The Redwood Saga (Pokémon Fanfiction, Crossover)

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 23: The Long Night Begins

Lab Ein – Fornia Region

"Tell me the odds again, Ein." Caleb Pravus said, as he stared down at his prize, grinning.

The lab coated doctor would've flipped his brown hair flick, if Pravus hadn't made him cut it off. For amusement. Instead, he pushed his glasses up by the brim. "Given the species' popularity, incompetent archeological preservation methods of our race at the time, and the tectonic upheaval of the Stoney Mountains, the odds of finding an intact specimen, let alone one a Mew fused with..."

He was silent for a good thirty seconds as his brain mathed out the numbers. Finally, he sighed, his monotone voice sounded bored. "Astronomically small."

Pravus gave him a look, but let it slide. They had other things to discuss. "Gender?"

"He hasn't figured that out yet." Ein said, smirking.

Pravus rolled his eyes. "Spare me the politically correct BS, and just say 'male', or 'plug' if we must use analogies."

Ein sighed, looking down at his creation. "It doesn't really matter. He's the only one we can make. We used all the other samples to make this one. And he's still part Rock Type."

Pravus grinned. "Oh, don't worry, we'll have a Draco Plate soon enough. It's on its way here as we speak." Ein rolled his eyes. Given the absurd rarity of Draco Plate shards, let alone full Plates, his deranged boss planned to take one from the reigning Unovan Champion. One didn't need to be a genius to know how that encounter would go. Hundreds of team bosses, every bit as strong as Pravus, had fallen to younger Trainers, with less experience. All of whom had also gone on to be Champions as well. Unova especially, had a habit of forging strong Champions. Ein was still wondering how Redwood had gotten around his diagnosis but he rightly surmised the late Professor Redwood was responsible.

Ein looked down at his creation again, and sighed. Pravus did have numbers though, and when it came to Pokémon, that was all one really needed. Empires like this cult were what made creating beings like his Veloraptar possible, and he would be perfect to lead their numbers... when he was finished.

The Pokémon being admired by the two men high above his paddock looked up at the pair of humans. They smelled delicious to the creature within. He eyed them, still hungry after devouring the Gogoat they'd all but dangled in front of him. He knew they'd been testing his leaping height, and soon after that first meal, the metal bar had been built overhead.

He hated how it loomed over him, but he especially hated the 'human' with dark eyes that eyed him like a meal. When he had been alive before, the humans had run from him in terror, but then, he'd been much faster, almost able to fly in those days. This new body, while physically stronger, was still flawed. He could run roughly the same, but he always felt slow. Imperfect.

His intelligent eyes turned to thin vertical slits as he scented more prey. Evidently, this…circular…thing they'd trapped him in had prey within it. He trotted off through the foliage, wincing at how loud his steps were as the new rocky protrusions across his bipedal form brushed and scraped against the foliage. How was he supposed to hunt like this?

Colville - Northern Fornia Region

Brad had, like his partners on this stealthy endeavor, made contact with friendly allies in Fornia's northern areas. The north was a natural forested buffer between the Takoma region and most of Fornia, and with the exception of the city of Pravia to the east, the Arceans didn't seem to mind the Tribe's presence to the west.

Brad had trained his Charmeleon against the Rebel Trainers, and he had finally evolved the previous evening. They'd camped out that night, with the young Charizard folding his wings into a tent, as his father had shown him. Evidently, it was something Alex had him do often, though usually Shruikan was the better choice, as he was now enormous.

It had been a jarring thing, being shoved back into Arcean society, falling into old habits, like praising the Prophet in every sentence he was mentioned. From his new perspective, Brad now saw how deviously ingenious Pravus's set-up was. It was designed for subtle, effective brainwashing. So subtle, the average person couldn't even tell they were being molded, if living the life of an Arcean was all they knew. Some resisted, of course…but they soon either fit in the mold, or vanished. This was why everyone wanted to stay out of trouble. Justice in Fornia had a tendency to be swift.

Though he'd initially entertained thoughts of rejoining his people, the corruption in the world Pravus had built soon became obvious to Brad's awakened eyes, and fear no longer made him ignore it. He knew there was no way he could ever go back now. Taking a cover job as a member of one of the Church's many 'media branches' had been tedious, but the monotony of doing seemingly meaningless tasks had been broken up one day when a group of Task Force members entered the writing room of their little studio, by force.

They'd asked for a specific writer of a specific article that, evidently, Pravus himself had read, and not liked. The consequences for producing 'sub-par work' involved every member of the twenty-man squad taking their chance to mercilessly beat the writer in question, long after he'd lost consciousness.

The job, which Brad had admittedly lingered at due to his feelings of nostalgia, was quickly abandoned soon after that incident. Indeed, Brad had simply vanished one day, and nobody, not even the security in charge of keeping the writers writing, could tell how he'd left. Nobody knew what Pokémon he had at home, as he was new, and Pokémon were not for the workplace. Not at their level, anyways. Those who allowed their Pokémon to be infused with Shadow were granted a higher rank, and since Brad had refused to subject his Rayquaza to the infusion process again after it had failed the first time, he had been sent to discover if the rumors of a 'Heretic Sage' in the Great Swamp were true.

Oranguru had figured him out in seconds, but had convinced the Trainer, with aid from his Rayquaza, to stay, and learn the psychic arts. They had promised the powers he possessed, if awakened, would be enough to help him attain the power he'd craved. He had witnessed the raw power of one of the east coast's Trainers, twice, after being beaten by the Charmander he'd left for dead in the Great Mohave Desert, now a Charizard. Alex's mercy, and indeed the strength of the other Trainers in Unova, had been a good example of how a free society could make seriously powerful Trainers. As he'd trained his Charmander, the bond they'd formed had awakened his potential, enough to lift small objects, at least. That too had been another factor in keeping him from returning to the Arcean fold. He was a 'psychic half-breed' now, at best. If not a traitor.

Brad had put the Sage's training to good use, and eventually, had discovered the northernmost Tribe in Fornia after wandering blindly through the wilderness. The more he had thought during his trek, the more he'd noticed. The Arceans had seemingly no interest in this beautiful, fertile land. It was hard to find in southern Fornia, but the areas he'd hiked through were full of mountains, forests, and even rare Pokémon. It was entirely out of character for Pravus to ignore it.

When he discovered Colville, a city among the massive trees that grew throughout the region, he began to understand. The Okanagan tribespeople here were not only expert Trainers, they could also move stealthily through the trees of their land with almost unnatural skill. Their guerrilla tactics were all but unstoppable, and every time the Arceans had tried setting up a site to dig for fossils or cut lumber, the Tribe had stopped them. Given how far they had to transport everything, the losses in equipment, fuel, and even manpower were significant.

Eventually, Pravus had given up on the area, though why, nobody quite knew. Some guessed he would deal with it later, after the Unova threat was taken care of. Most Arceans didn't seem to care either, for they only had cities on their large water sources, and were happy to leave the mountainous wilderness to the 'savages'.

Colville was not unlike the base hidden within the Majestic Canyon. Though most of the people and supplies moved through the massive trees with a relatively complex pulley system, those who could, preferred having their partners use Vine Whip to swing through the trees. These were usually the stronger Trainers, sent on guerilla strike missions at supply lines.

Like Alex and Jess, Brad had acquired a fossil on his way to this surprisingly modernized city in the trees, and after some training, his new Archeops moved through them just as silently. Once his newly assembled team was ready, after he'd caught, trained, and evolved the partners he needed, Brad asked the Tribe to help him with another mission that required stealth.

Tracking down his family had taken days, and he'd already stayed in Colville longer than planned. Alex and Jess were likely on their way to Mewsia, the only city on Fornia's lovely coast that wasn't entirely under Pravus's thumb. It was through this port that foreigners were allowed to trade and converse with specially selected Arceans, who would give the best impression of the culture their leader envisioned. Their loyalty was, apparently, unbreakable and it made the cult seem enticing to travelers.

Alex had said to take as long as he needed, though. They were going to contact him when they made their move. Until then, Brad didn't have to rendezvous, so he stayed, and he searched. The Pineus family, to which Bradley belonged, had owned a simple estate in the mountainous area of north-western Fornia. An entire mountainside, which had been in their family for generations.

Proud Arceans had been raised there, but none had risen like Bradley. He'd been the only Hand of the Prophet, but not the only Champion level Trainer to come out of their family. He could only imagine what was left of his home after defecting, but he wasn't expecting what he found. Ash covered everything, and the entire mountain had been burned bare. Machinery belonging to the Arcean's fossil recovery branch was already boring into the mountain, and from the looks of the lights over where his home had stood, they had met with success.

Brad smirked, as he mentally whispered to his Archeops. "What do you want to bet they've found elemental Plates and crystals?" His smirk widened. He'd memorized what the three of them still needed, and aside from dragon, and probably psychic, the other crystals could be found.

Brad had always known that his family's mountain contained power. The Pokémon raised on those once fertile slopes had always been powerful. He had not, however, expected to find at least ten of every elemental Plate, including Mind but excluding Draco, just lying around the camp. It made some sense, as in reality, nobody but Brad and his family lived out here, but it still seemed careless. Evidently, the leader of this operation was a 'fun boss', and rewarded hard work before safely storing assets. Brad's smirk grew grim as he eyed the Plates haphazardly stacked about. That was definitely against protocol.

Taking them all but guaranteed ruining someone's life, career, even marriage potentially. Some worker here would talk, the overseer would be replaced…ruined, and the digging would continue. But then, if he did nothing, what had already been dug up would be exploited further. The Arcean Fossil Organization was famous for digging deeper than they should.

A familiar voice echoed in his head. "Examine the man whose life you fear to ruin. He has no mental defenses. These people's minds are wide open. Go. Look. But do not influence."

Brad tensed atop his mount as he replied in the same manner. "Yes, Master." He reached out, and examined the man's mind. Thankfully, the illegal alcoholic beverages, and other substances, were clouding what senses the man did possess. Brad's intrusion went unnoticed, as he examined each memory, each thought, feeling, emotion.

What he found sickened him. This was a man who enjoyed his power, and while he could keep his workers happy, he enjoyed those who needed to be punished in truly disturbing ways. He reached for the Plates, when he paused. "I'm not seeing every angle." He felt the Sage's approval.

The bad emotions were easy to notice because they stood out. Among the kinder memories were his children. But even here, Brad was disappointed. They were far too reminiscent of his own childhood. He'd never seen his parents enough, as he'd been off being educated, at their expense. It had all paid off when he'd become Champion of the Arceus League, and had attained the rank of Hand of the Prophet, but that had almost been worse than being a strong Trainer with a Rayquaza.

He saw that this man's own offspring truly mattered little to him. Beyond making sure they were decent Arceans, he didn't seem to acknowledge their existence. The work he did, for the fate of the planet, was far more important. Finally, Brad left the man's head, his hope in humanity fading slightly after such a thorough look. He shoved the Plates into his bag, but surprisingly, they were incredibly light. His eyes counted each of the types, three times over. No need to be greedy after all.

As he looked at just how many there were though, he reconsidered. The Rebellion could use Trainers with Plates…and the knowledge of how to tap them. Between his Marowak and Scizor, the stealthy trio managed to grab many sets of Plates, before he'd felt they'd pushed their luck. They left when someone shouted, drunkenly, that the pile of Plates had shrunk.

The overseer had laughed, and said they'd just dig up more, but nobody had cheered at that. They'd just finished working, dammit. They needed, earned, this reprieve. As the mood in the camp turned dark and mutinous under the influence of the alcohol, Brad and his loyal flying, stealthy partner headed south.

He'd found the remains of his home, of course, and had been able to access some of the tech that survived in the mostly stone and metal interior. They may have been isolated out here, but his family had never lacked for gadgets. The last record, from several months prior, said they'd been moved south. So south they went, following the trail.

Though the area around the massive Mohave Desert in the region was sparsely populated by humans, what towns did exist, Brad searched through. There had indeed been a large truck with his family name on it that passed through. On their way to Sacreus, or so they said. Brad resisted swearing aloud once he found out.

Sacreus was a unique city, in that it had once existed in an age before Pokémon. Then, a massive meteor-like object had struck it, leaving nothing but death and destruction. Some said it was that event that sparked the final fall for humanity, but nobody really remembered why their race had fallen anymore. The ancient past was the ancient past. They hadn't even had Pokémon, so why learn about them? The ancient's way of life had failed. To most modern people, they were irrelevant, save for the rebooted entertainment franchises resurrected from the remains of the Old Net. As before, the Pokémon Wars Saga was an instant hit, and had again become a cultural icon. That had been the first of many rebooted movies, with Pokémon added in as either support or the main characters, and Unova was to this day still churning out more of them.

Sacreus itself had been rebuilt over time, as people came to live in the crater. It had once been fertile, but the city that grew within the crater soon drowned out what natural life had come from the ancient impact and destruction. Sacreus had natural defenses, massive crater walls for miles around it, and a plasma shield that could cover the upper airspace of the city in times of need. Just in case of impending meteor strikes.

The city had, over the years, also extended downwards. For hundreds of miles, it was said to be a steel under-city that people actually lived in, sometimes for their entire lives. Pravus' headquarters was at the bottom-most level, and reaching it any other way but through the Cult required one to magically dig through tons of rock, and then several feet of metal. Thankfully, they'd brought a mountain-eater with them. But he was, if the plan was on track, still training.

Alex had wanted to avoid Sacreus entirely, as being recognized in Pravus' home turf would be quite bad. The city was thoroughly checked for traitors, and people were switched out all the time if they became suspects of some usually imaginary crime.

Ignoring the upper levels and going for the head of the snake via Cenomons was the best option while they had stealth on their side. Brad had agreed. Much of Arcean society depended on the Prophet. He was a 'holy' man, touched by Arceus, and blessed with apparent immortality. He was the will of the 'God Pokémon' as the locals called Arceus, made manifest. He was also what everyone secretly feared.

Anyone who went against Pravus tended to vanish. But the mere thought of betraying their leader was, to many Arceans, unimaginable. A concept they couldn't even consider…not while he yet lived, at least. Oddly enough though, a few of the latest generation had begun to outright leave because of the rampant abuse within the system. Brad hadn't seen many of them in Colville, but those Fornians were the ones who'd sparked this Rebellion. He did wonder how they might react to seeing their cult leader fall, for from his point of view, anyone who'd suffered at his hands knew there could only be one fate for such a person.

With his parents likely sequestered within the fortress crater-city, Brad resigned himself to waiting. As for his siblings, he knew exactly where they'd be. He was quite familiar with where the Church put children with 'suppressive' relatives. He'd wanted more than his parent's aid to free them, as he was familiar with how heavy security was at the living quarters for children, but he could manage on his own now that he had a team of partners that grew stronger with every battle against wild Pokémon.

He had his stealthy Scizor zip around the camp, once he'd reached it. They called it a dig site, but in reality, it was a work camp, where children of loyal Arceans toiled away, mostly mining useless rocks for enough shards to make a Plate. They were considered done when they found enough shards for Plates of every type, but naturally, 'accidents' regularly occurred, and kept those mining from freedom when their caches of mined shards 'vanished' from the storage sheds, and returned their count to zero. Occasionally some would find a fossil, but those were always taken away quickly. His Scizor returned several minutes later. It had been hard finding two specific blonde, blue-eyed, tan skinned children amongst so many others, but the intelligent bug type had managed it.

Brad eyed the building for a long time, and eventually recalled his Scizor. He would do this himself. He reached out with the psychic power he'd previously ignored. It was a part of him, and now one he embraced. Upon learning from the other Champions in the Swamp that humans could not, in fact, reproduce with Pokémon, he'd come to terms with psychic types. It was hard to claim they were evil when they could speak to you, and emanated genuine kind emotions. It was more emotion than his Arcean handlers had ever shown, and after failing twice against Redwood, he'd accepted the truth. With the truth, had come research of the many claims Pravus himself often spewed at his crowds of brainwashed cultists. Using the Pokénet, he'd gained answers to most of his worldly questions, and also learned that checking one's sources was always a good idea. Biased views existed outside of the Church too, it seemed. After several minutes of mental scanning, Brad found the mind that he recognized as his youngest brother's, and made contact.

"Sam. Wake up. It's your brother. Think your responses, and I'll hear them. Do you understand?" It took a few moments for the groggy preteen to come to consciousness, and realize he was not in fact dreaming.

"Brad? How are you…"

"Later. Listen to me, you need to get ready to leave. Bring our sister." He sensed their youngest sister lying near him, but of the elder there was no sign.

The boy's mind lit up at the thought of not being in the living hell that was the labor camp, but fear kept him hesitant. It was, after all, the Church's strongest tool. "We can't just walk out. The guards will see us. The others will tell. We'll get beaten again..."

"Don't worry about them, just pack your bags. I'm getting you both far away from here. Where's Lisa?"

The younger brother paused for a moment, and then thought, "I don't know…she's…changed, Brad. She's on the fast track to becoming a Hand of the Prophet."

Brad sighed. He knew what that meant. His defection had only served to inspire 'loyalty' to the cause, and Pravus was all too glad to keep a potential hostage nearby. The fact that she was also rather attractive certainly had nothing to do with her meteoric rise to the Prophet's side.

That meant that over half of his family, his parents and sister, as well as any aunts or other relatives who hadn't cut ties already were likely to disconnect from them once it was discovered they'd escaped. Still, he'd decided early on that if he could only save a few, he'd want to get the young ones out first. He knew far too well what teenage years in the Arcean Church were really like.

His Lycanroc and Cloyster had taken out the guards around this particular building, and while those who were unconscious would recover, those frozen in ice would have a long wait to melt, at least until the sun rose over Fornia. But sunrise was far off. Brad had his Lycanroc guide the two children out, and once they were out of the building, he put them on the wolf's back, and had him carry them to Archeops.

He covered their tracks, mended the barbed wire fence that surrounded the work camp, and left no trace of which direction they'd gone. The security here was competent enough to follow tracks, but if there were no tracks to follow, they'd be significantly slowed. Enough for them to get away.

As his large, female Archeops carried them into the sky, his brother babbled away about fossil Pokémon he'd found, while his youngest sister, who was six and considered old enough to work, simply clung to her big brother. She would likely be pretty as well, though Brad also knew the camps were home to many with darker perversions. Such people had an unfortunate tendency to rise to positions of power within the Church. He sincerely hoped she'd avoided such men, but didn't have the courage to sift through her memories and find out. She'd been through enough already.

As his Archeops flew north, towards the relative safety of Colville, she flew just high enough for Sam to reach up into a cloud, and discover they were rather wet, not fluffy. Then, the large Pokémon stopped, and squawked for her Trainer's attention.

They went into a steep, gliding dive and came out over the forests of the north-eastern part of Fornia. Brad swore, and quickly turned the ancient bird around. It would be a longer flight, but he could use his Charizard if necessary. The Canyon Base was now the largest one the Rebellion had left.

Deep Within the Majestic Canyon – Fornia Region

Alex approached the strange orb at the end of the cave the Chief had led them to. Jess had remained at the base, and began the arduous task of learning who everyone was. She wasn't irritated though, as she knew he'd be joining her very soon.

As he looked at the orb, he noticed that it was black on the edges, and white within. Alex glanced at the Chief, who watched him, silently, probably musing to himself with his inner monologue. He did that a lot, and never noticed his tendency to mutter aloud when he mused after toking his pipe.

Alex put a hand on the orb, and smirked. The strange sphere shifted to a familiar swirling pattern of Eternal Balance, and the Pokémon within woke up.

Electric and ghost. That was the first thing Alex saw, and then he realized what he was looking at. It was Rotom, of course, but its black and white form was tied to a similarly colored crystal at the bottom. As the ghost saw the human, it reflexively melded with its crystal, and a pair of golden eyes stared at him from the object he currently possessed.

Alex knelt down and lifted the crystal up. The ghost within eyed him the entire time. "Hello there." The crystal blinked its golden eyes once. "I'm Alex. The Champion of Unova. The one who reunited the Original Dragon." At the dragon's title, the eyes grew brighter.

"The dragon is whole?" The voice was almost incoherent, and faint.

"He is, Old One." The Chief said from the back of the cave, waiting patiently.

The Rotom seemed to stare through him as it processed his words. Alex had no illusions about the intelligence of the Pokémon before him. He could sense the power the ghost had, and knew it was at least as intelligent as Tao, and probably almost as old. The ghost's mind felt ancient.

The crystal suddenly flared with electricity, searing his skin, and he winced. He'd learned to hold in a reaction to pain early in his martial training with the dragon. He noticed the small crystal mirroring his smirk, and Alex arched a brow. "Is that it?"

The Pokémon stared at him, and the voltage increased. He was ready now, though. His eyes flared as he guided the current harmlessly through the parts of his body that could handle such intense shock, and into the stone below him.

The ground flared in a familiar Taijitu swirl as electricity poured into it, and revealed a hidden carving below them, as the two bonded. Sparks began arcing through the air as the tiny Pokémon gave the human as much of a shock as he dared. The equivalent of a Thunder attack. Hopefully, it would only knock the human out, but he could never judge how much they could really take.

Finally, it stopped. The crystal shivered in approval, and then glowed entirely white. Alex stared at the crystal for a long time before deciding it was too similar. He tossed the crystal into the air, on a hunch, and the Rotom within burst free with a satisfying, and sparky, yawn. "I really hate not being able to leave that thing! At least you figured out how to open it. The last guy took two weeks." His voice was higher now that he was free, and he sounded vaguely like his new Trainer when he spoke. It was, somehow, both familiar and strange at the same time.

The small ghost type continued arcing his plasma body in ever more twisted shapes. Alex's eyes were on the crystal though. He'd heard of ancient devices that could contain Pokémon, and those that still existed always had unusual Pokémon within.

Alex pocketed the strange crystal, and shrugged. A Pokéball was a Pokéball. It was common knowledge that ancient civilizations from the early years of the Dark Times had been able to capture and battle with Pokémon. Devices like the crystal had been common, and far more unique than Pokéballs could ever really be. Battling, as a sport, was ancient in their world. An honored tradition that went back to the rebirth of the human race. In a time of chaos, it had united the world. For a while.

He found the small ghost eyeing him, and where his crystal went. He valued it, clearly. Alex reached out then, and brought the new member of their team into the mental web that connected his partners. He could tell the ghost was impressed, and Alex smirked. The plasma being was already conversing with several of his partners, and giving them battle advice.

The Chief approached the suddenly still pair of Trainer and Pokémon, tapping Alex's shoulder. The two blinked, in unison. "He sounds like you..." the Chief remarked. Alex simply nodded, flexing his hand as he focused on healing the burns. Recover was, unfortunately, still a mystery to him, move wise. He could make it seem easy, as he had against Connor, but if he was honest, Tao had mainly healed those wounds. They'd been rather serious. "We should return to the base. Your partner apparently just checked in…with news."

Alex raised a brow, momentarily blank on who was being referred to. "My partner…? Not Jess…then…oh. Ohhhh. Brad? What news does he bring?"

The Chief stared at the Unovan for a long moment, then sighed. "Nothing good…" He pointed to the north then, as they'd reached the top of the footpath that led up the canyon wall.

Alex's team joined them, staring in disbelief, and perhaps for the first time understanding just how depraved their foe was, and the lengths he would go to in order to crush rebellion.

The entire sky was turning black, and not with electricity. That, he could've handled. These clouds had something dark drifting down from them, and they were blowing in from the north. The Chief grimaced. "It has begun. Colville has fallen."

Alex shared the Chief's grim look. He recalled everyone, Rotom included, as Shruikan leapt into the valley below, and circled around for rapid ascension. "I need a better look. I'll meet you back at the base." Before the Chief could respond, the Unovan Champion had grabbed his Salamence's tail, and was already in the air, climbing the massive back of his black dragon. The huge beast flapped into the sky, through the ashy clouds, and then above them.

Shruikan picked up speed by the time Alex had grabbed onto one of his head horns. Dragon energy surrounded both of them as he mega evolved, and accelerated. A normal Salamence in this form could cross continents in mere hours. Flying a few hundred miles north was easy.

It took an hour, but eventually they figured out where the smoke was coming from. Ash clouds blanketed the area for miles around them, and as Alex recalled his dragon, he fell through the foul clouds, and let gravity control him for a minute.

He had time before he'd need to float, so he fell, and as he plummeted, he saw the land below him. Normally, he imagined, the trees that had made up this base of tribespeople were likely indistinguishable from the rest of the massive, ancient forest. Now though, there was a disturbingly perfect circle of charred trees, miles in diameter, that had encompassed the entire settlement based near a slope of a well forested mountain. Nobody had run away unscathed.

Just as he was wondering what sort of Pokémon could unleash this kind of flame in such a perfect circle, he felt eyes upon him from below, and reached for his power. His large form stopped, hovering in the air, and he rapidly ascended towards the clouds again.

It was already too late, though. Blaze popped free of his ball, wings and body enveloping his Trainer as the cone of flames shot up at them from the ground. Though they were intense, it would take far more than that to take his Charizard down. Alex slid onto his back, as his partner glowed with red energy from the Plate shard on his Trainer's hand. They shot into the clouds, and waited above.

They heard the wing flaps as whatever had struck at them rose into the clouds, and Alex felt a familiar sensation of 'oh shit' run up his spine as he spied his opponent, and what his opponent was riding. It was a Noivern, but something about it was…off. It had traded the flying typing for dark, and Shadow energy emanated from it. Its eyes only wanted to kill, and as it saw Blaze, it began to drool. Its mouth was covered in blood, and it took Alex a moment to realize where it was likely from. Picking off stragglers of a disaster. This was a special kind of depraved Trainer then, and likely one of Pravus's chosen Hands. He fit the description.

The man atop the monstrous dragon was clad in similar garb to what the examiners in the Swamp wore, though where theirs was 'camouflaged' this man's was entirely black. Though he wore a similarly colored beret, and though Alex had always found them a bit silly, it did nothing to detract from the imposing presence the burly, extremely pale man gave off. A familiar chill filled the air. The sense of dread that so often accompanied death. It seemed Pravus wasn't the only one with tricks.

The man wore a green monocle-type device over his left eye, and as he stared at Blaze, his smile grew. "That's the one." He said to the Noivern. He raised a gloved hand, and it flared with dark type energy. "Feast, Carporian."

At the man's words, an almost invisible Plate crystal, for it blended well with the man's choice of attire, began to glow, and the Noivern began to change. A smaller pair of wings sprouted from its sides, and the tail gained fin-like appendages. Most notable however, were the pair of massive fangs the dragon now sported. It panted as the change finished, ready to run wild. It's eyes were a mixture of rage and pain in equal amounts, with one fueling the other.

Normally, Alex would've enjoyed seeing a new Mega Form, but he knew a bit about Noivern, and could only imagine what their Mega Form was like, let alone under such a dark Trainer. It was very likely that he'd lose control of that dragon. Even Blaze could tell it was growing annoyed with its rider. It had grown larger, angrier, as his Trainer formed a leash of dark energy from the crystal, and wrapped it about the dragon's neck.

Shruikan, for his part, agreed with their assessment, and used it to his advantage. He'd been called out again once they'd come up in the clouds, and had been told to fly even higher. Now, the low whistling sound of his wings slicing through the air was the only prelude to the Charge Beam that followed. The Noivern glared at where the sound came from, but did not expect what was streaking down from the sky to be a Salamence of massive scale.

The electric beam struck the Noivern with deadly precision as the massive dragon zipped past. Not only was the beast weakened, but his rider was struggling to stay on, and cursing at his mount for being so blind. Preoccupied with his Trainer and their shared paralysis, the Noivern did not see the Dragon Hammer Shruikan aimed their way as he zipped past them again. The more heavily plated tail wreathed in dragon type energy hit with expert aim on the Noivern. The sheer size of it caused the bat-like dragon to sail rapidly through the air before slamming into the ground below with a thunderous boom.

"Time to leave." Alex said, as he recalled Blaze, and hopped once more on Shruikan. He headed south again, before the Noivern could recover. By the time it did eventually fly up again, they were long gone. The bat-like dragon was furious, and with a single sonic-flap accompanied by a Hyper Voice mixed with a Boomburst, it cleared the ash clouds for miles. It hadn't had a chance to use its power at all, and thus the enraged dragon type struck out at the obscuring clouds with obvious rage. The Salamence had robbed it of a battle with a rather strong looking Charizard.

The Hand of Death, now once more perched on the dragon, grimaced. He hadn't even had time for banter. He loved banter. Of course to him, banter was the screams of pain he drew from his targets. His dark expression shifted from an unusually jovial mood fresh from the slaughter of Traitors, to one more accustomed to the hunt. His sharp eyes searched the skies as his mount threw a temper tantrum, and then, a grin appeared on his face. The grin of a hunter who sees prey. By pure chance, the clouds obscuring the black Salamence had been within Carporian's range. Though the attack probably hadn't damaged the dragon from so far away, it had revealed him, and his rider. They had yet further to go until the undisturbed clouds of ash could cover them again.

The Hand's mount was already moving, for he'd spotted the prey as well. Though to him this would be more of a match between rivals, rather than a hunt. The Noivern had felt the thunder of that dragon first hand, and he would not underestimate him again. Each flap of his wings propelled him towards his target, and from below, he heard the obvious tread of the annoyingly fast hatchling that followed them. So far, the promise of food had kept it obedient, and it seemed to like the idea of getting stronger. What they had done after Colville's burning had been sport, to the newly revived Fossil Pokémon. It was bound to the land, but had proven effective in hunting down the humans that had fled from the burning tree-city.

The Noivern ignored the hatchling, and instead unleashed the power of his Voice, now that they were in range. The boom had shocked Shruikan, making his entire system tense up from the sheer power of the vibrations behind the attack. The dragon had continued soaring, but was slowly descending, and couldn't dodge. Alex had been trying to find the pressure point by the back of his skull that would release his tensed muscles for several minutes, but his scales were too thick in his Mega Form.

He'd had Shruikan drop it, and of course as soon as he let the power go, the damned Noivern noticed them. By the time Alex pressed the pressure point, causing Shruikan's wings to work again, they had fallen several hundred feet, and the fanged dragon had gained on them with the kind of speed all Mega Forms tended to have. Then, they heard its Hyper Voice. It was untrained, but the sheer power of it was all that was really needed. Shruikan took the hit hard, and Alex knew they needed to turn this around quickly.

Shruikan used his own Hyper Voice, and Alex smirked at his choice of words as the Black Salamence roared, "Dovah Envok!" The dragon's eyes flared, and an aura of bluish-purple energy formed around him as he circled in the air, and rapidly moved towards the Noivern.

A perfect circle of flame came hurtling towards them, but Shruikan cut through it. His Dragon Ascent wasn't perfect like Rayquaza's, but it was still strong. Where the Legendary dragons like Rayquaza could use such a move to Mega Evolve, other dragons manifested it as a powerful physical attack, and used dragon-typed energy to fuel it.

The energy surrounding the Salamence hit the Noivern hard, and this time, his Trainer knew there would be no second wind. The Hand leapt off his mount, and let it crash below in the mountainous forests that made up much of this part of the region, and had not yet caught fire. The Hand himself floated, a dark aura surrounding him. Much like his servant, he simply hadn't had time to use it before. The black dragon had been too quick.

He drew another ball from his belt, and Alex recalled his own partner, as he floated with his own power as well. Apparently, this battle was happening. He could just Teleport, but he wanted to see how strong the goons Pravus had at his disposal really were. The black clad man grinned at him. "There's no running from Trainer Battles."

Alex rolled his eyes, and as he did, the man threw a Dark Ball. An Absol appeared, as dark and shadowy as the Noivern it was partnered with. This one's expression was entirely different. It took one look at Alex, and began trying to resist its Trainer. To no avail. The power that controlled it now, and bonded it to the Hand, was too strong. It looked on helplessly as its Trainer commanded a Razor Wind.

Arthur appeared in a flash of purple then, from the ball Alex had drawn as well. A Psycho Cut canceled out the attack, but that didn't stop the Absol. It kept shooting the bursts of wind, but luckily, Arthur could use Psycho Cut just as much. It was one of his favored moves now, mostly because of its versatility as a ranged or close up attack.

Eventually, the fight had devolved into a Night Slash tradeoff, between the Absol's horn, and Arthur's blades. When he tried a Shadow Ball to gain some distance, the Absol copied him, and the resulting explosion pushed both back. That, was when they mega evolved. Arthur's arms were limned with gold-orange fighting energy as soon as he finished, but the Absol looked downright miserable as the power of Infinity Energy forced it to the next stage.

Arthur reached out to it. "It's okay…I know you can't stop attacking. Don't stop fighting his control. I can free you of this curse, but you need to keep resisting!" The Absol blinked as it processed the words.

"Aerial Ace." The Absol shot forward at the command, and Arthur met the attack with a Night Slash, cancelling it out. The stalemate resumed, and the usually smirking knight, this time, had a look of irritation on his face as the battle dragged on. Neither Pokémon could get an edge, and what kindness Arthur had shown at first had melted away in the ferocity of the pointless, yet epic clash. "Dammit...it's not working...the Shadow is too ingrained..." His irritation echoed in his telepathy.

Each Night Slash counter parried the attacking Absol, and as it continued to strike, it grew more and more berserk. Finally, the Shadow in its aura flared, as it entered the frenzied state commonly known as Reverse Mode. Arthur's eyes narrowed, as he realized the Absol was too far gone to the Shadow. The dark type energy shifted back to gold, and the Gallade focused his fighting energy into his blades. The almost fiery cascade of Light energy hardened into a glowing pair of golden Sacred Swords as he went beyond his limits with that move, making it into either something new, or a stronger variant of the same attack.

"This ends. Now."

Alex watched his Gallade, one eyebrow raised, as he noted the typing of the energy radiating off of his Gallade once again, the symbol of the Alpha Pokémon was unmistakable, which meant it had to be Light. It made some sense, as Shadow existed, and Tao's teachings all but guaranteed that Light must exist too. He'd suspected for some time now that his Gallade might have a tie to the Light. He supposed it made some sense… legendary fighters usually ascended to the heavens, in the legends. He guessed it was fairly rare though, but if anything could counteract Dark Matter…that would be it. It'd worked before, after all. This move he was readying now seemed different, though. Stronger. More focused. Perfected, one might say. Perhaps, enough to free the Absol of the Shadow. He knew how much Arthur wanted that ability, as he viewed Shadow Infusion as an unforgivable crime. Like most Pokémon.

Arthur glanced at his Trainer and smirked, before shooting forward with his Sacred Sword assault. The Absol, seemingly seeing an opening, powered up an Aerial Ace. Or rather, he tried. His horn simply didn't glow as he charged forward and struck regardless. He'd run out of power, but his Trainer's commands were still absolute. Arthur's strike caught the Absol as they passed in the air, and the Mega Absol's form dissolved.

The Gallade wasn't done, though. He refused to give up on this Pokémon. He landed and turned in one smooth movement. Arthur touched a burning sword tip to the downed Absol's bluish-black oval on its forehead. "Please..." He said softly, to himself, though Alex heard him in that moment. The Shadow faded, in the face of the Light. The Absol sighed, then collapsed, fainted. It could've gone several more rounds, like Arthur, but the sudden removal of the Shadow had knocked it out cold.

The smile Arthur had gained from the warmth of the Light shifted to an expression of cold rage as a black light hit the Absol, and recalled it. "Pointless." The Hand said, smirking, as the ball tolled with the immediate sound of a renewed infusion of the occupant. "I admit…I did not expect this kind of strength. I should've brought my Legends. Pravus suggested as much. You're yet another monstrously strong Trainer that's appeared from nowhere. I get it. But that doesn't mean we'll give up. Not even someone like you can take all of us down. We are relentless. We are immortal. We are legion. You cannot win."

He flung another ball. "Go! Tyrannus!" The Tyranitar had barely appeared, before it's master forced it to the next level of power. It roared not in rage, but agony, seemingly bent over in pain as its body split apart with the infusion of Infinity Energy. Alex stared, trying not to wince. He'd wanted to see what mega evolving with these stones could cause, and now, it was obvious. He had no illusions about who had started this Plate crystal evolution trend. The Arceans were the kind of group to analyze and then copy their enemies. What didn't take them out, made them stronger.

He'd battled other Tyranitar, though, who'd achieved this state the right way. Their power had been even greater, because the crystals could empower attacks. What had been learned in the Swamp was spreading, but it didn't have to result in harm. They just needed a way to keep this kind of power away from people like Pravus and his Hands.

"Send as many as you want, I'll take them all down!" Arthur shouted in fury as he rushed in again, swords blazing, and right as the Tyranitar loomed over him, the Gallade Teleported, and reappeared behind the Hand himself. The swords crossed over his neck like a blazing guillotine. He stared down at the Tyranitar then, as they were still floating in the air. "You don't need to obey him anymore." His arms moved, and the man's head fell. Then, it started to chuckle.

"That's adorable. So righteous. Tyrannus, remove the princeling. Sweep his legs." As ordered, the giant Pokémon turned his sights on Arthur, who frowned. It was clearly obeying, not rampaging. "It's not out of control…it's loyal…" Arthur confirmed mentally to his Trainer, as his opponent's form charged forward, claws wreathed in ghost type energy.

Where a normal Sacred Sword used fighting energy, Light energy evidently had a strong effect on ghost types. The attacks cancelled out, but the Tyranitar was relentless. Several claws got through Arthur's guard as they traded more Sacred Swords and Shadow Claws. After fighting the Absol, Arthur felt his power for the move, extended though it was by a PP Max, starting to run low. The perfected strikes took more power. Tyrannus was unstoppable, and monstrously strong. Eventually, Arthur was cornered from the relentless assault hammering him onto his knees. Alex recalled him as the Tyranitar formed a Hyper Beam with one intent. It shot the energy anyway, not caring that its opponent had escaped as it blew apart the land around it, roared in fury, and set its sights on the Trainer that had robbed him of his kill.

His master's head, which had been caught by his body, now smirked from the palm of his hand. "End him."

The Tyranitar paused, panting, which gave Alex the time he needed. "Hydrus! Finish this." He drew the ball, smirked, and then threw.

The Swampert in question shifted almost as rapidly as the Tyranitar had. Their method was definitely slower, though. The dark shift had been almost instant. Tyrannus recovered, and charged once more. The dark claws returned, but Hydrus smashed the blazing limbs away with well placed Hammer Arms, and followed that with a Water Pulse immediately after opening his opponent's guard.

The Tyranitar took the condensed energy pulse to its face, and went soaring back into the wilderness they were fighting in, unable to stop the powerful and dense ball of water energy from driving him away. The flames from Colville and the dark clouds made the setting ominous. All it needed was lightning. An Ice Beam shot at the Tyranitar, and then arced towards his Trainer, freezing both, as Hydrus burned power to make the beam last. He'd also created a small ice ridge on the landscape, but it would undoubtedly melt, if the ominous orange inferno in the distance was any indication.

Alex recalled Hydrus and Teleported before the Hand broke free, to the tent he'd been given at the Rebel's base. He'd recalled everyone and left quickly more times than he'd like to admit, but being able to be somewhere else instantly made terrifying situations a lot more interesting.

He looked around the tent, and then smirked, as he spied his lover. It shifted to a frown of disapproval as he saw his newest partner was here as well, and not in his ball…crystal…thing. Apparently, he'd snuck away with the Chief, rather than join the others in danger.

"You need a name, don't you… hmm." He eyed the ghost, who shook its head as it spoke.

"If you rename me, I'll have to change crystals. It's an ancient tech thing. Names have power. Just call me Rotom, Human. It's easy, and you can pronounce it."

Alex raised a brow. "Are you telling me I couldn't pronounce your name?"

The ghost stared at him, deadpan. "I'm saying my name, and your language, aren't even compatible."

Alex smirked. "You're not a Terran Pokémon are you…" The Rotom's eyes went wide. "Hah! I knew it. Your mind felt different to any other Pokémon I'd sensed, but after that battle we just had, I noticed. Your life energy, what's left of it, is from a different world."

The Rotom sighed. "I mean…technically…not really…but if that's how you want to understand it, you can work with that." The Plasma ghost yawned then, and twirled something between his plasma appendages. Alex blinked.

"You little…did you steal my staff!?" Jess giggled from across the room doing…whatever she was doing to her hair. Beauty products. Girl things. It was foreign to him, as she had a whole entire array of items that he could probably only name the function for half. It took effort to look as good as she did, though he'd repeatedly told her she didn't need it, but she kept the case anyway. She usually didn't speak during these morning rituals, but now, she did. "He totally stole your staff. We've been toying with it all morning."

He eyed it, but it didn't appear to be covered in unidentifiable liquids. So that was something. He stared at the Pokémon holding it, and then got an idea. An idea that just felt right. He sent it to Tao, who approved, and chuckled as he did so.

"Phaspiro." He said, smirking. "That's your name."

"Phaspiro? Did you take 'phasma' and add 'piro' to it? Why? Because it sounded cool? If we're going for cool, why not call me Stormageddon, Destroyer of Worlds? Honestly, you Trainers-"

Alex shrugged, cutting him off. "I like it. Round Table?" He said to their partners. Arthur had been given a Max Revive, but was still tired. He gave an 'aye', though. Everyone did. Alex smirked, and responded mentally to the snarky sparky ghost type. "It is decided. I dub thee Stormageddon. Welcome to the team, Stormy…you can reside in this, now."

He made a gesture with his hand, and wrenched the staff free of the ghost's grip easily. With a thought, it went from hair-curler length to staff length and formed an opening just the size of the ghost's crystal in the center. The Rotom's eyes went wide. "Waaaiiit wait wait, that crystal has untapped electrical power, to control it you'd need-"

Alex cut him off again with a confident smirk. "The essence of the Master of Fire, Ice, and Electricity." The Rotom tilted his head, then nodded, as he agreed that would probably work. Before he could say as much, the plasma ghost was recalled into the crystal, as Alex pushed it in, and the staff closed around it.

It gained a pair of eyes, and grinned at the Trainer. "Oh, I can work with this…" The staff began to change from within from something simple, to a container with much more…potential. It retained the colors, but shrunk. There was a hollow center, through which, Alex could see the shine of the crystal. Something was obscuring it though, that almost looked like…wiring? "Don't look directly into it, you idiot." Stormy growled.

Alex turned the strange device away from him, and then noticed a button on the small object. He hadn't been expecting the Rotom to change his staff so much, but he let the Pokémon do as he wished. Their newest ally only wanted to make them stronger, or so he'd claimed. Stormy's eyes and smirk appeared above the button he'd created. "Push it. Push the button, little Human."

Alex gave the ghost a look. "It's not going to fire some plasma projectile, right?" He asked, remembering how the ghost Pokémon was classified in the dex.

The ghost grinned. "Not a projectile."

Alex's eyes went wide as he realized what he was probably holding. "Ohhh…yes. So very much yes…" He looked around, realizing their tent was a bit cramped. "This needed a more dramatic reveal anyway. Outside we go!"

He ran out, object in hand, grinning like a child. Jess was behind him, more curious than anything. Evidently, she'd fixed whatever needed fixing. It was clear he wasn't going to mention her slightly curlier hair, but she was more interested in what her thick headed boyfriend had done to his Rotom. "What exactly are you up to? I was only half paying attention in there."

Alex simply smirked. "You'll see." He ran to the topmost cliff of the base, and then shot into the air, not caring about hiding his power at that moment. Once he found a suitably far, suitably high ledge to perch on, he pressed the button.

The now smaller former-staff blazed to life, as a dual colored beam of plasma extended from the hilt where the crystal now resided, white on the inside, black on the edges. Alex laughed in disbelief. It was a fairly long black and white blade. Deadly looking. It hummed as he twirled it around, still not quite believing this was actually happening.

The hilt of the sword-like weapon smirked at him. "You can call me Lux. Luxundus is the closest approximation in your tongue, but literally everybody calls me Lux. You probably should've asked my name, rather than assumed I needed one."

Alex rolled his eyes. "I was irritated. You stole my staff."

The hilt grinned. "And turned it into a plasma sword. And the best part? I can fight like this, and stay perfectly upright at all times."

Alex raised a brow. "Why...what would happen if you fell perfectly vertical?"

The ghost's eyes narrowed, and he shuddered in his Trainer's giant grip. "Bad things, Redwood. Bad things."

"Fair enough..." Alex twirled it around again. "You know…I've heard some of these can extend from both ends…"

The ghost laughed. "Find another super rare extraterrestrial crystal whose origins are a mystery to you, then. I'll make another blade."

Alex smirked, and lifted his sleeve, revealing where he kept most of his crystals. Each fit into the edge of his gloves, around his wrists in an obvious homage to a certain first season of a certain old Earth anime involving cards, dueling, and monsters, but were less bulky. The gloves were, like the rest of Tao's clothing, super comfortable, and form fitting. "I have thirteen."

The ghost eyed them, then blinked affirmatively. "I can use all of those. With this container, anyways."

Alex chuckled, "I like the sound of that. I'm probably better with a saberstaff anyways." He turned to Jess, who'd followed him, and had thus far been staring with a knowing smirk. She'd been in his head. He'd always wanted a laser sword. They were iconic. And so very useful.

He pressed the button again, and let the hilt hang from his belt in his tenth slot. Under his robe-like jacket. He smirked, trying not to laugh at the similarities to his childhood heroes, specifically a combination of the Aura Guardians, and several people from the Pokémon Wars Saga. There were some differences, though. The nine miniaturized balls that hung alongside the hilt on his belt. He wasn't going to hide them anymore. Their surprise advantage had literally gone up in smoke. Had he been wearing regular pants, they would've surely fallen with all the extra weight, and he wondered if that was why the League limited Trainers, usually, to six partners. Alder, one of Unova's now passed Champions, had carried at least nine openly, but then, they had been mostly on his shoulders.

He turned his gaze northward, towards the clouds of ash as Jess joined him, and examined Lux's new form. "I found one of Pravus's Hands. He managed to take Arthur down. Hydrus cleaned up, though. Whatever chance we had at stealth is gone, now. We don't have time to wait in enemy territory while we train Ceno."

Jess stood next to him, eyes wide as she saw the sheer scope of it. The entire sky was darkening, bringing with it an artificial night. "That just came from Colville alone?"

Alex shook his head. "It's spreading. The entire northern part of the region is probably catching fire."

She looked up at him, eyebrow raised. "So, what do we do now, oh wise Tamer of the Original Dragon?"

He gave her a look. "Plan B, obviously. That one's more fun anyways."

Jess rolled her lovely blue eyes. "You only think it's fun because you and the Council of Dorks like smoking together."

He winked at her. "You could join us…but I know how you get around that much testosterone. And Leaf."

She sighed. "Just tell your dragon. I'll go talk to the people I already know. You get the Chief."

Alex nodded, and then reached out to Tao. While he was a part of their mental web, he was more…web-adjacent, connected to Alex, but not the others, if only so the stray thoughts of a Legendary and ancient mind, full of things sometimes best left forgotten, did not reach the ears of his impressionable hatchling of a Trainer and his partners.

"Plan A failed. Pravus burned the north." Alex gave the dragon a moment, either to process his words, or finish whatever business he was in the middle of.

Finally, a response. "Plan B it is, then. Come home, young Hero…there's something you need to face here. A challenge that you are finally ready for, I think."

Alex let the contact fall, and smirked. There was always something else to face. It had a habit of making him stronger. He opened his Pokédex, out of habit as he checked the time, then paused as he saw the date. They'd been in Fornia much longer than he'd realized. Almost half the summer, which was now ending. "Two years to the day…huh. It feels longer. Right Terra?"

The giant grass tortoise joined him with a flash of green, and inhaled the warmth of the late summer day as he gave his slow, measured, mental reply. "It does…but I would not change a second of it."

His Trainer gave him a scratch under his mossy, dirty chin, and then hopped on his back. He began packing a bowl of the Leaf as the turtle brought him down towards the other humans the long way, so he could enjoy the sunlight while the sun yet shone. The clouds were clearly unnatural, and they were spreading. Alex knew this was likely the first step of whatever Pravus had planned for Unova, and knowing him, it would be brutally effective.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 24: Into the Abyss

Three Days After Colville's Burning, Dragonspiral Tower – Unova Region

Word reached the Original Dragon that the Governors of the thirteen 'States' who had come when he'd called, had finally arrived. Tao had expected the first plan to fail. They'd given Pravus too much time while trying to penetrate Fornia's defenses. Time to mobilize his Cult. His armies. Whatever he'd escaped Norstad with. He'd had half a summer to set things in motion, and he certainly had now. As soon as Alex entered Fornia, the Prophet had started mobilizing. The Rebel spies had been fed false information, and the 'holy army' formed undisturbed and undetected. Now, they'd illegally invaded Orre, made their way up Mount Battle, and had claimed it in the name of the Arcean Church. Evidently, it was now a part of Fornia.

Almost immediately after hearing this news of aggressive action by the massive Fornian army that numbered in the millions, the other Governors not under Pravus's thumb had received the Original Dragon's summons to the ancient seat of his empire. The Dragonspiral Tower. It was now much as it had once been in ancient times, a castle that awed those who looked upon it, as well as a fortified seat of power that could, if necessary, house the citizens of Unova in times of strife. Tao had been working to clear the underground levels as well, which were just as numerous as the upper levels, and much wider. Much of Icirrus Town's plumbing and other services had been disrupted by the excavation, but Tao had been able to re-work them with minimal inconvenience.

The followers of the dragon attended to their guests between martial and Pokémon sparring sessions. After a night of rest, for many Governors had traveled far, they'd gathered at the top of the tower, which now acted as an open-air meditation area under a dragon-sized pagoda-esque structure. Like his tower in his separate dimension, this area not for training or learning was covered with trees and grass at its top, and typically served as a place to meditate. Today though, it held a meeting of the strongest political figures on the eastern coast.

"Thank you for coming. We've much to discuss." Tao was upright, resting on his coiled body much like a Rayquaza did whilst sleeping. "As you've no doubt heard, the Church of Arceus is mobilizing. They're determined to spark a war with the east. They've raised a massive army to do so. Make no mistake, their ultimate goal is to conquer us, State by State, region by region, until they can reform the old empire under their Prophet."

The leader of the Kanadians spoke then, an elderly man of tribal descent with the classic black hair, and darker skin tones. Kanadia had several tribes that sailed on its frosty oceans, and this man's garb marked him as one of them. "Is there no way for peace to be maintained?"

The dragon shook his head. "They're marketing it as a 'holy war'. Their soldiers are devout, and fanatical, to the point of violence. Evidently, my powers and philosophy are the antithesis of everything the Alpha Pokémon stands for. So sayeth the Arcean Church."

The room stayed awkwardly quiet before someone among the crowd of leaders spoke. "Are they?"

The golden eyes of the massive dragon narrowed as his lengthy body arced over the suddenly slightly terrified men who, in that moment, suddenly remembered they were very very small compared to this Pokémon straight from prehistory. His massive golden eye stopped beside the Governor of Transylveticut. A thin man in a nice suit, with a thin moustache, that curled up at the edges into little swirls.

Of course. The man who lived in daily fear of the Swamp. Transylveticut was famous for its massive Swamp, which was too deadly to enter, and its superstitions, that most of the other States simply found silly in this age of rationality and reality-bending science. The dragon spoke once more. "I will forgive that impertinent question, for it has been millennia since I was last whole, and you humans have a tendency to forget, what with your short life spans."

The dragon rose slowly as he spoke, wings expanding, as he towered over all of them. His eyes flashed with psychic power. "See now, leaders of the States, and behold the history you have forgotten." He linked to each of their minds, and was pleased to see that among the many emotions the group of leaders were feeling, treachery was not one of them. These were hard-working men who wanted to see their people safe, and live through a time of peace. Unfortunately, nobody ever really wanted to be the target of a madman with an army. This was simply another stumbling block they needed to surpass. Tao had a feeling it would make them stronger.

The scenes he displayed for the gathered leaders showed the details, at least some, of his own creation by Arceus himself, a melding of three dying dragons, unified in a single balanced whole that emerged from a very bright spherical object. Time skipped forward, and next the humans watched as Tao was bid by Arceus to guard this continent, and use his awesome power to promote peace, and balance. Of course, in those days, the people who lived upon the continent had other ideas as to who should rule it. The wars of the ancient past had been large, and brutal, but Tao had sought out those who did not want to fight, who did not give in to their anger, bigotry, and base, greedy emotions. He taught them the secret of true power. They were his first students, and they were legendary for being all but unstoppable in those ancient conflicts. The combination of divine wisdom, and power had made them superior to any foe.

Tao spoke then, to each of them. "I have always been a peaceful minded being. I do not like violence. I do not like killing that which I've no intention of eating. I do not enjoy wasting the potential of a life. But mark me, if the Balance is disturbed, I will do what I must. Every time, regardless of who my foe is."

"What if Arceus broke the balance?" Someone asked.

Tao gave a heavy sigh, and the smoke from his nostrils filled the pagoda, and covered the round wooden table they'd gathered at. Thankfully the windy benefits of being thousands of feet high meant that it didn't linger. He didn't bother looking for the speaker. "If the Alpha Pokémon ever willingly disrupts the Balance, then weep, little Human. For the end of existence will be nigh."

What he showed next was a series of disturbing images. Humans, and Pokémon, who could not be dissuaded, lay dead by the thousands as Tao hovered over their battlefield. His sparking claws were covered in blood, as was his maw, and he wept openly at what he'd been forced to do to quell the senseless bloodlust of those ancient days, and restore balance to his new land.

From that senseless destruction though, came something truly impressive. The Dragon Empire. The golden age of the land whose capital would eventually be known as Unova, had stretched from coast to coast, and flourished under the Original Dragon's guidance. Each of the leaders was treated to a sped-up view of the Empire growing, flourishing, and many could not believe just how large it had truly been. The history books didn't do it justice. Coast to coast, their continent had once glowed with the light of civilization, and peace, for the Dragon Empire was not once successfully invaded in all its long years.

As the visions began to fade, the men were given an aerial view of three spires on a recognizable chunk of land. Unova's center, the capital, so created and named in the days of the Dragon Empire's apex, the glorified capital alienated many, and would eventually become the stage upon which all Tao had wrought was undone. The Dragonspiral Tower stood to the west, the Imperial Palace had stood on the easternmost coast, and finally, one massive tower that, to this day, stood over Castelia as a home to visiting foreigners of political importance. Unity Tower. There had even been a city around the one in the past, as well. In fact, as the men looked closer, they saw that all of what was generally referred to as Unova's capital had, at one point, been one single massive city. Seeing this, and knowing what the region currently looked like, was humbling. Nature had reclaimed their dying ruins of an empire in the chaos that had followed the dragon's split.

"You asked if my power and philosophy went against the Alpha." The dragon spoke, "My power is of the Alpha, as are my teachings. None understands the importance of maintaining Balance, and the price it takes to do so, better than Arceus."

The Governors looked amongst themselves, as they spoke quietly, even though many assumed the dragon could hear them anyways, which of course, he could. He let them bicker though. They were politicians after all. Arguing was their forte. Finally, Unova's Governor stepped forward. He gave a bow in the old style, right fist to left open palm. The dragon returned it, and then, the man spoke. "What do you suggest we do, Dragon of Unova?"

The dragon, who had remained hovering over the group, now returned to the coiled position he'd started in, and gave the man a grin that sent…not fear, but a chill of what could almost be excitement up his spine. It only grew as he processed what the ancient Pokémon said.

"Reform the Empire."

Thankfully, nobody seemed to outright reject the dragon's words, though there were more than a few rumbles of discontent. It warranted discussion at least, and it wasn't like everyone in the room hadn't considered it before. There had always been one point of contention, though. The Unovan Governor repeated it to the Original Dragon. "And who would be our Emperor?"

The dragon's grin only grew. He found it amusing that humans, even after thousands of years, had changed so little. A taste of power, real power, and many would salivate at the thought of ruling it all. He could sense the building greed in several of the humans before him, right that very moment, their twisted egos mentally listing reasons they just knew the dragon would say their name, and catapult them into the position they deserved over their rivals. His response shattered their ambitions. "I've already chosen my Champion. And given that he's just spent the summer in enemy territory, and is quite frankly the strongest Trainer we have available, he's the right Hero to lead our forces."

"What about N? Or the other Champions?" Someone asked. The Dragon's eyes softened.

"N has returned to the wilds…defending Unova for so many years against the shadow of his father…it took a toll on him. He realized that his obsession with hunting Ghetsis down had caused him to ignore something as obvious as reforming three dragons into One. Once Ghetsis finally passed, his drive to Battle faded. Consider him unavailable, for this conflict. It will take time for his Pokémon team to draw him out of this state, but when they do, he will be...fierce. As for the other Heroes...they too will have parts to play, as Generals of my legions." The dragon retained his unsettling and entirely too confident grin as he finished speaking. The men took in his words, and began to bicker while the dragon mused to himself.

Every aspect of Tao had liked N. He'd saved Unova, and several other regions, many times over the years. He'd said he was leaving to train, to find a new level of power the bond between humans and Pokémon could give, but Tao doubted he would have success. Not any time soon, at least. Only one other power truly rivaled the potential of Infinity Energy, and Mega Evolution, but nobody had rediscovered that method, as far as Tao knew. It had been effectively purged from history, and for good reason. Some things were best left forgotten, and undisturbed.

The Governor's debate was far more intense this time. The majority were opposed to the dragon's suggestion. Unova, and a few other State leaders, remained neutral for the moment. There would need to be a vote, but it seemed obvious how that would go. The leader of the eastern half of Texico spoke up then. "We've always seen fit t'govern ourselves, pard. Why would we put a whelp in cherge of our people? Any ijit can battle Pokémon."

The dragon's golden gaze fixed on the man with the classic Texican hat, which was white, and matched the rest of his fancy suit. Few of these men had issues with flaunting their material wealth. He resisted a sigh. "Because he is the one among you who proved himself Worthy. Billions of Humans on this continent. Thousands of years, and yet not one of you managed to do what he did. I lost count of how many times the Balance of the world nearly fell because one of your kind found one of the Orbs of my sleeping halves and tried to use it to take over other Humans. Even when both parts of me were awake, you all viewed me as two separate dragons, and that was how I remained. Even N did this, though he more than anyone understood my situation, and was aware of my reclusive shell."

The dragon stared at each of them as his commanding mental voice rang through their skulls. "Redwood is…different. He looked at me, and saw a being torn apart. He had the power, and the instinct, to reform what was sundered, and ever since, he's done nothing but use his considerable strength to keep the peace. Only one other Human has ever absorbed my lessons so…thoroughly. The First Dragon Emperor." The Governors who opposed, quieted then. All knew the legends of the last Emperors who had ruled the Empire. They'd been reduced to kings after the Original Dragon was torn apart, but the difference in authority had been minimal. Their descendants had still held power enough to call up armies, and sunder the capital in a chaotic, violent final battle, after which, the Orbs were hidden.

But the first Emperor had been a dragon of a different scale. Wise, powerful, and fair he had crossed the continent on foot, and slowly, convinced the disparate warring peoples to unite. It had taken a lifetime, but when he'd finished, his offspring had inherited the largest empire the Earth had seen since the old civilizations fell six millennia earlier.

Were it not for the curse of mortality, he could have gone on to unite the planet. Alas, his daughter did not possess his abilities, and despite Tao's best efforts, her...desires...had led the burgeoning superpower to the brink of civil war when the time came to name a successor. Thus, the Trials had been devised, first by humans, then by the dragon. Seven times the sagest humans of that age passed the rules for the criteria of an Emperor between them, until it was finally done, but the results spoke for themselves. Peace and prosperity reigned for millennia in a world darkened by madness, until the dragon was torn apart, but given that the last Emperors after the dragon's split had not faced the Trials, many Unovans still believed them to be infallible at picking a successor. They had never failed.

The men huddled again, and while a few had changed their minds at the dragon's words, most remained unconvinced. Unova's Governor spoke again. "Wise dragon, we would like the opportunity to examine your choice, if we may, if only so that those with doubts may have them assuaged. I know how strong your Champion is, I've met him. I agree with your choice. With guidance from us, and yourself, he could be a fine Emperor, but the others are proud, independent leaders. They need more than a verbal voucher for something this…monumental. With your blessing, we wish to test his capabilities. As we did in the old days."

The dragon pretended to ponder for a moment, and hid his smirk. He did feel slightly guilty using the human leaders like this, cleverly baiting them down the path he wished this conversation to take. It was necessary though. Fornia was a legitimate threat, and the east needed a figure to rally around, if they were to have any chance of stopping Pravus. "Very well. How will you test him?" He already knew, but he knew how humans got when they realized he could read their minds.

After another huddle, though this one only lasted five minutes instead of twenty, they agreed, and told the dragon what they intended. He'd tried not to break into laughter, and as always, kept his composure. He told the group that he would summon the Champion, and that they were free to enjoy his tower as his honored guests.

Once they'd all left, he began packing a bowl in his favored piece, the storm-forged glass he'd made but recently. Though it was new, it was growing on him. He'd almost decided on a nickname for it, even. He chuckled quietly to himself as he puffed the clouds of smoke into the cold autumn afternoon. "Humanssss…sssso very predictable." He shook his head, and then turned his golden gaze east across his barely recognizable lands. His divine gaze could just make out the murk of what the humans now called the Abyssal Ruins. Once, it had been a palace so lovely, even Arceus had enjoyed visiting it. Now…nothing remained but sand and ruin. The dragon grinned to himself.

For now.

Rebel Canyon Base - Fornia Region

Alex stood from the shell of his Torterra, who received many looks from the gathered Rebels. He was rather pleasant to observe. The perfect melding of earth and nature was…calming, almost. This was fortunate, for his Trainer's words would likely confirm their worst fears.

"Fornians, Tribespeople, Rebels, I know I am new here, but bend your ears for a moment. It's important." He was in the main room of the base, a massive cave, really. It was full of tech, supplies, and equipment. A gleam of something bright and multicolored caught his eye. He did a double take. Were those Plates? What were elemental Plates doing here? And how were there so many? So many questions. He buried them, for the moment, as the base gathered around. The Chief had told several of his underlings to run down the halls when the Unovan began speaking, and they had done so. Within minutes, the entirety of the Rebellion, or most of it, had gathered in the cave. There was almost not enough room.

"Many of you have seen the clouds." He started, and the murmurs began immediately. The sun had just begun to set, but rumor was that the sky had been darkening unnaturally all day. Given the intense and oppressive heat outside the canyon, many did not leave the caves. "They are ash clouds, from the trees of Colville. That's where it started. I saw the destruction first hand, when I ventured north. The northern Tribe's lands burn, and the Prophet's own Hand lit the blaze." He'd kept his battle cam recorder on, as it had proven incredibly useful, and now was no exception. He expected footage of what was basically a zombie would go viral quite quickly. He'd let someone else put it on the Pokénet this time. Like the media figures he'd sent it to. He had enough eyes on him already.

The murmurs increased to panic, as the most common first thought was 'what if we're next?' A few former Arceans even started shaking where they stood. "This is what we get for defying the Prophet!" Someone shouted, but she quickly clamped her hands on her mouth as everyone glared in her general direction. "Sorry…old habits…" She was trying not to break down completely. Fear had that effect.

"Rest easy, Rebels. I did not say he'd come here next, though he will eventually." The growing hysteria died down slightly as Alex used his Voice in a different manner. Tao had taught him the trick, and he had to admit, it was useful. A bit of power, the right tone, and humans were naturally, subtly influenced to focus harder on what he was saying. So long as it was the truth. Naturally, the result was silence.

"I have a way out of this place, a direct line to Unova. We can get there today. All of us, even those in the other bases."

Alex gave them his best smirk, and tried not to shudder with anticipation himself. He'd been preparing for this for months, and now, the war scenario was actually happening. A bit quicker than any of them had expected Pravus to attempt, but it was happening all the same. Tao had expected him to have an army of well armed zealots, he just hadn't expected it to materialize so quickly. It was clear now, that the western States had been planning this for some time. Two more army groups aside from the one at Mt. Battle were already reportedly heading east, or so the rumors claimed.

"How?" Someone asked.

Alex gave the dragon the mental equivalent of a nudge, and in an instant, the Original Dragon appeared within the massive cave as he Teleported to his Tamer. He floated above them in a long circle, and had just enough space between the crowd and the pointy, potentially deadly stalactites above him. His scales would protect him, but the humans below looked somewhat fragile. But then, they always did.

The dragon smiled as, almost in unison, the people put their fists to their palms, and bowed in the old style. It was a style that was universal on this continent. Vestiges of his Empire were everywhere. If he could but unite them, they could rebuild rather quickly. His serpentine form arced gracefully over all of them, taking in their faces, and already noticing some hereditary features from his time, faces so familiar, he could likely guess family names with accuracy. For whatever reason, even with Arceus' own blessing, the human race seemed unable to physically change their form much. Their minds had grown, but their bodies remained largely the same, if a bit taller. All that really changed was how well the humans took care of them in this age. Though he supposed that millennia of eating nothing but berries and Pokémon, two things Arceus's gift had directly effected on a genetic level, might also be a factor in their longer, if still pitiful life spans.

"Hello again, children of the land. It has been some time. Come, and I will once more take you to the safety of Unova, with the promise that we will one day return. Though your homes may be burned…" He trailed off, hoping one among them would yet remember the ancient words.

Chief Sike stepped forward, and smiled. "The land endures. We remember your lessons, great Dragon. Our loyalty is, as it was in those golden years, yours. And your Tamer's. We will follow your counsel, and the ancient accords, when the conflict ends."

The Dragon eyed the Chief. "If this conflict goes poorly, it may mean the enslavement of everyone that is not an 'Arcean'. That is how close we are to Unbalancing, my friends."

The Chief's eyes were wide, as were all of the Tribe's. "Are we so far gone already? How did we not see?"

A massive talon, currently not on fire or sparking with electricity, rested upon the Chief's shoulder, and a golden light filled the cavern. Every human there, sighed softly as it filled them. "Have hope. Every night must have a dawn. Though this one promises to be long. It will end." With that, he lifted back into his circling in the air, and then spoke to them all. "Gather your possessions, little Humans. We Teleport to safety in five minutes." He knew it would likely take them longer, but he could wait. His patience was infinite. He scanned for his Tamer, and sensed his thoughts.

The dragon's voice echoed in his skull. "Where are these Plates? Show me."

Alex directed his gaze, and the dragon followed it. He floated over, and the people around watched, clearly interested, but also tried to pack at the same time. The dragon looked at each, and then glanced to his left. "These are from a cache. Evidently, one of those tasked with safeguarding these did not do their job well enough."

"Do not be in a rush to judge, mighty dragon." Came Brad's voice, as he came around the left corner, and stepped next to the pile. "The Arceans dug these up, and I can guarantee you that if they had a guardian, it's either enslaved and corrupted with Shadow Energy, or was killed off for resisting too much."

The dragon's eyes went wide. "They would not dare kill mythical species. They are unique, precious, powerful. Pokémon born of the fusion of Arceus and the infinite potential of the evolutionary spiral."

Alex blinked. "The what now?"

The dragon literally brushed him off, with his massive tail, the way a male Pyroar did to its cubs. He forgot how attentive his latest Tamer was. It was almost irritating, not being worshiped as a deity anymore. In the past, humans had simply smiled, nodded, and accepted that he sometimes used strange terms they could not dream of understanding. But then, he'd never asked to be deified in the first place. The humans had done that by themselves, and they'd outgrown most of those tendencies over the millennia. He had no intention of dragging them backwards. "Never mind. You, Fornian, are familiar with where these were dug up. Now tell me. Did you ever hear legends of who specifically guarded your mountain?"

The once more tan and blonde Trainer thought for a moment. Like Alex and Jess, he'd ditched the disguise once subtlety had been thrown out the window. "Azelf, I think. There was a crater-lake atop the mountain…but I guess the Arceans drained it. Before they burned everything."

The dragon sighed. "If they have one of the Lake Guardians, we may be in serious trouble." The two Trainers raised a brow as the dragon spoke to them, and them alone. "As you know, Mew was one of the first Pokémon Arceus created. As such, it's quite powerful, and you've seen how messing with the base genetics can increase its strength. The Lake Guardians appeared not long after interacting with Humans and their powerful but latent psychic emotions. They settled by lakes the world over. Typically, there are three on every continental landmass."

Brad spoke then, also within his mind. "So they're strong. And? Pravus has plenty of Pokémon stronger than Azelf."

The dragon sighed, as he shook his massive head. "You don't understand, and I do not have time to enlighten you. Just know that if Pravus has Azelf, and the other two, he could very well tame me, and force me to obey him. Like the...Spear Pillar incident, in the place your kind calls Sinnoh."

The two Trainers shared a look, as they both very much understood. Everyone had heard the rumors of the mysterious power that had literally bound Time and Space in one place, and summoned Giratina's epic wrath. Pravus could not be allowed to replicate those events. This time Alex spoke. "I have an idea of where Uxie resides. Jess knows about Mesprit…but she refuses to talk about it."

The dragon stared at him. "Have her go confirm whether Mesprit is still in her lake. You do the same for Uxie. Send Arthur to check."

Alex nodded, and called the Gallade out. He affixed a Psychic Plate to the horn on his chest, and the two merged, turning it to a more scarlet color. Then, Arthur mega evolved, and Teleported to where they'd once come across traces of the mythical psychic type, as they were traveling west. Alex picked up a crystal from the nearby pile, and raised a brow at the dragon. "I thought these felt weird…they're dead. Just rock. Fakes?"

The dragon shook his head. "Merely dormant. Their energy is infinite. It would take divine energy, like mine, to wake them up again."

Alex nodded. "Then we should take what we need, and you can give the rest to the Trainers you deem worthy of leading. I trust your judgment, oh wise dragon." He couldn't resist his smirk.

The dragon sighed, and stretched a massive claw over the pile. The plates and crystals were illuminated by a golden circle of light that appeared on the rock surrounding them. A golden triangle outlined it, and various runes not based on Unown filled in the gaps between as the dragon, offhandedly, constructed this magic circle. The Light flared, and then, Alex felt it. Any human within a hundred miles that had any kind of latent psychic senses, felt it. It was power. The Infinite power of the Alpha Pokémon.

As Alex and Brad took what Plates they needed, Jess joined them. Brad eyed one of the Plates. "What do these even do, anyways? I get how the crystals work, but these seem…different."

Tao took the Plates and crystals the two Champions did not require, and with a twist of his claw, hid them somewhere safe. A temporal pocket dimension that he alone could reach into from anywhere. "The Plates are essentially just crystals, and the crystals are shards of one of Arceus's own Plates."

Alex blinked. "What? What do you mean? How are there so many if they belonged to the Alpha?"

The dragon's massive eye focused on him, as it usually did when the dragon grew irritated at his constant questions. "Arceus had to shrink his form to interact with this planet, and even then, he was still so large, his mass accidentally pulled in a planet-killer of a meteor towards the Earth. He shattered it with ease, and then noted how the remnants covered the planet, albeit briefly, before burning up. He then decided to give this fallen world a gift. He used his Judgement, and found the Earth worth saving. Alex and Jess have been shown this already." He stated, glancing Brad's way, before focusing back on Alex. "That, little Human, is why there are so many shards over your planet. With them scattered, the Alpha infused them with enough Infinity Energy to restore the Earth ten times over, and the result is the fecundity of Pokémon and natural resources that your race continues to squander."

Alex opened his mouth to speak again, but Tao cut him off, reading his thoughts, and simply answering. As he did, when the questions of the secret history of their world could not cease from spewing from his Tamer's mouth. His hunger for knowledge was ravenous, but then, most of his student's shared that trait. The promising ones, anyways. "Your burned, frozen, and drowned husk of a world was so out of Balance when the Alpha found it, his gift was necessary. It was the sorry state of your world that had even garnered his notice at all. This is why most of these Plates have grown dormant over millennia. Much of the Light powering them was drained to help nature regain Balance, but that which was lost can be re-awakened, by a being such as myself."

Alex simply nodded then, as Tao continued. "Your ancestors, while not as advanced technologically, had a very good grasp of how to wield and manipulate the energy introduced to them by the Alpha. Your kind called it 'magic', and yes, I will teach that to you too. When you are ready. With this knowledge, they took the broken shards of Arceus's power, and made them into items that boost the power of a Pokémon's attacks just by holding them. They mistakenly named them Plates, as they assumed that was what they originally looked like. The real ones were much, much bigger, and had differing shapes, but the re-forged ones work with about twenty percent of the power they once had, while attached to the Alpha."

The three Trainers shared a look, and Brad nodded, then spoke. "I knew that much…but given what they are, I figured there was…more…to them."

The dragon brought his massive golden eye down to the humans, and they remembered just how small they were. "There is more to them, but if you wish to draw out that power, you will have to figure out how by yourselves."

The three simply nodded, and began attaching the Plates to their partners. All save Shruikan, who could not fit in this cavern anyways, and Gelauros, who was still a bit young for such power. As with Shruikan, each of the plates bonded to the Pokémon it touched, and infused them with power. They stayed where they'd been affixed, melding seamlessly, and apparently painlessly, to the Pokémon in question.

Once everything was finally gathered, Tao Teleported.

Icirrus City - Unova Region

Moving objects and humans to a space thousands of miles away wasn't hard, persay, it simply took energy, depending on what was being Teleported. After several trips back and forth to each of the bases, Tao was genuinely tired. The results though, were impressive.

The entirety of the Fornian Rebellion sat in the shadow of the Dragonspiral Tower. There was a wide, circular moat that enclosed the base of the massive structure properly now, and to the immediate north, a forest. One which had grown to immense size, despite the upheaval the raising of the tower had caused. The Pokémon that had once resided within the tower had been relocated, at the behest of Tao, to the forest. They hadn't seemed to mind.

Icirrus Town had changed quite a bit since Tao's return. In the space of a year, the population of the usually remote town had exploded, and the locals soon became a minority, forgotten in the flood of Unovans desperate for the dragon's wisdom. Now, the newly crowded town, and all its inhabitants, surrounded the new arrivals as word spread that the Original Dragon arrived. His long snaking body was obvious, even from a distance.

There were a few murmurs as the Unovans noticed the Rebel's weapons and tech, which had been Teleported with them, when possible. There was a flash of green in front of the new arrivals, and then the very earth shook.

Slowly, the unmistakable form of the Champion rose above them all on a rising pillar of earth. He was standing, arms crossed, on his Torterra's shell, newly adorned with a beautiful jade colored Plate. Once he was high enough, the turtle stopped lifting the ground. "Unova! Welcome our friends from the west. These are the people who stood against Caleb Pravus when fear held back all others. Consider them our allies, in these dark times." The crowd murmured, at first, but it wasn't long before those of the east walked forward to help those of the west move their supplies and technology to the old fighting gym that had only served as a place to smoke Leaf and practice martial arts thus far. Now, it seemed like a good place to house these Rebels, for the moment.

Alex reached out to his media connections then, reporters and the like that he'd met and befriended as he'd traveled towards Fornia over the course of the summer. It didn't take long for them to respond to his summons, as Alex had advised each of them via text messages, Haley included, to stay around Icirrus once Plan B had been pushed into effect. As he saw the blonde amongst the varying trendy neon colored hair styles her cohorts were sporting walking through the crowd, he smirked. They stopped at the edge of his 'pillar', and then they gasped in unison as their bodies were raised into the air by a strange blue power.

Once they reached the top, a few looked disgruntled, but Haley cut off any words of anger with her eagerness. "Champion! You've…returned." The look of excitement faded into one of disbelief as she saw their mysterious Champion sitting on the shell of his Torterra, several cups of steaming tea floating by his head.

He sipped his own nonchalantly, and smirked as the cups floated to each of them. "I did promise a story…"

"You said you'd tell us about the Swamp." She remarked, crossing her arms as the others joined her, each taking their cup.

"Wow! This is good…sorry…" Haley glared at the one who'd spoken, and sipped her own tea. She blinked. It was actually delicious, and her brain said, 'drink more of this immediately', but there was a story here. That came before all else. She raised a brow at the Champion, expectantly.

"And I will tell you of the Swamp, for it's a point of contention among those who would war with us. But right now I need all of you rolling. This is important. For those of you who haven't noticed yet, there's a reporter here from every State not currently under the sway of the Arcean Church." A few of them shifted uncomfortably at his words. He took another sip as the cameramen with the reporters switched their equipment on.

"Look, Alex, we don't want to get in the mid-"

"It's too late for that." Alex interrupted whoever had started speaking. "War has broken out, and the front lines are already being drawn. The east and the west are once more headed towards war." He gave them a moment to process. "This isn't about me, or my feelings on the Church. Or their issues with me. This is about Caleb Pravus's ambition to become the next Emperor."

Haley spoke, once they were ready to start recording, "What do you mean?"

"Tao has informed me; the time has come. One way or another, this continent will once more be united. Either under the Dragon, and whoever he names Emperor, or under Pravus, who will force his doctrine on all of his subjects, one way or another."

"Wait a minute," The man he'd invited from Kanadia spoke up now, "Are you saying there's a chance Tao would name you our Emperor? Politics and Pokémon are two very different things, Redwood. I will freely admit you're very good at battling, but what do you know of running an Empire? Our Emperors of old were trained from birth to rule fairly."

"And look how that turned out." Alex retorted. "It doesn't matter if it's me, or N, or Hilbert, or any other worthy candidate in the eastern states at the moment. The point, is that we're on the brink of war. The Governors are in the Dragonspiral Tower at this very moment, waiting for word on who the Dragon will name."

"Not quite."

The two words thundered in the air as the massive serpentine form of Tao arced down from the fog of wonderful smelling clouds that had subtly sprung up around him as the humans dithered. "You have their eyes?" He spoke mentally, to his Tamer. Alex nodded.

"Behold Humans!" His telepathic baritone thundered for all to hear then, "Your leaders have an announcement." The massive dragon circled the entirety of Icirrus, his equivalent to hovering, and the fog he'd created faded under the beat of his enormous wings. The gathered leaders of the eastern States had come onto the balcony right above the tower's entrance for their announcement.

Unova's Governor stepped forward then, and bowed to the dragon above before addressing the Champion, and the gathered media representatives. By now, most eyes were upon them. Word of war traveled like wildfire. "After some advice from the Original Dragon, we have agreed. With this brazen move by Pravus and his Church, especially after the unprovoked burning of Colville, we cannot ignore it any longer. War is inevitable."

Kanadia's Governor spoke then, looking down at the new arrivals. "Fornians, brothers of the west, who would you follow in reclaiming your home?"

Each of the Chiefs had been gathered, all save for Colville's, and it was the Canyon's Chief, Sike, who spoke for them then. "We support the Dragon, my northern brother. We will support his Tamer, the one you call Redwood."

"We are all in agreement, then." Unova's Governor said again, "The Dragon has chosen, and as in ancient times, his candidate will be tested. Champion, do you accept this test? Understand that you may very well die if you even attempt it."

Alex finished his tea, and placed it on Terra's shell. The grassy surface covering the shell swirled around the cup, holding it in place as his Trainer launched into the air, surrounded by psychic energy. He floated up to the tower, and bowed in the air, fist to palm. "If you are all in agreement with Tao's choice, then I accept. What is my task?"

The Governor nodded at the Champion. "Go to the Abyssal Ruins. Find the center most chamber, and retrieve what lies within. You will know it when you see it. If you are worthy, we will know. If you are not…you will never leave that place. Good luck."

If the Champion was concerned, he didn't show it. He instead nodded, and floated back down beside Terra. He motioned for the gathered representatives of the media to come down from the shell. Luckily, they'd finished their tea. The cups were rather tiny.

Haley crossed her arms under the ever-impressive cleavage. "You promised a story."

Alex smirked, and flashed a pair of UPBs, or Universal Poké Bus. "On these, you will find a firsthand account not only of hard evidence that Caleb Pravus's own Hand lit the fire that burned Colville, the source of the darkness that now blankets Fornia, but also of several…let's call them 'indiscretions' committed by several of the Arcean Church's own higher ups." He offered them to the group. None of them moved. At the mention of the Prophet, all but Haley and Joey, who was still filming all of this, had gained expressions of reluctance.

"Listen, Champion, I know I owe you and your Swampert for stopping that avalanche back in Ontarec, but I don't want to get involved with the Arceans. The rest of Unova has no interest in this ego war between you and their holy man." The man who spoke then looked little different from most other Unovans with his black hair, pale skin, medium build and brown eyes, but then, beyond incorporating elements of black and white in their outfits, they didn't really have 'cultural clothing'. Unova was huge, and humans came in many varieties.

Alex sighed, and then walked forward to the only one of them who still had fire in her eyes, that instinctive need that would drive her to dig into this. He nodded once at Haley, and then looked at the man who'd spoken. "Watch the videos, Kyle. You'll understand then what Tao and I already know. What our enemy really is. This is unedited, first-person viewing of the people Pravus knowingly puts in positions of power. You can't fake this level of realism." He looked down at the pair of devices in his comparatively oversized, white gloved hand. "I wasn't able to stop any of it over the summer. Not without revealing myself neck deep in unfriendly lands. But I did leave my BR in the rooms they used to commit these acts. Triggered by the door opening. I had to shorten the recordings to thirty minutes, rather than just let them record indefinitely. The battery burnt out the first few times…but I soon discovered I didn't need thirty minutes. These…pathetic excuses for men didn't waste time. Ever."

After a reluctant nod from Kyle, Alex recalled Terra, packed his cups and teapot away into his bag, and shot into the air on his own power, headed east. He hadn't noticed at first, but flying was ridiculously easy now. In fact, most of his abilities had seemed stronger, since he'd stopped hiding them.

Picking up on his thoughts, he heard the dragon, who yet circled the city, speak to him as they passed in the air, with the speed of thought.

"It's the build-up. You've expanded your reserves by not constantly draining them with training. Now, lifting even your large form is easy. You'll find your Special Attacks are stronger as well."

The Champion smirked, and patted his unlit plasma sword. "I'm better in close range anyways. I always wondered why you taught me the sword and the staff. Did you foresee this or something?"

He saw the dragon smirk, "No. I trained you in the sword because, if you recall, you were so bad with the staff, you accidentally knocked Arthur out while practicing basic moves. Twice. A practice sword is essentially half of a staff. If you could master one, I knew you could grasp the other. Eventually."

Alex rolled his eyes, and continued flying further away from Icirrus. The dragon coiled directly above the growing city, and shot an awe-inspiring spectacle of ice, fire, and lightning into the air with a single breath. "Go. I know you will overcome this. Dovahkiin."

The Word reverberated in his head in a familiar, and not unpleasant way. He'd gone far too long without practicing his Shouting, too. Tao had stirred the urges he'd buried through the long summer, but now, he felt like one peep could crack open the sky. He decided to take a minute to balance the motivation with the calm he needed for battle. That, more than anything else, was the key to Tao's fighting style. The unifying balance of harmony and focus.

The gathered crowd of people, which had only grown larger as word had spread like a Fornian wildfire across the region, gave wild cheers. Some even chanted, though they didn't seem to be able to agree on shouting 'champion', 'emperor', his name, or any of the other titles he'd evidently gained, but couldn't make out in the din. The people seemed to agree with the dragon's choice as well. He only hoped he was worthy of their admiration.

The cheers audibly faded as he flew away from the town, and he hovered on the outskirts. After discovering a shared love of the Leaf, the Fornian Trainers within the Rebellion had introduced the Unovan to something they called a 'vape'. With this strange pen-like device, they inhaled the oils derived from the Leaf in a relatively harmless fashion. It had a stronger effect, a lack of smell, and was incredibly portable. He had to admit he liked the ease of access, but he'd always prefer a bong.

Still, it was convenient to have on hand, for times like now, when he had to give Jess a minute or five to realize that they were leaving. He'd just finished packing the absurdly portable device back in its safety-container within his backpack when a familiar ball of red hurtled into him with the full speed of a psychic-powered tackle.

By pure coincidence, he'd parked himself by a clearing within the forest that spread between Icirrus and the center of the region. They landed hard on soft grass, but since he'd manage to toss his pack somewhat safely out of harm's way, Alex didn't mind taking the hit on his back. Nor did he mind the beautiful, smirking redhead who shifted into a straddling position atop him.

"Emperor!? Seriously? When the hel did you two come up with this?" She was trying to sound irritated, but she kept giggling. The good mood was infectious. Their surroundings also helped. Golden grass, leaves with fall colors all around. As spots went, it was not bad at all.

"It was Tao's idea. He said the east needed someone to rally behind, or they'd end up fighting each other." Alex smirked up at her, though it faded slightly. "Even with me leading our forces, he thinks there's a strong chance Pravus could win this. Fornia is a fortress. The best the east has is Unova, and they've attacked directly several times now. The closest thing we have to Sacreus is the Dragonspiral, and that's surrounded by innocent bystanders these days."

Jess shook her head, and suddenly, Alex found himself surrounded by hair. Not that he minded. She always managed to smell amazing. "You'll be fine. You have a plasma sword. That pretty much beats everything. Especially when combined with psychic powers."

Alex rolled his eyes. "We don't even know what Pravus is. From what the Chief showed us, he seemed to devour the very life around Vega. What kind of…thing…can even do that?"

"Whatever it is, I'm willing to bet it's susceptible to being sliced in half. By plasma. Have I mentioned how much I love your sword?" She sighed, and laid her head on his chest.

"You know, some people could take that as innuendo." His words had a sarcastic tinge to them.

"With you, everything is innuendo." The redhead tilted vertically to look at him. "Make me an Empress. Then you can have your 'innuendo'."

He let the quiet grow for a moment, holding his tongue until he felt her gasp slightly. He smirked, and winked for good measure. "If that is what you wish." He reached for the power needed for Teleportation, but she stopped him, with the speed of thought.

Her face was crimson after that. "On second thought…you should probably take care of that before you go wandering into underwater ruins…that you might not come back from…"

He rolled his eyes, and their bodies as well, and smirked down at her. "Stop. You know my tendency to survive these things. Besides, every other Unovan Champion has already gone down there. I'm probably not going to be able to find anything, they picked it clean."

Mentally, they both doubted that, as he always found something, but it was having that same thought at the same time that made them pause in amusement. She smirked up at him. "Stop talking."

Sacreus – Fornia Region

"Turn it off."

It was a brief command, but like all of his commands, it was obeyed with machine-like swiftness. Caleb Pravus, Arceus's own Prophet, sat on the obsidian throne-like structure within his command center, thousands of miles below the fortress that was Sacreus. Shrouded as he was in a spherical blob of darkness that was deeper than the rest of the red tinted command room, all that was visible to his obedient minions of their Prophet was his eyes, which flared a deep purple when he spoke.

The glow faded, as it did when he went silent, and the room waited for his commands. His Hands, the important ones anyways, flanked him on either side. The room was octagonal, and filled with various screens showing different data. The one that was now silenced, had been broadcasting one of several eastern media networks.

Redwood's message had reached the entirety of the east, which presented an opportunity. "Why didn't you interrupt it?" A female voice, belonging to the sister of his former Right Hand, a position she had now willingly filled, broke the silence. It was a long moment before the eyes flared again, and the prophet answered, his mental, ethereal sounding baritone echoed in their ears with sarcasm and hints of mirth.

"Did you not hear? War is...inevitable. And their Champion is on his way to the ruins." The eyes shifted in the shadowy blob, and stared down the Hand of Death. "Make sure the ruins act as a tomb to yet another failed candidate. Understand that there will be no more 'mistakes'. Accomplish your mission, or die trying."

The Hand in question was sporting a new scar on his neck, the edges of which peeked just enough over his uniform to be seen. His pale skin made the sutures holding his head on stand out rather obviously. His words were monotone, and low as they rumbled through the room. "What is dead, may never die." His eyes narrowed. "But…the Redwood whelp yet lives. I will correct this...oversight. They do tend to happen when I am not properly equipped. I need my team. For all the ridiculous rumors around him, I will grant that his tools are quite strong."

After a long moment, the eyes blinked once in acceptance. "Granted. Use them well. I do not have time to waste replacing them." The Hand bowed, and left the chamber to begin the long trip to Sacreus's surface. The eyes turned to one of the minions working the tech that served as a direct line to the Arcean forces currently in Orre. The posturing had done exactly what he'd wanted. His enemies had gathered. Now all he needed on this fire was fuel.

"Tell General Marius the time has come. I want the stone as soon as possible. Don't let the locals hide it." His words were followed by the usual 'yes sir', and those assembled watched as the blips representing their troops surged down Mount Battle. Taking it had been easy, and after cutting power to Phenac City, the residents of Orre were essentially blind to their presence, and even if they had noticed the army, they had no method of sending word of the attack to their allies. None that would arrive in time, anyways.

In one move, Fornia gained thousands of miles of land. Most of it was desert true, but the border was all the Arcean Prophet was focused on. For the first time in centuries, the western states had a hard border. They also could now easily defend Fornia from both sides. It had taken longer than he'd wanted, to solidify his western coast, but it had been done. Now, he didn't have to worry about an attack from two sides. He was wary of Alola, but wanted their rather strong Champions unwilling to test the rumored strength of the Arcean fleet.

It was about five hours before the 'mission accomplished' signal came from the General in charge of the southern lines. If the shadowy Prophet was pleased, he didn't show it. "Good. Have them split in half. Reinforce Texico City, and Utado's border. Any word from the Dakota region?"

The response was quick. "Yes, my Prophet. The Dakotans have pledged fealty. All criteria have been met."

The shadowy ball that had encased the Prophet since the burning of Colville swelled, and then faded away. Pravus sat comfortably on his throne of blackened stone, and the grin upon his unblemished face could cause nightmares. "Send word to our media, then. The time has come."

The shadows faded as the tech crew set up the lighting the public would need to see their leader on screen. Finally, the lights turned green, and the Prophet stood. He was the picture of what every Arcean strived to be, and as his charismatic crowd-wooing tone began being echoed across the western states, it wasn't hard to see why his people loved him so much. While in public, he was quite charming.

"My people! Faithful Arceans, trainees, converts, and new allies, I have an announcement. The Alpha spoke to me last night, by way of a vision. He showed me who was responsible for burning our forests, and blackening our skies." He paused for effect, and then focused his dark eyes on the camera directly. "Unova. More specifically, their Champion. My own Hand confirmed his presence in the area, atop his Charizard." A grainy picture was shown then, captured from the camera they'd placed on the resurrected raptor, depicting a vague figure in black and white atop a Charizard. Pravus continued, his diligence to 'evidence' satisfied for the simple minds that populated his power base. "His crimes are obvious, and he cares not. Now, I know many of you have heard rumors, of our 'aggressive actions' in Orre, but know this. The people of Orre have always claimed to be peaceful. Loving. Uninterested in politics between the east and west. This reputation is nothing but a farce. After sending my own Hands to figure out the true intentions of our neighboring region, we found hard evidence of correspondence with Unova, and those who would oppose our Alpha. They were the ones who let the psychic puppet into our lands so he could enact his nefarious deed for his deranged psychic overlords."

The Prophet's tone grew grim as he steepled his fingers, and leaned towards the main camera. "Though it pained me to do so, my only option was to take their lands quickly and secure our front line, before the Unovans entrenched themselves on our border, and began spreading their psychic heresies to the populace of Orre. I am proud to report that our forces were able to take the region without the loss of life. Now, we have a strong, united eastern border that will keep our enemies at bay."

The Prophet stood then, raising both arms as he continued orating. "This is not the only news. With the blessing of the Alpha, the Church has decided to erase the borders separating our allies' lands. They are no longer necessary. Nor is any reading material, digital or otherwise, originating from Rebellious sources, like Unova. Stay tuned to your Church-approved channels, and you will know the Alpha's rewards." Pravus lowered his left arm, and the right's hand curled into a fist as he continued his tirade. "The Alpha has decreed it! With the removal of these restrictive, unnecessary borders and new policies, once more, our land will be whole. We will not roll over for the Unovans, we will take their lands, by force if necessary, and show them the true Path to the Alpha! One Fornia, under Arceus, now and forever!"

The Prophet made a motion across his throat with his hand, and the recording lights switched off. "Send word to the Kipnuk and Arciana regions. The time has come. They know their objectives." The person he'd commanded fiddled with his device for a moment, before nodding to his Prophet. The word was given. Pravus grinned. "Now then…give me a report on our star player."

A female minion, clad in the usual navy-blue suit that bore all sorts of medals, proving her years of dedication and loyalty to the Church, and the Prophet, came forward at his words. "The subject was extremely effective in combat, exceeding even our lowest parameters as he hunted stragglers from Colville…however…he did hit…a snag...on his return from Colville..."

The Prophet's eyes flared red as he recognized the tone of fear that accompanied news of incompetence in his subordinates. "What kind of snag…"

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 25: The Trial of Eight Paths

The White Wolf looked down upon the Dakota region's capital city of Fargo as the latest blast of freezing winter air slammed into him. Judging by how early the winds were rising, he knew this one would be a bad one. Typical. Winter was always worse during wars, and nobody had ever really wondered why. Close as they were to Kanadia, the city was almost perpetually covered in snow, and the gray stone buildings made the entire city look bleak, and sketchy. Tonight though, something had changed. The streets were alight with golden beacons bearing a symbol that once stood for peace. The people rallied around these light-bearers, despite the cold.

Even in the howling wind of the year's first snowstorm, Geralt Redwood's enhanced ears could hear the chanting, and it wasn't staying civil. Quickly it had gone from Arceus, to something about Unova, which involved blood, and then devolved into continued, unnerving chants of just 'blood' as they started marching en mass towards the west. He pressed the device in his ear. "This is Wolf. You can consider the Prophet's words in this regard to be true. Fargo is lit up with their symbol. They're whipping the locals into a frenzy, and taking them west..."

A woman's voice responded in his ear after a large yawn. "Copy, Wolf. You can go to sleep now, you know. It's four in the morning."

He tried to think of a clever quip, and then realized he had nothing. Being awake for over a hundred and fifty hours took a toll on one's creativity and wittiness. "Perhaps you're right." He muttered into the device. "Wolf out."

His ears twitched as he heard crunching snow behind him. Two footsteps. Then, as it came closer, the two became four. His partner's evolved form had taken on an appearance similar to their species' Day Form, but anyone with eyes could see that Ghost was special. By the time they figured out how, the battle was usually over. Geralt gave his huge, pure white furred Lycanroc a thorough neck scratch as they eyed the city. "Find anything?" The wolf huffed, irritated. "Lycan."

Geralt sighed. "I figured…come, Ghost. Let's get some rest. You've more than earned it." The large ice and rock type yawned, displaying his long, sharp fangs, before huffing in agreement. Though neither would ever admit it, they were both exhausted.

Scouting Arcean territory had become quite difficult of late, but the Pokémon Rangers were a part of the League as a whole, and they didn't skimp on winter gear. It wasn't his usual dark leather, but he didn't mind. It was warm enough.

Geralt and Ghost had been all along the 'new' border between east and west, and what they'd seen had not been promising. The League had wanted a situation report, before deciding whether to aid a side, or withdraw from the north-western quadrant of the world until things calmed down.

Either way, it seemed that either Fornia or Unova would become the next superpower to control these lands. He wished them luck. Those who claimed that mantle, with the exception of the divinely created Original Dragon, had a tendency to overreach with their power, and eventually collapse. It was a historical fact that, before the dragon first came, humanity's ancestors had tried re-establishing old world powers, with little success. Once the land had fractured, it had stayed that way until Tao appeared, despite humanity's best efforts.

Everyone had, apparently, had their own idea of how to govern properly. The eastern cities had wanted to retain their control of the continent, but the western cities had refused. Sides formed, but oddly enough, a line of States in between both agreed to not war with either side. In the end though, they hadn't had a choice. History was vague on how exactly they got involved, but all anyone knew these days was that east, west, and center had collapsed into senseless wars of revenge, and their factions grew more and more splintered as greed and betrayal in a fallen society ran rampant. Naturally, the result had been a war that ravaged the land from coast to coast. It had taken another war declared by the Original Dragon and his first Tamer, the man who would become the first Dragon Emperor, to unite them all again. Before that, no one had been able to stop the carnage

Despite Tao's best efforts, it was only after taking out almost all of the armies who'd opposed him that the war was brought to a blood-soaked end. Even then, the ideologies of the past had persisted, and when the Dragon Empire fell, east and west resumed their feuding, though admittedly, their conflicts had been little more than skirmishes. The forced migration from Floria and formation of several new middle States had reinforced the buffer between east and west, and the fighting had been with Pokémon, rather than firearms. Bullets did little against most final evolutions, and they certainly had never matched a Hyper Beam's power, or destruction.

Geralt sighed in disgust at the city below, and turned, heading towards his partner's massive form, easily big enough for a human or two to ride comfortably. "And so once more, Humanity repeats the past, blood is spilled, families are torn apart…and none of them will remember how terrible it truly was in about three centuries."

He felt a freezing nose push at his ear, for Ghost stood as tall as his shoulders. "Lycanroc. Roc, Lycanroc."

"Hmph. If you say so, but whatever hope I had in them vanished a long time ago. Be honest, Ghost. You've seen what I've seen. Humanity's only special power is to step on the backs of their fellow man so they can spend their brief span in obscene luxury. Over and over, we repeat this." The wolf grabbed his fuzzy white hood, and stopped him for a moment. He made a high-pitched sound, almost like a whine, but with more of a questioning inflection.

Geralt laughed, yanked his hood free from his partner's jaws, and then shook his head. "What about him? The goofy kid I knew was always more interested in where his supply of Leaf was going to come from, than politics. His first decree as Emperor would probably be Leaf dispensaries in every university campus. No. I don't believe Alex can handle this. He is in way, way over his head."

Ghost snorted, and then moved his massive head between his Trainer's legs, lifting him up effortlessly onto his back. The white furred and primarily ice typed wolf trotted atop the snow, which was reaching four feet of height, minimum, as they headed down a slope, through the dead trees. "Lycan. Lycanroc."

Geralt settled into his usual riding position, and sighed. "Sure, he might've changed and gotten quite a bit stronger, but what if he's changed for the worse? What if who he's become is little better than the man he's fighting?" The wolf turned his head, looking at his Trainer with one eye, while the other navigated. "Roc? Lycan. Lycanroc." Ghost snorted, and picked up his pace. Evidently, he remembered the kindness he'd sensed in his Trainer's relative, and doubted it had turned so sour so quickly.

It was Geralt's turn to snort now. "I suppose you have a point…and last I saw him, he didn't seem too different...but again, that just means our new 'Emperor' is probably more focused on Leaf than politics." He felt the growl from his partner, and sighed, letting the issue drop. "Fine. I'll be skeptically optimistic, but you know what those ruins hold. If nobody tells him, he's going to die in there."

Ghost gave a softer growl, of agreement, as they cleared the trees that covered the rise they'd perched on for several hours now. Any further conversation was put on hold as the wind began to pick up again, and howl. Ghost howled in return, and then began sprinting across the snow. It was risky, but in a storm like this, especially at night, he doubted any Arcean would see their white-furred figures against the blinding white of the snow. This was a satellite territory for them, and a newly gained one at that.

His doubts were proven incorrect as, after several hours of running towards their rendezvous, a hail of red tipped arrows arced down in front of Ghost, forcing the large wolf to stop hard. A quick glance told the Ranger that they were being toyed with. The arrows had formed a perfect circle around them, and then he saw the brown feathers that served as the arrow's fletching. "Muk." There was no point trying to outrun Decidueye.

They came quickly then, roughly six Trainers, each with a Decidueye. The leader of this merry band of soldiers, atop a blue and black feathered Decidueye, hopped down into the snow, and crossed his arms as he looked Geralt over. "What business have you in the Prophet's lands, stranger?"

He was thankful the gear he had on was concealing the League emblem on his usual attire. Not only did it show who he served, it marked him as a Top Ranger. One of two, assigned to this part of the world. He raised his hands, showing open, empty palms. "I'm just passing through with my partner here. We're not looking for trouble."

The man, who was as blonde and tan as most other Fornians Geralt had seen, gave a smirk that told Geralt this was going to devolve quickly. Still, he might as well attempt to avoid a fight. The officer speaking was as tall as Geralt, and clad in similarly white clothing, suited for winter. He was still deep in the Dakota region, as they'd been heading east after moving far enough south of Fargo to, he had hoped, avoid detection. The fact that they'd even seen himself and ghost in the snow and storm in the dark of night was a credit to their Pokémon's sharp eyes.

"Trouble has found you, stranger. I'll need to see your ID. War is brewing, and we can't abide spies. You understand." He gave another smirk, and then raised a fist. His squad was garbed much the same as he was, and though they lacked the adornments that marked their leader as an officer of the Church, they each had helmets, whereas their leader only had what appeared to be a naval beret that didn't look like it could repel the cold very well. Arceus' emblem was emblazoned on the forehead of each of the squad's white helmets, and though he hated to admit it, he rather liked the look of their black T-shaped visors. Sleek, intimidating, and likely made of something strong. What they lacked in manners was made up for in aesthetic, and as he looked closer, he grimaced. Cipher's hand was in their armor's design. It made some sense, given where they'd fled to avoid the Jennies. Had he been a normal Trainer, he might've been intimidated.

Ghost gave a low growl as the men approached, and Geralt hopped off of him, patting his raised hackles. "Easy, boy. They're just doing their jobs." He looked at the soldiers, and then their leader. "I'll cooperate, there's no need to get rough."

The man chuckled, and Geralt fell to his knees as one of the men smashed the stave he carried against the Ranger's back. Each had ten slots for Pokéballs, five on each side, and was adorned with Arceus' symbol at the top. Just below that, were three bars of some kind of material that could light with the power of fire, ice, or lightning as their wielders desired. He doubted the metal was high quality, but then, that didn't make it hurt any less.

"There isn't. But we're going to be rough anyways…search him." Their leader had approached, seemingly immune to the ever-increasing sound of Ghost's snarls. Ghost was eyeing the Decidueye, each of whom had an arrow trained on the large Lycanroc. For all the good they would do against an ice type.

Geralt smirked as two of the soldiers tried to find pockets on his jacket, and then remove said jacket, but doing that while he was on his hands and knees was rather difficult. He met their leader's eye, and in that moment, decided he'd had enough of playing nice. He sat up onto his knees, slowly. "One would think…with all that 'divine guidance'... you people wouldn't la-"

He was cut off as the squad leader backhanded his face with a clenched fist. "I'm sorry, I missed that last bit. What were you saying?" The smirk had returned, and Geralt's reluctance to injure these men was rapidly fading. He'd been awake too long, and these idiots were keeping him from his bunk. Worse, his mouth was going to taste like blood for quite some time. The bastard hadn't been gentle.

His eyes met the leader's, and the man flinched, as they'd turned into thin vertical slits, like a cat's. The irises around his thin vertical pupils had turned an icy blue. "I said…you lack Manners." At his words, Ghost lunged, and the snow around them turned red with blood and feathers.

Unova University – Unova Region

The tumble in the autumnal trees and golden grass had lasted well into the night, and though Alex had been eager to move on to the ruins, a text from his brother via his Holociever stopped him. He was needed at the University's lab. Immediately. The time stamp marked the missed calls and message itself around right after he'd flown out of Icirrus, and he hoped whatever his brother needed didn't take too long, but then he remembered he needed to pay the lab a visit regardless. The sooner the better.

Thankfully, Teleporting cut his travel time down to nothing. He appeared in the middle of Gelauros' old pen, and the little Amaura popped free of his ball, crying with delight as he recognized his old home.

He looked up at his Trainer, and made a questioning noise. "Go ahead, bud. But don't get too distracted. We're leaving soon." The little Pokémon had run off to the other nearby members of his species as soon as he'd heard 'go ahead'. For all his training, he still had the ability to ignore commands that all hatchlings and young Pokémon seemed to share. They did as they pleased, and had a blast doing so.

"Finally." Came the irritated tone of his brother. "I sent that four hours ago. I thought you'd be in the ruins by now, and that we'd missed you. What were you doing?" Eric's arms were crossed, and the blue eyes, so similar to his own, examined him through the glasses on his face.

Alex coughed. "Things. Stuff. What do you want? I'm kind of on a short timeline."

Eric rolled his eyes. "You're the one that found four hours to…jump in a pile of leaves?"

Alex looked down at his clothes, and sighed. He'd removed the leaves in his hair, but a few had evidently managed to hide in his pants. It wasn't all that surprising. He'd tossed them aside, and the wind had picked up several times. He yanked them free of his belt and pockets as he spoke. "Something like that. What do you want, brother?"

"Well, first, I guess I should congratulate you? Does this make us royalty now?" He had a teasing tone and smirk. Alex had no patience for either. He'd dallied enough, and only because Jess had kept refusing to let him get dressed. Not that he'd minded.

"I have no idea. What. Do. You. Want?" He repeated, letting the irritation show, slightly.

Finally, the all-business-no-nonsense look came over his brother. "Your plasma sword. Jess mentioned you had one. May I see it?"

Alex gave the mental equivalent of a glance to Lux, who gave the mental equivalent of a nod. He tossed the hilt to his brother. "I was planning to show it to you anyways. I want you to-"

Eric cut him off as he examined the hilt. "Reverse engineer it, and distribute copies to those the dragon deems worthy?" Alex nodded. "Well…we'll take a scan, and then see what we can do."

"Lux." Alex said, as Eric turned towards the part of the lab that held the equipment, as well as the rest of the still-working Brain Trust. "Come on out. I don't want your energy messing with their scans."

"Oh fine." Eric jumped in surprise as the black and white Rotom departed his container. "I was going to have some fun with them. The smart Humans always get so panicky when their little machines stop working."

"I know." Alex said, smirking. "But we just don't have time, and they need these machines. War is brewing, and knowledge is going to help us more than pranks."

The ghost, much like his Amaura, had stopped listening and floated over to the group of Aurorus and their young who had welcomed Gel back with reserved warmth. When it became clear he wasn't going to freeze them all by accident, they each nuzzled him, murmuring apologies for their past behavior. Gel, from his emotions, just seemed happy to finally be able to socialize and not freeze everything solid. Teaching him to control his power had taken Fornia's heat, and most of the summer though.

Alex sighed. "Champion of Unova…Tamer of the Original Dragon…and these are my ever-loyal partners." He shook his head. They were still new. He wandered over to the rest of the Brain Trust. There were five in all, including his brother, who was currently working on the scanning device. It would examine his plasma sword's composition down to the core, and more importantly, provide the bones of what would become a schematic, hopefully.

"How goes it, Frankie?" He asked, casually leaning against the side of his workstation.

Frankie was as thin as Eric, though he lacked glasses, and a proper lab coat. His attire was sufficiently nerdy though. The green eyes met his, and the Professor-in-training grinned. "Alex. Always a pleasure. In short…it's not going well. But it could be worse."

Alex raised a brow. "Oh? What have I missed?"

"Professor Juniper came out of retirement for this, and Professor Bianca gave us the Elektross data you said we'd need. Moreover, Professors from all the other eastern States are arriving every day. I could name them for you, but we don't have all night. Tao is putting them to good use, or so I hear, but we're still woefully unprepared for this war. There's already been blood."

Alex's eyes went wide. "Already? Where?"

Frankie shrugged. "Not sure, but skirmishes are happening all over. Utado has already fallen, and Texico is apparently where most of the fighting is happening for the moment."

Alex chuckled. "Well that's not too surprising. They've been ready for this for centuries."

"True, and that's why they're still holding." Frankie nodded, and then sighed. "But everyone else is not. The Illinowa and Tenina regions are also reporting attacks, asking for aid. They're likely to be overrun before we can reach them, though. The Prophet's army is enormous, early estimates are saying they number in the millions, and those are the low estimates of those on the border."

Alex glanced at his brother. "Then I need to move quicker. I could be out there, on Tao, stopping them. We could halt their advance fairly easily…"

David, another of the Brain Trust, chimed in then as his station was next to Frankie's. "Are you insane? That's the worst thing you could do!"

Alex raised a brow, and David continued. "What kind of General marches onto the front lines, no army, no support? Even if you do become the King, it's wasted effort if you're killed off in the first skirmishes." The Champion shifted uncomfortably. The words rang with logic.

"You really think they could take on the Original Dragon?" He said, quietly.

David, who was as pale and nerdy as the rest of them, made even more so by his green sweater-vest and tan khaki-esque pants, simply shrugged. "You'd know that better than I would, Tamer, but this isn't the ancient past. Generals don't go one on one in this era. We have weapons capable of handling Legendary class Pokémon. You need to assume Pravus already has access to such things, and is hoping you fly out to make yourself, and the dragon, a target."

Alex sighed. "I bow to your wisdom. Regardless, I need to move. Brother, are you done yet?"

"Annnnd…yes." Eric said, as the scan dinged, and flashed a green light, showing a successful compositional analysis. He tossed the hilt back to Alex. "As expected, the scans indicate that we can indeed reverse-engineer these. The power source is going to be an issue, though. Your Rotom's crystal is…unlike anything I've ever seen. It's from the old civilizations. We won't be able to replicate that. Their technology might as well be magic, to us."

Alex nodded, as that was what Tao had called it. He pointed the hilt at Lux, who was absorbed by the black and white beam of light, not dissimilar to a Pokéball's, that recalled him. He recalled Gel as well, giving the young Pokémon a moment to say his goodbyes. He chirped cheerfully once he had, and returned to his ball as well. "Hmm. Call up the scan data."

His brother did so, and the two eyed the information, which was now displayed on the large screen that each of their work stations was placed around.

Eric began chattering away, as he assumed it was too complicated for his brother to grasp with a glance. "You can see here how each of these…let's call them wires…connect to the crystal. It acts as both the focusing lens, and the power source. I can make a suitably sized replacement for focusing the beam, the real issue is a suitable power source."

Alex eyed the data. While it was, for the most part, beyond him, he'd had enough basic engineering lessons from his Gruncle, who'd given them while he'd worked on his old car. During his years in high school and then University, it had been his main mode of transportation, and fixing it had been his job. His father refused to pay for maintenance, and had told him he could always walk if he didn't want to bother learning how to fix various car parts. That had backfired, when he'd not only maintained the vehicle, but upgraded it with tandem rotors, and hover technology.

"So…if I'm reading this right, it's going to require a crystal regardless?" He was absentmindedly stroking his bearded chin, eyes still on the data.

Eric nodded. "I tried punching in the calculations for the Plate crystals, but for some reason, they won't work, apparently."

Alex reached out to Lux. "Is there a way around this?"

The ghost seemed to chuckle in his head, and the hilt of his sword floated before him, the face once more appearing on the handle as it spoke to all of them. "Those crystals contain Infinite energy. Without a Pokémon to control them inside the weapon, activating it would be like turning on an infinitely powerful laser. It would slice through anything in whatever direction you pointed it at. Before exploding with overloaded energy."

"So we need crystals like yours…or with less power…damn." Eric sighed, and pushed the brim of his glasses up. "I don't think this is realistically possible anymore, brother."

Alex, however, was smirking. He walked over to the machine, and began typing in commands. It was easy enough to run a simulation. Such things were covered in the basic science classes the University taught. "I disagree. You forget, we're in Unova. We have an entire mountain's worth of…viable crystals." He said, as the simulation flashed green with acceptable parameters.

Frankie spoke up then. "Of course! Chargestones! That's…kind of brilliant."

Alex continued on. "They should have enough energy to last twelve hours, and if you add a way of recharging them, we'll be fine. Moreover, the crystals grow quick enough to give us a suitable supply without ruining the cave. The Pokémon that rely on the magnetic field they give off will likely be undisturbed."

Eric shook his head. "Mining them is going to be tricky. If anything disturbs the Pokémon, it'll be the equipment."

The six of them sighed, quiet in thought as they tried to think of a way to avoid permanent damage to a beautiful natural environment of their home. Alex spoke first. "Then don't mine them."

Five pairs of eyes looked at them, and more than a few had eyebrows raised to Spockian levels. He continued on when nobody interrupted. "These blades shouldn't be mass-produced. In fact…" He punched in more numbers to the simulation, a base estimate cost for the materials they would need. They all gasped at the number of zeros. "That's what I thought. The metal components are precious, but we should have enough in reserve to arm those Tao wants to lead our troops. Have the Trainers go into the caves themselves. They can find their own crystal. If they're competent enough for the Original Dragon, they should be able to retrieve one without harming the local wildlife. Hmm...we could even make a test out of it, were we so inclined...maybe when we're not on the precipice of war."

Eric nodded, and then took over, punching in yet more to the simulation. "It'll take some time to finalize the schematics but…this could work." His voice took on a tone of command, and Alex watched, somewhat impressed, as he started giving orders. "Sarah, get to work on the recharging station. It'll have to be in the hilt, and don't skimp on the quality. We can't have these become unusable with wear and tear. They need to last. Also, account for the effect of temperature. It's going to be a long winter, and our leaders shouldn't need to worry about the battery dying from the cold."

Sarah, who looked as masculine as the rest of them thanks to her short haircut and muscled body, nodded, and then Eric pointed towards Frankie. "David, you and Frank focus on the emitter. It shouldn't be too complicated, but make sure the length of the blade can be adjusted. The people using these are going to come in various sizes." The two nodded, and then began chatting quietly as they called up the data, and began to work. "Zack," Eric said, turning to the last of their group. "You and I are on materials. We need to figure out what these components are going to be made from, they need to be relatively cheap, durable, and easy to acquire. Furthermore, we need to make sure that, when combined, the metal doesn't melt, or negatively impact the weapon's function."

Zack, the only one among them who didn't have brown hair, but instead sported a fauxhawk of light blonde got to work as well, and Eric turned back to his brother. "Why are you still here? Go! Become an Emperor. All of this is pointless if you can't rally the people."

"Good luck!" The Brain Trust said, with remarkable cohesion and timing, despite the fact they were working. "Don't die." Eric added. Alex gave a nod, put Lux's hilt back on his belt, and then Teleported.

Scandaga Lake – Upper Unova Region

While Alex had focused on getting the Fornian Rebellion to Unova, Arthur had been tasked with finding Uxie, the Lake Guardian of Knowledge. During the first part of the summer, Alex and Jess had come to this lake for a few days, mainly to recover from Norstad. During said stay, the Giver of Knowledge had made himself known to the Gallade, and his Trainer. He'd even had a name, given to him by a Trainer, now long passed.

"Merlin!" Arthur let his telepathy echo over the water. "Wake up! Azelf has been captured!"

The lake was silent, the water calm. Arthur scanned it with his third eye, and found nothing. He was still sleeping, then. Sitting cross-legged by the lovely shore, Arthur began to meditate, keeping track of his Trainer, while simultaneously scanning the lake, inch by inch, for the telltale disturbance that would mark where the mythical Uxie rested.

It took the better part of the day, and the sun had set before Arthur finally located the mythical being. He nudged the sleeping Uxie mentally, and felt the mind of the creature stir. He nudged again, but it remained asleep. Having an idea then, Arthur tapped into his newly acquired Mind Plate, which had fused with the now scarlet horn on his chest, and let the energy flow through him, as he mega evolved.

He raised an arm then, and moved it in a slow circle. Within minutes, the water of the lake was churning in a clockwise spiral around where he sensed Merlin resting. This, combined with a third persistent nudge, awakened the Lake Guardian.

Uxie appeared, rising from the waters by the shore. "Well well. The young Prince returns. Alone this time, are you?" Arthur nodded as the small Pokémon stretched and yawned, but his eyes remained closed. "I know of Azelf already. I also know that Nimue, the one you call Mesprit, is safe in her lake."

Arthur's eyes went wide. "She has a...nickname as well? Who named her?"

The powerful psychic type smirked. "It's not important. What matters, is that she is safe. Now, given these developments, I have decided. You and your Trainer could benefit from my wisdom, especially in this, a time of war. Take me to him."

Arthur shook his head. "I'm to take you to the Original Dragon. He asked for you specifically. By name."

The Uxie tilted his head at that, though his eyes remained shut. "Did he now? I see. Very well, take me to Tao, then." Merlin floated over, and one of his tails touched the Gallade's unsharpened hand. With that, they Teleported.

The Dragonspiral Tower – Unova Region

They appeared instantly before the Dragonspiral Tower, and there were murmurs around them as they did. Arthur sensed his Trainer nearby, rapidly heading east over Unova. He'd only half focused on what Alex had been doing once he finally got a response.

As he looked around, he noticed the humans from Fornia had set up in the old fighting type gym, and since it had largely been empty, it suited them well. The two psychic types floated into the air then, and shot towards the top of the tower, where the massive form of Tao encircled the top. He was meeting with the human leaders, and even at rest, his length encircled the topmost tower of the castle-like structure three times over.

"Here they are now." Came the dragon's pleasant mental baritone. "Welcome back to civilization, Merlin. Your skills are sorely needed."

The Uxie made a bow to the dragon, and then to the humans, who seemed surprised by it. "My knowledge is at your service, great dragon, free leaders of the States." The closed eyes shifted back to Tao then. "I am glad you have been made whole again."

"Let me bring you up to speed." One of Tao's tendril-like whiskers, which dangled down from his snout, reached out to tap the psychic type on his forehead.

Merlin nodded, then. "I see. Things are dire indeed if they're strong enough to block your vision. Let us determine the state of Illinowa and Tenina."

Merlin raised his stubby arms, and between them, an orb of psychic energy formed, not unlike the various ball attacks that served as the base for Taijitu moves. It floated over the round mahogany wood table the humans were sitting around, and expanded. Electricity sparked over the orb at first, but then Merlin opened his eyes, focusing the shining rainbow colored orbs on the psychic sphere alone, and the sparks faded, revealing the two regions.

They all gasped, collectively. The view was aerial, and even from the height Uxie displayed, they could make out many of the cities and towns of the two regions, engulfed in flame. A low growl rumbled through the pagoda as Tao saw the destruction.

"He burns territory he would claim as his own?" Unova's Governor spoke, disbelief in his voice. "How does he expect to quell rebellion? The people will despise them for this..." He spoke again, as Uxie's view zoomed in, and showed what must have been the Illinowa region's militia being marched towards an encampment surrounded by strong bars of metal, and covered with razor wire. Within, the citizens of the region were huddled together. It was cramped, cold, and muddy as most prison camps historically were. Such things had not been used in ages, however. They'd been deemed too cruel. In wartime, non-combatant civilians were supposed to be locked in their homes, but evidently the Church was done pretending to care.

Merlin answered the Governor, as he enjoyed answering questions. It was his nature to share knowledge. "The Arcean Church will likely subject them to long hours of indoctrination. Given their past success rate, the locals will likely bend the knee to the Prophet in a matter of days."

Illinowa's Governor, who had attended this meeting late, spoke up then, the desperation clear in her voice. "Surely his people will decry this…barbarism. Burning homes? Imprisoning soldiers? Indoctrination? The Arceans I know would never stand for any of this."

Tao's eyes flashed, and gathered the attention of the group. "The Arceans you know are little more than delusional puppets, fed only enough information to keep them sincere. Most of the Prophet's followers are completely oblivious to what their army is actually doing, and Caleb Pravus is a master of manipulation. Observe."

They sat in silence for a moment, before a portable television set floated up to the pagoda by way of telekinesis. One of Tao's tendrils switched it on, revealing the dark suited form of the ever-charismatic Prophet of Arceus. He'd added to his attire, presumably under the pretext of being at war. A symbol of the Alpha Pokémon now hovered directly behind his head, encircling the man's head like a halo of sorts. Tao's nose tendrils lashed, angrily sparking with blue at the sight of the Alpha's symbol adorning the head of a Champion of Shadow who'd sunk so low as to infuse unhatched eggs with that foul substance.

He had his hands raised, as he was in the middle of orating. The soothing tone of the Prophet's words filled the small building. "Many of you have sent in questions. The most common of these is 'Do the Tenina and Illinowa regions belong to the Arcean Church?'" The Prophet chuckled for a moment. "Do you think Arceus wonders if this tiny ball of a planet is loyal to Him? No! Because he is the Alpha and it does not matter what our opinions might be. Tenina and Illinowa are both a part of the world we're going to build with the power of our righteous Crusaders!"

He raised his hands higher, and the cheesy triumphant-sounding music that had been in the background as he spoke swelled with far too many trumpets. "The future belongs to Arceus' chosen people! We will do whatever we must to achieve the world we dream of!" A grim look came over his face. "No matter how many psychic heretics stand in our path."

The broadcast ended, returning to a view of a standard media news set, with a pair of Church officials dispensing 'news' to the populace. As they started gushing over their 'brave Prophet's words of wisdom' Tao flicked the screen off, in disgust. "We are dealing with a man who has mastered illusions, and has been preparing for this conflict for over a century at least. Do not expect aid or sympathy from his people. To them, we are all heretical blasphemers, and short of Church-officiated rehabilitation, all we have earned for our 'sinful actions' is death."

Unova's Governor looked around the table, meeting the gaze of each of his counterparts, and nodding. "We are agreed, great Dragon. Our forces will answer to you, and your Tamer, should he survive."

Tao nodded, but otherwise remained silent, his eyes instead focused on Merlin. "Arthur." He said suddenly, breaking the silence, "Your brother has arrived at the ruins. Join him. He's going to need your aid." With a formal bow, the still mega evolved Gallade Teleported to the city closest to the ruins, one he was thankfully familiar with. Humilau.

Merlin tilted his head at the dragon. "You never told them? Either of them?"

Tao shook his head. "If they are to be proven worthy, they must overcome the Trial by themselves. We've given all the aid we can. Now, it is up to them."

The Abyssal Ruins – Unova Region

Arthur zipped through the air with impressive speed. By levitating his lighter body, he was able to fly faster than either of the humans with whom he usually spent his time. As he came over Undella Bay, the full moon was reflected on the water's surface, and in the bright night, the primarily white robed form of his Trainer hovered over the gentle sea.

The Gallade joined his Trainer, and the two eyed the ruins below. From where they hovered, the structure was little more than a slightly darker blue blob, just barely visible thanks to the faint glow of the Marine Tube. "This lack of light is going to hinder us." Arthur spoke through their link, and the rest of their team welcomed him back. Gelauros had been included now as well, though his mental voice was still child-like, he was learning as quickly as Cenomons had.

Alex nodded, and then descended. Arthur lowered himself as well, and the two stood on what passed for a beach in this area. Arthur whirled, glaring at the cliffside above and behind them. "Alex…we have gawkers."

He gave the mental equivalent of a nonchalant hand wave. He'd sensed them as well. "Let them gawk. As long as nobody interferes, I don't really care who watches." He wasn't all that surprised they had a crowd. Undella Town was right behind them, for the ruins were directly east of the coastal town. They'd had time to gather, and despite the late hour, his ears told him many had made the trek. This did, he realized, have the potential to make history. He was only reviving the ancient culture of his entire people. No pressure.

"Alright boys." Alex spoke softly, "Come on out."

At his words, nine Pokémon appeared beside him and his Gallade, and all but Gel ignored the murmurs of the crowd behind them. Shruikan flew over them all, and circled in the air as the sliver of a sandbar would never support his size. The little Amaura gave a happy shout, and when those watching waved at him, he let loose a Frost Breath, which received a smattering of applause.

Alex chuckled, and let the youngling do as he wished, for the moment. The others would be enough. "Terra. We've never been able to get a proper scan of these ruins. Reach deep. I want to know how far down this structure has been covered by three thousand years of silt and dirt." The earth turtle slammed his feet into the beach, and closed his eyes. His entire form glowed with brown energy as he merged with the earth.

"Arthur, take Lux, and Blaze. Clear the water of bystanders, as well as the beach to our south. Don't terrify them. Be polite." He eyed his Charizard more than his Gallade, but they both nodded, and flew off.

Lux stayed, however. "I think you're going to be needing the sparky kitten and I." He said, yawning, and stretching his plasma arms.

Alex shrugged, for once, not in the mood to argue with the plasma ghost. "Ictus, Ceno, Leo, keep an eye on Gel. I'll let you know if we need you. And make sure nobody comes down the beach."

At his words, his Lairon moved towards the sliver of sand that connected their sandbar to Undella Town. One Rockslide later, and the path was sufficiently blocked from bystanders. Ceno marched back then, and dug into the sand, which was still warm just under the surface. Leo joined him, thoroughly enjoying the sand, as felines do, while the crimson Skorupi and Amaura had a sparring match, much to the delight of the onlooking crowd.

For his part, Alex had Hydrus Mega Evolve, and then set off across the water, the white and black ghost trailing behind him. Eventually, he zipped back into the hilt, as Hydrus's swim speed made it hard to keep pace while floating.

Under the darkened water they went, and Alex's eyes flared blue as he looked around. The glow kept the water from interfering, and his vision was surprisingly decent. He attributed it to the brilliant full moon above the bay. On any other night, he would've preferred to find a solitary spot and enjoy the stars.

Instead, he moved through the cold water, ignoring the foul salty taste leaking into his mouth, thanks to the speed at which Hydrus was zipping through the water. There were faint traces of power all over, and as they approached the first, he knew what he had to do.

Each of the other Champions had visited these ruins before, or so they'd told him, and they had all agreed that while the area certainly had an interesting and mysterious history, anything of worth had already been 'recovered' by themselves, and other divers.

As usual though, his eyes spotted something the others had missed. To him, someone who had grown up with RPGs, and the various puzzles therein, it was obvious. To Trainers who'd been doing little else but battling since they were teens, he could understand how they might miss something like this.

He turned Hydrus towards the Marine Tube, and smirked as he saw the unnaturally triangular 'rocks' by the edge of the enormous trench the tube had been built over. He'd always thought their sides were too perfect to be natural. Evidently, they had not been disturbed, which was fortunate. He spoke mentally to his mudfish, "Can you lift those?" He gestured at the stone pyramids, and the Mega Swampert swam over.

He nodded. "Heavy…but not too heavy. I'll be slow, though."

"That's fine." Alex said, hopping off his back. "I can swim on my own. Big hands. Bring these to each entrance of the Ruins. I think you'll find there's exactly enough for two apiece."

The mudfish blinked, and then raised a brow at his Trainer. "How did you know these were here?"

Alex smirked, crossing his arms. "Every kid sees the Marine Tube at least once. I did tell you we've vacationed here, did I not?" Hydrus shook his head. "Hmm. Well, you were still a bit young the last time we came through. Right before Nimbasa, remember?"

Hydrus thought for a moment, then nodded, and smiled. "I was so…small."

Alex gave his head fins a pat. "We were all small. Now get moving, bud. The others should be done by now." Hydrus nodded, and then further impressed his Trainer by lifting two of the pyramidal objects at once.

Though his hands, and thus the jets on his upper wrists, were occupied Hydrus could alternate between which sacs held his oxygen, and which propelled him through the water. The ones on his shoulders folded open, and two streams of water shot behind him from his shoulders as they propelled his hulking form towards the dark outline of the ruins, his large tail-fin guiding his trajectory.

After surfacing, and inhaling deeply, Alex propelled himself over towards the ruins once more, hovering above them. His unearthly clothes were already dry, and his bag was watertight. It made diving much easier. Lux floated beside him, his ghostly tail still attached to the hilt of the blade he called home. "What makes you so certain those pyramids belong by the ruins?"

Alex shrugged. "I noticed that when I was younger. My brother and I went diving by the ruins. I couldn't go inside, as I didn't have a Pokémon, which meant wandering around underwater for a few hours."

The floating ghost raised what passed for an eyebrow for his species. "Wait…you're guessing?"

He smirked. "Something like that. Just trust my instincts on this." The small ghost sighed, and returned to the hilt. Alex flew back towards the sandbar, and took a closer look at the people occupying the cliff.

They were cheering, as the rest of his team had indeed finished, and now Arthur and Blaze were sparring, though they'd refrained from using moves. It was an impressive display, seeing a Mega Gallade go hand-to-claw with a Mega Charizard. He gave Ictus and Gel an Elixir, and then recalled everyone but Terra, Leo, and Cenomons. Shruikan still circled above them, his massive form occasionally blocking out the moon.

The giant earth turtle blinked once at his Trainer, and his Lairon yawned, then trotted over. He scratched them both under the chin. "How does it look, Terra?"

"It goes down quite far…further than the records say it should. There is a secret within, and the land below feels…odd." He looked over at the dark blob beneath the moonlit waves. "I sense much power within…old power. The kind the Sage warned us not to test."

Alex nodded. "I expected as much. Well done." He shifted his eyes to Ceno. "Can you make eight long, straight rods of metal?"

The Lairon tilted his head. "Why?"

"I…you know what? You'll see." He winked at his partner. "Trust me. It'll be quite the show."

Ceno grunted. "Mmph. How long?"

Alex glanced back towards the bay, and made a generous guess. "Fifty feet apiece should do it. They don't need to be high quality, they just need to break the ocean's surface."

The Lairon looked at the mountains just west of the bay, then nodded. "I can do it. Will take some time."

His Trainer nodded. "Go then, find the ore. We can wait."

It took the better part of several hours, during which Alex meditated, floating over the sand and sitting cross-legged in the air. The voices from the cliff had grown quieter, and he resisted the smell of food that occasionally wafted down. Evidently there was a party up there. Finally, he blinked out of his trance-like state as he felt the cold metal nose of his Lairon nudge him. "It is done." Ceno yawned. "I need a nap." He pushed the button to his ball, and returned to it.

Alex stood, and stretched. Hydrus had finished some time ago, and contented himself by burrowing into the sand by the edge of the risen tide. Now, he rose as well, and lumbered over, still in his Mega Form. Each of the long rods floated into the air, surrounded by blue energy, and he ignored the shouts from above as he set out across the bay again.

The speed of his Swampert made placing each of the unwieldy rods relatively easy, though if he was honest, Hydrus did all the work. They placed each one in front of the pyramids, and once that was done, he gave his mudfish a well-earned rest.

Floating into the air, he got the attention of his team. Lux and Leo woke from their naps, and after a few moments, Shruikan appeared in the sky once more. He'd been hunting while they'd waited. Thankfully, Wailord was not an endangered species in this part of the world.

"Leo, you have the one closest to the shore. Shruikan, take the north. Lux, the south. I'll get the eastern one." As each of his team moved into position, he nodded at his dragon, and the black Salamence turned his maw to the sky. With a roar that sounded more like a thunderclap, dark clouds rolled across the otherwise beautiful night sky. "Ready? All together now…Thunder!"

His Pokémon summoned the energy for the attack with ease, and with a Shout of his own, Alex managed a similar effect. Eight bolts of searing plasma struck the rods, traveling down their length, and into the sand below. Then, eight glowing triangles appeared in the dark water.

"Again!" The Thunder attacks struck once more, and the glow increased. It took five in all, but eventually, eight beams of white-blue light shone up from below the water, and into the sky. He didn't feel the earth rumble, but he could hear it, and once it stopped, he smirked. It was the ever-welcome sound of a door, far away for the moment, being opened. "Well done, all of you. Return."

Lux didn't need to be told twice, and once Leo and Shruikan were in their balls as well, the Champion flew over the ruins. Thunder sounded again, but this time, it cleared the roiling clouds the dragon had summoned, once more illuminating the bay. The full bright white moon was hanging low in the sky by now, but he was finally ready.

He raised two fingers in the victory sign towards the cliff full of gawking Trainers, and then dove into the water. Originally, people had been against excavating the ruins, but over the years, and completely by accident, the eight square stones by each entrance had been uncovered. Usually, one's path through the ruins depended on where one dived into the water, but now, the deceptive structure revealed its four entrances, and from each one, a soft light radiated.

Alex smirked, and headed in. He waited for the telltale click that would signal he'd set off whatever trap lurked in these ruins, and expelled would-be trespassers, but evidently powering the pyramids had not only disabled said trap, but drained the water from the interior as well.

Each entrance was covered by a strange, malleable membrane that admitted his form with ease, and after seeing that, and the cuneiform symbols on the wall, he realized which written language they belonged to. "Atlantican? Odd…nothing in our history suggests we had much contact with them…" There was a theory proposed by leading anthropologists that suggested the people of Atlantica had migrated from Unova, but both Unovans and Atlanticans had found said theory either ridiculous, or unlikely. Then again, he realized, Unova and Atlantica both had lost large portions of their history when the old empire fell. It couldn't be a coincidence that both had gaps in their history centered around three millennia past.

The Dragon Empire had been little more than a small kingdom, in the end. Who knew how many people had fractured away from it over the course of its violent decline? He walked through the ruins at his leisure, navigating by way of one of the numerous maps that detailed the insides. As expected, the area had indeed been picked clean by scavengers, but now that the water had vanished, and the trap was inactive, he could explore at his leisure.

Eventually, he made his way to where the map marked a path upwards, and while there was indeed a hole in the ceiling, there was one in the floor, as well. Given that it appeared to be new, Alex jumped in, and floated down slowly. Or rather, he started slow. About halfway down, something interrupted his power.

Thankfully, he only dropped ten feet or so, landing in a three-point pose, hard enough to bruise his knee, but otherwise unscathed. He stood slowly, looking around, and as he did the blocks that made up the chamber began to glow with the same whitish-blue energy as the fields above. Comparing this room to the ones he'd gotten maps for, he realized he was indeed off the map.

It was a smaller room than the maze of tunnels upstairs, but like the upstairs, it had several blocks containing script. Thankfully, the cuneiform did not seem to extend down here. Instead, he noticed the letters were written with the shapes of Unown, the very creatures that the language spoken the world over, known only as 'Common', were derived from.

There was only one exit from this room, only one path forward. Above it, he softly spoke the words that had been placed there. "To restore Balance to the world, you must first find Balance within yourself. Hmm…"

He crossed the threshold into the next room, and stared in awe. There was no doubt now. This was the Throne of the Dragon Emperor. One of them, at least. The last heirs to that legacy had both claimed that title, and had both sat upon thrones, but history claimed the one that supposedly sat within the Relic Castle was the newer one. This one, was thought to be the one used by the first Dragon Emperor, and most others throughout their civilization's reign. The chamber itself was large, larger than anything the maps had detailed, and the room was shaped much the same as a ziggurat, save for the ceiling, which was flat. No doubt, that was what served as a floor for the upper levels. As with most pyramidal structures, it became much, much wider underneath.

Perched atop a smaller, and yet equally flat-topped ziggurat within the chamber was the throne itself. The rooms above had to be newer additions, because despite three millennia of ocean currents passing over them, the stones that made up this room were much, much older, judging by how eroded everything was.

The throne was in a state of disrepair as well. He'd begun climbing the smooth-edged steps, and found that the back part of it had been shattered in some other time. The armrests and seat itself were also rounded and marked with signs of wear.

Who dares to approach the Dragon Throne?

The voice echoed through the ancient chamber, sourceless by its very nature, though Alex was sure he'd heard multiple voices layered within the question. He stepped before the throne, and then turned, eyeing the vast chamber beyond.

He let his Voice echo through the chamber, as he Shouted back. "One who would be King!"

The white-blue energy suffusing the ancient stones shifted then, almost seeming to move. Then, he noticed, it was moving. Towards him. It gathered in eight spherical blobs on the stones around him, as the light was drawn from the entirety of the chamber, darkening it to his eyes, and illuminating only the throne now. The orbs rose into the air, and he could tell most were different colors. Red, blue, white, green, black and white, gray, gold, and in the middle, pale yellow

He is no Harmonia. It was the centermost orb of pale yellow light that spoke now, Leave, intruder. You are not welcome here. Be glad to have seen what you have seen, and depart with your life intact. Seemingly finished, the central orb floated away from him, but the other seven remained. It paused, almost like it was watching them. The seven spoke in unison.

Speak, Tamer. Why have you so diligently sought out this chamber? What quest brings you here?

"The Original Dragon has been revived."

Each of the orbs seemed to shimmer, and glow a little brighter at his words. The one that had floated away coalesced into a humanoid figure, a ghostly shape of a man, tinted the same color.

Each of the orbs did the same, and Alex knew as he saw their robes that these were the Sages upon which Ghetsis had based his own. The central figure wore a crown, though it was as phantasmal as the rest of his form. That marked him as the last true Harmonia. N had declined to even examine the Relic Crown, and when Rosa had found one as well, he suggested they were fakes, though their purpose was beyond him. Who would put a fake crown deep within a maze?

The ancient King floated back towards him, hovering over all of them, above the final steps before the throne itself. His hair was long, and unremarkably styled, and his beard went about halfway down his chest. His eyes though, were what held Alex's attention. He knew them. There was no mistaking the familial similarities, the inherent kindness, and sadness as well. This had to be one of N's ancestors.

As his form coalesced, so too did his words. "Who? Who has reunited the dragon? Name him, so that we may prepare the Trial."

Alex bowed properly, as Jess had shown him, and then glanced upward at the King, smirking. "You're looking at him. Alexander Redwood, at your service."

The King blinked. "You? Impossible. You are nothing. Where is my heir? He's the one who really reunited the dragon, isn't he?"

Alex shook his head, slowly. "I'm not surprised that you do not know, but I can guess how you came by what little knowledge you seem to possess. I'm not the first Human to come here in recent times, am I?" The ghostly King looked away, frowning, and then glared at Alex once more as he spoke. "I thought so. The man who came to you, Ghetsis I presume, you entrusted him with finding and training your heir, didn't you? The man who could reunite the dragon and rebuild the ancient empire."

"A lucky guess." The King snarled, and the Sages looked at him, several raising eyebrows at the venom in his tone. "Speak then, if you know so much. Where is my heir?"

Alex sighed, softly. "Gone, now. Traveling the world, seeking greater wisdom and power to draw forth from his partners."

The King's eyes narrowed. "Then we shall await his return as he gathers wisdom. Your news is appreciated. Now leave, and be glad you do so with your life. We usually take it from those who see this place. Leave the dead to rest."

Alex shook his head, and continued speaking. "I cannot. Your heir, known to us only as N, failed to unite the dragon. He couldn't even envision it, after what Ghetsis subjected him to throughout his life." The King's eyes went wide, and the rage in them was obvious, but he kept speaking. "I'm guessing you told Ghetsis where to find your heir, but I know what he did after. All of Unova does, N himself told us as much." In reality, it had been more due to John Crimson's determination to unveil the story of Unova's greatest hero, but the result was the same. Unova had only cheered their Champion more once they knew his origins.

He went on then, to explain what he knew of N's history, how he'd grown up, and what Ghetsis had forged him into. How he'd eventually freed himself of that destiny, but never quite finished walking that path. How he'd become the Champion, and kept Unova safe from Ghetsis' madness for years. How he'd traveled across the lands that had once also been called a part of Unova with Zekrom, and kept them safe as well, and finally, how he and N had battled for the title of Unova's Champion, faced down the rampaging Kyurem, and reunited the dragon.

"So you see," Alex said, finishing his tale, "He never had the chance to become the King you wished for. He was diverted from that path the moment Ghetsis found him, turned into little more than a puppet with just enough knowledge to be a competent leader. He never understood Humans, he barely understood Pokémon, and even as the Champion, the idea that the three dragons were One was simply never pursued. Mankind attempted to fuse them again, and only managed it with Kyurem."

The rage in the King's eyes had faded to sorrow once more as the tale had continued. Once Alex finished speaking, he resumed the form of an orb, and left without a word, sinking deeper into the pyramidal structure, to the floors that were presumably below.

The seven remaining figures shared a look, and then as one, nodded. One of the Sages, whose green tinged clothing bore a green circle with a square within it on his shoulders and chest spoke then. "You have proven your worth, Tamer. By your hand you restored the dragon's balance, and kept Unova safe. You succeeded where our King's own bloodline failed. At the very least, you have proven worthy of taking the Trial of Eight Paths. We will determine if you are worthy of bearing the crown."

"And if I fail?" Alex asked.

The man's countenance grew grim, and this time the Sage whose red tinged clothing bore a circle with a red flame within it spoke. "Failure means death. You must be willing to give everything, to become this land's rightful King. Will you face the Trial?"

Alex nodded.

The man with the green markings spoke again, as the seven other ghosts did as the King had, and floated into the lower levels. "Come, then. I will be your first challenge." With that, he vanished as well, and below the steps leading to the throne, another staircase of stone appeared. Though it seemed just as old, it had not been exposed to millennia of water, that much was evident.

The Path of Earth

Alex descended the stairs, until he came to a doorway that lacked a door. Above it, the words 'Path of Earth' appeared in the language of the Unown. He stepped through the doorway, and a wall of hardened stone rose behind him, sealing it off.

The ghost from before appeared again. Though it was hard to tell in the light of the throne room, he'd noticed each of the sage's phantasmal forms had a colored tint to them. This was what had made their clothing appeared colored, despite being ghosts. "Welcome. I expect you have many questions."

Alex smirked. "You have no idea."

The ghost seemed to chuckle at that. "Ask then, and I will do my best to sate your curiosity."

Though a torrent of questions came to mind, Alex paused, until he thought of one that seemed more important on an instinctual level. "What is the nature of this Trial?"

The ghost tilted his transparent head, as if eyeing the Trainer for the first time. "What a question. This Trial was designed by the Original Dragon, and ourselves, to test the aptitude of those who would be King."

Alex smirked. "But there's more to it, isn't there?"

The ghost nodded. "By traveling each of the Eight Paths successfully, you will unlock your true power. Each of the dragon's candidates possesses such potential, always, but only this Trial will draw it forth."

"How, exactly?" Alex said, arching a brow. "I'm already stronger than most Humans, and I don't really need more strength. Nor do I desire it."

"Oh, but you will require it, and soon, should you succeed here." The ghost said, nodding as only a Sage could, "There are many Humans who can match, and surpass, your current level. A true King must transcend all others. Now, let us begin."

The ghost's form sank into the floor, and the square blocks that made up the simple chamber flared green, before fading away to white nothingness. Alex looked around, reminded of Tao's world. The Sage's voice echoed again, "Kings are brave. Kings never lose hope. No matter what they face."

The blankness shifted, and an image straight from his memory appeared around him. The green tinged ghost stood beside him, as they watched the memory unfold. There he was, younger and with a patchy face full of newly grown beard, as he stood in the midst of an icy cavern, surrounded by two Legendary Dragons, and his childhood hero. Kyurem stared him down, and beckoned him forward for battle.

The scene shifted again. Arceus floated before him this time, and the Sage gasped in shock as it unleashed a Judgement attack upon the figure before it, who spread his arms wide, and welcomed it. Only now, seeing it from a different perspective, did Alex recall actually raising his arms. He'd done it on instinct, then. He hadn't even noticed. He'd been more focused on his failure and imminent death at the time.

More scenes followed. He faced down Tao himself, on the verge of rampaging, and calmed him. He flew into battle atop his Charizard as they faced down a golden Groudon. He faced down the Forces of Nature, and willingly battled their leader into submission. He dove headlong into the enormous wind wall that surrounded Norstad, atop his black Salamence.

As the scene shifted to him stepping into Rayquaza's volcano and being struck by the Storm Crown's power, the Sage turned and looked at him. The scene paused, and stopped moving forward. "You bear the Storm Crown?" Alex nodded. "I see…then the dragon's will is made clearer." He waved a hand, and the visions continued.

Another slight gasp came as he saw the maw of the World Eater snap behind Alex and Shruikan, as they led the great beast towards his doom. He'd never realized just how close those jaws had come. It was a matter of inches. The memories increased in speed as they flew by, more for the ghost's benefit than his own by this point, or so he assumed. His journey across the continent had included several close calls, and eventually, the room portrayed his current predicament.

The shadowy form of what could only be Caleb Pravus loomed over him, and those terrifying red eyes he'd displayed in Uppsalir filled the room. The ghost nodded. "I understand now. War has come once more. You were right to take this Trial." He pondered for a minute, and then spoke again. "You have faced down dangers most Tamers of my era would have run from. Even some of our Kings would not have held fast before the World Eater himself."

He gestured to the still-looming presence of Pravus. "This fear is different, though. You've seen the effect he has on the common people, and how easily he controls them. You've seen him go toe-to-toe with a being our species once labeled a God. Your fear is justified, but you must let it go. Do not allow it to hinder you, to cause you to pause. You faced down each of these tests by remaining steadfast. Your actions were well-intentioned, and honorable. Hold true to your courage, Tamer, and you will make a fine King."

Alex, for his part, nodded, and let the apprehension he'd had about facing Pravus down melt away. He might very well die if he faced Pravus as Thor had, in mortal combat. But if nobody faced him at all, his home, his people, his allies, would all be turned to little more than slaves. Jess entered his thoughts. There were worse fates as well for the women of the east. The Arceans were disgustingly blunt about wanting to 'breed with ideal females' as they called it. He felt his resolve burn to life, and a surge of energy ran up his spine from its base, giving him chills.

"What…what was that?" He asked the ghost.

The green tinged figure grinned. "That, was the first step on your path to awakening. You have traversed the Path of Earth. Go on, Champion. Face your next trial, and be aware, my counterparts share my knowledge. The more they learn of you, the harder this will become."

The Path of Fire

"Great…" Alex muttered, as the room returned to normal. One of the walls opened, and he moved towards it. Another doorway without a door. Another inscription in the language of the ancients. 'Path of Fire'.

Within the next room, he found the red tinged ghost, bearing the mark of fire, meditating the same way he did. Legs crossed, floating in the air. Though each of the Sages looked different, this one had been the only one to have a long, thin mustache that dangled down past his chin. Long beards that would be at home on a storybook mage's countenance had been the norm with his peers.

The Sage did not waste time as Alex stepped before him. "A true King has the willpower to remain good and moral in the face of overwhelming evil. Shame, doubt, anger, fear, sorrow, these emotions will cloud your judgement, and make you susceptible to corrupting influences." He opened his eyes, and examined Alex. "I sense much anger in you, though you bury it well."

The room flared white, and once more, an image from his memory came forth. One he'd repressed. He couldn't be more than eight or nine, but unlike some of the other visions he'd seen in the previous chamber, this one had crystal clarity to it. It made sense. Negative events always left a larger impression, and were more easily recalled.

His younger self was on the playground of his local school, building a castle that, he realized now, looked remarkably similar to the Dragonspiral Tower. An ordinary day, at least for him. Alone, but suitably entertained in his solitude. And like most of his early days, this one included the arrival of a group of older children, each flanked by a Pokémon, as they circled him.

Their leader, a typical brat with a bandage across his nose, clad in red and black, stepped forward, stomping on his castle. "Alright Redwood. What've you got for us today?" His younger self held up handfuls of now-crushed sand, that slipped through his fingers. "Not good enough." The older boy bent to lift him up by his shirt, but his younger self stood, instead.

He'd been taller than most, even back then, and he glared the boy down, before pushing him away, and freeing his shirt collar. The boy stumbled back, and gave a command. "String Shot!" The boy's Cascoon sprayed his younger self with the sticky, purple substance, and his younger self struggled to move. The boy pushed him over then, and delivered a swift kick to his stomach. Alex winced, and he could swear he felt something stir in his stomach as well, but he was too focused on the image of his younger self.

With each kick, the sensation increased. That had been but one day, in the middle of years of such taunting. Always he was at a disadvantage, for he'd always lacked a partner. He felt sympathy from his team, but he ignored it. The old feeling of painful solitude was returning with a vengeance within him. Ein's sneering face filled his vision, and the room, as he taunted his seven year old self through the stages of grief. Pure, undiluted hatred built as he realized just how much he actually hated Doctor Ein. Being a generally chill person, it was rare for him to actually hate someone. There were those he disliked, those he saw as trash, due to their own choices, and he simply did not associate with those people, usually. But Frank Ein held a special place in his heart, as the direct source of his ruined childhood.

The red ghost eyed him, and the scene shifted once more. It was his father's study, back in their house, and he immediately knew which memory this was. His father had not been pleased that he'd earned a Trainer Card. "What were you thinking!?" His father shouted, slamming the desk angrily. "Sneaking off after we told you not to! Shirking your chores for weeks! All so you could do what, play around in the woods!? You are not a Trainer, Alex. You will never be a Trainer! You heard the Doctor, and I know you're not that Stupid!" Alex felt himself shudder, as he realized he had more than a bit of hate for his parents as well. He did love them, of course, his mom moreso. They hadn't beat him or anything. His mom often made very good food, and his dad had gotten him his car, probably so he could do endless menial tasks around town easier, but still, the amount of emotion he felt towards his father specifically in that moment, shocked and scared him.

The memory faded suddenly, and the room was empty. Normal. Even the red tinged ghost had vanished.

"We sure showed him, didn't we."

A cold chill went up Alex's spine, as his own voice came from behind him. He turned, and beheld a perfect likeness of himself, but something was off. He couldn't figure out what, though. The doppelganger kept speaking. "We were quite the little rebel! Playing with Pokémon every chance we had. Trying to Battle…though it wasn't like real Battling, was it?"

His clone chuckled. "Oh no, nothing could compare to that thrill. Well, almost nothing, right Leafhead?" Alex glared at himself. "Don't deny it. I'm you. We spent our wonderful teenage years getting stoned in Gruncle's basement, just so that we could get through every single Mukking day we were forced to live through without a Pokémon of our own."

Despite himself, Alex looked away from his clone. His words rang with too much truth. The copy of himself was in his vision though, no matter where he turned. "Now now, don't ignore me…I've been ignored enough! You remember, don't you? The pure, undiluted rage we felt for father…you never wanted to admit it, but it felt good to hate him. It was right. He wronged us, and you know it. He wronged us just like Doctor Ein did, that Bastard. Honestly, by comparison, you could say our father wronged us worse than Ein. It's his fault we spent half our life in misery! Ein gave the diagnosis, but it was our parents who bought into the Bouffalant Stool. You might have repressed the past, but I recall it clearly! A few good years will never change that…"

"And what are you?" Alex said, finally forcing himself to speak. "An illusion, nothing more. A trick. An amalgamation of bad memories."

The red ghost appeared then, standing between the two of them. "Not quite." He gestured to the clone. "He is as real as you are. He feels your feelings, thinks your thoughts, and if you fail to overcome him, it is he who will go on to walk the other paths. You, will remain here, and when he leaves, you will vanish into nothingness." The ghost grinned. "This is your Trial…" He raised his ghostly hands, and Alex looked down, noticing a familiar looking hilt in his palm. His plasma sword.

The snap-hiss of his blade filled the room, but it had not come from his weapon. Though similar to Lux's container, it was simpler in design, a combination of gray and black metal, all but identical to Eric's schematics. His doppelganger's blade was pure red, and it sparked with electricity. He activated his own, and found it to be similar, though the color was blue.

He barely moved his blade up in time, as the red-illuminated face of his clone struck, and forced a blade-lock, as he sneered. "Finally…I will be free…no more repression…no more being buried under your other emotions, forgotten, and left to fester…I will right the wrongs done to us, and I'll start with our dear old dad." The clone struck again, and it took Alex a second to realize his fighting style was the same as his own. His clone's eyes flared with psychic power, and the two identical humans clashed within the small room, moving with impressive speed. They spun into a blade lock, and then spun away, each using the spiraling motions that made up Tao's fighting style.

"Perhaps some music, to make this more appropriate!" His clone said, grinning as he gestured to the room. A familiar tune echoed in the chamber as violins started humming a low, but building beat and his opponent grinned, dragging the crimson blade along the stone of the floor as he stalked ever closer, not caring for the damage it did. "Remember this? From those old Earth games you enjoyed so much. A classic piece of music from the Old Earth orchestra they kept in the Pokémon Wars Saga. You immersed yourself in that nerdy nonsense to dull the ache of your life, your lack of friends and Pokémon. Do you remember what this one was called?" His clone smirked.

Alex grimaced. He knew as well as his doppelganger did, the name of this particular song, and as the music swelled, he finally gave in. He hated fighting. Battling was one thing. It was sport, to his people. A contest of strength and honor, but always one that had good natured emotions behind it, or was supposed to, anyway. For Alex Redwood, it wasn't about winning or losing. It never had been. It was about the thrill of battling alongside the partners of one's heart and mind. Of understanding one's opponent, and overcoming them with the bond Trainer and Pokémon shared. This, however, was not a battle. This was a duel.

He took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly, letting his nerves fade as he found his center. He met his own gaze, and smirked, as he saw an unnerved expression cross his own face. His clone hid it well, but these were his own features. He knew what he looked like when he was worried. He fell into the stance Tao had drilled into his muscle memory, and let his power course through him. It flared off his large form in waves of deep blue aura.

"Duel of the Fates." He looked down at his sword, and his smirk widened. "Appropriate. I couldn't have chosen better."

Rage came over his clone's expression, and with a yell, the two clashed once more. Sparks flew from their blades each time they hit. The speed of the music increased, and so did their strikes. The room shook, and Alex realized that his clone was every bit as good as he was. He needed an edge.

"Is this really the best I can do?" Alex smirked, as he yawned, and made a circular motion, disentangling their latest blade lock with one hand, as the other covered his mouth. "I thought you were supposed to be the embodiment of my wrath." He smirked at his clone, and raised his sword above his head, holding it horizontally, as his free hand made the universal gesture for 'bring it'.

"You want wrath!?" The veins in the clone's head bulged, and his psychic aura of power coalesced from faint waves, to a proper aura, not unlike Connor's had been. It was rounded at the bottom, and flared uncontrollably at the top. The color changed as well, from a lighter blue, to a deeper bluish-purple, more akin to dragon energy. Then it began to turn dark red, and his clone's form sparked with red lightning. "Repress this!"

His clone lunged again, and Alex barely managed to deflect the first strike. The others were just as strong, and his arms ached as they took the repeated impacts. Still, it had the desired effect. His form was sloppier. Slightly. He needed more goading. Alex gripped the blade with both hands now, and the impacts were slightly easier to handle. He forced them into a lock again, and the plasma hissed and screeched as the swords met.

"Is that it?" Alex managed, still outwardly smirking. "Years of being kicked around. Mocked. Insulted daily. Cast aside like a worthless dimwit without even being given a chance! Perhaps you're not as full of rage as you let on." He swallowed, as he saw the look in his clone's eyes change from incoherent fury, to the cold stare he'd reserved for those who had truly managed to piss him off. A chill went up his spine. Was that what he'd done to those who'd been on the business end of this glare?

"You want to see our rage? I'll show you our Mukking rage!" A wave of psychic and draconic energy slammed into the real Alex, sending him flying back into the stonework by the entrance to this chamber. He hadn't noticed, but this time, the door was blocked by fire. Another chill went up his spine as his doppelganger began speaking in the Dragon Tongue.

The draconic energy flared as the clone Shouted. "Mul! Qah! Diiv!" While the effects were not identical, they were close enough to the original Shout his other self was purposefully copying. His teeth grew longer, sharper, his hands were clawed, and red scales appeared across his face, and presumably, the rest of his body. His ears were pointed, and a pair of horns jutted up from his brow, and curled backwards, slightly. The copy of his hat had fallen to the ground, and his hair had become a similarly colored crest of red scales that trailed down under the white robe that covered his clone.

Alex grimaced as he looked over that which had once been himself. Twisted, and evil. That was what he would become if this clone was allowed to leave. Though, whether he could match him anymore was a mystery. He got his answer, as the crimson scaled form of his clone seemed to vanish, and he barely had time to duck as the crimson blade cut horizontally across the wall where he'd been standing a moment before.

He spun away, once more in his dragon stance, but he might as well have been hopping on one foot for all the good it did him. "They will all PAY!" His clone screeched as he slammed their blades together, and effortlessly forced his large form toward the other end of the room. Looking down, he saw that the clone's shoes had been torn apart by a pair of massive, clawed feet that could only be described as draconic. There were only three claws on them, but they had better traction than his shoes, and Alex grunted as the draconic aspect of himself slammed him into the other wall. He could feel the heat of his own blade pushing ever closer.

That, was when he recalled a useful trick from the aforementioned games their epic music had originated from. He Teleported behind the furious copy of himself, and once more fell into his stance. His own power flared, and instead of wildly billowing above him, it coalesced around him like armor, outlining his form with at least an inch of protection. Though how well it would hold up against focused plasma remained to be seen.

His clone charged him again, and once more, their blades locked. Once more, he was being driven towards a wall. A corner, this time. Evidently his clone planned on doing this as many times as it took to work. He knew as well as Alex did that his Teleport had limited uses, and he'd used quite a few of them today.

That was when he switched his blade off, ducked under the slash that followed with his opponent's momentum, and elbowed his clone in the abdomen. Despite being scaled and durable, his strike had hit with enough force to make the dragon-man gasp and let out a hacking cough. It stopped midway through, becoming a soft sigh as Alex reignited his weapon under his opponent's guard, and felt his sword slash across the abdomen, dealing a serious, if not fatal blow. Evidently, not even his scales would protect him from a weapon like this.

The power faded in a red mist, as his clone doubled over. His eyes were bloodshot, but they still retained some of the blue. Alex caught his clone as he fell, letting the blade he'd used for this fall to the ground. His doppelganger still seethed with rage, but it was dying out quickly. "Make…them pay…make all of them…suffer for…putting us through that…hell. We never…we never deserved it…"

Alex nodded, sagely. "We didn't. But we never gave up, did we? Every single person in our life, save one relative, told us to give up on being a Trainer. Even Jess thought that, though she never said it plainly. And we became the Champion anyways. These emotions you revel in…they helped get us there." He brought his clone close, in an embrace. "I never forgot you. All the rage, anger, sorrow…I always felt it. But I balanced it with the joy and love we gained once we finally had our chance…" He met his own eyes. "You are as much a part of me as every other emotion. Now come home." There was a warm sensation in his stomach as he felt the weight in his arms vanish, and once more, he felt power surge through his entire being, originating from his stomach.

The soft sigh of his clone was all that was left of him as his body vanished. Alex found himself kneeling in the red tinged chamber, and the similarly colored ghost rose up from the floor, arms crossed, one hand stroking his thin chin in thought. "I've rarely seen a manifestation with such raw power…and you still tamed it. You have walked the Path of Fire and come through unburnt. Advance to your next challenge."

The Path of Water

Alex bowed, and moved on to the door that appeared on one of the chamber's walls. Once he approached the next chamber, he looked up, reading the words once more. 'Path of Water'. He entered the chamber, and found it cooler, more refreshing than the previous one. The orb of spectral energy that was the blue ghost coalesced before him, and he blinked in surprise.

He hadn't noticed before, as he'd been placating the former King, but this ghost was undeniably female. She was beautiful, but had features akin to her fiery counterpart that marked her as hailing from Eous. Her voice was softer than the others, but just as confident and inherently wise. "Hmm. I was sure the fire would end you."

Alex raised a brow, and then smirked. "Fire cannot truly harm a dragon. Let alone one who would be King."

The ghost seemed to chuckle. "Keep telling yourself that, 'your highness'. A true King acts with love, and accepts all of his subjects. I've seen your memories. How do you expect to rule a people whose defining aspect of their society is the antithesis to everything you believe?"

Alex tilted his head. "I don't follow your thinking…"

The blue ghost walked around him in a clockwise circle. Like her counterparts, her ornate robes bore a symbol within a circle. A crescent moon, and three wavy lines that no doubt represented water, or the ocean. Like the others, it marked her shoulders, and her chest. There was no cleavage to speak of, which was in line with the clothing of ancient times, if he recalled correctly.

"The people of the west view Arceus in a manner that is entirely foreign, both to you, and the Original Dragon. They worship him with blind devotion, and are so bound to their Prophet, they would, and have, gladly maimed themselves to demonstrate their loyalty." As she spoke, the room shifted with her words, though this time, the image was not from his memory.

It was the interior of an Arcean Church. Having never been inside one, Alex looked around, curious, and realized that it was disturbingly similar in layout to the numerous Pokémon Stadiums that littered the world. A circle of plain chairs in rows that stretched to the building's ceiling surrounded a central raised dais, upon which was a pulpit for speaking. Behind it, was the Arcean Cross, supporting the Alpha's symbol for all to see. Around the chairs, images of Caleb Pravus's admittedly appealing features, a bit exaggerated naturally, adorned the walls and free spaces in the form of paintings, and statues.

The ghost spoke again. "You've seen how the Church negatively impacts its followers, but you've completely ignored the beneficial aspects of cult worship that the Fornians have incorporated into their cultural psyche."

Alex frowned. "I fail to see how forced brainwashing is beneficial to anyone."

The ghost nodded. "And thus you've remained blind to a potential weak spot in an enemy, or even a beneficial way of thinking for your own would-be empire."

Alex's frown deepened. "I will not subject my people to brainwashing. Of any kind. I couldn't care less what they believe in, it's what that belief drives them to do that I intend to stop."

The ghost's arms were linked in her kimono-esque robes. She raised a perfect eyebrow at him. "And what happens when you claim victory over Fornia? Let us pretend for a moment that you win this war you are not prepared for. You march into Sacreus, burn the city, and kill the Prophet in an epic clash that will be sung about in Unova for millennia to come. Is the Church going to disappear because you've cut off its' head?"

"Well I-" Alex started, but the ghost cut him off.

"Is the faith and belief in Arceus going to vanish from the hearts of Fornians simply because you, an invading and victorious conqueror, tell them to stop believing so blindly? What are you going to offer them in its place? Science? They know more about genetics than your Professors could learn in a lifetime. They have machines capable of shooting elemental energy as easily as projectile weapons fire bullets. Your scientific mindset is not going to sway them. Pravus has already blended their beliefs with the basic truths of the universe. Are they going to stop following the Prophet of Arceus's command to kill you on sight simply because you dismantle their Church?" The ghost eyed him expectantly, and he was allowed to answer this time.

"I expect not."

The ghost sighed. "Consider this your Trial then, you who would be King. Half of a continent's worth of Human lives will be affected by your actions. Many already have been. The people of Fornia have held these beliefs for centuries. How do you expect to free them from this?"

"I don't know!" Alex finally said, raising his voice. He looked down at his feet. "If I had my way, they would have never been subjected to this foulness in the first place."

"And many would likely be happier for that." The ghost said. "But you cannot change what has already happened. Not without angering the God of Time. Bad things happen. All over the world, and many of these things are much, much worse than indoctrination into a Cult that fills the basic needs of living for millions of people. What do you intend to do about these terrible things? As King, your actions will eventually affect the world as a whole as well, like a stone cast into a calm lake. Can you truly handle that responsibility?"

Alex thought for a long moment, and as he always did when faced with a philosophical question that stumped him, he relied on Tao's teachings. "What can I do, but try to prevent what atrocities I am able to stop? I can't be everywhere. Even as a King. Even if I could Teleport freely, anywhere in the world, I could never stop all of it."

The ghost nodded, and smiled. "The dragon's wisdom has reached you, then. That is promising. Now, answer the question I first posed. How do you expect to free the people of Fornia from the stranglehold their Church has on them? How will you prevent the rise of another Pravus?"

He thought again, and then the ghost's own words echoed in his skull. "A true King acts with love, and accepts his subjects, no matter who, or what, they are." He nodded, feeling more confident in his answer, though the ghost's face was as impassive as his own usually was. "All I can do is try to show the people of Fornia what they have lost in their blind pursuit of their Church's 'divine truth'. Families torn asunder. Childhoods ruined. Genetic experiments. Shadow Infusion of Pokémon Eggs. Murder, destruction of the land, these are just a few of the Church's own actions that, without Pravus, I can illuminate. They can't ignore my words forever. Even if I have to go to every single one of them and convince them face to face, I will free them from this oppressive mindset."

As he spoke, he felt a strange sensation in his stomach. Then, he realized it wasn't his stomach, but his abdomen. A surge of energy moved through him, cooling the heat that the Path of Fire had seared him with. The ghost smiled again. "I believe you. I've seen the strength of your willpower, as well as the power of your Voice. If anyone can reach the Fornians and help them rejoin the world in peace and prosperity, I believe it is you. The dragon has, as always, chosen well. Remember my words, Champion, and move on to your next test."

The Path of Air

The wall of water that blocked his path backward remained in place, and another entrance appeared on the opposite wall of the chamber. Alex bowed, and continued on. If he was being truthful, the issue of the Fornian's indoctrination had been one both he and Tao had been unable to find a solution to, but after this, he expected the dragon would agree with using Words over violence.

He was, like Alex, not a violent creature. Pravus had earned his fate, but his followers yet had a chance to be redeemed. Most of them, anyway. He sighed, pausing against the wall of the tunnel that connected the Path of Water to wherever he was heading next. He almost would've preferred another plasma duel. Almost. He hummed the tune of the Duel of the Fates as he moved on to the next room.

As with the others, the door to the next room bore the same lettering. It read 'Path of Air'. He moved into the room, and blinked, as it resembled, strongly, the rock garden that Tao had in his other Tower, the one that resided on another plane.

"Look familiar?"

The voice that echoed through the square room was lighter, but unmistakably masculine. An airy spherical orb floated before him, and coalesced into the pale gray form of a bald man, with a short beard that resembled a chin strap. On his robes was a circle similar to the other three, though this one had a swirl of gray and blue within it, that evidently represented air.

Alex nodded. "It looks like the one Tao has in his…other tower."

"So it does." The ghost nodded, and smiled. "What brings you to me, you who would be King?"

Alex blinked. "Erm. I'm trying to complete the Trial. I'm here to walk the Path of Air."

The ghost nodded, still smiling. He was sitting cross-legged in the air, and his hands, both curled into fists, joined at the knuckles. They weren't threatening, however, as the pose seemed more meditative than anything. "And how do you think one walks such a Path?"

Alex thought for a moment, and then floated into the air, mimicking the ghost's sitting position with a smirk. This brought a chuckle from him, that devolved into a full-bellied laugh. "Oh…oh that's good. I set myself up for that one. It's been an age since I've had such a clever challenger. Literally."

Alex smiled as well. This ghost was one he inherently liked, and he suspected he'd been friendly with Tao as well. Had he yet lived, he expected the two of them would've become good friends. "I'm glad I could entertain you. Now then, might I ask what this test will entail?"

The ghost nodded. "To open your next Chakra, there are several lessons you need to know, though judging by your partners, you already know them!" He chuckled again.

Alex blinked. "Open my what now?"

The ghost blinked as well. "Has…nobody told you? Surely you've studied the secret behind the ancient King's powers. Nay, you must have felt them opening. You wouldn't be here if they were still closed."

Alex shook his head. "Most of the knowledge of the old empire was lost in the war that the two brothers started. What we know now was only kept alive via oral traditions, until someone wrote it all down again, but much of that is considered historically questionable, and with the return of Tao, much has been revealed to be false."

The ghost sighed. "I see. I never liked those boys, but I believe the one who sought Truth would have ruled us better. I have always been partial to living in the light, though." He shook his head, and put aside the topic of the ancient 'heroes' for a moment. "The surges of power you've been feeling after each test. Have you not wondered what they are? Has the increase in your strength not been significant?"

Alex shrugged. "I was told that this test would grant me more power. I just assumed it came in bursts. Evidently there's more to it…?"

"So much more!" The ghost exclaimed. "I would've thought the dragon would tell you of what exactly this Trial does, no?" His eyes went wide. "You do know what happens if you fail to open them all, right?" Seeing the blank look on Alex's face, the man frowned. "How has nobody explained this to you!? This is why I should go first. Air is first in the cycle anyways!" He sighed again.

"Perhaps…" Alex said carefully, "You should start from the beginning. Explain it now. Knowledge acquired late is better than total ignorance."

That brightened the ghost's expression, and his demeanor became cheerful again. His moods seemed to shift as often as the wind changed direction. Which was appropriate, he assumed. "True enough! Knowledge is indeed power, and if the empire's knowledge is gone, you must not know anything! Do we at least still have contact with Koria?"

Alex raised a brow. "Koria? They're on the other side of the planet. Moreover, that's Imperium territory. If you value your freedom, you avoid the Imperium. That's just common sense."

The ghost stared at him for a minute. "Imperium? Wait…the Imperium of Man? They're still around!? How in the name of the Dragon's divine dong did the Imperium of Man outlast our own empire!?"

Alex blinked. "The Original Dragon has a dong? Odd. He implied he didn't have…parts." When it came to typically genderless Legendary Pokémon, he went by the tone of their psychic voice. They could, after all, change it on a whim. He'd always assumed it was based on preference.

The ghost laughed again. "Oh, he does, hence the masculine terms we use to refer to him. He simply lacks the urges that drive Humanity. Well. Not so much 'lacks' as ignores entirely. It's hard to procreate when you're literally one of a kind. Anyways!" he said, waving a hand, "On to the topic of Chakras."

Alex nodded, listening attentively. It wasn't all that different from how he'd been educated by Tao himself. Many of their philosophical lessons had occurred in his rock garden. The ghost began explaining. "Chakras are pools of energy within oneself. They flow throughout your body…much like a river. Unfortunately, some aspects of this material world can block the flow of this energy, and without training, it becomes blocked off, and useless, trapped behind the emotional baggage of one's life."

Understanding flooded Alex, and he spoke as the ghost paused. "And this Trial is meant to unclog those…energy pools, and thus, the King appears to be powerful…"

"When in reality, he is as strong as anyone who has learned to let their energy flow." The ghost finished. "For you though, there is much more energy than normal. Such is always the case with the candidates the dragon chooses. This too, is why the Kings of old were so strong. The dragon would seek out these powerful individuals, and teach them his ways, unlock their power, and with it, they maintained peace in the Empire. The last King's sons never took this Trial, and while they were educated in the dragon's teachings, they never proved worthy of the crown, or attained the power their father did. Instead of making one of them face the Trial, the dragon chose to side with both of them, rather than tear the empire apart with civil war... Alas…it tore apart anyway."

Alex nodded. Their offspring had gone on to have a war anyways, with Unova as their battlefield. The final conflict had seen both Reshiram and Zekrom, emboldened by rage, truth, and ideals, clash repeatedly, and destroy much of Unova in the process. "I think I get it…so how do I open this…Air Chakra?"

The ghost chuckled. "A true King lets love and good emotions guide his actions. He uses them, to fight against the hatred that is unfortunately so common in the world. Or rather…used to be. I sense much has changed over the millennia. This is not a bad thing. This Chakra's energy is located in the heart, and is blocked by grief. I sense much grief within you, though you've buried it deep. What makes your heart so heavy?"

Alex looked away, face becoming impassive. "My…granduncle. He passed, recently. Not even Tao could heal him."

The ghost tilted his head. "Tao?"

Alex nodded. "The Original Dragon. I gave him a nickname."

At that, the ghost burst into laughter again. "Oh! The stones on this one! You gave a nickname to a creature of the Alpha, formed from the energy of Creation itself! Oh, oh ho ho! That is…genuinely amusing. But fitting! Very well. Tao. It works, I think." He made an 'ahem' sound. "Now then, you were speaking of your granduncle?"

Alex looked away again, then sighed. It had taken a Trial he couldn't afford to fail to finally face this particular demon, and as he felt the grief, he understood how it was blocking his energy. "He was the only family I had that believed I could be a Trainer...the only adult, anyways. He never gave up on me. He taught me everything I know. It's…a darker world without him in it."

The ghost nodded, his jovial amusement faded now. "I see. You are versed in…Tao's teachings, yes?" Alex nodded. "Then you know about the energy that makes up…" He gestured to Alex.

Alex blinked. "You just gestured to all of me."

The ghost chuckled lightly. "Indeed, and that is exactly the point. All of what makes you who you are, the energy that formed in the unique pattern that is your conscious mind, that never truly fades away. Energy cannot be destroyed, young Redwood. Only changed in form. The energy of life is infinite. An infinite Spiral of infinite possibility, if one can but reach for it." He gave the Trainer a minute to process his words. It was something he'd already learned, as it was literally basic science, but hearing it again drove the ghost's point home.

An ephemeral hand touched his shoulder. "The love your granduncle had for you has not left this world. It still lives, within you, within your memories of him, and perhaps, even in Arceus' own realm. He is a loving Alpha, and if your granduncle is the kind of man who could produce a student that has passed three of these Trials, I think he has found a spot amongst those of our kin the Alpha deems worthy to spend eternity with.

Alex smirked. "I don't think he'd like spending an eternity with a deity."

The ghost nodded. "Indeed, I got the sense from your recollections that he was a man of science and knowledge. Fret not though, Arceus is a being who can be...very rational. Now, as I said, energy can only change in form, and should one wish it, one may re-enter the world as whatever they wish. A bug. A Pokémon. Another Human. Some stay in the Alpha's realm for uncountable millennia, but eventually, everyone wants to experience this prime material plane once more. Even if doing so causes them to forget who they are…for a time. The urge to live…it's instinctual, even for a ghost."

Alex raised a brow. "What of you then? Do you not want to re-enter the cycle?"

The ghost nodded. "I feel the pull every day. The urge to come back. But if I did, the Trial would be incomplete. My knowledge would vanish until whatever I returned as passed on, and even then, who knows if I would ever remember all of it. No, the dragon commanded I stay to test and educate the Kings of the future, and if my happiness must pay the price for that, then I pay it gladly."

"Thank you…" Alex said, forcing himself to smile. Slightly. "Perhaps someday I can find another to take your place. Then you can all, finally, move on, hmm?"

The ghost shook his head. "My duty is eternal, young Redwood. I will be here, even after you and your long legacy are gone. But I appreciate the sentiment."

The ghost removed his hand, and nodded at the Trainer. "Now, let the sorrow and the grief flow away. You may yet meet your granduncle again. Or you may not. Either way, I do not believe he would want your thoughts of him to hinder you. Remember the kindness he showed you, and go forward knowing that it will never truly leave you. More than most, it has shaped who you have become."

It took several minutes, but eventually, as the ghost said, the memories of the many, many fun times they'd shared eased the heaviness in his heart. He was right, in a sense. The Professor's legacy went beyond just himself, too. He felt the energy surge again, and noticed that it was indeed quite a large pool. If the ghost was to be believed, it would only grow larger. He hoped he could contain it.

"So passes another walker on the Path of Air. Move forward, Champion, and remember what you have learned." Alex stood as the ghost spoke, and let his feet touch the ground once more, though if he wished it, he felt he could've floated with ease. Even with his oversized body.

He bowed, fist to palm. "Thank you, wise Air Sage. I will keep what you've taught me in my heart." The ghost returned the bow, and smiled as he watched what was likely but the first of many Redwoods to come, proceed in his trials.

The Path of Light

Alex moved on to the next room, genuinely curious as to what it would be, now the four basic elements had been covered. He read the letters at the entrance of the next door. 'Path of Light'. That, more than anything, piqued his interest. Learning about Light energy would be invaluable against a man who'd found a way to infuse Shadow into eggs, amongst other things. He stepped quickly past the threshold, into yet another square room. At least, he assumed it was square. The blinding golden light within seared his vision, and he brought the brim of his hat down, though it did little to help.

Eventually, the light coalesced into a golden colored ghost, who bowed to him in the Unovan style. Arceus' symbol adorned his robes where the elemental symbols had adorned the others, on the shoulders, and the front of the chest. His gray beard easily went down to his waist, and his ephemeral eyes were kind. "Greetings, you who would be King. Welcome, to the Path of the Light."

Alex bowed as well. "Thank you. Tell me, what must I do to…wait a minute…I know you!"

The ghost blinked. "What? You…do?"

Alex nodded. "We lost much knowledge in the ancient war, but not all. Not the face of the man who advanced our world's technological capabilities by leaps and bounds thank to his scientific research!" He bowed again, lower this time, and in the formal style Jess had made him practice to perfection. "It is a genuine honor to meet you, Professor Aristole."

The man smirked under his golden beard. It was full and curly, and unlike the other ghosts, he'd apparently kept his hair fairly short. "It is…a relief, I will admit, to know my work has not been forgotten, or unappreciated. Now then, on to the Trial. I've learned much of you, Alexander Redwood, over the course of these trials. I know you have the ability to Teleport, as I once did, and this means you must already possess part of the understanding required to unlock this Chakra."

Alex nodded, and the ghost continued on, one finger raised, as if he were lecturing. It was, in fact, the exact pose the Aristole Archive in Castelia City had him immortalized in by way of a statue. "Tell me, Tamer. Why do you wish to be King?"

Alex tilted his head. "Unova needs a leader, and the dragon has deemed that the time to reunite our fractured land has finally come. He's chosen me to lead them. Until I die, or he finds someone better."

The golden ghost nodded, and looked him over a second time. "And what of when this war ends, hmm? For one way or another, it must surely end. What then will you do with your Kingly title? Pass it off to another?"

Alex blinked. "I…hadn't really considered that."

"Consider it now, young defender of men. One must always be mindful of the future, especially a King." The ghost gave him another smile, but there was a glint of light in his eyes that seemed to indicate he was enjoying this.

Alex thought over what he knew of the man, and then nodded. He'd been famous for teaching, and his students had been a large part of what held Unova together after the empire fell apart. Now, he was likely going to try to educate him, as well. He met the ghost's eyes. "Defender of men?"

The ghost nodded. "Your name. Were you not aware of its meaning?"

Alex shook his head. "No…but it's starting to seem appropriate…very well…once this war ends, I suppose I'll do my best to rule. If I turn out to be terrible at it, someone else will be taking this Trial I imagine."

The ancient Professor chuckled. "And what if you turn out to be great at it? What if, under your rule, this continent flourishes in a manner it hasn't experienced since last the dragon was whole?"

Alex frowned, slightly. "Speak plainly, Professor. If there's a point you're trying to get at, I'm not seeing it."

The room shifted to blinding white, and then, as with the others, displayed an image. An image of the world. From his perspective, Alex and Aristole were standing above it. "Consider our planet." The ghost began, gesturing at the world. Lines appeared across it, and it took him a minute to realize they were the boundaries humans had drawn on their maps. "Many cultures, many peoples, many civilizations. For eons, we have fought each other in the name of one of these things. One culture does not like another. One kingdom invades a neighbor to gain more resources, power, and land." The lines shifted as he spoke, and he blinked at Unova and Fornia. They were the more recently drawn ones. "Over and over the cycle repeats, and when a leader dies, the result is usually a fracturing of everything said leader created. Our last King is no exception to this rule. Nor, I expect, will you be."

Alex shrugged. "Tao told me the Storm Crown would turn my body immortal, provided I'm not slain by way of a weapon. In fact, he implied disintegration would be the only thing that would stop my regeneration."

The ghost nodded. "Such is the power of the Storm Crown. What do you know of its history?"

Alex shrugged again. "Very little. Rayquaza and Tao have never told me much of it."

The ghost chuckled. "I expect they haven't. If you were aware of it, you might not want to bear it. Yet bear it you must." Alex raised a brow, but the ghost continued on. "Once donned, the Crown cannot be removed, until your disintegration. In you, our wise dragon has finally created a Human with a lifespan long enough to, perhaps, realize his ultimate dream."

Alex crossed his arms. "He hasn't mentioned this dream to me."

Another chuckle. "I expect he wouldn't. The dragon is a private being, always waiting for the right moment to impart knowledge so that he may turn things in his favor, but always remember, his dream is what guides his actions and words. It is the base of his truths, the heart of his ideals."

"And what dream would that be?" Alex asked.

The ghostly Professor gestured at the world, and Alex watched. Slowly, the lines began to shift. First, Unova covered the whole continent it had once reigned over. Then, the border stretched south. Then across the ocean. Slowly, to every region, land, and government. The end result was a single, unified, globe-spanning empire.

Alex stared, not quite believing what he was seeing. "Are you telling me the most peaceful being I know is ultimately after world domination?"

The ghost laughed then, and nodded. "Indeed. Though I imagine that phrase still carries the negative connotations it once did. The dragon confided in me during my life, and told me of the world he envisioned. A utopia, where all of Humanity and Pokémon could live and flourish together. But not just on this planet. Across the stars, as well."

Alex shook his head. "I…I don't believe it. Humanity already tried the interstellar empire thing. It didn't even last a century before the colonies demanded independence, and started a war. That war ended our interstellar journey permanently. That's basic history."

A subtle change came over the ghost, and Alex had a feeling he was about to finally reach his main point. "This is true. But do you know what happened to those colonies, after their war?"

Alex shrugged. "I imagine the old governments of Earth eradicated them, their families, and then nuked their planets. We were…a very violent people. Nothing good happened to them."

The Professor shook his head. "In actual fact, one of my students discovered an ancient document. 'The Mars Accord'. Evidently, all of the colonies, and the Earth, agreed to a ceasefire and to cut all communications and trade. Given what we know of ancient history, this was likely around the time our home planet was rapidly falling into chaos as the environment lost its balance, and pushed Humanity to the edge of survival."

Alex stared at the ghost. "So…what, you expect me to conquer the world, head into space, reunite the old colonies, if they even live still, and then…what? Spread across the universe?"

"If you manage to achieve world peace on Earth, would you not want that to be shared by our forgotten brethren? What of other sentient species? What if our Human methods of unity could help them keep from murdering each other as well? What of primitive races, still growing? What if we could enlighten them, and lift them up to join us in the stars? Is this not an ideal future to pursue?" The ghost eyed him, expectantly.

"I mean…" Alex thought for a moment. Then a longer moment. A minute. Five. The more he thought about it, the less absurd it seemed. He was, according to beings created by a genuine deity, a human who'd achieved immortality. At the very least, his span of years would be longer than most. He asked himself, for the first time since donning the Storm Crown, what kind of immortal he intended to be. One like Percy? Going around the world, influencing people, entire cultures, with knowledge from old video games? He could, he realized, do more. A lot more.

Then, his realistic skeptic side kicked in. Humanity would never stop killing each other long enough to get along. There was too much hate. He'd likely be killed by it long before he ever made it to space. "It is a good dream." He said, finally, "But no more than a dream. You are not an idiot, you know how our species acts. Our default is violence. We stab each other in the back the first chance we get, all so that we may climb to heights of power and wealth on the backs of others, and live in absurd comfort for our brief span of years. Humanity will never overcome its greed. Not as long as Money is our God."

"Those…" The ghost said, "Are not your words. They are your granduncle's. Realism can be a useful thing to have. Skepticism has it uses as well, but you should know by now, all it takes for the greedy to control our world is good men, like you, with the power to change what we are, standing aside and doing nothing to stop them. Do you intend to spend your years watching Humanity devour itself over and over again?"

"No." Alex said, before he could contemplate the question. He knew he was the kind of person who would act. He'd never hesitated in trying to help before.

"Will you stand idly by as unworthy men try to achieve this dream before you?" The ghost asked.

Alex blinked. "What do you mean?"

"The Storm Crown is a unique item. It was originally bestowed by the Alpha unto the Human he deemed worthy of Taming him." Alex's eyes went wide, but the ghost continued, "Once he died, it passed to another, the Successor, who reveled in its power and brought destruction wherever he went. Others saw this power, and claimed it for themselves. Ninety-nine times it passed through the hands of different Humans, each one killing their predecessor just so that they could enjoy the crown's gifts. Eventually, Tao had your Rayquaza take it from them, the way a parent takes a dangerous item from a child. We were not ready to bear it during the Dark Times, but now, here you stand, crowned and tested. Unless my instincts are wrong for the first time in my afterlife, you will pass this Trial."

Alex stayed silent as the Professor continued. "I ask again, Champion of Unova. What do you intend to do with these gifts of life and power?"

He sighed. "What can I do that better men have not already tried? I can't erase the borders." He said, gesturing to the Earth. At his words, the lines reappeared. "We're too divided. The Imperium and Eous alone would be impossible. They've been fighting for centuries. There is too much hate. Too many divisions. One person can't remove all of them."

"The last one to Tame Arceus did." The Professor's words were quiet, and Alex realized his tone had risen above civilized levels. "For a brief time, he managed to unite the world. Would that the Storm Crown had been on his head longer. By the time he donned it, he was already lost to our mortal coil. You, though, have a chance to succeed where he failed."

Alex opened his mouth to speak, but the ghost cut him off, and gestured at their planet. "You should know this already, you who would be King. These lines…" He gestured at them, and they vanished, revealing the Earth as it was. "They are Human inventions. Little more than an illusion. A true King accepts all beings. Something you are more than capable of doing, based on your training so far."

Seeing it before him drove it home, and he felt a surge of energy in his forehead. His third eye opened, and the world took on a new appearance. He gasped. Lines of energy surrounded and connected the planet, gathering at various points across the globe. Everything was connected, and he realized that unless he did something, humans and Pokémon would continue to walk down the same violent path they always came back to. They'd be trapped in this cycle forever, as they had for the past ten millennia since Arceus departed. They would continue to rise and fall in an endless cycle. Unless someone broke it.

"I understand." He said, finally. "I will remember your words, Professor. I have to ask, though…N seems like he was far, far better prepared to achieve this…ultimate destiny of our people. He can do things with numbers that make my head throb. How am I supposed to lead without that kind of knowledge?"

At his words, the Professor frowned. "That knowledge was passed to the one you call Ghetsis by our last King, but this did not ensure Ghetsis in turn prepared the Harmonia heir with everything he learned here. The King is capable of passing it to you, as well. He has the means. Whether he will actually give it, is another question entirely. One that depends on you, and your actions. Now go. Your next challenge awaits."

The Path of Resonance

Alex continued on from the chamber, pondering the ancient Professor's words. After that, he genuinely had no idea what awaited him next, and as he approached the next doorway, every bit as identical as the other five had been, he read the words at the top. The 'Path of Resonance'. He blinked. A sound-based trial?

He supposed he'd find out, and he continued on to the chamber itself. He found yet another square room, and the only thing that made it unique was a spiraling staircase that ascended upwards, with no railing to keep one who ascended it safely on the steps. A familiar orb of gray light hovered by the stairs, and it gave off a twinkling sound as it bobbed in the air, and then ascended upwards.

Alex followed, and soon realized the stairs did not require a railing. They were surrounded on all sides by rock once they reached the ceiling. He kept climbing, eventually floating as the monotony of climbing steps was straining even his legs, made strong by countless hours of training and travel.

Finally, he came to a much larger room, and as he glanced at the floor, he realized it was the very room he'd entered through when he'd first come to the ruins. It had changed, though. The maze of walls had sunk into the floor, and a staircase had appeared in the center, not far from the one he'd just left.

The gray ghost manifested before the stairs, and he was greeted not by a man or woman, but by a mask, plain and unreadable. The figure's robes bore a G-clef on the chest and shoulders, and said robes did much to hide the shape of the ghost.

As it spoke, Alex's usual method of determining gender failed, as it had two voices, male and female, and they blended together perfectly. "Welcome, you who would be King. You have already unlocked your Voice's power, so for this Trial, you shall aid me in setting the stage for your final tests."

Alex gave a short bow to the figure. "I am at your service."

The ghost seemed to chuckle, and its voice switched to the Dragon Tongue. "A true King can stir the hearts of their people with their Words. A true King does not speak lies, and refrains from divisive speech. This is something you have not always succeeded with, and even now, your Voice is being twisted, Dragonborn."

Alex blinked, but before he could ask how, the chamber was alight with Pravus's voice, crowing to his followers about how he'd captured 'hard evidence' of the Unovan Champion's supposed bigotry. Said evidence was, quite obviously, pieced together from different recordings but he supposed with enough fear and delusion, one could believe it was genuine.

The ghost's mask shifted to a sly, smirking expression as it watched him fidget uncomfortably. "Is your skill at Tinvaak so weak that you will let it be turned by a machine?"

"Nid."

The Word reverberated through the chamber, and the ghost shuddered visibly. "Interesting…the Storm Voice has grown strong within you, who would be King…unleash it! Raise this ancient ruin, this seat of our people's ancient power, and show your people the strength of your Voice!"

Alex looked around the room, but saw no other path forward. He only hoped the raising of this structure didn't accidentally hurt anyone. He let his Su'um build, and then, began to speak. As he did, he felt the newly gathered energy in his body flow through his throat, and his Words seemed stronger than they ever had before.

"Alok, hil do faal Lokoltei.

(Rise, heart of the Empire.)

Naal dii Zul dreh hi daal wah lein. Alok.

(By my Voice do you return to the world. Rise.)

Naal dii Su'um fen faal Dovah Lokoltei daal. Alok.

(By my Breath will the Dragon Empire return. Rise.)

Naal dii Fen dreh faal Dovah Krund daasin ont zos. Alok.

(By my Will does the Dragon Throne surface once more. Rise.)

Aal nunon bahlaan praal voknau nii."

(May only the worthy sit upon it.)

The ghost eyed him as he spoke, head tilting at his choice of words. The mask shifted to a smile though, so he assumed that was a good thing. It took a moment for the reverberating Words to stop echoing in the chamber, but as they did, the entire room began to shine, and the ghost gave a bow as the entire structure rumbled, and did as it was commanded.

"You have mastered the ancient tongue. Normally, this part of the Trial would take days. I have never seen it finished so quickly." The ghost bowed. "Ascend to the final challenge, you who would be King. Rise…or die." The figure vanished then with a genuinely disturbing giggle, and Alex headed towards the staircase to the top, even as the building continued to shake of millennia of silt and dirt build-up. It said much of his Voice that it continued to rise, despite the metric tons of weight upon it. Not even Tao's tower had been so deeply buried, but then, nobody had wanted to bury the Dragonspiral.

The last King Harmonia had not been a popular man, once his sons and grandsons tore their capital, and their dragon, apart with genuinely senseless war for centuries.

The Path of Battle

The stairs led up to another level, and seemed to continue. Alex would have gone straight up, had something not caught his Trainer's eye. A familiar shape, a battlefield, and an opponent upon it. Their eyes met, and Alex stopped ascending. It was too late to back off now. He didn't need a sign to guess what kind of Trial this would be. His team, thus far watching his progress, stirred from their earned rest, ready to battle. Their Trainer's awakening power had revitalized them, and the surging energy had only made them all eager to prove their worth. Even the young ones.

The palace structure stopped shaking by the time Alex reached his side of the field. His opponent was another ghost, one Alex hadn't been able to make out clearly before. Now, he knew why. An appearance like this would've distracted him. She was clad as he was, in robes from Tao's tower, in the same pattern of white and black. Her hair was as black and curly as his, though it was longer. Even her eyes were blue, and intense, like a Luxray's. The woman smirked at him. "Hello there. Care to Battle?"

Alex decided to take the advantage. If this ghost, presumably some sort of shape changer, was going to mock him by gender-bending his own appearance, he was going to make use of the absurdity. "Ladies first."

The ghost chuckled, and as she did, her skin turned pale white, and the rest of her became equal parts black. The most noticeable change was their eyes, unnerving, and devoid of pupils. One was pure white, on their black half, and the pure black eye was on their white half. "So be it. One on one...no substitutions. Best of three." They called out a Pokémon then, and it coalesced in a flash of green. A Tropius appeared, and he found his hand drawn on instinct to Gel's ball. He paused, as he saw the smirk on his opponent's face. He had a feeling then, that they knew exactly what was on his team, and what was needed to counter it. The Tropius was a lure, judging by how strong it was. It had been trained, but not nearly as thoroughly as his team.

He sent Gel out then, and nodded at the ice type, as they joined their minds. Alex shivered, but he could endure the close contact for this. "If you feel the urge this time, my friend, do not repress it. The time has come. Give it all you have."

The white and blue Amaura gave a battle cry, and the air around the field turned cold. The Tropius fidgeted in discomfort. "Sunny Day!" The long-necked grass type, no doubt a distant genetic relation to the Amaurus before it, raised its head high in the room, and suddenly, heat filled the field. It felt not entirely unlike Fornia had, during the daytime hours of the summer.

That, was what Gelauros had trained in. He breathed deep, and exhaled frost, keeping his core as cold as he needed. The Amaurus had a feeling he knew what was coming next. Against orders, he fired an Ice Beam at the Solar Beam the Tropius shot towards him, and the two moves canceled out in an explosion of energy. It was a credit to Gel's strength that he managed to stop a Solar Beam that powerful.

The two Pokémon fired another series of beams, each one colliding with the other, and Alex found himself smirking. The ghosts knew what was on his team, but they hadn't accounted for Gel not having the rock typing that evidently even their era had been unable to remove entirely. In short, the Sages were not as omnipotent as they appeared. He gave Gel the plan then, and the Amaura sighed, but agreed it would be worth it.

The Tropius prepared another Solar Beam, and this time Gel took the hit as he leapt into the air, and found a shot on this particular opponent's weak spot. For Tropius, it was usually between their wings, or their fruit. Either would do. The blast from the solar beam faded, leaving the white skin of the Amaura smoking with heat, but otherwise, he seemed unharmed. Barely inconvenienced.

The little mouth opened, and a powerful orb of ice formed within it. With pinpoint accuracy, a thin beam of ice slammed into the Tropius, and froze it solid. Given how much damage it had done, the battle was over. Gel began to glow as he ascended to his adult phase amidst the spiraling bright white energy, and grew larger, taller, Alex guessed, than even his kin back at the lab. He pulled out the Pokédex, and it listed his height at an impressive nine feet, five inches. Growth patterns suggested he'd max out at twelve, when he'd aged a bit.

The air around them, despite the move from Tropius that yet lingered, was freezing cold. Especially on Alex's side of the field. He gave Gel the affectionate scratch he was looking for, and then recalled the tall Aurorus, who'd retained his coloring of pure white, and deep blue.

Next up came a Feraligator, and Alex answered with Hydrus, rather than his Torterra, to the evident surprise of his opponent. Within moments, the two Pokémon mega evolved. Having not seen a Feraligator ascend before, both he and Hydrus took it in. It was most comfortable on all fours now, and seemed to have reversed along its evolutionary path, rather than gone forward.

Now part water, part rock, the light blue plates of armor covered the Pokémon's form completely, but the muscle beneath suggested the Mega Feraligator could still move rather quickly despite them. Hydrus charged forward, only to, in the blink of an eye, find both hands occupied and wounded as the bulging arms struggled to keep the predator's deadly jaws from crunching shut. They had barely seen it move, and Hydrus had relied more on instinct than battle technique to avoid being seriously chomped.

Hydrus glanced at his Trainer, and Alex nodded. The Swampert focused then, as Pokémon and Trainer glowed a deep blue, and an aura of power settled over his Mega Form. Hydrus wrenched the jaws open with sudden strength, and then rotated in place, tossing the Feraligator into the nearest wall with a seismic impact. With a new unfamiliar weakness to fighting moves, the gator winced in pain, long enough for the aura-covered form of the Swampert to appear behind him as he struggled to stand.

Hydrus eyes shone an ominous blue as the bulky mudfish ended the match with one swift, merciless Drain Punch.

Alex flashed the victory sign. "Best of three. What am I unlocking next?"

The black and white figure turned into a blur of gray then, vaguely in the shape of a humanoid. A mouth appeared on the head, but only when it spoke. It was unnerving to watch it move as the ghost spoke. "This Trial is not for a Chakra. The others do not care for me, because I represent something they all detest. Combat. Conflict. And the honor inherent to Battling in this world. If they had their way, I would simply not exist, but they cannot deny our species' will to compete. This is the drive I test in all applicants. Tell me, you who would be King, are they right? Would our world be less prone to violence if Battling for sport was not so commonplace?"

Alex smirked. Unovans in particular had already had this dilemma before, not surprisingly, from N. "I would argue that because everyone, more or less, knows how to Battle, the world is less...unfair. Those who are otherwise weak can become strong with the right partner. They don't need to sit idly by, trampled by those who are stronger. They have a chance to resist, and it is that very chance that dissuades so many would-be criminals."

"And what of Trainers like you? Do you not crush all who oppose you? I know your record, you know. Not bad at all. But to an average Trainer, they have a better experience not facing you at all. Defeat stings." The ghost paused, which was the only way Alex knew it was time for a response. There was no face to read, which was also unnerving.

"Defeat does sting...but I generally try to leave those I beat with some sort of wisdom. If they want it. If they don't ask, I don't push it on them." He shrugged. "Sometimes a reality check is useful. I've needed one more than once, and I've lost as well. I know exactly where my strength is, more or less, I know my limits, and how to surpass them...though I expect I'll have to re-evaluate them once I'm out of here."

The strange mouth smirked. "Do not assume you will get out so easily...our King is not likely to surrender his family's legacy."

Alex glanced towards the stairs then, "We will see about that." He turned back to the ghost. "To answer your question, Trainers like me have an obligation to not run around crushing the hopes and dreams of whoever we meet. Obviously, sometimes only a Battle from someone on their level is the only thing that can set them straight. Those are the kind of Trainers I enjoy beating the most. They're always a challenge."

The ghost-smirk widened. "You understand, then, the responsibility of power. Intriguing. If only there was an organization in this world that could monitor and keep such Trainers in check."

Alex smirked back at the ghost. "If only." He headed for the stairs then, more than ready to finally pass this test, and start turning the tide of this conflict.

The Path of the King

Alex glanced briefly at the words above the door to this, the final challenge. He knew he should've felt tired, but seven pools of energy within his large form had been awakened, and now flowed freely. They demanded release, though he knew not what would occur when and if they were finally freed.

He stepped into the final chamber, and knew from his map that it was where Hilda had first found the Relic Crown. Evidently, that had not been the real one. The ancient King from earlier stood before him now, crownless. He gripped the ethereal crown with his right hand, and as Alex eyed it, it became corporeal.

"So. You've actually made it." The ancient King gestured at the walls of the room, and they lowered, revealing the topmost room of the ancient ruins for what it was. The ancient lighthouse of Unova's eastern coast, once regarded as one of the Wonders of the ancient world, and one thought lost to war. Four pillars supported the crest of the ruins, and as the King gestured again, blinding light formed where the walls once stood.

"A true King must always be mindful of how their actions can, and will, affect the world at large. They see the consequences of said actions, and with that sight, are able to guide their people towards the path they deem worth following." The ghost had his back to Alex, but then, he turned, and the two locked their gazes. "A true King remains detached, impartial, and chooses what he believes to be the right course of action. This is his duty. His curse."

Alex met the ghost's eyes evenly. "I accept the burden."

The ghost chuckled. "Do you? Heavy is the head that wears the crown. You will never be rid of it. As long as you live, and you will live for a very, very long time, Alexander Redwood, you will be bound to Unova in ways you cannot possibly understand. Not yet, anyways."

Alex let his smirk play across his normally impassive face. "I accept the burden."

The King's sad eyes narrowed. "A true King inspires hope. In himself. In the future. Do you have any comprehension of what that means? Do you have any idea of what awaits you, once you take this crown?"

Before he knew it, Alex was standing directly before the old man. He could read every line on his face. His psychic gaze was telling him far more than ever before. Each of the ghosts had possessed dual typing, not surprising, given who must have trained them, and the King was no exception. Ghost and psychic. He could tell this specter of a bygone age longed for his own heir to be here, standing before him, but that was simply not how events had unfolded.

"I accept the burden."

With those words, the ancient King sighed, and the crown vanished from his hand. His ghostly form faded into nothingness as he whispered his final words. "Then may you carry it better than we did. For Unova."

Alex bowed again. "For Unova." As he straightened, he felt the gathered power surge once more, rising high into the sky where it touched...something. The normally blue aura of his psychic energy shifted to gold, and his power formed in a familiar shape atop his head. The crown reappeared, and thunder boomed while lightning cracked the sky outside the now risen palace.

Eight bolts of plasma arced down from the heavens, and struck the glowing chamber, and its sole occupant. The crown pulsed with power, as the incorporeal Storm Crown merged with the corporeal vessel that could contain its awesome power. A circular opening appeared in the top of the room, and Alex ascended through it, lifting his form easily. He didn't even notice the weight of his large build anymore. Indeed, as the energy flowed freely through his body, his eyes saw what he imagined N must see regularly. Numbers that would have made his head spin but a few hours earlier. Patterns. Shapes. Paths half seen, and yet still very much there. It would take time to be able to read them properly. Apparently, this was how the Harmonias had seen the world, but to Alex, it was just another thing to master, with time and effort.

Then, he looked down, and his good mood shifted to one of unease. Undella Town was thoroughly wrecked. The Marine Tube had shattered, and now only a small salty lake, directly south of the upturned town, was what remained of the beautiful bay that had once drawn crowds of rich tourists. The pyramidal structure that was the Dragon Palace rested atop a newly risen land mass, and as golden light shone through it from the inside out, the weathered stone renewed.

Ancient carvings made themselves clear again, and the damage of eons of water flow faded before the energy surging through the building. Seven orbs of light joined him in the air above the palace, forming into the various ghosts he'd seen below.

For your service, a second life I grant. Use it well.

A quick glance at the Sages told Alex that they had not, in fact, expected the hauntingly familiar tone of pure power that came from the heavens at that moment. Each of their multicolored forms shone bright with blinding gold light, and in the space of an eye blink, the seven of them were transported to the main entrance of the palace, now once more revealed and made whole. A pair of dragons were carved into both sides of it, one black, one white, and both reminiscent of the Original they'd no doubt been made to resemble.

Alex looked again at the Sages, and smirked. Each now once more possessed a body, though their skin tone remained the same color their ghostly forms had been. Evidently their 'service' would continue, even after these new forms expired. But for now, the pleasures of corporeal existence were theirs to once more enjoy.

As one, they bowed towards him in Unovan fashion, and with one voice said, "All hail the return of the King!" A roar followed their words, and Alex glanced up to see a familiar dragon, arcing through the sky. Tao smiled down at them, and then, went sailing through the air as a purple colored Outrage attack slammed into his left side, catching him completely off guard. Alex followed the trail of the beam, and spied a familiar Noivern, with a familiar Trainer on its back, head once more attached. Pravus' Hand of Death. Below him, running quickly over the mountains in the distance, he made out figures garbed entirely in black armored suits, their features covered by helmets with T-shaped visors.

"Muk."

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 26: The Fornian Blitz

Unova University, Main Lab – Unova Region

"Work, damn you." Eric Redwood muttered to himself as the fabrication machine, which usually produced Pokéballs, attempted to create yet another plasma sword hilt.

The screen before him flashed green, all the components were in place, but once more it all shifted to red, and gave an error message. The probability of the finished product exploding on ignition had lowered by three percent, but unfortunately the whole number remained in the low eighties. An almost assured malfunction. Unacceptable for war.

The younger Redwood sighed, and ran the faulty blade through the machine dedicated to deconstructing the parts, and it spat them back out in small reusable piles. The rest of his team had long since passed out, and the sun was rising on a new day. He knew his brother would likely be done soon, one way or another, and he was determined to not be completely outshone.

A loud, powerful, and yet somehow calming mental baritone thundered in his skull, "How goes the work?"

Eric didn't need to ask who or what was speaking, as this was at least the eighth time the Dragon God of his homeland had asked. All night he'd been putting off giving up completely, but he was at his limit now. The last configuration had failed.

He knew it was no coincidence that Tao had reached out to him moments later. His understanding of focusing the power of Chargestones had helped reduce the probability of failure from the ninety-nine percent that had demoralized his team into mental exhaustion after almost a day of consistent failure to create a suitable hilt.

Beyond that though, the dragon's knowledge ended. Eric responded in his head, somewhat familiar with it by now. He could almost vaguely sense the same feeling he had when in the dragon's presence, but in his head.

It was a strange feeling, and he had no idea how his brother had gotten used to it so quickly. It was almost too calm. "I'm out of ideas, great Dragon. The Tesla lenses are converting plasma fine, and the crystals can handle the energy flow. The insulators keep overheating though, and we simply don't have the kind of heat sink necessary to handle focused plasma. The emitters are fine, theoretically, but with such limited insulators we haven't really been able to test them. As it stands, they'll blow apart in our hand after roughly five seconds. The containment field has the same heat problem."

The dragon seemed to rumble in his head, a noise he'd come to associate with pondering. "I think I know how to give you some aid. Only one other, that I know of, has wielded a weapon like this before."

Eric waited patiently, but Tao remained silent. Five minutes passed. Then ten. Eric began to drift off, and soon, he'd joined the rest of his team in deep slumber. They were all awoken by a thunderous bampf from the back of the lab, near Gelauros' old pen. Eric groggily made his way towards the noise, and his brow rose to Spockian heights as he beheld the smoking form of the figure that had appeared in their lab.

He was a thin man, skin as pale as snow, which almost matched his hair. That, however, was tinged with the golden color of a pale blonde. His clothes were a strange mix of white, cyan, and whitish-gold, and as he rose from the three-point stance he'd landed in, he raised a fist in the air.

"You'll pay for that, you pompous lizard! Bloody arrogant Dragon Ty-" His words paused, as he saw the five nerds standing before him, half asleep. "Hmm. So you're the 'group of experts' trying to cash in on my expertise, eh?" His eyes settled on Eric. "You must be the little brother. He wasn't kidding when he said you were total opposites. Same eyes, though."

The man sighed, then glanced skyward. "Fine. But you owe me, Dragon. You, and your whelp. Twice now I've had to get involved in his affairs." He paused, as Tao presumably responded. A genuine smile came over the man's features. "Now that is the kind of gratitude I deserve! Very well." His gaze turned back to the Brain Trust, and he gave a flourishing bow. "Percival von Guterstein Velhavende Locuples the Third, at your service." He grinned up at them, golden eyes alight with mischief and maybe a hint of madness. "But you can call me-"

"Percy." Eric said, breaking the 'spell' the charismatic figure had over them, that had kept them silent through his shenanigans. He gave a bow in the Unovan style, and the other members of the Brain Trust did the same.

Alex had, in recounting his frankly ridiculous trip to Norstad involving demigods and giant dragons, mentioned the aid and irritation the 'fairy king' had given them. He'd also mentioned that he was Xerneas' Tamer. That likely meant that he was immortal. Eric only knew of one other such Trainer, blessed by the Legendary hind's Kalosian counterpart, the once more enthroned King AZ.

Percy's unsettling grin focused on Eric, and the younger Redwood again wondered how his brother kept meeting such ancient beings. And befriending them. "So, my fame runs before me. Alright little Redwood, show me what you have so far, and I'll make it work."

Eric's brow rose higher. "Just like that?"

Percy nodded. "I am now extremely invested in getting the lizard's minions properly outfitted, though, if you ask me, you're all doomed. Pravus's troops carry mass-produced weapons that are essentially advanced, portable versions of what they used to keep all of Unova from retrieving the Original Dragon, in the middle of New Tork City. Pravus may be madder than a hatter, but he's been preparing for this. By the time Unova is ready, assuming you get even that far, you'll be in for a long, bloody, war."

Eric pushed his glasses up with one finger, and let the fluorescent lighting hide his eyes. "With respect, 'Fairy King', we're not going to lay down and let him conquer us. This is Unova. We bow only to One. Before we're through, the Fornians will remember why."

Percy's grin widened. "Even if that One is your brother?"

Eric flinched, but nodded again. "If even half of what he told me about Norstad is true, he can…handle it. With the Dragon's help."

Percy chuckled softly. "Fighting spirit in the face of hopeless odds. I like it."

By now, they'd walked over to the machine responsible solely for testing the components that would make up the blades. Percy's golden eyes flew over the data, and he smirked. "Having heat trouble, hmm? I ran into a similar problem. And Chargestones? Interesting choice...but it works. I guess. If you like blue."

A tired looking Frankie yawned, and joined the two, followed by the others. "Can you fix it?"

Percy's grin returned. "Do Ursaring defecate in forests? I have a solution, little nerd, but you're not going to like it."

The group looked at him expectantly, and he continued. "There exists on this planet a type of metal suitable for handling high powered currents of energy. It's actually quite plentiful...if you know where to look."

Eric spoke up then. "And where, exactly, would we find this metal?"

Percy chuckled. "On this continent? Only one source exists, and Caleb Pravus has been...thorough... in keeping it all for himself. Where do you think he got so much for Sacreus' bunker city? His troop's armor and weapons? Where do you think all that ore the Church has been mining goes?" The five tired nerds stared at the Fairy King, too tired to deal with this kind of high-energy pep at the break of dawn.

Percy raised a finger, and gave his best impression of a Professor. "There exists a special Pokémon, in some parts of the world, worshiped since ancient times for giving Humanity the means to rebuild their towers that scrape the sky. On this continent, they exist only in one place, and any others that are discovered, or that manage to escape, are rounded up by the Prophet's own Hands."

Eric pinched the bridge of his nose. "Muk."

They'd all heard the stories, of course. Of the supposed living fields of metal that the Arcean Church used to build their infrastructure so quickly. Naturally, such absurdities were common amongst the many conspiracy theories made by those who claimed to have successfully left the Church, and were convinced that they needed to 'spread the truth'. The problem, was that the Church had countered them by releasing pretend conspiracists, until any and all rumor involving them was seen as most likely baseless. They'd buried the truth behind nonsense. It was common tactic of theirs, to flood the 'zone' as it were, with BS.

The Church had, of course, denied the existence of such efforts, or people making them. Now though, much of what had once been considered 'hate speech' from 'disgruntled thieves, unworthy of the Church' now rang with an unnerving air of truth.

Percy gave a dark chuckle. "The word came from the Church's own members. At Unova's peril, you all ignored it. I mean, even I knew about the metal fields, and I've been locked in a tower for thousands of years." He glanced at the main monitor, and smirked. "Here. Pictures will do better than words. You lot have at least one satellite, aye?"

"Yes..." Eric said, recalling how Alex had spoken of the reason Percy had been in his tower. "But they don't like us using it..."

Percy immediately began typing commands into the console, grinning like a madman. "Please. They won't even know I was in here." The screen flashed, as he easily bypassed the passwords both for the computer, and control of the satellite. Usually used by students whose goal was to one day report the weather with some accuracy, it didn't have the best zooming-in capabilities, but Percy made do.

The screen lit up with the University's campus, and then moved thousands of miles in the space of a few seconds. They gasped, as they saw Fornia, and the thin man swore in a language that none of them knew. "Draaf. I knew it was bad, but…" Fornia was, in a word, on fire. The entire northern part of the region now burned, with the exception of a few small patches of green, due to water Pokémon no doubt.

The problem, was that most of the sky was now covered in smoke, for the winds favored Pravus' plan, and were blowing in a southern and eastern direction. They were winter winds, and they had come early this year. Once over the Stoney Mountains, the air currents brought it all east, in an ever-encroaching blanket of ash-filled darkness. The cloud avoided the populated areas of the regions under Arcean control, namely the cities, but as it moved ever eastward it would, eventually, cover Unova as well.

After zooming in through the ash clouds, they witnessed a scene straight out of one of old Earth's fairytales. It looked, for all intents and purposes, like a scene from tales of Armageddon, or Ragnarok. Fire, smoke, entire herds of local Pokémon heading in whatever direction they thought would provide safety. Too many hadn't escaped the flames, but thankfully, the region's many ground types seemed to be capable of extinguishing the wounded, and clearing temporary paths in the flames.

"Enough." Eric finally managed, after noticing the looks on the faces of his team. Those images would likely haunt them, but as Percy shifted the camera, a new horror covered the screen. Fornia's southernmost peninsula, to the west of their half of Texico, was mostly desert and scrub.

The only city of note that far south was Arcino, but with their aerial view, they spotted something else, silver against the reddish brown of the ground. Percy zoomed in, and again, the group gasped.

While a relatively new discovery, the Hex Nut Pokémon had exploded in popularity…on other continents. Unovans, amongst others, had eagerly waited for more to appear in their regions after their discovery in Alola, and yet, very few had. Within a few years, the Meltan had all seemingly vanished completely, even from the islands. Now, from an aerial view, they saw where they'd all wound up.

Meltan had a tendency to explode in population, and their evolution was, in some places, considered a mythical Pokémon. The large silver pools, visible from orbit, appeared to be filled with hundreds, if not thousands, of the species, all forced together as molten ooze, stuffed in giant craters upon the ground. Unable to form singular bodies, the nuts that passed for their heads floated helplessly in the pools.

Percy's tone was grim. "This, is where the Arceans get their metal from. I have it on good authority that, through means I'll leave you all to imagine, they've managed to make the Melmetal produce something much stronger than iron. In my day, such a thing was accomplished by a bond with a Tamer, and an appropriate diet. They just toss in the ore, and these pools produce a building material on par with ceracrete."

David spoke up then, looking just as pale and disturbed as the other four. "S-so how are we supposed to get what we need?"

Percy chuckled. "Leave that to the professionals." He set the satellite back to its original position, and left as tracelessly as he'd entered, even going as far as deleting the logs of the machine's use and movement. He turned then, to the fabrication machine, and examined the in-progress schematic. "I'll handle it, at any rate, but first…let's adjust this…"

His fingers flew over the keyboard, and the other five watched, somewhat amazed, as the strange man with the fancy clothes and hat reduced the percentage of failure upon completion to acceptable parameters. Once they had the materials they needed. "The holy lizard wants you five focused on armor, now. The east has great Trainers, and strong Pokémon, but they keep dying because their opponents are far better equipped. Solve that, while I get your metal."

"And how do we do that?" One of the nerds asked.

Percy chuckled again. "Speak with Rayquaza. The older one…er, you may know it as the 'eastern one' as well. He's the one in charge of supplying your…materials. Get to it!"

Percy gave another flourish with his hat as he bowed, and then vanished with a flash of energy the five had come to associate with those who could Teleport. "Bloody psychics…" Eric muttered, still eyeing the schematic, and what changes had been made. He couldn't argue with the fact that Percy was either brilliant, or knew what he was doing. Or both. He glanced at the others. "You heard him. Back to work. I'm going to take a nap."

The Dragon Emperor's Palace – Unova Region

Tao, thankfully, was not so weak as to go down from one Outrage attack. His scales were scorched, but he managed to right himself over the ruined, empty buildings of Undella, only to find that the focus of his awakened fury was already going claw-to-claw with Shruikan, in a rematch both had evidently wanted. A Tyranitar and the Swampert called Hydrus were engaged as well, trading titanic punches. Both were surrounded in a shield of aura, but the Tyranitar's was blackish purple, and shocked to the touch. Thankfully, Hydrus was part ground type, but it still stung with every hit.

Alex had been surrounded by seven multicolored lights once the mega evolved Noivern had struck Tao. His team had popped free on their own, their power surging as their Trainer's did. He split his mental focus with ease, and helped each of them fight simultaneously as they moved to engage the Hand's team, including his younger members, who had teamed up, and taken on a group of black clad Arceans that had made their way onto the remnants of the beach.

He'd worried, for a moment, until he sensed Ictus. Evidently the surge of power, and fresh victory with Fell Stinger, had been enough for the crimson scorpion to evolve. Between him, Gelauros, and Cenomons, they could handle things.

Alex's eyes were still burning with golden light, and the Sages each withdrew a crystalline spherical 'Pokéball' that was evidently common to their era three millennia past. They had called out their revived partners once the Arceans had begun charging the palace. Evidently, they were here for the new 'Dragon Emperor', but capturing the newly risen seat of the Empire would deal a telling blow to morale.

The nearby Trainers perched on the cliffs above Undella, who'd sensibly hauled ass once the ground started shaking, were now engaged as well. From seemingly nowhere, the Hand had appeared with a small army of elite Trainers. Blaze joined Shruikan in the sky, and the three dragons cartwheeled over the former bay, lighting the area up with their flames and beams of energy.

The Seven Sage's Pokémon went forth to help as well, only to be met by three figures who appeared seemingly out of nowhere, in the blink of an eye. Evidently, the Shadow Triad had found new employers.

Lux spoke then, eyes widening at what he sensed. "Go to the dragon! Merge your power with his. That will…handle this." The ghost flitted back into the hilt, which Alex then ignited, as he sailed through the air towards the Original Dragon.

The Hand of Death chuckled, appearing before him from seemingly nowhere. Alex shifted in mid-air, and zipped past him, but he followed behind, shouting, "What is it with you, and running from Battle? I bet N never turned his back to his enemies this often!"

Alex ignored the obvious goading, meant only to distract him from uniting with the dragon. He was Tao's Tamer, and it was time Fornia understood exactly what that meant. It was a lesson Unova had learned long ago, and it was one that had stuck in their cultural psyche.

Spiraling through the air towards Alex, the two met, and the human landed atop his icy crest, that made up his horns, and formed a ridge down his back. Ice swirled up around his shoes, holding him in place. The dragon snarled, glaring at the sky. "We're too low…"

Alex was busy focusing on his plasma sword, as the base opened to admit his Draco Plate crystal, when an ear-splitting screech tore through the sky. His focus was broken. There was power in that cry, that could only have been a Hyper Voice. From above the clouds gathered by the lightning that had struck the still-glowing lighthouse atop the palace, a figure straight from pre-history appeared.

Where the east coast had Tao, the western coast also had a Legendary Guardian of their own, in the distant past. Some claimed it had been Ho Oh, but the most infamous Legend was the Pokémon known as Ignavis, though whether that was its nickname or its species name, no one was sure. Ignavis had been the product of 'dark sorcerers' in the western regions, evidently created by infusing Shadow into a Moltres egg via ancient and lost magical arts from another region. The stories claimed that Tao had slain the bird after it scorched half the Empire, but evidently, it had risen again several times through the ages.

Where once flames of red, orange and white had covered the wings, purple now dominated. Alex could see the resemblance to Moltres in the gold and red feathers, now tainted with blackish purple, but this creature was now far beyond that species and seemed more similar in appearance to the Galarian variant of the Legendary bird, cursed to an existence of constant and painful rebirth if the legends were true. The enormous bird's blue eyes were, even from this distance, filled with pain. The dark form of the Hand of Death appeared atop the bird's head, and he guided it towards the pair. It let out a shriek of rage as it spotted Tao, and once more, the dragon and the firebird dueled in the sky.

Ice formed in a protective block around Alex as he knelt low to avoid the massive flaming razor sharp beak of the Legendary bird. "Focus on empowering the crystal." Tao's voice came, calm as ever, even though he currently was whirling and slashing about in the clouds so quickly Alex could hardly follow his spiraling movements. "It will take much for me to achieve the next level."

Alex smirked. He'd figured as much. He began chanting low, in the dragon tongue, hilt grasped with both hands as dark fire met the three elements at the dragon's command just beyond his icy protection. Finally, he felt Lux give him the signal. It was ready.

His eyes shifted from gold to blue, though he hardly noticed, as he raised the hilt, ignited it, and sliced through his icy shield. Tao had just forced the Shadow-infused bird back with a torrent of fire that sparkled with blue electricity, and the hilt flared as the Original Dragon's Tamer finished his incantation, and activated the power with a final Shout.

"Dovah Envok!"

The Light energy that had been surging through him now transferred into the Original Dragon though his sword's hilt, and his form turned pure white as the infinite power of the Alpha remade him. A second pair of wings jutted out from above his hind legs, looking more akin to Reshiram's than Zekrom's. An aura of brilliant gold formed around Tao's altered form, which was significantly larger in size, at almost a hundred and fifty feet in length. His facial tendrils now constantly sparked, and a pair of blue flames that looked suspiciously like eyebrows now adorned the dragon's scaly brow.

The most notable change however, aside from a noticeable increase in size, was his tail. Where before it had resembled a lizard's save for the icy crest on the end, it now was entirely encased in sparking ice, and took the shape of a wicked looking serpent-like appendage that resembled a tail with the sharp head of a lance. Despite the ice, it seemed to move as fluidly as his regular form's appendage. His wings were covered on their edges with icy spikes, and his claws were now much the same as the crest running down his back, in that they too burned with fire.

Tao gave a roar that echoed across the former bay, as he ascended to his Mega Form, the symbol of Infinity flashing briefly above his head, before he refocused his attacks on his quarry. That roar got everyone's attention, and many paused to stare in awe at the dragon above them. The Unovans cheered, and the tide began to turn as Tao's tail rearranged the ice surrounding it, momentarily obscuring the deadly weapon that was the tip as a mix of Zekrom and Reshiram's tails formed around the serpentine appendage, and roared like a rocket engine, sending the dragon and his Tamer straight towards the dark bird at unmatchable speed.

Like Alex, Pravus's Hand had come prepared, and while each of their teams were battling, the two of them were yet perched atop their Legendary partners. That is, until a powerful Air Slash, which was also somehow sporting dark purple flames, slammed into the dragon's head as he charged, and sent his Tamer plummeting.

Tao focused on fighting the dark phoenix, as he assumed his human would be fine. He'd survived the Trials after all, and had successfully walked each path. He could handle the corpse-being that, at that very moment, followed the Champion through the air, down into the forests just south of Undella. The two massive Pokémon had drifted further west, as they clashed, and there was no doubt that Nimbasa was getting quite a show.

Alex managed to halt his fall, stopping his momentum at the last second, and then landing gently. The Hand of Death had no such respect for their terrain. He came hurtling down, and his landing left a crater within the small, wooded clearing they'd found. There was a small river just behind it, that sounded like it connected to a waterfall of some description not far from them.

Finally down to just his sword, but still, even then, mentally aiding his team in their own respective battles, Alex ignited the blade once more, as he connected with his Rotom, and fell into his usual fighting stance. He had no doubt the Hand had orders to take him alive. Though he imagined dead would work just as well.

The man gave a dark chuckle, and black energy swirled in his palms, coalescing into a deadly, and admittedly cool looking pair of scythes that curved up along each of the man's arms perfectly. Fighting him in melee combat would be unwise, it seemed. "Come quietly, Redwood…I don't want to be in this backwater region when the army gets here. The Blitz has already begun. It's not going to be pretty…but you were all given plenty of time to join us."

Alex gave the plasma sword a twirl as he shifted his stance, and the lower end of it sprang to life as well. The new blade remained the same black and white color, but an aura of draconic energy surrounded the entire weapon as Lux drew on the crystal still within the hilt. "We were never going to join your cult…not by force. We value our freedoms too much on this side of the continent."

"Exactly…" One of the dark blades sliced towards him, but it seemed to be moving in slow motion to his new, strange vision, and he dodged it with ease. Alex chalked it up to the recent power-increase, and let the energy of the universe flow through his eight opened chakra points. His eyes shifted to dark blue as he reached for the energy, and formed an aura shield of dragon and psychic typing over his form. Not unlike the ones most of his team were slowly getting the hang of controlling. "You all value your pointless freedoms far too much…you have no structure, no goals, your governments are weak, and your Trainers…leave much to be desired."

Alex decided to strike then, or try to, only to find that the strange black metal repelled his dual-bladed sword. So far, it was the only thing it hadn't cut clean through. Their exchange of blows occurred faster than normal eyes could follow, but in the end, Alex only managed a small singe mark on the man's thigh. It healed before his eyes, and he grimaced.

The Hand found it amusing, though. "Cut me as much as you like…it will make no difference. I'm just toying with you." Another furious exchange of blows came then, and the truth of the Hand's words became evident as Alex realized who the better fighter was.

He forced himself to smirk, despite the increasingly dire circumstances. "I had a feeling you were holding back…time to stop playing around, then." Though his words were confident, the bravado was empty, as yet another lightning fast exchange resulted in yet another stalemate. He couldn't break the man's guard, but neither did he seem able to get through his own as easily as he claimed.

The Hand chuckled. "If that's the best you've got, we started this war early for nothing."

"You haven't even seen a glimpse of what I have in store for your Prophet…and I'm not expending it on you." Alex's smirk widened, and the Hand's face went cold, neutral, unreadable.

"Then you shall die."

The blows came faster then, and the man assaulted Alex's dual-bladed guard with the relentless power only undeath could give. He was a corpse. He would keep fighting long after Redwood was exhausted. For his part, Alex tried every combination of moves he could, but it was never enough. No shift in fighting style worked, and he could barely keep the incoming blows from cutting him.

The Hand's scythes dripped with crimson, and the pale man licked one. His eyes widened, slightly. "So…that's the difference…interesting…but not enough, Dragonborn." The Prophet's Hand stopped playing around then, as both blades forced the dual-bladed plasma sword up, leaving the little hero's midsection open, for a moment. A moment was all he needed.

Alex watched the scythes twirl impossibly fast. His new, and still unfamiliar heightened perception could track such things easily, but his body was nowhere near fast enough to dodge this. Not after the injuries he'd taken. His arms and legs bore the most cuts, but Tao's clothing really was invaluable, as it stitched back together, it also mended his skin with makeshift stitching, made of pieces of the strange fabric. It would need tending later, but for the battle at hand, it was useful, and kept him from bleeding out.

The Hand's weapons did something strange as he arced his weapons up for the finishing blow. They came together at each handle, and formed a proper length dual-sided scythe, right as the man brought it down towards his tired opponent with a vertical two-handed strike. The pale Hand growled in his throat as he saw his weapon stopped by a blade similar in curve to his own, one that was black, and bore streaks of red.

"Not today!" A triumphant voice crowed from atop the waterfall. Alex glanced up to see a black scaled Haxorus blocking the path of the deadly scythe's blade with a blade of his own. "Dual-Chop!" The dragon began smashing his head at the man, who struggled to hold it off, for a moment. Long enough for the Haxorus's Trainer to jump down, grab the large form of the Champion, and leap away.

Alex only got a brief glance at his would-be rescuer, before their escape was halted. A gleaming metal shackle had the man around the ankle, and as Alex got a proper look at him, his eyes widened. "Lance!?"

It was indeed the blue haired boy he'd battled some years before, the grandson who'd been named for his famous relative, and apparently puberty had finally hit him. Moreover, his attire seemed familiar, and it took Alex a minute to recognize the Opelucid Gym's new outfits.

"Glad you remember me." The Dragon Tamer said, somewhat sarcastically. "The Dragon called for reinforcements. Nate answered." He gestured at the sky then, and Alex stared, as did Pravus's Hand. The skies over Undella, and the area immediately south and west, were teeming with dragon types, each fully evolved, and many trained by Nate's own hand. Leading them, arms crossed atop his Hydreigon, was the Champion turned Gym Leader, and one of Unova's many Heroes. A man arguably as ruthlessly strong as Hilbert, who was set on becoming a true Dragon Tamer.

The battle between Tao and his shadowy opponent quickly turned. A hard crunch on the phoenix's neck stunned it long enough for the ice-covered, sparking tail to stab it in the heart. Blue flames overwhelmed purple, and the firebird fell from the sky, landing in the salty puddle just south of Undella's ruins, and all that remained of the bay. The heat from the Pokémon's passing burned away any remaining water, but thankfully, any Pokémon in the bay had quickly followed their instincts, and swam east, towards Unova's harbor once the ruins had begun shaking. There was plenty of room for them there.

Sensing the conflict had shifted, the Hand of Death began to move to escape, only to find himself wrapped up by a pair of Dragonair. Lance's equally blue-haired sister came through the foliage surrounding their little clearing then, and gave a nod towards Alex. "I'll make sure he stays put. With the others we've captured."

"Keep him wrapped up." Alex said, caution in his tone, "If we give him a chance to flee, he will take it. My team has his Pokémon handled." Indeed, each of them had subdued the Hand's Pokémon, usually by way of fainting. Only the Tyranitar had escaped underground, quickly outpacing his Lairon in digging speed.

Blue light surrounded their little group, as Alex lifted them into the air, ignoring the cries of surprise. They paused, as they saw the field of battle. Plenty of Trainers had, evidently, fallen to the surprise attack. Most had been out hoping to see history, not die in the first skirmish of the war. Only the strong had survived the Arcean's unified brutality. This would not be the first time their better equipment and tactics would kill all but the strong, and indeed, it was happening even at that moment, all along the newly established front between east and west.

Alex landed them next to Tao, who was still in his Mega Form. His long neck turned towards them, and focused on the prisoner they'd brought with them. The eyes narrowed, and began to glow with bright golden Purging Light as they focused on the Hand of Death, who began to laugh.

It was an unnerving sound, one that almost hurt to hear, but eventually it was silenced by the thundering Voice of the Original Dragon. "Ahvakaar…" The eyes flared, burning with impossibly bright Light energy, and the laughs turned to a brief, pitiable scream as the Hand was incinerated. The Dragonair, who to their credit had not moved, had been untouched, and even healed, in the Light the Original Dragon now wielded.

Tao raised his head again, and snorted in distaste. His eyes focused on his Tamer, and he spoke only to him, then. "If ever you doubt why Pravus needs to die…remember the creature you just saw. Undeath is the antithesis of what we stand for. There is life, there is death, always in Balance. Undeath disrupts that Balance, usually by increasing the amount of death, and the world around such creatures suffers as a result. They are beings to be pitied, for they should not be, but are."

Alex nodded, responding the same way. "I hadn't intended to like it, but…it really is inevitable. If he takes total control, the number of things like that Hand is only going to increase. But that does make me wonder…what of Ghost Types?"

The dragon's eyes glanced away, "They…are quite different. Mainly for guiding the dead who get lost or diverted on their path to Arceus' realm, though they can also be lost themselves, and be very powerful because of it. Some, like your little spark, were simply composed of Ghost Type energy originally, and imbued with sentience. What gives said sentience varies between ghosts. Undeath is…different. Ghost Types come to be when those with Normal typing pass on. Usually, their energy goes straight to the Spirit World, but there are always exceptions. Abominations are…different. They can only be raised with the Shadow energy you've seen, given the freedom to once more roam among the living, but do not forget, always their goal is to empower the Shadow. It's not surprising Pravus figured out how to bind the dead to his will. There may yet be more of these."

Alex raised a brow at that, his third eye glaring at the dragon. "And if I encounter them, what am I supposed to do? Slicing this one didn't really work."

The dragon sighed. "It would have, if you'd found an opening…but his form was impressive, even I have to admit. Most cannot use dual-scythes so effectively. If you want to put these creatures down, you will need to Purge them, as I did. You meet their gaze, you hold it, and then you summon the Light. If they are not part of the natural order, they will be burned away. It has other uses as well, but stick to using it to cleanse the abomination's partners for now. I will make sure they do not cause more trouble."

Alex mulled that over as he did as instructed. The Hand's team had eventually been corralled, and all but the Noivern had accepted being bound. Once they were free of the Shadow's taint, they each apologized for what they'd been unable to control, and Alex found he understood them completely when they spoke. Likely a result of King Harmonia's gift. With the team cleansed and the purple egg of the phoenix in the Sage's capable hands, Alex climbed onto the Original Dragon's back, after thanking the siblings, and the two soared towards the palace. It was covered with lazing dragon types, all who had an eye on the massive form of Shruikan circling them overhead, like death itself. Alex spied Nate by the front entrance, speaking with the Sages.

The newly raised palace had been hit quite hard, but the Sages had earned their keep, and had kept any Arceans from entering. Now, they were barring Nate's way. Alex hopped off of Tao, who then perched by wrapping around the building. In his evolved state, he encircled all of it, easily. The dragon gave Shruikan a look then, and the massive dragon landed on the newly raised earth, then curled up for a nap.

Nate glanced at the Champion, and the two shared nods of mutual respect. He hadn't been around as often as Hilbert, and Alex hadn't made too strong of an effort to hang more. Namely because of the man's obnoxiously loud friend Hugh, who hung around him almost every day, trying to beat the Champion turned Gym Leader. He had not, according to Hilda, beaten Nate even once, but that hadn't stopped him. Nate hadn't seemed to mind their lack of contact, as he'd been focused on Rosa at the time, and little else.

Alex spoke first, "Thank you, for responding so quickly. Without the dragons, we would've tasted defeat, not victory."

Tao chuckled, and a murmur of draconic laughter rumbled from those also perched on the steps of the enormous pyramidal palace. The two humans stared up at him. "Victory? No…not victory. Not yet. This is only the first of many sparks that will ignite the flames Pravus craves." The dragon's eyes focused on the Gym Leader then. "We are going to need her. Wake her up." Nate bowed, and nodded, evidently quite aware of who Tao meant.

He turned to Alex then, and shrugged. "Tao told me to guard our homeland. That's what I've been doing. I hunt them, and Rosa jails them." His expression seemed to indicate he didn't care for the current state of affairs, and neither, frankly, did Alex. Tao sent a mental wave of agreement as well, though his mind was engaged now with the Sages, who had each floated up to him, and bowed in unison.

Alex spoke then, "I think it's time we change that. I don't need Arceans in Unova. Not while we're at war, at least. They've demonstrated that they'll do whatever their cult leaders order them to. No matter how morally questionable. They're a risk to our people, while this conflict exists."

Nate raised an eyebrow of his own as the Champion spoke. "So what do you intend to do about them...Dragon Emperor?"

Alex gave the man a grim smirk. "I'm going to give them a chance to redeem themselves…and I have a feeling many will take it."

Nate flinched as the Champion summoned his massive, napping Salamence with little more than a glance. The man leapt atop the dragon's head with a jump that no normal human could ever match as he flew by the formerly buried palace, Nate followed on his Hydreigon, as Tao and the Seven Sages properly conversed for the first time in millennia. Other dragons followed them into the sky, each carrying several prisoners bound to their backs by rope.

Now cleansed of the Shadow, the Hand's formerly enslaved Pokémon had agreed that, with their master gone, their loyalty to the human's cult was void. They'd taken off south, to the verdant forests, with Absol leading them. Said Absol had also promised Arthur that, should he ever need their aid, he would have it, for what he'd tried to do by freeing them in Fornia. Alex had listened in, mostly by accident, but again found himself understanding Pokéspeech with no difficulty.

The thunder of dragons headed north, towards Opelucid City once more, and as Alex and Nate peeled off and landed in Lacunosa Town just to the east of New Tork City's northern borough, he grimaced at what the town had become. Gone was the sleepy little walled village. After being turned into a prison by the Arceans under Ghetsis, and then reclaimed by the Unovan residents, the town had become the unofficial holding area for any Arceans that had been deemed a threat by the Unovan's police forces, and newly expanding military.

Conditions were, compared to the Church's prisons, luxurious. Three meals, time for exercise, and even access to TV. Nobody…official had come to the quietly forgotten town, and thus the 'prisoners' had never been interrogated.

"I'll need to see them one at a time." Alex said to Nate, as they headed toward the now militaristic camp's main building.

Nate chuckled, as he saw who'd come out to meet them. "That's not really my call."

The two Champions were as awkward and flustered as they'd ever been in the other's presence, and Alex waited patiently as the awkward small talk between he and Rosa dragged on. When there was a painful pause, he spoke. "It's time we freed up these people for the front line. You included, Rosa. One way or another, today, these Arceans are no longer our burden. I need a room. Soundproofed. Send them to me one at a time."

The woman glanced between him, and then Nate, who just shrugged, and then she nodded, seemingly glad for the chance to be free of watching these people. After weeks of hearing them whine and threaten litigation, which due to the current state of war, and governmental reorganization, would be pointless, she was ready to push them on someone else.

He ended up being given the mess hall, which had once been one of the townspeople's homes. The original occupants had been 'transferred' to Fornia, and the new Arcean occupants had been trampled to death in an icy stampede from Kyurem. Thus, it had been repurposed.

The first of the two hundred or so people he'd be forced to speak with came in, and set the tone for how most of the 'interrogations' would go. She was evidently someone who'd been captured from Castelia, in the sewers, amongst other militant Arceans who had been planning sabotage for use in this very conflict.

To his credit, Alex tried every other method first. He asked about her family. She had a husband, and three children. He asked where they were, and found they'd been scattered effectively around the Church's territory. He asked when she'd last seen them. She hadn't answered. He asked if that was what she'd wanted, and he came to learn that she'd been raised in this cult, and didn't know better. Staying apart was what families did. Saving the planet was too important.

He turned on the TV he'd had brought in then, and showed her the video that he'd asked Haley to work on over the summer. A guide for someone who'd been brainwashed into the Arcean cult and the many, many things they didn't know about it. He knew it needed some updating now, but it got the point across, once she watched. She saw how easily Pravus had whipped her deluded countrymen into a bloody frenzy. Getting her to watch had been a conflict in itself. Only by forcing her eyes and ears open by way of a brief, controlled burst of psychic power did she finally literally see the long history of sketchy violence and practices her Church was party to.

In truth, he'd only forced her eyes for a moment. Once they'd seen the screen, they'd stayed open out of pure human curiosity, and she'd been engrossed in the hard, disturbing evidence behind the Church's activities, much of which she knew the Church had already very specifically denied. From her perspective, it had been a little odd. At random times, the Church-run news network would make announcements about events they hadn't been openly linked to, with no other information about why they denied these claims officially being released. Most of their people hadn't known about the incidents in the first place, but they just assumed that the Prophet, for whatever reason, knew they had to be aware of this information. If they were going to Save the world.

It took several hours, but eventually, he felt certain that the woman understood, to a degree, the truth of things. Her resistance towards him had eroded to irritated acceptance, rather than outright shunning. He gave her a choice then, in exchange for turning infiltrator, Unova would find her relations, free them, and show them what she'd seen as well. He offered to help de-program them to the falsehoods they'd been fed, and eventually she agreed. She would claim to have escaped custody, and would be churned back into the machine that was the Church.

From there, the Rebels would guide her, as they were most familiar with what they needed to find. Tao had them focused on gathering as much intel on their foes as possible, though those among the Tribe that had wanted to fight, had been encouraged to do so. They were the ones currently in charge of whipping Unova's many skilled Trainers into physical fighting shape, and some semblance of an army.

Alex called in the next candidate, and after a few more hours of similar tactics, he'd convinced the man in question to settle a farm somewhere in Unova, and leave saving his family from the Church to the Dragon Emperor himself. He suddenly had a long list of names and locations to memorize, but Alex found that it was actually quite easy. His mind categorized information in a useful, and entirely new way since his trials. He found he could feasibly Teleport close enough to many of the people in question, and for those he couldn't, he always had other methods of travel.

Sorting through the entire 'camp' took several days, but Tao assured him that he had the war handled, for the moment, and that what he was doing was more important. There were billions of Fornians under the Church. The better he became at breaking their delusions, the quicker this war would end.

In the end only eighteen had refused his offers, even after learning, and more disturbingly, accepting, what their Church had done. They'd told him that it was the only way the Prophet could Save the planet. Before he could, he needed to dominate it, and because he was immortal, in time, he would. They had believed that they were the first generation of an army that would one day spread Arceus' Word to the stars as well. A Star Crusade, they called it. Where humanity would expand rapidly under the Church's influence, and cleanse any unworthy sentients or psychic-heretics they encountered. According to them, Pravus already had a working ship as well, one that could travel the stars in hours, rather than years.

It was a convincing tale, Alex admitted, and one he might very well have believed if he, like these people, had grown up with indoctrination in every hour of his early life. The more he broke their illusions however, the more he wondered. His granduncle had nurtured his skeptic side, but he'd always had a rational outlook on things. He'd figured out Santa shared Mom's handwriting when he was five, by comparing presents. He probably wouldn't have fit in, in Fornia.

That thought prompted a final round of interrogation. He let the now all but belligerent prisoners each ramble on for five minutes exactly, before cutting through whatever parroted nonsense they were spewing with a Word that silenced them as it shook the very air. He'd then asked what became of kids who had been like him, who were inherently skeptical. Or at the very least doubtful, of what the adults claimed was truth.

Each of the men had grinned at the question. It was a disturbing look, one his instincts told him was genuinely evil. The worst side humanity had to offer. What they told him was, in so many words, the same. Children like him were shipped off, sometimes for years at a time, to the Navy. There, trapped on a ship with naught but open sea for miles, they would learn to obey…or be thrown overboard to the Sharpedo swarms that acted as their battle-yacht's engines.

Many of the Sharpedo grew quite massive, and the strongest of those, were captured and infused with Shadow. The Navy had held their largely unnecessary blockade of the ocean for years. Japan had no interest in their land, and Eous was busy fighting the Imperium. Alola was isolated, but they hadn't weighed in on the current conflict yet. Word of it probably hadn't even reached them.

It seemed once again the Prophet had engineered a useful tool that accomplished several things at once. A powerful navy, which would keep the Alolans from going anywhere near the western coast regardless of what they decided, and a system that sorted the weak, and created strong water type Trainers. Still unnerved, he'd finally asked Tao what he thought, and the dragon seemed surprised. Evidently emperors of old believed their decisions were the right ones. Rarely did they consult him, after taking power.

The dragon had mentally watched his protégé interrogate the Fornians, and he had quietly grown cold in dread. This rhetoric was being spewed from low-level information gatherers. He knew, based on what he'd learned of the organization, that this 'devotion' would only be stronger the higher ranked one was. The army of 'Crusaders' were considered soldiers, and therefor were relatively high in the pecking order. They, and their families, were given the best lives the Church could offer in return for service, and thus, their loyalty was quite strong.

Finally, he gave his Tamer an answer. "Men like these are going to be the majority in those who've taken up arms against us. Their…certainty will be much stronger, their faith unquestioning. You will need your Voice to make them listen…or…you can try to Purge them. It is not always an attack, but can sometimes remove a being's inner conflict with…let's call it 'divine insight'. Once Purged, even their Bishops are likely to bow to you."

He could feel the dislike of the option in the human, and it was a long while before he responded. "And what would those I Purged be like, when this war ends? Will I be ruling over a bunch of devoutly loyal subjects missing half their natural emotions?" The dragon let silence speak for itself, and he sensed the human sigh. "That's what I thought. I can Purge men like these…the infiltrators, the soldiers, if we must…they'll never turn…but for the general masses, the civilians, I will need the right Words. First, I think I need to visit someone whose likely found them before…"

Shor's Hall, Uppsalir – Norstad Region

Alex felt a bit awkward, just Teleporting to Thor's own hall, but he did remember it well enough to do so. His stupidly large fist pounded the door three times, and after a moment, one of the Einherjar opened the door, and nodded at him in greeting. "Dovahkiin. You are welcome in Thor's hall always, for bringing Doom upon the World Eater. Come. Feast. I will retrieve Thor." Alex nodded, briefly examining the warrior as he entered and followed him. Most of Thor's warriors looked identical, well over his own height of six feet and five inches, bearded, and with similar skin to Thor's though where his was golden, theirs was silver, and up close he noted, faint straight lines ran across the warrior's skin, much like Thor's. It was not long before the God of Thunder himself appeared, grinning broadly as he saw Alex.

The grip hurt less, Alex noticed, as he and the Thunder God clasped the other by the wrist, in the manner of his people. "Welcome back, Dovahkiin. What brings you again into mine hall?"

He met the god's eyes then, and saw them widen. "You may have heard…I recently became the ruler of my people. You may have also heard that we're at war…and it is not going well. Not yet, anyways, or so the Dragon says. He claims to have a plan, and I trust his word." He saw the being casually rest a hand on the hilt of his hammer as he listened and nodded. "I come seeking your help with…a matter of the Voice. I know your people would usually just charge in, fight, and let nature decide who the strongest is, but I don't want to kill millions of people. Especially as I intend to rule them, as well. If I don't kill as many of their relatives, I'll have less…revenge-driven enemies, in the long run."

The Thunder God nodded his golden-haired head once more, "I understand. You believe the power of the Storm Voice will sway them from their…religious indoctrination. You would be correct. This means you are also aware, or at least assume, my people did something similar once."

Alex nodded. "Something like that…but from what the legends say, it wasn't a hostile takeover. The Aesir and Humans interacted plenty without…too much senseless violence."

That got a chuckle from the Asgardian, as they sat, and ate of the feast that took up most of the central room of the hall. To Alex's knowledge, the food was always fresh, and always present. And always delicious.

"The Humans were not that difficult to bend…we came to this world, shooting lightning and healing wounds, stopping natural disasters with skills we all, to a degree, possess. The belief that we were superior, and therefor divine, came naturally, in many cases, and it was not something we discouraged." The gold-skinned being put a hand on his shoulder then. "I know you hesitate to cause more bloodshed, and more violent cycles of revenge, but you need to understand something. These…Fornians, they are not like the Humans we encountered so very, very long ago shivering in the cold of this very land under straw-thatched roofs. They are smarter. Cunning. Aware of the natural forces, and unnatural ones, at work around them. They are more like the Jotuns. And I assume you have heard tell of how many of those we had to kill. Many by mine own hammer. There are some minions of Shadow that will not break, not even to a Hyper Voice."

Alex munched quietly on a random piece of meat, attached to a perfectly sized bone jutting from it. It was delicious, easy to chew, and none of the meat got on his hand, for the bone-like protrusion accommodated his ridiculously large fingers. Seeing the young human still in distress, Thor sighed.

"Very well…to know the Word to break them, you must know who they are. What the bedrock of their belief is. You must shatter the wrongness of it in an impactful way…then, at least, they will be confused, and hesitant to fight. They will think, and in that moment, many will understand what they are a part of. The good ones will rebel, and the number of dead will…lessen. The good news is that you are fighting a cult mentality. What breaks one thoroughly enough will likely work on most of them. But first…"

The Dragon Emperor smirked then, as the understanding slowly came across his features. "I must know my enemy. Thank you, Thor…I do appreciate the wisdom. And the food." They both chuckled at that, and bit into their respective hunks of meat. Alex caught the god's eye then, and saw a crimson eyebrow rise suggestively. Alex smirked, and rolled his eyes, but swung his backpack around anyways.

After several minutes of casual chatting, and setting up the instruments involved with enjoying the Leaf, the Aesir spoke, "And you say this…bong…can be fashioned of thunderclouds?"

Alex shrugged, but then nodded. "That's how the Dragon made this one. It's practically unbreakable. Do not." He said, as he saw the grinning god reaching for his hammer. He had a bad habit of smashing it into unbreakable things.

"I will forge you a new one!" Thor said, grinning at the dark grey instrument. He wanted to try Mjolnir's strength against that of the Original Dragon's. He'd heard the legend of the serpent's power, and now there was a chance to test himself against it right in front of him.

"After we smoke. I have a spare he made as well, just as useful, and a bit cleaner if I'm honest. It is always wise to carry a spare. You can bang on that one." That, thankfully, kept the God of Thunder from smashing the already packed instrument, and the two enjoyed the brief hours of peace, before the war that was to come.

Norstad had changed quite a bit since Alduin fell. The Everwinter had finally broken. Sun returned to the land, and Percy had made great efforts to regrow the forests. It was still cold, of course, but nothing compared to what had once been. While the Fairy King had rounded up the strongest of Norstad's new Trainers, each of whom had been inspired by the songs regarding the Fall of Alduin, and the role a Trainer had played in it, Thor had promised himself, his host of warriors, and a squad of Articuno flyers to reinforce their Unovan friends as well. He claimed to have a score to settle, with the Prophet. They were due to rendezvous with Professor Buckeye's forces in Ohiana over the next few days.

That only left Kalos unusually quiet. In all the long years the two had been allies, whenever the Imperium threatened Kalos, Unova would come to aid. When previous incarnations of Fornia had done the same as the current one, Kalos had come to Unova's aid, but now, after four attacks on the capital, and the outbreak of war, there was naught from Kalos but silence.

Lumiose City – Kalos Region

"It is time, Venu. Dark Burst." Four shadowy wings, akin to a Venomoth's, surrounded the figure under the full moon. He was a man, garbed now in a skin-tight suit that looked quite breathable, despite the skin-tightness. It was mainly purple in color, though there were hints of black as well. In the night sky, he was hard to see.

He soared high over Lumiose, and grinned. "Finally…those Hearts will be mine…"

The darkness in his wings flared as they continued to carry him ever higher. A voice came quietly from them, one he'd rarely heard of late. "Do not forget to whom you promised those artifacts, Dark Moth…"

"I remember, hag…" The man muttered. The legends said that whoever possessed both would be granted unlimited power, and while he'd been tempted to use that himself, another had made her interest in them known. She had been quite persuasive in convincing him that having ultimate power all the time was something that, inevitably, would ruin his relationship with the one he wanted revived. Therefor, he would bring the Hearts of Life and Death to her, and she would revive, in all capacities, the woman he'd lost. He did not doubt her skill, and did not desire any errors in such a revival process.

"Now…descend, my Shadow Spore!" The wings flared again, and orbs of darkness descended upon the sleeping citizens of Lumiose. Over the past few weeks, incidents involving people turned into 'super villains' had been an almost daily occurrence. It hadn't been long before most of the city had been affected by the oddness.

Normally, the Gym Leader would call in the League's help, but Clemont had, supposedly, locked himself in Lumiose Tower. In reality, nobody had seen him in public for quite a while. It wasn't all that unusual, as he'd created an automatic Gym Leader to handle his challengers while he invented decades ago, and the people of the region were now quite familiar with Clembot, but it had been months now with no word from anyone in the Gym. Aside from the machine, who wasn't programmed to answer questions about his maker.

With the absence of any official response, two Pokémon Trainers had answered the call to action. In their own words, these citizens turned dark called themselves villains. The two who stood against them figured there might as well be heroes, too. Nobody knew how the two heroes had acquired the Burst Hearts the turned citizens always seemed obsessed with stealing, but they'd given the ability to fuse a Trainer with their Pokémon, and become something new altogether. When normal Mega Evolution had failed, they'd stepped up, continuously, to drive off the unnaturally powerful opponents, and eventually cleanse them of the Shadow's influence.

Now, most of those who'd been cleansed were once more given the power, and once more, the Dark Moth's minions rose. The abilities his own Burst Heart gave him empowered both the citizen in question, and their Pokémon partner with varied supernatural abilities that made them quite strong. As expected, this usually led to chaos, but thus far, it had been relatively isolated chaos as Dark Moth tested his powers. It wasn't long before Lumiose was alight with the sounds of battle, as the local Trainers rose to meet the overwhelming numbers of brainwashed 'villains'.

Thankfully, the two Trainers who had become Kalos' newest faces of justice hadn't been slouching when it came to figuring out what was causing these transformations. They'd discussed the possibility of what might happen if the Shadows hit more than one person at once. After that, they'd reached out to the League itself by physically visiting the Elite Four's home, and in response, the Champion had been sent.

He'd rallied the other Gym Leaders of course, and their mission was to break into the Lumiose Tower, to find Clemont, and have him activate the city's defenses. They had a stun setting, as well as a violent one, for when the invaders came for blood, and plunder. Given that the people attacking currently were citizens, stunning would be enough.

Connor Gladstone had joined the two 'heroes', and quickly realized this…'Heart power' was easily as strong as Mega Evolution. His Infernape Ardor had put up a good fight against the dark-winged moth man, but it was soon clear that their side needed a boost. That was when the female Trainer, who was part Ledian at that moment, handed him an empty Heart. Since it belonged to another, they could only use it once, but given that it was empty, it would work. Maybe.

The fused combination of Trainer and Pokémon on a Champion's level quickly brought the villain down, hard. They'd only traded a few blows, and that had been all the burning ape man had needed. Raikou's fighting style, and their shared fighting typing, had enhanced the fusion, and Connor was almost disappointed that they could only use it this once. It would definitely smash through Alex's aura shield.

The 'Ledi Girl' proceeded to use what appeared to be some variation of a bright Silver Wind, and managed to engulf all of Lumiose within it, effectively cleansing the city of the shadowy balls of energy driving the citizens mad. Connor let the power fade, and both he and Ardor stretched, still in sync, as they became themselves once more.

"Oof. That's going to be sore for a bit. You two do this all the time, hmm?" He approached the girl, and her partner 'Night Cat', a Trainer who evidently had a Liepard, who'd held the swarm of powerful minions off while the Champion removed the source of their power. He handed the girl the empty Heart, and she stuffed it away.

Night Cat spoke then, "Our Pokémon fused with the Hearts when we found them. One was, apparently, once Xerneas's, and the other held Yveltal. We inherited some of their power. When a Pokémon becomes tied to a Heart, it's…painful to remove them from it. But it can be done, the plus side though, is no lingering side-effects. Borrowing the power of a Heart not your own can be…strenuous, on both the Trainer and the Heart crystal. It's best not to do it too often."

Connor frowned at that, mulling over the information. Kalos' entities of life and destruction had likely been subjected to significant pain, if it was true. Perhaps that was what made them so much more shy than their Norstad counterparts. The heroes left then, to protect their 'secret identity', and Connor joined the Gym Leaders in Lumiose Tower.

They were in the midst of tying up a struggling Clemont, whose entire body was radiating a dark, visible aura. His eyes were constantly rolled back, and he appeared to be unconscious, like a puppet almost, when he moved. The struggling ceased as Connor stood before him. Clemont grinned then, but an elderly woman's voice came from his mouth. "Ahh! The Champion…good, good. I'm glad you are here. Now my collection of Heroes is complete…I finally have the entire Kalosian set!"

Connor raised a dark crimson brow, as the others readied their Pokéballs. Despite being tied up, Clemont rose into the air, and his face's grin was…unsettling. "What do you mean? You're speaking nonsense…" Connor said, also readying a ball.

Clemont raised his arms then, and the Champion swore as the three heroes of his homeland, the Swords of Justice, stepped from the shadow. They were engulfed in the same purple energy as Clemont, but none more so than Cobalion. The steel and fighting type's eyes looked tortured, and the veins around them had taken on the same color as the energy coursing through him, and his counterparts.

"Fall back!" Connor ordered, and the Gym Leaders quickly did so, before the Swords could strike. Kalos was no stranger to strategic withdrawal. They moved into the Gym's battle arena then, and summoned their partners. All of them. Clemont's own team of a Diggersby and a Luxray joined the Swords, burning as dark as they did, and the battle quickly devolved into chaos.

Then, tearing through all of it, came a dark purple Flamethrower that threatened to engulf the Champion's whole party. An aura shield of scarlet-pink energy surrounded each of them before it hit, as well as their partners, and moved each of them away as another equally large, but normal colored Flamethrower collided with the first.

The pair of Delphox who'd cast the attacks stepped onto the Gym's field then, and Connor stared as a member of his own Elite Four, and hero in her own right, came shambling out to stand beside Clemont. He was busy reviving his partners, who had not been shielded or moved. The Swords had each defended themselves, seemingly on pure instinct, with their Sacred Swords. It had diverted most of the flames from them.

Kalos's newest Champion turned to see their rescuer then, and pinched his brow. It was, of course, his sister, once more in a different outfit. It was frilly and Kalosian, but she'd kept the black and white color scheme. "I had it handled, sister."

Jess smirked at him as she joined her partner in the Trainer's box of the field. It seemed they'd be doing this properly, as Clemont had shambled backwards alongside the Swords, leaving only Serena to face her. "If you'd had that handled, you wouldn't have been falling back to this entrance. Take care of Clemont, would you? Bind him. I can cleanse them all once we settle this…"

Connor followed his sister's gaze, and raised a brow as he eyed the two Delphox. They both had unsettling grins on their sly features, and their eyes burned with psychic power. He summoned his Garchomp, and moved for the electric type Gym Leader.

The two foxes made an unseeable motion with their arms, and two more massive Flamethrowers collided. By now, their field was clear, which was good, for the intense heat had charred it, thoroughly.

The Delphox who opposed them had an aura that seethed with Shadow, and it flared as the voice from before spoke again in the same unsettling tones, tilting the Fox's head sideways as it spoke. "I'll show you mine if you show me yours…"

She brought out a staff of dark wood then, another Flamethrower already prepared. Delphi brought her own staff out, a similar attack readied as well, which manifested as a small but intense burning sphere within the reddish brown colored wood claws that made up the tip.

The voice's owner laughed. "What the Hel is that supposed to be? Everyone knows Ash staves are the best."

Delphi glanced at her Trainer, nodded, then turned her sly eyes back to her opponent. "I prefer Redwood." She seemed to chuckle as she attacked, and her opponent quickly did the same, only to find that she'd been outclassed. The Blast Burn tore through the Flamethrower, and hit the enemy fox, her Trainer, and Clemont as well in a massive explosion of flame that left Delphi panting, and leaning on the sturdy Redwood staff. Of the Swords, there was no sign.

Gar had been handling the Luxray, and Connor let him battle on his own instinct, as he knew it would be good practice for the real Luxray they were preparing for. Gren had struck the Diggersby from the shadows, only to be countered by a quick Thunder from the electric lion.

Strong as Gren was, he was not the hardiest of Pokémon, and though he managed to hang on through the critical hit, Connor recalled him. Gar could handle the Luxray alone, and as Clemont fell, singed by magical fire, The Luxray in mid Thunder Fang had paused, instinctually drawn by the pain from his Trainer despite his being possessed. Gar gained the distraction he needed to strike, and he brought the thunder cat down, hard, shaking the entire gym with his Earthquake.

The dragon type roared triumphantly, and Connor used an escape rope to bind the possessed Gym Leader, as Jess did the same to Serena. She brought out her Articuno, then. Though it was nearing winter, it very much felt as though it had arrived as Folokraan materialized from her ball. The entire gym became akin to a storage freezer in temperature, and ice began forming over every surface in the gym.

Gone was the hatchling, as after she'd begun to battle, she'd grown rapidly in size. Few could withstand the power of a Legendary bird. Compared to her kin in her village, she was still noticeably young, but given that most people never got the chance to see an Articuno this close, it wasn't very noticeable.

The spectacle she put on was enough of a distraction. Icy blue light enveloped the Trainers, and their partners, and the Shadow burned away as it burned intensely white. The humans regained consciousness, but their partners remained fainted.

Connor stared at his sister in disbelief. "When did she learn that? Is that a move?"

Jess nodded. "Purge. Her sisters know it as well. The strongest of them can cleanse Shadow with it." She left out picking it up from the Original Dragon, when he'd assigned her to call on Kalos' aid. Officially. She'd dressed for Kalos, but hadn't expected to be ambushed by civilian 'super villains', and then face down one of the Elite Four in Clemont's gym. Despite all the flames, she'd managed to remain unsinged.

"Useful…" Connor muttered. His own lover, the village's seeress, hadn't mentioned that it was an actual move. She'd claimed it was just something Articuno could do. Moves could be shared, with enough training, and having a partner that could cleanse Shadow would be useful. He glanced at their cleansed allies, and then back to her. "Why are you here, anyway?"

She raised a crimson brow at him. "Because Pravus is invading us, idiote. Unova calls for aid."

Connor chuckled. "The mighty 'Dragon Emperor' needs help eh? Well I'm employed by the Pokémon League. And they are, for the moment, taking a neutral stance. If you want Kalos's aid, you need to speak to their Prince."

Jess rolled her eyes at them, patting her Articuno, and then recalling her to the recolored Luxury Ball that she seemed to enjoy. "And where is Calem, hmm? I'd heard he vanished."

Connor glared at her. The only ones who knew the Prince's public identity were the Elite Four, and the Champion, and he had a feeling she'd been reading minds again. The League had an agreement with those who governed Kalos. Their people would both protect and train their royalty, and nobility, and in return the League had gotten to use one of the region's oldest castles for their Elite Four to face challengers in.

Calem had certainly proved that the region's royals could still battle with the best of them after he'd gone from helping Professor Sycamore to being dragged into the Flare Incident, but after his Chesnaught had fallen to Alain's flames, he'd simply vanished. "Probably at the palace. Good luck getting in." Connor muttered, as he looked around for the Swords of Justice. It seemed in the chaos, whoever was puppeting them had made a strategic retreat of their own.

Jess smirked, recalled her partner, and headed for the exit. "Compared to this, getting in there will be cake."

Unity Tower, Castelia City – Unova Region

The encircling form of the Original Dragon shifted outside of the window as the room within was a mix of chaos and activity. From the tower, the eastern forces had been coordinating. They were retreating on all fronts, save for the Kanadian one. Their massive border wall that spanned the majority of the continent's width proved quite useful in repelling the Crusaders, and the Trainers manning it were some of the best Kanadia had produced.

Each of the eastern Trainers who now found themselves soldiers in a reborn empire were given leave to, if they desired, take ten partners, rather than six. Their enemies had capitalized on the trend once the League officials running the World Tournament had announced the raised Pokémon limit cap. Most serious Trainers had enough partners in their storage systems to fill four extra slots, and the Original Dragon himself had given them leave to expand their belts, as soon as possible. Statistically, larger teams meant more squads surviving. Being the largest population on the planet had its advantages, and new Trainers from the capital were arriving to reinforce what remained of the State's militias by the day. Slowly, something resembling a proper front had formed, but the Fornian advance was relentless. It was also slow.

It had troubled Tao that these Crusaders, all decent Trainers who had full teams of ten, only ever walked towards their forces, on foot. Plenty had capable mounts, who would make useful firepower as well, but the Church's legions remained on foot as they marched. When his Tamer had mentioned the abomination's talk of a Blitz, Tao had called in his ace in this war.

From the east, Norstad specifically, Rayquaza came at the head of roughly fifty Graybeards, each of whom had been trained for, and seen, war. They had been busy as, at Tao's request, they had taken the bones of the World Eater, purified them of any potentially lingering taint, and then forged them into armor the likes of which had never been seen this far west.

It wasn't long before Texico too eventually called in the retreat east. Despite being prepared, the Crusaders were too relentless, and the desert didn't provide the kind of food the greener lands to the north did. Tao had told them to retreat towards the Swamp, which had, of course, been met with trepidation.

Many who lived in the central areas of the continent could trace their roots back to that salty, ever-growing Swamp. It had forced their ancestors west, towards lands not occupied by humans for quite some time. They had flourished, especially under the dragon's empire, but they never forgot, and the Swamp grew larger all the time.

It was from the Swamp, that their secret weapons were coming. The Champions of the east, many of whom had thus far been forced to sit by, training, as their homes were invaded, had been summoned by their master. The Sage had given them a choice when war broke out, and panic, as well as anger at those whose States had willingly turned and supported the Arcean Church, surged through the now bustling island that had become akin to a small city with how many Trainers now resided there.

Their options were stay, and be considered allies in the war to come, or they could go home, be found out for their psychic powers, end up in a camp, and help no one. Only a few had left, and contact with them had quickly been lost. Gone were the mud huts that had littered the island, as the clever Champions, ever in search of more ideal places to chill, had learned that combining certain energies from their Plate shards created useful, sturdy building material. The dormitories had changed as well, becoming properly furnished apartments that eventually rivaled the Swamp Tree in size as more floors were added to them, simple in design, small, but private. With such a large surge in population, getting everyone comfortable had been their first priority, and everyone had helped build, if they wanted a roof over their head when the rain came. Slowly, the long days of hard work, and equally frustrating training, drove out many who had come to the Sage seeking 'magic powers'.

By the time Tao called on the Sage, they were mostly ready. A squad of the hundred strongest Champions had been drawn together, Trainers who had, like their 'Emperor', awakened a typing-based power. Some had even changed their normal typing as well. It was these hundred that Tao had called to the tower in their capital.

There, they had met the new Dragon Emperor, and had each, eventually, pledged to help. In some capacity. Nate, Rosa, Hilda, and even her brother were there with Alex. Evidently, they were all being given command, as they had all successfully bonded with the Dragon of Unova at some point, and understood his methods and battle style quite well by this point.

Their confidence was reinforced when Tao addressed them with his thundering mental baritone. "Champions. Each of you has been called here because the very Balance of our land now lies with whoever wins this unfortunate conflict." His head rose slowly within the room from the window it was leaning in through on the tower as he spoke, and his Tamer smirked, long familiar with how the dragon manipulated his fellow humans during Tinvaak.

"I am forming a force of…elite fighters, in both martial combat, and Battling. You have each demonstrated a gift for both. Now, I am calling on you to fight. Unova requires your aid…and should you choose to accept, we will outfit you with the…appropriate gear for the station you'll be holding." The dragon gave his Tamer a nod, and the Champions of Unova each smirked. Rumors of what Alex had on his belt now had exploded after the skirmish outside the newly raised Imperial Palace.

Naturally, the rumors about copies of his weapon had also spread, and the Brain Trust, in conjunction with the smiths of the Graybeard's order, had perfected armor for their elite troops.

Eric had explained how the armor was compressed into the device on his belt, but Alex had lost track after he'd sidetracked into explaining something involving 'nanofiber-bots'. Evidently, he'd copied the usefulness of Tao's clothing into the mesh joint-coverings each suit had, and the suits would, upon being damaged, attempt to repair both the wearer and itself. The pieces of dragonbone had been forged into unique designs, and given 'enchantments', based on the Champion who'd be wearing the armor. Many had held their titles for years, but nobody had questioned how the Graybeards had acquired a list of traits and abilities that could only have come from the League. Alex's own armor had been Voice Forged with Plate shards of every type, the majority of which had come from his own gathered collection. He'd held onto the Flame, Meadow, and Earth crystals, as they had sentimental value to him.

The Dragon Emperor stepped forward then, and addressed the group as he hit the new bone-white belt, and activated his own armor. It covered his tall form from head to toe, and the white bone armor made a good contrast with the black mesh beneath it. It strongly resembled what Percy had garbed him in, namely the Dragonbone set from the video game he'd influenced Norstad with, albeit with some key differences. Each forearm sported a carved Salamence head with its jaws open, though thankfully the carved teeth didn't obstruct his hand's mobility. His helmet covered most of his face, but kept the classic styled horns as well. Each step clanked heavily on the metal roof as he strode towards them. His fellow Champions activated their own armor, which formed up from their belts in the same manner that his had, namely with a flash of energy as the belts reconstructed the protective coverings around their wearers.

Alex saw many of the hundred gathered smirk, as they recognized his helmet's design, as well as the armor's. Spiky protrusions of dragonbone in Percy's aesthetic adorned the man's wide shoulders now, and he brought forward the leathery black cloak that hung from the back, concealing most of the armor from sight. He raised his right hand then, igniting Lux and the other Champions did the same with their own freshly made weapons. "Who will join us?"

The hands rose quickly, and the Dragon Emperor smirked. His lower jaw was the only part of his face still visible, aside from the intense, and bluish-purple eyes, now burning with energy. "I'm glad you're all ready…you'll have to find your own Chargestones, but once you do…you will have your sword. It will be a symbol of your rank out in the field. Do. Not. Lose. It. And don't forget to keep it charged."

The Champions were each given armor then, and they soon discovered that each suit had already been tailored to their fighting styles. Their emperor then bid them to go into the Chargestone caves, and come out with a crystal that felt right to their senses. They had each gained a heightened perception from the Sage's training, despite it not always being psychic. It took several hours, but eventually each candidate returned with a crystal. No one was harmed, and the wildlife remained somewhat undisturbed. Galvantula had a reputation as a fast special attacker, and many 'foreign' Champions had been eager to add an electric spider to their teams, but beyond that, the local Pokémon seemed intact in population density.

When they returned to the top of the Unity tower, they found the Unovan Champions, each covered with a leathery black cloak similar to the Dragon Emperor's, in that it concealed their forms well and hung down from their armored shoulders. Each set of the armor came with one, but nobody else had figured out how to activate theirs yet. They were called down to a certain level of the tower then, and it didn't take long for the Champions to realize they were being sorted by region, as each floor of the tower had been repurposed to connect with and coordinate the forces in the corresponding region.

The Dragon Emperor met with them once they came in, and gave each a freshly fabricated hilt. Evidently, Percy had returned only hours earlier, but his Melmetal were already proving invaluable. Percy had been given a blade as well, though according to Eric, he'd somehow changed it to be pink, before rushing off somewhere else.

Once the Champion in question managed to ignite their new blade, Alex welcomed them into the Scales of Balance, the chosen moniker of their new order. They were then sorted, by their personal preference, to one of the Unovan Champions, and put into their squad. After some minor shuffling, they each had sixteen fellow Champions under their banner. Nate and Rosa were deployed to reinforce the south then, and would be getting those the Sage next deemed ready. There were several who were worthy, but an even hundred had been required first. Now, the others would be called up in waves determined by their readiness, outfitted, and split between the two commanders in the south.

The twins were sent to the north and center part of the lines, where they had been told to dig in when possible, and combine the local militias into a proper force. Jess had left picking her squad to Alex while she was off in Kalos, and naturally, she'd ended up with an all-female team, with an even split of Champions and Articuno Riders she'd befriended in the Swamp. Quite a large group of riders had agreed to join this new fighting force after his latest visit to Norstad, and were given blades as well. Armor, they declined, as they claimed they did not need to wear Alduin's bones to be safe. Alex's own squad was comprised of mostly men, for there hadn't been an even split in sexes. Many of the female Champions had learned quicker than their male counterparts, and thus, there were more of them amongst the first hundred.

Those under him were the comrades he'd known best while training, and fellow Leaf heads, one from each of the eastern regions currently being invaded. By no coincidence, they were also, usually, the strongest of the Champions from their homeland. For the moment, he led both squads, as Jess was busy. They would be in charge of relieving the Kanadians in the far west, and taking the arctic regions there. Then, they would push down into Fornia itself, and force the Church to defend, rather than attack. The Blitz had, according to the dragon, begun in earnest. Crusaders had begun running down exposed eastern camps, and the Scales were needed desperately. Within five days, the Dragon Empire had managed to provide an answer to the soldiers charging towards them. It remained to be seen if they would be enough.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Melting Point

(The following is a short story that fits snugly into Chapter 26, and introduces several important characters. Skipping is not advised, for this one.)

Sacreus' Bunker Base – Fornia Region

Doctor Ein made a noise of disgust, as the name 'Wes' was read aloud from the report that had just come in. Their scouts had discovered where the Veloraptar had gone in only a few short days. Evidently, the presumed-dead Trainer called Wes had come out of retirement for this conflict, and somehow, had stolen Ein's prized creation. Ein assumed he felt somewhat embarrassed that his own state of Orre had fallen so…quickly. This was retaliation. His precious Veloraptar had been 'snagged' apparently, or so the locals who'd witnessed the event claimed.

Though the beast had been fast, the time power of a nearby Celebi, one thought previously to be only rumor, had given the aged Snatcher a fair chance at catching the Pokémon. He was too young, and frankly unstable, to handle a Dark Ball, and thus the capture had worked. The promised Draco Plates had been delayed by some seemingly random act of thievery, and now, the chance to mold the Pokémon's mind, and evolution, was gone.

He turned to his ridiculously garbed employer, who quite literally fancied himself a demigod, and said with all the reverence he could muster, "We need to retrieve him, my Prophet. Without that specimen, we have no chance of de-thro-"

The doctor was interrupted by a fist, encased in Shadow energy, slamming across his cheek. He was on the ground then, and Pravus loomed over him, glaring down with those awful eyes of red. "Do not presume to give me orders, Doctor. You'll get your pet back…or we'll mine up another. Our destiny is before us…do not spoil it by having such a loose tongue. His eyes glared at the technicians around them, working at their stations. Most, the smart ones, simply tuned out events like this, and focused on work, unless specifically called by name.

The ones who did not last long at their posts, and there were always a few, were the ones who listened too obviously, or in some cases, dared to watch said events unfold.

The room turned an eerie red, as black and red arcs of lightning flew from the Prophet's outstretched fingers, and into the workers who'd let their eyes wander. The Prophet had not been gentle, and many of the burns were serious. He had expected things in Unova to, finally, work to his advantage. But evidently, a sky full of enemy dragons was impossible to fool.

"It is time we put the Redwood whelp in his place. Begin marching the lines east. Tell the Generals the time for the Blitz has come. No stopping! No rest! I want this land conquered before the Unovans can form a hard defensive line." The Prophet's words had a hard edge, and his loyal minions worked rather quickly, despite their injuries, to accomplish the Leader's orders, and send out messages to the commanders on the border.

They had already begun pushing, though in reality, they had been marching rather slowly. Now, each of the Crusaders would summon a Pokémon to ride into battle, and the already retreating easterners would quickly be overwhelmed by their combined speed. All across the border, the Arceans advanced.

His lieutenant, Samson, stepped forward then. "My Prophet." He bowed his head. "The Texicans have known this was coming for a while…their Champion learned far more than he should have in Orre. I'm afraid this has caused a drive for unity amongst their people. As far north as Kentu's borders, we've had reports of organized resistance…and Ohiana has Professor Buckeye, and his Suicune."

That got the Prophet's attention. "He's summoned the North Wind? It seems the first part of this war may begin in earnest. Prepare a ship, a fighter. Make sure there are plenty of Dark Balls. I'm going to declaw his forces, too."

The lieutenant saluted, quietly glad that, for once, relatively bad news hadn't been met with a random, brutal beating. "Yes, my Prophet." The man might've felt sympathy for the Trainers about to lose their beloved partners to the Shadow, but they were heretics. They deserved no less for daring to oppose the savior of mankind.

Fifty Miles East of Arcino – Fornia Region

"You know, when I said you could disguise me, I had something else in mind…" The voice belonged to Wes, the unofficial 'hero' of the Orre region, and the man he was speaking to was quite a long way from home. But Percy had a task to complete. And a promise to cash in on.

The Fairy King smirked at his last-minute partner, who was now guised as a little girl. Cute, blonde, and complete with pigtails. He'd bumped into Percy on the only road that went into this part of the desert, and they'd found that their destinations were the same. Thus, they had joined forces, for a time. Everything had gone smoothly until they came closer to their goal. Percy had insisted on disguises, and though they'd made good time with them, Wes had been demanding a different guise for over an hour now, as they'd traveled across the dry brush landscape to their destination.

Percy was guised as an old man, with a beard of gray that covered most of his face. He'd even gone with an eyepatch, over his right eye. The story was, supposedly, that this random grandfather just happened to be wandering through a desert with his relative. Completely believable.

His argument had been that people in Norstad traveled across vast swathes of wastes just to survive all the time, but Wes had a feeling Arceans avoided that. Their Church paid for everything, which included transportation to wherever they were 'assigned'.

In the end, it hadn't mattered. They came upon their destination without encountering anyone. Now up close, Percy could see many details his abrupt satellite scan of the area hadn't picked up on. The facility was in what had once been a crater, which could only have come from a meteoric impact. Pools of undulating silvery metal were all over the crater, and had plenty of space between them. Oddly enough, there was no wall, not even a fence, surrounding the crater. Only several large, and easily avoidable turrets, placed about the rim.

"I can feel the heat from here…" Wes muttered, his adult man's voice sounding entirely unnatural coming from the little girl he currently was.

"Hush." Old Percy said, smirking. The Trainer had a point, though. It was hot down there. That was likely what was keeping the Meltan, and their evolutions, in a constant liquid state. Then, the wind shifted, and the two shared a look. There was a…noise, of a kind, on the wind. A terrible high pitched groaning sound. The sound of hundreds of Melmetal, and their prior evolutions, crying out in pain. Apparently being forcibly melted together in burning holes in the ground was something they didn't like. "If we can free them…they would make powerful allies."

The little girl glared at the old man. "Or, they could run amok, and be disintegrated by those turrets. We need to find a way to help them out of those holes and disable the heat, as well as take out those guns. Seems we have two tasks."

Percy was already moving. "Dibs on the heater. Have fun with the giant guns!" He gave a casual wave as he strolled down the crater's steep edge, moving slowly, and letting his magic camouflage him. Wes was on his own. As a rare act of mercy, he dispelled the poor man's fairy typed disguise, and gave him a robe of shadows instead. It wasn't as stealthy as a genuine one, but tricking one's perception was a trademark of fairy energy.

Knowing the Arceans as he did, for Caleb Pravus had sent many a brainwasher to his tower, over the years, he knew their buildings typically went for a fortified underground approach. After many failed attempts to convert him, Percy had been 'given' inside secrets usually only reserved for Church members who'd put in their time, and worked for it. Evidently Pravus' reasoning was that he'd already done his time, and had still been doing it, thus he could be trusted. If he joined. The Prophet himself never actually visited him though, not until he'd been useful.

Eventually, Percy had acquiesced to their requests to 'ally' with their organization. It was better than rotting away in that tower, forgotten by the mortals of all but his home region. Technically, he was considered to be at 'stage eight' of twelve on their Church's 'path to enlightenment'. The completion of which, made one 'immune' to disease, and supposedly death. There was, of course, not one shred of evidence that completing each stage, something the people had to pay thousands, if not millions, of units of currency for, actually worked. The first Prophet, the man who'd founded the cult, and set up most of the current rules and regulations, had himself died of a sudden heart attack. Then, Pravus had seized control, and those who questioned him disappeared. Or so the rumors claimed.

It was an unusual death, to non-Arceans at least. In those early days, they'd been the largest of several regions in what was now Fornia, and the east kept an eye on them. Under Pravus, they had dominated, and expanded, uniting the Fornia region under one banner in a matter of years. The Prophet's.

Evidently the first Prophet, a normal, if charismatic human by all accounts, had been sequestered on one of his naval ships after their cult was sued into becoming ocean-bound refugees, and the advanced medical technology that could've saved him was too far away to do anything. Or so Pravus had told his mourning followers. All anyone knew of the man assuming control of what the original Prophet left behind was that he'd appeared one day on the coastal beaches, and had been helped by the original Prophet, who'd just happened to be strolling by that morning.

It wasn't long before the strange castaway had befriended the first Prophet, become his confidant, and upon his death, took over the, at that point, almost entirely naval cult whose only land holding had been Port: Land, close to the Kanadian border. The official Church statement had been that Pravus' predecessor had been called to Arceus' side, and therefor had to abandon his body. Or something. Getting those details had been a slog, for many had not wished to speak of the first Prophet. Only the current one mattered, apparently. After well over two centuries of control, it wasn't surprising that the current generation was so unflinchingly loyal. Percy knew how malleable humans could be, if one influenced them young enough. It was why immortals and long-lived tyrants were so effective.

Once Percy finally found a bunker entrance, he used what skill he'd honed over the long millennia to subdue a guard, examine his mind, and take his place in the order of things by way of disguise. In this manner, he slowly made his way through the rank and file, until he made his way lower into the facility, broke a machine, and then found a maintenance worker, and took his identity as well. The illusions hiding their unconscious (and possibly deceased) bodies would hopefully last as long as their mission here would.

The room he was looking for, he had learned, was indeed located deep underground. A furnace, evidently powered by not one, but two male Heatran. As he finally came upon the chamber in question however, he found the armed guards, in standard soldier attire, already violently and permanently dispatched. Someone was inside, mumbling to themselves.

The room only had one entrance, from a walkway that, thanks to the technician's knowledge, Percy knew was over sixty percent Dolomite, a durable, heat resistant blending of metal. The walkway was above the chamber, most of which was taken up by the machine within. The two Heatran were there, and they were massive, held unmoving in some kind of stasis, constantly giving off as much heat as they could manage.

Percy decided on stealth at that moment, and listened in. "No…No. No. Nonono. Where the hell are they? I know there's *burp* some here." The man speaking, and belching in between sentences, looked like a Professor, and had the hair for it. Wild, spiky, with a bald spot only visible from behind. It was pink, save for faint streaks of white within. For the most part, he seemed like a normal human, but he'd already taken down four soldiers of the Church's Task Force, who lay unmoving on the floor of the underground prison with gaping wounds in their vital organs. Looks were deceiving.

Another, far more annoying voice came then. "Aw geeze, Rick. I don't think this guy is alive. Rick? Rick! I don't want to be an accomplice to murder, Rick! I want- I want to go to school!"

A loud belch filled the small underground cavern, followed by more speech from this Rick person. "School? You want be some *belch* miiiindless sheep that comes at the call of a *burp* bell? Fine. If all you're going to do is *burp* biiiitch, then you can go. Here. Go on, Grampa is right behind you." Percy glanced down, and his eyes widened as he saw the man fire a device with a pink crystal embedded in the top. At the push of a button, it tore open a portal in reality. It was a pinkish scarlet color, but the smaller owner of the annoying voice walked through without complaint.

The belching figure went back to rummaging, and moments later exclaimed, "Woahoho! Jackpot!"

Deciding he'd had enough stealth Percy dispelled his illusion as he leapt the stairs down to the machine, and winced at the intensity of the heat. He turned to his fellow intruder, who hadn't noticed him, and said, "Hello there."

Rick stood and turned slowly, and Percy got his first good look at him. Bored expression. Bloodshot eyes. Pink hair. Professor's labcoat. In one hand was the device that had torn a hole in the very fabric of space for travel. In the other was a large, almost plant-like seed looking object that seemed to pulse with heat. Rick handed him the seed then.

"Here. *Burp* Hoooold this. I can only carry two." He reached down to grab more of the strange objects, and Percy winced as he examined it in his reluctant grasp.

"I'm Percy by the way… erm, What…exactly am I holding? And why?"

"Heatran Seeds. The only thing that *burp* burns hotter than these babies is my eternal devotion to Szechuan Sauce. I need them for my…uhh…science. Just follow me through the *burp* pooortal, quick trip, in and out." Rick stood then, and Percy observed that his 'seeds' seemed to be more…fresh, as they were dripping some kind of ichor.

"Not so fast…" A new voice crowed from above them. The two men looked up to behold a new figure, another man, though almost as flamboyant as Percy. He had a long brown coat, and under it, a suit of clothes whose color scheme seemed oddly familiar. Deep blue, steel gray, and a light blue as well.

He too held a device. It was thinner than Rick's and had a blue crystal embedded at the tip that was the same light blue hue as his clothes. He was staring at them with what seemed like disbelief, as he pointed it at them, and it buzzed for a moment, then stopped. Percy felt a brief intrusion into his mind, but it was so quick, he almost missed it.

The crimson, almost scarlet haired man spoke again, then. "Ahh…Humans. Of course, it's Humans." He stared down at them with sad, angry eyes. "I thought you'd been wiped out…all that effort, and you destroyed yourselves anyways. Gave in to your 'inevitable doom'. It's enough to make a man give up…for a time. The running never really stops."

Percy raised a brow at him, ignoring the unsettling throbbing from the seed that, the more he looked at it, seemed more flesh than plant. "You seem to have outdated information. We bounced back. Have you really not seen a Human since Old Earth fell? How old are you?"

The red headed man adjusted his bowtie then and smirked, "Old enough, actually…right. Humans. Earth. House call. Imprisoned Meltan in a hellish crater." He looked down at his side then, and Percy spied a rather small Meltan, clinging to his pantleg. "You never said you were from Earth. But I'm here now. The Doctor is in."

He strode down the steps then, past Percy and a silent, unnerved Rick. He had visibly tensed at the man's words, specifically 'Doctor', and was looking at the strange man like he knew him, but the newcomer no longer seemed to care that they existed. The Meltan clinging to his right leg was struggling to stay somewhat solid in the intense heat the machine holding the Heatran gave off.

There was a familiar noise as a pink portal opened, and then closed rapidly, as Rick stepped through, leaving Percy holding the throbbing seed. "That's not a plant seed you know." The 'doctor' said as he scanned the machine with his tiny stick, and appeared to, somehow, read what it had to say about it.

"What is it then?" Percy asked, holding it away from him.

"It seems Humanity is as brutal as ever. Heatran give off the most heat when they're in intense pain. What you're holding in your hand is what whoever put these poor fellows in there had cut off, to keep that pain fresh, to keep the heat coming, to keep…the Meltan melted." He stared at Percy then, as if noticing him for the first time. It wasn't an unpleasant stare, nor was the man ugly. Not Percy's type, for he'd had both sexes and everything in between in his time, but attractive enough. "Where am I, anyway? Location, Year, etcetera? All I found was empty tunnels on the way in."

Percy set the 'seed' down, and then summoned his Glaceon, who formed a Water Pulse in a small, spinning sphere that he could wash his hands clean with. "You're some miles west of Arcino, in the Fornia region, some giant underground crater facility. The people running this operation are called Arceans. They're a…religious group. Big on militancy."

The doctor sighed, voice dripping with sarcasm as he examined the machine's controls. "Fan-tas-tic. I love a cult. Militant, eh? Let me guess. Plenty of guns?"

Percy shrugged. "A few firearms, like pistols perhaps, but their main weapon is the staves they make from the metal here. They're capable of shooting elemental beam attacks in the form of flame, ice, or lightning. They're quite strong. Are you telling me you just appeared in this place with no idea what was going on?"

The redhead nodded again, then blinked. "That's kind of my MO. Wait. What? Are you telling me you've all already gone and surpassed projectile weaponry for beam energy?" He looked at his bare wrist the way one might look for a watch, paused for a moment, then shook his head clear of old habits.

Percy chuckled. "Most modern regions are capable of producing capture-spheres that hold their partners in their own pocket dimensions. They're quite cozy, too. Beam weapons aren't that hard to reproduce, but it's cheaper to just teach a Pokémon how to use Hyper Beam."

The doctor raised a brow, and then lifted his dark brown long jacket, revealing a team of his own. "Capture-spheres? You mean like these?"

The Pokéballs looked rather old, to Percy's eyes, a bit knackered, but ordinary, to him. A nice combination of red and white in the classic style. He'd quickly reacquainted himself with the modern world's capture technology, and had even begun sneaking it to those in Norstad he knew could benefit from having them. This 'doctor' and his team looked several decades off, but then, some claimed the older balls worked better than the new. He hadn't been around for that era, so he didn't know if such things were true.

"Humans who can Battle…right. That…complicates matters. Deal with that later…for now, friend Percy, white-clothed, pale-skinned Percy, you have ice types yes? Like your Glaceon here? I want you to have them use Ice Beam on this console." He gestured to it, and then took several steps back.

Percy's Glaceon, who was already out and listening, used Ice Beam then. While it did cool, it evidently wasn't enough. His Beartic got involved as well then, and that was when the doctor deemed it ready. "Alright…we should be all set. L-9, would you do the honors?"

A Lucario materialized from his belt then, shaking his head as he once more became corporeal, and not energy. He gave his partner a nod, and with a motion so fast even Percy's eyes had trouble following, the console split in half diagonally. The Lucario gave his aura-bone a twirl, and it faded then. The redhead gave his friend a pat on the head, and then eyed the tanks.

"Oh…that seems to have woken them up…" He slowly turned to Percy, awkward smile on his face. The kind one makes when they know they've accidentally messed up.

His Glaceon began growling at the tanks, and Percy glanced from her, to the doctor. "What does that mean?"

"Well, do you know what happens to cold glass when it's rapidly heated?" The glass on both tanks began to crack, as the fluid holding the Heatran began to boil once more. The two angry males were awake, in agony, and the area around them would boil for it. It didn't take long before the entire holding cell began splitting apart.

"It means run!" The Doctor shouted as he bolted for the stairs and Percy sprinted after the redhead. He wasn't all that worried about stealth, for not many people were authorized to be this far down, and the roars of the pained Heatran began echoing through the tunnels as they broke free of their prison, incoherent with rage. Anyone with sense, would run from a sound like that.

"Not that I don't like exercise…" Percy said, panting after several minutes of running, "But do we have a destination in mind?"

"We do!" The Doctor said, taking a sudden right. He led them into a large cavern, big enough for aircraft, and with an equally large exit, which was open. On the 'landing area' outside, little more than a slab of poorly made metal, was the sleeping form of a God. Or the closest thing Pokémon, and humans, had to one. The beast that controlled and maintained the very flow of the Time Vortex.

Dialga.

They sprinted out of the enormous hangar, for indeed there were several aircraft which were currently stored away in the walls of the red stone common to the area. Behind them, almost forty feet of wall rapidly melted, as a pair of massive Heatran, eyes burning with purple shadows, came charging after them.

Dialga opened one eye as the Doctor approached it, and Percy, who had run before with other Tamers of Legendary Pokémon, found himself suddenly cautious as he saw the sad, angry eyes of the Time Deity.

"Right…" The Doctor said, as he saw Dialga's reaction, stopped, turned, and raised a hand. The two massive Heatran prepared another Magma Storm as they rapidly approached. "This is where it gets complicated." The man snapped his fingers, and Dialga Roared.

Meanwhile…

Wes had decided to test his recently snagged Pokémon on the Arceans guarding the large, imposing energy cannons that encircled the base. Having had an interest in fossils and the creatures his ancestors had named 'dinosaurs' since he learned that was what Orre was most famous for, he knew exactly what species this Pokémon had come from. That was why he'd laughed when he saw the ID on the vest he'd been wearing, and the name the Arceans had evidently given this revived species. He'd called the Pokémon out some hours after escaping the Arcean onslaught, but quickly realized that bonding with a Pokémon like this could help turn the tide of the oncoming war.

After taking down the entire crater rim's defenses in less than twenty minutes, Wes knew he'd made the right choice. Oddly enough, he hadn't been tainted with Shadow, which was a nice change of pace from the Pokémon he usually took from Arceans. He'd tied them to continued Shadow Infusion for years, had even told the League, but nobody had acted on the information. Now, his home had paid the price.

He gave the raptor a scratch under his thin chin as he came trotting back, and the beast made a trilling sound that anyone could tell contained joy. "Not bad. Not bad at all. Now we go get ready to help the Meltan. This way."

The creature did something then that surprised the Trainer. It crouched low, and stared directly at him with an unnerving amount of intelligence. He wondered what exactly the Arceans had done to the creature, or if said intelligence was just a part of this species, but decided to trust the inherent kindness of every Pokémon he'd ever befriended. He climbed onto the creature's back, and wrapped his arms around his neck.

They began running then, and though he was slowed by the weight, the Pokémon's speed was still, especially for a part rock type, quite impressive. They assaulted each pool quickly, and Wes called out his Espeon and Umbreon to give them a hand once they quickly found their opponents overwhelming them by disregarding any kind of battle etiquette, or rules.

There was a reason he was a top-ranked Trainer, even if he did come from the sparsely populated Orre region. He'd handled far more grunts in his time than the Church had garrisoned here. Thankfully, this was only half of the population. The others were, he had learned after studying a map and shift schedule by one of the turrets, all garrisoned in the tunnels below, and were off-duty.

Once they were done, they could only sit and wait, until Percy disabled the heat. A few of the Nut Pokémon had, upon seeing their torturers beaten, tried climbing out of their rocky prison. The heat always melted them however, and they oozed back down into the pool of silver and eyes.

After five minutes of pacing, Wes sighed. "I'm done waiting. I'm doing what I came here to do." His Pokémon perked up at his words, which had broken the 'silence' between them. In truth, this close to the pools, the Meltan and their evolutions drowned out the chance for conversation. They sensed freedom near, and all of them yearned for it. The sound was overpowering. "You three stand guard. E.S.P., help them up with Psychic when the heat goes off. I'll be back." His Espeon nodded, and sat himself by the rim of one of the central craters.

With that, Wes dashed into the nearest tunnel. His contacts in the Fornian Rebellion had given him a map of the complex that revealed enough of the structure to get him where he wanted to go, and nowhere else. Thankfully, it was easy enough to follow.

When the Arcean Crusaders had overwhelmed Mt. Battle, and then the entire Orre region in a few hours, and claimed the region theirs, they had taken prisoners to ensure that the 'heroes' of the region didn't stir up any trouble.

Naturally, this had meant kidnapping the girl who could see auras. Rui. Dear to both her cousin Michael and Wes, the Church had claimed that she was in a safe place, being well treated, as long as everyone obeyed the new order. Before long, what few residents the region had were suddenly giving their conquerors their hard-earned money, to take 'classes' on the cult they now had the pleasure of paying to be part of. Those who resisted usually conformed once they were threatened with being shipped away to a mining camp in Fornia. Even in Orre, the locals had heard dark rumors of the Church's protocols in such places. War had, undoubtedly, made them worse. It always did.

Only a few had persistently resisted the Church, but it was enough for Wes to decide he'd had enough of sitting around. The disappearances had started slow, but eventually, he kept an eye on those who did defy the Church, and it wasn't long before he had tailed the black clad Task Force members to the only road that existed in this part of the desert.

Now, finally, he was here. After hearing the Meltan's cries, he doubted these people were treating her well. Humans who could do that to innocent Pokémon were the worst kind of scum. He needed to free as many people as possible.

The tunnel before him read 'Prison', but the letters were in the shape of Unown. After hearing several rumors about such things, Wes moved slowly past them, down the hall, and towards the cells, which were little more than Iron bars and melted out caves. It was oppressively hot, and the entire place stank of unwashed, sweaty human.

Forcing himself to ignore the stink, he listened, and his ears caught a hint of her voice. He knew it quite well. Wes stalked towards the noise, until finally, he found Rui's cell.

She was repeating something. Over and over, hunched in a corner of the small cage carved into the rock. As cells went, it was rather nice. A real bed. A real pillow. A toilet that evidently had been cleaned, and recently. He raised a brow as he tried to make out what she was mumbling. "Rui?"

She twitched at the sound of his voice, and began rocking in place. "I can't see them, I promise…I can't see them… I can't…"

Wes glanced at the bars, and then called out his Typhlosion. The air shimmered, and the bars melted quickly as the Pokémon turned his back to them, and snorted, causing his flames to rise. He then moved to stand guard in the tunnel, hiding low on all fours.

Wes gave the bars a second to cool, and then stepped into the cell. The entire time, she had kept repeating the same words. "Rui? It's me. I'm getting you out of here."

She stopped rocking in place, and glanced at him, eyes wide in terror. "No…please Doctor…I can't see them, I promise…I can't…"

Wes' eyes narrowed. "Doctor who?"

Rui looked back at the corner, still repeating the words. He moved to touch her shoulder, and when she didn't strike at him, he picked her up, and set her on his Typhlosion. "Typho…get her out of here. Run all the way back home if you have to. But keep her safe."

Typho was one of his best trained Pokémon, who Wes had trained almost as long as his Espeon and Umbreon. The powerful Pokémon nodded, but followed behind his Trainer as they tried to quietly move back through the tunnels. Rui kept whispering however, and every few minutes, she'd grow louder. Typho would calm her by generating some heat from his neck, but it never stopped her mouth from moving.

They parted as they returned to the central hallway of the prison. After examining the locks he hadn't melted, Wes figured there was an electronic 'open' switch somewhere, and indeed there was. He defeated the man guarding it, who called himself a 'Bishop', and had claimed superiority to a Trainer like him. After a quick battle, Wes took the man's ID card with the bored expression of a man who'd done this several hundred times, and eventually, found the switch to open the cells. He smirked as he saw many residents of Orre stumbling free.

They each looked tired, but determined as they recognized the Snatcher, and it wasn't long before they began rushing for the exit. Wes joined them, and led them out of the tunnels. Right as they ran out, and returned to the craters of Meltan, the entire complex began to shake, and roars of pure rage echoed throughout.

Wes told everyone not fit to battle to flee, and all but a small group of Trainers did. They had Pokémon partners that had been taken, and refused to give up on them. Wes had explained that they were likely infused with Shadow now, and lent them his Snag Machine. At least until they recaptured their friends, and left this hellish place.

Once they'd left, his Espeon got his attention. The Melmetal were climbing up, forming cohesive bodies. The craters glowed with the white energy of evolution, as many of the Meltan came together to reach the next stage. They'd been unable while melted, but now, they all sought revenge, and that fueled their evolution.

In the end, the craters produced roughly twenty of the giant living metal beings, who began moving, unified, in each compass direction of their crater prison. They would cleanse all of it. They moved into the shaking tunnels, and exacted revenge upon the humans that had inflicted unimaginable pain upon them for decades now. Each giant had been surrounded by a crowd of Meltan at their feet, who aided their evolved kin with unified and timely Flash Cannons. Collapsed tunnels were easily fixed as they moved through the complex, but the metal used to prop them open was weak, and would eventually break if the shaking continued.

With Typho and the residents of Orre on their long way home, Wes recalled his eeveelutions, and decided to try to find Percy. He had no love for the man, but it felt wrong to abandon a fellow traveler when they'd come here together, and he wouldn't wish being captured by this cult on anyone after getting a firsthand look at their prison. Thankfully, he didn't have to look far once he climbed to the crater's rim again. The exploding hangar caught his attention, as did the unmistakable figure of Dialga, facing down two giant Heatran.

He was already moving towards the massive figures atop his raptor, but quickly realized he was too far to do anything. Dialga roared, and Wes watched as he ran. The two Heatran shrank in size as the Roar's power surrounded them, and seemed to calm them, slightly, though they still attacked with a pair of Magma Storms. He saw a Glaceon freeze the waves of molten rock in place, and then watched as a Lucario smashed them to pieces with a single strike from a bone club that looked like it was made of pure energy.

Things seemed to calm down then, and by the time Wes had run over, the same Lucario had subdued the pair by using its aura waves to keep them calm, and somewhat docile. Percy was speaking to a red-haired man with a unique fashion sense. "And they won't remember any of it?"

The man grinned. "Nope. It's like their trauma never happened. Now, all I have to do is bring them home, and their sense of time will return fairly quick. They'll have a few nightmares…but in time, they'll fade. Provided they're not disturbed."

The doctor chuckled as he saw Wes approach them, and raised a brow at his choice of mount. "Is that...what I think it is? Oh you are...gorgeous!" Wes opened his mouth to warn the stranger away, but the initially hesitant Veloraptar allowed the man to touch his snout, and then trilled as he began scratching the underside of his neck. "You'll want to get him right under the jaw, back here...that's the spot he likes best. Isn't it you beauty."

Wes raised a brow at the man. "How do you know that, exactly?"

The man winked at him as he gave the beast, whose tongue now lolled out of his razor-sharp toothy maw, a thorough scratching. "I speak raptor."

Wes shifted, and he glanced down at the raptor's legs. Dangerous looking claws adorned each limb, perfect for gripping and tearing prey, but now, one of them was twitching, in direct time to the man's attentions. He felt himself laugh, despite the absurdity of the situation, and the looming form of the Time God above them.

Percy and Wes gave a bow as the man made his way towards Dialga, though they didn't quite know why. It seemed right. The Doctor placed a hand on Dialga then and gave them a wave with the other. The two were then encased in a cube of blue energy that floated into the air, and shot skyward, where it shortly disappeared. Percy smirked, as he'd heard the strange doctor shout with glee as they vanished.

Wes raised a brow at him. "Was…was that Dialga's Tamer?"

Percy nodded. "He called himself the Doctor…"

Wes' eyes slowly hardened, and he glared up at where the cube had vanished. "Doctor who, exactly?"

The Fairy King shrugged. "He never gave a name, just…doctor. Why?"

Wes went on to fill in the events he'd dealt with while Percy had chatted up strangers who seemed to be able to warp space and time as they pleased.

Once he was finished, the light blonde man shook his head, and recalled his Glaceon. "I don't think that doctor was the one your Rui mentioned…he's not tied to this place, in fact, he seemed surprised that Humans still even existed on Earth."

They had begun walking again, on their way from the base. The crater now smoked from every entrance, and destruction was everywhere. Wes followed Percy, as he seemed to have a destination in mind for them. "Really? Well then who was she talking about?"

Percy glanced at him. "Like you have to ask. There's only one doctor I know of that meddles with Shadow infusion. That would have the...depraved idea of creating a place like this. You've met him, if the legends are true."

"Ein…" Wes spoke the name like a curse.

"Exactly." Percy said as he crossed his arms, and stopped. The Meltan that had traveled with and then been left behind by the Doctor was now stood beside him jiggling with excitement. They were before one of the larger rock formations just outside of the crater. Before Wes could ask why they'd come to stare at a rock, he got an answer.

The stone exploded outward, as a roughly ten-foot-tall hole appeared in the side of it. From it, came no less than twenty lumbering Melmetal, all surrounded by small groups of their prior evolution. Dark red drops circulated through each of their bodies, and Percy didn't have to ask where they'd come from. There was a reason humans had been warned not to anger powerful Pokémon. This was often the result. The Meltan that had been with them thus far rejoined its kin, and was soon lost in the swarm of golden hex nut heads, and silver.

Percy spread his arms as each of the giants stood before them, forming a semicircle. "Hello Melmetal! And hello Meltan as well. I expect your revenge went well, aye?"

Each of the creatures began readying an all-too-familiar sphere of normal type energy that presaged the use of a move absurdly common to powerful Pokémon like these. "Now now, no need for that…I'm Percy. This is Wes. With efforts from both of us, we freed you, and now, we'd like your help."

The balls of energy stopped growing in size, but still remained. One of the Meltan by the centermost giant wobbled forward, and Percy touched its mind.

Gratitude for freedom. Let us live in peace.

The Pokémon let their attacks fade, and turned then, but not before Percy spoke. "I'm afraid it's not that simple. Hear me out, please." The giant's eyes moved back to him, and waited, motionless.

Percy took the pause to speak, "I for one, am fully behind letting you all get back to what you were doing before you were imprisoned here, however, I imagine quite a few of you still yet hunger for revenge, yes? I saw…I saw the data for how many Meltan had simply fallen, dissolved to the heat. You have my condolences…as well as an opportunity to strike back at those who've been abusing you. Unova and Fornia are at war, and the east could use a supply of metal, gathered properly of course. In return for your aid, I'm told that the Original Dragon, who is indeed now once more whole, intends to give you land in which to live, undisturbed, once this is all over."

The Melmetal looked at each other, and three of them wandered away, evidently not interested in revenge, only rest. Percy didn't blame them for leaving, but thankfully, the Meltan following them stayed, and began to shine, as they combined with the other swarms around the giants to form another Melmetal. That left them with eighteen.

"Good." Percy said, smirking now that he had their attention. "The lizard will work out the details with each of you. You will have your chance for revenge."

The newest Melmetal intruded on his mind then, and Percy winced. The contact was powerful, and, he realized slowly, boiling with rage for all those who'd died senselessly. There are others. Must find them.

"Leave that to myself, and my allies. Your prison was obvious, easily found from orbit, but if there are others, they will be harder to track. They're all likely underground. We'll begin searching for them as soon as we return to Unova." A single Meltan oozed from one of the giants as Percy spoke.

This one knows of others. Give them same agreement? Land? Home?

Percy nodded. "I'm sure the dragon won't have an issue with that. I'll use this one's memories to find the others. Now prepare yourselves…this might feel strange."

Each of the Melmetal placed their fists on the ground, and knelt on both 'knees', as they sensed what Percy was about to do. He turned to Wes then, and chuckled. "It seems this is where we part ways. Tao will move you to Orre…since apparently that's what you want. Are you sure you wouldn't prefer somewhere less…hostilely occupied?"

It was Wes's turn to chuckle. "If I wanted unoccupied, I wouldn't go east. That's where the soldiers went. My moneys on south. No Church down there."

Percy shrugged. "South of Orre, and free of Arceans eh? Well, if you really want to test the legend of the 'Dark Continent', you go right ahead. I'm bound for Unova…I've a debt to collect on." Percy offered a hand then, and Wes gave it a shake, before taking the three-point stance he'd been told, by Percy, was the best way to survive Teleporting, as it could be tricky.

He reached out to Tao, then linked with each of the Melmetal, and with the dragon's aid, Teleported all of them to Unova.

Wes was redirected to Orre with little more than a thought from the Original Dragon. It was where he'd wanted to go, and he didn't mind when he reappeared in Phenac City. It was close enough, and, his ride was parked here, conveniently.

The Trainers from earlier approached him, and returned his Snag machine. Evidently they had gotten their partners back and flown home. They had even cleared them of Shadow with nothing but the strength of their bonds, and rather quickly at that. The local Trainers had learned how from the best, after all.

He'd half expected them to take the machine for themselves, but the people of Orre had come to associate such things with two particular Trainers they considered heroes. Nobody would willingly rob their remote region's icons of their ability to cleanse captured Shadow Pokémon.

Back in Unova, Percy set to work on getting the Melmetal comfortable, and it wasn't long at all until the Brain Trust began fabricating the war's first plasma swords. Only time would tell if they would be enough to shift the oncoming tide in the east's favor.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 27: The Red Winter

Parfum Palace – Kalos Region

There was a knock on the ancient mahogany door that marked the entrance to the quarters that had, historically, played host to all manner of Kalosian nobility. "My Prince your, erm, Grandfather has requested your presence in the…'space between war and peace'… He said you would know what that meant…"

"Of course he did…" Calem muttered, but the servant who'd delivered the message was already gone. He was no longer the young teen he'd been when he'd first met his 'legendary' relative. After they'd battled before most of Lumiose, he'd revealed that they shared blood, though how many generations separated them was a mystery. Realizing Lysander was likely also a relative had taken a long time to come to terms with, but it made sense, in hindsight. He too had been tall. Calem hadn't gained bulk however, just size. He'd already been tall before Xerneas had blessed him, but in the years following, he'd grown to one hundred and ninety-six centimeters last he'd checked, which admittedly, had been some time ago.

After regaining his beloved partner, the returned King of Kalos had reclaimed his Palace from Calem's cousin Allie, and took charge of the complex and delicate system of power the Kalosians had been peacefully ruled under since the last war, three centuries past. Nobles of their region were expected to be expert Trainers, for the King had decreed that only those with strong bonds with their partners were fit to lead.

Up until the Team Flare incident, Mega Evolution had been a closely guarded secret of the Kalos nobility, several Gym Leaders, and usually the region's Champion. When the young prince had gone to aid the very man who made Kalos' secret power so popular with his research, Calem had gained a bad reputation with the nobles, which had included his parents. That hadn't stopped him from thrashing them, however.

He'd been given the title of Grand Duke thanks to his skills, but any influence he might've had only became significant when the King returned, and publicly revealed their blood ties. Kalos was now once more ruled by a single figure, and he'd suddenly found himself a target of every noble in the region, who had, for the past three centuries, enjoyed the absence of taxes to a giant, ill-tempered monarch.

He might've been crushed, had his Chesnaught not become his bodyguard. Surprise hit-and-run Hyper Beam attacks had become far too common, and lately, he'd been forced to stay in his room.

"Come, Chesalier. I expect we have more Battles to win…" The sleeping form of his Chesnaught, which took up a large portion of his palatial quarters with his size, slowly unfolded, and the irritated, half-awake eyes of the massive Pokémon fell upon his Trainer. He opened his mouth expectantly, and received an Oran Berry.

Now smirking, and munching happily, he wiped the sleep from his eyes and lumbered after his Trainer, ready to form a protective shield around him at a second's notice. Calem glanced up at the ceiling as they walked, and were joined by the only missing member of their newly extended party of ten. Like many Trainers, he definitely intended to join the next World Tournament, since he'd missed the last one, though lately, it seemed like the next site for it would be a war zone before long. Or so the rumors said.

"Anything, Guivre?" The Noivern dropped from the ceiling in an elegant and spiraling movement that, in the dim lighting of the Palace, was hard to follow. He gave the dragon a jaw scratch as he rose up before his Trainer, and blinked his eyes once. Nobody around, this time. It seemed his route to the Hall would be clear today.

He recalled the dragon into his Luxury Ball, and continued on. The Hall of Mirrors, as it was sometimes called, was typically used, in ages past, to hold peace summits. The one that had ended the last war had been held here, and ever since, the nobles had preferred it when battling each other for political power, as they did almost daily, to further their personal agendas.

It seemed it was empty today though, save for his gigantic relative. AZ had said that, thanks to Xerneas, he too would one day grow to tower over his fellow humans, that like him, the power of the Legendary Pokémon had done more than make him immortal. He had been proven correct, despite Calem's initial skepticism. He'd also hinted at some strange power related to their blood, but they'd been interrupted before he could say more, and they hadn't spoken of it since.

The King had cleaned up since his return to power, and looked eerily similar to how he had several centuries past, though his hair was definitely grayer. Calem had walked by giant paintings of the man's face numerous times in his childhood, and talking to the man himself often made things seem surreal to the young Prince.

The ancient King was staring out of one of the windows that were as tall as he was, his Floette perched on his shoulder, as usual. AZ's attire once more befit a ruler, though his young relative still looked like a Trainer, albeit a well-dressed one. He'd matched his Chesnaught's color scheme of green and tan, and hadn't regretted the change.

"Good. You've come quickly…there is much to say. As you may have noticed…we have a guest." The giant man gestured, and a new figure joined them, separating smoothly from the few shadows in the room. Calem beheld the only other woman he'd ever classify as being anywhere near Serena's level of beauty, though comparatively she was still rather young, and a decade at the very least separated them in age. The more he looked, the more he realized the two women really were quite similar, though this one had sharper eyes, a satisfied smirk, and hair as red as fire.

Jessica Gladstone introduced herself with all the proper manners of one born to high society, and though she hid it well, Calem knew a Kalosian accent when he heard one. He returned the introduction with a bow, and his own list of titles. Once the niceties were done, a silent pause filled the room, and Calem resisted smirking. He knew a bit about the current Champion's sister. She was a good Trainer too, or so rumor said.

He quickly glanced between them, as his Chesnaught, sensing no danger, curled up into a spiky sphere once more to snooze while the humans talked endlessly. They both wanted him to speak first, or so it seemed, and he did. "So. What brings the youngest Kalos Queen in a decade back home, hmm? Last I heard, you and that new Unovan Champion were enjoying the homeland… though I expect things have changed…"

"They have." She absently ran a hand through the fiery mane, and adjusted her black and white sun hat as she ignored the title he'd given her. She had spent her most recent spring break from University in Kalos, and during said visit, had managed to match Serena in a Pokémon Contest. She'd denied the title though, and thus it was currently, technically; unclaimed. That was when the Prince's instinct-driven eyes finally noticed the color scheme of her outfit. Black and white. Of course. Unovans never changed, it seemed. "Fornia has declared all-out war…and they're letting their Church pay for the whole thing. Their…'Crusaders' are hitting us hard…in short, my Prince, Unova calls for aid."

Calem glanced at AZ, who had resumed staring out the window. He nodded, once. Calem gave his best smile, and as always, it drew a faint flush to the woman on the receiving end of it. "Then Kalos will answer. Though what aid we give will be up to the King…"

AZ finally turned then, and regarded the woman properly for the first time since meeting her, as his gaze often drifted towards the sky. Slowly, his eyes widened. "So…the Tree of Life gave another gift…let us hope you wield its power better than her first choice…" The giant began pacing then, and the two humans watched, and waited. "Unova has ever been our ally…and in ages past, even when split, the Original Dragon has aided my people against the Imperium's encroachment…I will send our Prince, and a legion of our best Trainers. I will ready them myself. Will that satisfy your needs, Dragon Empress?"

The woman blinked once, and then smirked. Her voice seemed to purr as she bowed low, in the Unovan style. "Thoroughly. Thus, the ancient pact is honored again. You have our gratitude, King of Kalos."

"That's…the thing." AZ said, interrupting what sounded like the woman's exit. She seemed eager to get moving, and given the current dire situation, or what little Kalos knew of it, it made some sense. "I no longer desire to be the King of this region, indeed, even the nobles grow tired of my ancient games. My Kalos has moved on in my…absence. This is no longer my little kingdom…it's grown much larger…but it still requires a leader."

The giant turned and approached the redhead. "Send your…Dragon Emperor…to speak with me, when this conflict abides… I wish to…test his mettle. If it's good enough for your Dragon…it may be good enough for my Kalos."

Calem and Jess's eyes went wide at his words, and their implication. "I-I'll inform him as soon as possible. You have my word…thank you, again. Truly. It's nice to have reliable allies."

With that, and to the Prince's shock, the woman vanished in a flash of light that he'd only ever seen his Gallade use. "Did…did she just Teleport?"

AZ chuckled at the Prince's expression. "Yes…it seems the next stage of our species' evolution is upon us my young Prince…those with intensified psychic power are becoming more and more common as they manifest their Will."

His eyes began to shine with a familiar blue and white glow. "It is a trait you too possess…and before we honor our ancient alliance, I will unlock your…potential."

The Prince raised a brow. "Is it just psychic powers that have been appearing? Or are there other types as well?"

The King grinned. "Clever clever grandson. Come…summon your Gallade…we are short on time…"

Calem threw the Luxury Ball, colored green and white, into the air. "Sol! Come." He turned to his relative as his partner appeared. He'd almost gone with a Meowstic, but when he'd learned his old neighbor Serena had acquired a Gardevoir from traveling in Hoenn, a Gallade had been the only logical choice for him. "Do you really intend to hand over Kalos to the Dragon Empire?"

AZ shrugged, as he finished bumping forearms with the young, but eager Gallade. "Potentially…yes. I do have a method to my madness…but we'll deal with all of that when and if he manages to make it here...for now, focus."

Calem nodded, and with a flash, his Gallade mega evolved. Nodding in approval, the giant human met the Mega Gallade's eye and said, "Show him."

Meanwhile, in Unova…

They were tearing the eastern forces apart. The Arcean's Crusaders were almost unstoppable, for each of them had strong teams of ten Pokémon, as well as a staff that could fire three kinds of energy. The same three that had subjugated an empire in ages past. Fire, ice, and lightning. Evidently, the Arceans brief, strange, and also completely denied capture of the Original Dragon had yielded something. Most of the Arceans never had to draw their Pokémon, so outmatched were the Unovans, in those early days.

As in all conflicts, the hard toll of war separated the weak from the strong, but the eastern forces could never muster a force to match their foes in a proper battle line. Their superior weapons, literal beams of energy that could take out squads of ten humans in a single shot, had forced a hard retreat in every such conflict, and the eastern commanders who survived had been forced to adapt. The mainly militia forces had been quite effective at evacuating, though.

Every Gym Leader throughout the eastern states had, without a word from the League, acted in unison, and moved as many people as possible eastward, towards the supposed 'capital' of this newly reconstituted empire. Those soldiers who had been Trainers tended to excel, and many suspected they were funded by the League, for those who stood out against the invading army were somehow always well equipped.

In Texico, the east's knowledge of sailing the Texican Gulf came in handy, as the west half of the split State had not held control of the waters for some time. Though initially forced into a hard retreat, the tides had changed after Champion Rosa and her Scales had reinforced the Texicans. After scavenging more than a few of the Church's own weapons, the Texicans of the east had forced a hard border line between both sides, one that had extended from Texico up to the center of the continent. That was where Champion Nate and his dragons ruled the air with a string of unbroken and overpowering victories.

While the Church had manufactured planes equipped for war, they proved inferior to Nate's dragons, who could fell over ten at a time with a well-placed Hyper Beam. It wasn't long before the advancing Crusaders with flying partners were organized into proper air squadrons, but superiority belonged to the dragons, who dove on the ranks of mainly ground-bound Crusaders with devastating Outrage attacks every chance they got. The front lines shifted most in the middle, and Nate was the first to lose Scales under his command when the Church had ordered a regimental shift to ice typing, and filled the sky with beams of ice.

The Unovan's new elite forces were, thankfully, hard to kill. Their armor proved invaluable, so much so that the head Professors of Unova University had granted their creators the rank of lab assistants. Eric Redwood, the leader of the so-called Brain Trust, was supposedly at that moment taking the exams to become a proper Professor, but while he did, the war raged on.

Illinowa and Tenina had fallen, willingly according to rumor, but the Kanadian border held as strong as it ever had. Their wall's strength was legend, for it had even resisted the Dragon Empire, though truthfully, Tao himself had never tried to take it. When the Dragon had led armies, they had won, and in the past Kanadia had willingly joined the Empire with the promise that their culture would be kept intact, along with their border, should the empire fall. Kanadians usually laughed, whenever 'southerners' mentioned the wall and asked after its origins. The Kanadians would then tell them, almost verbatim in each encounter, that the two hundred foot tall structure, made mostly of steel and old world building methods, had been built 'ironically' by their ancestors in ages past, to shield Kanadia from insanity. Whatever that meant.

Their northern neighbors were a bit…odd, but to their credit, they had taken in many who had begun running as soon as they heard the Arcean's 'holy army' was invading. The Kanadians found themselves reinforced by the Dragon Emperor himself, several days into the conflict. He'd led thirty-five of his heavily armored troops along the border, using the Black Salamence called Shruikan to eradicate entire companies of enemy Crusaders with massive Charge Beam attacks.

They eventually learned to shield themselves, but by the time Shruikan struck, he was usually gone, and the damage was already done. These men too had tried shifting to ice typing, and while effective, Shruikan would always make them regret their choice when he demonstrated that he could unleash a torrent of flame, as well as electricity. Alex charged him with helping to guard the wall, a task he accepted, for it both provided food in the way of Wailord in the icy waters of the north, and entertainment, when the Arceans would try, and then fail, to take his wall.

While the Kanadians along the massive structure appreciated the reinforcement, the new Emperor was something of an unknown, in their region. Rumor had spread, of course, of the 'first skirmish' of the war, in Unova's own territory. None had been surprised at the outcome, for Unova had always created powerful Trainers, by the dragon-load. While the new Gym Leader of Opelucid City had undoubtedly distinguished himself, their Champion had, quite publicly apparently, dismembered one of the Prophet's own Hands by way of incineration. He never bothered correcting the tale tellers by saying it had actually been Tao who'd removed the abomination. He would've done the same if the dragon hesitated, but Tao never did.

Indeed, the dragon was proving invaluable as a commander. He had retained his Mega Form, and from Unity Tower, mentally guided the thousands of troops under his command, usually by way of mental contact. Every human he spoke with, and the soldiers under them, fought ten times harder after hearing his Words of inspiration, and though many innocents were saved by noble sacrifice, many more continued to die to the relentless advance of the Arcean's Blitz.

It was an old practice in Unova, but after several days of besieging the border wall all along their territories, the Kanadians had, at the giant black Salamence's suggestion, adorned the wall with the enemy dead. Those with weak stomachs declined to help, but there were plenty who'd suffered under the relentless march of the Church who were willing to do the grisly work. The corpses placed atop the Kanadian's wall sent a clear message. Death awaited anyone who tried to take the north, and the attacks all but ceased as the futility of facing Shruikan gave the Kanadians enough bodies to line the wall across several states. Any attempts to take it were routed whenever Shruikan would so much as scratch his neck. He had proven he could strike the humans whenever he wished, day or night, but he was defending, and that meant staying put. For the moment.

Most easterners had latched on to the news of a new Dragon Emperor with hope, for every State had legends involving the first. The governments of each eastern State quickly reaffirmed their loyalty to the Dragon in writing, as they had quite openly supported the trade between the eastern states for years, hoping for this exact development. The people were ready to start growing again, all they had needed, was a spark.

A spark was exactly what the Dragon Emperor had created. Most didn't believe the rumors, about him taking on a Hand, alone, and living, unless they saw him in battle. The Prophet's 'limbs' had made a lasting and early impression in this war, striking many States on their own turf free of easterners, before vanishing in a hail of destruction, and usually carnage.

The rumors came to slowly be believed however, once the Scales of Balance arrived to even the odds all across the front. Wielding plasma swords straight from a combination of science fiction and fantasy, as well as 'magic' powers and teams of incredibly strong Pokémon, the Champions who'd survived the Great Swamp were almost impossible to stop, especially when they struck in force. Rumor had it that they could even slice through the energy beams of their enemies, deflecting them from their soldiers, but nobody quite believed that one.

It took a long, bloody week for the Blitz to ground to a halt against the Scales and the invigorated eastern forces, but it wasn't long before the Church's drums of war thundered once more. The Arceans set their sights on the Ohiana region, and the straightest path towards Unova, by reinforcing the northern border's Arceans army group with what remained of their soldiers after the attempts on the Kanadian Wall, and charging once more. Conflict erupted, as the head Professor for the region commonly referred to as the 'breadbasket of the north' resisted the invaders with surprisingly effective guerilla attacks.

Professor Buckeye, the man leading the militia, and Trainers, resisting the invasion quickly became a legend. This was mostly due to the Legend of his own, which he had summoned. As the days had begun turning colder, everyone knew winter was coming, and in the north, it had come early. Though the fact that a Suicune was nearby may have had something to do with the sudden shift in weather. At the very least, the snows were bad enough to make the Crusaders pause. Those who were sent out anyway, returned with ice burns, and tales of a ferocious 'snow demon'. If they returned at all.

With the north shutting down for the oncoming cold, and the border being held by Unova's Champions, Alex had taken his comrades to where they had been needed most, first. With a brutal takeover of the far north-western state of Kodiak, all the way up in the arctic, the Yukon and Takoma regions had joined the Kanadian soldiers, who had slowly been gathering on their new, unwalled western border, ready to reinforce it.

Winter was a constant in those lands, but given that these were the harshest months, the Arceans in the far north west seemed content to wait in their metallic bunker-fortresses along the border once they'd taken control of the sparsely populated regions. The Church, in truth, technically owned part of the Kanadian's wall, and were bombarding the men manning it on both sides. The call for help had gone out, and Tao had sent an answer.

Arcean Northern Command – The Border of the Yukon and Kodiak Regions

Their black cloaks made them stand out against the snow, though thankfully, with a little psychic manipulation from their Emperor, they were able to walk above the waist deep, or higher, drifts. Each of their feet glowed blue as they walked, yet unlike most armed forces, they left almost no trace of their passing.

The Arceans, naturally, had them surrounded in short order, popping up from the snow around the entrance to their aesthetically simple tall, round fortresses. Most of their forces had Beartic as partners, for little else could survive this far north, and still be strong enough to meet Church standards. Their leader, the only man with a gold-furred hood surrounding his white T-visor helmet, stepped forward, his staff raised. It was quite imposing, for a mass-produced weapon, and the black-cloaked figures knew, this was the type of man who 'modified' his weaponry for 'effectiveness in battle'.

"State your purpose here, strangers." He said, leveling the stave at them. Evidently, this far west, the Arceans hadn't yet heard about the east's 'secret weapons'. That, would be their undoing.

One of the cloaked figures stepped forward, a woman, judging by the shape hidden under the strange, almost leathery garment she seemed to be wearing. It was entirely black, and hid much of the person underneath. The woman spoke, and what could be seen of her mouth beneath the black, leathery hood obscuring her features was smirking. "Haven't you heard? There's a war on."

The wind gusted then, and even the heavy leather-like cloaks flapped in the ferocity of the arctic blast. The strangers didn't seem to notice, though. After the heat and intense training of the Swamp in summer, arctic blasts were refreshing. What they wore beneath their cloaks was bone white armor, with some sort of black suit beneath the molded bones, and protecting the joints. Evidently, it made moving the incredibly heavy dragonbone less arduous.

When it came to headwear, some of the cloaked figures had various dragonbone head coverings in a variety of styles, always in a mix of black and white coloring. The one leading them however, needed no helmet. She drew back the leathery hood that hid her face, and her hair billowed like fire in the intensity of the wind as she raised her blade, and ignited it. The Arceans did the same with their weapons, as they switched from ranged to melee. "Come, Champions…we fight!" The low hum of fifteen or so plasma swords burning to life filled the air, and each gave off a pale blue glow against the snow beneath them. The one leading them narrowed her Serperior-esque eyes against the wind, as she marched forward with purpose. "In the Emperor's name."

Chaos erupted, as the Crusaders found their beams of energy, regardless of type, sliced in half as each of the cloaked figures bisected the attacks of those who had not prepared for close combat. Then, the Scales fell upon their enemies, and gave no quarter. Nearby, a similar conflict had broken out. Alex had split his group of thirty-five into three units, and given command of the third to the leader of the Norstad Trainers Percy had called up, a man by the name of Bjalfari. His group was more of a motley combination, as his people used steel weapons, and the Scales among them had plasma blades.

After a brief battle, Alex had allowed the eager Norstadder to craft his own plasma blade, since he'd been using a longsword anyway. He knew how not to cut himself, which was valuable, as many were still adjusting their combat styles to avoid accidental loss of limb.

As the three giant monolithic structures fell to the Scales, the call went out to the Kanadians behind them. It took almost two weeks from that initial encounter, during which much of the rest of the war was stuck in a freezing, bloody stalemate. Alex led his forces all across the north-western territories, and reclaimed them for the Empire. As soon as the sparse regions were claimed and manned with yet more Kanadians, he rushed to aid the Kanadians on the westernmost side of the border wall that had, thus far, been bombarded from two sides.

Over the course of a day, he and his Scales had eradicated the soldiers north of the wall with brutal efficiency, losing not a single member of their company. This was namely thanks to Jess' skill with using Recover, and the Emperor's refusal to let his comrades die. More than once he'd had to channel energy through his Chakras, and unleash a storm of psychic power on their foes. Confusion and terror had gripped the Crusaders, and their terror was mercifully ended by his Scales. That night, not one of the Scales had joined the celebrations of the men who were no longer besieged, and evidently forgotten this far out west.

Taking the northern areas had been easy enough, and they'd taken several hundred soldiers as prisoners before they were through. None of the Champions turned super-soldier had yet experienced true, pitched battle against the Crusaders who, as it turned out, were usually just as effective in melee as they were from a distance. That hadn't kept them from being cut down like wheat before the burning plasma of the Scales, and after seeing, and often causing, such horrific wounds the former Champions had recoiled at what they had wrought. In the end, the battlefield had been littered with cauterized limbs and bisected human. What bugged Alex most though, had been the smell. He could still scent it with every breath, and resisting the urge to hurl was growing tiresome.

That night, as they sat within one of the many barracks that lined the interior of the Kanadian Wall, a familiar voice came to each of them. The Foggy Swamp Sage.

"Now you know the horrors of war, my Champions. I apologize…truly…I could not prepare any of you for this."

Alex, for his part, had been wearing the same grim 'smirk' since ordering the end of the bloody conflict. His body count had, easily, outstripped those under him as he'd been in the vanguard, and he'd gone quite quiet after they'd returned. As had Jess, and many of the other younger Champions. All of them now understood the true difference between a battle, as a sport, and war, as a fight for survival that had a steep price for losing. As the Sage's words echoed in their heads, their Emperor stood, and addressed them all. "Those of you who wish to leave…may do so. None of you signed up for…for that…and I expect that I, and those under me, will have to experience that kind of senseless slaughter quite a few times before we're done. We're the strongest soldiers the east has…which means our body counts will be large indeed. This is your chance to avoid a future of blood and death."

The gathered humans looked around, and his grim look faded as none moved to leave. He went quiet then, expressionless as he spoke softly. "Run, you fools…avoid this…you still have a chance…"

One of his Scales stood then, and Alex recognized him as a League Challenger who he'd sent on to the Dragonspiral Tower, and had then apparently made his way to the Swamp. His armor was much the same in general body design as the rest of them, but his helmet had horns that swept up and curved, not unlike Tao's.

The man, whose name was Nikolai if Alex recalled rightly, saluted him then, by pounding his right fist across his chest, and against his heart. "We already got this speech, Redwood. You weren't there for it…but we knew what we were signing up for. We've had plenty of chances to leave before now…and we haven't. We're fighting for the Empire, for the chance of peace. If that means bloodying my hands on those overzealous Arceans, so be it. They started this…they burned Colville, attacked crowds of innocents in our own capital by enslaving the Forces of Nature, and by ambush, and they even had the nerve to bind our Dragon, and try to use his power against his own people."

The others stood then, and the Emperor felt each of their eyes on him as the man continued. "I will never enjoy what we had to do today…I know the aftermath of what we had to do to them is going to haunt me. Forever. If it means my family stays safe though…I'm okay with that. I'm trusting you to lead us sensibly, so we don't have to do this too often…so if there must be battle…let us make it swift."

Alex glanced around at each of them, and saw not one single eye waver. "Very well…but understand this…these weapons, this armor, they are going to be central to what the Scales become when and if this conflict ends…you will never be free of them. The only way out of this little group of ours will be death, and it likely will not be a peaceful one…this is your last chance to leave."

None took it. It seemed Oranguru had weeded out anyone that might have not adhered to his rules regarding their psychic abilities.

He felt the Sage address him, specifically. "Heed their advice, student of mine. Revel not in war, but accept the necessity of it."

Alex looked at each of them once more as he replied mentally, "I understand the necessity. I am Dragonborn…I have a better idea of what that means, now. I need soldiers who also understand…and it seems that these Champions do…thank you, for Instructing them so well."

He heard the Sage chuckle. "You're quite welcome…it was difficult, and without Instruct we never would've come close to giving an even hundred…but it seems it was all worth it. I'll have more for you before long. Many more." With that, the connection ceased, and the Scales retired for the evening. Alex spent his time sparring with Arthur, as after his Trials, he too only needed four hours of rest for a full recharge, and like his Gallade, his sleep was more of a trance. When he wasn't exhausted.

The next day, Tao gave them new orders. It seemed the Arceans were once more fortifying for a hard push straight for Unova, through Ohiana. The winter storm had finally let up, and it was rumored that Pravus himself was leading the attack, alongside no less than ten of his Hands.

The Border Between Urbe Monachus and Ventosus

With the reinforced border between Kanadia and the blackened northern Fornia region taken care of, as Shruikan claimed he could guard the entirety of the wall easily thanks to his speed and the quick response times of the Kanadian sentries manning the wall, Alex moved his Scales to join with the defenders in Ohiana. Hilbert and Hilda had been given the northern parts of the border line, and along with Nate, Hilda had kept the center lines from collapsing. She had evidently, at some point before the conflict, gone through the same training her brother and Alex had, one Champion among many who had been Instructed in the Swamp.

Hilbert had drawn the short straw, and had been given the northernmost area, the very one Pravus now intended on charging through. The Champion turned General hadn't been idle, though. They had, while the fierce winter storm raged, built several underground hide-outs for the inhabitants of the region, who were mainly farmers, not fighters. That didn't mean they'd been short on volunteers though. Most farmers usually had at least one well trained Pokémon. Ohiana had many ranchers, and after learning of their new Emperor's humble origins, many of said ranchers had also opted to fight. Despite their salt of the earth toughness, many had fallen in the early hours of the Blitz to the superior firepower and tactics of the Arcean Crusaders, and until Professor Buckeye arrived, the local forces had been in the process of being routed. Were the Church's forces not also infused with Shadow, they might have held better, but they had no answer for the advantages Shadow Pokémon gave their enemy. Their intel suggested every single Crusader had at least one egg-infused Pokémon on their belt. This was, in both Tao's eyes and his Tamer's, a crime that would apply to every single Crusader. They had no doubts that Pravus had ensured his forces had as many egg-infused Pokémon as possible.

As Alex brought his combined group of Scales in, he realized that Tao had called in as many special units to this area as possible. The rest of the Norstad forces were already here, and it was mainly they and the Scales who had done the fighting thus far for the defense of Ventosus, the largest city bordering the Great Lake. Neither group had minded the cold winds or heavy snowfall, and indeed, they and their Pokémon thrived in the harsh storm. Newly reinforcing them were Trainers from what he assumed was Kalos, judging by their clothing. They were a small group, but as he looked closer, he recognized several faces. Old or semi-retired Gym Leaders who had been all too eager to come to the aid of their Unovan allies. It seemed Buckeye was leading them, as he appeared to know them, and Alex became more convinced that all old people knew each other. Not that it was a bad thing, given their circumstances.

He met with Hilbert, and found that he too had not lost anyone in his squad yet. This was mostly because they had, for the majority of the early weeks of the war, been stuck in a blizzard. Festivus would have already begun, had a war not been raging across the continent. Ventosus had the unique benefit of bordering the Great Lake, as well as the Kanadian's wall, and their skirmish lines extended south from the lake's shore.

Hilda had, apparently, sent word that she was coming from the south, but thus far there had been no news. The rumor was that the central fighting had suddenly flared again. She'd likely been distracted. They weren't alone though, for Kanadia's Champion, who'd diverted from Alex's squad as they'd passed over his sea-bound home island, had brought his own battalion of skilled Trainers from the icy north to reinforce Buckeye as well. Trainers from the northern Tribes, that also had little trouble with cold climates. Much like their Fornian cousins, they seemed, at least to Alex's eye, to be skilled Trainers in their own right.

Alex noted that everyone bowed when he entered the command tent, even the League-employed Professor, who had no reason to, as far as he knew. That was going to take getting used to. Having been mostly among trusted friends who had dropped the 'yes, my Emperor' nonsense on day one, he was still getting used to having authority, and having people many years his senior acknowledge it.

He sensed the Original Dragon as he took his place at the rounded table, and had to resist smirking. He felt a current of psychic energy between Tao's imposing mental presence, and his belt. Arthur joined them then, sitting beside his Trainer at the rounded, foldable metal table. A pair of disembodied golden eyes appeared above the table, burning with Light, and all who had seen Tao's Mega Form recognized those holy, vengeful spheres.

"You again have my gratitude for coming. I will not forget those who came when I called for aid. Should we prevail, you will not regret joining us. Now then, what spies we do have recently confirmed that the Prophet is in Urbe Monachus. A city that, judging by its name, will have no shortage of his followers." The Dragon went quiet for a moment, presumably to deal with something on his end. "We are expecting him to come to us much the same way the Blitz did. He will be fast, relentless, and if he gets through our line, he could devastate many of our farmer's land. The less damage he does now, the easier recovery will be. With that said, we will likely never have a better chance than now to strike him down, and that is why I have gathered you here. We must stop their advance, and remove their figurehead. Thor will engage him first, as he has experience battling the man in close combat, and Mjolnir can damage the Shadow abomination."

The red-bearded giant with gleaming skin smirked from his place at the table. His eyes were slightly bloodshot, but he seemed focused on the moment as he listened, golden arms crossed. "I may have to break out mine second hammer for this." He chuckled, and then elbow nudged Percy, who was to his right.

Alex, who had removed the imposing dragonbone helmet styled after his iron one, raised a brow at the alleged deity. "You have two? I thought those stories were made up."

The God of Thunder laughed, and the booming sound echoed loudly in the ears of those gathered. "I usually only use one because it is more of a challenge! But against that one…yes, I think two should do."

Percy chimed in then. "Just how many bloody hammers do you have anyways?"

Thor just winked at him, and laughed again. The others gathered seemed to sigh. He was, thus far, enjoying this war a bit too much. Not that they minded. When he exercised his boredom, enemy troops died. Every little bit helped.

The group of gathered leaders was interrupted then, as a courier entered the tent. "Sorry to disturb sirs, my Emperor, but you…you need to hear this. It's Pravus." Tao remained quiet, and his Tamer had a feeling the dragon already knew what was going on. The courier produced a miniaturized TV screen then from his giant, square backpack. The 'Dragon Army' as it was being called, didn't have much of a standard uniform yet, but the color scheme was to be expected, and this man was no exception. His heavy leather coat was primarily white, but underneath, his clothes were shades of black, with more white as well. At the very least, they blended with the snow, and could, like most modern clothing, be turned inside out for longer use, or a change of color.

The screen displayed a feed direct from the Arcean's main Church-run media network, Arc News, that was considered mandatory viewing for all 'loyal followers'. Through it, the people living, working, and even flourishing, despite the current 'conflict', were given a steadily monitored version of events as the Church displayed their 'Enlightened Crusade' for all to see from monitors that were in every home, workplace, outpost, work camp, and naval ship. The Prophet had ensured he would always have an audience for his bloviating speeches.

In reality, what was displayed was indeed battle cam footage, but only scenes that did not contain 'subversive content' were ever allowed to be shown. One of the Prophet's own Hands was in charge of making sure nothing slipped into the public's attention, and her skill was legendary. Despite numerous hacking attempts, she'd thwarted any and all content that would display the war for the atrocity it really was, and the visible Shadow auras many of their beloved Crusaders had. Despite the atrocities they had committed, naturally, the Church vehemently denied being party to a crime so egregious, the entire world had laws specifically designed to punish those who infused Shadow into Pokémon eggs. Both for individuals, and laws targeted at organizations.

Rumors still spread of course. Of camps, full of civilians from central states that wanted no part of any of it. Of the dark forces the Hands were, allegedly, using to slaughter their enemies wherever they appeared. The Prophet himself often addressed such rumors, live on his own network, and it demonstrated to his people that he was indeed listening to their concerns, and knew what to say to keep them loyal. If his charisma ever failed, there were always PokéMeters on hand for 'private sessions' as well as people who knew how to use them properly. Those who asked questions Pravus deemed subversive, or simply did not like, usually ended up in one of the longer grueling meter sessions, as Gilroy Redwood had.

It was a touted fact that the Prophet's PokéMeter was different from others, and the Church considered it a holy relic, infallible in its accuracy. All who beheld it agreed, there had to be a touch of Creation in that machine. Only one man had ever successfully used it, or so the legends claimed.

The screen of the portable television showed the Prophet in yet another of his 'private chats' with his people, and the PokéMeter in question sat before him shining with what seemed to be genuine golden Light. The gathered eastern forces exchanged glances. It was radiating what could only be Light energy, and as Tao sensed the thoughts of his allies, the pair of golden glowing eyes that had manifested above the table flew into the screen then, and reproduced the video's feed, but in a four-dimensional manner that, no matter what angle you looked at it from, was centered properly, as it had been on the screen. It gave them all a much clearer look at their opponent, and they realized he was on a presumably mobile set, made to look like his 'home quarters'. With their unique display angles, they could see the city around it. A city teeming with the all too familiar T-visored faces of the Church's own armed forces.

An alarm rang outside their tent, as the military was mobilized by a direct order from the Dragon. It did nothing to impede the leader's view of the scene though. The cheesy, trumpet heavy opening theme music, which strangely lacked the edited in title that usually accompanied this ridiculous 'show', finally finished, and the Prophet smirked at the cameras.

"Hello again, loyal followers…as is expected in times of war, there are many questions, and each day, more arise. I'll do my best to answer your concerns, going by majority. Many of you have called your Church, warning of a massive fire, raging in the north. Worry not." He winked at the camera. "Forests must sometimes burn away the old, Deadwood so that newer, better trees may grow from the ashes." He smirked, and gestured with a purple, hand-fitting gauntlet that was part of his standard 'war outfit', at what was presumably an image on the screen, that remained empty to the easterners sneaking a peak. "Now, it is true this blaze is particularly large; however, our land has always had enormous fires, and it has always recovered. Your cities will be protected by our strongest Water Pokémon Trainers, and those of you who live in the afflicted area will be relocated, as soon as possible. Until then, we have many Optimal Org building facilities that will not only house you, but allow you to contribute to the cause as well." He paused, to enjoy one of his notoriously long tea sips, common to his broadcasts.

"Slave labor." Professor Buckeye snarled, before spitting on the dirt 'floor' of the command tent. "The only people who live in forests like that are people tryin' to escape notice. The Church'll tak'em back alright, but they'll be shipped to a mining facility within a week." He shot a glare at Percy. "They've been doing the same to our people, the ones they captured, but in far worse conditions. It's only grown worse as their sources of metal vanish."

Percy shrugged. "I consider the lives of Mythical Pokémon above those of Humans who have absolutely no right to claim they're 'more important' after how they've been treated." He gave the Professor a glare of his own, and the older man flinched at the ice within it. "You haven't seen what I have. Every facility finds a new way to…sicken me."

"Relax, both of you." Alex said, and his voice cut through the growing argument the Professor was forming. He raised a brow at the now unhelmeted Emperor. "We'll save all of them. Percy, you yourself told me that the number of remaining camps is becoming 'manageable'. Finish freeing the Hex Nuts, and then focus on freeing our people. It's going to take time to find the camps anyways, let alone infiltrate them."

One of the fliers from Valaskjalf, the right hand of the Chief, who had better things to do than talk endlessly, spoke then. "We have found several, Dovahkiin. My people alone could free all of them."

Alex smirked at the pale woman with raven hair. "I don't doubt it Yennefer…but you're too valuable to send in alone. What if they ambush you? What if they manage to capture your mounts, and infect them with Shadow? You really want them to have that kind of power? Shadow Articuno in the winter? No. Patience. Scout their defenses, learn how many Crusaders the Church has deigned to put on guard duty, and then we will give you enough firepower to overwhelm them in one swift attack. And realistically, by the time we set that up, Percy will likely be done. He's rather fast."

"That he is…" Buckeye grumbled. "Fine, but just remember, the longer we take, the more of our people break…many might even turn. These are center region dwellers after all, and bowing to the invaders is easier than resisting their new order."

Tao rumbled then, filling their heads. "The center regions have always chosen the path which grants the most stability, as it suited them. In war, they turned the tide always, and often, and kept both east and west from obliterating each other more than once. Do not underestimate their cleverness. Now quiet, he speaks."

The Prophet lowered his stein full of…whatever he was drinking. It certainly didn't look like 'tea'. He wiped away the red stain on his mouth, and grinned at the camera with what seemed like genuine, slightly mad, amusement. "Now that's addressed, let us move on to current events! Behold!" A disembodied sound that, for lack of a better description, sounded like lasers from a sci-fi movie, played as the Prophet made a grand gesture, and the set folded down, revealing the entirety of the scene.

Tao cursed, loudly, and his irritation was felt by all of them. Behind the charismatic ruler, was a large group of seemingly normal people. They had the look of people who did not like where they currently were, and they were kept from leaving by several large men with armor who'd told them to accompany them. Or be dragged.

"Long have I denied that the policy of disconnecting from family members who leave the Church, quietly or not, exists. My enemies would have you believe that this old, and admittedly abhorrent practice is still very much enforced. The truth, however, is that the only people my Church orders cut off, are those who are traitors to the Holy Arcean Alliance. These people, gathered here before you, had relatives who were chosen by one of my own Hands to live in Unova, and try to show these backward primitives an enlightened way of living. Instead, their relatives largely turned traitor, and tried spying on us…and we all know what happens to spies, unfortunate as it may be. This…is war."

The Prophet gestured then, and a blade of pure dark type energy formed in his hand. He leveled it at the crowd of guilty-by-relation civilians, and stared into the camera. "Not all of the traitors died, however…" He grinned. "Many came home, to be forgiven…Purged of their sins, you might say."

His free hand gestured, and each of the eastern leaders flinched as they beheld what a Purged human really looked like. "Behold, those touched by the Light of Arceus! They have ascended to a new form of being, and will now serve the Church more devoutly than ever before! Their Crimes are forgiven, now that the Light has shone upon them!"

The humans in question lumbered onto the scene then, which had turned out to actually be placed on a raised dais, surrounded by Crusaders, as the Prophet delivered his almost daily 'chat'. It was large, as it had much to fit, and it seemed recently made, but their view was too focused to see much of the city beyond. It certainly looked like Urbe Monachus, going by the ever-present ever-darkening clouds.

One of the relatives of the Purged cried out as they saw what their loved one had become. As they came into clearer focus, one could see their pale, entirely white eyes, and almost corpse-like gray skin. They moved as if on strings, mouths hanging open, and each breath rasping in their throats.

The woman who'd shrieked was immediately enveloped in Shadow, and then vanished, with but a wave from the Prophet's weapon. "Those who are guilty of Crimes and dark Sins cannot help but flinch at the sight of those touched by the Creator! Rejoice for them, for they have experienced Divine Truth…though it cost them their sight. They will still be used effectively, for the furtherance of our divine Mission!"

The gathered Crusaders around the dais, in one uniformed motion, rested their imposing staves in the crook of their left arms, and began to clap in perfect unison. The result was applause that definitely sounded forced.

"Now, you may be wondering why I have gathered all these people here. As it turns out, the Enemy enticed these people with promises of freedom for their families. He and his psychic Serpent are tyrants indeed, for now, he cannot fulfill his promises. I possess their families, and to be sure we have no heretics or traitors among them, I will be personally Monitoring them over the next few hours, one by one, until their Crimes are revealed, and the traitors among them are Judged." He gave the camera a look then. "As Meter sessions are considered sacred, and one's privacy within one Divinely protected, we will not be airing them. Until then, my loyal followers, enjoy your regularly scheduled cultural entertainment, developed here, in Fornia."

The scene vanished then as the feed turned off, and the Light faded from the TV, though Tao's mental presence did not. The screen now displayed a movie, a generic superhero tale that, in actual fact, starred Rosa as the protagonist. Which meant it had been made in Unova. Alex heard Hilbert sigh, as he watched. He'd starred in several movies himself, in his time, and reportedly loved acting. The past few years had been focused on training however, as the World Tournament once more approached.

Tao's voice echoed again in their minds. "I received a report while we've been talking…as it turns out, Pravus does indeed have the families you promised to free, Alex but most of our spies evaded capture. The only Purged are those he showed us…probably. Some may have chosen suicide over capture, and some might have simply run off. Most, however, are reportedly safe. This means his little show was meant for us to see…their network has never been that easy to access."

"So it's a trap." Percy said, frowning. Thor nodded in agreement. "He's baiting you, Redwood, but, those private sessions are probably going to leave those innocent people worse off than the Purged. Somehow, he has access to a Light wielder. This should not be possible, Diist Dovah." He said, looking upwards.

"The Alpha's Light works and responds to those who open themselves to it. For Psychic Types, they can open their bodily energy pools, and absorb it from the general flow of the Universe. Fighting Types tap into it by embracing their emotions, and pushing their power past its limits. Not unlike Legendary Pokémon who also use Light energy. For normal Humans however, at least in this era, devout belief may have a similar enough effect, enough to be usable. Though it depends greatly upon the mind summoning the energy, and their purpose. The Light cannot be used to kill senselessly, but it can most certainly purge a Human of thoughts and beliefs another Human may consider to be 'corruption'. This is very hard to do though, as the Human in question must have both unshakeable trust in the Alpha, and a righteous heart. Whoever Purged those people has been practicing for a while. They're just sentient enough to be profitable. That is no accident. That's practice."

The Dragon Emperor spoke, as Tao finished and Alex put the helmet on once more. The bluish-purple eyes burned to life, causing his voice to echo slightly with psychic reverb. "And you said there is no way to save them?"

The Original Dragon radiated genuine sorrow. "No…what the Light burns away, it burns away entirely, if not properly shielded. It surged through their brain's circuitry. That doesn't grow back, not without focused treatment anyways, and given the Arcean standard of living for prisoners, they will likely deteriorate over time, if they haven't already."

There was a low rumble in the tent that radiated from their Emperor. The dragonbone sections had begun to glow. Fused by the Voice with elemental Plate shards, they acted similarly to the crystals. Alex had long since figured out he could Mega Evolve his partners by using parts of the armor. His set had been customized specifically with his team in mind, and it gave his outline a unique glow of their many colors.

The cascade of rainbow light hardened into a proper Aura shield as the bluish purple dragon energy in the bones bent the other types to its indomitable will. "Those people are only there because I gave prisoners a chance to be decent Humans…they're going to become little better than vegetables, because of my kindness." He looked around at his gathered allies. "I don't know about you all, but I'm not going to sit by and let it happen. I'll charge Monachus alone if I have to. I guess what I'm trying to say is…who wants to come with me?"

"Aye, I'll come. And I'll bring enough wind to fill the sail of that ego of yours." Professor Buckeye said, smirking. "I only chatted with your granduncle a few times…but I never got the impression the dark rumors about him were true. I've seen what his wife looked like. Do you think he'd approve of you charging into the enemy's headquarters?"

Alex smirked. "Not at all. He'd say it was a 'damn fool suicide mission', or something. And he'd keep saying it, all the way there, until he saw people in danger. That's when he'd become a Trainer, and try to save them. He was too good. That's what got him involved in their business in the first place. I guess it runs in the family…"

Percy chuckled. "I'm out. I have things to do. You have fun fighting in a city though, Redwood. Enjoy urban warfare. Maybe after you get trapped, you'll understand why I forbid them in my region." Thor and the black haired Articuno Rider gave him a look.

"Valaskjalf is as much a city as any-" The rider had begun to speak, but Thor raised a hand.

"Do not rise to his bait, Yen." He fixed his red eyes on the Fairy King then, "It does not matter, Percival. Norstad will regrow regardless, and eventually, the Humans will form cities. You know this, Fairy King. You are the one who lengthened their lives by lifting the technology ban."

Percy gave the flame-haired 'god' a blank stare. "I made a promise, didn't I." He stood then, and left with a sigh.

The Rider of Valaskjalf stood as well, shaking her head. "I have camps to scout. Good luck, Dovahkiin."

Thor stayed, grinning as he said, "You may consider me 'in', Dovahkiin. Whatever we find in that city, I shall smash! Two hammers!" He left then to go prepare for the imminent glorious combat, and kept laughing all the way to his own tent, his loud voice still very much in their range as he started boasting to his warriors about the last time he and Pravus had dueled.

"Tao will be ready to join us by way of Teleport, if necessary. And if they block that, somehow, he can also just fly over. Many like to forget, but he can ignite his tail still. He's faster than a Rayquaza." Alex smirked, and the remaining leaders chuckled. "Go then, you know your assignments…the Scales can handle this with Norstad's aid."

They each departed then, and all along the line, the word went out. Another strike was coming for Ohiana, and both sides had brought their best. What the north did not know though, was that communications had been cut in the center and southern regions, all the way down to Texico. The Church was leading another simultaneous offensive, and had begun to attack before the Prophet had. It was a good strategy, as those areas had, thus far, held the longest under the onslaught. The Church's best minds had been gathered, along with several Hands, to break the Texican stalemate.

Alex went to his own tent, and loaded the various ball holder clips spaced evenly along the cloak's inside with many of the partners he had captured in the past, and recently began properly training. The old training weight vests his original six had used had been passed on, and now he slotted in those who had proven themselves strong in the many battles he faced daily. This included his Sceptile, Staraptor, Umbreon, Espeon, Flygon, and Chesnaught, who had become like an unofficial backup team to his main ten. Now, in war, they would augment his ten, as no such carry limits existed in warfare. He would have had his Combusken and Rowlet trained up as well, but he'd only had so much time, despite the fact that there were always Scales willing to spar with him.

Percy had apparently been consulted for the cloaks as well, and had somehow managed to create a link between one's PC boxes, and the small four-pronged metallic ball holders that lined the interior of the dragonhide cloaks the Scales wore. Once a Trainer put their partner's ball in, they would be ready to be retrieved from their PC, and if the cloak was damaged in battle and the sockets with it, they would remain safe as the PC system automatically recalled the ball into storage. If a ball was damaged, though its occupant would remain safe, their new ball would need to be retrieved physically at a Pokémon Center.

Naturally, due to the expensive nature of this new technology, only the Scales had been outfitted, and many among them had begun training more partners to fill their cloaks. It was always nice to have backup on the battlefield, if they needed it. Alex hopped onto Blaze, once he was ready, and he'd memorized where each of his partners were with his new, strange mental abilities to compartmentalize basic information in massive quantities.

It had been a while since he'd ridden his Charizard, and he was surprised at how wide his neck had become over the past few months. He bore his Trainer, dragonbone armor and all, into the air with ease, and roared into the sky as he ascended to the next level with a flash of red from his Flame Plate. Echoes came from the Pokémon of the other Scales, and Hilbert joined him on his Braviary. Jess and Chari followed as well, and then the three Unovan's squads ascended after them, each Scale riding on unique mounts, though there was some species overlap, naturally. Charizard was also a very popular choice.

A horn sounded to their west, and they saw Thor, riding what looked like an iron chariot, pulled by two flaming Gogoat, soaring through the air just above his loyal soldiers. Each of those was armed with a sword and shield, and covered in golden armor that was from the same culture that had created Thor's regalia, judging by aesthetics. They were all mounted atop a Rapidash with blue flames for manes. Though the breeds of Norstad retained their fire, their home region's numerous ice types had made them considerably more burly than their kin across the planet. That, and their additional pair of legs, for a total of six, and evidently, more speed. Their supposedly immortal riders roared as they followed after the Thunder God, and once they left the camp, just outside of Ventosus, they spread out in a proper 'flame wall', as they called it. The Scales joined them, alongside the other fighters from Norstad.

It was a short trip to the enemy, and they knew they were seen long before they came up to the Sippi river. Thor's men leapt it with ease, as did the Scales. The normal Norstad forces, most of whom had thus far kept pace on foot, steamed in the cold night. Hot as they were though, they knew that entering that river would mean death. It was still flowing, despite the cold.

Their leader, Bjalfari, stepped forward then, and awed his men by summoning his Wailord from a tiny, almost laughable ball. A generally unchanged species across the world's oceans, the massive creatures had the fecundity of rabbits. This was good, for many ocean dwelling Pokémon were indeed carnivores, and had limited berries to draw from as an alternative. The men climbed atop the creature quickly, and with one flap of its limbs, it crossed the river that all but bisected the continent. They still had to sprint along the slippery length of its back, but none of them had too much trouble.

The sky above them seemed red, which meant it was dawn, or dusk. Given the nearly perpetual cloud cover that was becoming darker by the day, time had become wobbly for those who'd not seen the sun, only battle and snow, for over a month now. Thor was the brightest object for miles, but Alex wasn't concerned. They'd crossed the river. If the Arceans wanted to stall them, they'd lost their best chance.

Another horn from Thor split the air, and the Rapidash riders sped up to attack speed as their mounts began uniformly Flame Charging across the snowy plains, leaving their mortal comrades even further behind, but with a melted path to follow. Eventually, they saw the reason for the sudden increase in speed. Urbe Monachus lay before them. It didn't have much in the way of a skyline, being more of a spread-out grid like deal, but they didn't have to wonder where the Prophet's dais was.

A recently made 'pyramid' of circular edifices, each of which seemed to hold yet more Crusaders, was lit up like a beacon on the city's skyline. A shield of blackish purple energy appeared seemingly from nowhere at the edge of the city limits, where it met the urban sprawl that was, evidently, abandoned. The riders charged through, doing their best not to cause wanton destruction. There would be plenty of that once they got into the city. By that point, each of their mounts had charged enough to reap the benefits of constantly increasing their speed, and the area around them managed to go mostly unburned.

Thor leapt from his chariot and smashed both hammers into the shield. It wavered, and then reformed itself. A voice rang out above them.

"Ah yes, the 'thunder deity'. I was hoping the Dragon would send you to me…and with all your precious warriors no less. You haven't yet seen what my Crusaders can do, have you? This weather…inconvenient for war maybe, but not for the determined workers of the Church. I wish to negotiate, Asgardian. Send in your Emperor."

"Not alone!" Thor shouted, smashing Mjolnir into the shield again. Cracks across the opaque purplish darkness formed where it struck, and lightning moved across the entirety of it in seconds. "Your defense is not so great that it can withstand me, worm…but if ye wish to parlay, I'll…resist killing your men. For a time…"

The Scales caught up to the host of the Thunder God then, at the edge of the shield. They'd moved in formation, and Blaze had kept pace with them. "By all means…" The Prophet's voice continued. "Bring all your little friends…we've been expecting them." The shield vanished then, and without its opaqueness obscuring their vision, even to their psychically enhanced eyes, they saw now what lay beneath.

Crusaders lined the main avenue into the city, on each side of the street, where normally citizens parked their vehicular transport. None were around today however, in fact, there was no sign, physical or mental, of anyone, aside from the delusion hardened minds of the Crusaders. All their psychic themed paranoia resulted in a culture that trained its best soldiers to be all but immune to mental Mukkery. The assembled forces waited for their ground-bound warriors on foot, and then moved together, through the city, weapons drawn, but relaxed.

"This be most definitely a trap…" The crimson-haired Asgardian growled under his breath as they strode quietly down the Crusader lined streets.

Alex nodded in agreement. "Look at their mouths." The mental words came from Jess, and as he did, his glacially slow to awaken anger, twitched. He knew his smirk well, and whether by individual practice or hidden holoprojector, it was plastered on the face of every helmetless officer they passed.

Alex ignored it, after a mental nudge from the First Dragon, and continued onward, pretending to ignore the armed enemies around him. He was tense though, and he knew it. It was more due to the cold than anything, as it was low enough in temperature for ice to have formed over the smirking soldier's armor and visors. He remembered being more resistant to it in past winters, but for some reason this one kept him properly shivering, even in his armor.

The temperature only lowered as they neared Pravus's monument to the effectiveness of forced labor. The laborers were, like the city's civilians, evidently hidden, likely by dark type energy. Only Merlin's power had, to Alex's knowledge, been able to see through such things before.

Pravus stood atop the dais, at the end of the only ramp that allowed access to each rim, and of course, the top. "We have a special treat today, loyal viewers." Alex, Jess, Hilbert, Bjalfari, and even Thor sighed in unison, along with their squads and assembled fighters. The Prophet glared at them, and then smiled, continuing on with his shpeal.

"It seems the Dragon Emperor wishes to have a word about our last broadcast, and being the peaceful man that I am, I've decided to hold a summit, here, in the city of our most devout monks!" He gestured then, and suddenly, those with psychic senses knew exactly where the civilians and laborers were.

The city had a fair amount of high-rise buildings for one of the smaller cities on the continent, and atop each of the now lit buildings, was the population. They each appeared to be wearing the same blank white robes, adorned only with Arceus' symbol on the chest, and nothing else. He felt Tao's revulsion then, and the Dragon's voice echoed among his troops. "They are…they are all Purged…" Righteous fury at the sheer amount of wasted, discarded life spread through each of them, and Thor twirled his hammers as he shouted at the Prophet.

"Oi! You and I have a score to settle, Vul Sos! Nobody on this good Earth tries to steal Yggdrassil, and lives to tell of it! You came to my home, and tried to strip it of Life! That...is an act of war. Privileged am I, to be able to smash your foul face live, on your own bloody show!" It seemed Thor, like the rest of the easterners, were sick of hearing Pravus talk. The Asgardian bolted forward with the speed of a lightning bolt, and a pair of massive hands, formed of pure dark energy, and shaped like a Darkrai, grabbed the heads of each. Thor pushed him across the dais slowly, grinning as his golden muscles strained under his battle armor. It was Asgardian tech, and was barely distinguishable from his skin in color.

"See what your beloved Prophet really is, Fornians!" He shouted, and Pravus made a cutting gesture with his own hand. True to form however, 'technical difficulties' had begun as soon as Thor charged. For once, it hadn't been entirely untrue, as the lightning from the god's presence was making the tech atop the dais go wild.

"Look." Jess said in his mind. "The energy. I saw it last time, but I wasn't sure…it's definitely a Darkrai, but those eyes-" "Are Human." Alex finished. They'd been disguised by the usual invisibility of the Pokémon's form which seemed to have been merged to the back of Pravus in an all-encompassing shield. "The question then becomes…whose eyes are those…"

He had the thought at the same time the Dragon did. "I will show the Chief, do not move your gaze." Thankfully, Pravus and the dual-wielding Thunder God were trading blows, and had, after several minutes, each gained grins of genuine amusement. They were both powerful fighters that rarely, if ever, had a chance to go all out in a melee.

Tao's voice returned a moment later. "We were correct in our suspicions. The Chief was deeply shocked by the sight of that Darkrai, and her eyes…there is only one place in the world that has, ever, successfully created, and fused with, the Pitch Black Pokémon." He paused for effect, and spoke then only to Alex, Hilbert, and Jess.

"There is a reason the lands on the continent to our south were given the title of 'Dark Continent'. It's mostly covered in jungle, though the coast is taken up by Rio's size, or rather, the ruins of it. It is a place where Dark Types and Grass Types flourish. Just south of Fornia's side of Texico, there was a civilization that, around three thousand years ago, began fusing their entire population with Darkrai they created through artificial means that eventually got them wiped out. Zigma, the Guardian of that land was split in the fury of the conflict, but the fused Humans were all turned to ghosts, vengeful ones, able only to lash out at those brave, or foolish, enough to venture into their ruined city in the mountains. It was believed that after a few centuries of starving, the ghosts would fade back to the Spirit World. The last I heard, Rio fell into some kind of internal city-wide civil war that wiped out almost all of them. Now their city is mostly in ruins as well, though evidently they still occupy a small part of them."

"So…you're saying Pravus is what, some kind of Darkrai enhanced Human who…swam out to sea? Perhaps to escape whatever wrath was brought on his people…but he was dragged north by the current to…oh…" Alex paused as, the more he thought about it, the more the facts fit into place. It would explain why he'd known how to fuse with a Darkrai, and evidently make one as well. "So if he had to create the one Thor's fighting now…presumably by using energy from Vega, and a…suitable Human…"

Jess finished for him, this time. "What happened to the first Darkrai he had?"

They looked up as the two whirling, dueling figures having, and evidently enjoying, their epic clash split apart with a forceful boom that had come from Mjolnir and its twin smashing into a Dark Pulse that Pravus had evidently been attempting to condense into a much heavier, damaging attack. He felt Arthur's amusement, for he too had struggled with the absurd density of condensed dark energy. Until he'd infused a bit of psychic to keep it light enough to move. In his experience, the orb devoured what little psychic energy he put into it long before it made contact with whatever he was striking. Such was the nature between the two types.

Thor's crimson cape had been torn away in the fierce clashes of energy between electric and dark, but the god himself looked unhurt elsewhere. Pravus similarly was all but unscathed, for whenever Mjolnir came close to smashing him once more, one of the hands would reform, catch it, and push it away.

Furious at the constant redirection, Thor hit harder, using both hammers at once, over and over. The hands slowly withered as the Darkrai took damage, and seeing his chance for final victory, an end to the war, and even more fame and glory from humanity, Thor swung them both up with a flourish, and brought them down.

Or he would have, if the dark arms hadn't reformed suddenly, very much still corporeal, and caught Thor's burly arms in each hand. That left his chest open to the Prophet's dark sword, and it was as he struck that the man's private show came back on, the tiny robotic drones once more whizzing to life and recording. On the Fornian's side, the Prophet's aura, powers, and other such abilities were always, always shaded to be portrayed as golden light. The same held true for his Crusaders. Only the soldiers themselves, and those who saw them in person, knew the truth of his 'divine power'.

The smart ones hadn't questioned the disconnect from television and reality, and had reasoned that one must use both darkness and light to fulfill the Alpha's mission. It wasn't all that different from what Tao taught, though true to form, the cult structure had abused their people's honest devotion at every single turn. The ones who dared to suggest that 'using the essence of evil on our friends' was wrong, were the ones who ended up in labor camps for asking questions above their station about the Leader, and the wisdom of his decisions.

Thor's armor proved its worth as the Prophet struck the struggling Asgardian, but the Darkrai had a firm grip, and refused to let go. Thor shifted his chest, causing the blade tip to slide harmlessly along his golden breastplate, and kept the sword from piercing him by finding a seam in the alien metal. For the moment.

Snarling in irritation, and seeing the eastern forces starting to rush in to aid their ally, and potentially end the war, Pravus let the darkness envelop him, the sword grew larger, the hilt formed a v shape just below where the wide, black blade grew, and it took the man two of his own human hands to swing. He thrust up at Thor from a low angle, and the Asgardian gave a breathless gasp as the Shadow blade tore right through him.

Alex was at the top just in time for the spray that followed, and then the sickening sound of the heavy body hitting the ground as the blade phased through it. He glanced at his armor, covered in the blood of one he considered a friend. He stared Pravus down, and the purple-blue energy in his eyes and aura shifted to golden Light.

"Now now, little dragon, you might not want to Purge me in front of the entirety of my following…I'll only come back stronger, and the people's faith will be rewarded again and again. I have a different proposition…" He gestured to three bodies that lay, smoking, beside his PokéMeter, at the back part of the rounded stone dais. "Have a session on my PokéMeter. We'll even lift the rules, for this one special circumstance, and show it live for the first time ever…lives are on the line after all, and this is history." His smirk widened to a grin.

Alex tightened his grip on the ignited plasma sword, and felt Lux' eyes on him. Thor's blood had, apparently, brought out the electric type's rage. He was urging his Trainer to use him, and strike the darkness dead. This game was what he wanted, it was all part of the trap. Alex quickly thought over his options, and then took a deep breath as with naught but a whisper, he made a third option. He met the Prophet's grin with his usual smirk, and powered down his sword. Pravus did the same, and they both moved towards the machine, eyes never moving from the other. Behind them, Thors soldiers rushed to attend to his wound,but Pravus seemed not to care, now that he'd proven his dominance.

"I don't understand what you get out of…this…" Alex said, gesturing to the elaborate measures that had evidently been taken just to get him on this machine. It was undoubtedly from a source of Light, but this close, his third eye could see how skewed it had become. Twisted, until it could do little more than burn those who touched it, or not, at the reader's command. He resisted laughing, as he had a feeling that was what the Prophet intended. Pretend to give him a fair, honest, meter session, a hallmark of his people's culture and religion, and have him 'die accidentally' as a result. Evidently it wasn't unexpected, on this machine. He supposed it was a good plan, given that his Hand hadn't gotten the job done.

"My people consider these sessions sacred, young Redwood." Pravus said, sitting properly, as he powered up the machine. The camera drones buzzed around him, and from behind each of the sitting leaders, Scales and Crusaders flanked their backs, staring the others down, ready to start fighting if something went awry. They all knew it was a trap, there was no way things wouldn't go sideways. They were ready for sideways.

"This Machine, and those descended from its Most Holy design, are specifically tuned to hone in on one's Crimes, and advise a Judgement for the severity of them. The Light, praise be, is merciful, and usually only leaves small burns that heal in short amounts of time, but sometimes, one's crimes are so great, the Light eradicates them on the spot." He smirked. "Down to the last atom. This Judgement, we have determined through our advanced science and technology, comes straight from the Alpha himself. Therefor…it cannot be wrong. Once we are done here, it is my hope that this war will finally end, and my loyal soldiers can stop dying."

Alex nodded quietly as the Prophet spoke, and casually glanced upwards at the clouded sky. Reassurance flooded him, and the Scales behind him shifted. "Very well. I agree to your tests. If I prove worthy of the Alpha's Judgement, you will stand down, at once. We all serve the same Maker, we do not need to keep killing each other."

"My thoughts exactly." Pravus said, grinning, and gesturing to the silvery metal canisters at the opposite end of the PokéMeter. "After this, there will be no reason to keep fighting."

"You're running out of time, Alex…" Tao muttered in his head, both amused and satisfied that they had just gotten more than enough from the Prophet, in his own words, for future de-escalation. The Dragon had warned that the clever villain might not use his silvered tongue, but in hindsight, there was no way his ego would've let him stay quiet. He appeared confident in victory, or at the very least, winning this part of the battle, and then charging straight for Unova, and total domination.

"Then let there be peace." Alex said, winking at the floating cameras as he gripped the cylindrical canisters of Melmetal essence. Tao had taught him much about how energy could flow, any energy, theoretically. If one knew how to harness it, one could turn it on their opponent. Such tactics were a trademark of the Dragon's fighting style. Control, balance, and upsetting that balance, in combat, making their energy work for you instead of your opponent.

Moreover, he and his enhanced brain had gotten familiar with what they were using to make the plasma swords function, and he could, and had, often repaired those that had been damaged after a hard battle. The best part of the Melmetal's gifts was that, if you used a steel type crystal or plate, you could repair damaged parts in the field relatively quickly. Other metals did not mend so easily, and Tao had said they simply did not have time for him to learn how to properly wield and build with steel energy.

Thankfully an Iron Plate crystal had been fused by way of the Voice to his armor, as an Aggron would, eventually, be part of his team. Cenomons still had yet to evolve, though he was a good battler in his own right. He braced himself, and felt the cylinders grow hot beneath the black mesh that also protected his hands, as well as his joints.

The Prophet smirked, and began to read the instrument. "This isn't the first time you've been on a PokéMeter…you've done this before, haven't you?"

Alex glared at him, and the grip on the canisters tightened. The smirking Prophet knew full damn well what he'd caused with his first meter session. The last time he'd been on such a machine, albeit a normal, non-glowing one, he'd lost his chance to be a Trainer. Or so he'd believed, for a very long time.

"I have. It may interest your people to know that you sabotage the futures of innocent children, whose only crime is being related to an old man that subverted your 'legendary security' after being wrongfully imprisoned." He stared at the cameras then, for they were indeed still rolling. By the Church's own rules, a session could not be interrupted, and this one had been ordered to be performed live, by the Prophet himself. "I doubt those you've put in your labor camps are seeing this…but if they are, I want them to know that escape is still very much possible…and even if you fail, worry not." He shifted his smirk and gaze back to Pravus. "I'll free you myself, soon enough…"

"Oh, will you…" A surge of what could only have been Light energy came from the machine then, surprising Alex entirely as it broke through his Aura shield with little to no effort. He quickly guided the energy, and kept it in his arms, before forcing it back from whence it came, through the canisters, but the meter seemed unchanged. Pravus appeared satisfied though, for all intents and purposes, it seemed as though the sturdy Dragon Emperor had been thoroughly shocked. "How about now?"

Another surge came, and he played along, the snarls of pain were real enough, but Alex kept his posture, and his grip. His hands were on fire, but he didn't release the canisters. That would give the Prophet an excuse to end things early, rather than continue toying with him. A quick glance at the man's not unpleasant face told him what he needed to know.

The Darkrai around Pravus, still invisible to normal eyes, seemed to be looking down at him with sorrow. He winked at it, too, as another surge of energy traveled further up his arms than he would've liked. Both were shaking now, and flaring streams of light energy escaped from the joints between the dragonbone of his armor.

"I've bought you a few minutes…" Tao's voice came, and Alex got the mental image of the dragon, likely from centuries past, bashing a plain leather ball, evidently from a human, higher and higher into the sky with his tail. He started to chuckle, and immediately regretted it as another surge of Light ran up his arms. He controlled it once more, and forced it back into the machine. The pain was intense, and he bit his lip. He couldn't feel it though; his brain was preoccupied with the intense pain in his arms. No distractions, then.

"Seven bursts, and the Dragon Emperor still retains consciousness. Impressive, to say the least. Only my Hands have ever endured so much. Admit to your Crimes, Alexander Redwood…and you may yet be forgiven…I'll even offer a one-time chance to join me, my people, my Church. We don't need to kill each other, right?" The carefully controlled sarcasm irked Alex, but to his followers, sounded as genuine as everything else their beloved leader said.

"What…crimes…" He said, surprised at how hard talking had become. Another surge, but he'd been expecting it, this time. Once more he let the energy travel up his tortured limbs, and then guided it back down, which was just as painful, straight into the machine. Finally, he sensed a shift within it. An imbalance, small, but enough.

Pravus raised an eyebrow at his reading, but continued on anyways. "Come now, use that clever brain…everyone has things they regret. Choices, they wish they could undo. Share yours with us. There is no judgement, at least from us, during a session. You are with friends…"

The Prophet's voice seemed to cut through the pain he felt in his arms, which trembled every few seconds now. Still, his grip remained iron. He glanced up again, and hid a smirk as he 'pretended' to double over in pain before another surge of Light. He felt a strange, unnatural compulsion in his mind, to share his pain, things he would normally never utter aloud, to let all of it spill out, and let the Light decide if he was too terrible to keep living. He could see why normal people, without crystals or armor or psychic powers, fell to a machine like this so easily.

The metal cylinders had, he'd slowly realized, formed a direct connection to his nervous system, piercing his gloves, as the session went on. Normally harmless, this connection allowed the reader to measure the potential of the human linked to the machine, though in this era, meter readers had strict orders to extract secrets from their parishioners, which were then used to the Church's benefit, and the result had been the PokéMeters becoming little more than very glorified 'lie detectors'. The promise of privacy was, as with so much else in their cult, an illusion meant to reassure the person on the receiving end of the meter that what they said would be kept hidden.

Thankfully, the Light was not a mindless, all-destroying force that left death in its path when unleashed. It only came from one known source, and Arceus was a merciful deity. Alex knew if it reached his brain, as Pravus likely assumed it already had, he wouldn't be able to recover. Another surge came through his nerves, and the pain was almost too much. He'd retreated from his mental link to Jess and his partners, as he knew them well, and knew they wouldn't be able to sit by if they had any idea of just how bad he was hurting. Arthur knew, of course, as their link was far more ingrained thanks to his typing, but the Gallade also knew he had to resist the urge to charge in and help. For now.

Sweat fell from his jaw and beard as he panted, but his arms, he forced to stay in place. Slowly, he sat up again. Pravus gave him a magnanimous smile. "Confess, and the session will be over."

When another burst was slow to come, he waited. A minute passed. He waited. Another, and he knew time was fading fast. He forced himself to sit up. "You want…to hear what I am guilty of? What I regret?" He looked down again, composed himself, only to hunch further forward as another burst of Light surged into him. That was all he needed. Sadistic types like Pravus likely didn't know just how ineffective torture was, as a rule, but instead of lying to end it, he had other plans.

Part of his leg armor began to glow with steel type energy, but he kept it out of sight below the table, hoping the sadistic man wouldn't notice, enjoying the session as he was. He widened the connection to the cylinders, and redirected as much Light as he could through them. One more, he thought, as he sensed the imbalance in the device grow. One more…he could handle one more. But, he realized, he was out of time.

The sky above them took on a dark red hue, and the Prophet looked up, eyes narrowing. "All I regret…" Alex said, letting the pain fade from his mind, and replacing it with his growing rage, "Is that I let a worm like you control my life for so long…my biggest regret? Giving up my Venusaur, when I earned my Trainer ID…that's the only time I've ever been forced to abandon a friend…" The eyes narrowed, and the dragon energy flared to life again as he focused his anger. His aura shifted from blue, to a deep crimson, that matched the sky above them. Pravus stood, rage coming over his features as he realized, somehow, his opponent was not as weak as he should be. "And you are the reason I had to in the first place!"

He focused his power then, empowering his psychic energy until it let the Light energy flow into him from the universe, and his entire form began shining with golden light. He directed it into the machine's imbalanced internal energy, overloading it. "What!?" Pravus switched the knob that powered the machine off, but the needle displaying the energy reading remained where it was, entirely too far to the right side of the display, in the red. Nobody had ever forced the needle into the red before on this machine, not even Pravus had enough power to force it. He took half a step back as he realized he couldn't stop it, only to have it explode in his face with a flash of blinding Light.

When the flash faded, Alex found himself on his knees, arms hanging limp, still panting. He slowly reconnected to his team, and assured them that he was okay. Jess hadn't waited, reforging their link herself, and shielding him with a Barrier right before the machine went critical. She too, had seen the imbalance, what he'd been trying to do, and as usual, he'd forgotten to leave enough energy to defend himself.

His entire form was smoking, as he slowly stood, and he looked over at Pravus. The man was on his back, obscured by the table, and smoking more than he was. It was at that moment that his whispered Words manifested. Coming down from the clouds, seven massive meteor-like objects, wreathed in crimson, sparking flames, hurtled towards the dais, in a disturbingly perfect circle. The Crusaders, who had begun powering up their staves when the light exploded, barely had time to react before the massive spheres of draconic energy, summoned with naught but a whisper hidden in a deep breath at the start of this charade, came down on them.

The smart ones had shifted their weapons to fire type energy, and formed personal shields around themselves. Unfortunately for their comrades, panic had won out by majority, and once the ashy clouds of meteoric impact blew away in the fierce winter wind, the dais stood all but unoccupied, as it was covered with burned, wounded men. The Scales moved through them with brutal efficiency, and ended their pain with merciful strikes to vital organs.

With the dais suddenly free of their control, and their Prophet's status unknown, the remaining forces in the city began to converge on them, and the eastern forces reinforced the top level of the structure, turning the long ramp down to the street into a killing zone as Pokémon joined the fight. Eventually, Crusaders stopped charging blindly into the various attacks from the gathered Scales, and bided their time to make a concentrated charge.

In short order, they began climbing, alternating positions to form defensive spheres of elemental energy powered by their armor, which joined together when close enough. The Scales drove them back rather easily though, as those defending were Champions, and had their powerful partners using rock type attacks, which both severely damaged or cut through the Crusader's fire and ice counter-attacks, and were entirely immune to electricity. Moreover, they could also make the ramp very smooth, and difficult for the heavy humans to climb, especially while defending themselves.

The gathered host of Thor who had ran to their fallen leader, reported that he was comatose, self-induced, to begin the healing process. Evidently, he expected his allies to stabilize him in time, which they did, though how exactly, the others could not see, as the tall riders obscured any foreign eyes from peeking through. When asked how they were going to heal a wound like that, the only answer the stone-faced warriors gave was, "Asgardian technology."

The remaining eastern forces spread out atop the large stone structure, as Alex and Jess went to examine Pravus, to make sure he'd been fully ended. She'd already managed to use Recover on his right arm, and was tending to his left, as he froze, and shifted back to combat readiness. The spot where Pravus had lain was empty, only a charred mark on the stone remained where he'd been lying only moments before. "Bloody Darkrai…we need to separate him from it. Every time, it saves him."

"We need…" Jess said, as she focused her scarlet-pink energy on his arm, "To get out of this city alive. And figure out how he fused himself to a Darkrai in the first place."

Alex reached out to Tao then. "How did that go? Did they cut off broadcasting?"

"No. The feed is still live, somehow." Tao responded, sounding perplexed. The camera drones were, like everything else after the explosion of power, smoldering wrecks. Alex mentally ordered the most tech savvy of his Scales to secret them away, for they needed a back door into the Church's propaganda machine. "As far as I can tell, they gave your abilities the opposite coloration of the Prophet's."

"So it looks like I just blew him up with a giant darkness bomb. Great. Even when we win, we lose…" Alex muttered, flexing his hands as Jess finished. He used them both to hug her, murmuring, "I'm fine, really…" before letting her go.

An irritatingly familiar voice echoed above them. "Win? You have won nothing, half-breed." They looked up at the dark cover of the ash-filled clouds, as a familiar looking ship descended from the upper atmosphere. It was Percy's but it had been given the Arcean treatment. That meant more guns, more shielding, and a giant symbol of the Alpha, jutting up from the rear this time. "I'll give you points for being clever, overloading my machine with too much energy…you would've made a powerful Hand. Now, all you'll make is a corpse. Such a waste…"

Singing came through the sounds of battle by the edges of the dais, and they glanced to the rooftops of the city's few skyscrapers. The shield from earlier reformed, once the Prophet's ship was low enough. It began heading straight for them.

The pair of bow-mounted triple barreled cannons on the formerly stealthy airship formed six orbs of energy, two for each typing the Church had adopted as weaponry. Bjalfari gave a sharp whistle then. "Mount up with Thor's men, lads! We're getting out of here!" He met Alex's gaze, and the Unovan tilted his head questioningly. "Thor is severely hurt, and, well…" Bjlafari gestured, and the city below them teemed with the white armor and visored faces of thousands of soldiers, all heading towards them.

"Right." Alex said, shaking his head free of the painful daze springing the trap had caused. "Of course…fall back, all of you!" Hilbert took his Scales into the air, and headed southeast, over the city, and towards the battle lines that, presumably, needed reinforcing. The rest of them leapt atop their mounts as well, just as the beams from the ship fired. The entire top half of the stone monument was blown away, but the resulting dust and rubble only hindered the Church's troops, and gave the easterners cover to get away.

Thor's men had retained their Rapidash, and each of the blue-maned beasts had Bounced high into the air with the rest of them, some gaining additional height as massive chunks of stone flew past them. Not all the regular Norstadders escaped unscathed however, but the survivors knew that anyone who fell to the teeming horde of Crusaders below was already lost. They didn't take non-civilian prisoners very often. Alex's squad, which was essentially three in one at this point, saw where the Thunder God's warriors were landing, and battle erupted as they cleared the space for the descending fire horses. They were surrounded before long, all of them fighting and blocking as best they could.

Each of the Scales had called out their partners then, and many had bolstered their ranks by summoning Pokémon from their cloak holders. With unity acquired through practice in combat, those who could defend, merged their defenses, which were mainly rock type, and any ice attacks that came close to hitting their barriers were burned away by the Charizard, Talonflame, and other aerial fighters as well. Blaze was leading them, and the Scale's entire defensive strategy worked like a well-oiled machine as they covered for each other's weaknesses. None of them fell, as the Champions defended the landing host of Thor, and once the Rapidash were all down, they needed an exit.

As if on cue, a pair of very angry, very on fire Gogoats burst through the Crusaders on their eastern side. Bjalfari and two other warriors helped Thor into his chariot, though in the chaos it was hard to see how the red-haired Asgardian was faring. Once loaded up, the Gogoat both reared up, and then began charging back down the path of fire and death they'd created to reach the embattled eastern soldiers. The Rapidash needed no urging, and the gathered forces began moving as they beat a hasty retreat.

Then, for the first time in their brief history, the Emperor's own squad suffered losses. Moving so quickly back towards their lines had left gaps in their defense, which the Arceans abused to great effect. Bjalfari lost three of his Scales, and ten of his warriors, Jess lost two of her own, and Alex's own squad lost three. The Sippi region had only contributed eight former Champions to the cause. Some regions had as many as twenty, others as few as two. Sippi's in particular unanimously resented the Arcean plant that had taken their region, one Valarian Nocturne. The former Champions had, evidently, formed a plan in the quiet of their minds, and had chosen to sacrifice themselves, and their partners, to the hordes of angry Crusaders to buy the others more time.

Alex felt each of them fall, his sense of helplessness and anger rising with each death, and as the third of his own squad gave her life, he'd had enough. Three Champions, and over eighty Pokémon at their command…all brought down with merciless efficiency by the Church's horde of loyal men, and their own partners. Any rules of battle had been utterly tossed out the window. Alex reached out to his ace in the hole as they approached the wall of opaque darkness. "Are you here, yet?"

Alex smirked, as he was answered with a thundering roar, that made the Crusaders pause. Jess had reached the opaque barrier first, and with a single aura enhanced punch, had smashed a usable hole in the darkness with focused fighting energy. Rapidash began streaming through, and she moved to open another. Above them, thunder boomed as the upper part of the shield was blasted apart. Many of the Crusaders stationed within the city had been sent against the Kanadian Wall before now, and that roar haunted their nightmares. A cry escaped from one of the soldiers, a woman, who sounded several rows away from the current mob of chaotic Pokémon battling and combat. "Black Death comes! Switch shields to-"

The words were cut off as a massive pillar of electricity came down from the darkened heavens, and obliterated the speaker, and any who'd been near her general vicinity. Night had fallen by now, and the night was where the Black Death had earned his nickname. The Charge Beam moved in a tight circle around the easterners, and those fighting made short work of the few who escaped unscathed, before continuing to retreat after the fiery column of Norstadders following the unstoppable charge of Thor's Gogoat.

For the first time, Alex actually saw the Crusaders pause. They'd switched their weapons to ice typing, but the sky was a mess of reforming smoke, and chaotic Pokémon battles between Scales who excelled on their flying mounts, and aerial mounted Crusaders. The moon reappeared abruptly as Shruikan winged away for another destructive pass. As he circled, which took him just outside the city, and out of range, he mega evolved.

The Crusaders, instead of aiming for him, aimed for the similarly glowing Trainer giving him power, only to find their ice attacks smashed apart by blade arms, burning with Light energy from the Emperor's Gallade. Just as quickly as they'd struck, the Gallade retaliated, and entire squads of Crusaders fell to the whirling dervish of death that was Arthur. There were always more to replace them, though. Alex fell back as he let the others run the final stretch to the suburban outskirts, as he turned in the middle of the main road leading out of the city, and prepared to stall their foes. Otherwise, they'd chase them all the way back to command.

As Shruikan turned to deal with the advancing airship firing ice beams at him at a rapid pace, Cenomons appeared before his Trainer from underground, where he'd been making well-timed Dig attacks against soldiers who shifted their energy to electric. He'd followed the current then, and struck at the source. Usually, it wasn't an ally, and he'd have to dig again before retaliatory flames hit him. Thankfully, he was still rather fast. When it came to digging, at least.

"Alright Ceno, just like we practiced. Bearing Shot! Spread it as wide as possible!" The Lairon hunched his entire body, growling as the enemy, and their Pokémon, came closer. With a sound like cannon fire, tiny balls of glowing steel shot from each of the Pokémon's holes, along his back and head. Five times he repeated it, and the Crusaders paused, as the multitude of orbs stuck themselves to the nearest enemy target that the Lairon had marked. It was possible to hit allies with this as well, but he could usually spot friends from foes, with his Trainer's help. A piece of his attention was always there for him, in the back of his mind, if he needed it. It was reassuring to have on hand.

The Dragon Emperor raised a hand towards the Church forces who, upon seeing the orbs didn't really do anything but stick to them and glow, began charging him once more, intent on ending the war by taking his head. These were no back-woods soldiers that had never heard of the Scales of Balance. They knew how to kill Scales. Overwhelming them with varied melee strikes was the easiest method, while one had their Pokémon firing from mid to long range behind them as well. Their swords couldn't block everything.

The grimly smirking horn-helmed figure's eyes flared as he summoned the power of electricity, and the surrounding area took on a yellow hue. Sparks flared along every surface, and the internal systems of the Crusader's armor went screwy…for a few moments. They had been built to channel this very element after all. The fingers snapped, and the gathered forces, who were only a battling field's length away from him now, glanced skyward as they heard an all too familiar whooshing sound. The sound of Death inhaling. In the quiet before the strike, Alex's Voice reached Shruikan, and his victims as well. "Thunder."

The now mega evolved Shruikan had once more blocked the moon, and given the nature of formations that were chasing fleeing soldiers, a long line of the fastest had formed while the slower soldiers swarmed in behind them. The dragon opened his maw, but instead of a pillar of electrical death that only left charred, useless armor and smoking skeletons, the very clouds bent to his will as he used his Thunder.

He took his best shot at the closest opponent who'd been marked, and as the bolt struck home, it spread. Like a line of macabre dominoes, the Crusaders fell one after the other as the deadly energy spread through the silvery orbs, through the line of the fastest soldiers, and then into a good portion of the advancing front. Chaos erupted as divisions were left leaderless, and the charge faltered. Alex raised his hand again, and grabbed onto the black scaled tail that was all but invisible in the dark night to human eyes as Shruikan picked him up, and quickly matched pace with the rest of their war party.

"Not again! Fire everything!" Pravus' mad voice failed to hide the pain the eruption of Light had evidently caused him. It made some sense, as he'd discovered dark types were weak to that kind of energy. Alex recalled the various partners who had, thanks to his eeveelutions, not lost a single member. Between his Sylveon and Espeon, they had been an effective force, both defending and healing, as well as attacking when the moment came, but now was the time to pull back.

It was good he did, for Percy's ship had begun firing random beams of energy at any remaining enemy forces, which at this point, were his own partners. Eventually though, he recalled all of them from Shruikan's back. Seeing his prey fleeing, Pravus gave another command. "All soldiers! All ships! Ice Type attacks now! Fill the sky with them! Fire at will!"

Alex swore, and ran up the length of his dragon's neck, leaping off his snout, and recalling him as ice energy filled the air. His aura flared, and he propelled himself towards his troops, who were waiting by the Sippi River. While delayed, the Crusaders had regained marching patterns minutes after the Emperor's attack, and were now marching in pace with Pravus' newest flagship.

Alex raised a brow as he landed, and saw Jess and her squad ascending into the air. He found Hilbert, and their squads merged as they formed a defensive perimeter. "What are they up to then?"

Hilbert looked at him. "She said you were the one who gave her orders to fly into the air…"

Alex glanced up quickly. "I did not…wait, she's shielding herself from me." He went quiet as he gave her the mental equivalent of a loud knocking sound. He knew he'd made her wince. So she could hear him, at least. "Care to tell me where you're going?"

He sensed her wink at him. "Hush…and enjoy the show."

Alex raised a brow, and then turned his gaze towards what she'd mentally gestured to. His eyes went wide. He'd never seen a Suicune up close, but there was no way they were supposed to be this big. Moreover, its mane was blue, rather than purple just as Connor's partner was orange furred, and not yellow. Even Connor's Raikou hadn't been so…imposing, though. Professor Buckeye was atop the Legendary Pokémon, and he gave Alex a nod as they trotted by, following after Jess and her Scales.

She'd found her lover's choice of squadmates for her amusing, and had run with it once she returned from Kalos, going as far as bringing in five additional Articuno riders she'd befriended in her time at their village. They stood out among her Scales, and flew in a V formation of Articuno just above them. Jess was on Folokraan now, and Chari was with Blaze amongst the Pokémon of Hilbert and Alex's combined Scale force. Below them, there was a soft boom, and a cloud of snow as Suicune accelerated towards the enemy.

When both it and the Professor were about ten miles from the Sippi river, the old man let out a sharp whistle. The fliers above began circling his position, and from the distance, came their foe. Pravus's ship continued to charge towards them as fast as it could. It was much slower now, laden down as it was with all the upgrades. It had lost any chance of being stealthy, but it still fired ice energy beams as it advanced.

Below the ship, the Crusaders came as well, once more mounted as they had been for their Blitz. This was, evidently, meant to be their second attempt, a strike all the way through Unova. A howl tore through the air, and the relatively barren grassy plains that made up this part of the continent were flooded with mist that rose from the river and the snow, and encompassed what was supposed to be the battlefield.

The Asgardian forces led the charge back to Ventosus, their main focus on healing Thor. Alex didn't mind though, for he agreed with their priorities. His Scales could handle this. "Everyone heal up! If you need items, come to me. I want full health, and power on all your partners. Don't worry about how much you use, just give anyone who fought what they need to handle another round."

Arthur handled using items on their own team, and Shruikan made a brief appearance as well, healed himself, and then rapidly headed north once more to make sure the Church hadn't grown bold in his brief absence from the wall. The air had slowly grown even colder, and snow fell anew from the ash covered sky. He knew Jess had something to do with it, but she was still being dodgy about what they were up to.

As the Scales under Alex and Hilbert healed and restored their frankly absurd number of usable partners, Jess and her squad prepared to stall the advance, and perhaps end the battle before it properly began. Percy's ship fired beams uselessly into the fog-covered battlefield, and eventually ceased. Beams of ice fired back at the Arcean lines, and the Crusaders adjusted as necessary. Once they had ice shields however, a massive Blast Burn appeared from the mist and tore through most of the Arcean front line. The airship that held Pravus got to experience the power of a Thunder attack from a mega evolved and pure special attacker as Jess ordered Amphi to aim for one of the engines, and shared her psychic sight to account for Thunder's inaccuracy. Other fire moves immediately followed the massive thunderbolt. The Crusaders shifted their shield's typing again, and were met with ground and water moves in response.

Rightly assuming their attackers were on flying types, beams of electricity filled from the Crusaders soon filled the air, and actually managed to pierce the mist. Only a few of the Articuno were hit, and those managed to land and recover to get back in the fight. The misty cover was invaluable, but Suicune wasn't done.

Suddenly, the airship halted its forward momentum, as did the winded, and diminished lines of Crusaders. More streamed in from the city, and it became clear Pravus was giving his slower men a chance to mass up. When bunched together and shielding themselves in unison, few attacks could bring down the Church's soldiers. Or even manage to hit them, and as their lines reformed, their shield once more protected the airship from damage. What smoke there had been, ceased, as Fornian engineers handled and solved for the problem. Crafting a new part or six was easy when one had a living metal Pokémon on hand.

As the Church forces regained their composure and formed a proper battle line, as they had in the first Blitz, they charged again towards Ventosus, and entered the mist covered battlefield. They knew where they were headed, and it was Pravus' belief that they could handle whatever surprise the easterners had prepared. Without the Thunder God, they would be mowed down.

Another howl filled the air around them, and the mist turned into a Blizzard. There was a faint icy blue flash ahead of them within the storm, and without warning, the Blizzard became something else entirely, as the five remaining Articuno riders took control of the energy. That was when the Crusaders heard something on the wind.

It wasn't a howl this time, but a song, one in a deep, unknown tongue. Those aboard Pravus' ship knew it well, for many had been in Norstad, and hadn't left their posts in the months since. Flying type energy exploded from the airship in a circular wave that dispelled the clouds, if not the snow. Above them, the large once more full moon hung in the sky, and blocking their view of it was a rider, with fire for hair.

She raised a dragonbone covered fist, and the following snowstorm blinded the entirety of the Arcean lines with its intensity. The temperature dropped, rapidly, and Pravus gave the command. "All forces, switch to fire typing." The airship, for it had defenses as well, used the energy in its weapons, and merged it with the cohesive fire-shield blob the soldiers made up just below them. The result was a rather warm, comfortable dome that would burn away any ice attack. Or so they'd believed.

"Kun Iirik!" The Shout echoed across the battlefield, even through the shield of fire, and from the white void surrounding them, came an Ice Beam. It didn't look normal however, and it was Doctor Ein who realized what it was, though he couldn't convey it quick enough to matter.

When infused with Shadow, an Articuno could use a devastatingly powerful move that was, essentially, just an Ice Beam enhanced by Shadow energy. Now, it seemed, one of the irritating riders from before had thought to combine it with Light energy. The beam shattered the shield, and as a result, the enhanced armor of every Crusader suddenly lost power, burnt out by the overheating power units built into the back of each Crusader's armor. The suits had tried to output enough heat to match the frigid beam, but between it and the rapidly dropping temperature, the heat had been too much for the suits to sustain. Their weapons still worked though, and their leaders immediately ordered a barrage of fire typed beams into the sky.

It wasn't enough, though. The Sheer Cold attack from no less than five Articuno, each much larger than the one that had broken their enemy's shield, struck home as their defenses failed, and the beams of fire were swallowed up into the howling storm of ice and snow. As the roughly two hundred thousand Crusaders began to freeze, those at the back of their respective division began to flee for the city.

Seeing the first few lines already frozen solid in painful, horrific death poses, morale shattered, and the entire army began to flee. Or rather, they tried. Suicune had not been idle, and the impossibly fast Pokémon had run around the entirety of the Arcean lines, forming a barrier of ice with its Ice Beam as it ran.

Buckeye kept his partner healed and energized as they penned in the troops, and closed the jaws around the trap Tao had set. The Dragon had expected his forces would need a fast exit, and fast exits against men like Pravus meant a hard charge to follow. Using the river, and a few Legendary Pokémon, the clever Dragon had cut off his opponent's sight, attack and defense strength, and now had sealed off their escape as well, as the first fleeing soldiers soon found out.

Regular soldiers from Ohiana itself, made of mostly Trainers and militia who had thus far been under Buckeye's command, quickly traveled along the flat top of the new wall of ice, and began firing down at the soldiers quick-witted enough to realize that this wall was going to turn the battlefield before it into a killing zone if they didn't bring it down.

Some reinforced it with rock type moves, while others moved all the way to the far end, to make sure everything was covered. They knew it likely wouldn't hold if the entire field army began retreating, but they'd been told most of the soldiers would be frozen before they ever reached the barrier.

Tao, who had spent several minutes filling in Alex on what exactly the Hel their plan was, sent his Scales back into battle, and Alex and Hilbert's squad's once more joined with the ladies. They charged through the ranks of frozen Crusaders, their armor protecting them from the worst of the still ongoing Sheer Cold.

They did come upon the edge of it however, and as they saw the Riders of Valaskjalf freezing entire battle companies solid they also once more found the Prophet's ship. It was ascending, rapidly. Evidently Pravus realized his people below were already lost. Jess gave the order for the Sheer Cold to cease, but the damage had been done. Out of the two hundred thousand loyal Crusaders who'd followed their Prophet into the latest battle of this war, only two divisions, roughly fifty thousand men, remained.

Twin Ice Beams shot from either side of the field then, illuminating the sky with their brilliance as the clouds and snow faded. They struck the airship on each tandem wing rotor, freezing them both solid, and the massive ship began to plummet. This, more than anything, was what killed most of the soldiers.

Pravus did not, however, go down with his ship. Indeed, it seemed the wreckage was entirely empty of non-frozen or Crusader helmed victims. As usual, the slippery Shadow abomination had a way of quick escape, if it was necessary. Alex knew though, that the fact that he'd had to use it would likely mean incredible rage from the man, and new bruises for his subordinates.

Once the Prophet's ship crashed and the Scales hit it with several Hyper Beams, and elemental variations of similarly powerful attacks, the remaining Crusaders had surrendered, after a grisly chain of murdered lieutenants, and anyone with any kind of authority in the Church. The man who'd led his fellow soldiers in rebelling against a suicidal charge on the Dragon Emperor, called 'Reggie' or 'Reg' by his companions, had offered conditions to Alex that he'd accepted.

They would renounce their ties to the Church, and in return, the Unovans would imprison them somewhere far, far away from all the death and murder until the war ended. At that point, he said, he would like to return home, but he would leave that decision to Alex.

The Dragon Emperor had thoroughly shocked them all when he'd accepted the terms, and began speaking to them. "I know you all have heard plenty of things about me from your Church. Well the leader of that same Church just abandoned you to, presumably, die by my hand. The thing is, I don't want to kill you. Any of you. We never wanted this conflict. We wanted Pravus, for all the atrocities he has allowed in his long reign, and as you will soon see my Fornian foes, we had good reason to want to take him down. I will speak to as many of you as I can, when and if this conflict ends in a Unovan victory…if it doesn't, I'll be sure to leave the coordinates of your prison in a…obvious and easily found database. Somewhere. Maybe the Church will bother rescuing you. But don't count on it." He gestured then to the field around them. "Your frozen comrades who weren't shattered by your own airship will be thawed, but we'll leave convincing them to follow your lead in surrendering up to you…they're not going to believe anything I tell them."

If he'd made an impact on the Crusaders, it didn't show, but given that they all had visors on, that was expected. He pulled Reg aside once he'd finished addressing their new prisoners. "You're going somewhere near Ontarec. It'll be cold, damp, and probably cloudy, but you'll all be alive. I need you to figure out who the…dangerous ones among the frozen are. We have different facilities for them. You give me their names once you're all settled in, and our deal will stand. If you decide to try to betray me, or escape your new prison, you will all die. Do you understand me, Reggie?"

The man, who'd removed his own helmet, nodded. He had the usual Fornian features, though the tan had faded back to pasty white skin, from all the snow and near-constant cover from his armor, and his hair was black. "I hear you, Dragon Emperor…you don't need to convince me. I saw what you did…what your woman did…tell me something. Honestly. Are your powers evil?"

Alex chuckled, and shook his head. "Not…inherently. Obviously, not all with abilities like mine are…good natured, but I like to think I'm good at resisting the urge to brainwash people with them." The man seemed to chuckle at that, but it faded as he saw the Emperor's mouth grow grim. "I think you understand…there are more ways to brainwash people than with psychic abilities, and don't think your Prophet isn't using them, either. He has a Gallade of his own, you know."

"I'll take your word for it…" The man muttered, seemingly ready to return to his comrades.

Alex smirked. "You'll see for yourself. We have a video record, developed since this war began, for those Fornians we happen to capture. We show you the unedited truth of what your government and your Church have been up to for the past few centuries."

That piqued the man's attention again. "And does that kind of tactic work?"

Alex chuckled again. "About as well as you'd expect. Around fifty percent usually refuse to watch. The other half that do, don't take very long to deconvert. We offer a chance to save their family members then." He gestured again, and the very people Pravus had captured earlier, who'd been spirited away somewhat unwillingly by Thor's riders, were huddled around the Scales, and the fire Pokémon with them. "We don't always succeed. Most of the time, they're already dead, but sometimes…sometimes we have a happy ending, a family reunion, and people who won't try to unravel my government when and if this all ends." He met Reg's eyes then. "I don't want your people to die, Reg. I want your people to flourish, as they should have been, for the past three centuries."

The Crusader looked down again, shook his head, and sighed. "It's…a lot to process…"

Alex chuckled. "You'll have time to think it over. But the offer stands for you as well. Soldier or civilian, spy or diplomat. We offer the chance to be free to those who have the will to take it. Good luck…and may the Alpha's Light guide you truly."

The common Arcean ending to a conversation seemed to startle the Crusader, as it had come from the very man he'd been told had zero respect for his people's culture or beliefs, and wanted to see all of it in ruins. They would all have much to think about.

For his part, Alex had floated into the air, and headed for the windy city's Encampment, which was serving as the military's headquarters. As he landed and entered the command tent, Tao's voice filled his skull. "We have a problem. The other fronts have been cut off by dark type interference. For all we know, there's several divisions heading our way from the southern lines. All we've been able to divine is that the Church launched a second attack on the south and center lines while we were focused on Monachus."

"Well…Muk." Alex said, sighing. "Focus on re-establishing our communications. See if Merlin can't pierce whatever barriers are blocking us."

"Arthur can handle that…" Tao said, sounding slightly amused. The Gallade popped free of his ball then, bumped fists with his Trainer, and then Teleported. "There is more, though…I was wondering why we had such an easy time today…"

"You call that easy?" Jess said, shaking her head. "You try fusing an Ice Beam with Light energy without being able to 'summon it from the universe'." She'd added air quotes, but mostly for the benefit of the leaders present. Bjalfari had survived, but Hilbert was being treated for a harsh burn to his shoulder. Evidently he'd run afoul of a Crusader's Arcanine while fighting and leading the melee on the ground.

"I never said you weren't impressive. Regardless, did none of you notice something was missing? What does the Prophet always have with him, according to reports?" Alex glanced at the others, but Jess figured it out first.

"His Hands…we didn't see any. That is strange. All reports from his past appearances on the field have had him surrounded by at least ten, with five in reserve." She glanced at Alex then, sensing his own thoughts.

He spoke them aloud for those not psychically connected to him. "I imagine some are leading the offensives in the south, to counter the Scales, but…he's supposed to have thousands right? Where are the rest?"

"Unfortunately…" Tao said to all of them, "We know that, too…they're in Sinnoh. They've been in Sinnoh this entire time, and until today…Sinnoh's Champions were holding them off but…we just received word from the PNN. Reports are coming in from Japan…there's a second Blitz, apparently, and it's heading down the entire island chain."

Alex's eyes went wide, "But why? Why make another enemy, fight a war on two fronts, when he's barely been able to secure the land his Church has claimed here?"

"I imagine this was supposed to happen before we were ever engaged, but given Fornia's industrial might, they can handle two fronts. Especially since one has evidently been planned for a very long time…Sinnoh was betrayed from within, and the locals apparently surrendered without much fighting, in almost every city…the Crusaders there are already heading south, towards Kanto." The Dragon seemed to pause, and as it dragged, Alex fidgeted.

Finally, he spoke. "I'm sending Red. I'm sending Red, and whoever he wants with him. If Kanto is going to be their ultimate target…let's keep it from them. Japan is no industrial slouch either…and I'd rather not give them a chance to brainwash their stronger Trainers."

The Dragon radiated agreement, and was silent for several more moments. Then, "It is done. He and a squad's worth of Scales will have to be enough reinforcement for now. He said he would mention the Empire's wish to aid them in this sudden invasion to the local government, but until they actually accept, sending our troops there en masse would technically be an invasion as well."

Alex glanced back to the map on the table. "So what now? Pravus is probably healing in a bunker somewhere. Where do you need me next?"

Tao's eyes manifested once more, as he got a better look at his Tamer. "Rio. We need to learn more about that city Pravus came from, and my information is three millennia out of date. Go there, find out what you can, and if possible…bring home some allies."

Alex stared at the pair of golden orbs. "You're kidding me. Rio? People are going to think I'm vacationing in the middle of a war!"

Tao's voice was silent to the others then, even to the female he'd bound himself so close to. "You can't hide it from my Divine Gaze. You're exhausted. I can see your eyes. When was the last time you slept?"

The dragon energy flaring from his eyes shifted to Light, obscuring even Tao's sight, and the others in the tent exchanged looks. Alex responded in the same manner though, so the others heard nothing. "I can sleep when this war is over…or at least, until we free the civilians they've captured."

"Leave them to me. I have led many wars more difficult than this. Pravus has overextended, as we demonstrated today by taking out the northern part of his army…or most of them, anyways. I'm sure the city is still well fortified. In any case, you are not a military general of my caliber. I can still take you with four moves in chess."

"Five." Alex interrupted.

The Dragon continued. "Everyone has a mission to accomplish if we want victory. Yours, right now, is to find out who exactly our enemy is…the people of Rio may have a way of killing these abominations of Pokémon and Human. You detonated a relic of Arceus in his face, and he came away with mild burns. We need to know what he's vulnerable to."

"Fine." Alex growled, severing the connection. He turned his focus back to the others. "Jess. Your Scales and mine are going on a little…trip. First, back to Unova. Bjalfari, you remain here and help Hilbert. Once Thor gets up, have him take Monachus. Without Pravus and his highest-ranking goons there, they'll be weak for a while."

He left the tent then, smirking as the redhead pestered him for details, mentally of course. Eventually, he admitted that they wouldn't need their armor, for a time, and he'd then proceeded to retract his, for the first time in at least three days, into his belt. They would need to be less noticeable, where they were going. Many Champions in their squads had been quite famous in their time, or still were, so disguises were necessary. Rick Astley in particular had gained fame after his adventures in Galar, and the writing of what was, apparently, one of the hottest new songs in existence. It had been at the top of the associated charts for months now. He and his friend Drake were also among those Alex had chosen for his own squad.

They made good time to Unova, and were on their way south as the sun rose. The ship was a luxury yacht that Jess had actually owned, or rather her father did, but she insisted he wouldn't mind lending it to the cause. Having also been to Rio in her time, she claimed they'd fit right in. The ship was littered with the sleeping, now casually dressed forms of the Champions. They were all exhausted.

Only one of them stirred, the only one who ever remained up this late. Normally, he'd be training, but he'd gotten his four hours of rest, and was fully recharged. His eyes had even become slightly less bloodshot, though the bowl of Leaf he was enjoying didn't help with that.

Alex looked up as Arthur Teleported beside him. Being able to recall to his Pokéball was a useful skill that Alex wished he could use. The closest he had was his room at home, which he'd flown out of more than once when a recall failed.

His Gallade joined him at the top of the ship's cabin. The captain, a salty old man by the name of Fergus who was enjoying his golden years captaining leisure cruises, had joined him for a spot of Leaf, and had even shown him how to properly blow smoke rings, a skill that had eluded him for years. He taught Arthur, as the Gallade took his own hit from the bowl, and the two filled the morning sea air with the foul Skunky-esque scent of the herb as the dawn finally came.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 28: The Shifting Tides

Camp Straviken – Somewhere in Fornian Territory

The man inhaled and sighed with what seemed like relief. Or at least, that's what it sounded like. It was muffled, by his once pale white helmet, fitted with the standard t-shaped black visor every Church Crusader bore. It was gray now though, which meant they were somewhere under the ash clouds the winter winds were bringing east.

"Full moon tonight." He said, with what sounded like amusement. His prisoner snarled. Often his torturer had begun their sessions like this, with that very phrase…but this time, if Geralt was right, was genuine. The moon was indeed full. As usual his luck had seen him imprisoned on the night of a half moon. He'd missed his first chance to escape, as this very Crusader had been busy with him, and he'd still been…sensitive, and barely conscious. Now though, he had adapted to the pain, and forced himself to ignore it. He could writhe in agony once he was free of these damned chains. Tonight, he was finally getting out of this hell, or dying in the attempt.

"Let us see if we can't remove that gem of yours on this special night…." The prisoner chuckled mirthlessly at the man's words, and met his captor's eyes. The pupils had narrowed again, like a very angry feline. His fangs were more akin to a canine's though, or so the science nerds had claimed when first examining his newest, most durable pet's unique incisors. The icy blue stare always held the promise of death, during their sessions, but that feat would require the mutant to be able to escape, first. That, of course, was impossible.

Tonight, as with so many nights before, the man's focus was on the Lycanroc-head shaped crystal embedded in Geralt's chest that, when active, burned with the seven colors that had attracted their Leader's notice in the first place, amongst the general prisoner population. He'd been singled out when the uniqueness noticed by pure chance amongst the crowd yielded an unexpected treasure that, if things went wrong, could serve as a replacement, or even create another mutant. Stones like Geralt's were rare, unique from all the other various kinds that had littered, and been influenced by, the magic wrought on their world by a foreign deity. Whatever experimentation had been done had given the man's body a healing factor greater than any normal human. While he'd been unconscious, he'd healed as quickly as he'd been cut open, and the closer they'd cut to the crystal, the quicker the wounds had mended, eventually becoming too tough for even his torturer's instruments after many failed attempts. Geralt's skin and muscles had adapted, and even hardened after so much abuse and regrowth.

It had taken a few weeks, but the mad Doctor's tools from home had finally arrived. The Church was already analyzing the 'Scale Swords' captured from the Unovan's special forces, and focusing beams of plasma had already been achieved. Unfortunately, they were nowhere near the length of the Scale's blades, but the Church had given their medical and…otherwise inclined staff the use of such devices as soon as they'd been able to mass produce them. Given Fornia's status as an industrial and scientific giant, the whole process hadn't taken more than a few weeks after the first blades were recovered.

A low hum and a crimson light from the instrument's synthetically fabricated red crystal filled the blank, ceracrete chamber, as simple in design as it was in aesthetics. No windows, one entryway, and locked with a genetic scanner. Moreover, the hall outside was fifty yards in a single direction, and lined with death-spitting turrets embedded in the wall. Once they'd learned who their newest prisoner was, no chances had been taken. The Prophet himself had wanted him imprisoned, studied, and then replicated once he'd read the report on his physiology.

The plasma burned white between the emitters on the scalpel-sized instrument that had yet to be given a name. Thus far, the Church had been labeling them as 'Plasma Scalpels', and nobody saw a reason to call them anything else. The masked Crusader began to cut around the top of the gem, and Geralt snarled in pain, but his restraints kept him from shifting an inch. This was precise work.

Everything they had learned of the strange man suggested that this gem, whatever it was, gave not only a power to rival Mega Evolution, but was the source of the physiological changes in whomever it was implanted within. They needed it intact, for replication.

As the plasma parted flesh, Geralt tensed up, his entire body going taut. The Crusader lifted his instrument, watching with masked interest as the crystal flared, and flesh regrew, before then producing something that looked akin to white fur around the man's chest. Then, it began to spread. The gem flared to life, and within, the Crusader saw the crimson eyes of a Lycanroc, mad with rage. "Of course…" He said, chuckling in a slightly manic manner as he backed away from the now entirely white-furred human, realizing just exactly what had been implanted in the Ranger's chest. "A Burst Heart…we thought they were all destroyed…"

The chuckle became a full-on laugh, despite the fact that the man was yet reaching for the door, rather than his stave weapon. It was usually too bulky for him, a man who delighted in precise incisions and symmetry. "You're linked to your Lycanroc, aren't you? Oh Arceus, this is delightful…now we'll have two…"

Geralt's features had begun shifting into a passable replication of his Lycanroc's two-legged form. He could shift between this, and one resembling the Midday Form, but on nights like tonight, the ferocity demanded release. He had no doubt Ghost had given them trouble the last time the moon had risen. In fact, his torturer mentioning it in a previous session had been the only thing to get more than two words out of Geralt that weren't "Muk yourself."

Geralt had warned the man not to infuse his partner with Shadow energy, as the transformation, empowered by such darkness, would be more than they could ever leash safely. Naturally, these idiots had gone and infused him with Shadow anyways, and gloated about it. Now, things would end with blood. "You…" Geralt snarled as his entire form went taut, "You fools actually did it, didn't you...I did warn you…you're all going to die for tainting him with Shadow…" His eyes were the last to change, and the fusion of man and Pokémon snarled at him before barking a single, and final, intelligible word. "Rrrrun!"

He doubled over then, and the metal chains holding his arms tore from the wall, and then snapped off as the man's limbs became much bulkier. His entire form had gained a similar muscle definition to Ghost's two-legged form, and any trace of the human was gone. His eyes flared with darkness, and starting from his wolf-like face, the white fur became a mix of black and purple.

The door slammed, and the dark wolf's eyes snapped into focus at the sound, jarring him from the dazed state transforming had left him in. A howl of rage echoed down the tunnel, followed shortly by the sound of crumpling metal.

The turret defenses activated, firing various beams of fire, electric, and ice energy, but Geralt plowed through all of them, as his massive form easily lifted the now bent door, and used it as a shield. The fire and ice tended to cancel out, but he was glad he was resistant to electric energy. At least in this form. He yet retained some control over his limbs, though he felt his body moving on instinct towards the one to whom it was bonded. It would kill anyone that got in its way on the journey there. He knew he couldn't stop it, though he tried anyway. The Shadow had made them both berserk.

He'd snarled when icy protrusions had, taking longer than they usually did thanks to the new scar tissue on his…everywhere, burst from Geralt's much wider and now brawny neck and shoulders to hit the turrets he passed with Accelerock before they could fire on his backside.

He cleared the tunnel of death in a few bounds, and then doubled over, as the overwhelming desire to rampage filled him. His instinct took over completely then. All Geralt could do was remind his rapidly enraged body to head towards Ghost, and not get caught up on the prey the base was filled with. Their faces were a blur, usually soldiers, but they were still human. The least he could do was keep this perversion of their bond from snacking on what remained. Reuniting was their only chance for surviving, and together, they could escape. Probably.

It was this single-minded determination that kept Geralt from killing anyone who might not have deserved it. He managed to shift his gaze away from those in the garb of prisoners, and those not wearing armor, though several times he'd had to take out what had appeared to be a lieutenant or leader of some description sans armor. It would make sense that they trained their men to stay fit in the same place they'd keep dangerous prisoners. Arceans never wasted space.

Eventually, the dark purple furred wolf loped into a large, hangar-like room, within which were several aircraft. The human in him wanted to try escaping in one of those, but Ghost knew better. His instinct told him that he and his Trainer were more durable than a human and a Pokéball inside a metal flying machine. Humans often believed their constructs were stronger than the natural forces of the earth. As a Rockruff, Ghost had demonstrated that his rocks beat metal contraptions every time, much to the irritation of his Trainer.

Geralt went still as his eyes locked with Ghost's, and then, at once, their hackles rose. Light flooded the room, and Geralt saw the truth. Ghost was bound, the same manner that the One Dragon had been subjected to, and he'd needed help to get free…but help hadn't come. The Shadow flared in his eyes, and Geralt moved towards his partner. Ghost growled, and to Geralt's ears, it sounded like a very pained 'Don't'. His altered form stopped then, and stomped the ground hard, cracking the ceracrete beneath his foot. The movement, by way of what Geralt could only describe as 'rock sight', revealed what Ghost was trying to warn them of. Namely, the Arceans hiding above them.

Arcean Crusaders descended, as they sprung what was evidently meant to be an ambush. Geralt let his body dispatch the armored men, tearing them apart with disturbing ease, as he used Darkest Lariat to full effect. He didn't have time to lament at the lost life however, he needed to get Ghost, and escape. He was impeded of course, as best the Crusaders could manage, but his body's single-minded focus would not be denied. A power stronger than all of them was urging the two to become one, so that they might both survive. Some part of the White Wolf was worried about how many men he was ending, and that he couldn't even recall if he'd done his torturer in, but none of that mattered now. Ghost needed him.

His body raised both fists, and brought them down, hard, shattering the floor of the hangar with an Earthquake. His form had no problem traversing the newly raised bloody boulders, but before he'd made two leaps, he paused, and dug into one that had, moments before, been host to a lingering soldier. There was a chill in the air, an unnatural one. While in this form, he shared the ice typing as well and Geralt knew his senses were detecting something that embodied the element. Something powerful, that was approaching rapidly.

His ears twitched, as he heard what seemed like singing. Ghost shared his curiosity, and as they were both relying on raw instinct at this point, they couldn't ignore it. Those Words stuck in their ears too long, and they only grew louder before the massive fifty-foot doors leading outside were blown apart by a pair of Pokémon using Sky Attack.

Instinctual fear went through Geralt and his suffering partner. A Legendary Pokémon would make anything pause, rampage or not. Before the attacks had faded, revealing the light blue feathers of the Articuno, and the forms of their riders, Geralt's form had moved for Ghost. He was so close.

His arms lit with the power of Stone Edge, and once more, the Lycanroc demonstrated that human contraptions would always fall before the raw power of rock and stone. "Don't let them merge!" The now freed Ghost looked up at the same instant Geralt did at the source of the voice. A rider with hair like a raven, standing out amongst her primarily red and blonde haired kin.

Their eyes counted five in all. Each of the riders was dressed for war, and had been geared up by Unova, including the dark haired one, judging by their belts, and black and white metal armor plates that tastefully merged with, and further reinforced, their usual leather attire. Now free, Ghost moved before Geralt did, rising slowly, and snarling with pure, undiluted rage. He smelled his Trainer, but the wolf before him looked more like a rival, than an ally. For his part, Geralt returned the snarl, by pure instinctual response to a challenge. The enraged wolves soon fell into a savage melee of claws and fangs as the Shadow induced rage overcame their bond. Had they not fallen into Reverse Mode then, they might've fused together, and then, the Shadow corruption would've likely been permanent enough to infect Geralt's Burst Heart.

To the rider's eyes, they knew what was necessary. They formed a circle around the fighting wolves, and ended what straggling Arceans remained amongst the rubble. Several had tried hitting the new arrivals with fire energy beams, but the riders were quick enough to call a Reflect. The charred bones of the soldiers spoke to the latent power of the Articuno's psychic abilities. As one, they began to summon the Light, and their riders sang in unison.

All but one, that is. Geralt found his gaze focused on her for reasons he couldn't fathom, even as his best friend was tearing away at his arms. He felt the Reverse Mode's rage fade as his eyes shut and he saw the growing light. Once more by instinct, his claws clashed with Ghost's, locking together as they struggled against each other in a contest of muscle and rage.

The combined Purge hit them before Geralt met Ghost's gaze, which was lucky, for that was all they'd needed to finish fusing. Now both once more white furred, the two came together in a flash of light as a massive two-headed wolf. Both heads unleashed a howl that split the air, gave the Articuno rider a slow nod, and then sprinted for the exit.

Another howl split the air, followed by what sounded like meat in a grinder, as the soldiers stationed outside, who hadn't been frozen, or who'd thus been thawed once the birds moved on, tried to prevent their prisoners from escaping. Once more, Geralt felt himself covered with human blood as their new combined form used Drill Run through anything they ran into, and this time, the stench made both he and Ghost wince in disgust. Still, he was glad they were alive, and in control. Whatever the riders had done had cleared their minds, had allowed them to find harmony again, even joy, as Ghost realized they were free, and the near constant pain was finally over.

The Articuno soon joined them, several minutes after they saw, on the horizon, a massive glacier split the prison in two. Not by accident had the prisoner and 'work detail' quarters been missed, and eastern prisoners as well as disillusioned Fornians who'd been pressed into a work detail as punishment, ran together towards the rising sun in the east, and the rumor of safety under the Original Dragon. All he had ever asked for was loyalty to his Empire, and the desperate refugees found themselves willing to give it after their time under the reality of Arcean governing.

The Unovans had countered hard, and regained much of what was taken in the initial Blitz, even stymying Pravus himself, in the north, halting the 'Great Charge to Victory' as his propaganda networks had called it. Some soldiers in smaller Arcean compounds had been suffering from low morale, and even rebellion. They too did not mind the idea of pledging loyalty to a being that they had seen using genuine Light. The poorly paid soldiers in the camps along the Stoney Mountains were not typically amused, once they learned how the media covered the Shadow usage among the Church, but they didn't have any choice but to stay quiet about it, or be cut off. For soldiers manning these camps, there was no 'disconnection policy'. Those who left, died.

Even the central region dwellers among them, for there were more than a few, agreed that the east was their best bet. The Dragon had ever ruled them fairly, and the riders had borne his mark on their shoulder armor. He'd likely had a claw in this series of events, and frankly, anything was better than toiling away pointlessly for a cult they didn't wish to be a part of, or had entirely lost faith in.

The further the two ran as one, the more exhausted they grew. Ghost had barely been fed during his imprisonment, and Geralt had endured mind-altering pain. They needed to rest for a few hours, or days, and then report to the League. Geralt had no idea what he'd say, and left figuring that out to his future, well-rested self.

When running in such a large form, they'd covered much ground, and the Articuno riders never strayed far behind them, though they kept a respectful distance. Eventually, the sun hung in the morning sky, and the dawn finally brought an end to the bloody night. Ghost had mainly guided them, following his nose to a wild Lycanroc den that, from the smell and numerous jagged stone protrusions scattered about, was used for raising Rockruff in warmer months.

It wasn't pup season thankfully, and all the wild packs were wintering in their Stoney Mountain dens, ones much older and larger, that had housed their species for millennia. The two headed white wolf became two separate entities once more, and Ghost wasted no time in falling straight asleep after chomping down several berries. Geralt did the same despite being nude, as he was human once more and Ghost was a fine pillow. Though they both heard the riders land not long after, they were already asleep. If Ghost wasn't worried about the riders or their mounts, Geralt decided not to be either. His wolf had far better senses for such things, and he trusted them.

Several Days Later, Pokémon World Tournament Building – Unova Region

The riders had indeed turned out to be allies, scouting for, of all people, Geralt's own cousin. He'd singled out the raven-haired rider, as lovely as he'd come to expect from those females who tended to save his rear. Prying for information about the supposed 'Dragon Emperor' had led to a very stern informing of exactly what had transpired in Norstad. An awkward pause had risen when he'd questioned why Pravus would ever venture so far from his home region, and reluctantly, she'd told him of Yggdrasil, and the Fairy King's role in events as well.

He'd stayed quiet, retaining all of the information the League was, as far as he knew, yet unaware of. He was unable to read the woman, who'd named herself as 'Yennefer', and given no other titles. The other riders hadn't given him half as much information, preferring to mock him while he washed the month and a half or so of dried blood and grime from his still rather tender wounds in the only nearby stream. He ignored the fact that winter, and the nearby presence of his ice wolf and several Articuno made the ambient temperature cold enough to cause bodily shrinkage, and gave the mocking riders the same cold glance, before ignoring them entirely as he coalesced.

When his rapid healing was done, he'd discovered that much of his torso was scarred now, and he'd gained several small marks on his face for good measure. It had taken three days for Ghost to be well enough to travel to the spot where they'd stashed the rest of their team members, and then finally report in. They had done just that, and Geralt had used his skills as a Ranger to give the wolf a longer rest and not have to carry his Trainer. The Shadow had twisted his thoughts, and Geralt knew it would take time for the Lycanroc to sort them.

He had a job to do in the meantime. He'd arrived in front of the as-yet still under construction League building, meant to one day hold the next World Tournament, though he'd remarked that after he gave the information he'd gathered, it would likely be some time before such sport was held again.

He'd landed atop a Latios, and after thanking the creature he'd summoned via a Ranger Sign, sent him on his way. He identified himself as the Top Ranger to the guards out front, though he'd long since lost his ID, which had only confirmed his identity as a high value prisoner. He would've left it with his belt and other assorted tools he'd secreted away in the unlikely event of his capture, but that was against 'protocol'.

It didn't take long for Unova's League Chairman to summon, by way of Holoceiver usually, the other high-ranking members of the International Ranger Force, the Pokémon League, as well as the men who had invested in keeping them funded. Though the Rangers and Interpol had somewhat recently joined together, nobody could deny that the two groups had been far more effective in recent years after sharing information, and training methods. Geralt and his generation of similarly modified counterparts had been dispatched all over the planet to great effect, but the IRF was understandably hesitant about making more like them. As far as Geralt knew, the decision had been to keep the number of mutated Rangers at five, and only create more as the IRF needed them. So far, none of his contemporaries had been killed, or even captured, as Geralt had been.

Geralt highlighted the events surrounding his capture, as well as what he'd witnessed and been subjected to as a captive of the Church. When he'd finished, the gathered men conversed quietly, and Geralt waited patiently. Finally, the Victory League's chairman addressed him again. "Top Ranger, what do you think the League's response should be? We have always stayed out of wars, leaving other regions to handle them, however…the League representatives in Sinnoh have gone dark. We've lost communications with Almia, then Fiore, and now Holon as well. Kanto is their next likely target, and this very building is very much in the Arcean war path as well. Many among us wish to throw our neutrality away, but I hesitate. I would hear your opinion."

Geralt regarded the man, short in stature, but long in his pompadour-esque hairstyle and thin curled moustache. Like the others, he was in a dark colored suit, all business, but his eyes seemed genuine. Geralt decided to be blunt and honest. He liked to think they expected that from him by now.

"My opinion? The Pokémon League has stood against evil, and those who abuse Pokémon, since its inception. This is no different, really. The Arcean Church is just as culpable in crimes of abuse and mistreatment as every other Team we've put in Black City, only they're much larger, and have entire regions supporting their goals. The main difference is that these Arceans know your weaknesses, and are abusing them. They know you won't fight back for fear of political entanglement, and by the time you realize you need to, they're counting on it being far too late to turn the tide. If you want to maintain your presence in Japan and Unova, help the First Dragon."

The men conferred again, and this time an older gentleman with thinning auburn hair addressed him. "And what if, when all this is over, the Dragon demands yet more aid from us? How long until the Pokémon League becomes a part of the Dragon Empire?"

Geralt chuckled. "You're already technically a part of it. We're in Imperial territory right now, this entire building only exists because Unova has always been your ally. These people are brainwashing civilians, Trainers, and Pokémon into joining their little cult, and those who resist?" He opened his jacket, and lifted his shirt, though not high enough to show his crystal. His abdomen was enough, as that had been where his torturer had inflicted punishment for his failure to respond to questions. The gathered men recoiled in appropriate disgust and looks of discomfort at the still raw wounds. "These people have helped you, and looked to you for guidance in the past. Let me ask you all a question. Do you intend to let the Arceans continue all but unopposed, here and in Japan?"

The man looked at the Chairman, who glanced at the others. As one, they nodded, and answered. "No."

Geralt grinned. "And that, gentlemen, is why you have my loyalty, and aid. I understand your hesitation, and mark me, I will personally make sure my Leafhead cousin doesn't abuse your aid or future trust. If it comes to that. For right now though…we need to help the east, and Japan. You won't like what they become if the Arceans control them."

One of the men who was physically present, who Geralt hadn't noticed until now due to his quiet demeanor and simple features, snorted. "And what if we do, and we still lose? The Arceans have been preparing for this conflict for centuries. They have millions of Crusaders in Fornia, and are always making more to send our way. Meanwhile, the east can barely call up a hundred 'Scales' to match them. War is a numbers game my friends, and the math has spoken."

Unova's League Chairman answered him with narrowed eyes and obvious dislike. "One Scale is easily worth a hundred Crusaders. At least. They're the bravest Trainers we have, and, most of them are our own Champions. Would you really have us abandon them, Charles?"

The thin man sneered. "I would have us live. Since when has the League bowed to the wishes of its Champions? If we did, we'd be in chaos, and no small amount of debt. The point of this organization, as some of you seem to have forgotten, is to ensure that there will always be Trainers to rise up, and prevent disaster when a Legendary Guardian goes berserk, usually from Human interference. If we get involved, the Arceans will dismantle us. Then who will be around to train the next generation? To prepare them?"

Arguments erupted then, and Geralt marked those who were for, and those who were against. The latter was the minority, but there were enough of them to make the others pause. Geralt sighed, and let them fight. He'd said his piece, and that was all he could do. At least they'd respected his position as a Top Ranger this time. When he'd first joined up, the newly established organization in the States hadn't had a very good rep, or a very large roster. He had personally endeavored to change that, but ultimately, he still had little real influence in a nation that was still figuring out exactly where Rangers belonged in the social pecking order.

A sharp whistle blew from behind him, and Geralt turned to look at the source, glanced at the men, who'd paused in their argument, and then looked again, as his male instincts told him a second look was required, immediately. Had his weakness not been darker haired women, he might've considered making an effort to woo this one. Beautiful didn't begin to do justice to her features, but he at least resisted staring at her cleavage. Unlike the rest of the room. To be fair, her endowments had nowhere to go in the formal suits the League gave to employees, and the result was, in a word, glorious.

Finally, the Unovan Chairman spoke. "Ahh, Haley. I'm glad you're here. Gentlemen, our newest hire, one we snagged from the PNN. I knew as soon as I saw her work she was wasted on John Crimson. I assume you have something important, my dear?" Geralt looked the man over quickly, and his opinion of him rose further. It was genuine, almost grandfatherly eyes that were on the girl, entirely devoid of lust. As far as he could tell. The rest of the room was making little effort to hide where they were staring, though he couldn't blame them too much. Even his eyes were drawn like magnets, despite his focus on her face, ear, anything above the neck, really.

The blonde nodded, and then made a gesture on the tablet device she carried. She raised a hand then, and tossed something invisible towards the back wall of the room, upon which an image was projected. Not missing a trick, the Chairman, with aid from his taller compatriots, set the screen up. "You're missing the Prophet's latest speech…and seeing as how our Top Ranger has a personal mention…" The blue eyes shifted to him, and gave him a look he wasn't too familiar with. A mix of apprehension, disgust, and fear. "You should probably watch too…"

The video buffered for several increasingly awkward minutes, until finally, it played from the start. The opening title cards for the Church's programs had not lessened in absurdity over the past two months, but eventually the alluring baritone of Caleb Pravus, now taking on a tone of fake empathy, at least to Geralt's ears, filled the room. His visible skin seemed rather shiny and pink, as though he were sweating or covered with water, but evidently make-up had not been enough to cover the slight aberration in the usual bad tan. Caleb Pravus was far too pale to pull off the 'classic Fornia' look, but naturally, nobody said anything.

"My people…these past few nights we have suffered several setbacks, it is true. Many have asked what happened at Urbe Monachus and Straviken. Rumors abound, stories are flying, and I am here, as always, to set the public's record straight. This is a glorious time for us, and events should be recorded in detail, and in proper order." He gestured to an image on the screen, and Geralt's insides went cold with dread. It was a standard Arcean command center, one he'd charged through whilst transformed…and it was drenched in blood. Various body parts still lay strewn about, despite the numerous Crusaders who were, even as the cameras rolled, cleaning the mess.

"The Slayer of Straviken is responsible for this. Who is this foul creature you ask? An abomination, created by Unovan scientists, part man, part Lycanroc, and every bit as evil as the Psychic Types who no doubt pull his strings. More importantly…he is the Top Ranger of this continent, and a man held in high esteem by the Pokémon League. After this bloody night's events, and the resistance from the League Champions in Sinnoh's glorious conversion, the Church has decided. The Pokémon League are now among those we consider to be Suppressive Persons, and shall henceforth be shunned by Arceans across the world." There was a crowd before him this time, and he appeared to be speaking from the inside of an Arcean Church. A raised dais bore the solid gold pulpit from which he was orating.

Murmurs filled the room, and the Prophet silenced them with a glance. "Many of you are no doubt concerned. The League has ever been a close ally of Fornia, even though they refused to fund our Gyms and Champion halls, many of you have friends among their ranks. There is no word appropriate for a House of Arceus that fully encapsulates the kind of organization that would hide such dark deeds with so many kind ones, but alas, any kindness from them is but a mask, a distraction from what they don't want you to see. It may also interest you all to know that this Butcher is the Dragon Puppet's own cousin. I have told you all time and again of the foul corruption in the Redwood lineage, and now…unfortunately, I have hard evidence of their murderous tendencies. But the men we lost will not have given their lives in vain. Rest assured my people; your Church will not relent until our enemies are ground to dust before our righteous crusade!" He raised his arms, and cheering filled the air, as did applause.

The video ended, and all eyes shifted to Geralt. Finally, he moved his gaze from the floor, to the Victory League's Chairman. "Don't bother explaining. I know something of your…abilities, and after seeing those scars, I imagine whatever you had to do to get out was ultimately necessary. They were the ones who decided to prick our hide by capturing you, it's their fault they couldn't hold you. No Human like yourself has ever experienced Shadow Infusion lad, that you left anyone alive at all in that state is a miracle." Geralt had shifted his gaze to the floor again, as hazy memories of death rose from his subconscious. He looked up as he felt a small, but still masculine hand pat his arm as the Chairman had stood, and made his way to Geralt. "Any men who were caught in the madness of your escape likely knew full well who they were guarding. Caleb Pravus has a serious hatred for your family. In either case…the situation has already changed. We've no choice, now. He's forced our hand. All in favor of allying with the Dragon of Unova?"

The hands of those not present went up first, and though Charles was the last to raise his, he eventually did as well when it became clear nobody would support another refusal. To deny the others now would only cause more pointless dithering. The Arceans had already demonstrated what happened to governing bodies who didn't organize a response against them, after being declared enemies. None of the other State officials from the Arcean's new territories, League or governmental, had contacted them either.

They had asked Tao to look for the missing representatives, for they had heard rumors that he was quite adept at finding seemingly random Fornian citizens, usually families, with his awesome sight. He'd told them that by now, they were likely Arceans themselves, or prisoners slaving away under them. He'd added their names to whatever list governed which Fornians he personally had a claw in saving though, so it was better than nothing. Looking around, the Chairman nodded. "It is decided, then. Facilities in Kalos, Unova, and the remaining regions of Japan will mobilize to aid the local governments and Trainers in repelling the Church's 'crusade'."

His gaze moved back to Geralt. "I hope you're ready for more, because I have a feeling we'll need you, lad."

A voice interrupted them then, as Haley set about gathering her equipment. Oddly enough, she was the only one among them who hadn't flinched at the sheer power in the mental baritone thundering in their heads. Even those joining them by Holociever hadn't been immune. "I will be utilizing the White Wolf. His skills are needed for the next phase of this conflict."

While most of the gathered men looked about in confusion, the Victory League Chairman didn't miss a beat. He addressed the air above the table, "Then he is at your disposal, mighty Dragon, as are we all. It is unanimous, as you wished it to be. The League will aid you. Without you, we would all be dead and conquered by now anyways."

"You would." A pair of golden eyes manifested above the table, and scanned each of them. Finally, they rested on Haley. "I will be borrowing her, as well. She will be useful, down south."

Haley glanced up at the eyes, seemingly irritated rather than honored. "Really? You're sending me to Texico?"

There was a deep chuckle, and a pause. "Much further south."

The room went quiet, and the occupants shifted uncomfortably. Everyone knew what going to the Dark Continent brought, unless one went by cruise ship. Only the coast of that foul place played host to humanity now, and their city was almost entirely ruins, though admittedly, the parts of it yet inhabited were reportedly quite nice. Typically, Unovans tended to head for Alola or Kalos when they vacationed. Nothing good was ever reported about the Dark Continent, in fact, most reports involving it, as well as news, were only related to those who had ventured south into the jungle on a journey, and had not returned.

"My Tamer will know how best to use your skills. I will send you to him, when you are ready."

Haley frowned. "I'd have to go home and get my ba-" and with a flash of psychic power, she vanished. The eyes shifted to Geralt then, and the dragon's voice, somewhat muted as it was now confined to just his head, thundered loudly.

"You know of the Trainer called Wes? One of the Orre region's strongest?" Geralt had uncertainty, but as the Dragon shared a mental image of the man, albeit a bit older than when he'd brought down Cipher, Geralt recalled what stories he'd heard of the 'Snatcher'. "He has the key to bringing Fornia's technological advancements to a halt. Find him, and then I will share what task I have for the two of you."

What Alex had described of speaking to the Original Dragon helped here, and Geralt responded with his thoughts directing them as best he could, towards the Dragon. "And what if he says no?"

Another chuckle, though this one seemed, to his mind, a little sinister. "Worry not. He'll agree. Go, White Wolf."

The eyes vanished then, and Geralt was left staring at the assembled men who, the more he looked at them, seemed to represent more organizations than just the League. Several had logos of the major businesses in Unova on their suits, specifically the ones with the large, memorable buildings dotting New Tork's skyline. "It seems I have my mission. I, erm…need a lift to Orre."

The men shared another look, then chuckled. "Orre is enemy territory now, lad. We can get you to Aweston down in Texico, but beyond that, is a war zone. One of the Scales might be willing to help you, if you can find'em." Geralt nodded, and then gestured to the door, seemingly undisturbed about the idea of charging through enemy lines.

Rio – The Dark Continent

After reclaiming Shruikan from the Kanadian Wall, the east's Rayquaza had taken charge of the wall's defense, and the 'Emperor's Scales', including Jessica's, had split into numerous smaller groups to help train more Scales for deployment, as their Generals went south to gather information. After several days of travel, their luxury ship had cruised up to the free port city of Rio, famously known for their hospitality, though rumor had it that, if you wanted to leave, you should avoid drinking the water. Nobody ever seemed to quite know why, but more than a few tourists who had ignored that advisory had ended up moving in over the years, after visiting. Once more the Dark Continent proved that it kept those from the north who visited it.

For all the sketchy rumors though, compared to Black City, Rio was rather welcoming. There were familiar clouds of skunky-esque haze, and other flamboyantly dressed Trainers aboard other, and usually smaller, ships waved at them as they joined the clusterMuk of ships that made up the massive city's harbor. The harbor itself was home to even more strange, floating sights. More than a few men in flamboyantly colored suits on little more than rafts seemed to be playing an admittedly smooth jam on what appeared to be Saxophones as they cruised through the wake of the many passing ships. The Scales Alex and Jess had brought with them noted most of the fishermen, or other people on their boats smoking and generally chillaxing, tended to be singing along with the Saxophone fueled jam. The words were hard to make out, but the name of the city and the region they were entering, Rio, was repeated several times. It seemed to be some sort of anthem for the city. Once they found a dock, they realized that, comparatively, they were one of the smaller ships here. Rio's Dark Fleet was legendary, though the ships comprising it evidently hadn't seen real action for quite a few centuries. That didn't make the resting and numerous gargantuan cannons any less imposing to dock near.

They had finished their morning bowl of Leaf, and had donned disguises via the Scale's on hand Pixie Plate crystal. The basic facial changes, along with clothing, and the usual perception filter Fairy disguises had, were enough to blend in against Arcean level security. Here, for once, nobody was supposed to be looking for them. Seeing the sky was filled with Trainers and flying types, usually battling, Alex and Arthur had hopped on Blaze, as they surveyed the city in a casual manner. For a Trainer, anyways. Nobody seemed to notice or pay any extra attention as they went high, and looked down.

"Holy…that's the biggest city I've ever seen…" Arthur said, "I thought New Tork was supposed to be the biggest. This…covers the entire coast."

Alex gained a grim look, and nudged his Gallade with an elbow. "Look closer. Most of it is in ruins…and those who can't afford to inhabit the good buildings, reside in those that are derelict. If we stick to the areas that have legitimate ship traffic it shouldn't be an issue."

Arthur nodded, after taking a closer look. "We should find a place to scan from…Blaze, see anything?"

The Charizard growled. "There's a pedestal on a nearby mountain supporting what looks like giant white human feet. A little jagged maybe, but I could perch on it."

As they arced towards it, Alex glanced around. Nobody seemed to live within ten miles of this mountain peak, and the closest 'houses' were more jungle than shack. It was strange, because literally every other inch of available coast by the harbor had primarily tall white buildings shoved together to save as much room as possible. Several such clusters had even grown into something resembling a skyscraper, though the towering Dark Fleet ships were bigger than all of them.

"Alex…what are you doing…?"

He chuckled as he heard Jess' voice in his head. "We're going to scan the habitable areas around the harbor for…I don't know, something interesting. You know how this works."

She gave the mental equivalent of a sigh. "This is how you get involved in regional affairs. Every time!"

"I'm just a casual dude riding a Charizard. Obviously, a Trainer. Obviously foreign. But totally normal. If you worry about sticking out too much, you will." He felt his partners nod, agreeing with that logic. Blaze had been disguised as well with reddish orange stripes along his rather sizable form. They had been thorough in their preparations.

Another sigh. "Casual. Right. You're just landing a massive fire lizard on the most noticeable mountain peak for miles. If you need us, we'll be doing the subtle approach." Alex's Scales had been given assignments from Tao in squads of two or three, usually paired with women from Jessica's squad, and sent throughout the many areas that needed reinforcement once contact with the southern lines had been re-established. Only a few of her Scales had joined them on this trip, as had Haley, a day earlier by way of Teleport. Evidently, holding a piece of the Dragon was enough for him to make an accurate transfer.

Slightly more aware, the three came upon the peak in question, but as with the air space around it, nobody was here. No security, no Pokémon, no sentient minds. Just them, and whatever this strange pedestal thing was. "Land in a manner that suggests we're taking a pause before flying towards our real destination…what direction we face won't matter. Arthur, let's do it."

Blaze landed, folding in his wings, and sniffed at the air. It seemed like a relatively nice peak, a bit misty this early in the day, but he couldn't smell anything that would explain the lack of life in the immediate area. Even plant life hadn't grown here, which was a large part of what made it such a good landing spot.

As soon as their ride steadied himself, the two psychic types had begun. Immediately, they noticed something strange in the ground around them. "Fairy aura…" Arthur said, and Alex sighed in annoyance. He left scanning it to primarily psychic typed Arthur, as he'd long since given up trying to fight a type advantage directly. "It's…containing something…something foul…Human made contamination…we shouldn't linger… but if we don't poke at it, we should be fine."

Alex was still staring at the aura covered mountain, wondering what his race had done to whatever statue had seemed to once stand here. As Arthur turned his third eye to the city, Alex felt the Gallade's extended elbow smack his head. "I said no poking, silly Human. Leave it. We have a task, remember? If we waste time, more people die."

They both looked then, and immediately, their third eyes were drawn towards the eastern parts of the massive city, just at the edge of what buildings seemed lived in still, and the ruins of the ancient megalopolis that extended northward, along the continent's curve. Rio truly had been quite massive. The area in question was teeming with powerful minds. Shielded minds. That was good enough for both of them, as the rest of the city seemed sparsely populated, only showing the usual latent psychic signatures of the humans living within.

Blaze flapped into the air again, and once more, nothing hindered them as they flew towards the jungle, and prepared to curve around the long way. They'd fly over ruins, but they wouldn't come close enough to be attacked until they'd reached the area with the other strong minds. They stayed very high over the massive rainforest below, but even from so high up, they could see it teeming with life.

"The river…" Blaze rumbled, and he shared his sight with the two on his back. A massive form of what could only have been a snake, or creature akin to one, moved as a dark shadow through the largest river in the area below them, that had to have been the Amazon. Alex guided them to the opposite direction of the creature, as he had no wish to test something that strong this early, nor was he aware of what Legends lurked on the Dark Continent. Eventually, they curved around, and came down the ruined coast line.

Then, they saw the structure within which they'd sensed others with similar abilities. It was a palace of sorts, pyramidal in shape, but ultimately made of several larger white stone circles stacked atop each other, with only one set of stairs leading to what appeared to be the main entrance. Water flowed down every other side of it, and into massive tunnel-like structures that, presumably, brought the water throughout the city.

Blaze sniffed the air, and Arthur glanced around as they flew over the ruins, and came down near the sea for a better view of the building. "We are not alone."

Something moved in Alex's vision, and Arthur's eyes locked onto it, easily seeing through the invisibility the intruder had hidden herself with. Before his Trainer could utter a word, he'd leapt into the air, and began flying on his own power. The figure stopped, and Alex finally got a look as well, though he didn't need enhanced eyes as Arthur approached the figure, and booped it on the nose, before shooting backwards with a mirthful cry.

The tiny Latias he'd booped became visible, shivering all over from the touch and the good feels that came with it, and then with a smirk of her own, chased after the Gallade. The two zipped through the air, and it soon became clear Arthur was more maneuverable, barely, and the Latias had a speed advantage over him. That is, until his heart piece flared with psychic energy.

His Mega Form took off, and the Latias had zero trouble keeping up with Arthur, though he was almost as fast. He didn't have the most stamina of their party, at least not for flying, and soon found he lacked the energy to keep outpacing the Latias who, by all appearances, was enjoying the game of tag.

For their part, Alex and Blaze had simply hovered in place and watched, taking note of how she flew, but also knowing full well neither of them could come anywhere near matching her speed. The Eon Duo was said to be as fast as (if not faster) than Rayquaza, but no human had ever successfully compared their flight speeds, as they varied greatly between individuals.

As the fire lizard and the human watched the two with amused smirks, their necks began to tingle, as another presence, similar to the Latias, appeared behind them. With a unified glance, the two looked up and over them as the once invisible head of the large Latios (larger than anything the Pokédex said, at any rate) appeared above them.

His eyes flared with a familiar light blue glow, and a telepathic voice echoed in their heads. "What are you…I know that typing, but…" His nostrils flared, and his eyes widened. "Dragon blood? Here? But there's another scent…"

Feeling a nudge from Lux, Alex raised the plasma sword, but didn't ignite it. The handle wasn't too obvious, but the black and white blade belonged to only one person, and Alex was aware that the Pokénet had made it a bit of an icon. Arthur, who had stopped when he felt his partner's surprise, felt a tug on his 'cape'. Seeing the Latios, he realized this little one was much younger, and likely a direct descendant. He continued zipping through the air, playing tag, though he was more cautious with how hard he tapped her.

The Latios inhaled again, and nodded. "I see. So it is time…come to the palace when you are ready." He glanced at the Latias then, and his eyes flared once. She stopped in place effortlessly, and Arthur whizzed by, trying to avoid crashing into her.

She joined the Latios then, and the two disappeared from sight as they headed for the castle. Alex landed on the beach then, and as he brought Blaze in, several Trainers stared at the fire lizard, and reached for their Pokéballs. Unlike many Unova Trainers, not one of them had kept the original red and white, and their colors, patterns, and combinations were almost painful to look at.

Smirking, Alex accepted the Triple Battle, calling out his Aurorus and Lairon to help Blaze. Gelauros did the most damage with his Blizzard, as it seemed grass types were common here, and the Vileplume and Ivysaur they'd faced hadn't lasted long. An Air Slash and Crunch had been enough to finish the Azumarill, and for three more rounds, the local Trainers found themselves consistently losing to the trio. He'd kept them from mega evolving, and hoped his newer members weren't as well recognized as some of the rest of his team yet.

Nobody seemed to notice or ask his name though. The beach was full of flamboyantly dressed Trainers who, by unspoken agreement it seemed, kept talking to a minimum. They were here to train, and all one had to do to blend in was battle. True to rumor, the battles being had were typically between grass, water, and dark types. Apparently, this was the ideal habitat for them, though the jungle housed every type of Pokémon, and likely several that had never been seen before. Eventually, Alex recalled everyone but his Lairon, and the clever steel type managed a hat trick of victories, and sometimes against a serious type advantage, as they made their way to the nearest boardwalk. Ceno seemed to be enjoying the sights and sun, so Alex kept him out.

He came upon Jess and the others, and raised a hand, catching a pair of what smelled like breakfast burritos in his oversized grip. He took a seat as he tested a bite of one, and nodded, giving the other to his patiently, and eagerly, awaiting Lairon. The steel type rumbled in pleasure, vibrating the ground slightly as he enjoyed the meal.

He looked between the gathered women, and Haley pinched her brow. "Only you would consider playing with a Latias in broad daylight subtle. Seriously, we're supposed to be low-key."

Alex smirked. "Well, my low-keyness just got us an invite to the regional palace, within which said Latios and Latias currently are. Do you want to go speak with the Eon Duo, or should we keep sitting around eating the food? I don't mind either, really. This is delicious." He nommed the rest of the burrito then, and only paid half attention to her response.

She rolled her changed green-blue eyes. "We should find a…library, or something."

Jess chuckled then. "While useful, libraries aren't the best source of information in new, unfamiliar regions. The ones who've spent their lives reading from them are. I imagine a palace has plenty of myths…perhaps even ones on old enemies, that are likely to not be in the public record."

The blonde-turned-brunette relented, and the other Scales chuckled. They knew better than to test those two with 'Tinvaak'. "Fine. Let's go." Cenomons poked his ball as they began walking in the intense humidity, but the Scales were used to much, much worse heat and dampness. Haley was sweating, but didn't otherwise react to the hot, humid weather.

As they casually strolled towards the palace complex, they saw the guards responsible for its security. Each one had a long, blue, seemingly metallic staff that held slots for ten Pokéballs, not at all unlike those used by the Tribes up on the northern continent, and universally blue clothing, though there was no strict uniform to speak of, the uniformity came from the ocean blue every outfit sported. Evidently, this place was not as flamboyant as the rest of the city. It sat between the eastern edge of habitable houses, and the western edge of the ruins that extended along the continental curve, isolated from both by a wall that included a little bit of ocean, and a beach. There were other inhabited areas further north, but Rio was by far the largest of any population inhabiting the massive city ruins, having eventually absorbed all the other population centers that had once lived on their part of the coast as well.

The guard that appeared to be in charge waved them over as they came near. He was sporting a metallic serpent-headed helmet, that shared the deep blue coloration of his peers. Now that he looked, Alex noticed that those closest to the palace did have a kind of scale-like armor, which was the same deep blue. An aura of that same blue spread from the guard, and examined each of theirs. He was surprised to find that the foreigners had already formed aura shields, and could even hide them from view, when they needed to. They'd been keeping them going, casually, for constant defense. Against a few attacks, anyways. There was potential in each of them.

"We were told of your coming. Enter as an honored guest, Dragonblood."

The aura receded, not finding anything truly foul amongst them, or their partners, and the man raised a fist. The nearby gate opened, and a pair of guards guided them, with weapons at rest. They were led to a large library, several rooms into the massive white stone structure. Even here, water flowed continuously, including over the door. Though they hadn't gotten damp, their disguises had been washed away.

The sound of the constant flow made their spicy throats dry, and the numerous pools around them seemed suddenly tempting. The group of Trainers smirked at each other as they almost simultaneously reached for their personal water containers. They could all feel the urge to drink, but common sense dictated that they avoid the glowing magic water, no matter how alluring it looked.

A chuckle came from behind one of the spiral helix shaped book stacks that, on closer inspection, appeared to be floating on their own. "Northerners are always so quick to avoid our water…it really is safe, I promise…" The woman speaking came out from browsing then, and a small, redheaded girl came behind her. She ran up to Alex, who noticed she came to about his waist, and she then proceeded to raise a hand, and open Arthur's Pokéball with a psychic tap.

Arthur appeared with a flash of purple, and soon once more found himself playing tag, and keeping the energetic youngster from knocking over anything too valuable, by way of telekinesis.

Alex watched for a moment, still amused, then focused back on the woman. She shared the same deep blue coloration as her guards, and wore a dress that looked like it wouldn't be out of place in a Kalosian palace, but he knew a regional leader when he saw one. From the strength of her mind, he had a feeling she was, in some manner, tied up with this region's Legendary Guardians. Those at the top usually were. "I only know of one dragon blooded Human with such a handsome Gallade. So tell me, Emperor Redwood, what brings you to my home during these dark, and bloody days?"

He glanced around, saw they were alone, then shrugged. "Oh, you know. A bit of harmless, and entirely neutral reconnaissance. I assume you've heard of my western counterpart." The woman nodded her head, and her equally deep blue waist-length hair shifted with the motion, not unlike a pond when disturbed by a pebble. "Well as it turns out he has, somehow, managed to fuse himself with a Pitch-Black Pokémon. At least twice. A...draconic friend of mine suggested I'd find more on him down here, since there was, according to him, once an entire city's worth of Humans who did something similar in the old days."

She nodded, and her eyes went hazy as she seemed to recall what information she did know. He sensed Jess give Haley an elbow nudge, but the reporter turned administrator was more focused on the Gallade and what she assumed was the aforementioned Latias. They'd shifted into a much more complex, and quicker, game of clapping hands together in a repetitive motion, and upon seeing the woman's gaze, the girl waved her over, all smiles. Soon, she'd joined in as well, but that didn't keep her from paying attention as the blue-haired woman began to speak.

"Around three thousand years ago, in the mountainous and largely inhospitable mountains to the west, those we deemed too…criminally inclined for our glorious Rio were sent to live out their existence in exile. Over time, the banished grew into a village, then a town, and finally a city, after we expelled a cult of foul sorcerers who, at the time, we believed to be in league with Atlantica. Zigma banished them to the west, and we thought the matter was handled…" Jess coughed politely, and the woman paused, raising an equally blue eyebrow.

"Sorry, it's just…you speak as though you were there…also…Zigma?" The woman regarded them again.

"Do you really not know of Zigma up north? Do tales of the Zigman Empire not continue to inspire friendship, camaraderie, and the search for knowledge?" Seeing the puzzled looks on the faces of the women, she frowned, but Alex's was as impassive as a cliff face.

"Tao mentioned the name to me, once, but did not elaborate." He admitted with a shrug.

She raised a brow at the name, but assumed she knew of whom he spoke. "Well, since we're on the topic of names…I am Iara, leader of the free city of Rio, and Tamer of Yacuma, water aspect of our great, and long-sundered Guardian, Zigma. As Arceus left the northern continent the First Dragon for a Guardian, we were granted Zigma and under her rule, our people flourished as no other human civilization did. Our technology for taming Pokémon was unmatched, our Pokémon Tamers, the strongest on the planet. The sorcerers I mentioned…they were but the first spark in the war, about three centuries past, between us and Atlantica. They plotted and goaded each side into the war which ravaged our city, as well as the entire Atlantican civilization…once we returned to our shores, battered and exhausted, the sorcerers poured from the jungle, wielding the power of Shadow and nightmares. Lightning shot from their hands, and they fed on the life essence of my people as they sacked what little remained of Rio."

She paused, and her blue eyes fell to the floor. She glanced up, as the little girl, who'd temporarily abandoned Arthur and Haley, tugged on the sleeve of her flowing dress, and radiated emotions of peace and calm. Iara smiled, and tousled the red hair, before sending her back towards the Gallade. "I was indeed alive during those times…like I said, you should drink the water. In those days, I was still young. Zigma drove the dark ones back alone, in a battle that shook the entire jungle. For three days she barreled through the forests of Selva Muerta, attacked on all sides, but relentless in her determination. Eventually, she forced the dark ones back into their mountainous metropolis of stone, and with a display of power that killed her previous Tamer, my father, and split her in three, she turned every one of the sorcerers to ghosts, bound to the city for the rest of their unnatural existence, and doomed to die of gnawing, insatiable hunger for life."

"You said you are the Tamer of but one aspect of Zigma…who are the other two? Do they have Tamers as well?" Alex met her gaze as she looked up at his question, with some measure of surprise.

"I do not know of other Tamers, but then, I rarely leave the palace. As for other aspects…there is Mamboa…the Guardian of the jungle. He is…considerably more ill-tempered than Yacuma, but beneath his scales, his heart is yet gentle…towards Pokémon, at least. My people know how to traverse the jungles without incurring his wrath, but the Humans who live on the west coast, usually pirates in shoddily made port cities, have made a habit of chopping away at the forests, as our ancestors did, with reckless abandon and no regard for the damage and wanton destruction they cause. It is these Humans with whom Mamboa usually interacts…and kills, for their actions. The other is Sombrador. I have never seen it, but Yacuma said that aspect of Zigma stayed behind to guard the Kingdom of the Dead, and make sure that the specters within all died of starvation. To that end, it stayed to keep any more Humans from entering…though there have been exceptions, of course. Usually, such exceptions only end up as a meal for the spirits, but a few with the Sight have made pilgrimages to our dark defender, to thank it for guarding us. Since they returned alive, we assume the dark one favors, or at least tolerates, our presence in this darkened land."

Drake, one of the other Scales that Alex had elected for this mission, along with his partner Rick, spoke up then. "What's the Sight?"

The women nodded. "What the sorcerers wrought on our land infected all who live here. Some among us gain eyes that can see the ghosts of this world, always. They can see more, with training, and this allows them to safely travel the jungles. Naturally, they're also our strongest Trainers."

Seeing as how she evidently already knew their identities, Alex let his eyes flare up with psychic power. The entire chamber seemed to pause in its constant flow as he did, and the foreigners shifted nervously. "Would these eyes give us a similar immunity to death, were we to traverse them?"

The bronze skinned woman leaned in uncomfortably close, as she examined the eyes. The back of his neck tingled with instinctual fear that, he realized, he'd experienced before, when facing down an Arbok or Seviper that belonged to particularly powerful Trainers in a particularly large Swamp. Finally, she spoke, and he exhaled as subtly as he could. "Perhaps. I'd recommend some kind of armor, our Trainers have the ability to fashion such from obsidian, but I think…you would be fine. If you stay together, and don't…irritate anything. Don't try flying either. Humans irritate the aerial hunters, and I promise, you will be dead before you ever see them attack you. Travel on foot when trying to cross Selva Muerta."

Arthur, who had since rejoined them, and had apparently mega evolved at some point while playing with the Latias, chuckled as he rejoined the conversation. The little girl had taken to hanging on his various limbs now, but he could, finally, actually manage to talk despite that. "I have moves of almost every elemental Type in this head of mine. All physical, all strong. Let the Dark Types come. I can handle those." The arm not occupied by a young Pokémon in human disguise flared up with gold, which of course drew her attention. She leapt for it, but it ceased glowing as she caught hold. His now free blade lit up instead.

If Iara was impressed, she didn't show it. "I have given the warning. I don't care if you die. Less competition, really. Unova and Albion will be… 'helped', if you perish." She gave her best unsettling grin, but the dragon blooded Emperor had grown used to the look by now. She'd had her chance to strike them, but he was still curious. "Would you really get involved if we did not return? You'd commit to aiding two foreign territories so easily? Even when one is embroiled in war and the other puppet to a witch?"

The woman raised her other brow now, "To rule them, yes. The Dragon Empire must have fallen far to not recall those over which they once held power. That would explain much, actually…"

Alex continued the conversation, satisfied that he'd learned something of the woman. From what they'd heard, not one single person, in the entire city, went without water. It was what made their seemingly immortal Queen so loved, by those in houses, and those with nothing. If she cared that much for those under her, Unova at least might not be in bad hands. But he had no intention of dying. "These former hybrid ghost sorcerers…let's say that, hypothetically, one escaped, say about three hundred years ago…" He resisted smirking as he saw her eyes widen with recognition. "Let's say, hypothetically, he was carried north by the current, and landed on a beach, where he met a man. A man who happened to be the leader of a cult. A cult which may or may not have grown into something truly foul, and massive enough, to cover the entire western half of our continent, when said cult leader eventually died of mortality, and his successor, did not."

It was his turn to move into her face now, and his eyes shifted again as he embraced the dragon's power. He felt his neck tingle again, seemingly from the chamber itself, but it did nothing to hinder him, and he genuinely had no intention of harming anyone. He broadcasted that intention as effectively as he could. "How would a hypothetical dragon blooded Human go about killing such a creature, who let's say, hypothetically, created and fused with another Darkrai at the expense of a city."

The woman raised her right hand, and the instinctual fear faded, slightly. "Hypothetically…you would need a sword, or some other hypothetical sharp implement, to sever the connection between the two. Finding where they're fused should be easy for those eyes…but the first Darkrai, will not be able to be excised. They're fused, you see, and I imagine the new one is powering them both with dark energy that only a Darkrai can pull directly from the Nexus, from a place as far as Fornia…"

Alex let his eyes fade, having got his point across. The flowing within the chamber resumed, though perhaps a bit slower than before. "What Nexus?"

At that, the woman glanced up. "You know more of it than I do. You were there."

The increasingly familiar fear that they'd all been feeling now had a moving source, as water fell from the ceiling, and rose from the floor, to form a truly gargantuan, deep blue scaled snake that, with a glance, they saw was both water and dragon typed.

The unease faded somewhat as the Legendary Pokémon's soothing, and unquestionably feminine, voice echoed in their skulls. "You…Dovahssssosss…you are the one who reunited the Original Dragon? Issss what Eo tellsss me true? The Dragon isss whole again?"

Alex nodded, having a fair guess at what Pokémon within this place would bear a name like Eo, and be on speaking terms with a Legendary Dragon. "Yes. I'm the one who brought him back. Though, I had quite a bit of help."

The vertical slits within the blue eyes of the giant reptile widened slightly, as they went to his belt. "Clad in the bonessss of his brothersss indeed…very well. Pay attention, Ssscaless of Balance," She seemed to smirk at the name, though the more she spoke the more at ease they felt. She had the ferocity of a mother, but, as they were no threat to her people, they had nothing to fear. "The Nexusss iss a Human creation. Old technology, from three millennia passst, wass usssed to sssacrifice an unknown number of Humansss from the junglesss, and the ssouthern partsss of the land known asss Texico. The sssorcererss we exiled to die, endeavored to live, and eventually, found a way to form the gathered dark energy into what your ssspeciess callsss Darkrai, and fussse with it. The Nexusss is fueled when a Human diesss, and leavesss behind Ghossst energy. It convertsss it to darknessss, and the ghossstsss within the city persssssissst." She finished with an angry hiss, and looked to her Tamer, as she stroked the water serpent's leathery and slightly lighter blue underbelly.

"I tell all of my people, daily, not to venture into those mountains. The longer the Nexus exists, the longer Sombrador must guard it, and the longer Zigma must stay split. Mamboa grows ever darker towards Humans, and eventually, his rage will be sparked, enough perhaps for him to attack she who is his counterpart, and her people. If the two snakes fight, our people are doomed. That is what our last Seer prophesied, anyways." She nodded towards the Latias who, by this point, had dropped her human form, and was zipping around Arthur's head, dodging, narrowly, the sharp spike on his 'helmet' with numerous aerial barrel rolls. "That one, will be like her mother, but until she matures, we cannot get a…clearer depiction of these events, and how to avoid them. We have been without a Seer for some time, and this one only recently hatched."

Alex glanced at Jess, as she had the thought, and the redhead spoke. "So…I guess hypothetically…if this Nexus were to suddenly vanish, what would happen?"

The large snake's head tilted to one side, and they got a good look at her fangs. Naturally, they were made of ice, as like most water types, she used ice attacks frequently, and it made her and Mamboa more or less equal in strength. Were his typing to shift from grass and dragon, to grass and dark, he would have an advantage, for she had no doubt he would retain his Outrage. Even with a quadrupled weakness to ice, he had ever been difficult to keep in check. "Your foe'sss body would weaken, and he would begin relying too heavily on hisss new Darkrai for sssusstenance. Though he isss far away, the Nexusss iss large, and sstill sssusstainsss him, asss it doesss all hisss people, thossse who fussssed themssselves with manifesssted darknessss. He would likely ssseek yet another place to ssssuck the life from. If he addsss a third Darkrai, he will become a Champion of the Sssshadowsss. I trussst you know of the lassst one…"

The Unovans nodded in unison. Giratina had, according to new finds in Sinnoh from the former Champion Cynthia, gone on a rampage because, somehow, it had been infused with foul energy, that she had eventually confirmed was Shadow. It had taken Arceus himself to put Giratina away, which implied that the deity either couldn't kill Giratina, or didn't want to. Many suspected it was a combination of both.

"When and if you sssucceed in sssevering him from hisss newessst acquisssition, bring him home…he will rot, with hisssss people, asss a ghossst..." Alex bowed in the Unovan fashion, and the dragon once more became water, and flowed throughout the palace, and into the city. It had never stopped, though the flow had slowed, slightly, outside of the room they'd occupied.

Iara looked them each over again, and smirked. "You have a plan to destroy the Nexus, don't you…do you know anything important about Shadow and darkness that you'd like to share?"

Alex smirked. "This is the Dark Continent, correct?" She nodded. "Then you have your answer, if you consider where we're from. Think it over, it's not complicated."

Still puzzled, but not willing to show it, she pushed for more. "How did you combine the dragons of Unova again? Was it technology?"

He shook his head. That knowledge, he'd give freely. "No. Technology could only bring Kyurem and the other two together one at a time, and while those fusions are strong…they're nothing compared to the Original. The means I used were…divine, though there was a bit of complex energy manipulation as well…nothing someone down here couldn't try to replicate, I'm sure. Should the Nexus say, suddenly vanish in the next few days."

She blinked at him, twice. "Well Sombrador would have to come back as well…"

A familiar voice echoed from all around them. "Mamboa would come…if Sssssombrador did."

Alex nodded. "We'll see what we can do."

The Scales left the palace, and traveled incognito once more until they came upon the jungle's edge. It wasn't hard to find. Around the populated areas, pairs of deep blue clad guards stood watch between the city and the jungle. Death within was very real…if one was not prepared. They'd waved them in with nods and rumblings of 'good fortune' for their journey.

It was at the edge that they'd split their party. Haley and six others were going to stay behind, and try to find additional information on weaknesses these ancient human-Darkrai hybrids had. The only three who could use Light energy, namely Alex, Jess, and one of her Scales, would enter Selva Muerta. Drake and Rick Astley would also search the massive rainforest, and psychically pass on word of their discovery, if they managed to find the Kingdom of the Dead before Alex's group did. Together, they figured they could probably do something about this supposed well of darkness. They didn't need to ask Tao for guidance either, as they knew well what he would do, if the opportunity to weaken an enemy presented itself.

The two Scales waited patiently as their chosen companions prepared for the trek into Selva Muerta, already sweltering beneath the heavy leather-like cloaks covering the stifling armor. At the very least, it kept the smaller insects, namely mosquitos, from biting at them. They had been eradicated on the northern continent, more by damage from nuclear warfare than anything else, but it seemed here the infamously annoying bloodsuckers thrived. They were an Old Earth species that refused to die, though he imagined more than a few had become Pokémon at some point. Once their newest female travel partner, an Articuno rider who went by Svelka, had her own armor on, she'd pulled out an Icicle Plate from her bag, and it fused to her chestpiece. The resulting freezing aura kept the bugs, and many blood-sucking bug types, from going anywhere near the other four Scales as they journeyed into the dark jungle.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 29: Forest of Death, Sage of Rain

Selva Muerta – Rio Side

They'd made good time through the jungle, considering they were riding a massive Torterra. After mega evolving, for they were frequently challenged by locals, some familiar, and some that made their Pokédex randomly stop working, the pace had increased slightly. Arthur handled the poisonous ones, as well as any with flames or flying moves. He remarked that he was becoming remarkably good with Aerial Ace, but needed more speed. They'd gone through several potions by now, for the Pokémon had, true to what they'd been told, been strong enough to not go down in a single hit. Usually. They only managed one counter hit, but the damage piled up quickly.

As the hours crept on, almost as slowly as their ride, the Gallade grew tired. The five Trainers decided to let the others get a workout from whatever challenged them next, while the Gallade meditated within the hollow on the Ash Tree that grew from Terra's back. After growing so large, the Ash tree was slightly askew, but Terra didn't complain about it. Arthur didn't mind the awkward angle, as he was floating while he meditated.

Though Svelka eventually questioned why they were riding on, quite literally, one of the slowest Pokémon known to man, Terra had demonstrated why multiple times. Any shallow emerald green rivers they came towards, filled with what had to be water and dark typed familial relations to Krookodile, were easily crossed by the massive turtle. None seemed interested in testing a type advantage against that kind of obvious strength. There were exceptions, of course, but the Torterra would open his mouth, unleash a single Seed Bomb on them, and then continue on, unfazed, and without breaking his still incredibly slow pace.

As they'd been traveling north west, they eventually came upon a gargantuan river with a name so old, even Unovans knew of it, though admittedly most knew nothing about it. Though Terra hid it well, Alex knew when his starter was tired. There was no reason to push their limits just yet. He called out Hydrus then, and Jess summoned her Empoleon. Drake and Rick revealed an Intelleon, and Walrein respectively, and it was at the Amazon river that they split off from the group, leaving Alex alone with the ladies. With the girls on the massive penguin, Alex had the large mud-fish, who had mega evolved as well due to the strength of the water types, namely the disturbingly ferocious packs of water and dark typed Floatzel, around them, all to himself. One look from the Mega Swampert had dissuaded the opportunistic and carnivorous pack hunters to find an easier meal closer to the shores of the river.

He heard giggles as he began the seemingly complicated, but in reality, quite simple process of enjoying a bowl of Leaf. Having a bag that was seemingly bottomless was always useful. He was rather quick too, as the women had, upon seeing his shenanigans, zipped ahead to the other side of the Amazon River in only a few minutes. He let them, enjoying the beauty of a slow ride as he and Hydrus took it easy. The waters were just swampy enough for his partner's liking, and the view was rather nice. He'd always liked green, and on the wide river, he saw many shades of it from the water, to the tree line. The sky was clear as well, making it perfect Leaf weather.

He was packed up in roughly two minutes after finishing, with the skill of someone who'd done this many, many, many times, and Hydrus caught up to the two, who had continued on into the jungle.

Evidently, they'd intended to lose him in the trees, but his mud-fish had become rather adept at leaping from a swimming position, and hurtling towards a specific spot on the ground. He even kept his Trainer on his back. Usually.

They traveled by foot from there, and the two Unovans let their newer members test themselves against the local Pokémon. Jess had found a moment to take the fossil they'd taken from the Stoney Mountains to Nacrene City, and the result had been a revived rock and steel type they'd taken to calling 'Triceradon' due to her similarities to Bastiodon, upon evolving from a Pokémon that the Museum's scientist had been convinced was just a slightly different, but still genetically normal Shieldon. What differences there had been were due to her being from so far west, and were therefore probably regional, not a new species. The Shieldon, nicknamed Cera, had proven otherwise upon evolving though and her Trainer had then proceeded to train her newest member with repetitive battles.

Thankfully, Unova never lacked for Triple battles, and shared experiences. Upon evolving, Cera's head had become more akin to an Aggron's, as two of the three horns the female possessed jutted forward from her skull, and the third was like an extension of her nose. She retained the metallic frill Bastiodon usually had, and it was similar in both color and pattern. The two species clearly shared a heritage.

Ceno and Cera cut a path through the dense number of regularly attacking grass, and far more common, flying types. They were more common than bugs on this side of the Amazon for some reason, but as the sun began to set, Ceno and Alex continued training against the many dark types, namely Salandit, that jumped at them from the shadows. Since the ladies were carrying their tent, they'd set it up, and left the two battle-eager boys to stand guard duty. The constant attacks, while annoying, were great experience.

Even against fire types, the Lairon had adopted a battling style that involved slowing, and then hammering with a ground move. His defense was high enough that he could withstand three attacks, typically. As the losing Salandit fell to the latest Earthquake, the remaining two began to call for help. Alex smirked, and healed his partner. They didn't wait for what was in the trees to come out. Ceno had already lifted onto two feet, and brought them down just as their opponents charged from the trees.

They got two of the Salazzle matriarchs, but the other five readied what could only be Flamethrowers. Ceno dug underground before the flames reached him, and retaliated. Then there were four. Gravity brought him back down into the tunnel he'd dug, yet another tactic he favored, by digging straight up to strike. He limited any counter attacks to one, but one was all their opponents needed. Poisonous smog filled the air as the four belched it into his hiding place, but he was already digging again.

At a suggestion from his Trainer, he'd shot up from behind the poisonous fire lizards, and as he landed, hit them with an Earthquake. This time, none dodged, and they learned the painful lesson of a quadrupled type disadvantage as the ground around them shattered and crushed them. Only one managed to hold on, barely, and she began making a similar sound to the Salandit, who had, in the series of yet more Earthquakes, also fainted.

Ceno formed a condensed Flash Cannon to silence her, but Alex held him off. The ground was shaking, and they could both sense the size of what was coming. A Full Restore brought the Lairon back to fighting strength as it cured his poisoning as well, along with a Max Elixir, for he'd used quite a few moves thus far. There was no question that they'd need to restock after this trip, but then, being able to travel in regions like this rainforest required one to have absurd numbers of items on hand. The Trainers he'd met so far never seemed to lack for them, though common courtesy seemed to suggest one didn't use their hoard to persist in a losing battle.

Ceno glanced at his Trainer, who had, after readying him for more, pulled out the reddish mahogany brown colored device he'd been pointing at fellow Pokémon all day. The red beam shot through the trees, scanning their opponent. "Salazzle…? But that's not… Are you Mukking kidding me? Again!?" Alex's eyes had narrowed then, and he began typing in system commands, as their opponent finally came through the trees.

Seeing he was on his own for the moment, Ceno engaged the massive fire lizard. He was more dark than poison, and there was no doubt from the heat emanating around them that he had the fire typing as well. With yet more cursing, and a final sigh, his Trainer pointed the device at the lizard again. Their newest opponent hadn't attacked, after seeing one matriarch yet retained consciousness. He'd kept an eye on Ceno, but had growled at the nearby bushes.

A swarm of Salandit flooded around their wounded females then, feeding them more than enough Sitrus Berries for a full recovery. They wisely slinked back into the trees, and away from the strange human with the powerful mountain dweller. The Lairon had demonstrated that he was stronger, and they'd lost enough Salandit. Once the field was cleared, the massive hulking male, who probably knew some fighting type techniques as well, growled at the Lairon.

The challenge echoed through his body, and deciding that it was, finally, time the Lairon let his stockpile of evolutionary spiral energy carry him to the next stage of his species' evolution. He felt something awaken within him as he did, and the energy surged with an unexpected burst of power that almost felt divine, but not. Cenomons, true to his nature, consumed all of it. The light faded, and the Aggron rose, slowly. Alex just stared as he looked up from the Pokédex. Ceno easily towered over his Trainer now. Judging by his mass, he also guessed he now outweighed even Terra. His best guess put his new Aggron at twelve to fifteen feet, not counting the horns.

He did a double take, as he got a proper look at said horns, and the 'helmet' of his Aggron in general. The flared steel plates, which would shed with time, flared not unlike Cera's own, though they lacked the patterns of a Bastiodon, and remained a steel color. Feeling the enlarged crest clink awkwardly on his shoulders, Cenomons returned to all fours, and looked rather comfortable on them. The very structure of his body seemed similar enough to an Aggron, but evidently his would remain on four legs primarily. It seemed to fit, and Alex didn't mind. He had a feeling he'd be pretty fast, once he got some speed going.

It would limit what fighting moves he could use, if any, but they had more than enough coverage from Arthur, and Hydrus in that regard. Alex had told him they'd focus on rock and steel moves anyway, and they had. Overall, Ceno's head seemed more akin to his species Mega Form than anything, though it wasn't quite there. His nose had a similar upwards curve like Cera's for whatever reason, but the 'horn', while sharp, was shorter. His two larger horns also had a slight, but similar curve, though they were just as impressive as he'd expected them to be. Ceno had trained hard to get this strong.

Snorting, the Aggron lowered his head, as if to charge, and their opponent, who was rapidly reconsidering this battle, reared up and backwards slightly, from his usual forward slouch. The muscled arms hung low under the equally muscled chest, and ended in a pair of claws that, upon closer inspection, were indeed dripping poison. Alex slowly reached for his Pokéballs, but that slight shift had been enough for the battle to start.

Flames engulfed the lizard, bursting from the dark red markings all along the primarily black scaled body, and it charged Ceno. Much like its female counterpart, it was rather quick, when it wanted to be. As it roared, Alex listened closely for the species name, but all he got was 'Sala' before the roar made the rest incoherent.

He swore again as the two Pokémon attacked simultaneously, "Sala what!?"

The Flamethrower was blocked by a Rock Tomb, which had been placed defensively when Ceno slammed his front feet down, and made the earth rise. Alex glanced at his Pokédex. He'd manually scanned the creature, and this time, the machine had registered the unidentified species, which meant a blank page with a captured image of the body now dominated his screen. Alex decided to leave it for later, and focused on helping Ceno.

Temporarily obscured, Ceno proceeded to smash through his own move, turning it into more of a Rock Throw, as he crushed the boulders with ease, and assaulted the lizard with the debris. Their opponent had charged through the rocks, shrugging them off, before switching to physical attacks, and Ceno met him with an Iron Head. Fire wore away at the steel power of the move, but Ceno, like most Aggron, had plenty of stamina.

The Aggron made a rumbling sound in his metallic and rock body that one could've called laughter as he heard his Trainer's command. "Sweep the legs. Then finish it."

A Fire Fang overpowered the already weakened Iron Head, and Ceno moved back, clearly unused to his new bulky form. An Earthquake followed as he steadied himself, and it kept the lizard at bay as the ground beneath it shattered. Ceno blinked. He'd been skeptical about the strength differential between evolutionary stages, but he'd just seen evidence that his abilities were now quite a bit stronger. The Sala-whatever's claws began to glow with poison energy then, and as it charged, Ceno ducked low, and swept his now similarly strengthened Iron Tail through both of the comparatively skinny legs.

The creature fell with a loud boom that echoed through the jungle, and Ceno finished him with a Rock Tomb. Or so they'd thought. Upon smashing said rocks with Iron Head, they found a tunnel. Evidently, the lizard could dig, when it needed to, and the shattered landscape had only helped him. Terra popped free of his ball then, and guided Ceno as he showed him how species like them could repair what they tore asunder, to a degree.

The whole battle seemed to go unnoticed by the women, who had grown used to the Earthquake happy Trainer early on in the day. He insisted that the noise they made warded off the weaker Pokémon, and those who simply didn't wish to see humans. What new or varied species he had managed to catch, had been sent to his brother's box, as the word was that he was rapidly focusing on Evolution for his final thesis, and he'd attacked the subject broadly. They'd lost anything resembling a signal after entering the jungle though, not unlike Oranguru's Swamp.

The two women went within the tent, once the outside was apparently set up, and somehow, he just knew that it too would be bigger on the inside. It was a running theme with what Jess brought from home and she'd refused to explain it. As had his granduncle, and her brother, who had a bag like his own as well.

As Alex mused on seemingly impossible dimensional engineering that, as a formula, confused even his new math-friendly method of thinking, his attention returned to his yet unfinished manual Pokédex entry. Naturally, his team all had opinions on a name, with the most popular being 'Saladon' at nine to one. Blaze had stuck with 'Salazard', but his Trainer had ultimately gone with the former choice due to the ruthless battling style, and the apparent influence it had over at least a hundred of its kin. He listed what moves it had used, and then filled out the rest as best he could. At the very least, the data would help anyone else with a Pokédex that ran into such a creature.

The girls came out of the black and white tent to the sight of Alex, arm wrestling his newly evolved Aggron, who was lying at ease, and yawning as his paw easily stomped his Trainer's hand. When asked how he'd evolved, Alex was dodgy about the exact circumstances. Finally, he'd said, "We found something leading the Salandit attacking us. They'd already called for help from their Salazzle, so when the matriarchs began making similar calls, I had a feeling we were in trouble. The Pokédex didn't recognize this species either, it was convinced that we were just facing another Salazzle but…it was male. And much stronger, definitely a physical attacker. Though, once Ceno evolved, we took care of it…it may be back though, so keep a Ground Type handy tonight."

Ultimately Leo and Cera had been left on watch, and the now hungry thunder cat, after sleeping all day, made himself useful with his 'unmatched visual prowess' as he called it. Alex had no idea where his cat was picking up these terms, but he didn't really mind them. Salandit did indeed come by, but they were loners, not a part of the swarm from earlier, only following their scent. Nothing bugged them once they met Leo's eyes, and saw the equally imposing, and equally foreign Cera guarding all of them with a dead stare that suggested she would Earthquake any fool that so much as sniffed in their general direction.

The tent had not disappointed, though it was nowhere near as luxurious as he expected of his wealthy neighbors. The furnishings were normal rather than ornate and high-tech, and, they were under a century old. He still resisted poking at the seams of it though, no matter how much his new thought processes, which were still puzzling out the 'how' of his surroundings, bugged him to do otherwise.

They rose with the sun, and continued on, making significant time since the attacks were less frequent in the earlier hours. Eventually, they'd decided to form a 'herd' of sorts, with Terra, Hydrus, Cenomons, Cera, and Melodi, who had long since become an Altaria, and a nuisance to whoever Jess battled. Few challenged them as they made their way ever northward, though as they came through the latest patch of jungle, they once more found the emerald waters of the Amazon.

"How far does thees river go, again?" Svelka asked of Jess, who like Alex, smirked. Giant rivers were a foreign concept in a land of ice and snow, though more than a few had apparently formed with the dissipating storms, and subsequent thawing of the ancient land.

"The Amazon is, by last measurement, the largest in the world. It has apparently only grown in size, throughout the years, so…we will likely be crossing several branches of it on our way, but this is apparently the largest, according to Haley's map." She glanced at her Pokédex, which was storing said map because it had the memory storage, and was practical.

The girls zipped around Hydrus several times before pulling next to him, and they smirked at the Gallade and his Trainer sharing yet another bowl on his back. Alex smirked back at them. "Finally decided to join us?" The arm holding the bong and bowl in question stretched to the side, as he was tackled by the redhead, who somehow ended up in his lap after a flurry of limbs and shifting movement. She reclined on him like one might on a Pokébean chair, and fit rather snugly in his crossed legs.

She manifested a flame of her own on her pointer finger, a trick of pyrokinesis she'd refused to share with him, and hit the piece before passing it on. Alex, who was good by then, passed it to the Norstadder, who'd taken a seat by Arthur. "We have thees in Valaskjalf, but ours does not smell so…foul."

Alex smirked. "Try it. I think you'll find ours is stronger. Just don-"

She cut him off, inhaling far too deeply before he could finish, and he winced as the slow-smolder turned into a proper 'blaze', and created enough smoke to make anyone's head spin. The only downside was that she'd also likely just ashed the remaining Leaf in the bowl, but luckily, he had more. Svelka only managed to hold the smoke for a short while before exhaling, and devolving into a coughing fit. The other three shared a look, and then his Gallade began instructing her on the finer points of bong manipulation, as he'd all but made the process a science after finding he rather enjoyed the Leaf. Alex didn't mind sharing his stash and his equipment, so long as the Gallade put them back where they belonged, which he always did without fail.

They were roughly halfway across this latest river channel, when Hydrus felt a chill run up his spine. Few things startled his Swampert anymore, so Alex glanced up from the rather gorgeous view of the emerald colored scenery, and looked at the water around them. He rose slowly alongside Jess, and as they stood, their belts flared, summoning their armor. They'd eventually had to relent to the heat and travel without it, or be forced to consume amounts of water their Pokémon would never keep up with if they wanted to keep traveling without dehydrating. As it turned out, an Aura shield had been more than enough to avoid the old Earth bugs, the diseases they carried, and various other dangers.

As he saw what now circled them within the emerald waters of the world's largest river, he knew even dragonbone was likely to do little. They were called 'Legendary' Pokémon for a reason, after all, and going by the size of their new encounter, it was very likely an aspect of Zigma. He hoped. It was a snake, that much was certain, and it was undoubtedly male, judging by the mental presence which had, after they'd armored themselves, finally revealed itself.

The mind that reached out to theirs was similar, in Alex's opinion, to how Yacuma's had felt, in that it made the back of his neck stand on end. Though, where he'd felt the urge to run or fight, now, his instincts were telling him to hide. Death was all around him, and then, it spoke.

"Unovan Leaf…that…is a smell I have not sssscented in a long time. A long time. What brings Unovanssss to my domain?" Given that most of the Legendary encounters he'd had so far had mental ranges somewhere in a baritone, he was surprised to find this one was more… charismatic. Lighter, still definitively masculine, but anger seethed just beneath the surface. Hydrus stayed put as the grass and dragon type circled them below the water. A quadrupled weakness to an Ice Beam would let them get away, but any retaliation would take their ride out, and they knew enough about the river's locals to know that the following feeding frenzy would reduce them to bones in minutes, and if the Carvanha didn't get them, the packs of Floatzel in the area undoubtedly would seize the chance for an easy meal.

Alex glanced at the other two, who had not spoken, when he realized the being that could only be Mamboa was speaking to him directly. If the massive grass snake felt threatened by the sudden boost their armor gave their natural abilities, it did not show. "We're on our way north. Yacuma…all but tasked us with taking care of the Dark Nexus."

The yellow-orange eye that rose from the water before him shared a similar structure to most other dragon types, though in this one, the most obvious relation had to be the Serperior species. The vertical slit of black focused on him, after glancing about their little group. "You think you have the sssstrength to overcome such darknessss? It has grown beyond your ancient Human technology, and while your current level is impressssive, you have a ways yet to go before you can comprehend thisss. You journey to your deathssss, and you will only feed the Nexusss."

Arthur stepped forward then, and bowed, as the eye focused on the Gallade. The head moved away slightly, as it appeared to recognize the Pokémon as more of a legitimate threat, with his access to Ice Punch. All the battling thus far had definitely made him grow. It was exactly the kind of training he'd been itching to test himself against, and it paid off now as the psychic type's aura appeared around his body, and flared blue with obvious waves of power.

Mamboa's head rose completely out of the water now, ready to strike, if needed. The fangs he bore were longer than Yacuma's had been, and seemed to be made of an almost black wood. They were still quite sharp though, and no doubt served well when the Legendary summoned grass energy.

Arthur powered up with a flexing of his arms, and his aura shifted to Light, as he shone brightly in the center of the river. The sun had begun to set after almost a day of straight travel, and Alex didn't need to wonder who would have the advantage in the darkness. Mamboa was most likely a night hunter, like many snake species. They'd seen him before in the early morning, likely searching for somewhere to sleep, and as the current night came, he'd apparently awakened, and noticed them. The dragon type arched a scaled, but still very much leafy eyebrow, as he watched the Gallade. "I ssssee. One who wieldsss the Light. Yet, alone your strength will fail. You should know thisss…"

Two blue colored flashes later, the Gallade was joined by a pair of Articuno, who made the snake recoil. He was now a bit outmatched, as he knew the Gallade could use flying moves too. They were no longer prey, but he did not let them free just yet. There was another scent amongst these foreigners that drew the Legendary dragon's curiosity.

He moved back to where he'd smelt it, his nostrils very obviously flaring. His tongue licked the air, scenting it as the Pokémon hovering in the air watched him, and tensed as he neared their humans. "I know…that ssssscent…" The eyes focused on Alex, and the nostrils flared again. Once more, he drew the plasma sword, and the snake's eyes went wide. "The Original Dragon…livessss. Perhapsss...now is the era. The Nexussss…to be destroyed at long lassst…yesss…it is finally time!"

The group moved back as the massive snake sank under the water again, and then exploded from it with a burst of water as he leapt through the yellow-orange sky before coiling back in the water, and surfacing away from them, but still close enough to chat. They had given him the best news he'd heard in millennia, and he could hold off on breakfast. He'd need something more than a few man-apes and a mudfish to sate his appetite anyways. His lengthy coil swished in a manner that they could only perceive as happy, as the large snake all but grinned at them.

"It is as you say, Mamboa. Yacuma wished for you to return to Rio, though she expressed doubts that you would, until Sombrador was freed…" Alex let the helmet fade, and donned his hat again. The heat had already made it uncomfortable, and sweat had begun sliding down his face at annoyingly close intervals.

The grass snake's eyes darted to the symbol on the Trainer's hat, and the water rumbled as he chuckled. "Rio…it hasss been some time sssince I went there…they may not welcome me with open armsss."

Alex raised a brow at the Legendary. "Are you not a part of their region's Guardian? Go there, tell them you come in peace, and you'll be fine. You have my word, Sombrador will join you two soon…and then I guess you'll have to find someone strong enough to unite you."

"You cannot?" The snake leaned in again for another look. "No…I sssee your logic…one of our own mussst unite what the darknesssss tore apart." The snake's 'lips' formed into an approximation of a smirk. "We will have a Battle Tournament…and sssee who issss worthy! But firssst…your partners. Summon them. If you are to dessstroy the Nexusss…you mussst be ready…"

The humans glanced at each other, and then resumed swimming towards the nearest shore not occupied by territorial Floatzel. With a sigh, Mamboa did the same. This time, it seemed they were at the westernmost edge of the river's many diversions, and the mountains that marked the western side of the continent loomed behind the large, white sand shore they came in on. Their goal was still many miles north though, and they had been warned against trying to travel the mountains.

Mamboa soon joined them, and upon seeing their party, immediately focused on Serpi. Grass energy flowed between the two as they touched noses, and the Serperior came away looking not unlike Hilbert's Caesar, though she was much prettier. Her fronds had grown in the shape she'd desired, and the naturally elegant Pokémon pulled it off. She'd also gained at least ten feet of body length. Alex was still eyeing her, when he noticed instinctual fear from Terra.

Mamboa had shifted his gaze to his turtle now, and Alex gave his head a pat as he met the snake's gaze. "Thisss one is…crooked. A Guardian has already sssstrengthened you, but…you've grown asssskew. I will…fix thisss, and then, you will owe me a favor..." The snake hissed what was apparently a chuckle.

Before Alex could respond, vines extended from the grassy fronds that had, as he'd dried off, flared out from Mamboa's neck, making the similarities to a Serperior undoubted now. Though he looked far more regal than any of his apparent descendants could ever dream of, he still encouraged them to grow as large as they could. The vines glowed bright with grass energy as they flowed into, and slightly adjusted, the grass turtle.

With Terra, the changes were more…explosive, and a brief flare of pain seared through his bond with his Trainer as the energy of a Legendary grass type fixed what had grown askew upon his shell. Namely, this meant his straight-trunked Ash Tree had moved, shifted to the center of his shell, the roots extended down to, and encircled each of the stone-like spikes on his shell.

As the tree had moved, another three stone spikes had appeared on the other side, evening him out weight wise. Those were encircled by the roots as well, and Alex winced as his newest batch of Green Monster was lost in the shifting swirl of energy. He sighed, but he could always make more. He had several jars full anyways, and plenty of seeds. Still, it made him slightly sad, though that faded as he felt his starter's happiness. He no longer felt lopsided, which was what had made him resistant to being ridden for long periods. Now though, he felt right. Balanced. Like Alex had, after the Trials in Unova. The turtle genuinely thanked the Legendary, as he moved back to dote on Serpi.

Alex glanced at his pocket as it began beeping, and he drew the Pokédex. The light centered on Torterra, and to his genuine surprise after having it spazz out and crash over ten times so far, it successfully scanned the grass turtle, and an addendum to the usual species data appeared.

Though it is reportedly a rare mutation, individual members of this species have been known to grow an additional three spikes, without evolving, over a period of, at minimum, centuries. This usually occurs when the Torterra's tree becomes too heavy for the left side of its shell, the shell then apparently adapts, to support the weight of the ever-growing tree, by growing three additional rock spikes. It is theorized that Torterra this large also use these spikes to contain enough water to support themselves, and stay mobile. All variations with this mutation have been well over standard recorded size.

The device beeped again, and the words 'new mutation' appeared. He stared at the screen as it prompted him to enter a description under a still image of Terra. He smirked, typed in 'Yggdrasil Form', as it was she who had blessed his starter with this growth and vitality he had no doubt, and then hit enter, before closing the device. He gave his turtle a chin scratch then, "We're contributing so much to science lately, aren't we." The turtle snorted in his version of a chuckle, and then moved to dig himself into the still-warm sand, and absorb what heat he could.

The Legendary grass snake eventually left them, but not before mentioning that he was heading to the southwest, to remind the pirates there that he was very much still around, before heading to Rio. Once Mamboa swam off, Rick Astley and Drake returned, on their respective water types, amazed and awed by the Legendary they'd been hesitant to sneak up on. They told Alex of the Sage they'd encountered deep in the Amazon, who upon learning their tale and purpose, had invited the rest of them to visit his home.

Traveling the jungle was no less difficult, but for every day that crept by, they traveled hundreds of miles. They had veered away from the western mountains, as they were still very much south of their goal, and had instead shifted east, following Rick and Drake's directions as best they could.

Serpi had replaced the fatiguing Empolia, and appeared to take to swimming the emerald waters as gracefully as Mamboa had. She carried both of her humans easily, still brimming with the energy the Legendary had shared with her. She was not the only grass snake around though, as they had spied several other Serperior lurking in the trees as they ventured towards the subtle pull the river's current guided them towards. Chonkley, Rick's Walrein, had claimed that it would, if followed, lead them to the Sage.

Ultimately, it took four days to reach the center of the massive forest, and their supplies had dwindled to roughly half of what they'd started with. The battles with wild Pokémon were just as intense, the experience was just as strengthening, and Alex was more and more convinced that having Scales come down here to test themselves and train might not be a terrible idea. If they were prepared.

The others in the group that had stayed in Rio had contacted them one night as they camped. Signals were spotty at best in the jungle, but within the tent, they were rather clear. Apparently Mamboa had indeed returned to Rio, and the reunion with his watery counterpart had caused a few waves, as they'd tumbled in the shallows of the ocean, but there was little in the way of destruction. Apparently, the other half of their party had entered into the eager snake's tournament when he'd declared that the winner of said tournament would both need to be strong enough to unite the three again, and become Zigma's newest Tamer. The people of Rio had, naturally, accepted this challenge, and had begun setting up and registering the thousands of Trainers who surged forth to participate.

Rio was apparently celebrating the imminent return of Sombrador, and the atmosphere of good emotions and a chance at unity was welcomed by all, poor and housed alike. It was a common belief that Zigma would restore their city, and then everyone could have a roof, and access to water.

The two women had been worried of what might happen to the city should they fail to take on the Nexus, but Alex reassured them. If this 'Rain Sage', as Rick and Drake had titled them, was even half as wise as Oranguru, they would likely gain an advantage of some kind, if they heeded the Sage's wisdom. He didn't know what form said advantage would take, but his instinct said this was a good idea, though he still tread cautiously. His own mentors had been suspiciously silent with their mental guidance on this matter, but he decided that was for the best. Oranguru had hinted that relations between the Psychic Masters were strained, more or less, and he had no idea what to expect from this one.

They came upon an island eventually, and like Oranguru's, it sat in the middle of a swirling merging of several different branches of the emerald colored Amazon. Unlike Oranguru's island, there was little in the way of structure. Where the Foggy Swamp Sage had one tree on his island, this one had many, and among them, the group saw a massive, red-furred figure lumbering about its business.

Alex summoned his Gallade, and the two leapt for the shore, projecting their mental presence as obviously, and non threateningly as possible. They felt a response, though instead of words, it was a simple emotion, one his Gallade read as 'hurry up and come in'.

Alex nodded to Jess, who'd also proven herself in such a place, though as Svelka made to enter, she found her way blocked by a mass of roots and vines that appeared from the ground and surrounding trees,separating her from the Unovans. A deep-toned voice rang out over them then. "If you do not have the power, you cannot enter. Wait by the shore. You will be safe in this part of the forest…for now." A flash of blue, and her Articuno joined her. She gave the two a nod, and then proceeded to start brushing her bird, as she did every night.

Alex and Jess walked towards the presence, as did Arthur, and as they approached, their eyes saw more of what appeared to be the Sage's home. What had looked like trees from the shore became revealed to have been shaped, grown, or otherwise turned into a sort of pagoda-esque structure, made entirely out of leaves, vines, and the massive tree trunks that were common to the flora of the rainforest.

The first thing that hit them was the stench, and as they winced and continued on, they realized where it was coming from. Another, far more welcome, but still ultimately foul stench covered the one emanating from the Rain Sage. It was Leaf, of that Alex was sure, and as they came upon the Sage itself, they saw a familiar sight.

Sitting comfortably against what must have been the largest tree on this isolated island buried within dense jungle foliage was a massive red-furred creature. It had four limbs, and each ended in a curved set of claws akin to a Giant Sloth's that, while sharp, seemed poorly suited for advanced bong manipulation. The Sage's device of choice seemed to be a long, simple wooden pipe, and even Alex had to admit he liked such things. They didn't need water, they were fairly easy to clean, but he knew what happened to them after hundreds of sessions of holding burning herb, and had opted for glass instead, back when he'd first taken up the hobby.

The pipe in question floated up to the shaggy head of the creature, and after a deep inhale, smoke slowly drifted from either side of the 'head', and surrounded the seemingly perpetually damp fur, covering the other foul scent entirely. A single eye, purple within an iris of gold, appeared on what he would've expected to be the forehead of the creature, and the pipe once more levitated down towards a stand, upon which it sat while the Sage enjoyed its effects.

The Leafhead within him winced at the waste of perfectly good Leaf set to smolder, but he wrenched his focus back to the task at hand, and bowed in the Unovan style. Arthur and Jess did the same, but he took the initiative in speaking. "Rain Sage, the grass and water aspects of Zigma, Mamboa and Yacuma, have bid us to head into the northern mountains, and put an end to the Dark Nexus. We were wondering if you could give us advice as to how we might eradicate it."

The voice that responded was neither male nor female, but also had elements of both. It seemed as loud as Oranguru's voice, but was impossible to read for emotion. The tone was even and simple. "What would you have me say, pupil of the Swamp?" There was a chuckle from the shaggy creature, and he spied an additional pair of glowing yellow eyes, hidden in the fur of the creature's face, staring back at him. "You may have been away from it for a time…but the scent always lingers. In any case…my contemporary already told me of your imminent arrival…"

"Then you know our mission is good natured." Alex said, folding his arms within the white robe that had become his casual garb of choice. "We wish only to help this land…and reunite that which darkness has sundered."

Another chuckle. "And how do you seek to accomplish this feat? The Nexus has existed for millennia, and not even Zigma and I combined could end it. I know of your Gallade, I know of your skills with the Light, but it will not be enough."

Jess spoke this time. "Then tell us what we need to do to be ready. Light energy is quite effective against darkness, and Dark Types. It can purge Shadow. Why wouldn't that work on a Nexus created by Human methods?"

The creature sighed. "What your species has wrought cannot be undone by your technology. Or the Light. Too many have been sacrificed to empower the darkness. The time to strike this foul creation was before it began to manifest Darkrai."

Alex sighed as well. "I don't suppose you know of a Celebi nearby who would be willing to-"

The Sage cut him off. "No. You cannot meddle with this, it has affected too many lives, set into motion events which cannot now be undone. Not without seriously angering the God of Time. Were you to travel back to destroy it when it was yet possible, you would erase your very reason for coming this far into the jungle, and a great many other events besides. The timeline you create would be entirely foreign to you, and you, as you are, would cease to exist. Let me spare you centuries of agonizing over 'what if', and simply tell you: do not meddle with Time. You will die."

Jess eyed the red-furred figure. In body shape it was similar to Oranguru, and her eyes labeled it as a normal and psychic type as well. "There has to be a way to neutralize it. What caused it to come into being in the first place? What technology spawned this Nexus? Everyone we ask is vague on that. If we knew what started it, it could help us unmake it now, without shifting the timeline."

The Sage scratched its shaggy chin with the left claw, and tiny bugs fell from the foul-smelling fur as it did. "Hmmm. I do not know, Zigma would, but her mind and memories will be…scattered, even if successfully reunified. You have seen the same with your Dragon, no? Splitting apart Guardians has consequences." The pipe floated up to the 'head' again, but the fur covered from view anything resembling a mouth, and the smoke did not flow from where it was evidently inhaled. "There is a Time Guardian near the mountain you seek, one that has befriended Sombrador. Seek her out before you attempt to approach the dark one…Sombrador is not as…understanding as its counterparts."

The Unovans shared a look. Evidently the final aspect of Zigma would be playing the counterpart role that Kyurem had. That also meant Sombrador was likely the strongest of the three, and would be the boundary within which grass and water would be bound. Arthur spoke then, "This…Time Guardian. She can show us the past?"

The eye on the Sage's forehead focused on the Gallade, then narrowed. "You would be wise to limit what you ask her to show you…but yes, to a degree, the past can be shown to those like you, without upsetting the Time Vortex."

As Alex felt the Gallade's mind whirl at the possibilities, namely what he strongly desired to learn from the time traveler in regards to his own past, he bowed again to the Sage. "Thank you, Rain Sage, for your wisdom. We will leave in peace."

The red-furred creature chuckled. "It is custom to cement new friendships with a sign of good will…come, partake of my Leaf, Trainer. Your Sage mentioned that you'd probably wish to try it."

Alex glanced at the leaves that acted as a door, then Jess, who shrugged. They'd gotten here early in the day, and perhaps a few more minutes could get them a friendly Teleport. They did not know places in the jungle that were safe to bamf into, but if any would, it was the truly rancid smelling creature before them that, despite the stench, seemed genuinely good natured.

"Very well." He finally said, "We will partake, but then we must depart for this Celebi's home with haste. Could you…?"

"Teleport you? Hrmmmm. Yes, fine, I suppose. Speed will be needed, and Oranguru warned that the longer you take here, the more dire things become up north." A pyrokinetic spark lit the bowl of the pipe, and Alex inhaled deep as the creature kept speaking. "With that said, the news is relatively good…he mentioned something about shifting borders, but I will be honest…I do not care. You should visit him when you return."

The three spent the better part of a half hour in total with the Sage, and eventually were sent on their way. They were Teleported to a place in the north where the Amazon finally ended, in one of its many rivers, and from there, the five Trainers headed west through the equally dense jungle, that was home to equally strong and unique Pokémon that, for once, tended to avoid them, rather than jump out, and start a battle.

The jungle soon mercifully gave way to relatively barren rocky mountainside, and the group paused, healing their partners. Arthur came out then, as did Rick's Gallade, Gallahad, and the two Articuno. The boys shared a ride as the birds lifted them up towards the peaks, and brought on a soft snowfall with their flight. They didn't have to look far to guess where their destination was. The castle-like structure had been carved from the stone of the surrounding mountains for simplicity rather than aesthetics, but the mile or more of death surrounding the peak the structure called home was obvious, to those who were looking for it.

The darkness permeated most of the mountains, and any life that might've normally enjoyed such a home, for there were many mountain-loving Pokémon, had been driven away by the total lack of vegetation, and foul taint on the air. They shared a look then, and wondered if something that could warp the planet might be a bit out of their league. That meant bringing in Tao, which while possible, would not be worth it until they'd exhausted every other option. They didn't want to pull him away from commanding literally everyone.

Arthur had spoken to all of them then, as only a psychic type could. "We have two Legendary Birds with us, and I have Excalibur. Moreover, our redhead can empower her partner's Ice Beam, and Gallahad can help too. With his help, we've definitely got this."

They spotted the Celebi's grove, for it was the only patch of vibrant green that stretched this far up into the mountains. Hiking had required putting their heavier hitters away, but the near-constant humidity had, for the moment, seemed to fade. As they approached the grove, the chill in the air only grew, as did the sense of impending death. It was muted in the Time Guardian's grove though. Like most shrines to Celebi around the world, this one had also been carved of stone, but the patterns were ancient, and different from anything in Unova. The closest they resembled in design was the buildings of Texico City.

Jess let her own helmet, which resembled the Articuno riders to a degree but remained composed of dragonbone, fade away into the rest of the armor as she wiped her brow. "Now what do we do?"

Alex smirked. "It's the home of a time traveler. There's only one thing we can do. We must wait." She raised an eyebrow at him as she gave a familiar smirk, and he laughed. "Yes, we can do that, too. It's a good way to pass the time." His granduncle had always told him that Celebi was, to this very day, very much a mystery. Were there multiple across the world, or were they all the same Pokémon? Did it work for Dialga, or had it been created to keep the Time God's anger, and the damage it could cause to the fabric of space and time, from tearing reality apart by accident?

One thing had been clear throughout the research he'd shown Alex. The Time Guardian appeared when and where it chose, and nothing any human could do would change that. He'd also mentioned bringing an offering, and after spending time with the Rain Sage, he had a feeling this Celebi might actually appreciate what they were about to start doing in its grove, and even wish to partake.

Bunker City Beneath Sacreus – Fornia Region

It had taken the better part of a week, but the Prophet of the Arcean Church had finally recovered from the explosion of Light energy the draconic brat had ruined his PokéMeter with. More and more rumors, he had been told, had begun to spread about what exactly the events in Urbe Monachus meant. Their Bishops had always told the people that the Relic would only short out and refuse to work in the presence of one deemed worthy by Arceus himself. The Dragon Emperor had caused it to explode, to the view of the public, but only the Prophet had seen the needle's truth. There was no scripture detailing what an explosion meant, for all had assumed the divine machine could not break, but the well-spoken Unovan had done it regardless. The Church was spinning it as a bad thing, naturally, claiming it was a sign of the dragon puppet's impurity. That said, the needle had indeed moved to the red before it had blown, but nobody alive yet remembered what that signified.

Understanding the PokéMeter had taken a long time, for much of its history and the methods of proper use had been lost in the tumult of the Dark Times. Psychics good and bad had vied for the machine, and in the course of the fight for possession of it, more than a few records and notes on how to operate it had been lost, until in the end, nobody on the Earth had remembered. He had found precious few records on how to read it, and what said readings meant, but not one mentioned the needle in the red. From what he'd found, it was suggested that his relic's needle simply couldn't be pushed that far.

The 'meditation sphere' he now chilled in, Doctor Ein's newest project, and one Pravus had thus far very much enjoyed, opened, and the surrounding minions in his bunker base snapped to attention. He was in a good mood for once though, as he often was after being in the sphere. Ein had warned him that his temper was blocking his vision, making him little better than everyone else who had claimed to desire domination of the planet. This device would, so he claimed, enhance his 'mental abilities'. The sphere was crafted from the last stores of the Melmetal essence, but it was well spent.

It enhanced his powers, and kept them from ravaging his body. Moreover, it could project a shield of Aura, empowered by the Shadow his other half wielded. The flight capable sphere remained to be tested against the Unovans, but he had a feeling it would prove sufficient in keeping the nuisance's plasma blade from bisecting him, something his other half had warned him was quite possible, upon seeing it. As the spherical device that had, of course, incorporated his favored throne lowered, the command center beneath Sacreus went silent as the Prophet spoke. "Report."

His Lieutenant saluted, "Sir! The situation in Japan and Alola is going as well as you expected it would, though we've been…stalled…by a pair of Mewtwo north of Kanto. One belongs to Red, we were ready for that one, but the other appeared from nowhere to save it before we could successfully use a Dark Ball. Your Hands report that your intuition was correct, Red's is the ideal candidate for conversion."

Pravus eyed the Lieutenant evenly, arms folded within his black colored robe-like garments. They covered his body armor, an advanced design of the Crusader's kit that Ein was calling 'Mark II'. His crown, outlining his head in Arceus' symbol by hovering just behind him at all times, was pure gold though, and, in his mind, went nicely with the rest of his ensemble. "What of the other Mewtwo? Does hatred burn in its heart as well?"

The Lieutenant shook his head. "That one recognized your Hands as being…erm…special…as soon as it took the field, apparently. Somehow, it knew Luster Purge. The move had a similar effect to a Purge attack with Light energy…given what kind of move it is, we're theorizing that it too might be a formerly unrecognized dual-type attack. Nobody has studied it in detail, so the possibility remains. The Y strand Mewtwo took down two of the Hands before fleeing with the X strand Mewtwo."

Pravus' eyes narrowed. "Two? Hrmmph. Recall the leaders. Send Nonagon and Lucien to the front lines here, in the north and south. They will be far more…effective, on open terrain. General Marius will take over the duty of leading my Hands in Japan. Have the Navy begin blockading Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn. If Alola breaks our accord, and decides to intervene, you have my full permission to release our trump card over the region."

"But sir…what of the Kyogre Tamer? She has been a…persistent nuisance on the water." The Lieutenant spoke sheepishly, but his tendency to point out flaws Pravus missed in his plans was why he kept him around. He couldn't genuinely remember every detail of the minutia his minions considered important.

"She has." A dark grin appeared on the charismatic face. "She's been taking out valued members of our naval forces for almost a decade now. She has an idea of what transpires on our ships. Admiral Nauta will be more than eager to finally have leave to take her, and her little pet, down. While he hunts her, have him move in on Hoenn. That will divert their Champion's attention from Kanto, and Marius should be able to handle them once he eradicates Red's little…coalition."

The Lieutenant saluted once more. "It will be done, my Prophet. What of the war here?"

Pravus glanced at the screen detailing the current state of the war on his continent, and grinned. "The Dragon overreaches in the south…and the north has not yet seen a recovered Thor take the field?" The Lieutenant nodded. "Then unleash the aerial squadrons. Capture and convert any who try to resist…I want Ventosus. It is the gateway to Unova. When Lucien arrives, send him north. Nonagon can handle the south." The Lieutenant nodded, bowed, and then retreated to enact the orders. Pravus watched as the majority of the squadrons he'd placed in the Stoney Mountains appeared as a mass of red dots that slowly began moving east towards Urbe Monachus on their map. They would reinforce the ground troops, and this time, their objective was to push through, or die trying.

Straviken had been but one of many bases he'd placed within the mountain chain, and now, they would deploy their flying types and man-made aircraft. The Pokémon would block attacks from below, and the planes would counter by firing the one thing every eastern fighter feared coming up against. A device capable of capturing even owned Pokémon, and infusing them with Shadow. Dark Balls.

Aweston – Texico Region (East)

Geralt had been ordered to make his own way down to Texico, and after a helpful Teleport from a mind that was not Tao's, he'd ended up on the shores of the Swamp, just east of the Sippi River. The massive trees behind him set his neck hairs on end, as did the many pairs of eyes watching from the swampy murk that lurked beneath the trees.

Ghost made good time to Aweston, and mostly, they came across many easterners, fleeing north towards the safety of the Original Dragon, and away from the cloud of ash that covered the Crusader's advances. Naturally, he'd been asked into gathering a few items, crafting a few healing tonics, and of course, averting the regular natural disaster with the aid of whatever Pokémon happened to be around. It was nice having his full team back, as well. Most other Top Rangers sneered at him for having six, but now that ten was apparently becoming the norm, as it had been, allegedly, thousands of years before, many Rangers had done as he had, and filled out at least six slots on their belt.

Once they'd arrived in Aweston, which was acting as a critical location on this border of the war, Rosa had barely regarded them with a glance, before assigning them another Ranger as an escort to Orre. His name was Walker, and according to the grim-toned dragonbone clad Champion turned General of the southern legions, he was the best Texico had to offer. Apparently, nobody could avoid his eyes in these lands. He dressed simply, though that seemed to be the norm in Texico, even in war-time. He did, at least, have a black and white vest for a measure of protection, but his dark leather duster had gone over that, too.

He was pale skinned, but clearly well-toned, and his beard was, in a word, magnificent. He had a standard Texican hat that matched his jacket, and his Pokéballs, all normally colored, were slung diagonally across his chest. He only had three partners, but Geralt had a feeling he knew the secret of the Signs as well. Ranger protocol dictated using those only in times of duress. Though he personally was on good terms with the Latios that seemed to come every time he used the Sign. His granduncle's last gift continued to prove its worth.

Needless to say, Geralt had a suspicion about who Walker's family was, and he was sufficiently impressed by the fellow Ranger's record. The two had made their way as only those of their skillset could towards Orre. Namely, that meant traveling through territory of angry, and notorious Pokémon, more than a few of which had body counts tied to their League given 'nicknames'. At the very least, the Pokémon in question weren't looking for them, and the Arceans seemed to keep their camps and supply lines well away from such nuisances.

He'd been told that most of the Hands had been sent to Japan, and the fact that Pokémon this strong were still untainted by Shadow was a testament to just how many had to be over there. Luckily, the island nation had just as many freakishly strong Trainers as Unova did. They would be fine. Probably.

The trip through the southern half of the Stoney Mountains was enlightening, as the two men realized that, for Pokémon, it was also a war zone. Evidently, the leader of the local Nido species had come up against an Aggron that, true to rumor, was fully mega evolved, all on its own. It was a phenomenon that, as Rangers, they'd been seeing more and more of in recent years. The only explanation the League had come up with was the distortions from Arceus's dimension, ten times the size of the ones that had been recorded in the Alamos Incident. The power being given off was apparently affecting random Pokémon all over the world, and naturally, many were caught before a scientist had a chance to study them. Like other forms of Mega Evolution, this one was temporary, and usually required a power source to begin, but once started, as Tao had demonstrated for months now, a Pokemon could keep such a form as long as they wished, provided they had the energy.

They snuck by the warring species, neither of which seemed to be able to find an advantage, and made their way into the vast desert of Orre. From the perch they'd had on the mountain, Phenac City seemed not so distant, but as they traveled, they realized the heat from the sand had distorted their vision. Geralt and Walker crossed over the sands with their steel gray Corviknight and Pidgeot respectively, and they had an easy ride over the warm air. The fact that they'd hydrated helped as well. Walker had known exactly where to find water, no matter where the labyrinthine caves of the Stoney Mountains had deposited them.

They arrived in Phenac City rather quickly, avoided the Arceans patrolling it, and it didn't take long for a black clad man with a Snatching Machine on his arm to lead them to Wes, once he heard they were Rangers on a mission from the Original Dragon. They found him standing over a young woman who seemed to be having a nightmare, deep within a random box canyon fort just outside the city.

Once they'd isolated themselves, Tao's eyes appeared, and gave them their orders. "The three of you are to travel west, through the mountains, and into Fornia. The way has already been marked by your cousin, Geralt, but things may have changed in the interim months. Stay on guard, and don't get captured. Once you make a suitable base in the mountains, move through them, and take out the 'secret hangars' I've highlighted on Walker's map."

Right as always, the First Dragon had indeed marked several otherwise un-noted spots within the mountain chain on the Ranger's map, and Geralt nodded. "We can hit those easily."

"Take out any aircraft that have not yet launched. If they aren't invading now, they soon will. I would prefer to cripple their ability to take our Pokémon on the front lines. We're outgunned as it is." The eyes shifted to Wes. "Once in Fornia, as agreed, you will take point, Snatcher. Lead these two to Lab Ein, and you will have your earned vengeance."

Wes stared back at the eyes, clearly angry, though it seemed not to be directed solely at the Dragon. "You know what I want. How will this help?"

The eyes floated directly in front of Wes. "You will have what you desire when your mission is underway, and I have a moment to spare."

Wes's eyes narrowed. "No, please, by all means. Take your time. Nobody has their life on the line or anything."

The eyes hovered silently for thirty seconds, then, "It is done. I have dispelled the nightmares the Darkrai hit her with, but I can only do so much for psychological scars. The nightmares likely made those worse, though I have...lessened their effect, there is still psychological scarring from what was done to her in that Crater. It may very well never heal entirely."

Wes' expression shifted several times, and finally rested on a mixture of relief, and sadness. "Is there no way to undo the damage?"

The eyes shifted, as if they were focused on something out of the room entirely. "At the base of the path you will take to the mountains, you will find a lost Ralts. She could use a Trainer. I…cannot see if it will help, getting her another partner, but it is what will start her on a better path. That is all I can give you, Snatcher. Now be about your mission." The golden orbs vanished then, and the three men were left in awkward silence. Geralt, for his part, was just impressed, and now understood why humans had long followed Tao's path. Those in contact with the dragon, which was pretty much everyone fighting under his mark, noted the change in behavior in his Mega Form. He was more curt, strict, ruthless even, at least to his enemies, but even in this state that Geralt imagined must take quite a toll with the strain of maintaining a Mega Form so long, the Original Dragon remained true to his nature, using his gifts to help the people of his continent, as he had ever done. Even when the Dragon Emperors of old lost popularity, the people had never lost faith in the Original Dragon.

The silence persisted through their mission, for the three had all but non verbally agreed that being stealthy was their best chance. The Arceans still had their Task Force, but it was no secret that their recruits had been drawn heavily upon for their Crusader's ranks. Fornia was still likely very much patrolled, especially near Sacreus, but Lab Ein was out near the coast, on the region's smaller set of mountains, tucked away where nobody decent could stop the progress of science with things like limitations and morality.

They had indeed found a young female Ralts all but on the path Walker had chosen to take them into the mountains with. Wes caught the little one, after explaining how she could help, and though the psychic type seemed to understand. Geralt privately believed that she had simply read the emotions Wes was very obviously suppressing, and drawn a conclusion from those, but the Ralts seemed alright with helping someone injured, and as her ball was transported to Wes' boxes, they continued on after he ordered one of his people to retrieve it. After Geralt mentioned how Alex's own Ralts had once helped with amnesia, Wes had made sure to send the ball to Michael, who was standing guard over his cousin while Wes was away.

They made quick work of the hangars they found in the mountains, and Tao had added another three to their path as they made their way through. It took the better part of a week, but they finally emerged to see Fornia after four days within the tunnels, and found that the view was little better.

Smoke clogged the sky, and the mountain tunnel, as the winter winds moved the clouds east. Fornia was still on fire, apparently, but Rangers came equipped for travel through forest fires. Between the heat and the smoke, few would notice them, and thus they crossed most of the Fornia region undetected.

They traveled by way of the mountains that, at the start of the blaze, had burned to ash early on, but there was plenty of forest yet to go. The ash on the ground and in the sky kept the dark-clothed trio from sight as they curved around the large desert, and came down on Fornia's smaller chain of mountains. Wes told them where the Lab would be, as he'd seen it before, but Walker was the one who sighted it first, along with a pair of guards.

Before either of his partners could summon a Pokemon, the Ranger had spun in place kicking high, and taking the first easily by the chin with a Roundhouse kick, sending him spinning to the ground. The other received a jab to the stomach, doubled over, and then found a similarly merciless knee in his face. The whole thing was over in moments, but Walker still cuffed the pair, and then dragged them into the nearby woods, which had avoided the fire. He'd apparently left them by a stream, and had then convinced an Ursaring to watch over the pair for a few hours.

Wes was already scrawling in the dirt when Walker returned from double checking that they were alone. "The Dragon was clear about my mission, once we arrived, and he left the task of data retrieval and destruction to you. I'm going after Ein, to make sure this evil does not regrow. Again. Download what you can, and then destroy the rest. I don't care how. I just don't want these zealots having anything left to go through."

Walker frowned at the Snatcher. "Having strong beliefs doesn't make them bad people...they're part of a cult. What Caleb Pravus tells them to do, they do, or they suffer for their refusal. Also remember, these are scientists." The Ranger put a hand on Wes's shoulder, and the Snatcher raised an eyebrow, but was soon drawn in by the kind but unwavering stare Walker gave him. "Doctor Ein has earned this fate, but try not to go on a murderous rampage while you deliver it to him. These people are probably just trying to do their jobs."

Wes shrugged off the rough hand of the Ranger, and glared at him. "These 'people'," He said, using genuine air quotes, "Have been infusing innocent Pokemon and Eggs with Shadow Energy. For years. Usually after stealing them from children. Have you heard of what they did to the Meltan in one of the impact craters further south?" Wes shook his head. "If they have nothing to hide, they have nothing to fear." He called out his Espeon then, and the psychic cat's eyes shone with wavy lines of scarlet power. "E.S.P. will determine which ones have earned their deaths…" He threw another ball then, and a truly pissed off looking Typhlosion appeared behind him as the Snatcher started forward. "Come, Typho."

Wes entered the base then, through what appeared to be, going by its size, an exit for aircraft. The hangar shook as a roar echoed within it, followed by the sounds of battle. Flames then spewed from the hangar's exit, and the Rangers shared a glance, before hopping on their flying types, ascending high over the complex, and then dropping quite a few feet onto the ceracrete building's roof, just above what was supposed to be the record room. Once more, the inertial dampeners that could double as 'hover shoes' for a time over empty air, proved their worth in stopping serious falls. Interpol had all the best toys, and the Rangers had been instructed on how to use most of them.

Geralt unsheathed his shiny Doublade, and had them cut a hole in the roof with Sacred Sword. The red bladed, gray hilted swords hopped on Geralt's back once again, and Walker proceeded to punch through the carved circle with his bare fist, making a hole big enough for them to slip through as the chunk of ceracrete fell to the floor below. With that, they too entered the lab, and began their work in relative isolation, as all defenses had been shifted to deal with whoever was in the hangar.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 30: Lightbringers

Lumiose City - Kalos Region

Clemont chuckled, stroking his light beard as the light hitting his glasses kept his companion from seeing his eyes. They sat in the 'guest room' of Lumiose Tower. Aside from the slightly messy decor, it had an impressive view of the city. "How long has it been since we were caught together in some villain's evil scheme?"

Serena kept her gaze focused outside the window of Clemont's private quarters within the gym's tower. "Years...so very many years."

"Did you hear who else she has? The others? My sister, Tierno, Trevor, Shauna, they all seem to have vanished." Clemont kept staring, eyes locked on Serena, but she was focused on the window.

"I wouldn't know...I remember about as much as you...though it seems there's a large gap between when she took us...going by the last date we remember." She kept her eyes on the outside, but Clemont knew her well enough to know she was genuinely shaken.

He was too, in truth. His mind had always been his, a tool that never (usually) failed him, and it had been taken away without so much as a battle. "I guess all we can do is Purge the Shadow from the aura of the others, when and if we find them. Know anyone who could do that?"

She met his eyes suddenly, and the slight smirk he'd been wearing vanished under her stare. "No." Her eyes went back to the window. "That...red haired woman, the one from Unova. The one who beat me. She could do it. She's a strong Trainer. Like her brother, the Champion." She gave him a meaningful look, and Clemont nodded. They'd both had the pleasure of being beaten by his Greninja, and eventually his Garchomp as well. He didn't seem like the type to wield Light, though, as he very obviously favored the dark, like his starter.

Clemont sat back then with a familiar smirk. "There is another...did you hear we have super heroes now?"

That brought a slight smirk of her own to the blonde's face, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "That sounds familiar."

Clemont shrugged. "They may not be taking on Yveltal, avatar of Destruction, single-handed but they're doing alright against that...Venomoth Trainer. His outfit is silly, but he's pretty strong. I have a feeling he's the one responsible for hitting me with that Shadow energy. He might've gotten you, as well…"

She nodded. "Probably. The League isn't as secure as we pretend it is, but we don't really mind intruders. We're the Elite Four. If common thieves can take us down, we deserve to be robbed."

Clemont chuckled. "I'll never get why you enjoy it up there."

The silence grew as Serena avoided answering. She was a strong Trainer herself, and even after the surprise loss that, technically, lost her the Kalos Queen crown, people had expected her to return for the next cycle of contests. They had already begun though, and so far, neither Serena nor Jessica Gladstone had participated. Serena had ultimately ended up on the Elite Four when they called for a fire type specialist to replace Malva. After her adventures with Calem and the Legendary Pokémon of their region, the League had deemed her strong enough to apply, and from what Clemont had heard, she'd passed their tests quite easily.

The television in the room, a standard installment in every suite of Lumiose Tower, switched on automatically, as the local PNN reporter mentioned the Lumiose Gym, and the incident. It was more annoying than anything after so many weeks, but as Clemont moved to shut it off, he paused, and listened to the woman speaking.

"...for the attack on the Lumiose Gym has reportedly been sighted fleeing north, towards Galar. There is no word yet on whether the Galar region police will help detain the criminal, or give him sanctuary. All local Kalos police forces are currently giving chase before the criminal Dark Moth gets away."

Clemont glanced up as he saw Serena stand, and move to one of his windows. "Hey! Wait!"

But it was too late. She was already on her Talonflame, a larger individual of the species, as she was female. They soared northward in a streak of fire and Clemont, who had moved to the window by that point, grabbed her hat with his ever-useful Aipom arm as it flew off her blonde head. They weren't wasting time, it seemed.

He shook his head, and chuckled. "I'm sorry about that. The TV interrupted before you had finished changing, and she left rather quick…"

The black and purple clad fusion of a blonde haired Trainer and a Liepard melted from the shadows, and shrugged. He was a bit slender, but as Clemont took a second look, he noticed the so called 'Night Cat' did not skip leg day. Or ab day. Or any day, for that matter, despite still being a teen, or slightly older, he and his partner had been defending Kalos for quite some time now, since this Dark Moth first appeared. Night Cat still managed to keep a tan as well, despite the winter season."It's alright, I can catch her. I am curious though, who else do you know that can cleanse auras?"

Clemont grinned, and pushed his glasses up with one finger. The light hit them perfectly, hiding his eyes, and the blonde haired cat-lad sighed inwardly. "Your Ledi Girl of course! Probably. But failing that...there might be another who could help. He could catch that Venomoth...person, at least. He's fast."

The feline humanoid shook his head. "I already have a partner. Besides, stealth is important for our style of Battle."

Clemont chuckled. "Oh, don't worry about stealth. He's more than your equal, I think."

The blonde sighed again, turned, and found himself face to face with a legend, in his own right. Everyone in Kalos knew this Greninja.

Night Cat's smirk widened into a grin. "Oh. He'll do. Come on, froggy." He dashed out the still open window, once more leaving before Clemont could so much as utter a word.

The Greninja nodded at Clemont, and then vanished as he dashed forward with speed that few could match, quickly catching up to Night Cat. As Ledi Girl flew down with his bug wings to join the pair, the Greninja sped up even more, pushing himself to his limits as he chased after Serena's faint aura trail. He eventually caught sight of the comet that was Serena, though he knew he'd never catch up to her. Not without a boost.

As he reached for the link required for such a boost on instinct, the eyes, quite by accident, shared their sight with the human to whom he was bonded. Then, just like that, they were in sync once more, for the first time in years. Despite distance, despite their time apart, their bond had not eroded. Ash Ketchum's mind was there, so the Greninja fully embraced the power they shared as his form shifted with a flash of impossibly white light, and his speed quadrupled.

The Kalosian police in pursuit of the rapidly fleeing Dark Moth were rather good at taking down criminals with, primarily, Arcanine. As fast as their fire hounds were, the streaks of red and blue shooting past them far exceeded their pace. The Arcanine began sprinting as they realized the prey was about to be taken down. They knew how this Greninja handled villains, especially in that form.

This particular 'super villain' was, admittedly, much stronger than their usual targets. Kalos police could usually handle Mega Evolution, but whatever this madman had discovered, and then infused with Shadow, put him in a league of his own. He'd slipped through their forces in Lumiose with unsettling ease after being thrashed by the Champion. After being incarcerated for a few hours, he'd managed to infuse the Police Chief with Shadow as well, turning him into a puppet strong enough to distract the rest of the force as the suit clad criminal made his break for freedom. He'd kept up the chase from the capital for weeks, causing chaos across the countryside, though before now, he'd been much more stealthy about it. Apparently, the only way to reach wherever in Galar he was heading required speed over stealth. Thus, his final desperate charge for the coast line that even now left chaos in its wake.

Nobody chasing him considered that the villain might be audacious enough to try resisting. Not after so long running, at least. But resist he did, as he narrowly dodged the massive Water Shuriken that threatened to bisect him, and released a cloud of his spores into the air. To his surprise, they burnt to ash, as Serena's Talonflame burned them away with her Flame Charge. The fiery comet of a bird arced in the air, hurtling straight for the fusion of human and Venomoth.

Evidently, he shared a type weakness to the bug he partnered with, as the flames left him badly burned, and falling through the air. The Talonflame soon had him in her claws, and she returned to her Trainer, dangling the injured man before her.

Serena had no pity. "You're going to tell me where the others are. Now. Don't waste your breath on anything else."

The man chuckled, wincing as the sharp talons dug into him. The large beak moved close to one of his bug-like eyes, as her Trainer stepped closer. He spoke then, "I have...no reason to tell you anything."

She raised a brow. "You're not exactly in a position to deny one of the Elite Four...now talk!"

He chuckled again, seemingly ignoring the pain now. The darkness surrounding and corrupting his aura flared. "I may not be in position...but you are! Open fire!"

All at once, the unfolding scene became chaos, as three elemental Hyper Beams of water, grass, and fire typing surged towards Serena, her partner, and their captive. Behind them were, as expected, her friends. Shauna, Trevor, and Tierno were beside their starter Pokémon, a Venusaur, Charizard, and Blastoise, respectively, and each of them had an eerily familiar ominous purple glow to their eyes. One that still made her neck tingle. She hadn't let being possessed get to her, but seeing how it affected others for herself was profoundly unnerving.

She knew she was protected, as the bonded Greninja formed a pair of massive spinning Water Shuriken, one per fin, and deflected what he could from Serena. The Hydro Cannon spun uselessly against the powerful offensive attack turned defensive, and the Blast Burn fell to type advantage and the ridiculous speed with which the Ash Greninja was spinning his Water Shuriken. The Frenzy Plant almost hit him, until a dark purple and yellowish blur tore through the massive vines, and covered his flank with claws of ice. Night Cat didn't have time for a witty remark though, as the Shadow-infused plants continued to attempt to strike at him. Moments later, he too was aided by a pair of red and black spotted fists glowing with Light. Between the two fused Trainers, the ferocious attack from the Venusaur eventually ran out of steam.

"Fine. The hard way it is." Serena spoke as she raised her oldest Pokéball, and called forth her Delphox. "Psychic."

The fire fox grinned, raised her Ashwood staff, and hit the villain full force. The man's connection to his pawns was cut as his Venomoth wings took the brunt of the intensely powerful attack. The damage behind the attack was halved by the Shadow protecting him, but the force behind it sent him flying into the base of a nearby mountain. They were on a thin strip of land, surrounded by river on one side, and Kalos' final mountain, the last in the Mediterra range, on the other. The weakened and exhausted Dark Moth fell to the type advantage, and his form split once more into human and Pokémon as Venu (V-noo), his partner, ran out of steam.

Upon winning the battle, Serena had a moment to examine the help that had rushed to aid her. She knew this Greninja too, but did a double take as she saw his form, and then his eyes. The two stared at each other for an uncomfortably long time that nobody immediately around them had the nerve to interrupt. Ultimately it was the Kalos League's Elite Four member that rose first, and approached the downed criminal. No longer fused, he was far less impressive. His muscles lacked definition, but his body showed signs of battle damage, and not just from her. In truth, she had only dealt the last in a series of harsh attacks that had taken weeks to whittle this criminal's strength down.

"So they've found a way to infuse Shadow in Human auras..." She looked up as the bonded Greninja joined her, and nodded. Meeting his eyes again, she instinctively looked down to hide the rising redness in her cheeks. "I guess it's time, then..."

The Greninja looked up and to the left suddenly, but Serena continued anyway. "Will you be back for the World Tourn-" She stopped, as she looked up, and realized she was just talking to a Greninja. A good friend, a wise friend, that more than understood her. He placed a webbed hand on her shoulder, and nodded once. She nodded as well, eyes hardening, and turned back towards the man lying before her. Her Delphox joined her side, and a few moments later, Kalos police had arrived, and subdued their friends. Still infected with Shadow, some resisted the restraints as the raw emotions of hate and fury overwhelmed their better judgement in attacking an officer.

The Greninja hopped away as the situation around Shauna deteriorated, with several angry Arcanine readying Flamethrowers. She was fighting the officers cuffing her, and her loud tones filled the air. "I'm not into that stuff! Perverts! Get off!" Before her Pokémon, namely her own Greninja and Venusaur could get involved as well, one they all respected, to a degree, arrived to mediate.

"I want names and locations...I'm tired of chasing false trails." Serena spoke, and her Delphox growled in acknowledgement as the staff flared with a powerful deep red aura. She raised the staff and let the power flow, but the man before them simply laughed as the darkness surrounding him utterly dispelled the psychic power a second time.

"You want a name, little girl? You want a location?" He cackled again, and then went entirely still as the Shadow overtook him. His eyes radiated an unsettling Shadow aura that expanded from his glowing purple eyes in waves. Despite the enhanced possession, his face continued to smirk, and he spoke two words that made the gathered officers and Trainers flinch at the ominous reverb to his voice. "Morgana. Albion."

His chuckles grew into another laugh as he saw their expressions, and the direct control lessened, as Dark Moth was once more in control, with new orders. "I have one more word for you! Supersonic!"

The weakened Venomoth, apparently feigning a fainted state, flapped up suddenly, and the officers around it went still as they inhaled the dust from its bright wings. It aimed its mouth at the rest, namely Serena and the remaining officers, and loosed a screech that scrambled their world. By the time they could see straight, the man and his Pokémon had fled from sight, and given that they were in the wilderness, he could go any direction. Especially if he had other Pokémon. The word was that, in all the time they'd chased him, he'd only used a Venomoth so anything else he'd caught would be presumably ready to fly or battle as needed.

"Dammit! He got away again..." One of the officers growled, but Serena held up a hand, and the recovering law enforcement waited as she knelt low, and retrieved something from the ground.

"I just love it when they drop important things..." She eyed the Burst Heart, and spied the essence of a Venomoth within. A dark look came over her face. These apparently ridiculously powerful crystals, that induced a fusion between a human and their partner, as she understood it, were the source of Dark Moth's strength. According to the news, he had several in his possession that he'd stolen from Ledi Girl's care, but his Venomoth's was undoubtedly his favorite. "I wonder what happens if we remove the essence while its body isn't nearby...probably death, I'd imagine..." She turned to the nearby officers. "How many of your people did he kill?"

The officer blinked twice as he saw the look in her eyes. "None, actually...some serious injuries, but those were mostly caused by pursuit, not the man himself...Lumiose City is a different story."

Serena nodded, and pocketed the crystal, deciding she could determine who should have it, and when. "I need to find a way to cleanse my friend's auras."

"I think I can help with that." A new voice chimed in on their conversation, and the gathered police turned as one, and raised their Pokéballs. Some, namely the women among them, lowered their hands slightly as they saw who had arrived, and found themselves staring at, arguably, the most handsome man in the region.

Through no small effort, the Trainers infused with Shadow were brought before the new arrival. Calem, who had grown quite a bit taller since Serena had last seen him, knelt down to each of her friends, placed two fingers right between their eyes, and with a bright flash of energy that felt warm and shone like the sun, cleansed their auras of the Shadow's taint.

Serena followed him as he repeated the process for their Pokémon as well. "When...did you learn how to do that? I've only seen a Legendary Bird with that kind of power..."

Calem gave her one of his better smirks, and as usual, Serena found her cheeks matching her hat in color. "It's a...family trick. Only those who awaken the power in their blood can learn it."

Serena nodded. "So Xerneas did it." Calem nodded as well. "I suppose it makes sense...but wait, does your...does the King have this power too?"

"This, and several others, though he has a difficult time using them anymore. He only regained the Will to exist a few years ago, it takes time to recover from millennia of apathetic wandering. Thus, this is the only technique he was able to pass on in time. Using them multiple times in a row is especially taxing, and his recovery takes longer each time. Something we no longer have." Calem went on, as he usually did around her, spouting everything of import he thought she needed to know. It was something she enjoyed about the analytical mind of the Kalosian Prince, and what had made taking on the rest of Team Flare that much easier without Clemont, Bonnie, or anyone else from her first group of traveling friends. Shauna, Tierno, and Trevor had proven themselves too, and even earned a hero's award for their willingness to face down a legend that spewed death with each wing flap.

Serena's eyebrows came together as she listened. "Why are you in such a rush?"

The Prince chuckled, and looked westward. "Haven't you heard? Unova has called for aid in their war." Serena's eyes widened, and the prince nodded. "The King has been readying an entire legion of elite Trainers to rush to aid them. I am to lead them. The foe is apparently using mass-produced Shadow Pokémon, many Infused as mere Eggs, and the power to cleanse it has never been needed more."

The Elite Four Trainer's eyes went distant as she realized he too was leaving. Unova was fairly far, and Fornia even farther. "Well, good luck...don't die...I'd go but...we've seen how much use I am against the Shadow. Besides, I have League duties."

"Actually..." Calem said, interrupting anything else, "That's one reason I'm out here. The League has been trying to reach you. Japan is under attack too, and now the Pokémon League is involved. They're calling in everyone...things are bad over in Sinnoh...and every region north of Kanto has gone dark. The Kalos League is sending aid as well, though the Unovan Dragon redirected them to Japan, not Unova."

She nodded, and recalled her Delphox. "I see...so we're at that point already. Alright...let's go."

The Timekeeper's Grove - Selva Muerta

Time was a tricky medium, and Alex Redwood was fully aware that he had, at best, a minimal understanding of how it actually worked. Thankfully, he also had several mentors, each of whom spouted wisdom almost like clockwork each time they trained. The current nugget of wisdom his mind was nomming had come from the Rayquaza of the East, when he'd asked what to do, or how to behave, if he ran into a Celebi.

Evidently, the time traveler would only willingly appear in times of peace, and places full of life. If said life vanished from a place visited by Celebi, it had a habit of not returning until the flora regrew. It also apparently left a trail of blooming life behind it wherever it flew, but he personally doubted that bit. If life responded to its presence by growing, it wouldn't avoid scorched areas that needed such energy the most. With Legendary Pokémon, there was usually more to their powers than most humans guessed. Given Celebi's nature, his granduncle had theorized that it was stealing time from the plants it flew over, making them blossom yes, but also stealing their youthful energy in the process, presumably so Celebi could continue living. Its equivalent to eating.

In the grove they found themselves in, the surrounding areas were rather withered, with the grove being the exception. Though even its flora seemed weakened. The energy surrounding the relic stone in the center, a simple, pyramidal shape with tiered sides, was overwhelmed with darkness, and he didn't need to guess where it was coming from. The similarly tiered pyramidal fortress loomed over everything rather prominently, always in view.

The best way to cleanse a space's energy, he'd learned from the Dragon of Unova himself, was to have living beings, preferably Pokémon, radiate good feelings and emotions. Between the five of them, they had enough partners to heavily shift the energy of the space from one of impending death, to something else. The good vibes only flowed stronger when the Leaf smoking instruments were pulled out once more. All of them, even Shruikan, partook of the smoke, shielded from the wind by the massive wingspan of the giant black dragon.

The hours ticked by slowly, and the sun began to set as Rick made his rather delicious Berry Curry. Once everyone had eaten, the humans watched their partners drift off into Leaf naps. Jess had fallen into one as well, though she jolted awake at the same moment Alex abruptly turned his head towards the emanation those with psychic power suddenly felt. A distortion in the very fabric of the world. Their eyes let them see what was invisible to the others, and thus they silently watched as a Celebi floated out from the portal, glancing around cautiously. A smirk appeared as the psychic and grass type grasped what they had been doing in her grove, and she floated out towards the Pokémon yet awake.

The others grew silent, and nudged those sleeping back to consciousness, as they watched the Celebi appear from seemingly thin air. The time traveler looked at each of them, arching all the way backward in mid-air as she turned to try to take in the enormity that was Shruikan. The dragon actually nodded his head in respect, but sat quietly as he watched the time traveler. He'd become quieter since the war started, and especially on this journey, as he had time to mull over just how many humans he'd felled in their efforts to take the Kanadian Wall. He had discovered he wasn't alone in such thoughts, as the rest of his team had also seen genuine warfare, and not one had been left unscarred by the sights of death and destruction for human and Pokémon alike.

They, like their Trainer, understood the necessity behind all the death, but would never be comfortable with it. Pokémon more than most creatures understood that survival meant fighting, but humanity had, with eons of advancement, tactics, and ever more powerful weapons of death, turned the fight to survive into something else entirely. They called it war. When Shruikan had inquired as to just how many wars humans had fought against themselves, and heard the rough estimate, his opinion of the two legs shifted again. He was not the only Pokémon to wonder why the Alpha had given a second chance to such a violent race, but he continued to watch, as both Tao and Rayquaza had told him that there was much, much more to humans than their ability to kill each other in new and exciting ways.

Shruikan blinked out of his musing as he noticed the tiny fairy-like entity floating by his nose. The Celebi gave him a shy smile, and a pat on the nose. A feminine voice filled his head, and his alone. He did not share what the time traveler said to him, but his inner turmoil lessened, slightly. Then, finally, the eyes shifted to the humans. Alex stood with a swirling motion, and then bowed in the Unovan fashion after stepping forward several paces. The Pokémon's face had gone from smiling to unreadable, upon seeing the humans. "Time traveler...I am Alex Redwood, of Unova, and these are my companions, Jess, Svelka, Rick Astley, and Drake. We are here, in your home, on the precipice of another dark era, because we require your aid. The aspects of Zigma have tasked us with removing the Dark Nexus here, permanently, so that they may once more be whole. Will you aid us in our search for knowledge?"

The Celebi regarded him for a moment as she perfectly grasped what he said, and her mental tones were soft, feminine, but otherwise plain. "This is what they send to remove the Nexus?" Her eyes moved to Shruikan again on instinct as he purposefully adjusted his bulk. When she looked back, the human was smirking. "Very well...the locals of this land have referred to me in many time zones as Pacha. You may do the same. Now ask your questions, Trainers."

The two Unovans shared a nod and a look, and Alex addressed the mythical Pokémon. "According to the Rain Sage, we need to see how this Nexus was created if we wish to have a hope of stopping it. Can you show us without distorting the timeline?"

The Celebi eyed him again specifically, eyes shifting side to side as she read his apparent typing, and so much more. Finally, she nodded. "Do not touch anything, and stay out of sight...if you die in the past you cease in the present as well, and the Humans of that era, in this part of the world at least, were rather...brutal. If they see you, they will end you, and if you try fighting them, I'll end you. We cannot interfere, no exceptions. Everyone you will see is already beyond saving. Do not try to alter their fate, or you will prematurely end your own."

The group of humans shared a look, and then Alex turned back to the Celebi. "We understand. Once we arrive, we should find a safe place to Teleport back to. That way we don't have to be tempted to save ourselves." They recalled their partners then, all save for Alex's Gallade, who very much wanted to see the past, and was providing Pokémon eyes for the rest of his team to watch through. He knew how each of his teammates saw the world, such was their link, and with his power, it was a small effort to distort what he saw for them in a manner they were familiar with. Linked like this, they had the same view they would were they not in their balls.

"Arthur, stay close to Svelka, and the others. If we need to bamf out, you need to help them." The Gallade nodded at his Trainer, and gave another nod to the Norstad woman. Her lovely face was unreadable under her tribe's standard crested half-helmet, but after almost a week of traversing a humid jungle, the Gallade could sense she was ready for a real rest, in a hot spring, surrounded by females and only females.

Once they were ready, the Celebi raised her arms, and the gathered psychics watched as she pulled energy from the nearby Time Ripple, to open a smaller portal, just in front of them. "We will not have long, so move quickly!" The humans rushed towards the new portal, and the time traveling Pokémon followed just behind them.

The six humanoids emerged almost instantly into the past in the middle of a dark night, at the top of a nearby mountain peak. Below, Alex spied the grove they'd just left, though it was much harder to see, as it was surrounded by jungle. Evidently in the past, the flora was much more abundant, and indeed, it seemed much healthier than it did in the present. Even the mountains still teemed with life, and Noivern, judging by the silhouettes. Not far from the edge of those trees that no longer were in his era, he saw the mountain that formed the base of the tiered pyramidal fortress that played home to the Nexus in the present.

With a view of the past, he now made out other carved structures, an entire city almost, that had seemed to be all but completely weathered away in their time. He glanced at the Celebi as she joined them, floating beside Arthur. "Just how far back did we go?"

Pacha glanced around, and shrugged. "You wouldn't understand my calendar. Time tends to cross fate at many axes, so we should be near something interesting. Most likely, the start of the Nexus. When you travel the Time Vortex, you'll usually find yourself drawn into major events if you get careless. Only madmen jump in without a heading, but this time, we were looking for such an event, so it was relatively simple. Prepare your Teleports, and let us move with haste." The Celebi flew to each of them as they focused on memorizing the immediate area, poking them, and making their forms incorporeal. "I've moved you three seconds out of sync with time in the current era. The inhabitants will look right past you, as long as you stay quiet. Even if they catch a glimpse of you, their focus will shift from you easily, so if you think you've been seen, try to blend in, and they should return to ignoring you."

With that, the group set off towards the pyramidal top of the mountain fortress. Looking around, Alex realized he was seeing the southern continent in a very different stage of its life. The land was teeming with Pokémon, and what humans he saw walked through the jungle without constantly being attacked by them. The jungle seemed a lot more peaceful, compared to their time. The land itself felt different too, seeming more akin to Unova than the land of harsh survival he'd come to know over the past week.

They eventually reached the entrance to the fortress, following silently beside a slow moving line of humans dressed in rags and covered with bruises. They were being herded by other humans with pale skin, black armor that resembled a beetle, light blue eyes, and white hair. Some of their number lacked the hair, but they seemed to be apprentices, rather than whatever the people they were serving had become. He had a fair guess as to what they'd done to attain such visages. He could see the Darkrai hiding in their auras, surveying the prisoners as they marched by. The menacing eyes of each guard slid right over them, and even the Pitch Black Pokémon, it seemed, was powerless before the trickery of time.

Within the fortress, they came upon a truly gruesome sight. The people gathered, Texico West natives, by their clothing, were being marched up to an altar forebodingly covered in more lifeblood than one human could produce.

The four moved quietly through the straight entrance to the pyramid, which led directly to the central altar. Other doorways led from the pyramidal chamber that housed it, no doubt digging into the mountain itself below, but this central chamber was where these people were evidently attempting to create the Nexus. They split from the group of captives eventually, following a pair of guards who took up a post on the walkways that lined each wall of the pyramid's interior. They weren't lit up, in fact the entire chamber and area surrounding the fortress had been consistently dark. It had aided them in passing unnoticed, but now, they could just barely see the altar, and the area immediately around it, as it was glowing with a faint whitish energy. Alex grimaced as he saw what type it was, but stayed silent.

The gathered crowd of people eventually made it all the way to the staging area immediately below the altar, where its victims waited to be summoned to the top, and ended. A man appeared behind the altar, and gathered the attention of those below with a single snap of his fingers. He was garbed in a robe that was more purple than black, and he possessed the same unsettling eyes and white hair that his cohorts did. He appeared to hold some status though, as his robes were more ornate.

The man raised both hands, and in perfect Common, began orating to the crowd of captured victims. "People of Texico, welcome to our humble mountain home! Some of you may be wondering what fate could possibly await you upon a blood-soaked altar, and you are right to guess it is a rather gruesome one." Mixed looks of fear, and anger, came over the crowd, but the man continued on, his charismatic and even tone cutting effortlessly through their murmuring. "Let it not be said that we are cruel however, for before your lives are ended in the name of our glorious God, you will all understand His glory before facing the abyss!"

The people within the crowd shared a look, and a pause developed as the man by the altar received information from a black-haired underling. Alex turned to their Celebi guide, and spoke in soft, entirely mental tones. "This is the ancient past right? How are they all speaking Common?"

The Celebi chuckled silently, and responded in the same quiet manner. "Thank the Holder of Arceus for that. He may not have achieved world peace, but he gave the Humans of his future the two things they would need to unite. Battles of sport to test their skill and curb Humanity's bloodlust, and a language by which you could all attempt to understand each other. Many tongues once existed in your world, especially in these parts. What you are hearing is the direct result of a deity's meddling with time and space to fulfill a wish. Now hush."

The man atop the raised altar had nodded at what he was told, and then grinned down at the crowd. "You are all in luck! The moon is gone tonight, and the barriers between our world and the Shadow are thin...be glad, Texicans. Tonight, your lives will finally summon our God!"

"A curse on your false god!" A man shouted from the crowd. Another took courage from him, and shouted as well. "The people of Texico follow the Alpha Pokémon, and his Guardians! We will never bow to your pale imitations!"

The man in the dark purple robe chuckled. "Blind faith in the face of certain death…" He glanced up and behind him. "They may drain natural resources at an alarming rate and breed like rabbits, but you have to admit...these Humans have potential, under the right deity."

A pair of red eyes appeared from the darkness, and a silhouette formed from the shadows around them, but it was vague, lacking detail, and colored not unlike the Shadow energy they'd seen manifest thus far. Pacha floated backwards on instinct as she saw the eyes. "Oh no...no, no, no...we need to leave. Now!" She stared at Alex as her warning echoed in their heads. He gave her a blank look, as did the other humans. Seeing they needed prodding, she explained, while slowly urging them backwards, towards the exit. "That's the Renegade...no good can possibly come of being near it, and if it catches me, well...the universe as you know it is over. We leave. Now!"

The humans below the shadowed god cowered, as expected, but it was the unexpected and well-hidden shift in the chamber, as well as the faint tones of a psychic type's mental conversation, that drew the attention of the final member of the Creation Trio, and its gaze. The red eyes narrowed, and a genderless voice entered the head of each of the time travelers. The unfettered hate and malice in the tone sent shivers up the spine of each human.

"Do not leave...you are going to miss the show…"

The four began being dragged towards the ominous, massive figure but thankfully his pawn didn't seem to notice. The man was preoccupied with fashioning a blade of pure Shadow energy around his hand, sharpening it into a tool appropriate for murder. Pacha tried to stop their movement towards Giratina, but the obscured Legendary had them where it wanted them. A power darker than anything they were used to, and one that was entirely immune to psychic interference, raised them into the air of the pyramidal chamber.

One of the captured locals of Texico had been dragged up to the altar by that point, and made to kneel by a pair of black robed, snowy haired men with more bulk to them than they'd seen on the other figures with such looks. The man himself was as typical a native as one could get, with his reddish bronze skin, black hair, and relatively hairless body. He was pleading silently, offering what Alex realized after a moment was prayer.

His plea for help was never answered. The blade of Shadow came down on his neck, and the contents of his body spilled out onto the altar, giving it a fresh coating of red gore. The man in the dark purple robe raised the severed head of the man, and displayed it to the people below. They recoiled in disgust, which only seemed to make the man happier. He gave them a mad grin, raised his sword-encased hand, and snapped his fingers. Blackish purple flames lit the linear lines of the pyramidal chamber's roof, resulting in four straight lines of flame that coalesced at the top of the pyramid, and provided some much needed illumination to the pitch black interior.

The lights, while visually dramatic and impressive, were far overshadowed by what they revealed to the humans awaiting their turn at the altar. Each of the pyramid's four upwards slanting walls played host to skulls mounted upon metal spikes that had been carelessly driven through each of them, presumably dismembered prisoners of the past. There had to be thousands, and the humans out of their proper time could only stare in silence as they were forced to take the scene in. They could not even blink.

Alex's gaze shifted to the shadowed form of Giratina. Something still seemed off to him. Physically, the Legendary Pokémon seemed entirely focused on the ongoing, and equally gruesome sacrifices below, but there was more to this cosmos traveling entity than what he saw. Some part of the ghostly dragon was making sure that he and his companions saw every moment of this, though he could not rightly fathom why.

Despite that, Giratina still had a role to play that history, and their timeline, depended on having occur. It was as the second human lost her life, that Alex noticed. The eyes burned fiercer with every sacrifice, and as the minutes crept by, with them unable to do anything but watch, he noticed something else. Jess felt it first, but it was Alex who figured out what was causing her discomfort, something he'd become rather good at sensing, and fixing. The gravity in the room was becoming more oppressive with each lost life, but to the force keeping them suspended in the air, it was nothing. Still, the sensation on their own innards was uncomfortable, as gravity strove to force them down, and Giratina kept them stubbornly suspended in place.

One by one, the five humans, Gallade, and Celebi watched as the crowd of over a hundred human lives was sliced down to the single digits, until finally, only one remained. Young, old, weak, strong, there had been no differentiation made by the captive's butcher. They had each fallen, their life energy passing on directly to the half-manifested ghost dragon, and they had each had their skulls added to the long gore-stained poles that made up the majority of the macabre display on the walls of the pyramid. The people responsible for these acts, whatever they called themselves, had finished their final uncovered wall with the last of the sacrifices.

There was a pause as the last Texican lost his life as well, and Alex shifted his gaze to Giratina. Maybe it was the addition of firelight, and over a hundred human lives, but the shadowed entity seemed far more corporeal than it had at the start. It turned its hateful eyes to the human who'd eagerly played the role of butcher, and the man nodded again.

He turned to the two guards that had, in turns, dragged each sacrifice to the spot of their death. "Fetch the last one...the Emergence is upon us…"

Silence filled the chamber, as the two guards left, leaving only the purple robed man, who now had a robe covered in gore. He dispensed with it, revealing a similar set of shiny black armor that, from his perspective, Alex saw resembled a Liepard's bodily features. It made some sense, as the local cruel cats they'd come across had made the Unovan's look like common house cats by comparison with their bulkier frames, saber-teeth, and downright foul temper.

The man behind the altar, presumably the leader of what appeared to be some sort of dark cult, was not alone for long. Slowly, from each of the myriad tunnels leading below, other figures joined the man in the chamber. It took a moment for the temporally hidden humans to realize they were Pokémon. Not one of them lacked the dark typing, and at their head, floating before the altar over the space the captives had until recently occupied, was a Gothitelle. She raised both arms directly upwards, towards Giratina, and spoke with telepathy audible to those gathered. "Great one! We have prepared as you have asked! The next Successor has been chosen, and all is ready. With this, your freedom is a certainty!"

The eyes shifted from the executioner at the altar, to the Pokémon in question. She shuddered, visibly. Her god was, finally, going to answer her. Giratina leaned close, an easy feat, with a lengthy neck.

"Well done."

The two words made the Gothitelle faint in mid-air, or pretend to, but the focus of the chamber was drawn from her antics as Giratina's head moved to take in their new arrivals. Another pair of black-armored men arrived in the chamber, dragging between them a boy in the robes of an acolyte. He yet lacked the white hair of his betters.

Alex took another look, calling on Leo as he did. The Luxray's visual prowess illuminated the features of the young man they'd dragged in. His skin was a paler shade, though more sunburnt than tan at the moment. Facial fuzz covered his mouth in a circle, and the features of the face, high cheekbones, narrow eyes, everything seemed unnervingly familiar.

Within the space of his mind, he aged the individual a few years, accounted for a lack of sun, and more than a bit of cleaning up. The passive expression shifted to a dark grimace, and despite being held, Alex's fists clenched on instinct. The opportunity to wipe out one's enemy did not often parade itself so obviously, but he knew he had to resist, if they wanted to return to the time they belonged. He resisted thinking about all the lives he might save with a command and an arm movement. Out of sync as they were, which was all that was keeping Giratina from crushing them, the inhabitants wouldn't even see where the move originated. Each of the Scales realized this, and though they struggled against the power holding them, they stayed motionless as time replayed the events they had been so eager to see.

Other white-haired individuals flooded into the room now, taking a viewing position where their captives had stood before. They watched eagerly, each bowing as Giratina's eyes moved over them. They shifted to the distorted group of humans as well, but the intruders had ceased struggling against his power. They weren't worth the effort to kill. Not at a time as critical as this. Displaced as they were by the Celebi, he could do little more than hold them. For now.

The man who'd thus far been the executioner of the hapless victims raised his Shadow-bladed hand over the neck of the young Pravus, who'd been laid atop the still very much blood-soaked altar. He looked down at the youth, and spoke in grave tones. "Will you give all you have for Humanity?"

The younger human suddenly ceased struggling as, to the eyes of the psychics watching, a small piece of the Shadow within Giratina's aura attached itself to his, and sent him into a state of what seemed to their senses to be a euphoric, primal mix of arousal, rage, loyalty, and unwavering devotion to a greater entity. He made a movement hidden to the eyes of those watching. "My heart and soul to the cause!"

The blade came down, and the body grew still. Arthur, who had watched and engraved every single lost life into his psychic memory, had also seen every blade movement the man had made. He'd turned wholesale slaughter into an art form with his technique, and one had to admire how little his victims suffered, though it was entirely possible he was simply in a hurry, and not taking his time. Those who had tried to fight at the end had been slower to pass on.

It was as the blade came down, presumably for the final time, that the Gallade noticed it was in a different manner from every other merciless cut the man had made. The blade stabbed into the back of the young man who would one day become Caleb Pravus, and as it did, the Shadow in the older man's aura moved from him, to the body on the altar.

Giratina roared, and the entire mountain shook. The skulls lining the walls of the pyramidal roof began glowing with what little essence yet lingered, and the waves of normal energy shifted to ghost in the Legendary Pokémon's presence. Each otherworldly light flowed into the Renegade Pokémon as it cried out, and the onlookers stared on in disbelief.

In the light, Giratina split into two forms. One, affected by the gravity, manifested on the prime material plane, while the other yet remained a Shadow, trapped in the Reverse World. The two entities seemed to pull apart, until the shadowy one used its tendrils to draw the other back to it. It encased the ghostly dragon completely, and after a few moments, the massively heavy form hit the bottom of the pyramid again, shaking the mountain.

A fully materialized Giratina looked around the chamber, and the eyes were alight with Shadow, but those burning red orbs were still visible in its darkness.

"Finally...with this, all my plans are suddenly within reach…"

With a howling shriek that made everyone present cover their ear-holes, Giratina began to writhe, or rather, the corporeal one did. It seemed to have two heads for a moment, one real one Shadow, but the Shadow did not take long to regain control. It looked down at the corpse upon the altar as the foul energy sank back into the struggling Legendary Pokémon.

"Finish what you have begun…"

The corpse in question had, upon being suffused with the power and aura of a Darkrai, turned pale skinned. The hair once black was now entirely white, and had lengthened even, to the shoulders. The eyes had shifted from the white, brown, and black of a human to the green of one possessed by a Darkrai of varied color. Slowly, it rose from where it had been struck down, and raised both of the boy's thin arms. A larger pair of darker purple claws enveloped them, and from his perspective, Alex saw the young Pravus grin. It was a look he'd started to notice, and be unsettled by, more and more often, especially in times of war. The gleaming eyes of a human who had acquired new and unfamiliar power, and was gaining a hunger for more.

Purple and black electricity came down from the topmost point of the room, and struck the altar, which began shining with the accumulated normal typed energy of all those given to it. What little Giratina had not taken in directly had saturated the stones, and had continued to do so until the ghostly dragon had told them to stop. Now, what was left of the energy also turned to ghost as Pravus placed both hands on the altar.

The air gained a sudden and inexplicable weight as the gravity increased tenfold. A sphere of total darkness engulfed the altar, and Pravus, hiding him from the view of all present. After a few moments, the gravitational force increased again. The Shadow encasing the Legendary Dragon began to be sucked in by a forming whirlwind of dark energy, the natural byproduct of shifting so much normal energy to ghost typing. The foul clouds encircled Pravus' sphere with an ever increasing pace, until the entire inner area of the pyramid was filled with swirling black clouds. Suddenly, the sphere of black dropped, and Pravus leapt down to the other spectators, landing in a three point stance that left a small impact crater.

With another roar, the Giratina shifted into its flight-friendly form, and dove into the center of the forming vortex, while simultaneously returning to the world that acted as its prison, and inevitably pulled it back in whenever Giratina managed to leave.

The forces drawing Giratina and its dark passenger back to the Reverse World tore a hole in both space and time as the entity returned, and within, the Shadowmind finally let go of its ancient host, releasing Giratina as it prepared to find a new host. It traveled deep into the Reverse World, hiding easily from Giratina, who had become the Shadowmind's victim, and jailor in the uncountable millennia they'd shared this prison. Unable to separate the Shadow from the natural force of gravity and antimatter that was Giratina, Arceus had locked them both away. Now, ghost typed energy would enter the prison each time the humans on the other side of the new Nexus sacrificed yet more humans, and the Shadow as a whole would grow stronger as a result.

Alex and company found themselves hurtling outside the blood-soaked pyramid with a rapidly flying Celebi, just in time to avoid the chaotic backlash of energy that ripped through those who remained in close proximity. Once they were clear, and things within settled, Alex and the others approached the entrance, and looked within. The humans fused with Darkrai had been struck in numerous areas across their bodies, but even now those had begun to heal. A few figures began to rise. Those among them that still possessed common decency began the lengthy, but ultimately not too costly task of returning their fellows to life. The majority of those who'd managed to regenerate lacked decency, and thus sat back and waited with cocky smirks as the others slowly returned from the brink.

"We need to leave." Pacha insisted, pushing them from the entrance, and towards the cliff they'd come in on. The Celebi glanced at the sky. "As I recall, it did not take Zigma long to respond to the energy emanations here...we don't want to be around when she arrives…"

The time traveler's insistence led to no complaint from the humans, and indeed, upon reappearing in the present from the rapidly fading Time Ripple, the humans could see where Zigma had struck the once flourishing fortress. Most of the ruins had eroded by their era, but a few scars of the ancient battle remained.

Once back in the grove, Pacha bid them a short farewell, and returned through her original Time Ripple, on to a timezone not embroiled in war. Alex turned to Arthur and the others once she'd left. "Did you see what it did at the end?"

The Gallade nodded. "It went home, and linked the Nexus to the Renegade's prison. We cannot simply shove Light into it. That could end up opening a permanent hole to the Reverse World, and the effects on this land would only worsen."

By the time they'd returned, not very much time had passed, and the night continued on as normal as the present ever was. Alex fumbled through his bag for the herb-smoking instruments, and began unpacking them with practiced skill. "Obviously...we need a new plan. And when is the best time to plan, oh Gallade of mine?"

The psychic fighting type smirked at him. "At dawn, of course."

Jess plopped down on Alex again as he took the usual crossed leg position that was her chair. "It's settled. At dawn, we plan." Their partners joined in a circle around them, as they had earlier, always eager to partake of the smoke. Funnily enough, the effects had not translated across time zones, so while they had technically just finished a smoke session, soon enough for the bowl to still be warm to the touch, the effects had faded after the fear and adrenaline that came from watching history unfold.

Shruikan's leathery sky-darkening wings surrounded them, as they were more than large enough to encircle the Celebi's grove, and Alex gave the massive chin of the dragon a thorough scratch as he hit the piece one handed, and passed it onto the redhead using him as a chair.

Lab Ein - Fornia Region

A shadowy figure appeared in the large entryway of the hangar that supplied Lab Ein. It took the inhabitants a moment to notice, and it wasn't long before the entire room's soldiers had their energy stave weapons pointed at the intruder with varied lights of red, yellow, and light blue. "This area is for enlightened personnel only! In the name of Arceus, and his true Church, put your hands up, or we'll ruin your day!"

The command came from the evident leader of this bunch, a man whose armor was red rather than the standard white, for some reason. Wes looked him over again, and a dark smirk broke the otherwise impassive glare he'd been wearing for this. "Rosso...I had a feeling you might be here." Upon closer inspection, it seemed that the Crusader armor on the men under his command had indeed drawn inspiration from Cipher's aesthetic. The helmets were far superior though, as was the armor plating, and of course, the weapons.

The man in question held up his hand, and the glowing weapons, newly dubbed Power Staves by the Church, powered down slightly. "What!? Who the hell do you think you are? And how do you know my...oh Muk…"

Wes chuckled. "That's right. Round three...lets see if blind faith has made you less of a pathetic Trainer. Typho...Eruption!" The Pokémon appeared in a flash from where he'd crouched by the entrance, but the soldier's leader did not command an immediate volley. His gaze was locked on the Typhlosion that had once been his Cyndaquil. The same Cyndaquil that had gotten him a promotion to Cipher's Mystery Squad. The same Cyndaquil that he'd infused with Shadow energy once it evolved, thinking it would be unbeatable.

Unfortunately, he had not understood then that Shadow energy essentially made training useless. He'd been effectively stomped by this very Trainer's Umbreon and Espeon, and by the end of the battle, his partner was gone, snagged by a machine that should've belonged to them in the first place.

The Typhlosion met his gaze, and there was anger, but not the kind that had sent him into the Shadow. This was fueled by the shared desire between himself and his Trainer to prevent that foul energy from ever infecting a Pokémon again. Yet every time they closed down an operation using such Pokémon, they'd just pop up again a few years later. This time, they had decided to be thorough. Fornia had advanced the production of Shadow Pokémon into the low billions with their sheer factory power once Doctor Ein 'converted' to their organization, and the numbers only increased when Ardos, bearing Lovrina's notes, had joined Fornia after Cipher's second attempt at world domination. His contributions, while disdained openly by Ein, had nonetheless earned him a promotion to Hand of the Prophet, and Ein had used the notes regardless. The result had been a third variation of Shadow Pokémon, one far more difficult to purify with friendship and good feels. It required an egg to be prepared, but having a powerful tool that also gained experience from battling with the Shadow's power was invaluable to the strength of Fornia's soldiers.

As Shadow Pokémon had pervaded Fornia, the Church had given those who questioned the sudden increase in power, and decrease in kind emotions of the Pokémon to the Church's care. The running excuse for this behavioral shift was that this was caused by the 'blessing' the Arcean priests bestowed upon the Pokémon, turning them into righteous weapons of the Alpha Pokémon's vengeance. Naturally, anyone who'd been able to see such tainted auras, and thus the truth, had quickly disappeared, or fled the region, and the technology used to both identify and purify had been destroyed on sight once they'd taken over Orre.

The order to fire came several seconds too late, as the volcano Pokémon began prepping its signature move. The Eruption was quicker than the energy beams. Most went wild, as the move's fire typed power slammed into the human who'd subjected him to the Shadow so many years ago, and essentially blew that part of the hangar to rubble as it manifested an erupting mini volcano. Rivers of magma formed down the volcano the Pokémon had drawn up from the earth, as burning rocks filled the hangar with death, and the exploding transport aircraft took care of the rest. Wes and his partner strode through it unfazed, shielded by their Espeon's Barrier.

The move had seriously weakened the already vulnerable foundations embedding the lab in the mountain. Wes informed his partners of the imminent danger over their Holociever, and their time table moved up. They'd already confirmed what he'd expected. These servers had media news files, and little else. As per usual, the good stuff would be in the lab, no doubt buried deep under defenses and mountains, hidden from moral eyes. It was a theme with Ein's labs, ever since his first had been so easily discovered.

Wes continued moving through the base, alternating between his team of ten as their opponents varied their lineups. He was a ruthlessly strong battler, and he burned every human opponent to ash, after snagging their teammates. The ones who persisted, at least, by turning their weapons on him after losing a battle. The few who fled, he let go. Peons were redeemable.

Typho was as angry as his Trainer was, but these guards, evidently composed of a majority of inexperienced Power Stave wielders, were only the warm up to their desired target. Every other outward exit of the compound had, by way of his Noivern, been melted shut. The bat-like dragon now waited above, hiding in the darkness for their quick getaway.

Eventually, Wes discovered tunnels that went into the mountains themselves, leaving the shell of a heavily armed base to defend it from intruders. As per usual, the soldiers he came across supplied the needed card IDs to advance, though not one gave it up willingly, even after losing.

Eventually, he came to the true Lab Ein, an impressive affair that was suspended over a dormant, but still very much hot volcano. Protected from heat and intruders by an enormous glass pyramid whose edges dug into the sides of the rocky cone of the mountain, there was only one entrance, and all along it Wes spied Crusaders, ready for battle.

At their head was someone he had only heard rumors of. He hadn't been around for Ardos' attempt to revive Cipher, and without Doctor Ein's smarts, the 'un-purifiable Shadow Pokémon' had indeed been saved, but he reasoned that if the two had ended up in the same amoral cult, they'd likely perfected their projects by now. Ein had had plenty of time, after all.

The bridge leading into the pyramid of what appeared to be special glass, as it wasn't melting, was covered at its head by an impressive archway that doubled as a sentry lookout. Wes came up to it, and met the gaze of the man above. "Fire at will!"

Any hesitation he'd received from Russo was due to their history, it seemed. Evidently, the order was to take his head. He wished them luck, as he sensed his Espeon's mind meld with his, and together, they used their shared sight to dodge through the field of elemental energy beams.

As he spun horizontally over the last straight line of elemental death, Wes hurled a purple Pokéball marked with an 'M' into the center of the soldiers. Those who saw what now appeared in their ranks either cowered, or switched their staves to ice, but the first strike belonged to the Tyranitar. "Dark Pulse...wide spread."

The Pokémon roared in acknowledgement of his Trainer's command, and the dark energy formed a sphere in his jaws. It swirled, condensed, grew in size, and then launched a series of small, rapid projectiles made of dark energy into the soldiers, blowing those hit by the move to pieces with the kind of power that had made Pokémon more valued in war than firearms. Those he initially missed retaliated, and found their beams useless against Protect. They were then ended with a harsh Stone Edge.

For his part, Wes had charged with his Espeon, and leapt up to Ardos' perch. The powerful special attacker held the man with Psychic before he could so much as draw a Pokéball. Wes gave the cat a nod, and began walking towards his Tyranitar, past the carnage of his wake, and across the bridge. The Espeon held the man until they reached the bridge, at which point the psychic cat coldly stopped levitating him, over the lava pit below.

Wes held up a hand as he heard a familiar Psychic thrum, and spied the falling form of Ardos, levitated now by his Alakazam, saving himself from death once more. "Dark Pulse." The single, focused beam of energy struck the psychic type, and the two plummeted once more. Wes quickly threw a ball at the Alakazam, and the Snag Machine brought it into his care with a manifested claw of bright energy, focused around a Pokéball. His Espeon saved the other five balls, each of which was likely also infused with Shadow.

There had been much snagging on this mission already, and while he knew he'd probably missed some, he also knew trying to save them all alone was a lost cause, especially in a war. As always, he would grab as many as he could, open their hearts, and send them on their way. Those who wished to never again let another Pokémon be tainted, were the ones who stayed, and found true power.

Ardos mercifully did not last long in molten rock, and the three continued on past the bridge. As they came up to the door, Wes spied an irritatingly familiar card key slot, and glanced down again. "Damn. He had it on him, didn't he."

His Tyranitar assuaged his worry by empowering his tail with steel energy, and reduced the barrier to crushed glass and metal with a few powerful strikes. He gave his Espeon the phallic Melmetal hacking spike he'd used on the terminals in the 'lab' above to gather data from. The psychic cat would download their databases, including their current work, while Wes and the Tyranitar took the lead in distracting the Doctor. Of all of the Shadow Pokémon made by Cipher's first wave, none had been so thoroughly experimented on as this very Tyranitar, a pet project of Doctor Ein's.

It had taken a strange green-haired man claiming to be an Aura Guardian, who could speak with Pokémon, to tell Wes the extent of what exactly Ein had put them all through. Thus, he'd hunted the man for years, whenever he dared to leave his base. The base's location itself had, until recently, remained hidden to Wes, safe behind Fornia's strict border policies.

Vengeance was finally at hand now though, it seemed. None of the Arcean scientists had the fortitude to go toe to toe with a Tyranitar that furious, and as he recognized a few faces, Wes understood. His reputation preceded him. In his time he'd taken down Trainers and scientists alike. This time, they just ran. They found Ein at the top of the building's interior, smashing through every door and Trainer that decided to try to slow them down when they'd reached a lab terminal. His Espeon had become rather good at hacking databases on psychic intuition alone, as his instinct always led him to the juiciest information first, and if the enemy did somehow interrupt their download, all they would miss was extraneous data.

The Doctor turned, and sighed as he saw who had entered. Time had not been kind to him, nor had the Church, it seemed. His jawline bruises were relatively fresh, and his trademark hair flick had been shoddily chopped away, leaving an awkward raised clump as a remnant. He'd stopped combing as well, and the wild tangle of black hair, rapidly turning gray at the roots, suited him, as did the exhausted, sunken eyes. "Of course...it would be you...and with my Tyranitar, of all things. The nerve…"

Wes smirked, but his eyes had no pity left for this man. Not after so long, and so many Pokémon traumatized in his wake. "It's over, Doctor...from now on, you will never again make a Shadow Pokémon...Blizzard!"

The Tyranitar opened his maw once more, exhaling a furious flurry of icy death towards the human he had zero reservations about harming. He had seen all the others, fellow Pokémon of all genders and ages in those days, one by one, turned to the Shadow, and all the while the Doctor had continued 'perfecting' his masterpiece.

Despite his rage, the ice didn't reach the smirking, aging human, who had reached for and subtly pressed a large red button on his console moments before the strike. As he did, he finally noticed the Espeon that was hacking his database. The AI interface in his workstation gave the 'Download Complete' tonal signal, and the smirking psychic cat Teleported away with the data spike in its jaws.

The Doctor angrily slammed his workstation, now devoid of data, as the heat in the room suddenly grew more intense, and the ice attack, for all its power, was essentially melted into a harmless puddle. The Tyranitar and his Trainer narrowed their eyes in unison. Wes glared at the Doctor as he recognized the terrain effect now taking place all around the cone of the volcano. "Tell me you didn't…" Deep veins of red pulsed along the rock, and he had a strong idea of what was coming.

"The key to a perfect Shadow Pokémon…" The Doctor said, straightening as he turned with a hint of mania in his voice, "Is to make them as strong as they can possibly be, before infusing them...and then once infused, have the door to their heart almost opened, and then shut again, no less than ten times! Until the Pokémon understands that it will never be free of this rage, and power. Not surprisingly… Primal Reversion makes Legendary Pokémon, usually so heroic, far more susceptible to the Shadow…" Ein grinned down at the Tyranitar. "You were only a prelude to this, even Cipher itself was little more than a setback...now, be burned away by the true power of my work!"

There was an all too familiar roar from below them, and Wes sighed. Only Ein would bury a Shadow Groudon underneath his lab. He eyed the Doctor again, and began to understand. This was his line in the sand...he would finally win here, or be burned away, likely by magma, which even then was rising.

The heat was intense, and the two humans were sweating profusely as the lab was turned into an oven by its proximity to a Legendary Pokémon that really should've been asleep. Ein leapt backwards, atop his workstation, and pointed at Wes. "This is the man! We had Realgam Tower for a day thanks to him! Wipe him out! Precipice Blades!"

Wes swore, as he understood he needed to pull back. The mountain shook as the angered, Primal Groudon's eyes focused on him through the lab's giant window, and summoned the power. Surprisingly, this Groudon was not red, but rather a deep black, and radiated an aura of rage and Shadow that even he could see traces of, such was its strength.

Wes had his Tyranitar charge through the glass, which had finally started to melt under the desolate heat, and he recalled his partner as they jumped out over the bridge below, and landed. He glanced back, and saw four massive earthen spikes rise through the bottom of the lab, breaking it easily. The bridge he was standing on began to groan as the structure descended into the lava, and Wes quickly moved to the rocky edge of the mountainous interior.

He thought perhaps the move might've caught Ein with it, but alas, the mad Doctor appeared atop the Groudon's head after a few moments, and with a manic cackle, the pair rose towards the rock-covered top of this long dormant force of nature.

Walker and Geralt had made a similar retreat after Wes's warning, and had been encircling on their flying types, alongside his Noivern. They'd been told that some kind of large explosion would likely happen, and that if Wes did indeed go in solo, they would help him better by waiting for his vengeance to run its course.

They figured said vengeance had gone poorly, when the mountain erupted with all the fury of a Primal Groudon. They quickly ascended over the thousands of flaming, burning rocks, and past the rising cloud of ash as well. The two shared a look, as they spied a man in a lab coat, with white armored plates beneath it, atop the head of the Legendary Pokémon. Evidently this Doctor Ein didn't care that he'd just taken out the shell covering his lab, and everyone inside of it.

They saw him point, and the Groudon answered his command with an Eruption. Chunks of metal slag that was once a lab now filled the sky alongside yet more rocks, and the surrounding area, which had thus far been unaffected by the firestorm to the north, now joined it, and made the ash cloud as a whole that much larger.

His target had evidently been Wes, as the Noivern had, upon seeing the man responsible for infecting him with Shadow, raced down towards him, only changing course at the last few moments when he heard his Trainer call for him.

It wasn't long before Wes was on the back of his newest dragon typed snag, one that had proven quite strong, once purified. Like most modern Shadow Pokémon not captured as an egg, he'd been trained to a decent level of power, and then boosted with Shadow. The accumulated years of experience build-up had driven the relatively new party member to a level that almost matched the rest of their team. Evidently now was the time for him to pull his weight.

"Extremespeed..." The Noivern gave his Trainer a nod, as he inhaled deeply, and made the cones of his bat-like ears shift direction, and invert. With a boom, they shot towards the Groudon, namely the Doctor, as sound was expelled behind the dragon, sending him and his Trainer hurtling towards their opponents. His aim was just shy of the Doctor, but he hammered the Legendary Pokémon's skull with surprising strength, enough to shift even its colossal weight.

Reeling, the Primal Groudon focused on the now poorly positioned dragon type, and as it rose to fly away, the massive Pokémon raised a claw, and Shadow energy surged forth around the four of them, forming a barrier of darkness, and preventing their flight.

"Oh no you don't...Shadow Break!" Ein's voice had kept its manic tone, though now irritation had sunk in. He'd be set back quite a ways after this, all of Fornia would feel the loss of the lab. Moreover they would soon also learn that most of the quicker fleeing scientists, who'd hauled tail as soon as they'd watched the Snatcher stride through their workplace with a Tyranitar, had offered themselves to Geralt and Walker's mercy, in exchange for their expertise. Geralt had found a way to send the Original Dragon a message via his own Espeon, and the Legendary Pokémon had transported them into the arms of Unova.

The shadowy fist, which had now manifested even to Wes' eyes, came slamming down onto the Noivern, who'd dumped his Trainer from his back, rather than flee. Wes recalled him as he fell roughly ten feet, landed hard, and summoned his ace in the hole. That particular partner would no doubt draw Ein's interest. He hopped atop the back of the rock and dragon typed raptor that had been playing the role of ace in the hole in his squad for several months now, and had proven himself invaluable in keeping Orre in the fight. Whatever Ein had done to this Pokémon, it had made him as fast as a Lycanroc, with the capacity to hit twice as hard, and he hadn't even evolved yet.

The Doctor was quite obviously fuming, and sweating, as he was standing on a Groudon. He didn't seem to care at that moment though, as his near-perfect genetic masterpiece took the field, took the Snatcher on his back, and then began leaping across the smaller, nearby mountains in preparation for an attack, likely another Earthquake.

They skirted just around the barrier's shadowy edge, and Ein called another command that they were too far away to hear. Shadowy flames came their way in a torrent of fury, but the Veloraptar once more proved just how agile he could be. They did not strike though, and continued dodging the flames, to Ein's evident and increasing frustration.

Soon enough, they ran out of room to run, as much of the massive area the Shadow Hold encompassed now burned with purple flames of Shadow that eagerly reached for them whenever they came close. With a final leap, the raptor met the Shadow barrier with his feet, and using it for rapid redirection, launched himself at the Legendary Pokémon.

His Trainer hurled a familiar purple ball, the very one that Ein had seen, from the safety of Realgam's stands, snag his masterpiece of a Tyranitar. A dark look came over his countenance as he realized the Snagger's plan. "You bastard Trainers...and your damned STAB…" The truth was that his Groudon had taken far more damage than he cared to admit, and it seemed like Wes was looking to knock the Legendary out, and then snag it. Such tactics, like capturing fainted Pokémon, were usually frowned upon, but Wes had zero Muks to give. This was war, and victory meant survival.

The Tyranitar reappeared with a roar, appearing almost twenty feet in the air, understanding his role as he took in the battle, and made his move with the momentum his ball had shifted to him. He slammed into the ground just before the shattered mountain the giant Groudon was still standing in, and the ground responded to his power, shaking the entire chain of smaller mountains with its fury as the energy was guided into slamming the Groudon once more. The cone of his volcano, what little remained, shattered, and the steaming, wounded primal Legendary began stomping angrily towards the Tyranitar.

The barrier of Shadow keeping them low in the air fell as the move struck home, but not before Ein shouted a counter-command lost beneath the roar of pain from the Groudon. One of the Legendary Pokémon's claws lit with fighting type energy, as it charged his Tyranitar, and sent the massive beast flying as the move connected.

Wes had taken to the sky once more, this time on his Skarmory, and recalled his fainted partner before he crashed into a mountain from the force behind the quadruple effective move. It seemed Ein could play to type advantage as well. The transferred inertia nearly ripped the ball from his hand, but thankfully, Master Balls could handle such stress. Wes looked the Groudon over again, only to notice that the human on his head was administering a familiar potion.

He swore, as he recognized a Full Restore, and he contacted his support. He was two powerhouses down against a revitalized legend. He might as well use the aid he'd been given. Geralt and Walker swiftly joined the fray, as did Ein's other Pokémon soon after. A Gyarados and Rhyperior joined the Legendary, each undoubtedly sporting the same Shadowy curse, and battle was joined.

Anything resembling the rules of combat quickly fell apart into utter chaos, as wide-area Shadow moves whittled down their strength, and kept them from fleeing. It seemed that Ein had mastered using Shadow moves and had even come up with a few new ones that Michael had never reported seeing. The battle raged for almost two hours, before the Doctor and his opponents had exhausted their store of potions, and their final partners were on their last legs.

Surprising no one, Wes's Umbreon and Espeon were the last standing on his team, though the revivified raptor was still acting as his method of avoiding Legendary scale attacks, and Geralt was down to just Ghost, who he was riding to avoid flaming rocks and lava. Only Walker still had all three of his partners, though he stayed on his Pidgeot, keeping it from battle as his monstrously strong Tauros and Sandslash abused the advantage of the Primal Groudon's single weakness with yet another series of Earthquakes and same type attack bonuses.

The area around the lab, for at least thirty miles in a circle around the now volcanic crater, had been turned into an inferno of ash, fire, and shattered ground. Other Arceans had appeared over the course of the fighting, drawn by the eruption, but the three humans Tao had assigned to this mission could handle peons.

Like an increasing number of Pokémon the world over, this Groudon had not been limited to four moves either, and its rampage seemed unstoppable. Out of Revives and potions, the three men gathered for a final stand against the beast, alongside their partners.

Over the course of the battle, Ein's boots had slowly started fusing to the heated Groudon's black scales, effectively sealing his fate to the enraged Legendary. Everyone was exhausted after the ferocity of the fight. Even damaged as he was, the Groudon had not relented. It was uniquely colored, Legendary, and infused with the most advanced methods of Shadow Infusion to date. Ein had crafted the perfect beast for defending his lab, but the three men the Original Dragon had launched at him, not unlike an arrow at a perceived weak point in Fornia's armor, had stymied his plans in less than a day, again, and now his strongest weapon was on its last legs.

The Doctor reached for a Max Potion, finding only one, but as he tried spraying it, the bottle fell to pieces, and the coagulated boiled contents of the potion covered the front of his robe with an appropriate yellowish smear, amidst the black caused by the rain of ash he was all but standing in constantly, thanks to Groudon's height. The Doctor looked across, from what remained of his mountain, to the only slightly scorched tops of the peaks nearby, where his enemies had retreated to in the massive wake of the lava and Shadow attacks.

Wes and Geralt were speaking, and then, a grin came over the Snatcher's face. Ein didn't fancy himself a lip reader, but "Do it" wasn't exactly hard to make out. Ein slowly raised an eyebrow as the two other men with him, reported as members of the International Ranger Force that had taken to being irritatingly effective all across the globe, raised their arms, and began tracing a pattern in the air, or rather, practicing it. Then, he saw their fingers begin to glow, as they traced the same pattern again, in perfect sync, and left the glowing emblem hovering in the air between them.

Ein had focused mostly on Shadow Pokémon throughout his career, but even he had heard the rumors of the Rangers supposed 'secret power', which put them on par with the Aura Guardians of old. The ability to summon Pokémon, if they knew the Sign for it. A familiar cry, one which had often echoed in his dreams immediately after leaving Cipher, rang through the air. From the first embers of the rising sun in the east, just under the cloud of ash covering the sky, marking an end to the tumultuous night, came a comet of Sacred Fire. A similar ball of fire had ruined his boss' and thus Ein's, chance of continuing with their plans. Instead of slamming into a helicopter, this time, it took the form of a massive multicolored bird, and landed behind his three foes, leaning down towards them.

"Shadow Fire!" Ein shouted, before they could get comfortable and start talking, sharing power, or handing out magical game-ending items. The mystical bird turned its eyes to the fire typed attack, and as the flames purified, they seemed to think better of striking Ho-Oh, the source of what many called the 'Sacred Flame' by avoiding it entirely and fading into nothing. It was an old story in the western regions, but one that claimed the Trainer who could tame Ho-Oh would gain the secret of its powerful fire, along with immortality. Naturally, the greed of anyone seeking such a thing kept the bird from being so much as sighted for many years, until word of it had turned to legend in the face of limited human lifespans.

While not as active as its counterparts on some continents, the northwestern hemisphere's guardian, who'd had one of its favored trio stolen by this very man, now decided to get involved. They had tainted the Guardian of the Sea in these lands, which very much needed the presence of a Lugia. Though the Lugia in question had indeed been saved from the Shadow, the man-made rot had persisted, and the sacred bird had done as it always had, since the First Dragon tamed the continent. It minded its own business, and out of that lack of attention, the Shadow had flourished. No longer.

The Legendary bird eyed the three humans, and the red eye centered on Wes. A feminine, but no less thunderous voice echoed in his skull with, at his best guess, a volume that matched Tao. "Long have you been fighting the Shadow…" Memories came rising to the surface, but none of it was worth remembering before a certain event which occurred not long after he decided to leave Team Snag'em. The acquisition of the item that had made him a legendary Trainer among those who called the Orre region home.

His mind was once more drawn back into the same cycle that had been fueling his state of fury, as he remembered his first journey. As before, he determined Ein was irrevocably, unequivocally, responsible. For all of it. He glanced down at his left arm, as it began tingling, though not from any natural stimuli. His Snag Machine was shining. Cracks appeared in the casing, golden light shining from beneath them, and in an instant, the device that had been on his arm for years now, shattered to pieces. He knew where the power had come from, and he glared up at the Ho-Oh.

"How am I supposed to save that Groudon now? You just doomed us!" Wes swore colorfully, and turned towards Ein, and his partner. The Groudon was still panting, but he knew better than to give an enemy a chance to catch their breath.

"All I did was release the restraints on your power. You no longer require such a device." Wes turned back to the bird, as the angry look deepened at her words.

"I don't have magic powers. I can't burn the Shadow from Pokémon with a wave of my hand." Wes swore again, and then whistled to his last two Pokémon. They joined him, and he began to walk towards the 'path' down their chosen peak.

"Would you like to?" Ho-Oh asked. The Snatcher stopped in his tracks, and again met the bird's gaze. Patient as stone, she had not moved. "You have snatched thousands of Pokémon by this point. Have you not wondered at the energy that fuels their snagging and purification?"

Wes turned completely. "Celebi does it. It's Time Vortex energy, used to revert the Shadow infused cells back to normal, once the Pokémon's mind lets its body achieve a measure of homeostasis, of course. Usually through a bond with a Trainer, as its heart opens, the darkness is purified."

The Legendary bird's rainbow feathers ruffled as she made her version of a chuckling sound. "Almost...but not quite. You Humans have come far in the fields of scientific understanding, but you yet lack the ability to understand just how many types of energy exist."

"Nineteen." Wes muttered, unamused.

"That you know of." There was mirth in the voice, but it seemed the bird was finally going to stop irritating him, as it leaned forward, and gained a serious look in its eye once more. "Listen well, little Humans." Geralt and Walker leapt a foot in surprise as the voice, which had not reached for their minds before now, as Ho-Oh pulled them into the mental web of conversation at the speed of thought. "The dimensions of Time and Space, and those who maintain and make use of their awesome power, can always be traced back to the Light, and the being who resides at the center of it. For He is the one who created, and ordered them, such as they are." A look of surprise came over Wes' face as he processed the bird's words. He could've sworn the rainbow phoenix was smirking at him, but then, birds didn't have lips. "You have been using the Light the entire time...all your machines did was tap into what was residing in the Vortex's energy, and draw out the powerful purifying qualities within. If you do not believe Humanity has come far enough to manipulate Vortex energy, you need only ask your flame-haired friend why his backpack is bigger on the inside, for proof."

With that, the Legendary Pokémon once more ascended into the air, and leveled a gaze at the Groudon. "Go...I grant you the means to save as many of those fallen to Shadow as you can. All three of you. Do not abuse your gift, it will not be given again." As the calming feminine tones ended, the three men looked up at the majestic sight of a Ho-Oh in flight, and even through the ash-covered sky, a pillar of Light forced its way through the cover in a very bright, very obvious beam from above. The three gasped in unison as they felt it, a brief surge that caused their hands to shine gold, and their bodies to be filled with a genuine sense of peace.

Geralt looked nauseous, Walker had a calm, knowing smile, but Wes was smirking. He let the power fade, then summoned it again. It appeared as a sort of claw around his hand, one that seemed very familiar. The smirk widened, as he realized Ho-Oh had not been as full of it as he'd assumed. Walker had managed a similar test of his power, though for some reason his beard had initially shone with the Light, rather than his hands. It moved to his limbs as he realized he could control it, and being a martial artist, shifting the energy became rather easy for him. All four limbs began shining gold as the Ranger prepared for yet more combat, by dropping into a martial arts stance.

Ein had a good view from his all but welded position atop the Groudon's head. He'd stopped feeling the painful heat a while ago. Unable to stop Ho-Oh's benevolence, he was not surprised when his three foes, now glowing with the force that was apparently the polar opposite of the Shadow, began charging towards him. One atop his own creation, no less. He watched the Ho-Oh depart, and grinned. It was not the first time a Legendary Pokémon had underestimated his ability to come through unfavorable situations intact.

As the Doctor looked beyond his charging opponents, up at the Ho-Oh in the sky, and then down again in defeat, something caught his eye on the horizon. The look of grim acceptance of fate changed, and the Doctor began laughing like a madman. The Groudon's exhausted, furious eyes shifted to the human, and the Doctor composed himself as he drew a Dark Ball from his stained lab coat. "Return, Groudon."

The three light wielders charging the madman stared in genuine surprise as Ein recalled the massive Pokémon, easily over a hundred feet tall, into his ball. The man who'd been perched atop him began to plummet. He hit the ground long before they got close to him, and it was Wes, atop the revivified raptor, who found the man's broken body, still clinging to life.

The Doctor had blood leaking from his mouth, as was common with internal organs crushed by the power of gravity. He grinned weakly up at Wes. "You're too...late...they're here, you fool…you're all...dead." Wes looked behind him immediately and gave Geralt and Walker a signal to halt. Still some distance behind, they did. It didn't take long to understand why.

A single, rather massive sphere of technological death, colored entirely black, descended over the peak they had just occupied. With it, came old Earth style fighter aircraft who blotted out the sky. Their numbers had been diminished by clashing with Nate's unbroken string of victories, and sabotage, but there were still enough that had been based in Fornia to handle three men. Wes and the other two regrouped by the fallen Doctor, recalled their partners, and took up defensive positions, desperately hoping their newfound power would defend them. It did, forming a shield over their kneeling forms as the aircraft came screaming towards them.

Their pilot's aim was about as good as the rest of the Crusaders they'd fought here, but thankfully, Dark Balls appeared to become useless when hit with enough Light. After several useless strafing passes, the pilots realized what was happening, and moments later, they ceased their run, and the black orb began moving towards them.

A viewscreen of sorts slid upwards as it came within five feet of them, revealing Caleb Pravus himself, chilling comfortably on what looked like a stone throne, fitted to the sphere's insides. The classically villainous looking man was grinning entirely too confidently. Geralt groaned. "If I have to listen to another speech, I'll save you the trouble and end myself now."

There was a new hardness to the Prophet's eyes, or perhaps that kind of glare was only for the battles that weren't public. "You couldn't have possibly expected me to ignore such an obvious incursion in my own back yard. I assumed Ein could handle it…" He glanced at the broken pile of coughing, mad Doctor in the nearby Groudon footprint he'd landed in. "But it seems not, and now, you all have awakened the power as well. It's about time things started kicking off…"

Darkrai-esque claws sprung out from either side of the sphere as it zipped forward in less than an eyeblink. The grinning Prophet made a motion with his arm from within the sphere, and with the Shadow, pulled a single ball from Wes' belt as he passed by. The other hand made short work of Geralt and Walker as it smacked them with a wide, open palm. The two endured the hit with the Light, but were tossed a fair distance away, where they hit the ground hard, and rolled to a groaning stop.

The Prophet glanced around with an almost paranoid movement of his head, and then summoned the revivified raptor from the snagged ball. His floating death sphere was radiating an aura of visible Shadow, and now that it was closer, Wes spied a familiar pair of hateful eyes staring down at him. Only one Pokémon had eyes like those, though they seemed half real, compared to the sphere they were hovering above. Still new to seeing such things, he didn't recognize that the Darkrai was suffusing the shell, not the man.

The raptor snarled, and lunged at the ceraglass protecting the sphere. It was a credit to his claws that he managed to scratch it, but the thickness and durability of Imperium blending techniques was second to none. Expensive, for foreign entities, but not for a cult that profited from 'donations' that was over ninety percent of their peon's paychecks. The raptor's eyes went blank as a sphere of dark energy immobilized him in a waking nightmare.

"Remember…" The dark-haired man said with a grin. His goatee helped make the obvious evil theme he had going that much more intimidating. "Remember what you were...understand what you are…"

After several minutes, the raptor's eyes blinked back into focus, and regarded the man. By that point, Wes had been joined by the rest of his squad, but the barrier of Shadow from Pravus's machine kept them from interfering in the closing of the raptor's heart. He had grown strong as a part of Wes' team. The Shadow would make him terrifying.

Once the raptor was fully snared, the ceraglass shield rose, and Pravus himself reached out to his lab's creation, holding a Draco Plate. It had taken a while to arrive, but they had found more than enough dragon shards to make a full Plate by strip mining Pineus Peak, though even their knowledge had proved futile in replicating or otherwise shifting the form of the Plate. Reforming it had been all they could achieve. The divine object soared from his hand and attached to the raptor's chest area by itself. Then, it started to glow.

The raptor's vertical irises went wide as the power of his blood was awakened by the power inherent in the ancient human's devices wrought from shards of fallen Alpha Pokémon clones. The rock-like protrusions, as well as the typing, vanished and left the Pokémon part dragon, part something else entirely. Where the rocks had fallen, his skin had turned from mottled brown to a darker shade of black, and now seemed to be covered with a subtle layer of what looked like feathers. The teeth peeking from his elongated snout grew sharper, the claws lengthened, and the Pokémon's body as a whole gained several feet of height, and filled out with bulging, tensed muscles.

The barrier of Shadow fell, once the deed was done. The Prophet lifted his hand from the raptor's head, and then turned him on the three men who were now being surrounded by Crusaders in armor that, in comparison to what they'd faced thus far, seemed to be some kind of improved version of the standard Crusader battle armor.

Being somewhat experienced with finding themselves in situations where they were surrounded and outnumbered, the three men chosen by the Dragon of Unova had a fallback plan for this kind of scenario. Geralt pulled his last pair of regular Revives from a bag pocket and tossed one to Wes. Upon learning they both had Espeon, they had instructed their psychic cats, who seemed to get along, to work together if necessary to ready a last-ditch Teleport. Geralt had no intention of being a prisoner again, and neither Walker nor Wes had a desire to go through what Geralt had told them of in as little detail as possible. The scars he'd shown them had said enough.

The now seemingly rabid raptor charged them as the two revived, and still very much hurt Espeon focused their mental powers. Together, they could recall to a location their Trainers had both visited at some point, which in this case was Rosa's southern command center, a Pokémon Center that had been caught in the fighting early on and turned into a bunker of sorts as the war progressed through Texico East.

Being one of the only Pokémon yet ready for battle, Walker's Sandslash protected their little group with a Rock Tomb, as beams of fire, ice, and electric energy shot towards them. They hammered the defensive boulders hard, but as the Veloraptar came close, they could see the rage in his eyes. Wes knew he'd have no problem leaping their boulders and tearing them to shreds.

As he looked up, ready to try a last-ditch snag on his newest partner, he instead saw Ho-Oh. She winked at him, and a cylindrical barrier of rainbow light repelled the leaping raptor. He slashed at the barrier twice more, before settling to slowly stalking around it, waiting for a chance to smash it, and destroy those within, as he'd been commanded. It did not take long for his chance to come.

It all seemed to happen at once. A Dark Ball, launched from the once-more enclosed black sphere protecting Pravus, hit the Ho-Oh in the sky, and pulled the rainbow Pokémon into its dark depths. There was an ominous tone, like a bell, as the ball dinged shut, and infused its occupant with Shadow energy. The rainbow barrier disappeared, and the raptor leapt, finding himself face-to-face with an Ultra Snag Ball empowered by the Light.

None of the Arceans saw whether the ball captured their newest acquisition or not, but by the time they got close enough to look, the three men were gone, as was the raptor.

The obsidian sphere 'touched' down, hovering inches from the ash-covered terrain as the front part of it opened, and filled the surrounding air with a truly foul odor. The Dark Ball thrown from the sphere zipped into the Prophet's hand, and he pocketed it with a grim look. He'd been so close to retaining the raptor, but with a Ho-Oh as a prize instead, it was an equal trade-off. Without Ein, he couldn't make full use of the raptor anyway, properly typed or not.

Two of his soldiers accompanied him as Pravus made his way by foot to the broken, wheezing form of Doctor Ein. He stared down at the broken man with a look of contempt. "There he is...the fallen Doctor Ein yet clinging to life...fetch a medi-pod."

"Yes, my Prophet." The two soldiers moved quickly to do as commanded, and Pravus knelt down to Ein, who weakly raised a hand holding a Dark Ball.

"The Groudon...is still ours...but the lab is...gone." He didn't mention that they'd gotten its data. The Prophet nodded, and took the ball from his hand, pocketing it as well, as the soldiers returned with the pod in question. Like most modern vehicles, it was equipped to float just above the ground, and made harsh terrain one less problem to deal with. Ein would be crooked, and he'd need new legs, maybe new innards, but his brain was intact, and that was all Pravus had ever required from him.

The Arceans then returned to Sacreus, and continued to wait for the continent-spanning cloud of ash to make its way east. They had been tracking the progress of the cloud for months, and with this latest generous addition, the early reports said it would be more than enough to cover everything, as the Prophet had wanted, thanks in no small part to the mid-winter winds driving the war, and the current stalemate. All across the front lines, those in combat, and those sick of freezing their genitalia off, had slowly become accustomed to the ashen snow, until they stopped caring about it entirely.

With Tao distracted by everything else he needed to coordinate in order to give the new Dragon Empire a fighting chance, he'd overlooked the ash as an unnecessary weather effect, added for flare and intimidation more than anything else. To one who could clear the skies with a single roar, or several if he felt compelled to clear the entire continent, such things were better left to be dealt with until they became an issue. Occupied as he was, he did not have the energy to spend on cleansing the skies of ash, and thus the Prophet's plans came ever closer to a head.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 31: The Awakened Legend

The Timekeeper's Grove - Selva Muerta

Dawn had arrived early, as it was summer in this part of the world, and as intended, the five Scales of Balance planned. What they concluded, was that breakfast was needed, though even after they'd eaten, they were still faced with an unavoidable fact that had come up early in the planning session, from Arthur himself.

Giratina had utterly immobilized them, easily, and the only one of them that had been able to move, had only managed clenched fists. They had ultimately concluded that, in order to separate the Nexus from the Reverse World, they'd need to enter that strange dimension, sever the connection from there, and then hopefully find a way back out.

Alex and Jess had argued that, by all accounts, Giratina was often miscast as a villain, not unlike Darkrai, and that its actions in the present era at least, had seemed akin to those of a Guardian, not a Renegade. The gathered Pokémon, even Terra, had still been skeptical. Evidently, their Gallade's shared sight had been frozen on the Legendary Pokémon, and Arthur had been unable to move even his eyes. His team insisted that the Legendary evil they'd had more than enough time to watch grow stronger with each human life absorbed would crush them if they entered the Reverse World.

The unanimous agreement then had been, regardless of the plan, they needed an edge. This time, it was Svelka who chimed in. "I have watched you in Battle these past days, Redwood. I am cureeos. Why do you not use thee Plates your partners hold?" She tapped her own breastplate, the one that had thus far been keeping the native of an icy land moderately comfortable in the intense, humid heat of the world's largest rainforest, in the middle of their summer months. "Eet would give you thee...boost...you say you need, no?"

She looked between Alex and Jess, which wasn't hard as they'd taken their usual positions as chair and leetle spoon. They shared a look, and then glanced at Arthur, who was at that very moment, partaking of the Leaf on his own piece. After learning how to Teleport, his Gallade had become rather independent and used much of his time, and his Trainer's winnings that he correctly saw as partially his, to go shopping for things that drew his attention.

One such had been his bong that matched the shade of his aura's color, but Alex hadn't minded. Arthur knew, better than any other of their partners, that they were at their strongest together. True to his word, his 'freedom' had not impeded how often he battled, as a mental nudge tended to be all he needed as notice to return.

The Gallade exhaled with a sigh and nodded. "Aye...that could be one method...the only problem is that...it's a lot of power, and not all of us are as...experienced as we need to be to handle such things."

Alex raised a brow, and the Gallade sent him a thought through their connection. The human's eyes narrowed slightly, and the Gallade nonchalantly hit his piece once more. Alex spoke, and the two women flinched as they heard a bit of irritation in his voice, a rare thing, as he was more patient than most humans under the same level of stress. "Regardless...as you said, we only need those who can wield the Light for this. It's our best chance of coming through this alive." Alex looked back to Svelka. "You seem to know a bit about them already. Care to show us how exactly they work?"

The Norstad native nodded, and stood, moving to the pair of Articuno who were, by proximity, keeping the gathered group at a comfortable temperature in the oppressive humidity. Svelka reached for her own breastplate, and her hand was illuminated by ice energy as she removed the Plate and offered it to the bird that was her main partner. She and her sisters had each, before entering war, only had their Articuno on their teams. As time passed, they'd slowly taken to building their teams, though some had refused, and remained relying on just their birds. Svelka had only taken a few other partners, who had proven to be both cute, and rather useful. For glorious combat though, there was only one choice.

The Articuno rose to full standing height, and the Icicle Plate rose into the air to match it, attaching to her chest as Jess's own Icicle Plate had to her Articuno. The difference, came when Svelka raised her hand to the Plate, and once more made it flare with the energy that resided within. Eric had, on his last call, confirmed that they were indeed giving off serious Infinity Energy, and that these Plates were likely behind the technological boom Japan had been enjoying for the past decade. The signatures matched the tech from the Devon Corp. To the last wavelength. He'd likely demand a demonstration, once he heard about this hidden function of the Plates.

Light blue armor plates flared across the bird from the original Plate, covering her weak spots with rather beautiful icy blue armor. Not surprisingly, it matched the aesthetic her tribe's riders had for their own garments. Apparently, this was not a new trick for the inhabitants of Valaskjalf, as the armor had an ideal perch for a rider as well.

Alex smirked, as Jess stood and ran to her own Articuno with an eager look. He caught his Gallade's eye, and Arthur was smirking as well. The two nodded in unison. Alex glanced over at the girls and saw Svelka was once more favoring his better half over him. He'd expected as much and turned to face his Gallade. He didn't need help anyways, one demonstration was enough for his new way of seeing the world, and this particular formula felt...promising.

Though the Articuno riders had been nothing but polite to him, and the other men in the army that held rank, they'd been as cold as their mount's typing, only speaking more than three words with those of the female gender. That too, he'd expected. With time, and battle, they would likely warm up as their Chief had, but he knew humans. True change, and the idea of a world in which humans considered each other equal by default rather than superior thanks to genetics, ideology, or sex, would come with new generations. As it always had.

He raised a hand over Arthur's heart piece, where the Mind Plate had fused with his partner, and the familiar deep blue aura surrounded the pair. "Ready?" Arthur nodded, and used their bond to ascend to the next level of evolution. He took his Mega Form, and once the change was finished, Alex's hand flared.

The psychic energy that was by this point a part of him did its job, as the heart piece glowed bright, but no armored Plates appeared. Alex raised a brow, and heard Arthur in his head, sounding somewhat pained, or at least uncomfortable. "It's my fighting typing...the Plate is overpowering it, and the lack of bodily balance is keeping it from activating."

Alex nodded. "You've honed your fighting techniques to the point of divinity, my friend. Focus on summoning and refining that power, and I'll handle the psychic end of things." The Gallade frowned for a moment, then mentally acquiesced. He made his usual 'Gaaaaal' cry as he powered up, and his aura shifted from blue to gold. His arm blades did the same, radiating Light energy in waves of power. Rather suddenly, metallic plates of armor, similar to those that had covered the Articuno, formed around his Gallade.

His helmet became more reminiscent of a full helm, and covered his mouth, leaving only his eyes visible. In aesthetic he almost resembled a Ceruledge. His torso and legs were shielded, though the most interesting change came to his arms. Gauntlets had formed on his hands, and curved along the edge of his arms, namely the blade, and the formerly wild Light energy focused, and began to hum. Arthur tested them with several swings and gave his Trainer a wide grin. As they swung through the air, they sounded uncannily like his plasma sword when it did the same thing. "This...this will be enough. Even a Pokémon as powerful as Giratina will have a hard time suppressing this kind of strength, especially in this form."

He fell into a standard series of dragon style practice strikes then; circular movements that had been adapted by Tao himself for use by the Gallade. His arms hummed with every strike, and his Trainer had to admit, he looked insanely cool. He glanced over at the Legendary birds then, and spied the two women already atop them, smirking down at him and his overeager Gallade. The only thing not encased in the Mind Plate's armor was his 'cape'. The metal itself seemed to have a mix of gold and traditional psychic pinkish coloring, and even the Gallade's natural green 'helmet' had gained an extra layer of protection.

The two Articuno flapped over to them, and the boys mounted up. Upon closer inspection, the two bird's regalia differed, though the differences were subtle, and seemed to reflect personality more than anything else. Svelka donned her helmet, and the two Unovans activated their belts, and their armor. They were going to be rather hot, but that was preferable to being dead. With a shared nod, the two birds ascended into the air. They recalled the rest of their partners from above, mentally promising each that yes, they would get to try this 'armor thing' too, but for the moment, duty came first.

The two birds ascended from the grove, and over the ruins of what had once been a fortress that housed evil. The closer they came to the entrance they'd entered in the past, the colder the air became. For a long time on their slow approach, the only sound in the entire area was the soft flapping of the Legendary Pokémon.

As they touched down at the main entrance to the topmost chamber the ancient pyramidal structure played home to, two new sounds filled the air. One, a low ominous hum, intermixed with indistinct whispers. The other, was a growl, followed by an impending sense of death.

Two words floated through the air, underlined by the growl. It took them a minute to realize they were being projected, though by what they could not sense. "Go...back…"

"Som! Bra! Dor!" The Shout echoed through the area as Alex, Drake, Rick, and Arthur leapt from the Articuno, towards the very edge of the top stairs, and the entrance to the chamber they'd seen in the past. The air was much colder, and frost was forming on his armor. Alex didn't worry about the cold impairing it though. The bones that were his armor had survived the coldest Hel of Norstad for millennia. It would take more than this to break them.

The two Articuno landed behind them moments later, as nothing jumped out. The words, the presence, the feeling of death, it had all vanished the moment they'd landed on the steps. "Did you just break up his name into three parts solely so you could Shout it?"

Alex smirked, as he responded to the redhead that owned his heart. "Hush. He's here." His eyes were closed, but his third had stayed open. Normally, he couldn't sense dark types too well, if at all, but in this case, it was easy to track the Legendary presence by the lack of definition he created in the wide range of his mental sight.

Arthur went from chuckling to his battle stance as the indistinct orb being tracked by his Trainer arced towards them. It did not move to strike however, adjusting at the last moment to land in front of them. Alex opened his eyes, as they were better suited to the show that was Sombrador's entrance. Dark energy streamed in from seemingly nowhere, and before them manifested the Dragon of Darkness, the strongest of the Dark Continent's trio of Guardians.

He resembled both Luxray and Liepard in various aspects, and the eyes were almost identical to a Pyroar's, though the irises were red. His fangs were the only part of him that wasn't black, being instead stark white, and shaped uncannily similar to a scythe. They likely flashed as the last thing his prey ever saw, if they were lucky enough to catch a glimpse. Even manifested right before them, the Legendary Pokémon gave off little to no presence they could sense.

Though his features were akin to the many feline Pokémon species, he too was part dragon, and bore dark scales instead of fur. On his scales were red runes, that glowed to life as he snarled at them. His tail was akin to a Noivern's, though it split into dual barbed tips that were likely venomous in nature. He had wings not unlike Tao's, and unlike Kyurem, his appeared to still be able to work, and carry his bulk. The panther-like dragon type came low, lips raised slightly as it took in the individuals before it. "So... the time has come, has it? I can smell my counterparts upon you...Champion of Unova."

Alex raised a brow, and the Legendary continued to speak. He had no intention of interrupting, as they typically refrained from talking to humans. "Your deeds have not gone unnoticed, even here, where only death and ghosts reside. When I sensed that Unova once more had a Light wielder, I asked the Original Dragon for assistance...or tried to. I did not know if he heard me."

The humans pressed their fists to their palms and bowed as one. Arthur spoke for them, eyes blazing from under his Mind Armor. "You were heard, Dragon of Darkness. Now let us pass...it is time this blight was ended."

The lips of the Pokémon, that seemed to have a few bat-like characteristics as well now that he was so close and corporeal, pulled into a smirk. "You will need one who can control Dark energy in there, if you wish to succeed. You cannot win with the Light alone."

"Then join us." The red eyes moved to the human, clad in dragonbone from his head to his boots. A leathery black cape hung from the flared bone white shoulderpads, covering almost everything else. The smirking human spoke again. "We have enough Light between us to match the amount of Dark energy you can call upon. Probably. If it's going to take both, I have an idea of what we'll need to do. But first, we'll need to enter the Reverse World. Can you help with that?"

Sombrador gave a sigh of what sounded like relief. Usually, all he got this far out were unwashed, greasy bandits, looking for a hideout, and Trainers, usually young ones, disproportionately strong for their size, and lacking the mental maturity for the power in their hands. "Competence...finally...there is a portal to that dimension nearby. But only one, and we do not want to end up within the entity that feasts upon the energy of anything that passes through it. I could make another entrance...but it would require a lot of power."

The two Unovans shared a look, and then different aspects of their dragonbone armor began radiating dark typed energy. Jess spoke this time, smirking as well now. "Will two Plate's worth be enough?"

The cat-like eyes widened, slightly. "You have access to Plates of a fallen Alpha? Multiple, no less? Humanity must have come far indeed to have remembered how to re-forge them, let alone meld them into the bones of a Dragon Type. Very well. We will put an end to this curse. Together."

Sombrador's mind touched theirs, and while Alex and Jess had dark type friendly partners, an overwhelming mental presence radiating the energy they were inherently weak to almost threw their focus. Almost. The Original Dragon's training kicked in, and they forced themselves to raise their arms, and guide the dark energy at their command into the legend before them. As they did, Sombrador's form began to radiate with the power of his inherent typing.

When the dark dragon gave the command, they halted the flow, and pulled away from the mental contact. The dragon bathed the closest flat rock surface in obsidian flames, polishing it to a bright shine within moments.

Then, the Legendary Pokémon channeled the donated energy into the rock, and moments later, a portal was made of the ancient stone face, a hole in the fabric of space and time that led to only one place. Alex turned to Rick and Drake. "Watch the pyramid. If any ghosts try to interfere, take them out with extreme prejudice. I recommend Dark Type Moves." The two Scales of Balance nodded, lit up their plasma swords, and strode towards the pyramid entrance, summoning a Shiftry and Gallade respectively. As the two Pokémon formed Night Slashes, the humans and Pokémon with Alex's team flew through Sombrador's portal quickly, followed by their newest Legendary ally.

They emerged into a world of darkness, utter nonsense, and non-Euclidean angles. The rocky platform they were on was, thankfully, oriented 'normally', though the ones surrounding it, and everything else, all arced at strange angles within the shadowy void. Thankfully, they could still fly, more or less. It didn't take long for them to spot the Nexus roughly two hundred feet in front of them. A swirling vortex of ghost energy was being infused, slowly, with the dark typed energy that permeated and composed the Reverse World's rather impenetrable 'bars'. Essentially, the dimensional prison was being weakened, albeit at an impossibly slow pace, given how dark and ghost type energy interacted. The combination created Shadow energy, beyond the Reverse World, energy that would inevitably be drawn towards those the entity was using to spread the Wisdom of the Shadow. When one became the Shadow's Champion, they could draw this power to them, and become unstoppable.

Above the swirling Nexus was what at first appeared to be an indistinct shadowy circular blob. They all flinched as, quite suddenly, a red and black eye formed in the center of the entity.

"What is that?" Jess whispered, as she and Svelka recoiled, much like their mounts. The birds did not seem to like the Reverse World, or the utterly foul, deathly cold aura the thing was giving off.

I...am the Weakness of All that Lives…

An unnerving smile from a mouth full of razor teeth curved around the bottom of the entity as the eye opened fully, and its unnerving voice echoed both in their heads, and all around them. Only Sombrador seemed unaffected. It seemed to swell with shadowy tendrils and mass, awakening, as the newest victims of the Nexus spared it the trouble of pulling their life essence through small tears between the dimensions. It had been eons since it had tasted anything this fresh, and potent. Being shoved into this realm had genuinely weakened the entity, more than expected. Until now.

Tentacles of Shadow formed from behind the massive writhing blob and came towards them. Or rather, they tried, only to be smashed by flames of pure black, and burnt away to nothing. Sombrador shot a glare at his newest 'allies', but they were already in motion.

Two beams of Light, encased in, refracted, and empowered by the ice energy that guided them struck the shortened entity, whose size had diminished, slightly, under Sombrador's flames. The eye winced at the brightness of the beams, but only seemed to grow angrier as two attacks from Legendary birds struck it and blasted away parts of its form into nothingness. The entire mass shrank, as the blob repaired the holes with what Shadow remained.

Arthur and Alex followed them up, striking the entity from the spot in its vision that, presumably, was still blinded. Both of their aura shields had turned gold, and both had managed respectable attacks, in the form of whirling light blades, and a sphere of Light energy that was shaped not unlike an Energy Ball. It had been surprisingly easy to form and wasn't heavy at all, but as the pair's attacks came close to the Shadow entity, it opened a circular hole within its form, and they passed through, only to be caught by Shadow tentacles immediately on the other side.

The birds moved to free their partners, only to be caught themselves as their riders called for more Ice Beams. Sombrador, for his part, had vanished. The slimy, semi corporeal limbs tightened around their newest victims, holding all four above its toothy maw.

The jaws opened, and within the razor-sharp abyss of death, they spied what they'd been waiting to see. After comparing notes with the speed and efficiency of telepathy, Alex and Sombrador had discerned that the Nexus was connected to whatever entity they had seen subdue Giratina in the past. That same intelligence had been what ultimately sundered Zigma. They had endeavored to find the entity, and now, they had.

Four thwipping sounds filled the air, as the ghostly Shadow tentacles were bisected by pure channeled darkness from the forked tail of Sombrador. The Scales once more empowered themselves, all at once, forming a familiar half of a familiar shape out of pure Light energy in the space above the entity.

The massive eye narrowed, wincing in the Light, as it was joined by a similar counter-shape of darkness, forming a single, perfect sphere of balanced energy that lit up the darkened realm around them. One golden aura separated from the others, flying high with the speed of a Mega Gallade as the energy below began to spin and condense, guided by the other mortals, and the dark dragon type. With another boom in the opposite direction, the Gallade's psychic power sent him shooting down on the gathered Taijitu swirl of Light and Dark energy.

The Gallade's mental voice, not all that different from his Trainer's, echoed as he utilized his own Voice, alongside his Sacred Sword. "Vul! Kun! Yolmah!" As Alex had predicted, the center was where the zenith of all that power was. Arthur hammered into it with his Sacred Sword and Night Slash simultaneously.

The massive, and rather dense spinning swirl of energy shifted from the others, to the one among them who could, and was, used to wielding both Light and dark energy. As it shot downwards, the greedy swirl below them absorbed the entire attack, and then the teeth came together once more in a swirling grin.

I do not know why...but I expected more…

The Gallade chuckled in response, as his Trainer floated up beside him with a smirk. "Hi los nalkun dilon." The cyclopian horror's eye narrowed at the mocking Voice, and while he did not know their meaning, he groked their contents. The human gnat was implying he was already dead. As the entity scowled, and summoned fresh tentacles, Alex snapped his fingers and gave the two halves of opposing energy its catalyst. There was a flash from within the entity. Then another. The entity's tentacles paused in their bid to bind them all again, and a look of what could only be described as indigestion came over the cyclopic Shadow blob.

The explosions continued, picking up in pace as the two oldest types of energy slammed together over and over, neither gaining total domination. The resulting clash, perfectly balanced, caused continued damage to the entity from the inside, and pieces of it shot into the darkness of the void around them with each concussive burst.

Svelka glanced at the male and the Gallade. "That vill...stop, yes? It vill not continually eat realitee with ever larger bursts?"

Alex and Arthur glanced at each other, then the still exploding entity. It was obviously shooting parts of itself away into the void to be reformed later, but at the rate it had been growing, they had earned time to deal with it more effectively, at least. Pravus would be weakened regardless as they now could close the Nexus, and that, was what mattered. Arthur, for his part, was still smoking, and stunned, from launching that much power all at once.

"Probably not…" Alex and Arthur said, at the same time.

The girls shared a look, then looked at their birds, who seemed more amused than worried. With a final boom, the energy finally ran out of steam, and the last explosive burst sent anything left of the entity scattering into particles.

Sombrador reappeared then and gave them all a respectful nod. "Well done...that was...rather imprrrressive, for a Gallade and a bunch of Humans. Combining Shouting and Moves... Hrrrrrm. It has been some time since I've seen such a combat style. Only the first Dragon Emperorrr ever managed such a feat...and he had long since mastered the energy in Nature befoe he managed it..." Sombrador glanced down then, at what remained of the Nexus, namely the tear that had allowed normal typed human essence to seep in and be corrupted into ghost energy.

Now that the Shadow entity had been blasted to pieces, all that remained was a tear into the prime material plane, through which was the chamber they'd visited in the past. Similar shadowy figures, human one might call them, despite the indistinct white hair and missing eyes, floated aimlessly about the pyramid, their source of food and un-life now extinguished.

Sombrador licked his lips, revealing a tongue that was more serpent than catlike. "This, I can repair. Then...we leave...I will devour those foul entities once and for all, and this damned place will never draw in an innocent again. Heal yourselves, while I work."

The humans did as they were bid, and Arthur returned to his ball with the Legendary birds, leaving the humans to chat amongst themselves for the better part of an hour.

"...and that is, essentially, what the Graceland Theory taught modern Professors about the Reverse World, and its apparent function. Giratina is not inherently evil, just destructive. A darker force bent it to its will in an age long past, but somewhere during its imprisonment, Giratina freed itself, more or less. Now that we've scattered it, that...thing...may try to retake control of the Renegade. Something to keep an eye on..." Alex said, as he finished explaining 'vhat ze Muk' was up with this dimension, to Svelka.

A familiar, and fear inducing shriek, far too close for comfort, sounded in the fascinating void around them. They all glanced at Sombrador, who had paused in his mending of the ancient cage. The ghosts on the other side had tried to stop him, but Drake and Rick had smashed them easily, and grown stronger by doing so. "The Renegade comes...it senses damage to its home, and it too will not be pleased...we must hurry…"

Jess walked over to the giant catlike dragon type and fished around in her bag for a moment while the entity watched, and simultaneously kept mending. "I don't usually like using things like this in normal Battle...but wow are they useful in certain situations." She pulled out five X Speed potions, items designed specifically for boosting stats in combat. She held one, and the other four mimicked her motions as they floated in the air. With one finger press, she sprayed five of them on the Legendary Pokémon.

Sombrador typically did not use such things either, having never needed berries in his current form, and having never had a Tamer either, but he welcomed the boost all the same, and in under a minute, the repairs were finished, and the hole where the Nexus of Darkness once manifested now left no trace behind. There was no dithering, as he leapt back to the others, and left through the portal by which they'd come. Once back home, Sombrador closed it with another gout of obsidian flame.

Then, they waited, eyeing the polished face of the stone. After several minutes of nothing, the group moved to turn away from the rock, but Alex stayed. His instinct told him to wait, and so he did, beside the black scaled Legendary dragon type, who likely sensed the same thing. Giratina was close, and in modern times, it was able to break free of its prison, for short amounts of time. Apparently.

A familiar red eye appeared on the polished stone, glaring at them from the opposing dimension. An imposing and super effective mental presence intruded on Alex's all but breaking his mental defenses, in what quickly became the only time they'd been tested outside of the Sage's training. They held, but the words, the evident focus of the forced contact through time, space, and dimensional barriers, came through.

"This dimension...must not merge... What is within...must stay within… Do not...forget."

A ghostly shriek, distorted by the barriers between worlds, filled the air, and the serpentine form of the Renegade Pokémon moved on past them, to do whatever it was that Giratina did within its cage. Alex began to wonder if it might not be incredibly important, and if their actions had, inadvertently, caused the God of Antimatter more trouble than it needed.

Sombrador ran a five clawed paw along the surface, marring it and making it useless for portals. Then, he turned to the humans. "I will remain here and... take care of the lingering spirits of the Humans who fused with their abominable attempts at creating Darkrai. Then, finally, I can rest."

Alex bowed, as did the other four humanoids, in the Unovan style. "Rio awaits you, Dragon of Darkness. Mamboa and Yacuma desire to be whole again. Already they seek a Champion. Are you sure you don't need our help in there?" He eyed the entrance to the top of the pyramidal structure and cracked his knuckles with a look as eager as his Gallade's, as Drake and Rick returned, looking triumphant. "Unovans have a long, glorious history of busting ghosts."

The dragon gave Alex a sly smirk, "If I need help, I know who to call. Go, Unovans. Make good on your prrromise with my people. I shall return later this evening. At dusk, look to the west." The three Scales nodded, and Teleported back to Rio, specifically, the yacht they'd rode in on. It was just around noon as they looked around the deck. Evidently their venture had taken the entire morning.

They bamfed in to find Captain Fergus in the midst of a Leaf session with three of the other Scales in Alex's original squad that had come with them. The Champions of Kentu, Tenina, and Alagia, Amelia, Jack, and Maya, respectively. That meant that Haley and the other two from Jess's squad were out, then. Alex gave them a nod, and then once more found his gaze drawn to the ship anchored immediately next to them. Fergus joined him. "Welcome back, laddy. Ye've sterted quite a parrrty y'know. All o' Rio is celebratin' the return o' their Guardians. S'fine work, lad. Fine work."

Alex chuckled as he saw Arthur and the others who had braved Selva Muerta join the other Scales in their Leaf session and nodded at the captain's words. "I didn't do all that much. Arthur was the one who ultimately freed this land...as he did in Norstad. It's becoming a habit with him. Tell me, Captain. Did we ever find out which of these massive ships is the flagship?"

The Captain seemed to chuckle. "Aye, laddy. As fate would 'ave it, that beastie parked on our port is wot Rio uses as their bellwether. Accordin' tae me sources, the last time they seen action was a'fore even my time. Almost t'ree hundred yars past."

Alex glanced over the side of the yacht, ignoring the potent smell of smoldering Leaf behind him, for once, as a purposeful cloud blew in his general direction. His smirk widened into a grin as he read the words on the side of the ship. "Captain...that lettering there...that is their ship's monicker if I'm not mistaken?"

Fergus glanced over, and then nodded, arching a salty black and gray eyebrow at the young man who'd been named Dragon Emperor. "Aye lad, that be her name. Though I admit, it be an odd one for a ship."

"It seems more like a 'him' with a name like that." Alex chuckled, and Jess joined them as she sensed his thoughts.

"Och! A ship be a fine thing lad, hence the feminine terms. But ye 'ave a point. Sailors I've known refer tae their ships after what they named'em. P'raps it is a lad, in this instance. Would explain the, erm, giant cannons." The smirking Captain took a long drag then on his own smoking implement, a lengthy but simple wooden pipe full of crushed, if a bit stale, Green Monster.

Hearing Alex and the old man, Jess took a look for herself, and then smirked up at Alex. "Is this another nerd thing?"

He grinned back down at her. "Kind of, though I'm not even entirely surprised at this point. Seems appropriate, given our plans. We should go find Iara, the others, and then head for home. There's a war on."

It took roughly an hour for the Scales to regroup into their original squad of ten plus Haley. The city was a far cry from what they'd seen previously. Evidently, with the return of two thirds of their Guardian, the people had hope. Unova had reunited theirs, after all. It was time good fortune came Rio's way.

The buildings were alight with every color of fluorescent wiring the people had found, fixed, or just plugged in again after a few hundred years of disuse. The lights spread to the ruins around the harbor, but those were more normal flames. They gained an appreciation for just how many poor citizens lived in them, as from the air, the candle flames easily illuminated the continent's curve, and then some. In terms of population, the true number of Rio's citizens had to at least rival new Tork.

They found the Queen by the city's stadium, a place for sports of every kind, and of course, Pokémon Battles. The most recent tournament had been presided over by the two gargantuan snake-like Legendary Pokémon, and tonight, it was nearing its finale. They found the Queen in the viewing box that, by no coincidence, was eye level and in between the two massive serpent's draconic heads.

Yacuma looked as lovely as ever with her shifting blues and glinting icy crest, but Mamboa seemed much different. Happy, even, going by the curve of his mouth. The leaves that made up his magnificent crest had dried completely in his time watching the battles, with five serrated leafy fronds expanding from his neck and a crest of leaves in a shape akin to a star, the King of the Rainforest seemed quite regal indeed. Several bird Pokémon had taken to perching on the massive, strong fronds, for many wild ones also appeared to be watching, and enjoying, the contests of skill below.

"If what you say is true Dragon Emperor, then I will favorably consider your request once my people hear it. But only once Zigma returns as well, will our aid manifest." Queen Iara resumed sipping her drink then, and Alex nodded. He was seated between her and Jess, and the others had taken to indulging in the food and chatting up the Queen's lovely entourage. "Should she be returned to us, we will send aid to the regions you suggested, and quickly. I expect my sailors will be glad just to do something other than war games, though I do not know about these…'battle yachts' you mentioned. They seem silly."

Alex shrugged. "They've essentially blockaded Hoenn and Johto's ports. Nobodys heard from Alola, and while we have the northwest, they control those coasts as well. Getting aid to Japan has been rather difficult."

Iara nodded. "I see. Well, in any case...we have methods for dealing with Sharpedo swarms." She turned the ocean blue eyes from the battle below to him, then. "You have done much for us, Dragon Emperor. But recovery will not occur overnight."

"We will, of course, be willing to compensate you for any aid you provide. Be it in materials or food." Alex said, smirking as he met her gaze evenly. "My only agenda is to see both our continents thriving, and united, as they should be."

That drew an evaluating glance, and a genuine smile from the Queen. "Then let it be a lasting alliance. Come, help me tell those below the news."

He was about to suggest they wait for the battle below, a genuinely interesting contest of skill and power that kept drawing his eyes, to wrap up when quite suddenly, it did. The contestants were a Primeape sporting an additional grass typing, and a Corsola with blue spikes, and impressive size. The Primeape had cupped its hands by its waist, and then brought them forward as it launched a Solar Beam, and having just used Protect earlier, the Corsola Trainer hesitated and called an Ice Beam counter a second too late.

The Primeape, which seemed to have retained its coloring, but grown an additional layer of green moss upon its fur, hopped around happily, beating its chest, and urging on the crowd, who loved it.

Yacuma offered her wide blue head as a platform, and Alex stepped up next to Iara. The crowds went silent as the massive snake's movement brought them to a dull murmur. Alex casually stuffed his hands in his pockets and murmured to the Queen. "Tell me when you want the theatrics."

Iara chuckled. "You'll know your cue."

The beautiful blue-haired Queen raised her bronze-toned arms then, and the tall, pale Unovan beside her arched a genuinely impressed brow as her voice reached all of those below, though how exactly, he did not quite know. "My people! Many have been the rumors surrounding our returned Guardians. A stranger from a foreign land has convinced the elusive Mamboa to rejoin us and has informed me that Sombrador shall also be returning, this very evening!"

She had to pause, as the cheers were deafening. Once they quieted a bit, she continued. "Some wonder if it might not be an ill omen, but fear not, for I can assure you only good things will come from this, the turning point of our time! For Rio, and all who call this continent home!" The cheers drowned out any other noise, and lasted for a full minute as the crowd took turns chanting each Guardian's name, ending with Zigma, before the Queen continued, all smiles at her people's antics. "Now, many of you have asked, both yourselves, others, and even mine own guardsmen who is responsible for this sudden change, who is the foreigner who so generously offered to aid us in our time of suffering?"

The crowd enthusiastically began chanting 'who', but the Queen shrugged. "If that's all you can muster, you must not be very curious!" The cries of who increased in volume, and speed, and Iara gave a subtle nod. Alex ran past her, right off Yacuma's nose, who gave him a snout assisted jump into the air as the disguise melted away. Those below only saw a hint of white and black before it was obscured.

A flash of black light limned in white brought forth the leviathan that was Shruikan, who had seen precious little of Rio, or the sun, for quite some time. Alex climbed to his usual perch atop his head, plasma saber ignited and raised as the chanting of 'who' became an incoherent drone of cries, some of joy, awe, disbelief, and even a few jeers and boos.

"The most common thing I'm hearing…" Alex said as he made a show of casually strolling across Shruikan's lengthy back idly spinning the black and white blade, his Words reaching all of them just as easily, "Is 'why?' Why Unova's newest Emperor? Why accept the aid of the leader of a nation embroiled in war, when doing so might well drag your own into the conflict as well?" The massive black dragon soared just above the crowd, and an eager member held up a hand for a high five as he passed. Shruikan lowered his tail slightly, giving the portly man a decent slap, and soon, others copied him.

Shruikan arced around the stadium in slow circles as he made enough passes to hit all those who'd raised their hands for a tap, though none in the crowd with a desire to pelt the foreigner with food and drink had the stones to do so when the massive dragon was that close, and quite good at picking out potential threats in a crowd. Usually, a glare dissuaded them. "If I may enlighten you all as to our plight, perhaps after, you will be amenable, as your Queen is, to giving your northern neighbors some aid, in this time of war."

That brought more than a few 'boos' but Alex nodded casually and obviously, as if expecting them. Shruikan arced back up just below Yacuma and her icy fangs, but the two giant draconic snakes ignored them. "Three thousand years ago, the people of Rio banished a cadre of cultists to your home's western mountains. It took them the better part of those three millennia, but eventually, they struck back, and brought your lovely city low three centuries past with dark powers best forgotten, sundering your Guardian, even as ours was being torn apart by war. These cultists and the Shadow Energy they infuse in their being, are the reason your mighty Zigma is no longer whole!"

As he strolled along Shruikan's length, Alex kept his eyes on the people. Lux was away now, as the iconic sword and the iconic dragon had served to identify him to the masses. Most in the crowd were still paying attention, and most, had nodded at his last statement. "Now those of you who know how that particular tale ended will ask what a bunch of now long dead sorcerers have to do with you, the present-day people of Rio. That is, essentially, why I have come to your lovely region. The creature that calls itself Caleb Pravus, also known as the Prophet of Arceus, is one of these sorcerers, one that escaped Zigma's vengeance three centuries ago, and ever since, has been effectively brainwashing our west coast regions, moving ever eastward. The same threat that brought Rio low has regrown, and mark me, they'll be turning south when and if they manage to take us, and Japan, who they have also declared 'holy war' on."

The chanting soon returned, though what he eventually made out was 'not our war', steadily rising in volume. Glancing up, Iara looked more disappointed than anything at her people's response, but Alex Redwood had expected this too. Nobody ever wanted to go to a war they were not directly involved in. Not unless victory was easy. Alex made a show of levitating himself into the air, off Shruikan's head, as he continued, which quieted the chanting.

"You are correct! This is not your war, nor would Unova expect the people of the southern continent to fight it for us." The chants died out entirely, and confused, slightly angry, murmurs bubbled throughout the crowd, but the once more encircling dragon kept them from boiling over, as did his Words. "I am the one who Tamed the Original Dragon." He let his aura flare from blue, to blurple, to gold, making the visual display shiny, and impressive. "Caleb Pravus is mine, but the people of Japan are casualties not even our Guardian foresaw. We knew the Arceans had ambition for Sinnoh but...well, see for yourself people of Rio. See what has become of Sinnoh, favored region of the Alpha Pokémon."

He drew his plasma sword again, flipped it over, and pointed the bottommost end at the stadium's far screen opposite the Queen and the two snakes, which had thus far been used to list who had how many Pokémon left. The unmistakable outline of the Sunyshore City lighthouse, ruined and scorched by fire, was the first sight the people saw. The rest of the port city fared no better. Not even the Pokémon Center was free of flame marks. Alex and Lux continued flipping through the images that Haley had been saving as part of a larger project Tao had her working on, but for this, they were useful as well.

The images shifted again. Pastoria. Oreburgh. Jubilife. Canalave. One after the other, the flame-scarred cities covered the monitor, and the crowd had grown quiet. Then came Hearthome, and the murmurs of anger swelled. The 'cultural building' as it had once been called had shifted from a place of tolerance and compassion, to little more than a recruiting center, with the Arcean's symbol plastered atop it. Not even that city, however, had escaped the flames entirely.

Alex continued, just as quiet, and yet, not one person in Rio missed what he said. "Sinnoh has been taken, largely by ambush. It started in Hearthome, a center of peace between Humans and Pokémon. The Arceans used their 'foreign culture' to ingratiate themselves with its people, and then set up their command headquarters in Veilstone. Surprising no one, the remnants of Team Galactic apparently aided them, and from Sinnoh, the Arcean Crusaders descended upon Japan, taking one region after another, until Kanto's own Red halted them just north of the Indigo Plateau, on Mt. Silver, last I heard."

Shruikan roared, and the crowd jumped out of their silence. Alex put Lux's container back and gestured to the people. "Unova can, has, and will, handle our recalcitrant neighbors to the west. To you, the people of Rio, I ask aid for Japan. The Arcean Church has outfitted a fleet of 'battle yachts' with impressive weaponry and Sharpedo swarms. They've blockaded Japan's ports, and likely Alola's as well. I ask this of the people of Rio: I have brought your Guardians home and shall help the one chosen to tame Zigma learn how to reunite a Regional Guardian, all the north needs of you in return for this knowledge, is your Navy, the Dark Fleet. Your Queen is confident that your ships can free Japan and force the Arceans back to Fornia. Having seen your ships, I cannot say I disagree with her assessment, but as always, the choice belongs to the people of this free city. What say you?"

Shruikan had arced back up to Iara as Alex finished, and he recalled the giant dragon, thanking him as he landed once more atop Yacuma's head. The crowd of the stadium below milled and murmured, and murmuring grew louder as heated arguments erupted. The two regional leaders waited, patiently, and slowly, the people of Rio gave their answer.

"War...war...war...war...War! War! War! War!" Slowly, and then quicker once the people chanting realized they were the majority, the chanting grew louder as they drowned out the calls for peace or other more idealistic solutions, and the two leaders nodded.

Iara spoke then. "This shall be the start of a new partnership with our northern neighbors, who have promised compensation for our efforts by way of materials, and food, for whatever aid we give in this conflict born of ideology." The Queen grinned, and the stadium's own camera drones, which had been giving the people as good a view as they received from Pokémon Battles, focused on her lovely face as she spoke. "We will teach these...Arceans...what true followers of the Alpha Pokémon can do! But first, let our final match commence!"

It was rare for Alex Redwood to watch a Pokémon Battle whose contestants he knew little of, but that is what the final match of Rio's tournament demonstrated. Two Pokémon he'd never seen, going head-to-head with abilities he did not know by heart. Yet. Even the announcer had only named one, though what exactly it was had been drowned out by the ever-swelling crowd's cheers. The other, though unnamed, Alex knew as Zeraora. Though that was about all he knew. Name and typing, though as he'd guessed, it was a fast physical attacker.

The Trainers themselves did not speak, save to order moves, and going by their glowing eyes and normal/ghost typing, he guessed the benefits of the Sight were not all that different from what his own eyes showed him. That would make teaching the victor easier at least, though he had no idea what the Trainers were like in terms of personality.

The one he liked, namely because of his surface thoughts on war in general, ended up losing, and the victorious Trainer who'd started with the Zeraora ascended, recalling her final partner, bowing both to her Queen, and the visiting foreign ruler. Alex projected his thoughts to the snakes, and Iara as he looked the woman over with a cursory glance. "A moment, if you'll allow it...I was given very strict instruction not to teach those who are unworthy of power. I would test your Champion." The snakes nodded subtly, and the Queen did as well, taking a step back as the foreigner walked forward, and shook the woman's hand.

Her skin tone was as brownish bronze as most of the people of Rio, her body was in peak condition, and her belt had ten matching spheres holding Pokémon. Her clothes were an appealing mix of green, black, and blue that were suited to Rio's weather, and her mind had impressive mental defenses. Someone had trained her already. This too would make things simpler.

"So, Unova's Champion. I have to admit, when I heard the term 'Dragon Emperor', I expected...more." The Challenger had the same about-to-be-broken cockiness that all such Trainers had, after climbing to the top, and facing down the last obstacle. Such attitudes were what made, or broke, Champions.

Alex smirked and poked his belt with a psychic infused finger. The dragonbone armor manifested in all its impressive glory, and the woman blinked, several times, eyes darting about as she noticed just how detailed it really was. The Graybeards were masters of their craft. "Better?" She nodded. "Bring out your Psychic Type again, if you would."

The Xatu appeared with a squawk, and its gaze fell upon the tall bone-clad human before it. The eyes widened slightly, as it looked him over, and then its gaze shifted up, and up, and up. The strange bird leaned back, oblivious to the words or mental touches Alex had attempted to get its attention with. Whatever it was seeing was distracting it from the present.

A bright flash appeared beside Alex, and his Gallade manifested. Arthur knelt to the bird's level, and poked its chest as he brushed the Pokémon's mind and projected his words. "Oi. Anyone in there?"

The Xatu blinked one eye, then the other, and its head slowly lowered to meet the Gallade's gaze. "Ah. The Prince...yes, that makes more sense." The bird turned towards her Trainer and spoke to her directly. "Do not make an enemy of this one. Friendship is more beneficial."

The psychic flying type glanced up as it was tapped on the shoulder by a once more de-armored Dragon Emperor. "Hello there. See anything interesting?"

The bird blinked, once. "Xatu."

Alex's eyes narrowed slightly and switched to mental tones. "Fine. Is this better?"

"Yes." The bird's mental tone was feminine, but simple, not like her Trainer's own regional accent with Common words. "You wish to open her eye?"

Alex nodded. "She will need it, for what comes next. Do you think she can handle the power?"

The Xatu made a chirping sound, and said, "Yes, yes. Otherwise, the Rain Sage would not have trained her." Alex nodded again as he trusted a Sage's judgement, and then gestured to the woman with a hand wave that said, 'go ahead'.

The Xatu turned its gaze back towards its Trainer once more, and a flash of deep purple aura surged between the pair. Alex smirked, as he sensed the burgeoning mind, quite different from a psychic type's upon closer inspection, forming connections by instinct with her team of ten.

Her eyes burned with ghost energy, and she grinned at the Unovan. "This is...amazing."

He smirked. "It gets better." He nodded at the stadium's own Nurse Joy, who'd been patiently standing by to heal the Challenger's team. As was the custom in Rio, all battles were fought by participants at their best, and any status effects were encouraged to be cured immediately after battling.

With the number of Pecha berries, amongst others, that cured all number of ailments growing in abundance within the city and the jungles it wasn't a hard thing to do. Many considered leaving a Pokémon injured with painful status effects post-battle a punishable offense, even if the laws of the city did not, but thankfully those too callous to spare a berry were rare in this region.

"It is time, Challenger. You will face my own team as the final part of this tournament, and we will determine who Rio's strongest is. She will go on to Tame Zigma." Queen Iara spoke as Yacuma brought her to her side of the battlefield. The Challenger chuckled as she retrieved her healed team, and then followed, convincing Mamboa to give her a lift with just a glance.

As she took the Challenger's spot once more, she raised the ball that had, if memory served, held the Zeraora. "I'm going to bring you down, my Queen. This ability is…"

"Something I mastered three centuries ago." Iara's eyes flared a deep blue, the same color as Yacuma. "Something that allowed me to become a Legendary Tamer, on top of being a world leader." She smirked, as the tone was very much good natured. "But by all means, you who have just opened your eyes, come at me with all you have."

In short, she did. Iara's team, true to form, had predominantly water types, who did not fare well, or long, against the Challenger's Zeraora. Her own Aurorus, a female much older and much, much larger than Gelauros, managed to bring it down by shattering the field in a display that Alex's Earthquake users found most impressive.

The Queen handled the woman's Victreebell rather quickly with an Ice Beam, but her Yanmega brought the Aurorus down with a Solar Beam it charged as it dodged the long-necked Pokémon's attacks and grew faster by the second.

The same Yanmega took down the rest of the water types as well, and even the Queen's Lilligant, making the Challenger victorious. Once more, the old guard changed for the new, and Rio had her Champion.

Iara led the woman back up to her viewing box, which then ascended on its own power high above the stadium, into the fluffy, and yet very damp clouds, to a floating hidden landmass that seemed to be home to an entire ecosystem, including several rare Pokémon. Alex sensed his Scale's eyes watching the Pokémon, but wisely, none made a move to throw a Pokéball.

The large white-blue form of what could only be a Latios whipped past them and descended towards the old stone building on the floating island. It was the only such structure up here, and shared architectural similarities with Rio's own buildings below.

The new Champion floated from the box on her own power as she saw who awaited them beside the Latios they had seen previously. Alex smirked, and threw Arthur's ball into the air as well, for when there was a parent, the child would likely also be nearby. It took about five seconds of aimless floating before the Gallade was tackled by an invisible ball of feathers and red, and once more, the two were off in a game of tag.

The viewing box came in for a landing as the Professor gave the newest Champion of Rio a pat on the head. "I can't believe how far you've come. You're not that little girl that left town with her Torchic anymore. Go on then, let's see how she grew up."

The Champion obliged, and her Blaziken appeared, fully healed, as she hadn't been used in the final match. The Professor, a thin, balding man that looked as local as the Champion, gave the Blaziken a chin/neck scratch as he looked the Pokémon over. "Yes...yes, I see. She's become rather strong. Good. Come with me, Nelinha. We shall enter your team into Rio's Hall of Champions."

As the pair walked off, Iara sat back in her own chair, which was more of a throne. "This will take some time, my friends. So, enjoy, and get some dinner."

Alex, for his part, was staring at the orange-tinted sky that was growing ever darker, hands in the pockets of the white robe-jacket that served as his usual casual attire. They'd dropped the fairy disguises, as it was obvious who they were after their Emperor had flown his Salamence around the stadium numerous times. It took almost an hour, by which point the sun was setting, but once the two returned, it was with an armful of eggs.

Thoroughly curious, Alex watched Professor Cashapona, as he was evidently known to the region, place the ten eggs in the care of the Latios he'd arrived on, and the Latios then disappeared into the island's cluster of trees, presumably to find the eggs a solid home. As the Professor and Champion made their way back, he caught Alex's eye, and the Unovan gave him a nod of respect, that was returned in kind.

He offered a hand as they came closer. "Apologies, Dragon Emperor, for not introducing myself earlier. Our customs are important and are best done quickly. I am Professor Cashapona of the free city of Rio. Thank you, for bringing our Guardians back to us."

Alex returned the handshake. "It wasn't too terribly difficult; your Guardians wish to be whole." His eyes shifted to the Champion yet, and she smirked. "It's about time you learned how exactly you'll be re-uniting them, and then, we must return home." She nodded, and the lesson began.

Thankfully, and as was the case with most Trainers at her level, Nelinha had a full set of Plates, if not crystal shards. Alex showed her how to manipulate the energy, particularly ghost, dark, grass, and water, and once she had figured how to, more or less, activate and guide each of the types a roar filled the air. One that was familiar to the three who'd ventured into the Rainforest.

The bat-like wings of what could only be Sombrador shot above the cloud layer, and soon after, the heads of Mamboa and Yacuma joined them, though even with their massive size they just barely broke the cloud layer and appeared only as heads. Below, the people had again begun cheering, and the party was in full swing from the sound of things.

As Sombrador landed, Alex snapped his fingers, and brought Rio's Champion back to focus on him. "This is the most important part. Legendary Pokémon take quite a bit of power to Mega Evolve, and handling three at once will be a challenge to maintain. But maintain it you must, if you wish to be Zigma's Tamer. Do you feel ready?"

Nelinha nodded. "Aye, Dragonblood. Your knowledge is...helpful. I too am glad you came to our region, even if by doing so you've pulled us into war."

Alex chuckled awkwardly. "Well...I will endeavor to aid your forces, should they need it. We are allies now, after all. They'll be counting on you, as well. Once you are a Tamer, you'll understand how the power you've acquired can be used to protect many at once. Have Zigma show you how, if you find it beyond your skill level."

Rio's newest Champion thanked him again, and then turned to go and converse with the three gathered Guardians. The other Scales gathered around behind Alex and Jess as they watched history be made.

Nelinha proved as exceptional in her handling of energy flow as she was in handling Pokémon, and first, Yacuma ascended to the next level. The crowd below made noises of confusion as their water guardian began to shine impossibly bright white, and then flew upon a new pair of wings, not unlike Sombrador's, into the clouds above the stadium. She began circling the island in slow circles, brimming with the energy of Mega Evolution. Her form had gained four wings, but no limbs, and any other changes were obscured by distance as the Legendary Pokémon circled the sky.

Next to join her was Mamboa, who also gained wings, though only a single pair, which ended in fearsome claws, not unlike a Noivern's. The crest around his neck and chest had, like a Serperior, become the basis for his leafy wings, and he too joined Yacuma in the sky, twirling and dancing alongside her for a final time.

Last, was Sombrador, who remained standing on the floating island as his counterparts circled above. Alex felt a pull from him, and he, Jess, Rick, Drake, and Svelka all approached, and bowed low.

"My new frrriends…" He began, as his purring tones echoed in their skulls, "My people and my selves shall not forget your aid, nor fail to reward it. Long have your Dragon and I not seen eye to eye, though I like to think there was no malice in our disagreements. He wished to rule his people as he saw fit, and I shall do the same."

Alex responded mentally, keeping the conversation between the four who had entered the Reverse World, and ended the Nexus. "My wish is to rule both of our peoples, in time. I tell you this, because I do not want to rule by force. I will help Humanity prosper, as much as I am able. When the time comes for unification, I will hope you decide to join us."

The dark dragon eyed him for a long moment, and as he did, his eager Tamer-to-be channeled the infinite dark energy of a Plate of Arceus into his form. Of the three, and much like Kyurem, Sombrador changed the most. His scales became yellow, and black spots covered them all over. The wingspan grew large enough to rival Tao's, and the tail, ever the most impressive aspect of the Dragon of Darkness, gained a pair of much sharper tail stingers.

The Mega Form of Sombrador met Alex's gaze, and he sensed amusement from his mind, as the dragon sensed his thoughts. He did not hide them. He needed the Guardians, at least, to understand his intentions, and the logic behind them. Finally, the now yellow and black cat-like dragon nodded. "When the time comes...I will aid your case. Though it will be for my Humans to ultimately decide. It is their society, after all."

Alex bowed, and the Scales followed his lead. He got a good look at the much sharper, much longer claws as he lowered his gaze, and spoke with the same respectful tone he used in every Legendary conversation. "You have my thanks. Now go, become whole once more."

Alex stood and placed a hand on the shoulder of Rio's Champion, who was sweating heavily under the strain of mega evolving three Legendary Pokémon, though as he'd explained to her, it was really only one. That understanding helped her maintain the energy, but she was rapidly losing focus when it came to combining them. "For this, you must let them take over the merging, and focus on supplying as much of the three types they share as you can. They will do the rest. Recover your balanced center, before you start."

She nodded, and did as instructed, letting the calm fill her mind. Finally, after several moments of focus, she opened her blazing eyes, and nodded at Sombrador. The dark dragon roared, and its two counterparts descended towards its tail, at which point, the appendage split further, and pierced its counterparts, not unlike Kyurem had done with its wings.

The tail ends pierced the snakes in their chests, which they bared willingly, and with a sharp inhale, the three began to glow. Their Champion focused on the Plates before her, and each once more shot energy into their respective Legendary. The light became brighter as the three massive Pokémon began to come together, and with a final flash, three once more became one.

To Alex's eyes, Zigma was quite similar to Tao. Though she was feminine where he was masculine, and radiated a presence of unsettling darkness, whereas his own partner radiated a sense of calming light. She was as large as the Original Dragon, and had retained the catlike body of Sombrador, as well as the yellow and black spotted coloring, not unlike one of the spotted cats that once roamed Old Earth and had since become Liepard.

The wings were large, and seemingly fluffy. Yellow at the base, though they shifted to green at the top, a familiar color that could only have come from Mamboa, and upon closer inspection, the fluffiness of the wings became identified as being frond-like leaves that were quite similar to how the grass snake's crest had appeared when dry. The tail had again changed, though it remained split in two, it had gained two snakelike heads, one green and one blue in color. One had eyes like emeralds, and the other's eyes were more akin to sapphires. They joined the cat-like head by moving forward towards it.

Zigma's countenance was more fur than scale, as was the rest of her body, though many draconic aspects remained. Her long fangs were obsidian, but her eyes were kind, motherly almost. She was lying on the ground, in a manner much like a feline, for she still had four legs, and each of those bore claws worthy of a dragon type, and as sharp as any feline. She regarded the Unovans for what felt like a final time, standing slowly to her full height as her Tamer climbed upon her back. "Travel quickly back to your home, Dragon Emperor. Much has changed, and the Original Dragon requires his Tamer. Go. I will see that Rio flourishes from this point forward. You may expect our fleet within a matter of days. When next we meet, let it be in Sacreus."

With her newest Tamer now upon her spotted neck, the Guardian of the Dark Continent descended below the cloud layer, and the cheers once more became deafening. Every citizen knew, or had at least heard, what their Guardian of old looked like. True to the Unovan Leader's words she had, finally, returned to them. Up above, the northerners bid farewell to the Queen and the Professor, then linked arms and Teleported home after telling the Captain that he could begin making the voyage north. Evidently he was ferrying some curious southerners for a bit of profit as well.

New Tork City Science Lab - Unova Region

When the Scales reappeared it was, for once, a place Alex had not seen. Mid Teleport, they had been redirected, and guided to this spot, whatever it was. The eleven humans glanced around, and then, they saw Tao.

He was hooked up to a number of machines that were, at a glance, gathering numerous types of data. He nodded at the Scales, and they moved towards the being that was a leader to them. Both he and Alex had varying levels of respect, but when it came to military matters, they shared a rank, as well as strategy. Orders from one were considered on the same authority level as the other, though naturally, the humans tended to backtalk their Emperor, and not their draconic Guardian. Luckily, their new Dragon Emperor's groove was one of perpetual chill.

"Welcome home. I take it things went well down south. Pravus has missed the last two of his public addresses, ever since you caused that surge of energy in his toy. We felt it even here, and indeed, the entire planet may have taken notice. Pravus will now likely begin trying to restore the Nexus, by making a new one. His methods have advanced in three hundred years. He understands the Shadow quite well now, and, he still has Doctor Ein." The dragon's calming baritone rumbled in their heads as his own head rested comfortably in his paws. Evidently, he did not mind the scientific data that was being collected. Anything, to further their goals.

"I thought Ein was supposed to be taken out, along with Fornia's science base. It's rare that one of your plans doesn't go the way you wish it. What happened?" Alex asked.

Tao rumbled out a rare growl as he spoke again. "The base was thoroughly ruined, and its data is now ours, but the team I sent to Fornia was...waylaid by a Groudon the Doctor turned Primal. Ein delayed them long enough for reinforcement to arrive, and even with a Ho-Oh aided boost to their power, Pravus brought the team low, nearly snagged the Veloraptor, and caught the aforementioned Ho-Oh in a Dark Ball. We must strike quickly. Hence the...science." He nodded towards the numerous machines the Brain Trust, among other lab coated scientists, were working at. Alex's eyes caught sight of Professor Juniper, and her daughter, as well as several other famous minds from across the States.

Alex glanced around, and then noticed that Tao had, at some point, dropped his Mega Form. He'd held it for weeks, a testament to just how much energy Alex had been channeling after finishing the Trials, but now it seemed, he was at rest once more. "Finally ran out of energy, hmm? What of our forces, then? How will we speak to them all?"

"We won't. You will. It is time your people had their Emperor lead them." The Original Dragon made a sweeping claw gesture towards the walls of the room they were in, and Alex glanced down, realizing exactly where they'd been redirected. Castelia's streets were teeming with uniformed Trainers under the Dragon Empire's newest banner, the Original Dragon's own symbol.

"We have moved everyone back here with coordinated Teleports for armoring and resupply. The next phase of this conflict will be bloody, but we must make it short, and swift. The more time we give Pravus to abuse his newest prize, the worse an abomination we will find when we reach Sacreus. For this next stage of the war, we will meet the Crusaders in the field with our newly armored Legions. The Swamp Sage has given us additional Scales, enough for each of the Generals to have five thousand under their command." Alex's eyes went wide at the dragon's words, and the scientists around him began disconnecting the various equipment and sensors from his scales as he idly cleaned his claws.

"Five thousand? I don't recall there being that many of us…that's thirty thousand total! From where did we find such promising Scales?" He muttered, stroking his beard as he pondered what exactly had been happening in the Swamp while he'd been busy.

Tao filled him in. "Many Trainers who were fleeing from the west ended up being called to the Swamp and guided to the Sage. Most of these were, before his training, just normal Trainers but now, the Sage boasts, they can match a Champion in Battle...for a while, anyways. True Champions usually have an abundance of fighting spirit. That does not occur in every human. They are all here, ready to move out for the next offensive of this conflict."

A smirk slowly appeared across the Dragon Emperor's face as he moved towards the dragon. "Tell those under myself and Jess to meet in Entral Park...and I want as many Scales that have already seen combat as possible. See who the other Generals are willing to spare." The dragon nodded, and then rose, with his Tamer upon his icy crest, standing beside the fiery redhead that usually accompanied him. "For now, let us inspect the troops...and send them back into war."

It took almost two hours for the hundreds of thousands of eastern soldiers to prepare to move out. Most of them were either refugees turned soldier, or veterans of battles where Crusaders had simply mowed their units down. As usual, Tao had managed a near perfect balance of both kinds of warriors across each battle company.

The Original Dragon flew across the length of Unova's most populous island, and all along it his riders could see army tents pitched and waiting. Many began to crowd the streets as the dragon roared and woke the armies under his command. They had come to rely on his timely aid in battle, and many understood with certainty that they only still lived because Tao had aided them, though the form of said aid tended to vary by what was available.

This time, his gift to them had been armor, not unlike that which the Scales wore, and indeed, Alex spied many of the dragonbone-inspired sets of black and white appearing below as the soldiers readied themselves. They were the veterans, then. They knew by now that the dragon did nothing without purpose, and if he was flying the length of Unova, it meant the time to roll out was upon them. The armor itself their new forces were clad in was not unlike the dragonbone sets with which they shared an aesthetic. The scientists responsible for creating it had managed a decent enough substitute for dragonbone that, while a bit heavy, was both light and apparently abundant enough for mass production. All field tests, apparently, deemed that it could take two to three hits from a Power Stave before giving to the absurd amount of elemental energy those weapons produced.

When it came to weaponry, Alex noticed that the troops below were not necessarily uniform in their choices for close combat. Swords were, by far, the most common but they were not plasma, instead sharing their composition with their wearer's armor. Other such weapons, of a large variety, had also been crafted and distributed across the ranks with whatever each soldier felt most comfortable relying on to survive. For ranged attacks, they had full belts of ten Pokémon to match their opponents, as ranged attacks like Rock Slide had proven rather effective at stopping energy beams, or at least reducing the devastation they left.

Alex felt a mental nudge from the dragon, and his Voice reached each of the Unovans below, quite a bit more difficult feat, as they were scattered and within buildings sometimes, rather than all inside a stadium, or said stadium's parking lot. It took a moment to make sure he reached who he wanted, but eventually, he spoke.

"Hail to you, Unovans, easterners, and more than a few westerners as well. You who find yourself under our banner...welcome. The time to put an end to the Cult of Arceus has arrived. Some of you may have mixed feelings about that, but what is important right this moment is to focus on taking down the people making the cult a problem in the first place. Namely, Caleb Pravus, and his Hands. They have willingly embraced and perpetuated the Shadow by infusing it into Pokémon Eggs. For this atrocity, there is only one fitting sentence."

Tao arced up above the Entree, and the majority of Unova had a line of sight on the dragon as the tiny figure atop his head Shouted and reached those below with the strength of his Voice. "Make no mistake, the rumors are true. They have embraced the Shadow and shield themselves from scrutiny by hiding that fact under their worship of the Light. But we of the east know better. We know the Alpha, we know his Guardian, and most importantly, we know freedom, something the men of the west have long forgotten, in their zeal to please the Alpha Pokémon's alleged mouthpiece."

Tao had, during the time it took to gather the army, shared with Alex the plan he had for the east's counterassault, and also illuminated him as to the abilities of his cousin, Wes, and a martial artist Ranger from Texico. They made quite a trio, and many had taken to calling them the 'Light Triad'. It was fitting, for the old Shadows under Ghetsis had been confirmed to be on side with the enemy. Now, Tao could answer them with humans just as unnaturally strong as they, and perhaps finally put an end to them.

As the dragon wheeled north, towards Nimbasa, his Tamer reached out to and sensed those stationed there who had made their barracks in the dual stadiums. They mostly consisted of Kalosian reinforcements, and Thor's own host, who had, much like their leader, recovered, and were ready for a second chance at Monachus.

To them, the Dragon Emperor said, "Allies from Kalos, Einherjar of Thor, your task shall be to take Urbe Monachus, Fargo, and then march to the ruins of Colville through the Northstone Pass. Once there, you will receive more guidance, but make no mistake, taking two cities will be rather challenging."

A familiar bellow came from out of the dark clouds just above them. "Two cities, two hammers!" Thor came blazing forth in his fiery Gogoat chariot and parked unnaturally in the air beside the hovering Original Dragon. "Mark me lad, this time, we shall not be denied our prize."

Alex nodded, speaking normally. "I should hope so, though I imagine it will be easier without Pravus there. I hear the Hand he's left in charge...Nonagon...is quite a handful. Maybe go in with your Pokémon as backup, this time. Just in case. Even Pravus used one, you know. The Darkrai did all the work." Thor looked offended for a moment, and then paused as Alex simply arched an eyebrow, as if daring him to find a fault in that logic after being so soundly taken down. After a moment, he nodded with acceptance. He'd underestimated the Shadow aberrations before, he would not do so again.

Alex turned back to the waiting soldiers in the stadiums, who had all activated their armor with his Words echoing in their ears. "Opeleucid's own General shall lead you, alongside Thor Odinson himself! This new company of five thousand Scales shall make the Arceans tremble at the arrival of the Northern Legion. Go now! To victory! Krif Fah Kun!" As the Shout washed over those below, and the Scales who were even at that moment swarming in front of the two stadiums in preparation for a Mass Teleport, noticed their armor lit up with ancient Common runes, which essentially had little difference between them, and the Unown upon which they were based.

Energy surged through the soldiers, and those under Thor started the war cry, even as Merlin coordinated his psychic types for the intricacy of Teleporting so many thousands of minds all at once. Then, they vanished, and Nimbasa was left with crowds of old, young, and mothers all looking up at the dragon god of their people with a mixed range of looks one might expect from family members risking loved ones in a war.

Tao flapped, once, and a wave of golden aura passed over the gathered people. Alex felt their minds ease, though not completely. It was not false hope his dragon shared with them on an instinctual level, but it was one that remained skeptical, and optimistic.

Tao flew then over the Entral Park, which was still gathering Scales of Balance new and old. Apparently, even the new arrival's blades had not diminished the Chargestone crystal supply in a permanent way. The Professors had found that by sharing the power of a Lightning Plate, the Chargestones could recover and regrow in hours, making the disturbance in the magnetic field temporary. Trainers had eventually been advised to not catch the remaining Joltik though, as their population had dwindled significantly. With an abundance of food, however, they would recover quickly.

Jess floated down from the dragon's head towards her own forces in Entral Park, again mostly female, which had no small number of noticeable Articuno Riders. Almost half of what they'd given to this conflict, though it was rumored more would come, if the fighting dragged on in an unfavorable stalemate too much longer. To the east, by the Imperial Palace, Alex found Hilbert and Hilda, alongside their forces, the other half of Kalos's soldiers, and two army groups four hundred thousand strong of regular troops that were in tents that stretched along the entirety of the coastline and had evidently even filled the palatial quarters to the brim.

Soldiers flooded out of the pyramidal palace as Tao landed atop the mountainous edge of the coast that once looked over Undella, and had remained somewhat intact as the massive, ancient building upended the surrounding terrain. The palatial complex had grown its own golden grass and flora rather quickly, but those had also been covered in the snow that had been forestalling the conflict until only a few days past, when the winter winds finally let up. That was when both sides of this bloody conflict had begun regrouping for the next, and likely final clash.

Alex addressed those below with the same booming Voice, "Long have many of you here held the north-middle line of this conflict, and while many give credit to Nate's unbroken string of victories, the two Generals here only fell into trouble when they were unwisely split apart. This time, the twins shall take you all into the heart of the Arcean's satellites, Arciana City. Take it, do not senselessly sack it, free those citizens who would be free of their cult, and recover the prisoners the Arceans have no doubt accrued there as well. Our sources say the numbers are large, and the conditions poor, but we've had no eyes within that city. Taking it will not be easy. Should you do so, you are to move west, and take down the prison camps our Articuno riders have marked on your maps. Free the people there, arm those who will fight, and then head south, to reinforce General Rosa. Fight smart, and win!"

This time, Tao roared, and an aura of calm settled over the gathered army groups, as they closed ranks around the Palace, and linked arms. When all had done so, after roughly five minutes of adjusting, they too were Teleported to the closest eastern base they had to Arciana City, the city of Menefer, a city on the Sippi River typically known for its classic and true revivals of thousands of old earth musicians, and indeed entire lost genres of music. From there, it was almost a straight shot to their target just to the west.

The Original Dragon once more returned to New Tork, which by that point, had also poured and linked up their units in preparation of Teleportation. The four hundred thousand or so regular troops had the slightly larger number of veterans amongst the legions, and they had already surrounded the rookies in the middle, knowing exactly where their entry point would be.

Tao arced up in front of the Empire building, and hovered. "This one will take a moment. Take your dragon. They need to see you. It has been a while."

Alex was on Shruikan's head in short order, and the two arced over the city streets, all maze-like, in a grid, and teeming with black and white. Finally, he relied on his third eye to find her. She burned with a silver aura that seemed awfully close to manifesting a Light ability, of some description. She just needed a push, and Tao had informed him that the Arcean's southern general, Lucien, would give her a decent one. Or break her.

They found Rosa atop a skyscraper full of troops whose arms were also linked. There were several such buildings repurposed for just this, in order to fit so many bodies into the cramped quarters of the city. Those on the Texican border had seen the worst fighting, and none from Rosa's Scales had opted to join the Dragon Emperor. He did not mind, as they would need that solidarity if they were to invade the tunnel through the Stoney Mountains known only as The Rocky Pass, and then move on to Phenac City, liberate it, and then strike out southwards for Texico City, arguably the best defended city the Arceans had, outside of Sacreus.

"You all know your objectives. You all know what it's going to take to seize them. Once the Pass is yours, retake the Orre region, rally the locals, and then prepare for a siege of Texico City. Hopefully, when your reinforcements arrive, they will surrender in the face of superior numbers." Alex saw many soldiers roll their eyes, and their prejudices clouded their minds. He shifted his gaze to Rosa in particular, and she raised a brow as he shared mental words with her. "Make sure they do not dehumanize the Texicans of the west. Their hatred will consume them, if you let it. I know there is animosity, and it is well deserved, but that mark upon their armor stands for something. No raping, no pillaging."

Rosa looked down for a moment, thinking, and then nodded, as she created an idea of what would be needed to remind the people of two regions long at odds that their enemy was, in fact, human and worth saving. "I will keep them in line, at least...I cannot guarantee they will be kind to the prisoners we take." Rosa answered, and Alex gave her a mental nod, before he focused his power.

Alex closed his eyes then, as he felt Tao achieve the required threshold of power on his end. The plasma sword ignited, and he held it horizontally over the dragon's icy crest. He focused on summoning the energy of the universe, and soon, he was burning rather bright under the darkened sky. Lux channeled the Light into the Original Dragon, and with a booming Shout that tore the sky, the clouds of ash that had been moving ever eastward over Unova were blown away by the sheer power of the being that had once more ascended.

Sweating rather hard under the moonless sky, but still rather glad he'd managed to Mega Evolve a Legend a second time, Alex extinguished the blade, and sat cross legged atop the dragon's head. "You handle the sky, and their boons. I... need a minute. It's a lot harder to do that without divine assistance…"

The smirking and once more mega evolved Original Dragon flapped all four wings at once, and the aura of every soldier and Scale of Balance within Castelia began to glow with golden light. Moments later, the empowered soldiers returned to Aweston, to begin their latest assault on the Rocky Pass.

With the majority of the armed forces under them dispersed, the remaining Scales of Balance, the 'elite forces' under the Dragon Emperor, and she who would be Empress, were all that was left to deploy. Tao returned to Unova's center, namely the Entree, and landed upon the strange, ancient plant.

The double helix of black and white branches began glowing with white intensity, as did the pool of water that gave it life below. Tao's nose tendrils extended to the circles under his wings, and the dragon's tail went 'turbo' as their greatest scientific minds called it, as he summoned the power for his next move in the game of war. His much larger, coiled form was whited out by the sheer brightness of the Entree. A pair of golden eyes broke the blinding white, and with a thundering crack that split the sky, the First Dragon's own Hyper Voice rolled across the northern continent, eliminating the foul ash clouds as it went ever westward, and expanded from the north to the south.

The Legendary Pokémon's power revealed many a hidden flying Crusader company hidden in the ash, not yet in the right formation for an ambush, over numerous eastern outposts that had been lightly manned, but prepared for exactly this scenario. For the Dragon Army, clear skies meant the counter offensive had begun. The skies over the east filled with Pokémon attacks in the newly cleared theater of war, and the final battles of the latest conflict between east and west finally began anew.

Alex leapt from Tao's crest, as this time the dragon required a moment, and landed on a lower black branch of the Entree. "Alright boys and girls...the rest of them are moving. We must as well."

"Where are we headed, Dovahkiin?" One of them said from below.

Alex smirked, as he noted Rick and Drake were once again ready for war and it had been Drake who asked the question. "We head for Pravia, in the northwest, and then move east towards the Northstone Pass. When Nate and Thor arrive, we'll all move south along the coast, and trap Sacreus between Mewsia, and a retaken Orre. Before we move out though, there's a new trick we've picked up...every other battle group has a blessing, but we do not require one, apparently, now that we have unlocked this. You were told to bring your own Plate sets to this gathering, those of you who forgot your Plates, run and retrieve them. Now. We shall begin when all here have their full sets. We're going to need them."

Hours passed into the night as the Scales of Balance, under the Emperor and the Entree, rediscovered an ancient method of armored warfare once lost to time. The dragon, who watched them all from atop the spiraling tree, smirked to himself. Their potential was starting to manifest, but their ability to close the jaws of this multi-pronged assault would make it appear, or kill them in the process.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

The East Burns Red

(The following is a short story giving us an informative light on events transpiring elsewhere right as Chapter 34 starts. While that will focus mainly on Unova, Fornia, etc. this will center on Japan. Skipping isn't advised for this one.)

Oceana Pacifica, East of Evergrand Plateau - Hoenn Region

"Give me a regular report."

The Vice Admiral saluted, "Sir. All scans are normal. Another lovely day in Hoenn, sir."

Admiral Nauta sighed, and it turned into a groan at the end. His own naval attire, a dark blue suit that did little to hide the man's impressive bulk, was very much Sharpedo themed, for reasons that became obvious rather quickly to anyone who irritated the man Caleb Pravus had put in charge of the Arcean Fleet. "Another lovely damn day. No sign of the Irritant. Looks like another long day of thinning the prisoners…"

The gathered crew members aboard the ship that had long since stopped being a luxury yacht, grew grim faced. Only one person aboard the ship actually enjoyed watching the hunger of Pokémon like Sharpedo driven to the point of eating humans, and eventually craving them. Some in the pack were reluctant and would try to eat anything else. The largest, were not. Those were the ones selected to be moved out of the pens that acted as engines and had done so ever since the Arceans had been forced to adapt to a life at sea, aboard these very ships, so very long ago.

Before the regularly scheduled slaughter of rebellious 'japs' could again start, the radar pinged. All eyes turned to the main viewer. A single, massive ship was coming from their southeast. The device pinged again. The first dot had friends. Many friends.

The Admiral's tones rang throughout every ship in Japan. "Contact, southeast Pacifica. Friendlies sound off."

None did. The other Arcean ships were either blockading the besieged dual regions of Kanto and Johto, or up north parked in Sinnoh for repairs. Japan's own Navy had tried taking on the invading Arceans, but they'd been effectively routed thanks to the brutality of Admiral Nauta. He'd battled the weak Japanese all the way down the coastline, many times personally getting involved against their ships and sailors, but eventually, he'd run out of targets in Hoenn. Apparently, these latest ships were not friendly. The Admiral grinned, revealing a mouth full of manually sharpened teeth. He'd taken the Sharpedo look to the extreme, as he genuinely loved his partners, and only one had been infused with Shadow. It was the one exception the Prophet allowed when it came to infusion, given the Admiral's effectiveness at controlling illegal sea traffic. It was an unpopular view, but he found that non infused Pokémon were more effective, since they listened better.

Another ping, and yet more ships appeared behind the first groups in obvious formations. "Who the Hell has the 'nards to test my ship?" The Admiral growled, expecting an answer.

His well-trained crew, who while harshly treated, were also genuinely loyal, to a degree, gave him the answer he expected with the haste he deserved. The man was a genuine Mudbray, but he'd kept them alive when their families abandoned them to the Prophet's mercy for their rebellious tendencies, and he'd given them food, rather than turned them into it. The Arcean naval corps were where members of the population deemed insubordinate ended up, and the admirals all had leave to dispose of anyone they deemed not worth the effort of reforming.

"Sir! We have eyes on the Flagship. Putting it on screen now."

Once more, all eyes were drawn to the screen, and every crewmate on the deck flinched as they saw the imposing but unmistakable outline of the Dark Fleet. They had not truly sailed in millennia, not since they had lost their Guardian, and the imposing dark aura that had made ships flee in terror of their wake had vanished. The very large and very numerous cannons had made up for their lack of aura and had proven as effective as firearms ever had against humans. Once more, it seemed, the Dark Fleet sailed with Zigma's boon.

The Admiral spoke again, undeterred. "I want the name of the ship I'm about to devour...I never got the chance to have a proper showdown with Japan's."

Fingers hammered buttons, as the crew raced to be the first to answer their Admiral's demand. One man shouted in the tense silence. "HMS Chekhov, sir! That's their name for it. Flagship of Rio's Dark Fleet. Evidently, both it and the fleet can, and have, deployed Trainers on Flying Types for battles like this before, in mass quantities."

The Admiral chuckled. "They'll find a sky full of ice, a harsh teacher. Ready the Walrein and Dewgong." He held out a hand, and through the power of technology and electromagnetism, summoned to his gloved fist a Power Stave that had been customized into an upgraded trident. At the top of the hilt was a blue gem, and it began to glow as the Admiral's voice rang throughout his own ship, and the others in his battle fleet. "Now, release the Sharpedo!"

Heavy thumps echoed from every ship, as the pens holding the Sharpedo meant for battle opened and released the beasts into the sea. The Admiral's voice came again as he touched a pair of fingers to the blue crystal. "All pods! Mega Evolve!"

The rather obvious glow prompted the Dark Fleet to open fire, though their guns were not firing projectile bullets, nor were they aimed at the ships. Balls of still bloody chum encased in a sap that was waterproof, and yet still gave off a bloody scent in the water, hurtled by the mega evolved Pokémon, and as one they turned on instinct and followed the bloody balls, chomping eagerly into the meals that, when reached, would entrap them in tar-like sap miles under the ocean from their Trainers. It would dissipate with enough salt water, but by then the battle would be over.

Suddenly defenseless, the Arcean ships began listing as the Sharpedo and Carvanha acting as engines also moved for the food balls and dragged their ships as far as their anchors would allow. The Admiral glowered at the main viewer. "Fine. If that's how they want it, Carcharo shall be their opponent. I'm going up top." His final words were answered by a rising platform under his chair, that would bring him to the ship's topmost deck, an area reserved for the Admiral alone. It was also where he tended to launch from.

A Dark Ball brought forth his favored Sharpedo, and the ever-angry beast glared at him. The Admiral pressed the trident again. "Mega Evolve! Carcharo, devour them all!" The man pointed, and the now mega evolved Shadow Pokémon obeyed, charging through the waves in a bloody curving line towards the Chekhov.

Sap balls flew past him without the Shadow infused shark so much as glancing at them, and the Rio fleet's reluctance to harm a Pokémon left them wide open. He tore into their right flank, arcing towards the flagship through five relatively speedy boats used for reconnaissance.

The flagship changed ammunition rather quickly, and soon, multicolored balls of blue, magenta, and orange hit the speeding shark, and forced it to veer away, as the water around it became filled with 'Pester Gas' for use in the aptly named Pester Balls, that helped the people of Rio without ghost powers traverse the jungles and drive off wild Pokémon without injuring them. Even infused with Shadow, the Pokémon's body could not handle the gas, and avoided water that had been tainted by it.

"Carcharo!" The Admiral shouted, and his voice traveled across the water, gaining the Shadow shark's attention. The Pokémon's eyes went wide, as it saw the Stone the Admiral had evidently raised to the top of the ship as well. It glowed with seven colors and radiated the power of Infinity.

The Mega Sharpedo circled back to his Trainer, and leapt out of the water, matching the height of their own ship with ease. The Admiral had one hand on the Stone, and the other outstretched, as an offering. Carcharo bit down on his Trainer's limb with zero hesitation, and the man growled through the pain. "Dark...Burst!"

Shadow traveled from the Sharpedo to his Trainer, and then into the Stone as well. With time, the Shadow would devour it, and force the Stone to be found once more once it reconstituted itself, but if it meant wiping out the Dark Fleet, it would be worth it. Admiral Nauta fused with his Mega Sharpedo, and the two became one as the Shadow energy pushed their evolution to a new level.

The resemblance to a Garchomp was a little unsettling, though the Admiral and his partner lacked scythe hands. Aspects of the shark had fused with aspects of the man, and the result was a deep bluish purple skinned monstrosity with hate-filled eyes, and a very much Sharpedo-like jaw, with three rows of deadly teeth. The shark man eyed the oncoming ships again, as flying dots that must have been Trainers filled the sky.

The Admiral's new gravely tones rang over the battle fleet's intercoms. "All firing teams...Ice Beam! Feed any that miss to the engines!" With that, the fused beast leapt into the dark blue waters, and began swimming towards his prey as their Trainers fell by the hundreds. The Dewgong and Walrein that yet lived on these horrible ships had long since learned what inaccuracy led to. It didn't matter if they didn't want to hurt fellow Pokémon, they had to hit successfully, or become chum.

All the Chekhov got in the way of warning was an easy to miss nose, rising from the point of the shark man's elongated snout. Thankfully, the aid coming to the flagship was under the water, and saw the threat outlined in the intense sunlight long before he came close.

An explosion of glowing blue beams of water typed energy hammered the Admiral as he leapt for the flagship, jaws wide, and was sent skipping across the water as an Origin Pulse blindsided the Arcean's strongest water Trainer. The Trainers who'd acted as aerial support thus far cheered, as the massive blue form of Kyogre broke the surface. Atop the super ancient Pokémon's head was a woman, who gave the trio of figures atop the Chekhov a cocky salute. "Any enemy of these zealots is a friend of Hoenn! Name yourselves, strangers!"

The three figures atop the flagship, Queen Iara, their new green-clad Champion, and a man clad in blue with suspiciously Latios-like hair, conversed briefly, before the green one leapt over the side of the ship, and mounted a being that melted from the shadows. The massive form of Zigma coalesced from under the Dark Fleet, and the now floating Kyogre eyed the massive feline-esque chimera warily as she took the sky, and hovered before the Guardian of the western seas, and her Tamer.

A strong, and unquestionably feminine voice thundered in Haruka Birch's skull as she received her answer. "The Dragon of Unova sends his regards, alongside the Dark Fleet of Rio. We are to free your ports, be reinforced, and take back the northern half of this island. Guide us to your leaders."

The woman atop the Kyogre ordered the super ancient Pokémon to rise, and she stared the leopard-spotted chimera down, even when the rear snakeheads loomed, watching always, above what mortals considered Zigma's 'face' to be. "First, we need to take those ships, and not with firearms, there are innocents aboard." The Tamer of Kyogre gave the Dark Guardian and her Tamer another look over as she spoke, "I will be honest...it is a little unnerving to receive aid in the form of the Dark Fleet from a nation that claims to stand in the Light...one might wonder if the Arceans aren't completely off base with their claims...though their actions thus far are still dishonorable. It's for better heads than mine to deal with. I'll guide you to the Champions once we handle those ships."

Zigma's feline head nodded once. "Lead on, Tamer of the Sea. This is your home; you know it best. But first…"

Just as the hovering chimera paused, her fangs lit with pure darkness, and clamped down upon the near-invisible form of Admiral Nauta, who had sped back towards his quarry in an enraged frenzy and tried to strike down one of the Tamers with stealth. He snarled in pain as the fangs embedded themselves deep into vital organs, and even with his Shadowy healing factor, the wounds seemed to resist closing, or even attempting to heal. "How...did you...see me...I am...a Shadow...darkness incarnate!"

Zigma stared down the shark man and clenched her jaw tighter as the sea below them filled with black blood. "You...are little more than a tainted imitation of the real thing...and it is time you stopped pretending to serve the Alpha."

Nauta's eyes went wide as the Guardian's voice thundered painfully in his head, impossible to ignore, or deny, for the truth of her words was infallible. Darkness radiated off the hovering entity, as she spoke a final time. "In fact...perhaps it is best if you are simply...forgotten."

Zigma clenched again, and with shattering sound, the crystalline energy binding the Sharpedo and the man together broke before it could fully make itself permanent, and the fusion split apart. The shark fell towards the water, only to be stopped by a purple aura that kept it hovering in place for the moment.

For the wounded Admiral, his end was, to all appearances, quick and merciful as he completely vanished into the gaping jaws of the Dark Continent's Guardian, and was never heard from, or remembered, again. Zigma turned to the man's unfortunate partner, and with a flash of her dark aura surrounding his body, Carcharo was freed of the Shadow, and his painful memories of a genuinely good, if a bit deranged Trainer all at once.

His Mega Form had faded, but the latent experience from the many battles he'd participated in as a weapon of naval warfare all suddenly came back at once, and the already massive Sharpedo doubled in size. The eyes turned towards Zigma, blinked once in a respectful acknowledgement of the Mother of the Home Rivers, and then turned towards Hoenn, and the scent of Sealeo, and Walrein.

Zigma's Tamer let the hungry shark go to sate his instinct, and then turned her eyes on the ships in the distance, soaring above as Kyogre moved below the ocean's surface. She spied the Hoenn girl in her pressure-adapted sapphire colored 'armor' trying to subtly send a message via Holoceiver to what appeared to be a very worn, very haggard Steven Stone. The call was brief, but she could guess what it was about.

The giant, seven colored rock was obvious, atop the highest deck of the Arcean's flagship. None had realized the Admiral's fate quite yet, and none had possessed the right attitude to risk their necks and take a peek up top. Admiral Nauta had killed people for less.

Thus, the Dark Guardian swooped by, gripped the stone with her massive paws, and lifted it easily into the possession of the Dark Fleet. She burned away the Shadow energy trying to taint it and warped it into a pocket space only those with true mastery of the dark typing could create, or safely enter. Moments after the theft, the massive form of Kyogre Aqua Jetted through the Arcean's main ship, and by no coincidence left the still-afloat other half alone. That one, had contained prisoners, but the decks that had been barracks, and 'rec rooms' for Arcean higher ups had been completely torn through. The momentum of the fifty-foot Pokémon's massive form went rather high with the move it had perfected with the aid of a human.

That same human now guided the Legendary Pokémon back down, and they hovered slightly above the remaining battle group as Zigma began portaling prisoners away through holes of dark typed energy. "Incoming!" Was the only warning Haruka gave as Kyogre gave off a deep rumble, and the surrounding water rippled from the sheer force of it. It had rested well, for once, and today was finally the day to strike back. The Water Spout went high into the air, high enough to crystallize in the upper atmosphere, before falling back to the earth.

The self-titled Contest Queen then marked the ships below her with her eyes and psychically told the massive Pokémon where to aim specifically. The goal was to keep the casualties low, but with the power of an Origin Pulse, someone was bound to be unluckily caught in the crossfire. The streams of blue water energy shot into the massive icy Water Spout spread, and arced off the many pieces of ice, breaking them, and focusing the beams all at once.

The beams bounced around, and then downward, towards the parts of ships marked by the Tamer of the Sea, splitting the ships in half with pure water energy. Kyogre's aim was rather good, and always only the Arcean quarters and the main decks were the casualties. A few ships had managed to fire off cannons of their own, alongside Ice Beams from several Dewgong, though many had resisted firing at the Guardian of the Sea. To a water type, the idea of attacking Kyogre, outside of honorable Battle of course, was simply absurd. None aboard the ships had the heart to take down the Guardian as ordered, and moments later, more than a few directed their Ice Beams at the humans.

Chaos erupted as meteoric ice chunks fell into the ocean, and on parts of what was still floating. Thankfully, Zigma's methods of saving people and Pokémon were as quick and efficient as spatial portals always tended to be. The majority were evacuated with haste, though there had likely been casualties. Such was the nature of Legendary scale attacks.

In the distance, atop the Ever Grande Plateau, a plume of fire and smoke filled the sky, and from the newly leveled Victory Road, which had been emptied during Arcean occupation, now rose a massive volcano. A red scaled Groudon roared up from the flaming mountain, and met Kyogre's gaze in the distance, and a tiny ruby-colored figure atop its head waved in their direction.

The Groudon was recalled into a Pokéball, and before they'd gone halfway towards the plateau, they were met by a Champion, atop arguably the strongest Salamence in Hoenn. Once the three Tamers had conferred for a time, the Dark Fleet split in two. The southern half moved for Slateport, and would be led by Rikuya, Champion of Hoenn and Tamer of the Land, in retaking the city from the Arceans. The northern group, and the larger, had split again. Some went for Mossdeep, and the many strong Trainers who'd hidden themselves well, while the rest moved for Lilycove City.

For her part, Zigma had again moved the prisoners to the safety of the Hoenn Tamer's last holdout, Sootopolis City, and then had continued on her way. The fleet had orders to regroup and head for Johto once Hoenn was free, for that was where the Dark Continent's Guardian headed from Hoenn, specifically to Mt. Silver, the place where the Champions of Japan had hidden themselves, and their allies, from the encroaching zealots.

Mt. Silver - Johto Region

"You know, only fools climb up here more than once."

The ever-snarky tones of Professor Gary Oak caused the man known as Red to smirk, humorlessly, down at what he was looking at. It was a clear day, gorgeous really. Perfect for war. The view below was filled by the armored forms of the zealots from Fornia, covering the northern slope of the mountain. Only the lakes north of Mt. Silver broke up their lines, not that it would matter.

"So far, my Mewtwo and the…other one Team Rocket made...have been holding them back, but…" Red was interrupted as one of the Mewtwo, the Y strand and self-proclaimed (but statistically supported) Ultimate Life Form, raised a bulbous three fingered hand from under its ragged brown cloak, and formed a familiar ball of psychic death. The Psystrike rained down on the Crusaders, catching only the slowest of those below, who had been foraging outside of their corp's shields. General Marius knew armies marched on food, and the Crusaders had effectively stripped the land from Sinnoh to their current position of much of the berry related fruits, not even bothering to plant the extra. All were needed, for Arceus's war machine.

The retaliation was swift as it arced up towards them with all the combined fury of flame, ice, and electricity, but Red was already there, floating in the air behind his Mewtwo. "Mirror Coat!"

His partner, currently still mega evolved into its X strand physical attacking form nodded once, seeing the logic. His lengthy psychic spoon, as long as he was tall, formed from thin air, and the genetic Pokémon twirled it as it shone with rainbow light, and sent the combined Tri-Attack beams back down at those who had fired them, where they smashed uselessly into the combined energy barrier formed by the Power Staves when in close proximity.

The Crusaders had been marching under such defensive cover ever since their newest General, Marius, had arrived to reinforce them, and drive them south. The General had taken most of the north, and the Arcean's Admiral had taken the southern islands, and even Hoenn last they'd heard. Still, nowhere was as bad as Sinnoh.

The Champion of the region, Kohki, along with his team of would-be heroes, had managed to escape the Arceans when it became clear that Sinnoh was helping the invaders, or rather, a larger majority than expected had suddenly revealed their membership all at once, and had simultaneously crawled out of the woodwork to enact their 'righteous conquest'.

Gary sighed at Red. "This isn't working. Where's Cynthia? We could use that Rayquaza of hers…"

"She went north, to Sinnoh, to train. Last I heard." Red's tone was emotionless, and his eyes were locked on the north. "That dragon is probably already under their sway…and Kohki has, apparently, vanished."

"Vanished?"

Red nodded, wordlessly reaffirming what he'd already said, and Gary came up beside Red now, and stood beside him atop Mt. Silver's highest peak. He'd dressed as he usually did these days, with his classic (and warm) purple shirt, covered by his Gramp's lab coat. "I certainly hope they haven't caught that thing in a Dark Ball...a Shadow Rayquaza is a bit...out of our league. Sinnoh's was already ferocious on a good day..." There had been rumors that Champion Cynthia had some trouble taming the black scaled Rayquaza that had rampaged around the western part of the Sinnoh region, but Red knew that Legendary Pokémon could be difficult to bond with.

Red smirked again. "Mewtwo, both of them, can handle it if necessary...but you have a point. With that kind of firepower, we won't last long. They can't fight everyone. Not at once."

"Red! Red, you need to see this!" The feminine tones of Leaf, as well as the familiar rumble of a Hydro Pump entered their ears as the cannon turtle brought his Trainer to the summit of Japan's most iconic mountain by propelling itself through the air with its cannons. The two boys turned as she landed. "Seems like your Unovan friends finally sent us some help! The others are on their way up. We're counterattacking. Now."

The smirking, red clad Trainer floated into the air on his own power once more, and joined the Mewtwo in the sky above Mt. Silver's conical snow-covered top. Gary summoned his Charizard, and was joined in the air moments later, by the other Champions, and their own flying partners. When Red had called, those with a Pokédex had answered. Kanto, Johto, Sinnoh, and even friends from Kalos had come, though Hoenn's remained absent.

It was Kalos's Prince, Calem, who floated over to Red then, on his Noivern. The tall Kalosian handed him something crystalline, and Red's eyes flared with crimson aura as he saw it, and then met his Mewtwo's gaze. The two psychic types, for Red had awakened his own typing in the Swamp, seemed to converse for a moment, and then the Y strand Mewtwo floated over as well. After a few minutes of further psychic discussion, they nodded in unison, and flew further above the gathered Trainers. That was when they saw the form their aid had taken.

Rising quickly over the mountain's conical top, Zigma's feathery emerald colored wings darkened the sun, and her Tamer stood atop her head, arms crossed. She shouted down to them. "Champions of Japan! It's a real honor to meet you all, face to face. Your legends are heard even in Rio. By request of Unova's Dragon Emperor, we have come to aid you."

Red nodded, rising beside the pair of Mewtwo, as he addressed everyone. Seeing the sky above the mountain filled with Pokémon, the Arceans below began the long march up the mountain's relatively easy slope. "The time is now. We either win here, or let Kanto and Johto fall. Are you with me!?" He raised a fist, and the others cheered, but Red could see they were worn out. They'd been trapped in the very much inhospitable caves for weeks now. Most of Johto and Kanto had already been invaded, but the counterattack came now. Red pointed at the shield covering the forces below as he met Zigma's fierce feline eyes. "Can you take care of that shield? We can take them if we can hit them…"

The leonine chimera gave her best attempt at a shrug, and opened her jaws. Atop her head, her Tamer raised a dark crystal, that glowed with a similarly dark energy. The Dark Pulse grew in size, and the orb of darkness was mirrored above numerous red spots that appeared as Zigma enhanced her attack to surpass the energy level of the Arcean's shield. Then, she made them impossibly dense, with the nature of compressed dark typed energy. With a roar, Zigma sent the evidently heavy orb hurtling towards the Arcean's largest corps of soldiers, and when it hit the shield, it appeared to vanish.

"Is...is that it?" The question came from one of the gathered Trainer's Togekiss, namely the girl riding atop it, alongside Hibiki, the man who'd gone toe to toe with Red on this very mountain, in his day. They were both much older, and while Red had continued to hone his battle prowess after their encounter, Hibiki had gone on to become, and greatly expand, the use of Pokémon Rangers, and Ranger battle tactics, across Japan.

Kotone got her answer when, quite suddenly, an orb of dark energy flared up under the enemies' shield, devouring them to a man with unsettling waves of pure black. When it faded, all that remained were Power Staves, still connected to the overall shield of their corp formations, but lacking the men who'd held them.

Zigma turned to the gathered Trainers, Champions, Breeders, and Pokédex fillers. "Well...you have weapons, now. Make use of them."

Red floated forward, speaking for the uncomfortable Trainers gathered at his request. "That's not how we do things, in this land."

Zigma, who had begun to descend, paused unnaturally in the air, and then reappeared in an eyeblink before the floating Red. That close, he understood just how massive she was. The comparatively massive feline eyes narrowed at the tiny human, and her Tamer gave a shrug that very much suggested Zigma was doing her own thing and would not easily be deterred if she decided to have a psychic snack.

Red's crimson aura shield tightened around his body, for all the good it would do against a legend, but he wisely let her speak uninterrupted. "You do survive in this land, yes? Fight with honor? A code of Battle?" Red looked quietly to one side. "I do not care if you dislike such weapons. You may not need them, but they might." One spotted paw gestured to the regions behind them, and on such a clear day, it was easy to see smoke rising from Olivine City, and Cinnabar Island as well. "Will you not give your people the chance to fight for their freedoms?"

Red's eyes, burning with an appropriately crimson aura, narrowed. "That is how villains do things. Team Rocket. Magma. Aqua. Galactic. Flare. They use such devices, as well as Pokémon, to achieve their aims. Such things should be smashed, and never again made, as the ancestors willed." He gestured as well. "I've Battled almost all of our country's Trainers by this point. I have faith in them. Next time, crush the weapons too."

While the Guardian and former Champion were arguing, the two Mewtwo had, seeing an opportunity, dove into the fray on either side of the now fractured Arcean line. The X strand, Red's partner, shared his views on this particular issue, and in short order, his spoon proved itself superior, again, to any Power Stave, smashing them all to pieces.

Irritated, but evidently unwilling to argue, Zigma turned towards the easternmost army group of Crusaders, and prepared another strike, only to find that the corps had mobilized en mass and were now ascending atop Pokémon capable of flight. In short order, the sky was a frenzy of deadly energy beams, Pokémon moves, and naturally, death. Typically, battles were several hundred feet up, and Mt. Silver's summit was not merciful to those who fell. Neither were its inhabitants.

As the battle grew, it soon became apparent that the local Pokémon were helping as well, as best wild Pokémon could. While typically weaker to those who'd been trained, in large numbers, they were rather strong. Several of the original Pokédex fillers had also embraced Ranger tactics, and made full use of their wild allies, and even summoned in others as well through the use of their Signs.

Soon, the slopes were covered in battling Pokémon and humans, and Mt. Silver's northern face became pure chaos.

Several Miles North of Mt. Silver - Holon Region

"At last...back to war." The scarlet and gold armored form of a giant strode to the front of his mode of transportation, and glimpsed the flash of energy beams and Pokémon moves in the distance. His armor was considered to be the 'Mark III' of the Crusader pattern, even though 'Mark II' hadn't even been widely distributed to all forces. In Fornia and Japan, the soldiers had received what suits had been made, and their old ones were used on newer recruits, primarily for reinforcing Texico City.

The Crusaders under General Marius smirked at his enthusiasm. The aged man lived for conflict and had just finished destroying an old student of his who'd taken up living in a backwater nation like this. He'd mastered electricity fairly well, but he'd ignored the other elements entirely, and had fallen to his old teacher's power, as all the others had before him.

General Marius had been the mind behind the original idea of using the One Dragon's legendary power of subjugation, namely his devastating multi typed breath attacks, and condensing them into a powerful, portable weapon. Even while he was asleep, they had done it, and the Prophet's dream had come to fruition much quicker than anticipated.

Arceans had, according to their history, never actually warred with anyone. Any conflicts they did have, were usually in States they had held sway over, and had usually been against the rebellious 'counterculture' of whatever region they'd been taking over at the time. Thus, General Marius had a track record of victory, though even he had been stalled by winter. Like a true 'Spartan', he had refused to campaign in a blizzard, so Pravus had sent him somewhere else.

As the General's airship, the crimson painted Thunder Eagle, sped ever southwards on the standard Arcean combination of tandem rotor blades and powerful engines, Marius sighed. The land below was mountainous, snowy, and likely cold. But at least it wasn't thousands of miles of flat land and nothing but white in every direction. One had to be mad to be able to fight in such conditions, which certainly explained the Prophet's choice in switching around leadership.

The airship landed on the remains of what had once been an entire corps of their forces, and Marius' personal guard followed him from the ship's hold. He had his own personal army with him, and additional ships carrying the bulk of the hundred thousand strong force landed soon after. Like their general, their armor was scarlet, though it had been greyed by months of functioning under perpetual ash clouds. Now, they would turn it scarlet once more.

"Ahh...Mewtwo...interesting. Two, no less, and with the strongest, ideal Natures...Giovanni did not skimp. Let us see how they handle...a Titan. He drew a Pokéball from the scarlet cloak that adorned his back and bore the Church's symbol.

Despite being a normal ball, the occupant was very much still infused with Shadow, as was obvious to any present who could see such things. The General summoned his Regigigas to the field and pointed at the two battling genetic Pokémon.

The soldiers immediately around them suddenly focused their fire and forced the pair to retreat under their Barriers. Three Pokémon moves, also of fire, ice, and electric typing, forced the combined attacks into a stalemate, and canceled the energy out with the usual explosion. From the dust, came the reigning Indigo Champion, and the Legendary Beasts he only summoned on special occasions, but respected him enough to answer when he did call.

Silver glanced up at the pair of Mewtwo, who both blinked in recognition of the boy they had both once seen, clinging to Giovanni's leg. It was one of their earlier memories. Then, he spoke, his harsh adult male baritone shattered the pair's memory and brought them back to the present. "I have this! Go, find Red. You'll need him to take that thing down!"

As he finished speaking, Silver turned back to see the aforementioned titan charging at his beasts with building speed. "Shadow Impact!" Came the command from the red armored General commanding the titan, and at his words, it picked up its pace, and sent Entei, Suicune, and Raikou flying into the mountainside behind the floating form of their Trainer. Psychic was being used liberally, and many of the Trainers atop the mountain had been levitated into the air, though it took them a moment to realize who was orchestrating it.

Serena's Delphox had a reputation for her masterful manipulation, and Leaf's Alakazam was outclassed only by legends when it came to psychic power. Together, they kept those who needed to fly, and battle, out of harm.

As the pair of Mewtwo ascended to the top of the mountain once more, they found themselves no less embroiled in conflict. The sky was a shifting array of colors, often based upon type of move, but though the invaders each had belts of ten Pokémon, those gathered here had trained more than enough partners to fill out four extra spaces in preparation for the World Tournament.

The brown-shrouded Y Mewtwo looked around. "I do not...see him. Or sense him."

Red's voice came from above and behind them. "Where are you looking? I'm here. Right up here." The crimson aura-shielded human was smirking, and holding up a strange crystal that was glowing with psychic typed energy, manifesting as a crimson light, and radiating power to rival Mega Evolution. "Which of you has the power to answer a titan?"

The two Mewtwo shared a look, and both started forward, only to pause, and again lock eyes. Their auras, both deep blue and radiating raw power began sparking as the edges collided. Red's Mewtwo took advantage of the closeness and struck impossibly fast with his psychically manifested spoon. The Psycho Cut was smashed through with a Psystrike, and the Y strand Mewtwo raised both arms, calling down a hail of follow up strikes as it pummeled the other into the mountain.

It turned towards Red then, and in an eyeblink, it was before him, three fingered hand raised towards his. Their auras blended, and the crystal flared in Red's palm as he started the chant that, apparently, Kalos' top scientists had insisted was necessary for activation. Calem had helped him memorize it. "Full length…"

"Genetic Series…" The Mewtwo answered, reading his mind easily.

The two spoke again in unison. "Heavenly Burst!" The red coloring of Red's aura swelled as the two became one, and the genetic Pokémon reached a new stage of its evolutionary path. Because it had been mega evolved on its own power, the new fusion retained many aspects of the Y strand Mewtwo's characteristics.

It was a lucky thing, for just as they finished, they raised a four-fingered hand, and halted the Shadow Beam that Regigigas had launched towards the impossibly bright red light. The beam had also cleared the smoke around the pair's vicinity, and all of the combatants around and above the mountain paused, as they bore witness to a power only dreamed of.

The sky was bright red, and the reason for that coloration floated above all of them. The lengthy head tail of Mewtwo's Y form had split into two, and the semi-halo that surrounded the Y strand's Mega Form had become a full, blazing one, burning red above their head as the waves of power emanating from the new fusion of man and Pokémon. Their head sported a pair of uncannily catlike ears, and Red's seemed to have been lost somewhere in the mix.

The fused pair clenched their fingers as they glowed bright with the power of Mirror Coat, and the beam of darkness went streaking back into the Regigigas, who was too slow to counter its increased speed.

The elemental titan fell with a heavy crash next to the creature that controlled its actions, the human who was a General of his people. The man's third generation suit, one with no Melmetal essence, only ceracrete metal blends 'borrowed' from the Imperium of Man, revealed a hidden feature of the Arcean's latest armored suits.

His back-embedded jetpack brought the General high above his titan, and he spoke a single word. "Automatize!"

Regigigas rose, but as it did, it was missing parts of its metallic body, and the foliage that had grown upon it with time. Shadow poured from the missing pieces, and the General spoke again. "Now...smother the red one. Shadow Grip!"

The enraged, and heavily damaged titan charged towards the fusion of human and Mewtwo with a speed that should not have been possible with its size and nature, each of the six long fingers blazing with pure darkness.

As they saw their opponent approaching, the fused pair agreed, they needed to use an attack that would remove their enemies in one blow. Then, they could use this new Light energy coursing through them to heal their land, and retake Japan all the way to Sinnoh. A shadow from the late noon sky covered the fighters, and all looked directly up, as Zigma appeared above them all, and fired a sticky, sludge like substance, that certainly looked poisonous, at the feet of the Regigigas. The elemental golem's momentum faded as the tar-like substance stopped it and forced it to stand in place. Once it was stuck, Zigma roared. Their opening was before them.

The fused pair's crimson halo moved as they did, to behind their back. Their arms outlined a circular pattern, forming a familiar symbol made of pure Light and psychic type energy.

The halo burned brightly as they raised the dual typed Taijitu move over their head and let their mental baritone thunder across the mountain range. "Erupting...Heaven Sphere!"

The fusion of man and Pokémon let their arms drop to either side of them, and the burning orb exploded into thousands of red meteors, each of which sought out, and struck down, an Arcean soldier. Many fell to their ends, though just as many were saved by their armor's ability to take heavy landings rather well.

The largest sphere met Regigigas' Shadowy hands and burned the foul energy infusing the titan away. The orbs exploded on impact, filling the battlefield with bursts of smoke, and Regigigas' was no different as it took another direct hit, and finally fainted.

General Marius, who had deflected the orb meant for him with a single punch, began moving through the smoke towards his airship's LZ, suddenly found himself face to face with the ultimate fusion of Pokémon and human. The General sneered at the abomination, but a sneer was all he got.

"It would be best for all if you simply...forgot...all that you have been lied to about by your vaunted cult." The four-fingered hand with typically bulbous fingertips radiated crimson psychic power, and the General visibly reacted with disgust.

"Foul creature! I will never submit to your mind trickery!" The General stood strong in the face of the fused abomination's psychic power, but in the end, a single poke to the wrinkled forehead removed almost all of his memories involving loyalty to the Church of Arceus, and his blind devotion to the cause faded, as Marius gained perspective on just how atrocious his actions had been. What the psychic and normal type left behind, was a shell of the former man, a husk, not fit for command.

For good measure, the crimson fusion of human and Pokémon destroyed the man's Pokéballs, releasing and cleansing his partners all at once. It was at that point that Zigma again flew over. Throughout the course of the fighting, she had been inhaling, and purifying, the Shadow energy forcibly infused into many of these Pokémon. Some were more infected than others and would need a Light wielder to remove their affliction. It was the kind of Shadow corruption that changed one's very being, on a genetic level, and seeing it used so commonly from the Pokémon she attempted to free of the foul substance made the dark Guardian's heart ache for them, and their suffering.

Knowing that such things required tampering with Eggs, the closest thing Pokémon had to sacrilege, ignited her fury as well. The humans were learning once more, and if their rapid knowledge was not curbed, there would be another Judgement War in the end. Thankfully, the General's Pokémon had been second generation, infused in the early days of Fornia's tampering. Each of them grew large and healthy as years of battle experience under the west's strongest General came back to them all at once.

The other Arceans hit by the fused pair had been similarly affected by the fusion of Light and psychic energy. The indoctrination that had been working its effects on each of their minds since before they could walk seemed to vanish, along with the psychological compulsions to praise and obey their Prophet. The Trainers gathered were all bruised and covered with the grime of war. Several had been wounded rather seriously but said wounds had been healed when the fusion of human and Mewtwo had guided its attack into the wounded as well, proving beyond doubt that the Light could both heal and hurt, when necessary.

With the last of their energy, the fused entity curled itself up into a fetal position, and a wave of cleansing Light exploded from its body, passing over every single human, and Pokémon, on Mt. Silver. The Shadow infusions that had resisted Zigma's efforts were burned away, and the genetic damage done was repaired, in moments, by the power of Mewtwo and his inherent understanding of genetic code. The terrain healed as well, and flora soon began to cover the mountain's lower slopes in greater abundance, though the top remained snow-covered.

Red and the once more brown cloaked Mewtwo fell towards the mountain as their fusion ended, and the two were caught by the X strand's telekinesis, still in his Mega Form. Having healed from the earlier Psystrikes with a Max Potion he'd applied himself, the melee combat form glanced between his Trainer, and his newest ally, whose own Mega Form had dropped.

"Well done...that move of yours even struck those still in their balls. You have both effectively cleansed this entire army group...without Shadow Pokémon giving them the advantage, our Trainers will have no trouble rising to meet these invaders."

The gathered Trainers floating or hovering in the sky around the three cheered, and below, the armored forms of confused Arceans began moving northeast, to their nearest friendly port. Many had simply left their Pokémon, but quite a few had produced regular Pokéballs for them, and recaptured their partners.

At that moment, horns of many ships began sounding from their south, namely behind where the battle around Mt. Silver had been fought. Rising higher for a clear view of Kanto and Johto below, the gathered Trainers saw that the fleets had arrived from Hoenn, and with a pair of super ancient Legendary Pokémon in tow, no less.

The anchored Arcean ships tried to resist, at first, but the Dark Fleet's Trainers, strengthened by their conflicts in Hoenn on this long, war-torn day, made short work of rebellious ideas. Over half of the Crusaders the Arcean's had thrown at Japan were either captured or had been killed in the fighting upon Mt. Silver. The army group formerly under General Marius, men who had seen, and not forgotten, the numerous subduing campaigns they'd enacted under his orders soon rejoined their fellows, and the rumors began spreading as the typical ingrained fear of speaking out against Caleb Pravus was gone.

Stories were shared, truths were revealed, and for once accepted as likely being true, rather than compulsively assuming they were just more lies perpetrated by those who would never live to see a Saved world. Slowly, the mood involving their former leader turned, and the Arceans formerly under Marius headed en mass for their home region. The Dark Fleet let many of them pass unmolested, though some received cannon fire to their hulls, and sank into the ocean. Those, typically, were ships that had yet sported trapped Pokémon, for use as engines and weapons. Those headed west now were going on classic old Earth styled engines, which required fuel. Thankfully, the Arceans had never lacked for such things, and always had reserve tanks in the event their Sharpedo were immobilized somehow.

Sacreus Science Lab - Fornia Region

"All of them? Even Marius?"

"Yes sir!" The Arcean Lieutenant responded, saluting as he did. The new and growing bruise on his left cheek was inspiring more loyalty than ever. "Whatever Red did, dissenters are now the majority in Japan. Many are calling for your head, others have hijacked ships and joined the Dark Fleet. Expected projections assume they'll retake Sinnoh within a week, and then move on to Alola."

"Hrmmm. We can't have that...Alola needs to stay out of this." Caleb Pravus sighed, and looked down upon the chamber they were setting things up in. "Doctor, how long until we are ready?"

The mechanical, almost hollow voice emanated from the stiff form of Doctor Ein, who'd become more machine than man once they'd found most of his ribs, and a few spinal segments, had been shattered by his fall. His feet had been melted, and that term was generous for what had been left after standing for hours upon the back of a Primal Groudon in battle. "We are ready now, my Prophet."

A grin spread across the not unappealing visage of the Arcean's Prophet. "Excellent...let us begin. Get the deer."

The cyborg shuffled off to do as commanded, and returned soon after with a very small, very young white and teal colored Xerneas. The first that had, to their knowledge, ever been successfully cloned. The man keeping it in line, the Arcean Church's own Head Bishop, and resident Light user, followed behind it, holding in his cupped hands a Dark Ball that had since turned gold, thanks to its occupant.

Pravus summoned the last of the legendary influences they would need. The sleeping form of Azelf, curled tight, floated by instinct to the exact center of the room. It had resisted Shadow infusion thus far, but now, it would give them what they desired.

With a dark flash, Ho-Oh was released into the chamber as well, and the furious phoenix screeched only once before the Azelf, prodded by its owner, bound it with a sinister series of red crystalline chains. From talons to beak, the bird was muzzled. The remnants of Team Galactic who'd been desperate to ally with the Arceans had not been lying about the effectiveness of the chains. Ein shuffled forward, dragging the white-furred hind behind him. Ho-Oh paused in its rage, saw the creature, and then her eyes went wide.

Within the center of the circular testing area stood a simple pedestal, upon which was a mostly white crystal that had multicolored pieces of red, orange, yellow, and varying shades of both blue and green, as well as purple, floating around within it, aimlessly. Ein gave the hind a nudge, and the tiny Xerneas began emanating, and focusing, its Fairy Aura through its barely grown antlers into the crystal upon the altar. It was, essentially, the only move the Doctor had taught it. Azelf levitated Ho-Oh directly over the object absorbing the seven colors of energy Xerneas' horns were giving off. The crystal turned entirely black as it absorbed the seven colored light. The bird struggled against the bonds, but a similar human creation had been used once to summon, and temporarily bind, the aspects of Time and Space themselves. In this underground realm of Shadow worshipers, Ho-Oh was quite far from the Light, and any chance of divine intervention.

As the bird struggled, she felt her wings gain ground against the restraints, and hope returned, but only for a few moments, as she realized she was still bound. For whatever reason, the Azelf had given her minor wing space. The reason became evident, as she saw the particles of rainbow light fall from her wings towards the strange creation below. It absorbed the particles, and even the single feather that had fallen in her struggling against the chains. Even infected with Shadow and bound, Ho-Oh was a creature of the Light, and maintained some semblance of sanity. For the moment.

The Light particles from Ho-Oh's rainbow wings turned the pure black crystal into a pure white one, and Caleb Pravus, as well as his gathered underlings and the robotic Doctor Ein, all shared a grinning expression. When the Prophet spoke, it was in an excited whisper. "Next comes yellow..." He held up the Z-Crystal that had been 'acquired' along with the one that was serving as the base for their newest creation. It was a standard Z-crystal shape, though it sported additional diamond shaped protrusions at the top and bottom edges. A black eight-pointed star sat in the middle of it, and it began radiating a dark energy as Pravus drew upon it and guided it into their creation with a burst of Z-energy that Ein had determined would be necessary for their plans. The crystal shone with a flash of yellow light, and retained that coloring, as it hummed with the gathered powers of four Legendary Pokémon.

"And finally..." Doctor Ein intoned in his much deeper and changed voice, "The reddening..." He gestured to the Prophet, who manifested the same dark blade that had pierced and brought low Thor himself. An aura of Shadow surrounded him, though it flinched as he neared their creation. In this stage especially, it was strong enough to weaken beings like him. In the next, that would no longer be a problem.

Pravus raised his dark sword to one of Ho-Oh's bound talons, and slashed, cutting just between the top of the claw, and bottom of the leg, where the two met, and quite a bit of blood flowed. The sparkling crimson droplets fell onto the yellowed crystal, and a sinister aura formed as Pravus began speaking the words that had been whispered to him through the Shadow. "Black, white, yellow, and red. Form this power, and complete my Dread!" Two Darkrai-like hands extended from the aura by his shoulders and hung on either side of the strange crystal. The Dark Plate he'd affixed to his armor flared with energy as he bent reality to his whim and summoned those who evidently needed to have a hand in this, the final process of forming the ultimate weapon. It was harder without the Nexus to draw upon, but after this, he would not need a Nexus ever again. After this, immortality would be his.

Hundreds of Unown poured between the tear in the barriers of reality, and the dark hands bent them to the Prophet's will. The confused and then controlled psychic Pokémon floated in a pattern around the yellow and red colored crystal, forming it naturally as their simple bodies reacted to the stone the humans were trying to create. The Unown's power activated the phoenix's blood, and the crystal absorbed it, taking on the crimson coloring slowly until it pervaded the entirety of the crystal. As the process finished, the Unown, torn from their own dimension, were released, and Teleported back on instinctual fear. Pravus did not care though, for he had his prize.

The still smoldering ruby-colored crystal seared his hand's flesh as he picked it up from the altar. He grinned, as he felt the rage of the consciousness that evidently was still within, even after the work had been finished. "Yes...scream and thrash as much as you like, little dragon. Your power is now mine."

The aura surrounding the Prophet darkened his form, the red crystal disappeared in the forming maelstrom of dark energy and appeared again as a pair of menacing ruby-colored eyes. Two words came from him now, as he finally put the last stage of his plans into motion. "Dark Reversion!" He felt the Darkrai that was a part of him finally reawaken and become the embodiment of the element it represented better than almost any other Pokémon. The Prophet cackled, sounding very much mad as the power of their great work remade his form, and his partner's.

Japan was merely a setback, a costly one, but one that had distracted the dragon from focusing his forces on where they should have been, in order to stop this very process. Pravus was under no illusion that the Original Dragon had an idea of what he was up to, but there was no way the divine lizard could've known how far along they were. Only Doctor Ein, the Bishop, and his personal Lieutenant knew enough to be dangerous, and none of them had loose lips. "We go to Alola..." The Prophet said, as he once more resumed his fused form of human and Darkrai. They were stronger than they had ever been, and the Reversion was not yet complete. "We will stop this...Dark Fleet...before they ever become a threat."

The Doctor, the Bishop, and his top Lieutenant saluted the swirling maelstrom of sentient darkness before them in standard Arcean fashion and answered their master. "Yes, my Prophet!"

The maelstrom of Shadow energy ascended then, through miles and miles of rock and stone, up to the surface, where they would have space to take their final form.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 32: Jaws of the Dragon, Part 1

(Before reading, please take into account that each time we change scenes, we're jumping back in time as well, to the start of the same day, in multiple places. Enjoy.)

Arciana City Limits - Arciana Region

Hilbert and Hilda had, upon arriving in the city of Menefer, split their forces evenly. That meant each Champion turned General had five thousand Scales, most untested in true combat, as well as two hundred thousand regular troops in each army group. Menefer was a good example of what most cities east of the 'new border' had become. Covered in ash, streets filled with refugees moving east, and of course, rumors of the dark things going on to their west. Nothing but foul rumors came from Arciana City, one of the largest satellites the Arceans had pulled into their fold. At the source of all these foul rumors was, as per usual, a Hand of the Prophet.

Doctor Manchineel, a world-renowned scientist in his own right, had been placed in charge of using the 'undesirable converts' shipped en masse by train to his walled city to perfect something. Nobody knew quite what, only that it involved the Light, and a disturbing amount of people turning essentially brain dead, tossed aside to aimlessly wander the cold city streets. The sane locals of Arciana City had abandoned their homes once the Hand had built a massive steel retaining wall, hundreds of feet high and several feet thick, to keep the inhabitants from simply wandering away.

Though the shambling, dead-eyed humans were considered failures, those touched by the Light sometimes clawed their way back to sanity, and the strange new abilities that came with it. The Arcean Church had made full use of the largely abandoned homes, which were their property anyway, to house their soldiers. The few civilians who remained were usually in positions of importance. The good doctor had been given eight hundred thousand Crusaders to hold the eastern border line that had once marked the State of Arciana. The territory had changed much, in the months he'd been in charge. Villages and small towns west of the city were empty, and every surrounding city was the same, a habitat for ghosts, and dark types, but no humans. They had all been taken to Arciana City or had escaped before they were captured by Manchineel's Crusaders.

In truth, he had plenty of men, but nowhere near enough machines for them to fly in, after constantly having them blown apart by Hyper Beams from the dragon types that General Nate favored using in massive numbers. Even flying types were somewhat rare in this region, as much of it was little more than large swathes of flat, farmed land now covered in ash and snow, and the Doctor had found that moving his troops anywhere in the winter was simply not feasible, thus, he'd brought the people to him. Hilbert and Hilda's newly reinforced troops had no such problems, as by this point only those serious enough to train ten Pokémon remained. The early battles of the war had not been kind to amateurs.

With the mobilization came additional aid from the Imperial capital, in the form of Gym Leaders, from both Unova and Kalos. The majority of Kalos's military was now en route to aid Japan, but their elite Trainers, essentially the nobility, had been sent to Unova alongside two armies that had been trained for battling in winter conditions in the Mediterra Mountains, against Thunder Warriors. The twins had the aid of Burgh, Elesa, and Roxie for this particular endeavor, and their respective forces had become specialized during their training for combat.

It was standard practice of late in Unova for those intending to fight for their homes and their Empire to train rigorously under those the Original Dragon had elevated with his teachings. Not one of them lacked psychic powers, and were Scales in rank having served under the Dragon Emperor's squads, but their duty was to remain home to defend and train while the Dragon Emperor went south, and that is what they had done. The results spoke for themselves.

True to form, Roxie's crowd did not lack for motorcycles, and more than a few had taken to specializing in poison, but a common second favorite was pairing the poison with an electric type. This was largely where Elesa came in, and together under Hilda's leadership, they formed one half of the forces besieging Arciana City, which left Hilbert and Burgh to handle the rest. The Champion and the Gym Leader had found that bug types and dragon types paired surprisingly well, when working together, and their own training had been just as intense.

There was little ceremony once everyone was in place. They knew their task, and the boon from the Original Dragon kept their heads clear, and focused. The 'Dragon Legions' as the soldiery had taken to calling the entirety of the budding government's military power, had been given explicit orders by both their Emperor, and Tao.

Unlike most armies throughout history, it had been decreed that soldiers bearing the Dragon's mark, typically on their shoulder-armor, would remember what that meant, and in the heat of battle would refrain from the usual tactics of pillaging the civilians' valuable possessions, or worse, slaking their lust on Fornian civilians. There was only one punishment for those who callously broke this rule, and as with the majority of the punishable offenses crafted by the Five Generals, the sentence was a permanent guarantee that such atrocities would not happen again.

They did not deal out death for relatively minor things, like looting a store or home that was obviously abandoned for army resources, but the more serious repeat offenders, those who abused their weapons and rank to control and terrorize average civilians would be sent to Unova for another lesson on what was and was not allowed in 'honorable combat', as Tao had called it.

There would be those, as there always were, who would try to steal and rape and kill anyways as the power of authority mixed with the adrenaline of war, and those were the intended focus of this particular order. Officers and soldiers alike were expected to follow it, with the guarantee that even one of the Generals, should they violate the rules, would receive the same sentence from the Dragon himself, if needed. Tao did not look kindly on such things, but luckily, his chosen Generals all possessed hearts that were, at their core, kind. His halves had chosen and battled together with each of the Generals at one point or another. The exception had been Jessica Gladstone, but she and Alex both led the tip of the spear that was their own company of Scales, segregated mostly by sex. Together, Unova's Champions would not fail.

Hilbert and Burgh demonstrated the results of their preparation first, as the bug Trainers combined the power of hundreds, if not thousands, of Pokémon all using Bug Buzz. Most of the soldiers, formerly under Nate's command, had possessed dragon types, and Hilbert had one of his own, as did most serious Trainers on his level. Among the rising Scales, dragon types had, surprising no one, become the favored type to train.

His Hydreigon led the others in empowering the Bug Buzz with the undisputed force of Hyper Voice, and the resulting sound wave was enough to reduce the western side of the city's steel retaining wall to scrap, by causing it to buckle inward, and fall upon the barracks behind it. Though nobody had intel from the ground, aerial spies had confirmed where the Arceans had placed their valuable buildings, and both of the twins had intended to take out those targets with their entrance. The eastern forces rushed through the shattered opening, and battle was soon joined as Crusaders streamed in from across the city to plug the breach and drive the enemy out.

Hilda's approach was subtle, where her brother's was brazen. She had Elesa lead the very loud, very distracting bikers in a serpentine biking formation as they exchanged shots with Crusaders on their part of the wall, hiding behind their combined Stave shields. Hilda took Roxie and her strongest poison users straight to the wall, and after a few Acid Sprays, entered the back of Arciana City's own house of worship. The inside was heavily decorated with white and gold, and symbols of Arceus adorned the walls, always accompanied by the not entirely unpleasant facial features of his self-proclaimed Prophet. Strangely enough, the building was empty, as quiet as a tomb, for the Light branded did not wander into it by instinct. That was good, for Tao had been very clear on what they were to do to these false temples of Arceus worship.

"Alright Draga, Sludge Waaaave!" Roxie gave the command from the statue of Caleb Pravus, just outside the temple as she struck her ever-present electric guitar, and the purple and green colored Dragalge responded with his usual volume as the vibrations got him pumped up for battle. Hilda and the others had gone up to deal with the soldiers atop the walls by that point, and the poison dragon was able to drown the entire building in his attacks. He was soon joined by the rest of Roxie's squad, and as her Scolipede brought down the statue outside, crushing it to dust, they knew they had announced their presence to the city. Power Staves hummed to life around them, and the battle began on both sides of the city.

The soldiers atop the wall were removed in short order, and the rest of the ladies' forces soon enlarged the hole, and streamed into the city over the still sizzling remains of what had once been an impressive stone cathedral dedicated to Arceus. As the armies moved through the city from two sides, they did their best to avoid catching the almost zombie-like people who had been 'purified' by 'Arceus' Light' in the radius of their attacks. These victims had been ordered north, to the Black Hills, provided they survived the battle in the city.

It soon became obvious that the city itself was evidently not holding the armies that had kept the east from pushing west throughout the conflict. Only a few thousand Crusaders had met them, and they had in no way been the best of the best. The twins regrouped alongside the Gym Leaders once the city was taken.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Hilda said, as her brother and Burgh approached their appointed rendezvous. "This was too easy, and I feel like I'm standing in the middle of a trap." She looked up at her mega evolved Metagross, who was scanning below them with its powerful brains for signs of human life they were as yet unaware of. "Anything, MetaGee?"

The Pokémon gave a sound that sounded like a no, and then, a voice was projected to each of them, one that sounded much like Hilda's, but wasn't. "There is Dark Type energy shielding something below. Above, only the branded. If they are hiding, it is under the city."

"Of course they're under. You read the intel." Hilbert said, glaring downwards. "They build into mountains and rock. It's a running theme. Diggers! You're up!" Hilbert finished as he summoned a truly imposing Krookodile to join them. "Don't dig straight down. Guide them on the proper way to make a descending tunnel, strip mine variant. I don't care about ores, just find out if anyone is down there, and watch out for ice attacks."

The dark and ground gator gave his Trainer a thumb pointed upwards, and moments later, the gathered diggers, primarily ground types from the belts of Scales, began heading downwards in tight spirals. Hilda's Metagross shared a psychic projection of the Krookodile's eyes with them, and it did not take the ground gator long to find what he was after. He descended from the tunnel he came upon with all the force of Dig, and chomped down on one of the patrolling Crusaders as the other diggers joined him. Some went deeper, some went sideways, but in short order they had mapped out a somewhat detailed sketch of the underground complex in what had once been an urban garden center.

The two Generals and their accompanying Gym Leaders had sketched out what their Pokémon found, and once more, they found few soldiers. Even the underground, which bore signs of recent habitation, had been emptied somehow.

"I don't like this…" Hilbert said as his digger returned to the surface and was recalled. "There are supposed to be eight hundred thousand of them. We've barely taken out four… Where could they…" He paused, glancing back at the way they'd come. The wall had buckled with surprising ease, despite the power of their attack. They had been told it matched the Kanadian's in thickness if not length, but that had not been the case. It had fallen in like crumpled tin foil, and that was when he realized why.

At that same moment, a soldier ran up to him, an officer judging by the small set of horns, styled after Tao's, sweeping back from his black and white helmet. He saluted. "General! We've discovered more dead Crusaders in the remnants of the wall we brought down! It's my opinion sir that if they were hiding in that portion, they'll be in the others as well."

Sounds of battle erupted again before either of the Generals could respond, this time to the north of the city's centermost building, but soon, the fighting engulfed the entire perimeter. The officer had been correct, and the Arceans had begun countering.

"Oh ho ho ho!" A voice rang out from above them, and the gathered leaders of the Dragon's Legion got their first look at the enemy General, floating above them in a machine that looked like half of a Pokéball, and somehow kept the heft of its occupant aloft. Doctor Manchineel was a bald portly man with an almost comically round body not unlike an egg. He appeared to have no neck, and sported a bushy, grayed moustache under his far too large bulbous nose. His eyes were protected by what appeared to be a horizontal band of black glass, not dissimilar from what was used in the Crusader's T-shaped visors, and his clothes were a combination of red and black made of some sort of shiny, almost plastic like material. "This is what the Unovan Dragon sends me? A pair of twins, and a few Gym Leaders way past their prime? I have to admit, I'm disappointed! I thought my success in holding a hard border against hordes of Dragon Types would merit sending your Emperor. No matter...perhaps he will come to reclaim your corpses!" The Doctor snapped his fingers. "Open fire!"

At his command, the light around them seemed to shift, and atop the walls they saw far, far more Crusaders than they'd seen from the air. Even at that moment, more were streaming up from, presumably, where they'd been waiting within the hollow walls of the city. The easterners suddenly found themselves within a very large barrel, and the losses mounted as the Crusaders did as they were ordered.

Hilda reacted first. "Elesa, Roxie, Burgh, defensive formations! Shield as many of them as you can." She turned to her brother, who was already on his Braviary. "We'll handle the floating fool." She summoned her own Pidgeot, and together, the twins ascended towards the Doctor amidst a hail of mostly electric beams of energy. Being hit by just one would likely bring down their flying types, but the two Trainers had long since mastered aerial dodging with their partners.

"Focus fire on the twins!" Manchineel shouted, sounding somewhat frantic as he guided the machine keeping him aloft away from the angry, charging pair of avian predators, "Electric beams! Now! Now!"

The two flying types had to break off, if they wanted to stay aloft, their entire focus became dodging, but it became rapidly apparent that evasion alone would not be enough for long. Both understood that, eventually, one of the hundreds of stave wielders aiming for them would fire at the right time to score a hit.

"Storm them! Get atop the walls!" The order came from Elesa, and Burgh took the lead, as did Roxie, bringing their respective squads up the southern and eastern sides of the wall. The focused fire on the twins gave the three Gym Leaders an opening, and the last the twins saw of them was the three Gym Leaders vanishing into the depths of the walls at different points. They would take care of the soldiers within, while the regular forces secured the top.

The two tiring flying types were recalled once the volume of electric death beams lessened. Hilbert summoned his Hydreigon, and Hilda jumped atop her Metagross. The two Generals once more charged the Doctor, whose comparatively slow machine had been chugging towards the tallest building in the city, the city's center. A window opened to admit him, and it would have, if a very angry three headed dragon had not floated up between him and the entrance and barred his way. Behind him, the Metagross closed in as well.

"Psychic." Hilda gave the order, and her partner obeyed, freezing the mad Doctor's flying machine where it was. "It's over, Doctor. Give the order to surrender."

The Doctor met her hard eyes and kept his expression unreadable given his blank features and hidden eyes. "You're right, you've clearly outsmarted me. I am defeated." He held out his hands, wrists together, as if he expected to be cuffed. Hilda moved forward to do exactly that, which was when the man shifted, and hammered one of the buttons on his floating machine's dashboard. "Not!"

The twins didn't have to guess at what he'd done, the results were obvious and immediate. The walls of the city blew up from within, leaving a ring of charred slag and human remains around the entirety of the city. He had sacrificed his remaining forces, once they'd drawn in the Gym Leaders, and a good portion of the east's Scales, into the walls. Most of the regular army, and their own squads, had avoided the initial explosion, but as the wreckage tilted inward, it threatened to crush them. Some reacted swiftly. Others, did not.

"No…" Hilbert stared at the wreckage, knowing the odds of surviving such an immediate and devastating explosion were small at best, even with their new armored uniforms. But while the brother was sorrowful, his sister displayed another emotion.

A low hum filled the air and the blue light of Hilda's plasma sword underlit her severe expression. She raised it horizontally, holding it in the air. Even the portly Doctor recoiled at the ferocity in her gaze. "N-now now, I'm an important prisoner of war! You can't kill me! Think of all the secrets I could tell y-"

Hilda raised her free hand and pointed as the man began begging, and her Metagross shifted its Psychic to him, instead, immobilizing the man rather than the machine. That was a mistake she would not repeat but learning it had been costly. "Doctor Manchineel, for your abominable experiments on the people of Arciana City, as well as the murder of three Gym Leaders, and most of your own forces, I sentence you to swift and immediate death in the name of the Original Dragon. Speak your final words."

The Doctor looked at her for a long moment, and then grinned. "I'm sorry my dear, but you don't have the eyes of a killer. It wouldn't matter if you did! You have no idea what is coming for you...for all of you. Caleb Pravus will bring us all back." He gave her a smug smirk, and Hilda's hand tightened around her blade.

"No...he won't. There won't be anything left to revive." She made a gesture, and before her brother, still shocked by the apparent death of three Gym Leaders and old friends could stop her, her Metagross tossed the man from his cockpit into the air, and by no coincidence, the small sliver of throat between his chin and clavicle met the tip of Hilda's blade as his obese form went sailing past. She didn't turn to watch, she spoke only a single command, knowing MetaGee's aim to be true. "Hyper Beam."

The Mega Metagross again acquiesced, and the Doctor's portly frame, skeleton and all, was atomized before the unbridled fury of one of the most powerful moves known to humankind. The twins descended then, and quickly the battle resolved itself. The east had more remaining soldiers, but any attempts at excavating the walls only revealed body parts, and crushed human. Elesa and Burgh had been blindsided, along with their ace Pokémon, but Roxie's Scolipede came rolling out about an hour into the search for survivors. The severely burned bug type deposited his cargo, a very burned, but still living Roxie, and then proceeded to Arceus' realm with a final sigh.

The Scale's armor had kept a few of them alive, but their forces had each taken serious casualties. Once Tao's symbol flapped above the sea of wreckage and carnage below, the twins took what was left of their armies further west, to the camps they had gained the exact locations of from Manchineel's lab.

There, they made short work of the Crusaders defending the camps, and more than once the 'prisoner' population jumped in to aid them. The people were emaciated, grimy, and covered in ashfall. The areas directly east of the Stoney Mountains had received the heaviest, and almost constant, cloud cover from Fornia's burning forests. What the twins discovered within the camps only cemented Manchineel's fate. Even Hilbert eventually agreed he was better off dead.

They found numerous logs of experiments, from meddling with human and Pokémon genomes, to forcibly attempting to psychically link twins and awaken their latent potential, the experiments were detailed, brutal, and had accompanying video footage that was sent back to Unova for study and use in propaganda. The science, and sacrifices required to advance it, would not be wasted. Though the twins personally found Manchineel's dumping site for failed experiments, and buried them properly, it still felt like far too little for the number of lives that had been taken.

It wasn't until they found evidence of the Church of Arceus' support that they knew they'd won the war on the moral front. From lauding Doctor Manchineel as a 'paragon of morality' to directly funding the macabre experiments he enacted, the proof of Church involvement was hard, and undeniable. Each camp liberated only provided more evidence, and before the day was out, Tao had reports of the mad Doctor's experiments finding their way to the ears of the relatively sequestered Arcean populace that had fled to his territory. Without Arcean brainwashing and obedience to keep them from looking, the refugees learned what had become of their homes, and many were filled with fury by the news, and images. The more those from the central regions saw of the true nature of the Arceans, the more soldiers they would have enlisting.

Several Miles South of Fargo - Dakota Region

The second foray in Urbe Monachus proved to be easier than the east's last attempt, but no less dramatic. Thor had strongly insisted to General Nate that he and his warriors would be the ones to claim victory here, as they should have the last time. To that end, the being straight from prehistorical legends had charged the city, army of Asgardian warriors in tow, and in short order had claimed it for the Dragon Empire.

To the God of Thunder's disappointment, the city had only contained those branded by the light, who had taken to aimlessly wandering the streets, and roughly two thousand Crusaders, most of which surrendered when they laid eyes upon the sparking form of Thor, and his iconic hammer. From them, Nate learned that the Arceans, under their newest General, had strategically withdrawn to their northernmost city of Fargo, the largest city they had outside of the Kanadian Wall, and the one that had been the source of almost every failed Arcean attempt to surmount said wall. With Shruikan gone, the attempts had gotten bolder, but the new defender, a Rayquaza known to the Fornian people, made less than short work of their forces. All had been recalled to Fargo, after that last failed attempt, and as far as anyone knew, the former capital of the Dakota region had played host to the Crusader's entire northern army group for months as the harsh winter stalemate had dragged on.

Nate ordered the Light branded rounded up, as peacefully as possible, and then guided them to a holding facility where, presumably, Tao had someone who could help these poor, wandering husks. The dragon had not elaborated on how they were being taken care of, only that Nate was to send any Light branded who'd been left to wander to that specific location. What was unnerving about them, besides the gray skin, and white eyes, was the constant moaning. They only ever said one word. Human. They groaned it constantly, as they shambled.

Evidently, Hilbert and Hilda were going to be sending anyone else they found branded within Arciana City to the same place. The location in question was one of the last eastern holdouts this far west of Fornia's new border, in a place known historically as the Black Hills. Evidently, several former Champions from the surrounding regions had refused to give up the mountain they'd entrenched themselves in, and at this stage in the war, had offered their relatively empty mountain base as a holding facility for refugees, and those branded by the Arceans.

As the armies of men primarily from Kalos and further east trudged onwards, Nate and his complement of Scales led the way, and thus, they were the first to lay eyes upon what General Nonagon had set up for them. To its south, Fargo was surrounded by a small community of mostly farmers known as Briar Wood. The Hand of the Prophet had taken the name literally, and Nate didn't have to guess what Pokémon was responsible. A Trevenant's handiwork was obvious, and one on a Hand's level, no doubt infused with Shadow, was a force indeed if it had done this alone.

The once farmable land now played host to an impossibly massive thorny bramble that, after some aerial surveillance, proved to be too large to jump across even for Thor's blue maned Rapidash. The regular Norstad and Kalosian troops would have to go by foot, and Nate found his advance paused as the sons of Asgard, who had taken to leading the men of Norstad, caught up to the mounted Scales.

Nate looked over the troops, frowning. The Kalosians were all, supposedly, decent Trainers, and could likely fly over, as they all had belts of ten Pokémon, and any decent Trainer had one that could carry them. The Norstadders were another case entirely. Most only had one Pokémon, if they had any, and even then, they were wild, and would run off if injured. Some had Pokéballs for them to hide in, but few used them. They would be going on foot, if they went at all.

Alex had privately confided in the Gym Leader turned General before leaving, telling him that it was imperative that their allied forces stayed as intact as possible. Despite that, Nate had a feeling leaving the eager, bloodthirsty horde behind newly armed and armored as they were, would cause his new Emperor more of a headache. Denying them a fight and a 'glorious death' as they called it would make them unwilling allies. He missed his legion of dragon types and hoped the twins had managed to keep them alive. But he knew war, by now.

At that moment, a hefty, golden skinned hand placed itself upon one of his dragonbone encased shoulders. "Worry not, laddie. Your Dragon gave us the perfect tools to cut through this pathetic attempt at defense. They call this a wall. Pah."

The Asgardian turned to the now formed up ranks of Asgardians behind him. Their blue maned Rapidash gave off a similar golden aura in the cold night, and like the rest of their equipment, a tinge of gold covered their burning blue manes. Thor rose into the air on his own crimson Gogoat driven chariot and raised the hammer. "Let us teach these curs what happens when they dare to attack our Yggdrasil!" Once more, the Asgardians led the charge, and their Voiceforged weapons, burning with the dragon's Light, did indeed make short work of the bramble, which receded harshly before the Light. Mjolnir was no exception to the weapons and armor that had been empowered, and the hammer burned brighter than any other weapon as it led the wedge of mounted warriors straight through the defenses and minor traps the Hand had left for them.

Nate turned as the apparently otherworldly warriors once more leapt into battle. He'd been given three Gym Leaders to aid him with this assault, two of which were Kalosian nobility. "Skyla, take half of the Kalosians, and strike from above. Take down any surprises that are waiting in the cloud cover. Grant, take the other half, and follow Thor. Keep your weapons up. This is too easy. This bramble isn't done with us yet." He turned then to the only noble that the men of Norstad had agreed to follow, not because she was rather beautiful, but because she had the fighting spirit of a true warrior, and there was nothing that was more valued in the northerner's culture. "Korrina, take these warriors around the city, see if this bramble extends all the way around, and if not...hammer them from the north."

The Gym Leaders saluted, and moved to their tasks as the battle began. "As for us…" Nate said, smirking as he turned, and mounted the dragon in his arsenal that best handled fire and electric based attacks. "We follow Skyla...and reinforce Thor when he steps in whatever this Hand set up for us."

His Garchomp roared, and the Scales under Nate, formerly Hilbert's, took to the air as well. From above, he saw Korrina's Lucario, already tearing a path through the bramble. The Aura Pokémon was burning with Light like all the others and seemed to be enjoying itself. He briefly worried that, if he could see literally every eastern soldier, so could this Nonagon person.

Halfway over the labyrinthine bramble, the pace of the men below shifted, as the forest's roots came alive. The forward progress slowed but did not stop. The men of Norstad knew how to kill angry plants. Nate raised a hand, and a pair of Hydreigon riders, the few Hilbert had bothered to promote, torched the sides of the forest, and reinforced the border Thor and his host had carved with fire and fury.

"Incoming!"

The cry came from Skyla's unit just above them, as from the newest of the ashen clouds coming from Fornia's still burning wilderness came no less than nine floating airships, each similar in design but fundamentally improved from the Plasma Frigate upon which they were based descended in a line in the skies before Fargo. From them, came Pokémon riders streaming Shadow energy behind them as they sped towards Skyla's unit, and the Scales. Below, the trees had literally come alive, as average sized Trevenant, and Crusaders acting as their Trainers, met the Norstadders in combat. Thor and his warriors charged on, seemingly oblivious, or just simply not caring as Nonagon made his move. The God of Thunder was charging straight for the gate that guarded the southern entrance of Fargo. It was impressive, tall and made of steel. Nate had a feeling Mjolnir would prove stronger. If it could reach it.

"Send your Fire Types to join the men below! The rest of you, with me! Keep Skyla's people alive!" His orders given, Nate's Garchomp rocketed towards the horde of shadowy, aerial fighters, more specifically, for the blob of shadow leading them. His fellow Scales could handle the others. The Hand of the Prophet was wreathed in Shadow that flared off of him like a cape. A wall of energy beams sporting the ice, fire, and electric typings aimed for the Scales specifically, as they ascended. That was when Nonagon's men began to understand the difference between the regular soldiers, and those clad in dragonbone.

Plasma swords bisected numerous energy beams, and Nate was impressed as more than a few of the fiery ones were redirected at the enemies below. It was hard to miss, as the Arceans had been using the bramble's shadowy cover to great effect. Judging by how everything shifted below, it was where the majority of their own ground troops had been placed. Psychic aura shields surrounded Skyla's fliers, and as the Scales shielded and healed them, the sky became a whirl of golden lights dancing seemingly in vain among the Shadow surrounding them. But they did not break, and they did not yield. Nor would they. The Original Dragon was counting on all of them.

For his part, Nate approached the ships amidst similar, if much larger, beams of energy. Trying to hit a Garchomp and its rider with something so massive was a wasted effort though, and soon, with naught but a pointed finger, the airships began bombarding Korrina's group as well. Nate didn't see how they fared, as he landed before Nonagon, and recalled his Garchomp.

"So. You're the famous 'General' Nate, hmm?" The man's tone was light for a male, and his frame was thin underneath the black armor in the typical pattern for an Arcean officer. Armored as he was, Nate had the impression he could break him, like a toothpick if it came down to it, but appearances were deceptive. There was only one surefire way to be certain that this Hand would go down.

He drew an Ultra Ball and leveled it at the Hand of the Prophet. "General Nonagon, I challenge you to Battle, ten on ten, no substitutions. The loser surrenders immediately, once the Battle concludes."

The man chuckled and raised his arms. The shadows on the deck of his airship parted, revealing a force of bodyguards surrounding them. Nate seemed unfazed, mostly because better villains had tried similar tactics when he was still a rookie Trainer, and he'd smashed every single one of them with the kind of winning streak most Champions had. "I think...I will accept your honorable Battle. There has been far too little...structure...in the conflicts thus far. People calling Moves out of turn, firing energy lasers every direction, Pokémon attacking Humans, Humans attacking Pokémon, it's...Chaos." The man's thin, beardless face sneered at his opponent. "I shall draw first in the interest of fairness, as I have the field advantage. Come forth, Felidion!"

A Dark Ball sent forth a Pokémon Nate hadn't seen much of, but could counter easily enough, with his team. The Pyroar in question radiated Shadow as one might expect, but beyond that, appeared to be normal. Nate rolled his neck, and called forth his newest heavy hitter, all the way from Alola. "Komodo. You're up."

The Kommo-o appeared from an Ultra Ball that shared his color pattern in a flash, eyed the Pyroar, and shuddered in anticipation. The scales began jangling, and Nonagon smiled, tilting his head as he listened. "Such a lovely tune...a smart choice. Heavy defense, fire resistant, and multiple moves that have an advantage over me and my kitty." The sneer widened. "Flamethrower."

Komodo lifted a single paw and took the fire attack. The Pyroar blinked, a shiver running through its fur as the torrent of ten-thousand-degree heat did almost nothing to the dragon, whose scales began jangling a different more ominous tune as he shifted into an attack pose. Nonagon didn't wait, and shouted again, "Shadow Fire!"

Komodo was already moving though, and the black flames missed. Nate smirked. "You shouldn't have wasted the first Move advantage. Komodo, Rising Fist!" Before the Pyroar could blink, the dragon was low under his guard, and his heavily scaled fist was shining gold and striking upwards into his jaw. The lion Pokémon flipped onto his back and did not rise again. Nonagon recalled him, sighing.

"Fine, if you want to Play Rough...so be it." He tossed another dark ball, revealing a Mawile, which shuddered in obvious pain as her master immediately forced her to the next level of evolution. Strands of shadowy energy from him sank into the Pokémon, and the pair of mouths on its head began salivating as the power of Shadow and Mega Evolution merged. Quick on the uptake, the steel and fairy type began hammering at the dragon, and the newest member of Nate's team was brought down in short order by the powerful fairy typed blows.

The next several rounds went back and forth in a similar manner. Nate's Arcanine removed the Mawile as a threat with a series of rapid Flame Charges and fell to a harsh Earthquake from the Krookodile the Hand summoned next.

After that, Nate stopped playing around. He drew a Luxury Ball and spoke a single word as he held the ball before him on an open palm that was surrounded by his visibly burning aura. "Therion." The Lucario he summoned rose slowly as it appeared, and yawned. Nonagon paused and glanced at his Krookodile. They were trading type advantage with each round, but this Lucario was obviously stronger than the others the supposed dragon expert had used thus far. Nonagon still had one very effective dragon remover, but this Lucario needed to fall before he brought it out and claimed victory.

"Aura Sphere." In the space of an eye blink, the seemingly mild Lucario summoned a sphere of pure fighting spirit, imbued it with aura, and launched it in the center of the Krookodile's stomach. The dark and ground type went spinning through the air, and Nonagon didn't even try to recall it as it went over the ship's edge. If the Lucario was bothered by this turn of events, he didn't show it, but his eyes did get quite a bit harder as they took in the latest human they were facing, properly. The appendages humans mistook for hair rose as the Aura Pokémon closed his eyes and summoned his power against one who fought with Shadow. Light flared around his palms, and then condensed, covering them in golden aura. "Leave this, to me." He said as he projected his thoughts, dropping into a pose common to the dragon style of martial arts.

Nonagon answered the Lucario with the only thing left on his belt that might hit it critically. The rest would have to chip away at it before it inevitably brought them down. A Toxicroak appeared on the field, as Shadow infused as the rest of his party members. His poison points lit with dark energy as his Trainer called the move. "Shadow Sting!"

"Amateurs!" Therion's response thundered through the air as he moved his body and struck the empty air with his palm as he projected his harsh psychic baritone over the field. It was followed by a wave of pure psychic typed power, burning a deep blue and gold, that slammed into the poison type, and sent it flying as well. The fainted Pokémon arced in the air then, as the Lucario landed it, somewhat harshly, but still on the deck of the airship.

Nonagon had taken the brief opportunity to summon his next Pokémon, who was already charging forward and striking as the Lucario's focus turned back to the battle. "Shadow Slash!"

The Kabutops in question was a sickly green color and was also encased in an aura of darkness and purple. It raised its scythe arm, and the bladed appendage glowed with Shadow energy as the fast physical attacker brought it down on the Lucario. An aura bone slashed through the air in response, and forced the prehistoric hunter to leap backwards, as Therion fell to one knee. He looked back at his Trainer, opened his eyes again, and nodded.

Nate raised a dragonbone encased fist, and it glowed with the fighting typed energy of a Plate of Arceus himself. The energy shot into Therion, who used it to ascend to the next level. His aura swirled low around his feet, and then flared, turning a harsh golden color as the Mega Lucario retaliated faster than any modern Kabutops could hope to match.

Nate called the move that his partner had already been charging, just so Nonagon would understand he was about to lose another round. "Leaf Blade!" The aura bone shifted to a deep green color, and took the Kabutops down, again with only one hit. It seemed there was a reason Nate had become a Champion. Time had only made him better, and he'd had Therion since he was a Riolu, having caught him early on his journey through Unova at the Floccesy Ranch. After beating down Team Plasma alongside Rosa, the Aura Pokémon had then become the bar by which Nate's dragons measured their strength.

Therion similarly dispatched many of Nonagon's remaining belt members. Another Psychic for the Dustox, an Aura Sphere ended the rabid Emolga, but it was the Hand's latest pick that had the shining gold Lucario stumped.

The Goodra in question was, undoubtedly, the strongest Pokémon Nonagon had. Not surprising, as it was a dragon, but Nate had yet to see his Trevenant, and the as yet unknown member of the Hand's final three. Weirder still, unnerving red eyes covered the Goodra's body, and Therion learned the hard way that it could fire attacks from said eyes. Each Dragon Pulse from Therion had been redirected by the hefty defensive fighter, and getting in close would only slow Therion on the dragon's goo. Without his speed, a Goodra like this would make short work of him. Nate knew he was far from losing, but there was only one other member of his team on Therion's level, and he was saving that one for the Trevenant.

"Shadow Storm!" The Goodra raised its mouth to the sky and summoned the clouds of ash above them. Sooty raindrops fell, healing the dragon slightly where the Mega Form's power had left an impact. Dark lightning bolts fell from the clouds and struck the Lucario full force.

"Return!" Nate said, as he raised the Luxury Ball, and recalled the seemingly fainted Lucario. He wasn't completely down yet, but he had been making little headway here anyways, and had earned his respite. It was time to fight a dragon with a dragon. "Chomper! Dragon Claw!"

Nonagon swore. His power hitter was down, but a Garchomp beat a Goodra any day. It had been the right choice against a special attacking Lucario, but now, once more, Nate made him pay for it by countering as hard as he had throughout the battle. The Garchomp's wings lit with draconic energy, and hit the Goodra before it could react, finishing what the Lucario had started, and leaving him fresh and ready for the next enemy.

Having no other choice than to begin dragon slaying, for he needed to start if he was going to turn this battle around, Nonagon summoned his chosen tool for the job. A Sandslash adapted for the cold of the Stoney Mountain range. Knowing he didn't have time to waste in this battle, Nate ordered the move as soon as the Pokémon materialized. "Fire Fang!"

Chomper's flame-covered form hit before the ice and steel type had a chance to lift a claw in defense, and Nonagon stared, watching as his icy tank weathered the super effective hit, but stayed standing. Chomper smirked, and leapt away, his rough tail brushing the icy digger as he did, and the resulting damage was enough for its eyes to roll back. The Sandslash fell over, fainted, and the Garchomp crouched low as it prepared for the next round.

Nonagon chuckled. "I didn't think I'd have to pull him out for this...I will give you this, former Unovan Champion...the rumors of your power are not based on nothing. But...alas, your fight ends here. Shadow Curse!" The Trevenant appeared, and as expected, was impressive as a specimen of the species. It seemed Nonagon had purified and then again corrupted this Pokémon several times. Its eyes were dead, and after a closer look, Nate understood that what stood before him was, at this point, more a vessel of Shadow than a Pokémon. Not unlike the humans turned into shambling husks by overexposure to Light energy.

As the curse hit Chomper, Nate's eyes confirmed what he'd expected the shadow version of Trevenant's signature move to cause. His dragon was now purely grass typed, and had become entrenched by rampant grass energy, fueled by the power of Shadow. The dragon struggled to move as the slow, massive tree approached. Nonagon spoke again. "Shadow Fire."

A ball of flame, not unlike a Will-O-Wisp attack, floated down to the trapped dragon, and then detonated, finishing the dragon in a single move. Nonagon grinned. "The power of the Curse transfers to every member of your team, and only grows more powerful as they faint. Bring forth the next victim."

Nate sighed. With this particular curse, he was sure only one of his remaining party members could resist it. He hadn't wanted to wake her up quite yet, as he expected she'd be needed for Pravus, but the Hand had him cornered. "Laurea. You're up."

A scarlet light opened from a red-orange and tan Pokéball, and the Victini stretched, before she opened her eyes, and took in the sight of her next conquest. She glanced back at Nate, and his belt, as well as those who had fainted already, and with her third eye, she took in the war.

In short, Thor was doing, or rather had already done, the hard work. The southern gate of Fargo was down, bearing several deep dents from a square-headed object. It was impressive that it stayed in one piece despite the lightning adding to the pure force, but the host of Rapidash mounted warriors trampled over it all the same, their forward progress unaffected. Within the city, the battalions under Grant converged with their Norstad support, who had made it largely intact through the bramble alongside Korrina. Together, they met the Crusaders within the city, and with their ability to wipe out entire squads postponed for a few hits by Tao's infusion, it was enough for the warriors to get in close and overwhelm the ranks of soldiers. The Asgardian warriors had equipment that could take far more hits, but hadn't shared how to craft it, claiming the Unovan's current level would be enough for a conflict bound to a single planet. As expected, the God of Thunder had delivered a bloodbath, if the cries inside the city were anything to go by.

Nonagon had stayed silent as he watched the mythical Victory Pokémon awaken before his eyes. That was it, then. His enemies had both the dragon, and the essence of victory. The pair had conquered the entire continent, mostly by themselves, in days of old. If the legends were to be believed. Naturally, most Fornians were only concerned with their own mythology, no matter how absurd it became. Old 'eastern myths' were considered markers on the path to exile from the Church of Arceus, and His Light. Nonagon had studied them all the same, and as usual, found the legend to be based on quite a bit of truth.

"Searing Shot." As neutral toned as ever, Nate gave the order, and the burning psychic type sent a wave of scarlet flames towards the Trevenant. It had an effect, but surprisingly, the Pokémon stayed standing. Moreover, it seemed unbothered by the scarlet flame remnants still sticking to it.

"This old tree is special, you know." Nonagon said, sneering at the Trainer who, he was now convinced, had hyped up his reputation by using the Victory Pokémon. "Of course it is…" Nate muttered. Nonagon continued anyway. "I found it in Alola. Its' fire had long gone out when I came upon it, but with a little Shadow...the old Totem Pokémon lived again. More or less." The sneer widened. "Shadow Force!"

The ghostly tree exuded a mixed aura of ghost and Shadow energy, then disappeared from view, and reappeared instantly before the Victini, hammering it hard with the super effective Shadow move using ghost energy as a base. The tiny Pokémon went sailing straight into Nate, who caught it with the softer parts of his armor, but still slid back several feet from the inertia.

Something new happened then, as the Victini became surrounded by scarlet aura, tinged with golden Light, and hovered forward out of her Trainer's grasp. Her eyes burned with the power, and she reached for victory. Nate urged her forward, and the psychic and fire type boomed towards the Trevenant as she countered, hard. "Flare Blitz!"

The impossibly fast scarlet meteor hammered into the old tree, knocking it over, and proving just how strong her opening move had been. It struggled to rise, but the Victini hovered over it before it could counter. Nonagon was shouting moves, but Nate just shook his head. The Pokémon couldn't hear them, now. Victini was blocking the surrounding sound as she delivered a merciful end. Nate's eyes shifted to Nonagon's as he spoke the command anyway. He knew what move she would use. "Inferno."

The psychic barrier surrounding the two Pokémon became opaque as it filled with intense scarlet flames, which then proceeded to die down. Laurea let the barrier fall and stared for a long time at the pile of ashes that had once been a true defender of nature. Her eyes hardened, and then shifted to the human responsible for desecrating a Totem Trevenant's final rest.

The Searing Shot formed above her head without a command, as the battle was over, the war was again on, for them, and the enemy leader was right before her. As always, she claimed victory. The attack split into several shots of undiminished power, and she took down Nonagon and his guards as well in the space of a moment, the gold-tinged scarlet flames reducing the Shadow infused humans to nothing but ash. Then, she whirled on her human. "Next time, just kill him. We do not have time to delay." She looked around then and sighed as only two of the nine airships had been felled by the Scales so far.

She hovered high above all of them, and Nate gave the psychic command to clear the air around the ships and force the airborne Crusaders back towards them. The Scales and Skyla's forces did as ordered despite being outnumbered, and by the time the seven pillars of burning scarlet death tore through the rotors of each massive ship, most of the Arcean's flying forces were caught in the exploding vessel's radius. The ground below became a scarlet tinged inferno of molten slag and armored human.

Nate joined Laurea above, as she watched the carnage she had wrought. Each of the ships was falling into the bramble below, and where her flames touched it, the dark vines burned away. "This is why I told you not to use me in Battle. All I cause is death."

Nate shook his head at her psychically projected words. "You put an end to what that lunatic had created from an already long departed Pokémon. And the ships needed to come down anyway. Let's go rejoin Thor and -"

He was interrupted, as the Victini gave his Garchomp a boost that would last the rest of this battle, and then returned to her ball. Nate sighed and rocketed towards the city. Fargo fell not long after the ships had been burned out of the sky by the embodiment of victory. Those who surrendered were Teleported somewhere back in Unova, where they would be freed of their brainwashing, or tossed in with the zealots who would die before 'betraying the Prophet'. Most abandoned loyalty to him once they finally looked at and read about the things he had done with their hard-earned wealth, all in the name of their Church. The evidence was damning, but there were always a few who would need years to accept that they had been used and had about as much worth to Pravus as the rest of his tools.

From Fargo, Nate and Thor liberated the Northstone Pass, and were the first eastern regular forces to lay eyes upon what had, for them, started this entire conflict. By this point, all understood what had been done to Colville. Seeing it, however, was something else entirely. The march was steady, but quiet as the soldiers had to either fly, or cover their mouths as their west moving columns kicked up fallen ash. Much of Fornia was still on fire, but these first flames had long since gone out.

Their target was a city known as Pravia, and one that their Dragon Emperor and his Legion of ten thousand Scales were supposed to handle. They had been filled by the strongest Trainers to come out of the Swamp, and by no coincidence had Alex put Champions, current and old, from each former loyal State in charge of the battalions they divided into.

They finally came upon the city six hours of hard flying later and found it in the midst of a siege. Nate recognized what tactics they were using, though he also wondered why the Scales hadn't already conquered the city. They'd had time to do so with how long his forces had taken to march here. The plan had been to refuel, and then charge Port: Land before the Fornians defending the homeland got wind of their movements.

Thor wasted no time, as usual, and his burning chariot charged towards the city, as his host of blue flaming Rapidash riders followed him once more into the fray. Not one of their number had been felled by the Crusaders thus far. Injured perhaps, and sometimes rather seriously, but they always recovered, and always refused to share how they managed that exactly.

Tao had explained to Nate that he was essentially supposed to deliver Thor's forces to Alex once they'd redeemed their earlier forced retreat, and once combined, the armies would charge south down the western coast of the continent, all the way to Mewsia, unite with the Dark Fleet, and then head east to hit Sacreus. They would be behind Rosa and the twins now, unless they made serious time catching up. To that end, Pravia needed to fall quickly. Nate gave the order to join the fray, and charged in alongside his troops once they began moving.

The Rocky Pass - Border of Orre, Texico East and Texico West

The Southern Dragon Legion bamfed into the middle of the newly retaken city of Aweston, and had promptly begun marching westward, towards the Rocky Pass, and Orre beyond it. The soldiers following Rosa had been fighting consistently down here, for snow rarely bothered anyone this far south. Their war had been filled with sand, blood, and ash as the Texicans under Rosa had brought their foes to a halt time and again, for months on end. Now, empowered and literally burning with the Light energy infused into their very auras by the Original Dragon himself, they felt they had a chance to finally break this stalemate.

Supporting her, Rosa had Clay, Marlon, and Lenora, three level-headed and experienced Gym Leaders who knew how to keep the men under them in check. After a bit of shifting around when they'd been resupplying in Castelia, Clay had taken charge of the majority of the Texican's regular troops, Lenora had most of the Kalosians, and Marlon took whoever he wanted, as long as they had a good vibe. His force was smaller, but then, his role would be smaller too. But no less important. Water would be constantly needed if they were to cross Orre's desert twice.

Rosa's Scales, all five thousand of them, lead the charge west. Most in her group were brand new graduates from the Great Swamp, and the Sage who lived there. She personally had trained with Tao, and kept that fact hidden from everyone, including Nate. She did not yet know what psychic ability she would manifest, for many Scales either had common psychic abilities, or discovered something else entirely, but Tao had promised that this next battle would see hers awakened. She'd found that training with he who had once been Zekrom was far more useful than some giant Oranguru on a swamp island. Some people could live in that haze, with that smell. She was not one of them.

Their first target was The Rocky Pass, the site of an ancient Old Earth city that had marked an important border between countries that no longer existed in any capacity. Despite the apparent tensions on said border, it had all been crushed to dust when Arceus had graced their world with his presence and raised the Stoney Mountain range several thousand miles higher. Now, all that remained of the ancient city was a graveyard, where the people of the southwest and the people of the 'wild west' had clashed numerous times. Nobody remembered why the two peoples disliked each other, they only knew that things had always been this way and were unlikely to ever change.

The people of western Texico, historically far calmer and more rational compared to their quick drawing eastern Texican adversaries, had gone through a complete ideological shift with the introduction of Caleb Pravus' cult. Within a few generations, he had converted the people of western Texico, and used their ingrained dislike of the east as a focus for their war effort. It had paid off, as most of the Arcean's victories had been on southern lines, and Texico City was rumored to be as well guarded as Sacreus.

As the Legion came upon The Pass, they found themselves funneled into a single tunnel that, historically, had been open to people on both sides of Texico, provided their business was legitimate, and nobody caused trouble. Trouble usually occurred when humans avoided the Pass entirely, and bumped into nests of wild, and very territorial Pokémon.

In war time, things were very different, and the two halves of the same region had also had more than a few wars, with the Pass always playing a pivotal role in who claimed victory. Since most of their forces had to walk, and they were still small enough at the moment to be vastly outnumbered by splitting their group, the southern Imperial Legion had taken the Pass, and thus found their entire army group ambushed.

Strangely enough, the attacks that came from the Crusaders of western Texico were not beams of energy and death, but webs, not dissimilar in shape from an Electro Web move. They captured, rather than killed, and then dragged Scales and soldiers away before retaliation could come. Rosa had been beset by no less than twenty of them at once, and her Scales also found themselves similarly outnumbered five to one.

Their foes appeared from hidden tunnels that disappeared as quickly as they'd shown up, and the Arceans carrying their friends would simply vanish into solid stone. Attempts to follow only met more rock, and even diggers couldn't track where they'd gone. The very rock walls of The Pass seemed to obey the Arcean's will, and it did not take long for the Gym Leaders to sound a retreat. They were losing too many people to capture, and at this stage of the war, that could mean an end to their newest offensive. Without the lower 'jaws' of the offensive to crush Sacreus, the Arceans could very likely overpower Alex, Jess, and Nate's troops when they approached the Fornian capitol.

With Rosa and many Scales cut off from timely aid, Clay was the one who ultimately decided to sound the order to leave them. The Pass was too small for many of their force's Pokémon, and most hadn't even had a chance to call them out before they'd been bound in energy webs. Those Pokémon who had appeared anyway, sensing the danger, had been similarly subdued by type effective energy webs that kept them pinned. The upgraded staves did not seem limited to only three types.

Rosa's partners, naturally, sliced through the webs, and kept each other covered as Crusaders popped in and out of the stone to attack them. Finally, they stopped, and Rosa realized that she and her ten chosen partners were now alone. Then, like a bad nightmare, from out of the shadows came three old acquaintances that still creeped her out. Their Bisharp now radiated Shadow auras that her burgeoning psychic abilities barely made visible to her eyes. They surrounded her and her circle of powerful Pokémon, and then, one spoke. "You...we remember you...come…"

The three members of the Shadow Triad advanced, and Rosa's Pokémon snarled. From the walls came more Crusaders, bearing Power Staves that seemed different from the usual kit such soldiers had. Rosa looked at her partners, and then to the psychic partner of her mind. "Gothi...get them out of here." The Gothitelle shook her head, readying for more battle, but Rosa knew a hopeless situation when she saw one. "Now, Gothi...I'll be fine...but they'll infuse you all with Shadow...get out while you can."

The Gothitelle looked at her Trainer, and then her partners. She'd been on Rosa's team almost as long as her former Snivy, now a Serperior, who at that moment, gave her a nod as well. They needed to retreat, to fight another day, but one of their psychic-powered people had to stay behind. Gothi looked again at her Trainer. Her time had not yet come, nor would it, according to her eyes, for quite some time. She trusted that, if nothing else, and with a flash of deep purple aura, Teleported away. The balls on Rosa's cloak went with her, leaving the Shadow Triad to find only her plasma sword, which they took. They bound her with a web of dark energy, and then vanished in the way they usually did.

She was, after so many encounters, more than acquainted with how the Shadow Triad moved about, and when her vision reoriented itself, she found herself staring down what she assumed was the General of the Arcean's southern army, and the man who would, apparently, draw forth her psychic power. Lucien.

He seemed to have styled his appearance after Caleb Pravus, though where the 'Prophet of Arceus' had a goatee that belonged on a villain from a children's movie, Lucien had a full, well-kept beard. His hair was even combed over like his Prophet's, and as the Shadow Triad approached him, they handed over her blade.

"Ahh yes...the weapon of a Scale of Balance...but where are her Pokémon? I was interested to see what was on her team…" Lucien's voice had an even timbre, though it was filled with amusement. And why wouldn't it be? As far as he knew, his trap had worked. The apparent leader of the Shadow Triad gestured to his right, and the shadow on the right stepped forward, brushing their hair from their eyes. It was then that Rosa noticed, this was not one of the original three Ghetsis had at his beck and call. The other two were, she was rather sure, but this one had evidently replaced the third. What had happened to him, she knew not.

The newest member revealed herself to be female as she spoke. "We...knew you would be curious, General. She possessed a Serperior, a Gothitelle, a Wigglytuff, a Milotic, a Rapidash, an Excadrill, a Heliolisk, an Ariados, a Pangoro, and an Altaria. We expect that the Serperior and Altaria were capable of Mega Evolution."

Lucien nodded, eyebrows rising and falling, sometimes in disappointment, as he heard the list. "Not a bad line up...most of the Types covered...and enough of a Move pool to be ready for just about anything. Another exceptional setup for a Champion of the Eastern States." He chuckled, though it was full of malice rather than humor. "I can see why you stuck to making movies, General Rosa...compared to the other Generals your holy lizard has placed in charge, your team is...lacking. As are you, if our information is accurate?"

The lead shadow spoke again. "She...did not use any...interesting powers against us. We surmise she cannot yet even Teleport."

Lucien tutted. "A shame. Such potential. Such beauty. Wasted." He walked over to stand before Rosa, his arms crossed over his medium build. He was clad in black Crusader pattern armor, with an appropriate coating of sand and ash.

"Why do you care what gets wasted or not? Just kill me and be done with it…I'm not going to talk." Rosa spat on his boots, but the man seemed not to give a single Muk.

"I wouldn't say I care...I simply despise wasted potential...especially in those of our race who have awakened their latent Psychic abilities...there are so very few in Fornia, and yet, Unova seems to have been sleeping upon thousands of them. You and I are going to...get acquainted, young Rosa, and then perhaps, you can tell me where exactly the Dragon is getting all these...awakened Humans...and how exactly he's waking them up." Lucien leaned in low as he spoke and sneered at the woman.

Rosa responded by spitting in his face. "Pravus hasn't figured that out yet? That's...depressing, really. You've all had months. We were sure you'd attack the facilities producing Scales soon, not that you could take them, but if you don't even know where they are...we're going to win this faster than I originally thought."

That response, it seemed, warranted the usual show of brutality that those in power over others chose to dispense, often with perverse pleasure. Lucien was no exception, but Rosa had faith. The Dragon had told her to believe in him, and the strength he gave her. She had no reason to doubt it, and as the Hand's attack, whatever it was, fizzled against her, the aura of burning golden Light returned, as if it had never left. He struck several more times, each harder than the last, but the Light did not yield.

"Irritating...but there are plenty of others we have captured who will talk in your stead...perhaps once you see what becomes of them, you'll have a change of heart." He looked to the leader of the Shadow Triad. "Bring me the one that was closest to her position at the time of capture...we'll start with the officers... and work our way down.

Rosa started resisting, but her bonds held her in place. Heavy metal shackles kept her limbs pinned with both weight and restricted movement. The shadow in question disappeared, before he returned with one of her officers. Her name was Sarah, formerly an aspiring guitarist, and one of Rosa's oldest fans, she'd joined her idol in training under the Original Dragon when the war began and had excelled as most of Tao's students did.

"Rosa!" She cried out as she saw the state of her friend and favorite actor, "Don't tell them anything! No matter what they-" She was silenced, but only momentarily, by a swift backhand from Lucien. "No matter what they do to me, Stay Quiet!"

Lucien turned to the two shadows not occupied by a prisoner. "One of you, move her to a seat with a view...the other...get the next prisoner. Make sure she's out of their sight...but not the range of their cries." He dragged Sarah through to a different room than himself, and Rosa did not have to wait long before she found herself behind a viewing glass. Her friend, and her first real fan of her non-Pokémon related work, was bound to a simple chair, beside a simple rolling table upon which lay many instruments designed for only one purpose.

She had heard of the Arcean's skill with torture from Geralt Redwood, who was also under her command in the southern Legion and had even seen his scars. Lucien, it seemed, had been the man who had taught poor Geralt's torturer everything he knew, and when he was finished with her friend, she tried to look away, but the shadow behind her forced her head to turn towards the gruesome sight. She kept her eyes closed, but opened them at new sounds, another of her officers, and several of his Pokémon who had not been able to get away.

Thus, the process repeated. Over and over, hour by hour, Rosa eventually ran out of tears, and became stone faced, watching as many of her allies, friends and strangers alike, fell to the lunatic's knives. Lucien had presented quite a respectable face, but his madness was soon apparent. The Crusaders around them all watched as well, though thankfully, most of them had either neutral faces, or were hiding obvious disgust.

Most of the Scales met their end with a similar fortitude, though even the stoutest could not help crying out, eventually. Others were not so strong willed, and even offered to talk, but Lucien continued anyway. He was after bigger fish, and he needed her to understand the lengths he would go to. Human and Pokémon alike fell to him, and it was as he was once more proceeding towards yet another ended Pokémon life, on a Wigglytuff not at all that dissimilar from her own, that she finally felt something deep within her, stir.

Having nothing better to do, she pushed her burgeoning senses towards this new...gap, she sensed in her mind, to deeper parts of it. Parts that had always been there but buried under the trappings of life. In the face of the horror she had borne witness to, she had instinctively opened the pools of energy within herself. Little of what she had once considered important still mattered in the face of such casual disregard for her friend's lives, and while she had not quite opened herself to the universe, for once in an instance of one of many horrors this conflict had created, the universe was very much trying to help. All it needed, was a vessel for the power.

Light surged within Rosa, and through the hand of the shadow-human still mercilessly holding her head towards the carnage below. The second oldest of the Triad vanished in a cloud of ash and dust, and Rosa noticed none of it, as her mind made contact with a God.

These actions nauseate and enrage you.

She tried to give the mental equivalent of a nod. The deity understood, even though for the moment, her senses were still new.

They have the same effect upon me…

The girl's third eye widened in surprise. She'd heard the rumors from those who'd been partying by Undella when the Imperial Palace rose again from the depths. Having been there herself as a teenager, she was convinced she and Nate had found all there was left to find. They had been wrong, but more importantly, the onlookers had reported seeing a familiar shape in the golden Light that had radiated from the palatial lighthouse. She hadn't believed Arceus had actually been present to 'crown' their newest Dragon Emperor, but here he was, burning before her third eye in all his glory.

Use my power...end these atrocities… The deity's red eye widened, and then shrank for emphasis. Quickly!

Her chains melted away much like her captor had, and several things happened at once. The more eagerly viewing Crusaders noticed her, burning with an aura of silver, tinged on the edge with gold. The other half of the mandatory viewership, near the back of their underground base around the Pass, felt the tremors of Pokémon using Dig, or a similar move.

A whip-like tendril of white silver smashed through the upper viewing panel of Lucien's dungeon and wrapped around his neck. The Light shone brighter but did not burn those it shone upon. It healed the Wigglytuff below, leaving no physical trace of imperfection. The Light brought back all the Pokémon it shone upon, for their remains had been carelessly piled as the slaughter continued, and many of those returned had looks that suggested their reconstituted minds were still struggling to understand they were no longer suffering, or dead, for that matter.

Rosa hovered into the wider chamber, and then looked upwards. A pillar of silver light erupted through miles of rock and dirt, and Rosa rose through roughly half of it before she sensed the height she needed. Lucien came with her, gagging, but not dying, as her whip all but choked him. She liked to think it burned, as well.

She raised both hands, and like a Gothitelle using Psychic, sent her new power out in a wave that eroded the topmost layer of rock over the Arcean base, exposing it to the sky, and effectively creating a new series of tunnels and holes within the Stoney Mountains. Thousands of armored faces looked up and stared open-mouthed as one of the Dragon Empire's Generals hovered above all of them.

While that was indeed unusual, they did not raise their weapons to fire, for floating above the lady General was the unmistakable form of Arceus, pure white, and furious.

You who claim to follow me, and my Light, put down your weapons and acknowledge the madness you have been willingly part of. That, and its implications, brought a few of the Zealots to actually attack their own deity. Their reasoning, as it was shouted, was that the 'real Arceus' was gold, not white. Those who raised their Power Staves vanished, in columns of golden flame, and not even ashes remained of them as their Pokéballs fell to the stone ground, unharmed.

The outline of Arceus raised his head then, and a sphere of pure golden Light formed above Rosa's head, in her raised palm. Those below kneeled, and prayed, begging for the mercy of the god they were only half convinced wouldn't just outright burn them all anyway. Those who genuinely repented, and understood why they needed to, did not suffer from the streaks of silvery gold that rained down on the humans below. Those Judged to be unworthy of forgiveness were not so lucky.

The rest of the southern Legion poured into the newly opened base, capturing and ending those who still resisted. The Light in the sky around Rosa began to fade, but not before she heard a final pair of words, just for her.

Well done.

She reunited with her Pokémon then, and while the surge of power was gone, she felt she could manage levitating herself, at least. She knew her power was strong, and unrefined. At least now, there was something to refine. The Legion Teleported their prisoners back home to wherever they were being kept, and then marched on Orre. It took roughly six hours for them to reach it, but the locals were all too happy to rise up from under their occupiers once the army arrived.

From there, the Legion took an earned rest, armed the Orreans, and began the long march south to Texico City.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 33: Jaws of the Dragon, Part 2

Entral Park - Unova Region

By the time the ten thousand Scales under Alex and Jess had their necessary Plates and crystals, their leaders had them relocate to the peak of Draconis Mons, whereupon each of them spent time with their chosen General and Tao, in the dragon's alternate plane, as they learned how to utilize and battle with the armored forms the awakened Plates covered their Pokémon with. The going was slow, but many of these Trainers were exceptional, and picked up the trick quickly. Many of their partners would require more work, but they simply did not have the time.

They had gotten through the majority of the ten thousand gathered, or at least Alex's half, and Jess had gone into the extra dimensional space to finish training up her own forces, many of whom were Articuno riders. Several had held reservations about being a Trainer, or needing more than their birds, but the birds themselves were usually able to impress upon their partners why more help meant longer survival.

Alex was fine with waiting most of the day since patience had been a required byproduct of what Tao taught him, but as he waited and mused over how the other Generals were faring, one of his scouts on the ridge of the mountaintop reported an incoming Trainer upon an older Charizard. The new arrival brought his partner in for a landing on the central stone platform suspended above the ancient caldera, while the gathered Scales mingled with the dragon types who called the mountain's crater home. In the time since the Original Dragon's revival, the mountain had again become lush with berries, food was plentiful, and those who lived on Draconis Mons seemed to be flourishing.

The latest humans to come here, it seemed, had a collectively far greater understanding of how not to anger those who roosted here, and indeed as they waited, many Scales found themselves one dragon heavier as several of the ancient Pokémon joined their teams. For a time. Tao had asked that they do so, if they felt they could handle it. He'd also assured them that his chosen humans were nothing like the lesser beings that had abandoned them in the past. On the word of the First Dragon, those who were ready once more attempted to bond with a Trainer.

Most of the dragon types flew away for the day or descended into the forests below while the humans lingered, but a few were ready to see if their old scars had indeed healed enough for true combat. The dragons were not unaware of the conflict, they simply had no reason to intervene, until it became an issue. Thankfully, not all shared this outlook. Those who did partner up, did so to defend the land the Original Dragon was so very fond of.

As the newly arrived Charizard dispensed his rider, Alex saw it was none other than Professor Gary Oak. Last he'd heard, Gary was heading to Japan after finishing what training he was capable of within the Swamp. Evidently, he hadn't left yet, but he too was garbed in the black and white armor of the eastern forces. "Young Redwood," he said, as he approached, and gave a slight bow, "I've a... present for you. An old friend, who should have never been parted from you in the first place."

Alex's brow rose slowly, but as the Professor drew a rather old, and very specifically scuffed Pokéball from his bag, his eyes widened. A genuine smile broke the usually passive facade he kept up for public appearances, as his Venusaur appeared with a flash of light. He'd gotten bigger with age, and life experience, but the plant dinosaur's eyes went equally wide as the two old friends locked gazes yet again. He'd lost none of the fire that had propelled them through the Train Exam, back in the day.

A green flash of light came from Alex's belt then, as his massive Torterra decided to make an appearance as well. The two grass types eyed each other for a long time, before Saur extended a vine in friendship. Terra awkwardly shifted, but one of his tree branches bent, slightly, to meet the vine, and a flash of green energy surged between the two.

Their Trainer watched, still smiling, and the expression shifted to a dark smirk. "Another Earthquake user...perfect…"

Gary Oak planted his palm against his forehead. "All the versatility of Poison Moves, and you're just going to use him to break the ground? Don't you have enough Pokémon with Earthquake?"

Alex shrugged, and then thought about it, listing them on his fingers as he mentally counted off. "I mean...this makes eight out of eleven, though I'm willing to bet my Drapion and my Luxray could do it, if we trained hard enough. Regardless...thank you, Professor. I had a feeling you were the one who'd given him to me, but my memory is spotty that far back."

Gary nodded sagely. "That'll be the Leaf. You smoke far too much, lad. Just like your granduncle."

Alex shrugged again. "I certainly would, if my lungs were still naturally aging. But back when they weren't, I was much more careful about moderation. Knowing one's limits is important, especially for Trainers."

Gary sighed. "Well, at least you knew that much. I'm off now, I've got to get to Mt. Silver before Red loses control of it. Good luck today, Redwood! Smell ya!" With that, he called out his Alakazam, and had it return him to the border of Johto, and his home region. From there, he could fly.

As the Professor bamfed halfway across the planet, Alex recalled the two titanic grass types, just in time for Jess to descend from the cave alongside the Scales under her charge that had required training still. "Was that a Venusaur you just recalled?" She asked, once she'd landed.

Alex nodded; his mood permanently shifted. He hadn't been looking forward to more slaughter, but having an old friend on his belt again, and connecting their minds at long last, had vastly improved his morale. "He was the Bulbasaur I had back at the Trainer Exam. Remember?"

She smirked at him. "I remember a stoned teenager, stumbling out of the bushes with ash on his nose. But not much else, I'm afraid. I met a lot of boys back then."

Alex sighed. "And here I thought I made an impression with my masterful Battle skills."

Jess tilted her head then, actually trying to remember now as her own memory was just as hazy. "Oh, right. No, you made an impression. When you ordered a Water Gun to your face. That, was memorable."

Alex rolled his eyes, donned his helmet, and the usual smirk returned as he turned to their Scales, chilling atop Draconis Mons alongside dragons with whom many seemed to be casually conversing. His Voice echoed out to all of them. "Scales of Balance! Prepare to Teleport." The humans scurried into motion then, and their battalion leaders ordered them into linking hands and ready positions.

"Our first stop is with a mentor many of you studied under. Take a good, deep breath of this mountain air ladies, gentlemen, because we'll be smelling like Swamp for a bit." Many groaned, but focused anyway, as the Teleport began. Auras of multiple colors mixed and combined, and the two leading them focused the relatively simple psychic move on the swampy island to their south.

The Scales appeared in mid-air over the main complex of the Sage's island, and kept themselves in the air, as they took in their surroundings. The auras faded, and many were still just staring as they floated in place, with a good view of where many of their number had trained. To say the place had become built up would be an understatement. As the Scales descended to mingle with the initiates below, Alex and Jess headed for the main building, where they sensed the Sage.

The hall's interior hadn't changed much, though it now appeared to have several floors above the main one. The Sage himself had pulled out his removable swamp-bamboo bar and placed himself in the middle of the large circular structure, surrounded by patrons who were student and Passimian alike. He was perched in his bowl-shaped throne, whirling like a dervish in the center of the circle as he served berry drinks to Passimian, humans, and even to what looked like wild Pokémon from the Swamp itself with the speed and skill of a psychic master. His fan hung upon Swamp Tree, as it usually did, close at hand if necessary.

"Have a seat, I will be with you in a moment." The pair exchanged a look as the Sage's mental baritone echoed in their heads. He'd been louder last time. Perhaps he was simply distracted, as he had many customers. Alex picked up the time from one of the minds around him, and nodded, understanding. When the berry bar came out, and it rarely did these days, it only stayed around for a short time before the Sage went back to doing whatever it was he did when he didn't train them or eat.

The allotted time was almost up, and as usual, the crowd had surged. The dragonbone armor helped make moving through the crowd much easier, and he waited by the room's rightmost wall as the much slenderer redhead got them drinks. Alex had long since stopped bothering with trying to move and weave through throngs of people. He was far too large for it.

The armor gained him a few looks, but as the redhead joined him once more, the gathered Trainers slowed in their fervor for berry juice. Only one Scale had a redheaded shadow that gorgeous. Armored as she was, the dragonbone sets for the ladies were as form fitting as one might expect, though her body was entirely encased, and there were no suggestive bits of skin showing. Alex gave several of what he sensed were the more promising trainees nods, as eyes widened, and murmurs spread. Then, the Sage distracted them all.

"Last call!"

The heads turned back to the distraction at hand, though many eyes returned once the rapidly spinning Oranguru served them. There was silence, for a moment, within the crowded chamber as everyone enjoyed a sip at once. They knew how their master liked to end his sessions with the berry bar, and indeed, he had a pleased, sleepy grin on his face. The eyes then moved from his bar to his wayward students, and Alex drained his drink, knowing without words that they had best report to the training area behind Swamp Tree.

The arena in question, once a patch of dirt during his time here, had since been built up, and now mirrored the look of many stadiums across the Pokémon world. For their part of this war, Alex and Jess shared the rank of General, and their legion of Scales answered to both, though typically, they divided themselves by sex, there were always exceptions. The force of powerful Champions was able to adapt and adjust their ranks, and already the old blood had been paired with several of the newbies, decent Trainers in their own right, who would become truly fierce under the tutelage of the Scales who had retaken the frozen northwest. With them had come a single Gym Leader, from Kalos, specially requested by the Dragon Emperor himself.

Clemont joined them on the smaller stadium's field not long after the two Scales had. Oranguru kept silent though, as did the inventor, whose glasses hid his eyes while his mouth was occupied by a berry drink. Professor Aristole was joining them as well, though both Alex and Tao had agreed he would take an advisory role, not a battling one. He could handle himself of course, but the Sages were too valuable to future kings and queens to risk in open warfare, especially against those who twisted themselves with Shadow.

The Sage of Light came to the field as well, and Oranguru looked between the four of them. "Thank you for coming." The eyes shifted to Alex. "A power is about to awaken, one that rivals, and in some cases surpasses, Mega Evolution. You have already discovered the hidden utility of your Plates, and they will keep many Pokémon alive in the Battles to come, but there is another path to power that even now, forces both good and evil are discovering. As you are now, you will not be strong enough."

Alex raised a brow, and Jess sighed. "The Plates make them pretty strong…"

Professor Aristole interrupted anything further he might've said. "The items we call Plates are shards of this universe's creation, made manifest. They also appear when clones of Arceus fall to whatever caused them to come forth in the first place. Usually meteors. Combined with these...Mega Forms, you will be strong enough for normal adversaries...but the Foggy Swamp Sage has seen what I have. Our Future Sight has revealed Pravus' ultimate goal, and unfortunately, we cannot stop him. Not now. He will attain a new level...and you must as well."

Arthur popped free of his ball then, for he shared his Trainer's thoughts on this matter. "We're pretty strong already, I know I can handle Mordred with this armor, will his master really be so much stronger?"

Oranguru spoke again. "You forget he has subjugated not one but two Darkrai, one of which is a cut above even its own kin and has completely fused with its host by now. With what he is going to make, he will be stronger. Why do you hesitate, Redwood? You've never held back from gaining more strength before."

Alex and Jess shared a look before the Dragon Emperor looked back to the floating psychic Sage. "That's just it, though...the stronger I become, the further I get from ordinary people. I don't want my perspective of them to shift, and it's already started because of the lofty title I now find myself holding. If I'm supposed to unite the regions of this continent, I need to be at least a little relatable to them. Otherwise, they'll do as Humanity always does, and start deifying me. I don't want that, either. The last thing we need is another cult."

Oranguru chuckled. "My, don't we have a high opinion of ourselves. Do you really need a reminder of where exactly you stand in terms of power?"

Alex ignored the bait and thought it over. Jess glared at him. Going toe to toe with an actual Pokémon was asking for injury. The Foggy Swamp Sage did not hold back, and what power he did pull was only to avoid killing whoever was on the receiving end of his moves. "I think I do, actually. It would be good for my ego. War is not unlike Battle...and I. Keep. Winning." By the look on his no longer smirking face, he had grown tired of victory also meaning dead humans. When it came to combat, he would always prefer sport to slaughter. He hoped many surrendered in the battles that were likely unfolding as they spoke, for Tao was in charge of enlightening the misguided, but redeemable, children of Fornia to reality as only a Guardian appointed by Arceus could. The Scales would have plenty of time to help him, if Fornia fell.

The look in his eyes was covered over by the intense blue aura. It flickered below his eyelids as he closed them and opened the pathway for the Light to enter through. The Sage arched a brow and glanced at Professor Aristole. The two shared a smirk, as the Original Dragon's Tamer tapped into the Light. "I relent. His choices are as accurate as ever." The eyes shifted back to Alex as the Sage gestured to the stadium's field. Naturally, after only a few minutes of conversing, the students of the island had gathered in the stands, usually by way of Teleport. The noise built in murmurs as their teacher gestured.

Alex let the speed granted by the Light take him to his starting position, and he blinked, as he realized the Sage had gotten to his first. Teleport, apparently. He would have an anchor here. Alex made a note of its location and knew there would be more. Their locations would be the key to defeating the Sage. He could not sense them, as they were anchors made from short bursts and repeated battling, and different from the psychic anchors used for long range travel.

The Oranguru struck first, as he always did, for he was faster than all of them, but for once, Alex got a good look at how his species attacked. The fan had appeared with him, meaning he'd had time to go grab it before bamfing to his spot, and judging by the smirk on his mentor's face, that was the first of many lessons. He was slower.

Alex didn't draw Lux, though he knew the ghost was watching. He had proven himself invaluable in their battles for survival, as his eyes darted everywhere, covering his Trainer's blind spots with timely advice, and wisdom of age. He disliked killing as much as his wielder, and they were a good team because of that. Now though, Alex understood he was on his own. As the wave of psychic force emanating from the Sage's balance symbol marked brow came towards him, it seemed to move slower than he remembered. The Sage might be faster, but his attacks, or at least this one, were not.

He dropped into the usual stance he took for fighting hand-to-hand. There was a reason he didn't use his fists too often. Early on in his first foray into the dragon's alternate plane, they had realized his strikes were too powerful for most humans, and Pokémon, to survive if he put real force behind them. Typically, he saved them for moments like this, when his team was unable to aid him and he was on his own. The blazing aura of Light radiating off of him condensed around the dragonbone armor, and in the instant the Psychic attack reached him, he struck.

Fast, precise, the golden aura tore through the Psychic attack, launching at the Sage once it did. The emanation of golden light took on the vague shape of a draconic head but was dispelled by a wave of the fan. The Sage hovered for a long moment, eyeing his student as he again dropped into the dragon's stance. Physically, he'd made a simple punch forward, and that had been enough to turn his attack.

Alex didn't wait this time, though. His bone-encased fist was smoking from the contact with the psychic energy, and he didn't want to ruin his armor in a sparring match. As he closed in on the Sage, he halted short, as the fan floated in front of him, and radiated an aura of energy associated with the move Protect. He sighed and waited. The barrier fell, and as usual, made its user pause directly after, giving him a moment to strike.

As Oranguru was especially weak to the dark typing and its moves, Alex summoned the dark energy imbued in the ever-useful armor to his fists as he struck towards the Sage, only to find he'd Teleported away. He smirked. That was what he'd wanted. He propelled himself through the air then and saw the Oranguru's eyes widen in surprise. When last Alex had been here, levitating his larger frame had been too costly in terms of energy. Now, he barely seemed to notice it.

Once more his fist struck empty air, and again, the Sage had Teleported. Over and over this repeated, and while he let the dark energy dissipate before each potential hit, his clever mentor eventually caught on to what he was doing. The Light in his aura was weakening his own attack. Alex could only really use such a dark move effectively when his aura shield was down, but in a fight like this, that would mean an instant loss. He needed the strike to be almost instant, for the full effect. Unfortunately for the Sage, it was at that same moment that Alex realized they'd hit the number of anchors one Pokémon could legitimately manage in one condensed area. His enhanced mind had kept track of their locations easily.

He followed the Sage's Teleport as he winked out of the way of his burning black fist, only to have it sink satisfyingly into the Pokémon's white fur as he reappeared where the Sage did, and finally struck home. Oranguru went sailing across the field, but stopped himself in the air before he neared the ground, and then rotated to turn to face his student once more. "Well struck...but do not get cocky."

He Teleported again, and as Alex let his third eye track where the energy was moving, he swore. He knew what came next. The Sage appeared above the field and raised his hands. Between them, psychic and normal typed energy formed separate orbs in each massive palm, then melded together almost instantly, and it wasn't more than a second before the giant ball of psychic and normal energy in a familiar balanced pattern was heading for him. Another second, and it hit.

The crowd began murmuring again, as they'd stopped when he hadn't gone down against the Psychic attack, like pretty much anyone the Sage used it on. The murmurs grew as, with a wave of his fan, Oranguru cleared the smoke and dust from his attack. Alex rose, smirking from under the helmet as he met his master's gaze. "Protect is irritating, isn't it."

The Sage's eyes narrowed, but then, the aura around his student shifted from gold back to blue. He seemed satisfied that his attack had done at least that, but Redwood was still smirking. Dark typed energy radiated from one fist and covered his left arm. The Light, condensed around his right, and he gave the Sage a moment to realize what was coming, before he Teleported as well, and began to counter.

What came next was a series of Teleports, followed immediately by a dark or light punch that, usually, the Sage blocked with his fan of fur and leaves. Anyone with eyes could tell he was pressing his attack, and yet when the fan came out, the Light fist struck. When Alex was lucky enough to get around it, he struck with the dark energy. He repeated this, until finally, the Sage spoke loud enough for all of them. "Enough."

Alex paused mid-strike, and then propelled himself back towards his starting point. He was panting after holding that much dark energy for so long. It always threatened to consume his aura shield, given his own typing, but that had yet to happen in battle. If it did, he would be down just to his armor for defense, and that was something he wanted to avoid. Mostly to keep the armor intact and presentable.

"Well done." The Sage said, as he eyed the scorch marks on his weapon left by his student's punches. He floated towards Alex then, hovering cross-legged in the air. "Kneel."

Alex glanced around, as the Sage had, as far as he knew, not done this before. Jess confirmed that, according to the latent thoughts of the gathered crowd, this was a first for them, too. Oranguru raised the fan, and his hand twitched. The massive object folded up, and though the symbol of balance appeared on the spread leaves, it appeared on the sides when folded, as well. Alex did as he was bid and fell to a knee.

"By the right of the Sages. By the will of Arceus." The fan tapped each of his armored shoulders as the Sage spoke. Finally, it tapped, lightly, his helmeted head as well. "Rise, defender of Balance. There is little more I can teach you. He, on the other hand...has much to impart."

Before Alex could ask who, the fan had extended again, and waved at the seemingly empty air behind the Sage's spot on the field. It shimmered, and every single human and Pokémon gathered stared in unified awe at the pale white form of the deity responsible for saving the planet, and giving it, arguably, the best gift anyone ever had or likely ever would, in the form of Pokémon.

Arceus himself manifested before the stadium, and the red eyes scanned over the crowd of gathered humans, and Pokémon. Alex stayed kneeling. Professor Aristole followed his lead, and soon, all were displaying respect to the Alpha Pokémon. The Light around him seemed to shine a bit brighter as he mentally accepted their praise and looked them over. Then, the intense red eyes focused on Alex, and he remembered the last time he'd faced this particular entity in this very Swamp.

It is time we spoke.

Before he could ask where, his perspective shifted, as did his surroundings. White-gold light illuminated the immediate area, a series of weathered columns that marked equally weathered white stone stairs that ultimately led to where the Alpha Pokémon hovered. He was standing just below the deity's perch, on one meant, apparently, for speaking with the Alpha.

From here, I watch this world. From here, I see all. Many with the right to my Light are about to awaken, and you who would lead them must be tested.

Alex nodded, shifting from the scenery, which reminded him entirely too much of the realm he'd spent most of the morning within, training his Scales, and their teams. "I thought we did that already, but I accept whatever test you have for me."

The deity's thunderous chuckle echoed in his head. The test does not end. This will be a good first step on the path you now walk. You, like many, have had your destiny irrevocably twisted by those who preach in My name. The crimson eyes widened, and then shrank. I wish it Ended. I am asleep no longer, and my true self's return to this plane is nigh. This...cult, must be eradicated, lest it be regrown and twisted when the time finally arrives. If you allow it to persist, it will undo whatever progress you hope to make with your species.

"You really think it's that dangerous? That it has that much potential?" Alex had linked his arms behind him as he faced down a deity and was instinctively glad that he had his armor on. Not that he expected to need it. Pissing off Arceus himself was something he actively wished to avoid.

Because it uses My image, yes. The being emanated a mental sound that seemed not unlike a sigh, a weary one at that. Whoever next Tames me will have much to accomplish with my aid. All that good may again be undone, if we allow the masses their worship, as we did last time. There will be no organized devotion from Humans. Not this cycle. This time around...what we change will last.

Alex arched a brow at that. "With respect, what you and your last Holder created did last. According to...a wise man I knew, those earliest teachings became the basis of the Pokémon League. Of what Battling is, and what it should always be. You will not have to start from scratch, Alpha Pokémon...but why tell me? Am I the one to tame you next?" He had no small hint of disbelief in his tone by the end of his questions. The idea seemed absurd, as it had when he'd first heard the legend. Arceus was, by all accounts, a being comparable to a deity. Why would such an entity allow themself to be chained by a Pokéball, special or not?

The deity's eyes widened, and narrowed again as they ran over his very being, seeing more of the human than any of his servants could. The potential is there...but there are many with such power within. Who exactly will Hold the Space-Time Sphere has yet to be decided, and until it is, the future is fractured into many potential timelines. I come to you now, because you have already awakened, accessed my power, proven worthy of it, and are in a position to end this irritation in a timely manner.

Alex bowed. "As you command, it shall be. The cult will not survive this conflict. The Original Dragon has already done much to see to that specifically."

Arceus nodded and made what seemed like a pleased sound. I am aware. He knows what is necessary for the events that will unfold next...and he is putting his hope in you, Alexander Redwood, to see his Dreams achieved.

The human thought for a moment, before daring to ask something else. He knew he was pushing the limits of what the deity might impart, but he was standing before Arceus. Literal, real, tangible Arceus. Now was the time to ask, he probably wouldn't have another chance. "Do...you agree with his plans, then? You wish for them to unfold?"

There are many Guardians, each with their own plans and pupils. My role is to support the one that proves itself dominant in honorable combat. That is the system that was decided upon by your ancestors. Train hard, Human, and you may yet see your dragon's wish to fruition.

The white light around him flared and fractured as the deity pulled an object forth from a pocket space useful for containing things that were best kept hidden, until those who could wield them correctly appeared. A crystalline object, shining with an impossible number of colors, descended towards Alex, and he felt a strong compulsion to raise his hands. They moved on their own, as he did not fight it, and the warm crystal landed in his hands.

You are given permission to use this Burst Heart. When the time is right, you will use it with your dragon, and end the abomination perverting my image. With both of your powers combined, you should be able to handle the Shadow's Champion with ease.

Alex barely had time for a 'thank you' or a 'what the Muk is a Burst Heart?' before the Light around them flared impossibly white, and he found himself back on the training field. Around him, the others were still kneeling, Arceus was where he had been before, and as time itself began to flow again, he vanished as quickly as he'd appeared, without another word.

Alex was the first to stand, pocketing the crystal as he gave the Alpha a nod, just before he left. In his opinion, world peace was a worthy goal, and one he would help his Legendary partner pursue. He'd just need to find a path to it not paved with senseless slaughter. His face grew grim then. There would still be senseless slaughter regardless, though. Like Tao, he'd try to minimize it. He looked between Jess, Clemont, and Professor Aristole, as they too stood up. "It's time we moved out. Ready the Scales."

He walked towards Oranguru then, and smirked. "Master, do you mind if I give those who are worthy a chance to join us in the coming battles?"

The Sage watched him for a long moment, then sighed. "Very well." He mentally contacted those who might prove themselves ready, in the time it took the Scales to prepare to Teleport. A thousand stayed, and the rest of the trainees went back to honing their skills across the compound. "These are the closest to maturation that I have at the moment."

Alex nodded, and then addressed the crowd of Trainers. He recognized a few faces of Champions that had yet to ascend, as well as faces that seemed way, way too young for war. But he trusted the Sage's judgement. "We will test your worthiness for the title of Scale of Balance with a Battle. You should already know who among this group you'll be having yours with, and if you don't...look around. Fate will guide your eyes to the right gaze. He saw familiar smirks spread across the trainees, as they started meeting gazes, and readying their partners. The flames of battle were rising, and he stoked them with his next words.

"You have until I and my own Scales are ready to Teleport. We have extra armor for you, should you prove victorious. If you do, you will have the unique opportunity to serve with the best, and the most experienced Scales as fresh recruits. Do not cheat, do not take shortcuts. If you are meant to join us in Hel today, you will know it by how quickly you finish your opponent. Take your places and begin!"

As Alex had expected, his Scales had spread out among the compound once they'd landed, and not all of them had Teleported in to see the events at the stadium. Those had primarily been trainees, hoping to learn something, and get a show out of it. He felt they'd gotten one.

It would take time to gather the rest of the Scales, as more than a few had gone Pokémon hunting in the Swamp as well. Like most places of psychic power and natural energy, the Swamp was home to pretty strong potential partners, and more than a few had been given suggestions, usually from him or Tao, on what they needed to make their team more likely to survive.

Alex himself had several partners with specifically useful abilities waiting in his cloak, but his main ten were who he usually called upon in war. Many of his newer catches had not yet matured enough to be alright with the horror his main ten had grown immune to, slowly. Still, it was incredibly convenient essentially walking around with his box. Everyone got decent training. He needed to thank Percy again, later.

All around, battles began, and, in many cases, the first round began what swiftly became a series of OHKOs, for the Trainers with the most potential. Being the victor of a match-up, they were allowed to sense what species their opponent was drawing next and could shift to counter it. It took skill and cleverness to break out of that kind of advantage, and in the first few battles to reach the end of ten on ten, there were roughly twenty that had unbroken streaks. Those, he split in half, usually by sex. He knew his better half would enjoy more people to train.

Within five minutes, two hundred and fifty of the whole thousand gathered proved themselves with swift victory, while others, though skilled, ended up with opponents that favored defense, wearing down one's opponent, and then hammering them. He didn't need a clock, as the armored forms of those who had found their power and gone on to become legends in their own right were Teleporting into the stadium rather rapidly, filling the stands and preparing to Teleport, as the battles raged on.

Each of them began mentally checking in, as all Scales did while gathering, once the Generals returned. Clemont and Aristole had sent their Pokémon, rather than go themselves, but Jess had ways of reaching everyone, and had enough Pokémon to do it. By the time the ten thousand had returned, checked in, and begun once more forming the mental focus required for moving themselves, they had what evened out to roughly six hundred, in total, newly raised Scales.

Gas Town - Kanadia Region

The newly promoted initiates were bamfed to Unova, to be outfitted, and Tao sent each one back to them individually, after discussing what was expected of them as a soldier wearing his colors and mark. Only a few did not return from Unova, and the dragon would not say why. Alex trusted his judgement though, for if he'd felt them unfit, there was a good reason. As great a mentor as Oranguru was, they knew he was stretched with Instructing so many humans at once. Some flaws could not be so rapidly ironed out, with such large numbers. The Sage had simply taken the required numbers in stride though, and had adapted his home to fit them, while retaining the same sense of comfort and a vibe that remained chill.

It was several hours past noon when they were, finally, outfitted and ready. The new blood would be kept relatively safe from the fighting, and had been paired with the more experienced Scales, or those they had a previous bond to. They would be 'master' and 'apprentice' pairings, until the 'masters' deemed them ready to fight on their own and not die or cut themselves with their new plasma swords.

The entire army group focused their minds once more, and Teleported into an old, abandoned town called Gas Town, just north of the Kanadian wall, and the closest remaining outpost they had to the Arcean controlled coast. It was established little more than a few miles north of Pravia, and hidden, for the Kanadian Wall loomed over it, and the local flora hid the ruined old mining town rather well. Alex didn't know what exactly had been dug up here, but humans had ravaged the earth for what lay beneath at some point in the past. Now, nature reclaimed it, and they could safely use it as a hidden spot within which to gather, in the event the wall was breached. This late in the war, nobody saw that realistically happening, but it was always good to plan.

The two Generals then dispensed the battle plan, to everyone else. Rumor was, they had been mentally cooking it up, as they often had before, for most of the day. Any attack now would need to be remarkably fast, or it would last into the night, and they would be behind schedule to a far worse degree. Tao had allowed for them to have most of the day though, as they had agreed that Alex should gather as many from the Swamp as he could once they'd all more or less figured out how to armor their partners. They only had Scales in their army group, but that would be enough.

Before long, the girls left, with Jess at their head, to fly over the wall and begin tunneling towards Pravia. The boys, meanwhile, would pile into Shruikan. When armored by the Draco Plate, he had enough of a carrying capacity to act as a legitimate dropship. Alex would lead them in an attack from above, while the mostly female half of their forces came from below.

The riders from Valaskjalf had joined him, this time, as they were better battlers in the air, and their full potential was better used in the skies. Before things kicked off though, Alex had a plan that, while unlikely to work, could ultimately avoid bloodshed. The chance was worth taking.

Pravia, being a far northern city buried in the mountains that stretched all the way to Kanadia, had mostly been ignored by the 'southerners' and their cultish lifestyles. The Prophet's will was not as heavily enforced, and while they gave soldiers and supplies to Sacreus, their governing was left mostly to the man Pravus had put in charge. Of all his many employees, the man who ran Pravia's various task forces, amongst other things, was one of the few in the Prophet's direct service that leaned away from the zealot-like mindsets necessary to make viable Crusaders. In short, it was rumored he was somewhat reasonable, rather than insane, or...quirky.

The city did not have many troops, as most were either in Sinnoh by now, on the way there, or had gone east, to Fargo, to reinforce General Nonagon. Of all the Arcean leaders they were likely to meet on their march down Fornia's coast, this one was, supposedly, the one most likely to surrender, when he realized how outmatched he was.

The snow was not yet done with Fornia's northern half, and the clouds gave Shruikan the cover he needed while the two halves of the legion prepared to strike. The cover lacked ash, for once, as these were relatively new weather patterns, and most of the ash in the air, after being Shouted into nonexistence by Tao, was gone. It would still cover the south, for that was where Fornia was still on fire, but this far north the air had become clean again. More or less. He'd been told that the sky was usually gray, in this part of the world.

Alex bamfed into the home of the man his scouts said was in charge of Pravia's defense, once he approached it from above. Getting in was as simple as adjusting his position vertically by a few feet. As expected, the place was a cut above any other Arcean dwelling he'd seen, either with his own eyes or through memories. Pravus made sure his minions were comfortable. Given the relatively quiet nature of Teleport, he found himself hovering in a TV room, by the only door to the dwelling.

The screen was on, and the Prophet's seemingly endless Arc News channel was broadcasting. He did not judge though, for that was essentially all 'real Arceans' were allowed to watch, when it came to media entertainment. With the man in question were two smaller humans, and a woman, and at that point, Alex hit his belt, and retracted the armor. That, caused a bit more noise and he landed as it disappeared.

He stood as the family turned to find a bearded white and black robed stranger in their house. The parents had a look of recognition. The children just stared, wide eyed. "Hello there." He said as he looked between all of them before, meeting the man's gaze. "You and I need to have a chat."

"Jess, take the kids to the back…" Alex blinked at the name, but otherwise made no move for the family as they quickly left at their patriarch's order. "Now then...Redwood, right? What brings the most hated man in Fornia to my home?"

Alex gave the man a grim smirk. "Unfortunately, the war."

The man's brown eyes narrowed. "There's no war this far out here. Not unless you've brought it with you."

"Your Prophet has delivered this war unto you, 'his people'. You should not be surprised to find us on your doorstep, at this point. Not if you have any idea of what he's done to us. To Pokémon. To the very planet." Alex crossed his arms and looked the man over. He was in plain clothes, of fine quality, and seemed to not have armor on hand.

"If we are at war, then why are you here, in my home, Dragon Emperor?" The man had stood by this point, only his fine white leather couch between them. Behind him, Pravus's media drones continued to babble and spread misinformation. He heard something about psychic types, but what Arceans didn't know about psychics could fill a library.

"Contrary to what you have been told, I do not want this war. I don't like killing Fornians. I would have you prosper, alongside the rest of the continent, as you did in ages now long passed. But before that can happen, I need to take down the man who has twisted this region into a burning, mined-out hellscape. That means any cities loyal to him must fall. Arciana City and Fargo are under attack as we speak, in fact, by now, they've probably fallen."

"They have." The man interrupted. He gestured at the TV. "Your Generals work quickly."

Alex shrugged. He had known they would be behind, but it ultimately wouldn't matter much. They needed to link up with Thor and Nate to take Port: Land anyway. "Not surprising. I can only imagine what the media puppets are claiming we've done in this latest conflict. I'm here to tell you it's nonsense. I offer you a chance, High Bishop of Pravia, to surrender. Your soldiers and citizens need not feel the flames of war, if you bend the knee. The Original Dragon is-"

He was interrupted again, as the man laughed. "Oh, I know about your silver-tongued serpent. The answer is no, Redwood. We will never bend to you, or the dragon's will."

Alex sighed. "I have over ten thousand of my strongest Scales waiting to tear this city apart like a pistachio shell. If you do not do it for your rightful Emperor, or the dragon responsible for bringing this continent to peace, do it for your family, and the families of your men, who will surely fall to us. You can avoid a bloodbath. We all can. This is your chance to join the side that's fighting for the Light, not the Shadow. You know what's coming from the east. Not even your media goons can hide Thor's strength. Surrender. Before he gets here. Once he does, the battle will not end in your favor. You probably won't survive, either."

"Only ten thousand? You have very few men with which to storm my city. You have my answer, demonblood. I will see you on the battlefield." The man moved to a large containment unit then, within which was his armor. He began dressing, and Alex sighed, as he activated his own. The man paused, watching as the dragonbone appeared again from seemingly nowhere.

"No... you won't." Alex sighed, glanced at where the children had been taken, and then looked down. "Don't make me kill them, too. I can't guarantee your civilian's safety against what's coming. None of you have to die for this ridiculous war...I'm offering you a chance to live, man! Take it!"

"You offer the path to Giratina, and his Hellish domain. My soul will not be bound in such a place! I fight for Arceus, and his Prophet on Earth!" The man grabbed his Power Stave then, and levelled it at Alex, despite still only being half-armored himself. "I could end the greatest threat to him right now…"

Alex's eyes narrowed. Intense blue psychic aura covered his form. "You won't survive taking the shot. Don't do it…" He felt Lux hop into his right hand, and he grit his teeth. He'd really thought they could bypass Pravia, that reason might yet exist in this cult-infested region. Apparently not.

The man unleashed a torrent of ice typed energy at him as soon as he'd finished speaking. Lux bisected the light blue beam of energy, which tore through the entrance of the dwelling, and froze what did not break under its power. Alex remained untouched, as did the carpet and wall immediately behind him. He sighed again. "So be it."

The black and white plasma sword spun through the man's mostly armored chest as Alex threw the blade, and then pulled it back to him. He felt Lux, and his team, try to console him, but he was in no mood. Once more, Caleb Pravus' rhetoric would doom those who followed it, and no amount of rational conversation would dissuade them. For good measure, and to vent some of his rising anger, he lifted a hand, and then crushed the still blathering television, leaving it a sparking, crumpled mess of glass and plastic.

Then, he propelled himself upwards, tearing through the ceiling with his aura shield, as he was still irritated. He ascended over the city quickly, and before long had taken his perch atop Shruikan. The dragon looked back at him, the same grim look in his eyes. They both knew what he needed to open this battle with, but even now, he was reluctant. He sighed again and pointed down at the city with Lux's still humming blade from atop Shruikan's head. The wind was loud up here, but his troops would hear him. "Draco Meteor."

Shruikan summoned the energy, and it coalesced around the Scales leaping from his undercarriage, where they'd been on standby. Each Scale, encased in dragon typed energy, fell to the city and landed atop a building of import. Barracks. Distribution centers. Armories. Mining operations. The purplish-blue comets reduced them to craters, and the Scales that emerged from them, summoned their partners, dispatched any Crusaders they saw upon rising.

The city's defenses wailed to life as the bombardment kept coming. Alex and Shruikan were providing the energy, and forming spheres around roughly five thousand people was not a simple task, but the energy of the Plates was infinite. By the time they had emptied from the massive dragon's holding area, the city was filled with craters.

Then, he contacted his Jess. "They're out in force and converging on my Scales...now is the time."

He felt an affirmative response from where she and the other ladies were lying in wait below. From beneath the fighting Crusaders came another five thousand Scales, and with surprise on their side, the Crusader's numbers fell, hard, to their sneak attacks from underground. In short order, the once lovely city of Pravia had become a war-torn hellscape. Alex blinked out of his reverie as he watched the carnage. The Articuno riders were trying to gain his attention and were floating in the air beside the massive black dragon, waiting to begin bombarding the squads of soldiers below with heavy attacks. Many would simply die in the ice, long before they thawed.

Alex nodded at them and began to bring Shruikan down towards the carnage. He too was not overeager. There were far too many innocents for his kind of attacks. He preferred it when the zealots lined up for him in neat little rows. Still, he did his part. A column of electric death in the form of a massive Charge Beam tore through one such column of Crusaders below, leaving naught but their sparking Pokéballs behind in their wake. If the occupants managed to pop free, they would only find their Trainer's ashes.

More than a few Pokémon had been robbed of their Trainers over the course of the conflict. Most, when purified, ran off into the wild. Others, focused on vengeance. It was an issue to deal with at another time. Alex let Shruikan go about his business after a few passes over the city's more organized soldiers, at which point he joined his friends on the ground and focused on keeping his Scales alive. The Arceans were starting to recover from the girl's surprise, but Alex's team came in with timely moves that began shifting the tide.

Not long after that, a mighty yell echoed across the city, and a fiery chariot appeared over the eastern half of it, which coincidentally was the most embattled at that point of the attack. Thor himself rode into the fray, dealing death with every hammer blow, and behind him came a tide of fiery blue maned Rapidash riders, and the sons of Asgard made short work of those who continued resisting.

Nate and his own Scales joined soon after, and it was not long at all before the remaining Arceans surrendered. A force of three hundred thousand had been subdued by a mere ten. Nate's forces merged with their Emperor's, and in short order, the fifteen thousand or so Scales of Balance had teleported their new prisoners back home, to have their eyes opened, by the dragon himself. Since again finding his Voice, breaking delusions had become habitual for the Legendary Dragon. It was a fine line between replacing one indoctrination with another, but Tao was probably the only being in existence that could balance upon it. He did not break their wills, and while many were persuaded to see reason, or at least verify his Words, others stubbornly refused, and they were the ones who ended up imprisoned. Those who took the offer to join the empire they were going to build were kept separate from their more deluded kin.

The regular troops from both Kalos and Norstad came several hours behind Nate and Thor, and many of Alex's Scales were impressed at how fast everyone mobilized. Hilbert had drilled them well, and under Nate, they'd become strong. There had been more of them, back in Unova, but that was war. He ordered the troops to gather the populace, as they prepared to march. None of them had ever been to Port: Land, and those who claimed they had, did not have anchors strong enough for all of them.

Alex, Jess and Nate addressed the irate locals of the city who, upon realizing the invaders weren't going to kill them for acting out, had begun doing whatever they pleased. Some, had crossed that line between irate civilian, and armed combatant, only to then witness firsthand the disturbing ease with which a Scale could permanently end a threat from a single, ordinary human. Reports of maimed limbs, and even a few actual deaths had begun reaching the General's ears, and all three had agreed that they were better off moving on. But first, certain things had to be impressed upon those who survived here.

"People of Pravia!" The Voice reached all of them, and even those who'd fully intended to let the Enemy's words go in one ear and out the other, could not ignore the Dragon Emperor of Unova as he spoke to them. "A new era is coming to your region. The Original Dragon has returned. Once, you all understood what that meant. For those out of the loop, the Dragon Empire has been reborn, and whether you like it or not, I am the one who was picked to guide it, and the Humans within it. Before the month is out, you will find yourselves under a new government. Mine."

He gave them a moment to process that, and then continued. Thankfully, nobody seemed eager to shout out, at that moment. "One way or another, the Cult of Arceus is ending. I was told by the Alpha Pokémon himself; he has grown immensely displeased with what you, and your leaders, have done while claiming to follow his teachings."

At the end of that sentence, the city rumbled, as eight Earthquakes leveled eight of the most prominent houses of Arceus worship, shattering them to unusable rubble. His team came back then, one at a time, glaring at the gathered civilians as they did. Terra came last looking as chill as a grass turtle could on a battlefield, and Alex perched atop his shell, as he gave the turtle's upper neck a scratch. "He does not intend to allow Humans to continue worshiping him in an organized capacity, either. Arceus charged me with the task of ending your Prophet, who has taken for himself the mantle of Shadow Champion. I don't have to explain the truth of this to you. I am sure, from what I've been told by your fellow Fornians who have already surrendered, that many of you have Pokémon you have not given to your Church for 'purification'."

There was a sea of downturned heads, and averted gazes about the secret only ignorant children voiced aloud. Alex smirked, staring down at his starter, as he continued speaking. "Whatever that process is, it changes them, doesn't it. Turns them violent, feral, cruel even. Twists them from something good to something eager to kill. It's called Shadow Infusion. It does little more than pervert the perfect balance Pokémon have on instinct and turns these wonderful creatures into little better than an energy weapon. That in itself is atrocious, but your Prophet took it a step further by using this process on Eggs before they'd even had a chance to hatch, just so his Shadow Pokémon could gain experience. An entire lifetime of suffering, so that they're more useful tools for your Shadow Prophet. For that atrocity, there can be only one sentence."

Many eyes were looking pointedly away from the far too casual 'Emperor' chilling on the back of his grass turtle. His Words still reached them though, and as usual, the truth within could not be denied. When one spoke honestly using the power of the Voice, the words could not be ignored. He hadn't tried lying, as he'd been warned against it by his Rayquaza.

"Your Church has been taking the partners of our hearts and minds and infusing them with the foulest substance in existence. But the Shadow is not just mindless rage or corrosive energy. It has a will. All it requires, is a leader to direct it. That is what your Prophet has become, all while making you, the good people of Fornia, believe that he speaks for the Alpha Pokémon, the very entity responsible for caging the Shadow in the first place. Within the realm you know as the Reverse World, or colloquially, Hell."

He stood then, and recalled his strongest partner, landing easily on his feet as he did. "You can judge for yourselves the truth of my words in the weeks to come. If I'm successful in taking down your Prophet, there is much that will change here. You have until my next visit to ponder whether you will aid the Guardian that Arceus himself left in charge of this continent, or the fiend trying to usurp him, and turn us all into slaves of the Shadow. Most of you have your lives, and your freedom. Remember that, before you judge me and my people too harshly on the word of a lunatic."

The legions moved out quickly then, leaving not a single soldier to keep the burning city. It had been crippled, and everything but residential buildings had been crushed by the initial meteors. Alex's words had them properly musing, for more than a few had heard the growing rumors around Caleb Pravus and the use of very illegal Shadow Infusion practices but hadn't given them credence until that moment. Until, by his own admission, the man Pravus had very obviously scapegoated into the Fornian's nemesis destroyed their city because of these alleged actions. Even for the Arceans, it was hard to deny the kind of truth that motivated very obviously Light infused armies into marching. Once one started to question, they all would, and after that, it would be up to them as a city to decide what they would be doing with their lives and their freedom.

The combined legions made good time to Port: Land, and this time, Alex did not pause them before the siege began. Being the unofficial 'place of origin' for Caleb Pravus' cult had, over the centuries, turned the port-side city into a bastion of unquestioning faith in whatever their Prophet told them to do. Aside from Sacreus and perhaps Texico City, there would not be a harder nut to crack open.

Alex fully intended to crack it though, as Shruikan could make short work of any gate, shorter work even than Thor. They were debating that very point, on who they should send in first, when above them, a sudden darkness filled the sky. The sun's slow and early descent, since it was still close to winter, was seemingly sped up as the orange gave way to black and purple, which in no way seemed normal.

Then, every Scale of Balance preparing to storm the city felt it. The unmistakable presence of a truly dark entity, but given that it was indeed dark typed, they could divine little more than a vague direction from which the impenetrable mass was coming. It took time, but eventually, they realized that whatever this new darkness was, it was approaching fast. It soared over Port: Land, to their south, and then further out to sea. Alex watched it, knowing who was within the inky black sphere at the heart of the storm of Shadow, and he didn't need a map to guess its trajectory.

"Looks like we're going to Alola." Jess said, as she came up beside him. He didn't try to dissuade her; he knew she'd be coming whether he 'let her' or not. "We'd better hurry...Professor Kukui can't hold him alone."

Alex smirked. "He's not alone...and we likely won't be either." He shivered against her, slightly. "I've always wanted to see a Solgaleo...I suppose now is the time."

Within three minutes, the word had gone out. Caleb Pravus was on a direct course for Alola, and then likely Sinnoh, if the victories Red had achieved in Japan were true. Thor and Nate would handle subjugating the city, leaving Alex and Jess to handle whatever the Prophet had become. He no longer seemed human, but he was effectively shielded from psychic eyes.

As Alex reached out to Tao, to begin the climactic battle of the day, the Original Dragon appeared, in all his mega evolved glory, just north of Port: Land. From the city, several beams of intense ice energy arced towards his easily spotted golden glowing form, but they were stopped short, by one massive Flamethrower. Shruikan began the attack then, as the legion would need him, and his strength to take the city. Thor's burning chariot wasn't far behind, and Nate ordered the charge as Alex's dragon flew for the city's defensive walls and razed them with a beam of electric death.

Alex and Jess ultimately left their Scales under Nate's command, as they agreed the city would require them to fall, which meant their duel in the sky would be between them, and Pravus's own partners. Their Charizard mega evolved as the pair flew away, out over the ocean, following the massive whirling cloud of purple and black as it moved west.

They arrived just outside of Alola in time to find that they were not the first people to recognize Pravus for the threat he was. "Searing…. Sunraze...SMAAAAASH!" The call for a Z-Move echoed through the air around them, before the Solgaleo responsible for it lit up the sky as it meteored towards the blackened sphere that, presumably, held the Prophet within.

One massive, clawed hand composed of dark energy appeared beside the sphere, and grabbed the burning lion. Then, the light of the sun's emissary dimmed, as the Darkrai-like claw appeared to drain the light from his attack. Solgaleo and its rider began withering in the evil grip, until six beams of focused moonlight blasted through the arm connected to the hand, dissipating it entirely.

By that point, the two newcomers on their Charizard were close enough to see the riders atop the heads and necks of the two Legendary Pokémon. Solgaleo's Tamer was the man who'd held the rank of Alola's third Champion for quite a few years now. Lightly bearded and wearing a long white and red Trainer jacket with shorts, around their age, and reportedly chill, unless battling, Elio looked worse for wear after the power of their attack had been consumed. Lunala's Tamer was female, and after a closer look at her braided hair, flowery orange top, and Professor lab coat, they recognized the woman who'd studied under Professor Kukui. Professor Kaede was a powerful Trainer in her own right, but neither of the humans that looked to be around their own age seemed prepared to fight the Champion of Shadow that had come to their doorstep.

"Arthur." Alex's Gallade was out and in his Mega Form before he and Jess reached the position at which the two Legendary Tamers were hovering, and he brought Excalibur to bear on the sphere, shooting past it before a shadowy arm could so much as form. His form flared then, and the Mind Armor covered him, as he knew what would come next. The sphere cracked, and then fell away, the Shadow within flaring and expanding rapidly now that it was free.

Caleb Pravus had become what one might expect a human and a Darkrai to look like when fused together, but the Darkrai had...changed. Its form was bigger, darker, almost as if it embodied the very element it used to power its attacks to a whole new level. Pravus seemed to have fully fused with his partner and one of their shadowy claws flung a Dark Ball towards the armored Gallade.

Both Alex and Arthur knew what was coming, and it wasn't long before the Gallade was locked in an intense duel of swordsmanship with Pravus's Shadow infused Gallade, meeting Mordred's Aerial Ace with the Light typed Sacred Sword over and over. As those two clashed and drifted away from the humans, Pravus began throwing other balls. A Golisopod and Cloyster dropped to the ocean below and headed for Alola, while a white Gengar, a shiny Vikavolt, and an Ultra Beast, classified as Naganadel, joined their owner in the air, as the Gengar ascended to its Mega Form first.

Jess and Lunala's Tamer didn't give the other two the time to do the same as Chari took the Vikavolt with a Flamethrower and chased it down as it led her away. Blaze went with her, and Alex stayed hovering on his own, focused on helping his Gallade survive with an extra pair of eyes. He too had read the legends and had no intention of losing his brave Gallade this day. Professor Kaede faced down the unsettling white Mega Gengar, and Elio took his poison proof lion up against the dragon from another dimension.

Pravus sneered at Alex as the others began battling in and around their airspace, filling the air with the sounds of conflict and explosions of light. He was the only one as yet directly unoccupied by a battle, like Pravus. The Prophet crossed his arms, as he opened his mouth for what was probably another speech. Gone was the symbol of Arceus, that usually hovered behind his shoulders. He'd traded purple robes for ones that blended well with his Darkrai's black coloring, and kept his armor hidden from sight. The looming eyes of his Darkrai appeared just above his head as a part of his Shadow aura, watching. "Are you going to make me wait all day, or are you going to bring forth your divine lizard?"

Having intended to do exactly that until that moment, both Alex and Tao paused. Then, they both agreed on what their next course of action would be. Hearing his Trainer's thoughts, Arthur stopped locking blades with Mordred, and instead kicked with a rapidly spinning foot to the face, sending him flying in the opposite direction, as he bamfed back to his Trainer. "I like this plan. It keeps Tao safe and makes the most of what he taught us. If we fuse, we'd be unbeatable."

Alex shook his head. "Arceus himself said to use it on my dragon." He smirked at the Gallade, and then nodded at the suddenly very angry Mordred who was hurtling towards him once more, after having righted himself. "He never said which dragon." As he called for Shruikan, Arthur agreed to buy time, and so when Mordred came, the two Gallade began again smashing their arms together in a frenzy of energy, between Pravus and Alex.

Seeing what had become of Solgaleo, an entity whose light had powered Legendary dragons if the rumors were to be believed, after being in Pravus's new grip, had convinced Alex that if he summoned Tao now, something similar would happen. He was far more connected to the Light than most assumed, especially in his Mega Form, and so Alex called for the dragon that was of this world, and had grown with both light and dark within.

Arthur's diversion worked, as Pravus had focused on commanding his Gallade. Mordred's moves shifted, but Arthur had a type resistant, or advantaged, counter for whatever strike the Shadow infused Gallade tried. Alex had begun surreptitiously hovering back from the fight, when several things happened at once. Below them, a shield of gold and pink energy flared around the entirety of Alola, covering each island with a bright pink barrier, and atop Mt. Lanakila, the Trainers battling in the sky, saw the massive form of a Guardian of Alola, Tapu Bulu if Alex remembered his Tapus correctly. Standing in front of the fairy typed giant was a man who was not dressed for the mountain's cold temperatures, but that had never stopped him in the past. The glaringly obvious Professor lab coat and the set of shredded muscles beneath it only belonged to one man, on these islands. One who, as history showed, had empowered the Tapu before, albeit in a Pokémon League match against Ash Ketchum, rather than a serious situation.

Alex used the distraction the island's shielding caused in Pravus to float even further back, as his dragon was rather large, and he just barely missed wandering into the Charge Beam that he hadn't ordered. The massive beam of electricity hit Pravus directly, as he'd raised a hand towards the figures protecting the nearest island. Blown back only a few feet in the air, but hit directly in the chest, Pravus glared back in Alex's direction, his Shadow-covered eyes widening as he took in the smirking Unovan Champion, holding a crystal burning with multiple rainbow colors.

The expression of shock quickly soured and grew furious as he saw what rose up behind the Dragon Emperor. Alex landed atop Shruikan's head, and then raised the crystal. On the march down to Port: Land, the easterners had glimpsed armor camera footage from Japan, and had seen Red's victory earlier that same day. The enlightening video had raised the Scale's morale just before they'd arrived at the second site of conquest, but Alex knew Tao had had a reason for sending it directly to him, first. He closed his eyes, let the energy flow in, and the area became much, much brighter as he resonated with the crystal and Shruikan and Shouted, "Light Burst!"

The rainbow colors shot into Shruikan, and lit his form as well, and the two beings became one as the power of the Alpha Pokémon let them combine the strength of Shruikan's Mega Form with the absurd power that came from fusing humans and Pokémon. The final result looked more man than dragon, but a closer glance revealed there was just as much of Shruikan as his Trainer. Their neck was longer, Alex had a tail now, and the wings, unchanged in shape, arced up behind them from their back. His frame was large and covered in obsidian scales with white undertones, but then, it had always been large. He didn't realize how large, until he drew Lux, and found the hilt to be too tiny.

"You too, my ghostly friend." The humanoid Salamence rumbled. The hilt of the plasma sword flared with ghost energy, as the Rotom within pushed himself to the next stage of his evolution. His bottom opened, accepted the Draco crystal, and as soon as the Mega Rotom snapped closed around it and lit the other half of his enlarged and double-bladed form, Alex and Shruikan were moving.

Alex estimated himself at fifteen feet in height now, as he found himself before Caleb Pravus, and slashed. A pair of shadow hands tried blocking, but Lux's blade of plasma, hard to stop as it normally was, was burning with the power of the Light. The Shadow hissed and trailed dark smoke as the fusion of dragon and human struck again, and again. When there was finally a pause in their combination of eight strikes in a row, the Shadow flared, trying to force them back, but the fused being remained where he was as his aura burned brighter through the wave of Shadow. He smirked.

A cry of rage tore the air as the claws reached for the lengthened neck of Alex and his dragon, wrapping around it with blinding speed as they held him still. "Now, Mordred…" Pravus hissed, and Alex narrowed his scaly eyes as the dark Gallade turned his gaze to where his master had ordered it. Alex mentally ordered Arthur to follow and wait for an opening to strike.

As the Shadow Gallade raised both sword-arms to cut directly into their back, he suddenly found himself upside down, his concentration ruined, by the lengthy and prehensile tail of the dragon-man that wrapped around his foot and spun him out of balance. Furious, Mordred moved to right himself and strike anyway, but not before he found the Sacred Sword arm of another Gallade, stabbing into his heart piece.

"Break his guard." Alex said to Arthur, as Mordred fainted, and began to fall towards the ocean. Pravus shouted again, dark energy burning down his arms only to be stopped by a blade of black and white, tinged with a golden aura, that separated the shadowy hands from the shadowy arms. The flailing limbs retreated back to defense as Arthur came in with a series of eight consecutive attacks, and only when he paused did the Shadow hands appear again.

Pravus moved to drain the glowing Gallade as he had the Solgaleo, but the reformed claw found empty air, as the Gallade Teleported behind him, and stabbed both of his sword arms into the Prophet's back. As soon as he'd broken from his shell, both Alex and Arthur had psychically searched their opponent for the 'fusion point' of his body. They would need to sever it in order to free the younger Darkrai from Pravus. What they had found, was a layered connection, one between human and Darkrai, and reinforced by yet another Darkrai, but one that was smaller, unchanged, and not inherently evil like the original. As Arthur dragged his swords through the man's back, dark energy spouted from the x-shaped wound, and a Darkrai, normally colored but unhealthily thin, sprang free from the Prophet. Shadow followed, as the energy bled into the air, and the newly raised Champion of the Shadow screeched in pain.

More cuts began appearing across the fused form of Pravus and his reverted partner. Evidently, whatever power Pravus had forced his Darkrai to embrace had been too much for even their combined form, and their man-made Darkrai had been necessary to contain it. Neither had expected her to be cut free.

As Pravus screamed in pain, and raised his head towards the darkened clouds, he heard a hum, and then his vision began moving to his left. Then, it began spinning, falling away from the form that he knew was his body. It took him until he hit the water of the ocean below to realize that the dragon brat had severed his head with a single, perfect strike, and the last thing Caleb Pravus managed to make his mouth do before it simply stopped responding was open, in a silent scream as it sank into the depths of the ocean.

Alex and Shruikan were not done, however. The Darkrai remained, its own head taking over the corpse of the human it had struggled to dominate, and eventually partnered with. A humanoid obsidian scaled claw, burning with Light, reached through his reformed head, into the chest of the now decapitated Pravus, where it clenched around the Prophet's magnum opus, and tore it from the flesh. The Darkrai struck, but the strike was only dark typed, as without a Nexus or a power source, the Shadow's strength abandoned him. It bounced off the powerful aura filled with Light.

The Darkrai began to fall towards the ocean, trapped in the body he'd fused with so very long ago, and he managed to project his words. "No... give it...back...I must...live...I was...promised..."

Alex and Shruikan were staring at the red crystal within their hand, a look of genuine disgust on their face. They closed their angular eyes then and focused them on the failing form of the Darkrai, descending with it as it slowly fell to its doom. "That's the thing about bargaining with dark powers...they promise so much, but if you die before they reign ascendant...you get Nothing."

Psychic power surrounded the husk of human and Pokémon, and Alex cut through it twice more for good measure. "I don't want you resting anywhere near that bastard's head. Take my advice, Pitch Black Pokémon. Stay dead." With that, he sent the sliced-up body of Caleb Pravus, and its now unwilling occupant, sailing over Alola, far past it, to the depths of the massive Oceana Pacifica, miles and miles away from where Caleb Pravus's head had sunk.

Alex let the fusion fade, and looked up at Shruikan once they were again themselves. "That...was impressive, my friend. You've come so far from being that little Bagon I met under the mountain. Go back to Port: Land. Finish the fight…" He glanced around, seeing that the Alola Tamers, and Jess, were doing exactly that against Pravus' remaining Pokémon. "We're going to need to go to Alola...I have a feeling that all is not well with our island cousins."

Shruikan gave his Trainer a nod and winged back towards the burning city in the distance, casually torching fleeing Arcean ships with a Charge Beam as he flew over them. Elio and Solgaleo had seemingly recovered from their brief time in Pravus's grip, enough to catch the Naganadel in a Beast Ball, one of the few balls that legally overwrote a Trainer's ownership ID. If history was anything to go by, the Champion of Alola would either release the poisonous dragon or train it. Given that he already had a Naganadel, Alex guessed release was more likely.

Lunala handled the Gengar, whose Mega Form had evaporated when Pravus's head left his shoulders. Wounded and still berserk with Shadow, he was the first Alex bamfed besides, armored hands burning with the Light. "You've been in the dark too long, lost ghost. Come back to the Light." The sky flared again, and both Professor and Legendary Pokémon watched with awe as they confirmed the rumors were indeed true. The mainland's newest Dragon Emperor used Arceus' own power.

He was not the only one, for moments later, a similar flash lit in the distance, as Jess managed to finally touch the Vikavolt, and cleansed it, as her Articuno had shown her. After watching Fo and Alex do it several times, she had eventually opened her mind and body enough for the Light to enter through, albeit not in a manner as...exciting as Alex had. The result had only been enough to Purge the Shadow, but she was still refining her skill with the Light. Neither her nor Alex had used it while training, as they had been told not to overuse it, lest they become like the Light branded the Hands of the Prophet had left in their wake.

Elio and his Solgaleo came next, up to Alex specifically, who was floating in the air beside his still armored Gallade. "That...was pretty impressive. It's Alex, right? Champion of Unova, er, the Dragon Empire?" He chuckled, awkwardly. "I'm sorry Alola wasn't of much aid in this conflict but...we've had our own problems. Ones you can solve, I think…"

Alex nodded as he panted from the exertion of fighting while fused and held up the red crystal, he'd ripped from within Pravus. "This...this is the heart of a Necrozma...we need to figure out how to cleanse it, and then restore it. The last time we needed to do this, I hadn't been born yet. Do you know how to manage that, Alola Champion?"

Elio nodded, thumb brushing across his nose. "Our first Champion gave me some insight, and when Necrozma went berserk, it helped me calm it...I don't know what's been done to it though...that crystal feels...wrong."

Another voice joined them as a massive serpentine form appeared in the sky around them with the flash from a Teleport, flying in a graceful circle around them as the First Dragon's mega evolved body trailed through the air. "It is wrong, Champions of Alola…" Tao's voice thundered in their heads as he looked between the Solgaleo, and the Lunala the Professor and Champion were riding atop. "I will need both of you, if we are to restore it."

The two Legendary Pokémon gave their consent, and their Tamers translated unnecessarily for them. "They'll do it. Come, we can land on...hold on…" Elio pointed down at Ula'ula Island, and on the southernmost beach, the group spied four figures, surrounded by four more figures, which appeared to be floating.

"The Island Guardians...yes...their magic will help with this. Come." Alex landed atop his dragon's icy crest and descended to the beach alongside the two Legendary allies they'd made. Upon the beach, they spied familiar faces. Professor Kukui, Kahuna Hau, Kahuna Hapu, and a familiar face any Unovan would recognize, framed by green hair and a hat whose style was definitely not Unovan. N's attire had again changed, for war, and Alex even spied a familiar hilt beneath his black and white robes, but he had a feeling that it wasn't used too often. He was also probably the one person Alex didn't worry about giving a plasma sword to.

"The Original Dragon...and the man who united them. It is good you are both here...we have a... situation." Alex hopped down from Tao's head as N spoke, and the older man eyed his attire for a full four seconds as he took in the detail and masterful craftsmanship of Alex's dragon bone armored form before continuing, "Necrozma has been serving as a sort of...rejuvenating force for the region's space-time weave. Tearing a bunch of holes in it, repeatedly, made reality around certain parts of this region...unstable. The most affected area is Aether Paradise."

"Of course it is…" Alex sighed. "Has anyone come through these tears in Necrozma's absence?"

N nodded. "Some of the locals made a deal with Pravus. He doesn't invade the islands, and in return, he gets Necrozma's head. Since it lost its light and went inert, there's been a surge in wormholes. Only one person has managed to come through these tears though...at Aether Paradise. Ghetsis. But not the one we know...this one...this one did something terrible in his reality that made Team Plasma the rulers of Unova, and then their world. Now he plans to take ours."

Tao and the gathered Legendary beings had, while the humans chattered, taken the crystal that was the core of Necrozma's being, and placed it between them, as they formed a circle around it. The Tapu summoned nature's power for the dragon to draw upon, and draw upon it he did, as did Solgaleo and Lunala. All three began burning with Light in their auras, and the final forms of the Cosmog line shifted to their brightened forms in the presence of Tao's Mega Form.

Tao had retained his Mega Form through the initial stages of the siege of Port: Land, and with his boosted strength, guided the Light into the red crystal. The crimson coating wore away against the power the three were giving off, but instead of vanishing, or shifting back to yellow, the core of Necrozma turned a bright golden white, and then began shining with a familiar array of rainbow colors.

N threw a Pokéball, and the blackened shell of Necrozma appeared. The golden core zipped into the slot in the crystalline head, and in moments, the shell turned the same golden color, as Necrozma resumed its true form, on its own power, for the first time in an age.

A soft voice echoed between all of them. "I am... restored." The psychic and dragon type looked over them all with eyes that each burned with a variation of rainbow colors. "I will not forget this act." With that, the dragon soared higher into the air, opened a hole in the fabric of reality, and vanished. Moments later, Alola's sky brightened, as did the skies of many other worlds across many other dimensions.

The humans, distracted from their chatter by the display, glanced up at the gathered Legendary Pokémon, with more than a bit of awe. Tao spoke directly to N and Alex as the light show ended. "I will return to the battle, and ensure we win. We will march down the coast, and while we do, I want you two to take care of this...new Ghetsis. Quickly. Before he has a chance to vanish into our world."

N smirked as he glanced at some sort of band on his right wrist. "He will be trapped here, for the moment. Our world's weakened reality has been strengthened, somehow. Rejuvenated. Only the Cosmog line should be able to open wormholes, now...as it was in ancient times." He met Alex's gaze and nodded. "Let's go...before he finds a ship."

A pale green aura surrounded the man then, and N zipped away towards Aether Paradise on his own power. Alex let him go, as he sensed his better half's intent to return to the war. The gathered Kahunas, Professors, and Champion lifted off on their Pokémon as well, following N with that same determined look.

"Don't die." Alex said to Jess, propelling himself into the air as well. He caught up to the others quickly, and then zipped ahead to match pace with N as they headed for the center of the islands.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 34: Jaws of the Dragon, Part 3

Aether Paradise - Alola Region

Ghetsis Harmonia Gropius looked around the interior of the Aether Paradise, still slightly singed from his battle with that one insanely strong brat of a Trainer, glanced at the device on his left wrist, and grimaced. "This is not my Alola..." He hobbled over to the nearest console and brought up data from the Aether Foundation's sites across the world. Naturally, this provided a map of who ruled what and where. "This isn't even my world...Dragon Empire, eh...so someone here revived him, in this reality." A grin crept across the aged skin of his face.

"Perfect…"

"Hey! You! Get away from that console!" The voice of a woman filled his ear, and Ghetsis sighed on instinct. As he took in the speaker though, he got an idea. It might even work this time, as no random teenagers were present to disrupt his plans or die trying.

He turned to the blonde-haired woman as she stormed over, smiling like a kindly old man. He even added a grandfatherly tone to his voice. "My apologies, miss. It seems I've once again been pulled across realities by a Wormhole. The Aether Corporation in my Alola was studying them. I see from your data you've been doing the same here…" His eyes finally fell to the posted date on the console. "Now that's interesting...you're quite a few years ahead of my own world...I must've been pulled far indeed to cross the time axis."

She brushed past him, and looked at what he'd opened, and then again at him. "So you say. Well, if you really are from another dimension, we'll do what we can to get you home...Elio can take you on Nebby. I'll call them."

Ghetsis' visible eye twitched at the name. It was the same one this same brat from the reality he'd been pulled from had called out when her straights were rather dire, and the response had come from a Trainer who'd wielded the power of both Solgaleo, and Necrozma. He correctly assumed time had only made him stronger and changed tactics.

"You know, you remind me quite a bit of the President's daughter, from my own world...but she was just a child when I left. Is your name Lillie, perchance?" Ghetsis kept up the kindly old smile.

The woman nodded and reached for one of the built-in phone-devices attached to the console. He put a gentle hand on it as she reached to lift it. "I think we should find your mother first, if she is still in charge around here. If she's anything like my Lusamine, she'll know how to send me home."

Lillie looked the strangely dressed gentleman over again, and then shrugged. "Mother is an expert on Ultra Wormholes...perhaps she could." She glanced at the position data that told her where the Ultra Guardians were at all times. All but one was present and accounted for in Alola, and Mizuki and Elio's transmitters were already heading towards them. "Come with me, mister…?"

Ghetsis followed with his hobbling gait, talking and walking all at once. "My father called me N. Not the most complex name, but it's better than what it stands for."

Lillie glanced back at him as they walked. "Interesting...we have an N here, as well...but his hair is green, and he's so much younger…"

Ghetsis laughed at that. "Indeed! Mine used to be that color...but age has changed me."

They walked in silence then, as Lillie did the math. Something, quite literally, wasn't adding up about this incarnation of 'N' and his story. The dashing Unovan hero's history wasn't entirely unknown to her, and she knew the name Ghetsis, but his face was another thing entirely.

By the time they reached her mother's office, she was convinced something was off about the man. His face seemed unused to smiling, but he kept it up each time she even remotely turned his way. She kept her eyes on her mother as they walked in and knew her suspicions were confirmed when she saw surprise, and then anger on her mother's slightly weathered face. "Ghetsis? Here? But how!?"

As everything clicked into place for Lillie, she subtly pressed a button on one of the bands around her wrist, and summoned her best weapon from where she'd been resting in the Ultra Guardian HQ below the VLFS that was Aether Paradise. "The whims of fate, my dear Lusamine. As of this moment…" A Cofagrigus appeared behind Ghetsis with a flash. "You and your daughter are my hostages. Don't do anything foolish, and I might even let you help me conquer this new world for Team Plasma...just like you did back in my home dimension!" He cackled a genuine villain cackle then and locked the doors with a gesture from his normally hidden right hand. Even in a different reality his suit-like glove, torn at the wrist from its original owner, controlled various aspects of the Aether Paradise. Once more, the device proved worth what had been required to take it from the traitor who'd been wearing it.

He hobbled up to the desk then, sneering. "Tell me, in this version of existence, how far did Nihilego get into your skull before you were retrieved from Wild Space?" Lusamine looked away, with no small amount of shame, and Ghetsis grinned wider. "Not far enough, it seems. My Lusamine...I found her a husk of her former self, but I'm rather adept at filling husks with my ambition. She is a useful tool."

"Your ambition won't get you very far, Ghetsis...you failed in this world, ended by your own son. He's on his way here now, with Champion Elio and Professor Kaede. Surrender now, and we might let you go back where you belong...this doesn't have to end in violence." Lillie moved next to her mother, as the mention of Nihilego left her slightly shivering, as it had every other time someone mentioned it.

"Surrender? I think not…" He tossed a ball then, and it took Lillie an instant too long to recognize it as one of their Beast Balls. From within came a Nihilego, and it homed in on Lusamine almost immediately. "This one has now had three separate chances to brainwash three different iterations of the same person...I do believe it has acquired a taste for your mother's mind."

Lillie reached for one of her ten Pokéballs, one of which was empty, but she froze as she was Disabled by the ghostly coffin Pokémon. "Tsk tsk. You gave me enough trouble once before, what with your impassioned whining...this time...you will be silent." The Cofagrigus dragged Lillie into its coffin then and sealed itself shut. Lusamine made a slight noise, but otherwise stayed where she was, incapacitated by the Ultra Beast. At that moment, having successfully subdued two of the Aether Foundation's best Trainers, Ghetsis did not regret taking the UB from Giovanni. After checking some Pokénet history on the man himself, Ghetsis had learned that Giovanni's plans for 'world domination' had a tendency to be foiled by children, in that last dimension. Ghetsis had known he would make better use of Nihilego's abilities, as he had never had that problem.

With the president and her daughter subdued, Ghetsis left his Cofagrigus in charge of controlling the Ultra Beast if it became rowdy after dominating Lusamine's mind. He deadlocked the door to the President's office, and then descended into the depths of the lab, specifically to where, in his reality, they had tested opening Wormholes to other dimensions. Giovanni had insisted on using his own goons for their last plan, but Ghetsis's men were presumably still waiting for his call to join him in a new world worth conquering. They had become bored, after taking theirs, and had relied on Ghetsis to give them a new motivation for conquest. He had finally found one.

He opened a portal to his home dimension, and through it, came three of his most loyal servants. The Shadow Triad bowed before him. "Master Ghetsis...we feared you were lost…"

"No... never lost. Merely delayed. Go back and bring forth the Ice Warriors, as well as my Battling team...this world has quite a few powerful Trainers, and they will be arriving shortly. Make haste!" He pointed with a flourish at the portal as he finished speaking, and his loyal servants did as they were commanded. Moments later, Team Plasma's most elite fighting force, from his world, came through to join him in this new, unspoiled one.

Those who had thus far fought in the conflict between Fornia and Unova would recognize their armor as being of the 'Crusader Pattern', though they were adorned rather differently. Their captain's t-visored helmets resembled Kyurem's head and lacked Arceus's symbol. The Plasma Badge also adorned their icy blue armor where Pravus's men had put symbols of the Alpha.

There was a light blue flash of discharged ice energy as Ghetsis's captain took out one of the many mice he had yet to subdue within the Aether Paradise. Faba, historically a man who could aid his pursuits, was now frozen in place within a thick block of ice alongside an Alakazam. Ghetsis left them there, for later, and instead turned to his troops as more and more of the Ice Warriors poured through the portal. "My loyal Ice Warriors...this is a world in which Unova reigns ascendant, because someone here managed to reunite the Original Dragon."

The disciplined troops murmured quietly. Their home dimension was largely frozen, mostly because the Heroes of Truth and Ideals had sealed their respective dragons in their spherical forms, presumably forever, before they too had been frozen and left to die, like so many others in cities that had refused to bow to Team Plasma.

Ghetsis continued. "I intend to find out how, and, I have a new purpose for our forces...but first, we must handle the local employees. I have subdued the President and her daughter. Spread out. Subdue the rest. When the intruders arrive, lure them in, and freeze the Alola Champion. He will overpower us with his Solgaleo, and melt our ambitions before they have time to properly freeze, if we let him."

The warriors saluted, and then proceeded to systematically move through the Aether Paradise, as if they knew it well, and in a matter of minutes, the force Ghetsis had kept on standby in his Alola had subdued the Aether Paradise's employees in their very own ice block prisons. While their master busied himself with whatever plan he had in mind, the Ice Warriors took defensive positions around the lab, and kept their eyes on the sky. They didn't have to wait long to see the cavalry arriving.

"I have eyes on the Solgaleo Tamer...he's with Lunala's...and that third figure is-" The comm went silent, and Ghetsis frowned. To the Ice Warriors who had just come through the latest wormhole to their home he spoke quickly. "Our enemy has arrived…" He brought up the cameras that lined the landing platform ships and Pokémon used to enter the Aether building. He recognized Solgaleo and Lunala, as defeating them had been the first step to taking Alola back in his world.

The third figure though, was one he did and did not recognize. It certainly looked like a combination of Unova's three dragons, but it seemed...stronger. Then, he spied a figure that dropped from its head. Tall, large framed, and evidently the Dragon's Tamer, the figure looked directly at the camera he was using, and then with a gesture from him, that too went dead. Ghetsis swore. Loudly.

As Alex crushed the camera devices on the Aether landing platform all at once, he turned to the others. "It's a good bet he knows we're here."

The Original Dragon spoke to them then, leaning down as he did. "The Humans this Ghetsis has summoned have hardened their hearts to the pain suffered by Pokémon. They are cold and lack emotion. Burn them away."

At that moment, Blaze landed as well, having followed and retained his Mega Form from the battle with Pravus's rather quick Vikavolt.

Alex smirked and gave his living Flamethrower a scratch under the chin, followed by a Max Elixir. "Don't hesitate. Clear the outer building, we'll work on whoever is inside." The Charizard gave an excited growl, and took off then, as the group watched him go. He bathed each side of the Aether platform with intense flame, in the air, and those who had warred with the Arceans thus far grimaced as all-too-familiar ice type energy beams lit the air in vain, trying to freeze the fire lizard solid.

"I will return to the front. The battle may yet avoid more unneeded bloodshed if I am present...do not tarry here too long. We will be moving on soon." With that, Tao flew away, flapping each pair of his four wings in a rhythm that propelled hi gargantuan coiling body through the sky with impressive speed.

N spoke, as he watched the dragon depart, and then led them into the building. He drew a Luxury Ball. "Your best Battlers...they will be needed." Arthur popped free of his ball once more, joining N's Zoroark, Elio's Arcanine, and Mizuki's Midnight Lycanroc. The Zoroark looked between the gathered Pokémon, and then changed into another Gallade. Arthur arched a brow, and the psychic Plate fused with his heart-piece flared, armoring his form. The others stared.

"That is...new. Using Plates to armor them? What a formula…" N spoke again, as they continued moving, eyes sweeping for enemies.

"Something we picked up on the Dark Continent." Alex said, joining him at the front of their little group. "I'll show you how to use them, when we get a minute."

"That's alright, I don't even have a-" N's words were interrupted as three beams of ice converged on the middle of their group, hitting Elio and Mizuki. Only Elio's Arcanine managed to avoid being frozen, but the Lycanroc was not so lucky. She seemed rather angry though, as her red eyes darted about uselessly from within her icy prison.

The floor panel below the frozen trio began lowering, and Alex turned his gaze to their only chance. "Arcanine...thaw them! Don't let them be taken." The fire Pokémon saw, and more importantly understood, the meaning of his words, and joined them on the descending floor platform, just before a new one took its place. They would have a chance, at least, but they'd have to find their way back on their own. If even half the rumors about their battling prowess, especially as a team, were true, they would be fine.

From around those who remained, what seemed like recolored Arcean troops surrounded them, each had a firearm in their hands that, if they guessed correctly, was the source of the freezing they'd just witnessed.

"Surrender your Pokémon to Team Plasma! We are the Ice Warriors of Unova! You cannot defeat us!" One of them called out. Alex spied the speaker, a leader most likely. What unnerved him, was how similar his helmet looked to Kyurem's own crest, which in turn was similar to Tao's. It was like an evil, alternate version of his own troops, for while they looked very similar to the Church's aesthetic, he saw elements of Unova in their design as well.

He nodded to Arthur, and the Gallade stepped forward, falling into a familiar fighting stance as he projected his voice to the extradimensional humans. "Come then, 'Ice Warriors'. Let us see which Unova has produced the better Battler…"

As beams of ice arced towards him, the Gallade dodged each, only to quickly find himself surrounded by other Pokémon. He glanced at Alex, who nodded, and summoned some help for the outnumbered psychic and fighting type. Ictus, his crimson colored Drapion, took the field then, and hissed at the humans. "Defeat them quickly, and then rejoin us." Alex felt an affirmative response from his battling partners, and the group continued on quickly into another room.

"Ghetsis likely took out the President first. We should try to free her. Then we can-" Again N was interrupted, but not by a beam from an Ice Warrior. A slightly weakened Magearna was limping down the hall, towards them, as she recognized friendly colors, and not intruders. The Pokémon beeped at Alex and N, and the two shared a puzzled look.

Alex spoke first. "Is it just me, or are you also not understanding a word of that?"

N nodded. "Magearna is...tricky to speak with. But not unlike a Ralts, she uses emotion." He knelt down to her level and applied a Hyper Potion. The robotic Pokémon beeped with what seemed like happiness. "Tell me little one, where are they keeping Lillie?"

The Magearna beeped again and gestured for them to follow. Between Magearna's guidance and their psychic intuition for where enemies would be waiting, the pair of Unovan heroes managed to reach the President's office without too many battles. The soldiers they'd come across had possessed ice types, and the occasional dragon type as well. N had handled them with impressive quickness, and Alex had the sudden urge to battle his team again. They'd gotten stronger.

Eventually, they found the door, and also found it deadlocked. "Muk." N said, sighing as he failed to hotwire the door. "He deadlocked it, and this hallway is too small for a Move…"

A low hum filled the air as Lux jumped into Alex's hand. N moved, as the Dragon Emperor and his ghostly plasma blade made short work of the door with a pair of slashing motions. N chuckled. "I have to remember I have one of those."

Alex blinked at him, and smirked. "It's a sword that cuts through almost anything. You shouldn't forget you have it." The two entered the room.

What they found, was a Cofagrigus, unconscious, and both Lillie and Lusamine wrapped up by the tendrils of an actual Ultra Beast. Alex reached for one of his less plasma bladey partners, but N was quicker. "Flash Cannon!"

The rejuvenated Magearna raised an arm, and her unsteady form shook as pure, undiluted steel type energy slammed into the Nihilego with the intent to rip it apart, and free her beloved partner. The move's power seemed to surprise even N, and the grip on Lillie weakened, freeing her, as she and Lusamine slid to the floor in a puddle of goo. The space octopus was pinned to the wall and hammered by the power of same type attack bonuses, and type advantage.

"Pin it down." The entire office rumbled, as Cenomons appeared with a flash. The titanic Aggron, even on all fours, barely fit within the now very chaotic office room, but he didn't seem to care, as he approached the UB on all fours, and then rammed his two most prominent horns into the wall on either side of its 'head'. They lit up with steel energy, and the sharp point on his nose hovered inches from something he assumed the space squid wouldn't want gored.

Alex walked over then, and his eyes lit with psychic energy. "Your species has been plaguing our world, and a few others, for quite some time now. I want to know why." He knelt low then and offered a Sitrus Berry. "Speak, and I'll understand you."

One of the tentacles slooowly took the berry, as the beast's focus was on his large, quadrupedal steel triceratops. With a soft sucking sound, the berry was reduced to a husk.

"So... hungry…"

The translated words echoed in the heads of every human and Pokémon in the room, as Alex heard them. N glanced at him, as Redwood included him as well, and noted a difference in how they heard Pokémon speak.

"You wish...to know why we feed upon you…" The creature seemed to give its species equivalent of a laugh. They all sensed its dark humor. "Why does flame consume grass...You...do not matter...you are food. Your very existence…is pointless. Brief. Meaningless. Beings like you...serve better as food...for those who are Stronger. That is why we travel. We. Are. Hungry."

Lillie stepped forward then, unphased by the predatory nature of the creature before them, glaring at the beast that had dominated her mother's psyche and thoughts for most of her life by this point. "Meaningless!? I'll have you know we help thousands of Pokémon, the world over! Our lives have been dedicated to good!"

Another chuckle. "Good...evil...pointless, subjective constructs from...primitive, if delicious, minds...struggling to justify their own existence." The being seemed to cough then, and more goo leaked from it. Apparently, Magearna had not held back at all, and Ghetsis had never bothered actually healing the creature after it had been defeated in the last version of this world they'd been anchored in. Defeating the Cofagrigus, which had also wanted to feast on both the younger female, and its own prey, had weakened Nihilego further, and its short meal had been interrupted. "Humans...Ladrinae...Asgardians...beings spawned by the Spiral are chaos given form...little more than sacks of...information...and such pitiful emotions…" It seemed to chuckle again. "Your existence...lacks purpose...your people...lack motivation...you are better...as food…"

Ceno disappeared with a flash of light then, as his Trainer recalled him. Alex knelt before the weakening space jellyfish and stared directly at what seemed to be its face. "The thing about Humans...all 'spiral species', as I suppose you would call us, is that we are free to find our own purpose. Or to ignore it completely and assume Arceus gave us one we can't yet understand." The mention of Arceus made the jellyfish shudder again, as it actually laughed at him, and made the dark bluish goo leaking into a puddle below it that much larger. A single tentacle reached out, and Alex grasped it, allowing the dying being to survey his own thoughts. Being a psychic, he projected memories that would, hopefully, impress his point on the creature.

"What you...do not know...about Arceus...could fill a library." The creature began heaving then as it laughed again, and the gathered humans, while initially angry at it, had softened when they realized it was dying. None made a move to grab a potion, though. "Everything you accomplish...will crumble to dust...everything you teach...will be forgotten by your species' tiny...delicious brains...in the end...you will be food for the swarm. Why...persist?"

"Because that is the purpose of my existence. To make it as tolerable for as many others as possible. I don't care if it's ultimately futile. A wasted effort, in the end. Someone has to try to improve it, and unlike most of my species...I have the power to do it."

"And someone...will always end up...destroying it all. No matter how brightly you burn...how long you persist... Back and forth...over and over...good versus evil...evil versus good... You are not free, little Spiral spawn...you are trapped...in the same endless cycle...races far greater than yours...have been stuck in... since the dawn of existence. You delude yourselves...into finding meaning for your pointless lives...to avoid madness...and it is...amusing."

With that, the Nihilego deflated entirely. Alex sighed, and stood, glancing at the others. "Such a cheery entity...at least now we know why they hunt through Ultra Space."

Lusamine stepped forward towards the being as she finished cleaning herself space jellyfish goo, pausing before the now bubbling pool of it on the floor. It seemed the goo that acted as Nihilego's blood was acidic in nature, and it had begun eating through the floor. "We should find the tear in their reality, and force it shut. I have had one of these try to take my mind three times now...Nihilego is not what I thought it was. It took hearing its words out loud to reinforce that truth… It's a parasite. Nothing more." She turned to Lillie then. "Let's go take back our lab."

N chimed in then, and out of all of them, he seemed the most put-off by the death of the being still laying on the floor. "We should return it to its home...but yes. Closing them off to live in their own world...that would be best, I think. Can Elio do that?"

Alex remained quiet, eyes on the Nihilego as N glanced at Lillie, who knew better than most just how capable Elio was. She nodded. "Nebby can handle it…" The room took on a familiar tone of awkwardness then, one Alex was all too familiar with, but far too distracted with the dead Ultra Beast to really notice. At least until Lusamine spoke again.

"So. N... who did you bring with you to rescue us? I didn't think you had such...heavily armored...psychic friends." She blinked, as Alex raised an Ultra Ball, tapped the UB's corpse, and transferred it within. Being a newer generation model, modern Ultra Balls could handle anything, from this world or otherwise. That was the justification for their price anyway, but this was the first time he'd seen them work on a Pokémon not from their reality.

He stood, turned to the Aether President, and bowed in the Unovan style as he offered the ball. "Alex Redwood, miss President. I'm from the Dragon Empire. I'm here to help. I just finished taking down Caleb Pravus before he could darken your islands...then I heard you had a Ghetsis problem down here and came to help." He nodded at N. "I may not have taken him on as many times, or during his prime, really...but I relish the opportunity."

Lusamine took the offered Ultra Ball, nodded, and then strode towards the remains of her door. "I see...I guess I'll charge the damages to the Dragon Empire then." She giggled and kept walking. Alex and N shared a look, as Lillie sighed, and followed her mother. Admittedly, the room did look like a giant steel triceratops had charged through it with zero Muks given about anything in its way. The giant torn Aggron footprints in the carpet were damning.

Lusamine led them down to the Aether lab's lowest level, one large enough for Ultra Wormholes, and whatever might pop through them. Luckily, they were big enough for most of Alex's teammates as well, should they be needed. The path to the basement was as full of Plasma goons as one might expect it to be, but between Alex, Lillie, and N they smashed through them rather quickly, broke their weapons, and freed their Pokémon. Most of them needed little to no convincing to abandon their owners. The few who stayed, they had warned not to interfere. Each had carried significant quantities of Max level healing items in their bags, and those were taken as well. By the time they reached the lower levels of the VLFS, their bags had been all but restocked. Alex was just glad that their Pokémon weren't infused with Shadow, as well. Fusing with Shruikan had taxed him, but he had enough energy for this.

As they arrived, they found the testing area suspiciously empty, the consoles still on, and locked onto the world signature of Ghetsis' home reality. A voice rang out from above them, and that was when the group noticed a man, dressed a bit ridiculously like a multicolored castle parapet, lurking in the shadows atop the viewing area of the lab's experiment room.

"Heheh...isn't this a familiar scene. The freak I called my son, and some random Trainers who have allied with him, come to take down Team Plasma, and foil my plans for their world." Ghetsis, in what Alex and N recognized as his 'classic attire' stepped forth from the shadows and came to the edge of the platform that separated the scientists from the test area. Alex's eyes narrowed. The device over his right eye was humming with energy his eyes said was ice typed. It also seemed...familiar. "The worlds may be different, but some things never change."

The eye-covering device flared, and a similar glow lit behind Ghetsis. Alex had an instant and little else before he realized what was coming. The Glaciate hit with the force of a Blizzard, and N was encased in ice. Alex's dragonbone protected him well enough, but given his blood, the cold got to him, and he shivered uncontrollably, as his body violently reacted to the sudden onset of absurdly low temperatures.

From the source of the swirling blizzard that had filled the portal room, he spied a pair of familiar, pupilless golden eyes. An ominous, pained voice came along with the intense cold. "I see...in this reality...you are the one who ascended." The storm increased in its ferocity, but by that point, Alex had formed his shield of psychic aura, and was able to move, at least. Enough to throw a ball, anyway. "Show me...your power... break this lunatic's chains…"

The Glaciate increased in ferocity with a new wave of ice as Ghetsis ordered attack after attack, when the stubborn deep blue aura light refused to go out, amidst the new blizzard. Another flash joined it then, and a large neck rose from within the snow. The air changed, and the machines within the portal room were frozen over as another master of ice took the field.

Alex reached for the inherent dragon energy in his armor, as he spoke mentally to Gelauros. "The last time I faced this one down, it took both his halves to subdue him. This Kyurem though...it's different. I don't like it...and I don't want to give it the chance to hit you first."

The Aurorus turned its neck towards his Trainer, as he responded. "Let us ascend, then…"

He turned back to Kyurem, and roared, as the draconic energy flowed directly into him from his Trainer, and he proceeded to Mega Evolve. The ice crystals embedded in Gelauros' white skin flared and grew into sharp spikes. A crest of ice, not at all unlike Tao's, ran down the length of his body, ending in a thick, mace-like tail ideal for Earthquaking. The most impressive change though, was to the ice and dragon type's fins, which had turned from wispy, translucent flesh to pure rainbow-colored energy in the same shape, that shifted as one looked at it.

"Primeval Power."

The Mega Aurorus' eyes lit with the strange power that only those with a tie to the earliest days of Pokémon evolution on Earth had ever managed to tap into. A single beam of rock typed energy rocketed through the Glaciate and hit the Kyurem directly.

Ghetsis just laughed as it appeared to have no effect, despite the apparent type advantage. "You Trainers...always trying for Type advantage and attack bonuses, thinking you're so clever…" He raised his cane then, and Alex's eyes widened as he recognized a pair of DNA Splicers fused into the top of a very familiar black and white staff. "The Original Dragon is far more useful, and powerful, split into three!" The cane came down on the raised walkway then as he shouted, "Ice Reversion!"

Alex learned several things in that moment that made him re-evaluate what he knew of Pokémon. The forms they took, were evidently much more malleable than most scientists believed, and the energy used to power said changes seemed to have an effect on their form's differences, and similarities. Dynamaxing used Eternatus, Mega Evolution used Infinity Energy, but as Kyurem began to glow with the elemental power of ice, and changed its form, he realized his eyes couldn't tell him what type of energy he was staring at. There was nothing distinguishing about the energy that was emanating from the icy dragon amidst the still-continuing Glaciate. As if it had no type, even to his eyes, it seemed as natural as the rest of his mostly obscured vision. Yet it remained as cold and icy as any ice type attack.

As the light faded, he saw the changed Kyurem's body now very much resembled Tao's, as his front claws had extended into limbs capable of supporting his bulkier ice crest. The icy crest had exploded into thousands of jagged shards along its back, replacing the wings entirely, and making the ice and dragon type land bound. Not that it seemingly needed to fly. Its roar shook the entire Aether structure, only to be cut short, as another powerful beam of Primeval Power slammed into the dragon's icy head. A hole appeared, as Gelauros had nailed his enemy where his previous shot had landed.

Alex blinked, as dragon typed energy leaked from it, but was quickly overpowered and suppressed by the overwhelming ice energy now radiating off of the reverted form. He glanced at N, who was still properly frozen, and then looked back to Kyurem and Ghetsis. He didn't try looking for Lillie or Lusamine in the concentrated blizzard. If they were still free, they would try to activate a wormhole strong enough to pull Ghetsis and his monster back to their world. All he and Gelauros needed to do was buy time.

"Aim for the glowing spots…" Alex said, as he lit them up within the psychic vision he and the Mega Aurorus shared for battle. "We want him unbalanced…" Gelauros responded, by nailing one of the spots with another beam of rock energy.

As the ice began reforming, Ghetsis looked over the strangely colored Mega Aurorus as he tapped his eyepiece and changed tactics. "Imperial Rage!"

Kyurem sank its icy claws into the metal floor of the lab, and dragon energy again tore forth from the holes in the Legendary Pokémon as it built up the power within. The raw power of so much draconic energy evoked a response from the Trainer, and Ghetsis' brow furrowed, as he watched the armored Trainer trace a familiar pattern in the air, as the blue aura deepened, turning red and sparking with electricity.

Gelauros channeled the power, forming it into a balanced sphere of intense dragon and ice energy. It kept growing, even as the Outrage built within their opponent. Kyurem's nature ultimately weakened its attack, especially as the reverted aspect of an elemental type that dragons were weak to. That did not make the attack any less impressive.

The balanced sphere of condensed draconic and ice energy smashed through the move with all the force of type advantage and colliding natural opposites, into the Kyurem, who had retained its typing, and its weaknesses. When the smoke and whirling snow finally died down, all that was left of the icy husk of a Legendary Pokémon was a stump of a neck, and an evidently hollow shell.

Gelauros looked back at his Trainer and chirped, which brought a smirk, for a moment. It faded, as he watched the husk, and the hairs on his neck stood stiff. A vastly powerful draconic entity was waking up. One Alex was familiar with, but at that moment seemed quite different from the Tao he knew. Imperfect. Unbalanced. Empty.

He felt his Legendary dragon's mental focus shift to him with the usual impossible speed, and he found Tao shared his dread. "There is a reason Kyurem is part Ice. It kept the source of my core, the majority of my power, in check, while my halves battled to dominate it, with a Trainer who could fuse at least two of us. That, we reasoned, was better than total separation. In practice, Ghetsis' methods were...imperfect. Smash the DNA Splicers...and the staff will do the rest. You'll have to touch it, though."

With the speed of thought, Alex responded. "Could N awaken it as well, or must it be me?"

He felt the dragon's confusion and mild amusement. "Probably. Why?"

At that moment, Tao understood, for he viewed through his Tamer's eyes the arrival of the rather impressive Charizard the human had raised from his youngest stage. The presence of the Mega Charizard quickly melted N, and the rest of the equipment. Even water did not linger long, for the Drought dried everything almost instantly, and the lab became a battlefield between ice and fire as the two empowered Pokémon faced off. Blaze was more than eager for a second chance at Kyurem.

Alex shared a look, and the plan, with the arguably most famous hero of his homeland, and the older man nodded, eyes shifting to Ghetsis. A flash of darkness, and a Zoroark took the field as well. "Come, Zoro. I think a Lucario would do well here." His partner seemed to agree, as it took on the essence of the Aura Pokémon, and as they both ran towards Ghetsis, they shielded themselves with a bright green aura.

By this point, Gelauros had almost recovered for another attack, but it was as the pair ran off that Kyurem's form crumbled, the ice falling away completely. A dark outline of a familiar, if significantly smaller, draconic shape rose from the icy remains, and a pair of pupilless golden eyes appeared within the faint form composed entirely of dragon energy.

"Destroy them all." Ghetsis, who was smirking by this point, was familiar with what happened when one managed to break Kyurem's shell. Judging by the look in the Trainer's eye, he hadn't expected it to continue to fight. He had no idea what awaited him, then.

A shockwave of pure draconic wrath thundered towards Gelauros and the Charizard, who fell to the onslaught of the impossibly strong power, now unchecked by ice. Gelauros, who could usually tank such hits from dragons, fell to his new weakness. Blaze, stood slowly, and snorted. His tail flame shifted to blue, but he blinked, and snarled at his Trainer as the power of the Flame Plate was drawn from him, the connection no longer maintained, on the part of his partner.

Alex's voice echoed in the fire lizard's skull. "It is time we changed things up...fly close as I empower you and activate your armor. You need to heal." The Charizard's eyes widened, as he had been waiting ages for Alex to finally let him use his alternate form in a real battle. Once more, the aura around the armored human shifted from blue to a deep sparking red, and Blaze flew into the air, dodging a Dragonbreath from the ethereal dragon entity as he flew around the room, and passed by his Trainer.

The far too large hand sprayed the fire lizard with a potion as he passed by and once he was headed towards Kyurem, the free hand lifted, and the dragon energy catapulted Blaze to an alternate path of his species' potential evolution. In this form, he could take on Arthur even, and win, making him the strongest on the team, or so he had reasoned. Alex had then reasoned that if he was so powerful, they wouldn't be using it for normal battles. Blaze had embraced patience then, as he'd been told to by Tao, and finally, it was paying off.

His form solidified as he neared the draconic essence of Kyurem, and it flashed a burning crimson as his Flame Plate, one forged from the shard he'd evolved with under Draconis Mons, activated. The black scaled Charizard's form became covered in crimson armor, and the surge of power to his fire moves was significant. Once more his Trainer's voice echoed in his head, no doubt with a good move suggestion. He sometimes chose differently, but usually, the eyes on his back saw much that he did not, until he tried landing a hit. "Dragon Rush!"

The armored Mega Form's power tore through the Outrage response given by Kyurem, bursting through the other side of the wave of energy, and leaving the user unscathed by a type weakness. He rolled the bulkier draconic form into a pair of intense Dragon Claws, using both to tear into the figure, and the energy remnant roared in pain.

Blaze leapt back and followed with a Heat Wave, further rapidly drying and melting any snow Kyurem produced, as Alex drew his gaze to Ghetsis, and the pair of aura powered guardians. The 'Lucario' was busy fighting something they couldn't see from this angle, while N had, over the course of the fight, sidled towards and leapt for Ghetsis' cane. Both hands found a DNA Splicer, and with a burst of green aura, the machines that stood as humanity's attempt to bind what they had sundered, shattered into nothingness.

The black and white staff shot into the air then, traveling the relatively short distance to Kyurem's icy remnants. It fused with the essence dragon through one of the Dragon Claw tears just below its neck. Ice began to regrow, and almost immediately, the spirit roared in the face of being caged again within the ice, but the rapid refreezing happened before the spirit could use a move.

The Tao-shaped dragon energy tried to escape, but the ice that contained it was too thick. Kyurem spent the last energy of its Elemental Reversion energy as it essentially revived itself from permanent fainting. With a roar, the now once more regular Kyurem, free from Ghetsis' grip, turned on the human who'd slaughtered millions with his power, turning him from a Guardian, to little better than a weapon. A Tyrant.

At that moment, a wormhole opened behind the ridiculously garbed man, and he shouted with incoherent rage, as it dragged him, his Pokémon, and the Lucario back, presumably to his home. With a snarl, Kyurem leapt after them without so much as a glance at the Trainers that had helped revive it. Revenge would dominate its mind for quite some time.

N glanced up at the wormhole with a frown, and then looked at Alex. For once, he used his telepathy. "I'm going with them...Unova is in good hands. It doesn't need mine anymore...but the one on the other side of this hole, does."

Alex looked down, as Blaze landed beside him. He nodded then, answering in kind. "That makes sense...but if he really does have a successful Team Plasma over there, you'll be on your own in facing it...he won't leave your Aether platform intact, at least, not in Alola. He won't risk allowing reinforcements."

N nodded as well. "I'm aware of what my father is capable of...but their Unova needs a Hero. Apparently, theirs...weren't enough. Good luck to you, Redwood." With that, he crouched, and then soared into the hole in dimensions, just as it closed. Lillie and Lusamine ran over to Alex then, looking up at where they'd opened the portal.

"Did...did it work?" Lillie spoke, and Alex nodded. Blaze let the power fade and glanced back at where N had disappeared. That human had a reputation among quite a few local Unovan Pokémon. He would be missed.

"N... jumped in as well. He said their Unova needed a new Hero...since the others apparently failed. He has Kyurem...he should be able to handle Team Plasma." Alex scratched the massive fire lizard's chin, and then recalled him for an earned rest. He'd taken down quite a few grunts on his own with only a portion of his Trainer's mental focus to aid him. "Give the minions to the local police...if they're too much for your islands, Black City always has room for more."

Lusamine nodded. "We...couldn't handle what Team Skull became once they matured a little and gained competence...not inside our jailhouse, anyway. It's basically a tank for drunk islanders. Not gang members. We'll have them on the first ship to Black City...let them rot with the rest of Team Plasma."

At that moment, there was a loud roar, as a steel and psychic typed sun lion burst through one of the walls. Elio came through first, shouting Lillie's name, and Mizuki leapt through behind them, only to stand slowly, as they realized the danger had evidently passed. Lusamine sighed, deeply, glanced at the hole in her ceiling through which the Charizard had landed, and then moved to the closest working console that had survived the battle's intense freezing and rapid thawing.

Seeing things were handled, Lillie approached Alex, and gave a polite bow. He arched an eyebrow as she spoke. "On behalf of Alola...and the Aether Foundation, I want to apologize...the Fornian leader has been threatening our islands since this conflict started, promising swift death to our people and our islands, if we got involved."

Alex nodded. He'd expected as much. "Well, that isn't an issue anymore." He glanced at the Champion and the Professor, as they walked closer. "Caleb Pravus is...no longer a threat. Without him, his forces will crumble. Alola doesn't need to get involved...in fact, if you're needed anywhere, it will be in Sinnoh. Word is, the Church rallied and organized quite a few former gang members from across Japan once they took power." The intense gaze shifted to Elio. "The Hands tend to use Shadow. Watch yourselves, if you decide to help Red and Professor Oak."

A look that might have been recognition came over the Champion's face, and he nodded, barely getting out an 'Alola', before Alex shot into the air on his own power, sailed through the hole in the ceiling, and headed back towards the war at the fastest pace he could muster. After fusing with Shruikan, fighting Pravus, and then facing down a Legendary dragon, again, he was exhausted, but the 'day' wasn't over, yet.

His pace slowed, when Shruikan showed him their victory through his eyes. The city looked worse than Pravia had, mostly because the citizens, as ordered by their Bishop, had joined the fray alongside what Crusaders had not yet deployed to Sinnoh. There weren't many, for that had been Caleb Pravus' latest, and final, command. Reinforce Sinnoh, and keep Mt. Coronet under Arcean control.

As Alex finally brought himself over the east's encampment, there was a loud, mostly verbal uproar, from a group of bruised, disarmed Arceans. Most seemed like scared civilians, but only a few actually had armor. Most of the Crusaders had refused and died fighting rather than surrendering. Even when Tao had arrived and proclaimed the Prophet's death. The locals had only fought harder, and all they had earned was yet more senseless death.

Alex approached the screeching grown adults hurling insults and swears with every breath as their faces turned red with fury. He let the armor fall for the first time since being in Pravia. After several long hours of marching and fighting, he was about as fragrant as any other soldier. "Nahlot."

The Voice cut through the obnoxious chatter, and he focused his tired, angry eyes on the Crusaders that were now his to decide what to do with. "Which of you is the speaker for your little group?" He waited patiently, arms crossed, as the gathered men and women deliberated. Finally, one stepped forward. He was genuinely surprised it was a woman, for misogyny had evidently been commonplace in the Arcean's armed forces. At least, that was what their intel claimed.

She was as blonde and tan as most other Fornians in the Church's service, and she met his gaze with evenness, and intelligence. "You look tired, Dragon Emperor. Has killing the Light of this world exhausted you?"

He narrowed his eyes and sighed at her. "Spare me. None of you can sit there and pretend you Didn't see the giant ball of Shadow Energy that flew over your city naught but a few hours ago. It was hard to miss." He stepped forward, and to the woman's credit, she met his gaze evenly. As evenly as she could, rather, for as usual, he towered over her the closer he got and cut an intimidating figure with his armor. "That, was your precious Prophet, reverting the Darkrai he fused himself with to pure darkness by way of a beheaded and empowered Necrozma. Everything he did, he did for himself. Everything he said, was spoken so that you, the source of his real power, did not usurp him, and now, everything he owned...is Mine."

The final Word, pushed her back, slightly, sending her sliding across the snowy ground of the camp, towards her people. He met her eyes evenly. "To the victor go the spoils. Welcome to the Dragon Empire. Do yourselves and your people a favor. Accept that he's gone. I promise, once you understand what you're a part of, what you as loyal, zealous Arceans helped cause, you'll understand why he needed to end. As part of the Empire, you'll be better off than you were before, once we bring the Light back to this land."

Anger crossed the blonde and tan woman's thin features as she stepped back towards him. Alex arched a brow but didn't interrupt. "Our cities burn, our houses, soldiers, churches, and sources of comfort, demolished by fire breathing lizard demons, and you claim we will be better off? How? By bending our knees to you?" She sneered. "You're barely fully grown. What do you know of rebuilding the infrastructure required to run a city."

At that point, a very large, very noticeable draconic form joined them, landing directly behind his Tamer, as his giant and still mega evolved head loomed over them all, blue fiery eyebrows furrowed as he examined the thoughts of the humans below. Alex smirked, unshaken, as the very earth rumbled at the dragon's landing. "I know enough...and for what knowledge I lack, I have entities like the Original Dragon to fill in and cover the gaps."

He turned to the significantly less well armored troops, little more than civilians really, and focused on them. He knew the futility of speaking with Crusaders. "The Alpha Pokémon's Guardian has returned to us at last. One way or another, our land will be whole again. I offer Fornia the same choice my Generals have offered every other region we've marched through this day: Join us, and prosper, or fight, and fail like all the others who have tested the Original Dragon on the field of battle."

The woman turned back to the depressingly small group of enemy survivors, and deliberation continued. Finally, she stepped forward again, walking up to and then past Alex as she approached Tao. The dragon lowered his head, and nodded at her, waiting expectantly for her words. "Dragon...my people do remember your goodness, your loyalty to Arceus, the prosperity we had under your reign...for a time. Does this...psychic scum...truly speak for you?"

Tao projected his voice very rarely, for when he did, it tended to echo, loudly. Too loud for polite conversation. So, in her head and outside it for those gathered, he responded with his own psychic baritone, and thus, most of the city heard. "He does. Like the First Emperor, he craves peace over power, life over death, and has mastered the bond between Human and Pokémon. Something your people have perverted, in recent days with Shadow worship, and the infusing of Eggs." The dragon's head came down to her level, and the heat increased from his flaming 'eyebrows' and their proximity. One massive, pupilless golden eye moved before her, and she met it stoically, but like most humans, visibly struggled to find a point to focus on. "I am willing to forgive the people of Fornia for how they have abused Pokémon and the land...your minds were molded from near infancy and swayed by the Shadow's charisma. But...you must collectively let these lies go, if your people are to prosper again. Join us, and you have my word, you will again find lives of happiness in the Light."

The woman looked down, and then turned to Alex. "I will...take you at your word...if only because the Original Dragon has vouched for you...and there is much misinformation that appears to have been spread throughout our region. But mark me, Redwood, if you prove to be as tyrannical as the majority of the Dragon Emperors before you, we will fight you with all we have to be free."

The smirk widened, as he gave her a tired look. "I would expect nothing less...try to convince your fellow Arceans of the understanding you've already achieved. It will make the transitions to come go...smoother."

She grunted, and then returned to the group. After a few more moments of heated talking, they all approached the dragon, glanced at the Emperor before him, and then knelt, very obviously towards Tao, and not the human who had tamed him. "We will do what we can to make sense of these events, and ultimately accept your offer. For the moment...our loyalty is yours, Dragon."

Shruikan spoke mentally to his Trainer, as he watched the humans from his perch atop their city. The central skyscraper was, or rather had been, a new addition to the skyline. Now, an enormous, sparking black dragon perched atop its broken crown, eyes scanning over the destruction below. Much of it, he had wrought. "You're not killing them...and yet they still disrespect you to your face."

Alex gave the mental equivalent of a tired shrug. "I don't particularly care what they think of me. Their opinions are like dirt. Something good may one day grow from them, but more likely, they're thinly covering a hole full of Muk. They will bend to Tao's will, or they will perish. Sooner or later, they will understand my role as well, but for now, I don't blame their misplaced arrogance. It's born of indoctrination and lies. Would you be any different, had you been Pravus's Pokémon?"

Shruikan pondered for a long moment, and then answered. "No... if all I knew was taught to me by that...thing...if all I ultimately was, was a weapon for the Shadow...I suppose I would buy into the lies just as easily."

Alex resisted laughing, as Tao individually mentally contacted the humans, and further cemented their loyalty by prying open and logically deconstructing whatever lingering rebellious ideals or subjective truths they might have still clung to. "You're becoming wise, my friend. Remember what Oranguru taught us...I think it was one of his first lessons. Seeing things from your opponent's perspective is...incredibly useful. For battle, and war, apparently. You're practically a General yourself. You'd do well, with that aerial view you have."

He felt the dragon rumble, as he mentally reaffirmed to himself that he was a fighter, born to Battle, not a leader of tiny humans, no matter how well they had worked together. He stayed quiet and continued watching for any more rebellious Fornians. Alex met with Nate and Jess then, who had handled the battle of Port: Land on their own. They were in regular clothes, still wearing their bone-white belts, as always, but the armor was away. Nate looked, and smelled, about as fragrant as Alex did, but Jess, true to form, seemed untouched by the grime of war. Or maybe she'd had a minute to wash it off.

One arm went around her waist as Alex joined them at the table. A pair of disembodied golden eyes joined them, as they usually did. Nate began, tracing a line from Port: Land down the Fornian coast. "Our number crunchers have done the math. It will take about two weeks to march down the coast, given the amount of resistance we'll encounter." His face was as grim as Alex's as he looked up. "It's a long march, and we'll be resisted every step of the way."

"You do not need to be."

Three pairs of eyes shifted to the golden orbs that once more appeared before them, and they waited for Tao to form his thoughts, and share them.

"We will do as we have done so far, destroy or capture as many of their armed forces as possible. Leave the locals to pick up the pieces. Already we have had requests from Pravia for food and materials. The lack of an overbearing soldier presence will give the people a chance to focus on rebuilding instead of revenge, but they will eventually try reforming into a coherent cult structure. Pravus has drilled it into their psyche, they will try to go back to what is familiar. We must not let them."

Alex arched an eyebrow at the eyes. "How are we supposed to prevent them from reorganizing if we're not staying behind? This plan makes us quicker, but if they get enough weapons, supplies, and bodies, we could be facing a new army formed from the remnants of what we leave behind."

"We will use my Scales. Find two pairs, ideally of experienced and new blood, and send them to Pravia. We will do the same with each town and city we must travel through, and let them act as liaisons between Fornia, and the Empire. Two amiable plasma sword wielding Scales should be far more palatable than an entire army of foreigners." The eyes stayed static as the dragon's words echoed in their minds, and the three humans shared a look, then nodded. It was sound, to their ears, and Tao's strategies had worked remarkably well so far, despite a few hiccups.

By this point, word had reached them of the battle at The Rocky Pass, between Orre and Texico. Of Rosa's new abilities, and the loss of life that had been required to awaken them. Nate was more eager than ever to get to Texico City, and even now, Alex sensed his thoughts dwelling on her. He was half tempted to send him with a company of Scales and move on towards Sacreus. They'd had a plan for busting that particular fortress for a long time now, and Cenomons had only grown stronger in battle, and war. Especially since evolving.

Alex looked between the others at the table, and then at Nate. "Go on. Rendezvous with Rosa. Your troops are with them now anyways. Send...Marlon our way, once you arrive. He'll do well out here."

Nate stared at him for a long moment, then closed his eyes, thinking. He pondered for a good three minutes of companionable silence, with Tao's golden eyes waiting as patiently as the rest of them. Finally, he sighed. "Alright. They'll need me at the head of my Legion for Texico City...and Marlon we can spare. Your insight serves you well. He's been to Mewsia before, apparently." He blinked, nodded, and grabbed a Pokéball from his bag, before tossing it to Alex. "You'll need to wake her up, but I have a feeling it won't be hard for you. She only responds to powerful minds."

Alex nodded. "Thank you...I'll make sure she survives. I had a feeling Marlon would do well on this coast too. They are in desperate need of the good vibes he gives off. Let me know who you're taking, before you leave."

Nate glanced at their own troops, or rather the marker that represented them on their map of Fornia. "I'll be faster on my own. Not to mention quieter."

Alex glanced at the map as well, but Jess spoke for him, as she already knew what he was about to say. "Their last reported position was Phenac City, but Rosa and the twins will have moved on by now. Just head south from there...you won't be able to miss them."

Nate gave the two a final nod, called out his Garchomp, and departed into the night.

Alex and Jess shared a look, and then looked at Tao. "What of the other side of this war? How close are we to cracking into their media?"

There was a deep, long, sigh. "As close as you would expect. Many in Fornia outright refuse to so much as look at anything not provided by their Church. The other, outlying States have been easier to reach, however. Hilbert and Hilda were very effective in making sure the satellite Arcean states have an idea of what is going on. More locals defect with every hour. Fornia itself, remains a difficult nut to crack."

Jess nodded. "Throughout the siege, we kept trying to dissuade fighting...but it was amazing how little the people in this port knew about what was going on outside of their bubble."

Alex stared at the map again. "As expected of the city they started their cult within. We need a way to reach them, all at once, ideally."

Another sigh from the dragon filled their heads. "Many refuse to listen and will gladly die before doing so. Even after what they witnessed in Urbe Monachus. You cannot avoid killing all of them."

"I don't need all of them to stand down...just most of them. Do we know their peak viewing hours?" Alex looked at the numerous towns lining the coast. By all accounts, this was where most Fornians lived, enjoying the sun and fertility. The rest of Fornia had been turned into a hole-ridden mined out landscape of dust and an ever-growing desert. It was easy to pretend everything was fine when one lived in a paradise, though. Evidently, the Fornians of the coast thought the war wouldn't reach them. They were about to be proven very, very wrong.

"We have these things, yes...with the conquest of this port, we've gained a way into their media network...we haven't exploited it yet, though. Once we do, we will likely be shut out within thirty minutes. The Hand in charge is...adept at blocking our access."

Alex pondered some more, quietly, bouncing ideas off of Jess mentally as they struggled together to come up with a plan that would take the least amount of lives. Finally, he spoke. "Thirty minutes...timing will be everything." He felt the dragon's agreement and continued. "When we begin besieging Sacreus, we should exploit this. Have Haley put something together for this, specifically. Maybe twenty-five minutes, if possible. We don't need to tell them that psychic types aren't evil, or about how great and kind our Empire is. They won't believe it. They believe that they're fighting for the Alpha, and the Light, and that their Church is the epitome of good, as it does both of these things, with their hard-earned currency." He looked up at the eyes, then. "We need to tell them something they don't already know about."

Understanding flooded their minds, from Tao's. "Shadow Infusion...of course."

Alex's arm tightened around Jess as he smirked and replied. "Her idea. We air Pravus's dirty laundry, the entire history of the foul practice, from Orre to Fornia, and the signs Shadow Infused Pokémon have. What behaviors separate them from normal Pokémon, and if we can get some of the Professors to chime in for that, that will help our credibility. Then, we simply let the people fill in the blanks as to how exactly their precious Pokémon have been turned into shadowy monsters bred for war. An exposé on what Shadow Infusion is, what it can do to a Pokémon, the long-term effects, the short term, and of course, what the Shadow actually is. We give them roughly twenty minutes of knowledge, and we can take down the entire Church with five minutes of footage from my Battle Recorder. Shadow doesn't usually visibly manifest, but it did when I faced him."

Tao's eyes seemed to brighten, and his Tamer sensed the dragon agreed with their plan and had some small amount of relief. Evidently, he hadn't formed a detailed one for what they would do once they closed the jaws. The more variables they had to deal with, the more uncertain the future became. "This could work. This, combined with as peaceful a march as possible down the coastline...yes. The truth will set them free. This is the ideal path." Silence came for several moments, and both Alex and Jess felt the dragon reaching out to his various charges in control of the Empire's media, namely Haley, and those the Pokémon League had put under her authority.

"The funerary rights for the Prophet of Arceus will be the next mandatory viewing event. The Church will undoubtedly use it to try to sway the people to turn Pravus into some sort of martyr, there has been much unrest lately, likely from those Fornians who've looked beyond their insular region, and 'Church-approved' media. We will begin the siege on Sacreus as soon as our video finishes, and we will start it before the Church has a chance to spread another lie. The Bishop of Sacreus will be on, live, for this event...I can convince the person interviewing him to ask the right questions, once Fornia understands what Shadow Infusion is. Avoiding accountability with empty denial, will turn the tide of public opinion in our favor."

Alex raised an eyebrow. "How long do we have before they hold these rights?"

"Seven days of mourning, and then a speech on what 'Arceus's chosen people' will be doing next, now that their Prophet is gone. Many of their Hands have been falling lately and many are still embroiled in the conflict consuming Sinnoh. We do not know who is currently in charge of the city."

Jess spoke, then. "Seven days to march through and conquer four cities and who knows how many towns? We'll have to be quick."

Alex smirked. "We will be. We should pick the duos we're leaving behind in advance." He glanced at the golden eyes of his dragon. "Any suggestions?"

"A few."

North of Texico City - Western Texico

The faces of her fallen officers filled Rosa's mind as she bid the whip of silver Light to tighten around the neck of the Hand she'd captured. A voice came into the room, at that moment, before she could again compel the man for more information on Texico City. What she had so far would let them crack it open, in theory, but because this was Lucien, she wanted to be thorough, and she had a strong suspicion he had more to spill.

"General, we just received word. The Prophet of Fornia has been defeated by the Emperor."

Rosa turned from the one-way glass to her captive Hand that no longer had a Prophet to service. "Well, well. Seems we've won." She pulled his bruised, wincing face closer, and the Light shone brighter, excluding all but her face, and the hate in her glowing silver eyes. "Give me what I want to know."

Finally, his mind's defenses shattered, and she sensed that it was the dread understanding and then perverted desire to join his Prophet in death that had ultimately broken him. She would've gotten through either way eventually, and while he had held out hope, that hope had been solely that Caleb Pravus would rescue him, personally, as he often did for favored Hands who fell into dire situations, or at least, capture situations. He had never risked allowing one of them to be properly interrogated, intervening personally more than once when clever Trainers and rebels had managed to subdue them, but now, that safety record meant nothing. The Church would collapse without Pravus's relentless madness driving it forward, and the common people of the regions under Church influence would start learning what exactly had been done to their Pokémon.

The man went limp, life draining from him as he lost the will to live, but Rosa had what she needed. Two of her officers entered the room then, concerned looks on their faces. "General...he's…"

"Given up." Rosa interrupted, turned, and as she did her armor covered her actress' figure. The silver whip faded for the first time in seventy-six hours as she strode past them. "Clean up the mess. I have a secret tunnel to find."

The southern Legion, with three of Unova's strongest Trainers at their head, led the combined force of just over a million soldiers from across the east towards the city Eastern Texico had never been able to conquer, by itself. The skyline of Texico City was relatively bare, save for five massive, tiered pyramidal structures. The center-most pyramid, and naturally the biggest, was surrounded by the other four, and each one was placed in perfect alignment with the central structure's tiered faces, each of which faced a compass direction. Between them, the Generals were the first to see the remainder of the Fornian army. Reports put it at three to five million strong, but there seemed to be more, now that they'd seen the approaching force.

As the eastern forces reorganized themselves into one hundred and forty-five companies of soldiers, each led by a Scale of Balance, Rosa and the twins kept an eye on the horizon. The four surrounding pyramids activated, and beams of green, red, blue, and yellow, came together over the city's central pyramid. From that, came a torrent of bluish purple, which united, and strengthened the energy from the other four, forming a multicolored barrier around the entirety of the city. Then, from the city came a rider upon a Luxray that had a very different coloration from anything the three had seen in the eastern states. It looked almost like Alex's, save that it was mostly yellow/tawny colored, and had spots of brown limned with black.

Rosa was already upon her Rapidash, and heading to meet the rider, who was carrying a white piece of cloth with him, and letting it trail obviously, in the wind. Rosa had no such pennant, but she didn't need one. The gold-tinged aura of visible silver light that had surrounded her since the battle at The Pass marked her and her partner clearly, from both sides. She pulled her Rapidash to a stop several yards from the messenger, and nodded at him, as they locked eyes.

"I have a message from our Hand of the Prophet. He wants to meet, to discuss terms, to potentially avoid death, on both sides." The man perched atop the yellow furred and black spotted Luxray gave her a smirk that his mount matched. His skin was closer in color to bronze than tan, and his hair was as black as a Tribe member's. His mind was also shielded from her perusing senses, and she knew if she were to try penetrating his mental fortress, combat would be declared.

"Very well. I'm willing to meet with your Hand. Where?" The man gestured to the pyramids humming with energy in the distance. Rosa gave him a look. "You can't be serious…not after what happened the last time our Generals entered one of your cities under terms of non-aggression."

The man chuckled, though it was higher in pitch than a usual laugh. "It was your Thor who went after our Prophet first, lady General."

"Yes, he did, didn't he. They'd had a prior engagement, as I recall. Your leader infiltrated a foreign region and tried to steal their Legendary Guardian. A Xerneas. Three guesses as to what he was after." Rosa finished sarcastically as she let her mount trot forward but remained unthreatening to the pair. The Luxray growled, for a moment, and then paused, as it looked at the source of the power that was radiating off the human before him, the gold and red eyes slowly went towards the sky. He didn't bow, but he did stop snarling as Rosa continued. "Evidently, Pravus went mad with rage when Xerneas told him he could never be immortal. He was bonded with darkness, and Shadow, both of which Fairy types are rather good at defeating. The process would've poisoned him, given a slow death, but he retreated, after being thrashed by Thor, who was charged with protecting the aforementioned Xerneas. Being a leader of his...region, he had every right to seek revenge for such an obvious invasion. It was the driving force behind his decision to bring his warriors here with him."

The riding messenger gripped his weapon a little tighter, and Rosa noticed that the haft was obsidian, rather than metal. The top was shaped like those who had used nets at the Pass as well. "It's not for me to hear this. If you agree to speak, we will not attack you. Unless you attack first. Again."

Rosa sighed, and then fixed the man with a glare. A whip made of silver light was promptly around his neck, and before he could protest, she silenced him. "This will make you tell the truth. Do not lie, and you shall not burn... This is a trap, isn't it."

The man seemed more intent on choking than speaking, and the Luxray resumed growling, that is, until her Rapidash's horn began to glow with psychic power, putting the cat to sleep where it stood. Rosa tightened her whip again, and then gave him enough air to speak. "Talk."

The man glared at her, eyes going wide as he felt the words coming up before he could properly stop them or change what information he was about to give. "Of course it's a trap. But without you, your armies will fail! We had to...try…"

"Do. Or do not. Don't waste time trying." With that, she retracted her whip, and raised a hand towards the man. "You will return to your Hand and tell him I was most courteous. Then you will tell him I've agreed to meet." Her hand flashed, and his face turned dazed as she erased and replaced, as best she could, his short-term memories. He repeated her words back, dazed by the blinding silver light.

She'd never modified a person's short-term recall before, but Alex had suggested simple thoughts, and simple commands, if such a technique became necessary for avoiding as much death as possible. Such memories were more easily accepted by the subconscious, and she was only changing the last few minutes.

Once she was done, she sprayed an Awakening on the spotted Luxray, and bid his rider to return to the city. He did, and a few minutes after, the shields lowered, and the ranks of Crusaders parted, giving the General a straight path towards the central pyramid. She nodded and returned to her camp first.

The Imperial Legions marched towards Texico City shortly after Rosa returned, and while the soldiers of Texico City tensed and lit their Power Staves, nobody fired an attack. The Trainers of the east parked themselves very obviously before the northernmost gate, in the shadow of the northernmost pyramid. Rock types and fire types were summoned, but the general order was to use defensive moves first, if things went sideways. The General rode in atop her Rapidash, while the twins waited outside for the trap to be sprung. They'd agreed to her plan with minimal convincing. Now all they had to do was figure out what exactly this trap would be.

Rosa recalled her ride as she approached the central pyramid, and while the soldiers glared at her, she sensed no malice from them. Indeed, she felt nothing at all, and then realized why as she looked closer. Instead of the usual Arceus symbol pendants most Crusaders had, the natives of Texico City stood out from their northern brethren with obsidian charms, carved into runes that didn't look like Common. They were radiating dark typed energy, and thus blocked her senses. The charms seemed to shield the Crusaders among them without such neckwear as well, as if they had a wide area of effect.

As she climbed the massive pyramid, she glanced around at the mass of soldiers below her, it became rather obvious that this was where the majority of Fornia's eastern army group had retreated to, shortly after the events at Urbe Monachus. She came face to face with the Hand, who was sitting behind an ornate, if a bit blood-stained, stone 'desk', upon which were several papers that looked quite a bit like army related troop movements. Her Gothitelle examined and relayed what she could see from within her ball to the twins, as her Trainer bowed in the Unovan style to the Hand of the now deceased Prophet.

"General Rosa…" Came the man's voice, as he stood within the shadowed alcove and stepped into the light of the pyramid's center. It was radiating dragon energy. Once more, her Emperor's sharing of prior experiences came in handy. She knew she could trust what her eyes told her. They were quite a bit sharper than they had been before she entered The Pass. "I am glad you have agreed to come." His tone, accented Common though it was, was a pleasing one. Unlike Lucien, this man seemed less depraved, and appeared to lack the insane-if-successful mad genius of Doctor Manchineel.

His skin was as bronzed as every other local she'd seen, and a bone white skull was tattooed on his face, covering much of it, but not lining up with his actual skull for whatever reason. His armor was the color of obsidian and covered his form, but much like her own, seemed to be composed of large chunks of the material, linked by a flexible under armor. Standing out obviously on the chitinous breastplate was the golden symbol of the Alpha Pokémon. The man had his armored arms linked behind his back, and he towered over the General at a height of six foot four at least. His presence was almost as intense as Alex's had become since his return from Norstad.

"As you may have guessed, this is a trap." A smile split the combination of bronze and white that covered his face, an unnerving grin that seemed entirely too confident, for the moment. He snapped his gauntleted fingers, and the energy around them surged, but to her eyes, flowed around them, and upwards, to where it met the other pyramid's beams, and reformed the shield.

Below, the sounds of fighting broke out, and the eastern forces began taking losses as the Arcean Crusaders began opening fire. The Scales of Balance sliced many of the energy beams in half, spread out into companies of roughly a hundred and fifty soldiers as they were, but the Crusaders vastly outnumbered them, and the unprepared fell first. They were, thanks to their Pokémon, not immediately routed. A low wall of ancient carved stone surrounded the city's outer border, and the twins stuck close to it, as did their soldiers. Arceans who leaned over to fire were swiftly dispatched, and the battle began in earnest as both sides began summoning their Pokémon.

Rosa looked back to the Hand and sighed. "I expected as much. As we speak, my best teams are dismantling your little plan...in fact…" She looked towards the southernmost pyramid within the city. "They should be just about done, by now."

The fire energy it gave off vanished, as the pyramid itself was torn apart from the inside. Thousands of tons of massive chunks of stone crushed quite a few of the milling Crusaders currently swarming into battle positions, and from the deadly rubble, came a Tyranitar, and a Duraludon, working in tandem as they broke the earth under the Crusaders lined up in the city before them, and tore into their ranks. More Pokémon followed them from the breach under the former pyramid, and the Scales engaged the horde of troops as, at that moment and in synchronicity that made their Generals rather proud, the other three pyramids burst in a similar manner. The massive stone chunks, she knew, would be the source of the majority of deaths for this conflict. Already she knew thousands of tons of rock had just about evened their forces.

Similarly powerful Pokémon took the field as well streaming from below the ruined structures alongside their Trainers, and rock types seemed to be the favorite, alongside dragon. Being former Champions, many of the Scales had partners from multiple regions, and while any Champion worth their title had a Pokédex's worth of information in their head, most Crusaders had never seen a Coalossal or a Dragapult. She saw several Hyper Beams go right through a rather large specimen of the Galarian dragon species, and the ghostly dragon reaped a bloody harvest with its retaliation.

The Hand watched the carnage, and then looked back at her. His hand had been reaching for a Dark Ball attached to his armored belt, but it stopped halfway. "Well...at least we went down fighting."

Rosa's expression shifted from calm passiveness, to one she reserved for those who genuinely pricked her nerves. The death glare made the man straighten up slightly, and he took an instinctive step backwards as suddenly, there was power to match it, similarly focused on him, and similarly furious. "You know you're going to lose this conflict...and you fight anyway. You persist in causing senseless death, when you do not need to…" She looked up then, through the hole in the pyramidal ceiling. The beam of dragon energy was still flowing strong, but it only went straight upwards, without the other four pyramids to help construct the shield.

Rosa nodded, and then looked back at the Hand. "It is not for me to Judge you, though…" She raised a hand, and a whip of silver light formed from her clenched fist and trailed down to the stone floor.

The man raised a hand of his own, towards his alcove where she suspected he kept his weapon. A low hum filled the air as she ignited her own, and with a masterful flourish, met the Hand's weapon in a blade lock that he seemed surprised he was not instantly winning. Rosa was more surprised that his blade wasn't being cut in half. Obsidian hilted and humming with its own energy was what looked like a police baton, when deactivated, thanks to its composition. When lit up as it now was, there were three focused beams of energy surrounding the main obsidian blade. One red, one icy blue, and one yellow. Together, the combined elements were a match for the focused plasma her Chargestone blade emitted.

The Hand's sword style was bordering on barbaric, but he fought to win, and that too had been something Tao had trained her for. Cheap shots like dirt to the eyes bounced off of her aura shield, and between the rapid spiraling flourishes that defined her mentor's style of fighting there was little chance for him to employ more deceitful tricks.

Eventually, he shifted to a defensive stance, making her attacks damaging, but weak. The primal rage that came over his features when he attacked was paused, waiting for her to tire as she hammered his guard again and again.

As Rosa caught on, she played into his strategy, and slowed her strikes, as if she'd begun to lose her energy, but her sharp eyes read him the moment he moved to take advantage of it. The horizontal swing was dodged, instead of blocked, as she went low under the blade, and came up under his guard. The plasma blade sliced through him with the same unnerving ease it had every other soldier she'd taken on with it, and not for the first time, she was glad it minimized the amount of blood that came with war.

She stared down at the city below, and then mentally gave the order for all forces to withdraw. In short order, the twins had their people disengaging and retreating in all directions beyond the city with the aid of their Pokémon. Her Excadrill came up from below the stone floor, and he saluted to his Trainer, rather proud at the tunnel he'd carved through solid rock and stone, that would ultimately cement their victory. Rosa examined it as well as she could with her newfound senses, but her hesitation in pushing them ultimately limited how deep she could follow it. She found her Serperior though, at about the middle of the pyramid, and gave her the order.

"Frenzy Plant."

Her dragonbone armor flared with grass energy as her starter drew on the power to mega evolve, and then attack. The central pyramid shook, and Rosa flew into the air, letting the inherent power of the dragon energy carry her, before it too disappeared. Her Pangoro and Ariados had confirmed that the Arceans were using Plates, and ones awakened by the Light at that, to power their shield. Their task had been to retrieve the sources of power and bring them back into Imperial hands. As the energy faded, her Gothitelle received a 'mission accomplished' from the pair and began heading out of the city.

Evidently, the under-levels were like a whole other city, and it was here where the Arceans had kept those they considered lesser to toil in darkness in the service of the Light. In a macabre twist of irony, it was this separation that ultimately spared the civilians of Texico City from the cultural shock of watching the oldest monument of their region fall to pieces in an explosion of vines that was truly awe-inspiring.

The rubble was guided by said vines as they wrapped around the massive chunks of stone, and the Serperior at the center of them used the massive boulders to great effect, hammering entire squads of Crusaders into human paste with disturbing efficiency. The massive chunks paused in midair at the exact second white flags began appearing, and mass-surrenders came one after the other. Some kept fighting, naturally, but the eastern forces regrouped and surged into the wreckage of the city from the east and the west, dealing death and sparing life in depressingly equal amounts. By the time the sun set, the surviving soldiers had been Teleported to the capital, and the masses of workers reclaimed the surface in time to watch the sun disappear.

Rosa addressed them, though it was electronic assistance, rather than magic shouting that helped her reach her audience. "Today, the Dragon's jaws have closed on the throat of Fornia. Your Prophet, your leader, the man who forced you to live like Diglett, is now gone, and your future is again your own. Like your ancestors, you are not being given the option of bowing to the First Dragon. You will become part of the Empire, and as a gesture of good will for our newfound camaraderie, we will leave you all with roofs over your heads before we head to Sacreus, and finish this. If you fight and resist us, you will die. If you choose to work with us instead, to make a better Texico, we will give you the food and resources to do so."

She gave the people a moment to process that, before finishing her brief address. "Depart now to the lower levels. When the rumbling stops, you will have the city to yourselves, and we will be long gone. You have until our envoy arrives to decide if you will aid us or resist to the end. The first Dragon Empire is the reason those," She gestured to the now ruined pyramids they all stood upon, covered in no small amount of blood. "Stood in the first place. Your people prospered alongside ours, and we never forced you to embrace our customs, or remove your own. Nor did we infuse your Pokémon with Shadow Energy. We would see the days of prosperity return. For both sides of Texico."

She leapt into the air once she'd finished and propelled herself through the air in a northwest direction, as the quietly murmuring crowd retreated back underground. Once more, their Trainer's rock and ground types proved useful, and with no shortage of material (and Water Guns), the Legions crafted several skyscrapers of stone that, while lacking furnishings, had enough room for the massive family sizes the people of their region embraced. Nicer homes surrounded the bases of these apartment-esque structures, though they too lacked furnishing, a similar aesthetic to the now ruined pyramids appeared on the new buildings, but they could never be as grand.

Further reports as time had gone on had revealed that the living conditions below were subpar, and that was using nice terms for the stench and genuinely awful waste management they'd encountered in the city's lower levels. The people below didn't have much more than a few clothes and a blanket, an odd trinket or two. Those with skin bronzed by the sun had been allowed to keep such things, but the Church-appointed Hand had kept the darker toned 'underdwellers' to poverty, and lives of menial labor.

When the digging Pokémon had come, they had spoken with the Scales infiltrating the pyramids, and agreed to wait until the battle ended to get involved, on either side. Ultimately, that meant few of them had helped, largely because Pokémon were also a luxury afforded to those touched by the sun's harsh light, and kept from them. All that seemed to be changing though, as very few of the 'Light touched' as they'd taken to calling themselves, still remained in the city. The few who did were genuinely kind, and had typically avoided becoming Crusaders by excelling at clerical work.

The mood of the civilians changed again, for while they had heard the propaganda and been taught the Arcean's 'lore', many had stubbornly clung to whatever relics of their pre-Arcean past they could find. Usually, that meant a Pokéball of some description, usually carved from stone, or inactive. In their wake, the easterners had left the people Pokéballs within their new dwellings, sometimes hidden for fun and sometimes not.

Professor Buckeye, who had followed the army southward minus his Suicune, ultimately decided to stay in the city, alongside the six pairs of Scales that the Generals and Tao had agreed were best suited to coordinating the veritable flood of new, eager Trainers. The rest of the Legions moved towards Sacreus, but the march was long, and by the time they arrived, they expected mop-up duty, though it all depended on how things had gone at Mewsia. Her intelligence reported 'aggressive negotiations' erupting, but further details simply hadn't come yet.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 35: The Siege of Sacreus

Somewhere North of Mewsia City - Fornia Region

The march south from Port: Land had gone as smooth as one might have expected it to. The Crusaders resisted, but through each town they passed, less and less civilians resisted after the armed forces had been easily put down by the combined force of Scales, Kalosians, and now Norstadders as well. Without Pravus to guide them, and with many of their Hands now reportedly holed up in Mt. Coronet, the local remnant guard forces either surrendered, or fell to a man before the might of the Original Dragon, and his legions. Gold City had been the first to fall, and after word of that spread on the tongues of those fleeing the oncoming 'army of psychic slaves', the city of Mantiray capitulated as well.

They had just finished subjugating Los Commotus, and had left four pairs of Scales behind to manage the rather large city. It was one of the Fornia region's largest metropoli, rivaled only by Mewsia and Sacreus. The former, was their current destination. As the legions of Scales under Alex, Jess, and those who had for most of the war served under Hilbert reached the outskirts of Mewsia first, followed shortly by Thor's host of Asgardians, they met a welcome sight, if an uneasy one.

The massive, imposing shapes on the ocean-bound skyline of Mewsia were blocking the usual gorgeous views one could find in a city situated on Fornia's golden coast. Wreckage of ships bearing Arcean markings littered the bay, but the Dark Fleet, newly returned from Sunyshore City, had not yet invaded. As they arrived, a massive figure melted from the shadows beneath the fleet, and the imposing shape rose from the ocean, into the air. Zigma's wings darkened the sky as she gained height over any attacks the Arceans in the city below her might launch.

Tao popped free of his ball on his own power, and rose to meet her, still in his Mega Form, his lengthier body curling through the sky. If the Mewsians didn't know they were surrounded before, they did now. Alex would've preferred not cornering them before a potential fight, if only to avoid the inevitable suicide attacks that they'd been hammered with on the march down, but intimidation had its place, in war. This was not Pravia. Perhaps, someone yet existed in Fornia with a shred of reason. That hope had proven wrong more often than it had yielded a new ally, but Alex found he couldn't help but try, at each city they parked themselves before. Anything to avoid more death.

Marlon had joined them at Los Commotus, and had been instrumental in preventing most of the deaths in that city. Alex kept wondering when their prisoner facilities back home would be overwhelmed by sheer numbers, but the word was that all was calm, and those who had already wished to be free, and turn their coats, had been separated from the larger masses who still clung to the deluded idea that Pravus was not dead. Alex intended to show them just how wrong they were, in due time. First, they had to deal with Mewsia, and Sacreus.

As Tao and Zigma rose into the sky, white flags erupted across the city. Alex, Jess, and Thor shared a look. The leader of the Asgardians sighed. "I am taking mine host on ahead. We shall meet with the others at Trasia. Do not tarry overlong here, Redwood." Alex nodded, knowing the army of six-legged Rapidash riders would be able to handle pretty much anything this planet could throw at them. He did give a command, though.

"See if you can link up with the forces coming in from Texico City. Take some supplies, too. They'll be low, after crossing a desert." Technically they had crossed two deserts, many doing so on foot, but he also knew many of the warriors in that army group were from similarly hot, barren regions. They'd survive, at least, and Thor would see their stores refilled before the next battle began.

Seeing the flags, Zigma flew over the city, and while there were a few panicked screams, she did not attack, but rather, flew towards Tao, who had curled on the ground, and waited for her. Atop the Guardian of the Dark Continent's head was a familiar pair of female figures. Alex nodded, and turned to his Scales. "Pitch the camp, and send word to the legions to do the same, when they arrive. We may not have to fight, but I don't want any troublemakers coming near our position!"

The white and black armored Scales slammed their fists to their hearts as they shouted in unison. "Zin thaar!" They dispersed then, going about their assigned tasks. Everyone in their group had a role when it came to camp construction, and by no coincidence was it a role they were well-equipped to handle. With Tao present to guide them, everything from battle plans to camp orientation had been perfectly organized for minimizing casualties and breakthroughs.

As Zigma landed, her pair of riders leapt from her head, revealing themselves to be Iara and Nelinha. The four humans exchanged bows, but all eyes were on the pair of Legendary Pokémon. They too exchanged nods, but their conversation was mental, and private, even to their Tamers. At one point, Alex noticed Zigma's eyes, all of them, fall to him, before going back to the dragon, but she said nothing to him, and Tao revealed nothing of their conversation.

As Alex and his better half waited patiently, if awkwardly alongside the two women in silence, something invisible passed by his peripheral vision, and he felt a polite mental contact, the equivalent of a hello, among psychic types. He stared at the source, and poked his Gallade awake within his ball. A pleasant mental baritone rang in his head. "Dragonblood. Would you kindly summon your Gallade?"

Alex raised an eyebrow at the invisible figure, but responded in his head, not wanting to disturb the legendary beings as they conversed. "Why?"

"I would test him." The invisibility faded, and the Latios before him burned with a familiar shield of deep blue aura, not at all dissimilar from Alex's, and his Gallade's.

"I should warn you, he's very good at fighting against Dragon and Psychic Types…" Despite his words, Alex was already reaching for the ball.

"I am counting on it." The Latios disappeared then, and Alex tossed the green and gold ball up, giving his partner the directional momentum boost only a Pokéball could provide.

The eyes of the Legendary Pokémon glanced towards them, and Alex pretended not to notice, as his Gallade mega evolved, and dashed after the Latios. They soon began sparring some distance away, and it was clear that the Gallade was going to have trouble thanks to the difference in speed. Zigma seemed to humm, and the entire area shook with the sound. Once Alex saw the smirk on the feline face, he realized it was laughter.

Seeing Jess had already turned social with the other ladies, leaving him awkwardly alone once more, he subtly stepped back a few paces, crossed his arms, closed his eyes, and focused on helping his Gallade face down a Latios as everyone talked. With Tao, he knew from experience that this would take a while. The Original Dragon and Victini had taken a whole afternoon, once he'd woken her. She hadn't returned to her ball the whole trip down the coast, but Alex wasn't worried. She was always invisibly floating around Tao, and that was quite literally the safest place to be in this war.

As he joined his partner, he found his Gallade in the midst of intense combat, and Arthur seemed glad at his focused attention. "Good...I need to know how we're ranking the Plate armor's power... Should we use it for Battles, or...for life and death situations only?"

Alex pondered, as his partner effortlessly matched the Latios's attacks, move for move, with this latest move lock ending in a victory from him, and his Night Slash. The Luster Purge had been split in two, and Arthur followed the attack with a second Night Slash, from his other arm. The speed of the two attacks landed him a hit, and sent the Latios reeling.

"It is rather powerful...it might be too much, for certain Battles...but then, Gigantamaxing changes far more, and that's just as legal as Mega Evolution…" Alex gave the mental equivalent of a shrug. "We don't even know how this compares to other regional levels of strength...and we're not really in a position to test them...but, I think this Latios could handle it. Just don't injure him, and only use it if you need it."

"Right." As the Latios was sent through the air, it suddenly began flying in circular motions in the air, and Alex quickly prompted his Gallade to use Swords Dance in response. They needed to stay as even as possible, to win.

Alex matched the Latios boost for boost, and that was ultimately what doomed them. Arthur was humming with power, and before they attacked again, the Latios spoke. "The armor you draw from the Plates...don it. Hit me with everything you have." The dragon and psychic type began to shine with the energy of Infinity as he resonated with a strangely deep blue Key Stone around his long neck. "You will need it."

Arthur's slender form was covered by the expanding Mind Plate armor in short order, and his arms were humming with golden aura blades by the time the Latios had finished taking its Mega Form. Once more the two clashed, and as his Gallade was suddenly on the defensive, Alex felt the human mind he was most attached to, laughing at him. He opened one eye, to find the three women closer than they'd been before, staring. The smirk widened slightly. "It's a good Battle."

Jess continued to stare him down, as he finally realized they were looking at him. "Then share it."

The eye opened wider, and darted between the three, as he made the mental connections, and shared Arthur's sight.

"They're watching."

"Of course they are…" The Gallade answered, sounding somewhat irritated. He wasn't mad at his Trainer though, it was more how easily the Latios was cancelling out his Night Slashes with rapidly fired Shadow Balls. The ghost typed energy mostly burned out against his attacks, but the Latios was obviously stronger with special moves, and the more Arthur blocked them with his arms, the more damage the Legendary Pokémon inflicted.

Suddenly, he felt a surge from his Trainer's dark typed Plate, and Arthur drew on it eagerly. He ignored the voices that came with using it, as in his Mega Form especially, his mind was focused, incorruptible, and he drew only enough power to win. He also knew his limits, and reached them as he focused the power into another pair of Night Slashes.

The energy blades coming from his armor turned from gold to black, and the Plate around it began to darken in the presence of such strong opposing energy. If he wanted them to stay working, he would need to attack quickly.

Thankfully, when it came to speed, he actually managed to outpace the Mega Latios. Clad in psychic power made manifest to draw on, he was slightly faster when it came to zipping through the air. Or at least, he had been. With all the powering up, his attacks were on equal footing with the Latios's psychic power, but in turn the male half of the Eon Duo had become much, much faster.

Arthur managed to land one of the pair of Night Slashes, but it wasn't enough to end his opponent. Suddenly, once the energy in both arms was expended, he found himself floating aimlessly, unable to move himself, as the Latios' telekinetic power held him in place, unable to do more than float.

The Latios couldn't hold him forever, as Arthur readied a Shadow Ball to free himself, he didn't even have time to draw the energy before his opponent had zipped up to his face, and unleashed his Stored Power with a blinding flash of blue. Point blank, and after the hits he'd already taken, Arthur felt himself faint before the unbridled enhanced power of a Latios. If survival was on the line, he would normally push beyond his limits, but in this battle, he knew he was beaten.

On his side of things, Alex swore under his breath, and bamfed to his Gallade's side. He was light, lighter as the armor retracted into his heart piece. He nommed weakly on his Max Revive, and Alex returned him to his ball. The Latios then offered a wing, and he held on for dear life as the still absurdly fast Legendary Pokémon brought him back to where the Guardians of the northern and southern continents continued to chat.

The Latios let his Mega Form drop, and then took a human shape with blue hair that spiked upwards like Latios ears, bowing to Alex in the style of Unova once they'd landed. His mouth didn't move as he spoke, except to smile appreciatively. "Thank you. It was a good match...do not be afraid to use your power to gauge your opponent's level of strength. Especially if you are unsure about how high you should raise your own. You can do this, without invading their minds. Both of you can."

Alex nodded, giving the Latios a murmured thank you, as Tao suddenly rose behind them. Zigma joined him, and the two titans turned their eyes towards Mewsia. To their credit, the flags had stayed raised, and more had joined them in the forty or so minutes since Zigma had flown over them. Alex was still kicking mostly himself, for boosting stats instead of attacking. He'd always won matches like this by sacrificing power, for a faster and usually type advantaged move. Power ups made little difference when one's HP was zero. With Arthur, he could follow up his first strike with another, and enough Night Slashes might've won out against Latios before he'd Dragon Danced to the height of his power. The entire Opeleucid Gym had used a similar strategy of empowerment, and Shruikan had taken their opponents down quicker, as they wasted their chance to strike first against his then hard-shelled and slower body to power themselves up.

His Gallade had come close to winning, but it was a mistake they'd both learn from. He'd let the two climb as high as they could, before battling. He'd simply forgotten about his opponent's rather useful move pool. When it came to legends, he found they didn't always restrict themselves to four. Not that he'd expected them to.

As Jess informed Iara of the rest of the plan, for the Fleet, Alex and Nelinha took their places atop the massive Pokémon, who flew them to either side of the large city. They landed at the edge of the urban sprawl that spread from the rather decorative inner walls, built in an age when the western coast was not so peaceful. The Latios bamfed them back to the Dark Fleet once they had properly rendezvoused, and the massive cannons lowered. They continued to blockade the harbor, but they had ceased actively targeting Arcean buildings within the city.

Both Alex and Jess had seen what they'd left of Sunyshore through Japan's media, and had agreed on the march down that Mewsia should avoid that fate, if possible. It had a reputation as a city of artists, and good vibes, though almost nothing had been heard of the place since Pravus took power. Rumors said it was one of the few cities Arceans allowed foreigners to visit, if they were rich, but they'd seen the Church's handiwork first hand several times now, and expected the worst.

The Arcean's general populace, the non-fighters, were usually used for labor, and the tasks ranged from menial to tedious. That in itself wasn't too bad, the issue was how many hours of one's life the Church demanded from them. When Unova had started to industrialize, their people's work shifts had been brutal, but not nearly as long as what Fornians had apparently been working for the past three centuries. That kind of work drive could propel their Empire to where it needed to be, and Alex knew if he gave them room to prosper, without demanding as much as possible, the people would work faster, make less mistakes, and be happy. With Tao's aid, he knew they could get the region back on the right path.

He glanced across the city at his Rio counterpart, who seemed to be conversing with her tamed Legendary partner, and his eyes dropped to Tao's head. "So, did she agree to help us?"

"Yes. But while we're here...her power belongs to her Tamer." The dragon shifted as he spoke, settling into where he'd landed by coiling his lower half, and letting the upper half tower over the city.

"That's fine...I won't need her power here. Hopefully." At that moment, Jess rejoined him, her arrival signaled by the telltale bamf sound of a Teleport, with Marlon in tow. She joined his side, and the Gym Leader eyed the pair.

"Y'know, when you two first came to my town, I didn't think I'd one day be addressing you as leaders of the revived Dragon Empire." He bowed, low, and before Alex could tell him to stop, he spoke again. "I'm proud to think it was my Gym that started you on that path, and I'm honored to help you continue walking it. Both of you." He came up to them then, far too casual, and stared out at the city as the well-toned arms draped around their necks in a friendly manner. "Now, let's take this city with as little bloodshed as possible, yea?"

Alex chuckled, nodded, and then glanced at the casual Gym Leader all but hanging on his neck. "Marlon, you especially don't ever need to bow, or grovel to me. In fact-"

He interrupted again. "Oh I know, man. I've heard! You're a very…'chill' ruler, or so say the Scales. Don't bow unless I feel compelled to by loyalty, and patriotism!" He chuckled as well, and the hand around Alex's neck moved to pat the dragonbone helmet he usually wore into combat. "Keep doing what you've been doing, Dragon Emperor. You'll be a legend yet."

Feeling somewhat more confident, Alex turned back to the city, and poked Tao's mind. "Take us in. Towards that...orb-like building in the center. They're gathered there." The dragon's long neck extended over the city from his position on its eastern outskirts. Zigma, on the west, held out a paw with her Tamer atop it, and once the group was over the building, the two psychics levitated them all to the ground, where it appeared the man in charge of Mewsia was waiting, white flag in hand.

There were Crusaders all around them, and Lux seemed jumpy, but Alex merely gave the sword a pat, before he walked towards the man bearing the flag. He was comparatively light skinned, still fair haired, but lacking a tan, somehow. He was garbed in a suit more suited for business than war, and the rest of him was as well put together as every other Arcean leader he'd met. As usual, those in charge did not lack wealth. He had a feeling that time in this city would show him that the not so wealthy were as miserable as they'd been in every other city on the coast. Those who had fallen out of favor with the Church had been subjected to poverty of the worst kind, while those who blindly obeyed had been dutifully rewarded.

The man's voice was charming, as he spoke first. "Alexander Redwood I presume. Welcome to Mewsia. As you can see from our flags, we've no intention of angering the Legendary beings you've brought with you. Unlike my contemporaries, I can see the writing on the wall. Caleb Pravus is dead, and while I, and many others, will always have mixed feelings about that, you will get no resistance from us. We have heard of your...deals...with the other cities along the coast. That you're offering the chance to live, as well as food, aid, and freedom from overbearing work schedules, as long as we bend the knee to the Original Dragon. Our ancestors were not prideful people, and I will follow their example. Mewsia will gladly, nay, eagerly rejoin the Dragon Empire!"

He handed the flag to one of the Crusaders, their faces blank and unreadable, and then motioned for Alex to join him atop the stairs, by the entrance to the massive building shaped like a non-distinct orb. Judging by the words by the entrance, it was a cultural center of some sort. Alex removed his helmet as he climbed the stairs, and the lengthy thick dark brown curls came free as he met the man's eyes equally. He sensed no deceit, but he was filled with anticipation. An undercurrent of excitement he couldn't pin the source of without invading the man's mind.

At that point, the Original Dragon's voice echoed in his head. "What excites your enemies often means doom, for yourself. Be wary. Vanquished Humans are never uniformly so... willing to comply." Alex sensed sadness, and anger, within the dragon's mind, as it undoubtedly drew up memories of similar situations, and the betrayals that followed.

As the veteran of more wars than he wanted to imagine, Alex listened to the dragon, and glanced around, as did Jess, once he relayed the warning. Atop the stairs, he realized, there were sight lines from a number of the city's skyscrapers. Which meant a sniper was likely waiting in one, for a chance to end him, and avenge Caleb Pravus. It was what he'd do, in their position, had he spent his life as a brainwashed Arcean. He kept his face passive, smiled even, as he told Shruikan to watch from above for whatever they were planning, and retaliate swiftly.

Alex spoke, knowing by the time he finished, whatever had him in its sights would likely fire. He could feel the eyes bearing the killing intent now, and he silently thanked Lux, for sharing his first instincts. He'd become much more of a team player over the course of the war, and the ten of them were working like a freshly oiled machine. "If your words are honest, then I accept Mewsia's surrender, and will gladly leave all of your citizens alive, before we head for Sacreus. I will tell you what I told the other city rulers. If you have a way to convince them not to fight, use it. I, personally, am tired of this war...but others, have been burning for a chance to sack the Fornian capital for quite a few months now. I can hold their bloodlust in check...if we're met peacefully."

The man seemed to gulp, and then nodded at his statement. "I will do what I can, but...Sacreus is an entirely different city...as you will find once you arrive. I fear the headquarters of the Church of Arceus will not be as...cordial, as we are." The man scratched the back of his head, and Alex's eyes narrowed, slightly. He knew a hand signal when he saw one. The movement was too rigid and obvious to be natural.

At that moment, a spray of water came shooting towards him at impossible speeds from one of the skyscrapers. Silent, deadly, and if he hadn't been expecting it, it might've hit him. He knew of only one water type capable of such a shot from such a distance, but he'd assumed they weren't native to Fornia. He leaned back, slightly, as the blast of water passed harmlessly by his face, and slammed into the stone, leaving a crater several inches deep from the pressure. For a moment, there was silence, and then the Crusaders moved.

The one with the flag made to stab at his back, only to find his weapon bisected by a humming blue sword. The redhead wielding it made short work of the rest of the metal pole, and then held the plasma blade at his neck. The other zealot had powered on his stave, and readied it to fire, but Alex had already drawn Lux by that point, and he sent the focused beam of ice energy soaring in another direction with a swing that was more akin to a Pokémon Base bat swing than a dragon style sword slash.

Nelinha had reacted as quickly as Jess, summoning a Bisharp, who hammered the Crusader with the Power Stave in the gut, and then held its steel blade-arm to his throat as well. That left Lux, whose Trainer had pointed him at the neck of Mewsia's speaker. The man eyed the black and white blade, gulped as it formed a pair of menacing Rotom eyes, opened his mouth to speak, and then wisely thought better of it.

Alex glared at him, and then turned his head to the sky. "Charge Beam!" He wasn't worried about whether his dragon heard his Voice or not, for he felt Shruikan already taking aim as he spoke. Seconds later, a massive beam of electric death arced directly into the skyscraper from which the Pokémon, which had to have been an Inteleon, had fired. Electricity sparked over the top levels, and then the massive black dragon descended from the clouds, landing atop the massive orb building. Compared to Tao and Zigma, he almost seemed small, but as his sparking fangs loomed over Mewsia's leader, they certainly seemed large enough, from below.

"Now then...what am I going to do with you?" Alex said, addressing the man. His eyes, full of fear, turned back to the man holding a plasma blade to his neck, and he gulped again.

"Would you believe me if I told you I knew nothing of their plan?" The usually kind eyes of the man holding the black and white blade turned darker, and the air hissed as searing plasma just barely kissed the skin of his neck. It was a foul smell, and one he was growing to hate with each battle they found themselves in. "Gah...I thought not...I will submit to your mercy, Dragon Emperor. You have every right to end us...but we had to try. You murdered Arceus's light in this world...but He will stop you, before long. Tyrants cannot reign forever."

"You're right. Tyrants will always be unseated, by their enemies, or their own people. Caleb Pravus has been brought down by both. I have many Fornians in my legions, those who understand what he was, why he needed to end, and Fornia's place in the changes that are to come. Your people are not irredeemable...but you...that's another matter." He let his aura flare then, and as the psychic power built, it shifted to gold. The blue eyes became burning orbs of justice and judgement, and the man before him struggled to comprehend how the man he'd been told was the antithesis of everything Arceus stood for was tapping into His Light.

"By the will of the Alpha Pokémon, your false churches and idols shall be ground to dust, and this cult that has so perverted his words will finally end." The pair of titanic Pokémon on either side of the city punctuated his words then, as beams of dark and light typed energy razed the temples across the city to dust with a single shot. They each had their own methods of clearing them, and while Zigma had terrified the inhabitants with the dark typed nature of her mind, Tao had simply asked them to evacuate. The great dragon had his equivalent of a frown, as he watched the scurrying humans flee. Too many had assumed his calming mental baritone belonged to Arceus.

At that moment, Alex felt a tap on the dragonbone covering his shoulders, and turned to see Marlon, looking grim, and concerned. "His fate is not for us to judge." The words were simple, but it was enough. The rising rage faded, as did the burning golden aura, once more replaced by irritation, exhaustion, and a strong desire for the death to finally end. He turned back to the man, and lowered the sword. "Your position is forfeit. Your house will be given to those with no home, and all your worldly possessions will be sold off to help feed them. If you and whatever friends you have decide to try rebelling against my Empire, you will end up like the sniper in that tower."

Shruikan punctuated his words with a snarl that shook the air. "The Pokémon is likely fine, if fainted...its Trainer won't be. I want you to go up there yourself. See first hand what becomes of those who defy me, and then keep in mind…" He leaned in close to the man's face, for emphasis, not unlike how Tao did. "That was my smaller dragon."

Alex looked up at Shruikan, speaking to him through their mental link. "Well done, my friend. Your aim is getting rather good." Shruikan smirked as he nodded, and the black scaled Salamence took off again, proud at the well-earned praise. He returned to prowling above Fornia's darkened clouds, still heavy with ash and soot from the fires that to this day continued to rage to the north of their position.

In short order, it was decided that Marlon, and two pairs of Scales would remain to deal with the populace, and keep things peaceful. Evidently the oppressed in the city, their only crimes usually fabricated as opposed to the crimes of their superiors which were very much real, had been forced to live in caves they themselves had dug into the hills that stretched down into the beaches Mewsia was famous for. From there they had attended to the vacationing Arcean's every need, as well as the needs of their guests, foreigners from the Imperium, Eous, and other parts of the world that Caleb Pravus had wanted on his side. Now, armed with Pokéballs and a new taste of freedom, the former servile humans had largely taken to the grass to find partner Pokémon, but unfortunately, none had yet managed a catch.

Alex frowned as he heard the report back in his command tent, given by Marlon himself. "They're just...not coming out. We know they're around, this part of the region has many species, but they're all hiding from Human contact."

Alex grimaced. He knew well how easily Pokémon could avoid a human, though when those back home had eventually learned he wasn't a threat, but a source of berries, it hadn't helped him catch one. "I can't blame them, Marlon...they likely have had friends or family captured and infused with Shadow. Their opinion of the locals will not change overnight."

The Gym Leader sighed. "I just wish I could help them...N would know how. He challenged my Gym once, you know. It was strange, battling a man who completely understood his partners, but their bond was apparent, even to me. He did that a lot, you know. Smoothed things between people and Pokémon."

Alex glanced up from the report, and met the Gym Leader's eye. He'd heard, then. He'd stopped wondering how Gym Leaders were always in the know a long time ago. Having a nose for trouble was practically a prerequisite for their job. "I take the hint, but Pokémon I've never met aren't going to listen to me."

Marlon smirked. "Then don't be the one to talk to them, bro. Let your Pokémon demonstrate the kind of bond we should have with all Pokémon. They'll listen if, for example, a species known for its kind, loyal, and righteous demeanor is the one who starts talkin'. And I've heard your Voice. They'll listen. You should at least try, before we leave."

Alex gave an exasperated sigh. "Do. Or do not. There is no try."

At that, Marlon actually laughed. "Words to live by, yo. But. I would argue that sometimes all one can do is try. Thus, the act of tryin' becomes the act of doin', which is infinitely better, most of the time, than doin' nothing, or inaction, which is what your masters are warning you against."

Alex eyed the man with a newfound appreciation for Gym Leader wisdom. "You know quite a lot, for a Gym Leader on the harbor-side of Unova."

He gave a grin in return. "Knowledge is power, man! But some things can only be known by doing."

Alex agreed, and found himself rather glad that he'd switched Nate and Marlon. His fellow Unovan Champion was powerful, kind, but his serious mind wouldn't have even considered talking to the local Pokémon, distracted as he'd been by Rosa's apparent difficulty. Thus, the Dragon Emperor was delayed as his legions moved out for Trasia, the city at which the eastern and western army groups would meet, before marching through the desert to Sacreus, and the final fight of this war. His force had been reinforced by two hundred and fifty thousand Trainers from Rio, putting the total number just over equal to the other army group coming from the east. He was the last person surprised at how effectively the Original Dragon had split them almost perfectly in half. Balancing halves of a greater whole was his specialty.

Alex let the armor drop, and kept his aura shield hidden, but still very much present. Enough to block, for example, a high pressure water move. At least once. He radiated the same calming emotions as Arthur, and once the pair had learned where the local species dwelled, they walked into the grass, and then the forests beyond.

Alex paused at the edge of the woods, while his Gallade trudged on, slashing through small trees as needed. As he moved, he saw the Pokémon, and then both he and the human realized what the issue was. Though they were overcrowded, and the local supply of berries was likely dwindling to nothing, fast, many of them had burns, showing they were from the northern forests. Surviving to get to a relative paradise like Mewsia wouldn't have been easy. Most of Fornia was mined-out desert, or mountains, with the only non-scorched fertile areas being on the coast, and inhabited by humans who did dark and depraved things to Pokémon they captured.

Arthur found a clearing within, inhabited by what seemed like most of the Pokémon in the area. The usual forest-dwelling species were there, as well as some that lived near water usually, like Chewtle. A truly massive Ursaring, more thick than tall and undoubtedly a female, rose to meet the Gallade as he entered the space. He smelled of human, blood, and Pokéballs. She snarled at him, speaking in the tongue common to most Pokémon.

"We do not require any bonded here, strangerrr…" She flexed her claws. "Leave."

Instead, Arthur bowed as he projected his thoughts in Common. "I am no stranger to you. I'm a fellow Pokémon, with a Human that isn't pure evil." As soon as he said 'human' the other Pokémon around them hissed. He pressed on anyway. "My name is Arthur. My parents ruled over Albion, a land where Humans actually accepted the rule of Pokémon, more or less. Doubtless some here know, they are not all like those you have encountered recently."

The Ursaring grew tired of his words quickly, and made to Slash at him, but his sword arms lit with fighting energy, and with a series of strikes too fast for her eyes, he blocked her claws effortlessly, and sent her sliding back across the grass. She started to charge again, but faltered.

From the edge of the clearing, came the Gallade's Trainer. He smelled like most humans did lately, namely of ash and blood, but his eyes made her pause. They were tired, stressed, but the way he looked at the Pokémon she'd taken to caring for made her stop. For the moment. Then, he spoke to them, and the entire glade watched in disbelief as they both heard every word, and more importantly, understood every word. Such a thing was impossible, for the Fornia region had never birthed a power similar to the Harmonia's.

"I am Alex. His Trainer. I understand better than most what you've gone through, and for that hardship, those lives that have been lost, my apologies will never suffice. I cannot bring them back." He reached for his pack then, and the only reason he wasn't immediately attacked, was because he brought out a Rawst berry, and the scent made quite a few salivate. "Hear my words, Pokémon of Fornia, as you feed yourselves. Then, when I'm done explaining what has been going on in this region for the past three centuries, from the Human perspective, you can accept or deny my request as you see fit, and I will depart your forest with no one coming to harm, or being captured."

The Hyper Voice, it seemed, worked better on Pokémon than it did on humans. He knew that his honesty was what made it so effective though. A few evolved species huddled around the Ursaring, who then turned to the Gallade. "Will your Human understand if I speak in our tongue?" The Gallade nodded, and the mother bear turned towards the human. "Berries, first."

At that moment, a Teddiursa came bumbling forward, far too young to be out, but his mother didn't notice until the adorable cub, lacking honey on his paws, was before the human. Her eyes narrowed, her claws flexed, but the only reason she did not strike was because her cub, like many others, had a burn that needed the healing only a berry could provide. The human's reaction made her stance relax, as she watched.

"Hello there little one...here, this will help that burn...and...I'm pretty sure I found...aha!" He fished in his bag pockets, and then withdrew some sweet honey that a Ranger had given him while he'd traveled through most of Unova, and had road battles, way back before even becoming Champion. It was a good thing honey didn't easily go bad. He placed the jar before the cub, who sniffed, once, began drooling, and then dug into the jar of deliciousness with all the manners of a wild bear cub.

He stood, and looked at all the Pokémon then. "I have enough berries for those with burns. Those should come and get one first. Maybe one at a time, so we don't rush or get too excited. There's food for most of you, and once I'm done here, you will be free to spread out and wander once more."

At that the Ursaring snorted. "We do not wander. To be caught by the Humans...in this region...is to experience a fate worse than death."

Alex left Arthur to pass out the berries, and use Burn Heals when the supply of Rawst berries eventually did run dry. Sitrus and Oran berries, he had in abundance after a brief market stop in Alola, and the Gallade knew to leave at least one of each for future planting, but berries with special effects were in far shorter supply. He approached the mother Ursaring then, and very carefully, placed a hand on her shoulder. With his height, he was barely a head taller than she, who was already large, for her species. "Your mate, yes?" Her eyes became shinier as he spoke, and she felt the emotions he was radiating. It was hard to put them into words, but comforting was a start. "Tell me what happened. All of it. I will try to find him."

"How? There are so many Humans...and we have come so far." She seemed to be trying to once more repress the feelings of loss and hurt, as that was what had made her able to survive the trek here, to this relative paradise.

Alex spoke to all of them, then. "For the past three hundred of our years, many many winters, the Humans of this region have been under the growing influence of a man who lacked any kind of decency or morals. He infused your fellow Pokémon with Shadow Energy, and turned millions of them into beasts, little better than weapons." He held up a hand, and called for the Light. To his surprise, it answered, quickly, and with an unexpected but not unwelcome pulse of power, expanded through the glade.

Those who had thus far been planning to attack the human and search his bag for more food, paused. They all paused. The Alpha's presence was felt, and they eyed the human differently once the Light washed over and healed those who had not approached, of their wounds, burns and otherwise. "With the Light of Arceus, I can cleanse this corruption, and return your friends and family to you...however...some Pokémon were more...heavily experimented on, than others." He turned back to the Ursaring. "Even if your mate is one of those, I will still try to find him."

The act of sharing food, filling them with the Light of their creator, and then promising to bring back a leader and friend many had assumed was gone forever invariably shifted the mood, in the glade. Berries were had, stories were told, and he already knew who he would be putting in charge of finding and saving not just the male Ursaring who'd evidently been captured near Sacreus, but many others the forest dwelling Pokémon wished returned as well. The Scales he'd left behind could help easily enough. Reading surface thoughts made tracking down certain Pokémon easy.

Then, once everyone had somewhat full bellies and his berry stores were thoroughly gone, he told them what he'd come there to say in the first place. "There is a group of would-be Trainers outside, waiting with Pokéballs." His words made a few look up in lingering fear, but he pressed on. "They, like you, were oppressed by the Humans abusing Shadow energy, albeit in different ways. All they want is a partner they can love, Battle with, and rebuild their home beside. A bond like Arthur and I possess. We're teammates, practically brothers. You'll understand, once you Battle together."

Arthur spoke then, and the soothing emotions he was radiating helped his fellow Pokémon trust what he said. "Those who do not desire a Trainer will not be captured. After this, those of you who change your mind can jump out at them when you please, as other Pokémon do in regions where the bond between our kind and humans is still strong."

Their words didn't move very many to come forward, and it would take time, and no small amount of it, to convince them to not be wary of humans. Those who did step forward, mostly young ones, had a fire in their eyes that both the Gallade and his Trainer recognized. The promise of becoming as strong as Arthur looked was tempting to those who had yet to evolve. They left those gathered with the rest of his berries, except the few he kept for replenishing his supply, and then guided the Pokémon from the depths of the forest, to the eagerly waiting Trainers to be.

Almost immediately, the humans realized there would not be enough Pokémon to go around. Before infighting could start over who got which though, Alex spoke to them, and his Voice held their attention. "These Pokémon have been through much...that they're here now, after all your fellow Fornians have done, is a credit to the kindness their creator gave them." His eyes changed then, and the group of mostly young men had a sudden and inexplicable desire to flee before the hard bluish purple stare as his Voice echoed with a psychic reverb. "If I hear of any mistreatment of them, I will be coming back here. Personally. You won't enjoy what I do to you." The power faded, and the chill vibe returned to the black and white clad human. "Let them come to you, offer your Pokéball, and then tap them with it. You are the start of your region's next generation, one without oppressive control, or Shadow Infusion. Do not waste this chance."

He nodded at the group of shifting Pokémon, but none stepped forward. He knelt low then, to the one at the front of the pack of ten or so varied species, a Seedot. "What's wrong, little one?"

The rest of the humans only heard the tiny acorn say its name several times, but only the Dragon Emperor seemed to understand. "Is that all? Well, that's easy enough to fix. Your Trainer won't be able to understand you as well as I can, not at first, but that will change the more you two battle together. For now...I'll make sure they know how to care for you. All of you." He finished, looking at the other Pokémon, and then stepping back.

The Seedot waddled up to one of the younger boys, who stayed in the line Arthur had put them in. The boy offered a Pokéball, and the Seedot hit it with the tip of his 'acorn', and then transferred inside of it. Five seconds later, the Pokémon was out again, and seemed happier. The process repeated for eleven others in the group, but there were quite a few who didn't get a partner at all. The Pokémon, at least, had all found a human that suited them well.

One of the gathered twelve looked at Alex once they all had partners. "Now what?"

He chuckled, and turned on the armor again, widening the eyes of human and Pokémon alike as they saw it cover his tall frame. "There are enough of you for six one-on-one matches. Everyone should start their journey with a rival Battle. Once you finish those, go see Marlon. He'll heal your fainted partners, and show you where to get stronger." He turned to the others then, as the first twelve went off to begin matching up.

Alex levitated roughly twenty eight Pokéballs into the air, but these were different to what Marlon had given them. They bore the unmistakable black and gold U that marked them as Ultra Balls. "You did not receive a Pokémon today, because I could only convince twelve to come out with me. However, they will now resume roaming the woods once more, and have promised to, if they see a worthy Trainer, a decent Human, pop out for possible capture, as many other Pokémon do. Those who don't want a Human will avoid you rather easily. Ultra Balls are likely to catch whatever you come across first, but, I would still offer them the choice to join you. You'll understand once you see the shape some of them are in. Bring Rawst Berries, if you go into the woods."

The group uniformly looked somewhat guiltily down at the sand. They all knew why. The fires from Colville still hadn't completely faded, and they had taken quite a few lives, some human but by this point, largely Pokémon. The Shadow infused flames lit by the Hand of Death's Noivern had burned across the region, and Pravus, who had been strong enough as a Trainer to at least try to stop them, had ignored them entirely in favor of the war effort. They had driven more Pokémon to his people, and his Church had infused that many more Pokémon. It would take years to find and Purge all those still infused by the Shadow, but now lacking a Trainer, thanks to the war.

Seeing they understood, Alex nodded his helmeted head, and Arthur stepped close to him. "Now then...let's see where they are…"

The Gallade smirked at him. "You're the one with the 'recall point'."

His Trainer ignored the smug mental words, focused in on the mind connected always to his, and then bamfed the two away. They arrived in the air above the legions, and he found them stopped, for some reason. As he and Arthur descended, he rang Marlon on his Holociever. "Marlon. The newbies have their partners. I managed to convince twelve. The others are wandering the woods for theirs, as the Pokémon have agreed to once more come out...assuming we don't infuse them with Shadow. Have Jason and Lydia spread the warning."

Marlon gave him a cocky two fingered salute, appropriate, given that he'd dropped the war attire to better blend with the Mewsians. "Twelve isn't that bad, yo! Considering… I'll tell your people. They're already trackin' down those responsible for the infusions in this city. Their leader is singing like an Altaria, and it's making it easier."

"Keep me apprised." He closed the device as he landed beside the fiery hair of Jess, who was at that moment surrounded by Riders from Valaskjalf. He nodded, as they murmured his title in their region, and then, as always, the eyes shifted to her. "So what's wrong? Why have we stopped?"

She sighed, and nodded towards Tao, who was staring ahead at seemingly empty terrain. The forests this side of the lengthy Fornian mountain range ended and stretched into one of the most inhospitable deserts on the planet. Before that however, were miles of green that they intended to follow up, towards Sacreus. "Your dragon asked us to wait for you. He has something you should see, apparently."

He tilted his head at her words, and smirked. "There's more. What?"

She smirked back. "He seems...excited. It's...an odd expression on him. With the whole…" She gestured to her eyebrows, and pretended they were flaming and lengthy. Alex shrugged, and left the giggling females to chatter about whatever it was they spoke of when males weren't around.

He approached the dragon, who was at the very forward outskirts of the paused legions, turning, and smiling, as he saw his Tamer. "Ahh, Alex, good. I trust things went well in Mewsia? I felt you tap into the Light."

Alex nodded, gave a brief explanation of what he'd done for the would-be Trainers, and then finished by looking ahead of him at the seemingly empty grassland that Tao was focused on. "So. What have you found?"

The earth rumbled, and Alex's eyes went up as the dragon coiled in the air with a writhing excitement. Laurea floated off of his head, giggled at him, and then raised two fingers, at which point, Tao spoke. "Victory, my young Redwood. Take a look ahead of us. Tell me what you sense."

Alex did as he was bid, focused his eyes ahead, and then paused. The last time Tao had told him to look at something, he'd needed his third eye. He opened it, and frowned. "I sense...nothing…" and after a few moments, he figured out why. "It's a...shield of Dark Typed energy. A big one. What lies before us, exactly?"

The dragon rumbled again. "The Oasis of Glory."

Alex's eyes went wide. "But...that's where Geralt said their interim Leader was holed up."

"Indeed." The dragon, looking admittedly a bit silly with the blue flaming eyebrows in his mirth, continued. "But it is not just her that we are here for. I believe there is more. Much more. This was Pravus's testing grounds, where he rolled out each of his experiments as needed. Dark Balls. Power Staves. Crusader armor. They were tested and created right here. Whatever else he had lies below, for down there is shielded as well."

Alex took another look, and confirmed what Tao and Laurea had sensed. The obfuscating shield of darkness stretched deep into the earth. Visible only to psychic senses, he assumed Pravus had never expected a fully fledged psychic to ever pass by here. His smirk widened, as he looked down. "Shall we start at the bottom, while the others take the top?"

The dragon nodded, and then turned towards the base. The Oasis of Glory was supposedly the last armed holdout, aside from Sacreus, that the Church possessed. It was here, to this fertile paradise, that the 'most valued' members of the Church were shipped, for safety. It was here that they would be captured.

"Ceno!" The Aggron appeared when called, and trotted up beside his human with thunderous steps, hearing, but not quite seeing what the human and the dragon were speaking of. Alex scratched his steely chin as he stood between them on four legs. "We're going to practice for Sacreus. We have quite an impressive bunker before us. I want you to eat through it."

The Aggron's response was mostly hunger, but he did speak, and not with his mind. "With pleasure…" Alex's armor flared with steel energy, as the Aggron drew upon it to ascend to the next stage of his species' evolution. In his Mega Form, his crest remained flared, but not so much that it limited him to four legs. It curved back over his bulky shoulders, and would help him as he dug into the earth. He stomped the ground once, and looked down, sensing just how deep the bunker went. For an Aggron, it wasn't far.

The nine foot metal monster began digging then, and his bulk left a path his Trainer could easily follow. Alex let him continue, as Tao ascended into the air. "Spread the word to the legions. I will handle things up here. Do not go down there alone."

Alex waved the dragon's word away, as he hadn't intended to. He propelled himself into the air, and began Shouting. "Listen up! Before us lies the Oasis of Glory! Thor must've missed it when he rode on to Trasia in his haste. We have a chance to cripple their high command, right here, right now! Listen to Tao, and do not die! We'll need as many of you as possible, for Sacreus!"

The Scales gave their 'Zin Thaar' salute before the regular troops could react, and Alex had already landed by the time they were ready. He touched down beside Jess, smirking. "I need a squad to go with me down there. I'm taking Brad, Bjalfari, a few others...would you ladies like to join us? I hear your record for busting bases is rather impressive." He said the last to the lingering Articuno riders, as he knew Jess would be by his side.

The one who answered him had raven hair, was exceptionally beautiful even compared to her fellow riders, and smelled familiar, for some reason. "We shall join you...but only those with other Pokémon will go below. Articuno do not do well underground."

Alex nodded, and then began mentally pairing off his Scales to squads of regular soldiers they'd be leading all the way to Sacreus. This Oasis base promised to have decent defenses, and would be good practice for all of them. His own squad ended up being roughly twenty Scales and riders, who followed Cenomons' tunnel deep into the earth. There were a few places where it became vertical, but they were all able to levitate themselves enough to avoid injury, and let the added speed from gravity move them all the faster towards the bowels of the hidden base.

They came upon Cenomons as he was munching through the ceracrete bunker that separated the base's interior from his new tunnel. "This...stuff...tastes awful." Alex leaned in, as to the rest of the group, they'd only heard him mumble his species' name.

"Ceracrete...this bunker must be newer. The one in Sacreus is steel, though I guess that makes sense...Pravus wouldn't have contacted the Imperium when he was building that one. It's the oldest. No matter." He stood, and the other Trainers with him backed up, as they knew a move was about to be called. "Triple Iron Bash!"

Ceno acquiesced, hitting the ceracrete with one lengthy horn, then the other, and finally the one on his nose, which in his Mega Form, was rather lengthy and just as impressive as the two jutting from his head. On the third bash, the wall buckled inwards, and the massive steel type pushed through the rubble, into the base, all while leaving a passable hole for the others to follow through. Alex gave the hungry, if somewhat disappointed, Aggron a scratch and recalled him.

The room they'd entered was large, unlit, and seemingly empty. The dark typed shield obscured his senses from above, but at some point, they'd passed under it. He felt the hardened minds of Crusaders, and one in particular seemed...off. That would be the Hand. According to their intel, she was the last Hand in Fornia, and had taken over the role of leading the Church of Arceus until someone more qualified returned from Japan. Until then, she was supposedly in charge of all the Church's efforts, as well as making sure the media front stayed as palatable and coercion friendly as possible.

Even in the midst of a turning war, and defecting cities, the Church kept up their propaganda stream with the same zeal for fabricating utter lies they'd always possessed. As the group of Scales and riders moved through the darkness, they paused when their leader did.

"Turn on the lights...you will miss the path, otherwise."

Tao's voice had always given Alex pause, and he turned, fishing within his cloak for a specific Pokéball. "Galvan, give us some light. Flash!" A Joltik appeared from the Nest Ball he pulled out from the cloak, yawned, glanced at his Trainer, and then began humming. The surrounding area brightened, slowly, and the little bug was only spurred into generating more light when another of the Scales brought out their obviously much better trained Galvantula, and used the same move.

What the immediate rivals of the same gender and family line revealed was, at first glance, an airship. Unlike the other Arcean ships, this one had a more 'classic' design, with a saucer shaped bow, which was finished, and six separate engines, which were glowing a soft blue, but were not attached, and remained hanging over the uncovered frame that was only half plated with protective metal. What brought quiet chuckles from more than a few of Alex's squad was the name, emblazoned in the Arcean's favorite font, across the top of the bow.

Enterprise.

"In this, it seems, I am in agreement with the Church...no other name works, for Humanity's first serious attempt at a space faring vessel since we failed at having colonies in space." His words became mental, as he shared his sight with the dragon. He understood electromagnetism better than any other being Alex knew, and the energy his eyes saw had a similar wave pattern, radiating from the seemingly dormant engines. "Will this get us beyond our planet?"

"I will need to examine the parts up close, but...from what I can see, they would be enough. To reach Mars, at least, with some expediency."

Alex pondered as he stared at the ship, blinking out of the reverie once he felt Jess's hand on his shoulder. "What did he say?"

The others looked on, most not needing to ask who she meant. By this point, the Trainers under him and Jess had a good idea of just how many voices were in their Emperor's head, but only one was heeded by all. "He said we could reach Mars...theoretically. It would need to be assembled...studied...moved to the Capital…" The smirk reappeared, and the Scales returned it with grins of their own. "But we could do it…"

The other Trainers, from across the former States, started murmuring. Mars, stars, space, other planets, it was all a bit too much, for certain members of their party. The raven haired pale woman with a tone Alex could only classify as vindictive, despite her perhaps meaning to appear kinder, spoke up then. "You speak of flying to the stars so easily, Dovahkiin. What is...Mars?"

Alex nodded, figuring Norstad of all regions would be out of the loop when it came to historical fact. He poked his Gallade for aid, and psychically projected a basic image of the earth, her moon, with the view zooming further and further out until the basic layout of the Sol System was visible, mentally projected before the group of riders. It zoomed back in on Mars as he spoke. "The fourth planet in our solar system of planets...once, it was red, worshiped as a god of war, of all things by ancient Humans who saw it as little more than a bright star in a dark sky. Eventually...Humanity reached it with ships, like this one...ships in one piece. We terraformed the red planet, made it capable of sustaining life over hundreds of years, creating a second Earth even as the original continued to be torn apart by eco-disasters and war. From what Professor Aristole told me, the Old Earth governments and their space colonists started a war between themselves, and in their zeal to win, the colonists used several of their orbiting colony ships, capable of sustaining millions of Humans, as little more than massive weapons, to take down all the capital cities they could hit. The survivors in space retreated to Mars, and on Earth, our species did not recover until Pokémon were introduced to the ecosystem, and Arceus reorganized and rejuvenated our beleaguered world."

"Another Earth...a red planet...hmm." The rider seemed unnerved by his words, but whatever was on her mind was apparently not for his ears. They recalled their Pokémon, dousing the lights, and ascended stealthily towards where they sensed the Hand's mind. The further up they went, the more booms and earth shaking moves they could feel from up above. Even if the Crusaders here fought back, with the legion's numbers reinforced by Rio, and several squads of veteran Trainers from Japan who'd sailed with them, they would not last long.

Eventually, they came upon a narrow hallway, with a guarded entrance, aside from the hallway's opposite end. Jess had taken the opposite path, and now she and the riders were waiting to pin the pair of guards standing outside the door between them. He felt her mental nod, and he moved at exactly the same time she did, their plasma blades humming to life, and then hissing off after a pair of perfect strikes. He was reminded of the first time they'd stormed an Arcean bunker, in the north western regions. They'd left those sentries alive, and that decision had cost them time and lives when they'd called for aid despite having been ordered not to on pain of death. This time, the Crusaders did not get the chance to shout for help, and resist until the end. Their helmets silently levitated to the floor, and the pair had looks of disgust on their faces. The helmets hid the features of the humans they'd just dispatched, but that didn't make it better. Just slightly less grotesque.

Alex entered first, wincing at how loud the steel doors were as they opened. He saw only one other figure in the room beyond, hunched over something. A feminine voice rang through the dark chamber. "Good, you're back. Do you have the-" She paused, as the sounds of quite a few more pairs of boot-clad feet entered the room as well, while a pair of Scales kept watch outside for new arrivals. The woman before them was a redhead, and her hair jutted at numerous points in spiky tufts. If she had a decent figure, it was hidden by the deep navy blue suit that seemed not all that different to what Pravus had been wearing, the first time they'd battled in Castelia.

Alex's eyes narrowed. Her mind was a fortress, but her typing was normal. That meant that what she was trying to do within this room had almost succeeded. Before her, was a fawn that Alex, Jess, and the riders were well familiar with. White fur, light blue accents, and light gold horns, barely grown and still covered with fuzz, jutting from his skull. "Lilyth Opscuria...your rule over Fornia just ended...release the Xerneas. Now."

He put emphasis on the last Word, and quite by accident, the woman reflexively let the struggling Legendary clone free of her grasp. She glared at him then, stood, and adjusted her glasses. Her attire was proper, but he knew a nerd when he saw one. Judging by the screens and monitors set throughout the room, she rarely left this dark, cold space from which she spewed the lies that populated most Fornian media.

"Interesting…" She said, scowling as the tiny deer ran straight for the riders. Jess stepped in front of it, and Alex stepped forward towards the woman, readying a Psychic attack for any last-second traps or button pressing attempts. Hilbert had told him what had cost them two Gym Leaders in Arciana City, and he did not want history to repeat. He also didn't doubt that there was a 'blow up everything' button, somewhere. He needed this base intact. "Is that how you've swayed so many of my countrymen? Forcing their bodies and minds to bend to you with your foul half-breed magic?"

Alex chuckled, but it lacked mirth. "Would you prefer I indoctrinated them from childhood instead? Gave them no choice at all in their beliefs, and demanded total obedience lest their 'immortal souls' be consigned to Giratina's realm for all eternity?" The grim expression shifted to a small smirk. "How'd that work out for your Prophet?"

The woman gave him a creepy smile in return, and somehow, the dim light of her screens made her glasses turn white as she pushed them up purposefully with her middle finger. "Not well...but then, Caleb went mad ages ago. I should really thank you for beheading him. You stirred more civilians than ever into joining the Crusaders. The Prophet is more beneficial to us now as a beloved martyr. By the time you get to Sacreus, they'll be ready for you."

Alex snorted air through his nose, and shook his head. "Please. Fresh meat won't spare you from Mjolnir. Not after Thor hears about this." He gestured to the Xerneas. "They will be crushed, by the combined might of every legion the east has raised against you lunatics. You've already lost the war." Lux hopped into his hand and ignited with a snap-hiss, as Alex pointed his black and white blade of humming plasma at her throat. "Surrender the Oasis to me, and I will let you continue with your existence. You haven't bound yourself to the Shadow. You may yet be redeemed."

The woman eyed the plasma sword with more curiosity than fear. Then, she looked back at him. "I've infused thousands of Pokémon with Shadow, helped normalize the process, even covered up those who went berserk with power, hiding the damage from the general populace. There can be no redemption for me in the eyes of Arceus. I gave up that hope a long time ago, when I understood what the Church really was."

Alex looked her over again for a long time, then lowered the sword, and extinguished the blade. "You are still Human, in a land of Shadow Infused abominations." His deep blue aura flared, growing brighter and brighter until it started burning gold. He raised his free hand then, palm facing upwards, and a wave of Light washed over her side of the room, and more specifically, her belt. Judging by her awed expression, she had an inkling of the choice that lay before her. "Nobody is beyond redemption...and too few in this war have taken the chance to walk the path towards it."

"Then I won't break the streak." The woman grinned, and Alex sighed, lowering the offered hand. His aura flared back down to the normal outline of blue he kept as a shield when in war. "A compromise, dragonblood. Battle me. If I win, I go free and you never see me again. If I lose, you send me to wherever you put your 'special' prisoners, and I spill every dirty secret Caleb Pravus ever told me, so I could properly explain why it never happened, to the masses."

Alex's smirk widened. A battle was always preferable. "Your offer is accepted. Ictus!" His crimson Drapion appeared in a flash of black and red light. He chittered as he eyed the woman, and waited, seemingly eager for battle. Her first response to the Drapion was a Sandslash, but as it appeared, her opponent only seemed to grow more confident, despite type disadvantage.

"Now...Shadow Drill!" The Sandslash flinched at the sound of her voice, and even Ictus felt pity for the sand mouse. The pity shifted to amusement, as they watched the Sandslash look at its Trainer, sniff twice, and snort. Then, it curled into a spiky ball and promptly fell asleep. There was a murmur of amusement from the Scales, and the suddenly embarrassed women reached for another ball, face red as she recalled the Pokémon.

She called out a Mismagius next. "Use Curse!" The ghostly Pokémon looked around, seemingly dazed. She eyed Ictus, the Scales behind him, and then seemed to float backwards slightly.

To Alex's ears it said, "Good idea…" and then the ghost turned to face its Trainer, who was starting to realize what the issue was. The Shadow infused into each of them was no longer there, and the control she'd had over them was all but gone, as her partners had grown in level, some rather significantly, once the Shadow energy was Purged, and she had never bothered acquiring badges or building bonds. The Mismagius raised its arms, and used the move, on its Trainer, at the price of half of its own energy. She cried out in pain as dark sparks of electricity and ghost energy ravaged her form, slowly. A focused blast of ghost energy shattered its Pokéball, and then the Mismagius sank through the floor, and disappeared.

Alex chuckled. "Not enough Badges...and now without mind control, all the horrible things you've done to those creatures on your waist can come back to bite you. Maybe literally."

Her pained violet eyes went wide at his words, and she glanced at the remaining miniaturized spheres. She shook her head then, and glared at him. "What is it you people are always saying? Friendships and bonds triumph over everything? I'll use my first. He'll at least listen to orders!" She tossed the Dark Ball then, and its occupant appeared in a flash of black light.

Ictus hissed, and raised his tail, arms spread wide as he sensed that this time, the battle was very much on. A Flygon coalesced from the dark light, yawning as it rose from its curled up position, into hovering in the air. It blinked several times, and then looked at its Trainer, confused. Instead of varied shades of green with red tipped wings, this one had light blue accents upon its light green scales, and both his eyes and wings were orange in color.

"You do not have to fight for her, anymore." The Flygon turned towards Alex as he spoke, and was understood. "She can't control you against your will. You're free now. All of you are."

The shiny Flygon glanced back at its Trainer, and then answered him as it rose into the air on its rapidly beating wings. "Everything we did, we did to get stronger. I must be as strong as I can. For Arceus!"

Seeing his frown, the Hand gave a command. "Mud Shot!"

"X-Scissor." Ictus's burly arms rose, lit with the bug typed energy he'd all but mastered as a Skorupi, and deflected the normally super effective move by slashing through it with typing resistant energy. Poison, dark, bug, and being able to light his fangs with three different elements had been what the ogre scorpion had learned since his capture. He was more quiet than the rest of the team, often left to brood by himself as dark types tended to do, but both Arthur and Gelauros had managed to befriend him, and he'd come to rely on them, and his Trainer, in the chaos that was a warring battlefield full of Pokémon.

Irritated, Lilyth gave another command. "Try blocking this...Earth Power!"

Alex didn't give the Flygon a chance to summon the power, which would likely tear through the room. Ictus was already scurrying forward for his counter move with speed that one wouldn't expect from a hulking poison Pokémon. "Ice Fang!"

His mouth shone light blue as he came in close to the focusing Flygon, and bit, hard. With a pitiable cry, it fell to the metal floor of the technology-filled room, and the slight shaking that had begun to build ceased. Alex chuckled again. "A quadruple weakness to Ice attacks is rather annoying, isn't it."

Lilyth fell to her knees by the Flygon, but made no move to comfort it. She detached the balls from her belt, and offered them in her palm. "Fine. Redemption, was it? Take them. They won't want me...heal my Flygon too."

The Flygon, who had come back to a weak conscious state, snarled as Alex moved forward and applied a Potion. He usually preferred berries, as they stung less, but he was fresh out of those. He took the Pokéballs, figuring that the occupants within them could decide for themselves if they wanted newer, kinder, stronger Trainers, or freedom. He pocketed them within the cloak-friendly bags on his belt for now, and pushed the Flygon's ball back to her. "You can keep him. I suggest giving him a name though, he's strong, a shining example of a powerful Pokémon. He deserves that much."

The woman, still weakening from the Curse, sneered up at him. "I never saw the point in nicknames."

Alex sighed at her. "Without a name, you're just calling him by his species. It'd be like everyone referring to you as 'Human'." He pat the giant victorious crimson scorpion by his side, and smirked. "Bonds can conquer anything. Names are the first step. I accept your surrender...do not forget the terms of our Battle."

She gave him one last hateful look, before she and her Pokémon were bamfed back to Unova. "Now then…" He said, as he gestured to the room. "Find me the intercom system for this base. They'll break, once they know their Hand has turned on them."

In short order, his Voice was echoing through the Oasis of Glory, and the several thousand soldiers guarding it surrendered, once they tried checking in with the Church for orders, and found only sarcastic easterners on the other side of the comm.

The top side assault had been perfectly coordinated, and Tao had used the combined forces from Kalos, Norstad, and Rio to swiftly break whatever defenses the Crusaders managed to raise. People of several differing regions, along with Champions from across the former States, forged rather impressive bonds through battle, friendships that only the cruelty of war could make permanent.

Professor Aristole and Clemont had led them from behind their front lines as they combined their military genius, and ordered Grant, Korrina, and Skyla to come at the base from several directions. After taking several cities and towns with little to no pillaging, and doing so impressively fast, the soldiers under Alex and Tao had grown rather confident, and strong. Word was sent to Trasia, which had evidently been taken with no blood, but quite a bit of lightning hammer related property damage. They would all rendezvous at their new Imperial base in the Fornia region, that they actually spent manpower on occupying and holding for a change once it was empty.

Of the prisoners from the Tribes that Alex had promised Chief Sike he would find, there was no sign. After several hours of searching, one of their ground types found them. A mass grave, with thousands of bodies within it. Before the sun rose, the continent was aware of yet another Arcean atrocity, and from the files the Scales found, it was very much based on some half-baked Bigoted idiocy citing some sort of delusional about superior genes and breeding that Tao and those in charge of deprogramming their prisoners were quite familiar with. The racist rhetoric was, perhaps unsurprisingly, popular with those who had become Crusaders.

Three Days Later, Valley of Death - Fornia Region

Though the terrain the combined force of just under two million humans had to cross was arid, at best, the local Pokémon did not attack them, as they usually would have. The Original Dragon had returned, presumably to stop the madness the humans of the surrounding region had been perpetuating for almost three centuries. His massive figure was obvious, on the horizon. As with most areas in which berries were scarce, bleached white bones were a common sight. The Pokémon who lived here had to fight to survive.

Sacreus' presence hadn't helped either. Tao had remarked several times, mostly to himself, at how evil the land was around here. About how it was worse than he'd imagined. The further into the Valley they marched, the more the stone became a dark black, but in the light given off by their passing, there was a noticeable purple tinge to it as well.

"That's far enough, half-breeds!"

The voice that rang out from above and around those leading the legions, namely Unova's Champions, and the intimidating outline of the God of Thunder upon his chariot, was male, and its owner stepped into view from atop a nearby ledge along the jagged sides of the valley's walls. Thousands of tons of ash had fallen into the desert around Sacreus, but the city itself was illuminated on the horizon, in a bright dome that protected it from the swirling ash and sand. The winds had turned the armor of the Crusaders before them, those chosen specifically by the Prophet to guard their capital, a dark ash color that covered the gold beneath. Their weapons seemed different too as many, like the Scales and regular eastern forces, used a variety of weapons, each glowing with one of three familiar typings. Red, yellow, and icy blue lights powered up around them, and aura shields visibly manifested among the Scales as battle threatened to break out.

Nobody fired, though. "Your psychic overlord's crusade is over! We will not let you take the capital. We will not surrender. You will have to kill all of us! You will find the same within the city. Unlike some cities, Sacreus remains loyal to the Church that founded it!"

The Generals chuckled, and it was Hilbert that muttered, "That's not what founded Sacreus...people have been living in that crater ever since their Old Earth city was decimated. Long before Pravus even arrived..." That too, they could see outlined by the light on the horizon. The lip of the crater that cradled the center of the Church of Arceus was rather high, as what had taken out the old city had been truly massive.

Alex glanced at Tao, and the dragon's voice echoed in his head. "I have no issues with fighting them, but I sense you are weary of seeing your kin die. If you intend to avoid unnecessary death, you need to use your Voice. Now."

He looked at the cliffs surrounding them, as the Scales prepared once more to deflect the opening salvo of their opponents with rock typed defenses, amongst other attacks. Many had their Pokéballs levitating around their shoulders, waiting patiently for someone to strike first.

"Blaze." The Charizard seemed surprised that he'd finally been picked to face down so many at once. Usually Arthur or Shruikan stayed by his side, but he understood his Trainer's reasoning. The black dragon had earned a nickname among the Arcean's devout, and bringing out the 'demon' before the fighting started would likely spark it. With such a large form, and while surrounded by so many ice typed power weapons, he'd faint quickly, and would then be tired for the rest of the battles yet to come.

The fire lizard appeared in a flash of red light, and Alex hopped on his shoulders, which were wide enough now for his oversized feet to stand on normally. Most of his team had grown taller than average after their time in Norstad, and he wondered if it would stop, eventually. The Flame Plate affixed to his chest shone with a faint red aura, but he didn't draw upon the power yet.

His Charizard flew him up into the air between the craggy cliff sides, and he looked around at the Crusaders. Then at his Scales, arrayed into five legions behind him. There were less than when they'd started, but given that the initial Arcean's troop numbers had been well into the millions, they had lost more. "I am tired. The Dragon sees it. My troops see it. Our march down the coast was a long one. City after city, we brought your brothers to the point of surrender. But they're mostly alive. Waiting, in the capital, to be enlightened as to what has really been going on in your region while Pravus has ruled."

The figure that appeared to be their leader shifted, presumably to shout again, but Alex's Voice cut through whatever words he was preparing. "Some of you, I can sense, feel the same way. You are tired of war, of suffering, and now, the source of that suffering is gone. We are on the precipice of a golden era for this continent. Those among you who would live to see it, when your warmongering leader gives the command to open fire...don't. You will be spared, and we will know who fired, and who resisted. You are the last remaining Crusaders in Fornia. One way or another, my armies will take Sacreus. I would have most of you stay alive, despite that. I do not wish to kill you, or your civilians. Put down your weapons. Let the war be ended on a peaceful path."

A rocket-shaped missile fired from one of the cliffs, and Alex raised a hand, holding it in the air as it ran out of fuel against his psychic hold, and then sputtered out entirely, without detonating. A metallic voice rang through the air then. "Caleb Pravus's departure from this plane is temporary. Those who accept the half-breed's bargain are to be executed on sight!"

The voice's owner came out then, standing beside the captain who had stopped their forward progress. His entirely metal body was almost box shaped, and almost comical to look at. The man was mostly machine, as his torso, arms, and legs were all either replacements for what he'd lost, or mechanical upgrades the good Doctor Ein had given to him for this, the final battle for the survival of Arceus's true Church. "While the enemies of the Prophet still draw breath, there can be no peace!"

Alex sighed, and looked down, as he felt the wavering minds refocus their determination to kill, or be killed. He'd been close to shaking them. "My offer will stand for those who try to avoid killing my subjects."

His last words were shouted over by the metallic tones coming from the machine-man's speakers. "Open fire! All weapons! Do not let them reach the city!" More missiles fired from the launchers mounted on the figure's metal body, and Blaze scorched them with a Heat Wave, detonating them near the cliffs they'd been launched from, and taking several soldiers with them as they detonated.

Then, chaos erupted. Alex recalled his Charizard, letting gravity return him to the head of his own legion as he dodged the buzzing flurry of electric beams aimed at him, and he hovered just above the ground as Crusaders with melee friendly power weapons came towards them. He turned to the Generals, and the Scales who'd been following just behind them. He knew how tired his eyes looked, but he gave the order anyway. "Give those reluctant to fight a chance. Kill the rest. You heard them. There will be few prisoners this time."

Most of the energy beams had been blocked by the Scales' readied rock type moves, and more continuously fired energy discharges came down at them as the Dragon Legions marched once more to war. The Scales moved forward as a unit, but one unit, untarnished by a single loss throughout the campaign, charged ahead of the others. The sparking form of Thor Odinson flew up from his chariot, and through the air towards the mechanical General, judging by the decoration upon his chassis.

Mjolnir turned what had been left of his humanity, namely his comically small head atop the box-like chassis, into paste with a single swing, and with another, Thor buckled the man's 'body' in on itself, sending it arcing through the air, and crashing in a smoldering heap upon the Valley's floor.

Seeing that display of power so easily take down their General caused more than a few squads of Crusaders to drop their weapons, as Thor sailed through the air, letting his hammer pull him along. To his credit, he did not attack those who gave up. Those who tried to take a shot from a safe distance soon found that distance closed, with the speed of a lightning strike, and paid for their brazen attempt, usually with a hammer to the face.

Despite their General lying as a smoking pile of wreckage, the Crusaders did not break, and it was soon obvious as to why. Their officers were not unlike the Hand of Death, in that their skin tone was the same, and they had the same disregard for life. More than a few had begun to execute their own 'faltering' men to keep the others fighting, though some did manage to overpower the officers, and toss their weapons down.

Tao spoke to his armies then, as his unflinching golden gaze took in the carnage and the chaos. "Target their officers first, and the squads will surrender." Each Scale passed the word on to the non-psychics they were charged with keeping as alive as possible, and the battle shifted quickly after that.

Every so often a golden barrier of psychic energy flared up to block an attack veered the dragon's way by purpose, or accident. They all failed to so much as tarnish his scales. Alex wasn't worried about him, for with Laurea on his head, where she'd stayed even after her Tamer returned, he was essentially untouchable...if he knew what was coming. There were Scales with what had been classified by the Imperial military as 'sensory powers', guarding him. With all they and their Pokémon were able to detect, and with Tao able to link and share their minds and senses, there was little that could sneak up upon the most important Pokémon the easterners had. The squad guarding him had distinguished themselves in the Oasis, keeping Tao from a single hit aimed his way, which had allowed him to consistently heal the troops with his Light, and keep casualties low.

The majority of the Crusaders defending the Valley of Death's Sacreus side entrance eventually surrendered to the focused onslaught of the new Empire's military might, under the guidance of the Original Dragon. It turned out that the million soldiers Pravus had set to guard his city had not, infact, all gathered in the Valley. Only about half had gone, and now less than half of those had joined their comrades in the capital. There would be no denying their victory now that soldiers of Sacreus itself had arrived to join their number, as prisoners of war.

"We are not done!" The Dragon Emperor's Voice rang out over the legions as they recovered from the short but bloody conflict, healed, and began pitching tents. "We have only a short reprieve before we siege the city. They will not give up easily! Heal yourselves and your partners, restore their power as well, and then have them all by your side as we march. You have an hour at most. When the Dragon roars, we move!"

The oncoming army of just under two million humans would be exponentially increased in size, and more importantly intimidation, if their Pokémon marched with them. The wide-range and devastating weapons used by their enemies had made carrying them within balls the norm for this conflict, but by this point, the squads of Scales and soldiers under them assigned to guarding the regular soldiers on all sides were ready with split second rock-typed shields, and had been given their roles based on how well they could defend. Several of Alex's team had aided as such in the latest conflict, reinforcing their rocky defenses when necessary, and retaliating, usually with Earthquake.

Alex recalled his team after healing and restoring them with Max Elixirs, only to notice that Thor himself was approaching once they were almost all inside, and resting. Since learning of the cloned Xerneas, the Asgardians had, surprising everyone, been eager to leave. Both Tao and Alex had preferred to keep their aid, though. His soldiers were intense battlers in their own right, and many Scales had taken to sparring with them during the long march up the other, less anti-air defended side of the range of mountains Pravus himself had renamed Cordillera Muerte. Thanks to the Valley of Death, which separated the mountains and the desert to the east and ran all the way up to the crater within which Sacreus resided, the Arceans had been unable to set up lasting outposts in the valley. Their tactics towards Pokémon, and eventually their very presence, had become intolerable to the wildlife that vastly outnumbered the humans.

"Redwood!" Alex looked up from healing his Espeon, the last to return to his cape, as Thor came within speaking distance, covered in grime and blood. "My men and I are returning to Norstad. You have more than enough here to handle the city, now their number is halved. Yggdrasil must be united with her...offspring. I would have you explain this to him, he will not move for us."

"I'll explain things. Thank you for aiding us, Thor. We will not forget those who offered to join us when war broke out. You're rather popular back in the capital, you know." They walked as they spoke, heading for the temporary tent in which Thor's host had kept the Xerneas clone, once the battle had ended. They didn't like confining him to a ball, but it had been necessary for the march north.

Thor, for his part, nodded. "I may pay your capital a visit, sometime." He turned as they reached the Xerneas' recently pitched tent, and offered a thick, meaty hand.

Alex took it, giving the self-proclaimed deity his best attempt at a handshake. "You'll always be welcome. If the Imperium gives you any trouble, let me know. The latest reports say they've all but decimated Varangia. The Ursh Horde was the only thing holding them back from your gates."

Thor laughed at that, and let Alex's now slightly aching hand free of the iron grip. "Kalagann the Indomitable tested our gate often enough. Let the Imperium come. I have seen their 'thunder' warriors. They do not understand the forces they play with. Not as well as I, at any rate. They will be hard pressed to take Helheim's Gate."

"Mmm." Alex peeked inside the tent, saw the fear on the Xerneas' features, and then looked back to the flame-haired Asgardian. "Well, if they do manage to press you, you will always have allies, willing and ready to help defend your lands. I have a feeling Norstad will prosper, once the people start mining the mountains again. I would rather keep those resources away from the Imperium."

Thor raised a red eyebrow at that. "You mean to face them in war?"

Alex shrugged. "My Empire just doubled in size within only a few months of forming from the chaos of invaded States. With Rio and now Japan as allies, as well as Norstad and apparently Kalos, that's much of the planet that they have not conquered, siding under one banner. I doubt the Imperator will let us be forever. Were I him, I'd strike while we were weary from war, and I'd strike at our strongest allies, namely, the company of warriors that didn't lose a single man to heavily armed Crusaders our own troops could barely handle, at first." He gave the Asgardian a meaningful look, and the burly redhead seemed to see his point.

"I will keep mine eye upon our borders, Dovahkiin. Fare well." With a final nod, he turned towards the area nearby, where his men had rested after the latest conflict. Within moments, they began packing, and Alex turned to help with that, entering the tent.

The scared fawn's horns glowed with fairy aura, and being so close to it was nauseating, but Alex made his best effort despite that, forcing a smile to his face. "Easy, little Xerneas. I'm not going to hurt you."

The Pokémon stared at him for a long moment, seeming to remember his form, if not his voice, before it answered him in his species' tongue. "Why...can I understand you?"

That, made the forced smile more genuine. "It's a gift that not many Humans have been given throughout our history, but it makes explaining things, and coexisting, a lot easier. I lead the Humans that liberated you from that foul woman, in the Oasis of Glory."

As he mentioned the place, the male Xerneas shied away further, all but mewling. "Don't take me back there...I can't go back...I can't go anywhere…" The X shaped irises in the innocent teal blue eyes of the fawn met his then, and his heart lurched as he saw a small spark of hope in them, diminished as it was. "Where do I belong, Human that speaks like one of us?"

Suddenly cursing his lack of berries, he tried thinking of something else he could use to allay the well-founded fears of the young Pokémon before him. At that moment, Jess joined him in the tent, Sitrus Berry in hand. The Xerneas' eyes went wide at the new arrival, but the food made him step forward several paces. Alex briefly wondered if he'd even eaten anything since being rescued.

"Don't mind her, she's nice, and you should eat something. Then I'll explain what's going on, and answer your questions. Does that sound agreeable?" The fawn looked at him, and then at Jess. He sniffed, his eyes widened, and he stepped closer.

"This scent...this power in her...it seems so...familiar." Any further words were stopped by the devouring of the Sitrus Berry, and he had several more, as Jess kept procuring them from her bottomless bag.

"It is. It was a gift, from your...mother. It made her immune to aging, amongst other things. The burly men you've seen outside, the ones with the blue-maned Rapidash, they're going to take you to your mother now. They are the ones charged with guarding her."

The fawn blinked at him. "But I have no parents...the Doctor...he said Human science created me...he called it a...miracle of injumeering."

Alex chuckled, and then nodded. "Biological engineering...Human science allows us to do many wonderful things...but the Doctor you're referring to...I'm guessing his science was not so kind. He probably had a sample of your mother's genetic makeup. He used that, to create you. Fear not, you won't have to deal with Humans again, if you do not wish to. Your mother will explain more, once you arrive."

"The...burlap Humans...will they be nice?" Both the humans chuckled, as the young, tired brain of the Pokémon fumbled with terms he barely grasped.

"Yes. They will give you food that won't make you sick or sleepy, and they'll bring you to your mother. To your home. They might even let you stay out of the Pokéball, if you stay close to them." The fawn's eyes seemed shinier now, and his newly antlered head, still covered with soft almost invisible fuzz, tilted to one side.

"Stay close…? I can do that...the ball is...better than the Doctor's and the Woman's, but it's still...stuffy."

Alex arched a brow at that. Balls, he had in large supply. Wartime did not offer many opportunities to catch more partners, and those he had caught when the chance arose, had yet to be trained. He drew a Luxury Ball from within his bag, and gestured at the regular Pokéball lying to the side of the tent, tossed there by the men who'd freed him. It shattered with a burst of psychic energy, and Alex nodded at the new ball, in his hand. "Hop inside here. I'll give you a few seconds to look around, see if you like it better. It's yours to keep, when you need it."

The fawn eyed him for a long moment, and then booped the button with his nose, entering the ball. It shook twice, dinged, and Alex counted under his breath as Jess watched with amusement on her face. "Nine Sippi River...Ten Sippi River." He pressed the button, and the Xerneas appeared again.

"That...was much more...nice. I don't mind that ball. Thank you, Human. I will stay inside while the Humans take me to my...home. That will be easiest, yes?" Alex nodded, as the fawn spoke.

"They'll let you out to eat, stretch for a bit, but yes, it does make transporting you a lot easier, and it lowers the chance that someone bad will catch you again. Someday, you will have the power to make Humans immune to dying. Many will seek you out in search of that power. Stay close to your friends, and you will avoid being caught by them, and remember, not all Humans will be your enemy. Most of us are friendly. If one starts chasing you, find others. Most of us know the importance of keeping Legendary Pokémon free from poachers."

The fawn had several more berries after that, and then Alex and Jess emerged from the tent, handing the Luxury Ball to one of Thor's riders, stationed outside of it. "He knows where you'll be bringing him, and that he can trust you and your fellow riders. Don't let him out too long, we don't need someone catching him again. He's had enough hardship for one lifetime."

If the blonde, burly Asgardian rider was impressed, he did a good job of not showing it. He nodded, took the Pokéball, and attached it to his metal-clad hip, where it stayed, before he and the other three guards rejoined their company. The Imperial forces were quiet, as they watched their vaunted allies ride away into the desert. Then, they Bounced into the sky in a rising pillar of blue flames, covering hundreds of miles in a single jump. The ship they'd arrived in was still parked outside of Castelia, and he imagined that the city would give the heroes who'd kept them safe from more Arcean insurgents a warm send-off.

Tao's roar echoed across their lines then, and with a groan from the slightly demoralized regular forces, the march began once more. Only a few doctors stayed behind to tend the wounded, and bury the dead. Several Scales stayed to guard them, using Pokémon with intimidating stares to discourage the local wildlife from attempting to eat the numerous fresh bodies now littering their territory. They did not recover the fallen Arceans, as they never got the chance to before the local Pokémon, figuring out which humans were being dragged back and which were being ignored, had gone for the easy meals.

Oddly enough, they did not seem to be fighting over them. There was enough for everyone, and the sickening crunches of teeth punching through Melmetal armor filled the ears of those who'd stayed behind as the macabre noises echoed off the valley's canyon walls. Those who had gone on ahead, had a different plan.

"The remembrance has begun."

Tao's words echoed in the heads of his Generals, and they all shared a look as they approached the deceptively massive crater lip that held the city. Only the tallest of the dark spires of Sacreus showed over the edges, and below them was a lot more city than one might expect. Rather than a hindrance, the easterners used them as cover, taking sniper positions for any Crusaders that thought to try their luck before the siege began in earnest.

The plan, such as it was, was easy enough to grasp. Alex and Jess would again head underground, letting Cenomons munch a path for them through the massive Melmetal steel bunker-city below. Up top, Nate, Rosa, Hilbert, and Hilda would wait for him to take out the central controls that kept the vaunted automatic energy spewing turrets defending the city functioning, and with those, would go the energy shield that encircled the crater, and had been active since they'd first laid eyes on the megalopolis. While his squad took those down, and then focused on taking out the remaining heads of the Church, their gift of information to the Fornians would be playing, and interrupting the regularly scheduled funeral services for the now deceased Prophet. Having seen the rough edit, Alex knew their own information would be indistinguishable from the usual Arcean programming, such was the skill of their technicians in copying the cheesy, over-the-top tone of literally every broadcast.

Since taking the Oasis of Glory, Tao had bamfed Haley to it, along with whoever she needed, in order to take charge of the base's media. From her control room, Lilyth had possessed access to all the Arcean's media, battle plans, and dirty secrets. With that, Haley had compiled a much longer video, utilizing both the new information, and the members of the Fornian Rebellion, with Professor Dracaena at their head. By the end of the knowledge dump they would hopefully infuriate the local populace into a rebellion. While they were typically blinded by faith, Alex and Tao had observed that most Fornians did care about their partners. They had never been given time to love and frolic with them like many other regions did, but in their own ways, they cared a great deal.

They had simply been mentally conditioned to believe that saving the planet was more important than keeping their Pokémon 'protected from the taint of psychic types', and only those in the Church's military even knew what Shadow Infusion was. Only the 'most devout' had presented their partners for the Church's 'purification ritual'. It was only recently that Pravus had ordered the process to be mandatory, and more than a few Fornians had started to question what the Church had really done to their Pokémon once they saw the total shift in behavior.

Silver light burned into the sky, as Rosa tapped into her own strength, her Excadrill already in position. Behind her, were her Scales, and their soldiers, and surrounding the humans, was the contents of all their belts. Pokémon of almost all known species were ready to go, and those under the Scales were clad in armor the color of their typing, usually. Only a few had bonds strong enough to manifest the Plate armor, and they were in the vanguard. Tao roared again, and in a masterful display of the Voice, he empowered the already existing boons on his legions into a single amalgam of all the benefits he and the Dragon Emperor had infused into them at the start of their offensive.

Gold now once more tinged the almost platinum silver Rosa was giving off, and with a single Drill Run, her partner created a massive swirl-patterned tunnel into the rocky lip of the crater. With a single move, she had punched into their city, and she wasted no time in charging in, descending on the well-armed populace of the city first, as they began weakening the resolve of the soldiers. With Crusaders, it took many deaths before even a few were willing to give in to the inevitable. Sacreus being the capital of Fornia, they had expected the death toll to rise depressingly high.

Alex paused, as he took in a rather decent aerial view of their target, as well as where they should aim to pop up. The outer edges of the crater were covered with barracks full of troops in the process of becoming Crusaders, but as with any fresh group of soldiers when tested against those who'd already seen war, they fell, before the coordinated attacks of Rosa's troops.

Not to be outdone, the twins began glowing as well, as Hilbert's mega evolved Alakazam united their minds, and their respective strengths into one. A Power Gem from Hilda's Gigalith had a similar effect on the Arcean's natural defenses as the Drill Run, and both of their respective legions moved through the opening as they too entered the fray, and moved to link up with Rosa.

Nate's forces stayed behind, as without Thor's host, they were the smallest of the legions thanks to their losses in Arciana City, but that in no way made them the weakest. More than a few of his Scales had aspired to master the dragon type as well, and many of the Champions turned Scales could claim to have battled, and even beaten, Iris, Drayden, and Clair, when she'd deigned to tour the States. Their role was the simplest. When the shields and defenses fell, aerial superiority would decide the conflict's outcome.

If Nate looked impatient, he didn't show it, not on his face, at least. Alex did notice a slight, consistent leg twitch as his eyes very obviously followed Rosa, and he empathized, before he turned back to Cenomons, and the fiery gaze of his own better half. "Once we've cleared the lower levels, you can eat as much as you like. Just make sure the surrounding rooms don't crush anything important.

The Aggron gave an excited growl, and then moved faster than Alex had ever seen him. He felt slightly guilty, as he had promised this tantalizing metallic feast throughout his training. He knew by now Ceno would listen without it, but he had been looking forward to devouring the enemy's legendary bunker. To Ceno's delight, he found the edge quickly, and began tearing through the metal as easily as he had the rock. It was thick, by at least twenty feet, and extended for miles.

As Alex contemplated just how much metal one needed to make such a fortress, and more importantly, where Pravus had acquired that material, he paused Ceno's feast with genuine worry. The Aggron continued to tunnel, but he'd focused. As they moved, Alex reached out to Percy, wincing as his brain made contact with the Fairy King's. "Percy! The steel Pravus used for his projects...could we reform it into Meltan and Melmetal again?"

He felt silence, and wished the man would hurry up, as his head began to throb. Jess glanced at him, but he moved himself through the air, and the jagged edges of Cenomons' tunnel, at the same consistent pace. "No. Not without their Hex Nuts, which...from what I saw...were melted into the pools. The Arceans likely separated them from their body's metal, and used them for something else."

Alex paused, and then frowned. "I'm going to try my Iron Plate anyway…"

He shied away from the contact, but didn't sever the link entirely. He fished in his smaller belt-bound bags, and withdrew the awakened square of steel typed energy made manifest. A small piece of something that had once been much larger, at the dawn of creation.

Ceno nommed his way into a fluorescently lit underground hallway, and the Emperor's Scales moved out with their squads. Each was charged with mapping the complex in a single direction, and would pull back if they made contact with the enemy in numbers they couldn't handle. Ceno waited patiently, and Alex chuckled at his thoughts. As soon as he'd heard what his Trainer had in mind, the feast he'd been craving had taken lesser importance. If there was a way to revive the Melmetal, or even a few Meltan, it would be worth it.

Alex placed the Iron Plate on a nearby wall, where it affixed itself. Ceno had another Iron Plate on his chest, though in his Mega Form, it was hard to make out. His eyes burned from blue to gold as he reached for the power, and on a whim, reached for its source. To his surprise, he found it, rather easily, and the mind that wielded it.

Redwood. What do you require?

"The Arceans did...unspeakable things to a particular family line of steel types in order to acquire absurd amounts of their metal...I was wondering if the Light might...somehow return them to life. Rosa mentioned that it worked on Pokémon, before...most of the time." He sensed the Alpha Pokémon ponder, and then give the mental equivalent of a grin.

A worthy effort. You will have my power.

Alex sent a message to his Scales who had already begun moving through the complex, that things may or may not suddenly get hairy, and that the Meltan and Melmetal, should they revive, might not aid them once reformed.

He felt a tap on his dragonbone covered shoulder as he focused, and glanced to see the face of the man known to his region as The Snatcher. Wes, Geralt, and Ranger Walker had joined the Emperor's Scales for this foray, as their intelligence suggested Doctor Ein was one of the yet remaining leaders, and all three wished to settle the score with him. Alex intended to let them.

"What are you trying, Dragon Emperor?" Wes said, eyeing the Plate affixed to the wall. It was at that moment Alex remembered that he'd evidently helped Percy raid the crater facility east of Arcino.

"Just Alex, is fine...I'm attempting to bring back the Melmetal and Meltan used to construct this fortress...things may get exciting, so stand ready." Instead, the three men shared a look, and then stood around him in a triangle pattern.

"We're going to help you, cousin...now focus." Geralt's words filled his ear, and Alex smirked. He'd heard that his cousin had acquired power, but he hadn't seen it first hand. Walker, who was inspiring genuine beard envy, was unreadable, but his eyes were kind, and he was a Ranger. The three men bowed their heads, and held their right fists to their left palms as they focused their combined Light energy, and guided it towards him.

Alex welcomed it, and with Arceus watching, he made his best attempt at reviving the fallen Pokémon within the metal. Light channeled into him, and he directed it into the Plate, which began to hum. Unfortunately, hum was all it did. Percy had been correct, and the steel here was just that. Lifeless metal. After a few minutes of focusing, he stopped. "It's no use, without their Hex Nuts. Ceno, enjoy your well earned feast. Take in this metal, remember from whence it came...and avenge them, once you're ready."

The Aggron rumbled an affirmative, and began munching again as Alex pocketed the Iron Plate again, and looked to his waiting squad. Jess and Brad, along with the pair of Pokémon Rangers and Wes, would accompany him into the bowels of the complex, and then followed Cenomons deeper into the base as he munched through the steel.

When this conflict has ended, bring your Aggron before the Melmetal your people relocated to Unova.

Just as quickly as the Alpha's presence came, it vanished, without so much as an explanation for the command. Figuring the Alpha Pokémon might yet have something in mind, he encouraged Ceno to consume as much as feasibly possible, and once they punched into a deep chamber, not at all dissimilar from the one that held the Enterprise in the Oasis, he went to do exactly that.

The chamber in question was poorly lit, but there was one source of light. An Azelf, curled into a ball, floated in the exact center on its own power, and the light given off by its pinkish psychic aura lit a single figure, standing before it. The figure was bent over, crooked, stood using a cane, and had their face shrouded by the darkness. It seemed to shudder, as Alex and the rest of his squad came in through the giant gaping hole in the wall of the chamber.

Wes was the first to step forward, Pokéball in hand. "At least now we won't have to waste time searching for you...Doctor Ein!"

The cane tapped the floor of the chamber twice, and then, the lights came on. Alex, along with the rest of the Scales, reached for a ball of their own as Ein began speaking. "Of course it's you...Orre's famous Snatcher...you can put your balls away, I know when I'm beaten." The Doctor had changed in appearance since Geralt, Walker, and Wes had last seen him, but for Alex, this was the first time he'd actually laid eyes on the wiley mad scientist responsible for creating and perpetuating Shadow Infusion as an adult. The mad Doctor had seemed much less pathetic, when he'd been a child. His spine was bent, his face was crooked, his lower legs were entirely bionic, and what hair had survived Primal Groudon's heat was growing back in a bald pattern common to male humans.

"Right now, the people of Sacreus are learning about what you've been doing to their Pokémon, Doctor Ein." Alex said, stepping up next to Wes. He had a Luxury Ball in his hand, colored gold, light bluish gray, with hints of red as well. "When the crowds begin hunting the heads of those responsible for quite possibly the only blasphemy Arceus won't tolerate, your name will be at the top of their Muk list. Why shouldn't we just leave you to them?"

"I have knowledge, Dragon Emperor. I've been privy to Pravus's temper tantrums, rants, and plans for the better part of three decades." At the word knowledge, the ball in Alex's hand began to shake, and he gulped, as he sensed rage from within. He tossed the ball into the air, stalling anything else Ein was planning to say. The look of slow realization on his face was worth it.

As Merlin appeared in a flash of light, his head turned towards the Azelf, and his eyes opened. They burned with Light energy as he sensed what had been done to his counterpart, and it did not take long for him to focus his rage on the Doctor.

As the tiny psychic Pokémon began humming with power, the Doctor gave them a crooked smirk. "Abyssal Flame!"

From above the visible area around the Azelf, the ceiling lit with Shadow energy, and outlined a form familiar to a particular trio, and anyone who'd studied the National Dex Archive with determination. The Shadow infused flames from the Ho-Oh, still bound by the Red Chain and pinned by her wings to the ceiling, rained down on the Scales, and covered them in an explosion of Shadow.

Every instinct they had warned them away from touching it, and thankfully, the pair of psychics at the front of their squad had prepared, and then merged, a pair of Barriers. Directly under them, the two Rangers shared a look, and a nod, before they began tracing a Sign in the air. As their fingers moved, the energy they left behind shone gold.

The light the Sign was radiating reduced the shadowy flames outside the Barrier to nothing, and Alex and Jess dropped it. Between Alex, Geralt, and Wes, the Trainers had realized they had access to three Espeon. Alex's psychic cat had been training, switched from guarding the ranch back home to attacking and healing as needed in the conflicts. He'd grown rather strong fairly quickly, but the other two the Ranger and the Snatcher summoned, a male and a female respectively, were much stronger, and had been training longer.

Before Ein could call more fire, the three psychic cats linked their minds, and thin lines of crimson energy linked their foreheads as, together, they launched the Sign through the air, up towards Ho-Oh. A sparking barrier of crimson aura radiated off the chain binding the tainted Pokémon, but then, the chains wore away, the barrier faded, and the Sign slammed into the Ho-Oh, purging and restoring her to what she had been.

Gratitude and friendship transferred through it to the now once more rainbow colored bird, and she welcomed the calm, sane emotions of balanced homeostasis. Then, her eyes fell on the crooked human. A feminine voice echoed in their heads, but the rage underlying it was telling. "If you need anything from this one, now is the time to interrogate him. He will not leave this chamber alive."

"O-oh, but I must!" Ein said, backing towards the Azelf, "I have so much knowledge...you can't just...burn me! Where's my trial, Unovans?" His tone became slightly panicked, as the Scales turned their fiery eyes from the freed Ho-Oh to the brilliant Doctor responsible for enabling most of the madness Fornia had plunged into once Caleb Pravus had figured out that manufacturing an army of Shadow Pokémon was a very real goal, with the right people. When Cipher had fallen, many of their scientists had been all too willing to join the Church.

Ein hadn't noticed, but one by one, his old teammates had been replaced by blonde, tan skinned Fornians, every bit as competent as his old partners. He'd even gone along with their goals, for a time, until he'd learned that Pravus was mad beyond belief, and well into the Shadowy depths of Ekans shagging insanity. He wanted results, and after a few beatings, Ein had delivered them to him as quickly as their science allowed him. For that success, he'd been given whatever he'd needed in order to experiment as he pleased. Technology. Pokémon.

He'd witnessed the full armored and armed might of all their Crusaders. Millions of devoted Fornians who'd called eagerly for the blood of the east once Pravus riled them up with hateful rhetoric. The Doctor hadn't quite believed they'd be defeated, not until the Scales, and their leader, came charging into his private sanctum.

As he spoke, the Uxie floating beside the Scales who went by Merlin focused his burning golden eyes, and directed them towards the Doctor. Ein gulped, as he saw the Bringer of Knowledge shift his intense gaze between the Azelf, and the man who'd dared to infuse Legendary Pokémon with Shadow. "Knowledge, you say…"

Merlin floated before Ein's face, golden eyes burning with his aura. The psychic type bashed through the man's mental defenses, and began looking through his memories, as well as into the future. Through this unique combination of information gathering, Merlin was able to learn all the Doctor had seen, and would tell them, were they to bring him to the capital and interrogate him. At that moment, it was one possible future, but the Uxie found he preferred a timeline where this man's madness would never again have a chance to spread.

All he left intact were the humiliating defeats, and there were quite a few, at the hands of Wes. The then teenager who'd taken down Cipher had infuriated the Doctor, driving his passion behind his 'work'. All else the man was, Uxie took, leaving Ein with only the knowledge that he had failed, consistently, and was now about to be taken out by the same Ho-Oh that had stopped Cipher before.

Merlin looked up at her, and his tails waved as he spoke. "I have everything useful. Vengeance is yours."

"No...not vengeance…" The rainbow phoenix hovered above Ein, and the still sleeping Azelf. "For tainting creations of Arceus with the foulest substance known to our kind, Doctor Frank Ein, I consign you to the flames!"

The Barrier rose again around the Scales once Merlin psychically pulled the sleeping orb that was Azelf in close. The Sacred Flame filled the chamber's lower level, as Ho-Oh unleashed her rage. The humans and Pokémon stared in awe at the rainbow flames swirling around them. When the flames finally died down, she landed, panting over the small pile of ash and twisted metal that had once been human.

There was no sadness, for this loss though. Of all Caleb Pravus' minions, Doctor Ein had been one of the worst. The Ho-Oh looked to the trio she'd empowered, as well as Alex and Jess, who flanked either side of them, and again dropped the Barrier. "Take me out of this place...and then do not expect to see me for many of your Human lifetimes."

At that, Geralt and Walker looked pained, and it was Walker who finally spoke more than two words. "Is there no way to start over, great Ho-Oh? Can we not all coexist in peace, now that Pravus and Ein are gone?"

The intense red eyes came level with them, as the great bird leaned down. "The monsters of today may be slain, but I know Humanity. You will make more, no matter the era."

As Alex realized he was out of Luxury Balls, Jess stepped forward, offering one already in the color scheme of the Legendary Pokémon. "Stay in here for now, and rest. You should find it enjoyable, it's the most comfortable ball we can currently make."

The Ho-Oh eyed the ball, and then her, and the kindness returned to her tone, slightly. "One of the Sage's pupils, hmm? We shall see...I may rest inside for some time. Keep me safe, fiery Human." With that, the legendary bird entered the ball, and it dinged quietly, as Jess smirked. She glanced up at Alex, and raised the victory sign, mouthing the words 'I caught a Ho-Oh', before pocketing the ball. He'd seen what she could do with an Articuno, and had a strong feeling that, if she was persuasive enough, the kind old bird might actually stay with her.

Brad made a similar offer to the Azelf that had lived atop the hidden lake inside the mountain his family had built their now scorched home upon. The tired Pokémon happily accepted being carried around as he slept in safety, free of the nightmares the Shadow brought. Merlin returned as well, and the Scales began their ascent upwards, through the bunker.

Sacrean law ordered that none within the limits were to carry psychic types, in order to keep the city 'pure' or something, but the Original Dragon's soldiers had, for the most part, abided by that law as they fought in and below the massive crater. Cenomons was well into his meal, and had taken to reducing the outer thickness of the underground bunker, propping up weakened inner rooms with self-made rock supports every so often, to keep whatever was inside from being crushed. He knew enough about humans to know they valued their glowing clicky machines intact, as he'd gotten in genuine trouble with his Trainer when he'd once tried eating the 'lap top' he usually kept in his traveling bag.

The first Pokémon they found acting as a guard was one Alex recognized as belonging to Pravus, not because he'd battled it before, but because it had often been shown in frame with the Prophet, to not-so-subtly suggest and imply his strength. Seeing it up close, he now understood why he'd treated his Gigalith so poorly in Uppsalir. Jess reacted first, summoning Empolia. The Shadow burned to life within the Rhyperior, and as her Empoleon armored herself, the two began to battle.

The Splash Plate's sea colored metallic plates only served to make her wings sharper, her face more protected, and her fins better equipped for swimming. It did make her slower, but she became a watery tank as a result, which was what was needed for a Shadow Infused Rhyperior. The quadrupled weakness to water was reduced by half thanks to the infusion, but Empolia had been on her team for quite a while, and rivaled Hydrus in power. Unlike Hydrus, she was a special attacker, and thus took down the Rhyperior with three perfectly aimed Bubblebeams as it charged her, and then fell, sliding before her armored penguin feet, fainted.

The Scales continued on after Alex had purged the Pokémon, but when it became clear he could only do so much, Wes had Snatched the fainted Rhyperior, and promised that in time, he'd have sessions with Celebi. Unfortunately, that method of purification had been something both Ein and Pravus had wanted to prevent, which meant the process of removing the infusion from the Pokémon's very DNA was a long, arduous one, even for a Celebi.

When they finally climbed high enough through the metallic bunker city to reach the shield and turret controls, they found the room empty of soldiers, as they were automatic, and needed only maintenance. The Houndoom within napped beside its Trainer, who to Alex's eyes, seemed unnaturally still, for sitting in the most important room their side had, during a siege. Many of the locals who'd lived in this underground complex had either battled them, and fled upon losing, or just fled. None of his soldiers made a move to attack unless attacked first, and he was proud of all of them. The flames of war weren't as hot underground, but even above, he knew Rosa and the others would keep their soldier's heads cool, provided they didn't lose momentum.

He felt Arthur nudge him, as he stared longer at the human, convinced something was off. "It's Pravus's Zoroark. I know that stink...let me out, I've a score to settle."

Alex acquiesced, and within the hall, Arthur and Empolia readied themselves. An Aqua Jet from the imperial penguin sent the Houndoom flying into one of the steel walls. The pain only seemed to make it angrier, and as Arthur came at the human with an immediate follow-up, his Sacred Sword was parried, by the shifted arm of the Zoroark. They didn't have to guess who he was imitating, the resemblance to Mordred was obvious.

Arthur tried reasoning with it anyway, though his heart piece wasn't completely in it. This Zoroark had taunted him repeatedly in Uppsalir and Valaskjalf, and he'd hurt and endangered quite a few villagers during said fight, knowing the Gallade wouldn't be able to resist saving them. It had allowed the sneaky dark fox to get into Uppsalir, and return to its master. "Pravus is dead. Give up already. You're fighting for nothing...and it's making you weak."

That, made the fake Gallade snarl with a sound their throats couldn't produce. "He'll...be...back…" The dark eyes narrowed. "He...always...comes...back…" The Zoroark punctuated each word with an Aerial Ace, that Arthur parried with flying typed energy of his own.

"Not this time!" Arthur said as his swirling circular movements put him under the shifted fox's guard, where he delivered a super effective uppercut to its jaw. It dropped the form then, and snarled at the Gallade, switching to Night Slashes as its typing changed.

That was exactly what the justified Gallade wanted. Behind them, Empolia had made short work of the Houndoom, thanks once more to type advantage, and Arthur did not want to take too long. This close to the surface, he could feel the booms of moves shaking the earth almost constantly. He parried the Night Slashes, and felt himself grow stronger as each one landed, and did some damage, most of which was negated by his own moves.

He could make enemy attacks not damage him at all, but he always let dark typed moves hit him a little, for a very good reason. Within five slashes from the shadowy fox, he was burning with aura, and it shifted from deep blue to gold, as he condensed it around his Mega Form. His Excalibur met the foxes claws again, and locked them, as the dark energy and the Light battled for dominance. "Don't you have a family you wish to see now that he's gone? Don't you want to be free to make your own choices? You don't have to suffer under the Shadow any longer!"

The Zoroark snarled in response, and its mouth began to foam as the Shadow drove its conflicted emotions into overdrive, and rage overpowered all else. The shadow fox lunged, but Arthur was too quick. He pivoted to the side of the Zoroark's claw, brought his Sacred Sword down on its arm with a sickening snap, and then spun, using the other burning golden strike to send it sailing into the crater its Houndoom ally had made in the wall.

Wes had Snagged the demon dog already, but despite being unconscious, the Shadow only burned darker around the Zoroark. At least, until a claw of manifested Light wrapped around it, snuffed it out, and shoved the unconscious occupant into a Pokéball. The Snag ball did its job as well as the previous two had, and before it dinged shut, Alex's more tech savvy Scales were already on the consoles, bringing down the shields and the turrets lining the crater.

Rosa and the other Generals had not descended into the city, and their range, yet. They'd stuck to battling on the walls of the massive crater, and reducing the enemy numbers as much as possible. Alex sent her and the others the go ahead, and told Nate to take to the air as well. From outside of the crater, those still lying in wait within the city itself looked to the darkening sky as three gigantic figures came up to either side of their shield. Between the massive forms of Zigma, Shruikan, and Tao, the sky was filled with eager dragon types, with Nate and Nelinha at their head.

When the Dragon Emperor's squad broke through to the top layer of the city, what they found, and were soon swept up in, was chaos. True to their expectations, the Arceans were not surrendering their last city so easily, but more than a few civilians had joined the eastern forces, no doubt thanks to the education they'd just gotten during Caleb Pravus' funeral rites. Once at the top layer, Wes blew the charges he'd set on the turret and shield controls. The rest of them freed their partners from their balls, and joined in the battle with the rest of the Scales.

As the defenses fell, the east received reinforcement, and the tide inevitably shifted. From the sky, Draco Meteors guided by Zigma herself rained down on the usual city targets. Barracks, work buildings, armories, steelworks, anything that looked useful really. The residential buildings were largely either left untouched, or were only damaged by moves that were too wide and destructive to avoid such things. They still stood by the time soldiers did start surrendering, which was more than could be said for other cities the legions had taken on their latest offensives.

It was well past midnight by the time they had rooted out every trace of Shadow, from a Pokémon, in the city. Such emanations gave away the locations of Arceans, and usually those still committed to fighting. One by one, the Pokémon were Purged of the darkness, and often the Purge would leave the Crusaders with only their Power Staves to rely on.

The final battle had primarily happened on the crater's wall, where the eastern forces had paused while they waited for their Emperor and the education on Shadow Infusion to smash the Arcean's cohesion, and cause the city proper to devolve into smaller battles. At least until the shield fell. Individual Scales had gone into the city to begin rooting out the remnants and aiding the locals, and the Generals soon joined them. Thankfully, none of the Generals had ever had an issue winning one on one battles, and most Crusaders had enough sense to surrender once they'd been beaten.

As with Mewsia, Tao and Zigma unleashed their fury upon the stone cathedrals dedicated to Arceus worship across the city. Some buildings, the pair of giants had left standing. In each, Alex had observed that they lacked the gold trim, fancy artwork, and numerous depictions of Caleb Pravus's face within them. They had essentially been little better than carved stone boxes, with a few wooden benches for seating. The only adornment they'd had was Arceus' symbol, and that was, according to Tao, not what they wished to destroy.

Humanity would always want to worship Arceus, but in the Fornia region, many churches had put the Prophet before the Alpha. The slow brainwashing of the region had eventually convinced the common people that he spoke for the Alpha, and thus the difference was barely even noticed, for to worship him was to worship Arceus, or so they'd been told. To the survivors who found some of their houses of worship yet standing, the reason was obvious, and that fact swayed quite a few hearts when they understood, to a degree, the motive behind the Legendary Pokémon's devastation of their cult's extravagant gathering places.

Alex was atop Tao's head once the surrendering soldiers had been gathered en masse, but separate from the civilian populace. He let the First Dragon speak, as he knew that it was too soon for his words to reach the people below, even with Hyper Voice. Though the mood towards him had definitely shifted. He'd gone from being spat upon as he patrolled Sacreus' concrete streets, to getting nods of respect. Some, had even bowed.

"You are the last soldiers of Fornia." The words thundered over the Crusaders below, de-armored and lacking their signature Power Staves in the wake of their crushing defeat. "Your region put up a decent fight. For many months, I was convinced you would roll over our front lines, and take Unova. Were it not for the winter winds, you very well might have. Alas, my Empire reformed quicker than even I had hoped. Much has been said to you Humans in particular, regarding my Tamer. I ask that, in the days to come, you disregard the Church-approved rumors. By now, you should understand that they are lies. Your former leaders have been sent to Unova, and you Crusaders shall join your brethren there. I will be spending the next several months, if not years, speaking with each of you, who put down your weapons and chose to live, rather than pointlessly die in the name of a madman."

His last sentence caused the Crusaders to rumble, as hardcore indoctrination did its work, and the dragon nodded. Around the prisoners, Scales of Balance flared with multicolored auras as they linked together, and with the dragon's aid, sent the rebellious soldiers on to the prison that was responsible for holding all of them.

Then, he turned towards the people. "The future is now yours. Many of you were little better than slaves, a few hours ago. Now, the capital of the Fornia region is yours to live in."

Another psychic flash appeared under the dragon, and quite a few humans began moving forward towards the crowds native to Sacreus. "The Fornian Rebellion will handle matters of governance, for the moment. Listen well to them, and you will all soon understand the truth of the unfortunate conflict we have been forced to partake in. Within a few weeks, you shall receive word from your new Emperor, as to what task your city will be responsible for handling. There is much to do though, so, for now enjoy your lives and your freedoms."

Quite a few humans in the crowd bowed then, while others just stared blankly, not quite believing that it was over. Pravus was gone, the heads of the Church had been almost killed to a man, by their own people, and their Crusaders were now inmates in some distant prison. Moments later, Tao teleported home, with his Scales in tow. Six pairs of master and apprentice stayed behind to help the Rebels control the city, but the Scales, and the regular forces under them, save for those from Rio and Japan, were all bamfed back to Unova, along with the dragon. Zigma turned then, silent as she'd been throughout the conflict, and began the long, slow flight to their ships, still parked outside of Mewsia.

Her Tamer had gone with the Unovans, for now that the threat was gone, the issue of borders, loyalty, and compensation, would be brought before the Dragon Emperor. She chuckled to herself, as her humans followed as well. Tao had reformed his people with masterful tactics and no small amount of fear-driven advancements in technology. Now, it was time for her people to recover as well. There were other threats to deal with, but for a few years at least, there would be peace.

That, was what most of those under the Dragon Empire's banner were hoping for. Many believed the times of strife were over, and many would eventually be proven wrong.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Fate of the Arceans

The following is a wrap up to the Japan side of the conflict we've been embroiled in for the past few chapters. Keep in mind that these events are taking place a few days after the Dragon's jaws closed on Texico City. Skipping is not advised for this one.

Hearthome City - Sinnoh Region

The assault had not gone as planned. With overwhelming victory in Sunyshore, the forces from the Dragon Empire's Rio allies had departed, and after aiding with a string of such overwhelming victories all the way up Japan, Red didn't blame them. The word was that Caleb Pravus had been felled, by Alex no less, who seemed to have taken a page from him and Mewtwo. He didn't entirely mind, nor was it unexpected. Redwood was the kind of Trainer that learned from every battle he watched, and in the early days of their Swamp training, he had drawn crowds of curious eyes as he and his Charizard studied the moves of Galar's own unbeatable Champion he'd had recorded on his portable computer, as they tried to replicate them. Red knew well how good Leon was, and he'd seen Redwood's Charizard pick up several maneuvers, and then make them his own as they improved on the move, usually by making it stronger.

Their Burst technique had not, evidently, been a new discovery, for while he'd held that enlightened state, the fused brain of the most powerful psychic type and an awakened human had accidentally tapped into the Time Vortex with their unmatched psychic power, and witnessed visions from the world around them, from the past, from the near future, they had seen once that such techniques had been as common as the rainbow colored stones they required to perform them. There was more to it though, Red had found, as the process of disconnecting Mewtwo from the stone had been arduous. He had refused to undergo it again, but Red's partner had been only too eager to step up instead. He embraced the bond with the stone, and their combined shape was stronger for it.

The form they took looked similar to his X strand Mega Form, though there had been a few changes. He had thinner legs, and four toes. His tail, formerly up behind his head, had returned to where it usually hung while in his unevolved state, and grown in length and bulk. He had found that applying different types of energy to it while he swung, made it rather effective for physical moves. A burning circle of their crimson power made manifest hung behind their back, and that too, had proven to act as a useful, movable shield when the pair was in the thick of the fighting. Into the back of each shoulder extended a bundle of nerves from their neck, and the backside itself was covered in the dense purple muscles that had appeared on their limbs and body, atop every known humanoid pressure point and weak area. Their moves were incredibly quick, when in melee, and they had been able to outpace the Y strand's Mega Form while flying, in their fused state.

Their weapon, however, usually required two hands to wield. Red's Mewtwo had used its new heightened power to fuse his spoon with the essence of his human's weapon. It didn't seem to actually damage the weapon, so Red had embraced it as well, though actually holding the blazing blue plasma spoon was not feasible. Levitating it took less than no effort for them, though. It was good that they had held the fusion, for as their attack on Hearthome was routed, they were almost solely responsible for keeping the fleeing Japanese forces alive.

Red shared his partner's irritation, as they slowly fell back, and reflected blast after powerful elemental blast from the Arcean Crusaders that had made the city their foothold in Sinnoh. They'd also taken Mt. Coronet, and each of the towns and cities surrounding the massive mountain were currently held by the Church's forces. This charge had been to test their defensive strength, and as Clay had warned him, they would need the aid of Unova and Kalos to take the city.

The reinforcements from the Dragon Empire were currently coming up to Pastoria City to reinforce Red's army of roughly four million Trainers from across Japan, most of whom he'd battled at least once.

Clay had an additional two million soldiers freshly trained from Unova coming with him, as they'd mopped up behind Red's unstoppable charge up the island, at Alex's request, once the forces in Fornia rendezvoused at the Oasis of Glory. Half of the men were fellow Texicans, eager to follow a Gym Leader strong enough to have a Gym in the Victory League from a famous family that had roots in Sinnoh, as well as Texico and Unova. The other million came from Kalos, and had been under Grant, until Tao had sent them to reinforce Japan alongside Clay.

They'd been playing catch-up since landing, and often, mopping up meant dealing with Arcean holdouts Red had simply not seen as he blazed forward in his combined form with the Genetic Pokémon, and a company of Scales, as well as fellow Champions from across their nation's regions, both old and new. The overwhelming power of those Trainers had broken the Arcean lines all the way back to Sinnoh, and the last group under Pravus's Hand in Japan.

Clay had a bad feeling about leaving the zealots with so much free access to Mt. Coronet, especially when they had remnants of Sinnoh's own Team Galactic in their ranks, if their spies were to be trusted. Caleb Pravus had committed much of his Church's manpower to taking Sinnoh in particular, and the 'holy mountain' had been a great victory for Arceans the world over. At this point, they'd held it for several months, but as far as the Japanese and their allied forces knew, they hadn't achieved anything with it in the time they'd held control of the mountain.

The masters of Time and Space hadn't appeared in the sky, as they had when Cyrus pulled them from their dimensions, to the top of the mountain. Clay's Holoceiver went off as he and the forces from the Dragon Empire began to disembark in Sinnoh. When he answered, he found none other than Gary Oak on the other end. "Yo, Clay! The attempt to take Hearthome failed, they've reinforced it too heavily to just charge at it. We're heading for Pastoria now. Red wants us to link up there."

"Pastoria, eh?" Clay said, arching a weathered eyebrow. "Tha's where we're a'headin' too. Is the city on our side?"

Gary chuckled. "Crasher Wake was one of the only Gym Leaders that managed to hold on to his city, and that's largely thanks to the swamp and forest surrounding it. Eventually, the Arceans stopped sending men into the Great Marsh, and focused on Mt. Coronet, and the cities surrounding it."

"Sounds to me like we need a plan, pard. Does Red have one?" Clay asked, sounding more and more reluctant to aid as the call continued. He knew well the advantage an army could have if they holed up within a mountain, and one as large as Mt. Coronet could hold all six million of the troops the Church had committed to Sinnoh. Between Marius's charge and Red's, that number had dropped, but when it came to defending, the Arceans could hold multiple places with only a few Crusaders, thanks to the shields their Staves could form when linked together.

"Maybe. If he does, he hasn't told me, but then, he doesn't talk much as a rule. Just tell Crasher that we're comin' in hot, if you manage to get there first." Gary looked away from the Holoscreen, as a loud boom sounded around him. "I've gotta go, Clay. Smell ya'!"

As the Pokémon Professor hung up, Clay turned to his now disembarked troops as they piled onto the deserted beaches of Sinnoh's Route 213. "Listen up lads an' lasses! We're heading for Pastoria. Apparently it's a friendly city. I want you fast fliers to go ahead of us, an' kindly warn their Gym Leader that we're a'comin. We'll be linkin' up with Red's forces, and they'll be comin' in with Crusaders on their tails. Once we get to the city, start fortifyin'!"

The soldiers responded with their company's usual 'Aye, Field Marshal!', and then began moving. Several with fast flying types took to the air to do as Clay ordered, while the rest began marching through Sinnoh's wilderness, towards the route that led to Pastoria. By the time Clay arrived, he and his forces could see the smoke in the distance from the battle at Hearthome, where Red's seemingly unstoppable charge had finally faltered.

Clay didn't have to guess who the Gym Leader of Pastoria was, as he was standing in the center of the city once he arrived, a Gyarados behind him, directing his soldiers on where to station themselves, and humming a catchy tune under his breath.

"Field Marshal Clay!" The man said, upon seeing his hat, and attire. The Imperial military had given him the same black and white colored armor as his troops, but the classic Texican hat adorning his head was something he'd insisted on keeping. The compromise, had made it armor plated, something he found incredibly useful, as he could wear it while mining now, too. Crasher walked towards the Unovan Gym Leader, as his Gyarados watched with fierce eyes. Their faces were unreadable at the best of times, but as a ground type Gym Leader, he'd gone up against them before, and knew what they did before attacking. He doubted a Gym Leader's Pokémon would rampage on its own in a crowded town, but then, it was a Gyarados. The man known as Crasher Wake greeted him with a proper handshake, and a grin. "Welcome to Pastoria City! I'm glad Unova decided to help us with this...I don't like admitting it, but these Fornians are seriously strong."

"Mm. Tha's what happens when they infuse Shadow into their Pokémon." Clay said, nodding sagely. Upon seeing Wake's confusion, he elaborated. "Shadow Infusion, pard. It takes evil, downright foul energy, and fuses it into a Pokémon's body, makin' them much stronger, meaner, and downright narsty to deal with. Apparently, Caleb Pravus made it a part o' his Crusaders trainin', havin' them master Shadow moves, an' such. They're resistant to regular moves, an' Shadow moves have super effectiveness on non-infused Pokémon. Try not to let yours get hit, yea?"

Crasher Wake gave the man a thumbs up, and a grin. "We'll just have to drown them with our power before they get the chance to attack! Yea! Gyarados!" The massive water dragon glanced at its Trainer, as he called. "Let's go! I want the first shot at those zealots once they get in range of our city!" The Gyarados roared in response to its Trainer's heightened passion for the imminent battle, and began moving towards the city's western exit. Wake turned back to Clay, then. "I'll leave organizing the rest of the men to you, Mr. Underground Boss. Do whatever you need to, my home is yours!"

"S'preciated." Clay said, tilting his hat, as the eager water type master followed after his partner. He turned to his men then. "You heard'im! We're fortifyin' and defendin', until Red tells us otherwise. Now 'member, we're here under Japan's authority! Their government wants as li'l city damage as possible!" As his troops made ready, Clay headed for the western exit of the city as well, which was little more than an open route entrance, blocked only by swamp.

It didn't take long for Red's forces to arrive. The exhausted Japanese Trainers, as well as quite a few rather famous Champions, were singed, wounded, and demoralized after being forced to retreat. Thus far, 'Redtwo', as the troops had nicknamed him, had broken through every defensive posture the Crusaders had taken. Now that something had finally given the insanely strong fusion of human and Pokémon pause, they knew the Arceans would be using the same methods, in the future.

As Trainers streamed in covered in grime, swamp, and sometimes blood, Clay noticed Crasher Wake's enthusiasm had faded into a grim look. "I heard it was bad throughout Sinnoh, but to be honest, I hadn't heard specifics. The media went silent weeks ago, and I've been defending the Marsh since these zealots landed. How's the rest of the country?" He turned to Clay, as he asked.

Clay grimaced. "General Marius's Regigigas left a wide wake o' carnage behind it...thankfully, most Humans an' Pokémon avoided its initial charge, but the Crusaders're just as bad. They torched every berry grove from Kanto to yer fine region. Easy ta do, when they can launch beams o' fire energy at whatever they darn well please. Yall'r in fer a lot o' cleanup…" Clay met his fellow Gym Leader's eyes then. "But we'll be aidin' ya with that, too, I reckon. The Original Dragon aint the type to leave his allies hangin'."

At that, Wake arched a brow. "Oh? You've met the Dragon? I hear his Tamer is a pretty strong Trainer."

Clay chuckled, and looked down as he recalled their gym match. Like Hilbert and Nate before him, Alex Redwood's eyes had burned with passion, and his Swampert had been brutally effective at taking down fellow ground types. "Aye, I've met'em both. His Tamer challenged my Gym once, though I reckon he's changed a bit since then. He was only a pup when we Battled, but his Swampert was...fierce. He whooped me, an' Chili, one o' the Gym Leaders of Striaton, on the same day. Without so much as a Hyper Potion between matches. Prolly an Elixir though. If the legends are to be believed, the Original Dragon has only made'im stronger. The Scales of Balance're pretty much all psychics, like your Red." He said, nodding towards the direction the Champion would be coming from. "They're just as powerful, too. I ain't never seen a Human able to slice through energy beams like that. Whatever the Dragon's teachin'em, it's workin'."

Wake's grin returned, as Clay spoke in his Texican accent. "Right. Well, at least we have Trainers to fall back on if these zealots manage to stop us."

Clay met his grin with one of his own. "Don't go underestimatin' Red now, y'hear. That man is jus' as strong, 'specially with a pair of Mewtwo behind'im."

Before Wake could reply, they both got a good look at the aforementioned pair of Genetic Pokémon, as they hovered into view. The Y strand was mega evolved, and as it hovered roughly a mile from the entrance to Pastoria, it unleashed a Psystrike, presumably on Arcean forces they couldn't see.

For his part, Red was deflecting, and often redirecting, energy beams back at the advancing Arceans by empowering the giant glowing plasma spoon with Mirror Coat. "Let's go!" Crasher Wake said, as his Gyarados rose from the muck of the swamp outside the city. With a single leap through the air, the water dragon landed in the part of Route 212 that had a minor lake within it. There, the Gym Leader had been able to keep anyone from crossing that wasn't friendly. His Quagsire and Floatzel came to the surface nearby, ready to aid if Gyarados wasn't enough. He didn't see Clay follow him, but then, he figured someone with 'Underground Boss' as a title probably wouldn't follow too obviously.

Marsh terrain was nothing for an Excadrill, though getting back through the tunnel they'd made was definitely not going to be possible. Clay waited below, trusting his partner to pop up and attack at the right moment. Up above, the Gyarados and his Trainer waited out of sight. Crasher Wake gave the fused Red a nod as their eyes met, and upon seeing them, he and the other Mewtwo stopped attacking, and headed for the city.

Then, came the Crusaders. White armored in a design that was foreign to Sinnoh, as they'd never really heard of or seen Cipher's aesthetic, their forward ranks were shielded by a combination of the three elemental types they'd mastered manipulating thanks to the Original Dragon's time as their prisoner. "We'll have one chance to break them…" Wake said, assuming Clay could hear him, and was nearby. "Hit them with everything you have!"

Both Clay and his Excadrill heard, and readied themselves. In Sinnoh, the use of Plate crystals for Mega Evolution had been a growing trend that had been derailed by the sudden foreign invasion and subsequent takeover by the Fornian forces. Wake and Clay had a different use in mind for theirs, however. Against foes with strong defenses, the Trainers of Japan had focused on mastering 'Ultimate Moves', not all that different to Z-Moves, and the Plate crystals were just as capable of powering those, as they were Mega Forms. Most Trainers used the boost from mega evolving to further strengthen the attack, which more often than not was just a more powerful variation of a move they already knew.

As the Crusaders reached the edge of the lake, the shield lowered, and the soldiers switched to ice typing, as they prepared to cross. Moments after they froze the surface, the massive form of a Gyarados, and its Trainer, broke through the fresh ice with the force of a great typhoon, and a typhoon was, essentially, what the water and flying typed Gyarados unleashed upon the unshielded humans as his Trainer called the move, "Crashdown Tidal Wave!"

Nature itself became as enraged as the Gyarados began stirring it up, and Crasher Wake's right fist shone blue as his partner drew on the energy needed to unleash what was essentially a Surf attack, on a much bigger scale. A blast of wind knocked the Crusaders on their rears, and the following wave of water sent them hurtling into the forest that surrounded the Route.

They took roughly a minute to reform some semblance of a front line, charged with electricity aimed at the Gyarados. With one move, Crasher Wake had reduced the force chasing Red from just over a thousand, to roughly half. Many Crusaders weren't moving, after feeling a Gyarados' rage. As the hastily regrouped soldiers fired their electric beams in unison at the recharging Gyarados, a spinning figure burst up and out from one of the hills that blocked their path over the water, to Pastoria. Clay was standing on the adjacent hill, and tipped his hat to the Pastoria Gym Leader as he raised a fist radiating ground typed energy.

His Excadrill took the electric beams with little to no effect, and then propelled himself towards the still standing Crusaders as Clay called his own Ultimate Move, a practice he and the other foreigners had taken to with much enthusiasm, as they traveled the length of Japan.

"Subterranean...Smaaaash!" His Excadrill dug into the ground under the Crusaders with speed only a Pokémon could produce, and the ground under them began upheaving. Massive boulders rose up suddenly, and usually right under groups of Crusaders, sending them flying.

At least ten times the earth exploded with fierce protrusions of hard rock, and the Arceans began to retreat as the Excadrill popped up by his Trainer, and the Gyarados loomed over them all. The power of unleashing such an attack had caused it to mega evolve, and Crasher Wake was not one to let his opponents escape unimpeded. "Destruction Beam!"

A beam of yellow-orange death flashed across the scattered Arceans, and the following line of explosions ended most of those who had been getting to their feet. Thoroughly routed, the few smoldering survivors that had managed to summon a Pokémon for defense readied more Protects as they gathered what Crusaders still lived, and would survive the trek back up to Hearthome City. The retreating survivors had been reduced to double digits, and neither of the scowling Gym Leaders, upon viewing the carnage they had wrought, felt it was a victory. They'd forestalled a few hundred, but by now they knew better than to go anywhere near the marsh. The two Gym Leaders recalled their partners not on watch duty, and headed back into the city, where they could already see Red talking with the others, seven colored stone in hand as his Mewtwo was beside him.

Mt. Coronet, Upper Level - Sinnoh Region

"They have been repelled, my Lady. Hearthome is still ours. You were correct, without Zigma to break our shields, the Mewtwo abomination could not hit us as effectively in an entrenched position." Many hadn't liked retreating after Marius failed, not only in war, but in keeping his men loyal. Whatever the psychic scum had done, it had made their troops under the old General turn.

Lisa Pineus gave a nod to her female lieutenant, and then looked towards the former Champion of Sinnoh, the woman who'd lost the title to a ten year old and his Torterra. Cynthia had then focused on ancient myths, and eventually became a Professor who specialized in exploring them. Lisa knew it was not Cynthia she spoke to though, for the witch controlling her had introduced herself only as Morgana, and had revealed that she'd been an ally of Pravus himself. With him now beheaded, his Darkrai lost to the crushing fathoms, and his Church in the process of being deconstructed by the Original Dragon, Lisa found herself the leader of all five million remaining Arcean troops housed across the six cities they held in Sinnoh.

"Bring up the map. How many still defy us, now that we've returned?" Her Lieutenant did as ordered, and then spoke once more.

"Oreburgh City, and the surrounding Coal Valley continue to repel us, with their mastery of Rock Typed moves at Oreburgh's Gate, and they continue to seal whatever holes we make in Mt. Coronet before, or during, troop movements through them. Sandgem and Twinleaf continue to peacefully protest our presence, but Professor Hikari has shown that she isn't afraid to Battle, if one of our soldiers gets rough. We agreed to put more...foreign friendly Crusaders in their area, and there have been no issues since."

The Hand had scowled at the mention of Oreburgh. Roark and Byron had protected the combined inhabitants of Canalave City and Oreburgh all at once, moving their people before their Crusaders had bothered with Canalave. The initial focus had been on Jubilife, and somehow, the population of an entire city had managed to sneak past them. Since then, their Trainers had only grown stronger after repelling their attempts to take the Gate, and attack from within Coronet. Any more assaults from that side threatened to collapse part of the massive mountain. "I would consider the Professor's knowledge on Pokémon evolution to be valuable enough to interrogate her...but she was capable of beating the Elite Four, if not Cynthia. No matter. It's not worth the effort at the moment. Who else defies us?"

As her tan and blonde superior allowed her to continue, her lieutenant was glad that she, at least, did not regularly beat her subordinates. More than a few Hands had copied the Prophet in that regard, but Lisa Pineus was more rational, and viewed her underlings as pieces on a board, rather than punching bags good for little more than venting frustration and carrying out orders. She pushed her square glasses up as she again regarded her data pad, and gestured to the map.

"Snowpoint continues to be stubborn in its refusal to talk to anyone, and since we already took their Regigigas, there is little left there to worry about. Their Gym Leader raids around Eterna City sometimes, but our soldier's armor can handle what he throws at them. Usually. That leaves Sunyshore, which was reclaimed almost single-handedly by Zigma's Tamer, and all but demolished in the process, and Pastoria, which is where we assume Red has retreated to. Crasher Wake may be getting old, but his Gyarados has no such infirmities. Sending troops into the Great Marsh now, would only result in losses we can't sustain."

The Hand nodded again, pondering their position. No aid would come from Fornia now. There was a gut wrenching creak as the Shadow puppet that was Cynthia turned towards her, eyes alight with a dim purple, and a downright sinister smile on the aging woman's wrinkled face. "Sounds to me like holding the mountain is no longer...worth the effort. If you give Red and those other...Heroes...a chance to regroup, they will surround your holdings, and take down your troops. Maybe even turning more of them. Bring your soldiers to Albion, and I will make them the guardians of a kingdom all their own. Power you cannot imagine lies in this land...and if someone does not claim it soon, some nosy Trainers undoubtedly will."

The Hand stood during Morgana's little speech, and she listened closely, knowing the witch for what she was. A psychic wretch that thought herself clever. She could recognize the foul Aura such abominations produced radiating from the old Sinnoh Champion. For all her tricks, the ones she was and was not aware of, she had managed to give them perhaps the only thing that could take on the awesome power of two Mewtwo that had been genetically engineered to be the best.

"I want the Rayquaza. Give me its ball, and I will send my troops to your Albion." She held out her own hand now, wondering if the witch could see just how many moves ahead she was playing. Her answer would decide the fate of her troops, no small number of Fornians, and would no doubt have ramifications in the future. She may have offered her people to someone that could psychically take control of them the closer they went to her land, but she did have a plan.

Cynthia's creepy smile remained static on her features, until finally, the voice of the witch controlling her came from her mouth. "Deal." The Champion then awkwardly shifted her hand to her belt, and drew a Dark Ball that now acted as the Rayquaza's home, though Lisa had never seen the witch summon it. Morgana claimed to have found Cynthia training with the Legendary dragon, and had subdued them both with stealth and speed, recalling the mega evolved behemoth of a dragon before it could break free. Transferring it then to a Dark Ball had been as easy as going to a Pokémon Center during low peak hours, and then slipping away just as quickly, before anyone noticed her new, famous puppet.

The hand stopped, as it grabbed the Dark Ball, and after struggling for a moment, it again moved forward. A high pitched giggle came from the witch. "Apologies, my dear...this one still struggles…" Eventually, she managed to get the ball into the palm of the Hand, who took it eagerly. "You remind me much of myself, when I was your age…" The creepy voice paused to giggle again, and Lisa resisted rolling her eyes. "Take care with that one, now...if it gets Purged by a Light user, you won't enjoy what it does to you."

Lisa paused at her words, and glanced at the ball. Then, she decided to roll the dice, and hoped that the Light wielder doing the Purging, would keep the dragon's rage in check. Assuming she could get to the top of the mountain with it unimpeded. Plans had a tendency to fall apart right as they started to work, and as she gripped the Dark Ball, she knew she was taking a large gamble, but saw no other path forward for her people. "Why would I let it be Purged? This is our best chance at stopping Red's unholy fusion."

With that, she turned back to her Lieutenant. "Have the six cities we do control gather every scrap of fuel they can find. We should have enough to reach Albion." She looked back at Morgana then. "I have things to do. You should store your puppet somewhere safe." Morgana said nothing, and she left the room before giving Lisa time to say anything else. The Fornian watched the witch leave, clutching the Dark Ball in her hand rather tightly. Then, she ascended.

Mt. Coronet's summit was as lifeless and bare as it had been since the Arceans had arrived. All that remained were traces of Pokémon battle that had lingered despite their age. While their old Team Galactic allies had tried to summon the patrons of Space and Time, they had failed completely, as they had when they tried bringing Giratina back as well. There was, as usual, no trace of Arceus.

Lisa fished in her bag for the item that, she hoped, would summon the aforementioned Light wielder, and the Fornian's last best chance at avoiding whatever grim destiny Morgana had planned for them. The wind around her picked up, as she withdrew an ancient looking Azure colored flute, and put it to her lips.

She was not a musician, and as she forced air into the flute's mouthpiece, nothing came out. Nothing interesting happened. She tried again, and again, but only soft air was heard, and it seemed to vanish, as she blew into the flute as hard as she could. Lisa fell to her knees, a look of despair on her face, as she looked at the Dark Ball in her hand. She had not expected failure. The old caretakers who had fiercely guarded the Azure Flute had warned her that she could not make use of it, but then, that was a running theme with those who guarded ancient objects of power. Their 'morality' did not keep them from lying, in an attempt to dissuade people from trying to steal such artifacts. Evidently, in this case, the Pokémon she had intended to summon knew who she was, what she had done, and had been part of in her time as a Hand of the Prophet.

The tears that fell from her eyes surprised her at first, but she knew why they were appearing. Heroes like Red had a long track record of victory in conflicts like this, and now that Pravus was dead, she was on the wrong side of history, as were her people. It didn't matter how benevolent the Original Dragon and his Tamer claimed to be, the Arceans would forever be hated for what they had started, and done to their Pokémon. An appeal to Arceus directly had been their last chance, and as only darkness and Shadow lay before her path ahead, she put the flute to her lips one last time, and filled it with air.

She nearly jumped, as a note began to echo, and she inhaled through her nose, then exhaled into the instrument, urging it to continue playing. The eerie melody echoed across the Spear Pillar, and as it faded into nothingness...nothing happened. Light did not fill the sky, Palkia and Dialga did not appear, nor did the shadow of Giratina.

She waited several minutes, her faint flaring hope once more crushed by the lack of an appearance on the part of her deity. It did not take long for anger to replace the sadness and mix with her frustration as she glared accusingly at the Azure Flute. "You were supposed to work!" She raised it then, intending to smash it against the stone floor, but stopped halfway through the motion as tears appeared once more. "This was our last chance...if Arceus cannot save us...nothing can."

Ye must be the one to save Thyself, child.

Lisa's eyes went wide as the almost overwhelming tones of Arceus' voice thundered in her skull. She looked up, tears streaming down her cheeks as she squinted at the bright light before her. She made out a familiar outline, and then fell to her hands as well, bowing in the most respectful manner the people of this island nation had. "Please...Alpha Pokémon...save my people! We're doomed to the Shadow if you don't!"

The red eye of the manifested deity became visible as the light around him faded. It expanded, and shrank, and the woman winced, groveling closer to the ground as the rage in the tone of the Alpha Pokémon shook her very being.

Ye hath chosen to serve Shadow ere now, and ye hath served it well. Thine mantle of leadership falls now to ye. If 't be true thee didst not truly seeketh redemption, the flute wouldst not have played. Hearken to me, Mortal for there is but one path backeth to the Light, for thy kind.

Lisa raised her head, and looked upon the Alpha Pokémon as she pleaded. "I will do anything! Please, I...I just want us to live...and remain Human."

Purge the Shadow from every Pokémon thy forces possess, and cleanse it from thine own aura as well. I shall not abide Shadow worshipers using mine own name to further their agenda!

The blonde and tan woman, face still streaked with tears, spoke only a single word. "How?"

Arceus descended from the sky, and hovered closer to her. His words still thundered, but they seemed quieter, more inherently kind. The Dragon Emperor hast the means. Submit thyselves to the Human known as Red, and ye shall be upon the path to redemption.

At that, Lisa's eyes narrowed. "The Dragon's Puppet? You must be joking...an intolerant Trainer playing politics will only lead us to ruin! To domination by Psychic Types!"

She had never heard a God sigh, but that was what Arceus did, as he registered her words. Caleb Pravus hast lied to you of many things, child. Psychic Types are but one of them. They art not evil, not inherently. There is good, and there is bad among their kind as there is among all my children, and whether thee accepteth it or not, Humanity is rapidly learning of their potential for psychic power. The Dragon Emperor wast given authority by mine own self to dismantle thy leader's cult. Submit to him. There is no other path to the Light for thy people.

With that admission, Lisa's indoctrination began to kick in, and anger replaced her humility rather quickly. Her left hand gripped the Dark Ball tight, and she glared at the Pokémon before her. "I knew it...you are not Arceus...no divinely good entity would ally themselves with a Human like Unova's leader! The real Arceus is gold and black! You're nothing but a clone created by the Psychics!"

The deity mirrored her anger, though his was slower to rise, it lay beneath the baritone thundering in her head. This is but a clone of mine original body. All of my doppelgangers share in my Mind. I am the Alpha Pokémon, and I will waste no more words upon a Human blinded by Shadow. The choice is yours, Lisa Pineus. Leadeth thy people to the Light, or doom them in Shadow.

As Arceus began to ascend then, light flared around him, but his rise was stopped, as the human threw the Dark Ball in her hand, and summoned the Shadow infused Legend within it. The red eye slid back to her, as the black scaled Rayquaza roared into the air, already mad with rage and hate, emotions that were being fueled by the infection within its body.

The audacity of thy kind... Thou darest infuse one of mine own Guardians with Shadow, and summon it in my presence?

The Arcean's last remaining leader gave the self-proclaimed deity a grim smirk. "If you will not aid me willingly...you will do so by force!" She readied another Dark Ball then, and shouted, "Shadow Speed!"

The black scaled Rayquaza could only obey, and it vanished in less than an eyeblink, before reappearing above the Alpha Pokémon, as its body coiled into a circle of black scales, and brought its Shadow infused tail down on the Alpha's form. Arceus typically won his battles by instinctively shifting to typings that resisted whatever move was being used, and then countering. Unfortunately, Shadow Pokémon had only one weakness, and gaining the Light typing took even the Alpha Pokémon a moment to summon. But Lisa Pineus did not give him a moment.

"Shadow Rage!" The command came immediately after the hit that sent Arceus hovering closer to the ground but didn't seem to faze him, and from above, the enslaved Rayquaza opened its maw, as it bathed the Alpha Pokémon in black and bluish flames.

A barrier of golden energy surrounded the Alpha Pokémon, and the red eyes moved between the human and her enslaved Guardian, one of the few that had the strength to match his clone's power. Before she could call another move, he Teleported out of the human's sight, and from behind her, golden Light filled the area. The presence of such an intense source of Light energy made the human and Legendary dragon infused with its eternal opposite intensely uncomfortable, but before Lisa could turn and call another move, Arceus had retaliated.

A sphere of Light soared across the Spear Pillar, and hit the Legendary dragon, encompassing it in the Alpha Pokémon's Light, as he cleansed the Shadow from the dragon's body and aura. A low growl rumbled across the summit, as the no longer purple glowing eyes of the Rayquaza revealed the rage in its golden irises. In shape, the sockets greatly resembled the Original Dragon's, but unlike its forebear, Rayquaza actually had pupils. They shifted from the human to the Alpha Pokémon, and the growl ceased.

One claw straightened three fingers, while the other curled into a fist. The Legendary Guardian pressed the fist into the straightened palm, and inclined its head in deference. A single word echoed across the suddenly calm mountain peak. "Alpha..."

Arceus ascended over both of them then, and Lisa was clutching her hand as she watched. The Dark Ball she'd been holding had exploded in the waves of intense Light the deity had given off with his attack, and she had a feeling her belt of Pokémon had been similarly cleansed, like her Rayquaza. She kept them where they were, as the Alpha spoke again.

I know thy anger, Guardian, but thou must retain thine senses for the Battle to come. Do not let the Shadow's followers flee this land.

With that, Arceus ascended in a bright flash of light, and vanished. The still fuming dragon turned its golden gaze to the human, and its psychic voice echoed in her head, though her stressed mind could not rightly determine if it was male in tone, or female. "Surrender, Human...you did not imprison me in Shadow, and that alone is what is keeping me from ending you. Obey the Alpha. Kneel, and beg for your life. Only then might I show mercy..."

As Lisa met the Legendary Pokémon's gaze, she could've sworn the divine lizard was smirking at her. That, enraged her, and her eyes narrowed. "Never!" Before the dragon could act, and end her existence for her defiance, she raised the Azure Flute, and smashed it against the stone below her. There was a violent discharge of Light energy as the ancient artifact, a priceless artifact to the current and long dead residents of the Sinnoh region, was smashed to pieces.

The Light did manage to temporarily fool the dragon's eyesight, blinding it, as the human retreated into the mountain. Enraged, the black scaled Rayquaza roared its fury into the heavens, and descended down from Mt. Coronet's peak. This Rayquaza knew Sinnoh rather well, and there were only so many ways humans could flee from this place. It had no intention of defying the Alpha's command, and so it vanished into the clouds, to bide its time, and wait for its prey to attempt an escape.

Oreburgh City - Sinnoh Region

Red and Clay had been joined by Crasher Wake as they moved their forces to western Sinnoh, to link up with the locals who had actively rebelled against the foreign occupation of their home. The Champions of Japan's many regions had been welcomed as heroes, and while Professor Hikari of Twinleaf was present among the rebels, Lucas, their Champion, had been absent, missing evidently since the Arceans first took Hearthome City, and Mt. Coronet soon after.

Byron, Roark, Clay, and Crasher Wake flanked Red as he addressed his troops. He paused, awkwardly and totally silent before the crowd of faces, some familiar, some not, some from Japan, and others clearly foreign. Finally, he spoke. "Today, we free Sinnoh from the last remnants of the Arcean Crusade...! Roark will stay behind with the non-Trainers, while Byron and all who can battle will infiltrate Mt. Coronet, ascend to the upper levels, and begin purging Crusaders from its tunnels! I will be taking my squad to the summit...and we will work our way down from there, once we determine what the Arceans have done to the most sacred mountain in this country. Stay on guard...and stay alive!"

The cheering started from his countrymen, but was eagerly picked up by the foreigners from Kalos and Texico as well. Red raised his hand then, the seven-colored crystal burning in his palm, as he reached out with his mind to his Mewtwo, and once more assumed their fused form. Gary, Leaf, Hibiki, and several other skilled Trainers found themselves surrounded in red psychic aura, as they suddenly ascended, rapidly, towards the summit of Mt. Coronet, high in the sky.

Clay nodded at Crasher Wake, and those who remained. "Byron'll be leadin' us into the tunnels! Keep an eye on yer backs, and be ready to roll!"

Byron summoned his Aggron as the amassed force of rebels and soldiers followed the Pokémon's massive tunnel into one of Japan's most iconic peaks. Strangely, as they advanced to the upper levels by carving and crafting their own path, they found the peak empty, seemingly abandoned.

When they did finally happen upon obvious Arcean trappings, symbols, ration containers left to litter the ground, there was similarly nobody to meet them. Clay's grimace only grew wider each level they ascended, and eventually, they had made it up the entire peak without so much as a battle, for wild Pokémon were scarce as well, though Byron was convinced they were simply hiding. Of the Arceans, there was no sign.

Up above, Red and his team of six other Trainers looked around the summit, only to find it similarly empty and abandoned. Gary came over to the fusion of human and Mewtwo after several minutes of looking around. "I don't like it, Red...there's signs of recent Battle, a pile of azure shards, but nothing to suggest that anyone is here. Leaf just checked below, too...this mountain seems abandoned. Their command center is empty."

Saying nothing, as his frown spoke for him, the not unappealing fusion of features on Red and his Pokémon partner evened out as they closed their eyes, and used their third eye to make sense of what they were seeing. Moments later, aura covered Red's squad once more, and they gathered close to him as he spoke. "The Arceans are making for Canalave...they intend to sail somewhere in Galar...we must stop them."

The others nodded, and Leaf gave him a smile that emboldened the human, and deeply confused the Mewtwo with which he was fused. "We're ready. We can take them." Red glanced around at the gathered Trainers. Silver, Calem, and Serena had joined them as well, as each had proven to be top tier Trainers in their own right, though they could each claim to have lost a battle against Red's team. Red nodded to Gary, who opened his Holoceiver, a device that was unimpeded by rock. It soon made contact with Clay's.

"Field Marshal, the mountain has been abandoned. The upper levels are empty. Red figured out that they're heading for Canalave. We're heading out to stop them. Send your forces to check the surrounding towns, and have the rest start heading there as well. They won't get away." Gary closed the device after he received an 'Aye, 'pard', and with that, Red launched the seven of them into the air, hurtling them out of Mt. Coronet and towards Canalave City as fast as he could manage.

Canalave City - Sinnoh Region

"What is our status, Lieutenant?" Lisa Pineus asked, as she looked east, waiting for the ruse to be discovered.

"Ma'am! The Crusaders are loaded, now we're finishing up with Pokémon food and fuel. The fleet will be ready to move in a few minutes." She gave her superior a salute as she spoke, but the last Hand's eyes stayed on the horizon.

"Good...tell them to move faster. We may not have the time to...wait...what's that light?" The Hand gestured, and her Lieutenant pulled out a pair of binoculars.

In the distance, just over Jubilife City, seven crimson lights rose into the sky, and then came hurtling towards them. "It's Red, Ma'am! And he has backup!"

Lisa swore, and looked at her belt. Only three of ten had thus far been re-infused with Shadow after being cleansed atop Mt. Coronet. She knew it was a corruptive, even evil energy, but Arceus himself had sided with the psychic type's puppet. The darkness was her people's only chance. She took the binoculars, and confirmed it for herself. "Lieutenant, tell the fleet to go. Now!" The woman saluted, and rushed off into the city to do as ordered.

"Shame you lost my Rayquaza...it would've come in handy...no matter. I will need your aid to distract them, while the fleet escapes." Cynthia was puppeted up next to Lisa, as they stood outside the building that led to Canalave City itself on Route 218. The former Champion's team was summoned all at once, and Lisa summoned her own three that were ready to go, for all the good they would do against bonafide Champions.

As the seven spheres of crimson came closer, one broke away from the pack, flying forward on a Togetic. Then, moments later after an Extremespeed, it was above them, and a male voice rang out, "Exbo! Eruption!" An old style Apricorn Pokéball arced down towards the women, and Morgana raised a hand.

"Coalossal. Exterminate it."

The ground around them shook, as the Typhlosion appeared, and began his attack, only to have the vents of rising plasma blocked as the Shadow infused Coal Pokémon plugged them with giant rocks, by way of Ancientpower.

The same voice, sounding irritated, gave another command from above, as the former Champion's Garchomp tried to bring the Togekiss down with Rock Throw. "Again! Eruption!"

The Typhlosion made the earth rumble once more, but before Morgana could stop the attack, a Hydro Pump slammed into the massive Coal Pokémon, hammering it onto its back with the force of it. A woman in a black dress and red armor in the Unovan style appeared behind it, riding on the shell of her Blastoise as the rest of the Trainers Red had brought with him began attacking. Chaos erupted, as the Typhlosion got its most powerful move off, and took out Cynthia's Roserade and Glaceon in a single plume of lava.

Her Shadow infused Togetic Double Edged the one carrying the Trainer Lisa recognized as the man who'd battled Red on Mt. Silver, after becoming a Champion himself. The normal Togetic began to plummet as the man hung on for dear life, but he was saved by a timely Pidgeot belonging to none other than Professor Gary Oak, and the injured Togetic was recalled, as the now encumbered Pidgeot faced down the former Champion's Togetic, and its rage.

A Gengar and a Delphox from the iconic Kalos Trainers brought down her Spiritomb, and the two women huddled by Lisa's Cloyster, their ticket to escape, once they got the all clear. As the battle continued, Lisa frowned, as she realized their skirmish had yet to involve one very powerful, and very specific enemy. Red's abominable fusion between himself and his Mewtwo was nowhere to be seen.

Red and Mewtwo left the battle outside the city to the others, while they focused on stopping the Arcean's fleet of battle capable yacht-sized boats. They raised a four fingered hand, and the circular halo of crimson energy that usually hung on their back, or in front of their hand as a shield, now faced the sky, as it hovered above their palm.

Their arm moved, slowly at first, in circles, and the crimson halo began to spin. As it did, the clouds around the city gathered together unnaturally fast, and grew dark, as the power of Mewtwo and his human began influencing the skies and more importantly, the sea. Beside them, the Mewtwo that had thus far aided them had his arms crossed beneath his ragged brown cloak, as he smirked. "Not a bad idea. I like this Move."

The fused pair side-eyed him, then focused back on their targets. The fleet had already pulled out of Canalave's harbor, but they wouldn't be getting very far. As the crimson halo spun faster, thunder boomed across the sky, and the waves rose to massive heights. The wind picked up as well, and they knew it would be a matter of time before the ships sank before the storm's fury.

As the battle between the Trainers Red had brought with him and the Hand began to shift in the hero's favor, Morgana nodded at Lisa, who gave her Cloyster the command. Throughout the battle she had been Protecting them, and now, she would bring them to safety. Beams of purple light recalled their Pokémon all at once, and the Hand shouted, "Teleport, Cloytser!"

Just like that, they were gone, and the six Trainers, who had experienced some difficulty despite outnumbering their prey, were left panting and clueless as the two women appeared aboard the flagship of the Arcean's remaining fleet. Morgana crossed Cynthia's arms, as her creepy voice echoed from her mouth. "That was too close. Maybe now, we can-"

She was interrupted, as several things happened at once, each competing for the attention of their ears. Thunder rolled through the air as lightning split the sky, but it was not the only thing in the clouds. Rushing out onto the top deck that supported their command bridge, Lisa and Morgana found themselves surrounded by unnatural calm, in the midst of the storm.

They didn't have to guess what was behind it. The ominous shape of the black Rayquaza they'd lost to Arceus's Light cleansing had returned, for vengeance. Morgana forced Cynthia to throw a Dark Ball, and this time, her as yet undefeated Garchomp came forth. She had given the Trainers outside the city a hard time, and now, the Shadow infused Garchomp would buy them time to escape.

Morgana's voice echoed in Lisa's head, as the Rayquaza met the Garchomp's Dragon Claw, though instead of the usual bluish purple coloring, it was red, and the ground dragon's entire form sparked with crimson lightning. "Sailing is no longer an option. Gather as many as you can in the ship's hold, have others port onto this ship as well. I have an anchor your Pokémon should be able to lock onto, set in Albion."

Lisa glanced up at the Champion level Garchomp, going claw to claw with a Legendary Guardian. "We can't Teleport that far...it's over...this storm has us, and if Red doesn't get us...that thing will."

Morgana narrowed Cynthia's eyes, and then stepped close to Lisa, glaring as she snatched an unoccupied Dark Ball from her belt. "Let me handle the Rayquaza. Do as I told you, girl! Now!"

The Hand's eyes narrowed, as Cynthia's dominated face came infuriatingly close to her own. "And if I refuse?"

Morgana seemed genuinely angry, as evidenced by the purple swirls of smoke that now sloughed off of the former Champion's body. "We had a deal, Pineus. Do not go back on it now...you will not survive double-crossing me."

Though she intended to keep arguing, Morgana marched Cynthia out onto the bridge's balcony then, and her unnaturally amplified voice reached her Garchomp. "Shadow Rush, and return to me!" The Garchomp obeyed, hitting the Rayquaza hard, and then zipping back towards her Trainer. Cynthia stared down the Rayquaza. "Come, dragon! Do you not desire your vengeance!?"

Rayquaza answered her, by lighting up a ship to their port with an Outrage, sinking it in a single shot. It did the same with a ship on their starboard, and then, the final blast was aimed at Cynthia herself, but the Legendary dragon did not see the Dark Ball she'd hurled its way, as it flew within range to destroy the second ship. Furious, and feeling itself once more drawn towards the black abyss that was a Dark Ball, the black scaled Rayquaza turned and focused the Outrage on the ball itself, obliterating it, but confusing itself in the process as the super effective move exploded in its face.

When it looked back to find its Trainer, now a puppet of some Shadow user, all the Rayquaza saw, was an empty balcony. It roared its fury, and began haphazardly firing draconic beams of energy at anything near it, furious that Morgana had escaped, and frustrated, for it could not free its Trainer from her grip.

In the bowels of the last Arcean flagship, roughly two million of Fornia's soldiers had managed to fit in the massive yacht's cargo area. Pokémon who knew Teleport were somewhat rare among the Crusaders, as it was a psychic typed move, but one of the few not outlawed by the Prophet, as it wasn't inherently evil, and could even be useful for furthering their plans. Now, those plans seemed silly, idealistic, even.

Morgana's voice rang out through the hold, as she joined them, somewhat out of breath. "Everyone, link arms! Prepare to Teleport! We are out of time!" Then, she went quiet, as she linked to the Shadow infused minds of the Pokémon that would be bringing the surviving Arceans to Albion. The disciplined soldiers did as they were told, and then with a bamf sound, the crowd was gone, the massive ship was empty, and the last vestiges of the Arcean cult managed to escape. Moments later, a furious, but refocused Rayquaza using Dragon Ascent through the ship itself mega evolved, as it tore through the vessel, and found nothing.

Enraged, the Legendary dragon arced upwards again, howling at the sky in fury. Then, it whirled in place as it sensed a power that could match its own, right behind it.

Red and Mewtwo held up a hand in the universal gesture for 'wait', and the dragon paused, eyeing the strange creature before it, golden eyes blinking as it spoke. "They have escaped." The Rayquaza growled, but the creature continued. "Your Tamer was among them when they did...the other Arceans are dead now, either by capsizing to the storm, or blown apart by your rage." The crimson aura covered being floated close to the Legendary dragon then, and met its intense gaze evenly. "If you open your mind to me, I might be able to find out where they are going, and together, we can free your Trainer."

The dragon stared, irritatedly swishing its body as it pondered, and then finally nodded. A vastly powerful mind touched the fusion of Red's and Mewtwo's, and an impressive, angry baritone thundered in their head. "I...agree. Together...we can do this."

As the storm around them faded, Red and Mewtwo placed their hand on the Rayquaza's head, searching its memories, both recent, and from when Shadow had infused it. The latter were hard to decipher, but eventually, Red figured out their destination.

With the Arcean's force again split in half by battle, Sinnoh had been freed, but many were wondering what had become of their oppressors. Officially, the battle at Canalave City had seen their destruction at the hands of 'Redtwo' as the locals had also started calling the fusion of human and Pokémon, and the black scaled Rayquaza, who seemed to have joined the Trainer's party. Of Cynthia, the dragon's Tamer, there was no sign, and nobody was willing to speak on her location. Those who knew it, kept it quiet, so as to discourage any other attempts to track her down, and bring her home. Red knew that Albion would be much harder to reach now that it had Arcean tech defending it, but thankfully, the Scales of Balance were rather well equipped to handle such a threat, and it was to them that Red intended to go, once Japan had healed from the scars the Arcean Blitz had left all along their island.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

After All These Years

Nine Time World Champion, Ash Ketchum

Temple of the Mind Sage - Isle of Kazam (circa Chapter 7)

The entire island rumbled, and the Alakazam sitting before the Trainer suddenly awakened, eyes wide, and entirely obscured by the intense purple that was his aura. Ash Ketchum watched quietly, and observed the Sage's reaction. He did not know what was happening, but his own senses were picking up an immensely powerful mental presence that reminded him very strongly of Sinnoh. He'd had quite a few adventures there though, and he couldn't recall from which he recognized this familiar presence. The last time he'd been that far north in Japan, he'd lacked any real comprehension of his own natural ability. He did at least know it was from a Legendary Pokémon, though for him, that didn't exactly narrow the list of Pokémon he could be sensing.

For several minutes, that soon became twenty, the usually fidgety Trainer resisted the urge to move as he struggled to remember, and examine the larger presence, but as swiftly as it appeared, it faded. Like his Pikachu, he kept still, though where his Poképal had continued to focus his pools of rather volatile electric energy within his body, Ash had lost focus, and kept staring at his master, eager to know what exactly was transpiring.

Finally, the glow faded, and the Alakazam, who was usually in his Mega Form, let it drop for the first time in months. After another lengthy period of silence, his calm, but deep booming voice echoed in his head. "You've come far, since you came to this island...young Ash Ketchum...but perhaps not yet far enough, to handle what is to come…"

At that point, Ash could only hold back his rabid curiosity slightly, and while he didn't fidget, his right toe did tap against his leg, as he was sitting with them crossed. There was an eager look on his bearded face, as he sat patiently, garbed in a deep blue training gi, the standard attire of one of the Sage's pupils still in training. His hat was a classic, dirty, well worn, with a green check mark on its relatively simple red and white color combination. "I can handle any challenge, Master. Bring it!" He was followed by an affirmative "Pi, Pikachu!" It seemed they were, as usual, both ready to learn more.

The Isle of Kazam was home to one of the more psychically powerful Sages across the world, as his species' potential matched very well with their psychic typing, and the Sage's quiet nature made him that much stronger. Indeed, most of the isle was quiet, and slow. Adapting to that, had been the hardest challenge for a Trainer that was usually always in motion. His team hadn't seemed to mind though, as a change of pace could sometimes be a good thing.

"The Pokémon League was originally founded by the first Human able to Tame Arceus, roughly ten thousand years ago, who used the Alpha Pokémon's might and wisdom to better the Human race. When he died, Arceus returned to sleep, and the world spiraled into chaos, that is, until the present era, where most of Humanity has managed to live alongside my kind peacefully."

Ash nodded, as the Sage paused. "Professor Oak always said it was Pokéballs that let us grow so close to them. But I'm not so sure. Pikachu barely uses his, and that was only after I traded his old one in for a Luxury Upgrade."

The Sage nodded. "The bond between Humans and Pokémon can be forged without a capture device, however, it takes much longer. Your sphere inventions allowed your kind to catch many at once, and thus enabled your scientists to understand us better, as well as the role we play on your planet. To a degree, at least. Those who challenged the League back in the old days had such bonds, and many of my peers believe potential candidates have it 'too easy' in this era, now that capture devices have returned, and advanced so rapidly."

Ash blinked, several times. "Candidates? What's too easy? I don't get it."

The Alakazam chuckled in his head. "As you well know, World Champion, there will be a tournament soon, your people call it the World Tournament, a contest of skill designed to bring out the best Trainers in the world...but it has another purpose. To push the best of the best as high as they can go, high enough perhaps to reach the level needed to tame Arceus himself."

As the Sage mentioned Arceus, Ash's eyes went wide, as did his Pikachu's. "We've seen Arceus! We helped return the Jewel of Life to him…" He smiled at his Pikachu. "I must've been...what, ten?" "Pika." The electric mouse nodded, and they both looked back to the Alakazam with a smirk, as their mentor eyed them with what seemed like disbelief.

"Explain this encounter to me." He said.

And so, they did. Outlining the entire series of events, now that they'd remembered them. The Sage watched the human as he spoke animatedly, and began to wonder if he wasn't looking at the One destined to tame the Alpha as he name dropped not only the Alpha Pokémon, but the God of Time, the God of Space, and even the Renegade. From what he knew of the last human to Tame Arceus, he had been exceptionally kind, when the situation had allowed for kindness. He had not lived in peaceful times, as in his era, mankind had just discovered they could forcibly control the new magical creatures around them through science that, in the modern age, seemed more like magic. Naturally, everyone with a capture device had tried to carve out their own personal kingdoms, while the majority of regular humans had embraced the usefulness of having endless water supplies, endless electricity, and the whole host of other useful abilities Pokémon had provided happily, and usually without overbearing control.

"I see. From what I understand of the Alpha Pokémon, he is not the only one of his kind. As the legend goes, he came into this universe by way of a portal, and when his egg finally hatched, he breathed alone in the void, before our universe even began. My sire was told that the Alpha had never seen another golden Arceus, even when gazing through dimensions. It would make sense that such a species was rare, or hard to find...for Humans are not the only Spiralspawn that usurp the usefulness of Pokémon. What you encountered was a clone of our true Alpha, who just now, woke up again. For the first time in centuries. He has decreed that the next World Tournament shall kick off the process of finding the strongest Trainer alive."

The Alakazam floated towards the enraptured pair as they listened carefully. "Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town...do you have what it takes to become a Master?"

The nine time World Champion Trainer replied, by turning his hat backwards, and the Alakazam chuckled. "Good. Because of this turn of events, we may now advance your training quicker than we would otherwise...you will not be the only one to start, either. All across the world my fellow Sages will be preparing other challengers for the responsibility of Taming the Alpha Pokémon."

Despite his own comparable lack of psychic training, Ash's eyes were on fire, as were his Pikachu's. "I don't know about catching the Alpha Pokémon...but if I get to Battle super-strong Trainers like I did in the last World Tournaments, I'm in! Teach me, please!"

The Sage paused, at that answer, and then sighed. "Summon as much of your Aura as you can…" He went silent for a moment, and Ash vaguely felt him reach out to the other student who was training on the Isle of Kazam, and had been allowed to stay, despite what staying required of them. Once the doors to the Sage's spartan meditation chamber opened, his voice rang out as he projected it. "Isamu. Welcome. Come, sit with us. Important things are happening, things you must be aware of. Once you know what Ash knows, we will begin training your aura-related abilities as well. The time has come for your power to advance."

Isamu Midorinoki was from Johto, with fair skin tones, that went well with his black and primarily dark green hair, and similarly green eyes. His own gi was also a match for his aura, a deep green, but not sleeveless like Ash's. It was tighter too, highlighting just how physically fit Isamu was. Isamu's muscles had been growing for years at Japan's finest Trainer Academy, but it took more than muscle for a destiny like his. He looked as plain to the Alakazam as most humans did, for Pokémon sometimes had issues telling them apart, especially when they gathered in crowds. Isamu glanced between Ash and the Sage, and then frowned. "Why did Ash get to know before me?"

The Alakazam sighed, heavily. "He was here when they developed. Now sit, young Isamu, and focus on cloaking yourself with your aura, like Ash has done." As Isamu looked, he did indeed see Ash had already managed to project his bright blue aura around his form, in a perfectly layered shield of his power. It didn't wastefully radiate off of him in waves, staying condensed and strong enough to block even Pokémon moves. The usually fidgety Trainer had focused, and now he and his partner were pictures of calm, as they focused their respective powers.

Isamu sat, and followed suit. His own green aura flared as wildly as his unkempt hairstyle, and as usual, he felt it threatening to run out of control. He took a deep breath then, and focused on each part of his body, forcing the overwhelmingly powerful energy to surround him. It wasn't as perfect as Ash's shield, for it still flared up, but it successfully covered his form. Sweat covered his brow, as he forced himself to hold it in check.

The Sage sighed again. "Sloppy. And this is...only ten percent of your potential. Mmm. We have much work to do." With a flash, the Alakazam resumed his Mega Form, and the auras of his students dimmed, in the presence of his overwhelming psychic power, which manifested as an intense pressure that would, if they failed, force them to the ground with its power. "Now...keep your shields going. Both of you."

The overwhelming pressure from the psychic aura only grew, and both Isamu and Ash struggled, as their own psychic potential fought in vain to be present in the space, despite the massive power of their teacher. Alakazam's aura, especially in his Mega Form, took up most of the space within the chamber, manifesting as an omnipresent purple haze that seemed to be focused solely on breaking their barriers. Isamu's aura eventually brushed against it, and with a pitiful spark and a plip, it vanished as he lost control, and swore, as the sheer power of their mentor forced him face down into the floor. Again.

Ash, did slightly better. As did his Pikachu. The two frowned, as the Sage's attention now focused solely on them, and both of their shields, one bright blue, and one yellowish gold, began sparking as Alakazam's aura threatened to overpower them. Then, Ash did what he'd always done when his back was to the wall in the face of overwhelming strength. He reached out to his partner.

Pikachu felt his Trainer's mind brush his, and the link that had always existed became more tangible, obvious, as the mind of the Pokémon met the mind of his human, and not for the first time. This time, they both endeavored to maintain the connection, and as they did, their auras shifted together, forming a green one, not unlike Isamu's.

Minutes passed as the three struggled, and Isamu watched in disbelief as Ash and his starter Pokémon resisted the awesome psychic power of a Sage who was also an Alakazam. Finally, the pressure ceased, and the two let their aura fall, panting and covered with sweat, but grinning.

Mega Alakazam sat back as he floated in the air. A slight twitch of the Pokémon's impressive beard gave away his smirk, as his voice echoed in their heads. "Well done." Then, the glowing intense blue eyes shifted to Isamu. "Ash, Pikachu, go and rest. Maintain that link between your minds for as long as you are able. You will find it useful."

Seeing Isamu was about to get a private lesson, and knowing that it would likely involve his Pokémon, Ash nodded, glanced at his newest rival, and then left with his Pikachu on his shoulder.

"We will try again."

Isamu shivered, slightly, as he knew what came next. The Sage's words echoed. "Bring him out."

Isamu summoned his partner, and his inherited Zygarde Core appeared, glanced between them both, and narrowed its eye at the Sage. "You are far from your goal, Isamu Midorinoki. If you are to take up the World Warden's mantle, you must become stronger. Youta Maito will not live forever. As you well know." The Sage's eyes flared with his aura once more. "Now...push beyond your limits!"

The Zygarde Core jumped on his Trainer's shoulder, glaring at the Mega Alakazam as his aura became overwhelming once more. Isamu linked with the tiny Pokémon, and focused his energy. This time, the shield around both of them was a deeper green, and significantly stronger, giving off an audible hum, as the intense green manifested to the naked eye. The clashing fields of aura sparked in a circle around the pair, as the Sage's power slowly increased.

The green aura barrier pressed in on Isamu, and his Core, and the little green creature spoke directly into his mind with a single word for the first time since Isamu had inherited his ball.

"Focus."

Isamu took a deep breath, and did as he was bid, unwilling to lose, this time. If he failed, the Core would ignore him again, and bonding would become that much harder. Several green lights flashed from within his bag, as the Cells he'd caught so far, finally responded to his call, covering his green training gi, and bonding with the Core. His aura took on a vaguely canine shape, and as the Sage increased his power slowly, his beard twitched, as he smirked. "Good...now attack!"

Isamu's eyes, slowly turning bloodshot, focused on the Alakazam, as he started a proper Battle. According to Ash, it was one he needed to win, to advance. Thus far he hadn't had the honor of facing the Sage. He had not been strong enough to survive such a match, until this moment, and his Core had refused to help, until now. He and the Zygarde Core howled, and the Cells fused together along his back forming a cape of sorts, and bringing the aura cowl into a clearer intensity. He kept his focus, as he leapt, and formed claws around his hands, focusing an attack, as ordered.

He arced above the Sage's head, raised his hands, and brought them down with the intent to hit, hard enough for a knockout, at least. His form was stopped by the Sage's Psychic just before the attack landed, and Isamu suddenly found that maintaining the power was becoming more and more difficult to focus, as the Psychic Master focused a powerful move at him. His cowl's outline became vaguely canine once more, but he held it for several moments after the Sage lowered him back to his starting position.

"Well done. You are ready for the training course. You may use your Core, and only your Core. You should find summoning the cowl easier, now that you've learned to focus your aura into an attack. Rest, for now. Tomorrow, you will begin catching up to Ash." The Sage dropped his Mega Form, as he prepared to rest, and Isamu bowed, before leaving. The Core continued glaring at the psychic type, and leapt for him, as the human made to leave.

Isamu sighed, and recalled the angry Pokémon into its ball, which twitched, several times, before finally stopping. The appeal of Luxury always calmed the Core eventually, but the longer he stayed out, the angrier he became, and because Isamu still could not completely understand him, as Ash could with his partner, he had no idea why the Core with a deep green hexagon visible within its opaque body lashed out at everyone it locked eyes with.

As he walked through the Temple of the Mind Sage, he spied Ash, his Pikachu still on his shoulder, staring out at the ocean around them. His hands were in the pockets of his Trainer jacket, a long sleeved blue and white coat that fit over his gi, and was warm enough for cold places. Like most modern clothes, it could become longer and warmer, if one randomly found themselves in colder climates. Isamu heard him speaking, as he approached the pair, not for the first time, seeking insight from them, gained from their quite frankly absurd adventures, if even half of them were true.

"Another World Tournament...that takes me back…it's been so long."

"Pika."

"I know we'll see Leon again...I wonder who else will go. We may have to get some old friends back together, for this one, if it's as important as it sounds. I can't leave them idle on the ranch forever."

"Pi, Pikachu." The electric mouse said, nodding in agreement, before then thwacking his Trainer's head with his tail.

Isamu joined Ash then, and the pair shared a mutual nod of respect. "I just looked up the rules. Apparently, we can have ten partners. Those matches are going to be so long…and it isn't even being held for a few years. Unova has to build a new stadium, and according to John Crimson, it's going to try to match Wyndon's."

Isamu trailed off, seeing Ash's face, mouth agape, and then smirking with an expression that was, for lack of a better term, on fire. "Ten!? That settles it…" Ash looked back at his partner, and the two nodded as they smiled. "We have to train harder."

Two Years Later - The Isle of Kazam (Circa Ch. 30)

"Reach out, beyond yourselves. Open your hidden Eye, and view the world around you."

Isamu Midorinoki and Ash Ketchum did as the Sage instructed as they sat before their teacher in his training hall, and both of their auras flared, burning with intensity, before settling around their bodies. Then, they focused their power in their forehead, and looked...beyond.

"See the energy of the beings around you. See the energy keeping the lights on. It is not so different, and often, one can follow these paths of energy towards a goal they can stay focused on, like a friend, or family member. Everything is connected, even the planet. Reach out further. Beyond the temple. Beyond the island. Expand your perspectives."

While Isamu did as instructed, starting to see how the entirety of the planet was connected, thanks in no small part to the Zygarde Core on his shoulder. Only two Zygarde existed, which meant there were only enough cores for two fully formed defenders of the planet. Cells and Cores of both color variants had spread across the Earth, and formed lines of rejuvenating ground typed energy that covered the entire globe. As Isamu realized there was likely another who, like him, had inherited a Core from a Tamer of the Land, Ash found himself distracted, on the path to a wider view, as he sensed danger, from a mind he hadn't felt in years, but recognized instantly. Then, he saw what his Greninja was looking at. Serena's face drew his attention, and their surroundings held it.

He could feel the Sage's eyes narrowing, as Ash remained distracted, but he was determined, now. He reformed the bond with the water and dark type, much easier than he had in the past, and his Greninja gained an aura shield of his own, increasing his speed as he matched Serena's Talonflame, in the race towards their common enemy, what appeared to be some sort of man dressed in dark colors and fused with a Venomoth. But with far more black and deep purple.

He continued to remain unfocused on the current task, as he recognized a trap had been laid for Serena, and his Greninja leapt into action, as did some sort of strange, but insanely cool fusion of what had to be a Liepard, and a younger human.

Ash did not break the connection, until he was sure Serena was safe. Nor did he have a choice in when it ended. His master cut it short, once he saw the danger that had caught his pupil's attention had passed. What Serena had said last still hung in his ears, and he was more eager than ever for the World Tournament to begin. But he had learned patience long ago. It would come, in time, but likely not until Unova itself was far less wartorn.

He'd wanted to help, of course, when Isamu mentioned the strongly supported rumors of Shadow Infusion on the part of the reconstituted Dragon Empire's adversary, but the Sage had refused, assuring his students that Unova, and all the other regions once separated into States, also had a Psychic Master to watch over them, and help the continent's Guardian once more achieve balance. As Tamers of Legendary Pokémon, they had their own parts to play in other parts of the world.

"You were drawn to that conflict, weren't you."

Ash nodded, as the Sage's powerful baritone thundered in his head. "My Greninja...he needed help...and so did my...friend."

Isamu smirked, as Ash broke eye contact, but stayed quiet. For his part, he had succeeded in the lesson, and was fascinated by just how many energy streams criss-crossed their world. Before the Sage could press Ash on attachments, and removing them, Isamu interrupted with a bold question, before the Sage began speaking. "Why is our planet so thoroughly covered in so many different kinds of energy? I saw so much more than Ground Type, once I was out far enough."

The Mega Alakazam's eyes shifted to Isamu, as he answered immediately, as he always did when his students had questions. He encouraged them, though not in the middle of one of his sentences. "When Arceus Judged this planet to be worth saving, the result was an uncountable number of Plate shards embedding themselves in the planet. Humans discovered them eventually, and have begun using Infinite Energy to power their homes, and Pokémon. Too much mining of these shards will eventually remove these lines of power, and this planet will begin to deteriorate once again." He paused, as he noticed the looks on his pupil's faces. "Worry not, Humans...many are deeply embedded in the planet's crust. You would have to truly mine out your world to find them all, and your species has come far from that desire, in this era."

The two Trainers glanced at each other as they shared a worried glance, but by this point in their training, they were aware of how the Sages, Guardians, and even Tamers played a role in maintaining the planet's balance. If some organization ever made a concentrated effort to so brutally ruin the world, they would rise to stop them. Theoretically.

"The time has come for you two to Battle... You will bond with the Guardian each of you has Tamed, and practice battling alongside them." The Sage spoke again once the silence dragged on, and the two students rose, as he Teleported them to the Isle of Kazam's own battle stadium. The 'stands' if one could call them such, were little more than whitish gray stone slabs, but floating above them, were other members of the Sage's species, of all life stages, crowding the slabs as they Teleported in with multiple bamfs. Unlike a human crowd, the members of the Abra line were silent. At least, to their ears.

The psychic cacophony of so many minds was difficult to battle within, and for Isamu, it would only put himself and his Guardian at a disadvantage. Their connection was weaker than the one Ash had with the Guardian he had convinced to come to his call. The Sage appeared over his usual spot, a massive circle of the same stone, in the exact middle of the field, but out of the boundaries of it, of course. It was large enough to match Galar's stadium's, though it had the unique trait of not taking collateral damage, at least to the audience. The Pokémon watching them would redirect, and otherwise disperse the titanic forces that usually met in this arena.

The Sage glanced between both of his human students, and then, his voice rang out above them. "Summon them."

Isamu went first, bringing out his Core, who landed on his head. Over time, he had eventually learned how to understand the creature, though when it revealed it could indeed 'speak human', keeping it calm became easy, as misconceptions were cleared up when they occurred. It had remained opposed to bonding with him for a while, until Ash mentioned another Trainer and rival he knew who had run into a similar problem with his strange, but absurdly powerful Ninetails. The first step, had been asking the creature's name, and it was one step that Zyx had apparently appreciated. Over the past few years, they had maxed out their potential, according to the Sage, and only recently had Isamu finally mastered the cowl at fifty percent of its power, what Zyx called the Dragon Cowl.

With it, had come extra training, in the form of a martial art that the Sage referred to as the Dragon Style. It was something Zyx already knew, and had sped Isamu's memorization of, once they found inner harmony, and used it to form a bond. Five green 'tails' composed of aura fell behind him, dangling by his legs as the Core manipulated his aura shield into the base of the cowl that gave him, and all his predecessors, ridiculous amounts of strength.

For his part, Ash simply raised a gloved fist into the air, and with a loud splash, and then hurricane force winds, the Guardian of the Sea, the oldest Lugia alive, flew towards the human who had managed to befriend more of its kin than any human had in generations. The brilliant white psychic and flying type came down in front of its human partner in a whirl of wind and water, flaring its wings and roaring, at the comparatively tiny opponent it was meant to face.

Lugia and the Sage shared a nod. These battles were more to prepare Zygarde's next Tamer than to hone Ash's skill, but the bond was still formed, and as always, the Trainer from Kanto was eager to win. He shouted a move before Isamu had even taken his stance. "Aeroblast!"

Hearing the move, and then countering it, Isamu moved right with an impressive leap from a standing position, and then a circular turn out of the path of the wide beam of flying energy, as Lugia shifted its aim at the last moment to still try and score a hit. Isamu managed the dodge though, and charged the Legendary Pokémon, calling out his own move, as he focused Zyx's energy into his fist and leapt surprisingly high, soaring above the Lugia's head. His hand became heavier as the ground energy suffused it, and he brought it down as he shouted, "Land's... SMASH!"

The Lugia went down, hitting the ground hard as fist-shaped beams of green light pummeled the focus of the move, but before Isamu could follow up with another smash, the Guardian spun in place, righting itself as its scales flashed, and an impossibly strong wall of wind sent him sailing backwards across the field. Below the now once more levitating Legendary, Isamu saw Ash, smirking, hat already backwards. "We're not done yet! Dragon Rush!"

When cowled, Isamu was technically classifiable as a normal and dragon type, as Zyx's ground energy was directly tied to the Cells, and since their power was finite, they weren't always used for training. Ash was aware of this, and had finally added memorizing the type chart to his improvisational battle style, which meant he wanted to secure the victory. He had done so in every battle they'd had in this arena so far, against his usual team. Isamu was determined to win, this time.

With the perfection of the fifty percent cowl came access to another Move, one that would give them the same edge Ash was after. The cowl covered Isamu's forehead and skull, leaving only his jaw visible, as well as his eyes, when he wasn't attacking. Naturally, it resembled Zygarde's skull shape, and as the Lugia roared again, and propelled itself forward with a single wing flap, dragon energy surrounded its body.

Fangs of dark typed energy came down from the cowl's head, as Isamu focused the recently learned Crunch. Lugia came close as it charged them, and then snarled, as it realized it was going to miss. Isamu capitalized on the Legendary's bad luck, and a bottom pair of dark fangs formed just above his midsection, meeting with the top, and causing the volatile clash of darkness to come together around the Guardian's shoulder.

Isamu rode it down, as the Legendary Pokémon crashed, not quite fainted, but at Isamu's mercy. A hauntingly beautiful tune echoed across the field, as the Trainer from Pallet Town brought out what appeared to be some sort of blue coral flute, and played it. He looked up, once the brief tune ended, and smirked. "Blizzard."

The rejuvenated Legendary shrieked, and rose into the air, just above its target. This time, it did not miss, as the Guardian summoned the wind and ice with a single flap, surrounding Isamu in freezing cold, namely, arctic level blasts of wind, that eroded his aura down to just his shield, and as that faded, so to did the Blizzard, as the Guardian spun in place, and calmed the skies around the isle.

"Not bad."

The two words echoed like a thunderclap as the Guardian projected its voice into the air above the Core and its latest wielder. Isamu waited for the Sage to call the match, glancing his way as only silence followed. Then, he realized why. His shield was still intact, but the cowl had been blown away. He needed a new tactic, if he wanted to win.

As Ash also realized the Battle was not yet over, Isamu formed his cowl, or rather, the tails, and sank them into the ground, as he closed his eyes, and slowly moved his hands in the air before them. Then, he stomped the ground, and raised both fists, even though they were nowhere near coming close enough to hit Lugia. Ash smirked, thinking victory was his. A point blank Psychic was sure to end Isamu. He was barely standing as it was.

And yet, as the command formed in his mouth, Isamu's attack manifested rapidly in response to the seemingly useless arm movement, and the Lugia noticed only moments too late as a series of massive rocks rose up from the ground before the Trainer, lancing into Lugia's already injured abdomen, and hitting critically, as one of the rocks struck home on a wound from the Crunch.

The Lugia fell to the field, fainted, and Isamu was already by its side with a Max Revive in hand as Ash sprinted forward, a grim expression replacing the shock he'd experienced from watching Isamu make a seemingly useless strike, only to have it followed so quickly by a move that seemed like Stone Edge.

Moments later, the processed medicinal herb, maximized for healing potential, restored the Guardian of the Sea yet again, though the stress of nearly fainting twice in a row still showed. Ash's hands met its head as the indecipherable voice thundered in their skulls again. "I am going to rest." It gave Ash a meaningful look. "It was a good Battle."

Lugia levitated itself into the air then, and with one flap, purposefully aimed so nothing behind it was obliterated, it returned to the sea. Ash met Isamu's green eyes then, and gave a light smile. "That was impressive, using Stone Edge like that. I've never seen it hit so accurately before."

Isamu chuckled, but before he could answer his rival, the Sage Teleported them back to his temple's training hall, and answered for him. "That...was not Stone Edge, young Ash Ketchum. But in terms of strength, it is classifiably a Move, and is equally damaging."

Ketchum's eyes went wide, and he looked at Isamu again, used to rapidly shifting location, by this point. The Sage often brought them to where he was convinced they would excel the most. From Selva Muerta, to the frozen wastes on both North and South poles, their stays were usually brief, but enlightening, and not once had the Sage let real harm come to them. They had been ambushed eventually, of course. Both Isamu and Ash had rather determined enemies, but the Sage had Teleported them back to the isle, and handled the danger personally, often refusing to speak of what had occurred once they left.

"If it's not Stone Edge, then what is it? I've never seen an attack Move like that!" Isamu chuckled as Ash pressed him eagerly for more.

After a glance at their mentor, he answered. "One of the villains I was tracking back home fled north to Koria, before I ever even knew this island existed. While I was there, I noticed the people didn't always use Pokémon to Battle. Some people battled by themselves, using Moves related to specific elemental types. Mine, turned out to be Earth. Once I learned martial arts, Zyx suggested we combine the two styles. It's...effective, but not all that different from how they do it in Koria."

"Humans...doing Battle? That sounds awfully...Imperial." Ash looked at the Sage as he trailed off.

"While the Imperium of Man does use Humans to Battle alongside Pokémon, as a method of training their Thunder Warriors, they typically fight alongside their Pokémon partners, and only in coliseums devoted to the art of Battle. In Koria, there are four nations that dominate their region, and each one has ties to different elements. Those without ties to the elements, usually become Pokémon Trainers, while those who can command this energy and bend it to their will tend to Battle alone, or with only one partner, usually one that can carry them across the region. There is a reason why these Humans have developed these ties, but that's a whole other tale. Your insight serves you well, however, for the Humans who embrace Fire and heat have allied with the Imperium, and have spent the past three hundred years subjugating the region in the Imperator's name, giving the Imperium its first real foothold in Eous." The Sage answered Ash's words quickly, as he was still not entirely comfortable discussing the massive empire that was the Imperium. He had tried other methods to cure Ash of his fears, but in the end, it was evident only one thing could help the Trainer overcome his well-earned fear of the Imperium.

For his part, Ash seemed to have moved on from the disturbing thoughts, focused instead on something new, and interesting, something he did not yet understand. Learning how other regions battled, and just how varied that could become, had fascinated him as he traveled the world. "So...Fire and Earth...are there any other elements that Humans have ties to?"

The Sage nodded. "Those who bend Fire to their will can sometimes also summon Electricity, in the form of lightning. Those with an affinity to Earth can enhance that connection, usually by mastering Ground or Rock energy respectively. Their nation births Humans who can control both Types, and mastery of both can usually be refined into bending Steel as well, though that particular skill is very hard to master. The northern part of the region houses those with a tie to Water and Ice, but sometimes, they can manifest control over Grass as well, depending on where they're raised, and how skilled they are at manipulating Water Energy. The southern sea dwellers of the region also have ties to the Water, but they live almost entirely on ships, and trade only with Sinnoh, and other Korians. Lastly...and perhaps most tragically, those with an affinity to Air, who could fly, and sometimes even manifested Psychic abilities, were all but wiped out when the Fire Nation started their war. They were a peaceful people, though you wouldn't know it these days. The Imperium's propaganda machines have demonized them, and any like them, as mutants that have earned only death. You will have to be wary of them, when you visit."

Ash's eyes widened. "I'm going?"

The Mega Alakazam nodded. "For this next stage of your training, you should journey to each nation...but be aware, the Fire Nation considers those with psychic abilities to be mutant abominations of Humankind, and one step away from being Air Nation rebels." The Sage closed his eyes and sighed, remembering many, who had been his friends, long ago. His island was not all that far to the east of Koria, and the air nation had seen him as a brother to their people once their more inquisitive psychic nomads followed, and discovered the source of his massive psychic presence. "They did not leave enough alive for a proper rebellion...and they relentlessly hunt for any rumor of Air Nation survivors."

Ash's expression grew grim, at the Sage's mental tone, and the sadness that radiated from his powerful mind. "Why? What would drive people to do something like that?"

This time, Isamu answered. "They're hunting the Avatar. A Human who apparently mastered every element, and others besides the main four. Apparently, they could reincarnate themselves, but instead of leaving the cycle of rebirth, and Humanity, they stayed, and maintained balance in the region, as they don't have a specific Guardian. The supercontinent is massive, and its Guardian is focused on regions loyal to Eous."

The Sage spoke again, once Isamu finished, holding up a finger, and presaging a correction to an untrue assertion. "That, is Fire Nation propaganda, twisted by Earth Nation rumors. Their proper title, is the Avatar of Light, and that, Ash Ketchum, is who you must seek out on your journey. The current incarnation of this unique being has been missing for the past century, but with your abilities, and your team's, I am confident that you will find them. The World Tournament is approaching. You should use the partners you intend to Battle with on your journey, but, before you head to Koria, Teleport home to Professor Oak's lab. Gary has something that will make all of your Pokémon partners stronger."

Ash glanced at Pikachu, who was and had been perched on his shoulder throughout their training match. "A new region...it's been a while since we traveled around." He looked back to the Sage. "I'll head out now!"

The Mega Alakazam nodded, and with a bamf and a flash of light, Ash and his partner returned to Pallet Town. Then, the Sage focused his gaze on Isamu. "You did well to take on a Lugia, but you will need more power, for what is to come. Travel to the Kalos region, and find another Core of Zygrade willing to aid you. Ask the local nobility where they like to sunbathe. They will know you are coming. If that fails, I hear there are some in Alola as well."

Isamu nodded, as he levitated his backpack to him within the training hall, and began pulling on his Trainer attire. "I understand. Find the other Cores...and as many Cells as possible. I won't let you down, Master."

For the first time in Isamu's tenure on the Isle of Kazam, the Sage did something new. He dropped his Mega Form, and hobbled over to Isamu, placing one three-fingered claw on his shoulder from his shorter stature. "Her son will be tracking you, Isamu. Her pawn just escaped Kalos, according to Ash, but you can bet she still has her offspring hiding away over there...and he will be waiting for you to seek out the Cores. Remember your training...and do not be afraid to accept aid...whatever form it takes."

Isamu pulled on the hood that acted as protection for his identity, a useful feature of his primarily deep green outfit that obviously resembled the head of Zygarde's fifty percent form, not unlike his aura cowl. "I can handle him...I'm ready...the Shadow will not win." He glanced at his shoulder, as Zyx jumped upon it, and made his species best attempt at a growl. "Not this time."

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 36: Right to Rule

Riker's Island - Unova Region

Located to the east of Unova's bisected desert, on the waters just south of the Marvelous Bridge, lies a small island that remains a dark spot on Unova's history. While New Tork City eventually retrofitted Black City to house their incarcerated citizens, the isle under the command of Warden William Riker has always had a reputation as a merciless facility that does not tolerate the antics of its inmates, and has historically dealt with insubordination, and even rebellion, with harsh penalties.

While the people of old New Tork also once used it to house criminals, they eventually relegated the tiny island made mostly of composted garbage and poison to history, and it was only once Unova rose as its own independent region that its leaders again brought the ancient prison into service. Prison Island, as it was once called, was renowned in its day for lawlessness, corruption, and truly foul humans, guards and criminals alike, who populated it. That all changed, when Warden Riker took charge.

In an unprecedented move, the former military man took the men who'd served under him in war and gave them guard positions. Within a week, he'd determined the entirety of the facility's staff was irredeemable, and with the help of the Jennies, he relocated every single one of them to cellhouses within Black City. The prisoners were given an ultimatum, then. The days of corruption and 'easy time' were over. They would obey the rules, or they would be punished. Naturally, most assumed that the Warden was not serious. They were wrong.

Within a year, Riker had the entire prison functioning better than Unova's other holding facilities, and after several decades of maintaining a 'firm but fair' ruling ethic, he was honored by New Tork, when they renamed the island after him. A bit older, but still in the prime of life, Warden Riker was given the command by the Original Dragon to ready the facility for millions of potential prisoners. His ordinary charges were moved to fresh cellhouses in Black City, and the island was expanded with aid from the dragon himself, to accommodate as many Crusaders as possible. This was mainly done by digging down, into the planet's crust, and with no small number of floating barges, also laden with cells, ringing the island.

Warden Riker handled every single wave of Crusaders that came to his facility with the same iron will that had handled Unova's own brand of scum, and the defeated soldiers usually stayed in line. Those who didn't, he relocated to a special barge, per the dragon's orders. Tao, as the people started calling him, had wanted anyone leading resistance and continuously rebelling to be put in the same place.

Riker and his guards, Trainers who he had personally instructed in the art of battle, knew the war was ending once Crusaders from Sacreus, covered in ash and thoroughly demoralized, started arriving at the usual spot they were bamfed onto the island from. Throughout the course of the war, the Warden had kept a careful record of what the prisoners said about those who captured them. As expected, Unova's Champions turned Generals had inspired fear, respect, and submission from their subdued enemies, but there was one figure that Riker had consistently had conflicting reports about. Their new Dragon Emperor.

Some prisoners claimed he was a human-Pokémon half-breed, who used his psychic abilities to bend those around him to his will. Others, claimed he'd treated them fairly, when he'd had every reason, and excuse, not to do so. Eventually, Riker was able to determine who was parroting the Church rhetoric Caleb Pravus had drilled into them, and who was speaking honestly of the man's deeds. He'd made a point of battling each of Unova's rising stars, but Alex Redwood had been remarkably hard to track down, and Riker had been too preoccupied running his island to ever face him in a battle.

He had his own opinions about reviving the Dragon Empire, and letting a Trainer run it, but he kept them in check until he actually met the man. When the Original Dragon returned to New Tork City at the head of their golden, glowing legions, Riker began to understand what was going to come next. The east had won. He was only mildly surprised when Tao mentally contacted him, telling him that the Dragon Emperor would be arriving to handle the prisoners, but he had underestimated just how fast the man would arrive.

Within moments of zipping away from the party kicking off in New Tork for the returning soldiers, atop his Salamence, Redwood was sighted over the prison, and flew over the island twice, before finding the entrance, and a spot with enough space for the massive dragon he'd somehow managed to train. Warden Riker had some gray in his hair, but had retained his physical shape, and his team of Pokémon partners had done the same. None more so than his first partner, a Lucario, but as the leader of his nation landed before the pair, the aging Lucario perked up, his 'hair' quivering, as he sensed and read the aura of the human hopping down from the massive dragon's neck.

Riker glanced at his partner; brow furrowed. His Lucario was the main reason they'd only ever had one prisoner escape from the island, and since Ghetsis had enlisted Shadow beings to aid him, it was a mark Riker didn't really count. Nobody had ever even come close to stopping the Shadow Triad. They were gone before one realized they'd arrived, and if they battled you, it was to distract you from what the other two were doing. He and Lucario had managed to take one of their number down, permanently, as it turned out, but the other two had escaped with their boss in the end. Riker glanced up, as the Dragon Emperor flashed with light, and his Salamence took off again, flying south towards the open ocean.

He was dressed far too casually in the Warden's opinion. A lengthy white robe-like jacket covered black and white pants that extended all the way down to his similarly black and white Trainer shoes, and matched the hat he'd been sporting since he took the title of Unova's Champion. The smirk he was wearing seemed forced, but Riker re-evaluated his opinion of his new leader once they locked eyes. His were tired, exhausted even, but Riker recognized that look, and so did his Lucario, as the well-trained Aura Pokémon broke formation to walk up to the Trainer, as he approached.

That, brought a more genuine smile to the man's face, and Riker's Lucario began to tap his foot as the Trainer asked to pet him, and quickly found his weak spot, scratching it thoroughly. Though he didn't approve of the breach in etiquette, Riker knew his partner to be an excellent judge of character, and the reason he always won Poker Night with the guards. He stepped forward and offered the new leader of his nation a proper salute. "Emperor Redwood. The Crusaders are awaiting your inspection, sir."

Alex returned the salute with a far more casual tone to it, less rigidity, though that was likely from exhaustion. If the media was to be believed, they had teleported directly home after besieging Sacreus, and taking it, leaving just enough of a presence to keep it in line until the new government could get to handling it. "Warden Riker. I've heard good things, from Tao. Have there been any incidents while they've been waiting for the war to conclude?"

The pair began walking as they talked, with Riker leading the way through the maze-like facility. "A few. Usually, the new prisoners like to see how far they can push us. They learn quickly enough, but the charismatic troublemakers are the ones we separate out."

Alex nodded, his expression turning grim, as the smirk faded. "Mm. I see. We'll get to those...it's the main population I need to address, first."

Riker nodded, and picked up his pace, expecting both his Lucario and his Emperor to do the same to match him. "They're already waiting. They've been watching the celebration. This way."

Riker Island was home to many holding facilities, but usually, the prisoner's days were spent idle, somewhat comfortable, in this, the main rec facility that boasted both indoor and outdoor stimulation. The food wasn't gourmet, but neither was it garbage, and as long as prisoners followed the rules, and respected the guards, they were allowed to serve their time in relative quiet. There were other places on the island, for those who were determined to be more violent, and active. Naturally, battling was a favorite pastime, and as long as prisoners didn't try using their Pokémon to escape, they were allowed to draw one partner from their box. The battle facility also doubled as the max security wing, for both were Teleport proof, and had numerous other move-cancelling abilities besides. If all that failed, there was always his Lucario, who had yet to be unable to track a prisoner's aura on the rare chance they managed to escape the facilities.

The main rec room was filled with chairs today, of varying quality, texture, and length, though there weren't nearly enough for the number of Crusaders watching from the multiple levels of the building. Several million of them resided in this facility, and all but one side of the building played home to crowds of milling Fornians. They were arrayed before a massive holo-screen showing New Tork City in the throes of victory. The prisoners had rearranged the furniture on the ground floor to group up with their little social cliques, and as long as they weren't violent or subversive, Riker allowed them. There were cries of protest, once the screen went off, but silence reigned moments later, as the iconic visage of Alex Redwood walked out onto the balcony from which only Warden Riker, usually, addressed them. Riker himself was standing behind the Dragon Emperor, arms behind his back, as he watched the younger man closely. He'd heard rumors of the Trainer's persuasive Voice, some even claimed it was a variation of the Hyper Voice move, but he was the kind of man who believed what he saw, over rumors.

"Crusaders of Fornia. I did not have the pleasure of putting all of you in here, but if you spoke to one of my fellow Generals, or heard their words, you know the deal. Your surrenders have been accepted, and now that the war is over, Warden Riker and I will begin the process of letting those of you who are ready, return to your families." There were a few cheers at this, amongst skeptical rumbling, and Alex let them die down before he continued. "This process will have two paths. The easy path...and the difficult path. Because you are your own people, with your own will and beliefs, I will not force you to walk either. I will give you a choice, as I gave those of you who understood why surrender was your best option."

The smirk returned then, and the seemingly far too casual man held up one finger. "First, is the easy path. My Scales and I will use our psychic abilities to determine, rather quickly, whether or not you are ready for reintegration into the society we intend to build. The process will be invasive, but harmless. Only my best Scales will be examining your minds. If you are genuinely willing to support what we are about to build, we will send you home, with a job, to be started when the rebuilding of Fornia begins. Until then, you may do as you please, provided it's...legal."

The second finger rose, before the grumbles of protest became cries of bigotry towards anything even remotely psychic. "The second path will take longer and be more difficult. We will be using our abilities for that, as well, but they will not be as...invasive, and will take much longer. Both paths can potentially lead to your freedom, but I will warn you now, that lying, hiding information, and clinging to your fallen Church's doctrine will not be tolerated. I've heard good things about Warden Riker's 'one and done' system. One infraction, and all the comforts you would enjoy otherwise, vanish. I'll be speaking to those who decided to cause such infractions later, but first, I wanted to address you, the people likely the most eager, and willing, to go home. Work with us, and you will see your families soon. Try to take advantage of our kindness…" His eyes burned deep blue as he paused, and he stared down at them, forcing his mental presence to physically manifest within the building, as intense pressure. More than a few Crusaders slumped, under the sheer force of it. "...and you will not enjoy the consequences."

Riker glanced at his Lucario at that moment, and the Aura Pokémon met his gaze. His voice echoed in his Trainer's head, then. "This aura...it's…vastly stronger than any Human I've ever seen…" The Lucario stayed silent for a moment, as he kept reading it, then added, "...but, there is kindness, at its core. Honorable intentions... righteousness...for now." Riker nodded, eyes shifting back to the man who now led his entire nation. He'd known Tao wouldn't have a weak Tamer, but to hear he significantly surpassed the many criminals and enemies they'd faced with strong auras was...unsettling.

Alex's eyes returned to normal, and his aura shield returned to being invisible, as he smirked once more. "I will do my best to give the people of Fornia, even the men who fought for her under Pravus, the future they deserve. One where we all prosper. Together. Do not waste this opportunity. I can sense the potential each of you has...I would not see it locked away, wasted in a prison."

With that, Alex left, leaving the rec center largely silent, as the indoctrinated soldiers within processed his words. Caleb Pravus was gone. The Church couldn't punish them for accepting such a deal, at this point. The Church no longer even existed, having publicly disbanded once Sacreus had been taken. They had, according to the last wave of prisoners, been overthrown in no small part by Sacreus's own citizens, once said citizens had learned the truth of Shadow Infusion, and how their trusted government had been systematically turning their Pokémon into mindless, rage-fueled weapons to serve Pravus's ambition.

"A nice speech…" Riker said, as Redwood began following signs to another part of the facility. "But it will not work on those more opposed to you."

"Oh, I'm aware." The man said, waving a hand casually. "I'm not going to even try logic, with them. Rosa will be handling the...hardcore believers. All they'd do is spit, on me...and I don't have quite enough patience, for that. She'll be arriving with a few of the Scales who can handle their ideals best. Right now, I am here to see the Light Branded. I was told you'd received them from the Black Hills hideout. How are they?" One deep blue eye turned Riker's way, as the Dragon Emperor continued walking about the place as if he knew where he was going.

"Well...they're model prisoners...but I wouldn't call them Human. Whatever the Church did to them...it changed them on a psychological level, as well as a physical one. You'll understand, once you see them." Riker didn't speak again, until they reached the door to the barge that was currently holding several city's worth of Light branded humans. He unlocked the door, and then gestured, as they came upon yet another balcony, though addressing these prisoners rarely did anything. "Here they are…"

Alex winced as he looked down at the crowd of people. Some eyes turned towards him, most, stayed unfocused upon whatever their head was looking at. They shambled constantly, in a chaotic pattern of movement, not seeming to mind the cramped space, so long as said movement wasn't impeded. There were no words spoken, but the low near-constant moans from the humans below were demoralizing.

"Their brains have been thoroughly experimented on, and their bodies have as well…" The feminine voice that spoke, came from one of their sides, cutting through the omnipresent groans. Aurea Juniper was nearing the end of her mortal coil, but she still had enough pep in her step and electricity in her brain for study, and science. "Whoever experimented on them was determined to turn them into Light users...I can't tell if they succeeded. According to the Champions from the Black Hills, these are the rejects. Did you find any enemy Light wielders in your travels, Dragon Emperor?"

Alex glanced at the Professor as she spoke, and then looked back down at the writhing horde of humans. "No... not many, anyways. Not ones who demonstrated genuine abilities like myself and Rosa. They were usually healers, like Montaho's Champion and I saw no reason to keep them from using their gifts, but I didn't find any using them for Battle."

Riker spoke up then. "That's concerning. The Professor has determined, and I agree with her, that there are so many rejects because the goal was a perfected, man-made Light wielder. With this many failures, there had to have been a few successes."

Alex sighed. "Then no one, not I nor my Generals, faced them. We came across undead abominations, Shadow worshipers, even people who'd tried infusing Shadow into their own auras, despite the cost and the risk. The Light is...different. They may have completely failed to manufacture someone who could use it. Or...what they created used the Light to keep themselves hidden. It's a difficult trick, but I've seen Tao bend it to use as camouflage. They could be hiding, by now."

The Professor stepped up beside Alex then. "Is there anything you can do for them?" She gestured to the crowds below, and his expressions darkened.

"I can... certainly try. But it may...agitate them. Be ready. Warden, tell your guards to prepare...this may get messy. If anyone regains their sanity, I'll bamf them up here." Riker nodded as Alex spoke, and then the Warden spoke into his comm device, attached to his ear. Moments later, his similarly black and white garbed guards, armed with Pokéballs and simple batons specialized for defense and blocking, joined the group atop the balcony.

Alex took a deep breath, calmed his mind, and then focused, as he reached out to, and connected with each of the people below. Immediately, he noted that some minds were more intact than others, and his hands clenched the balcony rail tighter, as he saw firsthand what the mad doctors Manchineel and Ein had inflicted on their own people. He also realized he'd have to go through them one by one and hope his healing attempts did something. While healing with psychic energy was still difficult for him, he could close small wounds now, but he had found that the Light was far more suited for such things. While powerful when fueled by wrath and a desire for justice, when combined with peaceful emotions, the Light's healing effects were second to none, almost miraculous, if draining.

The tall frame of the Trainer hummed with a deep blue aura, which then burned to gold. Riker heard his Lucario gasp, but he stayed quiet this time, as he sensed the distant-but-present aura of the Alpha Pokémon.

"Here we go…" Alex started with the more intact brains, focusing a small but direct burst of healing Light on their minds, guiding the regrowth along the neural pathways that had been burned away in whatever gruesome experiment they'd been subject to. The first five, he failed to revive, and while they specifically stopped wandering, and even looked around seemingly more aware, he knew they were a far cry from who they had been. The sixth however, responded best to his healing. With a flash, Alex brought her up to join them, and he vaguely heard the Professor consoling her as he continued to heal, and scan.

He had no idea how long he stayed at it, and he knew it was quite a length of time he'd been awake now, but he was determined to get through the entirety of the crowd. Suffused as he was with Light, he didn't feel the exhaustion yet, and he knew it would only come once he let the connection fade. In the end, just over two hundred of the several thousand people they'd found afflicted managed to regain their senses, and their sanity, to a degree. No mind was the same, and each reacted to awakened awareness differently. Alex left handling them to Riker and Juniper, staying focused on his task the entire time.

When he did eventually stop, he noticed the light coming through the barge's barred windows was that of the moon, and the bright crescent was already high in the sky. For this time of year though, just past the end of Festivus, that was normal. It wasn't too late, but it was later than he'd wanted to stay. As the Light faded, he resisted the sudden but not entirely unfamiliar drowsiness that hit him, and as his mind compared it to other instances of sudden exhaustion, he felt Jess mentally poke him. He smirked, reaffirmed that he was fine, and would be joining her soon, then turned, to see the Warden eyeing him, along with his Lucario, with an indeterminable expression.

"So...how did it go, Warden? How are they handling their regained senses?"

Riker smirked. "Rather well...once we explained what had happened, most were glad the Church was gone...a few were upset that you had...'befouled their mind with psychic heresy', but they eventually realized why you did, and why it was irrefutably a good thing." The older man gave the younger one, who was all but teetering from exhaustion, a pat on the shoulder. "You did well, Dragon Emperor. You gave those people their lives back, more or less...and for the others...well, they can at least feed themselves now, so my guards are rather thankful too. They might even recover, over time."

Alex nodded, slumping against the balcony railing as he noted the people below had been moved to their cells at some point. While still barred and closed, they were not locked, and while before the Branded had been seemingly unable to open them, now, it seemed quite a few were able to, so they could continue to wander aimlessly. "Tao will be able to help them...better than I can. I know their brain's structure more intimately, though. He wanted me guiding...their initial regrowth."

Riker nodded. "I'll expect his arrival one of these days, then. I know there is much to handle, right now." He eyed the younger man again, and the smirk widened. "You seem like you're ready to collapse, lad. You should head home, and rest."

Alex blinked, at that. Home. Eric had mentioned that his room had finally been taken over by one of their cousins, since he apparently had a giant, ancient palace to sleep in now. He tried to glean where Jess was, and only found his third eye being dragged back to New Tork, which meant a ridiculously lavish hotel, most likely. "I'll do that." He stood then and gave the Warden a respectful nod. "Until next time, Warden Riker."

The older man saluted. "Sir." And with a flash of blue, and a bamf sound, he was gone. Riker turned to his Lucario then. "What do you think?"

Having mastered speaking with his human a long time ago, the Pokémon responded mentally. He couldn't project his words, and he couldn't read human runes, but the Common language was easy enough. "He has...a connection to the Alpha. The rumors were true."

Riker arched an eyebrow. "And his personality? Will he abuse that power?"

The Lucario shrugged. "I do not think so. I sensed no malice, or greed. Just determination to do what is right. If the Dragon guides him, he will do well, I think."

Riker nodded. "Well done, my friend. It's time you had a rest too." The Lucario stifled a yawn, and nodded, as his Trainer recalled him into his ball, and left the old man to ponder the future, and what it would look like after the Dragon Emperor started bending it to his will, as he had an entire barge's worth of people. "I may be out of a job…" He muttered, smirking, before leaving to grab dinner, and his own rest.

The Great Valley - Transylveticut Region

Alex slept for three days once he'd returned to New Tork, and he'd awoken to find that his better half had once again left before him, leaving only a note in her wake. Evidently, she and the Riders of Valaskjalf had absconded somewhere quieter to try to help Ho-Oh recover, by way of some ancient song. He left her to it, and instead tracked down his Gallade, who had taken to keeping track of everyone while their Trainer slept. Since donning the Storm Crown, he'd only needed four hours of rest to be functional, which put into perspective just how much energy he'd burned, before collapsing.

Arthur gathered their party in short order, all save for Shruikan, who was still hunting. Alex let him, as he had more than earned his rest after his efforts during the war. Each of his team had, but none had singly guarded the entire Kanadian Wall during some of their coldest months. Once Alex had all nine, he Teleported to where Percy had told him to rendezvous when they were ready to attempt his 'Meltan Plan', as he'd started calling it. Alex found the name ridiculous, but it had somehow caught on with his team while he'd been sleeping. The hotel had been more than willing to cater to their whims, given voice by Arthur, who had taken to helping the staff with his powers and demeanor while the others lounged around the areas dedicated to Pokémon within the massive New Tork skyscraper.

Alex materialized in a massive valley, surrounded on two sides by a mountain range that had long since eroded, flattened, and then raised again, in the wake of Arceus's reshaping of their planet. Tracking Percy's mind was difficult at the best of times, and he wandered on foot, at a walking pace, for almost an hour before he sighted his svelte friend, amidst several massive forms of what had to be Melmetal.

A group of Meltan charged him, as he approached their spot in the valley, one close to the ore-rich mountains. They fired several Flash Cannons his way, which he dodged, spinning away from each one with confident, even graceful steps one would not expect from someone with so large a frame. Eventually, he got close enough to explain why he was there to them, and while he did not understand all their noises, as some were on different sound wavelengths human ears simply couldn't grasp, they did turn from hostile to excited, when he brought out Cenomons.

His Aggron had grown rather massive after his feast. Alex had left him to munching on and structurally reinforcing the under-city of Sacreus. Essentially, he'd consumed the Meltan line's metal, and replaced it with sturdy stone walls and pillars. Once the war ended, Arthur had eventually gone back for him, with his ball, before returning him to New Tork, as they'd waited for their human to rouse himself. The lumbering steel type gave the Melmetal a greeting, one which was returned with what seemed like strange gestures from the mythical Pokémon before them. Each one towered above them, and there had to be over a hundred Melmetal across the valley.

"Some of them are more...shy...than these. But they are all eager to see how you intend to revive their brethren." Percy said, once they'd grasped forearms and bantered for several minutes.

Alex chuckled, at that. "That's the thing though, Percy. Arceus said to come...he never said what to do after I arrived." He glanced up at the Melmetal as he spoke and sensed their minds turning darker. He stepped between them, and Ceno, as he felt their thoughts turn to removing the metal of their fallen friends by force. "Let's not give up before we've even started, my friends… I am sure that the Al-" He paused, mid sentence, as he realized Percy was staring at something above them, and as the pale white form of Arceus manifested from a portal surrounded by what looked uncannily like a double helix, he settled onto the golden grass of the Great Valley, and each of the massive giants fell to both knees, arms bent, as they bowed to the Alpha Pokémon.

You did well to gather as much of the metal as you could, Mountain Eater. The red eye of the deity focused on Cenomons, before it shifted to the humans before him. I can give them new Hex Nuts, but we will need Human ingenuity to...retrieve...the metal within your partner.

Alex bowed as low as Percy did before the Alpha Pokémon, before he responded. "I have an idea...but I'll need your power to make it work. Cenomons knows a Move that can separate the steel from him in a... painless manner. But it will be up to you to hold it in place. If it hits the ground, it'll be expended...explosively."

Arceus regarded the human for a moment, then nodded his head. Together, then.

Alex nodded, taking a long breath as he fought down any panic that came from him partnering up with a literal god, and turned his eyes to Cenomons, pointing at an unoccupied area of the golden grass-filled valley before giving the command. "Bearing Shot!"

Ceno nodded, seeing his logic thanks in no small part to the bond they shared at a mental level. The Aggron rose onto his hind legs, and fired quite a few small, round, steel typed balls into the air above the golden fields from his mouth and the black holes on his steel frill. As expected, Arceus held them in place with seemingly no effort. They repeated the move until Ceno was out of power, at which point they used an Elixir and repeated the process. After running out of energy almost a hundred times, Cenomons nodded at Alex, as he knew by instinct that was all the steel he could spare.

Before them, floating in the air, were hundreds of thousands of tiny silver spheres. Arceus glanced at the human and his chosen partner. Well done, both of you. You continue to impress me, Redwood. This act will not be forgotten...by myself, or the Melmetal.

Alex bowed, and even Ceno knelt at the Alpha's praise. Then, it was his turn. After hearing the cannon-like sound of firing numerous Bearing Shots into the air, most of the Great Valley's inhabitants had gathered to watch and bask in the Light of their creator. They all stared, spellbound, as the Alpha Pokémon worked his magic.

The accents upon his body turned a steel color, as did the structure around his midsection and around the humans and the Aggron, several more Melmetal formed via evolution, in the intense outpouring of steel typed energy. It hardly mattered, as they were about to have far more Meltan. A single sphere of energy that even Alex's eyes couldn't tell the type of formed above the Alpha's head, and with a simple shift of his head, it broke into a brilliant cascade of bright white spheres, each shard of which connected with a steel orb suspended in the air.

With flashes reminiscent of evolution, the balls of steel formed into Meltan, who were then lowered to the golden grass by the Alpha, as he simultaneously focused on recombining all the others. The whole effort took moments, but it was quite a spectacle, and when they were done, every member of the Meltan line had happy eye squiggles, as friends they had thought lost were once more brought back into existence.

As one, they praised Arceus in what seemed like something between a cheer and a prayer, and just as quickly as he had appeared, the Alpha Pokémon vanished. One of the more massive Melmetal approached Alex then, and Percy grew tense, as he watched the thirty-foot steel automaton of a Pokémon. "Careful...this one is...temperamental. The Arceans were...not kind to him."

Alex nodded, but went to meet the Melmetal halfway anyways, as at his size, his lumbering speed was Torterra levels of slow. Alex bowed, and then resumed standing as the Melmetal thundered right up in front of him, causing him to have to tilt his head rather far to keep contact with its 'eye'. It spoke both physically, and surprisingly, in his head with a deep, ringing baritone. "We will not forget this act...Dragonblood. You will have the aid of my kind...in all your travels."

Alex nodded, smiling, as he sensed genuine gratitude from the usually hard to read steel type. "All I desire for your kind is peace, and the ability to spread as far as you desire. I may contact you for metal, in the future...harvested correctly, of course, but for now...rest, my friend. Your long torment is over."

"So...it...is." With that, the massive steel type lumbered away again, as did the other Melmetal, each with a crowd of revived Meltan swarming around their comparatively tiny feet. Alex turned to Percy then, and smirked.

"I take it you have questions." He said, nonchalantly examining his cuff, as he spoke.

"That energy Arceus summoned...what type was it? My eyes told me nothing…" Alex said, watching the Fairy King. Percy did not have many tells, when he spoke, but he liked to think he'd caught on to a few, by now.

The slender part fairy typed human just laughed, arching a pale blonde eyebrow at his query. "There was no type. What he summoned was energy from nature itself. Nature Energy. It doesn't have a type, unless a Pokémon warps it. But only a few do that, rather than using their own."

"Nature Energy…" Alex said, pondering. He mentally recalled the other times he'd seen energy, but not its typing, and his brows furrowed. "Could...could you use it for Primal Reversion?"

Percy's eyebrow arched higher, to Spockian levels, but he still gave what appeared to be a candid answer. "Aye, that's what is required for Primal Reversion...but only the Orbs of Groudon and Kyogre are able to gather enough for that particular transformation...and only after a long time of sitting in a place suffused with it. The amount needed to revert a Pokémon, let alone a Legendary class Pokémon, is...substantial."

Alex kept pondering, eyes on the ground, as his brain continued to offer tantalizing new formulas, if such power could be harnessed. "How does one summon it without such an Orb? I saw Ghetsis do it...and all he had was a staff he'd shoved the DNA Splicers into."

Percy nodded. "Lusamine mentioned she'd met you...and N. I never met him myself, but he sure left behind quite a few fans. If Ghetsis used it on Kyurem, I'm betting the Splicers were part of the reason. You also don't know what his staff was made of. Ask your dragon, I'm sure he could tell you more."

Before Alex had so much as a chance to form the question, Tao gave his answer, to his Tamer and only his Tamer, by way of telepathy. "Nature Energy is difficult to control at the best of times...to date there is only one region whose people have learned to...bend it, for use in Battle. This is something you will learn as well, in time, but first you should make haste to Kalos. AZ will not wait for you forever."

Alex nodded, recalling what Jess had mentioned about the strange man, and his proposal. He glanced back at Percy, who was waiting patiently, guessing correctly that Alex's Legendary partner had given him an answer. "I see. Apparently, I'm going to be learning about it at a later date." He gave Percy a look, and the Fairy King laughed. "Right now, I have to see a man about a kingdom...stay out of trouble, Percy."

The svelte man feigned a look of shock. "I'm hurt, Alex! I've been a model world citizen, since being freed."

"Mm. Credit where it is due, you did do the right thing, with regard to the Melmetal." Alex grumbled, turning to face Kalos as he willed his brain to recall one of the Teleport points he'd used for that region. "I'm sure the rest of your activities have been just as wholesome and good natured." Percy stifled a yawn, but otherwise said nothing. Alex just smirked. "Enjoy your currency schemes while you can, Fairy King. Tao means to remove currency altogether, before long. Until next time." Alex bamfed then, leaving the slightly unnerved looking Percy with a cocky salute before he vanished without mentioning how he'd known what the rather stealthy fairy man had been up to of late.

Percy sighed then, shaking his head. "Bloody Dragon Types...one does not simply remove the root of all evil."

Parfum Palace - Kalos Region

Alex had expected some measure of fame in other regions that had lent their aid to the Unovan's latest war, but the reception he got in Kalos was either one of approval, as many seemed to think he was responsible for saving not only his home, but Japan as well, while others, were not amused, and seemed to be of the opinion that Kalos should've never gotten involved. He'd resisted smirking, at those negative commenters. They were in for a surprise, once he spoke with their King.

Getting into the palace itself was irritating however, as parts of it had become little better than a tourist trap, while others were yet inhabited by AZ, his descendants, and several nobles of the Kalosian Court. He'd had to non-threateningly draw and ignite Lux, before the guards believed who he was, but once they understood they were quite courteous, and brought him directly to AZ.

The path led through the large palace, and then out onto a balcony, where the giant of a man was standing, looking out upon the garden mazes. Alex noted a pair of Golurk statues, which his inner gamer was betting weren't really statues, but he had no intention of waking them. Zekrom's obsidian eyes stared at Reshiram's marble ones from the far side of the garden, and AZ turned as the guard announced him, title and all, and then left the two regional leaders to talk.

Alex bowed, once they'd met eyes, and AZ wasted no time in talking, though his manner was slow, as if every word needed a second, on the way from his brain to his mouth. "Ah yes...the Dragon Emperor...well done, on your first...victory."

"Thank you, King AZ. Without Kalos's well-trained legions, we would've lost many more lives. Once more, the pact between our regions is honored." He rose from the bow once he finished speaking and met the giant's gaze equally. He wasn't all that smaller than AZ, but it was rare that he had to look up, when speaking with a human. "Jess mentioned that you wished to speak with me…"

AZ nodded, slowly. "I did...and still do. My Kalos...is not what it once was. It does not...require my guidance any longer...I would have done away with the...titles altogether...but...our region is not entirely...out of danger... yet." The giant turned back to face his gardens. "Tell me...Dovahkiin...what have you learned...of the Imperium of Man?"

Alex arched a brow, but stepped up beside the man all the same. AZ wasn't rude, per say...just tired. Millennia of wandering seemed to have that effect on an immortal mind, but Alex found his manner was similar to his own, and the silence between them was not tinged with awkwardness, as he mentally recalled the scraps of information he'd managed to pull from Aristole, and Tao.

"The Imperium has been around since the last Tamer of Arceus left us...their capital is situated on Olympius, the tallest of the Mediterra Mountains, the Imperator is seen as all but a god to his people, though his rule is...less than divine. The Imperium uses slaves, and lobotomized criminals to gather their hordes of resources, and the Imperator has channeled them into the creation of his twenty Thunder Warrior Legions, conquering most of Old Africa, and most recently, the Ursh Hordes of Varangia. Their Trainers Battle alongside their Pokémon, in stadium matches...and they're not very friendly to foreigners. There are many rumors of people being taken as slaves and turned into lobotomized servitors, but no hard evidence has been found to substantiate them."

AZ nodded. "Oh...you can be sure they were...taken. Though they likely died, soon after. The Imperium...uses hard labor...to bend captives to their...dogma. I know this...from firsthand experience. In my...wanderings...I had heard of the Imperator's power...and believed it could return...my lost partner to me...alas...I was wrong...it was many years...before I managed to escape him. It very nearly...broke my Will."

Alex's eyes widened, slightly, as he looked back up at the giant man. "The Imperator made you a slave? You actually saw him? Any hard information about him is...lacking, at best."

AZ nodded and sighed. "It... would be. The Imperator...is the most powerful psychic that Humanity has ever...naturally produced...and time...has only made him stronger." The giant's eyes met Alex's, and the smaller human sensed they were about to arrive at the real reason behind this meeting. "His...Thunder Warriors still seek my...recapture. They are physically strong...psychically resilient...mostly...and, they have been lining the border between Kalos and Germania for the past several months...I know their Legion...their symbol...the Imperator's Children have been hunting me...since I escaped. Neither I nor Calem...possess the strength to face them...or their leader...in real combat. You...may just have what it takes."

Alex bowed his head, and then met AZ's gaze again. "I won't let them take Kalos. They'll have to contend with all of us, if they wish to even try."

That, made AZ chuckle, a wheezing sound, but genuinely mirthful. "The Ursh Hordes...outnumbered the forces...you could call to your banner. Even with your...allies...they outnumber every other military force on the planet...save one."

Alex raised a brow, and AZ continued. "Eous's seven kingdoms have stood against the Imperium of Man with the power of their Kilin...for almost as long as the Imperium has existed...they have not always won...but only they possess the manpower...that you would need to meet them in... a fair battle. Even then...you would lose. The Imperium's technology...surpasses the rest of the world...but they are not insurmountable...yet...once they expand to space...that will change."

At that, Alex smirked. "I feel confident we can beat them to space. At the very least, we can make whatever craft they launch suffer from...technical difficulties. I understand the aerial advantage space would give them...but surely that alone wouldn't be enough to stop everyone else in the world…"

AZ chuckled again. "You...are assuming the entirety of the world...does not wish to join them. The Imperator's servants...are devout...and they are many. Imperial Iterators are not easy to ignore… Humans will always desire freedom, over slavery...but...more than a few individuals seeking power...have embraced the Imperial Truth, rather than resist it. You will be...hard pressed to unite Earth against them."

Alex privately thought that, if the alternative was death by enslavement, the world wouldn't be that hard to convince, at the very least it was a worthy goal to aim for, but AZ seemed to pause, before he continued. It took Alex a minute to realize he was inhaling, as if every singular breath was what he used to give life to his words. It almost seemed like he'd had to re-learn how to speak, from how his mind was working, but he resisted prying into the man's thoughts.

"In truth, I was prepared to simply hand you the power of Kalos...but another has beaten you to it." AZ withdrew something from his rather comfortable looking kingly robe in the colors of his castle. It was a helmet, judging by what was left of it. It had been cut perfectly into identical halves. It looked to have sported a pair of green glass-like eye coverings, that had sat under the crest of the helmet, which covered the forehead, cheeks, and neck all at once. Alex knew the material though, as his Aggron had once tunneled through a bunker made of it. Ceracrete. The Imperium's 'invincible armor' or that was the claim, at least. Compared to what the Arceans had used, this seemed more refined, and likely took more effort to break through. He smirked inwardly as several of his team offered to test the hype around the Imperium's power armor, and Alex assured them that they would, eventually, probably have plenty of time to test themselves against it.

AZ gave him a moment to examine the trophy, before speaking again, and as he did, Alex noticed the helm was sporting a strange symbol that marked the helmet's face protectors, and crest. A set of crimson fangs shaped in a square, engulfing what looked like the Earth itself. "He...has convinced me that you are not the only powerful Human who can face the Imperium...and unlike you...he has already faced their Thunder Warriors in Battle."

Alex didn't have to think long, about what other powerful Trainer in Kalos would challenge him for this. There were many candidates, but from what he'd seen of the Gym Leaders in the war, they weren't quite on the level of a Champion. Some, who had grown stronger whilst battling Shadow Pokémon were eager to have another Kalos League Tournament, to decide who was currently ranked where, on the Kalosian Trainer's hierarchy, but he knew who was currently sitting at the top, the last he'd heard. He smirked, guessing rightly who was standing in his way now.

AZ smiled at his wordless reaction. "So, you have figured out who he is...good. Go on then...he is waiting...and the Victor shall rule over Kalos!"

The King's rather sudden and loud proclamation captured the attention of several hundred people below, touring the gardens, and Alex knew that news of a match like this, especially in Kalos, would spread like wildfire.

Alex rolled his neck with a satisfying crack, and stretched his stiff limbs, as he met AZ's ancient gaze. "I'm down a member, at the moment, but I have a stand-in, ready and waiting. I'll need a PC."

AZ nodded, and the pair of tall Trainers headed for the closest terminal.

Several Minutes Later - Parfum Palace Front Entrance

As Alex wandered out of the palace and into the bright spring sunlight, he spied a familiar figure, still sporting the black and white of the homeland he hadn't defended. A deep blue scarf hung around his neck, and his new hat was business up front, and flared in the back, a rather popular style in Kalos, though it too matched his outfit's color. His Greninja's ball was in his hand, and as Alex's eyes met Connor's, they knew the battle had begun.

"For the right to rule Kalos, as King in all capacities…" Connor said, as his own Voice echoed around the semi-crowded courtyard. He raised his starter's ball, then. "I Challenge!"

AZ responded, before Alex could so much as turn his hat backwards. "Accepted!" His arms spread wide, and blue runic markings appeared on his ancient skin, the parts that were visible anyway, as he met Alex's eyes and winked. "Behold! Parfum Stadium!"

The ground beneath Connor rumbled, and Kalos's Champion stumbled, as the ground responded to the Will of the King, and moved aside, for what had lain beneath the front entrance, unused for millennia. The stadium rose, and the front gates did as well, revealing functional stadium-style seating, that semi-confused Kalosians eagerly began filing into. Many seemed to grin, as they spied a field below them.

For his part, Connor found himself on the field, and his eyes went wide as he realized what field it was. In ancient times, the Stadium of Kings had held Battles for the right to rule Kalos, and according to records from that era, AZ had never lost.

"The rules...are thus! Any move may be used! No Items that aren't being held already! The first one to run out of Pokémon loses!" AZ began inhaling again, as his large lungs ran out of air, and Alex took the opportunity to bamf the short distance to his side of the field, as Connor headed for his own, looking far too confident. "Let the match...begin!"

Connor returned his rival's smirk as he raised Gren's ball. Alex let his own chosen ten float around and above the back of his shoulders, giving each of them a view, as he brought Terra's to the front. If Connor wanted to start with this particular contest of power, they were more than willing to oblige. At AZ's words, he sent the ball high, as Connor tossed his own upwards, and then kicked it with the softer inside of his foot towards the field.

It was as it sailed rapidly forward, that Alex noticed it was more of a crimson color, than blue. Gren's was still in Connor's hand. Alex swore silently, and both Trainers gave a command as each Pokémon took the field.

"Rocket Punch!"

"Earthquake!"

Ardor popped free of his ball, and with the speed common to Infernape, rocketed towards Terra fist first, who appeared in the air.

The crimson fire monkey followed his opponent down, as gravity both did its work, and gave the massive earth turtle the momentum for a truly magnificent Earthquake. After using it so many times, he had learned how to make the breaking ground vomit forth an endless wave of not jagged, but sturdy, straight protrusions. They radiated forward from where Terra landed, and though Ardor brought his fist forward, flames encasing it and his body, the type advantage won out, and the overwhelming flood of super effective earthy spikes drove him all the way back to his Trainer, fainted.

Connor swore, but AZ shouted over him. "The Infernape Ardor is down! The victory goes to the Dragon Emperor!" He looked at Connor then. "Summon...your next Battler." Terra sank his feet into the field, flattening it, as Connor brought out his next ball, and seeing it was orange and black, and knowing his Aggron would fare poorly against an electric typed opponent that much faster, Alex psychically chucked another ball, even as he recalled Terra.

Connor's Raikou took the field, and the flames around his fangs died down, as he realized he was staring at another thunder cat, and not a grass turtle. Alex spoke before Connor could. "Mega Evolve." The Zap Plate on Leo's back flared in response, and electric energy surrounded him as he advanced to the next stage, and the only level of power likely to be able to combat a Raikou.

As the pair of thunder cats faced each other down, the stands grew ever more crowded, as word of the hidden stadium's appearance also spread rather quickly to Camphrier Town, and beyond. The crowd that had been visiting the palace were the majority, but since every Trainer in Kalos had a Holoceiver these days, more were flying in by the minute.

Alex opened, as he'd won the last round, with a move that he'd had to rename, because his Luxray no longer responded to the words 'Double Team'. "Shadow Clones! Let's go for...twenty."

"Aura Sphere!" Connor said, after glancing at his Pokédex. The Raikou growled, and between its fangs, a sphere of focused Aura formed, condensed into a tight swirling mass, and began to grow.

Alex countered, saying "Wait for it...Psychic Fangs!"

The move came moments after he called something that could block the undodgeable attack, smashing through several tangible illusions as it did, and Leo's fangs lit with psychic blue aura, as he tore through the sphere with a single, perfect bite. The Raikou gave a nod, acknowledging the skill of his adversary, only to open his mouth for another.

Before Connor called it again, Alex used his own move as the Shadow Clones faded. "Eerie Impulse!" Leo's fur rippled in response, as it sparked, and manifested a noise, one that got to the Raikou mid-sphere, and caused his focus on it to lapse, as his mind became disoriented by the move.

"Good, now Iron Tail!"

"Crunch!" Connor answered, as he ordered his own counter. The Mega Luxray's tail formed into a gleaming scythe, and struck at the Raikou, but the faster thunder cat caught it in his jaws. "Now Fire Fang!" The fangs shifted from being covered in dark energy, to fire, burning the still steel-covered tail, unique to the Mega Luxray's form, and doing quite a bit of damage.

Alex's eyes narrowed, as did Leo's, and he offered a suggestion for their next strategy. Alex nodded, and gave the order, "Break away, and Night Slash!" Leo drew the sharp scythe from the Raikou's jaws, cutting them as he dragged it through the flame fangs. Leo thwacked it against the ground, forcing through the pain, and willing the steel energy to trade with darkness. For good measure, Leo split himself into three, with more Shadow Clones, and while Connor ordered another counter, Raikou missed, tearing into a clone, as the remaining two hit him with a Night Slash, from the scythe-tail.

Connor glared, and then pointed, as he gave another command. "A good trick, but one we also know. Shadow Clones." The orange and black striped Raikou split into several copies, and Connor followed his move with another. "Now, Bulldoze!"

Despite being a special attacker, Raikou's mind was still off from the Eerie Impulse, and his physical attacks, at the moment, were likely as strong as his special ones. Over ten clones at least charged Leo, who was smirking, on his side of the field, looking entirely too confident, eyes closed, as he waited.

It didn't take Alex long to counter the oncoming rush of earth energy cowled electric tigers. "Focus your eyes...then leap and use Night Slash!" The golden Luxray's eyes opened at his Trainer's word, and in an instant, he picked out the real Raikou. That, was the same instant Connor remembered what made Luxray so useful, aside from their versatility with special and physical moves. Leo leapt, and then brought his tail forward, rotating his larger, bulkier frame in the air with the power of his move as he cut a hole in space with dark typed energy and tumbled through it. "Now, bring it down with an Ice Fang!"

Having learned the moves alongside Ictus, Leo had found commanding fire, ice, and lightning through his fangs to be rather useful, no matter who or what he battled. As the sparking thunder cat with ice encased fangs came down on his target, Connor grinned at his rival, now that he'd once more ordered his Luxray close. Raikou took the hit, but was himself not weak to ice, but the ground typed energy cowl faded, as Leo chomped into it, and dispersed it, leaving him just before the Legendary Pokémon, as he landed.

"Thunder!" Connor said, as he raised a triumphant fist to the sky, but it wasn't the clouds above from which Raikou brought the Thunder. From his back, pure undiluted electricity struck the Luxray, who'd taken several hits already. He stayed where the energy had smashed into him with seemingly unstoppable force, fainted, and smoking slightly.

Alex bamfed over to his partner, Max Revive already in hand, as stocking up had been necessary, before leaving Castelia. Leo's eyes snapped open, and then winced, as the healing took effect. Being stronger meant such things took longer to fully heal. The black and gold Luxury Ball that was his favorite bed recalled him, and Alex rose, eyes never leaving the Raikou's, as he bamfed back to his spot, where his balls had remained hovering.

A blue and brown one soared into the air, as AZ called the faint, and repeated to him what he'd said to Connor, verbatim. Hydrus took the field, saw the Raikou, and smirked. Two massive, bulky blue fin fists slammed into the ground, as he roared his name and drew on the Splash Plate that was affixed to his softer underbelly, ascending to his Mega Form.

The hulking mudfish smirked knowingly down at the faster, but weakened legend below him, as his Trainer called the move. "Giga Punch!" Hydrus raised an arm, which began to glow with a familiar intense orange, similar to what was found in moves like Hyper Beam and Giga Impact. Hydrus was essentially using the latter move, but his impacting appendage had the energy focused in his fist, and Connor countered, as he knew the enhanced fist would, at this stage, take his Legendary Pokémon down. If it hit.

"Reflect!" Raikou looked worn, but he rallied as Connor called the move, and a dense shield of psychic energy manifested just above him, one that would last quite a while, before it degraded. The thunder cat assumed himself quite safe beneath the shield, confident he could weather the hit. That confidence shattered as his shield did, as the unstoppable force that was the Mega Swampert's fist smashed through it, and sent the Raikou skipping across the field, and into the lower edge of the stands behind Connor, with a booming sound that caused all gathered, Hydrus included, to wince.

AZ was silent this time, as Connor tended to the injured cat, and he perked up quickly, before standing, bowing his head to the crowd, which they loved, and returning to his own Luxury Ball. Hydrus panted across the field, winded from the massive power in his last move, but that didn't stop Alex from giving a command. "Rain Dance." "Swaaaam! Pert!" Hydrus began chanting, slamming his massive forearms against the field in a rhythmic motion, making it rumble slightly, as he summoned the rain.

Connor, for his part, brought out a green colored ball then, taking advantage of the brief pause. "Itharius...Mega Evolve!" The Sceptile that had been trained by his Greninja in the art of fast physical attacks appeared, and did as his Trainer bid, when he raised his Meadow crystal into the air. Infinite grass energy shot into the grass type, making it grow and change, as the Swampert had.

Rain began to fall on the field as the two Mega Pokémon eyed each other, and when Alex didn't take the chance to order another move, Connor did. "Leaf Blade Barrage!" The Mega Sceptile's forearms began glowing, forming into a green scythe-like blade on each forearm. The rather fast grass typed dragon launched forward, as Hydrus continued to summon the rain. The Sceptile arrived just before the Swampert, and then rocketed upwards, scoring a strike on one of the large shoulders, and then he came down, scoring another on the left forearm of the hulking mud fish.

Seeing two hits from a move with quadruple effectiveness had done more than he'd expected, Alex gave the counter, the only one they were likely to be able to use, given the massive disparity in speed. In this case however, he was more than happy to trade speed for power, and Hydrus's strongest ice move required a move to have hit beforehand to be most effective. They could've fired an Ice Beam, but Hydrus was not a special attacker, and the Sceptile would likely dodge it. In the rain, and at this close range, they would not miss.

"Now...Avalanche!" Alex said, slightly above his regular baritone. His hat had stayed sitting normally upon his head, so far, and his arms remained crossed, while they battled. By the time Itharius realized where the ice was coming from, it was too late to dodge, and it was Connor's turn to learn just how damaging a quadrupled weakness to ice was. Great chunks of it formed rapidly from the rain, slamming down with added intensity, given how close the fast physical attacker had gotten, and when the pile of snow and ice finally settled, turning to slush in the ever increasing rain, AZ spoke again.

"The Sceptile known as Itharius has fainted! The round goes to the Dragon Emperor, and Hydrus!"

Frustrated now, and acting quickly, Connor shifted plans. He'd severely underestimated just how strong Alex's little, unassuming Mudkip had become. Hydrus roared triumphantly, hiding the damage he'd taken from the Leaf Blades as he raised his massive fists, and gestured for the crowd to get pumped up.

The crowd, who had quickly brought out parasols in the face of a sudden rainstorm, cheered in response, and Hydrus resumed slowly pounding the ground with his fists, urging the storm to drop more water down upon them, making him quicker as more and more droplets splashed onto his Mega Form.

An Alakazam by the name of Sophos took the field next, quickly shifting to its own Mega Form, before opening and locking eyes on the Swampert. It was as Alex remembered what Mega Alakazam had in its move pool, that he realized they were in trouble. Hydrus had become faster, as the rain fell, fast enough to one-hit a Sceptile, but Alakazam were just as fast, and could attack at range with devastating power. At this point, a single Energy Ball from a special attacker would finish them. Then, there was Trace, which allowed the psychic type to become even more speedy, as it copied Swift Swim from Hydrus.

"Energy Ball!"

"Send it back with Ice Punch!"

Ice energy formed around Hydrus's fist, since he didn't have enough stamina left to take another quadruple effective hit. Because of his bulk, he'd barely survived the first two. Dense as the grass energy was, Hydrus smashed it back with his massive fist, only for the Alakazam to dodge it, easily. It was only getting faster thanks to its traced ability, and Alex knew that would be a problem, if he didn't stop it here and now.

"Let's try...five at once!" Connor said, looking confident. He pointed at Hydrus then, "Energy Balls!" Five spheres of green coalesced and condensed above the Mega Alakazam's head, and fired all at once, at the massive target that was Hydrus.

Alex felt the mud fish ready to give in, but he wasn't done yet. He spoke mentally to his powerful Pokémon, as the balls hurtled towards them. "Dodge them with your next move...and shift into a Giga Punch once you're near him."

Hydrus nodded, and Alex shouted, "Aqua Jet!" The bulky mud fish surrounded himself with a cowl of water, and with speed enhanced by the rain, he dodged the Energy Ball barrage by going right, and then arcing upwards. It ran out of power just as he was over the Alakazam, whose eyes had widened as it realized what was coming. Hydrus' massive right fist had reared back, and began glowing with an intense orange energy. "Now, Giga Punch!"

Connor didn't have time to verbalize the move, but the Mega Alakazam was already forming another Energy Ball, just one this time, as the Swampert came close. The punch connected, sending the psychic type sailing into part of the stands that had been adjacent to the front gate. Once more, one of Connor's team impacted hard against the stands, but the mega evolved psychic caught itself, levitating above the ground, as it rose from the admittedly devastating hit, damaged, but still standing. That was more than could be said of Hydrus, whose eyes had gone Poli patterned, with that final close range and quadruple effective Energy Ball.

He collapsed with a grunt inches from Connor, and Alex recalled him as AZ called the round in Connor's favor. Alex mentally reached for Arthur's ball, until the Gallade spoke up. "Not me. Ictus would do better. This Battle isn't over yet, and you'll need me for the cleanup." Alex nodded in agreement, and it was Ictus' ball that sailed forth this time, depositing the crimson Drapion onto the field, with an 'ooo' from the crowd. As a dark bug type, he had plenty of moves that put the already damaged Alakazam in a pickle. If they could hit.

The rain continued to fall, making the psychic type that much faster still. Ictus's exoskeleton clicked ominously as he lowered into an attack position, arms wide, and then his Dread Plate flared with dark energy, as he too ascended to his Mega Form. He grew larger, gained a third set of legs, and another pair of bulky arms, not unlike a Machamp's. The claws tipping each arm were reminiscent of Pinsir's horns, and his tail grew longer, sharper, and then seemed to coil, with that same clicking sound.

Indeed, the Mega Drapion's entire body coiled, and Alex smirked as he ordered the move. "Spring into a Hell Thrust!" With speed that belied the ogre scorpion's bulk, he coiled every one of his limbs, before extending them all at once as he leapt across the field at the Mega Alakazam. Connor was already waiting, with a counter.

"Wonder Shift! Attack and Special!" Sophos nodded his tri-pointed head, and the gem in his forehead flashed, as he employed a special variation of Wonder Room to bring about a shift in form. The floating Pokémon shifted, burning bright white as his spoons melded with his form, and protected his weakened joints, shoulders, and head in silver armor. The lengthy beard became tied in a style of beard braid one would expect of a Pokémon who had mastered both mind and body in the psychic and fighting typing he now bore.

The Mega Drapion's four claws each radiated a cold, dark energy as they honed in on the psychic Pokémon, and it was then that Connor shouted his counter. "Close Combat!" The Alakazam's arms shifted into an intentionally similar draconic themed style of martial arts, and they moved in a familiar balance pattern, glowing with fighting energy, and blocking the Drapion's strikes. Then, as the two Pokémon continued to use the move until one dominated, the Mega Drapion's tail went for his opponent's back, specifically the seam between the silvery back plate, and the natural armor of the Pokémon's lower back.

The Mega Alakazam shifted, and one three toed foot caught the striking tail, barely, as it too burned with dark typed energy, and as that occurred, Ictus began to compress around the Alakazam, until finally, one of his holds gave, to the five limbs attacking him. Ictus skittered back to his side of the field, as the Alakazam was left fainted. In the wild, he would've preyed upon a Pokémon that had taken so much energy to bring down, but he was not wild any longer. He respected the honor of a real Battle, finding he preferred it to what the humans called 'war', where honor was a fairytale. Ictus considered the instinct to devour a sign of respect, and an urge he needed to suppress. He also knew his Trainer would keep him from going too far, as he had always done, when instinct acted before Ictus could stop it. It was a common problem with some bug types, but his training had eventually dulled it enough for the urge to be safely ignored.

AZ called the round, as Connor recalled his psychic type, and then brought out his dragon. Gar mega evolved, taking on his Mega Form as Connor gave the order, "Dig! Take it in one hit!"

Ictus glanced back at his Trainer as the Garchomp dove into the ground, and once he was truly buried, Alex smirked, and nodded at Ictus. The ogre scorpion raised all four of its heavy arms, as his Trainer called the move. "Earthquake!" Four claws slammed into the ground, shaking the entire arena as the move forced the ground and dragon type from hiding. It didn't do too much in the way of damage, but it did put Alex back on the attack, for he followed Ictus' counter with another move. "Use the boulders as cover...then Ice Fang!"

Ictus skittered into the field's ruined terrain, moving stealthily from boulder to boulder, the ominous clicking of his armor the only thing giving him away. Gar watched, his shark-like senses let him track where the massive multi-limbed scorpion was moving, and Connor called another move quickly, knowing his dragon would attack on his own if he waited too long. "Wait for the attack...then Earth Power!" The Mega Garchomp lowered its stance, scythes glowing a light brown as he summoned the ground energy. As Ictus came close, his bulk and armor gave away his usually silent approach, and his opponent made him pay for it. An eruption of earth hit him directly under the stomach, sending him flying into the air, but Connor wasn't done. "Grab it with Crunch, and then Seismic Toss!"

Ictus did not fare well in the air, but he knew Alex expected him to make the most of his opponent closing in for a Crunch. Gar chomped into him, finding the Mega Form's armor immune to piercing. The attack still hit, as Gar latched onto one of the arms, but Ictus attacked in return, fangs limned with ice as he struck the dragon's chest, before being rolled in the air, and sent hurtling towards the ground.

Alex recalled him before he hit and knew doing so would count as a loss. That was fine in his opinion, for Ictus wouldn't have stayed conscious after the hit anyways. With Connor's four faints to his three, it was still anyone's battle but both Trainers knew their starters hadn't been significantly damaged yet, and Alex had other potent weapons besides, that without Sophos, his rival's team would be hard pressed to deal with.

Being the victor, Connor shifted the significantly weakened Gar out for a fresh opponent, as Alex called his next to the field. "Cenomons! You're up!"

At almost the same time, Connor brought out his replacement, realizing too late that he might regret the choice. "Yami! Mega Evolve!"

As Ceno appeared, he locked eyes with the Sableye across the field, and both Pokémon took their Mega Forms. Both Trainers glanced at AZ, who nodded, and then proceeded to call moves.

"Heavy Slam!"

"Brick Break!"

Ceno charged on all fours towards the Sableye, his entire bulky form covered in steel energy, as the crystal weighing Yami down glowed with fighting energy. The slam hit the crystal, and as the steel and fighting energy collided, the shockwave was enough to shake the stands, and clear the skies above the battlefield that had remained gray even after the rain faded.

Seeing the heavy gem was resisting the slam, Alex called another move. "Triple Iron Bash!"

As the Aggron began smashing into the gem, Yami took the hits, as Connor gave another counter. "Protect! Then Low Kick the legs!"

Protect saved the encumbered ghost from the wrath of the steel attacks, but as it went for the Low Kick, the Sableye found it didn't have the strength of momentum needed to topple a metal monster weighing in at almost a thousand pounds, even with fighting energy. It left a damaging mark, but Ceno did not trip. To Yami, it felt like kicking a mountain. Then, it was Cenomons' turn to counter, to a bulky tank with an ability like Filter, Low Kick might as well have been Leech Life.

Alex smirked as he gave the command. "Show them how one sweeps legs. Iron Tail!" Ceno did as ordered, spinning to his right, as he hammered the Mega Sableye's legs, crystal and all with his steel plated lizard-like tail, and forced the ghost to collapse against its heavy burden. "Now use Rock Slide!" A hail of rock energy pounded the already weakened ghost type, and Ceno reared up, roaring to the cheering crowd, before lumbering back to his side of the field.

Next up came Durus, the Bisharp, who leapt in with a series of Night Slashes that Ceno parried with Iron Head, by way of his horns. Both Alex and Connor shouted the same move then, "Brick Break!" And the several hundred pound tail of the Aggron eventually overpowered the Bisharp's blade arm, and with a quadrupled weakness to fighting type energy, Durus did not last long before Ceno's tail caused him to faint. The bulky walking tank lumbered back with another victory, and the tone of the battle seemed to shift, as both Connor and the crowd, which had filled the stands by this point, realized he was on his final three.

Alex wasn't confident in the win yet though, for he knew Gren was among those three, and he had almost soloed the entire Kalos League, not to mention every gym in the region. Connor threw his next ball, giving a command as he did. "Goliath! Drill Run!" The Golisopod he called forth looked to be a newer catch, but that didn't mean he was weak. The lumbering water bug's claw-fingers began spinning, and he charged at the equally slow Aggron, giving Alex more than enough time to call a counter.

"Rock Tomb!" Ceno stomped the ground, and four boulders rose, slamming into the Golisopod, and hindering his progress by only moments, as he tore apart the boulders in his path with his claws, and continued advancing. "Good, now follow up with Stone Edge!" This time, Ceno reared onto his back legs, and brought his front down, causing massive stones to rise in response. Goliath tore through them one by one, and as he reached his target, Ceno slammed his tail into the ground, summoning a final spike to hit the water bug's back, as the Drill Run hit, hard, digging into his metal armor. Goliath lifted the massive Pokémon despite the pain to his back, and then tossed him. The landing shook the field and the stands, and AZ called the round, as the Aggron fainted. Alex recalled him, eyeing the Golisopod's injury as it returned to his Trainer.

To his surprise, it returned to its ball, and Connor instead called out his Crobat, Noctem, which left Alex with only one logical option. "Gelauros! Blizzard!" The massive, white and blue Aurorus took the field, retaining his usual form, as Noctem hadn't mega evolved, and Gel preferred a fair battle. Alex smirked, as he knew his Gallade's sense of honor was impacting his whole team, but strangely enough, Arthur seemed content to watch the current battle. His mind was calm, and Alex sensed him watching as attentively as he always had alongside the others.

As winter came early to Parfum Palace, the crowd again shifted to compensate, though far fewer had clothes suitable for the chill his Aurorus put out. Eric had been correct in assuming his special attacks would be incredibly powerful, but Gel knew how to focus them, by this point in his training. "Shadow Clones! Then use Steel Wing!" Connor ordered, and the silent Crobat flew forward fearlessly into the Blizzard. As ice and snow pelted its clones, they vanished one by one, leaving only one left, the real one, for the super effective move on the Aurorus.

As the Crobat came in for the strike, Gelauros used his strongest move, made ice typed by his ability. "Hyper Beam!" Orange energy formed in Gel's mouth, before becoming icy blue, condensing, and launching at the face of the Crobat. Fast as Noctem was, the beam in question was too thick in width to simply dodge, and the overwhelming ice energy snuffed out his attack, and remaining hit points, leaving the Aurorus fresh, and untouched.

Goliath the Golisopod returned, slightly worse for wear, and opened with a Rock Tomb, as it raised its claws. From within the rocky prison, the hurting, but still very far from fainted Aurorus recharged, and when the confused water bug didn't press the attack, an intense deep brown glow emanated from between the gaps in the rock. The air turned colder, and ice covered the battlefield.

Alex gave the command, once Gelauros had enough power stored. "Gelauros... Primeval Resonance!" His arms were crossed casually, as his titanic ice type mega evolved and broke free of the rocky prison, by lifting it above his Mega Form's head. His pure-energy frills shifted with a rainbow of colors as he channeled the power of the first Pokémon to appear on the Earth into an attack fueled by surging Infinity Energy.

The rock typed move was enough to finish the already damaged Golisopod, before he could so much as Dig, and though Gelauros had taken a hit, he was an icy tank, who weighed in around six hundred pounds in his Mega Form.

Connor stared at his last ball for a long time, and then met Alex's smirk with one of his own. "You should know...compared to my other members, Gren has achieved a new level. I don't want to hurt your Aurorus."

Alex rolled his eyes. "Yes, we know, your Greninja is very impressive. Strong enough to face most of Kalos, solo. Bring him out already...let us see if the hype survives the flames of Battle!" Connor threw the ball as Alex spoke, and he followed up with Gel's move, as he knew it would likely be all they got against a fast attacker with such a disparity in experience, and speed. "Thunder Wave!"

The Greninja's eyes widened, as he appeared and heard the move, evidently recognizing it. One of the many reasons Greninja were so popular was for their intelligence, as well as an impressive move pool. Many Trainers had embraced the League's World Tournament rule set partly for practice, and partly because the logistical nightmare of preparing a counter for any move a Pokémon might know added an exciting intensity to Battles that many elite Trainers eventually lost sight of. As Alex eyed the water and dark type, he flinched inwardly. He had the same intensity of aura and purpose as Arthur, and while he'd been strong before, he was certain the ninja frog had been adding to his skills, probably move by move, if he knew Connor.

As the waves of electricity covered the icy terrain of the battlefield the Greninja's eyes flashed with what Alex saw was psychic energy, and a strange power enveloped the lithe blue frog, as he placed his fins together in a genuine Shinobi sign, and weathered the electric waves seeking to paralyze him. Seeing this, Gel kept the waves of electricity emanating, finding it much easier to do, in his Mega Form.

Beneath his psychic shield, the Greninja reached out to the Plate upon his Trainer's person, incorporated into his attire as armor, hidden from sight, that is, until it began glowing. Connor did something strange then, and Alex's eyes followed the water typed energy, as his rival took it into his own body's inner pools of energy and then activated them all at once. His mind reached out to the Greninja, and the pair ascended together. The smirking bearded face of his crimson haired rival looked far too confident under his now visibly manifested aura shield of gold, and his Greninja had a similar shield, albeit in the form of dark energy. The Trainer was shining with Light, while his Pokémon was shrouded in darkness, and together the pair were perfectly balanced.

Despite this, Alex smirked, content with what they'd achieved. He pressed his advantage, as his rival spent time ascending to this 'new form' that very much just seemed to be the manifestation of an aura shield atop a Mega Form. "Don't let him close. Get ready to fire again!" Connor grimaced as the Aurorus summoned yet more electric energy, in the form of an attack this time.

His hands rose to match his Greninja's, and he gave the command. "Sage Technique. Dark Spiraling Sphere." Trainer and Pokémon moved in unison as they summoned the darkness with the ease of one born to it. The sphere of black manifested in Gren's palm, and the ninja frog held it out sideways, away from his body, as he leapt towards Gelauros. The Charge Beam burned through where Gren had been a moment before, but he had moved, reappearing above Gel's head as he prepared to fire another Charge Beam, and raise his special attack. It wasn't a bad strategy, Connor thought, it just wasn't going to work, with this match up.

For his part, Alex had expected the frog to dodge, counted on it, even. Their part of the ploy had worked. Gelauros' frills began shining, as his inner power was increased beyond its already impressive level. In the space of a moment, he glanced at his Pokédex, and it read his Mega Aurorus's special attack power with three numbers, usually. In that moment, it was giving him three infinity symbols. "Interesting…" He spoke mentally to his partner, who understood, and was emboldened by what the human's machine was saying. As one, their eyes moved to Gren's reappearing form.

The energy the Greninja and his Trainer had read as a Charge Beam had in reality been a prelude to a much stronger, but less accurate attack. All Alex and Gel had been waiting for, was for the ninja frog to close the distance. His attack would hit, but at this range, so would theirs.

"Thunder!"

One of the strongest known electric typed moves lanced forth from the mouth of Gel's Mega Form, nailing the Greninja, even as his own 'sage art' made contact as well. Both Gelauros and his Trainer winced, as the pain was instant, and overwhelming. The massive form of the revived dinosaur Pokémon went speeding into the part of the stands AZ was officiating from. He levitated himself above the wreckage wrought by the long necked saurian's massive form, his aura covered his long body as once more his skin was glowing with the same blue runes that had appeared before.

Gren bamfed himself back to his side of the field, once more taking the position of channeling a move, as he expected the fixing of such damage to take several moments. Alex also vanished, appearing by his partner's head, and taking several seconds to feed Max Revives to those who he'd had to rapidly switch out to keep their momentum in the battle. He recalled the revived, but tired Aurorus, and then reappeared in his Trainer's box on his side of the field.

Arthur was on the field before Alex spoke, and the ninja frog's eyes widened, and then narrowed, as he began tensing his body. Gren gave the Gallade a nod, remaining motionless, and a faint smirk broke the passive face of the psychic fighter. His Heart Piece flared as he ascended to his Mega Form, and moments later, the Mind Plate had covered him in his armor as well.

Gren's eyes widened, as he sensed what Arthur already knew. Their level of power was more or less equal to Gren's apparent 'Sage Form'. "Close Combat!"

The ninja frog's concentration was broken, as the attack came as quickly as a Teleport, for in a single bamf, Arthur closed the distance halfway through his Trainer's order, and began his fighting typed barrage the exact moment the move was ordered.

Connor's counter came quickly. "Mat Block." Gren's webbing on his hands and feet puffed up and inflated, and the agile Pokémon used them to block the Gallade's fierce assault.

Mildly irritated at the delay of the inevitable, Alex spoke again. "Combine it with Teleport." Very quickly, the tone of the battle changed, as the Gallade bamfed, and smashed the ninja frog with an empowered sword arm, sending him hurtling, only to bamf into his trajectory, and smash him again. Though Gren tried blocking, it was impossible to stop a move as rapid as Close Combat from ever making contact.

"Use Acrobatics! Then Night Slash." At his Trainer's words, Gren acted, suddenly whirling with seemingly psychic senses, as his limbs parried Arthur's blades with flying type energy. Eventually, Arthur had to stop burning Teleports, and the two Pokémon shifted from a one-sided barrage to an equally matched slug fest. Finally, the fist of the Greninja met the fist of the Gallade, and the energy of that direct collision sent both of them sliding back across the field as the shockwave rumbled the stands. It made the crowd roar, and Arthur smirked, letting their hyped-up emotions empower him.

Seeing an opening, Gren leapt above Arthur's guard, as the Gallade had done with his own defenses several times in their clash. This opening was long enough for his Trainer's second command, and he brought the Night Slash down in a vertical line from above Arthur's head.

"Leaf Blade."

Arthur leapt straight up, meeting Gren's blade with one of his sword arms, and though the Greninja had shifted to using two hands for the swing, the armored force of Arthur's grass powered attack pushed back against it. His usually golden arm blades were humming with intense grass typed energy now, and it was more than a match for the darkness the ninja frog had coalesced into a sword.

Before Connor could order another attack, they were ascending, rapidly, as Arthur's aura shield formed around him, and propelled the move-locked pair high into the sky, where eventually, Gren realized even he would lose to this kind of fall, and the damage it would inflict. As they reached the apex of their upwards curve, Arthur shifted his weight downwards, forcing Gren's shadow blade to the side, and following the hole in his guard with the other sword arm, radiating grass energy.

The hit was immediate, and effective, as Greninja was not the hardiest Pokémon, but to Gren's credit, he did not linger in the impact crater upon the field. He flipped back to his side of the field, taking his pose once more, as the Mega Gallade returned to his own side, arms still burning with grass energy. The armor on one of his arms was scorched from the intensity of the dark energy he'd been pushing against, but otherwise, he seemed little worse for wear. Gren on the other hand, had taken a Thunder to the shoulder, and a Leaf Blade to the jaw, as well as a hard landing on the field's exact center.

His lengthy tongue scarf had retracted after that hit as Gren was panting hard, and both Trainers knew the next collision would likely be the last. Alex had no doubt that Gren could have swept the rest of his team, but Gelauros had hit him hard enough for Arthur to finish things off. "Let me call my next Move." The Gallade said to his Trainer, as the two Pokémon eyed each other. "I want to try a thing." Reading his intent, Alex smirked, and nodded. Arthur let the Plate armoring fade then, as speed was more important for what came next, and he projected his voice for all to hear as he raised and crossed his sword arms before him. "Shine! Excalibur!"

The entire field became brighter, though it was not solely due to the Mega Gallade's blade arms shifting to an intense golden energy. The sun, previously hidden by Rain Dance, returned once more, and bore down on the field with the intensity of a Sunny Day.

If Connor knew what the Gallade was up to, he didn't say so. His commands were simple, and swift. "Shadow Clones." Suddenly, his side of the field was inundated with ninja frogs. "Now, use Bounce!" As one, the cloned frogs leapt into the air, surrounding themselves with spheres of flying typed energy as they soared higher.

While Excalibur continued to burn brighter with the usual golden hue, Alex called the move as the sun empowered his Gallade. "Wait for the descent...then Solar Blade!" The blinding gold turned green on the outer edges of the Gallade's burning arms, and Connor winced, as his guess that Alex's Gallade knew not one, but two physical grass type moves was confirmed. It was too late to change now, though.

As roughly twenty blue frog clones came hurtling towards him, Arthur crouched, as he gave the move even more build up. His sword arms moved in close to his slim form, and the energy they radiated was enough to make his 'cape' flap wildly behind him.

As the flying typed spheres emanating around the blue ninja frogs began converging on Arthur, he moved, and to all present, their view of the collision of moves was obscured, as type advantage tried to overcome the sheer amount of power Arthur had poured into a move that usually took time to charge up.

Suddenly, the dust was sliced in half by what Alex saw was Arthur's second arm. The first had cut through the clones, and weathered the Bounce, while the second had continued to charge, and then hit Arthur's target. When the dust settled and the light faded, Arthur was standing over Gren, his still smoldering right arm raised in victory. The crowd exploded with cheers, as for many it was more the intensity of the Battle between two obviously skilled Trainers that had drawn them, more than their respective reputations. Those who had come to Parfum Palace for a day out and then entertainment in the form of fireworks at night had gotten their money's worth. The crowd hushed though, once the floating form of AZ moved down to just above the battered field.

"With that...the Kalos Champion is out of usable Pokémon...which makes our foreign visitor the victor!" More cheers came, but Alex and Connor both seemed to ignore them, as they tended to their Pokémon. Gren's attacks had managed to leave several marks even through the Plate armor, but the Gallade was far from being finished. Gren, for his part, rose slowly once he had his Max Revive, and then bowed towards Arthur. The Gallade let his Mega Form drop, and returned the bow, after which, Gren returned to his ball.

To Alex's surprise, it was Connor who offered a hand to shake first. "To be honest, I was half expecting a loss. Most of your team has been training together longer than mine...and as usual, I relied too much on Gren being able to sweep you if things went poorly. I'll keep that in mind, for the World Tournament."

Alex smirked, and took the hand, shifting his grip to the Norstad style of shaking, as Connor did. He gave his rival a nod. "I look forward to seeing how you improve...you have a good team, there. They'll defend Kalos well."

Both Trainers looked up, as AZ floated over to and above them. Arms spread wide; he orated once again to the crowd. "With this victory, the Dragon Emperor has demonstrated to me, at least, that he has the power to keep our enemies from our fair Kalos! The right to rule our region is hereby granted to thee, Alexander Redwood."

The cheers and murmurs died down, and AZ landed on the ground, giving Alex only a nod, and then a glance at the crowd gathered. The Stadium of Kings had reached capacity within the first few rounds of the epic bout, and now, those gathered watched what the victor, and apparently their newest monarch, would do.

His aura shield manifested as Alex levitated his large frame into the air, smirk never leaving his face. "I give the people of Kalos my word...the Dragon Empire will keep the Imperium from overrunning you...and even if we cannot, we will stand with Kalos to the last all the same. Tao and I have a... plan...for how Kalos and our allies will be incorporated into the...way of things, but for now, be content in knowing that Kalos is not standing against these threats alone. Change will come, with time, but I intend to make it one for the better. Or die trying. Now, if you will all excuse me...I must return home."

With a bow and a bamf, the newest leader of Kalos vanished, and the Champion followed suit soon after, atop his Garchomp. AZ simply walked away from the palace, only pausing to once more lower the stadium, once the guests had vacated the stands. He too seemed to vanish, and in the weeks to come, the people of Kalos found that the shift in leadership hadn't actually changed all that much. Figures in black and white robes, Scales of Balance, marked their mountainous borders with Germania, but otherwise, life continued to chug along as it had for centuries, without AZ to rule over the people.

The Imperial Palace - Unova Region

Alex manifested in his room within the raised palatial structure that was officially his dwelling. Though, as he looked around the chamber he'd decided to take and furnish, he sighed. It wasn't his room back home, far too spacious, open, and still underground, despite the rest of the structure having been raised. It appeared that the last King had built many such chambers, their purpose long forgotten or turned to dust, into his abode in the old days. After the war ended, it had become the unofficial home for the Scales of Balance, as it was the only structure in Unova save for the Dragonspiral that could accommodate them. Many Scales had begun taking positions of authority in Unova's military fort east of Humilau, and the other half of their ever-growing force was housed there, or returned to their homes to await orders, and enjoy their earned leave.

The Dragonspiral Tower had, as in ages past, focused primarily on training new Scales, and according to Tao, the Foggy Swamp Sage had cut down on his own number of trainees, sending away those who would never learn, but finishing the education of those who strived to master what he Instructed them in.

His favorite space in the ancient structure was the 'Battle Room' as the Scales had taken to calling it. Situated under the throne above, the space had been wide and empty, and in the long months of war, the Sages of the ancient structure had furnished it with everything a modern Trainer needed. Being no experts in such things, they had turned to the Gym Leaders for suggestions, and it was several such Gym Leaders Alex saw, speaking with the semicircle of multicolored Sages, as he entered the room.

As one, they began to approach him, and he sighed again, though this time he kept it inward. He'd intended to give those on his team who hadn't battled a thorough workout, alongside himself, but judging by the look in Aristole's eye, that wasn't going to happen. The Sages bowed, as they arrayed themselves before him, and he noted a few were missing. Their more...eccentric members were nowhere to be seen, but those who represented the elements, and the Light, were present. As were Skyla, Cheren, and even Iris. They each gave him a nod, as the Professor spoke.

"Young Redwood. I see you've returned from Kalos. What news from our fair allies' lands?"

Alex paused to frame his words, as he often did with the Professor, before meeting his eye. "AZ ceded the throne to me...after making me battle their Champion. Kalos is now ours to defend."

Aristole frowned. "And now we share yet another border with the Imperium."

Alex shrugged. "Germania was once free. Maybe they can be again."

At that, the Earth Sage chimed in. "Germania believes they've become more advanced versions of Humanity, and with their science, technology, and seemingly limitless resources they essentially have. Not through any moral means...but they are strong, and they're loyal, despite being a relatively new acquisition of the Imperium. There is an entire Legion of Thunder Warriors based in that region. The Imperator's Children. Many, used to be natives."

A deep sigh escaped the black and white clad Trainer. "So that is what AZ was so worried about…" He trailed off, as he noticed that, around them, other black and white clad shapes had started creeping not so subtly closer. He smirked and stared at them. "I need volunteers. Who wants to protect Kalos from a potential invasion?"

A number of fists went into the air, and their leader's smirk widened. "That will be enough. I want you to establish an outpost there, offer the chance to instruct Kalos's native psychics in what the Dragon has taught us. If we can make them worthy candidates, we could do as the Imperium has." He saw several nodding heads, among the passive, but attentive expressions of his comrades. Several, already had their armor on. "We will be doing something similar all across this continent, as well. If Humanity is on the precipice of a psychic awakening, we should offer those with control issues a chance to learn. I'm intending to send you to your home regions, although...that won't work for everyone, it's not a concern. Other such bases will always need extra minds."

Alex watched their expressions shift to a myriad of emotions, as he sensed Tao mentally handing out assignments with the speed and efficiency of a mind that had quite literally saved the eastern forces from total collapse in the early stages of the Blitz. Seeing that was sorted, the Water Sage spoke up, and snared their leader's gaze. "The local government is asking us for funding. They want to turn Unova's center into a paradise for Humans and Pokémon. They're planning on calling it Pokémon Hills."

"Tell them they have my support. So long as the Pokémon aren't disturbed too much as they build." He paused then, as Tao gave his mind orders. "Apparently...we're also going to centralize the region's energy stations below the park, and open a connecting tunnel to the Chargestone Caves."

The woman clad in gradients of blue bowed, and summoned one of her Pokémon, a Swanna, and whispered several words to her, before the stark white bird flew off. Once she returned, Alex spoke again. "If that is all, you're free to go about your business."

The Sages nodded, and departed into the adjoining hallways that made the Battle Room the central hub of the underground complex. Almost alone once more, Alex found that the remaining Scales, Unova locals all of them, were waiting seemingly as a group, to speak with him. They had come to the Swamp long after he and Hilbert had, and as Trainers went, they had become good enough to challenge Champions, even if they didn't hold that title themselves.

He spoke, as they approached. "Tommy. Gaven. Everyone. You have something for me?"

"We've...sensed something, Dragonborn. Something in the Desert Resort. Since coming home, we've all been drawn there. I suppose you would have been too, if you'd been conscious, or on this continent."

Alex eyed the woman who spoke, recalling her name as Cybil, and smirked. "I thought the Relic Castle was buried, by now. Nobody can get in. I understand many of you were...ruin enthusiasts back in the day, but there's not much we can do if there's nothing left to find."

This time, Tommy spoke up, his tone full of snark. "I'm sorry, for some reason, I assumed a man who could breach not one, but two massive underground bunkers could handle a little sand."

Alex sighed, then glanced at his belt, and namely, the link to his Box that was his cape, and who was currently attached to it, and therefore, on hand. "Sand, eh? And you're sure this...emanation...is coming from the ruins?"

"It was strong before, until Champion Nate captured the Volcarona living there. We sensed other minds deep below, but even after collaborating, we couldn't find a way down to them. Now, a new mental presence is growing...and it is...powerful." Tommy gave Alex a look. "Nobody good hides under ruins and manifests powerful psychic entities. I figured this would be up your alley, Champion."

Unable to find fault with his logic, Alex nodded, but before he could speak, a familiar bamfing sound filled the area. The sound drew the gazes of the psychics, as their minds reacted instinctively to the power of the one joining them so suddenly. Their second leader, who legally held every authority Alex did, if somewhat more subtly, appeared in a flash of energy that Alex noted as being far redder tinged than times past. The Scales didn't question her, for her own battling prowess had been noted, with a win streak a mile long, many wondered why she didn't challenge for the Champion title.

To the man connected to her mind, he sensed it first. The change that had rocked their own connection unintentionally with its strength. He repaired his side of the mental bridge, once he realized the issue, and in the space of a moment, he saw what Jess had been doing for the past three days. Taming Ho-Oh hadn't been easy, but the ancient bird had managed to draw out a strength in Jess that had always existed. Her entire form seemed to sparkle now, and her hair, he could've sworn, had a rainbow sheen to it when it moved the right way in the light of the room. She'd never looked better, and it took more effort than he expected to turn his eyes from staring obviously at her.

The local psychics had expressions of awe and even envy, as she joined them, for their eyes told them what Alex's told him about her potential, and her awakened fire typing. With their difference in height, she came up to about his shoulder, which is where she put her chin as she smirked at him. "Found another adventure, have we?" With the speed of thought, he caught her up on what he'd been told, and she paused as she read his thoughts and had to fight down a flush in her face, before turning and addressing the psychics. "This emanation...have any of you felt it before?"

This time, another woman raised her hand, and Alex sighed inwardly once more. Of course she had sensed something like this before. The woman known only as Future spoke then, "I was deployed to Japan along with Red...it feels a lot like a Mewtwo...but I could be wrong. You've sensed them yourself, right Alex? I think you're the only one here who has sensed one in Battle besides me."

Alex thought for a moment, then shrugged. "It was more of a sucker punch than a Battle...but that does not mean it wasn't earned...if someone is making another Mewtwo below the Resort Ruins, I intend to find them, and stop them."

Jess spoke again then, and her words made the eyebrows of several of the psychics rise. "And if the Mewtwo is too far along to simply kill off?"

Alex let the question hang in the air, and then shrugged. "That will depend greatly on the circumstance of my meeting it...and its opinion of Humans. Ideally...I'll be the first it talks to. I'm reasonably sure I can keep it from going berserk."

"I believe you." Jess said, returning to his shoulder as she stared him down in that manner he would never get used to, but so very much enjoyed. "We should get going, if that is the plan."

He sighed for a long time but nodded at her. "It is." Leaving weird psychic emanations to fester never ended well, but he fully intended to wrap up whatever was going on under the Palace of Truths swiftly.

Desert Resort - Unova Region

The sandy dunes of Unova's desert, a burning reminder of their past failures, and the potency of Reshiram's flames, seemed to lack Trainers this day, as Alex and Jess flew over it. While most of Alex's team had rested and rapidly healed at a Pokémon Center, he still intended to call on those who hadn't been used to battle Connor. He had also traded out his unused tenth for his Flygon, who he'd caught as a Trapinch in this very desert, when the stubborn crab bug had refused to let him continue on his way.

Being one of the Pokémon Alex had trained during the war, and whilst marching, Eremus had eventually become a Flygon, and was eager to become strong enough to be a regularly used battler on his team. Eremus flew alongside Folokraan, who was keeping the intense heat of the desert at bay with the natural cooling of her surroundings. Behind them, were the other psychics, each flying on their own partner. As they began descending, Alex brought Eremus down towards where they were headed.

Alex gave his Flygon a nod, as he and the others disembarked. "Clear the area of locals...then return here." He looked at the psychics, then. "Start outlining where the ruins are buried, if you would...Eremus needs something to aim at." The group nodded, each raising a hand, as together they draw a deep circle in the sand that was rather large in diameter.

Eremus returned shortly after, his vibrations having summoned, and then scared off the wild Pokémon once he told them what he was about to do to the sand covering the ruins. The largest stumbling block had been a Hippowdon, but she had moved to find deeper sand pits once she heard the Flygon, and correctly judged that a battle between them would only end one way. While initially reluctant to train, after the semi-callous manner he'd been caught with, Eremus had eventually realized that he wanted to be strong, and that he actually enjoyed battling. He wasn't the strongest residing on Alex's cape, but he had worked hard for his present form, and the power it gave.

Once Alex heard the familiar hum of his wings above him once more, he pointed at the circle. "Eremus! Boomburst!" The gathered psychic humans levitated themselves away from the circle in the sand, and into the air, as the Flygon gathered the energy required for the move, and released it. His wings were an invisible blur, and Eremus traced the circle, before focusing on the center of it as well. When all was finished, the barest top layer of the ruins was visible, though the nearly perpetual sandstorm threatened to cover it again before long.

Eremus gave Alex a look, and the floating Trainer nodded, fishing in his backpack as he sensed the Flygon's intent. Moments later, he had the Earth Plate crystal in hand, and he raised it towards his Flygon. "Mega Evolve!" The mind of the Pokémon met his human's, and together, they pushed him beyond this stage of evolution, to one that was on an entirely different level. Eremus shone bright white as his form grew, and shifted. Another pair of wings, set just under his original pair sprouted from his back. His claws grew longer, sharper, and his legs extended as well, looking not too dissimilar from Tao's back legs in shape. They too gained claws, but most interesting about this new form was his tail, which had filled out into a spiked circle of diamond shaped green and red scales.

The Mega Flygon raised his tail to the sky as he adjusted his height over his now slightly more revealed target. The sandstorm paused, and the harsh sun shone down on the group once more. The coverings of his eyes had become fractaled, giving Eremus the unique vision only bug types could usually take advantage of. His horns had changed as well, shifting further apart, and sprouting two additional spikes near the tip on each horn. They quivered, as the Mega Flygon focused the power he'd need for the task at hand. The sunlight empowered the sand dragon, and when he was ready, another Boomburst slammed into the ground.

Gouts of sand flew into the air, and the gathered psychics levitated further back, as in the space of a few moments, the Mega Flygon cleared the ruins of sandy buildup. He controlled the vibrations with masterful skill, sending them through the structure, and forcing sand to constantly shoot out of the entrance. A slight depression had been made in the desert, at the bottom of which resided the Resort Ruins, now once more as clear as they had been in Hilda and Hilbert's time as teenaged Trainers.

Eremus fired several more Boombursts, and soon, the entire outer structure of the ancient kingly abode was revealed, at the depths of what was now a crater of sand and dirt. As Eremus continued to shore up the sides, so that sand and gravity did not undo his work, Alex summoned another Pokémon, as did Jess, for the two were rarely called upon by themselves. They worked best as a team, after all.

A Nidoking and Nidoqueen respectively appeared on the sand, and Tony's eyes were only for his mate, though they did eventually move to his Trainer. Though not afflicted with the burning desire to battle, Tony had become rather strong since his capture, as he'd trained alongside Jess and Maria. Alex had then offered him as a sparring partner to his newly captured Pokémon, and the Nidoking, while imposing, had been a good teacher, and had pushed many of their Trainer's newer catches beyond their limits. Alex typically didn't call on him for battle, though there had been several moments in the war where his heavy defense and powerful ground typed moves had saved quite a number of eastern lives.

"Tony, work with Maria on this. I want you to raise that structure, and whatever is under it, to the level the rest of the desert is currently at. Do you think you can handle that?" The Nidoking looked at Maria, who roared, and flexed, and he turned back to his Trainer, slamming his hands together as he spoke his name, but to Alex's ears, the sounds were translated. "Aye...with her, I can."

Alex smirked, and gestured at the ruins, and the Nido pair lumbered towards them. Eremus watched them from above, fully intending to aid the pair, if raising the ancient structure proved to be too much. As Tony and Maria summoned the power of the earth, it began to shake, for this far below the desert was primarily rock and stone and dirt. Ideal for ground types. The few burrowing Pokémon Eremus had missed quickly vacated the area as it began to rumble, and slowly, the Nido pair raised their arms, encased in ground typed energy.

With their light brown glowing arm's slow rise, the ruins rose as well, higher and higher until the structure finally sat several feet above the surrounding desert. Eremus cleared away yet more sand, and once the structure was high enough, flew inside of it. Blasts of sand shot out from the entrance again as the Mega Flygon began excavating. Bits of pottery came out as well, and while the loss of archaeological pottery was unfortunate, the chance to delve into the ancient home of Unova's truth-seeking Hero King was far more important to the historical record than any ancient vase.

Once Eremus came back, and explained that, eventually, there had been no more sand to clear and they could travel inside without getting burned by the scorching hot grains. Alex nodded to the others. The once hidden sub-layers of the ancient castle, much like those of the palace he currently resided in, had been free of sand, and were now once more open to exploration. Whatever tunnel had been used to access the lower levels by whoever was down there had undoubtedly already been broken, in the act of raising the structure back to the surface of the desert.

"Whoever is down there will be disorientated, and cut off from reinforcement. Armor on, and watch your backs. It could be Arcean remnants, it could be a vestige of Team Plasma. We're going in somewhat blind, so be prepared for an ambush. If they have reinforcements, they'll be making their way here soon. I want two of you hidden by the entrance, while a third goes to get our own reinforcement. I know several Rangers like to hang around here. Call on them. The rest of you will be joining Jess and I in the ruins, and will map diverging tunnels as we go. Let's move."

The other Scales snapped to carry out their General's orders, and while all of the psychics were eager to delve into the ruins, two were eventually made to wait and conceal themselves, while another went to find the local rangers. That left a pair of psychics, the strongest of their little group, to join the Dragon Emperor as he strode into the ancient home of the Hero King of Truth. They guided him as deep as they had ever been, after he recalled his Pokémon, and gave them an earned rest. The four humans kept quiet, suppressing their own psychic presence as they delved deeper into unused tunnels.

Eventually, it was Jess who spotted footprints that led to a diverging corridor. Both paths seemed to be used somewhat regularly, so the group split into pairs, Alex with Jess, and the psychics on their own. They shared a silent nod, and then proceeded deeper into the subterranean structure that was both similar and yet so very different to the Imperial Palace.

Alex and Jess soon found that the inhabitants of these hidden rooms were indeed a vestige of a criminal gang, though not the one they expected. Years ago, after being soundly defeated by multiple ten year olds, the gangs of Japan had banded together, and come to Unova, presumably at the behest of Ghetsis' remaining Sages. The banners they found on the ancient walls sported Team Plasma's shield, but emblazoned upon it was not a P, but a rainbow colored pair of Rs.

The first room they stumbled into seemed to be some kind of lab, though what was being studied was not immediately clear. The room had two adjoining hallways, and Alex went down one, while Jess took the other. Arthur and Delphi joined them, as they split, and it was his Gallade who sensed it first. Without a word, Arthur inexplicably dashed down the hallway, past several closed doors, to a room at the end. With one focused smashing punch, the reinforced stone door toppled, and the Gallade leapt into the room, only to find it empty of enemies.

It was not entirely empty however, for the only thing of note within the otherwise barren stone chamber was a table of sorts, covered by a simple cloth, and a pedestal supporting and incubating what Alex soon realized was a Pokémon egg. As he approached it, it visibly twitched. Alex and Arthur shared a look, and then the human lifted the case keeping the egg at the ideal temperature. With a hiss, air that smelled very stale wafted free into the room, and the egg shook harder, more insistently.

Arthur was smiling, as he sensed what was about to happen, and Alex poked Jess mentally, though she seemed distracted by whatever her own search had yielded. She would live to regret not dashing to see this hatching, but for Arthur and Alex, it was a sight. The egg flashed bright white, before popping open with surprising force. Slowly, the occupant rose on unsteady paws, covered in egg goo, as its intense eyes locked with Alex's first.

For his part, Alex recognized immediately that this was a Riolu, a male, and judging by the mind he sensed probing his own, he had been inside of his egg for a very long time, suspended in time and development when it came to his body, but not his mind. "Finally…" He said, projecting his mental voice. "I have waited a lifetime for a worthy Human…" The eyes looked between the pair of human and Gallade, and the little Riolu smirked. "Your auras are...potent." The focus shifted back to Alex, then. "You. You will train me, yes? Humans still Battle, I hope?"

Alex nodded, and fished out an as yet uncustomized Luxury Ball. "If you wish to become a top rate Battler, you would be hard pressed to find a stronger team to be on." He held the ball forward. "If that is what you desire, I will make you as strong as possible." The Riolu looked between them again, and then booped the ball's button.

He entered with a flash of light, and the ball dinged almost immediately. Having never visited Floccesy Ranch, Alex had never had the chance to find and catch a Riolu, and Arthur had eventually said that, if he ever did find one, it would have to be from somewhere else. For whatever reason, he viewed the packs around the ranch as too wild to ever be properly trained. Such reservations were gone for this Riolu, though. As Alex brought him into their mental web, he could sense the tiny Pokémon's satisfaction. "You did not lie...your partners are strong...loved...and friendly. I think...I will like this team."

The voice drifted off, and Alex pocketed the ball in his bag, letting the little Pokémon sleep. Hatching after what seemed like years, if not centuries, of waiting took a lot of energy, but he expected the eager fighting puppy would be up before too long. Arthur seemed eager to train him, and it was as he and his Gallade were concocting a training regimen for their newest ally, that Jess found them.

She looked at the egg remnants, and raised a red eyebrow. "Something hatched for you?"

Alex nodded. "A Riolu...he's been in his egg for a while...but he'll be strong. I can tell."

Jess smirked. "Of course he will. I guess that means the Mewtwo is mine." With that, she left just as suddenly as she appeared, though Alex was right behind her. Before he could so much as question her, she was dashing down his corridor, and making the turn into her own. He followed, as did Arthur, and it wasn't long before the boys found what she had discovered on her own. Where their hallway had been more storage related, this one had contained equipment in several rooms, notes on genetic experiments, and once Jess had found the room containing the suspended, still forming Mewtwo, she realized it was the source of the psychic emanation they had sensed up above.

Delphi was in the process of keeping a pair of scientists, each sporting a Rainbow Rocket badge on their lab coats, subdued. As they saw Alex enter alongside his Gallade though, they struggled harder against her psychic hold, to no avail. Arthur went over to help the psychic fire fox keep them from pressing any 'emergency terminate' buttons, while the humans eyed the tank holding the suspended Genetic Pokémon.

Alex spoke first. "This one seems...different...to the pair Red has with him. Physically, I mean. The face is rounder...not as narrow and intense…and its chest is...umm...rounder."

Jess nodded. "The notes called it the XX strand of the Genetic Pokémon. Apparently, it's capable of Mega Evolving by itself, and doesn't need a Trainer like the other two."

Alex smirked. "Those two barely needed their Trainer for that in the first place...but you're right, this one is quite strong." He placed a hand on the glass, and the occupant twitched. He gave it a gentle mental prod, and as one eye opened, he smiled. "Hello there."

An intensely bright blue aura surrounded the floating Mewtwo, and the glass container began to crack. Alex and Jess backed up, and with a combined burst from them, they helped the Mewtwo break its container. Glass and goo covered the dusty floor, and the Mewtwo stared at the pair of humans, tail waving slightly behind it as it sat quietly, and looked between the pair.

Then, a feminine voice filled their minds. "Where...am I...this...this is not…"

Alex spoke first. "Easy there...I expect you're disorientated. Welcome to Unova." He offered the Mewtwo a genuine smile, and she seemed to lose some of the stiffness in her spine.

"Unova...I don't...know…" The Mewtwo winced as she saw her hands, and then her humanoid shaped body, closed her eyes, and breathed several times, before opening them again. She briefly eyed Jess, but then the intelligent eyes moved back to Alex. "Who...what...am I?"

The smile faded slightly, as Alex answered. "You are what we Humans call a Pokémon. One of many unique and powerful creatures that inhabit this world." He gestured to Arthur and Delphi who, like their charges, were watching the scene with awe. The Pokémon felt the Mewtwo's psychic power much clearer now, for after being freed, it had only grown in intensity. "They are also Pokémon...and like you, and your predecessors, they are Psychic Types."

"Psychic...Types?" The Mewtwo asked, tail still waving in a calm, but rhythmic pattern.

Alex nodded. "There are many Types of Pokémon...Psychic Types are among the strongest...you are what we Humans call...Mewtwo."

"Mew...two?" The psychic cat-like entity tilted her head.

"Mm. There are only two others like you, that I know of. You were...created by us, by Humans, as a clone of one of the most rare and powerful Psychic Types that Humanity knows about. The Pokémon we call Mew. Through Human science and bioengineering, you have been revived from a fossil of a Mew and made into a stronger version of it. Mew two." Alex kept his tone even, and calm as he spoke, watching the psychic type for adverse reactions. He didn't sense the hostility Red's had possessed, however. This one simply seemed curious, disoriented, but more and more confident, as she learned more about who and what she was. He could sense her powerful mind churning as he spoke, and answered her questions, and Alex knew mentally, she was not all that different from a human child. For now.

It was then, that one of the scientists spoke up. "You are the most powerful Mewtwo we have ever created! You will serve Rainbow Rocket well!"

Arthur backhanded the scientist as he spoke, but he had already finished his statement before the sword-arm smacked him. Mewtwo spoke again, her tone gaining an edge. "So... I was created...brought back...to serve another?" The intense blue aura shield returned. It was wavy, unrefined, but immensely powerful. "To serve...Humans?"

Alex held up a hand, and stood in the gaze of the Mewtwo, who had shifted her eyes to the scientist. "You will find, as you live in this world, that there are many kinds of Humans. Just as there are many kinds of Pokémon. Some...will be kinder than others. These scientists are criminals, to the rest of Human society. Left to their own devices...you likely would have been made into a weapon. They've tried this before, with your fellow Mewtwo...and they failed, both times. Their power was too much to tame, their rage nearly ended the world. But you, Mewtwo, do not have to be their slave."

The intensity of the aura seemed to lessen, and Alex continued to speak in that same calming tone. "You are alive. The circumstance of your rebirth does not make you lesser. Your path is your own to choose, and if you do wish to partner with a Human, who you decide to join in Battle is entirely up to you. You have the intelligence of a Human, at least, and by our laws, that means you are worthy of the freedom to make your own choices."

The tail paused in swaying, and the Mewtwo narrowed her eyes at Alex. "You...do not intend to weaponize me? Is...is that not my purpose? What am I to do, then?"

"Whatever you wish to do, Mewtwo. For right now...I think you should come with us…" He gestured to Jess, and their psychic types. "There is much about this world that has changed from what you likely remember. In time, you will be free to wander wherever you desire, but I would have you learn, first. How to control your awesome power, and of how this world has changed since the last time you inhabited it. Do you find this agreeable?"

The Mewtwo pondered for a long moment, examining her three-fingered hand, opening and closing it as she eyed the rest of her new body as well. "Your words...are filled with sense. I will accompany you...for now. But I will not bind myself to something as weak as a Human."

At that, Jess chuckled, which drew the Mewtwo's intense gaze. "Humans are many things...but we are not weak. Do not underestimate us because we lack your power. The Humans in the corner lack power, and they made you. Things can often be more powerful than they first appear to be. Blind assumptions will get you hurt...or worse, captured. The world is filled with Pokémon Trainers, and you will be hard pressed to find one who hasn't heard of, or desired their own, Mewtwo. Deflecting their Pokéballs will be easy for you, but if you underestimate their strength or cleverness, you may end up being captured by someone you did not choose. That's not necessarily a bad thing...but...power, and the pursuit of it, can do strange things to otherwise decent Humans."

The psychic type had semi-tuned out the flame haired woman mid speech, as she focused on levitating herself to her feet with her power, since her body still felt weak. "I have sensed the thoughts of three of your cities while I slept. I am not concerned that any of those...dreamers...could genuinely bind me. You two are an exception I was only vaguely aware of. But most Humans are not like you."

"You underestimate them at your peril. But that's enough talking for now...we need to find the others in our group." The Mewtwo's eyes narrowed, and he elaborated. "Trainers, like us. In our society, we're the Humans who have the closest bonds with Pokémon. Naturally, this makes us rather good at Battling."

The Mewtwo levitated herself then, as she got a feel for floating. "Battling?"

Alex nodded, as they began to move, slowly at first, but increasingly faster, as the Mewtwo got a handle on her power, and how much was needed to move at an appropriate pace. "Humans have a tendency to weaponize whatever we can. Naturally, when we discovered Pokémon, we did as we always had, and exerted control against their will, but even in those early days, there were a few who followed a code, were friends with their chosen partners, and found enlightenment in testing themselves against others like them. Some things and stuff happened over a long period of time, and today, it's the philosophy of those Trainers that survived to the present and is essentially the underlying foundation of everything the Pokémon League is. Not all of us adhere to those philosophies...but the strong Trainers usually reach the level of understanding required to be genuinely powerful, as a team."

The Mewtwo smirked at his hand waving explanation saying, "You will have to show me this...League of Trainers, in time." She soon understood the need for the shortened explanation, as they rounded the corner and turned onto the left forking passage, and sensed minds ahead that were not friendly. Delphi levitated their prisoners, and Arthur watched their back, as Alex and Jess doubled back to the path they hadn't taken. It was good that they did, for they arrived at a strange scene just in time to see the other two psychics, Perry and Dua, and the two they'd left guarding up above, captured, and on some sort of simple stage. A man with a dark goatee and a Rainbow Rocket uniform was orating to a crowd of grunts, who after a careful glance, they determined were from gangs all over the world, and Japan. Many had kept their old group's aesthetic in their uniform, but their colors of mainly black and red all matched, and all bore the symbol of Giovanni's last vestige.

Behind the stage, looming over all of the humans below it, was a sleeping Pokémon. Rather large for a Volcarona, by Pokédex measurements logged likely from Nate's own device, the massive fire bug's body rose and lowered slowly, and somewhat ominously. The Mewtwo with them shrank back, as they did, mistaking stealth for shared fear, in that moment. The creature's mind was anathema to Mewtwo's senses, and only in time would she understand that what she sensed was simply the structure most bug typed minds possessed.

"These dogs of the Dragon Emperor will be the first to fall to Volcarona's fiery judgement! Their mere presence here proves that the Dragon fears what we have created! It will not take them long to realize they are missing. The time is nigh, my brothers and sisters in crime. Soon, Unova, and this entire 'Empire' will know who we are!"

The dark-haired man was orating, and the crowd was eating it up. He was flanked by two people who had also kept their old gang's aesthetic, that of the Arcean Church, and their Crusaders. These uniforms also shared the black and red base aesthetic with the Rainbow Rocket badge placed in the center of their breastplate, next to Arceus's symbol.

Jess glanced at Alex, but he shook his head, now helmeted once more, as he donned it and completed the full protection it offered. "We need to wait as long as possible...show her how to hide her presence. If she gets excited, she could wake the Volcarona up…"

Jess nodded at his mental message, and then linked minds with the Mewtwo, who watched her with wide, intelligent eyes, nodding, to their silent conversation. Soon after, her presence had seemingly vanished, and when Alex glanced over, noticing the sudden lack of presence, he found himself meeting the Mewtwo's gaze with a nod of approval, that made the psychic cat entity smile. He returned to scanning the upper levels as subtly as he could, for he too could awaken the fiery bug, and it was in their best interest to keep it asleep for as long as possible.

Once he sensed their final psychic return with reinforcement, he contacted the man, whose name was Low, and gave the order to summon all available Scales. Suddenly, up above, there were a lot more minds, who quickly doused their mental presence, as they sensed their Generals had. Alex gave Low a brief overview of things below, and once that was finished, he nodded to Arthur. The others were on their way down, but judging by the speech, things were about to kick off.

"Let these four be the first of many to fall!" The orating man had summoned a Pokémon to the stage, a Houndoom, who had mega evolved, and began bearing down on the bound Scales. As the man snapped his fingers, giving the salivating dark type the go ahead, a crescent of fighting typed energy surged above the crowd, and smashed into the Mega Houndoom with the force of type advantage, and a significant difference in level. Arthur was on the Crusaders in an instant, and as the Gallade smashed, bamfed, and smashed again, those in the crowd moved to aid their leader.

Though, instead of Pokéballs, all they found was air. Their belts and ball holders had been uniformly sliced by Delphi, and her subtle and dangerously precise Psychic attack that spread unnoticed through the crowd as the Gallade did his thing. There was a roar at the back of the room as a wave of powerful electricity surged over every inch of the underground space, and the Pokéballs on the ground fizzed out, as they sent their occupants back to their Trainer's box and became temporarily inoperable.

The electrified terrain only served to empower the Luxray prowling upon it, moving towards the crowd of unarmed Trainers, snarling louder with each step as his massive mane sparked with his power. His stride was purposefully slow, though. Some Pokémon who had been out, mostly Swoobat, charged the golden lion, only to find themselves thoroughly zapped whenever they came within a certain range of him. Leo had combined his superior sight with his precise Thunderbolts, and rarely missed. The grunts of the remnant teams soon found themselves recalling situations where they had received a similarly one-sided thrashing.

Alex winced, as the hell hound hit the sleeping Volcarona from the force of Arthur's opening strike, but the massive Pokémon seemed undisturbed by it. Fainted as it was, it wouldn't be using any flames to wake the massive bug, now. Then, it was Alex's turn to bamf. In the space of a few seconds, he freed his people, and as the orator drew another Pokéball, he found himself face to face with a figure whose armor and plasma sword had all but become a cultural icon after victory had been achieved for the east. His face fell, as he realized what the Dragon Emperor's presence meant. The ball in his hand was wrenched free of his grasp by a foreign mind, and held closed, as the occupant within, who definitely was infused with Shadow, struggled to break free, and rampage.

The other balls he had on him were similarly taken, and the man raised his hands, once that happened, knowing when he was beaten. Seeing their leader surrender, the two Arceans did the same, and dropped their staves before the Gallade had a chance to disable them. Slowly, hands went up in the crowd, thanks in no small part to the snarling Luxray, and his approach. Some had tried to run, only to find themselves in the tight embrace of Serpi's vines, before they were unceremoniously tossed back into their fellows. She slithered out of one of the adjoining tunnels in the underground room, and in a matter of minutes, the hidden rebellion of the last vestiges of Giovanni's dreams for Unova were rounded up like Tauros and driven to the surface by twenty freshly arrived Scales.

Once the gang members were on their way to be processed by his empire, which was rapidly becoming accustomed to handling large groups of potentially hostile humans and their Pokémon partners, Alex turned to the Volcarona. He nodded at the Mewtwo, then. "You can poke it now, if you like. Let us see if we can't reason with it, convince it to find a new home."

Jess arched a crimson brow at him. "You're going to try negotiating with a Bug Type?"

Alex shrugged. "You know I prefer it to just shoving them into balls."

As he finished speaking, the massive mind stirred, at the Mewtwo's gentle touch, and slowly, the gargantuan wingspan of the fiery bug filled the chamber. Alex eyed it carefully, but neither he nor the gathered psychics saw traces of Shadow Infusion. Since Fornia was crushed, they were becoming much harder to infuse for the criminal elements left over in the wake of a war as large as theirs had been.

"Hello there." Alex started, and he sensed the female bug's eyes shift to him. He didn't detect hostility, but he knew that a misstep could lead to an unpleasant formula, in which he'd have to deal with burns for a few weeks most likely. Endeavoring to avoid that, he began speaking, layering his words with the power Rayquaza had shown him how to harness. "I'm sorry to have disturbed you, but as you can see, the Humans who were previously worshiping you have been...removed. They won't be coming back, and seeing as how this building is now once more upon the surface, I would offer you a choice."

The massive fire moth settled on the stage, felt it rapidly breaking, and decided upon only two legs. Even then, it sagged under her girth. Her mental tone was surprisingly coherent, and calm, with only a hint of irritation that had a healthy mix of curiosity, especially at his mention of the surface. "I see. I liked those Humans...they fed me well. But if you have returned the chance to fly the sky to me, I am in your debt, Humans."

A few of the Scales behind Alex murmured as she spoke, but he answered her with the same level of calmness and respect. "I was planning to let you fly away, provided you don't burn everything around you...you see, I lead the Humans of this region, and I am responsible for safeguarding no small number of the Pokémon as well. You are welcome to reside here with us, in the harmony we have achieved in this era. Provided you don't burn away our forests or our residents."

The fire moth seemed to hum, and she did so for a rather tense minute, before she responded. "I find these terms...agreeable. I will take your offer of peace...but warn your people not to intrude upon me. I will not suffer them to live."

That, caused several Scales to blink, and shift into a more ready stance, but Alex made a low, sweeping, open handed gesture, and they visibly relaxed. "I will warn them...but I am afraid Humans, especially Trainers, are very curious...and they're also rather bad at listening. I would ask that you judge the Humans who come upon you, rather than just burning them all. And to those you find worth acknowledging, I would ask you to entrust them with one of your Eggs."

The bright, sun-colored wings rose high into the chamber, and sparkled ominously. "You would have me give up my own blood...to Humans?"

Alex visibly pondered, and then shrugged. "Kind of. I leave the decision to you, of course, but I would rather have more Larvesta inhabiting our land than we currently do. Giving a few to worthy Humans that find you could go a long way towards repopulating your kind, in our region."

Another hum filled the air, for more than a minute this time, but Alex waited, unfazed, and patient. Finally, she spoke again. "I see the sense in your words, Human leader...and I accept."

At that, Alex smiled, and bowed low. "Your calm and rational demeanor is a... pleasant change of pace. With your permission, I'll move you and yours to the surface with a Teleport. From there, you may nest wherever you prefer. Ideally...far from people. I would also suggest somewhere to the north, for there are many mountains and forests up that way."

"You may use your Teleport upon us...and I think...yes. The cycle of rebirth shall start here. You are a... Trainer? There is one among my brood I think will pair well with you. He is yours to raise and protect." The massive Volcarona's leg shifted, and from below her, came a tiny, crawling, fuzzy Larvesta. It chirped at him happily, and he offered a Luxury Ball to the relatively young Pokémon, who entered willingly. The Volcarona spoke again, once that occurred. "It is done...take me to the sky."

Alex gave the Scales leave to return to the surface as well to help with the prisoners, before he, Jess, and their gathered psychic types, Mewtwo included, formed a circle around the massive fire bug. In the space of an instant, they changed locations, from far below, to high up above the raised Relic Castle. Each of them hovered back slightly, levitating themselves as the Volcarona's wings flapped, and filled the air with cinders. She gave a cry that could only be described as half terrifying, half joyous, and then ascended higher into the air. From below, the group spied other huddled fuzzy white forms upon her back.

Before they descended, another mental presence joined them, and the sensation of such obvious power manifesting beside them so rapidly spooked the young Mewtwo, sending her 'leaping' several feet above them as Tao reached out to them. "There is news. Come. Bring the Mewtwo."

Just as quickly as he came, he left, and below, Alex spied his Lieutenant giving him a salute, a moment later. The others had their orders, and he had his. He glanced at the Mewtwo, chuckled, and then beckoned her to their level. "That, was Tao. The Original Dragon Pokémon, and the Legendary Guardian of this entire continent. We should go speak with him."

The Mewtwo seemed to think for a moment, before she nodded. "I would be interested in meeting the body that houses such a strong mind. Lead on."

Alex nodded, and with another bamf, they were gone from the Desert Resort.

The Dragonspiral Tower - Unova Region

Tao intercepted their Teleport, and diverted them to his chamber, at the top of the tower, a place Alex hadn't seen for several months now. Merlin was with him, levitating a stormy gray glass bong between the two. Tao had altered his size to fit better in the chamber, and he confirmed his curious pupil's guess as to whether Legendary Pokémon could shift their size. Evidently, it was easier for the older Guardians, and few others had learned how to safely replicate the process those like Tao used to achieve their shift in size. He was still rather large at twenty-five feet, lying in a coil as he was, as he, Merlin, and Laurea passed the instrument around.

Tao's head rose as Alex, Jess, and their newest Pokémon ally in the form of a Mewtwo approached the three powerful psychics. Each set of ancient eyes were focused on the Mewtwo, and as the humans bowed, she paused for a moment, and then gave the three figures a general nod of respect. As far as she could sense, she was on their level, or near it. The human had implied he knew how to make her even stronger, and in that moment of meeting, she decided she wanted to test herself against each of the three before her.

Merlin spoke first. "So. This is what...erm, who was giving off the intense psychic emanations beneath the sands." He glanced up at Tao then, the dragon's almost reptilian features as unreadable as ever.

He was perhaps the most interested in what his students had brought back. A Mewtwo spared a violent birth and a hatred of humans, one without hate in its heart from the beginning. Tao spoke, as Merlin finished. "Once more, your mastery of the Voice and quick thinking have worked in tandem to bring us one who, perhaps, will become a powerful ally...I welcome you, Mewtwo, to Unova, and the modern world. I know of the agreement you reached with my students. I shall be the one to instruct you, but all present here will teach you, eventually, if you wish to learn." The pupilless golden eyes flared, eyeing her up and down. "Alex. Run her through the first stances...and then return when that is done."

As he left to do just that, he sensed Tao was about to have a talk with his better half, and the dragon's shielding of their words, and Jess's only confirmed that. He sighed, heavily, and found the training floor just above Tao's preferred meeting chamber. He called out his Riolu as well, who had taken the name Canis, and the punchy puppy yawned, stretched, and looked around with a mild expression, before his eyes settled on the Mewtwo, who narrowed her eyes, and smirked at him.

The two stared for a long series of moments before Alex finally coughed and gained their attention. "The key to these stances is controlling when you breathe and using your body's balance to inflict the most damage on an opponent. Copy me."

The pair learned quickly, as Alex showed them with the efficiency born of a lot of repetition, how to move through the attacks and poses associated with the Dragon's style of martial arts. Roughly thirty minutes later, Jess joined them as well. Evidently, she'd been given a mission of her own, in Fornia, now that she too had become a Tamer to a Guardian. Tao sent him a blurb of mental knowledge, for he knew well how Alex enjoyed them by now, revealing that Ho-Oh was the Guardian of the skies between Japan, and the western coast of their continent. She was also a vaunted ally, and one who typically preferred solitude. That she had chosen Jess seemed to rattle Tao, but he embraced the universe's path, and sent her where he deemed that she would flourish the most. Once they finished educating the newbies on the first series of movements and punches, Jess took over, and sent Alex up to the waiting circle of chilling Legends.

They were still in the midst of toking on the bong, and Alex joined their circle, floating into the air on crossed legs as he did. He noticed that Aristole had also joined them at some point, and his lighter gold aura kept him levitating beside the others, though he abstained from partaking of the Leaf. Tao was the first to speak. "Merlin, Laurea, and I have sensed a disturbance...emanating from Koria. Long ago, their Guardian fused with a Human, and ever since, that Human, and all their reincarnations, have defended the region. Unfortunately, since the Imperium of Man gained a foothold, the region has fallen out of Balance, and their Guardian is missing...or rather, they were. This emanation of power is one we recognize...but there is one championing the Shadow rising beside it. Go to Koria. Find the Guardian's Avatar and help them throw off the yoke of the Imperium."

Alex slid his eyes towards Aristole. "They're not going to like me getting involved...and I don't think a disguise will be enough to fool them. You said they have psychics of their own. They'll sense me, eventually."

The Sage of Light nodded. "They will. Unfortunately, conflict is inevitable...we would have you turn it in the Light's favor. Their Guardian is sorely missed." Merlin and Tao both nodded at the Professor's words.

"Conflict with the Imperium is an inevitability, at this point. Despite that, you should still endeavor to not be too noticeable. A simple Trainer from Unova won't raise too many eyebrows, if you stick to the Earth Nation." Aristole said, as his arms, folded in his robe's sleeves, shifted. He brought forth a map then, and a Pokédrive chip with a slot for a Pokédex.

Alex fished out his own, and then winced, at all the scratches, scuffing, and use the mahogany casing had taken. Lux poked his mind. "I could hop in that, if you'd like."

Alex smirked, and responded in kind, mentally. "No, I'm fine... I need to finish piecing my new one together. I haven't really had time." He looked up at Tao then. "Is this urgent? Or can I get a few days?"

"The longer you take, the harder the Guardian will be to find. You should leave now, if you wish to arrive in time. You will have plenty of hours on the ride to Koria. Even from Mewsia, it is a long trip." Alex sighed, as he knew the trip wasn't that long, and piecing together a Pokédex on the waves seemed like asking for frustration to set in. Tao spoke again, eyes locked on his pupil's. "While you are in Koria...embrace the custom, as well as you are able. Strengthen other Pokémon, ones you haven't used on camera if possible, and learn all that Koria has to teach, before you return."

Alex bowed, fist to open palm. "Yes, Master. Will the Guardian be returning with me?"

This time, Laurea spoke. "It is better if they remain, to harry the Imperium from as many sides as possible. Koria must expel the Imperium before that can happen, and you will be of great aid in that struggle. Do as you have done so far, in your foreign adventures, and you will be fine."

Alex internalized his growing bad mood, as not only did he now have even more work, but it was also work that would take him across the planet, and for the first time in years, without Jess beside him. They both agreed they'd been due for diverging missions, but that didn't make taking them on any easier. He intended to speed his along, and if there was a war brewing, he would see it end swiftly. "I guess I'm off, then."

The psychically inclined Legendary Pokémon watched him leave, and while he was slightly annoyed, the chance to journey incognito once more did hold some appeal. As he mentally selected who he would use, he put his main ten on his cape, and therefor connected to his box back home. According to Eric, he ran the Pokémon regularly, letting them roam as they pleased on the ranch land.

They at least, deserved a chance to lounge around and rest, as Shruikan had been. Arthur and Terra were the most reluctant to leave his belt, but they saw the sense in it. Despite Tao's words, Alex still planned to take a day to train up his chosen party to a respectable level, before setting out. Canis had volunteered himself to lead this new party of ten, and from there, had mentally helped Alex select their nine companions. While he could switch them out, it would require being somewhat out of sight to activate his belt, and in the Imperium, people caught skulking about in shadows were usually arrested first and questioned later, if ever. He was also aware that logging on to his Box from Imperium networks was a bad idea, as more than once the empire's tech specialists had managed to steal the contents of such boxes from top Trainers, or so the rumors went.

With seveal other mighty Pokémon chosen, all still a bit green, but eager to be first in the line-up for the first time, Alex began preparing for what was required for travel in a foreign land occupied by hostile forces.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 37: The Southern Water Tribe

Battle Room - Imperial Palace, Unova

As the newest Professor Redwood descended into the depths of his brother's pyramidal palace alongside one of Unova's own Champions, and now a war hero as well, the sound of the theme track played during Galarian Gym Leader matches boomed through the Battle Room, as the intensity of the more-anime-than-game inspired bop refused to be contained by the ancient stones set by the Hero of Ideals.

It seemed Blaze was acting as the training partner this time, and the ferocious fire lizard let out a roar, as he beat his wings, and pushed back the Grovyle and Riolu he was facing alone, while their Trainer stood between them, silently giving commands to both sides, as he essentially battled himself. Those they had chosen to join their 'B Team' were eager to get started, thus they'd returned for a brief training session. Canis, his Riolu, had opted for minimal supervision, and his Grovyle, Arbor, had claimed he wanted to try battling alongside the newest member of their ever-growing family as a team with limited guidance from Alex, save for move suggestions that were easily ignored, if they felt they wanted to use something else.

Canis attacked with Vacuum Wave barrage. After a PP Max, Canis could launch seemingly endless flurries of such attacks before he tired out. His Grovyle had a comparatively limited amount of Energy Balls, but over the past half day of training, he'd started to grasp how to condense them, and being a fire type on an entirely different level than the newbies, Blaze could take whatever they dished out. Dodging what he gave back in return was also part of the training.

The Charizard reared his head back before he unleashed a Flamethrower, dragging his head side to side as he aimed it at both of them, though it weakened the move's power. Canis dodged in front of the Grovyle, and punched through the flames after focusing his aura into a Vacuum Wave that Alex knew was coming closer and closer to being what his species line was known for. As the flames parted in the manifested vacuum, Arbor, his Grovyle, fired an Energy Ball from behind the Riolu straight at Blaze, who this time instead of tanking the hit on his stomach, blocked it with a wing, as he noticed the newcomers, and Alex mentally slowed the battle to a standstill.

He snapped his fingers, and the epic beats ceased. The hat turned back around, as the Dragon Emperor of Unova turned to meet his contemporaries. Beside his brother was Hilda, and behind them, were a pair of women he did not recognize, though one did not have to be psychic to sense their devotion to N. Their bracelets matched his, though it seemed N had taken one from each woman for his own wrists. More than that, their minds were radiating both a similar sense of calm, and constant surface thoughts about the man, and his well-being.

The one with the long pink hair spoke first, with a deep bow. "It is an honor to be in your presence, Dragon Emperor. I am Anthea, and this is Concordia. We are the Goddesses of Love and Peace, chosen by the Seven Sages of Team Plasma to raise N as King." She said, as she gestured to her similarly calm companion. "We cannot sense our Lord N. Hilda said you may know something about his sudden vanishing."

Alex nodded, as he kept his face passive, and debriefed them on the events directly following his beheading of the Shadow's latest champion. By the end, their faces had gone through admiration, shock, the verge of tears, and then a bleary-eyed determination that he had to admire, even though neither woman seemed to possess a Pokéball.

Hilda had a reaction that while similar, burned hot enough for Alex to realize there had indeed been some truth to the rumors surrounding her and Unova's strongest Champion. Her eyes were on fire, and he had a feeling that, if for some reason he denied telling her how to reach N, she would battle him right there for the information, and that matchup was one he knew he'd lose at the moment. Most of his team was off enjoying their well-earned break, and his team for Koria was still coming together.

"If you want to reach the dimension he entered, you'll have to speak with the Aether Foundation." Alex grumbled. "They control everything related to Ultra Space, and travel through it, for the Empire. Apparently."

Hilda shared a look with the other two women, before they all nodded, in unison. She met Alex's eyes evenly as she spoke. "We're going in after him...possibly forever. I'm going to take the contents of my Boxes with me, on my cloak...I don't expect to come back. Hilbert has already gone off to train, and I don't have time to find him. I don't want to leave N alone any longer than he's been already. Good luck, Dragon Emperor, and give this to my brother when you next see him." She passed him a Pokémail, and he pocketed it for later.

Alex nodded then, though his eyes narrowed slightly. "Champion Hilda, you are stripped of the rank of General, and are free to pursue whatever mission you choose worth your time. If you ever make it back, Tao and I will gladly welcome you, and N, home."

The three women bowed again, and then ran from the room at a hurried pace. Alex knew her Pidgeot would carry her to Alola rather quickly, especially now that the airspace over Fornia was friendly. The islands had again become swamped with tourists from both the east and the west now, with all the benefits and detriments they brought, and many Alolans had come to the mainland, to test how they ranked against Fornia's newest rising stars.

Eric spoke, once the women left, eyeing his brother up and down with a barely hidden sigh. "Is this how you prepare for a new mission? Standard training?"

Alex smirked. "Clearly our training methods are good, if not the best. Else you would be Champion, brother. I assume there's a reason Tao told you of my classified mission?"

Eric pinched his brow. "I've essentially become the head of anything scientific that he requires. Our lab is well-funded, but the workload is...extensive."

Alex nodded. "I heard. Well done, Professor. What else is he making you work on? How many new Trainers have you started from our little hometown?"

Eric met his gaze evenly and pushed up his glasses. "The next projects we have coming down the line are universal language translators that, when we're done, should be able to translate unknown tongues in real time, and get us a Common equivalent reasonably fast. We're also working on a device that can replicate medicine, food, and spare parts using Infinite Energy...but that one is more complicated."

Eric glanced at the stairs, then back to his older brother. "As far as new Trainers go...that's one of the two issues I have for you before you go off to get involved in another region's issues...we're running out of eggs. Your...fans...are always clamoring for Turtwigs, Mudkips, and Charmanders. Most of our Trainers have to wait, if they want a Fire Type. They go the quickest."

Alex shrugged, glancing at Blaze. "I doubt he and Chari could produce more than they already are. Chafing is an issue for all species, it seems, if certain things are done often enough. See if Brad is willing to lend his to the cause. His Charizard should be of Egg-making age by now. As for Hydrus...that won't be a problem. He's settling in just fine in that lake out behind our house. Find your Mudkips there. Terra is another story...Torterra breed slowly, but in great numbers. Maybe you should contact other Professors or offer other Pokémon. What about Saur? Or one of my other starters?"

Eric thought for a moment, then shrugged. "I'll check your Boxes, see if there aren't worthy substitutes. We may end up giving out different ones on different days."

Alex recalled Canis and Arbor then, while Blaze left to go answer nature's call outside of the palace, and then his vacation. "You said you had something else for me?"

Eric nodded. "I've been examining the Pokémon used extensively during the war...namely those who regularly used Mega Evolution. Yours are the only ones not suffering DNA degeneration at an alarmingly fast pace. I told you using the power of the Plates was dangerous. At the very least, our data is telling us that their lifespans will be shorter."

Alex's brows furrowed. "Kalosians have been using Mega Evolution for centuries, and only with truly excessive use has it shown anything life threatening."

Eric sighed and pinched his brow again. "The Kalosians have been using a pair of stones, and a bond between a Trainer and usually one Pokémon, for centuries. A method created by ancient masters, I might add, who understood Infinity Energy far better than we do. Their stones are flash-crystalized remnants of other Pokémon with essentially the same genetic sequence, enough to not force the modern Pokémon's strands out of whack. The bond with the Trainer, and their Key Stone, are directly tied to the lack of pain and out of control rage Mega Pokémon sometimes display. Our method just has our Trainers using their latent psychic bond with their partner to guide Infinite Energy of the Pokémon's Type into their partner. Take us to my lab, I can show you the data there. I also have something for your journey."

Alex's face shifted to a frown as his brother spoke, but a dry smirk had returned once Eric finished. He held out a hand. "Are you the one who will be outfitting me on missions now?"

"I already outfitted you, your Scales, and the entire Imperial Dragon Army. You should be so lucky, to have us working on things that will make your excursions easier." Eric grumbled, as he took the offered hand. With a flash of pinkish energy and a bamfing noise, they reappeared back in Derrion Town. The rest of the Brain Trust looked up, as the two brothers appeared. Like Eric, they also had lab coats now, and the entire lab had gone from questionable or out of date machines to the most modern equipment a superpower like Unova had access to. It had also been made bigger, and now had three floors. Alex had to fight down the sudden rage he had for his father, as his Granduncle had tried many times to expand his home, but it had never been 'allowed'. It was one of the main reasons his cousin, his Gruncle's daughter, had left him in his advanced age. Eric's voice cut through his rage and Alex saved it for a later tirade, and his eyes shifted to the screen hanging from the second floor balcony for viewing from the first floor. "Bring up the genetic strands."

Alex didn't see who typed away at their keyboard, as his eyes were focused on the screen before him. Eric continued. "As you can see, your team's DNA is at the top, and the DNA of ten of your strongest Scale's Pokémon partners are below for comparison. Some are degrading faster than others, but yours remain stable, because the Plates they hold are keeping them that way...without those however, the data suggests they'd have months to live. We need to solve this, Alex. The sooner the better. For now, we've been able to outfit many Scales with Mega capable partners with Plates, Tao even showed us how to forge them from shards, so they won't get any worse...and with no Mega Evolving, they should recover in time, but we can't outfit every team in the Empire with them, and your Mega method has caught on in every State."

The frown returned, and the Dragon Emperor's voice cut through the hush that had taken over the lab, and its aides as they delivered the bad news to him. "How long do we have before we start losing lives?"

Eric shrugged, though Alex knew when his brother was panicked, and was suppressing said panic. He didn't blame him for feeling such things. His mind grasped what the data was telling him, perhaps not as detailed as the Brain Trust understood it, but between his Trials and lessons with Professor Aristole, he knew his mind was a lot sharper than it had been at the start of his journey. "Have you consulted the Sages? Perhaps they are aware of what we're doing wrong here...I refuse to accept that using the Plates and shards isn't viable, but for the moment, we should slow down their usage. Tell the Pokémon League to spread the word, and then consult with the Sages. I need to get to Koria...perhaps something I learn there will help us with this...if we're lucky."

Frankie, one of the other Brain Trustees, spoke up then. "If there's one thing you have on your side Redwood, it's luck."

Eric shot him a look, before turning back to his brother. His right hand fished in his lab coat as he spoke. "Alex has a point. Koria is renowned for their mastery over energy. Their people have a deeper understanding and tie to several Types of energy that other Humans simply do not. Be thorough in your investigations, and you'll come back with something we can use, I'm sure. Now then...these, are for your 'B Team'." Eric said, as he fished out three Pokéballs from his coat.

One was red and white with gold-ish highlights and a dark blue middle, rather than black. The middle one was a combination of purple and yellow, and the last seemed like a normal Pokéball, with the exception of several perfectly circular black spots on the red upper half.

Alex took the one on the far left first, and tossed it. From within, a Scorbunny materialized, adorable wide eyes taking in the lab as he looked around. Finally, the eyes fell on Alex, who already had his Pokédex out to record the data. He knew Galar produced legitimately strong Trainers thanks to their starters, but until Leon had taken over as Chairman of their League, those matches had largely been focused on Galar, and hosted by Galar for Galarians to participate in. The World Tournament was the one exception to that.

"Scorbunny, Scor?" The tiny fire type's name was all the others in the lab heard, but Alex heard his question.

"I am your new Trainer. You should know though, little one, I only take on Pokémon who want to be among the best Battlers in the world. It's a long road, with exhaustive training. Do you think you have the will to walk that path with me?" He'd knelt down to the fire rabbit's level, more or less, and held out a fist to bump as he finished speaking. The Scorbunny did a flip, and hit his fist with one of its startlingly warm feet. "I'll take that as a yes." Alex said, smirking. "Get some rest, for now. We'll start training soon."

The Scorbunny leapt towards Eric then, and bopped his ball's button with the same inverted flip kick, as he returned to it in a flash of white light. Next, came the purple and yellow one, as Eric pushed the release, and found Scorbunny's ball floating from his hand, to Alex's belt. If all three Pokémon here accepted his typically offered terms he gave to new catches, that would leave him halfway to a full team.

"This one was a bit too...rash...for his Trainer to handle. Since he had almost a thousand other partners, apparently, he was eager to see this one go to a good Trainer." Eric's voice registered in Alex's ears, but he was too busy admiring the Pokémon before him now. He'd never even seen a Toxel outside of the Pokédex.

The perpetually skeptical looking electric poison type looked at Alex, and tilted its head, as it spoke its name. "What are you supposed to be?"

Alex smirked. "I'm your Trainer. I'm going to teach you how to Battle."

The Toxel frowned. "Battle. Will it hurt?"

Alex nodded. "Quite a bit, sometimes. Ground Type Moves are common and will be the bane of your existence."

The frown deepened. "Why Battle, if it hurts?"

"To gain experience. To grow stronger. To evolve. To become as strong as you can be...and then go beyond your limits to heights unheard of." The Unovan Trainer's eyes were on fire, and the rest of the room, upon seeing the conversation, had sudden interest. They'd heard the rumors of course, that their latest leader could also speak to and understand Pokémon, but seeing it firsthand was fascinating to any scientist.

The Toxel still seemed unconvinced, and Alex knelt down to its level, and opened his Pokédex, as he brought up Toxel's data. He swiped the screen, and the Toxel's eyes widened as he saw not one, but two possible evolutions.

Wide eyes went up to Alex's. "I'll look like mama?"

Alex shrugged, "Probably more like your dad...bulkier, more muscle mass. But powerful." He winked, and then swiped again, as the seemingly very young Pokémon's eyes went wider.

"Whaaaat." He said in child-like awe, and Alex chuckled. "That's what happens when you...Gigantamax, apparently. We can add it to our to-do list in Galar, if you want to Battle like that. Using that much power is a big responsibility. But together, we can be pretty strong, I think. It's not going to be easy, but it will show results, and quickly. You'll be evolving before you know it."

The Toxel seemed to think for a second, and his eyes glanced at Eric. The purple electric lizard looked back to Alex then and nodded. Eric tossed the last ball, and a Blipbug appeared, causing Alex to sigh inwardly.

Seeing his reaction for what it was, Eric spoke. "This one is perhaps the most important to your mission. You'll be able to trace the Guardian's energy in its Avatar...when it becomes a Dottler."

Alex glanced at Eric, and then back at the nerdy bug worm. "That won't be hard. Bug Types grow quickly...is that something you'd like?"

The Blipbug blipped, and Alex's brows furrowed, as his ears only translated the noise as a blip as well. "I suppose that means yes…" He muttered, standing as he summoned the Scorbunny again, and looked between the three. "We have some things to do before we set out...first, is giving you names." He pointed at the Scorbunny. "You, will be Cinder. After your final form." The Scorbunny said it to himself a few times, though it just sounded like his own name to everyone else, but then he nodded enthusiastically. Alex looked at the Toxel then. "You will be Temere (Tem-air-ray), and you, shall be known as Sensus." He finished, as he then looked to the Blipbug. None of the young Pokémon seemed to mind their new nicknames.

The Pokéballs for all three levitated in the air around him as they expertly pinpointed and recalled their respective targets. The Toxel had started to wander off as he spoke, but had not managed to escape the recall beam, while the other two seemed eager to rest. Alex manifested only his cape then, as it draped down around his shoulders, held up by his psychic power rather than the dragonbone mantle as he grabbed a ball, and then returned the cloak holding his balls, and the link to his PC boxes, back to his belt.

"Eremus makes six…" Alex put his ball on the belt as well, making his Flygon his secret weapon for Koria, as his level was by far the highest on their growing team. He looked up at Eric then. "Anything else for me, while I'm here?"

"Fornia is still on fire." The female member of the Brain Trust said, from behind them. "You should probably put that out before you leave."

"A good suggestion." Alex said, as he envisioned the canyon within which the Fornian Rebellion had once taken shelter. "I'll do that." The Brain Trustee in question blanched at his answer, but Alex didn't notice, as he was already across the country, mentally.

He mentally contacted Hydrus, before he bamfed to the central cave of the Fornian Rebellion. Though the Tribes were returning, they were taking the long way home, healing the land as they went. Alex clacked quietly on the PC in the abandoned rebel base as he retrieved his Swampert, and several other water types strong enough to help with what he had planned.

Eremus carried him swiftly towards the part of Fornia that had once played home to Brad and his family, and atop the mountain, Alex found a deserted, dried out lakebed. With a mental toss, his water types were out. "This was the first of the land that the Church decided to start burning, and from here, it will end. Line the crater, boys." Once the gathered water types had done so, he nodded again. "Now, Rain Dance!"

Hydrus set the beat, rhythmically pounding his fists against the ground as the Wartortle, Seismitoad, Swanna, Starmie, Vaporeon, Croconaw, and Mantyke he'd summoned to help all matched the rhythm he was beating out, and danced around the edge of the crater. As the sky darkened over Fornia again, the clouds radiated for miles, but he needed the dark clouds to be much, much bigger. "Hydrus. Mega Evolve."

The Mega Swampert looked skywards once he ascended, and fired a Water Pulse towards the clouds, where Alex was aware that it had burst, and dispersed into the clouds, turning them even darker. For a good thirty minutes the dancing and chanting continued, before Hydrus finally nodded at Alex.

For his part, the human inhaled, and then bellowed at the clouds which, by Hydrus' reckoning, now covered all of the areas over Fornia that had seen the worst of the flames. Thunderous noise cracked the sky as he Shouted, "Lom Lokluv!" The sound of the Hyper Voice visibly rippled through the clouds, and as it passed through them, they began to pour down the combined Rain Dance's accumulated water onto the parched Fornia region.

Suddenly, the sky above those gathered on Pineus Peak opened, and sunlight burned down around them, even as the rain continued to fall. Her descent caused a rainbow, and as Ho-Oh hovered above them, leaving both Alex and his partners in awe at her appearance, he spied a familiar flame haired figure atop the restored rainbow phoenix. Jess winked at him, and then murmured something that apparently only Ho-Oh heard.

The legendariest bird flapped her wings, and a circular wave of Light energy radiated out from her rainbow wings, as it infused the clouds. The water came faster, and all around those on the peak, grass, flowers, and greenery began to appear on the cracked, brown earth. The lake began refilling rapidly. Across all of Fornia in the distance, the green was returning.

Ho-Oh landed beside her Tamer, but her eyes were focused elsewhere. "And from the east…" It took a moment to see, but all gathered kept staring. His Swanna saw it first, and Alex guided his partner's gazes towards the farthest point on the horizon, from which, a rapid wave of gold was coming, overtaking the green. That which blessed Unova now also covered the entire continent. The fires were ended, according to his Pidgeot who'd been scouting them, and he knew Fornia would want to know why their green plants were suddenly turning golden.

"You have done well, both of you, in restoring this land to what it once was. Atop the golden continent, the ancient people of these lands built an empire. I look forward to seeing what your minds create of this fresh paradise." With that, Ho-Oh ascended upwards with a single wing flap and disappeared into the clouds.

As the Legendary bird vanished, Alex oofed, as he felt arms around his neck and a familiar figure press against him. "I'll handle Fornia...you should get going to Koria. But before that, Ho-Oh suggested I give you a parting gift."

Alex smirked. "I'd love to, genuinely, but I don't have four hours. I really do have to leave…"

Jess rolled her eyes, as she searched through her bag, and then pulled out an incubator, holding an egg with red and blue triangular markings. Alex inhaled audibly as he looked at it, and Jess arched a brow. "You know what species it is? Ho-Oh suggested you should raise it."

Alex eyed the egg, and then peered within it with his third eye, smirking at what he found. "I can guess." He took the incubator then, and placed it within his own bag, in a special slot solely for egg carrying that let it hear and 'experience' the sights around it, but also kept it hidden and safe from potential thieves. "I don't usually go for Fairy Types, but for this one, I'll make an exception."

Jess seemed to be trying to remember all the fairy types, as there weren't too many, and which one he might now have, as she summoned Folokraan, and climbed atop the rapidly maturing Articuno. After a moment, Jess shrugged. "Tell me when it hatches. And be safe." Their eyes stayed locked for a good few moments as Fo leapt into the air, but then Jess stoically turned her head towards the sky, and their destination, somewhere on the coast.

For his part, Alex recalled and replaced his partners, including Hydrus. Only Aero, his Pidgeot, stayed out as he claimed to enjoy flying in Fornia, and was willing to carry Alex to Port: Land, now known as Cascadia, since the Arcean Church was disbanded. The change in name apparently was a sign of the citizen's willingness to embrace their new future without the all-consuming Church of Arceus to steal their money. Fair wages seemed like a lot to people who had previously been forced to give almost ninety percent of what they'd earned in the course of a year to the Church, in 'donations' for their 'charities', building acquisitions, and fundraisers.

Many people had embraced the Dragon Empire once they not only usually kept their positions, but were given free time, reunited with their families, and more than fair pay. With what the Scales had discovered in Pravus's bunker-city, they had enough funds to keep Fornia employed, on the Empire's dime, for at least three centuries. The hoard of gold and currency had only made Alex slightly nauseous, as he saw just how much had been stolen from Fornia's people and hoarded for no reason other than greed.

He tossed Aero an Oran Berry and tied Hilda's Pokémail to his leg as they parted. "This is where Hilbert is currently," Alex said, as he'd been able to sense his contemporary after expanding his mind to search for him. "Take this mail to him, and then return home. Stay safe, Aero." The Pidgeot cawed, and then launched into the air, winging his way towards Superior Forest, and the Great Lake it surrounded.

Alex paused in the city by a park to sort out his new team of six, that with time, would fill out to ten. Arbor, Canis, and Eremus already had the moves needed to battle and win, usually. But this was a good opportunity to give the others their vitamins and respective TMs before he could board the ship that would take him to Sinnoh, in Japan, as they stopped to pick up goods, and then the Southern Water Nation city of Katavik.

After about an hour of trying to keep three younger Pokémon now all with stronger moves, in check, Alex was again on his way. Cinder had found Flame Charge to be very fun, Sensus's Bug Buzz would need some work, but for a young bug type Pokémon, Struggle Bug would have to do for battle. Temere had found that Thunderbolt was a bit more intense than he expected, but the rash baby Pokémon was firing off something closer to a Thundershock.

Sensus received his Exp. Share harness, and Alex still barely grasped what he was blipping while he put it on. He gave the tiny worm a pat though and promised it would make him stronger. At the very least, it seemed he understood his new Trainer even if he initially found the harness restrictive. Alex didn't intend for them to get much experience soon as sailors were only so challenging, but as he went to board his boat, he found it being held up, quite literally, by a pink aura full of fairy typed energy.

In front of the floating boat were several grumpy looking sailors, a weathered old man who Alex assumed was the Captain, and in front of them, the man undoubtedly responsible for the levitating ship. Percy. The svelte figure gave Alex a bow, before he spoke. "Welcome to Cascadia, Dovahkiin. I have one last challenge for you, before you leave, and a prize, if you manage to win with that team of yours."

Alex turned his hat backwards, and smirked. "I accept. Standard one V one?"

Percy arched a brow, then shrugged. "One it is. Choose wisely."

Alex's smirk widened, and with a nod of his head, he sent out Canis, who he'd put in the point position after realizing his mild punchy puppy was capable of great things in the way his Gallade had been early on. They were already becoming closer, and it wouldn't be long at all before Canis had mastery over his aura and managed to evolve.

In the same moment, Percy sent out a Sandslash, of the Alolan variety, which Alex recalled him catching, the last time he and Jess had visited the islands. It greeted Canis with a nod, and a slight bow. His Riolu put a closed fist against an open puppy palm and bowed in return, before dropping into his species' version of a Dragon Stance.

Alex knew better than to assume the type advantage would win this, but he also knew how painful quadruple weaknesses could be, and how often Trainers underestimated them. He was among their number as well. Terra, Hydrus, and others had all eventually felt the sting of such effective moves, despite his best efforts to shield them from such hits.

Percy opened by shouting, "Ice Punch!" which Alex countered with, "Brick Break!" As the Riolu and Sandslash met in the air, the fighting move's greater power and type advantage won out, sending the bulky ice shrew awkwardly in one direction, as Canis guided his claw's momentum. The steel appendage slammed into the ground, and froze there, before Alex shouted again, "Now, A flurry of Force Palms, right under the arm!"

Canis obeyed, and delivered four quadruple effective hits before the Sandslash broke free and swiped blindly at the already retreating Riolu. He was hurt, but not down yet. "Pin Missile!" Came the command from Percy, and Alex responded quickly, "Dodge them, and counter with a Vacuum Wave for each pin!"

The two Pokémon traded at least five blows, two of which Canis tanked, and three of which hit the already flagging Sandslash. Looking slightly annoyed by the hand fate dealt each of them, Percy persevered. "Use Rest!" As his Sandslash slept and regained full health, Alex's eyes narrowed. "Brick Break until it's finished."

Canis nodded, and in a swirl of motion, danced around the sleeping, tanky ice and steel type as his fighting typed punches struck it, but seemed to do little. A low flute sound hummed through the air, and Alex swore as he saw Percy wink at him, before playing the melody that awoke Pokémon from sleep on his Pokéflute. "Fury Cutter!" The Sandslash spun in place, bug type energy glowing around its claws as it struck Canis, who dropped back with a snarl. "Again!" Percy shouted, and his Sandslash responded.

All Canis could do was dodge, and dodge he did, as he shifted his paws on the pavement in circular but random patterns that the Sandslash couldn't predict. "Focus…" Alex said, as Canis continued to bob and weave through Fury Cutter misses. Even back to regular strength, a move that strong from a Pokémon with such a higher level would likely knock Canis out at this stage. They had one chance left for a win, after the Rest.

"Now!" Alex shouted, "Focus Blast!" Canis danced around another Fury Cutter, and then put his paws together, one facing up, the other facing down. From between them, an intense orange sphere of power burned to life, and launched into the Sandslash, sending the Alolan Pokémon hurtling across the pier, into a dock post. The post took more damage than the steel typed Pokémon, but he was sufficiently unconscious enough for a win.

With a sigh, Percy recalled him, and lowered his hat. "Well. A Riolu. I certainly did not see that coming. I thought you were more of a Grass Trainer."

"I have plenty of strong Grass Types," Alex said, smirking as he and Canis approached the Fairy King of Norstad. "I'm just training Canis here at the moment." With a single leap, the punchy puppy was perched on his shoulder, and he eyed the other human's aura, unable to quite decide if he liked it, or despised it. "Now then, you said you had a prize for me?"

Percy chuckled and shrugged. "I thought it would be harder won, but aye, I've a reward for a well-fought Battle." He brought out a Pokéball then, colored a light gray on the center part of the ball's top half, while the rest was a deep blue. The black bits in the middle were more of a yellowish cream color, and it took Alex longer than it should have for him to recognize the pattern the ball's former owner had placed upon it.

Having an inkling of who laid within, Alex tossed the ball at the ocean, where a rather young Lapras appeared, and chirped, as she saw the humans, and swam up to Percy. "Take good care of her." He said, as he gave the young Pokémon a thorough scritching under the jaw. "Wait until she's a bit bigger before you ride...you're large for a Human."

Alex rolled his eyes. "She'll grow quick enough." He met her eyes, and her mind, to his surprise. Hers actually brushed against his, emanating simple emotions like joy, curiosity, and an overall modesty to her nature that suffused every part of her mental being. "Does she have a name?"

Percy nodded. "Pruina. She'll become rather strong, like her mother. Koria has many islands, and waterways. Having a Lapras to ride will come in handy. The Imperium and the Fire Nation don't like people flying anywhere, so if you want to stay unnoticed, just Surf."

Alex nodded, as he quietly asked the Lapras if she was willing to battle, and her response was both enthusiastic and adorable. Her young eyes were on fire though, and that more than anything was what he sought from his teammates. He bid Percy farewell, as the man bamfed away, allowing the crew of his ship to finally board, and prepare to sail.

Alex spent the time waiting teaching Pruina moves like Ice Beam, Water Pulse, and Protect. Since she'd only known how to Sing, and he had no intention of keeping her from having such a useful move, he gave the same amount of vitamins as he had the others, as well a number of PP Maxes from his already dwindling supply.

Once Pruina and the others were fed and tired out, he recalled them, and set to work on his Pokédex, as the long ride to Sinnoh began. He soon had to float in place, with the pieces of the disassembled machine, and pieces of his Holoceiver as well. He was combining them all together into a single machine, and with some help from Lux, whose hilt was in the bag beside the egg radiating warmth, he was able to 'fuse' the devices together into a device his Rotom finally agreed to inhabit semi permanently. He'd claimed that his previous Pokédex and other such Earth devices were too primitive for him, and he'd only end up breaking them, but on this, he had seemed almost eager to finish it.

It took them most of the trip, but the result was an item unique to them that they dubbed the Holodex, and his Rotom seemed to enjoy being inside of it immensely, as he now would often share tips he found on the PokéNet with members of their team, connected via their mental web. It soon became obvious to his Trainer, that the alien ghost type preferred being a teacher much more than a weapon. Having a wise weapon was a boon though, and Lux understood well the need for the kind of overwhelming defense psychic powers and a blade that could cut through anything provided.

Several Days Later, The Sea of Kazam - Somewhere North of Sinnoh

"And what did you say this strain was called?"

The weathered Japanese captain gave Alex Redwood a knowing grin. "Dream Lotus. A fine blend of lesser strains, culminating in a powerful hybrid."

Alex shrugged, hit the bong, and then passed it to one of the crewmen who'd agreed to sail him and his team to the southern edge of Koria. The Fire Nation kept a constant naval blockade between Japan and Koria, and reaching Katavik was something of a challenge, if one went by sea. The Imperium's air forces kept a hard border in the sky with their Thunderhawks, while the Fire Navy controlled the sea.

"So how exactly do we reach Katavik, Captain?" Alex asked, as he noted a long line of battleship sized black colored dots on the horizon.

The captain nodded to the youthful member of his crew, currently partaking of the happy herb. He declined any more, once the struggle of almost coughing had ended. His eyes, clearly influenced as they were, were then turned towards the horizon. They closed, and Alex stared, watching closely as the young man of darker brown skin tone raised his arms, and through them, controlled the water surrounding their modestly sized ship. He wasn't moving the water though, for Alex's psychic sight revealed his typing, which had until that moment been hidden even to him. The typeless nature energy within his body shifted to water as he summoned reached out to the nearest source of the element, and the ocean responded in kind. It was quite a sight.

"That there is Akos. He's a native of the Water Nation's southern tribe, and in return for some honest currency, he guides us into Katavik to trade and buy goods neither of our regions can get, with the blockade in place." The Captain winked at Alex then, and the ever-present sack he kept over his shoulder swung around, to reveal quite a massive number of Ultra Balls. "The Water Nation are very good at trading between rebellious Fire Nation elements, and the Earth Nation's military. If those standing in the shadows against the Imperium can learn to be Trainers, and element benders, they can face the invaders with some measure of success. Sinnoh isn't helping officially of course, but the League has...subtly been keeping those of us trusted enough to trade, supplied for several decades."

Alex watched the boat as the old Sinnoh native rambled on, for it seemed to sink beneath the waves, and a bubble of air kept them still 'floating' on the water around them. Akos brought them deep, and they began moving faster, as the young man windmilled his arms. Then, he frowned. "Captain...they have mines. Hold on to something."

The Captain bumbled towards his ship's speakers, and Alex knew it would take the teetering old man too long to reach it, for the speed they were going. Thus, he Shouted instead, "Mines!"

Thankfully, the crew was well aware of what that meant, as the Word reached their ears, and instilled the appropriate amount of panic associated with death by explosive. Many water benders cleared such dangers away, as deep sea battle was not something the Imperium or the Fire Nation had mastered in any capacity. Yet. Sometimes the fields of explosives were a nuisance, sometimes not, but when they did appear, they were numerous, and often based on motion detection, surrounded by others based on touch, and thus easily avoided.

Masterful benders were able to tell the two deep sea mine variants apart at a glance, but more than a few of the younger ones were known to set off explosive getaways from the blockade. Often, they rode the pressure of the explosion through the water like a wave, and escaped that way, but such tricks were dangerous. One moment of lost concentration could make the water between them and the explosive force come together, and that usually meant death, or a wrecked ship, and a ruined career as a guide.

Akos's movements became smaller, more close to his body, though they still moved at a fair pace, the field of potential death around them on all sides made everyone tense. It was still interesting to watch, and Alex glanced between him, and the ships above, where his eyes made out vague humanoids radiating a mastery of the fire type. He also sensed the rage that fueled it, and frowned.

Akos managed to guide them safely through the field, and instead of gunning it as soon as they were away, he continued at an even slower pace for a good mile. Alex spied several buried mines in the floor below them, and above, they would still be in sight of the ships, or a good scope.

Experienced guides knew the Imperium liked to order varied nets of obvious and subtle sea explosives, in patterns that were both financially practical and most strategic. Some officers took advantage of having nearly limitless resources, but the Imperator prized efficiency over pure results with no thought to the cost. Being somewhat clever Akos was able to read the patterns the Imperium drones had set the mines into easily enough, as he knew the signs of different kinds of dangers. More than once Alex had followed his darting gaze only to notice a different kind of weapon, like an undersea turret, and several nets hung between coral reefs that were bone white in death and radiated ghost type energy.

Eventually, they picked up speed once more, and the bubble around them expanded to its original size, rather than the almost cramped shell they had crouched under for what seemed like quite a while. Many of the crew stretched and groaned, but Akos kept bending, and after another hour of travel in the same direction they'd held since leaving Sinnoh, they surfaced again.

Akos was panting for his efforts, as Alex approached with a water bottle in hand. The young man chugged it rapidly, and Alex let him finish before offering a hand, and saying, "Hello there. I'm Alex." The Water Nation native looked at his hand, and then swallowed his mouthful of water, as he left him hanging. Alex persisted anyways. "So...that was Waterbending, yes? I've never seen anything like it."

Akos shrugged. "I do alright...but I am no master. The Fire Nation took our masters, and eventually takes anyone whose outed as an element bender as well. The Imperium claims that they're 'mutants', and as such, under Imperium law, they're subject to constant monitoring. Earth, water, air, it doesn't matter. Only the Fire Nation is allowed to bend openly."

Alex pondered for a long moment. "Is it possible to learn how to bend? Could you teach me?"

Akos shrugged. "I've only met Korian benders, and while some people gain the skill to wield two elements, if their parents are from different nations, it's rare. Only the Avatar ever mastered four, and it was by this skill that we knew they spoke with the Guardian's authority each time they reincarnated."

Alex blinked. "They reincarnate? Who was the last Avatar, then?"

Akos nodded at his first question, but the second one darkened his face with a frown. "Avatar Kora. She was Water Nation, like me. After the Air Nation nomads had their temples were burned, they fled with the help of their Avatar, a fellow nomad called Aang. Kora came next in the cycle...grew up here, apparently. She started finding Fire Nation turncoats, and supplied the Earth Nation with their intel. She got the Water Tribes involved in strategic warfare and tactics...she kept the fight going for over a century, before the Fire Nation caught up to her. Now, the next Avatar is somewhere in the Earth Nation, but they could be anywhere, from deserted mining towns in the Si Wong Desert to the Impenetrable City. It's been almost three decades since we lost Kora, but there's no word of the new Avatar. Some people are beginning to think the cycle stopped, that after Kora fell, the Guardian lost hope in Koria, and did not reincarnate the Avatar into the Earth Nation."

Alex nodded as he listened, stroking his bearded chin as he pondered the information. Sensus had gained quite a bit of experience after their battle with Percy, but he wasn't quite ready to evolve yet, and icy terrain made a poor training environment for bug types. By all accounts, Katavik was situated on a massive chunk of ice that was inexplicably stationary, a home base for a tribe of people who lived primarily on ships. "Shuoma...that's one of the Earth Nation's last strongholds, right? How does one reach it?"

Akos frowned. "Not easily. The Thunderhawks regularly fly around the islands between Katavik and the mainland, and since they can land on water, ships are easily stopped. Sometimes, they're just shot at on sight. Apparently, for target practice." Akos clenched a fist, and his tone told the Unovan that he was sick of the oppression the Imperium offered to those they conquered.

"Let's say I had a way to reach Shuoma. Would you be interested in joining me? Your skills would be very helpful...and I really want to try Waterbending." Alex said, as he looked towards the north, and then back at Akos.

"I am free after we bring this ship in...we're only hired for single voyages, usually...but if we're going to travel together, I have some questions. Like, who are you, for one. The Captain was very tight lipped...but I can tell you're no simple tourist."

Alex gave his best attempt at an innocent shrug. "Am I not giving off a tourist vibe?"

Akos looked over the large frame of the Unovan, clad as it usually was in a lengthy white robe that was open in the front, with black stripes down the sleeves. Black pants with white stripes on the outside covered his lower half, and his hat still bore the symbol of Unova's newest government. The same symbols were also on the shirt beneath the white robe, and Akos could tell the westerner was quite physically fit. Like a warrior. "No... not really, no. I've never seen a tourist dressed like you. And none of them have your...bearing."

Alex arched a brow. "My bearing?"

Akos nodded. "You're not gawking at the ocean views or the giant blocks of ice." He said, gesturing to the freezing sea around them. "You stand confidently. You speak intelligently, and the questions you've asked indicate to me that you have seen something as magical as bending before. That there's a specific reason you've come here."

Alex shrugged again as he smirked. "Guilty. I've seen quite a number of...strange magics. But your bending was genuinely impressive." He glanced around the ship, very much aware that the crew, while they pretended to work, or worked diligently, were dropping eaves. "Is there a place in Katavik that is not easily spied upon? I'd rather not discuss why I've come so...openly."

"For a Waterbender surrounded by ice, caves for privacy are easily made." Akos said. "I will make one, and we will talk openly. We still have two days left of sailing though."

Alex nodded. "In two days, then. You will know why I've come, if you're still curious."

Two Days Later, Wolf Cove, Katavik - Koria Region

In the span of two days, Alex trained his Lapras against the local wildlife, primarily Sealeo, Dewgong, and Sharpedo, which she took down easily with Thunderbolt. Sensus, who rode on her back to get a feel for actual battle, evolved thanks to the shared experience, and had been growing in strength and mental ability ever since. The pair of modest Pokémon both grew rather quickly, especially once a pod of Sharpedo tried swarming their ship. Between Pruina's Thunder and Sensus's Energy Ball, they were driven off, and both gained quite a bit of experience for taking down so many strong foes. Once Sensus could hold his own, and had grown almost as strong as Pruina by doing so, the Exp. Share harness passed to Temere. Despite his Box Link sharing it party wide, he discovered wearing it actually increased how much its wearer gained from that, and he tried not to think too much on how much exp had been wasted, since it had largely been sitting unused in his bag since his first trip to Castelia, when he was still gathering badges.

Once they arrived in Katavik, Alex and Akos had gone to his home which turned out to be a dome of ice bricks that was surprisingly warm inside, where he revealed he already had a sub-ice level chamber. Hidden with water bending, the sparsely decorated room was covered with white furs with black spots, and several tusks that looked to have belonged to a Walrein once. Given the lack of berries on the iceberg, Alex was not surprised the locals had taken to hunting. From what he'd seen, they had established rituals associated with hunting, and those they hunted, if they lost, willingly gave their essence, that the humans might continue to live.

It was a delicate balance to maintain, and balance was one of the many things Alex highlighted for his waterbending ally, as he reiterated the highlights of his journey, since getting his Turtwig. "...and then Tao sent me to Koria, to find and aid your Guardian and her Avatar in restoring Koria to what it once was." He gave the water bender a moment to process before speaking again. "Will you help me, Akos?"

"Will I help you, the Tamer of the Original Dragon, track down the hero of my region so we can defeat our mutual enemies? Absolutely. According to our legends, the First Dragon was the one who taught the Fire Nation to harness the element...back when they had honor. As for joining you on your quest, though...you might want to get someone more skilled." Akos said, as he finished with a downward glance.

Alex arched an eyebrow. "You seemed skilled enough when we were dodging mines."

Akos met his gaze evenly again. "You've never seen a real Waterbender. I have. What I can do...doesn't even come close."

Alex nodded, as he inferred that, apparently, creating bubbles of air wasn't a hard trick, nor was speeding up a fairly sized ship while bobbing and weaving through fields of death. He knew Akos was no master, but he also recognized a gifted student in need of a teacher. "You need to study with a master of your craft. For me, I studied the best Trainers, while I was forced to sit on the sidelines during my childhood. Lance. Leon. Red. I watched every Battle they had, that was recorded, and I learned the history. Read the PokéDex in its entirety. Battling is so much more than a sport...but the nature of sports is a valuable part of it. It has Greatly curbed Humanity's desire for constant violence."

Akos furrowed his brow. "I wasn't going to say anything but...honestly, Battles always seemed a bit...cruel...to the Pokémon. So does shoving them into a ball. Most benders in this region feel this way, and with the lack of consistent Pokéball access, we don't have many Trainers. The Water Types are fun to practice with, though. I learned most of what I know by watching them. I couldn't be comfortable, shoving them in a ball."

Alex suppressed a deep, Unovan sigh, and then smirked. "Their balls are more comfortable than any field, and there's no chance of them getting randomly ousted from it by a stronger Pokémon. It's a home they can always come back to, that's directly connected to their Trainer. Pokémon Trainers have a different...kind of Pokémon, usually. They're not like the wild ones you're probably imagining, who enjoy their freedom and frolic in it. Those don't typically attack or jump out at Humans. The ones who do, are either mad at having their territory invaded, or want to Battle the Pokémon in the Human's balls, because they know they're stronger. Usually. If they really detest battling, most Trainers release the Pokémon. Obviously, some Trainers don't, but I like to think most Trainers have enough sense to release a Pokémon that doesn't like battling, if battling is all they do."

Akos's brow furrowed further. "So... what makes a Trainer's Pokémon different, then? I don't get it."

Alex nodded, sagely, and then called out Eremus, who immediately crouched, and then curled around the somewhat cramped subterranean room. The desert born dragon shivered against the ice, but connected as he was to his Trainer, he had agreed to prove this point to the man that would, ideally, be their guide as they searched Koria. "Take Eremus, here. I met him as a Trapinch." Alex said, as his Holodex hummed to life and began floating in the air as it displayed what a Trapinch looked like. "Trapinch don't usually let their prey go, so when he trapped me, I had to battle him to the faint, or catch him. I was in a hurry, so I just used a ball. I found out later, once I could understand him fully, that many Trapinch in the Desert Resort seek Trainers out, instead of their usual prey, so that they can evolve, and become a Flygon. Thus, I trained him until he became one, at which point I gave him a choice."

Alex scritched under the Flygon's chin as the long head finally looped around the small room to his Trainer. "Continue climbing in strength with us, as a Battler, or some other option, based on whatever his preference was, now that his goal was achieved. So far, he's agreed to keep Battling. Someday he might leave, true, but even those few Pokémon who have left after evolving wanted to keep their tie to their balls, just in case I need them. I've let quite a few go, once I speak to them and realize they don't want a life of combat and glory. Pokémon are far more compassionate beings than Humans give them credit for being, but this...bond, we share. It's there for a reason. The capacity for connections this deep, on a mental level, are by design. They were created, after all."

Akos snapped his fingers. "Right...that...deity Pokémon the Japanese pay homage to...Arceus, right? You're saying it actually exists?"

Alex nodded. "Can confirm. He's appeared before me, once or twice. I'm about seventy five percent sure we Battled once, but dream rules are in no way fair. I think reality would prove...different...even if I still end up losing, but I'm not in the business of bothering a deity just so we can Battle. Legendary Pokémon have more important things to do. Most of the time." He recalled his shivering Flygon then, and mentally adjusted the heat within his ball to be even more akin to the desert Eremus preferred.

Akos thought for a moment. "I do know a Piplup that always wants to follow me around. Even back here to Wolf Cove. Even among people who would look at it and see dinner. Do you think it wants me as its Trainer?"

Alex smirked, as the almost hopeful tone in the bender's voice gave him away. Having a genuine fondness for Pokémon was what made great Trainers. Akos's potential was another reason Alex wanted him as a guide. He sensed the potential for a psychic awakening, and having a psychic waterbender as an ally would be a very good thing. "I think it's worth asking. I can translate for you."

Akos nodded then. "Provide me with one of your balls...help me tame this Piplup...and I will journey with you." He offered a hand out then, and Alex did not hesitate to grasp it by the wrist. To his mild surprise, he found Akos reciprocating the Norstad style of handshake, and Alex began to wonder if it was a bit more widespread than he had previously thought.

"We have an accord, then." Alex said as he let go, and then fished around in his bag for an Ultra Ball. He poked the top of it several times, and Akos watched with childlike let-me-try-it excitement as he watched the westerner color the ball from the original, classic, black and gold to Empoleon colors.

Akos tossed it several times, as he examined the ball. "It's...heavier than I thought it would be."

Alex nodded. "A reminder of the weight of the life you're protecting within it. Also, capture technology, and the interior design features, made them heavier over time. Cheap to purchase, expensive to fix. Especially in places without master crafters."

Akos smirked. "I kind of want to throw it."

Alex shook his head, as they stood, and exited the igloo, one among many in the surprisingly small settlement, one of several on the iceberg that was Katavik. "I have something for that." He fished around in his bag again, and then withdrew a similarly weighted, but squishy, half red half white ball of rubber. "I practiced all the time with this, back in the day. Save yourself years of training, and just spin it into a curveball. It's easier than wildly throwing. Here, watch."

Alex turned then, as he sensed the ghostly presence behind him move in to strike. This port was full of spirits, though the locals seemed oblivious to them, the Ghastly currently attacking him was clearly after his psychic power. The ghost's mind was hungering for his life essence, and in one smooth motion that came with his turn, he threw an Ultra Ball, and it spun counterclockwise in the air, adding a curve to its trajectory, which brought it down on the Ghastly's forehead. "Excellent!" A voice from the ball chimed, and Alex clenched a fist in victory. Then, the ball sucked the ghost within, and bounced onto the ground.

It bounced up immediately after, did a single flip, and then dinged, as the ball recorded and cemented the catch. Alex pulled it to his hand, and seemed to stare at the ball, from Akos's perspective. Once the ghost understood, and eagerly accepted his part in their team in exchange for food. He and Lux began chatting and didn't stop for the entire walk out to the ice fields west of the port, where the Empoleon reigned supreme among the wildlife. The Ghastly informed him that he would be called Nox, and his Trainer smirked, as once more, it seemed he'd found balance between light and dark. If Nox wanted to use Dark Pulse and ghost moves, Alex wasn't going to deny him. He was modest about how strong he was, in comparison to the rest of the rather fresh team, and Alex was glad he was almost a Haunter. Training up a Gengar was no easy task, and he didn't intend to put Nox through the emotional trauma of a trade.

"So Akos...you mentioned Koria does have some Trainers...what's their deal? Do you guys have a Pokémon League?" Alex asked, as he kept his head on a constant swivel while they walked. It was a leftover from his days of ranching, and keeping a constant eye out for trouble, that had proven useful in the Forest of Death, in war, and now again on a massive iceberg that his senses were telling him played home to far more than just Piplup, Spheal, and their evolutions.

Akos had his eyes in a similar pattern, though they were watching their back, and the sky, for many flying types used the iceberg to rest, before flying on, and some species had no qualms about hunting human. "We do...but it's more of an Earth Nation thing...they have the resources to set up Gyms and buy Pokéballs from the rest of the world, so it's usually Earthbenders and Earth Nation citizens who enter it. We used to have many Trainers...and then the Fire Nation combined the power of their element bending with the power of Fire Type Pokémon, and all but wiped out the Air Nation's nomads. With a bit of Imperium assistance...officially, the 'Air Rebels' were classified as 'mutants'. The Imperium brought in a Legion of their strongest Thunder Warriors to exterminate all four of their temples and subjugated the Impenetrable City a week later. The Fire Nation has been in charge of Koria ever since."

Alex arched a brow at the Korian man. "Wouldn't that make it the Penetrable City?"

Akos shook his head. "Impenetrable to anything the Ash Makers could bring to bear on it. They didn't realize how outclassed Koria was by the Imperium's technology. From what I've heard, the Earth Nation has been trying to fix that, by subtly educating more and more of their populace, though that's had...unintended consequences... for the Earth King."

"Educated people want the freedom to decide their own governance." Alex said, smirking knowingly, and Akos nodded.

"It's a bit of a clusterMuk of a Nation, but they're the only Nation able to counter the Fire Nation in terms of population size, Type advantage, and military strength. The Water Tribes have...never been very expansionist or...modern. Most of our elders are firmly stuck in their ways, and the enemy has made us pay for it. Repeatedly." Alex nodded silently as Akos finished.

Akos stopped then, at the edge of an icy ridge, that below, played home to many variations of the Spheal line, as well as the Seel line, living in harmony. The Empoleon kept watch over the herd as a whole, while the younger ones stayed in the water and snow. The water bender covered his boots in ice, and skated down the ridge, giving the Pokémon fins high fives as he went. As Alex followed, a Sealeo barred his path, until he explained that he was here with Akos, and also came in peace. The Sealeo still wanted a battle though, and Pruina obliged him, drawing attention as a pair of Thunderbolts, spaced out by an Ice Ball from the Sealeo, struck the large Pokémon. Alex gave him an Oran Berry, before moving on, and the Pokémon recovered the rest of his strength by taking a Rest.

Akos was already by the alpha Empoleon of the herd, by the time Alex caught up, and the westerner bowed in the Imperial style, as he approached. He looked to Akos then, "Let me guess. The Piplup you want is his offspring?"

The young man's mouth was slightly ajar as Alex spoke. "How did you…"

"It's a theme." Alex said, smirking, and turning to the Empoleon. "If you have doubts about entrusting a son to this Human, let me allay them." He lifted the robe he wore then, suppressing a shiver as the freezing air flowed within his warm shell. "I too am a Trainer...I will make sure Akos knows how to care for a Pokémon, before I am done in this region. You have my word."

The Empoleon seemed surprised he could understand the human at first, and after a long look into Alex's eyes, found no deceit. "Very well. You may take him. Make him strong."

The Piplup in question then was summoned with a deep honk from the Empoleon, and the tiny Pokémon strolled over to Akos, then chirped excitedly, as he saw the ball in the human's hand. Akos looked to his translator, as the excited Pokémon chirped at him. "What's he saying?"

"That he wants to be strong. That he wants to be your partner. Apparently, he's wanted that for some time now." Alex replied, smirking slightly.

Akos bopped the ball against the Piplup's beak, at which point it drew the Pokémon in, and dinged immediately, signaling a successful catch. That was when Lux took the initiative, floated out of Alex's pocket again, and reiterated the basic entries regarding what the scientific world knew of Piplup for the Water Nation native.

After that, the pair returned to town, Alex purchased overpriced but still useful Earth Nation clothing that, with its subdued black and brown colors, could be from any nation. He even incorporated his cloak into it, as it merged well with the shawl type garment, and hung around his larger frame from his shoulders, trailing in an epic fashion whenever he moved. He also had to put his hat away and swapped it with one that was more black than white, and still bore the symbol of his homeland. Apparently, getting tourists wasn't unheard of in the Earth Nation, but Akos still advised against wearing it in the Impenetrable City, which was their ultimate destination. His hood on the garment went over the hat, and he noted once again he was in Terra's colors. When he asked the earth tortoise's opinion though, he found his starter sleeping, and opted not to wake him.

After a decent amount of training, Pruina had grown large enough to comfortably fit the two men, though her shell still lacked firm handholds, and was more smooth than tough, for now. Their first destination was Shuoma, an Earth Nation city that, according to Akos, was still fighting the good fight against the Fire Nation.

With food, a disguise, and a ride in the form of Akos's bone and leather rowboat that Akos called an umiak, the two set out on the seas, heading north, towards Shuoma, as Pruina pulled them rapidly through the waves. Alex pondered the map he'd bought alongside their provisions, and his eyes narrowed slightly, as he saw something that looked like a city, with a slash through it. "Akos...this mark here...what is it signifying?"

Akos saw where he pointed, sighed heavily, and answered as he stared out at the ocean. "One of my tribe's greatest failures. The southern Air Temple once played home to our good friends, the Air Nomads...it was one of the first two temples that the Fire Nation attacked when their war of conquest began...about three hundred years ago, now." He turned to Alex then, and the Unovan quickly realized that this loss was one Akos and his tribe took seriously. "They were our best trading partners. Wise, humorous...and they were slaughtered for no other reason than a demonstration of power. By the time we knew, our fighters were too late to sail to aid them...but they went anyways."

Alex nodded, listening intently, and he noticed his Lapras was listening as well, though she did not completely understand, she knew a mournful tone when she heard one. Akos continued, "The southern and western temples fell quickly, and the Air Nation lost half of its people in one day. The Avatar of the era, an Airbender named Aang, was training at the easternmost temple at the time. He rallied the Earth Nation and the northern tribe of the Water Nation, before heading to the northern Air Temple, and evacuating the people there. The Earth Queen of that era agreed to ferry them eastward, and the war began in earnest. Then, one day, the Avatar vanished, along with his people, and the entire eastern Air Temple. Nobody knows where they went. The Fire Nation likes to pretend they're extinct."

Alex thought for a long moment, and then spoke. "This Avatar...did he return to fight once his people were safely vanished?"

Akos nodded. "Avatar Aang led a combination of all three Nations to the foot of the Regis Caldera, in the Fire Nation...right into the waiting jaws of a Legion of Thunder Warriors. Their counter-offensive shattered our forces and drove them all the way back to our current destination. Aang was finally brought low at the Straits of Shuoma...by an entire company of the Imperium's Thunder Warriors. The legends tell that he wiped out most if not all of them...but their Prime Archon eventually managed to kill him, and the cycle continued. The next Avatar was a ferocious warrior, from my own tribe...and for the crime of supporting her, the Fire Nation brought us low next. They took most of our benders, released and drove off our few tamed Pokémon, but we never lost hope. For the next century and a half after the Imperium forces were shifted elsewhere, Avatar Kora waged a secret war against the Fire Nation. She did well. Very well…too well. She brought the Imperium's attention back to Koria, and once more, the Thunder Warriors brought her low. It was a different Prime Archon leading them that time...they lured Avatar Kora into a trap, and then fired until there was nothing left of her. No ashes, no skeleton, nothing. Or so the story goes. People say the Avatar didn't reincarnate into the Earth Nation after that...but I'm not so sure any of that is what actually happened. The current Avatar should be about thirty by now, if they did reincarnate. Historically...that's how long mastering four elements takes. More or less."

Alex nodded again and tapped Pruina. She started picking up speed, and the wind began to affect his mop of curly hair, and Akos's perky ponytail as she swam quicker. "It seems to me, that every time your Guardian manages to strike back at the Fire Nation, the Thunder Warriors arrive to stop them. The Avatar is likely the Earth Nation's best kept secret...I need to speak to the...Earth Monarch. Do you know who currently reigns?"

Akos thought for a moment, then shrugged. "The last Earth Queen was a big supporter of the war effort...but when she died and was replaced, the Earth Nation seemed to...lose their spine. All I've heard of the current Earth King is that he's never left the Earth Palace. Without stiff resistance from the Earth Nation's army, we've had...peace, as the Imperium's Iterators call it...every few months the Fire Nation arrives to take what they like from the people of Koria. Money, heirlooms, wives, nobody can stop them, and the Thunder Warriors. I don't blame them for losing hope."

Alex turned his gaze northward, as he stood, and gave Pruina a scratch for the itch that rose behind her ear. "Hope is not going to oust the traitors, or the Imperium. But I'm willing to help." Akos began to say 'how', which was when the black and white plasma sword flew out of his bag, seemingly on its own, and then ignited in his right hand. The ocean around them was empty for miles, and Akos stared in awe as droplets from the waves marking their passage hissed against it. "You are not alone in this fight. Eous continues their long tradition of resisting the Imperium, and now, you have my aid as well."

Akos pulled out his own weapon then, oddly shaped and made of bone that shone like metal, marking it as being from a steel type. "All I have is this boomerang...how do I get one of those?" He said, as he gestured to the humming plasma sword.

Alex smirked, and stowed the blade then, and he felt his Holodex hum to life within his pack as Lux returned to whatever it was he did on the PokéNet. "With training...and practice. Lots of practice." The smirk widened as he saw the young man's eyes narrow, and he continued, "Well...I guess I could look."

Akos blinked. "Look?"

Alex chuckled, and then the smirk vanished back into the passiveness he usually wore. "Don't worry, it won't hurt."

Akos blinked again, as his voice cracked with mild panic. "Hurt!?" But Alex's eyes were already glowing an intense blue, as he focused his Future Sight on Akos. There wasn't enough power for an attack, but he could scry on his target's future, and gain an inkling to how they'd handle a psychic awakening. His eyes, especially his third, showed him many formulas, and it was easy to read those who would shirk their responsibility and go mad with the power.

Luckily, what he saw of Akos was the young man rising to some position of tribal prominence, being a great leader, and a great friend...to a figure his mind had trouble seeing, as it was cast in Shadow that refused to be removed. He sensed a mental wave of Light from Tao, and the image cleared, focused, and revealed a man in his prime, clad in a green training robe of one who practiced the martial arts. He and Akos had their arms clasped in the Norstad style, and the visions shifted, continuing, as Alex saw the pattern, and what it needed to occur. If he befriended the Guardian's Avatar, Akos would become a powerful ally. He nodded then, and his eyes returned to normal.

Akos just stared at him, boomerang raised defensively, as he felt nothing. He tried moving, and found it easy enough, though on a fast-moving umiak, shifting was a bad idea. He'd met the Lapras's eye as her Trainer's eyes started glowing, and the creature smirked, winked, and then continued speeding through the waves, testing her stamina, and pushing her limits.

"I will train you, if that is what you want. Only a certain kind of person can handle a sword like that. If you end up following the right path, I will awaken your talents." Alex said, once his eyes were a regular blue again.

"I kind of just wanted the...wait, I have the talent!?" Akos said, grinning. "Psychic Waterbenders are very powerful...and rare."

Alex frowned slightly, as he realized Akos had far to go. That explained why he'd been at least two decades older in his vision. "It is a heavy responsibility. I have yet to determine if you would truly be up for it...the future is...always moving. It's hard to see, and what is seen can change greatly...depending on your choices."

Akos pondered for a moment, and then snapped his fingers, deciding he definitely wanted a sword like that. "How about this: if I'm making the right choices, you give me a nod, yeah? That way you don't influence me too much, and I can tell if I'm straying. You seem...wise, for someone not much older than me...I'd like to learn what you know."

Alex smirked, and then turned to face their destination, with his arms crossed over his chest. "In time...perhaps. Your path is your own, but...I can provide an occasional sign post. Sure. Why not."

Pruina let out a cry, which drew the two men's attention towards their destination, and the mountain on the horizon. Before it, were a pair of cliffs, surrounding a waterway. It was almost like a fjord, but it lacked ice, and vegetation. Akos's face grew grim as he spoke. "The Straits of Shuoma...Aang's last stand."

The Water Nation youth bowed his head, but Alex looked around, keeping silent out of respect. There were craters everywhere, in almost perfect lines, and he knew then that the rumors of the Thunder Warrior's ranged weapons, Bolters, guns whose projectiles exploded on contact, were not exaggerated. They would need to be dealt with when the time came for battle, otherwise a genetically enhanced army of such warriors with those weapons would be unstoppable. There were other marks as well though, and his psychic sight picked up residual energy that almost seemed like Light, and yet it was also different to the Light he knew. "Sensus."

Akos glanced towards Alex as his Orbeetle appeared, and hopped onto his shoulder. "Get a trace on this energy...it will lead us to the Avatar." Sensus blipped an acknowledgement, and then quietly began blipping, as Pruina glided through the straits. She too was surveying the damage, and as she ducked under the water line, Alex merged their sight. The barren, rocky bed below was also devoid of vegetation, and looked like it too had been used in the battle. He could not yet picture how one person fought with four elements at once, but from what he had seen so far, the fighting had only gotten more intense closer to the mountainous city in the distance.

Then, right before the straits ended in a small beach, with odd looking stairs leading up the cliffs, Alex saw the final mark of battle. Akos hid his umiak as they slid ashore, and Alex recalled Pruina as Sensus continued to blip. He breathed deep then, and reached out mentally to the shard of a Splash Plate he'd acquired from Connor what seemed like a lifetime ago. It glowed blue, and he let the energy flow through his body's network. Once it was suffused, he raised both hands towards the water, and though he was surprised at how hard it was to move relatively little water, the shallow waves of the strait parted, as Akos stared on in disbelief. "You never said you were a bender!"

"I'm...not…" Alex managed through the strain of holding the water in place. He took a deep breath as he inhaled, raised his arms higher, and revealed what lay at the bottom. "Look…" Akos did as he was bid before he could point out that the westerner did in fact seem to be bending, and he fell to his knees as he saw the grim reality of his region's situation.

Within a crater caused by what seemed to have been a massive release of power of some description, was the remnants of a suit of 'rock armor' that Earth Nation benders tended to use when fighting in close quarters. It was cut perfectly in two, but within the rock, were hints of white, the color of bone.

Sensus flew down towards it, and made a mournful blip, before returning to his Trainer. "I have the trail...this sacrifice was not in vain."

Alex exhaled, and the waves once more covered the grave of the former Avatar. "Sensus has what he needs. We can track the Avatar now." He put a clenched fist to an open palm, and bowed towards the remains. "The third round of this battle is only just beginning."

Akos nodded, and his fists were similarly clenched, as the two men ascended the stairs towards the mountain. Alex kept Sensus on his shoulder as they approached, and while he did not sense the Guardian's Avatar in Shuoma, he blipped excitedly as they came closer.

Akos looked up from staring at the ground as Shuoma loomed over them. "Is he-"

"No." Alex said, crushing the hope in his companion's eyes. "But they were here at some point...and we need supplies. Information. Someone in this city knows the current Avatar...we just need to figure out who. Keep searching from your ball, Sensus...I don't want anyone trying to steal you while we're here."

The psychic bug blipped in acknowledgement, and returned to his ball, as the two men began the long climb towards the Earth Nation city of Shuoma.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 38: Path of the Guardian, Part 1

Shuoma City - Koria Region

The sound of hungry Pokémon woke up Akos of the Southern Water Tribe, as the sun rose on a new day. Alex was already up, letting his team frolic, spar, and eat breakfast. Akos's Piplup had joined them, but chirped and ran over once he saw his Trainer had finally woken up as well. Shuoma loomed over the group in the distance, a city built into a mountain peak, adapted to its shape, to accommodate as many houses, businesses, and other buildings as possible. The Fire Nation's flag flew over the simple but sturdy battlements of the front gate, and the Earth Nation symbol carved into the topmost part of the gate was charred black, but still visible, once one got closer.

"Initially they had it covered." Akos said, as they approached after feeding and letting their partner Pokémon relax for a bit. One of his darker brown toned hands gestured to the charred symbol. "But people kept burning the flag down, and the Earthbenders refused to remove the symbol. Those who tried to remove it with tools, only found it remade the next morning. The Fire Nation charred it after that and spent quite a few decades oppressing the citizens...until someone finally managed to convince the Fire Army to withdraw. You'll probably meet him later, once I find my people."

Alex nodded, eyeing the charred symbol as he did. "Charred, but still visible. Still standing. Much like your region." He quieted, as the pair approached the 'gate', which was really just a section of wall that the earthbenders opened and closed manually.

Once the pair of guards outside Shuoma's gates bought their somewhat true story of a water tribal innocuously guiding an ignorant westerner through the hotspots of the Koria region, Alex and Akos began their search for the Avatar by splitting off in separate directions. Akos knew many of his fellows in the Water Nation were rebels, but he himself was not one. He tracked down his people, as only a waterbender could, using the same codes and tricks Avatar Kora had created for the rebellion in her time, that had passed to Akos from his father, and grandfather before him. There was no way they would ever approach him with a giant pale-skinned foreigner in tow. Even garbed as he was, Alex stuck out as a foreigner. He wasn't the only one in the city, but a flash of hands or cheeks gave him away with his inherited lighter beige skin tones, and the instantly noticeable size. Most Korians averaged around five feet, but he soon found he was not the only giant foreigner, the further he went into the city filled with squalor and hard living. They seemed Varangian and given what the Imperium had done to their region, they were likely refugees who were somewhere between trying to start over and struggling to exist.

For his part, Alex stuck to what he knew, and what he knew when he saw it, was a Pokémon Gym, right beside a Pokémon Center, in what he soon learned was the central area of the city, and the only part of it that had a Pokémon Center able to treat injured Pokémon.

He entered the gym, and was greeted by a strange sight, one that soon became evaluated by his psychic sight. A man who looked very much like a Gym Leader of a ground type gym was going toe to toe with a Rhyperior, though neither one of them was using Moves he recognized. As Alex watched, he realized they were bending the ground to strike, and the all-out rock themed brawl reminded him of Royal Mask and one of his classically larger opponents, but with rocks.

The Rhyperior made a motion with both of its arms, filling the air with rocks that Alex watched it effortlessly keep aloft, before a swift shift in motion sent them hurtling towards what appeared to be his Trainer, judging by the Pokémon's surface thoughts. Said Trainer proceeded to plant his feet in a wide stance, and smash all of the projectiles with nothing but his fists, and speed. He then spun, keeping one foot planted as the other lifted a large part of the field that seemed glued to his foot, until gravity and his spin's momentum sent it hurtling at the Rhyperior.

The rock rhino roared, and spun up its Horn Drill, just before the rock made contact, making the chance of hitting much higher than usual. The boulder broke in half across his horn, but the two halves never hit the ground, as the Rhyperior took control of them, and then sent them back with a powerful Rock Throw. This kind of back and forth continued for several minutes, before finally, the Pokémon ran out of power.

That didn't stop him, but his struggle was obvious, and while the human was flagging, he still had more left in the tank, and finished the match with several sudden jutting pieces of the ground striking the Pokémon all at once. He planted his feet in the rocky floor as he shifted within it and moved, rather quickly, towards his partner. One hand fished for something within his dark green and brown attire. He pulled out something that looked like a blue Max Revive and tossed it in the weakened Pokémon's mouth.

After several hundred hours of watching various team members do something similar with the earth, through the Move classified as Earthquake, and this demonstration, Alex felt reasonably confident he could move it as well. As he tried reaching out to the ground however, it remained as silent and still as it always had.

"Hello there, stranger. I take it you're here to challenge my Gym?" Alex glanced up as the man who'd gone one on one with a Rhyperior, and won, approached him. His hair was a wild, spikey, unkempt mess, but up close, his physique was much more chiseled than Alex had expected. He clearly put effort into his training, though judging by his Rhyperior, he was more focused on bending mastery than Pokémon training.

Alex spied only one other ball on his belt, and then met the man's gaze evenly, as they seemed to be almost exactly the same height. "I am. I heard there was a Pokémon League in the Koria region. Figured I would try to tackle it."

The man nodded. "I am your first in this region, foreigner?"

Alex nodded in return, and the slightly graying man chuckled with a deep, booming laugh.

"The locals call me Leader Boomi. I'm the only serious Pokémon Trainer in Shuoma. The rest of these wimps don't train nearly as hard as I do! Let us see who has the stronger Pokémon." He crouched then, and the ground depressed, and then erupted, as he used it to leap, flip through the air, and land on his side of the battlefield he'd been facing his Rhyperior on. "I should warn you; we do things a bit differently in Koria. Thanks to our...strong Imperium overtones...the idea of Battling alongside our partners has caught on, over the years. Since you're not a bender, I'll face you with just my Pokémon, but in other Gyms, without bending, you will be at a severe disadvantage."

Alex arched a brow as he took his own spot on the field. "I can handle a handicap... but I see why Pokémon battling has fallen out of style with your non-benders...it's not fun, constantly losing to such an advantage. You can tell I'm not a bender so easily?"

Boomi chuckled. "Call it a hunch. Most foreigners can't hack it...but there's fire in your eyes. It reminds me of the last foreigner that came to my Gym. His Electric Type was...on another level."

Alex stroked the curly beard that covered most of his jaw, and half of his cheeks as he wondered which electric type would give a ground gym leader trouble. He guessed Elektross, with Levitate and Giga Drain. "If you think you can teach me to bend the earth, I would like to learn."

That, seemed to pique Boomi's interest, and there was a similar fire in the chiseled man's intense gaze. "Very well...beat my Pokémon team, and I shall try to educate you in the art of Earthbending. It's not completely unheard of for foreigners to learn bending."

Everything Alex's eyes were telling him said this was the formulaic path to both his need for a Mega Evolution solution and finding the Guardian's Avatar. He continued to follow it, as after splitting from Akos, his unique perspective of the world and the randomness of the universe had led him here. He felt Arbor's ball twitch, as Boomi mentioned battle, and he knew his Grovyle, Arbor, close as he was to evolution, was eager to test himself against such a strong opponent.

"You're on." He nodded, and Arbor burst free from his ball. He dropped into a battle crouch, and held his palms so they faced the other, as he readied his Energy Ball. The Rhyperior returned, was given a potion, and then eagerly proclaimed how ready he was for battle.

"Energy Ball."

"Wedge Block! Then counter!"

Alex's eyes narrowed at the move his opponent called, as it was unfamiliar. The Rhyperior smashed the ground as Arbor spun up his Energy Ball between his hands, and a rocky wedge-shaped shield rose before the Rhyperior, right as the attack fired. It smashed into the shield, as it ricocheted off of it into a wall. Then, half of the wedge suddenly became a sharp flying triangle of rock headed towards the grassy reptile, and Alex knew avoiding it would be a good idea.

"Agility."

Arbor's eyes lit up with psychic power, and Alex sensed their bond deepen as he drew on the one psychic related ability his species could learn. He moved faster than the eye could track, as the Rhyperior launched the other half of the wedge. The rapidly moving grass lizard dodged both, before Alex ordered another attack. "Good, now Leaf Blade!"

Boomi smirked. "Getting in close to a Rhyperior with a special attacker. Not the choice I would've made…Megahorn!" The Rhyperior's horn glowed with the familiar light green belonging to bug typed energy, and it swiftly bashed away both of Arbor's Leaf Blades, before the Rhyperior made to strike the quickly backtracking Grovyle's chest.

"Use Quick Attack to dodge, and then counter with an Energy Ball." Arbor looked back at him, and Alex nodded. "Point blank." The Grovyle smirked and turned to face the slowly charging Rhyperior. With his heightened perception, even a charging rock rhino seemed slow. Something odd began to happen though, as Arbor moved. Alex felt his heartbeat, and that of his Grovyle, begin to synchronize. Arbor dodged the Megahorn easily, as in that moment it seemed like he could see both through his eyes, and his Trainer's. While Alex had done something similar before with Blaze and others, this felt different somehow. More intimate. He was glad his Grovyle thought so highly of him, and those feels were reciprocated as his Grovyle did as ordered. While the thin aura of white certainly looked like a Quick Attack, the way his Grovyle moved with it was impressive, and since Alex had a direct line to the grass lizard's mind, he realized his partner had dodged the rock rhino's horn jabs with nothing but instinct.

Then, Arbor seemed to vanish with his quadrupled speed, only to reappear and hit the Rhyperior from behind with his condensed Energy Ball, sending the heavy rock rhino sailing through the air, before he caught himself on his arms as he all but crashed to the ground. In a smooth motion he spun to his feet again, taking two pieces of floor with him as he struck back, throwing them at Arbor as he did. Alex smirked, and called the move that would likely finish the round. "Leaf Blade."

Arbor's arm blades hummed to life as he moved in to strike, sliced through both rocks, and then culminated in a final dual-slash right on the Rhyperior's chest. The moderately strong Pokémon let out a cry as he collapsed, but it was Alex who gave him the Max Revive this time. He looked up suddenly, as light blinded his peripheral vision, and he stared, as his Grovyle evolved, his form largening, growing, until it reformed for the last time, as a Sceptile.

Alex gave his Sceptile a fist bump as the Rhyperior lumbered back, somewhat confused by the fact that the human had responded to his 'thank you' for the Max Revive as if he'd understood his words. Boomi spoke then. "Well done, Challenger...and thank you. My own supply of Revives is...limited. The Imperium keeps Gym Leaders poorly stocked, in case we try helping the Air Rebels...even though the League has stressed its neutrality. I have one more challenge for you."

He threw his second ball, after recalling his Rhyperior, and revealed instead a Diggersby. Upon seeing the Diggersby, Alex nodded to himself. This was Boomi's first Pokémon of that, he was sure. It was bigger, its ear-arms were thicc and heavily muscled, and as the heavy appendages rhythmically pounded the floor, an aura of ground type energy flared up around the Diggersby.

Alex nodded as he scratched under Arbor's chin and recalled him. He was more than a match for the ground pounding bunny, but he had others on his team that could rise to this challenge and needed the experience. "Canis, you're up. Cinder, you watch."

From where he'd been hiding, in the shadows by the gym's door, Alex's Riolu padded out, as mild and seemingly chill as ever, onto the battlefield. Beside him, Alex's Scorbunny appeared, eyes wide as he got a proper look at a Pokémon strong enough to manifest its aura as a shield. The Exp. Share harness had switched to him, but his Trainer wanted the eager fire bunny to see how intense battle could be firsthand.

Canis bowed in the Unovan style to the ground typed bunny, who mimicked the movement with his ears, as the battle began, though his eyes darted to the Scorbunny, and narrowed, as he resumed his ready position. Boomi took the initiative this time shouting, "Flopsy, Bulldoze it!" The Diggersby responded enthusiastically by lowering his arm-ears, linking them as they powered up with ground type energy, and charged at Canis.

If the Riolu was alarmed, his face didn't show it, beyond a widening of his eyes. He dropped into the Dragon Style's ready position, and waited for his own command, which came quickly behind Boomi's. "Go high with Quick Attack, and then bring a Brick Break down on it!" Canis's tiny form lit up with white light, as he dashed towards the bulldozing bunny, only to leap into the air, and dodge the move.

He shifted direction in the air with an imperfect Vacuum Wave, that was more of a Vacuum Poof, as his paws lit with fighting energy. Flopsy raised an ear to catch the paw that smashed down at him, but the type advantage won out over the Diggersby's aura shield, and left him on the ground, as Canis leapt away, and fell again into his fighting crouch.

For his part, Boomi stroked his unruly tuft of brown chin hair. "I can tell you're close with your partners, stranger...but I'm curious. Why do you Battle?" As his Trainer spoke, Flopsy rose back up, snarling as he still had plenty left in the tank. By Alex's estimate, Canis's best move would clinch the victory.

Alex couldn't help himself, as he lowered his furry hood, smirked, and turned his basic Unovan style hat backwards. "To be the best. Ever." Boomi smirked as well, as Alex spoke again. "Canis...Focus Energy…"

"Dig!" Boomi said, and his partner obeyed, slipping quickly below the gym floor's rocky surface. "I see...and is winning all that matters to you?"

"Of course not. It's not about winning...or losing." Alex said, as both he and Canis watched for the Diggersby's strike. They were less in sync then he and his Sceptile had been, but Alex knew that would change, with time. "It's about the path we choose to walk...and ours leads to the top of this League, and the top of all the others. Wait for it to surface, Canis…"

The punchy puppy nodded, as his eyes were closed, and his energy became more focused. Then, suddenly, his 'ears' flared up, and Flopsy emerged, wreathed in ground type aura as he intended to smash the Riolu. "Now! Focus Blast!"

The fighting energy swirling around his Riolu was skillfully redirected into a ball of dense energy that hammered the Diggersby. To his credit, he fought against the energy, and to Boomi's credit, he didn't give up either. "Try adding a spin to your Dig! Break through!"

Unfortunately, breaking into the dense sphere of fighting energy only caused it to explode, and the resulting boom left the ground typed bunny unconscious on the gym floor. Canis, for his part, hadn't moved. He stood gracefully from his fighting crouch, and then looked up at his Trainer, as his tail wagged. Alex chuckled, and tossed him something the locals, and Akos, had called a 'meat bun'. Canis had declared them his new favorite thing to shove in his mouth, and it was one such bun Alex gave him now. He sat where he received it and began munching. His tail did not cease wagging, and only increased in speed after each bite.

Boomi came over, once his partner was revived and recalled, and he seemed to eye Alex more closely this time. "Seems I've been had...you're no beginner. Neither one of my partners made yours so much as flinch...I guess Unova really does have strong Trainers."

Alex smirked and readjusted his hat and hood. "The strongest."

Boomi nodded, then looked him over again. "Excuse my bluntness...but you seem very familiar. Do you mind if I ask your name, stranger?"

Right as Alex was about to say 'Lee', as he'd met five people with variations of Lee on his way here, the gym door opened behind him. "Ahh, there he is. I told you he'd be here; the man is obsessed with Battle. Hey, Alex! I found my friends. They're uh, ready to talk with you." Akos came into the gym, followed by two other members of the Water Nation who had similar blue toned outfits that matched Akos. One was a woman with wavy hair the same color as Akos's, who was scowling in Alex's general direction, and an older member of the tribe who was sporting several harsh but long healed burns along the entire left side of his body that looked anything but natural.

The widening of Boomi's eyes was all that gave away his recognition of the similarity in the face and name of the stranger who'd come to challenge him, and a certain world leader. If he made any connections, he said nothing, and instead looked at his new guests. He broke into a smile. "Ara. Boto. It's been a long time."

The two arrivals flanking Akos bowed to the man, as Akos seemed alone in not understanding why people were treating the crazy haired and ridiculously shredded shirtless old man with so much respect. Boomi crossed his arms after he returned their bow, as the somewhat manic looking eyes moved back to his latest victor. "I had a feeling you were someone important...one would think such a person would make more of an effort to hide in a potentially hostile region."

Alex smirked. "I have my hood, since it's rather cold in your region. And my beard is longer. I'd change my skin tone, but Fairy Type glamours literally burn me when I try forming them so...I make do. I knew you might find out, but I'm willing to take that risk...ever since I learned about your League, I've been wondering...how is a normal Trainer, even with bending, supposed to take on eight masters of other styles, and win? It seems to me like this setup is designed to find a special kind of individual...one the First Dragon wishes to aid."

The woman introduced as Ara narrowed her eyes at him. "Dragon? What dragon? Boomi, you seem to have more of a clue than my brother. Who is this guy?"

Boomi stroked his beard, smirking as he answered Ara. "The newest Dragon Emperor of Unova, or a very good lookalike." His eyes shifted to Ara as he spoke, and he then looked to Boto, who glanced at Akos, shrugged, and then smirked back at the Gym Leader. "Very well, Alex...let's say we believe who you are, and what your purpose here is...if you get discovered, you're going to plunge your nation into a war."

"Perhaps." Alex said, smirk widening. "Or perhaps greater minds than ours are convinced that the Imperator's attention is embroiled elsewhere along with his Thunder Warriors, and now is the ideal time to liberate Koria. His Prime Archons have all been deployed somewhere I can't mention. But I do know we have some time to prepare, strike the Fire Nation, and free your region from the Imperium's influence. First...we need to find the Guardian's Avatar."

Ara spoke, scowling with undisguised disbelief at the far too chill foreigner claiming to be someone important. "Oh do we. Do you know how long the Imperator's attention will be occupied?"

Alex pondered for a moment with a downward glance, before he met the woman's eyes again. "Until the end of the summer at most...I intend to help you all so you're ready much quicker. Just tell me what you need."

Ara walked towards him then, and by reflex, he stood a little straighter as she peered at him. "You're going to be our rich western uncle? Very well...we need equipment. Weapons. A way of communicating with our allies long distance, that can't be traced. Can you handle that, 'Dragon Emperor'?" She said, finishing with literal air quotes from her fingers.

Alex ignored her jibe, and in that moment realized she was quite a bit younger than he'd assumed. Living under the Imperium hardened everyone, but the hormonal roller coaster of puberty had not yet finished with Ara, that much, was clear. "Just tell me where you want it, and I can move it in...do you have a main base of some kind? I need an anchor, for my method of transport."

The foreigner's seeming indifference to her verbal jab at his credibility drove one of Ara's eyes to twitch, but she turned incredulous as he asked for their base's location. "Like we're just going to take you there!"

Alex rolled his eyes, and then they fell on Akos, with a meaningful look. Akos stepped up to the woman then, and with the two together, the fairly obvious family resemblance became clearer. "Look sis, I've known him longer. He's good people. Pokémon like him. I think we can trust him."

"Trust is earned, not given." Ara said, as she quoted one of Avatar Kora's more popular sayings, from the end of her mortal coil. At that, both Boomi and Boto nodded as well, and Alex sighed inwardly, as he knew what came next. A task, likely menial, that would somehow demonstrate his loyalty to the cause.

With her hands on her hips, the female Southern Water Tribe native met Alex's gaze evenly. "We have allies in the Great Swamp that are having trouble with the Fire Nation. Their Trainers are too strong. If you are who you say you are, and the hype around your strength isn't an exaggeration," Her expression clearly signaled that she believed it was, in fact, exaggerated, "Then you should be able to help them deal with the Firebenders no problem."

Boomi chimed in as Alex prepared to decline, politely, and emphasize the need for speed, and just how fast he could get them supplies if they'd but lead him to the area they'd defended best. "The Great Swamp is home to another Gym Leader...though he's not so big on Gyms. He's a Waterbender, and you will be hard pressed to match him without bending of your own." Boomi met Ara's eyes then. "He can stay for a while, try to learn the basics of Earthbending, as we agreed before we Battled, then he can go see Hyu."

Ara sighed, deeply. "Fine. Their tactics can buy us a few days, maybe a week, but you know what they'll do if we wait too long, Boomi. The Fire Nation is convinced there's Air Rebels in the swamp."

Boomi's subtly shrinking smirk vanished altogether, at that. "Then we must begin immediately…" His eyes shifted back to Alex, as he walked closer to the foreigner and extended his hand. Within it was a Badge, green and gold, and shaped in the style of the Earth Nation's symbol. "For winning the Badge of my city, you have earned the right to have your aptitude for Earthbending tested...come with me."

With a single shift in movement, and before the others could so much as move or reply, Boomi made a motion with his hands, and the entire battlefield flipped. Akos and Boto had hard falls, while the others landed on their feet. The room below was dark, but after a brief scratching sound, Boomi lit a built-in lantern embedded within the rock of the wall with a match. The flame followed the flammable but not easily charred material along what appeared to be a tunnel that led into more darkness. Every few feet, a new lantern lit with the same flame.

Boomi talked, as the group walked. "Shuoma has been resisting the Imperium ever since the day the Fire Nation betrayed us for power and slaughtered the Air Nation. I eventually convinced the fire tossers to leave. Made them think the entire city was ridden with plague. Every time they return with one of their Thunderhawks, we give them the same news. Massive death toll, highly infectious, etcetera. If the Imperium is wise to my scam, they haven't done anything about it, and the Fire Nation seems just as eager to leave us alone. Provided we don't cause trouble."

Alex arched a brow at the old man. "You mean...you're bluffing the military might of the world's largest government? And it's working?"

Boomi tapped his nose with a pointer finger and a mad gleam in his eye. "As you said, Redwood. It appears that the Imperator is...distracted. Koria is a minor acquisition, and Shuoma is not its largest city. The largest resources we have are people, and maybe cabbages, and if those people are defective by Imperium standards, they think we aren't worth bothering with. Until we become a threat, of course."

By the time they'd finished speaking, they'd reached the end of the long tunnel, and emerged into a room that, Alex guessed, was ideal for earthbending training. Massive boulders, the kind Arthur had honed his Rock Smash on in their early days, lined one wall. The other was filled with bowls atop pedestals that looked like they were holding various pebbles of rock. In the center was a meditation spot, where Boomi crossed his legs and sat patiently. Surrounding it, engraved into the stone of the floor, was a large depiction of the Earth Nation's symbol.

"Begin with the bowls." Boomi said, as he placed his closed fists together over his lap and closed his eyes. "They will get harder to punch through as you go down the line. Don't try to rush...bending the earth requires great patience."

Alex approached the bowls, and a portion of the wall they were arrayed before slid down, revealing another human. His eyes were narrow, and the set of his face made him seem to perpetually scowl. His skin tone was as dark tan as the rest of his region's people, and he demonstrated what Alex was to do.

With a wave of his gaunt hand, the man hardened the contents of the first bowl, which to Alex appeared to be little more than dirt and pebbles. Then, he formed his hand into a flat, extended, and stiffened shape, before he plunged both of his hands into the solid rock three times, in rapid succession. He then gestured to Alex to do the same.

For his part, Alex had watched how the man achieved this task. His network of inner energy, much like Boomi's, was inundated with rock and ground typed energy, but this close, his eyes were telling him the man was evidently normal typed, with a strong tie to ground energy as well. Alex put his hands on the pebbles within the bowl, and focused. His eyes snapped open though, as the man struck him across the face, only to find the foreigner's face did not give an inch. "Not like that."

Alex chuckled, meeting the man's gaze as he completely ignored the slap. "I'm not born to this like you are...give me a moment."

The man, for some reason, made to slap him again, when Boomi held up a hand, and spoke simultaneously, stopping the man's strike as he heard Boomi's voice. "Don't. Ki-sai, he is right. If he can do this, it will not be the same way we do. Do as he asks."

Alex gave Ki-sai a smirk, which seemed to quietly infuriate him more, but Alex put the thin earthbender from his mind as he again focused, and tried to draw in the natural energy of the earth. His Splash Plate crystal had aided him before, outside Shuoma, but he knew Boomi would not allow him to draw on his crystals now, and relying on them too much would defeat the point of learning this kind of energy manipulation. He intended to use them to empower his attacks, like his partners did, but first, he needed to master the basics.

He sat for many minutes in patient silence, as he mentally drowned out the thoughts echoing around him, rather loudly. Ara was glaring, remarking to herself how dumb his body shape looked, Ki-sai had similar, much more racially biased thoughts, though it seemed meeting his gaze had been what set him off. Evidently looking at a teacher directly was disrespectful in his culture. Only Boomi was truly focused, so Alex focused on his lack of thought, and breathed. Then, he felt it. When he became perfectly still, he was able to draw in the power of the stone below his hands into his own inner energy network. He focused on breathing then, and within ten breaths, had suffused his network with the required power.

Then, he struck the rock as Ki-sai had, and blinked, as it moved to accommodate his oversized hands rather easily. Ki-sai moved to the next bowl and seemed to glower at him. "Again!"

Again, Alex struck, only this time, his hand did not sink in as deep. He noticed there was a slow, but steady leak of the gathered energy, and that movement made it leave faster. As he struck the second bowl a second time, he realized he needed to purposefully hold in the energy, as he moved, or the resulting earthbending would be weaker, and it seemed holding his breath during the movement helped.

He repeated this, making his way down the line, until they reached the final bowl. Ki-sai smirked at Alex, this time. "Even I cannot break this one. It is the hardest rock we have found in this region. You will fail as well."

Alex rose to the challenge from this new, irritating rival, and he did not see the slight smirk Boomi wore as he continued meditating. Alex drew in as much earth energy as he could, and then like Terra, focused it into his limbs. He only required one limb for this, and with a single chopping motion, his hand slashed through the bowl's contents, the bowl itself, and the pillar. Ki-sai waved away the dust, and his left eye twitched with fury as he saw the mess the arrogant foreigner had made.

Boomi's commanding tones filled the room, before their antagonizing personalities could spark into a fight. "Good! The rumors are true. You are strong, Redwood." He stood and turned all in one motion, and both Alex and Ki-sai quailed slightly, as they felt the power emanating from Boomi. He fell rapidly into a martial stance with a single motion and gestured for Alex to 'bring it'. To his psychic eyes, Boomi was holding in, somehow, more earth typed nature energy than Alex could, and he was doing so with ease. "Come, Pokémon Trainer...it is time we dueled again."

Alex strode forward, drawing in more energy with each step, using the moment in which he stepped, and stood still for an instant between strides, to draw in more earth energy. It was nowhere even close to Boomi's level, but he refused to lose without giving it his all. He fell into his Dragon Stance, and Boomi tutted. "You're going to find that fire and air work far better with your Dragon's martial style. Do you know anything more...power-based?"

Alex nodded and shifted stances. He had not completely mastered the Foggy Swamp Style that Oranguru taught, but he knew it well enough. Boomi was correct as well, for he felt the gathered nature energy respond and settle much better into this stance than it had with Tao's.

"Let's start...simple." Boomi said, shifting and bringing one shredded arm forward in a swift punch. A chunk of the floor moved with his motion, and Alex spun into it, in an attempt to chop through the small boulder. It broke apart around his hand as he made it listen and bend, and then like Boomi's Rhyperior, caught the chunks with his own power. He sent them back with a counter spin, and Boomi's fists caught them and turned them into sand in his palms. "Not bad at all, Redwood."

Alex bowed in the Unovan style. "I'm a fast learner."

Boomi grinned. "Again!" He said, before sending three rocks this time. As a style developed by an Oranguru and mastered by Passimian, Alex was ideally suited for handling roughly ball shaped rock projectiles. He sent back each rock, making use of his stupidly long arms and a few Dragon Style spinning motions to give them more heat, not all that different to how the Passimian who'd mastered this style returned punches.

Boomi spent the next several hours, the rest of the day, moving Alex through the forms of basic earthbending styles, and having him memorize them once he learned that the psychic foreigner had a memory like a bear trap. Finally, Boomi ended their training session. "That will do, I think...you have mastered and memorized all you need to know, to face Hyu and manage a win. Practice what you have been shown, Redwood. You will make a fine Earthbender."

Alex held up a single finger and couldn't resist smirking. "There's one more thing I'd like to try...just be ready to stabilize these tunnels if it gets too...strong."

Boomi cackled. "You don't have the strength to bring down these tunnels, Redwood. I made them myself!"

Alex just smirked, and focused the earth energy in his bodily energy network into his arms and hands. The idea had come from Terra, but he also sensed he had Hydrus's attention as well. The rest of his main team was busy relaxing or socializing with what Pokémon were around them, but his mudfish and grass tortoise were keeping a mental eye on him with what seemed like amusement, and curiosity. Alex had been able to replicate an Earthquake by hitting the ground before, usually at high speeds, and then breaking it with a wave of psychic energy. It hadn't been as powerful as an Earthquake from a Pokémon, but he had made do, and it had broken the ground under his Arcean targets all the same.

What he attempted now was, in essence, what his team had done, often, in past battles, and it was their energy flow he copied as he raised his fists, brought them down, and focused the resulting bending of earth towards Boomi, who he assumed could handle it. The room shook, the earth broke, in a straight line towards Boomi, who raised a wild, unkempt eyebrow, and then simply shifted one foot, never letting it leave the floor. The trail of the miniquake arced away from the master earthbender, and dissipated harmlessly.

Boomi smirked at him. "I look forward to seeing that once you understand the earth a bit better. For now, you have memorized what you need. You should be able to make your way to Hyu and the Great Swamp tomorrow. Tonight though, we shall feast! I haven't had a good feast in ages."

As Boomi seemingly sank into the ground where he sat, presumably to prepare the feast, Akos came up to Alex. "That's two Elements I've seen you bend now, Alex...are you sure you're not the Guardian's Avatar?"

Alex smirked. "What I did outside the city was...different. But similar. I think I have the capacity to...imitate your Avatar, but I doubt I'm anywhere near as strong. Even when I master this...from what Tao described, it sounds like your Avatar fused with the Guardian at some point in your history. That would make them as strong as a Legendary Pokémon."

This time, Boto chimed in, as he walked forward, leaving Ara scowling by the entrance. "Actually, it takes many years for an Avatar to be that strong...only when wielding the four Elements can they hope to stand up to the might of the Imperium. It has been many years since Koria had an Avatar like that, in the spring of youth."

Alex arched an eyebrow at the man. "If my math is right, the newest Avatar should be...what, early twenties? Younger? I get the feeling you know them, Boto."

Ara stepped forward then, and the accusation in her tone caused Alex to sigh inwardly, as he resisted the human urge to rise to her bait. "Reading his mind now, are you? I'm still not convinced. For all we know, you could be an Imperium spy!"

Alex stayed calm as he formed a response, and then tossed it into his mental trash bin, as her brother rose to her bait instead. "Is my word not good enough, Aratak? I said he's good people! When have I ever been wrong? Besides, he's a psychic. The Imperium hates psychics."

Ara gave her brother a wide smirk. "How about that time those pirates from Eous came to our village? You practically invited their ship into our port, and they almost took it over, Akos. We don't even know that he's psychic, and if you remember, the Imperium has psychics as well. He could be part of the Collegia Psykana." The blue eyes narrowed as they focused on Alex. "A Librarius spy."

At that point, Alex closed his eyes, and the boulders lining one side of the room began glowing with a deep blue aura, and floating. He opened his eyes then, and Ara flinched, as she saw them burning with deep blue waves of intense aura. His voice, slightly shifted by the reverb which accompanied channeling such powers, echoed through the room. "I am no spy. The Imperium requires genetic modification, and alteration to their genes, to achieve that which I was born with, and have honed over my travels." He let the rocks land then and let the power fade. "This is the first time I've even heard of a...Collegia Psykana. Are you saying the Imperium has an entire school dedicated to training psychics?"

Ara simply nodded, after that display, and then spoke quietly, mostly to Akos. "I... agree. That is the kind of power the Imperium hates...it reminds me of General Meelo...fine. I'll trust your word Akos," Her eyes shifted back to Alex then and held no less suspicion. "But you, I refuse to trust blindly. You'll need to earn it."

Alex thought for a moment, and then nodded, and bowed low to her. "All I ask, is for the chance to prove my intentions."

Ara gave him a grunt, and at that point, Ki-sai reappeared, in slightly less dirty attire that was still keeping with the same shades of green and brown that seemed common to the Earth Nation. The feast was meager, by feast standards, but Alex didn't complain, as he'd seen the poverty many citizens above lived in. The Pokémon were fed, and that was more important to him. Many of his new team were eager, after watching Arbor win, and then evolve.

Cinder was the most eager, as he bounced around the room with barely contained energy but was skillful enough to not disturb the feasting humans with his antics. Alex let him practice, and burn off his energy, as he knew Scorbunny were often like this. They needed some kind of outlet, daily, or their inner fire would become too intense to use safely.

Alex noticed Ara watching his team, from Pruina keeping Temere from wandering off, to the egg he polished with a warm cloth once he'd had his fill. He hadn't eaten much himself and had decided to forgo seconds in favor of tending to his team. Once he brought the egg from his bag, he saw the watchful teen's eyes light up, but that light faded, as they fell back on him. He wasn't sure why she disliked him so much, but he was somewhere between not caring, and still wanting to make a good impression.

"Do you know what will hatch from that?" Ara finally asked, and Akos smirked as he gnawed on what was probably his third meat haunch. Given that part of the bone was protruding, he hadn't opted for silverware.

"Don't waste your time, sis. He doesn't hand out his secrets that easily." Akos muttered.

Alex just smirked. "I told you I wasn't entirely sure, Akos. I have a guess, based on the pattern, but I do know it's at least part Fairy Type. That, with the pattern, makes me think he's a Togepi. But again, I could be wrong."

Akos munched quietly for a moment, then looked at Boto. "Do you know what a Togepi is?"

Boto shrugged, and it was Ara who answered. "They're fairly common in the Sinnoh region. Or they used to be...I hear things have changed quite a bit over there. Something about a foreign, hostile takeover?"

Ara directed her layered question to Alex, who pondered as he wiped down the egg with the warm cloth in the same pattern that had hatched the few other eggs he'd seen and cared for in his time. He was less of a breeder, and more of a catcher when it came to Pokémon but caring for Miltank and Tauros eggs had been one of the few aspects of his old life that he still missed.

"Yes...the same force that threatened my region, and the rest of the eastern States, also made landfall in Sinnoh, and then moved south to Kanto and Johto. They had quite a bit of Imperium technology, too. The Trainers of Japan were able to drive them back. With a bit of western assistance. Sinnoh got the brunt of the damage though. It will take a few years to build it back up to what it was." Alex finished wiping down the egg, and sensing the comfort from the life within responding to the warmth and good feels he sent the hatchling's way, carefully put it back into the safety of his bag. "I don't think mine is from Sinnoh...but I can tell he's a good Egg. That's good enough for me. Time will tell if he's also a Battler."

Ara arched a thin eyebrow then. "And if he isn't?"

Alex shrugged. "Then I let him do whatever it is he wants to do, ideally once he's strong enough and old enough to be safe on his own."

Ara's eyebrow rose further. "You'd just let him go? An Egg you cared for, hatched, and then raised?"

Alex chuckled lightly. "Part of being a Trainer is knowing what your partners need and want. What they want isn't always Battle. It's my job as their Trainer to ensure that they're happy, doing things that make them happy, ideally in a setting where they're also useful to society as a whole. I've yet to meet a Pokémon that was unwilling to help the greater good the Original Dragon is trying to create."

Ara nodded, seemingly accepting that answer, and shortly after that, the feast was finished, and everyone departed to bed. Alex awoke early the next morning, gave his team breakfast, re-upped his portable Berry Pots, and then Boomi had them on their way to the Great Swamp in under an hour. It was a straight, southern route to the swamp from Shuoma, and the trip down wasn't too exciting. A few Pokémon he half recognized jumped out at them on the road, especially when the road became more tall grass than road, but between Akos's Piplup and Alex, who used Cinder and Temere depending on what type of Pokémon they ran into, the group was largely fine.

Alex noticed that Ara also had Pokéballs, but he hadn't seen her team, and there were only three of them on her belt, hidden away from easy viewing. He'd scanned them mentally enough to know they were mostly water types, which wasn't a surprise. She didn't bring them out on the trip down, though. While it was technically fine to keep Pokémon in their balls indefinitely, as they eventually entered a sort of stasis if kept within long enough, the overwhelming consensus among Trainers was that giving them fresh air and food regularly was the best way to keep them happy.

When they finally arrived at the Great Swamp, Alex could tell Cinder was close to evolving, and Temere had grown to trust the commands given to him in battle. After dealing with more than a few flying types, he was getting the hang of aiming his Thunderbolts with more accuracy. It was a far cry from his Luxray's 'unmatched visual prowess', but Temere was still young.

The swamp itself was less hazy than Oranguru's but the stench was still the same. Alex had images of nostalgia flash through his mind as he recalled the last time he'd come to such a place to train. His current team was greener than the others had been, and there had only been six of them at the time, but he had a feeling his 'B Team' would be a bit stronger once they left. No visions of Arceus or impromptu battles with the deity occurred on their trek through. Akos and Alex switched off between having Cinder and his Piplup battle the grass types they came across, and it was after several hours of trekking into the vast swamp that Akos suddenly stopped swinging the Water Nation machete he'd borrowed from Boto and paused their forward progress.

Alex, Ara, and Boto stepped forward to see what had stopped him. A massive root blocked their path, and Akos sighed. "I can't cut through this."

Alex walked up, and placed a hand on the root, then smirked, as it reminded him in many ways of the Swamp Tree. It was older, though. Much older. Its voice was too slow to listen to right then, but he did get a brief psychic impression of just how large the Great Swamp truly was. "We don't need to cut through." He said, after a moment. "In fact, we should stop cutting altogether...there are other ways to move through the swamp."

Akos sighed. "How are we supposed to get where we're going if we don't make a path?"

Alex turned his head towards his newest friend, and smirked. "You're focused so much on making your path, that you're not paying attention to the trees. Or tree, in this case. We're already where we wanted to be. The center of the swamp." He raised a hand then, and psychically levitated their group onto the massive root. He looked at Ara and Boto then. "Where is this...Hyu person we're supposed to meet?"

Boto answered first. "In my experience, he's usually under this very tree...meditating. He probably already knows we're here."

Boto took the lead, as the group climbed the massive root, which eventually led to a massive trunk. Once they were properly beneath the sky-blocking canopy that had to stretch for at least two miles, Akos spoke again. "So... does anyone see him? What does Hyu even look like?"

The group turned at once, as Canis leapt from his perch on Alex's pack, and growled, falling into a fighting stance as something large and deep bluish green came hurtling towards them. It was attached to the tree by a vine linked to the canopy, and Alex stepped up behind the Riolu as he sensed the mass was indeed alive. He sensed both a Pokémon mind and a human's within the mix of vines however and spoke to Canis. "Easy boy...let them attack first, if attack is their plan." Canis nodded, and his 'ears' flared as he readied himself but did not strike first.

The fast-moving blob of vines hurtled past them, and the group watched as it swung up, and then let gravity bring it back. It was aimed towards them, and Canis growled again, but Alex reinforced the order to hold, and wait. Several more times it swung by them, before stopping in front of the Riolu. The vines parted, and seemed to vomit out a man, drenched in water and plant fibers.

He was stocky and big boned, like Alex, though his body lacked muscle definition and he smelled like a mix of adult human body odor, and swamp water. His feet were coated in hardened brown mud, and the only clothing he was sporting was a leaf wrap and some cloth around his waist, keeping his man bits from showing, to the strangers. His face was round, and bearded, though his mustache was less impressive. His hair was wild and unkempt, with leaves and dirt mixed into it that suggested a natural living style that Alex had a feeling was by choice. His eyes, were on the Tangrowth behind Hyu, still hanging from the canopy. It was strong, that much was obvious, and given how few Tangela ever learned Ancientpower, it suggested the dirty swamp man before him was a decent Trainer.

Throughout their journey here, Alex had only encountered two other Trainers, who had Pokémon as something more like a pet, than someone they battled with to be the best on the planet. They had provided decent experience for his budding team, but he wished there were more of them. Unova had been home to thousands of Trainers willing to battle him, each with their own style of battling. They had been a large part of why his first team of six had become so strong, so fast.

Boto stepped forward next to Alex, and Canis lowered his paws, slightly, as it seemed the two were not going to attack them. Like his Trainer, his eyes were also on the Tangrowth, but for an entirely different reason. "Hey there, Hyu. How have you been?" Boto said, as he extended a hand with a genuine smile.

"Oh, y'know. I've just been hangin' around here, swingin' vines, scarin' off fire tossers. The usual." The two men clasped each other by the forearm and shared a nod of respect. "Tell me, Boto. Who're yer friends? I recognize Ara, but these other two are…" He trailed off. His examination of Akos had been cursory, but upon meeting Alex's eyes, and getting a nod from the silent Trainer, he got a good sense of what kind of person he was looking at.

Alex spoke, as he saw Hyu's eyes widen. "I'm Alex. I'm here to challenge your...Gym." He glanced around at the tree and the roots. "I assume this is it?"

Hyu nodded, and then stepped forward, peering at the Unovan. "Alex, huh? You a Trainer, boy?"

Canis let out a slight growl at the tone of condescension from the stinky, stocky human, but Alex was unfazed both by his breath and his natural odor. "I am. I'm...considered pretty strong, in Unova. I've been traveling the world, and your region, to improve myself."

"I'll bet'chu have." Hyu said, chuckling slightly. "C'mon up to the canopy. Our Battle will be up there." Surprising all of them then, Hyu did a backflip, into the mass of vines that was his Tangrowth, and then swung his way up hundreds, if not thousands, of feet to the massive tree's canopy. Alex recalled Canis, and began to follow, climbing on his own ability, rather than using his power. The less he used such things here, the harder it would be for the Imperium to track him down and identify him. Arbor had to help him several times, and he realized just how out of practice he was at climbing, but he eventually reached the top.

He was sweating as well, in the humid heat of the Great Swamp, but oddly enough, there were almost no bugs constantly trying to suck his blood and transmit a disease as they did. Such pests had been an issue in Oranguru's swamp, but here, it seemed like other bugs and plant life had either eaten them, or their species had simply never made it here.

Once within the canopy, Alex discovered a battlefield. It was made from the interwoven wood of the tree itself, but something had shaped it, at some point, into a massive circle. Hyu was sitting in the middle of it, with his Tangrowth standing behind him. "Over here, foreigner." Hyu said, patting the wood.

Alex joined him, sitting cross-legged as well. Up here, the air was cooler, and he removed some of his Water Nation layers to enjoy the breeze, and air out his sweaty shirt. Hyu spoke, as Alex took his place. "You know, most folk don't come here to face me...an' those that do, don't last very long, in the Swamp."

Alex waved a hand. "Oh, this is nothing. I'm pretty used to most of the things a swamp can throw my way. We have a fairly large one back home."

Hyu nodded. "I've heard y'all have a nice swamp out there in Unova. The swamplands that have taken a portion of your land began here, with a seed, from this very tree, given to...an old friend. The Great Tree has never told me who that friend was, but that lesson helped me reach enlightenment. Everything is connected."

Alex nodded. "I've learned that lesson as well...though sometimes it's hard to believe. People are so different...even Pokémon can be vastly different from one another, despite looking the same physically."

Hyu chuckled lightly. "Yer not so different from other Humans, Pokémon, or even this here tree. If you listen long enough, you can hear every living thing, growing together. We are all connected, even if some people can't or won't accept that. The actions we take, the choices we make, there's always a price for'em, a reaction somewhere, some place, maybe thousands and thousands of miles away. What affects one of us, affects all of us, in the end."

Alex nodded sagely. "The actions of a few can easily upset the balance...I've devoted my existence to trying to maintain that balance...as well as I can."

Hyu chuckled again. "Seems the Original Dragon has been teachin' quite a bit, since he was awakened again. Tell me Trainer...I know yer here for a Badge, and we will be havin' our Battle soon, but I think there's more to you being here than you said, down below."

Alex was quiet for a long moment, as he pondered. He didn't like revealing who he was so often, but at the same time, building trust required sacrificing secrets. Eventually, his identity would get out, but he assumed one hermit Gym Leader in the middle of a deadly swamp was probably not a huge security risk. "You are right, Leader Hyu...I came to this region looking for the Guardian's Avatar. The person the Imperium is so bent on finding and destroying once and for all. I... have a close tie to the Original Dragon. He sent me here, to accomplish this, to aid the Avatar, and free Koria. If possible."

Hyu looked at Alex in return, seemingly studying him, in that manner Gym Leaders had, when they evaluated a Trainer. "I can tell yer not lyin' to me Alex, and ya seem pretty enlightened, fer a westerner. I like the vibe you have going, very relaxed, calm, so I'll trust you, since both the Dragon and Boto seem to be vouching for ya. The Avatar was here only a few weeks back, learnin' how to bend water and earth, together. He's a fierce Battler of Pokémon as well, though he din't catch any. They jus' listened ta him, like magic or sumthin'. When he left, he did so quickly, quiet-like, an' I dunno where he went off to next...but I can help you find'im. I reckon you're like the Air Rebels...I can sense your mind, an' the power it has...General Meelo came by as well, tryin' to do the same thing you are after he recruited my fellow Waterbenders here in the Swamp, but his connection to the Universe wasn't as...strong, as yers seems to be. Meditate, after our Battle...follow the connection to Koria's Guardian, and you will find her Avatar."

Alex listened closely, and then tilted his head at the end. "Her?"

Hyu winked at him, and then grunted as he got to his feet. "Now then...I assume Boomi told you how we do things in Koria...I won't go easy on ya because yer not a bender."

Alex smirked, and then stood as well. "Actually, I have Earthbending down...more or less...it's keeping the Nature Energy inside my body that I can't seem to grasp."

Hyu chuckled and paused in turning towards his side of the battlefield. "You just spoke the issue, young'un. Nature isn't meant to be kept, it's meant to flow, freely and continuously. You weren't born a bender, but given your psychic talents, I'm not surprised you've achieved this much...it's rumored that some Air Nation gurus were able to bend the other elements, sometimes, because of their control of their energy network. They eventually realized that bein' so attuned to the air was what kept'em from wieldin' the other elemental types enough to master them...but you...you might just have the skill to use all of them...maybe even more...let the energy of the earth flow through you, an' only stop it when you require it to strike. See how that works for ya."

Alex furrowed his brow but closed his eyes anyways. There was a surprising amount of dirt and rock this high up, in a tree, but he sensed it was also what had made a battlefield's presence up here possible. He would need to be careful, in how much he used for the battle. He let the ground and rock suffuse his body's network of energy once more, and instead of drawing it in and holding it, he let it flow. The flow itself was naturally slow, but he found he could increase it, and did so, until the required nature energy was shifting through his body's pools of energy in steady waves. Then, he moved, and hurled a piece of hardened dirt and mud towards Hyu, who he sensed was amused by that.

Alex opened his eyes in time to see the Tangrowth bash the clump away effortlessly, and it was around that time that Ara, Boto, and Akos joined them in the canopy, also sweaty and out of breath from the climb up. Akos was the most out of breath, and Ara seemed to be sweating, but at the same time had no visible sweat on her, just a sheen of moisture. Boto also seemed indifferent to the climb.

"I really...wish...he would add...some stairs…" Akos grumbled, not for the first time.

Boto chuckled, in between heavy breaths of his own. "I just wish...he'd add some pants."

Hyu chuckled as well, seeming to not care about how exposed his stocky body was, as he walked over and gave the three some water, which he drew from a snapped vine of his Tangrowth with a wave of his hand, and guided into their mouths. "Pants are an illusion, and so is death. You three rest, while Alex and I have our match…" He looked at Boto then. "Any advice?"

Boto smirked. "He's strong. Hold nothing back."

Hyu nodded, and then strode over to his side of the field. Alex was already on his side, Canis and Temere were beside him, watching, but it was Cinder who was on the field, hopping like a Hitmonlee in place, as he readied himself for some intense, fiery kicking. He'd used Alex's Holodex to watch videos of Nick battling in the Elite Four back home, and how Bruce, his Hitmonlee, constantly beat down challengers to the Victory League with a potent mix of kicks, and even a few punches. Between him and Ace, the Galar Champion Victor's Cinderace, the young Scorbunny was eager to test what he'd learned by combining the best of both, and someday taking his place among them as one of the best battlers.

Hyu stepped in front of his Tangrowth, as Alex readied himself as well. "I'm sure Boomi told ya how strong my fellow Leaders and I are...are you ready?" Alex nodded, and then Hyu fell back into his Tangrowth, letting the vines engulf him. The Tangrowth's larger vine-arms started moving then, in shifting circular motions, and Alex watched, kind of fascinated, as his eyes showed him how exactly Hyu used his Waterbending. Vines from below them rose up to join the Tangrowth, and the combination of Pokémon power and human bending caused the Tangrowth to grow taller. Moss and wood joined the mix, and then finally, Hyu's vine-encased figure appeared at the top of the vine mass, clad in a wooden mask with a simple face depicted upon it that he hadn't been wearing before.

Cinder stared down the massive clump of roiling vines and Pokémon, and then looked to his Trainer as he gulped. Alex could see the tiny fire bunny shaking, and he knelt down to Cinder's level. "You remember the TMs I showed you?" Cinder nodded, and went still, as his Trainer's hand met his head. "Stay calm. Stay focused. Don't worry about their size, it doesn't matter. I'll cover you; you just focus on hitting with your kicks, alright?"

The Scorbunny took a deep breath, then nodded confidently. "We've got this." Alex nodded as well, and started the battle, as Hyu and Tangrowth loomed ominously over both of them. "Flame Charge!"

An aura of fire surrounded Cinder, and he dashed forward. Alex had no chance of matching his speed, but he moved as well, ready to counter once Hyu got involved. The Gym Leader's voice rang out over the canopy, even as his partner began swinging a massive vine-arm. "Power Whip." Cinder kept running, eyes constantly shifting between the 'fused' form of their opponent, and the oncoming arm. He winced, braced for a hit mid charge, and then found his forward momentum unimpeded as a square slab of sturdy rock rose between him and the vines, and shielded him, for the moment. The slab broke in half under the powerful vine, but Cinder was already past it.

He charged into the mass of damp swamp grass and vines, hitting with the Flame Charge. Alex reset his position to the ready stance of the Foggy Swamp style and gave the next move. "Blaze Kick!"

Cinder leapt off the mass of vines, backflipped in the air, and then aimed his burning foot for his opponent's face. A massive vine arm blocked the kick, and then hammered Cinder back, but the agile fire bunny had flipped off of the arm again, and landed, panting, but still in the fight. Hyu's voice rang out again, and both Alex and Cinder tensed, as they readied themselves. "Now use Surf!"

The vine covered combo of human and Pokémon raised their 'arms', and a truly massive wave of water rose up unnaturally, to the canopy of the tree they were battling on, before the topmost part of the wave came crashing towards Cinder, while the rest fell short, and became nutrients for the tree. Alex knew a hit from that would knock them out, so he countered with the only move that might save them. "Cinder! Bounce!"

The fire bunny wiped his nose, nodded, and then crouched, before leaping high into the air. Alex wasn't done, though. "Come down with a Blaze Kick!" The aura of flying typed energy shifted to fire at the apex of Cinder's jump, and a combination of gravity and propulsion drove the speeding Scorbunny towards his target. He hit with the ferocity of a missile, and then flipped away. Or tried to.

Hyu's counter was swift, and brutal. "Power Whip!" The Tangrowth did not waste time in smashing the Scorbunny in midair, sending him hurtling back towards the 'ground' of the canopy battlefield. Alex moved his arms, and a wall of rock seemed to rise to catch the Scorbunny, who saw it, and had enough time to curl into a ball. Thankfully, the middle bit was soft dirt, while the edges were stone, and the structure killed the momentum from the hit without fainting the fiery bunny.

"Giv'em a barrage of Vine Whips!" Hyu called, as Alex and Cinder gained their footing. The two shared a nod, and Alex moved again, using his basic martial arts of both his known styles to keep the vines from hammering Cinder. He swirled, dodged, ducked, and kept any of the vines from his Scorbunny with sharp rock pillars that sliced the Tangrowth's vines when they hit hard enough, as the tiny Pokémon recovered his breath, and readied himself for more.

"I'm good!" He shouted to his Trainer after several long moments of a constant vine barrage, and Alex nodded. The vines came again, all at once, as Alex had been consistently forcing them to strike at him in unison, pretending that multiple vines at once were something he had trouble deflecting. As they came, he leapt as high as he could, and the striking vines buried themselves in the earth of the canopy battlefield. He then hardened the ground as much as possible, holding the vines in place, and giving his fire bunny a ramp straight towards their opponent. "Flame Charge!" He shouted again, as he landed, and struggled to hold the vines. They were resisting his grip, but he was determined to keep them long enough for Cinder to attack.

Cinder looked up the ramp at his target, and nodded, as he began running. Fire surrounded him again, and time seemed to slow, as he made each step. He felt an unknown but potent power rising within him, one he could stop if he wanted. Thus far, he had stopped it. He knew embracing it would change him quite a bit, but he also knew with that change came strength. The Scorbunny glowed a bright white as the infinite power of the Evolutionary Spiral drove him to the next stage of his life, just in time for him to land the move his Trainer had called for.

The Flame Charge, now much larger in size and effect, hammered the Tangrowth, and the entirety of the 'fused' human and Pokémon mass shuddered from it. The vines wrenched free of Alex's grip then, and he swore, shouting, "Incoming, Cinder! Use Flame Charge to break free if they grab you!"

Cinder had enough time to spring off his opponent and glance behind him, when the vines suddenly wrapped around him. They were tight, damp, and smelled truly awful. He tried to Flame Charge, but the fire went out immediately against the rather damp vines, and the Raboot realized the human had used some of their Surf attack to protect his partner as well. Having a human to aid one in battle really did add a whole new dimension to the competition.

The vines rose ominously with their furry prize wrapped tightly, only to suddenly fall limp, and be burnt away, as a spinning, sharp disk of rock sliced through them. The serrated rock frisbee made several more passes as Alex guided it back to him, caught it, and threw again several times. The Tangrowth's vines tried to reclaim its prey, but all it got for its efforts was more damage. Once they needed to regroup for another strike, Alex and Cinder countered. "Blaze Kick!"

The fire rabbit, still in mid-air, aimed his foot at the mass of vine and human once more, and fell like a comet towards it. More vines rose to try to stop him, but they lacked the watery protection Surf had given, and thus the grass typing fell before fire. Cinder landed the hit, and then sprung high off the Tangrowth, this time with a triple backflip, before he landed back on his side of the field in a three-point landing straight out of the Pokévengers.

Hyu was blorped out of the soggy vine mass, as his Tangrowth fainted, and he chuckled, as he fell, patting his partner back to semi-consciousness. "Well done, Trainer. You and that rabbit of yours are quite a team."

Alex smirked at Cinder, who brushed off the praise, as if he was too cool for it now. Alex walked up beside him and offered a subtle fist bump. "Yea, we really are." He felt the soft press of a Raboot paw, smirked, and tousled the fire rabbit's fur tuft atop his head before heading to Hyu to claim his prize.

As Cinder despaired, and fixed his fur tuft, to the amusement of Canis and Temere, who were mentally mocking him, Alex met Hyu's gaze with a nod, and offered a Max Revive. "Well thank you kindly, Trainer. I've only got my Tangrowth here for Battlin', so that makes you the victor. Lemme get your Swamp Badge, and then we'll try trackin' down the Guardian's Avatar."

The Tangrowth also expressed its thanks, as it regained energy, and the vines rumbled and swirled, before they blorped forth a Badge, in the shape of the Great Tree, into Hyu's hand. Hyu turned, and offered the gooey, swamp-smelling piece of metal to Alex, who took it with two fingers, shook it clean, and then nodded his thanks. "Thanks. Now I won't have to go to the Fire Nation capitol to get their Badge. For reasons I can't go into, it's best if I avoid that place...do you know what spot would be best for sensing the Avatar's presence?"

"Many people avoid the Regis Caldera, son. Don't worry, yer not missin' much. I went there, once. Awful place. Too red. Too much lava'r. No vines at all!" He chuckled, and then looked around, and shrugged at the second part of Alex's sentence. "I s'pose the center of the field here would work best. It doesn't really make. The connection is what's important. Where you are when you make it is just an illusion."

"Like pants…" Alex muttered, as he walked towards the center of the swampy, dirty, mass of vines that made up this battlefield. He knelt and placed a hand on the center. He heard an audible gasp from his companions, and an appropriately accented cry of amazement from Hyu as he summoned his power and focused it into the Great Tree. The battlefield around him lit up with blue psychic aura, in a pattern of Balance that Alex was intimately familiar with, but did not see, as his eyes were closed.

What...do you seek...Human...

The impossibly slow tone of the tree, a far cry from Swamp Tree's own inner voice, echoed in Alex's head. "I need to find the Guardian of Koria...I need to find the Avatar." As if in response, Alex felt his third eye's vision drawn across the sky, miles and miles, towards what he realized was a floating pod of Drifblim.

Follow… Was all the tree said, and just like that, the connection ended.

Alex's brows furrowed, and he glanced up to see Hyu, Ara, Akos, and Boto all standing in front of him, having a chat. Ara was speaking. "So, you scared them off? All of them? Firebenders don't usually give up."

Hyu waved her words away. "It's handled, Miss Ara. Them fire tossers won't be back fer a long time. I 'preciate the concern, though."

Alex looked at Hyu as the conversation lulled, and he opened his eyes. "That didn't really help...it just told me to follow some Drifblim."

Hyu stroked his beard, and then shrugged. "If the tree told you to follow...then follow. You'll find what yer looking for if you do, that much I can guarantee."

Alex nodded, and stood, towering by several inches over most of them. Only Boto was close to being his height, and he had to be around five feet seven inches. "I'll take your word for it, Hyu. I just don't know how we're supposed to catch them...Drifblim disappear all the time, they're easily spooked, and it's almost dusk. That's when they typically vanish completely. Eremus can carry Akos and I, but he can't fit four Humans."

Ara and Boto shared a look. "Don't worry about us…" Ara said, as she brought out a standard Pokéball he hadn't seen or mentally scanned before from a belt pouch and enlarged it with a click. "We have our own method of transport...but we can't use it for long... the Fire Nation assumes anyone riding one of these is an Air Nation rebel." With that, she tossed the ball, and in a flash of white appeared a Pokémon that Alex was intimately familiar with, from feeding and care, to shoveling its feces. In Koria however, it seemed the Bouffalant had taken to the sky instead of the plains.

The coat was less robust around the head, the horns were thinner, and pointed almost straight up from the skull that had a brown downwards facing arrow of brown fur atop its white coat, and the Pokémon had six hooved legs, instead of four, but otherwise, it seemed to be very similar to what Alex was used to. "His name is Oogie. General Meelo loaned him to me...said if the Imperium ever caught him, they'd turn him into a meal...the Firebenders take great pride in how well they roast their Sky Bouffalant steaks...it's sickening."

"It is." Alex said, as he met the bison's gaze, and gave it a friendly smirk. He held his hand out obviously, and moved slowly as he approached, but it seemed the Pokémon was, in that moment, wondering why it had perfectly understood the human, as if he'd been speaking like another Korian Bouffalant. The wide nostrils snorted, as they took in his scent, and the Bouffalant's eyes widened. It was faint, but it was there. The smell of his own kind...or something very close to it. Out of curiosity, he pressed his nose to the strange, pale human's hand, and rumbled, as he found it radiating quite a bit of heat. "There are many Bouffalant back where I am from...someday, I hope you get to visit them. You would amaze and astound them."

The sky bison rumbled as he replied. "Long have I dreamt of tasting the golden grass of Unova...but first...Koria must have Balance."

Alex chuckled. "That's...why I'm here."

That response received a massive, gooey lick from the happy Pokémon, and Alex sighed, as he once more smelled quite a lot like bison. It brought back nostalgia, and bitterness, that was soon overshadowed by the thrill of flying on the back of his Flygon to find a group of Drifblim that could take them to the fusion of a human and a Legendary Pokémon. Even though he was exhausted from his efforts in the war and was forced to travel incognito, he was enjoying every second of being in Koria, and learning their ways.

As they began to fly, Alex found himself drawn within his mind, falling into a sort of semi-sleep, as he left scanning the sky for Drifblim in the general direction he'd sensed them to Eremus. He opened his mind's eye to find himself in a familiar clearing in Unova, surrounded by golden and crimson leaves, sitting on golden grass. In his lap, was the woman he'd do anything for, or rather, the psychic manifestation of her conscious mind, which had used their bond to create their mental surroundings.

She didn't look like she had when they'd taken a lengthy break in this particular clearing. Her hair was still shining with a rainbow sheen when it moved, and her face was more mature. Despite not aging, fighting in a war had taken its toll on her, as much as it had on Alex. "Finally…" He heard her say, "It's amazing how single minded you get when you Battle…"

She shifted on him then, to a position of straddling, and dominance. He knew the look in her eye, and could guess what she wanted to try, with their psychic manifestations. He could also vaguely sense her surroundings, a rather nice Arcean hotel that had been solely for the higher ups, but now was open to the general public to use as they moved around in the general chaos that followed the dismantling and reorganization of a government. Mostly, it was used to reunite families, separated by work, that hadn't seen each other in years, sometimes decades. More than a bit of drama had erupted over such reunions, but that was why Jess's presence had been required. The Empress in all but 'official' title was rapidly becoming a favored figure of the Fornian public, and a softer pill to swallow than the psychic-powered saber wielding Dragon Emperor that had marched an army down their entire region's coast.

The propaganda campaign the Church had launched against him also didn't help. In the wake of the collapsed Church of Arceus, Arc News and its owners had taken to regularly and baselessly bashing him, and his 'decisions' as Emperor, or so he heard. He refused to give those lying hacks more of his life hours by dignifying them with his eyeballs, but he knew Tao was monitoring them for the line they would, inevitably, eventually cross. Stochastic terrorism, and the incitement of fresh violence towards the Empire.

"Jess...I'm in the middle of a mission…" Alex began, only to find her mouth on his. His mind actually went blank, as he was shocked, and then awed by how realistic it felt. He let that sensation linger, and then exhaled through his nose, pulling her close to his chest as he parted their lips and struggled to maintain his total bodily calm. "I'm in the middle of finding the Avatar...as in, I'm flying to do so right now."

"Do you know…" Jess began, grinning up at him, "How long it's been since we've-"

He kissed her again, cutting her words off, though this one was shorter, his forehead was against hers when they parted. "I'm literally counting the seconds...but I need to finish this so that we can enjoy the real thing."

He sensed her disappointment, as she wondered if he even wanted to try this at all, to which he responded, immediately, to correct her misconception. "The moment I have time to rest...I will be back for you...I think I can guess how you...arranged this." He blinked then, as he felt someone shaking him. It wasn't Eremus, so he assumed it was Ara or Akos, and that their quarry was in sight. "I mean it. The moment I have time to sleep...I will return here."

She sighed, deeply, and leaned against him. "I'll hold you to that."

"You'd better." He said with a smirk, and to Jess's perception, his eyes closed, but a piece of his mental presence stayed. His attention was elsewhere though, focused on the mission Tao had given him. She sighed again, and fell completely to sleep, figuring the rest would be useful if the mental exhaustion was similar to the physical exhaustion coitus usually brought.

As Alex opened his eyes, he saw them. A group of roughly twenty Drifblim. Beside Eremus, Oogie was flying, and Ara was giving him an odd look. Apparently, she had tried to rouse him, from her steering position atop the sky bison's head. "Finally! We found them...also, you had a weird look on your face...this isn't the time to sleep you know."

Alex sighed and turned his focus to the Drifblim as he urged Eremus to pick up the pace. "Oh, I know." They zipped ahead of the comparatively slower Bouffalant then, and Alex approached the Drifblim. "Hello there!" He said, letting his Voice carry his words to all of them.

Eremus gave them a friendly hello as well, and one of the younger ones waved back, as it drifted idly along. "Hello Dragon. Hello Hooman."

"I was told by a wise swamp tree that your pod could lead me to someone I need to find. Could you help me?" Alex said, as Eremus matched their lazy pace.

"That depends...depends...on who you seek…" One of the larger Drifblim spoke now, and judging by his place in the floating pod, he was the leader.

Alex spoke again, bringing Eremus closer as he lowered his Voice, but still propelled it to each of the Drifblim. "I seek the Legendary Pokémon of your region. Your Guardian. The Human known as the Avatar."

One of the other Drifblim spoke this time. "Ahh...Raava. You seek Raava."

Alex stared for a moment at the older balloon Pokémon that had spoken. Its cloud wisp of hair was wild, and frizzy, its body had several old burn marks, too focused to be anything but Firebending, and its arms were frayed as well. "I... I guess I do. Is that your Guardian's name?"

At that moment, Oogie pulled up beside the pod as well, and the older Drifblim spoke again, it's simple eyes shifting to the sunset as it answered. "It is," He wheezed as the rest of the group heard only one side of the conversation. "We...do not know...where Raava resides now...but we can take you...to one who does." Alex watched as the lead Drifblim's body, and the energy-filled bodies of the other ghost and flying types all began to glow, in unison. Then, the sun set over the distant horizon. "Hold on tight, Hoomans."

Suddenly, and out of nowhere for the three humans on Oogie's back, four Drifblim grabbed each human, and the leader grabbed Alex, as he was likely the only one that could carry his heavier form and still float. Akos struggled uselessly against the female who'd entrapped, and then winked at the young waterbender, and upon seeing Alex be taken and not seem concerned about it, Boto and Ara stayed calm as well. Ara recalled Oogie after Alex recalled Eremus, and the older Drifblim spoke again, and their surroundings became pure darkness. "Keep your eyes closed, or you will become lost. Keep your mind focused, or you will wander. Good luck, Hoomans."

Alex relayed that to his companions, who ceased their struggles, closed their eyes, and waited. For his part, Alex was more focused on finally finding out just where exactly Drifblim went at night, but he closed his eyes as well, trusting the Pokémon to know better than he did in this area. The next thing he felt was soft grass, and energy, rather potent energy, all around him. He got up slowly, eyes still closed, and called out. "Drifblim? Are any of you still here?"

There was silence, and finally, Alex opened his eyes. What he saw, made no sense, and as he tried to use his psychic sight to figure out just what the actual Muk he was looking at, he found his powers muted. Even the special way of seeing the world, the way a Harmonia did, was lessened. There were vague, half-formed patterns that made little sense in his new surroundings. His neck tingled constantly, like it had in Selva Muerta, and around ghost types. If this was the realm of ghosts, he supposed their natural type advantage over psychics was probably what was limiting him.

Then, he noticed the ground, and looked around, taking in the area. Two giant beams of light burned from either side of the strangely circular mountainous terrain, and it was as he noticed the terrain, that he smirked in disbelief. One half of it was grassy, full of life, and light, and the other half burned with an unsettling aura of darkness. The inky blackness hid whatever might be lurking there. Between the two sides separated only by an S shaped line between them, in the exact center, was an ancient tree, not at all dissimilar in shape to the Entree of Unova. At the bottom of the helix-swirled branches with varying shades of light brown and dark brown, was a hollow, bored into the trunk of the tree.

Alex held his head, as he experienced a sudden headache. His view of the tree fragmented into what he assumed were different stages of time. In one, what seemed like the earliest to his perception, a thin male human was bending four elemental typings at once as he used them in a spherical combination to trap, and then bind the figure within the sphere of elements inside of the tree. Then, came another vision, as Alex's perception of the area changed. There was a figure in this one, still bound within the tree, held in place by a barrier of psychic, fairy, and fighting typed energy, rather than grass, water, ground, or fire. The figure itself, now more easily seen not surrounded by elements, looked like some sort of edgy black and red evil kite, and sported the dark and ghost typing. His perception shifted again, and this time, a female figure in black robes, with a similarly black hood, stood before the tree, raised both of her long, thin hands, and shattered the barrier with a mix of dark, poison, and ghost energy.

The evil kite creature and the female then seemed to leave together, as she walked out of sight of the half-vision and into the darker side of the area. Then, as suddenly as it had begun, the visions ended, and Alex was left staring at the tree as it currently was. Empty, and unoccupied. Lux and Nox floated out to either side of him, as they sensed the energy disturbance. Alex continued to hold his head, as he realized none of his partners had seen what he had, and he had no rational explanation for why he had seen what he had. All he knew, was that it was a bad thing that the evil kite had escaped. He didn't know how he knew that he just knew it boded ill for the future of existence. He spoke softly, as his hands rubbed the sides of his skull. "Muk."

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 39: Path of the Guardian, Part 2

The Ocean Around Wailord Tail Island - Koria Region

"Incoming landing!" One of the Fire Navy soldiers shouted, and each of them stood at attention on the deck of their Imperium Class Fire Cruiser, as the blue burning taillight from their Princess's black scaled Charizard appeared on the horizon. Each one of the soldiers was garbed in tones of black and varying shades of red and had a vaguely skull-like white faceplate covering their faces. Their heads shifted, as they saw Prince Okuz emerge from within the ship. His golden eyes were narrow, and intense. His dark hair was bound in a distinctive royal ponytail. His armor was the heavier version of the standard Fire Nation uniform, and it covered his comparatively paler skin well in the colder southern climate of their region. He stood between both lines of soldiers on the deck, arms behind his back as he watched his sister approach.

The door to the inner ship compartments opened and closed again, but the soldiers knew better than to look, this time. Okuz muttered to his uncle, a long-retired Fire Admiral, and a Dragon in his own right. "She doesn't look happy, Uncle."

The old man stroked the longest point of his tri-pointed Fire Nation style beard. "She never is." Being a retired Admiral, Iroh of the Fire Nation had let himself go, just a bit. He'd actually trimmed down recently, as this trip forced him into a diet of primarily noodles and salty pork, while his niece and nephew hunted uselessly for traces of the Avatar. They had been at it for well over four years now. Koria's Guardian had evaded their grandfather Sozin, and their female incarnation, Kora, had encountered and fought their father, Iroh's brother Ozai, many times, without capture. But that had been in his youth. Their final clash had seen Ozai the victor over the aged Water Nation woman. Since declaring himself the 'Phoenix King' after his triumph, Ozai liked to think of himself as the strongest Trainer in the Fire Nation.

Princess Aluza came in with a landing that could only be described as hot, for her Charizard shared her mood. She ripped off her helmet and slammed it into the metal deck of the ship, as blue colored fire accompanied and propelled it over the side. She stormed towards her family then, and Okuz met her gaze, without letting his eyes linger on the burn mark that covered almost the entire left side of her face. She hid the deformity, usually, with a golden metal face covering, but it was impractical in combat, under a Fire Navy helmet. Her own outfit was lighter, letting her keep her speed and not die of dehydration in the humid swamp.

She began to storm past Okuz, but her unscarred brother stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. Aluza looked at him, ready to strike, until she saw the cold gleam in his eye, that made her hesitate. "Did you find them?"

Aluza exhaled, and the air steamed as she did. "No. They were long gone by the time we showed up. The swamp tribe, the Rebels, the only thing we encountered was some sort of fire-resistant swamp spirit. We couldn't even burn it down. The entire place was too damp...but the Rebels have clearly moved on."

Okuz's thin eyebrows narrowed. "You had orders to burn that swamp to the-"

"Let's take this discussion inside, Prince Okuz…" Iroh said, intervening. "There's no point in angering a Spirit by burning a swamp nobody lives in. The Fire Nation has enough problems, without retribution from Spirits." Iroh had placed a hand on both of his younger family member's shoulders, and the siblings shared a look, before sighing, and shoving their way free of his grip as they went inside. Aluza paused by the door to glare at the troops. "Be sure that Cae is well fed. Or she will feed on you." Her Charizard gave the soldiers a deeply unsettling grin, as she heard her Trainer.

Aluza didn't even wait for the cries of 'Yes Princess Aluza!' before she slammed the black iron door and followed after her brother and uncle. The old man had gone to her brother's room, as being the leader of their expedition, he had the largest space. Iroh was brewing a pot of tea as she entered, and Okuz was standing before his wallcovering of the Fire Nation's symbol, arms behind his back as he stared at his sister expectantly. "I hope, for your sake, that you did not return without any kind of trail…"

Aluza scowled at her brother. "All trails end at the ocean, when dealing with the Rebels. I told you they had Waterbenders. They've probably gone back to Minjujuui City by now."

Iroh spoke then, as he poured the Jasmine tea, but neither of his nephews moved to take a cup. "I can handle Minjujuui. President Raiko and I have established a working diplomatic relationship."

Okuz spoke then, and Iroh sighed inwardly at his words. "We've tried playing politics, Uncle. It has gotten us nothing...our father will not tolerate failure forever…"

Iroh gave his best attempt at a devious smirk then, but whatever evil had infected his brother's side of the family, it had skipped him, entirely. Mostly, he looked constipated to the younger firebenders as he said, "I will occupy Raiko's focus, and the focus of his police. While they're distracted, you two will enter their sewers. It is the most likely place, for Rebels to hide."

Aluza and Okuz grimaced, and the sister was the one to speak next. "Surely not, Uncle...what sane person would ever hide in a sewer? Being surrounded by a city's worth of filth would invite disease."

"Not if you can bend the filth out of your way…" Okuz said, as he stroked his chin, and thought it over. "It's out of sight, nobody would willingly go there, and they're surrounded by a favorable element that none of our soldiers would want to be hit with...I agree, Uncle. The sewer does seem like the place this...General Meelo would hide. We'll need a trail to follow first. I don't want to wander the sewers of an entire city without a lead."

Iroh nonchalantly sipped his tea, as Okuz spoke. "Greed is a powerful motivator for the less fortunate. Give them currency, and they are likely to have information for you."

Aluza sneered at her uncle. "You expect us to trust some street hobo? We only have Fire Nation coins, and not many of those remain, after keeping you fed, old man. We should dispose of the hobo once they stop being useful. Father would not want loose ends."

Iroh sighed deeply, but his niece and nephew sat at the table then, and drank from their tea, hiding their enjoyment of it in their own way, as the three continued to strategize.

The Spirit Portals - Spirit World

"What's wrong?" Came Lux's concerned tones, but Alex waved him away, as his headache faded.

"I... saw something…" He looked at the tree again, and at the hollow within.

Alex fought down a sense of the urge to upchuck his lunch as the mere thought of wanting to see inside of it, brought him to the edge of the tree's hollow. He gripped the edge, and held still for a minute, until the sensation of vertigo faded. He blinked, as he sensed his ghosts floating up behind him. Lux looked around rapidly, as if seeing something above and around them within the tree's hollow, but Nox was focused on his Trainer, with a mutually blank expression, that formed into an unsettling approximation of Alex's own smirk.

"Interesting...that you would end up here, of all places…what did you see?"

"Some sort of...evil kite ghost. It was imprisoned here, once. So... you know where we are?" Alex said, arching an eyebrow at his newest ghost, and the Ghastly nodded.

"The Tree of Souls…" He said in his soft, but haunting baritone, "The exact center of the Spirit World. From here, one can see the past, present, and future all at once...if their spirit is balanced."

Alex nodded. "Then it's most likely here that I'll find the answer to our Mega Evolution problem…" He looked at Lux, then. "See anything?"

"Mars." Lux said, frowning as he zipped around. "It seems like a fixed point in the Time Nexus, likely the closest to the present...it keeps popping up. Just a planetary view of the Red Planet."

Alex frowned as well, and his thoughts drifted back to what Tao had said of the Imperator, and his current distraction. He was obsessed with the Moon, and getting beyond it, to space itself. Humanity's first logical step into space had always been Mars, and it was rumored that some humans still lived on the Moon, from the ages before Pokémon and the old civilizations, but most people treated the stories about 'ancient Moon Men' as fairy tales. According to Tao, they were very real, and worth allying with. They were master politicians, and the Imperator had been forced into constant retreat, personally, with the weapons and technology the Moon residents had access to. Apparently, they also had Pokémon, and every member of their society was a Trainer of some description. So far, the Imperium's attempts at space warfare had been pitiful by comparison, so diplomacy had begun, and the process promised to be a long and arduous one.

Tao himself, now that they were at peace, was focused on winning them allies on the Moon by giving them an alternative to becoming slaves of the Imperium, and that effort was what had taken up most of his time in the few weeks since the conflict ended. Alex glanced outside the tree, and then at his partners. "I need you two on opposite sides of me...here, and here." He said, pointing and guiding them. The two ghosts shifted, and Alex sat cross legged within the center of their opposing energies, as he began to meditate.

Within the tree, he discovered, his psychic abilities were somewhat more intact. It seemed that within the Tree of Souls, he could use his third eye, at least. With it, he saw what Lux had been staring at, and as he looked around at the various, shifting moments of time around him, fragments of the lives that had and would come to rest in this realm, he saw one in particular that drew his focus.

Every Trainer worth their balls knew Alain, the now former Champion of Kalos. The vision showed him, mega evolving his Charizard for battle, and as Alex watched, he saw something he'd never noticed back when Mega Bracelets and Mega Stones were still the preferred method. Energy from the two stones connected in the air and the reaction from the human's Key Stone gave the Pokémon in question enough energy to evolve past their final form. The scene replayed over and over, and Alex stared, as an idea began to form.

He hopped out of the tree with a single leap, and called out Arbor, who glanced around at their strange surroundings, and then at his Trainer. "Arbor...we need to try something. I intend to practice this with everyone eventually, but for now, I'd rather have you try this first. I think I've figured out our Mega Evolution problem."

Since finding a cache of Plates in Fornia, Alex had made sure to keep spare Plate crystals on hand, just in case. Alex handed him a Meadow Plate crystal then, and the Sceptile eyed it for a long time, before clenching it in his claw. Alex held a similar shard from Draconis Mons, theoretically of the same Plate. Instead of just pointing it at Arbor and guiding the energy into him, Alex held it up, as Pokémon and Trainer locked eyes. Then, almost by itself, the two Plate crystals harmonized, and strands of green Infinity Energy leapt from each crystal and connected the green energy in the air above them. Arbor's eyes widened as he sensed the power of the dragon typing become his, and with a roar, he took the form beyond his final evolution.

"Seed Bomb!" Alex said, pointing randomly in the distance. The Mega Sceptile responded rapidly to his command, swirling in place, and launching his tail pods, and tip, at the area. The attack left tiny craters in the landscape on the darker side of the area but given that craters covered the rest of the visible area on the edges of the darkness, Alex assumed the rest of that side's terrain was similar.

Arbor stepped into the light side of the mountainous encircled area, and inhaled, enjoying the light, warmth, and life as only a grass type could. After a few moments, he let the Mega Form fade, and Alex left him to bask as he entered the tree once more. This time, both Lux and Nox were eyeing the tree's once more invisible visions, and Alex joined them. "That was a good start. If I can teach everyone how to resonate like that with the crystals and their partners, we can avoid a crisis. Potentially. I'll have to try it with my own Key Stone too... if I can find one. The real issue will be finding enough of the Plate shards...now then...let us find our path to this...Raava."

As Alex spoke the name, the fragments of visions coalesced into one massive vision that drew the trio's eyes as it coalesced. An idyllic landscape, still in the Spirit World, filled it. There was a small building that almost looked like a Korian shop of some description, and in the distance, a massive mountain loomed over the scene. Alex swore he saw something yellow flying around the summit, but he knew the focus of their search was at the hut in the foreground, given how the vision centered upon it.

"That is our destination...now, we have to find the others. If they were here, they would've approached by now...which means they've wandered off. Nox, can you guide us to them?" Alex said as he stood, and stepped from the tree.

Nox nodded his entire 'body' as he floated in place. "I can sense which direction they are in... but they could have wandered far. The Spirit World can be...disorienting to Humans."

Alex gestured for the Gastly to take the lead, as he recalled Lux and Arbor. As they began walking, Alex realized that his connection to his other Pokémon was weaker, almost non-existent, in this realm of ghostly energy. "It is a realm of Dark Energy too…" Nox said, as he heard his Trainer's thoughts, "but there is also Light. The spirits live within the balance...but Humans, especially corporeal Humans, can easily unbalance everything with their wild emotions. They have before. Take care to stay calm."

Alex smirked at the ghost as he spoke within his head. "Don't worry about me...be more concerned about Ara and Akos. Boto is probably fine, but those two...have a way to go."

Meanwhile… - Elsewhere in the Spirit World

Akos and Ara found themselves opening their eyes to what seemed to be another swamp, though this one was darker. The water wasn't wet, as they waded through it, and though they could bend it, they lost control of it shortly after moving it around a bit. If attacked, their counters would need to be swift, single strikes.

Akos had attempted to hack their way through the Spirit Wilds but had very quickly learned that plants in this realm fought back. They made their way mostly by moving or holding the brush aside with teamwork, and their progress was only halted, by a discovery. Ara and Akos stared upwards, at the impossible, and frankly magnificent building that was seemingly hanging upside down in the canopy of the spirit trees. Each of the building's corners had a tall, thin spire of stone reaching towards the forest's floor. A domed building sat behind a central one, with a smaller pillar of rock atop it as well.

Ara called out Oogie, and the two climbed atop his back as the sky bison ascended without becoming entangled in the relatively wide clearing the strange upside-down building created within this forested space. Their perception of their surroundings flipped as they ascended, and Oogie lost his balance, as the world seemed to spin. He flopped onto the stone floor of the building's entrance with an unamused groan, and Ara recalled him, as the two siblings ventured within.

The interior of the building was primarily white, and surprisingly bright. A network of straight crossways provided travel over a seemingly bottomless void to the thousands of shelves of books that filled this grand room. Spiral staircases of what seemed like marble led up to further levels, with even more bookcases. "What...is this place?" Akos wondered aloud, as he stared around in awe.

A deep, powerful, and feminine voice rang from all around the two humans. "This...is a sanctum of knowledge...a Library for...spirits." The pair didn't have to wait long for the speaker to show herself, for she stepped forward from her unseen hiding place upon realizing what had stumbled into her abode this time. "Humans...interesting...where are you from, mortals?"

Ara eyed the figure in disbelief. She was vaguely human in appearance, but every sense the young waterbender had was telling her this was in no way a human. Once, perhaps. But no longer. She towered by what seemed to the humans like hundreds of feet above them. Her skin tone was a darker brown than any Korian, and her garments were foreign, and pure white with golden highlights. A pair of unsettling and burning gold eyes glowed from beneath her ornate white hood, but she had a kind smile, and that more than anything made Ara trust her, in that moment.

"We are Waterbenders...of the Koria region. I am Ara, that's Akos." She said, gesturing to her gawking brother.

The smile faded, and the woman almost grimaced. "Humans of Koria are no longer welcome in my Library…" At her words, there was a slight flapping noise, barely perceptible, as a shiny Decidueye perched upon the woman's left shoulder. His cloak of feathers was black as the night, and his legs and underbelly were an unsettling white. Instead of a blue cowl, his was the same color of gold as his Trainer's eyes. He screeched at the humans and flared his wings offensively at them from his perch.

"Hush, Wan Jian. They are of the water, not the flame." The giant spoke, and the ghostly bird turned his body around in a huff, stood tall again, and then glowered at the pair by turning his neck all the way around as the giant woman spoke again. "I am Kormir, the...caretaker...of the knowledge within this wondrous place. Why have you come here, Humans?"

Akos spoke up this time. "We seek knowledge of the Imperium of Man, and the Fire Nation. Got any books on them?"

Kormir seemed to give a deep, mournful sigh. "Humans...you never change...the sum of countless sources of knowledge at your fingertips, and you seek only to continue your own cycle of slaughter. I will have no part in it."

Akos seemed put out by her response and spoke before Ara could shut him up. "But they murder people! Families! Fathers, brothers...and what they do to our women...I suppose it's too 'uncultured' for a place like this." Akos crossed his arms defiantly, daring the giant woman to tell him otherwise.

The giant woman's eyes seemed to burn brighter. "Long are the list of atrocities committed by your species, and you have no idea of their scope, or consequence. What has happened to your people is kind, by comparison. The information you seek was burned away, by a Firebender, also of Koria. There was much to be learned from the Imperium's rise, and now, it is ash. Be gone, Humans...I will not have my books ruined by your bending as well."

As Akos let out several choice swears upon hearing that, Ara spoke this time. "Please, noble Kormir, we seek only to help our region. If you will not tell us about our enemies, please, guide us to the Avatar of our region. They are the only hope we have of restoring balance to our home…"

Kormir glanced at Wan Jian, and the Decidueye shrieked, and turned his beak up in haughty defiance and with a clear air of superiority. The woman scritched under his chin then, and the angry ghost owl could not resist the smile that crept onto his beak. She turned back to Ara, her face and tone calmer. "I refused the Firebender's request for that knowledge because he was a brute...but he brought a sufficient donation to my collection...even if he ended up burning large swathes of it...what do you bring?"

Ara and Akos shared a look, and Ara shrugged, as she had nothing but water skins for bending and drinking. Akos snapped his fingers then, and smirked. "Have you…" He fished in the pockets of his furry, deep blue attire as he spoke, "Seen one of these?" He held up the ball of his Piplup, who he'd since nicknamed Pado.

Kormir leaned in to look, and an eyebrow arched as Akos pressed the button, and enlarged the ball. Another press brought the Piplup out, and after a brief yawn, he locked eyes with Wan Jian. The grass and ghost typed owl smirked and mocked the tiny penguin with a sardonic call of its species name, and Pado took immediate offense, bouncing around and hurling obscenities, until Akos recalled the tiny, angry penguin. Kormir spoke again. "I have heard of the capture technology of your planet...I did not think it would be so...small. You could fit several in a single pocket."

Akos nodded, still smirking. "And that's why we call them Pokémon. Pocket monsters! Consider that to be my contribution to your knowledge." He said smugly, as he returned the ball to his pocket and crossed his arms, in victory.

Kormir didn't blink, but rather just seemed to stare, for a long time, at Akos. Her face might as well have been a cliffside for all that could be gleaned from her neutral expression. Finally, she nodded, slowly. "I suppose that counts." The burning eyes shifted to Ara then. "And you?"

Ara thought for a long time about what knowledge might be accepted, then, she shrugged. "Can you keep a secret?"

That, made the giant glowing woman smile at an irony neither of them could ever comprehend. "I can. But why would I? Knowledge should be shared."

Ara scowled. "Because I don't want what I tell you to be given to the next bender who wanders in here."

Kormir's smile lessened, but it was still there, as she stared down Ara. "I will be moving soon...too many Humans have found this place lately. It is time to move...elsewhere." Wan Jian nodded sagely in agreement. When that did not satisfy the waterbender's scowl, Kormir sighed, lightly. Despite her attitude, she found the young woman likeable, and familiar in many ways to how she had been, as a mortal human. "I will not pass on what you tell me, Ara of the Water Nation. You have my word."

Ara glanced at the Pokémon on her shoulder, and Kormir murmured to him. Wan Jian dropped from his perch then, sailing down into the pit below the many crossways before using the vast space to arc up again, and fly off to a different part of the building that each of the humans realized, the longer they were here, was bigger on the inside. Once the ghost owl left, Ara spoke. "The Korian rebellion against the Fire Nation, is headquartered within Minjujuui City."

Kormir nodded, as she understood that this information was valuable, to Ara, and secret to many. That gave it some amount of power, that only Kormir would benefit from. "Your contributions are accepted. You may browse the library until it is time for us to depart, in an attempt to find your regional Guardian. Ask one of the Thievul if you need refreshments."

Akos tilted his head. "Thievul?"

From behind them, came a soft padding sound, and the siblings turned to see a red Thievul, tail full of something she had undoubtedly stolen, trotted by them with a greeting of "Thieve." She moved towards Kormir, knelt, and then deposited the tail's worth of acquired books and tomes before her. Kormir nodded, as she looked them over, waved a hand over the pile of books, and sent them sailing away to where they were best suited.

"Well done, Caithe. Go enjoy a well-earned rest, and be aware, we are moving soon. Tell the others to return swiftly or be left behind."

The Thievul inclined her head in a slow, respectful nod and then trotted off further into the library. Ara and Akos bowed as well, and the giant woman smiled, and then vanished in a flash of light as she left them to peruse.

Ara soon became distracted by the wealth of knowledge as most of the Avatar related history had either been burnt or was something she already knew. Eventually, she spent her time practicing her waterbending, near one of the fountains she'd found within a rather lavish room, without a giant gaping hole in the floor. It was its own part of the library, almost entirely different in design to the central chamber, and yet also full of water, and perfect for her needs. She felt several Thievul and Nickit eyes upon her as she practiced, but she made no move to purposely damage the waterbending scrolls in Kormir's collection.

Akos convinced one of the younger Thievul, after giving it a treat, to get him a Pokédex. In response, the thieving fox had guided him to a room full of the devices, some in disrepair, and many from separate regions, and even separate decades. He settled on a blue Holoceiver that he knew had a built-in Pokédex, and Pokénet access as well, though there was no service in this plane of existence. Feeling more like a real Trainer, he began wandering, giving his new Thievul friend an occasional scratch behind the ear as he traveled beside Akos and Pado.

The two stayed for several hours, and Kormir agreed to let Ara keep the scrolls, and Akos keep his new Holoceiver, but only if they cherished both for as long as they lived, and ensured they were passed on. Their word was honest enough for Kormir, and as the pair left on Oogie, who once more lost his equilibrium mid-flight, they saw the library turned upside down again, and then in an instant, it was gone without so much as a flash.

Oogie landed in the spirit jungle once more, and Ara rubbed his head as they took a minute to get their bearings. "I know big guy, but we won't have to do that again." "Booouuuuufff." Oogie said, before drenching the Waterbender in a juicy tongue-lick. The sky bison's droopy ears twitched, as something came through the brush towards them. Oogie snorted, and lowered his head, until he saw the human from earlier, and a Gastly, emerge from the foliage.

"Not bad, Nox." Alex said, as he eyed the pair. "Ara. Akos. We know where this...Raava is. Maybe. Nox can guide us...wait, where's Boto?"

Ara and Akos shared a look. "He wasn't with you?"

Alex thought for a moment, then shrugged. "I didn't sense him...but this plane wreaks havoc with psychic abilities. I didn't see him around, but looking around was kind of…vertigo-inducing. It stopped once I left that place. I think I appeared in one of the strongest centers of ghost energy on this plane."

Akos lowered his head, and then shook it. "We need to focus on finding the Avatar...once we get to wherever you think we need to go, we can look for Boto and circle back. We can't just blindly wander this place...it's...weird."

Ara pulled water, and quite a bit of it, from the air around them in a swirling rotation of her arms and body and smirked at her brother as she guided into his face. "I kind of like it here. I've finally gotten the hang of bending the water."

Whatever Ara had discovered was a mystery to Alex, as his sight was as simple as it had been when he'd first acquired it. He could see her normal and water typing with a glance, but peering into another's energy flow was a technique that required the mind's eye.

As the group trekked onwards behind Nox, he told his Trainer they were nearing their destination, and when they were a few minutes away, that was when trouble struck. Other ghost types, primarily Dusknoir, had been seen by the humans as they made their way, but most of the inhabitants of the Spirit World ignored the humans in their midst, and the humans in turn did their best not to disturb the spirits.

The disturbance began when they entered a clearing, near the edge of the latest patch of spirit jungle. In the distance was the mountain Alex had seen in the Tree of Souls, but it was still far away. Out of nowhere, a Mismagius appeared before them, with a grin that looked downright unsettling, made only more unsettling by the aura of Shadow she radiated, and the Ultra Ball in her ghostly hand.

Alex and Nox barely had a second to react, before the Mismagius threw the ball, and revealed a Copperajah, radiating a far stronger aura of Shadow. The tranquility of the Spirit World was shattered with the metallic elephant's shriek, as the Shadow drove the usually rather friendly Pokémon into the kind of mindless rage it only experienced during its mating season. The angry male's shriek echoed for miles, and then, it charged the humans. Behind it, the Mismagius began chanting, low and fast, and too drowned out by the oncoming steel titan to be heard by Alex.

Nox heard his command though and moved to enact it as soon as he said, "Confuse Ray." The ball of gas floated before the Copperajah, and his eyes flared as he used a blinding flash to further disorient the Shadow Pokémon. It turned as it charged, mistaking a spirit tree for the humans as it bashed into the tree's trunk, and began to savagely thwack it with its own trunk. That left Nox to handle the Mismagius, and he would have, if the magic wielding ghost hadn't fired off a Psychic attack while Nox was distracted. The wave of psychic energy sent him towards the enraged Copperajah, and he passed through the rampaging steel type, just in time to be hammered hard by a swing of his powerful trunk.

Wisps of his gaseous body faded away, and seeing this, Nox's eyes narrowed. He expanded his body then, encompassing the Copperajah within the space of two seconds. Alex blinked, as he recognized Fire Punch being used from gaseous arms against their opponent, and after a brutal hammering, the Shadow Pokémon finally fell over, fainted. The struggle had left Nox weakened, but he had enough left for the Mismagius.

He floated slowly back to face the smirking ghost witch, and then he closed his eyes, and inhaled, drawing in the life essence of the Spirit World itself to capitalize upon the boost that fresh battle experience had given him. His body glowed impossibly bright, and became more corporeal, as he became a Haunter. The grin he gave the Mismagius as the light of evolution faded made her flinch, and Nox used his new hands to summon a ball of shadow, and a sloppily condensed spherical blob of a Dark Pulse. The Haunter's eyes glanced at his Trainer then, and Alex nodded, producing a Spooky Plate crystal, and holding it up as it gave Nox the boost he needed to form, or attempt to form, a Taijitu move. Lux had filled his head with stories and images, and now that Nox had hands, Alex knew exactly how eager he was to try one for himself.

The shard of Plate gave Nox what he'd required, and both orbs swelled, combined, and were then hurled at the Mismagius all at once. Shadowy flames were sent out from the ghost mage to meet the combined spherical move, but the Shadow Move was overpowered by the dense swirling ball. Nox directed his new limbs upwards with glee, and his Trainer watched the ghost control the energy orb, as it rose and simultaneously pummeled the Mismagius into the 'sky' and then out of the Spirit World entirely, somewhere between it, and the prime plane of existence.

Alex started a slow clap, which Akos joined, as Ara facepalmed. Nox smirked, and bowed, then opened his toothy maw as Alex tossed a Sitrus Berry his way. There was a heartbreakingly mournful sound that drew the group's attention, as they saw the Copperajah, still wounded from the fiery pummeling Nox had given it. Alex approached, and Nox hovered over his shoulder, still ready to punch it down again if the Shadow drove it to further violence.

The metallic trunk weakly reached out to the human, and mentally, Alex kept Nox from reacting, as he reached out and touched it. With that contact came memories. Several Cuphant, a herd of its own kind, likely in Galar, at least he assumed it was Galar, until one of its memories of wandering showed him a city that, judging by the architecture, had to be situated in the Indius region. There were more, so very many more memories, many involving a vague half-remembered human shape, but Alex knew he had limited time. "I don't know if this is going to work, in this realm...but I can try to free you of the Shadow...just stay calm and try to focus on your family." The Copperajah's breathing was ragged, and the raspy sound was echoing through its metallic body. He didn't need a Pokémon Nursing Degree to know it was dying. He could sense how thoroughly the Shadow had been infused, but he reached for the Light anyways, in an attempt to save its life.

His psychic aura flared but was pushed down by the constant and oppressive ghost energy in the Spirit World. He tried seven times, before he too was panting, and frustrated. Without a psychic connection, it was impossible to let the Light flow into his chakra network from the surrounding universe, assuming he was still even in his universe. The Copperajah seemed to give in as he nodded at Alex, withdrew his trunk, and closed his eyes. They opened again, as they heard a slapping sound. Alex had enough power to pull the metallic elephant's ball to his hand, and he met the Pokémon's gaze. "Hang on...once we are out of this realm, I will be able to cleanse you...but you will need to fight to stay alive. Don't give up. Your story will not end like this…stay alive, and I will get you home again."

He recalled the Pokémon then and minimized the ball. Theoretically, that should've sent it back to whatever storage dimension the ball was linked to and keep the Pokémon in stasis. Such safeguards were put in place for those the ball's sensors deemed critically wounded. Hopefully whoever had infused it in the first place did not try withdrawing it, as that would teleport the Pokéball to them. To do so was almost certain death for the creature. Alex looked at the others. "We need to move quickly. Nox, guide us forward."

The Haunter looked around, and then zipped towards the edge of the clearing. "We are already here…" He pulled aside the foliage with his new hands, that he very much seemed to enjoy having, and beyond it, was the building Alex had seen within the Tree of Souls. He walked towards it at a quick pace, and his longer purposeful stride left the Korians needing to almost jog to keep up with him.

As he stopped outside the house, Alex squinted at the writing, as it wasn't in Common, and didn't use any runes he was familiar with. Their shapes were thin lines mostly, almost reminiscent of buildings or towers, but he recognized written language when he saw it. "That's odd…"

"What is it?" Akos asked, as he and Ara caught up.

Alex gestured to the shack. "This writing...I was told once that the last Human to tame Arceus made a wish...that all languages would coalesce into one. Some others survived the Dark Times, but not many, and none like this…"

Akos peered at the runes as well. "Looks almost like Japanese to me. But it isn't, that much I'm sure of. If it was, I could read it."

"If I had my psychic sight, I could divine its meaning...but I'm less than useless in this realm of ghosts." Alex sighed, and then looked around the front of the shack. There was a table just outside of it, one that could seat six, at least. It was bare, save for a solitary teapot that had been left upon it.

He looked around the clearing several more times, as did Lux and Nox, and after a minute, Alex noticed Nox staring at the teapot. "What is it?" He asked the Haunter. "Thirsty? I have one of those, but we could use this pot if you prefer."

"That...would be a bad idea, for me." The poisonous ghost replied in his head, as he chuckled. "That is no ordinary teapot."

Alex peered closer at it, and then stepped back. "Lux." The plasma ghost hopped in his sword, and Alex soon had the black and white plasma blade leveled at the teapot. Ara and Akos stared at him, wondering if the ghost realm was starting to affect his mind, as he threatened pottery. "Why don't you show yourself?" Alex said, as he spoke to the ancient looking pot. "We won't hurt you...so long as you don't hurt us."

Silence reigned as the three humans watched the teapot. It was gray in color, with an ancient looking wooden handle, and it seemed to be made of clay. A beige swirl marked either side of it, and after several moments, it sighed, and came to life.

A tiny white and blue head poked up from under the top of the teapot, and the Polteageist within stared at Alex with its swirly, light blue eyes. He didn't need his Pokédex to know this Polteageist was different, and he blinked, as his eyes brought its type to the fore, for him to see. He and Lux relaxed, as they saw the symbol of the Alpha Pokémon, on what had to be the first genuine Light type, aside from Arceus, that he had encountered.

The head poked up further, as the black and white plasma sword deactivated, and Lux flew out of it. He bowed, as did Nox. Alex glanced between them, and then inclined his head in a respectful nod towards the inhabited teapot. "That's it. Come on out...I think you can help us."

The tea ghost's eyes moved between his ghosts, and then fell on Alex. A soft, calming voice echoed in his head. It reminded him very much of Arceus, in that he felt calmer as he heard it within his skull. It was nowhere near as commanding, though. "Why...would I help you, Human?"

Alex hung the plasma sword's hilt back on his belt, and stepped closer, stopping after two steps. "I am Alex, of the Unova region." He gestured to Ara and Akos. "This is Ara and Akos, Waterbenders of the Koria region. We seek Koria's Guardian, Raava, and her Avatar. We wish to aid them in restoring Koria's balance."

The Polteageist let out a sad sigh. "Unfortunately...that may no longer be possible." Alex's brows furrowed, but before he could respond, tiny white and blue legs popped out of the teapot, and it walked over to Alex, looking up at him, as it continued to wear the removable top part of the pot as a tiny clay hat. "I am Kashiji. Raava was once carried in my pot in a weakened state by her first Avatar, a human called Wan. He was...a good friend to the spirits. Your aura reminds me of him."

Alex gave another respectful nod. "I'll consider that a compliment."

The talking teapot gained a slight amount of sass to his tone as he responded. "You should. He was a good Human...one of the few decent specimens your race has spawned, over the centuries. Because of Raava's time within this pot, I came into existence, once she left with Wan to bring balance to our home. I have stayed here ever since, watching her adventures through our faint, but lingering connection."

Akos spoke then. "That's great! So, you can tell us where she is now. You're connected to her."

Kashiji looked at Akos and shook its head. "Unfortunately, I am no longer connected to her...Avatar Kora had...an intense battle with the Fire Lord, Ozai, at the end of her life. To counter Raava's Light, he embraced the power of the Shadow, and it has since taken him over. With it, he severed Kora's link to her past lives, and Raava's spirit. For a time. Kora was able to reunite with Raava and drive the Fire Lord back, but the effort caused her to eventually reincarnate...the current Avatar has no spiritual connection to their past lives. They probably aren't even aware of Raava. The battle severely weakened her...it may be several cycles before she awakens again. Because the connection to Kora's past selves was severed, their combined knowledge, their power, what made the Avatar such a capable Guardian of Koria, has lessened significantly."

Alex absently stroked his curly dark brown beard as he absorbed the information. "In my experience, the Shadow has always yielded to the Light. Is it not weak to it?"

Kashiji nodded. "The Shadow is weak to concentrated Light energy, but Light energy like Raava's is also susceptible to the Shadow, if it is strong enough. In balanced amounts, they are equal. Arceus made it all but impossible for Shadow energy to become so concentrated...but there is one entity who embodies the Shadow, that is able to wield it against the Light to great effect. The first and eternal Champion of the Shadow, and the being responsible for our two planes being connected. Vaatu. Raava's counterpart. It was his power that first forged the bridges to your planet and infected it with Shadow energy. Even if you slay Ozai, it will persist. If you Purge it with Light, it will return. Vaatu is relentless."

Alex grimaced. "This Vaatu entity wouldn't happen to resemble a seriously evil looking black and red kite, would it?"

Kashiji chuckled at that, an enjoyable sound that echoed within its pot. "I have...not heard Vaatu referred to like that, but...yes, I suppose he does resemble one of your...kites." The Polteageist chuckled again, and then became more somber. "He is the opposite to Raava in all respects. Vicious where she is kind, ruthless, where she is merciful. Rash, where she is wise. He was able to overtake the greed of the Fire Lord, and merge with him...somehow. It should not have been possible, but he found a way. If he finds the Avatar again, he will provoke them until Raava comes forth, likely by instinct. If the Guardian dies while using her power, she and her human will be split forevermore, the world will descend into darkness as Vaatu grows stronger in her absence, and the cycle of the Avatars shall end."

This time, Ara spoke up. "All the more reason to guide us to Raava. Please, Kashiji, we need to find them."

The Polteageist yawned then and stretched its tiny limbs. "I can...attempt to connect to her...but not for long."

"All we need, is a location." Alex said, "I came to this region at the behest of the Original Dragon. He told me to aid Raava in restoring Koria to balance."

Hearing that, Kashiji turned back to Redwood. "Truly? Interesting. The Original Dragon and Wan were also good friends. He passed on the secret of Firebending to Wan, and from Wan, it spread to the people of the Fire Nation. Yes...I can sense the Original Dragon's aura on you, now. That is partially what reminded me of Wan. If he is finally One again and ready to aid us, the least I can do is guide you to Raava. This attempt will take some time...please, sit. Enjoy some tea."

A line of ghostly energy flowed into the shack then, and at that point, the three humans realized it was a tea shop. Relatively simple in design, but well stocked. Three cups came floating from within, and the door closed behind them. Kashiji then poured its essence, combined with its tea, into each cup. "Please enjoy, while I attempt to contact Raava."

Kashiji went silent then as the tea ghost returned to its pot, and as Alex sipped the tea, he felt some of his own vitality transfer to the teapot. Understanding what Kashiji needed then, he drank more of the tea, and motioned for Ara and Akos to do the same. Warmth filled their bodies, and it seemed only Alex was aware that the Light type was drawing on their life essence to empower itself. If it meant finding Raava, he could spare some energy for the friendly teapot. It helped that the tea itself was also delicious.

Kashiji glowed a bright bluish white as it focused its energy and gave off a soft 'bwom' sound. The humans sat around waiting for a good ten minutes, before the teapot stopped glowing. A much more tired looking Kashiji popped its head up, once it stopped. "Agna...Qel'a...that is where...the Avatar currently trains...forgive me, Humans...I must rest."

"Here, have some of these. Restore yourself." Alex said, as he offered three Sitrus berries. Kashiji took them with weak ghost arms one by one into its pot, and then put its tiny hands together as it 'bowed' in thanks.

"This will...help much. You have my thanks, Humans...you are welcome here...any...time." Kashiji yawned then, and returned to its pot, leaving the humans to stare at each other.

Ara just smirked at Alex. "You...seemed awfully unfazed by the talking teapot."

Alex gave her a light grin in return. "Honestly, this isn't even the weirdest thing I've seen. You should travel the world someday, Ara. There is much out there that is...far stranger than our new friend here. We have our destination now. The capital city of the Northern Water Tribe...so...do either of you know how to leave this place?"

Ara and Akos shared a look, and then simultaneously answered. "Nope."

Alex frowned, and then glanced at Nox, who unlike Lux, had not tasted the tea. "How about you two?"

Lux shrugged, as Nox drained the rest of his cup into Lux's, as he hadn't ingested any, and nodded. "The portals by the Tree of Souls are one way out. However...they are linked to your planet's poles, which...according to your memories, are very far from Koria. Perhaps we should find our Drifblim friends."

Alex's grimace grew. "Assuming they haven't returned to reality, yet. We also need to find Boto."

Nox turned suddenly towards the tree line closest to the mountain in the distance, and then shifted back to Alex with a grin. "Actually, we don't. He has found us, it seems...and he brought our friends."

Alex's eyes narrowed slightly, in suspicion. "That's convenient…"

"Ho there!" Came Boto's voice a moment later. "There you are! Finally...we've been walking for hours. Dawn is almost upon us...but we haven't found any trace of Raava in this place. Have you young ones had better luck?"

Ara and Akos informed Boto of what they had learned and mentioned to Alex their own library-related adventure, before he'd found them. With Boto, came only three Drifblim, as it seemed the rest had continued to float, while three had gone with Boto to help the dropped humans return. Alex also gave them berries, as thanks, and after that the Drifblim were more than happy to return to the prime material plane with the humans in tow.

As Ara and Akos shared a Drifblim, and the largest of the trio took Alex in its 'arms', he looked back at the tea shop, and the sleeping Kashiji, as they ascended towards the 'sky'. He had a feeling that, for some reason, they would return to this place again before long, but he trusted the Path he was walking to guide him, as Tao had promised it would.

They awoke to an awful sight, illuminated by the light of the dawn. All around them was a burned forest, and between the trees were the uniform and darkly methodical footprints of soldiers in a formation. It was something Alex recognized quickly, as he stood and inspected the area. Their armor was as heavy as what his own troops now wore, judging by their tread, but what little firebending he'd seen suggested free movement was a good idea.

"These prints are old...but nothing has disturbed them since this...atrocity was committed." Alex said, breaking the silence.

Nox floated out of his shadow then and looked around with a grim expression. "Many Pokémon were lost here...Alex...what would you say if I was to...track the soldier's essence back to their camp? Give them some...retribution."

Alex sighed, though internally he too wanted justice. "Revenge is not a motivator that we use, Nox. We Battle when we must, and always attempt to minimize harm to others." The other three had gathered themselves behind the pair as they spoke, and seeing they were ready to depart this sad place, Alex checked his map, and then headed south along the coast. "However, given that this is a semi-occupied region, and we're aiding the Rebellion, I would allow such a thing when combat begins. It's different to Battling...and you'll know when it starts. Incapacitation is always preferable to death, Nox. Do you understand?"

The Haunter nodded, slowly, as he floated behind his Trainer, and then sank back into his shadow. His eyes could occasionally be seen constantly sweeping, almost eagerly, for signs of the enemy. That night, Ara informed Alex and Akos that their next stop was Minjujuui City, one of the largest and most advanced cities in Koria. Compared to the rest of the world, their technology was actually primitive, but for Korians, after three centuries of licking firebender boots, it was a progressive step forward.

Ara claimed they had some sort of weapon that could stop even the Fire Nation, but only the city's President, and the high-ranking rebels in the Korian Rebellion had access to it. Minjujuui was one of the last free cities that the Fire Nation openly traded with, as opposed to conquering them. They had tried to conquer first, of course, but Avatar Kora had driven them out repeatedly, alongside their superweapon. These days, the Fire Nation found more benefit in trading with them, and keeping Minjujuui friendly, as they funneled troops towards the Earth Nation's failing armies.

The Impenetrable City of the Earth Kingdom, also known as Ba Sing Se to the locals, which translated as the same name in Common, had been taken shortly after Kora finally fell. Without it, the Earth Nation had been consistently losing large swathes of land, which Ara pointed out for Alex, via his region map. Personally, he felt the fighting should cease, and the Earth Army should hide, collaborate with the rebels, and grow to fight another day, but according to Ara, they were stubborn, and many former Generals of the Impenetrable City refused to give up the fight.

That night, as they camped in the forest, Alex moved off to a quieter part of the woods, and after asking the local Pokémon not to disturb him, he called out the Copperajah from earlier. It had been resting within the ball, but as it materialized and saw an unfamiliar human, the Shadow-fueled rage kicked in again.

It all happened in seconds, but Alex's perception was once again enhanced by his psychic abilities. For him, it was all in slow motion, and all pretty well illuminated by the orange crescent moon in the sky. He dodged the massive trunk as the metal elephant reared up, and then levitated into the air as he saw its legs ready for an Earthquake by glowing with ground energy. In the space of an eye blink, that to his credit the Copperajah followed with his eyes, Alex had moved to place his right hand on its metallic forehead, and then, the entire area lit up with the Light.

Very quickly, he realized this infusion of Shadow was slightly different to the Arcean method, which involved tainting eggs, and raising Shadow Pokémon capable of growing in strength, something Cipher's early methods had been unable to do. This variation was more akin to Cipher's imperfect method, in that it stopped experience from being gained, but it was far more thorough than anything the criminal organization had ever created, in those early days. Alex's brows furrowed, as he understood that this meant someone in another region, somewhere, both knew how to enter the Spirit World, and how to infuse Pokémon with Shadow to a degree rarely seen.

The golden light burned into the sky, in a pillar, as Alex drew in more of it, and systematically moved it through the Copperajah's body. The whole process took less than five minutes, but Alex felt as though hours had passed. The result was worth it, however. The tired male Pokémon weakly placed his trunk on the human's lap as they both panted, and Alex patted it, before grabbing a Sitrus Berry for the tired metal elephant to munch on. The trunk curled around the gift and brought it to the Pokémon's mouth. Once it was done, Alex gave him another to hold, and then recalled him to his ball. He eyed the hand painted Ultra Ball that matched the Copperajah's tones for a moment, wondering if there wasn't a way to connect them to his berry pouch, so his partners could nom whenever they wished.

He felt several mental pings of approval at that thought, and smirked, as he pocketed the Copperajah's ball, and headed back towards their camp. He ran into Ara and Akos on the way. Ara was the first to speak, and she looked ready for a fight. "We saw a giant pillar of light...what happened?"

Alex let out a tired exhale and met her gaze evenly. "I Purged the Copperajah from earlier of its Shadow Infusion...it required more energy than I thought it would...but it worked. He will live. Now come...I need a rest."

"We should move on, before that. If there's Firebenders around here, they just saw that." Akos said, and Alex sighed again, but agreed with his logic. Eremus, who was comparatively fresh, and Oogie took them to a new campsite under the cover of darkness, and the group slept there for the night. Being rather mentally and physically exhausted, Alex let his body rest, as his mind subconsciously sought out another, half a world away.

They awoke at dawn, and it took several hours to finally reach Minjujuui City the next day, and what Alex saw on the horizon when they finally arrived raised his hopes. It reminded him of New Tork in size, but he knew the population density was probably lower than back home. Airships patrolled the skies, and Ara had told them many either were for travel, entertainment rides for rich citizens, or belonged to the 'Steel Benders', a police force founded by one of Avatar Aang's friends, full of earthbenders who had learned to bend metal as well as rock and stone. At the very least, the airships would be useful in countering the massive fleets he'd seen from the Fire Navy. Some kind of aerial defense would give Koria a chance in the fight to come.

Ara had helped Alex with his disguise before entering the city, and like Akos and Boto, he now wore the blue of the Water Nation. His outfit was lined with white fur, but black fur ringed the heavy navy-blue hood that he soon realized was not uncommon, even in a city. Minjujuui was home to every kind of people, with the only noticeable exception being members of the Air Nation, and many traveled with hoods, even on a cloudy day like the one they'd awoken to.

He also noticed many Trainers from other regions, though most of the time, they seemed to be subtly selling western technology, like Pokédexes, or Pokéballs. The prices made him grimace, and he knew the poorer class of the city, by far the largest by his count, were probably not Trainers. Ara led them to one of the city's parks, one of three massive areas that citizens and Pokémon alike were free to enjoy. She claimed the rebels would contact them, and while they waited, she offered to show Alex how to waterbend.

Eager to learn how to control one of the strongest natural forces on the planet, Alex agreed, and the two practiced streaming the water between them, near one of the park's ponds. It had taken Alex half of an hour to figure out that he needed to let the water typed nature energy constantly flow through him like he had with the earth, and guiding and shaping that flow required movements that didn't interrupt it in any way. Waterbending required one to shape and influence the water energy as it moved through one's body. Eventually, he grasped it thanks in no small part to many of the Dragon Style's more advanced movements. Pruina cheered from the center of the pond, as she watched her Trainer, congratulating him with a Water Gun to the face.

About two and a half hours into his lesson, as he attempted to master what Ara called the Water Whip, a dingy hobo of a man came up to their group. He had wild gray hair, two splotches of a mustache, and a full beard along his chin that was as wild as his hair. His clothes were soiled and full of patches, and several flies constantly buzzed the man, who seemed to have grown an immunity to being annoyed by them.

Boto and Akos were relaxing alongside their gathered Pokémon, and it was Canis's ever watchful eyes that first noticed the hobo was singling them out. His low growl reached Alex first, who stopped the water he was bending, arched an eyebrow at the dirty man, and then removed the water from his clothes as he left the pond.

Ara dashed past him, and went to give the hobo a hug, despite the aura of stink, reminiscent of a sewer, that followed him around. "Gommu! Finally, I was wondering how long it would take one of you to see us."

The hobo eyed Alex with suspicion, before patting Ara's back, and ending the embrace. "We saw you were with a stranger...but since he's apparently a Waterbender, my superiors decided to take a chance."

Ara chuckled, and glanced back at Alex, who at that point, was getting mobbed by Sensus, Cinder and Temere, who were all eager for more food. "I didn't trust him at first either...but he's...good people, I think. Nobody that good with Pokémon can be bad, y'know? Akos trusts him."

Gommu eyed the Unovan, who ignored the stare as he handed out food to each of his team and nodded. "You can fill me in fully back at HQ...but I'll trust your assessment. Come, all of you. There's an... issue that you might be uniquely suited to help us with."

Alex recalled his partners as they nommed on their food, and Akos and Boto packed up their camp. Gommu led them through the maze of a city, into increasingly deeper and destitute parts of it. It reminded Alex of New Tork's slums, but Akos seemed more unnerved by it. "I always heard everyone in Minjujuui was...living their best life. This is...not what I expected."

Gommu, who turned out to have a somewhat cheery disposition about life in general, continued giving them tips about the city and life within it as he answered Akos. "It's not all bad, fella. We may not have much, but we do help each other. Every vagrant in this city does their best to keep others alive. Benders, non-benders, Fire Nation, Water Nation, we're all just people, y'know? Personally, I enjoy the nomadic aspect of this kinda living."

Akos winced, as Gommu stepped in a pile of what he hoped wasn't human feces, without so much as blinking. "I think I prefer living on an iceberg to living in... this." Boto nodded sagely in agreement. It took thirty more minutes, but eventually they came to a well-hidden passage that led into an underground sewer system. The canals were filled with the usual refuse of humanity such a den of disease and stench often afforded, but at the very least, the canals had been built with walkways beside them, for those unfortunate engineers that sometimes descended to keep the pipes maintained, and functional.

Gommu didn't blindfold them, and Alex soon realized why, as he recognized the crafty hobo was purposefully leading them in a pattern through the sewers that none of them could easily memorize. Still being attuned to the water, Alex was able to sense they were heading towards a central part of the sewer, from which the water in the canals flowed. Knowing that, he felt reasonably sure he could get back to it, should he become lost.

The headquarters itself was situated around a near-constant stream of refuse and foul water, falling into the sewers, and being piped around the city before eventually flowing into the ocean. Glass walls kept backsplash from hitting the people here, and Alex noted several that were not dressed as vagabonds, and still seemed affected by the stench. Gommu led them to a dingy campsite surrounding a dead campfire that looked to have been urinated on, as he, Boto, and Ara went to talk shop with their superiors. After about an hour, Ara came back, and it was time for them to meet the rebel's leaders as well.

Alex was surprised to find the leaders ensconced within an incense-scented room, hidden by earthbending. It was spartan in decoration, having only an old and slightly worn metal table surrounded by moderately comfy metal chairs within the room's center. On each wall, the symbols of each bending Nation were displayed in equal importance, though some of the banners were obviously newer than others, with the oldest being that of the Air Nation. Seated in front of that one, was a man with an arrow tattooed on his forehead. The rest of his head played home to a close cropped and suggestively militaristic hairstyle, wild eyebrows, and an equally wild dark brown beard who Gommu introduced as General Boomi. He and Alex shared a nod of respect, before the hobo introduced the others. "Next to our fearless General is Lin, the Chief of the Steelbender Police Force, beside her is Minami, daughter of Kuzon, one of our most reliable Fire Nation allies."

The elderly and wrinkled Police Chief glared at him for a long moment, before nodding once, and the Fire Nation local, the first Alex had met, gave him a polite nod. Lin was encased in what was essentially a streamlined suit of armor, not unlike something Galarian knights of old would wear, while Minami was in her nation's classic clothing combination of red...and darker red. Alex gave both women a respectful nod, and they nodded back, as Gommu continued.

"Across from General Meelo, we have Asami, an engineering genius, and the daughter of one of Minjujuui City's smartest futurists and engineers. She's taken over what her father built and turned it into marvels we thought Koria would never see. And last, next to her, is our de facto leader, since Avatar Kora left this world, and General Meelo's own dad! Master Tenzin, of the Air Nation." Tenzin and Meelo, now that Alex looked, did share some family resemblance, and though their clothes were very different, they both had arrows upon their heads. Tenzin was bald however and had on a yellow and orange set of robes, while Meelo had on leather armor covered in scorch marks, and signs of heavy use. Tenzin's beard stuck out from his chin, and was longer than his son's, though his was entirely gray. He seemed to be near Lin's age and looked very much like a human who'd been alive for over a century.

For her part, Asami was a perfect ten, with jet black hair that almost reminded him of Jess, save that hers had streaks of gray, as well as curl and volume for days. She spoke the least, and among the gathering of benders, Alex's sight informed him that she was the only one without an elemental tie. The old Air Nomad that led this group of influential people spoke, as his fingers steepled before him. He eyed Akos for a moment, and then settled his gray gaze on Alex.

"So. You are the foreigner sent to us from the Dragon of Unova...Aratak tells me that you're good with Pokémon, and are worthy of an audience, if not our full trust. Apparently, you were going to help our allies in the Great Swamp, but they were already out of danger by the time you arrived."

Meelo broke in, as his father paused in his speech. "Hyu sensed them coming before they even landed. Thanks to him, we were able to get away without casualties...but that Firebender leading them...the one with the black Charizard...she is going to be a problem." Meelo finished, giving his father a look, as he crossed his arms. His outfit shared a similar color scheme with his father's clothing beneath the armor, but the leather itself seemed designed on purpose to help blend in with foliage.

"President Raiko has informed me that the Fire Nation has once again sent us envoys...he is meeting them as we speak. Based on what we know of their ship and its last known route, it is likely this Firebender that Meelo encountered is with the delegation. Tell the troops to stay out of the city for the next week, just to be safe...we must be sure that they do not find us. If they are as competent as you say, we cannot risk them getting back here, which leads me to my task for you, Alex." Tenzin said, as he focused on the Unovan. "Lately there has been an Onix causing us no end of trouble down here. Damaging pipes, burrowing through tunnels...those of us with Pokémon have tried to drive it off, but it's too strong for us. It's pretty big, at least several centuries old. Find a way to remove it, and you will have the trust of my people, and the thanks of our city's President. This is a problem for him, as well. The damage it has caused so far is an expense the city can't afford, if it's going to keep supporting our cause."

Alex nodded at the old man, and resisted smirking, as he considered what an Onix could do for balancing his new team. "I can handle a rampaging Onix. Leave it to me, Master Tenzin...I would ask for something else, once I'm done."

"Name it." The old airbender replied.

"I wish to learn how to bend the air...and fire, if possible. I would be honored to learn your ways." He bowed again then, fist to palm, and Meelo shared a look with his father.

It was Meelo who spoke up next. "Gommu tells us you're a Waterbender. It's unusual, but not unheard of, for a foreigner. The Water Tribes were almost as nomadic as my people, back when Koria had peace."

Alex nodded. "I can indeed bend the water...to a degree. As well as the earth. My method is...different to how you and your people bend the elements, but it's similar enough to share a label."

That, made both of General Meelo's eyebrows rise. "Are you telling us you're like the Avatar?"

Alex chuckled. "No…well...kind of." He looked around the room and decided to trust these people with a bit of information about himself. "I am what some regions call 'Dragonborn'. Humans like me are rare, but if we manage to awaken our draconic blood's power in our lifetimes, we can become akin to Dragon Types. It is the nature of Dragon Energy, to bind and control the other elemental Types, that gives me the control necessary to learn your styles of fighting, in theory, among other impressive powers. That, combined with my psychic prowess, has helped me learn your element bending arts rather quickly. Mastering Nature Energy manipulation is what the Original Dragon claims is the next stage of my training. I have already learned much in Koria...I would be honored to study under true masters."

Tenzin nodded slowly. "I see...well, such a person would be a valuable ally to us." His gaze shifted to his son, then and raised a single bushy gray eyebrow. "There is one thing, however…"

Meelo's eyes and tattoos began to glow with a white aura, and in his head, Alex heard him say, "Show me your...psychic prowess." His aura appeared around his form then in a shield of white, sending a constant, and heavy breeze through the isolated chamber as the aura expanded. The group held on to their papers, and every single woman at the table sighed, as Meelo started his shenanigans, while Tenzin watched on without a word. Alex was quick to respond to the psychic challenge, and the deep blue of his own aura emanated off of him in a similar manner. The edges of the two auras met above the table and crackled with psychic sparks as each vied for dominance, but neither overpowered the other.

"Enough." Tenzin said, and the firmness of his tone shocked both his son and Alex out of the focus needed for matching their psychic strength without harming the others.

Meelo, for his part, was grinning. He looked at his father. "I'm convinced. He wants to help, he's at least as strong as me...we could really use someone like him on our side."

Tenzin stroked his beard again, looking first at his son, and then at Alex. "Hmmm…"

Alex guessed what he was thinking and spoke. "I will still take care of your Onix problem regardless of whether you trust me or not...but the sooner I can Teleport in supplies for your rebellion, the sooner the occupation of Koria will end."

The leaders discussed then, and Alex waited patiently as they did. Not all of them shared Meelo's opinion of the newcomer, but he had, quite purposefully, gotten a strong psychic indication of what Alexander Redwood was about in their brief psychic struggle, and Alex had in turn gotten an impression of the General. He was a bit rash, more impulsive than what he'd been told Air Nomads were like, but he was genuinely kind, and a powerful Trainer in his own right. He would make a fine ally, in the wars to come.

Before the gathered representatives could come to a decision, a messenger was let into the room from the outside and accompanying him came a fresh whiff of fecal sewage that made all gathered except Gommu grimace. His words cut through the conversation going on between Minami and Asami. "Master Tenzin! The Onix has returned. It's still angry from last time, and our scouts say it's heading straight for us."

All eyes in the room shifted to the old airbender, and Alex did not envy his position. Trying to hide and run a secret rebellion from a technologically superior enemy with a rampaging Onix on hand was difficult, to say the least. Keeping their operation secret without a base would be double the trouble. Tenzin met Alex's gaze in turn and raised a bushy gray eyebrow towards him.

Alex nodded. "Seems like I'm up. Please, my new friends, continue your conversation, and when I return, we can find a spot for these supplies to appear within." He turned to the messenger then. "Show me the last known spot this Onix was sighted."

The messenger nodded, and he led Alex back into the sewers, taking only a few turns, before Alex felt the earth itself rumbling. "It's close!" The messenger said, slightly panicked.

"Head back...if I don't succeed in stopping it, you will all soon find out." Alex said, as he faced the direction of the vibrations. He attuned himself to the earth around him, and smirked as he felt the messenger run. Standing in place, he attuned to the rock and stone around him, before suddenly halting the flow of nature energy, and rapidly shifting the earth as he did, to gain the charging rock snake's attention. His eyes opened, as he felt it shift to move towards him.

"Canis. Arbor." Alex spoke, and the two Pokémon in question popped from their balls, eager for battle. They shared a nod of mutual respect and fell into a similar style fighting crouch. "Canis, stop its momentum with your strongest Vacuum Wave. Arbor, weaken it with Leaf Blade." As he finished speaking, the head of the rock snake broke the sewer tunnel, and it roared in rage as truly foul water, amongst other things, splashed its face and head as it came up to their level. Seeing them, the Onix slithered forward rapidly, and Canis moved first, placing both his palms together as he charged, and then fired the Vacuum Wave. The fighting typed ball of sparking energy hit the Onix head on, and the rock snake lost his momentum, as he headbutted it. Eventually, the super effective move exploded in his face, which only made the massive rock snake angrier.

Arbor took that chance to dash into the smoke, and another pained roar echoed through the sewers as his Leaf Blades did their work. Arbor was a green flash within the haze, and the tight quarters gave him plenty of room to zip around, and dodge the Iron Heads it was trying to stop him with. The Onix was quite massive, despite it actually being comparatively young, from what Alex could tell from its mind. He was ambitious, strong, eager to grow stronger, and more than intrigued by this human who so skillfully handled two partners at once.

The Onix was around the same level of strength as Arbor and Canis, and because of that, the three super effective hits brought it where it needed to be for a successful catch. Massive rocks, from a Rock Throw, hurtled past Arbor, towards Canis and Alex, and the two moved in a unified spiral pattern as their fists broke the rocks. Alex swirled away from the last one, drawing an Ultra Ball as he did, and sent it flying back towards the Onix, adding the usual spin to it that made it curve in the air.

The rock snake's eyes widened as it saw the ball, and Arbor backflipped away, as the massive tail came forward to try to smash it away. All the tail did was cause more devastation by taking down several walls and flooding the area with dust, before the Ultra Ball drew the Pokémon into it. Arbor turned, catching the ball on his leafy tail, and sparing it from the sewage flowing rapidly into the hole the Onix had made with his entry, as he did. It wiggled several times, angrily, but the weakened state and superior capture technology was enough to keep it in, as it dinged with the sound of a successful catch. Alex psychically pulled the ball to his hand, pocketed it, and then gathered more nature energy for the repair job.

He glanced at the giant hole, and the chaos it would undoubtedly cause the sewers if left unfixed. Using simple earthbending, he fixed the area around the Onix tunnel's entrance, as well as some of the more structurally necessary walls the rock snake had demolished in his rampage. He glanced up, as both Arbor and Canis growled, alerting him to someone else being down here with them. Canis began to chase them, and Alex swore, shouting at Arbor as he finished the final wall. "Go! Make sure he isn't stolen or killed!" The grass lizard nodded and dashed after the punchy puppy.

Arbor and Canis did not go far, as Canis barked the intruders all the way up a ladder, and out of the sewer. He growled but did not follow them up into the foreign city he did not know, in an area of the city that would take one look at him, and try to sell him for parts, or as a novelty from Sinnoh. "I have your scent, fire tossers…" He growled, before turning, noticing Arbor, and then storming past him, back to their human tether.

Alex recalled Arbor, and kept Canis on his shoulder, once he heard that apparently firebenders had gotten unnervingly close to the rebel's base. He headed back to the HQ, only to find it filled with people who cheered as they saw him return triumphant, though really, most were astounded by the adorable Riolu hanging off his shoulder.

It seemed that Tenzin and the other leaders had come out, likely after hearing what he'd told the messenger, but they too were smiling.

Tenzin stepped forward and floated effortlessly over the now once-more flowing river of filth between him and the Unovan. "A quick and masterful display of Trainer ability, young man. I am impressed. Come. The others and I have agreed to let you give us supplies. I am told you need a room to...anchor your powers to. Truth be told, the ability to Teleport is something my people lost, when the Fire Nation almost eradicated us three centuries ago."

"Well, if we have time, I would be honored to share the trick with you and Meelo." Alex answered, as they walked. "If you're anywhere near as strong as him, it's something you will both be capable of doing."

Tenzin led him in what seemed like a circle as Alex informed him of what they'd seen in the aftermath of the Onix. Eventually they came to what seemed like a blank rock wall, but actually turned out to be a cleverly hidden room that seemed to be used for storage. Several hobos, Gommu among them, were in the process of clearing space for what he was bringing. "Now, Ara mentioned that the Imperium may detect multiple uses of psychic power. She said you had a way to protect against their discovery of this method of moving supplies and people."

Alex nodded. "The Original Dragon will hide the energy...I will act as the anchor in the room, and he will bamf the supplies here. He says the Imperium likely won't detect it, if he is the one that does it, but I don't know if there's a difference to how he Teleports, and how we Humans manage it."

Tenzin stroked his beard for a moment, in thought. "The Original Dragon is a master of many arts and has lived many millennia. I am sure there are quite a few tricks he has yet to show you, young Redwood. In any case, I will stand by outside to keep watch for anything going awry. I have some...psychic prowess myself, you know. You may begin when ready." He finished, with a light smirk.

Alex nodded, entered the room, and then sat in the center. "This may take a moment…" It took almost ten minutes for him to psychically anchor his mind to the room, but Tenzin seemed to have the patience of a Sage. Finally, once he was ready, Alex mentally poked Tao, and with a minor thought on the dragon's part, the supplies that had been standing by for several days now, were moved halfway across the planet in the space of seconds. Alex suddenly found himself in the midst of a room packed with boxes, and he sucked in his belly as he carefully slid his oversized form free of the now very filled space.

"There should be more than enough food, fresh clothes, medicine, bandages, things like that. We have a surplus of such things leftover from our most recent war. You are welcome to them, with our thanks for your trust." Alex bowed again to Tenzin, who returned the gesture.

"We thank you for your aid. I believe Ara told us that you're challenging the Gyms of our region. Asami happens to be the Gym Leader of Minjujuui City. She's extended a challenge to you." Tenzin said, as they began heading back towards the center of the sewer-based headquarters.

Alex blinked, at that, as it wasn't unheard of for Gym Leaders to call out Trainers. It had simply never happened to him, though, he realized, he had never actually met a Gym Leader outside of their Gym before challenging them before. He felt Cinder's ball twitch, as Alex reasoned that an engineer probably had steel types. Given where they were, she likely also had a few partners that represented her primarily Earth Nation city. "I look forward to challenging her. If you need me for anything else, let me know. I'm here to help."

Their group was given several hours to rest, as the meeting was scheduled for the morning, and the sun had long set during their journey into the sewers. Alex did not need convincing to fall asleep, and did so easily, letting his tired and drained body rest, as his mind reached out to another, for yet another mental reunion.

Several Hours Earlier Lord Okuz's Ship - Outside Minjujuui City, Koria Region

Their ship approached the constant light of Minjujuui City, as night fell, and darkness covered the sky. Okuz and his Blaziken, Ken, were practicing their firebending on the topmost level of the ship, what was essentially a larger crow's nest than one would find on a standard Imperial Fire Navy Cruiser. Okuz was as relentless with his Pokémon as he was with all his sparring opponents, and his flawless form often snuck by the fighting fire chicken's guard. Flames erupted from the top of their ship, and he was sure the locals in the city could see the epic clash of fist to fist fighting as well.

Ken launched a Blaze Kick that Okuz caught on his crossed arms. He forced them apart then, stopping the kick's momentum, and cancelling out the fire from it all at once. He brought his outstretched hands together then, and two walls of flame crashed on the Blaziken, finally making him drop to a knee. Okuz and Ken panted, eyeing each other, before suddenly, their gaze was drawn to something on the horizon. A massive pillar of golden light lit up the night sky under the orange crescent moon, and Okuz couldn't help but grin, as he finally saw proof of what his semi-mad father had called a 'Light type'. According to Ozai, there was only one, in Koria.

Most of Ozai's advisors thought he was mad, when he ranted almost daily about finding the Avatar, and tearing them limb from limb, but seeing was believing, and Okuz now knew beyond doubt, that what his father sought, and feared above anything else, was nearby. He formed a small smile as he realized he might finally be able to go home. "Well done, Ken, get a good rest." The Blaziken, while initially expecting to continue, bowed, and returned to his ball without complaint.

Okuz jumped from the crow's nest then, and he whistled as he began to plummet. His falling form was caught by his red orange scaled Charizard, Druk, and he gave his starter Pokémon a pat, as they circled the roughly hundred or so feet down to the deck. On their descent, they were sent spinning in the air by the black form of Caeruleus, and her rider. Aluza sneered at Okuz as she sped by, and brought Cae in for a landing, giving zero Muks as her ride's claws tore into the deck.

Druk was fuming as he righted himself and landed. He snarled at his sister, who smirked at her brother the same way her Trainer did to her own relative. Aluza and her shiny Charizard made quite the pair, but Okuz knew in his heart that Druk was stronger. He hopped off of Druk and turned to see his uncle appear from within the ship. "So." The old man began. "You two saw it as well."

Okuz placed a hand on his partner and drained the excess heat from Druk's agitated state into the night air, as he helped the fire lizard cool off, but the calming of his mind did little for his mood. Druk continued to glare at Caeruleus, who continued to smirk. Aluza was grinning like a madwoman, and her half-covered face only helped that appearance. The golden face covering hid her entire burn and kept her eye useful. "Forget the feast, Uncle...we should go after that light."

"I agree with Aluza." Okuz said, as he internally didn't quite believe he was uttering the sentence that just came from his mouth. "We need to figure out if that was the Avatar. Dinner can wait, Uncle."

Iroh sighed, heavily. "I'm not one to put food above a mission, but this feast is about more than filling our bellies. We must appear to be friends to these people, to keep the peace between us. Minjujuui could make things very difficult for our supply lines if they decide to help their founding Nation." Iroh looked at Okuz, then. "You still have it?"

Okuz nodded and produced the 'family heirloom' the old man had given him the day he and his sister had been exiled and sent on this futile quest. It was an old circular object with a double ended symbol upon the circular surface that reminded Okuz of the decorative Herlemin, a double-ended axe, on display back at the Fire Palace. One of many outdated, but unique weapons his father enjoyed hanging on walls. An S like line looped behind the double ended axe shape connecting the top and bottom parts, and two spheres, with a gem of some description, sat at the northern and southern points on the object. Beneath the symbol, the disk was a faded grayish-blue, and covered in swirling patterns. His uncle had claimed it was a gift, from a far-off region close to Galar, that could apparently detect Light types, and glowed in the presence of the Light.

"Good." Iroh said with a nod. "Bring that tonight. Whoever created that pillar will have moved by now, if they're smart. They may even be in the city by now. We could be having dinner with them, for all we know. If they are in the room tonight, you will be the first to know, Prince Okuz. Now, both of you, go and ready yourselves for the feast. Commander Zhao will be there as well, and the Royal Family will be better behaved than he is." The old man finished, with a glare at Okuz, and then one that lingered on Aluza.

With a pair of sighs, and an eye roll from Aluza, the pair of young fire royals returned to their cabins, as Iroh and the crew brought the ship into Minjujuui's harbor. They were parked next to what he recognized as Zhao's own vessel, and he subtly shook his head as he noted each of the cannons were manned, and armed, occasionally swiveling, and fraying the nerves of the dockmaster. Iroh gave his crew the night to enjoy the city, before the three royals were led to City Hall, the building that housed events like the feast, and played home to the city's politics during the daylight hours.

Aluza's outfit was as close to scandalous as a royal could get. Okuz hated to admit it, but compared to the other women he saw as they were announced, and entered the building's main floor, his sister was superior when it came to aesthetics, as evidenced by the entire room's male population unabashedly eyeing her fit and curvy figure as they entered the party with the usual announcement of their presence. Okuz sighed inwardly, and hid his frown, as the half-mask and exposed cleavage drew the eye of every male in the room for a good ten seconds.

His face shifted, as his mouth formed a thin line. He had an expression between constipation and hatred, as Commander Zhao approached them, two cups of tea in hand. He was a tall man with an aged face covered on either side by burly sideburns, he was as physically fit as Okuz, and still wearing his military outfit, even at a party. "Admiral Iroh, and the Banished Royals. I'm surprised you came to an event like this. Has your search for the Avatar led you to this...city?" He asked, as his tone alone implied what he thought of their current location.

Iroh took one of the offered cups, sniffed it, and then bowed to Zhao. "Commander Zhao. Unfortunately, we are here for repairs, and rest. Our search has been fruitless. Come, and I will catch you up on all that has transpired." Iroh glanced at his niece and nephew, only to realize Aluza was already in the crowd. An earthbender who was, in a word, unapologetically shredded, and wearing a too-small green vest over his bulging pectoral muscles, already had Aluza chatting and flirting. Okuz simply gave his uncle a nod, and then found a dark corner to brood in.

He leaned against one of the massive pillars holding up the roof of the building, arms crossed as he examined the crowd, and glanced at his 'heirloom'. More men had crowded Aluza now, and Okuz sighed, as he left her to her amusement. Such behavior had helped her get that scar, and join him in banishment, but if she wanted to fraternize with earthbenders, he wasn't going to stop her from living her life. After denying one of the more attractive serving girl's offer for a tiny piece of meat wrapped in what looked like a bun of some sort for the eighth time, he began planning his exit from the party. Nobody here had any importance to his mission. He needed to investigate that light, alone if possible. He was also obtuse enough to not realize the serving girl seemed smitten by his classic royal family good looks. His mind was too focused on potentially recovering his honor, and returning to the Regiis Caldera, to entertain the idea of romance.

Okuz dodged through the crowd, smiling and nodding to guests as he did. He approached one of the drink tables, and as he left, and subtly singed one of the far corners with a small ember. He disappeared again into the crowd, and shortly after, the rapidly building flames caused a small panic. A nearby waterbender security guard handled it quickly enough, but by then, Okuz was gone. His royal garments were carelessly incinerated in one of the alleys outside the building, and below them, was his armor. Mostly dark red and black, it helped him blend into the night, as he skulked through the city with his Greninja, who went only by 'Ninja', leading the way.

It took two hours of subtle travel, but by the end of his tour through the city, he'd acquired a travel cloak to hide his head and garments and had rather easily escaped from the city. Getting back in would be harder, but it seemed nobody cared that a random traveler was unofficially leaving in darkness. He called out his Arcanine once he was far enough away, and the fast fire beast carried him towards the area of the coastline around the city from which the light pillar had come.

After about an hour of running at top speed, Okuz let the panting pooch slow, as he felt his side grow warm. He drew the strange object Iroh had given him from his travel pack, only to find that the gray under patterns with swirling designs had begun to glow with a faint whitish blue. He stared at the symbol as it pulsed in his hands, and using it like a dowsing rod, he walked towards the forested area it seemed to be drawing him towards.

Eventually, he came to a clearing, and had to blink as he noted a truly massive, unnatural depression, likely made by a Pokémon, on the ground. He couldn't tell which, only that it was evidently far squarer, or at least, had several more right angles, than he expected a living being to possess. The object was glowing much brighter now, and a quick perimeter walk confirmed that this was the epicenter of the Light pillar. "Alright, Arca. Find me a scent we can track…"

"Leave that to me, Kuzkuz." Came Aluza's voice from behind him. Okuz grimaced, as she was almost exactly twenty minutes behind him, judging by when she'd appeared. Arca growled as she met the gaze of Aluza's current partner, free from his own ball, a Houndoom that his brilliant sister had simply dubbed 'Doom'. With a nod from Aluza, the Houndoom trotted forward, and quickly locked in on a scent. Not to be outdone, Arca also followed it, and seemed to find several others as well. "They've got something." Aluza said, as the thrill of the coming hunt added excitement to her sadistic tone. "Let's follow it, capture whoever was stupid enough to light up the sky, and go home."

"After you." Okuz said, gesturing. His sister brushed past him without so much as a glance. Like him, she was in her armor again, and this only confirmed his suspicions. She'd gone back to the ship. He repressed a shudder.

Aluza called out Caeruleus then, and hopped on the shiny Charizard's back, as they followed Doom's rapid pace from above. Arca paused only to let Okuz back on, before catching up to, and matching the Houndoom's pace, much to his irritation. He snapped at one of Arca's legs, and Okuz answered him with a furious flash of fire to his face. He resisted such things but took the message not to mess with Arca all the same. If Aluza cared that her brother had firebended at her partner, she didn't appear to show it.

The scent trail led them to another clearing several hours after the sun rose, and after that, the pair surmised that whoever they were tracking had likely arrived in the city by now. They continued to follow the trail back into Minjujuui City, only having to flash their Fire Nation emblems to avoid harassment by the guards. Once inside, they donned cloaks, and let Doom lead the way, as he was less conspicuous than a fully grown Arcanine. Houndour were common within the city as well, though none were as purely bred for battle as Doom, he could blend in as a local, from a distance. Anyone who looked closer would notice his ribs weren't showing, his fur was shiny, and he was in remarkably good health, for a city Pokémon.

When the trail led them into the slums of the city, Aluza finally cracked under the smell. Okuz could tell the lack of sleep was starting to affect her, and he too felt his eyes growing more tired, but they continued on, convinced that they were close to their target. Eventually, Doom led them to a sewer entrance, and after fashioning barely efficient face masks for themselves, the pair of firebenders entered the smelly sewage network. About twenty minutes in, still following the trail, they felt a rumble in the earth, and it was Aluza who stopped Okuz from walking straight out into a causeway that, in an instant, became home to a rampaging Onix rising out of the earth, who was doing battle with a green blur, and a Riolu.

Whoever it battled was skilled enough to catch the rock snake rather quickly, and both firebenders wondered who exactly had the kind of tech for such a thing in Koria. Such technology was prohibited from Korian citizens, and catching Pokémon was not a common skill. As the struggling Onix brought his tail forward to try to stop the ball, he took out a wall near them, and exposed their cover. Slowly, and as quietly as possible, Aluza, Doom, and Okuz moved backwards, but the green blur, revealed to be a Sceptile, spotted them, and was soon followed by the barking Riolu as well. Muttering an expletive under her breath, Aluza recalled Doom, and then dashed away from the scene. Okuz was right behind her, and after a few quick turns, the pair climbed a ladder they'd found to the surface, and passed through a manhole cover, to their freedom.

They kept running, and deciding subtlety was out, Okuz called out Arca once more, letting the massive flame dog clear a path for them with her bulk, as she used her speed to return them to the harbor at an expedited pace. Neither of the siblings spoke, but they both knew the importance of what they had found. The Light user was likely working with the rebellion, and they had likely been close to the rebel's base. Now they knew where it was, they could press their authority as regional overlords to send troops in, capture everyone there, and question them, until they gave up the Avatar.

Now that they had the location, marked so conveniently by the Onix, the end of the rebellion was all but assured, and the time for their return home was approaching rapidly.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Foreword: The following is essentially a chapter's worth of information on one of the more fun characters I've shoved into this madness. It took a while to cook up and be somewhat faithful to the original Witcher series, but I'd say we got there. Or got as close as Pokémon can get, anyways. There's more to this Geralt's tale than I can fit here, and we will get to it. Eventually. I would not advise skipping this one. As always, I'll tie any lore back to the main story eventually, it just might take a while.

Until then, enjoy.

The Ranger's Path

Redwood Ranch - Northern Unova Region (Several years before the Trainer Exam)

The moon was full in the summer sky above the thirteen younger Redwoods who had, after learning the basics of how to approach and capture Pokémon all day, dashed out of the Redwood Lab, eager to find some. Geralt and Malina, being the oldest, were charged by the Professor to keep the littles in line, but despite the later hour, the Professor had a feeling about that night. The tingle of fate was in the air, and it was a good time to catch Pokémon. Once they had all departed, the old man lit his hand-held wooden Leaf pipe, took a long draw, and spoke aloud, seemingly to the darkness. "Soren." He exhaled his cloud of scented smoke reminiscent of a Stunky. "Watch them, would you?"

A low hoot answered the ancient human as two yellow eyes appeared in the darkness of the nearby tree that sat outside the lab. There wasn't much he wouldn't do for the old man, and keeping track of thirteen slow moving targets in the darkness was nothing to a Noctowl his age. The younger Redwoods soon found themselves in tears, and running to Malina for help, when what they wanted to catch took one look at them and ran. There was one, however, who had gone with his brother and his oldest cousin, to find something by one of the ponds near the back end of their property, at a pace the toddlers couldn't match. Though Eric Redwood constantly repeated that their dad wouldn't like this, he too eagerly clutched a Dive Ball. His brother had admired fire types almost solely because of Leon and Alain. Eric knew that water beat fire, thanks to the lesson earlier, and thus he had decided to catch a water type, before his brother even found a fire type. He was four and a half, but he already liked the 'vibe' as his Gruncle would call it, that water types had.

It was as they came upon the pond Eric had demanded Alex guide him to, or else he'd tell, that they saw they were not alone. They looked around for Geralt, only to realize the coolest and eldest teen of the group had vanished. Swimming in the pond were a pair of Poliwags, and before Alex could so much as take a step, Eric chucked the Pokéball in his hand as hard as he could at the relatively younger Poliwag with a triumphant cry that mimicked what he'd been taught by his Granduncle, "Yeet da ball!" The ball wiggled on the surface of the pond, once, twice, three times, before suddenly, it burst open in a flash of blue.

The Poliwag that had almost been captured panted heavily in shock, but its sibling was furious, and launched several Bubbles at the pair of humans. Seeing his ball break had caused Eric to start wailing, but his brother knew how dangerous moves could be, and yanked his tiny sibling out of the path of the weak and slow-moving water attack. They dashed into the bushes shouting for Geralt, as the two Poliwags watched them go with angry eyes.

Geralt, for his part, had been busy. He had only agreed to help his ninety plus year old granduncle watch thirteen smaller humans because the alternative was actually showing up for his 'behavioral correction' night classes at the high school. Given that he was about to graduate, and start training to be a Ranger, he had stopped giving any Muks about his schoolwork, and had focused on training with a Pokémon Ranger's tools.

The most important tool, however, was at least one Pokémon on hand that was versatile enough to help the Ranger in question. Geralt had no intention of being the only Ranger trainee without a partner Pokémon, and his granduncle had given them free balls. He let his little cousins wander and play around the lake, as he didn't really care if they got muddy, and he knew Alex was a natural with everything that lived around here. His sharp eyes had instead noticed something else entirely. A flash of white in the darkness.

What he found when he followed it, was an oddity. A wild Rockruff, sitting on a rock, chilling, as he stared at the moon. "Hey." Geralt said, as he drew out a Sitrus Berry. "Relax. I'm not going to hurt you. Are you hungry? Do you want food?"

The initial shock and suspicion at seeing a human made the slightly lighter-than-normal colored male rock puppy jump in place and narrow his eyes in suspicion. At least, until he saw the human had food. His tail wagged slowly as he watched Geralt carefully approach and set down the berry. The Rockruff began to gnaw on the comparatively massive fruit, as he subtly looked the human over. His shoulder length hair was brown, and he was very obviously a human in the end spiral of adolescence, making him not much older than the Rockruff himself. His green eyes were fierce, his clothes were mostly leather, a jacket, Trainer gloves, and durable pants that gave away that he was from farmin' country.

"I'm Geralt." The eighteen-year-old said, in his somewhat awkward monotone. "Rockruff." The rock puppy answered, as he gnawed at the tough, but satisfyingly juicy fruit. Geralt waited for the amusing pupper to start chewing on a larger piece, before he spoke again. By the time the Rockruff finally got a piece large enough to nom in his mouth, Geralt's green eyes had shifted to the moon above them. "I don't suppose you know what a Pokémon Ranger is."

"Rock. Ruff?" The puppy answered, with a mouthful of fruit. "I thought not." Geralt said, pretending to understand the pupper. He kind of did understand more or less, mostly by tone. "A Pokémon Ranger is someone who puts the protection of Pokémon and the natural world first. They hunt down bad Humans, who treat Pokémon like tools, and usually try to conquer the planet. But they're not like most Trainers."

The Rockruff paused in his biting, and asked, "Rockruff?" "Yes. Really." Geralt answered. "I'm about to head off to study and train to become a Ranger. I was hoping you would be the Pokémon I went with." He held up his Ultra Ball then, and the Rockruff stiffened, but slowly relaxed as the human didn't throw it. Moments passed as the two stared at each other, and the Rockruff's eyes widened as he slowly realized the human was asking to catch him. He looked down in confusion at his berry. Humans never asked, they just attacked, and threw. And he usually dodged, and ran.

The lighter toned Rockruff looked back at the human then, who was still holding up the ball. He didn't know why, but the simple fact that the human had asked made the Pokémon more malleable to being partnered. From his perspective, he'd found a rare human, and he knew how strong human-trained Pokémon could become. All Pokémon understood on an instinctual level what the strange bipedal apes could do for them, in terms of gaining strength. He yipped, and wagged his tail, but then looked meaningfully at his berry. "It's alright, you finish first."

Geralt placed the ball by the Rockruff's snout, and then proceeded to pet the pupper between the ears, which made his rock-filled tail wag more. Suddenly, the Rockruff paused as he finished his last berry bite and looked upwards. Then, Geralt heard it too. Two high pitched younger male voices shouting his name. "Muk." He said, as he stood up quickly. From behind him, he heard a ding, and he glanced around to see the Rockruff had entered the Ultra Ball. Nodding in immense satisfaction, Geralt grabbed it, and ran towards his cousins.

As it turned out, the Poliwags had been watched as well, by a comparatively far more attentive Poliwhirl, who now used its superior muscles to run down the small humans. It fired several Hypnosis moves at them, but Alex had continued to dodge by zig zagging, and he dragged his tear-stained, snot-nosed brother behind him as he did. The Poliwhirl jumped in front of the two then, and it was at that moment, that Geralt appeared.

He slid to a stop as his black Ranger issue boots gripped the dirt and hurled his Ultra Ball at the Poliwhirl. It bounced off, getting its attention, and releasing his new Rockruff all at once. The Poliwhirl eyed the rock puppy, and then the human. The tense moment passed, as neither side attacked, and it began speaking, gesturing at Eric, and sounding very angry. Geralt nodded along, getting the gist that something the toddler had done had seriously angered the local Poli population.

"I'm sorry for whatever my cousin did, but as you can see...he's young." Geralt then noticed Eric's Dive Ball was missing. "How about we all...calm down, and have my cousin here apologize? You and your friends can all have some Berries, too." The Poliwhirl eyed Geralt, and his new partner, and then nodded slowly. "Rockruff, go find some Oran Berries. At least two." Geralt said as he approached the Poliwhirl with his last Sitrus berry. "Here you go...now, Alex, bring your brother. And on the way, explain what he did."

As expected, at least one of the littles had completely ignored the Professor, and just 'yeeted' the ball at whatever they wanted. As they walked, Malina and the swarm of other little humans joined them. The Poliwhirl looked angrily at Geralt as more tiny humans arrived, but he shrugged, and then kept walking, unfazed. Seeing the small humans were more friendly and curious than overeager, the Poliwhirl eventually gave them pats, and seemed to calm down, before it followed Geralt and his two charges.

Malina had also had some success, as she'd found an adorable Eevee, offered her a berry, and then a ball. Only one of the littles had actually managed to catch something, and that was Aria, who'd enticed a very young Swablu with her singing. Malina had spent her co-opted evening babysitting for her dad while he smoked more Leaf trying to calm down the Altaria that hadn't wanted her baby to leave just yet. Eventually she'd calmed enough to listen, especially once the Swablu was let out of the ball, and Malina had explained that they lived a few yards away, and the Altaria was welcome to fly by any time.

As she relayed this to Geralt, and as he relayed his own Rockruff related experience, they reached the pond. One Poliwag dove underwater in fear, but the other locked eyes on Eric, and bubbles formed around his mouth. That is, until Poliwhirl appeared. After repeating its name half a dozen times, the Poliwag had come towards the human, and Eric offered a berry in each hand. The Poliwag had taken both, and then dove into the water.

It was as they were about to start playing around the pond, that Geralt heard a hoot from above, and swore under his breath. One of the littles he hadn't noticed, Aria's youngest sister Emily, he was pretty sure, stared up at him with big, blue eyes, and repeated his obscenity with pure, undiluted joy. He quickly picked up the toddler and said, "No, nono, I said 'Poooo'!" Thankfully, the joy she got from repeating poo soon overwrote the other expletive, and Geralt whistled with his fingers to his lips. As agreed, everyone came and gathered by him at the sound. "Listen up. Our parents are coming." He minimized his ball and looked at Malina and Aria meaningfully. "If they ask, we caught Nothing. Understand?"

Twenty Minutes Later - Redwood Ranch House

"This is unacceptable, Gil. Letting them catch Pokémon? We have enough mouths to feed, and most of those are connected to five stomachs! How are you going to pay for their meals, Professor?"

Gilroy Redwood sighed heavily. Once more, his nephew Frederick was tearing him out, as one of the littles had almost immediately told their parents who had caught what Pokémon, and what they were all doing outside so late. Gil responded with the same sly sarcasm that he knew, on a fundamental level, pushed the uptight businessman's buttons. "It's a genetically unstable fox, a rock puppy, and a bird. The puppy won't even be around much longer. Geralt needed a partner, and it was long past time for the others to have a Pokémon too. You had one as well, Fred."

The wrinkled eyes of Alex's father closed in irritation, and then glared at the Professor. "And then I grew up! All you've done tonight is introduce my family to a world of heartbreak that I would rather not have them distracted by! You could've at least gotten them something long-lived. Like a turtle Pokémon. There's plenty of those. Birds and canines don't live forever."

The Professor rolled his eyes. "Altaria are part Dragon Type and live for centuries. If anything, I've introduced a baby Swablu to a friend it will never forget, or likely get over. Have you heard how they learn Perish Song? Once their Trainers pass on, every single time without fail, it becomes a Move they can, and often will, use frequently. Eeveelutions last about as long as Humans once their base genetics stabilize, and don't worry about the Rockruff...that one is...special. I don't know how, or why, but it is. Geralt was meant to find it, I think. It was very far from the mountains."

Frederick waved a hand. "Yes yes, you're very well educated about Pokémon, and are half Psychic. Yet you still can't levitate the remote into your lap, can you old man?" The bitterness was obvious in his tone, and the Professor responded by sitting back in his chair, looking smug. The Professor's brother, and Frederick's father, had had a saying. 'Those who resort to insults in arguments have already lost them.'

Professor Gilroy Redwood had lost a few of such arguments with Fred that way, like when he didn't allow renovations to the lab to make room for his own family. He enjoyed the look on his nephew's face as he realized his error, and Frederick sighed. "Fine. Whatever. At least not all of them caught something, praise Arceus."

The Professor's victorious demeanor shifted to a hard expression. "Hasn't praising Arceus done enough damage to our family? Particularly to your first born."

Frederick met his gaze evenly as his eyes narrowed. "Get out."

The Professor walked out of Fred's office, muttering several choice expletives under his breath involving Miltank rears, Tauros dung, and how they should apply to a man that denied his child a Pokémon in a society that adored them, and idolized Trainers. Surprising no one, Alex had been drawn to the vicarious victories that came from watching the meteoric rises of Champion level Trainers like Leon, and Alain. As Gil walked, he noticed Geralt, leaning all too-cool-for-skool style against the wall. "I take it that went as well as it always does."

Gilroy grumbled. "Same pile of Tauros Excrement, different decade."

"The decade isn't over yet, Gruncle." Geralt said, showing a rare expression of positivity. He was right, technically. They were two years in.

The Professor kept walking, down the stairs, and straight out of the house, where he brought out his Leaf pipe. "And by the end of this decade, your cousin will still be Pokéless, and I will have failed him."

Geralt arched a white eyebrow. "You haven't failed him. He adores you, and what you teach him. You're third on his list of awesome Trainers."

Gilroy nodded, expectantly. "The top two being Leon and Ash, of course."

"Of course." Geralt said, smirking.

"Is there something you want, lad?" The Professor said, side eyeing the teenager.

Geralt nodded. "I need a Styler."

The Professor nodded, and chuckled. "I hoped you'd forget about that promise...very well. I did say you'd need a Pokémon first, and now you've got one. Come along."

Gilroy led his grandnephew into his Lab, and puttered through the perpetual mess it had been ever since every female influence that wasn't his daughter, had stopped working in it. The Professor plodded along the walls of inventions and projects, most half-finished, or covered in rust, meaning they'd never be finished. He paused, at an open book, and an illustration of a black dragon type that was really just a vaguely drawn blob, against a thundering sky.

After a moment, he looked Geralt's way, and stood straighter. "Right, Geralt, ermehem...what was I doing?"

"Styler." He replied in his usual monotone.

The Professor snapped his wrinkled fingers and nodded. "Right, right. I did make a new variation, though I wouldn't exactly call it original. An old friend, Professor Hastings, helped me with the design. He said I was crazy, that it wouldn't have enough power." He opened a drawer then, closed it, then turned the handle on a completely different drawer vertically, and opened that. He reached in and pulled out something that actually surprised Geralt.

It was like a Fine Styler, fit to go on a Ranger's arm, but this one's 'launcher' was shaped like a wolf's head. It was mahogany brown with a reddish tinge, and Geralt held it like a newborn as the Professor gave it to him. "You should have seen his face when I shoved a Rotom inside of it!" Geralt's cliff-like visage broke into a smirk as the old man chuckled. "Brilliant and original, I know, but this way, I didn't need to cannibalize one of my Beyblades to make it work. Yours will shoot a tiny ball of plasma, and with some direction from you, that plasma will encircle and bind whatever Pokémon you need, for as long as your Rotom has energy. It's not very high level though, so…"

The Professor fished through his pockets, and then brought out a small square chip device. "This is essentially a modified, Styler-compatible Exp. Share, that will share the experience it gives among your whole team. Taming them will also give experience, so you don't need to rely solely on your Battle skills to train. You're going to thank me for that someday, Mr. Rock Typed Starter."

Geralt took the Wolf Styler, as he'd mentally dubbed it, and slid it on his arm. A pair of eyes opened where the wolf's were, carved into the device. "Hello there." Geralt said, smirking. "You need a name, don't you...how about...Fangst?" The Rotom in the Wolf Styler nodded, by moving his arm up and down, for him. Geralt blinked, and then looked back to his crazy relative. "I won't forget this. Thanks. I need to head out now...it's a long way to the Ranger Academy, and I need to practice."

"You're welcome, lad." The crotchety old Professor said, as he gave a lazy wave, and watched his grandnephew leave. "Stay in touch, eh?"

Geralt turned his head, nodded, and then exited the lab.

International Ranger Academy - Somewhere East of Route 20, Kalos Region

Geralt Redwood had traveled the length of Unova before reaching the borough of Castelia, and the Inter Regional Airport. His Rockruff, since named Ghost for his lighter coloring and his impressive use of Quick Attack, had grown rapidly once the would-be Ranger began traveling, and using his Wolf Styler to help the people he met along the way. Everything from random rockslides to an actual kidnapping of a farmer's grateful daughter, he had stopped by using his Rockruff, and when that wasn't enough, other Pokémon who happened to be nearby.

He'd studied many techniques with books borrowed from his granduncle, particularly of the Walker family, and their method of calling for the aid of Pokémon in the States. They'd had a family member in the Top Ranger class for decades, and that had continued after the Ranger Union's merge with Interpol.

Geralt tried battling Trainers on the road, but soon learned very quickly that there was a specific kind of Trainer he was good against, while others he was easily beaten by, thanks to the rock type's weaknesses. Ghost overcame his inherent disadvantage a few times but given that he was still young and comparatively untrained, he lost more than he won. Except against Bird Keepers. Those, he had no trouble beating, despite the aerial advantage flying types had. Fangst had also grown in level, and acted as a kind of PokéDex, when it wasn't sleeping. If he controlled a Pokémon that the Professor hadn't archived the data for yet, his Wolf Styler added it to the archive anyways.

Once he arrived in Kalos, Agents of the hybridized Interpol and Ranger Union guided him to a helicopter, which brought him east, deep into the woods, where he noted a surplus of wild Pokémon, surrounding a massive, modern building that had a combined symbol of the Ranger Union atop the IP's golden Pokéball outline adorning the building's front. On the top of the structure was a garden, he assumed, since the roof was obscured by leaves from what looked to be several trees.

Geralt was brought into a room with roughly twenty other people that he soon realized were also Ranger hopefuls. They eyed him longer than most, thanks to his youthful looks and pure white hair. They didn't stare for long though. One of the Agents that Geralt noted worked more for the IP side of the organization than the Ranger Union guided them into an auditorium, and once they were seated, the lights went out, and were focused on the stage.

Geralt knew their speaker immediately, for while age had wrinkled her face, the Flying Ranger had been among the Top Rangers of the world for decades longer than anyone else. "Welcome, new Student Rangers! I'm the Flying Ranger, Wendy. Today, we're going to be giving you uniforms and Training Stylers, as well as a roommate who will share a bunk with you. Tomorrow, your training will begin! When I call your name, come on up and get your things."

Geralt watched quietly as each of the other Ranger Students approached the Top Ranger, and when his name was called, he did the same. If anyone recognized the Redwood name, he didn't hear them murmur about it. When Wendy offered him a Training Styler, he held up his own, and that, got the other students murmuring. "I already have a Wolf Styler. My granduncle is a Professor."

Wendy's brows furrowed, and Geralt quickly inferred that she did not like when people went off script. "That's...not regulation…"

Geralt shrugged, as he took the clothes, leaving her holding the green newbie Styler. "He worked with Professor Hastings on the design and shoved a Rotom inside to compensate for the amount of power needed. Not all of the functions are unlocked yet...but they will be, once Fangst is high enough level."

Wendy, clearly not knowing what to do, looked off-stage. At that point, one of her handlers joined them in the spotlight. He was an older man, brown hair on his top, while the sides and lower back part of his hair had turned silver. He was in a long dark brown trench coat, underneath which he was clad in a suit, the same dark brown shade as his coat.

He smirked at Geralt and put a reaffirming hand on Wendy's shoulder as he spoke. "Seems like we've got an overachiever in you, Mr. Redwood. We'll need to have our Lab take a look at this...but it seems Professor Redwood did a fine job. And using a Rotom...not exactly original as ideas go, but one that we never thought to try!" He chuckled, and then offered Geralt a hand. "You can call me Looker. I used to be an Agent in the field, but since the merge, I've been keeping track of useful Trainers and helping with new Rangers."

Geralt shook the man's hand, nodded awkwardly, and then returned to his seat. Looker continued, the moment his rear touched the chair. "I am the one who will ultimately decide if you are International Ranger material! Remember, your goal is to protect nature, and Pokémon alike. From poachers, from evil gangs, from the kinds of threats you can only imagine, and will likely have to experience to believe. The life of a Ranger these days is not guaranteed to be a long one, but the good you do for our planet will not go unappreciated! Your dorm assignments are in the main hall, outside. Good luck, Rangers. You'll need it."

Geralt followed the others outside to the room assignments, and as he did, he smelled trouble. He figured his Wolf Styler would garner attention. He'd hoped it would be the fun kind, but the fellow student who approached him first had a manner he could only describe as 'snake-like'. He was bald with thin black eyebrows, and his ears were pierced a truly obnoxious number of times, all with different earrings and studs, and no two were alike. Some even seemed to be made for women, but Geralt didn't judge. He was clad in dark purple clothes and had already replaced his jacket with the Ranger Student one, which was a forest green. "Thatsss quite a Styler you have there...Geralt, was it?"

Geralt nodded once, and the man with viper-like eyes continued. He didn't know why exactly, but the hairs on his neck straightened with foreboding. There was something off about this man, but Geralt didn't care to pry. He was here to advance to an Area Ranger as fast as possible. "I've never heard of a...Professssor Redwood...I'll have to have a look on the Pokénet…"

Geralt immediately got the sense that this man, for he seemed several years older than Geralt himself, already knew what he'd find in regard to his relative. Geralt just smirked and met his gaze evenly. "Don't believe everything you read on the Pokénet."

The viper-man arched a thin black eyebrow. "What, do you have a... problem...with factsss, Geralt?" He said, shrugging as he spoke.

Geralt's eyes narrowed, and he raised his tone slightly, as this snake-man subtly insulted one of his more tolerable family members. "You would be amazed at how easily idiots are led astray by what they believe are facts. Good thing our generation was taught how to cite our sources and verify trustworthy information. So we can account for a biased take on such 'facts'." He said, employing actual air quotes. "We wouldn't want our judgement impeded by, say, the bias of a Cult, now, would we? That's how you end up being fleeced like a Wooloo. A fool and his Pokédollar are soon parted."

The long black-haired viper-man sneered, chuckled, and then walked off to find his assigned room. Geralt exhaled and watched his back as he left. Something definitely smelled off about that guy, but he resolved to let the other people here deal with their own issues. He found his own way to the room assignment list and arched a brow at his roommates. Apparently, each room had two bunks, which meant he'd have three other people to deal with, not one. Wonderful.

His bunkmate was a man who went by Greif, and thankfully, he was nothing like the snake in human form he'd encountered in the main hall. Greif was blessed by genetics with a mesomorphic body structure, and the muscles to go with it. He was several years older than Geralt, who was quickly finding he was one of the youngest Ranger hopefuls here. Their roommates were Eskel, a decent enough fellow with blunt features, a blunt attitude, and brown hair, and a lithe sandy blonde man with brown eyes shaped like a cat's, who called himself Levhart.

They were decent enough, as roommates went, but the real excitement came when Levhart noted that Geralt had a Pokémon with him. He brought out Ghost, and gave him some chow, and despite the catlike manner of Levhart, he gave the rock puppy just as many pets as everyone else, and Ghost didn't seem to dislike him, or any of the others. Levhart revealed that he had a partner as well, and surprising almost no one, he brought out a Liepard. Rather than snarling at Ghost, the two had sniffed each other, and then the friendly Rockruff had offered him some of his food, and the dark panther purred, finding no issue in sharing. Eskel didn't have a partner yet, and seemed to sulk when Greif revealed he also had a partner but refrained from taking it out in such a small room. He also refused to divulge what it was, as he found his new roommate's interest amusing, and wanted it to be a surprise.

The next day, after working out who would shower in what order in their shared and tiny bathroom, Geralt's roommates found they were one of the first groups to appear ready to train. The others were all women, and after some bold and friendly reconnaissance from Greif, they learned that the ladies had woken up at the crack of dawn. Geralt eyed them and didn't find one among them that wasn't suitable for his admittedly low standards when it came to women. He'd found that each of them was unique, and thus deserved his whole attention and appreciation, if things turned romantic. Geralt had no intention of starting anything here, though. Romancing coworkers didn't always end well.

A new face greeted them, as they gathered outside the International Ranger Force building. He was dressed like a man straight from Unova's military, clad in camouflaged clothing that was baggy enough to allow a wide range of movement, like most Ranger clothing. Geralt had also adopted the green clothes of the Ranger students, and found them breathable, roomy, and durable.

Their instructor's hair was in a military cut and was seemingly brown or black. His features were intense, and from under his square, black glasses he looked over each of them, as he silently strode down the line. When he reached the end, he half-sighed half-growled. "We have stragglers."

Geralt was amused to see the snake-man and what he assumed were his roommates, all hastily dressed and cleaned. Evidently, they hadn't figured out a system for who showered first. His own roommates had opted to send the quickest first, and Geralt had gone second. Being the largest with the most area to scrub, Greif had gone last.

"Trainees are expected to be presentable and in formation by this time every day, Mister Echis! (Ekk-iss)" Their instructor began, shouting, as was typical with Unovan military types, right in the face of the snake-eyed man. Their instructor stepped back then and began dutifully pacing along their line. "I am your commanding officer. Agent Kriger (Kree-gurr). But you Noobs will call me Sir. Some of you may be under the impression that you are already Rangers in training. You are Not! Until I say otherwise, you are green footed, wet-behind-the-ears, Nooblets! You will not speak, unless I speak to you! You are not dismissed for the day, until I say you are! Am I understood!?"

Greif and Geralt replied loudest with "Yes sir!" While the rest of the line seemed to mumble, unsure. The females in particular did not seem thrilled with Kriger. Kriger gave Geralt and Greif a slight nod, and then turned his harsh eyes to the rest of the line. "I ASKED IF YOU UNDERSTOOD!"

That, got a much louder 'Yes sir!' from the rest of the line, at which point, Kriger continued. "Before we begin today, I want to see what you Noobs have on your belts. I was told not all of you have figured out how to catch a Pokémon apparently. So those of you who lack balls may proceed over to the Flying Ranger. Wendy will show you how it's done." When the people lacking Pokémon were slow to move, the vein on Kriger's forehead throbbed and he shouted, "Move it! Move it! Move it!" And then muttered under his breath about having to waste half a day on getting Pokémon for mostly grown adults.

Geralt gave Eskel a sympathetic look, and then snapped his eyes forward again, as Kriger came up to him, upon seeing Geralt's eyes move anywhere but forward. "I know you. The Nooblet with a Professor for an uncle. I heard his connections are what got you here. It sure as Hell wasn't your grades."

Geralt shrugged his shoulders slightly vertically from his best attempt at 'standing at attention'. "The Professor always told me, that school was for idiots. I decided to use my time studying Top Rangers and their techniques, Sir!"

Kriger seemed to nod, "Well, at least you had enough sense to prepare. We'll see how that works out for you, Nooblet." Kriger sighed, and then saw Geralt's wrist as his eyes drifted over the Nooblet before him. "What in the name of almighty Arceus is on your wrist?"

Geralt held up the Wolf Styler for his inspection, and noted every single other Ranger trainee was also watching. He resisted smirking. His Gruncle was likely going to start a trend. Kriger eyed the wolf-headed Styler, and then jumped back, as Fangst manifested his eyes, and winked one at the extremely well muscled and shredded Agent. This close, it was easy to see the man exercised constantly.

"Boy...is that a Rotom in your Styler?" Kriger said, getting right in Geralt's face.

"Sir, yes it is, sir! My Granduncle made the Styler, and the Rotom powers it. Sir." Geralt met the man's glasses-covered gaze evenly, and while one might expect irrational anger from this type of instructor, the stereotype was proven false. Kriger seemed reasonable, rational, the kind of man who demanded excellence, but wasn't deranged enough to break the students under him mentally, emotionally, and physically just to get a blank tablet to mold. Geralt was glad he was the instructor for his class. That was exactly the kind of person he'd wanted, as he intended to excel in every possible way, and this kind of instructor would promote him for that. Ghost was similarly motivated, especially once Geralt had gone into details about the Rangers, and how important they were to a planet ruled by greed and inundated with Pokémon.

Kriger looked Geralt up and down again, and then shook his head. "Well...that's just crazy enough to work, actually. You said you were a Redwood, right? Like the ranch milk they sell in Pokémarkets? I've never heard of a Professor Redwood."

Geralt nodded. "He specialized in chasing down mythical Pokémon even more based in conspiracy and rumor than Mew or Celebi, sir. He was never very famous, but he can be clever. Sir."

Kriger eyed the Wolf Styler again, and then nodded. "We'll see. Alright then. Show us your balls, Redwood. I was told you actually have a pair."

"Well, Fangst doesn't really like coming out of the Styler...but I do have Ghost." He tossed the recolored Ultra Ball, that was now essentially just a Premier Ball with a black outline, and Ghost appeared. Geralt heard several chuckles, as the Rockruff with lighter coloring than perhaps was normal appeared, and stared up at Kriger, unfazed.

Kriger's glasses-covered eyes rose slowly, menacingly, towards the arrogant Nooblets that dared to chuckle while he inspected a Trainee's balls. The jokers wisely straightened to attention, mimicking Grief and Geralt, and Kriger looked back at the Rockruff. He crouched down to Ghost's level, and the rock puppy blinked at him, nose twitching as its hypersensitivity told the Pokémon all he'd ever need to know about the human before him. His tail started to wag, and Kriger's stoney demeanor cracked, with a smirk. He gave the Rockruff scritches on his rocky neck collar, and then stood. The smirk was already gone. "You have a good partner, Nooblet. But you both have a long way to go. You'll have to work to catch up almost as hard as the Ball-less Nooblets over there." He said, jerking a thumb towards Wendy, and her group.

Geralt met the man's gaze intensely, and nodded. "I intend to, sir!"

Kriger chuckled softly, and mostly to himself, before turning to the rest of the line. "Now that is motivation, people! You there, Nooblet Grief! I heard you only have half a pair! Let's see what you've got."

Grief smirked. "One ball is all I need to get the job done, sir!" He brought out a strangely styled ball then, and Geralt's brow furrowed. It was kind of a common practice to match a Pokémon's ball to their pattern, but this pattern had him stumped. It was a Luxury Ball, that much he knew, but it was a light golden color on the top, still black on the bottom half of the ball, with hints of red, tawny, purple, and green ringing the ball's top and lower half.

In a flash of golden light, it appeared, sparkling as it roared. Geralt stared in disbelief at the Shiny Silvally, as did Ghost and even Kriger. Most serious Trainers knew of Gladion and the Aether Foundation's Pokéstein project gone right. Geralt had been a fan of his style when Gladion had made it rather far in the World Tournament. He'd seen a Silvally, but this one seemed quite different. The tail was more reminiscent of a Pyroar's, and a massive pair of light golden wings were folded against the Pokémon's back, the same color as its head, though the tips were white, and would presumably change color as well.

Kriger stared at Grief, and then lowered his glasses, revealing calculating blue eyes beneath them, as he met the Silvally's gaze. The others all murmured now, and Geralt couldn't blame them. A Shiny Silvally was unheard of, as the RKS system designers at the Aether Corp. had been sued, heavily, by the Fornian government for daring to try to create or replace the Alpha Pokémon with a cheap knockoff. Ultimately, it had actually been Gladion who testified to the legitimacy of Silvally as a Pokémon, and therefore worthy of the basic rights the Earth had agreed to give them, in this modern era. No more were supposed to have been made, and as Geralt guessed at its strength, he figured it was either a prototype, or an upgrade from the few Silvally that had been seen across the world.

Kriger went down the rest of the line then, though nobody could upstage a golden, winged, Silvally. Echis revealed what he called a Muertan Arbok, a regional variant from Selva Muerta and the Dark Continent that had grown to a massive size of twenty feet in length. Its pattern was a disturbing depiction of a grinning human skull in black, yellow, red, and orange. Kriger frowned, as it hissed and made to bite at him. Echis's roommate, a bear of a man called Bjorn, brought out a fully grown male Ursaring that was taller, and shaggier than most, marking it as being from the Mediterra mountain range.

Geralt heard Ghost growl, and glanced down, before he noticed that the Ursaring had locked eyes on the Rockruff with an expression that suggested rage. Wondering how many of his fellow 'Noobs' could barely control their partners, he calmed Ghost with a few pets, and then stood rapidly, before Kriger noticed.

Once everyone's balls had been emptied, Kriger moved back to pacing before them, and their partners. "Today, we're going to introduce you Noobs to something I like to call The Killer. Everyone else just calls it the Trail but...The Killer is more accurate." The Agent said, giving a rare grin to the fresh crop of Nooblets. "Both you and your partners will run this course together. You will need your Stylers to advance. You will run this course every day, until you can complete it within the allotted time. Then, you will run it until you can break an average Ranger's time. As you may or may not be aware, we've been inundated with requests to join since our merge with Interpol. We are not lacking for bodies anymore, and the decision has been made to accept only the best."

Kriger proceeded to outline the trail then, for by that point Wendy had returned with the others, and a map. Geralt was selected as one of the people to help the Pokéless candidates catch something, and thus, he and Eskel were paired, and sent to one of the mountains on the western edge of the Mediterra Mountain Range. The Killer began several miles away from their home building, and the trail itself went across two massive mountains, similar to the one Geralt and Eskel went to, to find a suitable Pokémon.

Their search took them most of the day, but finally, Ghost smelled something, and led them to another Rockruff. The two sniffed each other's butts, as Geralt and Eskel watched with amusement. "What do you think?" Geralt said, gesturing. "Do you want a Rockruff? They're pretty useful, and our time is almost up. I'm amazed we didn't find anything else up here." He looked around again at the view from the slope, and got a good look at most of Kalos. He could even make out Lumiose Tower in the far, far distance.

"A Rockruff is good enough for me. Lycanroc are pretty strong, right?" Geralt nodded, and Eskel brought out his ball. "I guess I throw it now...oh, wait, Geralt, have Ghost attack it first."

Hearing this, Ghost turned and snorted at Eskel, who blinked, and looked at the still-bemused Geralt. "Maybe you should try what I did, and just ask if it wants to come with you. Give it this." He brought out a Sitrus berry then, and handed it to Eskel. Both Rockruff wagged their tails, and Ghost's slowed and went limp as Eskel greeted, and then treated the wild Rockruff to some food.

The lighter colored Rockruff came back to Geralt, and whined, and Geralt chuckled, before tossing him an Oran berry. Ghost returned to his new friend's side then, and the two nommed, as Eskel made his best attempt at convincing the pupper to come along. Ghost also helped, and Geralt walked over as well, giving him pets and scritches as the two rock puppers ate their berries. Seeing how strong Ghost was, and how kind comparatively the humans appeared to be, the wild Rockruff yipped, once it was done, and entered Eskel's ball. It dinged shut, and the two humans sighed in relief.

"Maybe now, Kriger won't kill us for taking so long." Eskel said, sounding hopeful.

Several Weeks Later…

Kriger had, infact, decided that the two Nooblets had taken their sweet time on purpose, and after only coming back with one Rockruff, a pretty young one no less, he had made Geralt and Eskel run The Killer until the next morning. He almost made them do a new day of training as well, but Wendy reminded him that the Rangers had rules, and the pair had earned an eight hour rest.

In eight hours exactly, to the minute, one of Kriger's Agents had come to get them, only to find the two men were dressed already, recovered, and their partners were fed. They joined the rest of the group on The Killer, and because of their 'tardiness' Kriger had the entire class run the course longer, until Geralt and Eskel also had at least sixteen hours of exercise. From then on at least, they were caught up, and each day they found that they could do more and more of the obstacles without needing to rely on their Stylers.

The Pokémon that inhabited The Killer tended to be too strong for a School Styler, or even Geralt's Wolf Styler, most of the time. When he did manage to tame something, like a flying type, he used it to ferry over the rest of the group as well. The ones that were able to keep up with the head of the pack, at least.

Those who fell behind usually arrived just as Fangst ran out of energy, and the wild Pokémon became wild again. Geralt always thanked them for their aid, but after that, they usually took off quickly, to avoid the other Ranger hopefuls. Within the first two weeks, several candidates had washed out, and left for Kalos on their own power. Geralt's roommates, and the majority of the females in the class, tended to stick together and made a pretty effective team as they did.

Echis, Bjorn, their roommates, and less of the girls made up the other 'team' and while they were slower, their methods of traversal usually left lasting paths through The Killer that they hid for themselves, and used later. Eskel had named his Rockruff Varg, and both he and Ghost grew stronger, and bigger, as the weeks went by. Varg even evolved one night, howling wildly at the moon as he did, and became a Midnight Lycanroc. He and Eskel practiced sparring then, and though evolution gave Varg an advantage, Ghost managed to make most of their battles a draw by relying on his speed. He never had enough power to beat the fully evolved Lycanroc though.

Ghost also evolved, eventually.

It was as Geralt and Ghost were doing some extra time on The Killer that he came across the first hint of his greater destiny. She appeared, in the form of a twelve year old girl, lost, running, and clearly in trouble. Ghost had actually been the one to lead Geralt to her, by suddenly dashing off the trail between obstacles into the brush, and the first thing Geralt noted about the twelve year old was that her hair was as white as snow. She stumbled and rolled into the brush as Ghost came upon her, and yipped. She groaned, finding a hand in her field of vision, as Geralt offered to help her up. "Hello there…" He said, giving his best attempt at a smile as she cautiously took the offered hand, after glancing at the symbol on his uniform. "I'm Geralt, a Ranger Student. Are you lost, kid? You shouldn't be on these mountains alone."

"My name is Ciri," She started, sounding every bit as petulant as Geralt recalled twelve year olds being, "I'm not lost...just...turned around...some weird old guy with pink hair and a lab coat tried to capture me. He appeared out of a weird pink portal, and then said he had to kill me! I haven't been able to find my friend since I ran away."

Geralt nodded, and a smirk broke his expression as Ghost nuzzled the girl, and she gave him scritches in return. "Who is this friend of yours?"

Ciri looked the Ranger over again, and a small smile broke through the fear and adrenaline as Ghost demanded belly rubs, and twitched his leg as soon as her hands made contact. "She goes by Triss. She was taking me somewhere that...could teach me. I'm...psychic, or something. Apparently."

Geralt arched his brow, "Seriously? That's...pretty cool. Can you...move things with your brain?"

Ciri chuckled. "No...Triss said I have a lot of potential, but I don't know...studying seems boring. What are you doing out here anyways, and why are you so sweaty?"

Geralt gave the small child a confident smirk. "I was training. Now, I'm helping you find your friend before that weird guy shows up again. What does she look like?"

Ciri looked Geralt over once more, one hand on her chin, and her young features shifted into a smirk. "She's around your age, I think...red hair…very...erm...curvy. Yea...I think you two should meet."

Geralt's other brow joined his first raised one, and then he gazed upwards at the trees. "Red hair...should be easy enough to spot. Do you have anything that belongs to her? Something Ghost could track by smell?"

"She lent me these clothes...they still smell like her perfume." Ciri said, eyeing the rock puppy. "Are you sure he'll be able to find her?"

Geralt just smirked. "He'll be fine. Ghost." The Rockruff rolled to attention as his Trainer said his name. "Sniff Ciri. Her clothes. Try to find that scent. We'll get her to safety."

The Rockruff did as instructed then, sniffing the girl's shirt, arms, legs, and even crotch. There were many smells to sort through, and many were unfamiliar. The girl turned red as Ghost found the scent, but Geralt was too busy scanning the woods for a flash of red, or pink, to notice. "I'm going to get a better view...Ghost, keep her safe."

The Rockruff yipped, and then sat next to the girl, looking up at her as his tongue lolled, and he panted. He was also rather sweaty. His tail wagged as she pet him once more, and it was moments before he was again in belly rub heaven.

Geralt climbed one of the closer tall trees, and then looked around, specifically in the direction Ciri had barreled in from. When he saw nothing, he switched to his ears then, and listened. On the wind, came a voice, calling. It sounded female, and the word it was shouting was 'Ciri!'. It was an echo though, which meant her friend was likely in a valley, beneath the canopy.

Geralt mentally traced Ciri's most likely path from the direction she'd come, and diverted his eyes to the nearest valley. Then, he caught it. A flash of crimson among the green, remarkably close to the part of The Killer that went between the two Mediterra mountains that made up the course.

Geralt leapt down branch to branch easily, using their species' affinity for grabbing branches to guide and safely direct his momentum. He rolled as he landed, and sprung up to his feet, unharmed. "I've got a direction, and Ghost has the scent. Let's go."

Geralt followed his Rockruff as they headed for the valley part of The Killer, an area with quite a few obstacles meant to improve strength and agility. Luckily, they'd already done those courses, and getting back to where they'd been distracted from wouldn't be too difficult. They trekked for several hours as they descended, and Geralt almost forgot Ciri was there, until she complained, or almost fell. Several times, Fangst's capture energy whip had wrapped around her to keep her from tumbling down the mountain.

She was a quick learner though, and after the second time that happened, she copied what Geralt did, eyeing the ground's terrain as they descended. It was around that time that she finally asked a question. "So Geralt...do you have a girlfriend? You must be pretty popular with that jawline and Ranger status."

"I do alright." He muttered, staying focused on his path of descent. He knew Ghost had the scent now, but his partner's tail was upright, stiff, and he was sniffing constantly at the air around them.

When he didn't say anything else, the twelve year old pushed for more. "Is that a 'no' then?"

"You should focus on your footwork." He answered, smirking. Several moments of silence passed, and Ciri gave an exasperated sigh. "No. No girlfriend." He said, finally relenting. He subtly eyed the girl's face, and she seemed pleased by his answer for some reason. He didn't get why. She was twelve, and he would likely have a steady partner by the time she was old enough. Even then, a romance between them would be weird after having met her as a child. As a rule, Geralt tried to keep romantic partners within five years of himself.

They didn't speak again until they reached the bottom of the valley. Noticing she was panting rather hard, Geralt broke the silence. "It's late. Almost dawn. We can rest for a bit, but not too long. It gets cold out here without constant movement."

Ciri found a rock to perch on, and as she recovered, Ghost approached for more belly rubs. Geralt chuckled, after taking a sip from his Ranger canteen, and passing it to her. "He likes you. Normally only I can pet his belly, and only when he's good."

Ciri took a swig, and then looked at the Rockruff, splayed before her. "Is that why you love these so much? Does your Trainer not give you enough love?" She started scratching again, tossing the canteen back to him, as she used both hands.

Suddenly, Geralt whirled, as there was a snapping sound of a twig from somewhere around them. Ghost sat up as well, ears and tail up and alert. "Fangst." He said, and his wrist began to glow, as his Rotom powered up.

Ciri watched the Wolf Styler's eyes glow an ominous red, but all she could say was, "Cooool…"

"Shh." Geralt replied, glancing around. Ghost barked, and Geralt whirled towards where his Rockruff was looking. Instead of a redhead, out of the foliage came an old man. His hair was pink, his lower lip was covered in some sort of semi-perpetual pink slime, and he had a lab coat, like a scientist or a Professor. He was stumbling around like he was very drunk and had the eyes of a man who hated his existence, or perhaps, what he was about to do to preserve said existence.

His pink monobrow rose as he saw Ciri. "Finally. It's about *belch* daaamn time. Stay still, girlie...making this not *belch* huuurt is the least...I can do." The pink haired man shakily raised an object that looked suspiciously like a grocery store scanner at her, and Geralt and Ghost slid between them and the man's unsteady aim. The man lowered the device, and Geralt could tell he was properly wasted, likely from alcohol imbibement. "Thank you for finding my, uh, granddaughter, Ranger. I'll take her from here." He looked Geralt over more, and a smirk formed on the man's face that was downright sleazy as he saw the trainee uniform. "Heheh... You should get back to your training, Nooblet. Kriger doesn't like slackers."

Geralt's eyes narrowed. "It's my day off...how do you know about Kriger?"

The old man waved his hand. "It doesn't *belch* maaaatter. I'd like to get home before the sun rises...now, hand over my granddaughter."

Ciri spoke up then, "I'm not your granddaughter! I don't even know you! Where's Triss?"

"Triss? She's uh...at the helicopter. Waiting for us. We *belch* aaare going home now little lady…"

Geralt interposed himself between the man with a persistent burp and Ciri, and Ghost did the same with a snarl, that made him pause. "Ciri says she doesn't know you...go get Triss, and I'll believe you, old man. We'll wait right here. Otherwise, she's not going anywhere."

The old man gave a deep sigh as he pinched his brow, and his face and demeanor changed to something more serious as his posture straightened, and his eyes became those of a sad killer. "I'm tired of this charade...give me the *belch* giiiirl, Ranger. You have no idea what she is…"

Ghost snarled, and Geralt's expression mirrored his. "She's twelve…" He said exasperatedly, "She isn't old enough to warrant death...I don't care what she's done."

The man glared at Ciri as she'd apparently blabbed, and then met Geralt's gaze again. His eyes had gone from drunk and unfocused to cold and hard in the space of a moment. "She told you that huh? It's not about what she's *belch* dooone, it's about what she's *belch* gooooing to do! You think I want to do this? She's younger than my *belch* graaaaandson, but the future, man...the future needs to happen. It's too dope to let *belch* diiiiie. You're interfering in things that are beyond your comprehension, Nooblet...she's dangerous. The Lady of Time and Space *belch* muuuust not mature…" The old man took a similar stance to Geralt then and leveled the device he'd pulled from his lab coat pocket at the Ranger. It was white, shaped like a grocery scanner, and had a small pink crystal in a glass sphere atop the device. "Last chance, kid. *belch* Steeeehhp aside. Only one of you has to end here."

Geralt snarled this time, "Over my moldering corpse…"

"So be it…" The old man said, eyes closing. He pointed the device to his right side, and Ghost began to charge for a Crunch attack, as dark energy limned his tiny fangs. The device glowed, and shot forth a ball of pink energy, opening a similarly pink swirling hole in reality a few feet from the old man.

Through the portal, came a creature of frost and nature, a combination of ice and grass typing. An Abomasnow, and one that was already in its Mega Form. As it stepped out of the portal, the air around the three humans turned frosty. Shards of ice crystals filled the air, as the mere presence of the Mega Abomasnow turned the surrounding pair of mountains into the middle of a truly massive blizzard. "Obamasnooooow!" The old man shouted, getting its attention as the wind began to howl and swirl.

"Sheer Cold." The old man said as he pointed at Ghost, and the Abomasnow answered with "Abomaaaaa!" As a wall of ice formed from the snow in the air, and surged towards Geralt, Ghost, and Ciri.

Ghost broke off his charge, and tried to dodge, but it was too little too late. Or, it would have been, if a new and female voice hadn't shouted at that moment, "Phoxi! Flaire! Fire Blast!" A twin pair of vaguely human shaped five-pointed fire attacks slammed into the sheer cold, and exploded into shards of ice, and mist that filled the area amid the hail.

From the collision came a woman that Geralt's granduncle would've described as a 'perfect ten' as he'd been partial to redheads. Ciri had not lied either, as she was quite curvy, and quite beautiful. Geralt only had a moment to admire her though, before he focused, and sent Ghost in. "Ghost, Quick Attack! Don't let it power up again!"

Triss and Ciri called each other's names, and met with a hug, behind Geralt. For his part, Ghost had smashed into the Mega Abomasnow's face, and continued to zip by, nipping and hammering the larger Pokémon with each consecutive Quick Attack. He was doing well, until the old man spoke again. "Enough. Obama*belch*snoooow, use Ice Punch!"

The mega evolved Pokémon moved before Ghost could even attempt a dodge, and the Infinity powered super effective move hammered the tiny rock puppy, freezing it in a block of ice, before sending him hurtling away, where he stuck in the ground.

Ciri had evidently explained who he was to Triss, because she shouted at him, as Ghost went flying. "Geralt! I'll get her to safety. Use my Flareon!"

Geralt nodded, and then looked at the Flareon, who nodded at him. "Alright then. Flamethrower!"

Triss gave a command to her Delphox as well. "Phoxi, Teleport us back!"

"Nooo!" The old man yelled, but it was too late. The quadruple effective move hit the Abomasnow, and burned it. By the time it could counter, the Delphox, her Trainer, and the child had vanished, leaving Geralt and the borrowed Flareon to stall the old man.

"Who even are you...why are you trying to murder a child!?" Geralt asked, and the old man sighed.

"Obamasnow...go home. Eat a berry or somethin'." The mega evolved Pokémon suffering from its burn did so, limping through the pink portal, and vanishing as it closed. There was a definite change in tone, now that his prize was gone. The old man was calm, but Geralt could see the irritation growing in his eyes. Just summoning a fully mega evolved Pokémon to the field was unheard of.

"My name is *belch* Riiiick. Rick Sanchez. I'm trying to keep the multiverse from imploding, Noob. Quadrillions of lives will be snuffed out if we let that little monster live, and *belch* groooow to maturity. Aren't you Lawful Good types supposed to want to avoid massive *belch* caaaaalamity? Time and Space already have masters, and unlike her, we can control our *belch* poooowers." Rick put his hands in his pockets, as he determined deterring the Ranger with logic would be more useful than battling with the injured Abomasnow.

"So teach her control!" Geralt said, finding he'd come to like the kid in their short time together, and didn't want her to die. "If you already know how to control some aspect of her power, show her how it's done."

Rick sighed. "It's *belch* noooot that simple...that's not how it works, and I don't have time to explain it to a Nooblet. That girl is going to become a monster. It's her fate, Ranger. Right here, right *belch* nooooow, is when she needs to be stopped. The Shadow cannot be allowed to infect her…"

Geralt's eyes narrowed. "Shadow? What? You're not making sense, Rick Sanchez...and this is no justification for the murder of a child. Under the authority of the International Ranger Force, you are under arrest for attempted murder."

Rick simply sighed, and then pulled out a non-copyright Pokéball from his pocket. "I'm *belch* noooot subject to your laws. Beth. Eliminate all of them...then come and find me." He fired another portal into existence, tossed the ball, and then walked through. A Porygon Z appeared as the portal closed, and Geralt opened the new battle immediately. "Fire Blast!"

Geralt paused hopefully, as the blast of flame landed, but didn't seem to do much. It was then that he realized this Porygon Z was very high leveled, and neither Flaire nor Ghost could hope to contend with it as they were now. It glowed a bright white, that then shifted to blue, and sank back into the Porygon Z. Strong as it was, it had chosen a type resistant to fire, and with a type advantage, upon using Conversion 2.

Guessing at Flaire's moveset, and hoping Triss was a decent Trainer, Geralt shouted, "Flaire! You need to use Dig!" The Flareon looked back at Geralt with an expression that just seemed...impressed, and then winked at him, before leaping into the air, and spinning down into the ground. Geralt raised a clenched fist before him and shouted, "Yes!" As the move worked.

Unfortunately for Geralt, he could not possibly hope to know the significance of the man who had actually created this Porygon Z, or why he'd done so, and thus could not anticipate what happened next. The Porygon Z floated over the hole left by Dig, looked down, and began screeching. "REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" The faint blue of the acquired Conversion 2 typing was gathered by Beth's psychic power, and focused into the base of her Hyper Beam, essentially creating a very convincing replica of Hydro Cannon.

Guessing what was about to happen wasn't good, Geralt shouted, "Flaire! Aim for Ghost!" The light around them in the small, wooded clearing grew bright then, as the sun rose over the horizon of the eastern opening of the valley. Time seemed to slow for the Ranger, as several things happened at once. The Porygon Z fired its water lazor into the hole left by Dig, but in the moments it took for the move to pass through Flaire's winding spiral of tunnels, the Flareon broke the surface with Dig, and hammered the ice around Ghost.

The frozen Rockruff was tossed into the air, right as Flaire was hammered by the force of the Hydro Cannon. She fainted, and had a hard landing, as the pressure of the attack had propelled her into the air. Her sacrifice had not been in vain, however.

Ghost's ice shell, rather sturdy as it had been endowed by a Mega Abomasnow, had cracked just enough for the Rockruff to move his paw, and then, the rest of him. As the icy prison shattered from his efforts, his eyes went wide. Varg had, like Ghost, not known which Lycanroc he wanted to become. When he did finally advance, he had done so because it felt right. In that moment under a full moon, he had felt the urge to become a midnight fighter.

Ghost felt a similar urge now. He didn't quite know what he would become, as Varg had, for it was not quite Day, and well past Midnight. If anything, he would call that moment a Dawn. As the sun rose further, the ice around him from Obamasnow's attacks and Snow Warning glowed as white as his body did, as they created a Sun Dog in the atmosphere. That ice became a part of Ghost, as he evolved into what would become known as the Dawn Form of Lycanroc.

Geralt simply watched in awe, and felt a bit of hope as well, as he saw his Rockruff evolve. Seeing a Midnight Lycanroc in action had caused a bit of envy, and he didn't mind being like Eskel, since by his reckoning it was still night. The two had become good friends over the grueling weeks on The Killer, and two Midnight Lycanroc would be quite hard to beat.

He blinked though, as the light faded, and then, noticed the sun. About twenty-two degrees to the left and right of the Sun were subtly colored patches of light, orbiting it like a pair of mini suns. In the light of those 'three suns' he found his Rockruff had indeed become a Lycanroc, but his form still resembled the Midday Form. His fur was snow white, the tips of his ears were red, and his mane had spikes of ice, not rock, jutting from it. His mane resembled the Day Form more than the Dusk Form's did.

Or at least, it started that way. As he landed, Ghost began to snarl, and grow. It was an almost horrifying process to watch, but the end result was a heavily muscled, ice-covered Midnight Form Lycanroc, standing on two legs. Ghost was hunched by the weight of the wildly growing ice crystals on his mane, and as he focused on the Porygon Z, he Howled, and then leaned forward, relieving his back of ice crystals in the form of a hail of icy shards. They tore through the Porygon Z and seemed to do at least slightly more visible damage than the Fire Blast.

The crystals on Ghost's coat began to regrow, but Geralt noticed his shoulders were fused to the icy mane that ringed his neck. His movements would be awkward, but powerful, in this form. "Ghost!" Geralt flinched as he finally noticed his Pokémon's new eyes. They were yellow in this form, with vertical black slits curved like a crescent moon. Geralt gave his Pokémon a smirk, and said, "Try a Dark Typed Move." He turned and pointed. "Use Crunch!"

Ghost snorted a cloud of ice at him and leapt forward with impressive speed. It wasn't Crunch he used, though, as he closed in on the Porygon Z. It began trying to power Conversion 2 again, but Ghost hit first. He leapt, and spun his entire body to his right, rotating through the air as a red and black tornado of energy poured off of him like flames, and spun him faster. Geralt was a savvy enough Trainer, and a fan of Royal Mask, so he recognized a horizontal Darkest Lariat. Evidently, his Lycanroc, like the others, had learned a move upon evolving.

Ghost wasn't done though, for as he landed on all fours, he shifted his weight effortlessly, and spun again like a horizontal tornado of icy claws through the air and hit Beth once more. He repeated this several times, as the Porygon Z tried to use Conversion 2, but couldn't. Ghost didn't give it enough time to do so, and by the seventh hit, she finally fainted.

The Porygon Z crumbled to pieces, and Geralt left it, as he approached Ghost. He was still panting raggedly, and snarling. While he'd been beating 'Beth' senseless, Geralt had saved Flaire, namely by expending one healing item after another. It had taken several Revives, Hyper Potions, and berries, but the Flareon in his arms was alive.

"Ghost." The Midnight reminiscent Lycanroc whirled towards him, and Geralt noticed the eyes softened as they saw Flaire. "You need to calm down, Ghost. Try taking that other form you had." The Lycanroc stared at him for a full minute as he breathed raggedly, before he nodded, and closed his eyes. Geralt exhaled a breath of relief, as he watched his partner return to 'normal'. He was still massive, at least several feet taller than the average Day Form, but his demeanor was closer to what Geralt expected of his partner.

As Geralt came closer with Flaire, Ghost leaned down, and it was as his large white body lowered into his range of vision that the Ranger realized he could totally ride atop his Lycanroc. He had the sudden and inexplicable urge to try the Wolf Styler while he rode, but he paced himself. Wolves were not horses, and probably weren't easy to ride.

He climbed atop Ghost and looked around. "Take us to Ciri." The icy wolf nodded, and then closed his eyes, as he focused on his incredible hearing and sense of smell. The yellow eyes, still as ferocious as they were at night, shot open, and Ghost let out a chilling howl that split the night, before he ran across the lightly snow-covered mountains. Geralt quickly realized, as they found themselves back on The Killer, that he could set a course record if he figured out what obstacles Ghost couldn't easily handle in his new form.

The massive white wolf veered suddenly, and then seemed to leap out over a cliff edge, only to fly through the barrier of psychic energy, hiding the scene within. Geralt had a moment to take it in, and all he had time to do, was point. Ghost had intruded violently upon Rick, dragging an unconscious Ciri, towards a pink portal. Around them was what appeared to be a cave, instead of a cliffside.

As Ghost saw the finger in his upper vision focus on the girl, and not the enemy, he rumbled out a sigh, and snapped at Rick's hand. The weird old man had a second to consider, his hand or his target, before his limb retracted, and dropped the girl, who was quickly snatched up by the wolf's jaws. From the look in that Lycanroc's eye, Rick knew even he might have trouble surviving once it got a hold of him.

Ghost dragged Ciri over to the equally unconscious Triss, and her Delphox. Geralt used his last revive on the psychic fire fox, as Ciri saw to Triss. Once Phoxi came to, Geralt moved to help Ciri, and got his first out-of-combat look at Triss. He noted that surrounding her fair features were mechanical implants of some description, but he knew just by sight that the Imperium of Man was responsible for creating them. That likely meant they were for prolonging life or enhancing her some other way.

His brows furrowed, as he straightened her, and found her gold and red robes marked with two insignias. A red and gold twin headed eagle that shared a body, with a pair of lightning bolts coming down beside its tail, and on her left, an image of a black tower embedded in what had to be a Mediterran mountain, against a background of the purple he and the rest of society most commonly associated with psychic types.

"Enjoying the view?" Came Ciri's mocking tone as she saw where his eyes appeared to be wandering.

Geralt blinked, then looked at her. "Do you know where she's taking you?

Ciri shrugged. "I erm...had an accident, back home. It set off an... alarm or something...so now, I have to go with Triss, or...well, die."

Geralt pinched his brow. "Small child, why is everyone trying to kill you?"

It was as her eyes became shinier and her tone went up in pitch that Geralt's ears lowered, and he realized he might've been a bit too blunt. "I don't knooow...I didn't ask for this…"

Geralt put a hand on her shoulder before the tears could flow and stared her down. "If you can't control your power, the obvious choice would be to learn how, from someone who knows, right? Once you do, if you don't like what they're teaching you, if they treat you badly, if you want out, you let me know. Through psychic dreams. Or a letter." He blinked. "Ah, right, no, I have a Holoceiver...somewhere…" He brought out a small black and silver device then and shook it. "I'll give you the number for this. Make sure whatever you call from can't be traced."

Ciri nodded quietly and sniffed. Geralt wrote down the number and shoved it in her hand. "Don't let them find that. Once you memorize it, burn it." She nodded again, and Geralt waited until she'd hidden the paper away to retrieve his smelling salts and replace his Holoceiver.

Triss snapped awake after a few moments and blinked. Before her was a rather handsome stubble-covered Ranger in trainee clothes and hiking gear, and it took her a minute to recall who he was. She hadn't noticed the handsome features, as last time she'd mainly watched his back. She felt her Flareon lick her face, as her Delphox conjured what seemed to be some sort of barely visible psychic force, that Triss leaned against, as she sat up. "Ciri? Didn't...didn't he grab you?"

Ciri nodded. "Ghost came to save us." She waggled her eyebrows then, and smirked. "And so did Geralt."

Triss met Geralt's gaze then, and to their onlookers, the air between them almost seemed to smolder, that is, until a massive ice wolf came over to the small child, and licked her cheek, after hearing his name. Triss stared. "Oh...wow...is that...is that the little Rockruff that took a punch for us?" She eyed him over, and it was Geralt's turn to smirk, as he knew the expression on his partner's face. It seemed the white wolf didn't mind her eyes. "You sure got...big. Thank you for saving us."

Ghost glanced at Geralt, who shrugged. "All I did was point. You got us here in time. You grabbed Ciri. He would've killed her, Ghost. Well done."

He fished in his bag then, and the serious demeanor of the Dawn Form Lycanroc melted, his massive, ice-crystal covered tail swishing with a pleasant jingle as he realized what Geralt was retrieving. Only good things came from that pocket. Ghost panted, as he realized he was very hungry, and Geralt had unwrapped three of what one of the other Rangers students had called a 'meat bun', a delicacy in her home region. Ghost caught the first two that Geralt threw, and nommed, then caught the third, and made wolf-biscuits as he froze the pile of mashed meaty deliciousness with his breath, and then proceeded to gnaw on it.

Once Triss was able, the two Teleported back to where they'd slept the night before. Apparently, Triss had brought them to a family cabin, when Rick first appeared. It was east far enough to be in Germania's territory, but it was close enough to hike to, from the farthest part of The Killer. Geralt and Ghost returned back to base in time to log their extra hours, and essentially rest all day, as was mandatory. He would resume normal mid-week training the next day, but once he'd rested, he had a rare amount of free time, right as the rest of the slackers returned from the ever-enjoyable first day of the week training.

Apparently Echis and co. had set a new course record, but despite their gloating, the majority of the Ranger students were too busy admiring the rock and ice typed Lycanroc to care. Geralt and Ghost woke up early the next day, and tested which obstacles the massive wolf could do, and which would be slowing. There were many paths through The Killer, but avoiding obstacles usually meant tangling with an impressively strong 'wild' Pokémon that always seemed perfectly equipped to initiate an inescapable drawn-out battle. They were always healed up on the next run through, too.

Once they made it through twice, they had time to nap, before it was time for training. Very quickly, Geralt's group noticed his absence for a second day, as he and Ghost bolted ahead of all of them. Echis had his Arbok using Dig to cruise through the course, as he gave zero Muks about the trail the massive cobra was leaving. Ghost quickly outpaced them as well, and then used his Quick Attack as they came up on the first obstacle, a rickety bridge. Echis could cross it, but it took his Arbok a moment, and that moment was all the Lycanroc and his partner needed to get ahead.

Naturally, Kriger was watching for success, and thus he instituted one of his favorite ploys for crushing excellence, a 'natural' disaster. This time, it was a rockslide that didn't fall on them, but instead blocked their path. Geralt and Ghost could tell it was fresh, as it hadn't been there earlier that morning, but neither seemed worried, as Ghost didn't stop. "Darkest Lariat."

Once more, Ghost rotated, and Geralt clung for dear life to the ice jutting from his mane on his back, as his Lycanroc leapt into the air and spun his body three hundred sixty degrees through the landslide, clearing the pass for themselves, and those who would follow. After that, they completely outpaced Echis, as their lead was commanding enough for them to catch up to their group as they lapped them, and this time, Geralt and Ghost gave them aid. When they moved past Echis's group stuck trying to pull his titanic Arbok out of a mud pit trap, Geralt and his wolf had winked at the pair, as they helped the others speed through the course.

Geralt broke Echis's record in half thanks to his rapidly growing white wolf and the others in his group had all improved their times as well. Later that night, he was brought to Kriger's office. He was back in his leather jacket, but he'd kept the black Ranger pants. He lived in them these days, and they were absurdly comfortable. "Geralt. You and Ghost have been improving a lot lately, and frankly, I knew as soon as he evolved, you'd excel that much further. You've both beaten the times set by the past Rangers already. Ghost still has training to do, and we're preparing a course to play to his strengths and weaknesses, to essentially toughen him up."

Kriger took off his glasses then, and Geralt met his gaze evenly as he steepled his fingers. "What I am offering to you, and four other Rangers, is the chance to be...something new. I want to turn you into the kind of Human that can keep up with a Pokémon like Ghost on The Killer...I want to see what kind of Ranger such a person could become."

Geralt raised a white eyebrow. "Turn me into what? What are you talking about? How are you going to turn me into anything other than a Ranger?" He sincerely doubted he'd ever keep up with Ghost, but he sensed that this was what Kriger had been waiting for all the long weeks they'd been training. For five individuals to improve enough to be considered for whatever project he had in mind.

"I'll be honest with you...we want to experiment with creating a kind of...empowered Ranger. You know how the Imperium of Man enhances their citizens and warriors? Through implants, and mechanical upgrades? We want to try something similar...albeit, more natural. The process might kill you. It has claimed the lives of many already without a single success. All volunteers, of course...it has taken years, but we are finally ready to perfect the process, and you are one of the ideal candidates. What do you say?" Kriger asked, lowering his hands to the desk. Geralt stroked the beard stubble adorning his face, that was slowly coming in.

"I'd need to know more."

And so, Kriger told him. The idea was to use natural plants, enhanced with Arceus's power, since Pokémon arrived on the planet, and combine them in such a way that they would naturally augment a human's body, making them faster, stronger, able to see in the dark, amongst other abilities. It was not a simple process, it would require some surgery, especially if things went wrong, but the end result promised to turn him and four others into Rangers the likes of which had never been seen before.

Geralt asked who else was being considered and frowned at each name. Greif, Echis, Levhart, and Bjorn. Each of them, Kriger claimed, had both the necessary physical prowess and Pokémon partner for what he and his top scientists, who he refused to name, had in mind for them. Individually, their times on The Killer were the best, but Geralt didn't agree.

"I can understand the others...even Bjorn, but Echis? That guy is the antithesis of everything I was told Rangers stand for. He blasts through the trail without caring what damage his Dig causes, and his Styler...I'm pretty sure he augmented it. Whatever he tames ends up staying paralyzed, once he's done. He tosses aside wild Pokémon allies like tools he's done with." Geralt highlighted his points, and Kriger sighed, nodding as he was forced to agree with the truth.

"Echis has much to learn, you're right...but the results are clear. He has the aptitude. The way this enhancement process works...it requires a certain kind of bond, with a Pokémon. Say what you want about him, he cares for his Arbok. The fact that it hasn't swallowed him whole indicates the snake probably feels something for him, as well. Either way, you and Greif will be first, if you agree to this. When Echis follows, you can try molding him into a better Ranger." Kriger said, crossing his arms as he finished.

Geralt pinched his brow. "Isn't that your job?"

Kriger gave him a grim smirk. "These Nooblets are going to need a leader figure, Geralt. You'll be a... team, of sorts. Like the Ultra Guardians. Someone we can call on when the Muk hits the Fan Rotom, and conventional Trainers can't cut it. You and Echis have never Battled, have you. You're going to need to earn his respect, which will be harder after the process...I would Battle him soon...but watch that Iron Tail. They've been perfecting it ever since Ghost evolved."

Silence reigned then, as Geralt mulled over the man's words. Finally, Kriger spoke again. "Well? Are you interested?"

Several Months Later… - The Mediterra Mountain Range

Geralt ultimately agreed to Kriger's request and had battled Echis as well. Ghost had eventually learned Drill Run, by using the same rotating attacks he did when using Darkest Lariat, but with ground energy, he had easily beaten the poison cobra, and earned a small amount of respect from the snake's Trainer as well.

With training on The Killer becoming easier for certain Rangers more so than others, many started graduating from Nooblets to Noobs, which was what Kriger called Area Rangers. Geralt was one of the ones who stayed, alongside the other five Kriger had mentioned. Eventually, only those five were left, to the confusion of their classmates who were eager to see them advance and succeed.

Geralt and Ghost had moved then, to a different Ranger facility, hidden deep in the Mediterra Mountains. An ancient castle, in the Germanian style of architecture, had been set aside for the experiments that each of Kriger's chosen five had eventually agreed to. The first of these was relatively easy for Geralt. He had to eat a strict diet of processed plants and berries, some poisonous, all while hiking a trail that seemed to be a spiritual successor to The Killer, save that the obstacles were even more ridiculous, to the point of being impassable, if no other Pokémon were around.

The diet alone gave Geralt many weeks of hurling, and sleepless nights. His only friend through that, was Grief, who was going through the same thing. His constitution was heartier though, so the effects faded not long after they arrived at Castle Morgraig. Thus, he was the first to begin the next stage of what Kriger was calling 'The Trials'. Geralt didn't hear from Greif for over a week after that, and soon enough, he was deemed ready for the next stage as well.

Once Geralt's system had adapted to the foul concoction of herbs and whatever else, he was finally brought in to meet the scientists who would be responsible for mutating him into something beyond a human. He recognized two of them from the start but let Kriger introduce them. "First, we have Professor Fennel, an understudy of Professor Juniper. For the majority of the next week, you'll be under the care of Doctor Colress, and his aides, former students of the renowned Professor Rowan."

Geralt, knowing Unovan history fairly well, simply glared at Colress. "Aren't you the guy who helped Team Plasma: Pirate Edition capture and convert part of the Original Dragon into a massive ice cannon that was fired on Opelucid?" Fennel averted her eyes at Geralt's sharp tone, and the other aides either seemed to have not known that tidbit, or were aware of it, but unfazed.

Colress was a thin man, clad in a strange gray suit that covered everything. Legs, chest, even hands were all covered in the same gray material, the only thing free of it was his face, and his halo-like hair flick, dyed blue. He pushed his glasses up with his middle finger, as he cleared his throat. "I was, at the time, seduced by the promise of power Ghetsis said his methods would prove was unbeatable, and yet, a trio of teenagers was able to topple him. Twice. With nothing but hard work, training, and the friendship of Pokémon. Since then, I've devoted my life to uncovering the secret of a Pokémon's true power, the bond we share with them, and the reactions it creates...your Lycanroc, for example...I believe you and he can make each other stronger. We've discovered a way to both enhance your bond and make it much more powerful."

Geralt arched a white eyebrow. "How? What have you learned?"

Colress gave a genuine smile, and Geralt could tell, this was a passion project for him. He seemed on the level now, at least. If he wasn't, he assumed Kriger would have him in handcuffs, not a laboratory. "Historically, the greatest increases to a Pokémon's power have come from Kalos and Galar. Their methods and bonds bring out not just new forms, but new abilities in Pokémon. Sometimes, ones radically different from their final evolutionary stage in a way that Terastallization simply doesn't."

Geralt smirked. "I sense a 'but' coming…"

"But." Colress said, smirking as well, "I discovered a third method of attaining power, one that I believe can transcend even Mega Evolution. During the Dark Times, our scientists, viewed as magicians to common people, were able to use the scientific knowledge of the past to create a series of crystals that were able to contain a Pokémon, much like our Pokéballs. Instead of just holding them however, these crystals induced a fusion between Human and Pokémon alike with a strong enough bond, forming them temporarily into a single being with unlimited potential. With the help of the IRF's Rangers, we have been able to successfully recreate one of these 'Burst Hearts' but as of yet have been unable to make them work. The texts imply psychic power is required to activate them, as well as a strong bond."

Geralt tilted his head. "I'm not exactly psychic, Doc. Nor do I think I want to be, given how close we are to the Imperium."

Colress gave a nervous giggle. "Oh yes. Wise. You don't want the Imperium to ever discover what we're doing here...they'd annihilate us. And our home regions. Thankfully, you don't need to be psychic. We're going to implant a Burst Heart into your chest, after it's bonded with your Lycanroc. You'll be closer than ever before, and if we succeed, I believe that with time, you will fully unlock its potential, and achieve a fusion of Human and Pokémon."

Geralt was quiet, stroking his now nicely growing in white beard as he eyed the floor. It sounded, to him, like Colress had cracked, but then, Kriger was not a man to waste talent like Geralt's on a pipe dream. As salty as the man was, Geralt trusted his intentions, and then met Colress's gaze. "How do we begin?"

"Drink this." Colress said, handing him a large, clay pitcher. "Every drop. Then...give this to your Lycanroc while you sleep." Colress reached inside his weird one-piece techno-suit, and pulled out a hexagonal crystal, glowing with all the colors of Infinity energy.

Geralt stared, as he took the rainbow crystal. He could feel the power running through it, and for the first time, started to wonder if Kriger was on to something. "How...did you even make this?"

Colress tapped his thin nose and winked at the Ranger. "That's a trade secret even my esteemed colleagues don't know, and if I have my way...they never will. I made a promise after all. The knowledge of how to create these...it must never fall into the hands of men like Ghetsis. That's why I destroyed the clues that led me to the secret and have not written down the method to create them anywhere. The only place that information now resides, is in my mind."

Geralt nodded, agreeing with the man, and was now more convinced that he wasn't secretly still evil. It seemed his pursuit of drawing power from Pokémon, while misguided once perhaps, had since found its way back on the path of all that was right and good. That, he could support. "I'll do as you ask. Then what?"

"You're in for a rough night, Ranger...well, more like a rough month, but by the time you're done...you'll be someone new. Come to the lab once the pitcher is empty, if you can. From there, it's up to us, and your body, to succeed." As Geralt stood to turn and leave the dank basement lab, Colress spoke again. "If you wish to back out Geralt, do so before you finish the pitcher. We won't think less of you for doing so."

Hearing that, Geralt paused, and grimaced. "Just what exactly is in this, Doc?"

Colress chuckled. "Oh, you know. Mystical herbs. Mutagenic compounds. That sort of thing. Unfortunately, I can promise you it will Not taste good. In fact, it will likely be overpoweringly disgusting, but I must emphasize the importance of drinking every drop...every candidate that hasn't...died rather quickly in the next stages. Be sure this is your path, before you start swigging."

Geralt turned his head slightly, nodded at the Doctor, and then left. Once back in his private room, he gave Ghost the crystal to hold, and the white wolf seemed enamored with it. Then, Geralt sat on his bed, and held the pitcher. He thought of his family, naturally. He had two little sisters, twins named Gina and Gianna, and a little brother as well, called George, who was older than the infants, but still nowhere near Geralt's age. Apparently, Geralt had been the accidental child, and once his parents immigrated from Germania and settled at the Redwood Ranch, they'd finally had more. The result was a large age gap between him and his siblings. He knew they liked him, looked up to him. Now, he wondered if they'd recognize him the next time he went home.

Assuming he survived.

Ghost watched him stare at the pitcher and whined. It was a questioning inflection, but Geralt knew what he was asking. He would be fine with backing out now, especially after what Geralt had told him of the meeting and scenting the foul liquid within the pitcher. He could live with being an Area Ranger's partner, but Geralt shook his head. "No... we can't turn back now, Ghost. We've trained too hard for this. I want to see where this path of ours will take us...at the very least, I trust Kriger, if not his scientists. There are forces in this world we're going to have to contend with once we get to the top...I want to be ready for them, and whatever they put us through." He smiled at his partner. "You and I will reach new heights that even those eggheads won't recognize."

Ghost gave him a short bark, that Geralt figured meant something along the lines of 'Chug it, then', and so, he did. The liquid was every bit as foul as it smelled. There were...chunks, of something, he felt slide down his throat, and roil in his stomach, but he kept chugging anyway. Higher and higher, he tilted the pitcher as tears ran from his eyes. Every instinct he had begged him to stop, but he persisted. Finally, mercifully, it was empty. The pitcher crashed to the floor as he rolled back on the bed and growled. Ghost curled up on the other side of the bed, surrounding the Burst Heart, as he watched his human. Geralt mumbled that he was fine, but Ghost was not convinced.

All night, the Ranger rolled and convulsed, drifting in and out of consciousness. His dreams made little sense. Sometimes, they were pleasant. Sometimes, he saw Triss. Sometimes, he saw Triss, and all of his former Ranger classmates, the females anyways, nude, and surrounding him in some sort of hot spring. Other visions were less pleasant, and he shifted from nightmares to pleasantness regularly. Finally, the sun woke him as REM sleep had finally taken over his exhausted form. He dragged himself from the bed, only to stumble, and find himself supported by white fur. "Ghost…" He mumbled hoarsely, "Go...to the lab...bring...the thing…" That, was the last conscious memory he had. What followed next were visions, snippets of things that felt real, and things that had to be made up.

The next time he became semi-lucid, he heard a voice. "...and Lycansbane. That's all of them...the Heart is bonded in place, and his body is almost ready...now, we wait." Indescribable pain then filled the entirety of his half-aware consciousness for what had to be hours but felt more like years. Multiple years, of nothing but mind-breaking pain. It encompassed every sense he had, even while unconscious. He faded in and out of it, but every time he became even partially aware, the pain returned, more potent than before.

That pain was overwritten, as he felt something sharp cut into his chest. His body surged in new agony, as the split nerve endings screamed at his brain, and again, heard a voice. "Dammit, hold him down! I don't want to waste time repairing an artery!" Then, the pain returned, but it was dulled. Everything he felt and experienced was comfortable, blessed numbness, and in that moment of peace, Geralt finally slept.

He awoke, because a twitch caused by a dream he instantly forgot brought him to reality again. His chest was on fire, and he snarled. Something began beeping, somewhere, and soon, the numbness returned. That process of awakening and numbness, a preferred change to the agony of Before, repeated what felt like a thousand more times, before finally, when he felt aware again, he twitched, and only felt a dull soreness, in his chest. It still hurt, but Geralt's pain tolerance was rather high. He tried to open his eyes but couldn't. They felt like they were completely crusty, like after a long sleep, but worse. "My eyes…" He growled, as he felt his wrists restrained.

"He's awake!" Came a voice. Movement happened, and Geralt's ears twitched, as each sound bombarded his senses like never before. Wood scraping on stone had never been so loud, and the door was like thunder as it opened and closed several times. Warm water soon covered his eyes in the form of a cloth, and Geralt rubbed his face against it. His arms tried to move, but couldn't, so he tugged twice, and then fell limp. Moments later, the restraint came off, and Geralt grabbed the towel from whoever had been holding it. A woman, by the smell that entered his nose. Somehow, on some level, his mind processed what he was inhaling, and compared it to previous memories.

When he'd finally wiped his eyes free of truly narsty slime and goo, Geralt lowered the towel, as his vision blurred, and then focused like never before. He could see every pore on Colress's nose, the well-hidden age lines that marked his brow, the streaks of silver in his blonde hair that blended rather well, and likely with chemical aid, but were visible to the Ranger. The older scientist smirked, and as he peered closer, that smirk grew into a grin. "It worked...it only Bloody worked!" He cheered, and the scientists around him, chuckled, some even clapped. Then, they quieted quickly, as Colress spoke again. "Well? How do you feel, Geralt?"

In truth, he was annoyed. The tone of Colress's voice irritated him, and his underlying obsession with power was more unsettling than it had been at their first meeting. He looked down then and considered the annoying man's question. Honestly, he felt amazing. His body was on fire, and he had the sudden urge to move. He tossed the towel away and sat up. As he spoke, he realized he was in nothing but his boxers, but he didn't let it affect his coarse monotone voice. "I feel...pretty good, actually...thirsty…"

"Professor Fennel, get the man some water, would you?" Colress asked, and Geralt's eyes shifted to the Professor, as she was closest to a prepared pitcher of water. She quickly passed it to him, watching his eyes as he took it. She too, was looking rather proud. Geralt made a concentrated effort not to stare at the woman too long or too obviously, for his male gaze had a tendency to linger on the fairer sex, he noticed. Not that it hadn't before, it was just infinitely harder to ignore, now. For whatever reason, his thoughts were momentarily consumed by the desires that had propelled humanity forward for hundreds of thousands of years, but he willed them down, and focused on his drink.

It was as Geralt chugged the water, and felt a drop slip free, to his tender chest, that he glanced downwards, finally. The cup fell to his lap, and then began to fall. In the space of the second it took for the cup to spiral towards the bed's edge, Geralt saw the product of the lab's work, and what they had wrought on his chest. Embedded within the red, raw skin of his well-muscled and toned chest was the Burst Heart, but it was different now. It was shaped like a Lycanroc's head, but not just any Lycanroc. It was a passable replica of Ghost himself, though thankfully not one that protruded. The crystal was shaped like his mane and jaw, but the face within the crystal and its surface was flat enough for clothing to fit over. Geralt assumed, as he currently had very little. He snatched the cup with a lightning-fast grab and set it back on the table in under a second. That brought more smiles and words of congratulations to each other from the scientists.

Noticing his eyes and where they fell, Colress spoke again. "Ah yes...in a few days, that will meld completely with your chest. Don't worry, it's not damaging your organs or bones. It might if you get hit hard enough there...but guard your center, and you'll be fine. As you can see, it's bonded with your Lycanroc. We hypothesize that it will allow you to communicate and understand him better than you could before, or perhaps, with more detail and less guessing. The power from the Heart is currently infusing every cell in your body. Once it's done, you'll be able to run faster, jump higher, and see in the dark, like your partner. You'll age slower, if you age at all, and as long as you live, Ghost lives as well. There is...one final part, to this particular Trial. This is not the last one, either. Right now...you're about halfway through."

Geralt sighed audibly, but it came out as more of a growl. He noticed that, for some reason, growling felt easier. It might've just been his sore throat, but he spoke anyway. "Hurry up, then...the sooner these are done, the sooner I can get out there…"

Colress eyed Geralt for a long moment, and then nodded. "Very well...Doctor Yuzo, give him the final Mutagenic concoction."

One of the scientists introduced as one of Professor Rowan's former aides walked up to Geralt, and as he did, brought with him a sparkling wineglass full of a bright orange liquid. He realized it was snow white hair being added to the sparking concoction, and as Geralt took it, sniffed it, and found it revolting on levels he had previously not been aware of, he grimaced at Colress.

"This will make you more like Ghost...faster, comfortable on all fours, larger canine teeth, nails hard enough to be claws, etcetera...they won't stick around forever, but if you flex them for combat, they will appear. They may also eventually not disappear...so be aware. This is...new territory for us." The scientist's annoying voice sounded genuine enough to Geralt, and he exhaled, then once more, imbibed a foul, foreign, and mostly unknown substance into his body on the word of a stranger with a checkered past.

Once Geralt had finished, finding this one slightly more palatable than the first pitcher of grossness, his chest flared a bright gold, and a howl from outside the room joined his own cry of pain, as Trainer and Pokémon experienced the painful discomfort of change together. Eventually, mercifully, Geralt whited out again, only to then seemingly moments later, be woken up by a familiar, icy tongue. Geralt absently crushed the ice crystals in his new beard, and brushed them away, as he pushed Ghost off of him.

"Down, boy...I'm alright...I think I still need to sleep, though…" Geralt said, yawning. He fell back into a relatively peaceful slumber, as soon as his head fell back to the pillow. Ghost looked at Fennel, who was in the process of standing, until she sat back down, and frowned.

She waved the Lycanroc over, and he came, as the two had become rather friendly over the long days they'd waited by Geralt's bed. "Sleep is a good thing, Ghost. He'll be alright...Kriger worked him pretty hard on The Killer Mark II. He'll be fine once he's up."

Geralt, naturally, heard every word, but ignored them, and soon forgot them entirely, as he slept and recovered. What he didn't know was that beside him, in another bed, was his friend Greif, also lost in sleep. The two stayed like that, with their Pokémon taking their meals by their sides, for the rest of the expected month, and then some. Finally, Colress and Fennel met to discuss the issue.

By that point, both subject's bodies had acclimated to the Burst Hearts. By all their tests, both Greif and Geralt should have been up and about and training with their new skills, but something was preventing that. Being a specialist in dreams, Colress let Fennel take the lead in treating them, and it was agreed that both Rangers should be woken simultaneously if possible. The other three candidates had already arrived and would be ready for the first Trials soon.

"Let's start with Geralt...Sharni! Use your Dream Mist!" Fennel ordered her Pokémon as she tossed the ball, and the floating pink tapir cried its name, before focusing on Geralt. The pink mist floating from her head filled the lab, and the other scientists watched with interest. "Let's see what he's dreaming, first…" Fennel said, as she calibrated her equipment to account for the Dream Mist, and report and record what it found. She doubted anyone would ever see the recordings of the mutated Ranger's dreams, but posterity was important to Aurea Juniper, and Professor Fennel had taken after her mentor.

The scene recreated for the scientists was of the encounter with Rick, Ciri, and Triss. Naturally, Kriger had a report on it, but only Colress had been allowed to read it. As the events repeated with the voices as Geralt recalled them, the scientists murmured to each other, with the appearance of this 'Rick Sanchez', and his inexplicable desire to murder a child. It was as Colress remarked on Geralt's strong moral fiber, that Rick mentioned the child, who evidently was psychic, falling to Shadow. The entire group fell quiet, and Fennel spoke quickly. "Sharni...pause the mist flow."

Colress stood then and walked over towards the Dream Mist version of Rick. "Now that...is intriguing." The title Rick had given her, the Lady of Time and Space, certainly had implications, and though the mist obscured the color of the crystal in his portal device, Colress was sharp enough to catch that it was probably related to Palkia, as was this Rick character in some way. The impression Colress got from his attitude was one of a man who did not and would not be replaced by a little girl. If she was in the Imperium now though, for he had recognized Triss's clothing emblems and knew what they meant, Rick Sanchez would have quite a time retrieving her from the Obsidian Keep on Mount Olympius, the tallest mountain in the world at the center of the Imperium's power, and the home of their Imperator.

One of the other scientists spoke, as Colress pondered. "He mentioned the Shadow, Colress. If the Imperium is playing with-"

"Don't worry about the Imperium." Colress said, turning, and smirking. "The Imperator knows better than to invite madness into his being...but I wouldn't put attempting to control the Shadow, in another vessel, past him. We should focus on the task at hand...and I think we should bring Geralt in on the danger behind what we're facing. The more he knows, the better he can fight it."

At that moment, Kriger spoke. "No."

Colress turned towards the man and arched an eyebrow. "No? But we need champions for the Light, Kriger. That's the entire point of this project."

"The point of this project is to create Rangers with unmatched tracking skills, speed, and endurance, to better fight poachers and the evil teams of our time. If Geralt comes to the Light, he must do it on his own. The same goes for Greif and the others. They must rise or fall by their own decisions on their own paths, and we will react accordingly based on their choices." Kriger said, crossing his arms as he sat back in his chair, near the wall beside the door to the lab.

"That's just inviting disaster, Kriger." Colress countered, "You've seen Echis. I would bet money Levhart also falls to Shadow and its temptations, once its minions learn what we're making here."

"I agree." Kriger said, making the scientist's eye twitch. "Which is why we will condition the Rangers who need it, during their trials. As you said, Geralt has a... strong moral fiber, and Greif...I'm not worried about his. In fact...his Burst Heart's eyes have been golden since the bonding. He's probably already in contact with the Light. Fennel, wake up Geralt. It's time he rose and got back to work."

Fennel sighed and tapped at her keyboard. "Yea, I'll just do that…" She muttered. "Sharni, resume the stream, and then insert me. Let's try waking him that way."

The Musharna responded with a cry of its own name, and then focused its Dream Mist, using its psychic powers to insert an avatar of her Trainer into the Ranger's dream. Shortly after, Geralt's eyes shot open, and he sat up, panting. Then, he held his head. "Oof…" The Dream Mist retracted, and Colress moved to Geralt's bedside. Fennel and Sharni then focused on Greif, who seemed to be dreaming of running beside Geralt and the others on The Killer.

"Welcome back, Ranger. You were stuck in your dreams for a while there. How are you feeling?"

Geralt groaned, as he sat up and looked at Colress. "I feel...better, actually...last time, I felt like I was on fire, eager to move...but now…" He clenched and unclenched his fist, and with a bit of focus, his nails grew, his hand enlarged slightly, and white hair formed over it in a thin coating. "I can control it...it's like a... sixth sense." He retracted the claws then, and the fur and size disappeared with them. Then, he noticed his hair. It was longer now, well past his shoulders, and it was also as white as Ciri's had been. He glared at Colress. "You've made me old before my time, Doc."

Colress chuckled nervously. "An unintended side effect...and one unique to you, Geralt Redwood. Greif's hair did not lose its pigment, but yours has been overtaken by your Lycanroc's."

Geralt just sighed quietly and nodded. Now he was sure his family would barely recognize him.

He looked to his right, as he heard Greif, and saw the burly and far more shredded man sit up. The Trials had only enhanced his physique, among other things. Greif was quicker to stand than Geralt, and as he did, the female scientists flushed, as did a few of the males. It didn't take a degree to figure out why, for the man's undergarments had evidently grown...snug, as his body had grown. Geralt tested his own, which felt exactly the same. Indeed, his body was still around five feet and ten inches, and while Greif had been around six foot two inches before, he had to be pushing six foot nine afterwards.

Geralt crawled out of his bed and smirked at Greif. "How come you got to be so tall, while I'm the same height?"

Colress eyed both of them, and he was also smirking. "The Trials affect everyone differently...Greif is probably stronger than you now, Geralt, but he cannot manifest claws. Yet. With time, you may grow taller too. We really don't know...you two are the first to survive. It's been over a month since you began...now that you're at this stage, all that's left is for you to test your new abilities. But first…"

Colress whistled sharply, and there was a cacophony of footsteps outside the door. Geralt heard Ghost's whine, and grinned as one of the scientists opened it. His massive Dawn Lycanroc came loping towards him, and Geralt could feel how happy he was that his human was alive, awake, and seemingly alright. Silvally had a similar reaction with Greif, and once the two Pokémon calmed, Kriger stood from his chair, and spoke to both of them.

"Well done, Rangers...I watched both of you endure that...I have a feeling these Trials will break lesser men. For today, you may test yourselves on the second iteration of The Killer at your own pace...tomorrow...we begin setting records...and breaking them. Your new outfits are in your rooms. You are no longer Noobs. You may now consider yourselves fully-fledged Rangers."

As Kriger finished, Colress tapped Geralt's shoulder. "You'll notice we made some...modifications...to your Wolf Styler. The consumption on Faust should be lessened significantly, and, we've added functionality for the use of Ranger Signs, should you learn any. We've also copied your Granduncle's design, and modified it for the other Rangers who will, with luck, turn out like you. To be honest, your entire class has requests for similar Stylers, you've started a trend already."

Geralt crossed his arms, as he pondered what Colress intended with his Granduncle's designs. "Wait a second. Are you going to be handing out these devices to everyone that asks for one? That's a lot of Rotom."

Colress pondered. "You're right, Geralt. They should have a bond with a Rotom, that will bring out the most power. Hmm. Caring for a younger one already imprinted with their Styler should help some of your contemporaries with their...emotional issues." Behind Colress, the other scientists had begun murmuring, and Colress waved Geralt and Greif on their way. "Go on, Rangers. We have work to do."

Five Years Later… - Somewhere in the Germania Region

"I kid you not, Triss. He turns himself into a pickle. He's called Pickle Rick. Funniest thing I've seen in a long time."

Triss Merigold murmured an 'uh huh' as she fixed up her mussed hair in the mirror of the room she and her lover had been staying in for days, now. Geralt had discovered the wonders of Imperium television and was enjoying the seemingly limitless content as he recovered from his refractory period. Given that they'd been going at it for most of the night, and it was almost noon now, Triss was more than willing to give the man a well-deserved rest. He hadn't seemed to need one, even after four rounds in a row, but once they'd reached the double digits for the apexes of his own stimulation, the heavily mutated body of the Area Ranger had finally required a rest.

That was just as well, for Triss had been trying to muster the courage to tell the handsome Ranger of the Imperium's plans for several days now, and other things had continued to distract her from doing so. It wasn't like she wasn't in trouble already. Not reporting on the extensive mutations the International Ranger Force had caused in Geralt Redwood would make her a Traitor in the eyes of the Obsidian Keep. Despite that, she still hesitated.

After being assigned to the northernmost part of Galar for his Area Ranger duties, Geralt and Triss had enjoyed several similar trysts over the course of five years, always meeting in a geographically neutral, and unimportant mountain resort, such as the one they were in now, to enjoy each other's company. The difference this time, was that Triss had come with more than her usual desire to be repeatedly left in a pleasure coma. Only recently had she learned what the Imperator was experimenting with, deep below the Mediterra Mountains, and how Ciri was involved in it.

She subtly eyed the mutated Ranger from the mirror and sighed inwardly. He likely wouldn't even know what to do with that knowledge, and she knew, as soon as she uttered it, the psychics of the Obsidian Keep would be able to see and hear it. They monitored the planet for the revelation of such secrets, and she knew of no place their eyes could not peer. The Imperator took no chances with his most promising projects, and she had only been brought in on them as an advisory aid. Little more.

Finally deciding that now was not the right time, she strode back to their bed, as nude as she'd been when she left, and joined the Ranger. He seemed enamored by the current TV content, which seemed to be depicting a universe where every one of the cartoonish characters had somehow been turned into a pickle. Or maybe Pickle Rick had found a sentient pickle dimension. She let out a sigh as her head rested on his shoulder. "How can you watch this drivel?"

Geralt chuckled. "It's actually pretty high concept stuff. Not the kind of thing you can just jump into and expect to understand. It takes a keen mind to follow this plot, but I have to admit, I'm hooked now. Invested. One hundred years, Pickle Riiick!"

Triss sighed again. "How is Albion these days, mister Area Ranger? It seems to keep you busy enough."

Geralt nodded; his eyes unmoving from the screen. "Oh, y'know, plenty of dark forests, Dark Typed Pokémon, bandits and other issues. For the most part, I handle guiding the more...wild...Pokémon away from the settlements. But the people adore their king, even if he is a Gallade. Uther rules them fairly and advises me on where the darkness tends to lurk. As areas go, it's fairly easy to keep safe."

Triss glanced at the gem in his chest, shaped like Ghost, who was at that moment either sleeping on the balcony of their room, or hunting in the Mediterra Mountains. "Is that where you got those Shiny Doublade from? You do know they subsist on life force, right?"

Geralt nodded again. "I'm aware. But as I'm sure you've noticed, I have life force in spades, and it always comes back. Stal prefers taking down bandits. Srebro handles the more...violent...Dark Types that lurk in the forest. Albion's Rockruff have taken on the Dark Typing, and their Lycanroc are vicious. Though, that may be because the more...rustic...people of Albion keep shooting them when they see them."

"You mean the region run by a Pokémon is technologically and educationally deficient? Color me surprised." Triss said, sarcastically.

"There's something to be said for a life without technology. Albion doesn't have to enslave its people just to keep its lands functioning, and in check. Nor do they enslave foreigners that wander into their borders." Geralt answered, his warped eyes still unmoving from the screen. He chuckled again, to himself, as Pickle Rick turned himself into a human as a 'big reveal'. Naturally, the pickle people didn't like this abomination, and pickle-based slaughter had ensued. He was convinced this was the height of comedy.

Triss rolled her eyes, ignoring the graphic pickle slaughter spectacle on the screen. "We don't enslave everybody...just the criminals. Only the truly awful ones become Servitors."

Geralt paused the show, with a flick of the remote, and turned his gaze on Triss. "Bjorn tells me that every other month he has people going missing all along the Mediterra range, Triss. When your vaunted society runs out of criminals, when your crime prevention methods work too well, your Imperium turns to the 'barbarians' of the wider world for their lobotomized slaves. Somehow, the rest of the world manages to get along just fine without capturing innocent people and turning their brains into obedient machines."

Triss met his gaze evenly, eyes widening slightly. "I never knew you had such strong opinions about the Imperium."

Geralt smirked. "One of the people I care for hails from there, and since I can only imagine what they'd do to me in their borders, I figured knowing my enemy was a good idea. I wish you'd leave them. If more people defected, the Imperator might be convinced to change his methods." Geralt resumed the show then, turning his warped eyes back to the screen.

Triss shook her head. "There will always be more Humans to labor for His glory. We're doing important work, Geralt...in fact…" As she made the decision to, if not tell him outright, at least drop a hint about the Imperator's plans, Triss found she couldn't speak. At all. Her body literally seized up, and her vocal cords refused to function. She felt a mechanical whirr within her, and her eyes went wide, for a moment.

Though the sensation passed quickly, Geralt didn't seem to notice, but Triss understood what had occurred, and the Ranger didn't seem to notice the silence as she trailed off, distracted and sated as he was. His libido had increased significantly with his mutations, but there was something to be said for craving the opposite sex. It kept him sharp, focused, hungry. Many things might've changed, had he but noticed why Triss went from speaking to watching the show with him, and joining him on the bed.

Naturally, Human Rick had turned other pickle people human as well, but he didn't have enough Deus ex Serum for the whole planet, and so the humans he managed to save had devolved into a war with the pickle people over the rightful rule of Earth. As they binge watched the show, Human Rick and his allies eventually found more serum, but some of the pickle people actually liked being brine based, and so the war continued.

Triss said no more about Albion or the Imperium, limiting her comments to the show, if only to reaffirm to herself that she could still talk. Geralt remained oblivious, and they spent another three days relaxing and fornicating until they inevitably parted once more. Triss had taken the hint, even if Geralt had missed it completely. Speaking about the Imperator's plans would cause her life-extending implants to either malfunction, or knowing the Imperium, explode, if she forced the information out of her mouth anyways. She resolved to find another way to acquire the Ranger's help, though the form that help would take would only be known once she had a plan to, at the very least, get Ciri out of the project.

Fifteen Years Later… (Circa Chapter 40)

Over a decade and a half passed, and in that time, several things changed for Geralt. He gathered more permanent partners on his belt, like a shiny Corviknight, and an Espeon. He also achieved the rank of Top Ranger after keeping not just Albion, but Galar and the surrounding Galish Isles safe as well, once he could easily travel between them. With that promotion had come reassignment, to his home continent no less, and he found keeping the thousands of regions within the States safe was a constant effort that left no time for trysts with Triss.

Not that there had been any. After that last one, she had gone silent, and despite Geralt's best attempts to reach her or pass a message to her within the Imperium. He eventually learned that, for some reason, she was ignoring his messages completely, and seemed to have moved on, romantically. Though he didn't advertise it, the mutations to his mind and body had also caused a dulling of pain, particularly of the emotional variety. He took Triss's abandonment in stride, for his libido still burned with the passion of a thousand suns, and there was an entire planet full of lovely, and often very grateful women.

He bounced between meaningless flings and endless Ranger missions, subsisting on food, women, and wine until one day, the monotony was broken. The most recent war between Fornia and Unova absorbed the Ranger, and his cousin Alex, into the events that shaped it, and ultimately, Geralt came out of the fighting alive, and with newly awakened powers.

He was at the Redwood's manor house again, on a rare bit of R&R demanded by the IRF after his torture sessions he'd endured throughout his weeks of imprisonment, lounging with Ghost in his own room within the Redwood's manor, and sampling the latest strain of Leaf his cousin had grown. A strain he was evidently calling Yin Yang. Ghost's ears twitched at the same time Geralt's did, and both of them glanced at his Holoceiver, one of many gadgets he'd accrued over his years as an active Pokémon Ranger, now scattered on his dresser.

Not recognizing the number, he answered it. What he got back in response, sent a feeling of dread up his spine. It was Triss's voice, of that he was sure, but the message was garbled. "Geralt...dian Keep. Ciri is...can't...uch time. You ha...us. We'll mee…"

"Triss? Hello? I can't hear what you're saying!" Geralt said, but just before he could get irritated about it, both he and his Dawn Lycanroc glowed with a whitish blue light, and with a 'bamf' sound, suddenly, they found themselves somewhere else.

Lantea City - Dark Side of Luna

"Teleport complete, sir!" Came a female voice from somewhere in the distance.

Geralt and Ghost looked around, and sensing danger, Srebro and Stahl leapt from their comfortable ball to help their Ranger. Geralt whirled, taking in the scene around him, his Doublade crossed defensively over his Burst Heart. This wasn't the first time someone had Teleported him randomly to some other place, and last time, that had turned into a major pain in the Mudbray to escape intact.

The room around them was filled with people. They seemed to be standing on a pad of some sort. The part of the room he was in was at the lowest point. Stairs at the far center end of the depression led up to the first level, that seemed to have doors and hallways jutting off in different directions. More immediate to his eyes though, was the second floor above them. A pair of balconies were on each side of the room, and he looked to his right, as someone spoke.

"Now now, Ranger. There's no need for that. You are among friends, here."

Geralt's eyes widened, as he recognized Colress's voice. Then, he saw the man, a little older and wiser, a little grayer, but otherwise, exactly as he'd been the last time Geralt saw him, save that his suit seemed to have gotten upgraded at some point by technology he didn't recognize. "Doctor Colress...where the Muk am I?"

At that moment, Ghost whined, but Geralt was still busy taking in the command center full of people in primarily gray outfits, differentiated only by triangular patches of color whose significance Geralt did not know, but seemed to indicate some sort of hierarchy based on color. Black was the most common, but red was also common, and some seemed to have tan versions of the full body suits. They looked sharp, and Geralt recognized hints of military in their design. The tan versions were fewer, and aside from stripes on the sleeves that matched whatever color the suit's patch was, they were uniformly plain overall.

The Ranger's enhanced sight made out one more thing. There were six black patched men standing on either side of the stairs leading out of the spot he'd been brought into, watching him intently. Each of them had a firearm of some description, and on their shoulders was a patch with an emblem he didn't recognize, but that he surmised was emblematic of whatever organization had just Teleported him here. There were no words on it, but he recognized an equine figure with its forelegs splitting a V shaped emblem, whose tips flared out into a pair of wings, almost making the horse look like a pegasus.

Finally, he noticed Colress in a room above them, as he turned to see what had drawn Ghost's attention, and instead of addressing him, Colress made his way down a staircase to the first level. What Geralt beheld, left him in awe. It was, in retrospect, very clearly the centerpiece of this command center. A massive, circular arch made of some kind of metal he wasn't familiar with. He lowered Srebro and Stahl as he took it in.

The outermost edge of the massive metal ring was covered in Unown lettering that made no sense to his eyes and was unreadable. The inner part of the ring was covered in thirty-nine glyphs that, to his eyes, seemed based on constellations of stars, some vaguely familiar and others completely alien.

"Welcome to Lantea City, Geralt Redwood. You're currently in a city run by a group known as Pegasus." Colress said, from his left. "This city was created by an ancient race, or so we believe. Their technology was centuries ahead of anything we developed on Earth, even before Humanity's fall, and our inevitable rise. Currently, we're parked on the dark side of Luna, what Earthlings refer to more commonly as 'the Moon'. The inhabitants of our moon call it Luna, though."

Geralt blinked and looked at the Doctor. "You're saying we're in space right now? Why aren't we floating?"

Colress pushed his glasses up with his middle finger before he answered. "As I said, this city's technology is...bordering on magical, or rather, it was, before we understood it. We found a similar Gate on an expedition to the thawed southernmost continent on our planet, Atlantica. As it turns out, the locals of that region are descendants of the Humans who found this city before we did. At some point in our past, apparently, this city was in another Galaxy entirely, one their records refer to as the 'Pegasus Galaxy', the selfsame name of the expedition that traveled there. The Atlanticans let us study their gate decades ago, and it was your granduncle, Professor Gilroy Redwood, who managed to turn the damn thing on. It brought us here, and ever since, we've been working to restore power and functionality to the city. Someday, I want to make this city fly again. It can evidently function as a spaceship as well as a habitable city."

Geralt sheathed Stahl and Srebro on his back, as he looked around. "This is...a lot." He paused then, as he absorbed Colress's words. "Wait. He turned it on? ...How?"

Colress smirked at him, and Geralt felt a chill of destiny up his spine as the Doctor said, "By shoving a Rotom into it, of course."

At that moment, the Gate powered on, spinning to life, as volatile blue plasma surged from its center, and then was drawn back within the bounds of the ring-like structure. A pair of angular ghostly eyes with round pupils smirked at him, with a face he recognized. "Dengeki? Is that you, you old spark?"

The face nodded, but as quickly as it appeared, it faded, looking to Geralt's keen eyes like Den had seen or noticed something that grabbed his attention away from conversing with him. The Gate fell silent, and Colress tutted in contemplation, before he walked up next to the Ranger. He put a hand on his shoulder and gave a kind smile. "I'm sure you have questions...come. Let's get some food at the Mess, and we can trade questions. We have a few for you, as well."

The Doctor led him through a maze of hallways then, until they came into a very basic cafeteria/buffet setup with surprisingly decent food. Seeing Colress load up on some steak and potatoes, Geralt helped himself to two slabs of steak, and a pile of mashed potatoes he'd mixed with corn and peas. Colress stared at his pile of food as they sat. "I take it your body needs a lot to keep it going, now."

"You have no idea…" Geralt mumbled, as he began to chow down. After a few bites, he slowed, chewed, and then finally asked a question. "So... Pegasus, eh? Just like the expedition. What do you people do up here, exactly? Aside from kidnap people on vacation."

"We monitor the planet. A few decades ago, the people at Interpol contacted the Ranger Union, and Professors the world over with the information around the discovery in Atlantica that included your uncle. They agreed to form a secret, but unified organization dedicated to mitigating the damage of rampaging Pokémon, and those who upset their balance. This wasn't long after the Rainbow Rocket incident, so the idea was popular, in the face of multiple gangs from multiple regions potentially forming together again." Colress paused to eat some of his own meal, before continuing. "So, Geralt. You received an interesting phone call a few minutes ago. Why is someone from the Imperium's Obsidian Keep calling your Holoceiver?"

"It's none of your damn business who has my number. All you need to know is that on the other end of that call, people are in danger. Good people, that I care about. Lucky for me...Pegasus can help me rescue them." Geralt said, looking around. "Just beam them up, like you did to me."

Colress shook his head. "It's not that simple...there's the matter of power to consider, and then there's the issue with them being in Imperium territory. We can't beam up psychic Humans when they sense us coming, for some reason, and the Imperium uses their enhanced Librarians, or Imperium-sanctioned psychics, to shield their territory from our efforts. Or, at least the areas they don't want us reaching."

"And the Obsidian Keep is one of those places. Of course it is. Muk." Geralt proceeded to rage-eat as he thought over ways to get to Triss, and presumably Ciri, as quickly as possible. Then, he perked up. "Cn oo een p th all?"

Colress nonchalantly sipped his iced tea-lemonade. "There's food in your mouth, Ranger."

Geralt growled, and rage-chewed, thankfully with his mouth closed, and swallowed. "The call. Can you play it back and clean it up?"

Colress tilted his head, then nodded. "There should be a record that Interpol can use. We'd need your express permission and your device, though."

Geralt looked at him, with an emotionless intensity in his warped frosty blue eyes. "You have them." He shoved the device he barely used at the man, who accessed it with his suit as he ate with his other hand.

A moment later, the voice of his wayward psychic lover filled the immediate space. "Geralt. It's Triss. I'm outside the Obsidian Keep. Ciri is with me. We can't stay here anymore. There's not much time. You have to help us. We'll meet at the lodge in the mountai-" Her voice cut out as his own overrode her words with useless attempts to hear her.

Colress finished his potatoes as they listened, took a few more bites of dinner, and then stood up. "We can act on this, but only if I have your word as Top Ranger that these two will comply with our rules. They won't be able to leave, once they're here. Even your vouching for them has limits, Ranger."

Geralt was already moving towards the command center they'd just come from. "Nowhere on Earth is safe for them, if Ciri is as important as she seems. Keep them from learning where this base is. Then you can beam them back without them being any wiser."

Colress nodded, and soon, they were back where Geralt had arrived. His tone was full of authority as he spoke. "Power up the Teleporter. Shutter all windows and form a perimeter around the Gate Room. Lower the curtain and start scanning the Mediterra mountains for two powerful psychic entities. Try rapid beaming once you find them, don't let them block us."

Geralt sat in suspense for about five minutes as the technicians spouted technobabble and attempted to teleport the ladies to safety. A massive sheet fell in front of the Gate that Geralt hadn't had time to even ask about yet. The faint light of space and the celestial display of the stars was shuttered, and the only light became that of the fluorescent fixtures around the command center.

Many people either raised similar shutters on the glass surrounding their desks or left the area to continue their work in parts of the city designated for it. Working near the Gate was useful, as one could requisition whatever one needed when they made the connection with Atlantica back on Earth.

"They're coming in hot!"

The technician's voice rang out, and everyone but Geralt left the gate area. "Srebro. Stahl." His swords leapt into his hand as the blue light heralding the ladies' arrival glowed brighter, and Geralt carved an elongated lower-case E in the air with his swords as they appeared. They came in with flames, undoubtedly from Triss, and just in time for the Flamethrower, Geralt's sign manifested a golden shield that kept him protected from the flames. "Triss! Stop! It's me!"

The flames died down, and the lights came back on. Most of the gate area was singed, save for the curtain hiding the monolithic portal gate. Evidently, it wasn't flammable. "Geralt!" Triss ran to him, hugged him, and then looked around at their surroundings, as the security guards and Colress slowly rose from their hiding places. "Where...where are we? I don't sense-"

"Don't worry about where we are, Triss." He said, tapping his nose. "It's a secret Ranger base. That's all you need to know. Not even the Imperator can find you here." Ciri followed Triss's lead with a hug of her own, and Geralt's stone-face broke a smile, for her. "Hey, kid."

"I'm twenty-seven, old man." She muttered snarkily, but her smile gave away how glad she was to see him. Though, it slowly shifted to a frown, as she noted certain changes. "By the Throne...Triss told me they'd mutated you, but…"

"I'm afraid I'm responsible for mutating your handsome Ranger friend, Miss Ciri." Colress said, coming down the stairs to their level, arms wide, open, and empty. "I dreamed of creating the ultimate expression of the power Humans and Pokémon can achieve...I'd say I succeeded. Right now, I'm in command of this installation. My name is Colress. Your Ranger friend here is, by far, my greatest success. Or, one of them, anyway." It wasn't all flattery, for Colress was of the opinion that only Grief and Geralt had truly succeeded in becoming what he'd set out to create. Levhart was too self-centered and aloof almost to the point of being uncaring, and Bjorn was an isolationist who preferred to live and survive on his own, rather than help humans. It was a waste of a Ranger with his potential, only guarding a specific group of Pokémon in a tiny part of the world, but Bjorn had found his happiness, and the IRF refused to pry him from it with no reason.

"That reminds me…" Geralt growled. "We need to talk about Echis…"

"Yes yes." Colress said, waving a hand. "We can do that once we've debriefed your friends here."

Geralt seemed unsatisfied, as he pulled away from the women's embrace. "We also need to talk about the you-know-what." He gave an almost imperceptible nod at the curtain behind them.

Colress sighed. "That conversation...is best had with your cousin here, Geralt. He's grown too powerful for us to Teleport in randomly."

"Fine. Where is he? I'll get him." Geralt said, sheathing his Doublade again. Alex was one of his more tolerable family members, in that he didn't judge his mutations, and was practical enough to follow Geralt where he needed, on naught but his word.

"It's not that simple…" Colress said, chuckling. "Let us retire to my office. I'm sure these lovely ladies have a tale to spin. Then we'll speak of your cousin."

Ciri and Triss looked between Geralt and the strangely garbed man, before following him and Geralt presumably towards his office.

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Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 40: Path of the Guardian, Part 3

Nomad's Isle, Minjujuui City - Koria Region

Alex awoke to the pervasive scent of processed fecal matter, among other wonderful smells, like rotting berries, garbage, and what smelled disturbingly like corpses, mixed into the stink. He was grinning though, ear to ear, and had a satisfying stretch as he noted Akos was also rising. Ara and Boto were already up, but Akos had proven to be as late a sleeper as Alex. "I've never known anyone who was so cheery after just waking up." Akos muttered grouchily as he patted his bedhead down, and created a messy 'warrior knot' out of his hair. "How do you do it?"

Alex smirked, mostly to himself. "I have very enjoyable dreams. It makes waking up to the smell of feces tolerable. We should really ask General Meelo for some of that incense." Akos grumbled something about stingy Air Nomads hogging all the sacred scent sticks, and the two men proceeded to dress themselves, before heading out. Alex had a date with a Gym Leader, though he found the match had evidently been pushed to noon once he had remained very much asleep at the crack of dawn, and Leader Asami had better things to do.

It was Meelo who informed him of the time change to noon, and thus it was also Meelo who suggested the two Trainers join the other Pokémon Trainers in their city at the rebel's own training field. Their path to the Nomad's Isle was underground, and from what Alex could tell, under Full Moon Bay as well. They emerged into a rock-covered cave like area large enough to support three whole Pokémon battlefields. Each one was surrounded by simple wooden stands, and very quickly, Alex realized that the rebellion was probably selling tickets to this kind of thing among the people. Which would make it the worst kept secret, in a city this large.

Seeing Alex's face, and sensing the train of his thoughts, made Meelo whisper to him from a distance, as the air silently carried his words. "Many Trainers in Koria live in Minjujuui. Modern jobs give them enough currency to afford Pokéballs, and vitamins. Try not to stand out, and we'll do fine."

Alex arched a brow at him and responded mentally. "If I'm Battling in some sort of underground tournament, I'd prefer to win it."

Meelo pinched his brow, sighed, and answered in kind. "You won't like what you win, in a place like this. Some of the...unconnected citizens running this place can get quite vicious. They usually back off if we prove we're with the rebels, but be warned, they are not above cheating to claim a win."

Hearing that, caused a change to come over Alex's face, as he smirked, and his eyes lit up with a mix of eagerness and irritation under the bulky furry hood. "Let them cheat. It won't be enough." He pulled his hood lower over his eyes, not unlike many of the other contestants, and approached the man seeking more Trainers for the fray. Seeing he had some time before his match, as the battles had also seemingly begun at dawn, he called out his newly caught giant rock snake, alongside the Copperajah that had joined them as well in a spot away from the battlefields.

The Onix's first reaction was anger, but before Alex could move to stop it from striking at him, the Copperajah swung his trunk, fast and brutal, as steel energy imbued it. The metal elephant beat the Onix down with a single blow and pinned it with a massive metal foot. "Listen." He said to the Onix, as the damage took effect. The rock snake's eyes shifted to the human, and Alex glanced between him, and the apparently much larger Copperajah. He had grown since the last time he'd been out of his ball, easily now the size of an alpha, and Alex assumed that the experience he'd gained during the course of his Shadow infusion had finally taken effect. He was now almost at the same level of strength that Cenomons had been after their journey through Selva Muerta, proving that he had in fact been trained at one point. That made him much stronger than the rest of his current team, but despite that, and the desire to battle with such a powerful force of nature like a Copperajah, Alex had his heart set on a Steelix, and he had a good feeling about this massive, but relatively young Onix.

Alex's mind reached out to the rock snake's, and for a rock type, he found it remarkably complex. He also realized he'd never really examined rock typed minds too closely. His new appreciation for the earth made his mental perception of their intelligence adjust itself, as he realized they were, much like him, quiet, reserved, and typically stoic. That didn't mean there wasn't much more beneath the surface. "Hello there. I know you and I had an... interesting first meeting, but I sense in you the same potential that sleeps in pretty much every Pokémon I've caught. I want to offer you the choice to leave now and return in peace to the wilds far away from the city, or to join my team, and become one of the strongest members of your species."

The Onix looked at him skeptically once he got over the shock of understanding a human's words perfectly, and rose in place, eyeing the Copperajah as he did. "I demand a rematch. Bring out your noisy fur thing, and the Grass Type." The Onix's eyes were on fire as he spoke in his species tongue, "I will not give you an answer until I have had my revenge."

Alex frowned in disapproval. "Revenge is a poor motivator. It blinds you in Battle, makes you sloppy. Gets you captured by tiny Humans." The frown shifted to a smirk, and if an Onix's face could say 'how bloody dare you' this one's face was certainly close to expressing a similar sentiment. "But if it's a rematch you desire...Canis. Arbor." Once again, his Riolu and Sceptile appeared and shared a fist bump, before smirking, and falling into an identical battle crouch before the massive Onix. Alex met the Copperajah's gaze then. "Are you feeling better? If so, I would ask you to aid the Onix. I think a fair fight is required, for this." His eyes shifted back to the rock snake. "But first, breakfast. For all of you."

The Onix looked like he was about to protest, when he suddenly realized he was, in fact, hungry. The hit from the metal elephant had also caused not insignificant damage, and food would bring him back to full strength for the battle ahead. Seeing the Onix's personality was similar to his Cinderace, he let the massive Pokémon's appetite dig into his stash of Figy berries, as his Sitrus berries were still growing. Tenzin had offered a planter for his personal use, and as Akos had no berries, having lived on an iceberg for the majority of his existence, Alex used the planter on his side of their room as well as his portable Berry Pots. He massaged his Pokémon egg with a warm towel, as the others ate, and he grew still once the Onix finished, and brought its snout closer to him and his fragile charge.

He gently touched the egg with a carefulness that belied his size and attitude. "This one is close to joining us…" He hummed as he closed his eyes and drew in the egg's scent through his rocky nostrils. "You have kept this one warm and safe...hmmmm." The eyes opened again as he rumbled in what seemed like approval, and Alex met the rock snake's gaze evenly. "You are what you say you are...a good Trainer...interesting. Most Humans lie." The Onix slithered away then, coiling a short distance from them, as the other three finished their meals. Rage and a bad mood had been replaced by quiet curiosity. There was definitely something different about this human.

When they were ready, the rock snake lifted his tail, and then brought it down rapidly. Alex watched, impressed, as he enlarged the area, and gave them enough space for a double battle. The earthbending caught other people's attention, and as they saw the quartet take their starting positions, more than a few came over to watch. Alex smirked from under his hood, as the Onix then slapped the ground with his thick tail and made an imprint of the field's lines in the dirt, akin to the others, which had been marked with paint.

Alex's fist glowed green, and similarly green lines of grass energy stretched from his hand to the ones emanating from the Meadow Plate crystal Arbor was holding. He transitioned smoothly to his Mega Form, as his Trainer spoke, "Seed Bomb! Canis, Focus Blast!" The hail of grassy bombs hammered the Onix with critical effectiveness, as it fell from the sky, too fast to be entirely dodged, the rock snake managed to weather the hit, but the opening salvo had brought it to the red, by Alex's estimate.

Canis charged up his attack, but the Copperajah was there, and he countered hard with an Iron Bash as Canis was charging. He was sent flying towards the nearest wall of rock, but he caught himself, and readied a counter.

An Earthquake rocked the area as the Onix and his Copperajah ally aimed for both the Sceptile and the Riolu. "Close Combat! Energy Ball!" Alex ordered, and his partners responded. Canis leapt as the wall broke around him, and Arbor's legs were strong enough to jump over the Onix's quake. Canis landed on the massive metal elephant and began hammering him with fighting energy covered fists. He swung in vain with his trunk at the punchy puppy as he took significant damage.

The Onix was another story. His Iron Tail bisected Arbor's hastily condensed attack, and he lunged surprisingly high in the air with a Crunch attack at the grass lizard. Unfortunately for the Onix, he wasn't quite long enough to actually land the hit. Arbor countered hard on his own initiative, landing on his lengthy body, and dragging his pair of Leaf Blades down the Onix's length, scored a victory.

For his part, Canis was dodging and weaving around the larger Copperajah, and he Howled underneath the metal elephant, before repeating the last move his Trainer had called. Connected as they were, he knew his human meant for him to continue the barrage until he won. Powerful as the Copperajah was, after each of them missed their next attacks, a Play Rough collided with a Metal Claw, and the two parted.

They both panted, and the Copperajah rumbled at the panting puppy. "You're good...for a twerp."

Canis's eyes narrowed, as he became irrationally angry at the barb. "I'll show you a twerp…" His 'ears' flared with aura, and his Trainer had a smirk of pride just visible under his blue furry hood. White light surrounded Canis, as he advanced to the next stage of his life in a double helix swirl of Infinity Energy. The largening crowd whooped, as everyone loved an evolution, and the newly evolved and rejuvenated Lucario faced down the much stronger Pokémon under the light of the noonday sun.

"Remember, Canis." His Trainer said, "Special moves are now your forte...but your physical ones won't be lacking either. For you, though...stick to special ones as often as possible, and you'll get stronger." The Lucario barked an acknowledgement, and his crouch deepened, as he sensed the move coming. "Now, Aura Sphere!"

The Copperajah batted the sphere into nonexistence with a powerful Play Rough, as fairy energy filled its trunk. Canis stood his ground, as his double pair of 'ears' flared with power. A ball of steel energy formed in his palm, and as Arthur, and now Eremus had shown him, he layered it in a tight, condensed swirling pattern, finding he could control the steel energy as easily as he did fighting energy. Alex called the move, as he realized what Canis was using. "Flash Cannon!"

The STAB steel sphere hit the fairy typed trunk, and exploded, and as the Copperajah blinked away the damage. The smoke above him parted in a sudden circle, and Canis was there, both paws by his hip, a spinning sphere of deep blue super effectiveness situated between them. "Aura Sphere!" Canis brought his paws forward, and the automatic hit finally knocked out the Copperajah. Canis Howled again, as he claimed victory, and his Trainer gave him a fist bump and a meat bun as he returned victorious.

Alex moved to the Copperajah first, handing out a Max Revive. He gave the metal elephant a trunk pat, and an acknowledgement of a good battle, before turning to the Onix, who was awake, and nursing his hurt pride. Arbor stood next to him, as he also got a fist bump, and a berry, and Canis joined them, once he'd scarfed down his snack. "Well? How about it, big guy? We could use a strong Steel and Ground Type on our team."

The Onix tilted his head, and his eyes shifted to his giant metal 'partner'. "Do you not have him?"

Alex shook his head. "He belongs to someone else, I'm just holding his new ball, temporarily." He fished in his pack then, and from the same pocket he'd drawn honey from for a hungry Teddiursa, he pulled out a cylinder of metal, and held it up towards the Onix. "This Metal Coat is yours, if you'll join us. I can promise you'll become very strong." The rock snake's eyes shifted over the human's partners, and then the man himself. Finally, he nodded, and touched his rocky snout to the metal cylinder as he rumbled his name. "I accept."

Alex held up the Metal Coat, and the Onix touched it with his snout, glowing a bright white as the coat of metal became silvery, almost liquid, as it traveled over his body. The bright white energy of the Spiral remade him, as well. The Steelix reared up as he kept his length in his evolved state and roared at the crowd. Alex waved his head down then, and the large metal snake leaned down towards him, receiving several Sitrus Berries in his toothy iron maw. Alex gave him a potion as well for good measure, and then recalled everyone, to wait for his turn to battle.

He was lucky, as his first opponent used a whole team of weak first stage birds that Temere and his Dottler gained decent experience from. His streak didn't last long though, as he forfeited his next match upon learning it was at noon and departed for Asami's gym within the city proper instead. He didn't make as much of an impact as he'd hoped to, but then, he hadn't seen much cheating either. His opponents had been young, naive, but honest in their battle strategies. If one could call using six of the same species a strategy.

Asami's gym was a strange setup, though not as odd as some of those in Unova. A central platform stood tall above an indoor pool of dark water. Stands for observers surrounded the center platform. The platform was a hexagon, one side black, one white, separated by standard Pokémon battlefield lines. Asami didn't have any warmup Trainers, and her gym actually seemed mostly closed down, with most of the seats covered by sheets. She looked up at Alex as the automatic bridge linked his waiting area to the platform. He took his spot, and the look she gave him suggested that for her, battles were an outlet of some sort.

"Good. You're finally awake. Let's get this started." She said, drawing a Pokéball unlike those he was used to. It had a golden F.I. on its black top half in Ultra Ball colors, and as she spun the central button with her pointer finger and thumb, the ball expanded simultaneously. She tossed it, revealing a Lopunny that Alex quickly realized was stronger than the majority of his team. He really hoped she was leading with her strongest.

The two females waited for him to draw, and since she already knew his secret, he mentally pulled Canis's ball into his hand. "You're up first, my friend." The newly evolved Lucario appeared in a flash and rose into his battle stance. A bead of sweat appeared on his head as he too realized the strength of their opponent but had no intention of backing down.

"I'm not a Bender, so we'll have a standard League Battle, alright? Not that your bending would help you against us!" Asami raised an arm then, and lowered her black and maroon sleeve, revealing a Mega Bracelet. "Lolo! Mega Evolve!" She pressed her Mega Stone and gave the bracelet a spin. Infinity Energy flared wildly, before forming a double helix as the bracelet continued to spin. She pointed it at her partner, while Alex and Canis watched in awe, impressed as the seemingly ordinary woman focused the power of Infinity, sending it into her partner. The Lopunny ascended to her Mega Form, and bounced on her heels, looking at the boys as she made the universal gesture for 'bring it'.

Alex and Canis shared a look, and Alex fished for his Iron Plate crystal shard. "Fair warning...this is his first time with a Mega Form. So be ready...I believe he can control it, but the first time is always the hardest. Ready, Canis?" His Lucario nodded, and took a deep breath as he focused his aura. This was the reason he'd wanted this Trainer from the moment he'd felt his aura within his egg. He'd sensed they could reach this stage together, and control its power. His paw moved faster than Lolo could follow as he caught the Iron Plate crystal. Alex mimicked his breathing and synced their heart rates, then raised his own crystal. Several lines of steel typed energy arced through the air, and it was Asami's turn to be impressed, as they connected, and Canis took his own Mega Form. Alex's eyes widened as he sensed the sheer power of his Lucario's mind, and aura. As Canis opened his eyes, his deep blue aura visibly pulsed across the field, and a slight smirk graced Asami's age-wrinkled mouth as it blew back her graying hair, and Lolo's ears.

She began the battle with a move unfamiliar to the Unovan Champion, but one easy enough to counter, he assumed. "Steel Punch!"

"Aura Sphere!" Alex answered, and Canis's movement in forming and launching the sphere was almost too fast to follow. A steel energy encased fist met the not too condensed ball of fighting typed aura, and the result was an explosion in the Lopunny's face, which she quickly brushed off, not because she was resistant to the damage, but because even though it was super effective, it hadn't done nearly as much as Alex or Canis hoped.

Asami smirked. "Dig." Lolo obeyed, leaping into the air, and then spinning into the ground.

Alex frowned. "Into the air, with Psychic!" Canis levitated himself rather rapidly, which was a new sensation that he got the hang of, as he zipped around the battlefield. Not sensing his feet, Lolo eventually popped her head up, and that was when Canis positioned himself several feet above his side of the platform, and Alex shouted, "Now! Attack!"

The wave of blue psychic energy moved from surrounding his body to the Lucario's paws as he fired it in a wave of deep blue power towards the Lopunny, and though he hit her head, the only exposed part of her, this too didn't do nearly as much as Alex would've liked. As she crawled out of the ground, and backflipped before her Trainer, Alex recalled Canis. His Mega Form would hold in his ball, but Alex could only keep one of them going at a time like that, and still focus on battling. Like Arthur, their bond was easier to maintain thanks to the aura hound's mental prowess. "Sensus. Join us."

On their own, Dottler were not Pokémon with the greatest pool of moves, but the magic of Technical Machines made them capable of at least battling on their own. His bug was close to evolving, and a half-beaten Mega Lopunny, a fast physical attacker, would be the ideal experience to spur him on to the form that would pinpoint their target in this region. Asami seemed to figure out what his Dottler was for, and her eyes hardened. "So that's how you intended to find the Avatar."

Alex nodded, as the happily buzzing psychic bug landed on his fuzzy hood. He felt his skin crawl at the sensation, but resisted the urge to shake him off. "He can track Light energy. The Avatar's is similar to mine, but Raava has a unique signature, apparently." Sensus had grown to be a very decent battler, for a middle bug evolution. He had more drive than most of his B team. But Alex knew the others would likely rise to the challenge, with time.

Asami's eyes widened at the name. "You...you know about the Guardian?" Alex nodded again, and she pondered for a moment with his hand on her chin, then nodded, to herself. "There are other things you should know. But first...let us finish this. Fire Punch!"

"Reflect!" Alex shouted, as Sensus formed two psychic barriers. The Mega Pokémon smashed through one easily, but the second, much stronger one rebounded the attack. Lolo moved with the momentum though, and came at Sensus again, who blocked again, this time with three barriers. They continued back and forth until Lolo realized she was in a half-dome of goldish green Reflect barriers. "Now use Psychic!" Sensus buzzed up to the top of the barriers, and drowned the fighting bunny in a deluge of psychic power, that only increased as his body glowed a bright white from the effort, and assumed his final form as a rather sinister looking big brained ladybug.

As the Reflects faded, Lolo was revealed to be downed, as evolution made the attack just strong enough to faint her. Asami nodded, and pulled out the only other partner she intended to use for this match. She hadn't specified how many rounds there would be, but two on two was more than enough for her. This Trainer was more than capable. Still, he had one mountain yet to climb. Asami stared at the ball for a long time, and then twisted, and threw. Like Lolo's it had the same F.I. on the top. "Let's go, Naga."

Sensus paused in his pattern of sideways eight movements in the air and looked at his Trainer. His voice had an echo to it that hadn't been there before, but it was certainly a unique mental tone. "This one...Battled for the Light Spirit. They had a bond." Alex nodded, and examined their opponent. The Beartic was truly massive, stronger even than Brycen's, and different in head shape than the Beartic of his continent. It was larger, almost dog-like with a truly massive jaw, and the same icicle beard. Whoever had trained her had done as thorough a job as he had with Terra. Her eyes were round and sad, but fierce, and ready to unleash some pent up energy. Alex spoke then. "I'm afraid Sensus is nowhere near Naga's level...but Canis might fare well." He switched the two again, having heard Asami's mental decision about a two v. two, and Canis took the field in his untouched Mega Form. His aura flared as he rejoined the battle, and eyed his opponent.

Naga snarled. "Come at me, pup…"

Canis answered her with a barely restrained retort that Alex didn't want to translate. "Calm down, Canis...you are younger than her." The Lucario turned and glared at his Trainer, but then relented, in the cold reality of his thought process, focusing instead on the battle. "Aura Sphere!" The Lucario's eyes narrowed, as he summoned his signature move, and the ball of energy his Mega Form held in his paws could've been classified as a Focus Blast, were it not for how he condensed and layered the projectile all in the space of a second and a half. The air reverberated as he fired it at the Beartic, but Asami simply smirked.

"Play Rough with him, Naga."

Naga's eyes widened as she saw what was, to her eyes, essentially a ball, and her maw lit up with fairy energy as she chomped on it. To her extreme joy, it didn't immediately shatter, and she nommed it for several seconds of pure bliss, before looking at the Lucario, and ending his attack with a single, unsatisfactory poof as her jaws clenched shut. She smacked her large bear lips, which pulled up into a smirk at Canis, whose fur bristled in response.

"Close Combat!" Alex said, following the attack up quickly, and Canis was all too eager to close the distance between him and the massive polar bear, but Naga wasn't done Playing Rough with the aura hound. Fists encased in fighting energy met claws cloaked in fairy energy, and while his steel typing kept them from being too damaging, Canis found his move completely blocked. He dodged back towards Alex, his far superior speed giving him time for another move as the massive Beartic loped towards them, on four paws still glowing pink. "Flash Cannon!"

Canis nodded, and this time, the orb between his paws was steel typed, and it grew heavier as he pumped more power into it, thankfully, the projectile did not have far to go. The dense steel sphere spun through the fairy energy around her fangs, and Naga was sent reeling back, but both Alex and Canis watched as she weathered the hit with a building aura of ground typed energy in the form of a Bulldoze, without Asami calling the move herself. Canis was already charging up another one, when Naga stopped her backwards slide, and then began charging, shaking the platform as she Bulldozed towards Canis.

He did as Naga had, and used a move without it being called, specifically Psychic, as a speed boost to launch himself into the air, and behind her charging form. He let the power go, and then launched his second condensed Flash Cannon before the slow to turn polar bear Pokémon could even begin to block. Naga weathered the hit, and looked up at Canis. She emitted a sound somewhere between a roar and a bark, in the form of a Hyper Voice, hammering him and his sensitive ears hard, as she again battled on her own. Asami seemed to let her, only chiming in when Naga paused long enough to heed a command. "Finish him! Icicle Crash!"

Alex grinned, knowing his Mega Lucario wasn't nearly done yet. "Close Combat!" Canis righted himself, and then propelled towards the massive Beartic, meeting her ice covered paws with the ferocity of his fighting spirit. The type advantage won out, and the two Pokémon were sent sliding back to their starting points, both panting hard, and equally worn out.

It was at that moment, that the city exploded, with a massive rumble, and a boom that echoed for miles, shaking the stadium they were in. The pair of Trainers and their Pokémon looked around, as dust and bits of debris fell from the ceiling, and then, the humans locked eyes, nodding simultaneously.

Minjujuui City Harbor, Several Hours Earlier - Koria Region

"We will be the epitome of stealth." Aluza said, as she paced in front of their soldiers on the deck of their ship. She was dressed for combat this time, most of her head and face covered by her Fire Nation helmet, and golden faceplate. To say she looked fierce in the pointy, crimson and black raiment was an understatement. "By the time these savages know we're there, I want them to be fully surrounded."

Behind her, atop his scarlet and crimson armor plate covered Charizard, Okuz let out a sigh. Aluza whirled on him, her visible eye twitching. "Is there an issue brother!?" A few of the soldiers shared looks as the siblings began another fight, but they wisely stayed silent.

Okuz's eyes narrowed at her. "We don't have the time to get into your issues, sister. We have a more pressing concern." He said, his tone full of mockery as he gestured to the ship's gangplank.

One of her hands was already burning blue with flames, as she prepared to strike him, but his gesturing turned her gaze, and the flames died as quickly as they rose. Boarding their ship was their uncle, looking none too pleased, and Zhao, who looked far too smug. Iroh spoke, once they were before the soldiers. "The Admiral here is commandeering our forces for the attack on the rebels."

Aluza let out a series of colorful curses, before Zhao's best attempt at a commanding baritone cut through the profanity. "The Phoenix King has placed Me in charge of both this effort, and our imminent efforts against the Northern Water Tribe. Obey my orders, and you will all reap the rewards of Victory!"

Okuz took note of which royal guards were so easily swayed by such obviously honeyed words, and crossed his arms atop his Charizard. Still enraged, Aluza jumped onto her own living flamethrower, and ascended rapidly through the air. Zhao shouted uselessly after her, before focusing on Okuz. "Keep your insane sibling from ruining our assault 'Prince', or Ozai will hear of it." He turned then, and left the smaller ship, as their soldiers went with him.

Okuz looked at his uncle, who slowly shook his head, silently advising against arguing with the newly promoted Admiral. With his own groan of protest, he and Druk also ascended into the air, following the mega evolving black Charizard as they too ascended to the final, but branching evolutionary stage. The pair of fire lizards and their royal riders watched from above, somewhat disappointed, as the column of red from their ship merged with a proper army of Fire Army soldiers, who began marching through the city.

Almost unanimously, the citizens of Minjujuui got the Muk out of their warpath, though that didn't seem to stop several bold or stupid people from attacking them. Flashes of firebending from below gave away how well resisting the Fire Nation usually went, and the citizens were soon occupied controlling the newly set blazes, so much so that the soldiers marched right past them, and into the poorer districts where Aluza and he had found the nest of rebellious Rattata.

"We should be down there fighting!" Aluza snarled, and Caeruleus mirrored her Trainer's sentiment. In her Mega Form, her dragon typing made her even more brutal than usual, and she was in a mood to set something ablaze.

"Watch for stragglers." Okuz said, bringing Druk in next to her. "They will try to run, scurrying about in the shadows, as Rattata often do." The noonday sun in the clear blue Korian sky made the armored fire lizards obvious, but it also gave them clear sight, and in their Mega Forms, they could easily pounce on anyone trying to flee.

Sewers of Minjujuui City - Koria Region

Asami had a back way into the rebellion's HQ which put her and Alex back at the base in time for the pompous baritone of the Fire Nation's leader to begin his speech, as they'd arrived at the same time as the Fire Army soldiers.

"Rebels of Koria! Hear me! You are completely surrounded, by three of the Fire Nation's finest platoons. Surrender, and your deaths may be mercifully short."

As the angry sounding man delivered his threats, Meelo met Alex and Asami at the entrance to her secret tunnel. "Akos and the rest of your group have already departed. We haven't had long to run, but the hotheads didn't exactly hide their approach."

Alex arched a brow, as his cover story evaporated. "Where will I be rendezvousing with them?"

"Agna Qel'a." Meelo answered hurriedly. "Kuzon, one of Aang's friends and an old ally of ours is who you're heading to on the way north. Colonia Ignis is where he operates from. He's also a Gym Leader, and the Leader after him is in Agna Qel'a as well. I'll be going with you, so you don't get lost, and Dad wants me to determine your skill with Airbending as we travel."

"Here." Asami spoke up, handing him a badge as they readied to leave. "You and your team are more than competent enough for this." He took the badge, as the older woman began following them towards another exit from the tunnels. "You should know...in her last Battle, Kora and Raava were separated, for a time. The consciousness and wisdom of the former Avatars was lost, according to her. Even if you do manage to find the Avatar, they might never be strong enough to contribute to your dragon's plans."

Alex was quiet for a time, as he sensed Tao's brain in the back of his split mind, already accounting for the loss in firepower. Then, he spoke. "I am somewhat aware of what Ozai did to Kora. Where would the detached spirit essence of a former Avatar even go, once separated? Assuming it does not simply disappear."

Asami shrugged, though he could see his words had caused her some pain, she showed none of it. "The Spirit World? Arceus's realm? A place they favored in life? I'm not a Ghost Type expert." She stopped then and wrenched open a hatch on a thick iron door that capped off their tunnel. "Head north from here. You'll have to walk; the Imperium shoots down anyone they see flying. Good luck, Meelo. You as well, Alex. I've read about what you've done for Rio, Norstad, and Fornia. I hope Koria benefits from your presence as well."

"I try to leave every region I roam through better than it was, as a rule." Alex answered with a nod. It was a practice Jess had started, back during their trek through Arcean territory. In the face of being able to do nothing against the oppressive system the Church had the people under lest they break their cover, she'd done what she'd been able to in order to aid the people, and Alex had followed her lead, as it was a fantastic idea in general.

"Stay safe, Asami." Meelo said, as he took her hands. "I know the other Avatars of Raava are still intact, somewhere. Have a little faith."

Asami looked ready to give him a stern reply, when the tunnels shook again. "They're coming. If we want to make this setback work in our favor, we need to leave. Now."

The two men nodded, and the gym leader closed the sewer hatch behind them. "Hope you're not allergic to Fairy glamour, O Dragon Emperor." Meelo said, as he produced a pink shard of what he assumed was once a Pixie Plate.

Alex grimaced. "Not allergic...but I can't use them myself. Not without burning my hands. Activating the energy is…painful."

Meelo nodded, as his psychic sight confirmed that humans who awakened typings tended to awaken their weaknesses too. "I'm amazed you made it this far without one. I'll try to make this one last."

"I'm surprised you know how to use them. I've only met one other who could. Can all the Air Nomads do it?" Alex asked, as they ducked to the side of the sewer exit.

"With training, I think they could." Meelo said, confidently. "But right now, I'm one of three who can. We were shown how to use this by... a friend I guess you could call him."

Alex's eyes widened. "This friend…was he thin, dressed in light blue, white, and gold, and sporting a stylish hat? Strange looking golden eyes?"

Meelo chuckled as he outlined Alex's bulky frame with the Plate crystal. "He didn't have a hat, or such clothes... but you described his eyes perfectly. Why, do you know him too?"

"More or less. If we're speaking of the same person, I'm the one who set him free. He wasn't causing trouble, right?" Alex said, as he pinched his brow.

"Only for the Imperium." Meelo answered as he finished the glamour. "If he's a friend of yours, then my trust in his magic is that much greater."

Alex examined his new disguise before he answered. He was Korian now, going by skin tone, even if he was taller than any Korian he'd seen thus far. His hair was also a lighter brown, though his face largely remained the same, the natural perception filter fairy energy caused in humans would allow him and Meelo to pass mostly undetected if they wanted to.

"Mm. Well...sure, yea he's one I would call friend, and a decent ally as well. As far as I know, he's kept his promises...perhaps I'm being too skeptical. Pessimistic. Hmm."

As Alex mused, several hundred feet above the pair of travelers, a pair of eagle eyed Charizard and their riders were watching for a pair such as them. Only Caeruleus had eyes sharp enough, eager enough, to catch the edge of the natural perception filter fairy typed energy gave those who used it to hide, and though she dove many yards to check, to Aluza's surprise and irritation, she was ultimately not able to spot the two.

Alex and Meelo made good time away from Minjujuui City, and by the time the wide blue Korian sky turned orange and red, they were several hundred miles away from it. It was only once they camped, with the notable forms of Oogie and the newly dubbed Adamanteus lying around their cookfire that the pair of Charizard riders finally found the source of the scent and footprints they'd been tracking with Okuz's Arcanine.

Down below, as yet unaware of their incoming guest, Alex and Meelo were enjoying an Air Nomad specialty, cake made from berries, crafted in a stone oven Alex had bent into shape, and infused with their trademark airyness by Meelo. Naturally, the conversation had shifted to airbending, and how one managed it.

"Air is the element of freedom. We don't really bend the air, so much as we guide it, and it is by no means always under our control. The stronger our minds become, the better an Air Nomad will be at reading the air currents, and moving with them, using them to their advantage. Having a steady breathing rhythm is also important. You have to breathe fast enough for combat, but deep enough for your attacks to be more than a gust of wind."

Alex smirked, as he listened to the General of the rebellion, and son of the man who represented what was left of their Nation. "Honestly...this sounds like my kind of element. I have years of breath control practice already. I have to admit, I was kind of hoping I could learn how to punch people with mini air tornadoes, but this sounds intriguing as well."

Meelo chuckled and shook his head. "You can certainly attempt such a thing...it's just going to take a lot of energy to keep in control. Air is everywhere. It will outlast even the most durable human. You can fight it, force it to bend a certain way, but to be truly powerful as an Airbender, you have to move with it, and expend as little energy as possible. Avoid, and evade. That is our strategy, and it works rather well...when we aren't ambushed."

Alex nodded, as Meelo referenced the Fire Nation's initial opening strike in their Imperium-supported conflict across Koria, back when they were but one of four Nations, and by no means the largest. "I understand. I think I'll...give it a…"

His words trailed off, as to their southwest, the burning tail flame of what Alex easily recognized as a Charizard, and one in a Mega Form no less, descending from above. They watched it vanish into the horizon, but the rider was close enough to reach them, especially if they had other Pokémon. The two men shared a look, and Meelo pulled his hood further up. He looked like an Earth Nation civilian now, and they'd agreed that Alex could earthbend for him, if he was asked to prove his lineage. "Probably just a scout...act natural." Meelo said, recalling Oogie. Alex brought Pruina out in his stead, and while she didn't really care for the grassland, she Ice Beamed the earth beneath her, and got comfy.

It was about twenty minutes before their uninvited guest arrived at their fire. He had a hood on, and his clothes were baggy, a mix of red and black that likely concealed his armor. Alex and Meelo looked his way, but made no threatening moves.

"Uh, hi." He said, somewhat awkwardly. "Okuz here. That's my uh...name. I was wondering if I could...join your fire."

Meelo spoke first. "Are you of the Fire Nation, Okuz?"

The man nodded, though to Alex's eyes he seemed a teenager, or had just left his teens behind, but what interested him was the dual typing the stranger had. Fire and electric. "I hope that's not a problem…"

Alex spoke then, gesturing at the flame. "On a battlefield it might be...but we are simple travelers, here. Let's consider this fire to be neutral territory, and remain friends, if not acquaintances while gathered around it."

Okuz nodded and took his place at the fire. Meelo flinched as he gestured at the flames and made them stronger. "So, where are a pair like you two headed?"

"Away from Minjujuui City." Meelo answered vaguely. "Your Nation's army was on the march through the streets when we left."

"We're heading for Colonia Ignis." Alex said, answering him directly. "I'm challenging the Koria League. My next Badge is there."

Okuz arched a brow at them, before he replied. "The Koria League?" He said, surprised anyone would willingly challenge his father, who reigned as Champion. "You must be quite a Bender. What's your element?" He asked, completely ignoring Meelo's statement.

"Fire, actually." Alex said, forcing his airbending companion to hide his initial shock. He caught on to what Alex was doing pretty quickly, though. Finding a friendly firebender to teach him would be difficult, but one had just walked up to their campfire and agreed to neutrality. "I heard there was a master at the colony, but if you have any wisdom to pass on, I'd be eager to learn."

Okuz thought for a moment, and then said, "I might be able to help...but it depends on where your skills are at."

Alex gave him a genuine smile. "The basics would be a good start. My mother was Fire Nation, but not a Bender. My father was a Bender, but of the earth, not the flame. I've made it this far mostly because of my Pokémon." He finished, gesturing to his lounging team.

Okuz looked over each of them, from the brooding pair of Lucario and Raboot, to the fake sleeping Lapras. "I could've sworn I saw a Sky Bouffalant from above, but I suppose it was just the ice under your Lapras in the light of the moon. Sure, I can go over the basics of proper Firebending. You'll need it against Leader Kuzon, and Champion Ozai."

He and Alex stood then and moved to the flat area adjacent to where they'd set camp. The grass on the plains around them was short, and unlikely to burn out of control once they got started. "I'm going to watch as well, if you don't mind." Meelo said, joining them, albeit at a distance.

Okuz nodded, again, seeming more interested or focused on Alex than him, as he launched into his lesson. "Fire...is not like other elements." Okuz said as he inhaled, and then with his exhale, and a swift punch into the air, unleashed a burst of flame from the tip of his fist. Alex, naturally, was watching every move with his psychic sight, and what he saw confused him. "Fire is alive...every living thing has heat and relies on it to keep living. Firebenders can control that heat...we can spread it, increase it, or decrease it entirely. The techniques of...my home, rely on combining Firebending with martial arts." He demonstrated then, shifting into another punch, a spinning kick that sent him up into the air, and then down in a fiery ball. Very quickly, Alex realized Okuz was much better at bending than he was. "Emotions fuel our flames. Anger, rage, hate, these produce the strongest flames. They are how my Nation has conquered this region, but they can burn out of control if your will is weak." He turned to Alex then, gracefully spinning back up into a standing position. "Let me see any amount of fire you can currently produce."

Having watched how Okuz tapped into and utilized his fire typing, Alex wondered if his electric typing was also a part of firebending. It made some sense, as plasma was one of the hottest forms of matter humans were aware of. As he started though, his perception slowed, and he felt Tao and another mind exerting their will to temporarily slow the flow of time itself around them. He recognized the extra mind as 'his' Mewtwo's, and it seemed that together, they managed what they needed to. Tao's voice echoed in his head. "I do not have long so listen well, Tamer of mine. The Fire Nation has perverted everything Firebending was and should be. Hateful emotions are not the key to bending this element, and as a fellow Dragon Type, you will need it in your journeys. Power in Firebending comes from the breath, the heat generated as you exhale can be spurred into flames. You can draw from other sources as well, and naturally, our Sun is the easiest. Be careful what you reveal to this Human. He has an air of fate around him that...I do not like."

Alex nodded, to Okuz, and to his silent mentor, as the temporary time diffusion faded. Meelo noticed it but only narrowed his eyes in suspicion. If Okuz sensed the shift in the flow of time, he gave no sign. Alex took his own stance then. "My mother taught me a style of martial arts from the Fire Nation...the Dragon Style. I'll use that, if you don't mind." He took a deep breath then, and as he exhaled, willed the natural heat in his breath and body to manifest into flame. As he struck forward with a 'dragon palm', fire erupted from it, in an uncontrolled, and powerful torrent. Okuz's eyes went wide, as did Meelo's, but Alex did not panic. He let the flames die out on their own, slowly cutting the energy to them, and the torrent decreased in stages of smallness.

"That...was...it was so...strong. Especially for a novice. What did you do?" Okuz said, crossing his arms as he eyed Alex. His fairy glamour kept the perceptive prince from seeing too much, and it helped that the firebender was more impressed than suspicious in that moment.

"I... just used the heat generated by my exhale to expand the flames…" Alex said, eyeing his hand. The heat had expanded rapidly, almost out of control. Like it wanted to be free to rage and burn. He started to understand why Blaze always wanted a battle. If his flames were anything like that, he'd need one to keep it in control.

"Your emotions, though...you didn't seem...angry. How did you generate that kind of fire without them?" Okuz said, still eyeing Alex.

"I... I think there's more to this than blind hate, Okuz." Alex said as he punched the air again, and this time, was ready for the sudden surge in fire power. It came out as a steady torrent, almost like a Flamethrower. He nodded, and then repeated the moves Okuz had used step for step. When he was done, he swirled back into a standing position, and faced the firebender. "I think I have the hang of it. Let us spar."

Okuz nodded, and then inhaled deeply, speaking as he exhaled. "I will not hold back. Don't expect any other Firebender to hold back either. It is not our way." He took his own martial stance, and Alex nodded, though personally, he was of the idea that the Fire Nation needed to practice control. He'd seen what they had wrought, and now knew, or at least had an idea, of how they'd done it. Madmen with this kind of power and a lack of morality was a bad combination.

Alex took his own stance, and as soon as he did, Okuz launched himself forward with flames from his feet, but Alex was already turning, spinning away from his opening strike, only to whirl around and find their arms meeting at the wrist. Flames billowed into the air around them, and Alex grinned. He wasn't trying to kill, that much Alex could tell, but he didn't intend to lose, either.

Alex opted for defense, finding he could strike through Okuz's flames if he focused. As they clashed, he realized that, as a martial artist, they were on the same level, but as a bender, Okuz had a natural talent. The way the flames obeyed him was almost mesmerizing, but Alex kept his eyes attentive on how the nature energy passed through his body's network and came out as fire. He learned more with every strike.

As Alex opted to avoid and evade with his infuriatingly evasive movements, Okuz seemed to get more and more frustrated. His flames were hotter, and that, was when Alex realized that emotions were a good way of increasing the heat one could produce. His strikes were hard and fierce, but most of his energy was being wasted as he gave in to rage.

Alex blocked a series of rapid punches, and a spinning kick, before Okuz spun back and up into the air, pointing one foot down at him as the other crossed under his outstretched leg, and sent him hurtling towards Alex like a rocket. It was as close to a Blaze Kick as Alex assumed a human could get, and he met it with his own emotion-fueled Dragon Palm. Fire erupted around them, but he sensed Pruina was on it, covering their team and Meelo as the two firebenders met.

The resulting explosion of flame sent them both sliding back along the charred grass, and Alex held up a hand, panting as hard as Okuz as he seemed ready for more. "I... think that's enough...for now." One closed fist moved to his palm, and Alex bowed, deep. "That was...a very instructive...lesson. Thank you, mister Okuz."

Okuz almost looked ready to continue regardless, but he exhaled, and his inner flame cooled. Alex continued watching, noting that the energy within his body also seemed heated. He looked at his own and noticed the same thing. He did as Okuz had, and cooled it with an exhale, though he wondered if that might not affect how well he could draw on other elements if he used too much firebending. "You're pretty skilled, for a novice...martially, at least. Train hard, or Leader Kuzon will burn you to ash." Okuz said, as he adjusted his clothes, and wiped the sweat from his brow.

They returned to the camp then, finding the ground somewhat damp, from Pruina's protective Surf attack. It wasn't long before they went to sleep, and Alex mentally informed Meelo that his overprotective aura hound had volunteered to keep an eye on their fire shooting counterpart. Okuz did little during the night, and Canis only glanced at him with suspicion when he noted a slight blue glow from the man's sleeping roll.

Unbeknownst to Alex and Meelo, the Fire Nation's prince had, out of curiosity, removed the circular object capable of detecting the Light, and this close to Alex and his team, it gave off a faint glow. Not as bright as it had before, but Okuz now knew with certainty that these two were more than what they appeared. When he looked at them it didn't seem that way, but the glowing disk could not, according to his father, be fooled. Somehow, they were tied to Light energy, and he had every intention of finding out how. He figured they had, knowingly or not, been in the Avatar's proximity.

When the sun rose, so too did the firebender. Seeing only Canis was awake that early, he scribbled a note, and handed it to the Lucario, before departing on his Charizard. It was shortly after that, that Meelo awoke, and tried waking Alex with a gust of air. As usual, the man was deeply drawn into his dreams, though when Meelo tried mentally prodding him, all he sensed was that his mind, or the conscious part of it at least, was far, far away. He let Alex sleep and began making the morning's meal out of what berries they had, feeding both Alex's team, and Poki, the Korian Passimian, a flying type, that acted as his own partner, when Oogie had to hide.

When Alex finally awoke, Meelo didn't press him on his dreams, and after a mid-morning sparring session with Cinder and Canis, and his newly acquired fire manipulation the two men headed north. Alex convinced Adamanteus to give them a ride, and the steel snake agreed. Alex wasn't worried about leaving a trail for Okuz and whatever firebending friends he might have; they were only heading exactly where he said they would be.

Aside from a few changes in biome, none of which impeded his massive Steelix, they ran afoul of a nest of particularly bad tempered Mandibuzz, quite unlike those Alex was familiar with back in Unova. They were part bug type, and that bug, seemed to have been a Beedrill. According to Meelo, the foul tempered flying types had hunted the bugs to extinction, and then taken on their traits. Even the Fornian variants of the Weedle line, who were typically four times larger than their Unovan counterparts, hadn't been so ill-tempered. Temere got in some decent experience when he leaped from his ball on his own accord and Thunderbolted them out of the sky, and Alex knew, the tiny electric Pokémon was almost ready to evolve. The spark on his head was occasionally flaring, something the Pokédex claimed was a sign of imminent evolution.

Aside from crossing a rather large river, little else happened that day, and even Adamanteus was ready for a rest once the sun finally began to set. Thanks to the longer summer days, they were able to get within walking distance of Colonia Ignis with the speed Adamanteus traveled across the land. While he hadn't left the ground ruined in his wake, using his power to fix his trail as they went, the disturbed earth was still easily visible, say, from the back of a Charizard.

Alex was keeping his egg warm again as the rest of the team lounged. Oogie only came out when they could find a forested clearing to hide his bulk, and tonight such a clearing was simply not around. He was watching Meelo and his Korian Passimian, Poki, spar against Temere, when two things happened at once. Poki had been charging up a particularly strong Razor Wind, but Temere had made no move to dodge it. He'd wanted to battle solo against a strong flying type, and Alex had let him. As the Razor Wind struck, Temere began glowing a bright white, the whirlwind of damage shifted in nature.

In preparation for his evolution, Lux and Nox had been showing the tiny Toxel songs from the genre of music humans had labeled 'Classic Rock', but one song had, naturally, resonated more with the tiny sparking poison lizard more than the others, which he had still enjoyed. A song from an era lost to history, now revived from the middle of the electric hurricane his Toxtricity had decided to evolve inside of. The opening chords of 'Thunderstruck' by a band titled with only four letters of the Common alphabet rang across the plateau that sat above Colonia Ignis. Alex had little doubt the locals could hear the electric screech of his Amped Toxtricity's stomach shredding, and he bobbed his head in approval, as he also enjoyed this song. It was, undoubtedly, a jam.

The terrain became electrified, and the clouds above multiplied, and darkened, but that didn't stop Meelo and Poki. "Acrobatics!"

By the first chorus of 'Thunder!' that the electric salamander vocalized himself, Temere let out a Discharge that sent the physical attacking flying lemur backwards on a wave of Rock'n'roll, and super effective energy. Meelo held off a follow up though, as both he and Alex watched.

Temere was in his own little world, distracted from the battle as he skillfully belted out what was undoubtedly the first of many songs he would attempt to cover now that he had the skillz. Thunder boomed through the sky, followed by streaks of lightning, all without rain. Alex blinked, as he felt not only Lux's mental attention, but Shruikan's. His massive dragon had been silent and somewhat cut off over the past few weeks, doing his own thing as he took a well-earned rest, but he watched with amusement through his Trainer's eyes as the newest electric typed battler of their family came into the summer of his youth. Then, Alex heard him speak. "You might want to look down."

As quickly as he'd paid attention, Shruikan returned to his silent aloofness, but Alex was distracted, by the egg in his arms also glowing a shining bright white. Cracks formed in the egg, and by its pattern, Alex was now sure of what he'd been given. The top part of the shell popped free as the light broke out, and a happy 'briii' filled his ears, in the midst of Temere's playing. The Togepi in question was male, as Alex examined him, and while he held its gaze, the baby egg Pokémon turned in his hands towards the sounds coming out of Temere's chest. Instead of crying though, he seemed to cheer and bop along to the jam. It was then that Alex noted he seemed slightly different to what the Pokédex had shown of Togepi. He had a slightly reddish tinge, and after nudging Lux, found that the markings on his shell were reversed in color, as in usually blue triangles were instead red and vice versa. Lux determined they had an alternate-colored specimen of the Togepi line in their midst, though upon checking what that would manifest as in later forms, Alex wasn't too surprised. His Togekiss would be slightly gold it seemed, which was fitting for his team.

Alex assumed his tiny hands waving back and forth to the beat were a sign of his enthusiasm, until they also started to glow. That was when he remembered what Metronome looked like, and while he knew Togepi weren't supposed to hatch with that move, his modest little spiky ball of fairy energy didn't seem to care. He winced, waiting for a move like Hyper Beam or Explosion, but instead found himself as surprised as Temere. A Thunder attack arced down from the clouds above Temere, leaving a crater right in front of him, and throwing off his rendition of Thunderstruck all at once.

Temere was moody after that, while their newest team member seemed greatly amused. Alex kept him occupied with a Wiki berry, that was almost as big as he was, and the hungry baby Pokémon went to town on it. Meelo joined him then, teasing the easily amused baby with his fingers. "I see your Egg finally hatched. Are you going to nickname this one too?"

"Of course." Alex said, one eyebrow slowly arching as the baby Togepi looked from Meelo to him, with wide eyes, as if he understood the essence of what they were saying. Thanks to his past experience with Percy, he hadn't mentally connected with the newborn, but thankfully he didn't have to. He could sense its emotions, and understand its words, though being a baby, all he heard was gibberish. "How about...Lumen?"

The Togepi thought for a moment, then stuck his tongue out, and continued to eat. Alex took that as a no. At about halfway through the melon-like Wiki berry, the youngster's appetite finally slowed, and he looked back up at his still pondering Trainer. "Hmmm. Astrum. How does that sound, little one?"

To Alex's surprise, the Togepi repeated the word himself, though all Meelo heard was his species name, and the newborn smiled, repeating it a few more times, before munching on the rest of the berry. "Astrum it is." He said, giving the rounded part of his soft, yet spiky head scritches. Somehow, he wasn't surprised the baby was only saying his own name, and in the hours that followed until he curled up into a ball for sleep, it was the only thing his ears translated. The rest of his team seemed to understand him to a degree, though.

The next morning, Astrum was given a Luxury Ball to rest and play inside of, and with his team one final evolution closer to a full roster of adult battlers, he and Meelo set off for Colonia Ignis. They hadn't tried airbending yet, as both had agreed he should focus on fire manipulation for this next gym, and while in Fire Nation territory it was a big risk. None of the colony residents had come to see the source of the electric rock show, and Temere, who now went by 'Tem', had taken to practicing strumming in his ball, and Alex could feel it rocking out on his belt. Through their mental link, Tem was sharing his rockin' riffs with whoever wanted to listen, which was most of the team. Alex included.

Their first stop was for more Fire Nation friendly clothes, which thankfully were not hard to find. After that, Meelo led Alex to the gym, and he entered, crushing the obligatory warm up Trainers with Pruina and Adamanteus. Unlike their leader, these Trainers battled regularly, with just their Pokémon.

As Alex progressed to Leader Kuzon's room, he found himself within a giant opaque square of glass, and across the battlefield was his opponent. He was an old man, easily as old as his Gruncle had been, if not older, and his serious, thin face broke into a smirk as they locked eyes.

"It has been a great while since a Challenger with fire like yours made their way to my humble Gym." The old man studied Alex, hands behind his back as he did. He had a thin pointed beard, white with age like his hair and his outfit was as red as every other Fire Nation citizen's. He seemed a bit frail to be a Gym Leader to Alex's eyes, but he'd absorbed enough Korean culture by now to understand that people typically avoided disrespecting their elders by telling them when to quit and retire. "You carry yourself like an Earthbender. You will find that element little use against me."

Alex just smirked. "Actually, I'll be meeting your fire with my own." He made a quick jab in the air, and produced a flame that came out smaller than he intended. His brow furrowed then, as the fire typed energy in the gym felt...off. Sluggish. As if something else was drawing power from the natural heat already.

"Fire? Really?" Leader Kuzon squinted at him. "I was sure you were...never mind. Fire it is, and Fire it shall be. You at least had a chance, with Earth." The old man closed his eyes then, and began breathing deeply, slow at first, and then faster. The air grew hotter, and Alex then realized why his own firebending was weaker. The old man was attuned to the majority of the sources of fire energy in his gym, by Alex's best guess, either a hot spring or lava pit hidden below the battlefield. While Kuzon's eyes stayed closed, Alex watched it react to his breath, and frowned. He was right. Bending like this, in a space so dominated by a master's control already, was seemingly futile.

He wondered how anyone ever dethroned such masters if they could always control the most nature energy aspected to their type, when Kuzon brought out an Infernape. He was an old specimen of the species, and an impressive white beard hung down from his chin as he beat his chest and roared at Alex, who had been about to call out Pruina. Seeing the fire monkey was at least as strong as Naga had been, he reconsidered, and instead summoned Nox to the field.

His Haunter didn't pop out of his ball, but rather his shadow, where he watched, learned, and kept his team safe from thieves. Kuzon eyed the ghost, but Alex didn't take notice, as his poisonous specter had a demand. "If I beat this one... I want your pile of Dusk Stones for myself. All of them."

Alex blinked at Nox. "What would you even do with five Dusk Stones? I need those to evolve other Pokémon."

The Haunter's face became ninety percent grin. "I will make their Darkness my own…"

Alex sighed and fell into a Dragon Style ready position. "You have to win, first."

The Haunter faded from sight as he chuckled. "I will…"

Alex frankly doubted their chances, but he intended to battle as hard as he could. A wispy thin Korian man with narrow eyes and black hair shouted, as Kuzon fell into a fighting crouch as well. "This match will be a standard three on three Battle. Only the Challenger may substitute Pokémon. Begin!"

Kuzon's opening strike was, in a word, ferocious, for a fourth Gym Leader. His arms made circles as he inhaled an inhuman amount of air, and then expelled it as a torrent of unstoppable flame from his mouth. Alex looked at his available paths as the flame came towards him, and opted for the one he felt would work. He used his Voice under his breath and inhaled. "Naak Yol!" Kuzon controlled most of the fire energy in the gym, but not Alex's own. The energy of just his breath could only burn so hot, but to his surprise, the Words of the dragon tongue drew the natural energy's power into his system as he inhaled Kuzon's flames. The Words excited the flames, which were naturally drawn to the power in his Voice.

For his part, Nox had kept the Infernape busy, being all but immune to his fighting attacks, and being more than able to counter the fire monkey's Fire Punch with the same move. Assuming he could even hit through the Confuse Rays that Nox kept him bathed in. He was motivated enough to handle battling on his own, which was good, because Alex could barely handle everything Kuzon had breathed at him, but he managed it, and then smirked, wiping his chin as he did. "Now that...was some good fire." Some of the flame had singed his beard but otherwise, Alex had taken in enough fire power to counter, hard. Kuzon simply stared, somewhere between impressed and incredulous.

Taking a page from Okuz, he launched himself forward with a burst of flame. Seeing him move, Nox let the confused Infernape flail wildly at nothing, and hid within his Trainer's shadow as he struck. He hadn't completely left it, and bonded as they now were, it was easy to glide back to. Alex brought a flurry of flaming dragon palms from above, and while Kuzon was able to handle those with ease, he did not expect to be uppercut by the Haunter with a Fire Punch to the chin, followed by a roundhouse kick from an oversized foot that sent the old man out of the field's arena.

Alex and Nox turned on the Infernape then, and from the sidelines, the old man held his jaw, as age finally caught up with him, and his body was momentarily stunned from the pain of two hard hits. "Bul!" The man's voice snapped the fire ape out of its confusion, and the old man held up his hand. The sleeve of his red and slightly darker red garment fell, revealing an intricate golden bracelet, within which was a Key Stone. The flame atop Bul's head parted, revealing what had to be a shard of a Flame Plate within, and Kuzon shouted, "Now, is the time! Mega Evolve!"

Alex swore, and fished in his pack, not for a potion, but for the items his Haunter needed. "Whatever you're going to do with these, Nox...do it now." His Haunter looked at the stones, and then the glowing Infernape, and reached the same conclusion Alex had. With the difference in level and power, even one hit through a Confuse Ray would knock Nox out, and winning was still part of the agreement. Alex had assumed his Haunter needed them for evolution, and without anyone to 'trade' him to, or a place to trade in, he'd been out of luck. At least until the poisonous ghost revealed that in Koria, Haunter didn't need such a thing for evolution.

In the depths of the night during one of their camping sessions, before Alex's mind had gone elsewhere, his Haunter had explained the 'why' of this to him, as he was curious. Evidently, the spirit of Shadow and Raava's own counterpart, Vaatu, had once entered Koria by force from the Spirit World. The result of that action, made possible by the folly of a human who had separated the two entities, had left the region infested with a lingering darkness that had led the Nations to war with each other regularly throughout the contemporary history of the planet, with the only exception being the Air Nation. Mistrust and hatred marred the history of Koria, and it had always come down to the Guardian's Avatar to keep the balance between them, and maintain some measure of peace.

If Nox had enough power, he could use the lingering darkness of the land to propel himself down an alternate line to his final form, one he assured his Trainer would be worth having. Once Nox had told him Korian Gengar was a ghost and dark type, Alex had been more than okay with helping him to evolve, but the Haunter hadn't brought it up since. Until now.

The Haunter tossed the Dusk Stones into his toothy maw and crunched on them, making their darkness his own. Nox doubled over once he swallowed, and he snarled, making all four participants of the battle pause, to watch. As the light of Infinity remade Bul, the power of Shadow, tempered by Nox and his Dusk Stones, became purified of its natural corruptive essence, before it remade the Haunter. It looked like a painful process, but mentally, the last mental thought Nox would ever share with them, he assured them all he was okay. His eyes bulged, turning red and cracked until the eyes of the Haunter became the eyes of a Gengar. Completely red and significantly darker than the more common kind of the ghostly species, his body shifted from purple to primarily black, with hints of dark purple akin to a plum. The usually straight teeth of his Gengar grin were now jagged and razor sharp, but otherwise, Nox seemed almost identical to the more common form of Gengar that plagued many regions across the Earth.

For his part, Bul had become everything Alex expected of a Mega Infernape. His fur was now white and shaggy like an Oranguru, and instead of a fan, he had a long red staff, and several pieces of golden body armor on his legs, shins, fists, and forearms. A gold face plate framing his ape features played home to the shard of the Flame Plate on his brow, and as the light of Infinity faded, Alex and Nox found him perched atop a ball of flame that seemed to be alive, to their eyes. His tail was now surprisingly similar to a Charizard's, if furrier, in that its tip was now home to an intense blue flame.

They watched as the Mega Infernape stuck his tail flames into the ball of fire, turning it blue, and with an expert flip through the air from the top of the fireball, he sent it sailing towards Nox with the momentum of his tail. For his part, Nox responded with a Double Team, but his attempt to dodge was foiled as Bul controlled the fireball.

Alex was distracted from helping him, as Kuzon was back on his feet, and furiously countering every move Alex made with speed the old man simply hadn't had before. He could barely bend in response, and what fire he could make now that between him and Bul most of the energy was already being heavily drawn upon was not enough to damage a firebending master.

Thus, Alex fell back on a strategy that had always helped when he was pushed on the defensive back foot. Take a page from someone better. Okuz had managed to propel himself with his feet, and Alex had just enough control to manage that with his naturally high body temp, and oversized feet. He essentially fire-skated around the field, picking up Nox in his shadow as he passed by. With the giant blue fireball now chasing him, he skated away from it, and then backflipped over it with the aid of his 'rocket feet'.

Kuzon was on him again as soon as he landed, and Bul disappeared with his enhanced speed, to the other side of the fireball's path. With his staff, he swung at the fireball like a Pokémon Base player, and sent it sailing back towards Kuzon. Seeing it coming, Alex dodged the gym leader's fists, and stayed in place as Kuzon struck at him. When he sensed the fire coming and tried to move, Kuzon suddenly found his feet stuck. The shadow from under the challenger had him locked in place, and a downright malicious grin appeared within it.

Bul shrieked and pounded his chest, seeing Kuzon not able to dodge, but even with his speed, it was too late to redirect the fireball. Alex rocketed back at the moment of impact, and Nox held Kuzon in place hidden safely in his shadow as the intense Pyro Ball hit his back, causing him to fall. The Mega Form faded from Bul as this happened, and Kuzon was properly out of the fight.

Bul didn't last long though, as Nox slowly rose from Alex's shadow, and his Trainer gave the order. "Psychic!" An ominous red aura appeared in a wave of psychic energy that raced towards the flaming ape, and sent him sailing into the glass wall.

Then, the ref spoke again. "Leader Kuzon's Infernape is unable to Battle! The round goes to the Challenger. Leader Kuzon is unable to continue Battling. The rules will now shift to a standard League match in the interest of safety!" If the ref was mad at Alex, he didn't show it, and Alex was grateful for the impartiality. Sometimes, gym referees could be biased, but it was thankfully an uncommon thing to find, in any region with a League.

Kuzon's next choice was a Camerupt, which he tried and failed to mega evolve. Alex swapped his Korian Gengar for his Lapras, and the two were almost even in strength. Koria's wilderness had many rock and ground types, and Pruina had grown strong shooting them down with Water Pulses. Fortune was with them, as her initial Water Pulse confused the volcano camel, and the following Surf attack, along with damage inflicted by confusion, caused him to faint.

By that point, Leader Kuzon had been tended to with berry paste salves, and revitalized with what seemed to be soup of some kind. He stepped onto the field again, as he drew his last ball. "I'm ready to Firebend again, Challenger. Take your place, and substitute if you wish."

Alex frowned, not convinced that the old man was truly ready after a STAB hit from a Mega Pokémon's strongest fire attack, but he stepped onto the field anyway. Surprisingly, he noted the referee had left, along with the other warm-up Trainers who'd been in Kuzon's gym, watching the match. It was, seemingly, just them now. Before the old man could control all the natural fire around them, Alex began breathing deeply, reaching out to the flames, and urging them to burn larger, hotter. The field around them became akin to a volcano's insides, and he recalled Pruina, not wanting her to be burned by the rapidly heating floor.

Kuzon summoned a Typhlosion then, one that was, from his demeanor, downright nasty, and ready to battle. Seeing how strong the fire type was, Alex called out Eremus, who was unbothered by the intense heat, being both of the ground and a dragon. The song of his wings filled the air, as Kuzon eyed him. Undaunted by his type resistance, the old man shouted, "Tanuki…Eruption!" As he leapt towards Alex, once more barraging him with a flurry of blows.

Without total control of the fire's natural energy, Kuzon's strikes were weakened, and Alex dodged away from them, as he countered. "Sandstorm! Counter with Earth Power!" He spun into the sand that erupted from Eremus, and the tornado of ground and dirt collided with the angry Typhlosion's Eruption. The powerful fire move turned to glass, surrounded as it was by so much sand. The boulders of roughly formed rock and flame worked as good cover within the storm of sand, and Eremus purposefully kept his Trainer's vision clear of it as he moved, not an easy task while battling.

Seeing he was on his own, Tanuki spun into a Flame Wheel, only to hit one of his own move's boulders with the attack. Then, came the counter. The earth itself erupted from under the burning honey badger, but it wasn't enough to finish him. For his part, Alex chose to counter, and Eremus parted the storm around him and Kuzon so their flames weren't bogged down by the burning hot sand. Alex was not gentle, as he came hurtling out of the curtain of sand, propelled by all four limbs as he went for a headbutt to the old man's stomach. He disliked hurting him so, but it would stun him if he lost his breath.

Luckily for Alex, fate was with him, and he hammered the old man a little too well, as he lost his breath, and began coughing on the ground. Seeing he was out, and knowing he was like to keep fighting if Alex let him, he turned to Eremus. "Finish it. Earthquake!"

Tanuki had recovered from being blown off his feet, and he roared for his Trainer, seeking the power of Mega Evolution. Unfortunately, Kuzon was in no fit state to empower such a thing right then, and only the enemy Trainer's cry of the move was heard through the roar of the intense sandstorm. Tanuki was unbothered by it, giving not a single Muk for the slight damage it caused him, but it did impede his eyesight. He felt the Earthquake before he saw it, and though he Flame Wheeled away, it caught him, and sent him flying through the far wall and into the rock of the gym beyond it.

Seeing he was victorious, Eremus willed the sand to cease storming, and Alex stood over Kuzon, one fist flaming against his throat, as he started to rise, and then paused. "It's over, old fellow. Your Typhlosion is unconscious…but your Ref is missing."

"So…so he is…" Kuzon managed to say, as he nodded at Alex's words. The younger man offered him a hand up, and Kuzon took it. Quite to Alex's surprise then, he watched as the old man retook control of his accumulated fire energy and used it to burn away his fairy glamour. He stood before him, blinking at the impossibility of what Kuzon had wrought, clad in Fire Nation garb, his pale skin revealing him as a foreigner. "That's what I thought…" Kuzon said, still recovering from the perfect Headbutt Alex had given to his solar plexus. "I spoke with Leader Boomi earlier, so-called Tamer of the Original Dragon. Lucky for me…he told me what Pokémon were on your belt. The Flygon confirmed it."

Kuzon turned and bowed to Eremus then. "You have been…trained well O master of the sands. You have earned for yourselves the Flame Badge." Alex gave the floating desert dragon a tail-five with his hand, and then took the badge, placing it beside his many others. "Now then…come with me and summon your friend. I can guide you along the path."

Alex reached out to Meelo only to find, to his immense surprise, that the man's mind was, for some reason, filled with lust. He left the mental equivalent of a note in the Air Nomad's mind telling him to come to the gym when he was free, and sensed he noticed it, then quickly withdrew. Some things were better off private, that being one of them. He knew Meelo likely sensed what he himself did every time they slept, and why he rose so late, but he hadn't pried out of respect. The least Alex could do was return the favor. He knew all too well how such bodily needs could impede the mental calm needed for meditation and impartiality.

Kuzon led him underground, as he opened a secret tunnel in the earth with his firebending, placing his hand to a wall, and watching as he bent the fire typed energy with ease to shift the mechanisms that operated it. Truly, he had a long way to go. Beyond his own limbs, he had little to no control over nature energy, and he knew it would be an issue when he tried his hand at air and waterbending.

Kuzon brought him to a well-furnished room, a far cry from Bumi's, but like the shredded earthbender, the symbol of Kuzon's nation was proudly etched in the floor. It seemed different to the one the Fire Army used, though. Seeing his eyes, the old man sighed, as he sat on one of the lavish, and naturally red and gold, pillows surrounding the tea brewing stand atop the symbol. "This was our Nation's symbol…before the Imperium made us their leashed dogs. Before Ozai went completely mad. Few remember what the flames that form the flower-like shape represent. Fewer still, even care. Our victory over the Earth Nation has made our people arrogant. Our reliance on emotion for bending has made us weak. Your dragon's lessons are long forgotten, Redwood."

Alex took a cup of tea once it was ready and tried it. It tasted rather good, for hot leaf juice. "I see…it is my opinion, that should the Imperium be expelled, your people should return to their roots." He closed his eyes for a moment, and then smirked. "Tao agrees with me. The Original Dragon shall return to the Fire Nation, if you can but convince the people to listen to him."

Kuzon's eyes widened. "You…he would do that for us? Even now? Even after what we…what we have done to his kin?"

Alex's eyes narrowed. "Of what are you speaking, exactly?"

Kuzon sighed, deeply. "Not surprising that no one told you. Long ago, when the Fire Nation began its descent into its current state, our Fire Lord was told that by subduing Dragon Types, masters of the elements in their own right, a Firebender could claim power from their essence, and take the title of Dragon for themselves. Our chain of islands used to be overflowing with Dragon Types…but over the years…they vanished. Hunted to extinction, most likely. Many of my kinsmen sought the power one supposedly attained from a dragon's corpse. None of these were more sought after than Charizard who evolved to attain the Dragon typing. There were few in ancient times, and they were quickly hunted or tamed once this…'sport' became commonplace. Now only Royals and their guards train members of the Charizard line. The Fire Army utilizes them as mounts, but they lack the wings and honorable intelligence that makes Charizard so popular. Gene-enhanced by the Imperium, these ground bound Charizard have become brutish, and that is on purpose. Many Pokémon no longer visit or inhabit our islands…and since the Imperium gave us their technology, even the flying types avoid roosting there now."

Alex frowned as he listened. "Your land may yet be redeemable…but that will not be my decision. We will speak again when the day of Koria's freedom finally arrives."

Kuzon sighed into his cup. "Spoken with such confidence. Perhaps it would not be so if you had seen what my Nation has been turned into. A hell of black steel and smoke. Technology that pollutes all it touches. Nature, defiled for our advancement, the land raped and the waters turned to sludge. I do not see how it can be redeemed."

At that, Alex chuckled, and Kuzon glared at him. "I have seen Tao's influence work on a similar land…though perhaps not as far gone as your island chain…there was much more of it. Do not give up on hope for your home just yet. Our planet is rather resilient. Someday, the Dragon and I will visit your home, and see what we can do to restore it."

That offer made Kuzon more friendly, and they talked for almost an hour more before Meelo arrived to see Alex in the midst of learning to consistently manifest his flames away from and around his body. It was something starting with earthbending hadn't really taught him, but he was learning now, with great effort. For him, controlling the energy of the natural world beyond his body was much more of a strain, which meant earthbending and producing fire from his limbs would always be easier for him. But he couldn't rely on that as a crutch. He was determined to master these techniques, as Tao had told him to. The dragon always had a good reason for his sometimes ridiculous demands, and short of attempting to fell a mighty tree with naught but a Magikarp, he was willing to try what his teacher suggested.

After an awkward sharing of nods between the travelers, Kuzon led them deeper into the tunnels, until they came out to a secluded beach, at the edge of a rather long river. "From here, it is a straight shot north to the Water Nation. Don't work that Lapras of yours too hard, and good luck finding the Avatar, Redwood." Kuzon left then, closing the tunnel's hidden door behind him as he did before muttering. "You're going to need it, if you want that boy's help." He snorted, shook his head, and then began the walk back to his gym.

As they traveled, Meelo finally agreed to show Alex the basics of bending the air, which helped with his current problem of sustaining energy control away from his body. By watching the Air Nomad intently, he saw him diffuse his psychic power into the natural energy of the air itself and guide it. He added a bit of his own aura to his flames as well after that, and found they shifted to blue, became much hotter, and had little issue sustaining themselves in the ever-dropping temperatures of Koria's north. With the same trick, he found guiding the wind was easy, and compared to Meelo's aura infusion of the natural energy around them, it seemed to listen to him with much less resistance. They both agreed this was likely due to his dragon typing.

Trouble struck, as it usually did, right as they were on the cusp of their goal. Tem had trained himself on the various water types from Pruina's back, mostly by keeping giant Korian Octillery and Sharpedo away from her while not electrocuting her from her back. The Toqusoq Tagiuk, so named by the Water Nation, was a massive inland sea far enough north enough to enjoy the freezing cold temperatures that Varangia was infamous for. The sea was mostly freshwater, which meant Tem could rock out hard, and not worry too much about aim, since the water wouldn't conduct his attacks very well, if at all.

As they approached the iceberg in the center of this massive body of water, the snow and hail falling around them turned black. The already dark waters were made more so by what Meelo determined was soot, and when Alex asked him how he knew the cause of such a dramatic effect on the weather, the Air Nomad simply pointed north. Eventually, they arrived at their destination, or rather, as close as they could get without being spotted.

What had to be almost two hundred fully armed and evidently coal-powered Fire Navy ships were surrounding the entrance to what was likely the Northern Water Tribe's port. A massive wall, bearing a slightly different water symbol to the southern tribe's at its center, was all that stood between the fleet, and the city built into the behemoth of an ice island. Or at least, that's how it appeared.

As the ships began launching truly impressively large fireballs at the wall, the sea roared, and Alex stared, a tingle going down his spine as he recognized that call, having heard it only twice before. Once, atop the PNN building in New Tork city, distorted with pain as that cry had been, and again in Norstad, when he'd freed Percy. This roar was one of rage, and the Lugia it belonged to was, by far, at least four to six times the size of the others he'd seen. If their species had a Guardian, this titanic Pokémon was it.

It spun up from below the ice mass, and with a single wing flap, sent the fiery projectiles back from whence they'd come with its mastery of the air, hitting several of the ships as it did. Then, it began glowing with what Alex and Meelo saw and recognized as Light energy. The Lugia's eyes were alight with the familiar, to Alex at least, light blue glow that signified its source was Raava, and even from that great distance, Redwood spied the human responsible for it.

Sitting atop the Legendary Sea Guardian's head, seemingly meditating, was a human figure, whose aura was burning with Light, far more than Alex had ever dared to wield at once. The Lugia formed an Aeroblast then, and the ominous Light energy suffused it, as it ran over the slowly retreating ships, for all the good it did them. Alex couldn't tell how many had sunk, but he knew it was enough to confirm who exactly was atop the Lugia's head. Raava's Avatar.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 41: The Siege of the North

Senlin Village - Fire Nation Colony Territory, Koria

"People of Senlin Village!" Came the commanding tones of the Fire Admiral, Zhao. He struck an imposing figure, atop the back of his massive Camerupt, which seemed perpetually enraged, and had eyes that burned with an ominous black and red energy. "My forces conducted an exercise today, to drive out Air Nation Rebels from Minjujuui City. We did not catch all of them." His massive fire Pokémon stomped down the line of arrayed villagers, what few were left. Many had left to fight the Fire Nation, and none had returned, once the Imperium became involved.

Each villager had their head bowed under their Kasa hats. Being as they were simple farmers and foragers, their classically Eousian styled hats hid their faces from their fire spewing overlords as they knelt and endured his monologue. "Who speaks for this…place?" There was about one second following his question before an elderly looking gentleman, judging by his hands, stood before the Admiral.

"I do, honored Admiral. We have seen no Rebels here. We are of the Earth Nation…and we willingly pay the tithes of the victorious Fire Nation." The old man said, bowing as he spoke.

Zhao arched an eyebrow. "Do you now…" He looked around at the town, most houses were abandoned, and several had marks of firebending. The fields were fertile though, and the grain house was open, and recently emptied. Just a bunch of farmers with barely enough to eat. "Lieutenant!"

One of the Admirals closest soldiers stepped forward, beside a nasty looking Incineroar with artificially enhanced muscles. "Admiral."

"See that these wretches acquire some Servitors. They may be peasants, but they're part of the Imperium now. Imagine how much more they could contribute to Mankind if they weren't weighed down by menial tasks." Zhao said, with a truly subtle smirk.

"As you command, Admiral." The man said, stepping back alongside his partner. Such methods had been employed heavily throughout the Fire Nation, where villages of farmers were slowly replaced by, and often became, the lobotomized menial arm of the Imperium of Man. Only Firebenders typically avoided this cruel fate, but average citizens were encouraged to contribute all the same. If they failed to do so, they could be made into 'specialized' Servitors designed for mining. The process to make such an abomination of flesh and technology was far more painful and involved.

"Soldiers!" Zhao roared, and the primarily mounted soldiers answered him with an affirmative noise of their own, in practiced unison. "Fan out and find the Air Rebels…they're definitely here." The smell of the sewer they'd been hiding in was in the air, and he knew the Fire Army's most common mount Pokémon would be able to sniff it out. Charizard was practically a revered species in the Fire Nation, but over time, and thanks to many generations of inbreeding, a different form of Charizard began appearing, once their Charmeleons evolved. They had initially had four weak, malformed legs, no wings, and large, often malformed fangs. Their tails had retained their fire, though, and they had the same eager-to-battle quick-to-anger mentality that most of the Flame Pokémon line did.

It was the disturbing commonality of these evolutions and the desire to spread beyond their island chain, that had prompted Fire Lord Sozin to seek out the Imperium of Man's assistance, betray Eous, and give the Imperium their first foothold in historically Eousian territory. The Imperium had stabilized the malformed Charizard's DNA, and in the process created a large, thick, muscled ground bound mount with a superb sense of smell, tracking ability, and battle prowess. Unlike their winged kin, these massive rapid moving fire lizards had no qualms about torching weaker opponents. The Fire Nation bred them specifically for viciousness. They stomped off at Zhao's command, and the Admiral failed to notice the subtle finger twitches of the old man who claimed to speak for this place as they did.

As his soldiers began to fan out past the gathered and still bowed villagers, Zhao turned, and admired his mobile fortress looming over all of them like a volcanic God. An Imperium Coalossal by the name of Incineratus. Genetically modified to be massive, and a useful source of combustible fuel the Imperium had dubbed Promethium, since Koria's subjugation, the genetically modified Galarian giants had become commonplace on the borders between the Imperium of Man, and everywhere they did not yet rule. This was the only one in Koria, and had been a gift to Zhao from one of the Imperator's own children, the Prime Archon Lorgar, leader of the Imperium Heralds, the 17th Legion of Thunder Warriors tasked with bringing Koria into the fold of the Imperium of Man.

The massive Coalossal began moving northeast and reality shook with each mighty step. It was as the Admiral stomped off on his ride, that he noticed. Each of his mounted soldiers was roaming into the forest surrounding the village, aimlessly, like their mounts were being led by a scent on the wind in a specific direction, away from the village. It was at the moment of this realization that the Admiral turned back towards the villagers, only to find a flying foot coming for his face. As he'd been making to follow his Coalossal, he'd still been in the village, and thus went sailing into a wall of a long-abandoned house. His Camerupt roared, enraged, at least until a slim figure in a shawl covering red and darker red clothing appeared before the enraged Pokémon.

Fire formed around her hands, and began shining with a warm, golden light as it filled the Camerupt, and calmed its heart. It still wanted to defend its Trainer, but Minami already had it falling asleep once it calmed. Akos had followed up his initial kick with a waterbending barrage, but it was quickly being evaporated by his larger, angrier opponent. Zhao was an Admiral for a reason. Just as he seemed to be overwhelming the waterbender, another foot came from Zhao's blind spot, hitting him on the other side of the chin, as Ara stepped in to help her brother, and took a 'Southern Octopus Stance'. This was a smart decision, as the circular wall of water and tentacles shielded her from the explosion of flame that Zhao let off as he recovered himself.

"THE NEXT PERSON WHO KICKS MY FACE GETS INCINERATED!" He roared. Akos had not been so well shielded, and fell burned, beside his Piplup, who popped out of his ball as he landed, and spread its little arms wide before Zhao. The pissed off Fire Admiral took down both Ara and Minami, as they attacked simultaneously, from two sides, burning them as well. He was ready for them now, and he would start, with the first water rat that had dared to touch his noble personage. He loomed over the tiny water type and laughed. "The hell are you supposed to be?"

The tiny penguin puffed up its chest and glared. Then, he started to glow. As he became a Prinplup, the Admiral sighed. "Enough of this. Move." The Prinplup lowered its head, and water surrounded it. It leapt forward then, with impressive speed, but it had given away its attack to a fighter as skilled as Zhao, and his Aqua Jet was not yet perfected, as he had literally just started learning it.

"Pado!" Ara shouted, as the Admiral roundhoused the penguin Pokémon in the face, sending him flying her way as he advanced on her badly burned brother. She drew water from the air itself, rotated in place, and used the penguin's speed and momentum to restore his move, and send the water-wreathed penguin hurtling back towards Zhao, nailing him right in the armored stomach. Zhao had the air knocked from him and fell to his knees as his flames went out with his lack of breath. The newly evolved penguin waddled unsteadily as he landed, while Minami gathered Akos up, and Ara grabbed his Pokéball. She recalled the Prinplup, and Tenzin made his timely appearance from dispatching riders in stealth from the woods, by hitting the winded Admiral with several smoke bombs that did not help his need for air.

Zhao cleared the smoke with angry firebending drawing on his emotional rage rather than his lungs, but when it dissipated completely and he'd recovered from his coughing fit, they were gone. Each of his assailants had been wearing long brimmed Kasa hats like most farmers in this village, sufficiently hiding their faces. Furious, he made his way back to where the villagers had been rounded up, only to find a few of his soldiers stumbling out of the woods with black eyes or cradling broken limbs. Others, Tenzin had not been so gentle with, but the elder Air Nomad strongly disliked ending lives and had over his century plus of years learned to tell which soldiers were worth sparing at a glance. The psychic powers also helped. He had no moral qualms about reading the thoughts of the people who had relished in burning his Nation to the ground, but he was yet wise enough to understand not all Fire Army soldiers served willingly.

Zhao found each of the villagers was gone as well, and with an enraged yell, he rocketed himself into the air with his bending, and made for the ceramite structure built into the body of Incineratus. As he took the helm of the massive Pokémon, he pointed at the village below. "Incineratus! Use Promethium Surge! Wipe this nest of Rebels off the map!" Zhao's mad orders thankfully, echoed loud enough for his soldiers to hear. Some, around two or three gaped, as they couldn't quite believe the Admiral had just ordered all of them burnt alive. Those who recognized the imminent threat of death, and ran, were the ones who survived. Incineratus had precision thanks to his augmentations, and his owner had ordered this specific village, and not an inch more of it, burnt to nothing.

Tenzin and the newly recruited villagers, what few had remained once they saw the smoke start rising from Minjujuui City, ran northwards towards Bul Fortress. There, they would rendezvous with the caravan that had fled underground with their earthbenders and newly acquired supplies from their new western ally. As they hurried onwards on foot, the world shook. Behind them, a tower of flame erupted, exactly where the village was. An air-shaking roar followed the explosion of orange liquid that was evidently so hot, they could see the air shimmering from the heat from roughly a mile away.

"We need to go faster!" Tenzin said, whirling his robed arms around him as he summoned the air. The entire group picked up speed, and with a little effort, they all began to sprint rather rapidly northwards. Akos had mostly received burns on his arms and face, his legs were still fine, and the air boost from the Air Nation's last surviving leader helped him and the other wounded keep pace.

They eventually arrived at the outskirts of Bul Fortress after crossing a river with the waterbender's aid. It was many miles to the Earth Nation province of Hu Xin. Officially, the province of primarily farmers in the breadbasket of the Earth Nation was controlled by the Fire Nation. Like many Earth Nation provinces however, the Fire Army had simply not mapped them very effectively, and Bul Fortress was more of a myth to them, than a fact. More than once had Thunderhawks from the Imperator's own air force scoured the area for the 'rebel fortress', and all scans and searches had turned up naught. Thanks to combined earthbending, lazy Imperium technicians, and a bit of luck, the Earth Nation's southernmost bastion of defiance had remained undetected for centuries.

In the centuries since the Fire Nation had taken control, many underground tunnels had been created across the underground of the Earth Nation, and this far south of the Impenetrable City, Bul Fortress was a nexus point for them. Thus, it was through these tunnels that most of the rebels in Minjujuui had escaped and brought their Unovan supplies with them. Being unable to bend the earth, Zhao's soldiers hadn't even noticed which of the many rock-sealed pathways they'd taken out of the sewers, and the tunnel to Minjujuui was now mostly collapsed.

As Tenzin's group came upon the fortress, they all stared in shock, stopping in their now several days long run, as the fortress sank into the earth itself, and vanished before them. A few minutes later, they understood why. From above them, a pair of flames in the sky were hurtling towards their group. Given express orders by Admiral Zhao, the banished Fire Nation royals had been tasked with the less important task of wiping out Senlin's remaining rebels. Zhao had proceeded northward, to the Water Nation's northern tribe, to end their centuries of defiance, once and for all. It was also the best way to draw the rats to him. In desperation they would claw at Incineratus, and while they might manage to damage or even faint him, it would not keep him from obliteration Agna Qel'a.

Tenzin stopped a few steps ahead of the others, sensing their progress had again stalled. He was weary after leading exhausted farmers and his rebels this far north, on foot, and even his bending hadn't kept them from tiring. Seeing the flames, and knowing them for what they were, the old Air Nomad sighed heavily. Then, he drew a communicator from his robe, one whose partner was in Bul Fortress. "This is General Tenzin. I have Senlin Village's civilians with my group. We've been found by a pair of Charizard riders. Commence pickup maneuver twenty-two, over."

The comm crackled for a second. He knew the voice on the other end, and its words made the old man smile faintly. "Twenty-two!? Tenzin...are you sure about this?"

"Quite sure, Hao. Get the civilians to safety." He spoke louder then to his group. "Aratak, Akos, and Minami…you're with me. Lin, take Boto and the civilians northward. Pickup maneuver twenty-two."

The graying earthbender's eyes went wide as she realized he was serious. "That's suicide Tenzin! Those are flying Charizard riders! I'm not leaving you here to make Pemma a widow."

The Air Nomad fixed her with a steely gray airbender stare. "I have no intention of dying. Now go! These people need you, Beifong." At hearing her surname, the villagers who'd thrown their lot in with the rebels started murmuring.

"Yes, that Beifong!" Lin snapped at them, before sighing. "Fine, Tenzin…but you had better come out of this alive." She rounded on the group she was leading then, "Move it, Slowpokes! Unless you'd rather eat a fireball!" The group with Lin began running northward, and Tenzin spied one of their assailants, still thousands of feet above them in the air, arcing towards their group. The blue flame descended on Tenzin's position, unchanged.

"Oh no you don't…" Tenzin muttered, and then spun in place, as air whirled around him in a building tornado.

"Umm…General…" Akos said, concerned, as his airbending no doubt became visible from above. "What's a twenty-two maneuver? Are you going to clue the rest of us in on the secret?"

"Akos, I'm about to let everyone in on the secret…" Tenzin mumbled, as he spun faster, and then sent his arms skyward. A nearly invisible tornado of wind snagged the arcing Charizard, brought it slamming back into the burning blue dot, and then the pair of them started hurtling towards the ground at a speed that guaranteed the riders would die, if they didn't stop their momentum. They were trapped, in a downwards moving air corridor that neither Charizard could fight against, entangled as they were by the crash.

As they neared the ground, the pair of firebenders atop their struggling mounts created a combined fireball of orange and blue that crashed into the ground, and Tenzin recognized the light of Mega Evolution as a pair of rainbow-colored DNA spiraling helixes appeared above the flames. His frown deepened. Only Royal Guards and Fire Army elites flew on Charizard that still had wings. Only royals of the Phoenix King's own family knew how to bring them to their Mega Form, and has the stones to do so.

The air was filled with smoke as the two variations of Mega Charizard rose from their smoldering crater, and then, in an instant, it was blown away, along with Tenzin's hat, and shawl, which had hidden his iconically colored yellow and orange airbender attire. "Spawn of Sozin!" He said, with hate in his eyes, "Today you pay for your family's sins…inviting the Imperium into Eous, and Koria…murdering my father... and the attempted genocide of my people."

The nastier fire lizard of the pair, the one with blue flames, answered the airbending human with a Flamethrower, only to have it blown back in her face, from an angry torrent of air. From the black Charizard's back came her rider, one half of her face seemingly melting, from the redirected Flamethrower. Aluza tossed the golden mask and snarled at the Air Nomad. "I know you…the spawn of Aang…Tenzin of the Air Nation…the Last Airbender…" Beside her, came her brother, who fell into a fighting crouch. Both Druk and Caeruleus readied more Flamethrowers, while Ara and Akos took their own stances beside Tenzin. Pado was already out, and ready to provide them with water, from a safe distance behind them.

Aluza pointed at Tenzin then. "Alright you two! Focus fire on the Airbender!" Druk looked briefly at Okuz first but attacked alongside his sister anyways. A torrent of blue and orange flame came straight for Tenzin and was wide enough to hit the waterbenders as well, but instead the attack was blocked with a technique Okuz recognized immediately, as one his uncle Iroh used. Taken from the style of northern waterbenders, the arms moved in a circle, dissipating the flames harmlessly before the Kasa hat wearing firebender who blocked them. Aluza's burnt eye twitched as her scarred face contorted with rage. "Brother…take care of the Traitor…the Nomad is mine!"

Ara and Tenzin immediately came under fire from Aluza and her partner. The Air Nomad easily blocked or redirected the angry firebender's wrath, which of course only made her angrier. Ara, for her part drew on the Water Gun Pado sent towards her, made it larger with what she pulled from the air, and formed a pair of water tentacles around her arms as she dodge rolled away from the Flamethrowers that Caeruleus sent her way, making the Mega Charizard pay for it with repeated, and super effective, slaps to her face, neck, and wing joints. They might as well have been Bug Bites, for all they did to a Mega Form with a dragon typing.

Minami, meanwhile, had Okuz following her off to their own part of the plains, which were rapidly becoming scorched. Akos watched the two groups, unsure of who to aid. He tracked Minami, in case she needed help with the male firebender and his own Mega Charizard, but her partner, a very feminine seeming crimson furred Infernape, was handling the fire lizard with moves like a firebender, something the line could learn to do, if they were trained in Koria. She used her open-palmed hands to ward away anything fire based, leaving Druk with few other options. Fire Punches clashed with Dragon Claws, and the force of it reverberated through the area, and Akos. "Go!" Minami said, from beneath her hat, "Help the others." She respected Meelo, mostly because the only battler stronger than him that fought for a free Koria was his father. If this blue burning rage princess was strong enough to take his son, Tenzin would need an edge.

Pado glared at the Charizard, spat a well-timed Water Gun at his face, and followed after his Trainer. The flame lizard glared, focusing in on the Prinplup, and leaving him wide open to the Fire Punch to the jaw that the Infernape gave him. He flapped backwards, and into the air, and launched another widespread Flamethrower, but this time, the Infernape gathered the fire into a sphere between its palms, and condensed it. "Fireball!" Minami shouted with a timely command, and the Infernape pointed at Druk. A small orange bead of light flew towards the Charizard from the flame monkey's palms, and then detonated in a circular explosion of fire damage, right in his face. Though he resisted fire typed moves, the damage of the move was adding up with all the others the Infernape had landed.

Air Slashes rained down on the fire monkey, and Akos watched as she dodged effortlessly, knowing that just one of those, from a Mega Form, would probably be enough to KO her, or leave her barely on her feet. As they entered in on Tenzin and Ara's battle, Aluza took one look at them, and flowed from a furious, but still deflected series of strikes on Tenzin, into a fast, electric based attack aimed right for Pado. The bolt of lightning that coalesced from around her body and then gathered in her fingers was meant to kill.

Akos moved before he could think, as he desperately reached for water, any water, and recalled something he'd seen his father do, a technique the southern tribe had developed, which had then seen them captured and imprisoned for its use. To this very day, many southern waterbenders remained imprisoned by the Fire Nation. The tube of gathered floating water Akos sent to intercept the superheated plasma shooting from Aluza's fingers guided the energy along it harmlessly, and dissipated its charge as the levitating water tunnel dispersed the burning plasma, before promptly evaporating from the heat.

Tenzin capitalized on her outstretched arm, grabbing it and twisting it behind her back. The firebender roared furiously, and blue flames spouted from her mouth, only to die out seconds later. A brief distraction was all Tenzin had needed, to start creating a pocket of vacuum around her head with his free hand within which was a distinct lack of oxygen. She gagged, coughed, and started to choke to death, but Tenzin had to stop his efforts and she only fell unconscious.

Seeing her partner in trouble, the increasingly irritated Mega Charizard spewed blue flame at Ara. As expected, the waterbender used her dodge roll, but that was what Caeruleus had wanted the water rat to do. Ara caught the business end of her massive, mega evolved tail as Cae spun and hit her. She went skipping across the plains, and Tenzin tried to give her a soft landing, which ended his finishing move on Aluza. While he did, Caeruleus snatched up her partner, and roared for her brother, only to find him conquered by a shiny Infernape, and its Trainer. Now Okuz was on his own against both of them, and holding out well, for a lone human. Knowing he had other partners, Cae decided to leave them, and flew towards the nearest cover she could find, so Aluza could recuperate, and come back to consciousness.

Seeing Aluza leave, was the moment Minami had been waiting for, and her Infernape came back to her, as their battle with Fire Prince Okuz hit a brief lull, while he recalled Druk, and drew another ball. As he went to throw it, Minami tossed her Kasa hat into the air, revealing her features to him, which made him pause with visible shock. "Minami…? But you're…you're no Traitor…you're supposed to be at the Academy with Izumi!"

Her eyes narrowed. "You don't even know, do you." The air around her became noticeably hotter, as her anger boiled over. "You don't even care!"

"Know what…? Minami, what happened?" Okuz said, glancing behind him as Tenzin and Akos, who were supporting Ara, came up behind him, but made no threatening moves. Tenzin had one hand raised defensively, but didn't airbend. Okuz thumbed his ball, and summoned Ken, his Blaziken. Okuz held up a hand, as the flaming chicken prepared to strike, and readied his own defense.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you…" Minami said, looking at the scorched ground. Her Infernape made a sad noise, but stayed ready to leap into combat if Okuz resumed it.

"Stand down, Ken." Okuz said, the authoritative and somewhat hoarse voice deflated the tension in the air as he spoke. He lowered his hands, and Tenzin did the same, with a slow nod to him, a mutual agreement; there would be no fighting, for now. Okuz stepped towards Minami, palms open, and unthreatening as he glanced at her Infernape, and then at her. One hand landed on her shoulder, and the crimson furred fire monkey growled, but quieted when the human did nothing else. "Tell me how you ended up with Rebels, Minami…tell me what happened to my daughter. You wouldn't be here without her…"

Since Okuz had enrolled his one and only child in the Fire Nation Academy for Females, Izumi and Minami had become close friends for eight out of the ten years they were required to attend. This year was supposed to be their last, as both girls had been selected to graduate early. He'd kept as informed as possible, but between his banishment and Izumi's mother shutting him out, staying in his daughter's loop had been all but impossible. It was one of the many driving factors behind his desire to capture the new Avatar, and head home as quickly as possible.

Minami looked up at his eyes then, and the Fire Prince's orbs widened, as he saw tears. Kuzon's daughter had never, as far as he knew, shed tears. For anything. "It…was our last class." Minami said, looking down again as she spoke. She couldn't bear looking at Okuz anymore, she saw too much of Izumi in him.

"She decided to ask our Praeceptor about Shadow Infusion. She'd overheard your father, talking to himself, and heard stories from some of the Japanese students, of humans being controlled by the Shadow, who were invading their land. The Praeceptor brought her out of the room….and she didn't come back. Ever." Tears were falling now to the scorched earth below her, but Minami continued. "They brought in…an Inquisitor. Apparently…just mentioning the Shadow warrants a visit from them. I don't know what happened to her after that…this was several years ago, now…I tried to find out where she went. To dig deeper, but you know how the Imperium is. All traces of her vanished, your father didn't even blink. Wouldn't even speak of her to me. He ordered me imprisoned for 'wasting his time', and it was at that point, I decided to escape the automated hell your family has turned our Nation into."

Okuz just stared at her, still processing. If an Inquisitor had taken her, it was to Olympia, and once on Olympia, she would never leave. Not as she once was, at any rate. The news surprised him though. He had thought the Imperium disliked openly using the Shadow, though he wondered if they might not be setting themselves up as the only force on the planet able to use the fearsome power Shadow Infusion could bring. If that was the case, he reasoned, they would want to keep an eye on anyone asking about it or seeking knowledge. In all likelihood, his daughter was now a Servitor. All for asking a single, and somewhat harmless question, of her teacher. The wrongness of it was finally too much for Okuz as his brain tried to process the idea of his little girl as a lobotomized servant to the High Lords of the Imperium. Years of denying what he and his family had helped turn Koria into began to finally register, now that it was personal, with massive amounts of guilt, shame, and the understanding that what his people had done would, forever, marr their history. Many talks with his uncle started taking on a new perspective, and he knew then his path forward.

After about a minute of silent thinking, Okuz looked up at Minami, and tilted her head up at him. Their eyes locked. "Listen to me, daughter of Kuzon…I will find my daughter…or what's left of her. And I'll have to help your rebellion to do it. My uncle was right…as I'm sure you know. He tried to tell me. I just didn't hear him. I'm going to see him now…if your rebel friends let me…"

Tenzin, while initially conflicted at allowing one of the family members of those directly responsible for the attempted genocide of his people to go free, read the young man's thoughts, and found in them the potential for redemption, someday, once the Fire Nation had thrown off the Imperium's yoke. They would need a leader and compared to his sister's fraying and instinct driven mind, Okuz seemed the best choice. It would be hard work, undoing three centuries of hatred, but Tenzin surmised this man could give the effort towards finding unity for Koria again its best start.

"I won't impede you from leaving here…and as long as you intend to rebuild the Fire Nation into what it was, and not what your Grandfather wanted it to be, you will have the aid of myself, and my people. We can discuss the matter of…reparation, once Koria is free again."

Okuz looked at the ground again, as he was forced to acknowledge the superiority of character from the Air Nomad. Had it been the Fire Nation on the receiving end of what they'd endured, the war would've never stopped. He was reminded of what one of his earliest firebending instructors had taught him; those who wield the power of the flame must walk a razor-thin edge between human decency, and savagery. Okuz thought then of the sparring match between himself, and a traveler of Koria that they'd stopped to interrogate, and who he'd lost track of once they entered Kuzon's gym, never to come out again. The stranger's flames hadn't burned with rage, but like his uncle's, came from breath control, focus, and a large source of heat. He resolved then to learn this alternate method of firebending. If he could use both without becoming an unstoppable ball of burning rage, he surmised he just might have enough power to take on his father. With some help.

"Much will have to change before my Nation understands what it's done. …Be patient with us, Airbender." He called out his Arcanine then, and rode away, as Druk still needed to rest. Tenzin and the others watched him go, as did another. Caeruleus snarled as she watched her brother's Trainer ride away, and the noise woke her own Trainer. Furious, she leapt from the crater in an explosion of blue flame, and spied the battlefield a short distance away. She started running, and then leapt on Cae when she flew after her. The pair returned to the scorched area, only to find the Air Rebel and his water rat friends had gone. Of her brother, there was no sign.

Caeruleus dropped her Mega Form, and then headed northwards, to regroup with the Admiral. She knew all the rebel's rats eventually floated up north into the Water Nation's inland sea. It was an entire biome that the benders of the area had total mastery over. The people, the Pokémon, all with an irritating edge over those who wielded flames as weapons. Even the Imperium had been resisted by them. The initial fleet of Thunderhawks under the Prime Archon had leveled the Nation's capital to nothing in the past, but the irritating water rats had rebuilt, often in the space of a day. She wanted to be there personally, to ensure all they had was reduced to ash.

After connecting with Bul Fortress, Akos, Ara, Tenzin and the others continued north. Boto opted to stay and train with the earthbenders, and saw that half of the supplies the west had given them made their way across rebel cells in the Earth Nation. They'd traveled north then, through the Laghima Mountains, where Akos and Pado had begun filling out their team, and training hard as they recovered from their wounds. His encounter with Zhao had fired up the tiny penguin, and within a matter of days on their trek through the often-hostile peaks full of very territorial Pokémon, the Prinplup evolved into an Empoleon. But the training didn't stop there. Akos had asked Alex how he'd managed to become Champion, and the 'secret' such as it was had been simple. Constant training, but not just by battling. On their previous treks, Alex had often had a partner out, ready to help wild Pokémon, or other humans, as needed. The act of expending their power to aid or defuse situations had helped them grow as fast as any battle, and it was this strategy Akos used to eventually dethrone a rather brutal Alpha Nidoking.

The local Pokémon would have to find a way to coexist on their own, but many let their group pass unhindered after that, making the trek easier for those hauling the supplies. The refugees who wished to live at the Air Temple had taken this role, while others from their now destroyed village had dispersed throughout the Earth Kingdom, mostly headed for Ba Sing Se. Given a chance to wander freely without Fire Nation soldiers spotting them, as they rarely came anywhere near these 'haunted' peaks full of Air Nomad ghosts, Akos went on a catching spree with the balls Alex had given him. Thirty ultra balls were more than most new Trainers got, and Akos put them to good use, snagging a Duraludon, a Swinub, an Elekid, and a Rockruff through the course of their travels.

When they arrived at the Northern Air Temple, or what the Imperium had left of it, he found a lost, hungry Phantump, and added him to his growing team as well, while Ara, Minami, and Tenzin distributed their supplies to the rebels hiding in the burned-out husk of the once magnificent mountain temple. Once they had recovered from their trek for several days and distributed the supplies they had left, it was Ara who noticed that, from the north, the clouds were becoming darker, not with the threat of a storm, but with ash. Seeing that, the group hurried off towards the Northern Water Tribe, to presumably rendezvous with Meelo and Alex.

Agna Qel'a - Koria Region

Faced with the problem of reaching the Water Nation's northern bastion without getting attacked, Meelo tried to send word ahead to their Chief, but his pocket radio was being jammed, and the wind was too intense for his words to reach anyone of import at the backmost edge of the city built into the massive chunk of ice. Alex suggested waterbending them beneath the ocean to reach it, but Meelo opted against that. While the northern waterbenders might not outright kill a fellow waterbender, they were typically hostile to strangers, and undoubtedly had far superior control to his own. So recently after an attack, they might very likely just assume they were hostile and pop their air bubble beneath the water. Alex had progressed well with his brief but instructive lessons from Ara in Minjujuui City, but not enough that he could hold off an ambush by multiple waterbenders at once. Instead, they turned Pruina around, surfed to within sight of the mountainous coastline, and then burned their Fire Nation clothing.

Once that was done, they took Pruina around to the right of the massive ice island and began trekking on foot towards the city of Agna Qel'a in almost five feet of snow. When they were within a mile of the city, Alex bid Meelo to stop. The Lugia had since disappeared from the horizon, likely back under the waters, and the remnants of the Fire Navy had ceased their assault, for the moment. Alex wanted to psychically suss out any potential threats in the Water Nation's capital, and Meelo agreed to help him. Together, they combined their psychic prowess, one hiding their probe from detection, while the other scanned. Most of the city had the same latent psychic potential as any other large accumulation of modern Homo Sapiens, and as usual, the exception came when Alex scanned the most ornate building at the back of the city, likely home to its leader.

What he sensed deeply disturbed him. One presence, while large in terms of power, was completely controlled by Shadow energy. Thankfully, there were exactly three other sources around it, one of which, he was quite certain, was Raava's Avatar. One was situated to the side of the Shadowed presence, and the Avatar, and presumably a friend of his, were standing before the presence. Given what Kashiji told him, Alex assumed the Guardian was asleep, to not notice the obvious Shadow corruption in front of her. It was as he took this mental sight in, that Meelo spoke. "I hid from the others…but that large presence…likely Chief Unulaq, noticed us."

Alex sighed, and swore, invoking the name of the Grimer line. "Of course he did. Listen, Meelo. That Chief of theirs is infused with Shadow." The man's eyes widened, and Alex guessed that he grasped the seriousness of this issue. "He's very likely either willingly serving this Vaatu figure who's fused with the Phoenix King, or he's been made into a pawn…which explains why the Fire Nation has largely ignored the northern tribe. I have a plan, but we have precious little time to enact it. I can sense benders already heading for us. We won't outrun them." He handed the Air Nomad his Pixie Plate shard. "Use this to make me look older. White hair, wrinkled skin, make the tone of it a vague brown, but light enough to be foreign."

As Meelo nodded, and quickly made the changes to the glamor they'd reapplied after Kuzon's dispelling of it, Alex focused on Lux, telling him what he needed. "You can't seriously believe that will work." The snarky spark ghost said. "You'll never get close enough."

Alex gave him a mental smirk. "I don't have to get that close, if you channel the Light for me through your form. You need to look like very scorched bamboo. Can you pull that off?"

The Rotom seemed to reassess his plan, and then nodded. "If they don't confiscate me and you get close enough, this might actually work."

Meelo raised a bushy eyebrow as his travel companion's previously hidden plasma sword floated free, winked at him, and then became a very ancient looking, gnarled bamboo staff seemingly scorched black by fire, and turned white in small parts by age. Once their preparations were made, the northern waterbenders showed up not long after. Meelo took over speaking, then, as Alex bent his spine, presumably due to age, and leaned heavily on his staff. "Greetings, Waterbenders! I am General Meelo, of the Korian Rebellion. This is my travel companion, a fellow rebel, and a source of great knowledge and wisdom."

The waterbenders were clad in blue tones, but unlike the southern style of clothing, theirs was less furry, and more modern. Insulated. Streamlined. They likely had a very skilled tailor. Sharp icicles had surrounded the pair when they appeared, but the leader raised a hand. "Meelo, you say. Master Tenzin's son? Can you prove this claim, stranger?"

Meelo nodded, and at that moment, felt the urge to sneeze. He focused the expelled air on a nearby snow drift, and it exploded apart as the forceful air burst hit it. Seemingly impressed, the ice shards focused uncomfortably close to Alex, then. "And this one?" The lead guard asked.

Alex spoke then, in his best hoarse old man voice. "My name is Alex. I am an ally to those who fight the Fire Nation, and the Imperium. Master Tenzin and I are old friends."

The icicles lowered then, and the guards murmured amongst themselves. Tenzin was supposed to be en route to them, and Meelo was undoubtedly an airbender. It was also known that the older Air Nomad had many equally old allies, scattered throughout Koria. Finally, the leader dropped his ice, and beckoned to them. "Our Chief, Unalaq, has ordered you brought before him. Come with us."

The benders brought them on moving pieces of hardened snow into the besieged city, and Alex took it in as they passed through. Meelo did the same, and Alex heard his voice in his head. "Something is wrong…dad told me the northern tribe was much more prosperous than this…even with the siege, this level of poverty and despair is…"

"Man-made." Alex answered, solemnly. "The Shadow's influence reaches far…don't worry my friend, we will Purge it before the day is done."

Alex sensed the airbender was skeptical, but he kept the faith, even if his ally and his staff doubted him. What he had in mind would work. Probably. Agna Qel'a's palace was impressive, to say the least. Massive totems depicting local Pokémon like a snow Liepard, Beartic, Braviary and other Pokémon local to the biome flanked the path to the pyramidal multi-tiered palace.

As they were brought inside and into the Chieftain's audience chamber, Unalaq raised his head, as the voices, mercifully, parted and gave what was left of his mind a reprieve from their incessant mutterings. He was old, likely one of the oldest humans yet living, at well over two hundred and fifty years of age. His body, once maintained by his masterful bending for an unnatural amount of time, even by modern human standards, was old and withered. Black veins of ice radiated through his relatively recently added ice throne, and his eyes were tired, red, and surrounded by bags of exhaustion, except they went entirely around his eyes, bottom and top.

He was a sunken, shriveled human, but what the Shadow possessing him showed his people and Raava's meat suit, was an older man, aged, but still capable of fighting. Alex immediately saw through the illusion, recognizing it for what it was. Pravus had worn such a thing as well, once.

"Unalaq…" Came the dreaded whisper through the blessed silence of Unalaq's mind. "The Original Dragon's Tamer approaches. He is a herald of doom, for your people. You must destroy him…and his friend."

Leaning on Meelo's arm as they approached the throne, Alex stared the Chief down, and knew that in turn, the Shadow had recognized him. Or rather, its source had. What Vaatu knew, he assumed, the Phoenix King knew, and with that, his cover in Imperium territory was essentially blown. If they could entrap him. Having been shown the unnerving autocratic efficiency of the Imperium's oppressive mechanism, he assumed that, in these next few minutes, the Imperator himself would hear this news, and a response would be given in kind.

Standing to the right of the Chief's uncomfortable looking straight-edged throne, was an older man with mostly gray hair, a thin mustache that came down in two straight lines on either side of his mouth, and a very bushy soul patch. He seemed to be a tribal elder of some description, and Alex could tell he was powerful in his own right. The man's eyes met his, and he smiled, before focusing back on the Chief. Of the Avatar and his powerful psychic ally, there was no sign.

As they stopped before the throne, Unalaq raised a hand, and in one motion, all of his thirty or so guards lowered their spears into a stabbing stance, aiming them at the newcomers. "The hospitality of your village seems to have cooled of late, Chief Unalaq." Meelo said, eyeing the spearmen.

"Why should I welcome you…son of the air?" Meelo's eyes went wide as Alex psychically broke the illusion for him, too. To his credit, the man kept his composure, and had dispelled his own glamor before they'd arrived. His arrow shaped tattoos on his bald head were on full display. "Your doomed rebellion…has dragged my people into war. If you wish to help us against the Fire Navy…your aid comes late. Our…newest ally and his Lugia…have sent them home, limping."

The old man beside the Chief glanced at him, and then the foreigners. His eyes were narrowed, and Alex could sense him readying his body's energy for bending. "Come now, Chief Unalaq…are we not all fighting for Koria's freedom? The Nations must be one again, if we are to repel the Imperium. We will fail if we do not stay united. Though some in our region may fall to the Imperium's temptation, they've aided warmongers in the past, and always we have come through the occupations stronger for it."

"Not…like this. They have never…been so involved." Unalaq wheezed. "It will take…more than we have…to repel this enemy. We are better off…staying isolated, and quiet, under Imperium rule."

Meelo's eyes widened, and mentally, he spoke to Alex. "I know Unalaq. The Chief of the Northern Water Tribe would never give in so willingly."

Alex nodded then and stepped forward from his 'aid' with walking, leaning on his staff as he did. The old man's eyes focused on him, and through them, Alex saw red tinged Shadow staring back. The kind of infection that turned one's own essence dark. He briefly wondered if Unalaq would even survive a Purging. "Unalaq…son of Nurro." He said as he mentally asked Meelo the name of his predecessor, and approached the throne, "This Shadow has plagued your mind long enough…hear my Voice, Chief of the Water Nation!"

The Storm Voice echoed in Unalaq's ears, and Alex smirked as he felt the battle, between the frankly furious mind that was Unalaq, and the shadowy grip Vaatu had on his essence. That sudden renewed conflict, gave Alex what he needed, and as the Chief's old waterbending guard struck at Alex, Meelo sliced through the watery tendril with a crescent of air. The old man arched a brow at him, and the Air Nomad simply held up a hand. A universal gesture for 'wait'.

"Zu'u Stin Hi!" Alex said, and as the Hyper Voice washed over the Chief in visible waves, his advisor recoiled in horror, as the veins of Shadow in the ice throne became visible, the illusion shattered. The vague outline of a seriously evil looking black and red kite appeared in the ice behind the throne, its tendril 'arms' reaching out to, and binding the elderly Chief. Dark laughter filled the chamber.

"Your petty Words will not unbind Me, pawn of the Light!"

Alex's smirk faded, to a grimace. Blue aura shone around the old man guise he wore, and his back straightened, his heavy clothes flaring as he summoned the power. "I will Purge you, Shadow spawn. Greater Champions than you have dispersed before me." The blue aura shifted to gold, and with that, the fairy glamor burned away. His audience looked on, as the soldiers the Chief had positioned around them charged forward, some throwing their spears. Meelo acted again, covering the epic clash of Light and Shadow in a turbulent spheroid of wind.

Alex raised Lux and aimed him at the Chief. The Shadow in the ice recoiled in the face of such harsh Light. "I told you to disarm them!" Several of Vaatu's tendril arms burned away, snapping free of the Chief's frame. "If I go…Unalaq dies…" Light energy burned up the gnarled 'wooden' staff in a spiral of gold that, naturally, took up half of the black coloration, leaving it a perfect balance of black and gold.

"You underestimate the strength of the Water Nation." Waves of Light radiated off of Lux as he channeled the power through his housing.

Several tendrils regrew from Vaatu's form, wrapping Unalaq once more. "The Northern Water Tribe is Mine!"

Alex raised the staff higher, holding it level at Unalaq thanks to his height, as he'd climbed up the stepped dais towards the throne. "Lux! Use Purge!"

As he spoke the move, Lux activated the stored energy. If Alex hadn't had his psychic powers, Unalaq would've likely burned away as well, but he was able to guide the Light, purging the Shadow, and healing the human simultaneously as he forced Vaatu back. His new tendrils snapped, as did several others. Furious, the Shadow's strongest Champion on the planet lunged at him directly. Alex's other hand joined the first in gripping his staff as Vaatu exposed himself and gave in to rage. The Purge hit him full force, knocking him out of Unalaq, and back into Ozai. The Phoenix King's roar of rage echoed through the Regiis Caldera as the connection was cut.

Unalaq began to fall forward off his throne, but Meelo redirected his air shield to catch him. With the clash blocked off and the illusion of Vaatu dispelled, the gathered members of the tribe had paused, and watched. More than a few had noted that, since the Fire Navy had renewed their assault several months ago, their Chief had been acting strange, and now they had all seen why.

The old waterbender who'd stopped at Meelo's gesture caught the old man, as the airbending faded, and the guards gathered around them. Alex let the Light aura fade back to blue, and then to its usual state of invisibly shielding his frame. Despite his advanced age, Chief Unalaq looked quite a bit stronger, now he was free of Vaatu. His skin became less wrinkled, his hair less frayed but still snow white. As his advisor helped him stand, he began bending, and Alex watched, curiously. He drew water from the air itself into his body, suffusing it with fresh life, but the toll of the lengthy period without that nourishment would be taken on his ancient body in the days and weeks to come. For the moment though, he had the strength to lead. "Master…Pakku…and Meelo? Is Tenzin here? Did…he free me?"

"That was me, actually." Alex said, and the Chief's eyes turned to him. He bowed in the Unovan style, and the old man recognized it. "I am a friend to your tribe, and Master Tenzin's rebel alliance. We should speak in private, if possible. Along with the Avatar."

Aware of the number of eyes on them, and how rumors spread, Alex hoped the Chief would see the sense in this. After a long moment, he nodded, when the stranger hadn't offered his name. A quick glance at Meelo, who'd nodded at the foreigner's words, was all he needed. "Very well. To the War Chamber. Master Pakku will join us, once he has retrieved the Avatar."

Pakku left to do that, and Unalaq thanked his warriors, assuring them his mind was his own again, before leading Alex and Meelo through the maze-like ice corridors of his palace. They entered a room then, with a standard setup that reminded Alex of business rooms for meetings in Unova. A long table, many chairs, all with the trappings of the northern tribe's iconography, but otherwise, a rather spartan chamber designed solely for speaking in private to others. Pakku arrived minutes later as Meelo and Unalaq chatted. Behind the old man, was presumably the Avatar, and Alex took him in as he got his first proper look at his quarry. It'd taken a few weeks more than he'd wanted, and they were well into early summer by now, but finally, he'd found the being Tao charged him with tracking down and aiding. He could almost feel the well-earned rest he was eager to take once his business in Koria finished.

"Introductions are in order, I think." Pakku said, as the sandy toned young man who was presumably the Avatar sat. He gestured at Meelo and Alex. "This is General Meelo, of the Air Nation, and a leader of the Korian rebellion. His friend is…"

Alex nodded, taking the conversation's lead from the old man as he stood, and Unalaq sat. "Alexander Redwood. Tamer of the Original Dragon of Unova, and leader of the newly reformed Dragon Empire." He bowed to the space between the Avatar and Unalaq. "The Original Dragon bid me to come to your region to find Raava's Avatar and help them free Koria of Imperium control." He turned to the presumed Avatar, then. His eyes were sad, and in this moment, a bit incredulous. If he found it odd that a pale westerner was offering their region aid seemingly out of the blue, Alex found it equally odd that so much could rest on the admittedly shredded shoulders of one seemingly ordinary man.

He was dressed in similarly modern looking clothes to the locals he'd seen, in the green and brown tones Earth Nation citizens seemed to favor. Bandages covered his hands and muscled forearms, his swampy green, durable looking pants seemed as roomy as Alex's preferred ones, and his shoes were brown, with plates of metal protecting his feet and shins.

"I see…" Unalaq said, as Alex and the Avatar locked eyes. "Emperor Redwood, then…this, is Avatar Jimen. Koria's last hope."

Alex offered a hand, and the lightly bearded earthbending Avatar took it, as he finally spoke in his deep but not unappealing tones, and gripped Alex's hand with significant force. It was like shaking hands with a rock. "The Original Dragon huh? I've heard the legends…he taught the Fire Nation to wield their flames. Odd, that he'd be on our side."

As Alex was about to explain that, apparently, they no longer followed what he'd taught, Tao spoke for himself, shocking everyone, as a pair of intense glowing golden eyes manifested in the room above the meeting table. "The Fire Nation has perverted my teachings, Avatar…and you are running out of time to stop them. Even now, the Imperium has sent additional Thunderhawks to level the Water Tribe. You must prepare." The eyes focused on Alex, who sensed the dragon was urgently trying to get them out of harm's way. "Take Jimen and his friend and return to the Tower." The eyes turned to Unalaq then. "When next you see the Avatar, he will be as strong as Kora and Aang were. With that might, and mine, we will free your people…for now…hide and shield yourselves as you have before."

Unalaq simply nodded. He could sense the sheer power and presence of the eyes before him, and they matched what the oldest legends they had of the Fire Nation said when describing the Original Dragon, and how he taught the first firebenders to wield the flame with honor under that fierce golden gaze. For his part, Alex could sense how monumentally disappointed Tao was with how far the Fire Nation had fallen, and how much further they yet could go.

Alex and Jimen left Pakku, Meelo, and Unalaq to deal with the imminent bombing. He took the chance to examine the Avatar's belt, only to find he had no Pokéballs. "So…uh, you're not a Pokémon Trainer?"

The earthbender glanced at him, as they walked. "I used to be…but no longer. Kora didn't have many partners, and mine…"

Jimen trailed off, and Alex didn't need to read his mind to recognize sadness. "I understand. Fire Nation?" Jimen nodded, and the two continued on in somewhat awkward silence. Then, suddenly, Jimen stopped at an icy door.

"This is it. My friend is in here. What tower was your dragon talking about, anyways?"

Alex spoke, as he opened the door. "Probably the Dragonspiral Tower. In Unova. It's his…headquarters…" He trailed off as he took in the only person inside the room Jimen stopped at, mostly, because of disbelief. The man within had spiky black hair, kind eyes that had a fire in them, a Pikachu on his shoulder, and a long blue haori with white flames on the bottom of it. His red and white hat had a green swoosh on it, and the style of his clothes under his jacket reminded him of what Oranguru garbed his trainees in, these days. Alex needed no introduction for the reigning World Champion, but Jimen gave him one anyway.

Jimen stepped into the room nonchalantly, and said, "Ash Ketchum, this is Alex Redwood. The new leader of Unova, in the west. His Legendary partner said we're supposed to go with him, since the Imperium is coming as we speak."

Ash seemed to process this, his almost perpetual smile fading. "And leave Koria…? I…don't think I can, just yet." He stood then, and walked towards Alex, offering a gloved hand. "I'm Ash. This is my partner, Pikachu." "Hiya hooman!" The electric mouse said, sounding rather cheerful, given the circumstance of their meeting.

"Uh. Hello there…I uh...I know who you are, World Champion..." Alex said, trailing off. He was still processing who was in front of him, how they were even there, the fact that they were even real. A thousand questions flooded his mind, and Ash seemed to have an inkling as to their source.

"You said you're from Unova right? Before you ask…the cartoon liked to embellish my early years…but honestly, they did pretty good with recreating the important moments. It's a good thing most Gym Battles are recorded, huh? Very easy to animate, after that."

Jimen, for his part, looked completely clueless. "World Champion? Cartoon?"

Alex just shook his head, and laughed, genuinely, for the first time in at least a week. "Yea…your friend here is…kind of famous. Legendary, even. Famous enough to have a TV show chronicling his journeys. He's the World Champion, the best Battler in the world, and if even half the stories are true, he's met more Legendary Pokémon than most people on the planet." Alex tensed, as he sensed Tao's urgency. "As much as I'd love to talk about your Battles, Ash, we need to go. Now. The Imperium has the power to block Teleports, and they're closing in."

Ash shook his head. "I still need to recall Lugia…"

"We don't have time!" Alex said, as Tao psychically urged him to hurry, again. "I'm sure a Lugia that large will be just fine on its own. It's a Psychic Type. It can find you again." He grabbed Jimen's wrist then and offered a hand to Ash. "We need to go. Quickly."

Ash's Pikachu look at his Trainer then, "Perhaps we should listen…" and though all Ash heard was "Pi-kachu, pi…" He understood about as well as Alex. "Alright." Ash said, taking the hand offered. "Bring us to Unova."

Alex focused then, letting his mind focus on and remember an anchor half a world away. Once he had the lock, he used Teleport. A brief pulse of psychic energy emanated from him, but instead of a bamf, all they heard was a brrplf. Twice more he tried, and twice he failed.

"Erm…does that usually happen?" Jimen said, raising an eyebrow.

"No. We ran out of time. They're already here. Looks like we're on to plan B." Alex said, grimacing.

To his surprise then, he sensed a powerful surge of fear, and its source was Ash Ketchum. His partner poked him, as the man looked down at the icy floor. "It's the Imperium. Plan B is to surrender before they shoot us. They won't stop, now that they've been deployed."

To Alex at least, it seemed like Ash had prior experience with the massive supercontinent-spanning empire. He spoke confidently, and Ash's eyes met his as he did. "They have to find us first, and we have Pokémon with us. We'll be fine." He gestured to Jimen then. "We also have the Avatar. We'll get out of here. The question, is where are we running to?"

The look of determination returned to Ash's eyes. Redwood was right, of course. He had Pikachu, and his partners. Lugia would follow in time. "East. To the Temple of the Mind Sage. I've heard of you, Unovan Champion. Heard you also studied under a Sage. My teacher will likely be eager to have us spar."

Alex nodded. "I look forward to meeting him." He looked at Jimen then. "I can help you bend us a way to the ocean. Once we reach it, we should walk on the bottom, rendezvous with this Lugia if possible, and start heading towards the mainland. Can you guide us?"

The Avatar nodded. "I have friends in Ba Sing Se that can get us further east. We'll need a way to cross the ocean, though."

Alex smirked. "Worry not. I have a Lapras. Lead on, Avatar."

As the trio made their way, Meelo met up with them, and gave their feet a useful speed boost as they exited Agna Qel'a to the north, moving up the sheer icy cliff face that made up the back of the city with an air spout from Alex and Meelo's combined bending. If Jimen was surprised the Dragon Emperor could bend, neither he, nor Ash, mentioned it. Once at the top, they dropped into the deep snow as Jimen called out a warning. The first of the Imperium's Thunderhawks had arrived. Screaming out of the rising sun over the city, the first flying V of gunships passed over the city, and each one fired a payload of at least forty missiles. Thankfully, the ice did not run red anywhere, and all the Imperium destroyed, as usual, was the homes of ice emptied of material possessions.

As the flying V turned around above them for another pass, Alex had seen enough. The group moved, trudging far too slowly down the northern slopes of the Water Nation's ice mass. Then, he heard it. A roar he was all too familiar with, but this one sounded female, and unlike Chari, was no runt. "Behind me!" He shouted, and as the blue Flamethrower burned a trail towards them, he dissipated it as Okuz and Kuzon had done to many of his own attacks by guiding the flames in opposing directions and leaving naught but a fiery circle that faded to nothing. The Mega Charizard flew over them with an angry roar, and another torrent of blue flame, this time from her rider, came towards them, to no effect. Alex called out Pruina then. "Hop on! Pru! Take them to the water! Quickly!"

She made a noise that suggested her worry for him, but he waved her on. "Now, Pruina!" As the Lapras took off through the downwards slope of snow, his mind stayed with her, and the battle, such as it was, became split. The Charizard rider leapt for him, only to be blindsided by a massive, snow-covered chunk of earth that sent her into the five-foot drifts in a fit of rage. The snowmelt kept putting her flames out however and soon she was drenched, and shivering. Alex turned and guided Pruina then, using their shared sight and mental link to aim her Dragon Pulse at the Charizard. After two misses, she narrowed her eyes, and guided the ball of dense dragon energy, curving it in the air, and hit the flying fire lizard right between the wings. Caeruleus crashed into a drift as well, and Pruina fired another three far more condensed Dragon Pulses at her as she reached the water. The fire lizard's Mega Form faded, and Pruina looked worriedly back up at her Trainer.

Up above, Aluza was enraged, and melted her way out of the permafrost and bits of tundra buried deep under the snow that he'd pelted her with. "Fire…and Earth…" Alex's eyes widened, and for a moment, he wondered if it might not be better, and safer for Jimen, if the Fire Nation was after him, from their perspective, a random pale skinned foreigner who trained Pokémon. He could sense their intent in a crowd, and even if they did ambush him, he had Lux, who could only extend his blade a few inches, if necessary. Without the need to bisect elemental beams from Crusaders, there was no point to go full length all the time, and there was only one person on the planet who, thanks to media and propaganda from the Dragon Empire, owned and used a white and black plasma sword. It had become iconic, and the fame of the Pokémon Wars series was no small part of that. Aluza jumped at him, full of flames and deformed rage across her otherwise appealing features. Her armor didn't leave much to the imagination either, form fitting and soaked as it was.

Alex confirmed her suspicions for her, and trapped her angry charge with snow, that became water as he shifted its form. Heating and freezing the water he controlled had been tricky, but it was something Akos had gone over until he understood how it worked. He re-froze the water then, completely. Aluza seemed to inhale within the ice, but Alex was ready for that. Firebending needed breath after all. He controlled a hard circle of ice and sent it hard into her solar plexus as he rapidly raised a fist, and her breath went out, as the air was literally knocked from her lungs.

"Somehow, I hoped you'd be harder to beat." He said, spinning in the snow and turning it to ice to help his momentum as he broke the bit containing the rage princess, formed it into a sphere, and then chucked it at a passing Thunderhawk, who by this point, were on their third pass, and thus, had finally noticed their duel. Her ice ball went right through the gunship as it started laying down strafing fire, and then the damaging projectile continued down towards the earth for a landing that would likely shatter it, and violently free its occupant.

Shifting the circle of ice beneath him into a makeshift sled not at all unlike the disc-like ones he'd used as a child, he hurtled down towards Pruina, and had to fight down a smile. The situation was too serious for fun, but he had to admit he'd enjoyed fighting a firebender for real. Manipulating Nature Energy could compensate for whenever he faced a superior martial artist, for he had no illusions as to which of them had been training and bending longer. He recognized natural talent in the fiery woman, but that had done little in the face of multiple elements, nor would it save her from taking damage from being hurled through a ceramite aircraft only to land, hard. The ice ball would shatter on impact, likely hurting her quite a bit, but her people were nearby. She'd probably survive, and if she didn't, that was up to the harsh nature of this environment she was invading, and no longer his problem.

It was Pruina who had ultimately shown both he and Akos how to control large waves of water in what was classically known as a Surf attack, among Trainers. He showed off for her, riding the circular ice sled on the wave he guided and grew, until he came down, and braked beside her. Her forehead met his, and he chuckled. "You're getting good at that, for a Human." She said, and he enjoyed the praise from the water type. Who would know waterbending better?

They descended beneath the waves then, and Jimen helped, as he and Alex kept them all breathing beneath the water in a dome of air, while Pruina propelled them rather quickly through the undersea. Unlike the seabed on his way into the region, Pokémon were all over the place here. Meelo sat quietly on the shell, meditating, and projecting his aura towards the wild Pokémon, including several Sharpedo. They were nudged into ignoring the humans atop the Lapras, and more then once Pruina had let her horn sparkle with the beginnings of a Thunderbolt for those alphas who wanted to test her anyway. There were none here capable of resisting an electric attack, and most species seemed content to ignore them.

Ash's Pikachu shouted, and pointed in the distance, and Alex mentally guided Pruina into a stop. A massive shape was moving in the distance towards them. All Alex glimpsed was its eyes, glowing ominously in the dark inland ocean, though they resolved into the features of a truly massive Lugia as it came closer. Compared to Pravus's and Percy's, this one was clearly the oldest, and probably classifiable as an alpha of the Lugia line.

His male mental voice was calming, and Alex extended the bubble as his head came closer. Pokémon around them watched, curious as to what the Beast of the Sea could want with humans and a Lapras. "Hello." He said, looking at each of them, before focusing on Ash. "You do not need my aid for the next leg of your journey. I must return to the isles."

Ash nodded. "I understand. Thank you, Lugia. Before you go…could you drive off the Thunderhawks?"

The Legendary Pokémon nodded slowly. "It will be my extreme pleasure…travel safely, Ash. If you need me, I shall come."

Alex watched the psychic and flying type, and he smirked to himself. The emotions being given by Ash and his partner almost reminded him of himself and Rayquaza. The dragon tended to be more stern, but if one could get him to indulge in some Leaf, he was very companionable. He didn't open up his heart much, and Alex knew it was because he still grieved for his last human, but they'd reached a mutual level of respect, and Alex knew if he ever needed him, both he and Tao would be there. Only a few Rayquaza could move so fast they Teleported, and Tao had long ago mastered the skill of instantly transmitting his being to another point in space. Apparently, it was slightly different to Teleport, and he'd learned it from a human, but the dragon had not elaborated on who, or where, or even when.

The Lugia flapped away then, and the silt blinded them completely. Another thump of pressure signaled a second flap, and then, Lugia was above the water. He spun out of the ocean in a glorious spin, bringing no small amount of water with him. Almost immediately, the two wings of Thunderhawks dispatched to level Agna Qel'a reacted to its presence.

By the time they turned though, it was already too late. The Aeroblast was accompanied by a furious shriek that the party below the water did hear, and the resulting explosions from eighty percent of the airships signaled his victory. The survivors scattered, and Lugia took the opportunity to fly away, east towards the sea, where he could travel in his favored terrain on his way home. There were other Lugia to see of course, and he looked forward to checking on them on his way back.

The group soon discovered that waterbending didn't apply to silt, and Jimen left the bubble to Alex, as he focused on keeping the disturbed mud, miles of it upturned by Lugia's flaps, from coating them. Keeping Pruina's eyes clear was also a draw on his focus, and thus Alex kept their bubble intact, as he settled in, and became accustomed to the strain.

"Try this." Meelo said, extending his aura shield to match their bubble. Alex reinforced his shield with his own, and found it drew far less energy than constantly bending.

"What, you're psychic, too?" Jimen said, in disbelief.

Alex smirked at him, as he took a similar meditative pose to Meelo. "I was a psychic long before I was bending Nature Energy." With the silt issue solved, the four men chatted in the quiet beneath quite a bit of pressure from the inland ocean around them. Ash explained that he'd been training with the Mind Sage, an Alakazam, alongside his friend Isamu. He was too excitedly recounting it to elaborate on who that was, but neither Alex nor either of the other two stopped him.

Alex recounted his own training then, and he had to smirk when Ash asked what happened to Iris, and Alex simply said she'd retired. It was easy to miss, given how lively Ash was, but Alex realized he was quite a few years older than himself and Jimen. It was Meelo though who was by far the oldest, of the four of them. He briefly wondered if Iris had slowly faked how old she'd become, so that she could 'retire' and do as she pleased. It was no secret she had not been thrilled by being so easily dethroned by Rosa, who had then gone on to be trounced by Nate hours later, with his absurdly powerful team. Taking on the majority of Team Plasma had turned his team of six into beasts, and it was a matter of record that he hadn't stopped there. Nate had ultimately let Iris retain the title, while he beat her with four more teams from his box, before officially claiming the title and seat of Champion for himself. His later clash with N had been, in a word, Legendary, but the green haired son of Ghetsis had eventually emerged the winner, taking on Nate's entire team with only Zekrom, and winning. Alex was glad N hadn't been that on top of his game, when they'd battled.

Chatting with the three men made the trip seem short, and before long they were on the shoreline just before the massive mountains of the Laghima range, where the Northern Air Temple once stood. As Meelo tried to contact his father, Alex, Jimen, and Ash had a quieter conversation. "Jimen. I met a…special Polteageist in the Spirit World on my way here…it claimed that Raava, Koria's Guardian, lost her connection to your past lives in Kora's last clash with Ozai. Have you been able to speak with her?"

Jimen shook his head. "Raava…I know that name…but no, I…the Water Sages said the Guardian was sleeping, and that she may likely not awaken in my lifetime."

Alex nodded. "I've been thinking about that." He looked at Ash then. "I think the Mind Sage may be able to help us with awakening Raava. Once we're out of range of the Teleport blocker, can you get us there?"

Ash frowned. "Maybe…I've never Teleported myself before…" Pikachu leaped onto his shoulder then and gave him a tiny thumbs up. "But I can certainly try!"

At that point, Meelo came over to the triad of protagonists. "I just contacted my father. They're actually close…there's just one problem."

Jimen arched a thin eyebrow and spoke up. "What is it, General?"

Meelo sighed, and his gray eyes looked downward. "The Admiral leading this attack isn't…sane. He's brought a Coalossal from the Imperium."

Alex spoke this time, "The giant kind?" Meelo nodded an affirmative. "Muk. They won't even know it's coming…and something that large will snap that ice mass in half."

The four men shared glances, and Ash spoke this time. "I'm not leaving a city's worth of people to die…or worse. I've seen what the Imperium does to prisoners." He turned to Jimen then. "We stopped them once. We can do it again."

"Without your Lugia?" Meelo said, sighing, and pinching his brow. "We don't have the numbers to take down a Coalossal that large, and we can't mass Teleport the people out now."

"Unless..." Ash countered, "We find the Librarius." The other three men looked at him, and Ash gave his best attempt at a confident smile. Alex and Meelo could both tell he was fighting the fear within, though. "We take out the Librarius, the Teleport blockage goes down." He looked at Alex and Meelo then. "Can you two Teleport that many people at once?"

Meelo pondered for a moment, and then glanced at Alex, who shrugged, and looked back to Ash. "With Tenzin's help? Maybe…but we'd need somewhere to send them. Somewhere that knows they're coming."

"The Mind Sage took in the Air Nomads once." Ash said. "I can try to reach him and tell him Agna Qel'a is coming as well."

"Let's keep that as a backup plan…" Alex said, looking into the distance. There was a part of the horizon line more smokey than the rest of it. "I say we take down the Coalossal, and drive them back. Jimen, that Firebender I fought, thinks that I'm you…I say we convince this Admiral of the same thing. Let them think the new Avatar has pale skin like a westerner. They'll never find you. Right now, getting you to safety is our first priority. Ash, we need to move to the southeast, out of Librarius range, at which point you can both go to the Mind Sage. Leave the Coalossal to us. Without it, the Northern Water Tribe can keep enduring."

"You're suggesting open war with the Imperium, Alex." Meelo said. "Are you sure you want to risk that? They may have other ways of identifying you."

"When I Purged Vaatu from Chief Unalaq, I have no doubt he and Ozai informed the Imperator of who I was, and that I was here. We need to hit the Fire Nation before more reinforcements arrive. If we take out the Librarius and the Coalossal, we can retreat, and call it a victory." Alex said, crossing his arms. He was using his own General voice now, confident of the plan.

Ash and Jimen shared a look as well. "We can't just leave-"

But Alex held up a hand. "Jimen is more important to Koria's future than me or Meelo or anyone with Tenzin. I know he'll be safe with you, World Champ. You need to leave this to us. Adamanteus!" He shouted, summoning his Steelix. "We need to head up those mountains and put as many miles between us and Agna Qel'a as possible. Can you handle them?"

The Steelix looked at the peaks of the Laghima range and nodded. "There are powerful rivals here…but I can take them, now…"

Alex nodded, confident he could. "Alright. Hop on, you two. Ash, try reaching the Sage."

With reluctant sighs, the two men climbed onto Adamanteus, and Ash's aura flared a blue almost as deep as Alex's. Possibly even more so. Alex could sense the sheer depths of his power, and in that moment, very much regretted that they probably wouldn't have a chance to battle. Yet. Then, as he reached out, an overwhelmingly powerful mental presence manifested among them, and Meelo turned, his own communication with Tenzin disrupted by the arrival of such a potent mental presence.

"All three of you must come."

The voice was loud even for Alex as it echoed in his head, not like thunder, but louder than his own Sage master was. It made some sense, for no species could boast the kind of psychic power an Alakazam could produce. Their brains were more advanced than humanity's, and a Sage of that species would probably be, arguably, the most powerful psychic presence in the world. It didn't mean Oranguru would necessarily lose, if they battled, but in terms of raw special attack power, this Alakazam would have a clear advantage.

Meelo spoke then. "He's right, Alex…he…he showed me how to win this. Let my father and I handle the Coalossal and Agna Qel'a. Go. Help our Avatar, Dragon Emperor. It's why you were sent here. It is your path."

Alex glanced at Adamanteus, who also sensed the massive mind, though he only had second-hand knowledge from Alex as to what the plan now was. "Fine." Alex said, giving Adamanteus a kick. "Be safe, Meelo. Keep everyone alive, if you can."

Meelo watched them speed off into the Laghima mountains then, and Tenzin and his group arrived just in time to see their dust cloud, and their mount, vanish in a flash of Teleportation as they'd sped onto a second peak, and then a third with the Steelix's power.

Temple of the Mind Sage - Koria Region

Adamanteus crashed hard as the inertia carried through the Teleport. Ash and Pikachu went flying as they lost their grip, Jimen simply leapt and rolled away, but Alex stayed on, secure in his position behind his partner's large neck. He gave the slightly winded Steelix a rest in his ball and looked around. Odd and long strands of golden yellow grass extended into the sea from either side of the pointed almost triangular jetty they'd appeared on. Before the trio, on a rising mound of what seemed to be dirt, was a structure he would classify as a temple. Large, many roomed, and made of stone, Ash began sprinting towards it. Jimen glanced at Alex, and Alex nodded, before starting after him. Luckily for them, Pikachu hopped off his Trainer's shoulder to guide the slower pair, and Alex tossed him an Oran Berry for his trouble.

Ahead of them, Ash sprinted up the stairs to the topmost chamber of the temple, where the Mind Sage typically resided. Ash found him again in his Mega Form, meditating, and hovering in the air. His eyes opened, as he sensed the urgency of his student's return. "Interesting…someone has shown you how Teleport works, have they?"

"Master…" Ash said, out of breath. He panted, from taking so many stairs so quickly. "It's Agna Qel'a…they're under attack from a Coalossal."

"I am aware." The Mega Alakazam said, nonchalantly. "What of them?"

"We need to help!" Ash said, regaining his breath. "If that thing reaches their iceberg, it'll break it in half!"

"And then the abomination will fall into the ocean, and presumably be attacked by the local Pokémon. I see no issue here, Ash Ketchum."

Ash blinked at the callousness of the Sage. He'd genuinely thought the kind old Pokémon would eagerly lend a hand. "Look, the city's population is hiding right now, under the iceberg. If it breaks, they'll be crushed!"

"They are Waterbenders. I severely doubt they will so easily die to something they can bend." Alakazam answered. "The Fire Nation cannot reach them, and the Imperium is not equipped for deep water combat. The people will survive. Probably. They can rebuild their icy home quite easily. They've done so before."

"Maybe they can rebuild!" Ash said, growing frustrated, "But we need to move the civilians who can't bend out of danger until it's passed. I wanted to ask you to bring them here."

The Mega Alakazam pondered and closed his eyes. For an infuriatingly long time he said nothing, and Ash tried not to be impatient. The Mind Sage often got like this, when he tried to mentally foresee and predict all future outcomes. "Your idea has merit. Freeing the Waterbenders to aid the Rebellion will likely turn the conflict into a rout for the Fire Nation. The first loss in the turning tide of the war. Of course, none of this can come to pass until the Librarius is removed."

"General Meelo is working on that as we speak, Great Sage." A new voice said, echoing through the chamber.

The Mega Alakazam shifted his eyes to the newcomer and arched a brow. "I know thee, Human…Oranguru's Rising Star. The Rain Sage speaks well of you also. You are welcome in my temple, Dragon Emperor."

"I'm honored to be here, wise Sage. I brought the Avatar with me." Alex gestured to Jimen then, and the newest incarnation of the Avatar stepped forward.

"Uh…hi. I'm Jimen." He said, awkwardly scratching the back of his head. He was still coming to terms with the fact that Pokémon could apparently 'speak human' when they wanted to, if they were psychic typed or Legendary. Or both.

The Sage eyed him for some time. "Raava yet sleeps within you…it will take many lifetimes for her power to fully return to you…lifetimes we do not have the luxury of waiting through."

"Then…how do I wake her up?" Jimen asked. "Ash and Alex said you might have a clue to that."

The Sage nodded simply. "I do." He gestured for them to come sit, and before where he floated effortlessly in the air, three plush seating cushions appeared, and the three men sat, and listened. "To awaken Raava, you must enter the Spirit World, and find the lost remnants of your past lives. The battle between Avatar Kora and Fire Lord Ozai scattered much of your spiritual lineage…but enough may yet remain to awaken Raava, and elevate your combined powers to that of past Avatars. Your spirit will never be completely healed, but if you find Avatars of repute, who wielded great power on their own in their time, you will gain their wisdom and experience, and their power when you enter the Avatar State. Once you have reconnected with enough of your past lives, Redwood here can show you how to master the Avatar State."

Alex blinked. "Erm…I can?"

The Sage nodded. "You have walked the Trial of Eight Paths and come through alive. Not something many Humans can claim to have done. Even only a precious few Avatars ever managed it. You must guide Jimen through his path, as you were guided through yours. Are you up to the task, Redwood?"

Alex briefly pondered. Obviously, the goal would be to get Jimen to channel the energy of the universe itself at the finale of his chakra opening. Such energy might very well be what Raava would need to awaken, assuming they could find his past lives. "It would be easier to take him to Unova…the Seven Sages there can help him more than I could."

The Sage shook his head. "Raava must awaken here, in Koria. She is tied to this land in a manner every Guardian is. You will be provided with whatever you need, to open his chakras."

Alex nodded. "Then I'll do my best to train him, Mind Sage."

"You will train Ash Ketchum as well." The Alakazam said, looking to Alex at least, deviously proud. "This is the price of my aid for Teleporting the majority of the Northern Water Tribe into my home."

Alex glanced at Ash and knew that if he helped someone with such obvious raw potential awaken it, he would be given a very strong rival as a result. The nine-time World Champion roadblock in his future might very well become insurmountable, with fully realized psychic powers. He smirked, as he wouldn't have anything less than Ash's best, when they inevitably battled for his title. "I accept. I'll do what I can to guide both of my new friends here on the path to enlightenment."

"Good!" The Sage thundered. "I will send you into the Spirit World now, to find Jimen's past selves. You have been there before Redwood. Think of the best place to land, and you shall appear there."

Deep purple aura flared around the floating Pokémon, and Alex thought for a moment, deciding between Kashiji's hut, and the Tree, before ultimately focusing on the hut. If anyone could help them, it was the Light-touched Polteageist that Raava had inadvertently created.

As he focused, Ash and Jimen closed their eyes as well, and then, in a flash of purple, they were gone.

Fire Nation Controlled Shore Near Agna Qel'a - Koria Region

After Caeruleus had found Aluza lying unconscious and battered on the ruined ice of Agna Qel'a, the shiny Charizard carried her partner across the inland sea to report to the Admiral the identity of the new Avatar. She'd sent a Talonflame ahead with a message but knew the Admiral would want a full account of her failures. Over and over, she replayed how easily he'd taken her down, with multiple elements. She hadn't expected him to look like a foreigner from the west, though. They'd never considered that Koria's Guardian would reincarnate outside of Koria, it had never happened before, but then, the Fire Nation had never all but controlled Koria either. Would it not make sense to reincarnate in a non-hostile region, and then return to Koria once grown?

As she pondered her latest excuse for failing her mission, she noticed a pair of rats, scurrying on the ground near Incineratus, as Cae alerted her with a growl. "Finally…" Aluza descended with practice born of years of training as an aerial hunter, and in the darkening sky, Caeruleus was all but impossible to see thanks to her black scales. What Akos and Ara did see as they went about their mission to take down Incineratus from the inside, were faint half circles of sparks in the darkness, followed by an impossibly fast bolt, aimed right at Akos. All Ara had time to see of this perfect and critical strike from the shadows was where the bolt would hit, and she leapt, catching it herself before it hit her brother. She didn't hesitate for a second. As Ara went down in a smoking heap, Akos drew the water from their six total waterskins, and used it to shield himself and his sister from the follow-up blue Flamethrower delivered by their attacker's obsidian skinned mount.

Unfortunately, the attack burned away his shield, and Aluza followed up by leaping down from Cae's back and bringing an arcing fiery foot down at Akos. It became clear the grinning, deformed rage princess was playing with him, as they traded blows, and Akos knew he needed to level the playing field before the Charizard returned for another pass, or worse, mega evolved again. If it reached its dragon-typed Mega Form, he had no chance of stopping it solo.

Desperate to slow her, Akos used the snow around them to freeze her, and in the seconds it took her to once more burn free of her icy prison, Akos called out his Rockruff. He wasn't particularly special in terms of looks, and Akos hadn't used him much since catching him. They'd camped together a few times, shared a love of Sealeo jerky, but he'd called on his other new additions for training, so far, not this one. Thus, the rock pupper was a bit confused as he was brought out to handle a fully grown and very pissed off Charizard of the Fire Nation's royal lineage. Akos then surprised him, by offering him what seemed to be some sort of small pink candy, in a blue wrapper. "Eat this!" He ordered. "Hurry!"

Akos's Pokédex had listed his Rockruff's projected level, and he'd found it around the same as the other Pokémon he'd caught in the Laghima mountains. He'd also noticed it was more than was needed for evolution, apparently, and by quite a large margin. For whatever reason, this Rockruff had simply not evolved, though he could refuse now, if he wanted, Akos hoped he might consider it, in order to win. Thus, as the sun set around them and the night took over, the Rockruff was given a Rare Candy his Trainer had picked up randomly from the ground, and as a result, the tiny rock puppy began glowing, growing, and then howled, as he reformed as a Midnight Form Lycanroc. "Get the Charizard!" Akos shouted, as he and Aluza once more engaged.

He shifted his attacks from ones that tried hitting her, to tendrils, focused on slithering around out of her field of vision, and snaring her limbs before she could burn him. The newly evolved, but now much stronger Lycanroc fought a similar losing battle, against the superior Charizard, only staying alive and conscious thanks to his newly learned move: Stone Edge.

Just as the Lycanroc was about to suffer a rather powerful tail smash, a feminine voice broke in on the conflict. "Now, Luna! Use Moonblast!" Akos hadn't expected help, as Minami, Meelo, and Tenzin were on their way to the Librarius. Thus, when the absurdly powerful beam of fairy magic came out of nowhere to smash into the Charizard, he knew the tables had begun to turn. The source of the attack was a blue eyed Lunatone, floating beside its Trainer, a similarly blue eyed and white-haired woman of Akos's nation, garbed in the blues and light purple of the Northern Water Tribe. Around her, from the ocean, came other waterbenders, garbed for war, and they brought with them ice Liepards, Beartics, and even a truly massive Gyarados, that was just then arcing out of the water. The Gyarados, clearly an older one, and therefore far more powerful, aimed a Hyper Beam at Incineratus that the massive Coalossal raised its arms to tank the hit with. Though a mark had been left, all the attack really did was make the living furnace roar hard enough to vibrate the air with the force of it. The temperature of the area rose several degrees, but the snow did not stop falling before the might of Incineratus.

The fight Aluza had started had alerted not just the Fire Army forces within Incineratus, but the northerners who had been watching and waiting for a sign that it was time to strike. Evidently seeing a member of their sister tribe from the south go down hard was enough to motivate them. Akos's Lycanroc capitalized on the fairy attack, following it with a harsh, quadruply effective Stone Edge that sent Caeruleus hurtling away from the newly made camp. He howled in victory and grinned at his Trainer. He seemed to like being a Lycanroc, and he considered Akos worth defending. Furious, Aluza beat down the water rat resisting her, finishing Akos by breaking his guard, and then hitting him in the chin with a burning roundhouse kick. She sprinted for Cae then, ready to burn the world around her if someone tried to further harm her partner.

The white-haired Trainer ran to Akos, but he pointed weakly at his sister instead as he fought to stay conscious. "My…sister…oof." As he blacked out, the woman laid him down, and then approached the still-smoking form of Aratak. She winced, as she noticed the body before her had, by that point, stopped breathing. Akos hadn't had a chance to tend her after she was struck, and by now, her spirit had left. They'd simply been too late to save her. The woman retrieved her necklace, a symbol that she was apparently engaged, and four Pokéballs from her bag.

Her Lunatone then levitated Akos back into the water and hid them beneath the waves just out of sight of the battle with a silvery shield of aura, as the woman tended to him with her waterbending, using the northern tribe's famous Life Dew like skills to heal. It was something his gran had told him the northerners learned from the Lapras that resided in their inland sea. Akos regained consciousness quickly, and looked around agitated, before his eyes settled on the woman. She was beautiful, easily the most stunning Akos had seen in his young life, and as he realized he was sitting in damp sand underwater, with his head in her lap, he flushed slightly, and sat up. A roar echoed from above them. "The battle isn't over? My sister! Is she-" The words died in his throat as he saw the woman's face, and as his eyes fell, saw four Pokéballs in her palm, and their mother's necklace.

That told him all he needed to know. "My name is Yue." She said, placing her free hand on his arm. "By the time I reached her…not even Heal Pulse could help. I'm sorry it took my people so long to aid brave warriors from our sister tribe, like you and your sister."

Akos was a roiling bag of emotion, as he tried to come to terms with the fact that a beautiful woman was touching him, and his sister had died for him. All he could do was stare at what he had left of her, his mom's necklace, and his sister's Pokémon. She had always been the better bender, the smarter one, though he'd never admit it. It was why she'd been tapped for the resistance, and he had not. Or so he thought. He took her Pokémon from Yue and let them out beneath the shielded sea. A Horsea, a Primarina, a Dewgong, and to his surprise, what he recognized as a female Riolu appeared before him.

Their faces broke his heart as he told them the fate of their Trainer, and though they didn't know Yue, they looked to her for confirmation all the same. Her Lunatone let out a sad tone that confirmed, in their tongue, what they asked, and the Primarina began crying as Akos finally spoke with a shaky voice. "I understand if you girls want to leave…there's plenty of wild Pokémon here that the Fire Nation hasn't disturbed. The Dewgong, and most recently caught addition to his sister's team, looked at the ocean around them, and then nodded with a sad intonation of her name. He released her, and with a sad farewell, she slipped beyond the psychic barrier. The Primarina did the same a moment later, jetting off at an upward angle, and heading north. He'd heard that, when sad, they created hauntingly beautiful melodies to express their feelings, and he knew that tonight, such a melody would fill the inland sea. He kept her ball just in case, though.

The Horsea, for his part, as Akos realized it was a he, and not female like the others, just looked heartbroken, sagging into the sand, as he clearly didn't know what to do now that his friend had passed on. The Riolu however, was emanating an emotion Akos understood all too well, and as they locked eyes, he knew he'd gained a partner. "Rio. Lu." She barked at him, and he nodded, holding up her ball. "Revenge it is, then." The Horsea watched the Riolu be recalled, and then met Akos's gaze. The sad, tear-filled eyes of the relatively young Pokémon hit him hard, and then they mirrored his. Tear-filled, shiny, but determined. "I'll take you with me too, then." He said, recalling the little one.

Yue let him have a moment, as he cleared his eyes, and stood up as he did. "Right." Akos said, sounding far more confident as he suddenly took her hands in his. He fixed her with a hard stare. "I know you don't really know me, but I need your help, Yue. I was tasked with bringing that Coalossal down from the inside…and I can't do it alone."

She nodded, matching his determined look, as the faint blush from him suddenly grabbing her hands faded. "The Northern Water Tribe is no longer hiding. Even Chief Unalaq is fighting. I will help you." The pair emerged from the water then and found the beach landing area alight with random fires, jutting ice sticking out of the snow, and numerous now dead Fire Nation soldiers. The waterbenders, as usual, had the advantage when it came to fights, they weren't massively outnumbered in. More troops would be coming though, as word reached the ships anchored in the only waterway that led into the Water Nation's home learned their moving base was under attack. They scurried across the snowy beach, Akos pointedly avoiding looking at where his sister had fallen, as they entered a metal doorway carved into Incineratus' leg. The carved-out insides of the living furnace Pokémon were as hot as one could expect it to be, and thanks to Minami's educational ramblings about the intricacies of Imperium technology, he knew where he needed to hit the massive Pokémon to set it off. In the bowels of each Coalossal mutation, their 'hearts' such as they were had been changed with technology, implants, and genetic therapy to unnaturally produce more of everything the Pokémon needed to live, resulting in truly massive size.

He had no idea if Meelo, Minami, and Tenzin were accomplishing their mission, or were already dead because of it, but he intended to blow up the Coalossal either way. This mission had cost them far too much already, and all because they hadn't seen the Charizard rider in the sky. His sister's Riolu and Yue's Lunatone ran beside them, but all they encountered were a few normal engineers, that the Riolu took down with a brutal series of punches. She was brave with her attacks, but Akos knew that bravery was driven by grief. She tried to hide it, but he could sense how torn up the punchy puppy truly was. "We need a name for you, don't we." He said, trying to distract her as they ran down several cramped corridors unimpeded for the moment. "How about Tuhan?"

Roughly translating to 'fighting spirit' the Riolu's eyes went wide. "What," Akos said, chuckling as they came around a corner, boomerang raised. "Is that what my sister called you?" He paused, as the Riolu put a paw on his leg, and nodded, and he blinked away fresh tears. "Great minds think alike." He growled, as a fresh wave of emotion threatened to overcome him. The Riolu looked at him differently after that, and actually listened to his orders when he gave them.

Eventually, they reached what Akos guessed was the core of the Pokémon while encountering only about twenty people. It turned out that Tuhan also knew Rock Slide in addition to Force Palm and Quick Attack. This helped with the various fire and flying types the soldiers had used. Talonflame was a very common choice for a Fire Nation soldier's belt, and the swiftly moving rocks propelled by aura took them down rapidly. The core itself was surrounded by crisscrossing steel beams that provided structure for the heart device's advanced technology. It was very sturdy looking, and neither Tuhan nor Luna managed to make so much as a dent in it.

Akos then called out his Duraludon, Alumin, and Pado. "I need you two to work together on cutting through these beams." He said, only to notice his Duraludon, a very high-level catch, and a new one, was uncomfortable in the heat, and disinclined to listen to the human who'd snatched him from his territory. Akos looked meaningfully at Pado and gestured at the rapidly heating steel type. Water doused the steel dragon, and its initial reaction was anger, until Akos got in front of it. "Focus, Alumin. Help Pado cut through these beams. He'll keep you cool."

The dragon eyed Akos properly, and paused, as he read the obvious turmoil Akos thought he was hiding and repressing. Pokémon were, luckily, much better at reading humans than humans assumed. Sensing his distress, the steel dragon nodded, and then glanced at Pado. He seemed more concerned with the human, which made sense, but as ordered, the two began using their steel moves to slowly cut through the strong, light, and durable alloy blend the Imperium used in pretty much all their processed metal structures.

"Yue." Akos said, gaining her attention, "We can cut through the other beams with our Waterbending. Then Luna can deliver a powerful attack from above, maybe something Rock Typed, and it should, theoretically, all come crashing down." Luna chirped, evidently happy to help, and Akos looked at her. "We might need a shield once it falls. Can you cover us?"

The blue-eyed psychic rock moon nodded confidently, and that was enough for Akos. They set to work then, with Tuhan covering the entrance to the core room. She kept herself hidden, and with her aura, sensed when anyone unfriendly approached. For a solid hour, they kept at it, slicing through steel alloyed beams one by one, until finally, Akos deemed it ready to fall. In that time, they'd heard consistent sounds of fighting from up above on the Coalossal's higher levels, and he only hoped that the airbenders weren't having too rough of a time holding off the Admiral and his troops while they took down the Librarius.

When Akos said it was ready, Luna looked at the beams, and her eyes began glowing with a pale white psychic aura. "She's using Future Sight…" Yue said, somewhat in awe. Seeing that the psychic bombardment from the future would be enough to detonate the Coalossal core, she gave a cry of "Tooooone!" And then hastily floated for the exit. Tuhan both cleared them a path and covered their rear with her Quick Attack getting her to the front and back of the group more than once. The few soldiers they encountered fell easily, and when they emerged, it was to the sight of a losing battle for the Water Nation. More Fire Nation soldiers had arrived, it seemed.

Yue put a hand on Luna, and shouted, as her voice psychically reverberated through the area. "The mission is accomplished! Everyone run!" What waterbenders yet lived began disengaging from the firebenders, usually by locking them in what little snow remained on the beach that had yet to be used for bending. As they began running into the ocean a pair of firebenders torched a retreating waterbender, and Akos realized they were slow targets for the firebenders remaining on the shore, so he called out his Lycanroc again. "Amaroq! Make us a wall with Stone Edge!"

The midnight Lycanroc howled, and did as ordered, slamming his paws into the ground, and creating rocky cover for the fleeing waterbenders. There were less of them than before, but there were far more dead Fire Nation soldiers in their wake. Akos doused the man who'd been opportunistically torched as Amaroq made the pair of firebenders pay for overreaching, instead of retreating with the rest of their forces. Akos recalled his Lycanroc before it got further distracted by chasing fleeing opponents, and he, Tuhan, and Yue ran to the ocean.

Behind them, Incineratus let out a mournful sound, and Akos's arm went around Yue's waist as he pulled her down into the water and shouted, "Duck!" A pillar of white-orange flame lit the sky for miles around, and flaming rocks, not unlike meteors, came falling down as the mutated Coalossal finally expired. After seeing how heavily modified it had been, Akos had no doubt the creature was glad it no longer had its innards playing home to Fire Nation soldiers. As the two waterbenders sat up in the relatively low surf, they watched the sky.

Yue was in awe, but Akos was looking for the three who'd gone to take on the Librarius. Then, one of the fireballs descending from above stopped being on fire, and Akos spied Minami as the source, as she and Meelo held what appeared to be an unconscious Tenzin. Akos really hoped he was just unconscious. Meelo tried cushioning their landing, but the air puff he produced was lacking. Akos raised his arms, and seeing his target, Yue helped him. Together they raised a wave, thin at the top and large at the bottom, ideal for spreading out the water tension and impact force of three rapidly falling humans. "I can heal them." Yue said, once they landed, and Akos pulled the three towards them with the ocean's current.

As a pair of very bruised and beaten rebels deposited their unconscious and rather old general, Yue frowned, but began doing her best to heal anyways. "Luna, I'll need your Heal Pulse." Luna began focusing her psychic power on the airbender, and then Akos felt her nudge his mind. Turning on nothing but instinct, he raised not one, but three ice walls, as yet another surprise, and critically effective, lightning strike came lancing towards Yue this time, her glowing healing power making her an obvious target in the night.

Two of the ice barriers shattered, and Akos clenched a fist, drawing the third onto his form, like armor. "The Fire Princess…" He growled as anger took over his vision. Tuhan's eyes matched his own as she understood; this was the warrior who had killed her partner. Revenge was at hand.

"Keep healing, Yue." Akos said, and as he strode with murderous intent towards Aluza, it seemed as if the inland ocean, or at least a very large part of it, moved with him. He called out two more Pokémon then, not looking at them, or even stopping as he walked. "Amaroq. Protect them from any more damned lightning…Tuhan…Pado…this is the inbred Fire Royal that killed my sister." Tuhan snarled as she confirmed her suspicion, and shared in Akos's rage, and Pado, who had genuinely liked Ara especially after their tag-team move on that angry guy with the sideburns, intended to avenge her. "Don't hold back."

A healed and rejuvenated Caeruleus joined Aluza then, and she held up a hand towards the Fire Nation soldiers approaching from behind her. "This water rat is mine. Nobody interferes!" What was left of the beach had been turned black and into glass by the massive detonation of Incineratus. The ground was still hot, steaming in the cold air of the Water Tribe's home and littered with the charred and now empty armor of dead Fire Nation soldiers as the two faced each other down.

"Back for round two, Royal?" Akos said. "I want your name, before I kill you."

Aluza smirked. He was angry, which meant her strike earlier in their first round had done its work. She felt the thrill of the kill surge through her, and beside her Caeruleus felt it as well, her orange tail flame shifting to blue. "You have the honor of having your rat sister killed by the Fire Princess Aluza. I don't need your name, sea trash, but your penguin's corpse will please the Admiral." She moved then, like lightning, but Akos was expecting that now, and having none of it. For some reason, he felt more in tune with his bending than he ever had before. "Aqua Jet." He said, as Pado laid down, and he guided the water penguin into the air with his bending after hopping on his back and locking his feet there with ice, essentially making them fly. "Tuhan! Take the Charizard!"

Aluza's first strike missed the pair as Akos began air surfing through the air atop his Empoleon, and she looked at Caeruleus then. "Mega Evolve! Kill the runt, and then bring them out of the sky." The eager flame lizard nodded, and then began glowing. Aluza pressed her Key Stone, and it reacted to the X strand of Charizardite hidden within Cae's crimson body armor. The Mega Charizard moved for the Riolu, but Akos trusted in Tuhan. Despite the massive disadvantage, he knew she wouldn't let her Trainer's death go unanswered, and all she really needed to do, was distract the Charizard.

Pado hurtled towards Aluza once Caeruleus left her side, but the mutilated princess dodged easily, and danced through another buildup for a lightning strike. The water that Akos had brought with him trailed behind him as they jetted through the air, and as Aluza struck again, Akos turned with Pado, and the pair barrel rolled safely through the air as the momentum of the penguin Pokémon kept his Trainer tightly bound to his back. Then, Akos retaliated. After seeing her attack several times now, he'd noted a weakness. After she fired, she lowered her guard from brief exhaustion. Either she was as tired as he was, or shooting hot plasma from one's limbs took a toll. In reality, her body was simply cold, after being drenched in her earlier battle, and essentially frozen. Akos raised his arms, and as he did, he spied Luna out of the corner of his eye.

Tenzin and the other waterbender had been stabilized, and the Lunatone had then ignored Yue, to focus on the sky above the battle for some reason. Nothing she could do made the psychic moon rock budge, so Yue went back to healing with her own power and let Luna do as she wished. There was really only two moves Luna wished to contribute to the kind waterbender with the hurting heart, and the first, was Moonlight. Though it only restored Luna's energy, something she also needed, it also made the moon appear in the sky, and shine brighter. It was a useful boon to waterbenders.

As Akos brought his hands down, the spiral of water he and Pado left in their air surfing wake rained down hundreds of thin, needle like razor sharp pieces of ice from multiple directions. Aluza burned a swathe around her face free, but many more hit her sides, back, and legs, and the ice soon turned red, signaling a successful hit. What was worse, was that as her rage melted them, the deep wounds they left were free to flow, and there were simply too many to burn closed. She'd pass out from the pain of searing nerve endings long before she cauterized every cut Akos had given her.

Akos gathered what water remained in front of him as Pado kept them levitating, and when Aluza lowered her guard to counter, she was greeted with another shower of ice needles. This time, several got through the flames billowing from her mouth, and brought her down with the force they hit her with. With hate in his eyes Akos surfed towards the soldiers then and raised his arms. From the beach, and Aluza herself, came a flood of water and blood needles. He aimed them at the soldiers, only pausing long enough to give those with sense to run as the cloud of death formed over them. Those who moved to fight, were brought down in a rain of icy death. Each fallen soldier only added to what Akos could bend and combine with the snow. He wasn't entirely merciless. Those who begged or those who limped away wounded he didn't target, and some, simply retreated after keeping a steady burn against the blood and water, before turning and fleeing. "Ice Beam." He said coldly, and Pado launched an icy ray of frosty energy along the bloody ground. He made a wall of seething ice then that gave off waves of frost in the relatively warmer air, the part on the land was blood red, and the part blocking the water of the Xiyan river was as cold as a glacier, and almost as thick, for he'd frozen all of it.

The Pokémon in the river would be saved later, by other waterbenders, but for now, the message to the Fire Nation was clear. The beach was theirs, their Coalossal was gone, and sure enough as the sun would rise, so too would the Northern Water Tribe return, as they always had, after Imperium bombardment. While Akos had lost himself to rage, grief, and war, his new bond with his Riolu had been affected by his mindset.

Tuhan had dodged the Mega Charizard with well-directed Force Palms keeping her just out of Caeruleus's reach. She'd managed to dodge the furious dragon for just long enough for her Trainer to pelt Aluza with ice. The second hit on Aluza sent Cae back to her normal form, and as she moved to defend her Trainer, Tuhan hit her hard with a Rock Slide, right on her neck. Drawing the Charizard's fury again, she moved to crush the annoying puppy with a Wing Attack, only to then feel the brunt of Luna's second contributing move; another Moonblast. Concentrated fairy energy again hammered the Charizard, just in time for the moment when Akos's emotions had shifted. Sensing the darker turn, the Riolu reacted. Under a bloody night sky, at the peak of rage and the emotional turmoil of loss, Tuhan found herself heading down an alternate and previously avoided path of the Riolu line. Luna kept up the Moonblast, as the punchy pupper evolved.

She had two metal spikes on the knuckles of each of her paws, and in form looked like a slightly shaggier Lucario. Her fur was longer, all across her body. What was supposed to be blue was now more plum colored; the spike on her chest was also on her back, and her feet were larger, shaggier, and had longer claws. Her tail curled upwards into a tight spiral, like a Kecleon's, and her 'hair' had several lumps, almost reminiscent of braids which dangled down by her ears. The black fur around the end of each of her paws was a familiar crimson, and the fur coating her chest was black instead of the typical yellow. She still very much seemed like a Lucario, but what one might expect of a Riolu that evolved at night.

Now a dark and fighting type, Tuhan manifested a purple Aura Bone and proceeded to use a combination of Bonemerang and Rock Slide to raise a pair of massive rocks limned with rock energy, and hammer them at Caeruleus with critical effectiveness, on the first rock. The second was enough to make her faint, and by that point, Akos and Pado were surfing back towards Tuhan. Akos recalled his Lucario into her ball as they headed for deeper water, and it was only from above that Akos finally noticed what was occurring deeper under the water. As he flew over where Yue and the others waited, she guided them under the waves towards Akos, and then realized why he'd altered course.

It seemed that the Chief's Gyarados had given the Coalossal a rough battle, but in turn, the Coalossal had brought down the water dragon, and as it had still been standing, was technically the victor. Even if it had blown apart shortly after said victory. By the time Yue arrived, the other healers had done what they could for the Chief, but both he and his partner had been claimed by the counterattack from Incineratus, a volcano-like spray of massive burning rocks.

The waterbenders headed home then, and in the dark night following that rather eventful and bloody day, set about rebuilding most of their capital, starting with the walls encasing the front. For his part, Akos had been refused when he offered his help to rebuild. The northerners had an entire corp that specialized in rapidly building homes and dwellings, sturdy ones, out of ice. Feeling useless, drained, and demoralized he trudged out to a western peak not far from the capital, but far enough that, he assumed, nobody would follow him.

And then, on the wind, he heard it. A mournful aria that could only be from a Primarina. Other voices joined in with hers, for Unalaq's Gyarados had been a powerful alpha of the inland sea, and his presence would be sorely missed. He hadn't noticed he'd been crying, but at some point, tears had escaped his eyes as he took in the song, and then had frozen to his face. Thus, when Yue appeared 'stealthily' and surprised him out of his reverie, he fell in the snow around his perch, and rose with powder clinging to the tears on his face. He closed his eyes, and bended the water away, before rejoining Yue on his seat. "What are you doing up here?" She finally asked, once the giggling ended.

Akos gestured to the wind, and Yue listened, closing her eyes. He heard her gasp softly when she heard the aria, and as the wind shifted again, it became louder. "It's Ara's Primarina. I think a pod of Lapras might've joined her…I…get the sense they're mourning the Chief's Gyarados as well as my sister, and all the others we lost today." He vaguely felt Yue wrap herself around his arm then, and realized with belated grogginess, that he was freezing cold. Too cold. Numbness in temperatures this cold, meant death.

Akos exhaled, using the warmth of his breath to spread heat through his blood. He was more in tune with his body's fluids now, after having used other's lifeblood as a weapon, controlling his own wasn't too difficult. Yue seemed to notice what he did, for next she said, "There are a few in the tribe who want to exile you for Bloodbending…it's a forbidden technique, up here."

"It's forbidden in the south too." He said.

Yue nodded. "I understand why they're…disconcerted, but I also understand why you did what you did. You single handedly drove back most of an army, Akos. Are all southern Waterbenders as strong as you?"

He shook his head. "I had the right emotions to fuel me, and your Luna using Moonlight also helped. Thanks for that, by the way. Without her, Tuhan would've been hit while evolving…"

That was something else that worried Yue, and thankfully few others had seen his unsettling Lucario. "I've never seen a Lucario like that, I must admit…we have stories about the Aura Pokémon. And the Aura Guardians who tended to use them. In ancient times, it's said they brought peace and stability, where they could."

Akos nodded. "I thought about it. My friend, Alex, had a Riolu of his own. They're good friends, and his Riolu evolved in Battle, around noon time, by his account. In contrast, Tuhan had just lost her Trainer, was fighting desperately for her life, and could sense my own emotions. I think those circumstances, and the fact that it was night, propelled her down a different path. But I'm not a Pokémon Professor."

"Aren't you worried she'll be…you know…violent?" Yue asked.

Akos shook his head. "I can feel the same righteous anger that my friend's Lucario had. She may lose control…but that's why she has a Trainer. Watch. I'll use her to help free this region, like my sister wanted…and after that? I might just let her wander, if that's what she wants." They sat for several minutes then, in silence, taking in the aria for the departed. "How is the tribe doing? Did they decide on a leader, yet?"

As Akos finally spoke, Yue pulled away from him. "That, is actually one thing I wanted to speak with you about…the traditionalists want me to be Chieftess. I convinced Chief Unalaq to aid you, I led the others to the beach, and even helped you take down a Royal of the Fire Nation. The others in the tribe…they want you to be our Chief." She said, watching his reaction.

Akos's eyes went wide. "Me!? But…I'm a southerner. Isn't that-"

Yue cut him off. "For some it's a problem…for others, it's just more proof that Unalaq's decisions against proactively fighting the Fire Nation, beyond aiding the rebellion, were a bad idea. We've forgotten how to fight on the offensive. At some point, our teachings shifted to defense…but the moves you used, they're very much offensive. 'Born in the fire of war' some say. That's why they want you. If you accept, I won't stand in your way." She smiled at him, and Akos's heart skipped several beats. "Frankly, I agree with them…we need fresh eyes closer to the conflict to lead us now."

Akos closed his eyes, and did as Alex had instructed during their travels, when he posed a particularly hard problem for him to solve, claiming it was part of his 'psychic awakening'. Whatever that meant. Slowly, a solution came to his hormone-addled mind, one that, in reality, would actually serve to unite the tribe, and not just the north, but also the south. "The last thing the Water Nation needs to be right now is divided." He said flatly. "If I become Chief, even temporarily, those supporting you or other northern candidates will undermine me. If you become Chief, those who want to fight will probably leave on their own and get blown apart by the Fire Navy." Yue nodded along, and seeing she followed his logic, he smiled at her this time. "So, I'm thinking…why not both?"

Yue blinked her large blue eyes at him. "What? How would we both…" She trailed off, and the two mutually flushed as she realized what he was asking. She stared at the ground, thinking. It was just crazy enough to work. It would get her father off her back about being eighteen and unmarried, and then there was Akos. A strong Trainer of Pokémon and a powerful bender to boot. There were certainly worse matches.

As she seemed distracted, Akos gathered some snow in his palm along with a rock and condensed it into an icy circle as he used the water to carve the stone. Tradition usually had the men carve these by hand, but he reasoned that he was using his hands to bend, and no amount of whittling with a bone knife would ever come close to reproducing the piece of the necklace he was now crafting. He'd combined the northern tribe's crescent moon and wave lines with the southern tribe's similar wavy lines, and three crests from the ocean's waves into one symbol. One tribe.

Once he was done, he moved his arm, and the sound of it brought Yue's head back up, as the handsome warrior held out his palm. Then, she saw what was in it, and his intentions, for her and their people, became very clear very quickly. She took the chunk of carved light blue rock then and kissed him. Luckily for him, it was also her first, so neither could tell how bad they were doing, and in that moment under the starry night sky, neither really cared.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 28, 2024

Chapter 42: Coalescere Unus Spiritus

Note: If you haven't finished Legends: Arceus and the events on top of Mt. Coronet yet, I strongly recommend doing so before reading. Spoilers are ahead. But since this is a lengthy chapter, I'll mark where they begin.

Arborstone Castle - Albion Region

It was another dark and stormy night in the Albion region. The overall technology of the region was low, especially compared to their southern neighbors in Galar, and the people, of both high and low caste, were miserable after recent events. All thanks to the efforts of two foreigners from Unova. The Scales of Balance known as Rick Astley and Drake had come to Albion to find out what they could about its Queen. What they discovered was a rebellion in progress, and after convincing the rebels they were friendly, the pair endeavored to help them, namely by getting the rebels Pokémon of their own, as well as a number of ships. Over the course of several months, as the rest of their fellow Scales battled in a bloody stalemate against Fornia and its lunatic Church, Rick and Drake managed to train up a small army of new Pokémon Trainers, and sailed them right to the pet project of the Queen.

A massive black stone tower, just off the coast near Arborstone Castle, it had been designed in eons past by the last Archons of Albion, to channel the latent psychic energy of the planet into a single place, for a single purpose: the fulfillment of a wish, not unlike how Jirachi and its powers were known to work. The Archon of the past had been stopped, by a brotherhood of Gallade, the leader of whom became Albion's king, in the days that followed. The Spire, as it had been known, was dismantled, lost beneath the ocean, and the lore surrounding it faded into folktales, then myths, then legends, until it was thought forgotten entirely.

Queen Morgana had revived the Spire, upon devoting herself to the Shadow, and absorbing its whispers in her bid for even more power. Many of the peons in Albion had given their lives to build it up to what she estimated was around half its height in ages past. This time, a wish had indeed been made, by Rick, who himself had burgeoning psychic abilities. At the height of the battle in the Spire's centermost chamber he wished for all the Shadow on the planet to vanish, and with the power Morgana had gathered, the end result was enough power to cleanse the Shadow in the room Rick and Drake had been battling the Queen and her Shadow Pokémon army within, the very core of the structure itself. This use of the Spire ultimately saw the rebels victorious, as it cleansed Morgana and her tools of the Shadow's influence and Rick and Drake left Morgana as Queen to work alongside the rebel's leader, Paige, before they returned to Unova to get Alex to bring his Gallade, who they'd learned was, in fact, the Lost Prince of Albion, back to his rightful throne.

After leaving on a high note, their mission mandate fulfilled and exceeded, the two Scales rejoined their order in the bloody war against Fornia and its Arcean Crusaders, and while that conflict concluded, the Shadow that remained in Albion struck quickly, to once more infect the Queen. Her Purging by the Spire had left her memory with several holes that over time became filled in, and as her mind returned, she realized she had quite willingly embraced the Shadow. One night as she pondered whether to find the Judges she'd made her deals with once again, a crew of pirates trapped between life and death and firmly under the Queen's, and the Shadow's, influence scaled Arborstone Castle's tower, stole into Morgana's bedchamber, and revived the dark Queen to her previous state of Shadow infusion. The next day, her retribution came swiftly. The rebels, every single one of them that were in the midst of partying and celebrating, were brutally murdered by the muskets of the Queensguard. Their leaders were publicly strung up, left to rot across the towns of Albion's claimed lands in cages of spiked iron that none could remove, under pain of death. From Arborstone to Brightwall, and even in Aurora, the corpses of those who defied Queen Morgana rotted to this very night, a very grim and clear message to anyone else that entertained the idea of betraying her rule. The result of her actions saw a broken and dispirited populace returning to suffering under her rule, after their all too brief taste of freedom.

Bandits again plagued the roads, the pure dark typed Lycanroc, nicknamed Balverines by Albion's locals, exploded in number, and a dark ever-present cloud now hung over the region, frequently covering it in rain that tasted downright foul. Several weeks later, a group of refugees of the Arcean efforts in the Sinnoh region arrived in Albion and began whipping the remaining populace to work in producing food and energy with modern methods, previously foreign and unwanted by those in Albion. With their superior weapons, they made effective taskmasters and guards, who became very good at sniffing out talk of a new rebellion and stamping it out with their multi-typed laser staves.

It was as Morgana looked out over her dark kingdom, ultimately satisfied with how things had played out despite losing the Spire, that the Chatot which Captain Dread had left her, should she become Purged again, began to sing to itself, starting with a low hum. "Hmm hmm hm hmm hmm hm hmm hmmm hmm hm hmm…I tell you I tell you…the Dragonborn comes." Morgana turned slowly and leveled her gnarled black staff at the chatty parrot. The pale stone atop it hummed with power making the very air in the chamber vibrate, and the bird yelped.

"What did you say?"

While hesitant to speak more after seeing her reaction, the dark and ghost typed Chatot continued in its hauntingly beautiful mimicry of human speech, "With a Voice wielding power of Norstad's ancient art…beware…beware, the Dragonborn comes."

Morgana turned her back to the Chatot, which had colors similar to the shiny variation of the more common species. Its body and head were pure black, the ruffles around its neck were yellow, and the feathers under its neck and filling out its wings were a vibrant green. It would've looked beautiful if its form wasn't primarily see-through. "So…the Dragon's whelp survived…looks like it's time for another Scry…"

Morgana descended into the bowels of Arborstone Castle then, and her new Arcean Crusader guards saluted as she passed through the darkened halls adorned with black and purple decor. The wait-staff drawn from the nobility, who throughout the rebellion had stayed loyal to her, bowed low and deferentially as she stormed past, her black and lengthy garments billowing behind her.

She had sent out her own Mismagius, her first Pokémon, into the Ghost Realm when she'd divined that the Original Dragon's nuisance was there and limited in his annoyingly strong psychic power. She'd even sent the Copperajah she'd stolen from Indius along with her beloved partner, to ensure that the combination of magic and brute force kept Unova's Champion, who was sporting an under leveled team now, from ever returning to the prime material plane. Upon entering her throne room, where she had once pretended to care about the local's concerns, she pressed a stone behind the throne, and two of her new guards in their Crusader armor accompanied her below, as was the protocol.

They descended deep into the earth then, to the caverns below Arborstone Castle. Once, the Archons of Albion had constructed and secreted a Heroes Guild here, and from the hidden halls, the Will users, as Albion called those with psychic abilities, had strode forth across the land to accomplish deeds both moral…and morally abhorrent. With time, more and more so-called Heroes had begun to lose their Will abilities as their Heroic blood became diluted, and many had tended to take up morally gray or just downright evil 'quests' as they'd been termed. This had ultimately led to the locals rising up and hunting down every last Hero following the invention of firearms and the discovery of large caches of gunpowder in Albion's many mountains. Not even the formidable power of Will had been able to stand before pogroms of angry, firearm carrying peasants. More than a few Pokémon, Gallade among them, had also strove to stop the Heroes Guild, and the result had been those Heroes who still had a moral compass going into hiding, and being banished from their homeland, rather than fighting the people they had sworn to protect. Those who had a lack of morals and had chosen to fight, had fallen to the angry villagers, eventually.

Now, all that remained in the dusty, Noibat filled caverns was the ruins of the once great Guild Hall that had extended from Arborstone Castle to the lake under Millfields, where most of the nobility of the current era now lived in relative comfort and peace.

The Arceans beside Morgana powered up their staves as they came, for the second time in their tenure in Albion, to the 'cage' of the powerful psychic entity Morgana kept here, in the deepest chamber of the old Guild Hall's ruins. The Chamber of Fate. Artificial lights strong enough for flora to grow by lit the formerly dour chamber, and plants, namely moss and flowers, covered the painted glass frescoes depicting the ancient Heroes of Albion and their deeds, now long forgotten by pretty much everybody. The only one intact was a golden armored stereotypical 'good' Hero, looking out over a long-vanished vista of ancient Albion. Albion's people weren't big on reading history in recent times and thus most equated tales of Heroes to fairy stories in the modern era. The chamber was an almost nauseatingly beautiful garden with a raised dais in its center, but the Arceans remained ready, on guard for the psychic and fairy type's shenanigans.

"Gwenivere!" Morgana called out into the enchantingly beautiful scene. Her hoarse voice disrupted several Morelull who'd also taken up residence, but they wisely scurried away from the obvious Shadow aura once more radiating off of the staff-wielding Queen of Albion.

From behind one of the larger berry-producing trees that had taken root in the deep chamber, came the white and green form of a Gardevoir. She was relatively young and had finally hatched about a year before. Only recently had she grown strong enough to reach her adult form. Sometime during the fomenting rebellion Morgana had been dealing with, the annoying Kirlia had grown, and again tried to gain her freedom. She knew better now, though. Morgana had demonstrated her superior powers to the Pokémon, and they had eventually come to an agreement, when the Queen realized she still needed the fairy type's power. Caleb Pravus's fall had been unexpected, as not even Gwenivere had foreseen the Original Dragon's Tamer acquiring a Burst Heart. Morgana had believed there were only three, perhaps four, that still remained intact. This had ultimately not been the truth, as her minions had discovered in Kalos. The irritating bug girl apparently had a whole safe full of the things, and there were rumors of others appearing as well.

"My Queen." The Gardevoir said, projecting her lilting voice psychically as she curtsied like a woman of the court. "What do you require of me?"

Morgana removed the pale lilac colored stone atop her gnarled black staff and offered it to Gwenivere. "I need you to use Scry again, on the same Human as last time. As only you can."

The Gardevoir nodded solemnly. Her specific family line's signature move was also her curse. The reason she was trapped in this ruin of Heroes now long forgotten. The stone went from a pale lilac to a brilliant amethyst color in the hands of the Gardevoir. The stone Morgana had stolen from Eous refused to completely work for her, and always paled in her presence. Even Purged of the Shadow's influence, it had remained pale, but for Gwenivere it regained the beautiful coloring it had when first stolen by the witch. Gwenivere inhaled sharply as it touched her hands, and her pupils dilated. The Crusaders beside Morgana tensed, but the Gardevoir waited. Unknown to either of them, the Truth Stone of Eous's Mount Wudang had the ability to grant its user the ability to detect poison and expand one's mind. Like each precious stone of Eous's seven kingdoms, it also had an effect on the region it had been bestowed upon, but Morgana had neither seen nor cared what her improper wielding of it had caused back in Eous.

As Gwenivere gracefully floated up to the center of the room, the dais was the only part not covered in her plants, she levitated it before her, and focused her powers. In ages past her ancestors had used Nimue's lake to perform Scry to aid the King, but those brighter days were now long gone, as was Nimue.

As Gwen focused her aura on the Truth Stone, it again showed her the face of a Gallade, a rather handsome one, but as always, she pushed past him, thinking it a fanciful dream and nothing more. A manifestation of her longing for a companion, perhaps. Morelull were kind, the Noibat also visited her, but there were few Pokémon down in this forgotten hole with her level of intellect, and most of them had become dark typed. They avoided her psychic and fairy typed aura on instinct.

Looking beyond the handsome visage she focused on Morgana's request. The curly dark-haired human again appeared before her, and Gwen psychically projected what the Truth Stone showed her. Morgana gripped her staff tighter. As before, the curly haired and quite tall human appeared within the realm of ghosts, but this time, his companions were different. Gwen focused on them, knowing Morgana would wish to see their faces.

For her part, the evil Queen was fuming. It was bad enough that Redwood was meddling in Koria, but now, it seemed he'd found what he and his dragon were after: the Guardian's Avatar. Gwenivere's psychic sight showed the auras of both Alex's companions, and the other man's face was one she recognized as well. The World Champion was one the Shadow desperately wanted to possess. No, she decided then, these three mucking about in the Spirit World would not do. They would also never be weaker, and so conveniently close to each other. If she acted fast, she could wipe out all three, and then find her Mismagius.

"Their surroundings." Morgana said. "Show them to me."

Gwen did as ordered and zoomed her enhanced sight outwards. They were not so very far from the spot her last ambush had occurred in, when she'd lost her connection to her Mismagius. Having seen enough, Morgana moved quickly, leaving her guards to watch the stone as she retrieved the best tools for excising three annoying, and potentially Light wielding men.

Swords.

Meanwhile in the Spirit World...

One did not simply Teleport living humans to the Spirit World. Only Alex had the senses to figure out what the Mind Sage had done, though. Creating and empowering a Shadow Ball into more of a Shadow Gate far above them even as they'd spoken within his temple, he'd bamfed them through, relying on Alex's memory to send them relatively close to the destination he desired. In the end it was the dark and ghost type hiding in Alex's shadow that brought them to the shack, and as they tumbled out of a shadowy hole in the sky, Nox levitated them to the soft grassy ground with Psychic.

Alex spied Kashiji still resting on the table and walked towards it. Jimen and Ash followed, and then shared a look, as the apparent Emperor of a nation conversed with pottery. "Kashiji! I'm back. I've brought Raava, and her newest Human. We're here to find their past lives." He paused, and Kashiji did not react, respond, or move in any way. "...Kashiji?"

Though the teapot seemed empty, Jimen stepped closer as he got a better look at it, taking in the pattern on its side. "Something about this teapot…is very familiar…" As he and Redwood examined the teapot, Ash and his Pikachu looked around the area. The electric mouse said his name in a low tone, and Ash nodded.

"I hear you, buddy…something is…off, here."

The yellow electric rodent's nose twitched. His eyes widened in recognition then, and it was as he tried to tell his human just who it was that he smelled, that she descended in front of them, floating in the air and suffused with Shadow in her aura.

Ash didn't need his partner to tell him who the woman floating before them was. Her hair hadn't been washed or maintained for an extended period of time. Her clothes were recognizable, if a bit more refined than her usual attire. They'd once been respectable, not out of place in Galar, but now, the black lace and ruffled dress was in tatters. Her eyes were sunken, dark circles and the fire that had burned within the eyes of Sinnoh's former and top eight ranked Champion had seemingly gone out, now replaced with a mad shadowy glow. Ash knew better, though. His friend was in there, somewhere.

"Shirona!"

Ash's voice caused Jimen to glance up, but Alex was seemingly stupefied by what he saw as he lifted Kashiji's lid, and looked into the teapot. The perplexed expression faded into one of complete, emotionless passivity. "Nox." He said quietly, as Jimen rushed towards Ash.

The dark ghost rose from his shadow, his expression mirroring his Trainer's, with a toothy grimace, and growing rage. Alex retrieved and affixed his Spooky Plate to the Korian Gengar's chest, and it vanished into his void of a body. "Get ready." He said coldly, drawing a shard of a similar Plate into his hands, and turning and joining his companions.

As Alex took in the sight of Sinnoh's former Champion, he recalled being aware that Shirona, or Cynthia, as she was known in the west, had been missing since the Arceans had risen up in Japan, and taken Sinnoh. Not long before that, Kalos had reported that several of their famous Defenders had also been possessed, by someone the report had named Morgana. Tao had then confirmed for him that this was the name of Albion's Queen. Evidently, at some point Drake and Rick Astley had been sent to reconnoiter Albion to get the lay of the land, but Alex hadn't been the one to debrief them. Tao had been infuriatingly vague on their mission's details but they'd apparently reported to Tao that the Queen had been freed of the Shadow's influence by the time they left. Evidently, Morgana had duped the pair into thinking she'd only been a minion of the Shadow, not a willing servant, and she had, according to Tao, since been using the deaths of the revealed rebels in her region to consolidate her authority to all corners of it. Albion was darker than ever, and as he looked at Cynthia, he knew, Albion was likely where she'd been kept ever since her ensnarement.

Even if he'd been able to touch the Light in this realm, Alex could tell just by looking at her that whoever had infused her with Shadow, presumably Morgana, had done so thoroughly. It would take time and expertise to restore her to what she'd been, assuming her almost a century old body even survived the Purging process. After his success with Unalaq, Alex was willing to try at least, which meant they needed to capture her.

Cynthia had no intention of being captured, however. If anything, her puppet master was more determined than ever to strike down Alex, Koria's Avatar, and the anathema that was Ash Ketchum all in one blow, in a realm where their psychic abilities were severely weakened. To that end, her puppeteer had given her a Pokémon for each of her targets. Alex and Jimen came up beside Ash, and Alex drew two balls, as Ash picked one from his own belt. Alex tossed one to Jimen, just in time for Cynthia to reluctantly raise her arms with a jerking motion, and throw three Dark Balls of Fornian design. As the Shadow Infused Pokémon within manifested, Alex finally learned what exactly had happened to the Swords of Justice. Haley had done her digging, and had eventually sent a report to him, after airing it live of course, suggesting that someone, at the time she assumed the Arcean Church, had been seen chasing down and then catching the Swords by force within Dark Balls.

The three men spread out, as Cobalion stared down Alex. Terrakion faced down Jimen, and Virizion took Ash. Alex glanced at the teapot in the distance, and reached out to Nox. Cobalion pawed the ground, but as he readied a Shadow move, Alex and his Gengar struck first. Ghost typed energy flared around him, reacting stronger than it ever had on their home plane. Nox's energy from the Spooky Plate within him arced through the air and met his Trainer's aura midway. The colliding ghost energy sent him down the path to the next stage of Korian Gengar's evolution.

It seemed this form was one that more significantly branched from a typical Gengar. He was entirely black now, and like the more common line's Mega Form, his legs were gone, replaced instead by unsettling black flames with crimson on their edges. It was these flames that kept Nox afloat. Their source was his back, where his spikes formed a cradle of a sort, from which Nox could presumably draw more flames. Shadow met dark ghostly essence as Nox let Cobalion charge him with Shadow End, and surrounded him with dark and fire energy. Nox landed behind Cobalion only partially damaged by the powerful and automatically super effective move, and connected as they were, Alex knew what move to call that was evidently unique to this form. "Umbra Bomb!"

A black and red fireball launched from the flames pouring from Nox's back, and nailed Cobalion with an explosion of darkness. The leader of the Swords of Justice roared in agony, and then turned on Nox with murder in his shadowed eyes. A massive, black and purple sword extended from his head horn, as Cobalion initiated his Shadow Sword attack. Spent as Nox was after that move, he couldn't dodge in time while he recharged, and in a blur of darkness, Cobalion sliced past Nox, ending him with a single hit. Mega evolution helped with the disparity in level of strength, but two super effective hits, one of them a critical hit infused with Shadow, was too much for Nox. The flames burnt out, and his form faded back to normal. Alex drew him into his ball for once, and thought about his next choice as Cobalion eyed the human, but did not immediately attack. Even Shadow infused, the noble Pokémon sought a fair fight, and would presumably only end Alex once his team was fainted completely. With how strong Shadow Sword was, he wondered if the mythical hero Pokémon would actually do it.

Jimen had been given Canis to aid him, and against Terrakion, that had been the right choice. With naught but a nod between them, Jimen and Canis had skillfully dodged the raging Terrakion, who was actively trying to kill both of them. No trace of the noble brute capable of breaking a castle wall remained in his shadowed gaze. Unable to use his Mega Form just then, Canis took some of the advice he'd gleaned from Arthur over their mental talks while the B Team had traveled Koria and focused on improving his base form. There was a certain point where training it wouldn't do much, but for Canis's current level, it was still needed.

The training within his ball had focused on speed and special attack power, and it was both Aura Spheres and Flash Cannons that hammered Terrakion after his blind Shadow Rush continued to miss them both thanks to Jimen's timely earthbending. As Canis continued to battle, Jimen noticed his paws were starting to burn with an intense blue aura that seemed almost fiery. Having actually seen this before from a Lucario in Ba Sing Se, he gave the command. "Max Aura!"

Canis was above Terrakion, having just finished dodging him again by leaping upwards and away, and getting a mental idea of what Jimen wanted, he was willing to try. He focused his aura, aimed his paws at Terrakion, and rocked in the air from the deep blue beam of energy he hammered the Shadow Pokémon with. Being essentially a combination of Aura Sphere and Psychic, and despite their disparity in level, the gap between them was smaller than Cobalion and Nox's, and Canis's attack was enough to make the rock and fighting type finally faint after taking so many counter hits.

Ash meanwhile, had called out his Charizard. He'd taken on Legend class Pokémon before, and had held his own. Ash was aware nothing made his friend burn quite as hot as a battle with a Pokémon that had enough myths surrounding it to be classified on another level. Like Alex, he employed a Mega Form, and this time, it was the Y strand variant. While fire would be useful, Virizion had a quadruple weakness to flying attacks, and Ash began with the Air Slash barrage almost immediately. He was able to keep the fast moving and defense heavy fighting type on her hooves throughout their bout, but eventually realized special attacks wouldn't do as much as a physical one. Thankfully, his partner had learned Fire Punch long ago, and it was with such a move that they took down the lonely natured Virizion.

With how fast Ash finished compared to his new companions, he was ready to jump in against Cobalion as well. While all the Swords of Justice were formidable, their leader empowered by the Shadow would likely require all three of them to handle. He had questions about Alex's Gengar, and had felt his own shudder within his shadow at the thought of battling it. For his part, Alex brought out another ball that Ash recognized as having been produced in Galar, by how the center line glowed upon enlargening. Alex threw, and a Raboot came onto the field. Ash's brow furrowed, and the two foot tall rabbit looked up as the nearly seven foot Cobalion began charging it, with a Shadow Sword attack.

"Focus, Cinder. You have this. Dodge with Flame Charge!" Training as they had been with firebending, the little fire rabbit had gotten very good, when it came to speed. He and Canis had often raced throughout their travels, but where the Lucario had focused on honing his special attacks, Cinder had focused on his physical ones. His burst of flame was just enough to dodge the keen edge of the Shadow Sword, but Cobalion did not let up. "Keep dodging! Flame Charge!" Alex ordered, and the fire bunny acknowledged, by continuing. Slowly, over time, dodging the strikes became easier as Cinder read Cobalion's angry, and unfocused moves. His body was in a state of complete and constant rage, where by contrast, Cinderemulated Meelo's calm as he moved in rapid, spiraling patterns with the agility of a rabbit.

Canis had Terrakion levitating with Psychic, and Ash's Charizard had a single foot pinning Virizion, should the Shadow urge her to rise again. All of them watched though, thoroughly impressed. Canis saw his friend, burning as bright as he always did, and the Charizard saw a worthy opponent. With a bit more training, at least. As a fellow fire type though, he knew, the fire rabbit was on the verge of growth. He almost seemed like he'd put off evolving, though not by much. In this case, one level was more than enough.

Enraged, Cobalion used Shadow End to give speed to his Shadow Sword, and Cinder reached the peak of what Flame Charge could do for his speed. That was what Alex had been waiting for. "Counter!"

In slow motion to Cinder's perspective, he dodged the sword, circled under it, and then hopped atop the burning Shadow. It hurt, but the counter was worth it as his eyes narrowed, and he delivered a spinning roundhouse kick right to the face of the leader of the Swords of Justice. The hit seemed to surprise Cobalion, knocking him off balance, and with the damage from his other fiery wounds from Nox, he found himself stumbling. Naturally, this only made him angrier, but the pause gave Cinder what he needed. Intense white light burned up in a double helix spiral around the Raboot, as he ascended to his adult form. He hopped in place, and to Ash's eyes, well familiar with the species as he was, he could see just how fast the fire rabbit was at the moment. He turned, hearing his Charizard roar encouragement.

Cobalion turned at the triumphant sound, saw both of his companions fainted and trapped, and this pushed his already burdened psyche to its limits. He roared, and the Shadow Sword grew larger as he dumped his remaining power for it into one single, perfect strike. Alex heard his strained and enraged voice shout "Dodge this!"

"Agility!" Alex said, and the Cinderace nodded. The psychic speed with which he moved, and his already maxed speed boost from Flame Charge made him vanish from the path of the massive blade, and though Cobalion corrected his swing to arc and still aim toward the absurdly fast fire rabbit, the power he'd dumped into the attack and the surrounding spirit vegetation he was cutting through with such wild, unfocused strikes made him just slow enough for Cinder to counter. "Now! Pyro Ball!"

Kicking up a cinder from the grass below his burning feet, the fire rabbit readied the move as he charged the swinging Cobalion. He leapt again as the blade came horizontally for him, and it grazed his ears as he hung in the air, inverted, and hammered the fireball he'd summoned with a kick possessing the unerring accuracy that his species was known for. The Pyro Ball knocked Cobalion's Shadow Sword out of existence as he lost focus, and Alex continued with the momentum. "Double Kick!"

As the flames petered out, all Cobalion had time to see was the spinning, and burning feet of the Cinderace as it landed, leapt into the air, and gave him a burning, spinning roundhouse kick, again to the face. The force of the critical hit sent Cobalion sliding towards Cynthia, fainted, as his eyes became spirals. She took in the fallen Swords, and then looked up. As her puppeteer made to remove her from the situation by levitating her higher, Ash acted. "Now, Gengar! Shadow Strangle!"

The more common variant of the powerful ghost Pokémon line surged from his Trainer's shadow across the ground with a dark grin, before he leapt from it to ensnare Sinnoh's former Champion. He dragged her towards the three men, and Alex raised his Spooky Plate shard. "Link yourselves by touch with me, and hold on!"

Without the Drifloon, or a way to contact the Mind Sage, there was only one way out of the Spirit World. He focused his mind on the Tree of Souls and the twin portals that supposedly connected to the poles of their planet. Looking at them, he asked the other two a simple but loaded question. "North pole or south pole?"

When Jimen and Ash shared a confused look, Alex sighed, and made the choice, heading for the south pole. It was warmer than the northern pole of the recovering planet, albeit not by much, but would probably be abandoned at least, keeping them from another ambush while they regrouped. The Antarctic continental plate had also been sundered in humanity's fall. The western half of the broken landmass had become warmer, slightly, enough to match temperatures of the Dark Continent in some areas, while others remained an icy, lifeless tundra the further south one went. The eastern part, now called Arctica by the modern day humans, was completely barren and more akin the snowy wasteland ancient humans would've been more familiar with, but over time it had collided with the Australian continental plate as the impacts it had taken in humanity's fall were enough to shift it. Southern Stralia was blocked from this icy hell by a chain of imposing, and truly freezing mountains. It remained the coldest place on the planet, and naturally, many Pokémon had moved there to avoid humans as much as possible, with many adapting, as they had in places like Norstad, by gaining the ice typing.

Canis was levitating all three Swords now, and straining to do so as the very realm wore down his power for the move quickly. He followed his Trainer, sensing his logic, and the other two men followed. Cinder and Charizard had been recalled after sharing a fist bump and a promise to battle eventually, and as they walked into the burning light of the portal to the south, reality twisted around them.

South Pole Spirit Portal - Arctica Region

The arctic blast of air was the first thing they felt, and each member of their party shivered in the cold. Alex called out Adamanteus then. "Coil around us for a while, and keep watch. I doubt this portal is completely unguarded." Shrugging off the cold, the Steelix did as asked, and provided a steely shelter for the group to hide within. First, Alex called out Nox, and gave him a Max Revive. Seeing burn marks on his plum shaded body, he gave him a Rawst berry to munch on as well. Next, Canis got an Ether for his Psychic move, which between being used as a massive beam and as a restraining device, was almost depleted. Renewed as he was, he easily kept the Swords down, and Shirona strangled, with the help of Ash's Gengar.

Once his team was sorted, Alex tried to draw on the Light, and found that he couldn't. He sighed, irritated. "I need to calm my mind…Nox, help Ash's Gengar keep Cynthia in place. For now…" He snagged the Dark Balls from her belt, and noted her own team was missing. "We can keep them in these. It won't make them any worse." He recalled the Swords of Justice, placed them in front of him, and then sat in the snow, ignoring the growing wetness of his bottom as he focused on what was blocking his mind's connection to Arceus' realm. Very quickly, he found the source of his emotional blockage.

Kashiji's teapot had not been empty. The strike that had killed the friendly ghost had left a thin line to mark it, undoubtedly from a Shadow Sword attack that had been stabbed through his pot, and what remained of Kashiji had been little more than bluish goo. Alex had liked the Polteageist, his vibe, his attitude. He hadn't deserved an end like that. Sighing heavily, Alex let himself grieve for his brief friend, and then let that grief flow through his chakras. Like a flood that had been slightly dammed for a while, the energy moved, and very swiftly, he found his third eye opening to a realm of golden light, and vague pillars of white stone. It seemed Arceus desired to speak.

As before, what appeared before him was a white clone of the true Alpha Pokémon. He could tell it was a different clone though, namely, by the way it spoke.

Alexander Redwood. Oft have ye drawn from this realm's font of power.

Alex moved his mental projection of himself up the steps to properly converse with the deity, as he had before. "Have I misused your realm's power, Alpha Pokémon?"

Nay. Ye would use it upon the one known as Shirona, of the…Sinnoh Region.

Alex heard a tone of what almost seemed like fondness, sadness, and nostalgia when Arceus mentioned Sinnoh, but he had no earthly idea as to why. Perhaps this clone oversaw Japan. It would make sense then, that he spoke differently from the one who had spoken to him in Oranguru's swamp, Fornia, and Transylveticut, and to Rosa in her hour of need. "I would. She has proven to be a kind caretaker of Pokémon and is regarded as one of the strongest Champions on the planet. She does not deserve Shadow Infusion, and I would Purge her of this rot."

The Alpha Pokémon's eye widened, and then shrank, for emphasis on its words. Ye must decide who ye spend this realm's power upon wisely. Know this, Tamer of the Original Dragon, her lineage is fraught with evil. It shall find her again.

Spoilers begin here.

Alex's brow furrowed. "I don't understand."

Arceus nodded, and floated closer to him. If ye seek knowledge, I shall impart it, if it be thy wish.

Alex bowed, low. "I would be honored to be given divine wisdom from the Alpha Pokémon." He rose again, lowered his mental defenses, and vaguely sensed Tao's eye upon him as he did. The dragon did not interject however, and it seemed something else had his attention.

Arceus lowered his head to Alex's and with the faintest touch of one mind's eye to another, he was shown a vision.

A man in ancient white robes trimmed with gold and a hairstyle that obviously mirrored the Alpha Pokémon was standing atop a mountain. Luckily, it was one Alex recognized, and the wordless, instant communication Arceus employed told him this was indeed the Spear Pillar of the Sinnoh region, roughly a century and a half in the past.

Alex came into the scene just in time to see the Arceus-haired man and his Garchomp lose to a Trainer, clad in deep blue clothes that were very indicative of feudal Japan, though under them Alex spied a very modern style shirt. His face was familiar though. Unsettlingly familiar. He squinted, and tilted his head, assuming they couldn't hear him in this vision. "...Kohki!? Why is the Sinnoh Champion a hundred odd years in the past?"

Arceus nodded at the blonde man. Behold the cause.

The man was panting, as he recalled his last Pokémon. "Why…why do you have the blessing of Arceus? I worshiped it more devoutly than any other as the creator of our world! I bent all of my passion and interest to its study…all the time I spent poring over legends…everything that I've done! You outsider! It's almost as if you were spat out of the Space-Time Rift just to get in my way…"

The Torterra responsible for Wood Hammering the Garchomp into unconsciousness stomped the ground, and Kohki shouted, "It's over Volo! Enough of this madness!"

The blonde man, Volo, apparently, looked at the ground, and then back at the time-lost Champion of Sinnoh. "No…no, this isn't finished yet…" His eyes darkened, as did the area around them. "Can't you feel it? The chill creeping through your veins…the eldritch presence icing over your heart!?" A roar echoed around them, one that Alex actually recognized, and had fervently hoped he wouldn't hear again. He should've known better, really. He turned to look at Arceus, but the Alpha Pokémon was fixated on this moment of time.

The Alpha's eyes seemed to soften as a pair of ominous wings appeared from the shadowy void manifesting behind Volo. That's when Alex saw it with his weird way of seeing reality. All the various pieces of Arceus's intentions for speaking with him suddenly became clear. Volo's darkened eyes, the unnatural manic grin, Arceus's words, the Garchomp, and the tear-shaped pendant of silver hanging around his neck that Alex had completely missed until it all clicked together. "Cynthia…he's Cynthia's ancestor!"

"GIRATINA! STRIKE HIM DOWN!" Volo commanded, as the dark entity manifested in reality.

Reality swirled, the vision ended, and Alex found himself desperately wanting to see the rest. To have more context. To know how and why Sinnoh's Champion, who had been sorely missed in the present when his region was invaded and usurped by religious zealots, was a hundred and fifty years in the past, in feudal Japan. Only Unova, Galar, and Kalos, with maybe one or two other regions around them, had access to modern Pokéballs that far back. Even the Imperium hadn't reverse-engineered them yet. He resolved to dig a little deeper into Sinnoh region history, when he returned there on his journey back from Koria.

Alex heard Volo's voice again as the vision ended, like an echo. "Someday I will unravel the mystery of Hisui's Legendary Pokémon! And on that day, I will stand before Arceus at last- No, I will conquer it! No matter how many years, how many decades, how many centuries it takes me!"

As Alex's mental form stumbled upon reappearing at, now that he looked at it, what seemed to be a passable recreation of the Spear Pillar, he looked up at Arceus. Now ye know the truth of things. Volo's descendant will be drawn into darkness. It is the fate of her line. Would ye still spend this realm's power upon her?

Alex thought it over for a moment, and then recalled what he knew of Sinnoh's former Champion. Though, with Kohki in the past, as he was still missing as far as Alex knew, she may well become the reigning Champion again in his absence. Given a Pokédex by Professor Rowan in her youth, she'd traveled Sinnoh with her Gible, exploring ruins, battling Trainers, and becoming one of the strongest Champions in the world. Multiple times had she made it to the Masters Eight of the World Tournament, no small feat, as they were the top battlers on the planet. Shirona of Sinnoh had placed in every one of them for decades, only recently retiring from that contest of Champions to spend her twilight years focused on whatever she did in those old, forgotten ruins.

Finally, he answered. "No living thing deserves to be enslaved by the Shadow. I would strip Morgana of all her puppets and sentence another Champion of the Shadow to the void."

Arceus nodded, as the mortal made his choice. As always, He would not interfere with mankind's decisions. Never again. Know you this then, Wielder of Light. The more Shadow you Purge, the stronger it will resurge. The universe will always seek Balance.

Alex nodded. "It will. But the universe is a big place. The Shadow can infect somewhere else. I would see the Earth free of its taint."

Spoilers end here.

With his choice evidently made, the meeting with the Alpha Pokémon came to an end, and the power of the Light surged within him. To Ash and Jimen, he had only been sitting a few moments, before his form hummed with power, first with deep blue aura surrounding the Dragon Emperor's large frame, before it burned to a soothing, and yet wrathful gold. He opened his eyes and fixed them on Cynthia. "You first, descendant of Volo…" He muttered, as the power added reverb to his voice. "You'll want to release her, Gengar, Nox."

The ghost and poison type glanced at Ash, who nodded, and he let his stranglehold go as Nox did. Cynthia's eyes opened, but it was not her looking through them as she found herself held in place by a powerful, burning aura. "Hear me, Witch." Alex said, spitting the word like a curse. "I will not rest until Albion holds you to account for your crimes. Now release her!"

"Never!" Came the snarled answer, followed by a scream, as Alex's large palm met the clammy forehead of the older woman. She was in better shape than Unalaq had been, and almost immediately, he sensed her mind, desperate to be free. He shared the Light with her, hoping it would help, though it seemed only to stun her with its radiance and calming effect. Taking that in stride, Alex directed the energy through her form, and frowned. "Muk. There's…some kind of crystal in each of her limbs." He levitated Lux's plasma blade container between Jimen and Ash. "One of you is going to have to cut them out."

Ash gulped. "Cut!?"

Lux winked at him and said his name a few times. Alex translated. "He can guide you, and I can illuminate them. She'll be unconscious, for this part. Quickly, now."

When Ash hesitated, Jimen grabbed the floating hilt. Even in Eous, rumors of westerners with laser swords had reached the locals, and the chance to use one motivated the Avatar. He wasn't as invested in saving the ragged blonde woman, but Ash seemed to care for her, and that was enough for him to help save her life. "We're ready. Do it."

Light illuminated the crystals, and Jimen chose the right angle to carve them free without slicing through bone. Lux also, who by now had an intimate understanding of human anatomy, science, and 'culture' if one could call it that on the Pokénet, knew where to guide his miniaturized and very fine plasma blade, and he easily guided the rock steady hand of the Avatar through the process without damaging Cynthia's veins or tendons. In short order, they'd freed her limbs. Alex pumped Light through her then, and her body rose off the snowy ground by several inches as her wounds healed and the Shadow was purged from body and aura, before collapsing into the snow.

Wasting no time, recalling the Alpha Pokémon's words, and not trusting Morgana, Alex hit the release on the three Dark Balls psychically, and all three Swords of Justice reappeared, unconscious, but still radiating an aura of Shadow, to his psychic sight. He went for Cobalion first and found his type of Shadow Infusion was the one given by Dark Balls, and thus easily cleansed, if not by Purge than just by having him on the team roster would help his heart reopen and his body would achieve homeostasis in time. For time's sake, both Alex and the fainted leader of the Swords were glad for Purge.

Light suffused the steely fighting type, and Alex popped a Max Revive in his mouth. Cobalion slowly sat up, just watching, silently, as the curly haired human revived Terrakion and Virizion in the same manner, with the same Light. Unlike his counterparts, Cobalion was sure of its source. He had heard and felt the power of the Alpha only once, and that had been when their trio had left Albion in the wake of the usurper, to protect the Pokémon of Unova from ever suffering a similar disaster. And yet, they had. Often the Sword's leader had wondered if they ever made a difference, but upon meeting Keldeo, he'd been convinced that they had left a mark upon Unova, making it a better place than when they'd first found it. He could ask for nothing more, after their failure to protect Kalos from AZ's grief, and then later Albion as well.

Virizion was the second to awaken, and she blinked slowly. "Cobalion?"

Cobalion nodded. "We are free at last, sword-sister."

"And now you are whole, again." Alex said. Cobalion and Virizion blinked, as they understood the human perfectly. While they sometimes spoke with them, the communication wasn't always super clear, and often humans used terms that were simply alien to Pokémon. Smart as these three were, they immediately noted the difference. Terrakion soon joined them, and Cobalion tried to stand, only to find himself too weak for it.

"To whom…do we owe our freedom? You cannot imagine the hell of being dominated by Shadow…we will forever enter your service, Light Wielder." Cobalion said, the other two nodded, and then Terrakion took in the other humans huddling within the coiled Steelix with them. Cynthia was still unconscious, but Ash had stepped forward now as well.

Alex smirked and gave a bow. "Alexander Redwood, Dragon Emperor of the newly reformed Dragon Empire. I'm from Unova, and I know your deeds, O Swords of Justice. I will not have you bow to me. I would simply have you return to your duties…after a long, and well-earned rest. Young Keldeo has been handling them well in your…absence."

Cobalion looked down for a long moment, and then seemed to chuckle. "So, it has come to pass after all." Seeing his partners confusion, Cobalion explained. "The Alpha Pokémon spoke to me when we failed to save Albion from being usurped. Rather than lead us back to our home in Kalos, he bade me to go to Unova instead, for it had regrown since the flames of Reshiram and Zekrom's clash had long been put out and forgotten. He said doing this would ultimately save us from a fate worse than death, by the hand of Unova's ruler. He also said that it would be then, that we would retire, and leave things to the next generation."

Alex was passing out what Oran berries he had as Cobalion spoke. Koria wasn't exactly teeming with berry trees and Pokémon who hoarded them, but there had been enough for a wandering Trainer at least.

"Does that mean the Swords of Justice are disbanding?" Ash asked, as the Pokémon dug into the berries. Cobalion shook his head. "Far from it, Ash Ketchum. Keldeo and we three shall find the next generation and prepare them properly. Only then will we retire."

There was a long silence then as the Pokémon ate, and then Cobalion pondered. "I cannot speak for my counterparts, but I feel the weight of these long years more keenly after our tenure in service to that Witch. And seeing you, a new Dragon Emperor rising before our eyes and wielding the Alpha's Light only reinforces the fact that our days will eventually come to an end."

Alex spoke up this time. "I have no intention of stopping the Swords of Justice, or whoever replaces you. In fact, I would suggest that this time, we work together. The rebirth of the Empire was a bloody one, but from that crucible of war, Humanity has created something akin to the Aura Guardians of old. Our Scales of Balance. I would have them work with your Swords to keep not just Unova, but all of the States safe, for Humans and Pokémon. We can monitor the Human's needs well enough, and while I can speak with Pokémon, there is only so much about you that we Humans are aware of. If there is ever a danger that's beyond the Swords, do not hesitate to call upon my Scales."

Cobalion pondered for a moment, and then looked at his counterparts. Alex sensed telepathy between them but did not intrude. Finally, the rejuvenated leader rose to his feet, steadying them as they shook, and looked Alex straight in the eye, for he was almost as tall as the human. "Your…Scales. Do they have weapons? The Aura Guardians had both their powers, and their partners, and it still was not enough to save them, in the end."

Alex held out his right hand, and Lux jumped into it with a psychic nudge from his Trainer. The black and white blade burned to life at full length, and Cobalion stared. "My Scales wield blue versions of this. Made from Chargestones, and Human ingenuity. I would see their swords used for justice."

Cobalion eyed the human again, taking his measure properly, and finding that there was quite a bit more to him than most humans. Finally, he nodded. "Our successors will contact your plasma sword using Scales if they need to. At the very least…you are capable of reaching out to Keldeo, that much, I can sense."

"I'm also capable of sending you home." Alex said, and all three of the Sword's eyes widened. "Psychic typed abilities. They're so very useful. I will Teleport you to the Original Dragon, and from there, you may do as you wish. The Swords of Justice will always be welcome and beloved heroes to the Dragon Empire."

Cobalion lowered his head in a slight bow, as did the other two. "You honor us. Please, send us home Human." And so, Alex did. In short order, he bamfed the linked minds of Unova's heroic triad to where he sensed Tao. With that done, Alex, Ash, and Jimen, who had become rather interested in the unique and yet human-speech capable Pokémon turned, to find Cynthia standing, awake, arms crossed as she looked them over.

A faint smile broke her expression as she looked at Ash. "So, Ash Ketchum. You've made some powerful friends. I take it the curly haired Dragon Emperor is the one responsible for freeing me?"

Ash nodded. "He is." His Pikachu confirmed that as well, and then trotted over to rub against her leg affectionately. That deepened the smile, though it faded as she met Alex's eyes again.

"That power you used to free me…I need to know what it was. What its source was." Normally, Alex wouldn't have denied the renowned Champion of Sinnoh anything she asked. But, after God Itself literally showed him a vision of her ancestor and his dark deeds, he had more reservations.

Despite them, he gave her her answer. "It was the Light you experienced, Sinnoh Champion. The Light of the Alpha Pokémon, as you yourself heard Cobalion name it."

Her expression was unreadable, and she looked for a long time at the teardrop-shaped pendant around her neck. Finally, she spoke. "My family has searched for the Alpha…for Arceus…for a very long time. I would very much like to meet it."

"I'm afraid…the feeling is not mutual." Alex said, with a slight frown. Seeing her expression and sensing her question, he continued. "One of your ancestors did…something unspeakably disruptive, I assume, to the fabric of Space-Time. I don't know all the details, but I do know it was enough for Arceus to take notice. That's not a good thing. I would advise that you curb your greed and be satisfied with the fact that your mind is intact."

Cynthia's eyes narrowed at Alex. "How dare you! You have no idea what this means to my family! To me!"

Alex's tone was a low, logical contrast to hers, but the logic he dropped was able to reach her thanks to his Voice. "It meant enough to meddle with forces that should not be meddled with. You saw the Team Galactic incident. You know what became of their leader. Take my advice, Cynthia of Sinnoh. Go home. Help your people rebuild. They need their Champion, and Kohki isn't around right now."

She seemed ready to keep arguing, but then paused as she took in his point, and sighed. She had not been ignorant through her ordeal. She recalled almost all of what Morgana had made her do when she'd been let out of her cage. "...You're right…Sinnoh needs a firm head, and if Kohki isn't available, it falls to me as his predecessor. I saw how bad it was…the damage she and Pravus caused…I will resume my search for the truth of the Alpha and the Renegade, but only once Sinnoh can stand on its own again."

Alex nodded. "The Dragon Empire is already helping with that. Areas the Arceans burned through are being tended by our people, under Red's direction. I would coordinate with him. I can send you anywhere in Sinnoh you have a strong connection to. Just picture it in your mind, and I can send you home."

She made to grab his offered hand, and then stopped. "My Pokémon! The Witch still has them!"

Alex frowned. A team like Cynthia's in the hands of a Shadow user was not a tenable situation. "Once I am done in Koria, I intend on heading to Albion next. This Morgana has caused enough chaos. I will find your partners; you have my word. For now…pull others from your Boxes and lay low. Rest. Recover. Aid your people as much as you can."

"Once I recover, I intend to join you, Redwood." She said, meeting his gaze with the fierceness he remembered seeing when she battled in the Masters Eight, and he'd been younger. Without a Pokémon of his own, watching battles had occupied his life hours for quite a few years, and he was a longtime fan of hers. He'd been internalizing his nerdy excitement at seeing Ash Ketchum and Cynthia in the same place again. She continued, "I can pull my weight in Albion…and I have one partner in particular who will be very motivated for revenge."

Alex spared her the speech on revenge and vengeance, as he knew in her state, it wouldn't do her any good. She would get it either way, but he intended Morgana's victims to be the arbiters of her punishment. From what he knew of Albion, that likely meant beheading. "In that case…I'll let you know when I head there. We can meet in Wyndon, before heading north."

Cynthia nodded, said her goodbyes to Ash and Pikachu, and then was Teleported home, somewhere in Sinnoh's north, by what Alex had sensed in her mind. Somewhat tired after expending so much energy, Alex sat in the snow again, and looked upwards. "How are we doing, Adamanteus?"

The response came mentally, which surprised Alex, since the large steel type rarely used their mental web. "There are…ruins here that I believe would interest you."

Alex frowned, and Jimen spoke up as he heard the Steelix's impressive rumble. "What did he say?"

"There are ruins outside. This cold is deadly, though…" Alex said, before pausing, and glancing at Ash. "You have a Charizard, yes? Make it use Drought, and we should be fine, for a fairly large area." He'd taken note of how Ash's fire lizard fought as soon as he'd seen Ash call on it, naturally, and for Blaze's ego, for his own eager fire lizard kept poking him mentally, he intended to measure its strength. How far one's natural Drought ability could affect a blizzard was a good way to measure strength between Charizard, before the inevitable battle.

Ash tapped his nose, oblivious to anything this potential rival in the World Championship might learn for the long term. "I get it." He said, as he called out his partner. They shared a nod, and the Charizard mega evolved, this time taking the Y strand of his species lineage. Once he stopped glowing, Adamanteus uncoiled, and the Mega Charizard's Drought caused the snow to simply melt, for quite a wide area. In time, it turned into a light rain, but immediately around them, the water simply evaporated in the air from the heat he was giving off. He sensed Blaze's irritation, as his own Drought only heated a smaller area, and not in varying degrees. He'd been lazing about on his vacation thus far, but Alex sensed his motivation had returned, and he concocted a regimen for the fire lizard as the trio walked into the ruins, which were now melting around them.

Jimen looked closely at them, and chuckled. "Do you two recognize these?"

Ash leaned in over some others. "They seem…familiar…like something I saw in Galar, once…"

"They're Draconid runestones." Alex said, eyes wide. Most people knew of the wandering dragon type wielders who, in modern days, were apparently far fewer in number. In ages past they'd apparently lived in a land teeming with dragon types, until one day, their chieftain decided it best to keep them from the violence of human hands in Norstad. In those Dark Times, many had sought dragon types for their power, to use as little more than weapons of conquest, and many species were thought to have gone extinct as they were hunted or captured. That particular legend claimed that the 'Chief Hooligan' as his Gruncle had called him, was responsible for sending his people out around the world to protect and hide dragon types from those who intended to abuse them, or worse. Alex gave his companions that knowledge primer and added, "In Hoenn, it's historical fact that they're the ones who summoned, and evidently helped Mega Evolve, their Rayquaza to stop a meteorite impact. Twice. But they have branches all across the world, even in Unova. We have the Village of Dragons, and those who reside in the Oath Woods as well."

Jimen nodded at Alex. "The professors at Ba Sing Se University have studied the Draconid's various migratory waves, and the Northern Water Tribe believes they too are descendants of those from the original Isle of Dragons."

Alex returned the nod. "It's a common tale, in multiple regions. A group of Dragon Type using nomads, stopping disasters, and calming rampaging Pokémon wherever they go. But why here…"

"Cynthia would be able to decipher these…" Ash muttered, before looking at Alex directly. "We shouldn't have just sent her away so quickly."

Alex didn't look up from the ruins, as he was noticing ancient Unown script, which was a nice change from Braille. "Cynthia needs to rest, Ash. Besides, she's focused on Sinnoh ruins…and Giratina…" He trailed off, as now he could guess why. Two and a half centuries wasn't that terribly long, for as long lived as humans tended to be these days. Volo could've been a grandparent, or a family patriarch. He could've been the one to give her a Gible in the first place. Hungry baby dragons were not typically what one handed to ten-year-old Trainers, but then, Cynthia was no ordinary Trainer.

Alex traced the wind-worn ruins then and lit them up psychically as his fingers felt for the eroded shapes hidden in the stone. Seeing what he was after, Jimen helped and added in some precision earthbending, and in a few minutes, they had a legible set of words. Alex read them aloud. "All lives touch other lives to create something new and alive…hmm."

Just then, Alex noticed the snow in the distance shift almost sideways, and the area Ash's Charizard was warming was gradually shrinking. "Fascinating as these are, we're not prepared for this wind…and we still have a mission to finish. We need to find your past selves, Jimen. Let's go back through the portal and try this again."

Jimen gave a stoic nod. "I'm ready…first I need to talk to Kora. From her…I can find the others."

Ash glanced at his friend. "Have you managed to speak to her yet?"

Jimen shook his head. "It should be easier in the Spirit World. Let's find out."

Alex already had an idea as to what Jimen needed to do first, before reaching Kora. As they re-entered the portal, a giant pillar of nature energy burning into the snowstorm darkened sky, the words they left glowing on the now once more blizzard shrouded ruins did not deter the locals none of them had noticed, from reading the words, and finding meaning from them. While that daisy chain of events was set into motion, Alex guided Jimen and Ash to the Tree of Souls, and Ash spoke up as he got a good look at it this time. "This looks a lot like the Entree…in Unova…"

Alex nodded. "Professor Fennel has a few theories suggesting that the Dream World is actually part of a much larger plane of existence…and I'd bet Pokédollars this is that very plane. Quite a few Ghost Types can feast upon dreams." Ash glanced at his shadow, and Alex's, but then Jimen's movement distracted him. With a single step, he found himself before the Tree of Souls, and Alex followed after him. He seemed unbothered by the sudden shift in movement, but Ash nearly lost his footing. His Pikachu yanked on his hair just hard enough to right him, as they joined their friends by the large tree.

Alex glanced at Ash. "You should probably…stay here. If you go in there, we might not see what Jimen is after."

Ash arched a brow. "I'd like to take a look anyway."

Alex shrugged. "Let's give the savior of an entire region a minute first, hmm?"

At that moment, Jimen peaked over the edge. "Uhh…Alex, this tree seems…empty. Did I break it somehow? I'm not good with spiritual stuff."

Alex waved his words away and climbed up. "Nonsense. You have the right temperament for it, you're just new." As he entered though, and regained some of his psychic senses, he immediately noted the problem. "Ahh. Chakra blockage…that'll do it. I guess we're having this lesson now." He leaned out of the tree hollow to look down at Ash. "On second thought…you should join us up here."

As Ash Ketchum rolled his eyes and climbed into the Tree of Soul's hollow center, nothing happened. At least, not to the naked eye. Alex found his third eye drawn to the images around him and Jimen, and he learned quite a bit about his new companions, and the reality of the world Ash had faced. There were, naturally, visions related to all three of them, floating in the tree's space, but Alex found himself focused on one in particular, behind Ash.

The spiky black-haired man was kneeling on the ground, somewhere hot and dusty, surrounded on his front by three massive silhouettes of men that Alex knew immediately had to be Thunder Warriors of the Imperator's unification forces. Soldiers of the Imperium's Legions. Towering over Ash at at least eight and a half feet of bulky armored height, their helmets were adorned with crests of red dyed hair, with open faces covered on the top by opaque eye coverings. On their bulky shoulder armor was the image of a sword, framed by a pair of wings, and on other parts of their dark green and gray colored armor, the Imperator's more commonly recognized sigil, an obsidian fist clutching a lightning bolt, adorned their chest armor. Their weapons intrigued Alex, as one of the warriors in the vision leveled a sword at Ash. Five Pokéball slots adorned each side of the blade, which itself was also a formidable weapon. The leader's seemed to hum with some sort of energy, not unlike a plasma sword, while the warriors flanking him held swords akin to a chainsaw, whose blades were more like spikes for rending flesh rather than cutting wood.

A yellow flash appeared then, slamming into the leader's head with an Iron Tail that split his helmet, but not his gene-hardened skull and the scene devolved into chaos as Ash's Pokémon had apparently leapt free of their balls to help him of their own accord. The vision faded, replaced by another, but Alex closed his third eye at that point. He could imagine how that battle had gone, since Thunder Warriors were known to take anyone, civilians, Trainers, anyone capable of menial labor, into slavery in service of their Imperium. They also seemed to be adept battlers, though from what Alex had heard, they didn't like calling out their Pokémon, preferring instead to handle foes themselves.

He looked at his two would-be students then and sat cross-legged with them on the floor of the tree hollow. "The process of opening the energy points in one's body can be…intense. It can dredge up memories best left forgotten, emotions you thought handled can surface and manifest themselves. I don't know how different your experiences will be from mine, I had an entire trial and palatial setup to experience and face down mine in, but in this realm, they might still materialize." He mentally nudged Canis then, and as the Lucario appeared, he glanced at the three, and then at the spacious hollow around them. His eyes also saw the visions, but he focused on Alex when he spoke. "Canis will guard us and look out for any…wayward manifestations."

Ash drew a ball of his own, then. "I have someone who can help too." He brought out another male Lucario, one clearly far higher level than Canis currently was, and while initially the two steel typed jackals eyed each other like they were about to strike, Ash's finally gave Canis a nod, and Canis nodded in return. Naturally, they wanted to battle and test their aura powers against each other, but right now, they had a duty to see to.

For his part, Alex had a bit of an internal fan freakout, as he recognized the Lucario responsible for creating, and as far as he knew the only Lucario capable of using, the G Max level move dubbed 'Aura Bomb' by those who had seen its use in the first Master's Eight tournament Ash had won. Canis glanced at his Trainer, as he mentally pictured the move in his mind. Having just launched a similar amount of aura as a beam, he wondered if he couldn't replicate the attack himself, with his Trainer's help.

Alex took a breath then, as he recalled what he knew of chakras and how to open them. "I guess I should explain what these even are. There are pools of energy in our bodies commonly called Chakras that can become clogged by the trappings of life. Each one can be blocked by something specific, an experience, an emotion, but when they're able to freely flow, the energy of the universe can move through you. It's...an experience. Jimen, this should help you connect with Raava, and Ash, this should make your Aura powers stronger. I'm sure your Sage will refine them further, if you succeed, but he did say this was the next stage of your training."

Ash gave a stoic nod, but Alex sensed his unease."I'll do whatever I can to get stronger. Show us the way."

And so, Alex did. The hollow of the tree turned reddish tinged as he started them off and formed a pair of mental links with each man. They flinched, as they heard his voice in their head. "That buzzing at the base of your spine, that's me, trickling energy into your Earth Chakra pool. Focus your attention there, for now. This is the Earth Chakra. It deals with survival and is blocked by fear. Picture what you fear the most…"

To Alex's third eye, pictures appeared from each man's subconscious. Jimen's was fire, that consumed a man who looked like Tenzin, and a fierce Water Nation woman he assumed was Kora. Then, the flames consumed Jimen as well.

Where Ash was concerned, Alex saw the Thunder Warriors from the earlier vision appeared again, this time with his Pikachu between a pair of humming chainswords. They raised them, ready to strike through the electric mouse's head.

Alex mentally shared with them the wisdom they'd need to unblock their energy pool. He spoke to Ash first. "This chakra is blocked by your fear." He recalled how the Earth Sage had helped him and passed on his sagely wisdom. "You must remember your courage, and trust in your Pokémon. Thunder Warriors are not immortal." The scene continued then, and a pair of blue blurs, each a Greninja, struck down the Thunder Warriors with a single move. One belonged to Ash, but the other, Alex recognized as well. Apparently, Connor had met Ash Ketchum too, for it was Gren who was aiding the Greninja famous for defending Kalos from the aftereffects of Lysander's madness. "With your team, you can overcome anything, Ash. Even genetically enhanced giants. You're one of the few individuals on the planet who can stand against them, and win. Let your fear go."

Seeing the manifestation of his latent fears beaten once again, Ash realized they were, in fact, still human beneath the ceramite power armor and genetic enhancements. His aura flared, as he let his fear go, and instead regarded them as worthy enemies. Obstacles to overcome.

To Jimen, and almost simultaneously, Alex said, "The Fire Nation has claimed your predecessors. You fear losing everything you have left to the flames." Faces flashed through the man's mind. A younger sister, a mother, others throughout the rebellion and the region that he'd come to care for. Last came a Pokéball, but that too, like everything else, went up in flames before a sneering Fire Army General with one eye, and standard Fire Nation facial hair.

Jimen was clutching his head and hair, doubled over. "I have…nothing left…they already took everything I care about."

Alex put a hand on Jimen's shoulder. "Fire, has several weaknesses." New visions flashed in his mind, as Alex spoke. "A lack of air kills flames. Water douses them and is far more powerful. Then there's the rocks that stomp it out, and the sand that covers them. You can bend all of these, Jimen. Once you understand how, you can keep anyone else from suffering through what you have. But first…you have to let the fear go. You too are a Firebender, and it will be up to you, Avatar, to help bring their Nation back. Eous will need their military might and Fire power to hold against the Imperium."

Another memory played through the Avatar's mind then, him using his bending to stop the firebenders burning what appeared to be his home; a rather run-down looking Earth Nation city, sporting a flag of the Fire Nation that showed its occupation. It wasn't rocks he used though, but a torrent of sand that had overwhelmed the soldiers and doused their fires. It bothered him that he'd somewhat enjoyed seeing the flame butchers choke to death on the blood-soaked earth of his home, but Alex could tell he was steadfast in his decision to do so, even if at the time, the awesome power of the Avatar, awakened on reflex, scared him. Jimen picked up his Pokéball then, saw it was damaged beyond repair, and left it as he ran off to escape, and the vision faded. Alex sensed him focusing on that victory, and the victories he'd had since, namely, destroying most of a fleet with the aid of Lugia.

As his chakra opened, Alex wanted to tell him that a damaged ball didn't mean a dead partner. All Pokéballs, when damaged, rerouted the occupant to the nearest linked box. He decided to save that nugget of information for later. The tinge of red in the air faded, and the two men panted. "Well done." Alex said, as he recalled which energy pool he'd opened next, while in his own trials. "Now for the second. The Fire Chakra deals with willpower, and is blocked by shame, and disappointment in oneself." He shifted where his psychic power was poking them. "Focus there, and picture what you are most ashamed of."

He sensed both men focusing on their stomach area, and again, was inundated with visions as the area within the tree shifted to a yellowish tinge. Ash was mostly oblivious to shame. What shame he'd felt during his journey had been in his younger years, and typically after losing. What lingered most in his adult life, however, was a female figure. Pretty eyes, blonde hair, Alex recognized Serena of Kalos's Elite Four, and the former Kalos Queen, though why Ash felt shame in regard to her, he didn't quite grasp, until he heard Ash's inner monologue. "I should've been there…"

Before he had a chance to comment, Jimen's shame overshadowed Ash's and instinctually drew Alex's focus. Images flashed by pretty quickly. His home, in flames. Another family who'd taken him in, murdered by off duty Fire Nation soldiers who saw him sandbend. His entire nation, run by pompous aristocrats, too diverse to ever fully unite under one banner without atrocities being committed. Every city he'd visited in Koria, either burned or marked by the Fire Nation's banner. "I'm a terrible Avatar…"

Alex glanced between his 'students' and focused on Jimen first. "Your duty as Avatar has only just begun, and you have inherited an impossible situation from your predecessors. You are not the only Avatar whose failed Koria, but you are Koria's best hope to stop the Fire Nation. Accept your duty. Face it head on, steadfast, like the Earthbender you are."

Concepts from his earthbending training flashed through Jimen's mind, and Alex felt his Fire Chakra burn to life as he affirmed his purpose. Then, Alex focused on Ash. "I'm going to need more context…if you're comfortable sharing."

Ash's mind reacted with surprise to his mental words, and images flashed through his mind. A date on a calendar, circled in red. A forgetful twenty-something who ran past the calendar to battle an old rival. A victory over said rival, Gary Oak no less, younger than Alex knew him, but still clad in his grandfather's lab coat. Asking Gary for womanly advice for the night that was to come. Probably terrible advice from Gary about women, and life in general. A Pokémon outbreak pinging on his Rotom Phone in Galar, and a message from another friend, someone called Goh, who invited him along. Galar wasn't far from Kalos, and Ash had a competent enough team to fly him there in time for dinner, probably.

The outbreak happened to be an outbreak not of Dreepy, as promised, but of Dragapult. It was well into the night before Ash and Goh escaped the violent horde of angry dragon ghosts. A repressed memory of a phone call with a worried, and then very angry Serena, followed by silence that had lasted years now. "Ho boy…" Alex said, before attempting to help. "Young men make stupid choices, Ash. But you're not that young anymore. You've learned. Grown. So has Serena. The only way you'll ever know how she feels, and get her to forgive you, is by talking to her. That's probably why you've had nothing but silence. Accept your stupid mistakes and learn from them."

Ash nodded, understanding what he needed, and now intended, to do and with another hum, his deep blue aura flared, before settling. They were both proceeding faster than he had, but Alex had no intention of stopping now. With four chakras total now open, he wondered if he might not be good at this, but then focused, before his ego could overinflate. "Next is the Water Chakra. It deals with pleasure and is blocked by guilt. Focus on the sensation of energy. That is your Water Chakra." The air around them turned orange this time, as both men focused, and Alex nodded, though he did note a discrepancy in the pattern of color. Red, yellow, then orange? He briefly wondered if his own trials had been out of order for some reason, but then focused on what mattered: the students before him now also attempting to transcend their limits. "Picture what causes you the most guilt." He said in the minds of both men.

Jimen's came first, as he recalled the shattered Pokéball, and his shattered nation. Ash, for his part, had little to feel guilty over, as his shame had also been tied up in his guilt. What little remained revolved around his friends, and how few of them he'd seen in recent years. Decades, even. He realized he had many apologies to make, and that Serena would be the final one, assuming they made it back to the real world. Ash's chakra flooded open, and he opened his eyes. "I…I think I opened it. I do feel stronger…"

Alex met his eyes, nodded, and then returned to Jimen's mindspace. "There is something you should know, Avatar. With a region as…suppressed…as Koria, you might not fully grasp how Pokéballs function." He explained then how they functioned on a conceptual level, and half of Jimen's guilt seemed to almost fade.

"But…I don't have a Box connection. PC usage requires money in Koria, and it's monitored. Where did my partner end up, Alex?"

Alex pondered, mentally stroking his beard. "I'm not sure. But we have PC network experts who owe Unova a favor or three. I can have them transport it to my Boxes, once we're back in civilization. Assuming it's still in the system, it will have been asleep, in a kind of stasis, since last you saw it. And as for the Earth Nation…"

He gave the Avatar a mental map of not just the Earth Nation, but all of Eous. "Eous is like your Nation. Diverse, massive, home to many peoples. Many times, has the Eousian Empire fallen, and many times has it risen again. You may be the Avatar, but you are also one man. You can only do so much, and right now, there are more important things for you to deal with, than politics. When Koria is free, the word of its savior will carry enough weight to, perhaps, change things for the better for your people. Until then, we must focus on advancing."

Jimen steeled himself, and his chakra opened as well. "Let's keep this momentum going." Alex said, as the orange tinge faded, and normal colors returned. "Next is the Air Chakra. It's empowered by love and is blocked by grief. This one resides by your heart."

The air around them turned green, as both men focused on their respective energy pools. Alex continued. "The answer to this Chakra is the same, so I'll refrain from prying into your grief for this. Regardless of who you've lost, all you need to understand is that your loved one's affection for you has not left this world. The Sage who taught me elaborated on this concept. Evidently, love is a kind of energy, and energy cannot be destroyed, just changed in form, and reconstituted into new love. Those we lose stay with us, on some level, likely until we join them."

Jimen's brow furrowed. "I was taught a different concept."

Alex nodded. "Humanity has thousands of suppositions about what follows death. In this instance, I'll trust the Sagely ghost over a cult doctrine likely designed for claiming and clinging to political power. Focus on the reality of your lost loved ones still residing within your memories. The emotions those bring are real, Jimen. Perhaps remembering them is all it takes." He paused then, smirked, and said, "All lives touch other lives, to create something new and alive."

Hearing that, Jimen's chakra hummed open, as Ash's had moments earlier. Both men seemed worn by diving into their emotional baggage so many times, and Alex nodded sagely, mostly to himself. "By my count, we're halfway there. I say we take a food break, and resume after."

"I thought we couldn't stop." Jimen said, one eyebrow arched.

"I didn't, when I faced mine." Alex answered, "but my Trials were more...intense. And rushed. We have time enough for a meal. Who wants burgers?"

Jimen and Ash shared a look. "Burgers? Is that some kind of...Unovan food?" The Avatar asked.

Alex nodded. "Burgers for us, and curry for our Pokémon friends."

Ash rose, and stretched, but he had the same look as Jimen. "I can make the curry." He leapt from the tree hollow then, startling their guard dogs. "Food time!" He said, throwing his chosen eight partners into the air, as two were already out.

Alex got his first look at Ash's team, and took them in. Gengar and Charizard he was aware of, but he also saw a Dusk Lycanroc, Sceptile, Greninja, Garchomp, Lapras, and Heracross. A strong, well-balanced team, and most capable of Mega Evolution. He psychically chucked his own partners out as well, and the teams mixed, greeting their fellow Pokémon with cheerful noises, while others locked eyes and sparked rivalries.

Alex stepped up by Ash as he seemed to take in his team as Alex had done with his. "Quite a team you have, Alex. I have to admit, I expected them to be…older, since you said you were a Champion."

Alex smirked. "Was your Alolan team old when you claimed victory? As I recall, most seemed younger than mine." Ash chuckled, and Alex spoke as he retrieved dehydrated burgers and a portable grill from his bag. "This is actually my B Team. You may have heard we had a…pretty violent conflict in Unova. My main ten needed a break. They more than earned it." Then, out came the buns, which were kept mold free in the airless dimension that was his pack. Pruina scooted over and hydrated their meals, two burgers per man, while Ash set up the curry pot. Alex gave him some high-quality berries, that he had fewer of, and Ash added some Gigantamix, which ensured there'd be enough for everyone. Their flames were perfect, and required no fan, the curry itself could be moved with waterbending quick enough to stir it and keep from burning, and it was Ash who added the final ingredient, before the curry and rice quadrupled in size. Alex gave each of them a plate as their teams were sprawled out on the grassy, light side of the area, and nobody ventured near the dark half of their surroundings.

Both Ash and Jimen seemed distracted, as they munched on their hamburgers, at first by the deliciousness of the food, but then likely by the visions they'd seen so far, and the visions to come. Time passed, and eventually Alex stood up, stretched, and looked meaningfully at his 'apprentices'.

"I think that's enough rest for now. Come. Let us finish this." Alex leapt back into the tree hollow, and the pair followed him up, as the Pokémon were left to mingle and spar. After considering which chakra pools were where, Alex noticed the Unovan trial had opened the mind before the throat. In this instance, he opted to follow the body's natural order instead. "Next comes the Sound Chakra. Located in the throat, it deals with truth, and is blocked by lies. Namely, the ones we tell ourselves."

By this point, the two men knew the drill, and focused on their respective throats. Jimen was confused at first, as he'd told too many lies to count. Ash on the other hand, had rarely lied, and couldn't think of one. Alex focused on him first. "Having trouble?"

Ash gave him a mental nod. "I can't think of a lie that's big enough to block my Chakra."

Alex thought for a moment, and then smirked. "I may know one lie you've made but might not be aware of. Depending on how accurate the cartoon is." He felt Ash's skepticism but continued on anyway. "If it's somewhat accurate...aside from the Unova arc...I can think of your Primeape. In the show, you apparently left him to train as a top tier fighter. Said you'd come back for it. Some day. But as far as I know...that never happened."

Alex watched as Ash's brain processed, and then cringed in reaction to the realization that he had told his Primeape he'd be back. He'd misremembered. "I thought I told him to follow his dream...but you're right...I did say I'd be back for him…"

Alex frowned, as he sensed the formerly unblocked chakra clog up further. "Shall we see what he's been up to for a few decades now?"

Ash blinked. "You can do that?"

Alex shrugged. "I can try. It's like a sort of...reverse Future Sight. A useful formula I've been working on. It should show us up to the present. If you want."

Ash nodded. "It's been so long…show me."

Alex nodded. "Picture your friend, as you knew him." He focused on Ash's bond, and love, for his partner, and with a bit of psychic power and intense focus, Alex was able to see the violent ape's past, and project the images into Ash's mind.

They saw his Primeape, fighting numerous battles, winning most of them. Then, as with every fighter, he eventually lost to a stronger one, a Machamp whose flurry of super-powered fists knocked him out. A man with an impressive jawline tried consoling the violent pig-monkey, but the crushing defeat led to his eventual release by the man with the chiseled jaw. Primeape found his way back to his group of Mankey, and ruled over them, but his violent temper made him more of a tyrant than a good leader. Still, in Mankey society, that wasn't unusual at all.

"It might just be best to leave him there." Alex said, once his efforts ended. He felt very tired, but he could get them over the final hurdles. They'd all need a rest after this, and after, they would begin the hunt for Jimen's past lives. Again.

"No." Ash said verbally, and his aura flared, as his throat chakra opened. "I need to make this right. I will make this right. I can tell his fighting spirit was crushed. Primeape was one of my first Pokémon." He looked at Alex, and Jimen's eyes opened completely now, as he watched the verbal exchange. "Would you leave one of your first like that?"

Alex just stared at him, wondering if he'd forgotten a certain bug type as well. "If it meant they'd live happy lives, the lives they want, then yes. That's why I only usually take those who genuinely want to Battle. To become stronger. To compete in the crucible that is the Pokémon League. It's to avoid the heartbreak of losing them. I wouldn't forget one of my main ten, and if I somehow did, I'd also want to make it right. But I had a feeling you'd feel the same."

"And thus, his Chakra is open." Jimen said, as he took Redwood's measure again. The more he learned of the odd westerner, the more impressed he was. Quick to help, knowledgeable, psychic, not to mention an impressive Trainer, a Champion, even. He was essentially who Jimen had wanted to be, once upon a time. But those dreams had been crushed.

Alex glanced at the Guardian's Avatar as he sensed his line of thought. "Your turn."

Redwood gleaned the latest thoughts of the Avatar, still focusing on his throat chakra pool, and sensed the block. Lies took more effort than reaffirming one's emotions or outlooks on life. Lies were sinister and had a tendency to fester and spread like a mold. One of the many reasons Alex avoided using them, as often as he could anyway. Thankfully, conversing was one way to get rid of them. "Did you ever have a favorite Champion, growing up?" Alex said, so Ash could hear as well.

Jimen gave him a smirk. "Leon. That World Tournament match with him and Lance…I watched that a hundred times. That was the first time I'd really seen a Battle, on that level. My sister preferred Cynthia. She said Leon was dumb, because he's bad with directions, and has a Charizard."

That, got them both chuckling. And then Jimen's smirk faded. "My dad showed me Battling. But he…passed away, and things got…difficult. More than they already were. He did well at hiding what the Fire Nation was, from us…but eventually my fellow citizens of Hujiang revolted. I thought I lost everyone, when the Fire Army retaliated…I'd gone out on a well-paying job, and we returned to a pile of ash." His mind space turned black with anger then. "Those…flaming Mukheads expected us to attack them, once we returned. Figured they'd have more than enough excuse to kill us, too. But all we asked them was why they'd done what they did. Over and over. Why. And for that one question, they tried killing us anyway…I…stopped them. And realized I was the next Avatar of our regional Guardian. I could've stopped them…if I'd been there, I could've stopped all of it. Like I did in the north."

Alex shook his head. "You had one Pokémon, and a reflexive sense of the other elements. Even with Kora's strength, they would've killed you."

Jimen flooded him with skepticism, and Alex brought his heavy brows together. Images from his own experience in war, using his similarly strong superhuman abilities, and how little they had ultimately mattered, individually filled the skeptical man's mind. Yes, he'd been the deadly tip of the spear, he and his partners, but it had taken his whole company to keep them all alive. Everyone, working together, teams in near perfect harmony as they blocked and countered the superior weapons of the Crusaders with Champion level Pokémon moves. Jimen was genuinely shocked, as uncensored carnage had that effect on people.

"Stop lying to yourself, Avatar. Even at the height of your power as Guardian, Aang was brought low by a Prime Archon, because Aang didn't have an army of genetically enhanced warriors with him. You would've died if you'd been in Hujiang, and the Fire Nation would have total victory with an Avatar of their own."

As the truth of Redwood's words sank in, the Avatar faced the reality that the man was right. Whether it was energy beam lasers or mounted living flamethrowers, both were overwhelmingly powerful. His energy pool became unblocked with a slow but gradual increase and the blue tinge to the air faded.

"Next, is the Light Chakra. Located in the forehead, it is the source of your third eye, and it's what will power and channel most of your abilities. It is blocked by illusion. We'll go one at a time, for this one…Jimen, you're first." Jimen nodded at Alex's words, and the two closed their eyes. Ash took the opportunity to stay lost in thought, as he tried to recall who else he'd eventually released. Butterfree had gone on to do what he loved and had eventually run into him and Pikachu again. Other names and faces flooded his memory, and he glanced at Alex, who'd mentioned a 'B team'. Ash had enough partners for several rosters of ten and began to wonder if he shouldn't make more combinations. His mind began pairing partners from the many regions he'd traveled, and that occupied his thoughts as Redwood helped Jimen. He was the one who needed this power most, after all.

Alex looked between his students, trying to figure out how to expand their final two chakra pools of the mind, and pure instinctual connection to the energy of the universe. Ash glanced at Jimen, after a few minutes of just silence as Redwood seemed to stare intently at the floor. The silence dragged on, awkwardly, longer than it really should have, because eventually, Alex saw a formula he rather liked, and hadn't done for quite some time now. Professor Aristole had required a short lecture to open his own Light Chakra, but Alex saw an easier formula. To open one's mind, one presumably had to be in the right state of mind.

Five Minutes Later…

"So, you see, everything is connected. It's all just energy, if you think about it. An Infinite source of it. The greatest illusion of life is that we're all separate. When we're not. People. Pokémon. Plants. We're all connected on a…heaving oblate spheroid of energy that is this planet. Teleport requires awareness of this universal connection, and Psychic Types, most of them, can sense it instinctually at a very young age."

As Alex dispensed his version of what Professor Aristole had relayed to him, in not all too different surroundings, the purple haze that had formed in the now much smokier tree hollow intensified, as his latest traveling companions opened their Light Chakras, almost in perfect sync. Ash chuckled, then. "Oblate spheroid."

"It's like, really purple in here." Jimen said, and the other two men chuckled. Then, the purple faded, and the gray returned.

"Aww, the purple is gone." One of them said, followed by more chuckles. Outside, the gathered teams watched the tree in confusion as they heard the deep laughter of three grown men and saw a line of smoke trailing from the hollow. While it had made them sigh, Canis and Eremus had explained to the others that it was best to just leave the humans alone for like, two hours, when this happened.

Alex moved to put away his Rotolighter, along with the rest of his smoking apparatus, but the tiny spark in his self-made invention sparked his hand. "Oi. Hooman. Use me more. It's been days! I need to light my fiiiire!"

Ash and Jimen just stared, mouths slightly ajar. "His lighter is talking to him." "Did you understand it!?" "What is it with this guy and inanimate objects?"

Alex assured his lighter that he would be well-used, and let the tiny fire/electric type, who he'd nicknamed El Fuego, float beside him. This chakra, he could open as well. His eyes started to burn a deep blue, until the air around them turned violet.

"Oh wow, it's purple again!"

"Now, we open the final Chakra. Time to focus, lads." Alex said, and the psychic reverb in his Voice made them both sit a little straighter as they focused on where he was lighting up their energy pool with a stream from his own. Thus far, he'd made it easy for them to 'see' where they needed to focus, but this one was harder, more faint, and at the very crown of their energy network. Ash found it, and began to focus his aura on it, as he had with all the other chakras. Then, Jimen found it as well, and used the instincts he had for earth and waterbending to open the final door between him, and Raava.

Since the day he'd stopped the Fire Army, he'd been told of the region's Legendary Pokémon, the Spirit of Light, Raava. Koria had many stories of her, especially among rebels, which at this point in Korian history, was everyone not profiting from the Imperium's occupation. Jimen had heard many tales, some which had apparently even come from Avatar Kora herself. He was eager to meet the Avatar who to this day was still spoken of like a ghost of a legend, but who had very much been real. The Imperium had broadcasted armor cam footage of Aang's death to the entire region, for over half of their occupation. The Prime Archon's Iterators crushed any hope the common people might have had in their Guardian, but the existence of a ferocious waterbending Avatar had eventually been impossible to deny. Nobody knew how she had died though, which always unnerved Jimen the most.

"The Thought Chakra is based in your link to the cosmic energy of existence. It is blocked, by earthly attachments. You have to be willing to let them go, let them flow away in the cosmic energy flow, so that you can wield the energy of the universe. Jimen, in your case, because of Raava's nature and divine mandate to guard this land, you won't be able to detach yourself completely. The Original Dragon is similarly bound to Unova. You'll likely tap into her, and then, I assume, we can start this hunt for your lost power." Alex looked at Ash, then. "You, might see Arceus…if you're really able to let everyone you love flow away."

Jimen had few attachments left and understood that it was not a permanent removal of emotion and attachment, merely one required to allow the universe to flow into one's mind. Or something. This was not the first time he'd heard of the concept, but the Professors of Ba Sing Se had made less sense than Redwood, and right now, Jimen saw the Unovan as a literal fountain of wisdom. Ash on the other hand, had many attachments, and like most men, didn't want to give them up. For anything. Why would he?

Ash continued to struggle, but Alex couldn't help at this point, and he left him to figure it out for himself. He knew what to do, to let that nascent hum of power flow into his body, but there had to be a price for it. There always was. Ash guessed that, with time, it might lead to an erosion of compassion for those in one's life, but eventually, after about three minutes, Ash figured out one didn't need to constantly let the unbridled power of the universe into their energy pools. Those who could and did stay detached likely achieved enlightenment, but Ash had only been told to reach that level and unlock it. The lesson from several chakras earlier also rang in his head, as he knew that love would not disappear.

Jimen's eyes had begun glowing first. A soft, blue-white light burned from them, but the Avatar was calm, perfectly still, as he communed with the Legendary Guardian he was destined to tame. Ash's eyes flared from deep blue to a brilliant yellow-gold, and Alex felt the Alpha's presence, but this time, it was all focused on Ash, and, he realized, different from the other clones he'd already met. After seeing more than one, he could tell them apart by their nascent personalities.

Alex let them be and waited quietly for the pair to return to full consciousness. Ash's Pikachu came in about halfway through Ash's time spent communing, and his yellow aura joined his Trainer's, making it spark with electricity. Ash finished first, and glanced at Alex, but otherwise said nothing of his experience. Jimen's eyes stopped glowing, and as they did, he glanced at Alex.

Though Alex was unaware of what the two had experienced, they now both had a better idea of who he was, and the obstacle he would eventually become. When neither of the two men spoke, Alex broke the silence, and met Jimen's gaze. "Do we know our first target?"

Jimen nodded. "Kora and Raava said we need to find the first Avatar. Kora never went that far back…she wasn't super spiritual for most of her life…and all Raava knew was his name. Wan."

Alex nodded and leaned out the hollow. "Nox! Lux!" The two ghosts, plus Ash's Gengar, approached the tree, and Alex began speaking to them as one would a human. "Do either of you know of Wan?"

Nox chuckled, and nudged Lux with a black elbow. "Do we know Wan. This guy."

Lux shrugged his electric arms. "Never heard of him."

Nox tilted his spikey head. "Really? What about you?" He asked Ash's Gengar. The Gengar shrugged. "Wow. You'd think every ghost would've heard of the man who sundered the balance of the Spirit World."

"Wait," Lux said, eyes narrowing. "The meddling idiot Human who unleashed the Shadow from its Light counterpart?"

Nox nodded. "That was Vaatu. Wan freed him from Raava's hold."

Lux blinked. "Oh. Wow." He looked at Jimen with a new appreciation for his power, if he really was her Avatar. "We had...different names for them, back where I'm from..."

Alex arched an eyebrow, but the ancient Rotom didn't elaborate. "Nox. Any idea where Wan might go, separated from his other selves, and Raava?"

Nox visibly pondered, and then gave his Trainer a grin. "There's an old Passimian spirit he befriended, if the legends are true. He has a pretty chill Oasis. We could start there."

"Lead the way." Alex said, gesturing. He and Ash recalled their partners, including El Fuego, and the trio followed the dark ghost deeper into his home realm, leaving the Tree of Souls behind them. As they left the perfectly divided area connecting the north and south poles of the Earth, Nox gave them a warning.

"Walking the spirit realm isn't like traveling on the prime plane. Stay between me, and Ash's Gengar." Alex relayed the message, and the three men, two ghosts, and one electric mouse stayed in a line formation between the pair of Gengar.

As they traveled, Alex noted the various vistas they moved through, fey-lit forests, wide, open grasslands, and then finally something resembling a jungle, all passed by very quickly. Nox explained then that traveling the Spirit World could go very well, or very poorly, depending on where the realm itself wanted to send you. Thankfully, it seemed between their guide and the Avatar, their planet's physical connection between the two planes through Raava's power kept them on course.

When they did finally arrive, Jimen seemed twitchy. "This place…this forest…I…I remember…it's this way." He walked past Nox then, who glanced at his Trainer, and shrugged, before floating after the Avatar.

"Here he comes now." A softer male voice said.

Jimen and the rest of the party emerged from the forest to the sight of an oasis, surrounded by colorful vegetation, and a lack of trees. Within the oasis itself was a ghostly Korian man with pale tones reminiscent of those from the Fire Nation, long unkempt brown hair, and a lack of clothing. Beside him, was a creature that strongly resembled a Passimian. It was thinner though, almost goofy, and yet Alex recognized that in death as in life, the Passimian species from the small island off the edge of the African part of the supercontinent, Ryugu, was shredded. The black and white fur babies had become insanely popular once they'd been discovered, but this one had clearly been an Alpha, just going by its size. It had a lanky torso, also thinner than the species found in Alola, and yet, Alex didn't want to fight the wiry creature. He seemed friendly.

What Alex noted first about the lemur, and what set the mood for this reunion, was the object the creature was manipulating with its near human hands. An object Alex knew very well, and one that both Ash and Jimen were now familiar with too. The lemur creature hit his bong, a frankly lovely and primarily green piece, that also had swirls of color which matched the plants around the oasis. Whatever he had in his slide, was sparkling, and green.

The black and white creature physically spoke then, and Alex could only describe his higher pitched tone as delightful. "Welcome, smelly Humans, to my Spirit Oasis. I take it you've come for my friend here."

Alex and Nox just smirked, Jimen blinked in surprise, and Ash glanced at his own Gengar. "Smelly?"

The lemur creature nodded, and his large flappy ears nodded with him. "Oh yes. Quite smelly. Especially the large one." He said, nodding at Alex.

Alex performed a brief pit check and nodded. "That's fair. But I haven't seen a shower since arriving in Koria."

The lemur held up a long, clawed, finger. "Ignorance is no excuse for poor hygiene! Wash yourselves in the outer pool, and then join us, friends of the Avatar." The outer pool was a ring around the oasis, and Alex simply jumped in, knowing he could bend the water from his clothes later. He sighed, as the water was warm, but spirits that looked disturbingly like translucent Basculin with white stripes began approaching him.

"Umm." Alex said, loudly, as they came near, and Nox readied a Shadow Ball.

"Please do not shoot my fish!" The lemur creature shouted as he let his latest hit from his implement go with a plume of sparkling smoke. They eat smelly Human pollution, and keep the waters clean."

"Ahh." Alex said, and Nox lowered his hands. "Eat away, little friends." He said to the fish, who blinked, as they perfectly understood the large human. Ash joined him after disrobing, but throughout their shenanigans, Jimen and the man who could only be Wan had locked eyes and began wordlessly communicating.

The first Avatar rose from the oasis, nude save for a wrapped cloth around his vulnerable bits. Compared to Jimen's physicality, he was a stick. He stepped towards Jimen, who tapped into Raava. His eyes began to hum with her Light, and though he tried to hide it, Wan was shocked by how weak she'd become. "Hello again, old friend. It's just like old times." Raava smiled, and nodded through Jimen, and Wan turned back to the lemur creature. "Thank you, Aye-aye. I won't forget this."

"Nor will I, Stinky. Now go home already." The lemur creature hit his bong again then and exhaled a cloud of sparkling smoke as Wan and Jimen's eyes met. Raava's Light blinded the area, and then, it was gone, and so was Wan.

Alex and Ash joined Jimen by the front of the oasis then, freshly cleaned, and looked around. Ash spoke first. "Aw man, did Wan disappear already?"

Jimen just smirked and closed his eyes briefly. A ghostly image of the First Avatar appeared, floating out from Jimen's body, colored in the shade of Raava's Light, and now clothed with relatively simple garments that could've come from any Nation. Behind them, the lemur let out a peaceful, happy sigh as he felt the Light long thought lost, after what happened to Kora. Vaatu's victory had deterred and depressed many spirits, but here was the proof that the Light never really died.

"Wow…" Wan said, with a slight ghostly reverb to his voice. "This is a lot easier when it's less crowded…"

"Wan." Jimen said, getting his attention. "We need to find the next Avatar. The second. Do you know him?"

Wan chuckled. "Ah yes. Jiro. He was of the Air Nation. A bit too carefree to handle the problems of his day…he had a rough existence. It took a long time for people of all Nations to understand that I'd been reborn, and that this would continue to be a thing. As for where he'd go…well, he was an Air Nomad, so my guess would be where the Sky Bouffalant roam. Understand something, Jimen…not all of our past lives have…stuck around. Ever since Raava was ripped from Kora, they've been on their own, and over two decades waiting for you, is a long time in the Spirit World. The older ones have likely run out of energy and returned to the cycle of life. But we could find someone more recent. I'm afraid I don't know many of them though…I wasn't exactly consulted often, after a certain point."

Jimen nodded. "So, first Jiro, and then Aang. He was strong, and I don't think he'd just disappear, knowing what he left behind."

The three men rested at the oasis then, and the Aye-aye spirit bid them farewell after a 'day' of rest and recovery from the exhaustive process of opening one's chakras. The lemur was actually pretty chill once he realized he and Redwood shared a habit, and they exchanged Leaf seeds before parting. Wan often appeared to them as they traveled, manifesting from within Jimen whenever Nox was unsure of their heading. Eventually, they found it, after running afoul of a Dusknoir who saw them as lost spirits, and a very irritated Aegislash that Cinder brought down with a combination of Quick Attack and Blaze Kick. They came upon a verdant paradise, and it was Wan who spoke as he manifested again. "This spot, in the physical world, was where the first Air Nomads tamed their Bouffalant partners for the first time. It's a source of strength for those who fly."

Then, in the sky, they saw them. Several ghostly humans, frolicking with long departed sky buffalo above the idyllic fields of grass. One of the humans saw them arrive and gestured to the rest. Wan just watched, in awe. "If I'm right…every single one of them is a former Air Nomad who served as Avatar of Koria at one point…and yet somehow I'm not surprised they found each other."

Alex glanced at Wan and took the opportunity to ask about things he hadn't yet experienced. "Do Humans usually come here, to this realm after death?"

Wan shook his head as the Air Nomads landed. "Only those who become lost, vengeful...or do something in life to warrant a truly endless and inescapable prison. A rare few choose to spend their eternity here by entering when their body dies, but over time they become Spirits as well. Only a few places in the world have people who are in tune enough with Ghost Types to project their entire essence into this place. It usually doesn't end well for them."

"Avatar Wan! At last!" An Air Nomad who could only be Jiro said, as they approached. His translucent form was gray, and faded around the edges, but still held intact by his spiritual power. He was dressed like the other Air Nomads with him, clothes very similar to those Meelo and Tenzin had hidden beneath more simple coverings. He was also bald, as Tenzin had been.

"Jiro! I'm glad you're still here, old friend. I see you've gathered some of the other Avatars." Wan said, nodding at those who he knew. Surprising almost no one, it was actually Air Nomads who had typically been able to connect with Wan, but over time, even they had lost the skill to reach that far back within their selves, and as such those like Aang and Yangchen were not among those gathered.

"It's not just us. I found our Torterra, from your era. She's begun gathering lost Avatars of the Earth and Water Nations. Avatar Roku and Avatar Kasai are gathering the fire Avatars near the Fire Sage Temple with the help of their dragons. I don't know how long we've been at this, but surely we've found most of them, by now." Alex listened quietly to Jiro in the background, but one word in particular had caught his ears.

"You said there's a Torterra gathering disconnected Avatar spirits? How? A slow, land-bound tortoise seems like a poor choice for such a task." Alex said, throwing some fake shade at a species he adored.

Jiro bought it, and the man's tone turned serious. "You must be thinking of the Torterra from Japan, and elsewhere. Those in Koria are…were…different."

Wan spoke up, then. "In the chaos of Humanity's fall into the Dark Times, much of the supercontinent was plagued by raiders, bandits, and violent Pokémon. The Torterra of the Koria region were Dragon Types, and they were by no means bound to the land." Alex just stared, eyes wide, but said nothing as Wan continued. "They sheltered the people of Koria, keeping the raiders away with powerful Earthquakes, and other elemental attacks. Some, even began favoring the elemental affinity of the people they sheltered."

Jiro spoke then, his tone sad. "Unfortunately…all but the Air Nation's Torterra were butchered over the years. The Earth's was slain by ambush and became a meal for a pompous king. Its flesh poisoned him. The fire-favoring dragon tortoise was challenged by the first Fire Lord, and in slaying him, became the line worthy of ruling the entire island chain. Some of the Fire Nationals saw this act for the barbarity that it was and left the islands en masse. Some say they built a new city, that ascended into the sky. Ours is the last of her kind, and she resides in this realm because were she to return to ours, Humanity would undoubtedly end her, as well. When Raava was separated from Kora at the Harmonic Convergence, it was our Torterra who kept many of us from dissipating outright. We owe her everything."

With their path clear, Jimen took in the gathered Air Nomads, and even with only roughly thirty lives out of six hundred and twenty-four, Alex could tell the Avatar was stronger when they sparred with their earthbending. They spent varied amounts of time traveling the length and breadth of the Spirit World, sometimes guided by Nox, and sometimes guided by a growing sense of his other selves from Jimen. Often the past Avatars would manifest to share their wisdom, and through them, both Alex and Jimen were able to increase their bending prowess, usually by practicing on each other. Jimen was a tough opponent, moving through the earth like an Ekans in sand, and then hitting with the force of a Copperajah. Alex found that, instead of 'steelbending', he'd mastered an aspect of earthbending relating specifically to the ground typing, namely, sand.

It was a hard element to block, it could wear away any earth shield, and only getting it wet stopped it. Fire only caused bits of burning glass to hit him instead of sand. Not that water stopped Jimen. He used mud just as effectively, turning it into rather tough armor to block with. Alex also realized, very quickly, that Jimen had a far better time bending the nature energy around him. While Alex could switch what element he controlled fairly quickly, Jimen had a connection with nature energy that Alex, and all other humans, lacked. This let him draw upon each element with ease, and more importantly for combat, speed. The older Avatar spirits actually understood what Alex was doing but were impressed that he could passably mimic bending styles. It was then he usually told them of his draconic typing, and the control it gave in conjunction with psychic power.

Absorbing more Avatars only made Jimen stronger, as they visited the spirit side of the Fire Nation, which was 'closest' to where they'd found Wan. Avatar Kasai, the fifth Avatar, had been helping Roku, Aang's predecessor, with finding the lost spirits of their firebending kin. Many had burnt out before they could be found, simply fading back into the universal flow of energy without Raava to sustain their conscious minds. From Kasai, Alex and Jimen learned ancient firebending forms, which while silly in aesthetic, had a flow to them that Alex realized was ideal for moving the flames. After seeing, and learning, those techniques he was able to move the flames like a performer Ash had claimed to see, and often after dinner, Alex would take his Cinderace, and go hand-to-foot in a fiery spar. Ash also did this, with his Lucario, and evidently had learned Alakazam's style of martial arts during his tenure on the Mind Sage's island. It surprised Alex that special attackers like Alakazam would have a martial art, but then, Connor's partner had shifted form, and psychic beings that intelligent likely figured out how to achieve a form suited to close combat with time. Ash had to keep his shoes off to use it effectively, as it required a surprising amount of dextrous toe work, but the results spoke for themselves. His Lucario did not go easy on him.

Finding the allegedly flying Torterra, was more difficult, so instead, they relied on Jimen's sense of his past selves. Over time, they came to a densely wooded area that reminded Alex of Oranguru's swamp with its pale green haze and frequent lack of passable terrain. Jimen stopped suddenly, and then changed directions. "He's close. A Waterbender."

"Give. Her. Back!" A loud, male voice shouted. A more sinister voice answered it. "Never. Her face belongs to me, now. Disperse already…your spirit cannot endure this much longer." In a swampy clearing ahead of them, the party saw a faded gray Avatar spirit slashing with waterbending at a denizen of the ghostly realm, who dodged his attacks with ease.

Avatar Szeto, the fire Avatar before Roku, appeared then beside Jimen. "Korruk! You are not alone anymore, old friend!"

The fire Avatar vanished back into Jimen, and his eyes began to burn light blue. The voices of the recombined Avatars spoke in unison then. "Keep your faces neutral, or this spirit will steal them." He glided through the earth towards Korruk then and placed a hand on his opaque back. The Light Spirit's power briefly blinded and revealed his opponent, and as it faded, Jimen took in the creature his past life had such hatred for.

It had the body of a Centiskorch, but instead of a bug, it was very much a ghost. Ominous purple flames surrounded the creature as it recognized Jimen as a threat. "Ahh…the latest Avatar. An interesting face…but not my type."

Alex's voice echoed in the Avatar's head, then. "Violence doesn't always have to be the answer. Diplomacy is worth trying." Jimen noticed then, the ghostly centipede was poised for an attack, but was holding. Jimen stood up from the bending crouch he hadn't noticed he'd fallen into, and the purple flames went out.

"Name yourself, Spirit. Why was Avatar Korruk attacking you so fiercely?" The sternness in his voice didn't extend to his face, thus rendering the creature's single hit KO attacks useless. It coiled around the Avatar, and Jimen turned with it, not wasting a movement.

"I, am Koh. The Face Stealer. Your past life was shouting something about his wife…oh, right. I remember. Korruk, was a Mudbray. He spent his life as Avatar gallivanting, abusing his natural talent for shows of strength, and impressing females. I was appalled to see the Light Spirit's gifts wasted on such…base, primitive filth. So, when he finally found a female to procreate with, I stole her. And her face."

Koh met Jimen's eye level then, and 'blinked' as the face in question manifested. An intense light-blue aura shield formed around Jimen; a trick Alex had shown him how to manifest. Koh recoiled, blinking the face away to that of an angry Primeape. "This power…"

"Release her." Jimen said, with a cold emotionless demand, punctuated by the unnatural reverb in his voice.

"Or what, Avatar? Her face is mine now." The ghostly centipede coiled in on itself now, defending, and readying for a fight.

"Or I crush a bug." Jimen answered.

Koh seemed irate, and the Primeape face changed to that of a Gyarados, with its perpetual expression of infamous rage. "Do you have any idea who I am!? How dare you!"

Jimen stared him down. "You are not nearly important enough. I am done with your schemes, Koh. I have Korruk's memories. I know what you've done, Face Stealer. To men. Women. Pokémon. Children. I offer but one chance: release her, and your pathetic existence continues. I'll let some other life of mine deal with you."

The Avatar's aura became brighter, as Raava shared in Jimen's righteous rage. She saw Koh as a pest, but it was not her duty to exterminate such vermin. She had been placed to maintain the Balance against Vaatu, and other all vile entities spawned by the Shadow, a crime that Koh had not committed. Jimen however, could make the decision to take a life, or not. It was up to her Avatar, and their humanity, to keep things in check.

Koh knew Raava was weaker, but this latest Avatar, an earth Avatar, was too strong. Like Kyoshi before him, Jimen had the steadfastness of a mountain, when he wanted to. This was an Avatar capable of striking the final blow atop the numerous weaknesses Avatar Kora had inflicted on the Fire Nation during her life. A man who would change Koria, and perhaps even the world as a whole. Dealing with him in a new body would be easier, but that didn't mean there was no fun left to be had. The ghostly worm's face shifted to a sneering Pansage as he said, "Vaatu won, Raava. It's over."

"It is never over." Jimen said, as a powerful female voice melded with his. "The Harmonic Convergence has not yet passed…" The Avatar glanced directly at Alex then, and he blinked in surprise as he felt Raava focus on him. "There is still time…a Way to achieve an era of Light instead of Shadow." A memory came to Alex then, from Lux, of the planets of the Sol system, all perfectly aligned, a vision from the Tree of Souls that had flashed by while Alex was occupied. While they still rotated around the sun, their synchronicity with the other planets in the Sol System was perfect, unnaturally so, and when Alex wondered why that was, Raava's power sent him another image via his Rotom sword. An image of Mars. Evidently the red planet had a hand in this unnatural alignment, but it did present an opportunity for Raava, and the rest of their world, to avoid ten thousand years of darkness and mayhem under Vaatu. Again.

If there was a way to change the outcome of whatever 'harmonic convergence' was, Raava didn't elaborate yet, instead turning back to focus her gaze on Koh. The ghostly centipede hesitated in answering, and Raava, through Jimen, pressed him. "The longer you hesitate the more faces I will draw from you. Let. Her. Go."

That, finally made Koh hiss. The flames returned, and he screeched "Never!" Before sending them at Jimen and trying to burrow into the earth. In hindsight, it was a poor tactical choice. The Avatar dispelled the ghost fire with the dissipation he'd learned from Alex mid-spar, and then, he raised the earth Koh tried hiding in. The chunk of earth that trapped the ghostly centipede began glowing a bright gold color, as it broke apart, and formed a swirling, rotating cage of rock chunks around Koh. Then, one of the rocks slammed into his stomach, and the Gyarados face was upchucked back into the Spirit World. It retook its form from life, and then flew away, presumably to find peace or perhaps just to escape Koh.

The centipede was irate, but no matter how he gnashed and struggled, he could not break the Avatar's grip. His energy was too robust, and finely controlled. Somehow, this very young Avatar already had his chakra pools open. The face of a Zarude appeared this time, enraged, and shouting. "If you kill me, you kill what remains of her! Let me go!"

"Not until every Human face you've stolen returns to this realm, so they can potentially find peace. You can release them now, the easy way, or I can draw them from you by force!" Jimen said, as his open hand controlling the swirling rocks twitched, ready to close, and strike another weak point on Koh that would make him upchuck another spirit.

The ghostly centipede seemed terrified of having to violently disgorge another essence it had taken into itself, but that hesitation led to another hard strike, on his back this time, and the Zarude came free. Now ghostly, translucent, but free, it swore impressively at Koh, before leaping away into the spirit wilds. A new face appeared now, that of a child long dead, but still trapped in the endless hell that resulted from having one's face claimed by Koh. Her expression was heart-wrenching. Furious that Szeto and Korruk had not lied about the vile spirit going after kids, Jimen readied another strike. The expression on the child's pained face reminded him far too much of his sister's, but this time, Koh pleaded with it. "All right! All right! You have made your point, Avatar…I will leave the faces of Humans alone…I'll take them from those who break the laws…just…stop hitting me with your boulders…"

Jimen did not, however, let the centipede down on his word. "Go on then. Release them." The rocks continued to swirl menacingly, but they weren't pelting Koh anymore, for the moment. With a violent shudder, the ghost centipede aimed at the ground, and the souls of at least twenty people came tumbling out, all at once. Jimen glanced at each of them, and his aura burned as he realized that Ummi, Korruk's wife, was not among them. The rocks swirling around Koh turned sharp. "Last chance, worm... Let. Her. Go." Avatar Korruk's voice could be heard loudest in unison with Jimen's.

Koh's newest face shifted from a Noctowl, to Ummi's face again. He eyed the Avatar for a long moment, and then let her spirit go. Korruk floated free of Jimen's body and went to her. The two talked quietly, as Koh continued to speak, "I'm keeping the Human criminals I still have. Their crimes are unforgivable." Koh said, showing the painted face of a clown. "Pedophilia." He blinked and shifted to an angry Fire Nation man. "Raping and pillaging." An old man's face appeared then, though what Nation he'd belonged to was impossible to tell. "Destroying sacred sites. And other such crimes."

Jimen held, despite Korruk very much wanting to bring down the earth attack, and finally end this menace. The younger Avatar consulted Raava, and she judged Koh's words to be true. Releasing such humans would return that foulness to the universal pool of energy, and all were better off without that kind of filth. "Fine." Jimen said, letting the rocks fall, as his eyes continued to burn with the Light Spirit's power. "You will take the faces of those who commit such crimes. No more innocent Humans and Pokémon. No more schemes. Don't make us come back here, Koh."

"Oh, we'll meet again Avatar…but I expect you will have a different face." The Centiskorch-like ghost scurried away into the swamp then, and Jimen let him go. Ummi floated away as well, and eventually Korruk returned to his current existence's body.

"Let's keep moving." Jimen said, as he turned towards the next strongest spiritual signal from a former self of his and began walking.

Walking turned out to be impossible for this one, and one soon became two as they found Avatar Aang, along with Yangchen, atop a mountainous peak that reached above the clouds that required flying Pokémon, or airbending, to reach.

Only Alex and Jimen had ascended, and as they landed atop the suddenly crowded peak, the man who was clearly Tenzin's father turned to them. "Ahh. At last, you've found us. I expected the Avatar, but who have you brought with you?"

Jimen then explained concisely who Alex was, why he was here, and what he could do. Like most Avatars, Aang was impressed by how convincingly Alex replicated their bending culture in Koria. "Avatar Aang was one of the few modern Avatars to learn and understand Energybending in his lifetime. That was the term we used for those like you, Alex. Foreigners who learned to wield the elements through their awakened psychic prowess." Yangchen said, after he and Jimen demonstrated their skills. "I've rarely seen such control though. Humanity has grown stronger. As I told you they would, Aang." The 'younger' bearded Air Nomad stroked his chin as he pondered Yangchen's words. Most Avatars, in death, appeared as they had at the height of their power, and connection with Raava.

Alex pondered the dead Avatar's wisdom as he flowed a breeze towards Jimen, who sent it back his way. "Energybending...it sounds like what Pokémon do when they use Moves. I've watched their energy flow hundreds of times. Some can control it more than others."

Aang nodded. "Appa, my Sky Bouffalant, did it when he used his Airbending. They seem to do it on reflex, as naturally as we breathe."

Jimen absorbed the pair then, and as he did, he made to leave, only to pause as Alex grabbed the shirt-covered shoulder of the young Avatar. Turning, he saw what made Redwood pause, and just stared, as a creature from a storybook slowly floated out of the mist surrounding the mountaintop. If it was a Torterra, it was unlike any Alex had seen. Though it had the right shell type, the face was completely different. Their features resembled Tao and Rayquaza the most, but the longer Alex looked, the more he could see the turtle melded with the dragon, and why Korians had called this beast a Torterra. He didn't need his abilities to tell it was dragon and grass typed. He was glad. That was a rare combination, and the other examples of it were…special. If not silly.

The massive beast hovered in front of the pair, and then smiled, as she inhaled. Her tone had gravitas that shook the very air as she projected her mental voice. "Raava. And the Tamer of the First Dragon. You are a most welcome sight, in these dark days."

Jimen walked up to her, as she leaned in close to them, and both turtle and human-avatar-of-spirit glowed impossibly bright as they exchanged a heartfelt reunion long in coming. "There is still hope, old friend. Something is disrupting nature. The planets remain aligned. This should not be…and yet, while it is, we have a chance."

The dragon typed turtle gave a slow nod to the Light Spirit. "I have gathered many of your Human's past lives…but not all. Many are there that I was unable to save…"

A multitude of pale translucent forms flooded from the turtle's back then, and Alex noted there was actually a settlement atop it, long abandoned, but still standing, unclaimed by the jungle that covered the rest of the turtle's shell. That, was by far the largest number of displaced Avatar spirits that their group found. The draconian turtle disappeared after discharging her load and wishing them luck, fading into the relative safety of the Spirit World once Jimen had reclaimed his power. By reclaiming each Avatar, Jimen was treated to a brief history of their life and deeds, and the lessons they'd learned. After absorbing so many, his own trials and suffering seemed par for the course, and somehow lesser, in the face of the evil in the modern era. His suffering had been put into perspective, and Jimen knew that he was not the same person who had entered the Tree of Souls.

Between Redwood and his past lives, he was becoming an Avatar unlike any before him, though, unlike any before, he was reconnecting with hundreds of his past selves. Avatar Aang, as it turned out, had been the one to contact the most of his past lives in a time when he desperately sought a method to stop the Fire Nation's overwhelming power. Their answer had been to fight, and so Aang had, only to fall short before one of the Imperator's sons, and a Legion of Thunder Warriors. His lesson stuck with Jimen, thankfully, as he understood that he would simply not be able to remove the Imperium's influence over Koria by himself. He would need help, a team, as Aang had called it. In his era, Aang's team had consisted of Boomi Sr., the Omashu Gym Leader's grandfather, Kuzon, who was still alive thanks to Imperium enhancements even after three centuries, an earthbender of a noble family in the Earth Kingdom, the Beifongs, and a woman from the water tribes, who Aang had apparently fallen for. The more Avatars that Jimen absorbed, the more he understood that he too would require a team. He briefly considered Ash and Alex, but he also understood they had goals and dreams pulling them away from Koria. No, he decided eventually, his own modern 'Team Avatar' would have to be from the current era, and like Aang, he intended to enlist benders from each nation. His first candidate was Meelo, and he had a feeling the airbending rebel would leap at the chance to be a part of it.

After what felt like weeks of traveling and searching, they had found over four hundred of the lost Avatars, but unfortunately the effort turned depressing the more they searched. Over and over Jimen was told that his former selves had already passed on by other ghost types, fading away without the power of Raava to sustain their consciousness, and power, after being severed from Kora.

After the tenth such failure, Ash spoke to Jimen one 'night' around their cooking fire. "Maybe we should head back, Jimen."

The Avatar firmly shook his head. "I've delayed long enough. If I leave, those we have left to find will be lost without me."

As he said that, a voice echoed around them, and the Alakazam from the Mind Sage's temple astrally projected himself into the space above their fire. His psychic-based image flickered, but the ghost energy he combined it with kept the connection going. "Those you have yet to find will persist, Avatar. Unfortunately, for now, they are beyond your reach. Those lost have also reincarnated, and you can find their essence here, in the physical world, to acquire their strength, and free the new minds they inhabit from your past memories. This task will take much of your life, Avatar Jimen, and you will walk this realm again, but for now... it would be wise to return."

Jimen glanced at Alex, as he'd come to value the man's psychic insight, but Alex simply shrugged. "This is your decision, Jimen. Regardless of your choice, you have my aid, Avatar."

A rare smile cracked the clifflike visage Jimen had worn since experiencing the memories of over four hundred of his lives. And while his own origin was tragic, it had been put into a far larger perspective. This was not the first era in which the Imperium of Man had tried to invade and weaken the kingdoms of Eous, and it would likely not be the last.

Finally, the Avatar made his choice, as the Psychic Sage patiently hovered over their fire. "I will trust your wisdom, Sage." He said confidently. Alex had told him of the Sage's power, and the others across the world, about their wisdom if not their larger role. "Take us back, Mind Sage."

Jimen could tell not all of his lives agreed with his choice, but the time had come to move on. His developing sense of his other selves had been silent for some time, and if new lives were being burdened with his old ones, he was obligated to do something to help. He also had a feeling the process would be harder than simply having Raava absorb their essence.

As Jimen made his choice, Alakazam opened a hole between their worlds, and it drew them into it. In a moment, they'd returned to the prime plane of their dimension, and once more found themselves in the presence of the Mind Sage.

Sensing their first, and most obvious question, the Alakazam projected his psychic baritone to them, as they manifested in his chamber. "You have been away for the better part of a month...though I am sure it felt much longer. Welcome back."

By Alex's count, that put him around two to three months into his mission, and almost halfway through summer. "Is it time for stage two?" He asked Tao mentally, as he reached out to the dragon.

"Yes." Came the reply, and no other words of wisdom or advice followed. Alex needed none. He had known for some time now that the plan had shifted, now that the Imperium very likely knew he and Tao were getting involved with Koria.

At this time, it seemed Alakazam was having a conversation with Ash as well, leaving Jimen to glance around awkwardly as the silence dragged on. Finally, the Sage spoke again. "Avatar Jimen. Your next life lies in Ba Sing Se. Retrieving it will be difficult. Alex, go with him, find a good anchor, and then prepare for the next conflict. The Fire Nation has become worse in your absence, Jimen. The Fire Princess confirmed you were alive, before she fell during the final battle of the siege in the north. The Coalossal of the Imperium was felled, but Chief Unalaq lost his life as well. The next conflict we face will likely be the last. Ash will be staying here, until the time for that battle arrives. Go with the Light, Avatar."

As the Alakazam made to bamf the two of them as close to the Impenetrable City as he could, an Avatar spirit manifested from Jimen. It was Avatar Aang. He looked at the Sage with a pained smile. "Thank you, for helping. I won't forget what you've done for us, partner."

A single tear fell from the Sage's eye as he put his closed fist together in the Air Nomad style of showing respect and bowed his head. "Your thanks are not necessary. I am honored to be able to aid the Avatar again. I am glad you are back, Aang. We will need your wisdom, before the end."

With that, the Sage Teleported the pair to Ba Sing Se, and then focused his attention on his student.

Ba Sing Se - Koria Region

They appeared on a small hill outside the city, and Jimen frowned, as he took in the capital of the Earth Nation. The connecting pillars of the walls still stood, but the others had long since been brought down, and the urban sprawl of the destitute war orphans and penniless refugees had spread to the farmlands around the city. The only part of the city's famous wall that still stood, only did so because it was an entrance, and above that entrance flew a gigantic flag of the Fire Nation. It didn't seem made of cloth either. Probably something fireproof.

Within the massive city was even worse. Alex followed Jimen, as he seemed to have a better idea of this city, but the smell alone was worse than New Tork, and the abject poverty was slowly making him furious. As a westerner, he'd always heard that some Eousian kingdoms had the kind of absurd wealth gap between the obscenely rich and the dirt poor that had marked humanity's final era, before their fall. Rampant Capitalism had left its mark on their history, and pretty much every continent, but it seemed some tenants of old systems, or more likely new systems with old inspirations, still remained.

Seeing Alex's face, Jimen gave a grim smirk. "Yea…it had that effect on me, too. Don't worry though…everything in this city is a lie." Jimen led him underground then, with earthbending, and they soon came to the Undercity. While the poverty above was what the nobility of the city expected to see, down here, there were weapons, hundreds of trainees practicing earth, water, and even firebending. Food was given out freely to members in ragged uniforms and wretches from the upper city alike, and Alex actually spied some crates from Unova, that he'd assumed were either lost, or moved by Tenzin in the kerfuffle at Minjujuui City. He was glad they were helping, but the locals seemed to have their own food, too.

Jimen explained that, because the government had been crushed so easily by the Fire Nation, the citizens had long ago decided to take the matter of food and shelter onto themselves, rather than wait for the pompous aristocrats to free enough currency into the economy to pump it up. Jimen kept his face hidden as they walked, and while Alex's bulky frame got looks, nobody stopped him, as he was clearly being led somewhere.

The place he was led to, was actually a room, not unlike the one he and Akos had shared before they split up. Two simple earth beds with deflated straw mattresses. "This will do." He said, before Jimen left to go reconnect with his people. Alex sat on his bed, planted some berries in the nearby planter, and then focused his mind, not on the universe or the world's leylines, but the clusterpsyduck of mental psychic webbing that made up the connections between his partner Pokémon.

Once he felt he had his A team's attention, a single sentence reverberated in their minds, and some listened, while others were too busy to even notice.

"Alright boys… Assemble."

Sahqoreyth · Mar 29, 2024

Foreword: The following is one out of three short stories that people may/may not be aware of, culminating in the final one, which is basically just a whole chapter looking into what the main ten have been doing on their time off. Enjoy.

The Once and Future King

Forests North of the Pledge Grove - Unova Region circa Chapter 6

The Gardevoir ran as fast as she could, the edge of her 'dress' whipping in the wind. The little newly hatched Ralts in her arms wailed at the sudden harsh movements, and she calmed him with her mind. "Hush little one…hush…you're okay…" He'd only hatched a month ago, in the safety of the Pledge Grove. It had been a wonderful month, the best one in years, since fleeing her home in the small kingdom of Albion, a place in the northern reaches of the Galar region, and separated from Wyndon and the other cities and towns by a near-impassable mountain range. The first good times she'd had, since abandoning the throne to that witch. Since the new Queen's relentless pack of Trainers and Pokémon had murdered her mate, and forced her into hiding.

Like most baby Ralts, her son had learned to Teleport almost immediately, which was what had caused this current chain of events. There were only so many Ralts in Unova, and the witch's minions who hunted them had sensed him as soon as he'd left the grove. A chilling howl filled the air, a howl that still haunted her dreams. Dark circles had formed under her blue eyes, the only thing that marked her lineage as different from the rest of her species. She knew that howl. The Houndoom had her scent. She would never escape, now.

"Cobalion!" She shouted again, through her telepathy. The Pokémon with the will of Steel did not appear, however. Out of all of those she had fled to, seeking asylum, the Swords of Justice had been the only ones to take her in, despite the risk. They had been royal guards of Albion, once, even though their origins were in Kalos. Treachery had turned her mate against them, and led to their own banishment here, in Unova, but that hadn't stopped them from being heroes. If she somehow managed to go home, she intended to exonerate them. Not that it was very likely now. No one escaped a Houndoom.

Despite what she'd done to the Swords of Justice, what her mate had labeled them as, they had still taken her in. They were, truly, the noblest of Pokémon. She still could not believe how easily they had all been fooled. But none of that mattered, now. The Houndoom had her scent. She was as good as dead. It would never let her go.

She looked at the little Ralts in her arms, and teleported to the Pledge Grove. She knew it would lead the hunters there, but she had to try and get help. There was no choice but to Battle now. The Houndoom's howl echoed again in the distance, but this time, four figures appeared in front of her. She collapsed, panting. "He...Teleported… Please…they're coming."

Cobalion looked at her, and nodded. "Keldeo." His mental baritone was impressive, and commanding. The youngest of the Swords looked up, already in his Resolute Form. "Take the young one north. To Humilau. The Humans there are kind, and there are many places to hide. Wait for our return."

Keldeo looked ready to argue, but another howl echoed. This one was closer. "Go!" Cobalion growled, "If it gets the young one's scent, he too is doomed."

The Gardevoir looked at her son as Keldeo prepared to flee. She reached out to him, her mind enveloping his. She shared her memories as well, though she locked them deep. They would only surface when he was ready to see them. She hoped that someday, he would be the king his father had foreseen. The king Albion needed. "Go little one…be safe…I love you." The young Ralts was too upset and confused for words, so he settled for emotions. Love. Sadness. Reluctance to leave. It almost broke her noble composure. Almost.

Keldeo took the young Ralts onto his back, and jetted out of the grove with the water shooting from his hooves, over the trees, and began heading north. Minutes later, a growl filled the grove. "Down, Cerberus." A voice silenced the Houndoom. A human voice, belonging to a human woman. She was clad in red leather that was entirely too revealing. She matched the colors of her mega evolved Houndoom, but where he was more black, she was more crimson. They went well together. She grinned at the exhausted Gardevoir. "Igraine…at last."

The Gardevoir's eyes went wide. "Circe…? I don't…but why?" She had never seen the Trainers behind the Houndoom that had followed her from her former home. She'd never imagined this, however. She knew Circe had a Pyroar and a pair of Lycanroc, but the Houndoom was new, and most likely borrowed judging by the name. If that was indeed the case, the former Queen of Albion had more enemies than she'd originally thought. The true Cerberus only ever hunted for one master, though it had a bad habit of ending others who tried to take his name as well. It made more sense now. That witch had foreign aid from the Imperium. She was playing with fire, and she probably didn't even realize it. The Imperator was as devious as he was charismatic.

Her eyes moved to her defenders, as they stood before her in a protective triangle wedge. "Now now…you shouldn't get invol- wait a minute…I know you three…oh my Arceus…you found the Banished Knights! And they're actually protecting you! Oh, this is too much." The woman laughed for a good fifteen seconds. Terrakion snarled. The Houndoom eyed him most of all with a wary look, but he was only half paying attention. He could almost smell another Ralts line scent. Cerberus blinked, as he recognized the Gallade King he'd been ordered to kill. His scent was all over the three warriors in front of him. The Houndoom drooled. That fight had been truly enjoyable...and delicious.

The woman continued, "Do you know what they say about you three back in your 'homeland'? Do you know how the people of Arborstone see you? Egg breakers, they call you. Honorless deceivers. And Cobalion…" she grinned at the blue Pokémon, "You they hate most of all…the renegade leader who returned to kill the King he served after you failed, your betrayal is legend, now."

"Lies!" Cobalion's telepathy filled the air around them.

"Truths. Although this is Unova, so it could also be Ideals." The woman said, grinning. "Morgana says it, and the beloved people you hoped would one day respect you again believe her, easily. It must be tiring. You do so much to save them, all of them, and yet only the Pokémon ever actually believe in you. Maybe that's why you spent so long protecting them in this region, and not the Humans."

"We defend all who need our help…Humans have a tendency to be more of a hindrance. Your kin are not defenseless. Not in this region. Unovans are fierce warriors." This came from Virizion now, who had spent quite a while with the Trainer-turned-Champion, Hilda. Hilda still had her Pokéball, but did not mind if she stayed with her fellow Swords. It was the closest thing to a home any of them had had since leaving Albion, and Cobalion had found having at least one human liaison a boon.

"It doesn't really matter what Unovans are. Or what any of you do. You already know how this ends. Tonight, the former Queen dies." The Houndoom snarled, and Terrakion faced it down, shifting the wedge to take point position. The Houndoom drool paused, as Cerberus realized how outmatched he was. Normally, three on one would be no problem for Cerberus, but only his true master could bring his other heads out. One of the many reasons he hadn't wanted to be 'traded' temporarily to this woman who barely knew him.

"Your little puppy has to go through me first." The large rock type lowered his head, but did not charge.

The woman frowned for a moment, and then pulled another ball from her hip. It was a deep purple with green highlights. "Natubratus…Forest's Curse!" The Trevenant she called out glared at the Houndoom for a moment, before doing as ordered. Terrakion charged, but the massive purple roots that were a part of the ghost tree's Move stopped its charge before it even began. Circe grinned. "Now you're all weak to my fire…" In this instance, the Trevenant had replaced Terrakion's rock typing with grass…for as long as its roots held, anyways.

The Houndoom leapt forward then, and bathed all of them in its' fire. The Swords cried out in pain as the unnaturally dark flames burned them, and the Gardevoir they were defending.

Just North of Humilau City - Unova Region

Keldeo finally stopped running once he found a cave that lacked inhabitants. He'd gone the long way for sure, spending most of the trip running atop the water, a trick he'd learned once he'd mastered Sacred Sword, and made full use of his elemental typing. The little Ralts had hung on the entire trip, often asking for his mother. Keldeo did his best to calm the young one, but knew what the fate of his mother likely was.

He didn't know about the other Swords, but he did know that a Houndoom never gave up on its prey. Their Mega Form was even more brutal, and relentless. He'd heard the legend of one Houndoom with three heads, Cerberus, who was the most relentless of all, but he seriously doubted that howl had been from the three headed beast. Cobalion and the others had been in worse scrapes, they could handle a Houndoom. And, they had Terrakion. No fire type stood a chance against him.

Days passed, as Keldeo scavenged the nearby forests for berries. Thankfully, it was summer, and the fruit was plentiful. Only Alola got more sun than the eastern coast of Unova this time of year.

The young Ralts grasped much of what had happened, mainly from sensing Keldeo's emotions. The conclusion he always reached, was that whatever had befallen his mother was entirely his fault. She'd warned him not to Teleport blindly out of the grove, but he had done exactly that.

It had been fun, at first. He met all manner of Pokémon in the woods, and only reached out in fear to his mother when he heard her shouting for him, and the howl that shortly followed.

He often wandered the woods around the cave they now called home, on the northern shore of Unova, sad, lost, until one day, he ran into something he'd never seen before.

His mother had called them humans, and had spoken fondly of her own, back in the home-she-never-named. From what he could sense, this human in particular was kind, and what's more, was this human had a psychic type with her. He didn't recognize it, but it was red and yellow, and had a long stick that shot fire into the air.

He'd approached the Pokémon quietly, and realized suddenly that it was a male when he heard it speak to him. "I see you, little Ralts. You should not wander far from home. What would your mother think?"

The Delphox had thought that would scare the little Pokémon back into the woods and safety, but instead, it started crying. He blinked, glanced at his oblivious, sleeping human, and then moved quickly, shushing the little one, and then noticed how young it was. "Hush now, it's okay. Are you lost?"

The Ralts sniffled, and then shook his head. "My mother…gone…" He didn't have psychic-type speech down very well, but he'd learned a lot from Keldeo in the past few days.

The Delphox's eyes narrowed. "Was she caught? Did a Human take her?"

The Ralts again shook his head, and fresh tears welled up from under his green hair. He couldn't explain with words, so instead, he reached out to the kind, strange Pokémon, and shared his memories. The Delphox sighed with sadness. A Houndoom. That explained much.

"I don't know where to go…lost." the Ralts managed, and he kept whimpering. The psychic fox examined the hatchling's memories, and nodded, slowly, in understanding. This infant was heir to a Kingdom, and, under the protection of Keldeo, a Sword of Justice. Since this was Unova, the fox decided not to interfere in Sword business. Those who did had a habit of dying.

The Delphox looked around for what he assumed was Keldeo, but the Sword was thankfully nowhere to be found. He did however, know where the cave they were residing in was, so he guided the youngling back there. "I can help guide you. But come, first show me your cave. We shouldn't stay out in the open. Not unless you want to be caught."

The Ralts didn't know what 'caught' meant, but he led the kind psychic type back to their cave anyways. Once there, the strange Pokémon began gathering sticks, plants, and other strange materials that it pulled from the depths of its fur. "Sit here, little one, and I shall give you guidance."

The Ralts tilted his head, feeling somewhat better being back in the cave, and munching on an Oran berry. "Guidance? Gratitude."

The Delphox smirked. He was saying emotions now. He'd forgotten how cute baby Ralts were. "Hush. Watch. I will discern the nature of your future…and from that, you can figure out where to go. Perhaps you'll even find your mother."

Thankfully, the little Ralts was too young to understand what skepticism felt like, and instead he sat, and did as the red and yellow Pokémon said.

The Delphox drew his wand then, and the circle of twigs lit up on the cave floor, incinerating the plants he'd put within it. Smoke filled the immediate area, and then, he summoned the power. "I see…you will become strong. A Gallade, like your father…a great warrior…with a weapon of serious power…" He glanced at the Ralts, not quite believing what his third eye told him. Excalibur? Even Pokemon thought that it was only a legend. He continued on regardless. "You have many paths before you, but only one will lead to the answers you seek. If you wish to find your mother…go with the...turtle? Hmm."

Ralts tilted his head. "Turtle?" He smiled. "Turtle turtle turtle!" He liked that word.

The Delphox chuckled. "Yes…something turtle related will guide you towards your destiny…I can't tell if it's a Pokémon or not…but that doesn't matter. You will know the turtle when you see it, so trust your instinct, and go with it when you find it."

"How I find?" The Ralts asked, and the Delphox swatted him with his soft tail for his poor grammar. The Ralts giggled, the concept of swatting in general was entirely unknown to him, thankfully. Thus, he grabbed the tail and snuggled it. "Soft. Gratitude!"

"You mean, 'How do I find it'." The Delphox managed through a hard laugh. "Let's see…it's near here…interesting…in three days, go north-west from this cave. You will find your turtle." He grinned at the Ralts, sensing his next question. "North-west is that direction." He pointed, and the Ralts nodded.

"Del! Where are you!?" The Delphox's ears perked up. His Trainer was calling for him. He'd recognize her voice anywhere.

"I must go now." He said to the young Ralts. "Stay safe, listen to Keldeo, and do as I told you in three days. Which way is north-west?"

The young Ralts pointed, and the fox chuckled, and gave him a pat. "Good lad. Now, go rest. Perhaps we'll meet again in the future."

The little Ralts gave him a hug, and shared an emotion he couldn't name, so again he said "Gratitude..." It was sad though, tinged by the understanding that they were parting. He had bad experiences with parting.

Del smiled. Using Future Sight like that took a lot out of him, but in this case, he sensed it was worth it. He didn't quite know why, but he did know one thing. They would definitely meet again.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 29, 2024

Foreword: The following is the second short story that people may/may not have already read, that will be relevant to imminent plots. The second of three. Enjoy.

The Lady of the Lake

Scandaga Lake - Unova Region, circa Chapter 27

As Arthur bamfed himself away from the Fornian Rebel base in the Majestic Canyon, he opened his eyes to find himself once more staring at Scandaga Lake. His last trip here had been brief, but his humans had certainly enjoyed themselves, and the rest of his brothers and sisters had frolicked for hours on the shores and within the lake itself while the humans had occupied the cabin. Now, it was empty, and quiet. Almost too quiet.

He reached his psychic senses out for Merlin, but detected no trace. He summoned his power then, and frowned, as the image of the Shadow Tyranitar readying a Shadow-empowered Hyper Beam to his face filled his mind, and broke his focus. He panted, kneeling at the edge of the lake, and punched the shoreline in frustration. That had never happened before, and while he had been knocked out a few times, he understood that death had been a lot closer than he would've liked. Had Alex not broken the rules of battle, he would likely no longer be among the living. The Hand of the Prophet had broken them first, but that was besides the point for the honorable Gallade. Returning to his ball in the middle of an enemy move just felt wrong.

Arthur looked up suddenly, as he heard a faint bamf sound, and then footsteps. Coming down the shore towards him was what appeared to be a shiny Gallade. His upper half was a royal blue, his 'helmet' had a steel color to it, and his eyes and heart piece were orange. "Hail." He said through his projected mental voice, raising his right arm. "Are you the one they call Arthur?"

Arthur stood, and peered at the Gallade. Being a psychic, and tied as he was to Alex's mind, he could tell this one was almost as strong as he was. He had yet to encounter a Gallade that was on his level, or even close to it, and the thought made him eager for a battle, even if this one's arms were a bit lopsided, with his left being more…beefy, than his right. There were courtesies to perform first, however. He bowed, and then spoke, "I am Arthur. Why have you sought me out, stranger?"

The blue and white Gallade smirked at him. "I am Lancelus. I was sent by the Lady of the Lake to come and retrieve you."

Arthur blinked, and then slowly turned his head to look at the lake they were next to. "There's a lady in this lake?"

Lancelus blinked, and then chuckled, and shook his head. "No. She resides in the Great Lake, up in Superior Forest. There is a gathering of other Gallade there. We would be honored if you would join us."

Arthur nodded, and then looked out over the lake again. "I would, but I have a mission I must accomplish here, first. The Original Dragon deemed it of great importance. I am sorry, but I must decline."

Lancelus nodded. "I understand. Duty comes first. We will be gathered for some days yet, if you end up being free to join us, you are welcome to. Until we meet again, Arthur." The shiny Gallade bowed then, and Teleported away, presumably back to the Great Lake.

Arthur spent the rest of the evening meditating by the shore of Scandaga Lake, and as he did, he found himself dreaming, as he accidentally fell asleep. He didn't usually dream, as typically all he needed was four hours of semi-awake rest. While his Trainer and brothers slept, he usually trained, but in that space of time, as Alex was fornicating, prepping his Pokésaber for replication, and readying their team for the Trial in the Abyssal Ruins, Arthur had a dream.

It started as one involving his mother, and his father, for once. He'd always had trouble picturing his dad, but now that Arthur was intimately familiar with how Gallade looked, it wasn't hard to guess what his father had looked like. He saw the pair of them, also by the side of a lake, in a region that his instinct told him had to be Albion, the region he was apparently from, originally.

The oddest part of the dream, was that Arthur himself was still an egg, and as the dream went on, he became more and more convinced that this was more of a vision than a dream. He saw a Mesprit rise from the lake his parents were beside, and his blue eyed mother greeted her as an old friend. His father gave a nod, which she returned, and then, she looked at Arthur. Or rather, the egg he was inside.

Her voice was calming, and his semi-aware consciousness had a feeling that the words the Mesprit conveyed were either happening in real time in the present, or had been left as a message to the future from the past. It was all a bit hard to keep in chronological order, but her calming feminine tones filled his head all the same. "Some day, you will visit me in my home region. Some day, you will journey to the Great Lake. When you do, you will awaken the power your father always desired, but never achieved, and with it, you shall be the greatest King that Albion has ever known."

Arthur willed himself awake, and his eyes snapped open. He found himself panting, and then, another voice thundered in his skull, this time, he knew it belonged to Tao. "Go to her, son of Albion. The time has come."

Arthur furrowed a mental brow. "But what about my brothers? They'll need me for this Trial of yours, won't they?"

Tao was slow to answer, but when he did he said, "Perhaps. Perhaps not. You will have time for this, either way. Time flows differently around the Great Lake. A few hours in Unova will be almost a day, over there. Go. Traveling there will help you awaken Merlin, and once you go there, you may find more success here."

Arthur felt the dragon withdraw from his headspace, and nodded to himself. He took one last look at the lake he was sure Merlin was sleeping in, somewhere, but he heeded Tao's wisdom, and propelled himself into the air, heading northwest, towards the location of the Great Lake. It didn't take all that long to reach it, and he felt the difference in time almost immediately as he floated down towards it.

He spied a group of Gallade, surrounding a pair of Kirlia, who were kneeling beside the Mesprit from his vision. All eyes turned upwards towards him, as he descended, and landed right on the shoreline, next to the Mesprit. She inclined her head, and then projected her soothing mental tones for all those gathered to hear, "Welcome, Arthur. You've arrived just in time. Percival, and Bors here were just about to become Gallades as well."

Upon hearing the Mesprit name the newest arrival to the gathering of Gallades, an older Gallade wearing what seemed to be a ragged, worn gray cloak that covered his lithe form limped forward, and knelt before him. "Dear Ector, now is not the time for-"

"A thousand pardons my Lady...but this is long overdue." The older Gallade's wrinkled eyes settled on Arthur, and a smile cracked his visage. "You look just like Uther did, in his prime." The Gallade called Ector bowed his head then. "Nimue and your noble father charged me with ferrying your mother away to Unova, and safety...we were split up, as I attempted to draw the Houndoom from her scent…" He lifted his cloak then, and the group collectively gasped and winced, as they saw his legs, covered in bite marks surrounded by burns. Remnants of many a Fire Fang. "They still burn me...a reminder of how I failed her...failed you, your Highness. I will accept whatever punishment you deem fit to give me."

Arthur looked at Ector for a long moment, feeling a bit overwhelmed as he'd just landed, but a glance at the Mesprit and the gathered crowd told him they had an inkling of who he was, perhaps more than he had himself, and they expected him to act. So act he did. He smiled at Ector, and put a sword-hand on his cloak covered shoulder. "You gave me time to hatch. You gave my mother a chance to find safety on this continent, as well as friends, other knights, who also pledged to defend her, and saved me, long enough to find a Trainer." His mentally projected words caused a stir in the crowd, and Ector frowned as he heard that, but Arthur continued on. "I found a Trainer who made me part of a team that can topple world-eating dragons. I think we'll be strong enough for the reclamation of Albion soon enough."

At that, one of the Gallade in the crowd raised an extended sword arm and mentally shouted, "On that day, I will join you!" The eyes shifted to him, and Arthur smirked, before walking towards the Gallade in question.

The other Gallade moved towards him in turn, and they clasped blades, as Arthur grinned, and spoke. "Bedivere. What are the odds of the only other Gallade in Unova being here?"

Bedivere chuckled. "Unova makes us tough...but apparently you and your Trainer have been hard at work since we last met. It wouldn't be so close a contest this time, I think."

Arthur chuckled as well, letting his arm shift back to normal as the swordshake ended. "I haven't quite mastered a physical Ghost Move yet...but I've been working on my Aerial Ace, and Fury Cutter. You are right...I've grown quite a lot. But don't ever let that keep you from asking for a Battle. I rather enjoy fighting other Gallades."

A tone of snark came from the crowd around them. "If you spar with weaklings, weak is how you will stay. I don't care how high a level you think you're at. You can't face Morgana. You don't even know how she took over our homeland."

"That is why he has come, Agravain. To learn. To lead." The Mesprit spoke this time, as she floated towards Arthur and Bedivere. The other Gallade parted, so they didn't crowd her. "I am Nimue. The Guardian of this lake, and the Kanadia region's waters. I once called Albion my home, for a long time, but this lake is my demesne. I do miss the company though...your mother was a good friend."

Arthur's eyes drifted downwards. "Then...you know."

Nimue nodded, visibly reacting to the shift in his emotion. One lengthy tail tilted his chin up at her. "Many of your kin felt Igraine's death...and when we learned the details...those gathered here wished to help. They came to me, one by one, and I told them to wait until I called upon them. I saw your path lead you here tonight, and tonight, we will discover what the last true Queen of Albion left for you."

Arthur shook his head free of the tendril, and sadness tinged his voice. "She left nothing. I have nothing of her. Because of my idiocy, all I have are vague memories. I can barely recall her face."

Nimue sighed softly, and lifted his head once more with one tail, while the other touched itself to his third eye. As her crimson jewel aligned with it, it projected the image of Igraine over the lake. The gathered Gallade murmured in awe, but Arthur found his vision rapidly blurring from the buildup of tears. Many memories that were more feeling than image returned to him, but he was aware enough not to miss her words.

"Arthur, my son, if you're seeing this, then you've found Nimue. I can already tell you feel guilty for what is about to happen to me...don't. It was Uther's actions, and mine, that brought me to this fate. Yours can, and will, be different. Our family is blessed by the Light to rule over Albion. There are many secrets there we must keep from the Shadow, and the protections guarding them will not hold forever. They can withstand three decades, at least, before Morgana finds a way to breach Arborstone's vaults. If she does, the world may very well fall to the Shadow. The power to fight it is within you, Arthur. As it was in your father, and me as well...but it is not guaranteed. Do not take it for granted, for it can easily turn to Shadow. It all depends upon the wielder. One last thing…as we left, the Queen stole the egg of the Ralts you were to be betrothed to someday. A Gardevoir who will be capable of using Scry. So long as Morgana has that power, she will be able to strike at you and those you hold dear. Fare well, my son."

Arthur blinked, frowning, as the message ended. He wanted so much more, but time had barely allowed this to survive, and Igraine had not had much power left when she'd created it. "She stole an egg?"

Nimue nodded, solemnly. "Morgana managed to swipe it in the chaos that enveloped Arborstone following Uther's death...she was hoping for yours, but in your poor betrothed, found a means to extend her power further. There exist in this world stones capable of bestowing a Human with power rivaled only by Infinity Energy. Morgana acquired one from Eous."

"Is there a way to break this Ralts free?" Arthur asked, as he glanced at his sword-arms. They'd glowed with a new type of energy in his last battle. It had been genuinely powerful.

Nimue tilted her head, and frowned. "I have not been able to see her for quite some time. Wherever Morgana has hidden her, it is beyond even my sight…" Though Nimue could guess where Morgana might keep such a prisoner, now was not the time to go searching blindly to attempt a rescue mission.

"I need to awaken Merlin. The Original Dragon has need of his skills, and his sight is greater than anyone's, no?" Arthur said, focusing on what had brought him here.

Nimue nodded. "Merlin's sight can pierce even the Time Vortex. When you awaken the Mind Plate that is now one with your heart piece, you will be able to stir Merlin from his slumber. He is a heavy sleeper, so do not be afraid to stir up his lake." The Mesprit seemed to have a bit of a smirk at the thought of her grumpy contemporary being woken abruptly. "Now then...Percival, Bors, you have both been very patient. The time has come. Recite the oath."

The pair of Kirlia shared a look, and then nodded. The one called Percival spoke first, "To never commit a murder."

Bors spoke immediately after saying, "To remain loyal to King and region."

Percival spoke again, and the two Kirlia continued switching off in that manner. "To renounce cruelty, and always act with honor."

"To grant mercy, even to one's enemy."

"To help the weak, and those who need aid."

"To fight for what is right, instead of what we desire."

Then, they spoke at the same time. "To uphold the values the Alpha Pokémon embodies. This, we swear to do with the power given to us!"

Nimue nodded, and smiled at the pair. "Your hearts are true and your words are honest. Take your Dawn Stones, and awaken what lies within you." She extended her tails again, and at the tip of each, there was a flash of light. A pair of Dawn Stones appeared before the Kirlia in question, and they both eagerly grabbed for them, as Arthur and the others watched on.

Light swirled around the pair, and when it faded, two new Gallade stood confidently before Nimue. Then, they turned to the others, and bowed. The gathered Gallade extended and clacked their sword-arms together, creating a loud racket that vaguely resembled clapping. Arthur noted the only one who didn't clap, was Agravain, the same Gallade who'd had a salty tone earlier, in regards to Bedivere. His arms were crossed, and he was still glaring Arthur's way. Bors and Percival joined the crowd, where Lancelus patted their shoulders, and welcomed them to adulthood.

Arthur moved among the crowd then, gathering names, and chatting for a moment, as the Gallade celebrated two new warriors in their midst. Nimue watched them all with a patient, but serene smile. Once Arthur made the rounds, to everyone but Agravain, he approached the Lady of the Lake.

"Lady Nimue, you said you gathered us here because these Gallade expressed a desire to reclaim Albion, right?" Arthur asked.

Nimue nodded. "It took some longer than others to learn of Igraine's fate, but yes. This is the beginning of the force that might yet reclaim Albion."

Arthur smirked at her. "And do you notice anything missing?"

Nimue smirked back at him. "Why don't you tell them, Gallade who would be King."

Arthur turned to the others then. "I know not all of you may have one, so if you don't have a Trainer, kindly step to the side." He gestured to his right, and those Gallade without Trainers, whose names he'd remembered as Lancelus, Gawain, Gaheris, and Gareth, along with Ector, and now Bors and Percival, all stepped to the side.

To the remaining group, which consisted of Gallahad, Agravain, Bedivere, and Tristan, he asked, "Hands up, if your Trainer is unaware that you are currently here." Each hand rose slowly, and all but Agravain smirked when Arthur also lifted his hand. He turned to the larger group then. "I would not force such a bond upon Pokémon like yourselves, but, you all have the same psychic sight I do. Compare our Trained group's level of strength, to yours."

He saw all but Lancelus shift uncomfortably, as they realized the difference in strength was rather noticeable. Arthur continued on. "Humans can be cruel. Pig headed. Gross. Stupid. Loud. But, they can also be honorable. Compassionate. Kind, and strong. I have seen thousands of Trainers who have brought out the strength of their Pokémon partners with a bond built on trust and love. I would encourage those of you who have found your strength wanting to find a worthy Human to train you, for we will need them in Albion's reclamation as well."

At that, surprising almost no one least of all Arthur, Agravain spoke up. "You overestimate Humans. They ruined this world once, and they ruin Albion as we speak. I only tolerate mine because, as you said, they can make us stronger. Their vitamins, their training methods, are things we should use, and then discard."

Arthur sighed. "By ignoring the bond you share, you are ignoring a massive source of strength."

Agravain sneered at him. "I don't believe you. Humans only bring weakness, like all other inferior lifeforms."

Arthur smirked, and then glanced at Nimue, who nodded. "Then believe your eyes, Agravain. Behold what the bond you can achieve can do, even when they are hundreds of miles from you." He extended his right sword-arm then, and empowered it with his Sacred Sword. Murmurs from the crowd grew, as that move alone proved him the heir of Uther. Arthur focused, as he had during the fight with the Hand of Death, and reached for the Light. He sighed, as he felt it again. Calm, but focused. Kind, but righteous.

Arthur held the burning golden blade high for all to see, and he heard Ector whisper, "Excalibur…" Before he brought the tip of the sword-arm to his heart piece, which now played host to the Mind Plate fused with it. The only one that Tao had not awakened with his Light, back in the Fornian Rebel's cave. Now it awoke again, and he felt Alex's curiosity, as Arthur drew on their bond and the Infinite Energy within the Plate to achieve the next stage of evolution. He kept what he was doing somewhat hidden from his Trainer though, as there would be a time to inform him of these Gallade, and he felt that time was not yet here. Given how distracted his Trainer was by Jess, this wasn't too difficult.

Arthur stood before the others, sword-arms burning with Light as he became a Mega Gallade. He turned to look at Ector then. "Sir Ector, step forward, if you would."

The older Gallade did so, as he hobbled forward, and Arthur gently removed the ragged cloak, which had hid even more fiery wounds that covered more than just his legs. "For your defense of my mother, and your honoring of her memory, I will remove the pain of these wounds...we will need you, old knight, when we reclaim Albion."

As he spoke, Arthur touched the tip of his golden sword-arms to each of the wounds, and heal by heal, the old warrior stood straighter, and looked stronger. By the end, he stood tall, and rejoined the other warriors with his head high, his infirmity lessened significantly.

Arthur let the Light energy fade, but held the Mega Form for the moment. "There will come a day, hopefully not long from now, when Nimue will summon you all again. On that day, I want you to tell your Trainers, if you have them, of what you have pledged to help us do. Bring them with you, to this place, and from here we will head to Galar. If they fear for your safety, tell them of my strength, and my Trainer's. He is the Tamer of the Original Dragon. Both he and I will endeavor to keep all of you alive. Now if you'll excuse me, I must depart. He will need me, and Merlin soon."

Lancelus spoke up then. "Might I have a word first, friend Arthur?"

Arthur nodded. Out of all the Gallade, who he typically found himself liking, he and Lancelus got along the best. They had a similar nature, and Arthur could tell the other Gallade was also eager to battle. The two stepped away from the group, as Nimue spoke with them, and began Teleporting them to where they wished to return. Agravain was the first to leave.

Lancelus turned, once they were far enough away, and spoke. "As you no doubt noticed, I am a bit...stronger...than most here. Save for you, of course. I don't know if I could ever find a Human worthy of catching me, or if their balls are even capable of that now. I heard the stronger a Pokémon gets, the harder it is?"

Arthur chuckled. "You can choose to be caught, if that is your wish. Have you not found a Human that's caught your eye with their Battle style?"

Lancelus shrugged. "I don't know many Humans. I was also secreted away from Albion as an egg, and Nimue raised me here. I've left a few times, but this is my home."

Arthur nodded, and then looked at Lancelus for a long moment, as he mentally went over the list of Trainers in the world, that he knew of, who could handle the shiny Gallade's strength. Then, one name came to him that seemed to stick persistently. He was a top tier Trainer, a kind human by all accounts, and an almost unmatched battler.

Once he decided, Arthur smirked. "I think I know the perfect one for you, my friend...go to the Galar region. In their biggest city, called Wyndon, there is a Trainer, at the highest floor, of the tallest tower. His name is Leon. You may have to Battle your way to the top just to see him, but you can handle that, I think. Or just ask the humans to guide you to him. Find Leon. He'll push you to the heights you wish to reach."

Lancelus thanked Arthur, and then, the Mega Gallade launched into the air, and headed for Scandaga Lake once more. His Mega Form dropped halfway through the flight back, but he stayed airborne. He hardly even noticed the shift in power, as he was still thinking of all the faces he'd met. He landed at the lake, far more confident than he'd felt before, and judging by the sky, he hadn't been gone all that long.

He looked at the lake that was said to house Merlin, still thinking of the warriors who would help him reclaim his home someday. He was sure their story was only just beginning.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 30, 2024

Foreword: This is the last of the trio of short stories that is essentially just ten short stories in a row, all having to do with what our A Team has been up to since Alex ordered them to rest. Enjoy.

The A Team's Lost Days

Terra

A deep, rumbling inhale shook the surrounding area, and what followed it was the snore of a Pokémon in a deep, restful sleep. The other Pokémon on the Redwood Ranch were long since used to it though, and the aids at the Redwood Lab knew better than to wake the slowly shifting mountain of earthy tortoise. They did observe him, however. Once a day, every day, the Meadow Plate upon the front of his shell, just above his head, pulsed, and by the end of the hot summer day, the Torterra in question had grown that much larger. Between the heat of summer, and the side effect of Blaze training with Alex's other fire types in his Mega Form, Terra was able to grow truly massive.

This is how the exhausted earth turtle spent most of his vacation, as his Trainer traveled around Koria. He trusted Arbor to keep Alex intact, and failing that, the Storm Crown would, apparently, keep him from expiring early. Probably. Pokémon played on his shell, and the water types occasionally gave the sleeping turtle some of their water, something he subconsciously thanked them for, by producing apples from the tree upon his shell whose species, in nature, did not usually produce fruit. They were a bit sour, but juicy, and best of all, healthy. Those working on the ranch often would give him some water as they passed by, and take an apple to munch on.

Yet as the weeks passed on, each hot, humid day followed by another, Terra slept. Even in thunderstorms, when the humans tried to wake and move him inside, he slept. He ignored the recall to his ball, and even diverted lightning from his tree. With most of his allies able to use electric attacks, and being a ground type, Terra gave absolutely zero Muks about the stormy weather, and eventually, the humans just left him alone. The lightning bolts homed in on his tree, but never seemed to hit him, just the ground around him, or they were diverted to the lightning rods atop the Redwood manor.

Then, finally, after about three weeks of growing and sleeping in consistent patterns, the Torterra yawned loud enough to gather the attention of Pokémon and humans alike. He greeted his Trainer's family members with a hearty "Terra!" and after taking in some actual Pokémon food, which was essentially just ground up berries mixed with complex proteins, he began wandering the ranch. Blaze was gone, it seemed, and he vaguely recalled the fire lizard had left some time ago. There were others on the ranch who regularly used Sunny Day though. Alex's Sunkern had awakened one morning, about three after Blaze had stopped training and heating the ranch, to find a Sun Stone next to his bed. Since then, as Sunflora do, he greeted the rising sun with Sunny Day, and basked in the light.

Terra greeted the Tauros, Miltank, and Bouffalant, moving between their pods of individuals with ease. None got in the massive earth tortoise's way, as he made his way to the small man-made lake the Redwoods had added to the pasture, once it became crowded with other Trainer's Pokémon. There were quite a few new faces, besides the ones Alex had caught but had not yet had time to train. Terra greeted each of them, and soon learned that, for whatever reason, most of them with some significant measure of intelligence knew who he was. It was weird, being famous. He knew Blaze enjoyed the roar of gathered humans in a crowd, but Terra had never cared for them, or loud noises in general.

On his way back to his spot, where he intended to sleep again, a massive Bouffalant got in his path, and snorted at the massive, bored-looking Torterra. The alpha of his herd, clearly, judging by his size and intense eyes. He pawed the ground, and snorted again. George, one of the other Redwoods who actually worked on the ranch, came over and tried to quell the battle, but the Bouffalant knocked him aside. That, managed to irritate Terra. "Leave the Humans be." He rumbled at the angry buffalo.

His would-be opponent pawed the ground. "Battle me! The Human is not important." Terra helped the man up, and then nudged him away. Far away. He looked at the other herds, and gave George a meaningful look. While not as in tune with the creatures as Alex or Geralt, George had enough sense to understand his cousin's psychically smartened earth tortoise was telling him to move the bystanders, which meant a battle would, in fact, be happening.

The Bouffalant facing Terra was twitchy, angry, as they waited for the herds to move, but Terra kept him from going after anyone else. His eyes had hardened now, into a stare, and the earthy tortoise's head bobbed whenever the Bouffalant's anger tried to shift focus. He felt the slice of his Trainer's mind join him for this battle, but Terra already knew what move it would call. He would've preferred his Trainer's whole attention, but he knew Alex was likely busy. That he could give commands from so far away was a testament to his strength, and the strength of their bond.

Once everyone was away, the Bouffalant charged. Behind him, Terra heard Alex's brother murmuring, concerned. Likely worried about the damage to the terrain the earth tortoise's attacks would cause. Luckily for them both, Terra had absorbed what his Trainer had about earthbending, namely, how to control it, and so as the Bouffalant came at him with a long-charged Skull Bash, Terra raised a single foot, slammed it into the ground, and shook the entire ranch as the Earthquake went off.

The Bouffalant's charge knocked aside the rising rocks to his left and his right, then, a wave of hard earth protrusions sent the Bouffalant soaring back into the back part of the ranch, near the lake. Its eyes went poli patterned, and Terra snorted. He'd expected more of a challenge from a fellow alpha. He sensed the humans approaching, likely to assess the damage, but Terra was already bending it back into place, and with a flash of grass energy from the massive centrally placed ash tree on his shell, the grazing plants regrew from the fault lines he'd left in the earth. With time, it would all settle again.

After that, Terra received two more challenges, from other Trainer's partners, who he ended with a single Seed Bomb. Now fully awake, Terra decided to leave the ranch, by making a small, temporary earth bridge over the fence, and then collapsing it back into dirt so the little Pokémon following him couldn't escape. He also used what few vines from Oranguru's Swamp he had growing on his shell to place those resting atop him back in the ranch, before wandering off. For whatever reason, it seemed Alex's family was going to let him wander, which he was glad for.

He actually passed through Derrion Town itself on his way to his destination, half out of curiosity, and had to stop his slow gait, as he took it in. In the year or so since Alex had become Dragon Emperor, many people had flocked to this former pit stop only used by Bostonians for apple picking, or as a place to get fuel on their way south. It hadn't even had a Pokémon Center. Now though, it was a far cry from what it had been. A standard Pokémon Center/Mart had been added on the main thoroughfare. The roads had been properly paved. New houses had been built. There was even a billboard of his Trainer, smirking with a thumbs up, as it promoted some sort of item for the humans to buy. Terra just stared for a good four minutes, taking it all in, before he made his way through.

Of course, as soon as he did, people lost their minds. "Holy Heracross! That's the Champion's Torterra!" "No way, haven't you heard it was sleeping on his ranch?" "No, look at the tree! I'm sure it is. No other Torterra around here is that massive!"

Some of the hovercars, while initially mad that they had to stop, quickly changed their tune and parted for him, as they realized who Terra was. Several humans came up to pet him, and he greeted them with a friendly intonement of his name. Eventually, he passed by the elementary school, and that, caused the kids playing there in the midst of their summer vacation to bounce around on him, for a time. Terra let them. That took most of the day, as they played with him, babbled nonsense, and gave them fruit, but eventually they went home, and the patient grass tortoise moved on.

He found himself on a more 'country' road then, to the northeast of town, that led to an orchard famous for two things: Torterra, and apples. As he walked towards the orchard, he saw one of the orchard hands nudge his partner, as they indulged in some Leaf. One of them called out to him. "Hail, mighty Terra! Everyone just ate, so they might be sleepy, but you're welcome to try to wake them!"

Terra gave a happy call of his name back to the humans, and they just watched. This wasn't the first time Terra had shown up to visit, but last time, Alex had been with him. Terra planted his feet in the ground at the front of the orchard, and one of the closest earth turtles raised her head, curiously. Then, he roared.

"TOOOOORRRRRTERRA!"

The two Leafheads watching stumbled and shouted expletives, as the entire orchard shook with the awakening of literally every apple-bearing grass tortoise they had in this orchard, all standing up at once. They began slowly crowding Terra, as he moved through them, and greeted each one, in the way only the grass tortoises could. One by one he said hello, until he found the females he was looking for. Those with eggs, and Turtwigs too young for the Redwood Lab, were near the back, and the orchard herd followed him, as Terra went to check on his offspring.

Those he'd met last time were long gone, and now, new faces from new clutches, but the same father, stared at their sire in genuine awe. He shared with them, and the other Torterra, what wisdom he had learned from his travels to the south and beyond, and noticed that, for the first time since evolving, he wasn't constantly tired. He could sleep, yes, but then, any Torterra could pretty much nap on command. This was different. He finally felt his inner balance recovered, and realized he kind of wanted to keep battling. Beating the Bouffalant had been far too easy, and he realized what he wanted, was a challenge.

Terra spent most of the rest of his vacation at the orchard, fertilizing future clutches with his selected harem and teaching them to use their inherited moves safely. When he finally heard his Trainer's command to 'assemble', he returned to the ranch with a swarm of Turtwigs in tow, and freshly laid eggs behind him. Eric and his assistants began catching them in balls, and Terra spent the better part of an hour getting his Trainer's brother to retrieve his own ball, and send him into the PC. As always, he was the first to answer Alex's summons.

Leo

The gorgeous, and rather large thunder cat that belonged to her boyfriend purred, and rolled on his back as the Articuno Riders of Valaskjalf gave him belly scritches, and talked with Jess in their rough, ancient tongue. Any compliments for him were said in Common, but most of their conversation was in the language of Norstad.

"The League sent word. They have agreed to our proposal, provided we can get them eight potential Gym Leaders."

Jess nodded. "Brad is still technically their Champion, since the League never counted Pravus as legitimate. His team is still a bit new though…and when it comes to who the actual strongest in Fornia is, there are many claimants, and most are from the scattered Tribes around the region. Only the Yavano have offered their strongest for a Battle."

One of the other girls spoke up then, a brunette as aesthetically appealing as every other female in the circle surrounding the purring thunder cat. "Maybe you should invite all the Tribes. Then we can gather the new Trainers, and figure out who the Champion, and the Elite Four, should be."

"I tried that…" Jessica said, sighing. "But most of the Chiefs won't come unless Alex himself promises that it's safe, and the competition will be fair. They want him to oversee it personally." Like most of the riders, she was in Fornian attire now, something Leo also greatly approved of. Jean shorts that barely went down one's thigh, with a bikini top. Fornia's sun had also turned every single one of them a pleasing tan that they simply couldn't get back home, and the foreign clothes helped beat the heat, and blend with the locals, many of whom had adopted similarly less Arcean clothing styles, especially around the beaches. Dark toned suits were an awful choice for a region as bright and hot as Fornia. Of the Articuno Riders who'd joined her squad during the war, these were the ones who had opted to remain once victory was achieved, and had since become her lieutenants. It was nice, because they knew how to handle the catty disputes among the Scales that a mostly female squad tended to have.

As the other ladies digested her words, one of them narrowed her eyes. They were purple, but went really well with the raven black hair she sported. "These…'chiefs', they deny you because…you are not male?"

A ripple of sudden awareness went through the other women, but Jess hardly noticed, as she'd trailed off into a thought, and nobody had diverted her brain train. She blinked then, registering the words of Yennefer, the 'unofficial leader' of the riders, and their Articuno, while they were still in foreign lands. She was, in every way, a bitch, but Jess had come to like her, even if the feeling wasn't mutual. Many people made assumptions about her because of how she looked, but Jess expected that. Apparently her strength during the war hadn't been enough to sway Yennefer. "Erm…no. Because I'm not the Tamer of the Original Dragon."

Yen widened and narrowed her eyes. "You have Tamed Ho Oh, yes? That will be good enough for the likes of them. Tell them to send their strongest, and tell them your Pokémon League will be overseeing the matches." The other riders nodded in agreement, and Jess sighed, as she felt the inevitable battle of machismo between the primarily patriarchal Tribes and the hardcore feminist riders on a doomed collision course.

"Fine." She said with a sigh. It was worth trying, if nothing else, and she was too tired from dealing with conquered Arceans to argue. Yen had enough sense not to strike anyone first, and cause another war. Many people of the Tribes had fought alongside the eastern forces, though none had the absolute joy that was encountering the foreign female Legendary Pokémon riders as a male. They, in turn, had noted that the 'chiefs' of these foreign tribes had not used any of their women to battle, something they had brought up to Redwood, when Jess was unwilling to press the issue, and cause a cultural incident. She'd seen the more…servile roles the women of the Tribes had done, but there was genuine love there, like a team, one side staying vigilant and battle-ready, the other taking care of everything else that the males couldn't while keeping modern-clothed Fornians out of their forests. She wouldn't have split it perfectly, there were always outliers who needed and deserved to be given a chance to fight, or not, but she understood the customs well enough. In fact, if Jess played things right, she could likely solve that imbalance, now that peace had returned.

She glanced at Leo then, who had, in the midst of blissful belly rub heaven, fallen asleep between the serious toned women. They'd stopped paying him compliments, so he'd stopped caring about their existence. His tongue was lolling out of the agape mouth, and she got a real good look at just how sharp the little kitten's fangs had become. He'd always be that dashingly handsome cub she'd met in Mall Town to her, though. "First, I need to take care of this." Jess finally said, gesturing at Leo. One did not simply leave a curious, monstrously strong electric feline around freshly conquered civilization. Her dashing boy needed to start training again in safer environs, much as she enjoyed having him as a pillow, and making her nightly connection to Alex that much stronger.

The other women left then, and changed into their armor with quiet displeasure. Getting them into their 'real attire' was something Yennefer tried getting them all to do as often as possible, only because every single one of her fliers, when given the choice, preferred the promiscuous outfit to their traditional honored garb. Back home, Yen wore such revealing things often, and didn't mind the attention she got. Here, everything with a penis and hominid ancestry tried flirting with her, and she was very much done with Mewsia their precious 'golden coast'.

Jess woke Leo with calls of his name once they were alone in her Fornian hotel room. She'd demanded a room from a former female high ranking Arcean, one of many who'd used this building as a place to live while away from her family and working for the 'glory of Arceus' twenty hours a day. She was too aware of what the high ranking men had done in such rooms, and frankly, she was of the opinion that she ought to have Ho Oh purify them with fire rather than let people live in such spaces.

As the cat rolled onto his paws and stretched, his neck came up by her lap, expectantly. She waited for his impressive mane to stop sparking, before giving him under-chin scritches. "There's my handsome boy. Are you ready to train again?"

Leo lifted his hand off her jaw, and stared at the floor as he blinked his sharp eyes. The images of humans being incinerated by his own plasma only lasted a few seconds, this time. He nodded. He was at a place where having a real battle would actually help start burying those memories with new ones. Being surrounded by busty, scantily clad women in a sunny, warm, sand-filled paradise had been exactly what he'd needed.

Jess brought him to a place in Transylveticut, which had recently renamed its region to Sylvinia following the war. She'd been with Alex when he'd looked up where exactly his Luxray had originated, and knew it was somewhere in this particular State. Tao had been recently pushing them to be called provinces again, to further bury their violent past, but the term had yet to catch on.

They arrived at a breeding facility, large enough for far more than just Luxray. Some of those Pokémon who grew here (with ideal natures) were sold off to Trainers, like Leo had been. Others (with less than ideal natures) were released into the wild of their home regions. There were many such facilities, now that so much of the population was opting to become a Pokémon Trainer. It was the best way to keep Trainers from breeding Pokémon themselves, and potentially releasing inbred members of a foreign species into a foreign region. Places like this had been the solution to keeping the wild populations healthy and genetically diverse.

As Jess led Leo to the Luxray part of the center, all of the female's manes began standing on end as an alpha approached. A flash of black and gold bounded down from a fake cliff, and landed in front of Leo with a poof of dust and a low growl. His black and gold clothed Trainer was almost as fast, and he and Jess had a chat, as the two Luxray males eyed each other, and began sparking their fur.

Jess left him then, as she knew Alex still battled with his partners. Leo had simply asked to stay with her when they'd been given 'mandatory time off' as Alex had called it. "This way." The blonde Trainer said, and Leo glared at him as they walked. He remembered all too well being trapped and then sold by this human. Of course, with how strong that had made him, he hardly regretted that it had happened. He would've preferred to have left in his own time though. The only thing he had to settle here, was a matter of pride.

"I'll be the referee. You two can work this out by Battling on your own. Begin." The man said, as he leaned back behind the field's energy shields. The inside quickly became a localized thunderstorm, as two alpha Luxray with golden fur faced off on even ground. Leo snarled at his sire. "When last we Battled…I was barely a hatchling. You will regret stealing me from my family with a cheap farce of a Battle!"

As he'd inhaled, he'd gathered the power for his own version of the Hyper Voice, and as he finished, he roared, and the sound became physical, and then started sparking with lightning. It washed over the older Luxray, and the foreign energy paralyzed him, and dealt damage.

"Impressive…" The old cat growled, as it steadied itself. "Most impressive." His fur flared then, and Leo watched as Alex melded their eye's power together. The elder Luxray shot his energy out as spikes, from numerous chakra points throughout his body. Being a Luxray, most were located in his muscled areas, but it was enough to break the paralysis from another electric type.

The energy the old cat summoned stayed though, and the older thunder cat began a Wild Charge at Leo, who countered with Double Team. The charge ran through the circle of shadow clones, until it hit all of them. It burned out of power as the older thunder cat looked around for his wayward offspring.

From the shadows, four fangs lit with fire energy, and by the time Leo leapt at his father, they'd manifested into an attack he wouldn't resist. The Fire Fang tossed him, but Leo's sire landed, and smirked. "I couldn't see through them…someone taught you the Dark version of that Move."

"We're night hunters." Leo answered, snarling. "The darkness is our ally."

They both fired a Thunderbolt then and as evenly trained as Leo had been in physical and special moves, with his physical ones only being slightly stronger, his father's special attack power was a focus of his rash nature. Leo used Substitution, as he called it, and left a Pokédoll to tank the hit. It was irritating not having a type advantage.

He felt Alex's direct focus then. He was walking somewhere, and had closed his eyes to focus on helping his partner. He put a mental elbow on Leo's mental shoulder and said, "Drill Run looks an awful lot like Fang Over Fang, doesn't it." His mental image smirked, and held up a mental representation of the power in his Earth Plate shard. Leo felt the power, got the reference, and grinned. Alex had taken to mentally watching all the numerous anime Percy had shown Leo and turned him on to, when he'd had time anyways. Leo understood Alex was still only in the early days of the epically long Japanese-inspired ninja anime that had survived from old Earth completely intact, but that didn't make his point less valid.

On the field, his father swatted the Substitution doll away, annoyed. "I've never met an Alpha that hides so often…and for so long."

There was a noise from where he'd swatted the doll, and while the older Luxray looked, it took him too long to recognize the remnants of an upward jump through the hedges surrounding the battlefield, which hid the energy shield housing. Leo roared from above him, and spun with the ground typed energy summoned by his Trainer's mind, barely controlling it, as he worked it into a tornado of sandy pain that came down on his sire from above. Only seconds too late did the old cat glance upwards, just in time for the move to connect.

Leo let the super effective hit take its toll, and the older cat fell on one leg, and the other three soon followed, as his fainting reflex took over. Leo panted, staring him down, but he'd stopped moving. "That's it. Another victory for the wayward offspring." His Trainer said with boredom in his voice. Before he could do anything, Leo trotted off the field, as his father was revived and restored.

Leo made his way back to the pen, and identified by smell which females were related to him, and which were not. Eventually, he found one who met his gaze evenly. She was a Luxio, but close to growing. With a lightning quick slash of his claws, he cut the Everstone collar from her neck, convinced her to come with him, and the two dashed off into the wilderness, heading north.

It took several days of fast paced travel, but he got them back to the ranch easily enough. They were dirty, hungry, exhausted, but they'd made it. One of the other Redwoods put his female in a Luxury Ball, and Leo spent the rest of his days off relaxing in the warm sunbeams, and making kittens. Eric didn't seem to mind the option to give an electric type to his potential Trainers. When Terra eventually returned, Leo learned he'd evidently slept through his Trainer's order to 'assemble', and he helped the gigantic earth tortoise communicate his need to get into the Box, before joining him and bidding his new little family farewell.

Hydrus

After being deposited on the ranch like the rest of his team, Alex told his massive mudfish to enjoy his freedom, and his well-earned break. Like some of his teammates, Hydrus stayed near the ranch, but off of it. To the north was a swampy bog he'd always liked the look of, but it was infested with members of the Poli line. He went there first, intending very much to make a home for his own offspring.

The local Politoed and Poliwrath naturally did not take kindly to his intrusion, but he made it clear he intended to stay. There was only one way to 'peacefully' settle such a dispute, and so, Hydrus called out the alpha of the Poli pod in his own swamp, confident he could beat the frog.

They started, with a Rain Dance. Hydrus understood his Trainer was with him, and he used the power of the Splash Plate affixed to his chest to attain his Mega Form. The rain would make Hydrus faster, and would heal the Politoed over time thanks to its own ability.

The two Pokémon were slamming the ground in perfect sync as the rain began to fall faster. Hydrus had no intention of striking first, and so the large Politoed fired a Water Pulse at him. Hydrus simply smirked, and tanked it on his beefy chest, as he stood tall on his now comically small legs. He raised the oversized arms of his Mega Form, and brought down an Avalanche of ice on the frog. While it didn't do much damage, it did make him slower, thanks to his biochemistry.

Another Water Pulse followed then, as well as a Mud Shot, but they might as well have been splashes of water and mud for all they did to Hydrus. Seeing the lack of an effect, the Politoed opened its mouth to start singing Perish Song, a move that guaranteed no winner, but Hydrus countered first, with Darkest Lariat, taking the frog in the throat, and cutting off the song of doom. Blaze hadn't been the only one watching old battles.

The Politoed alpha went skipping painfully across water and swampy mounds of earth alike, before crashing into a tree, and Hydrus winced along with the Politoed's family. Hydrus left them to tend the large frog, while he left to Aqua Jet the short distance back to the ranch, take a Super Potion, and then head back to the swamp.

The younger Polis fired water and ground attacks at him, but they did even less than their leader's had against his Mega Form. He slowly approached the unconscious frog, only to be stopped by a burly Poliwrath. Hydrus convinced him he could help the semi-conscious alpha by letting his Mega Form go, and negotiating. After fumbling with the made-for-humans grip, he managed to spray the Politoed's wounds with the concentrated healing spray.

Once it was conscious again, Hydrus claimed its swamp for his own kind. Many of his kin had moved to the Nameless Bog further south of Derrion town after this one was taken over by a Politoed who could usually handle any attempts on their territory from Seismitoad or a Swampert. This Swampert, however, was on an entirely different level.

Seeing they had nowhere to go, Hydrus offered to extend the swamp. They could have the northern part, but the southern part would belong to the Swampert, and from there, he could send his offspring to find a Trainer at the Lab, if they wanted one.

Over the several months Hydrus had to himself, the swamp expanded, and he managed to create a peaceful union between the Poli line, the Seismitoad line, and his own kind. They worked together, instead of fighting, planted berries with organization only humans had used before, and kept their lands safe from encroaching grass types who couldn't be reasoned with. Before long they had enough food to help other species, and by the time Alex gave the word to assemble, Hydrus trusted one of the Seismitoad to keep things in line along with the alpha Politoed. He too made his way back to the Redwood Lab, and after three of Alex's main ten returning and gesticulating to the PC, Eric had enough sense to recognize something was up.

Blaze

"So how do you and your Charizard keep in such good shape after so many years, Chairman Leon?"

"Well, we train. Not as...often as we used to, but just as intense! We Battle, we travel, we use our skills to help those who need it, people and Pokémon alike. Charizard is my Ace, and probably my favorite Pokémon species, but the rest of my team works just as hard to be called World Champions."

"You heard it here first, folks. The Chairman of Galar will be competing in the upcoming World Tournament. Though if he wins, I guess we'll be getting a new Chairman! Leon's thoughts on a potential replacement, coming up in…" Blaze nodded off, as the Galarian accent of the reporter lulled him to sleep. He still listened, of course, his awareness was almost just as good with his eyes closed, linked as he was to a psychic human. He rested his sight balls, and took in the report through his ears instead.

The aged interviewers from PNN's Galar branch played on the old television in front of the pair of lounging Charizard. Blaze had gotten Arthur to tell the humans what he wanted, and Eric had set him up a small TV viewing station just outside the lab, by the window that the older Redwood used to blow Leaf smoke out of. Blaze briefly regretted never having the chance to battle the old man, before focusing back on the tiny, portable TV usually used for Technical Machines. Naturally, they could play other disks as well.

"Your Charizard is easily in a tier of his own though." The reporter, Gillian, said to Leon as her latest inane babble ended. "Renowned worldwide as the Unbeatable Charizard. Not even Alain's could beat yours. Your last match with him only needed two Moves."

Leon nodded, paused, and then decided to share a story. "Master Mustard said my Charizard had an 'interesting lineage' when I first got him. His father was actually a Tyrantrum, and being able to use Ancientpower has been…very good for type coverage. And other Charizard. I knew Flamethrower would be most useful though, so we practiced enhancing his fire. One method we used since he was a Charmander, was parting water with his flames, even if only briefly. First puddles. Then streams. Lakes. Then waterfalls." Blaze opened one eye, as the droning humans finally mentioned something interesting.

"You're saying your Charizard can split a waterfall with just his Flamethrower!?" Gillian asked, genuinely surprised. Blaze's neck rose slightly off the claw supporting it, but Chari was already snoozing under the summer sun.

Leon chuckled, and flashed the camera a winning smirk. "I'm saying the last time we visited Kanadia, he made Niagara stop falling for a full minute with nothing but flame. We train hard, and the results show!"

Gillian became the central focus of the report again, but Blaze had already turned his focus inward, and tuned her out. He could reach Kanadia. The Niagara Falls were legendary, but also crowded. He too, was a somewhat famous Charizard now. If he was going to split a massive waterfall, he needed to practice on smaller ones first. He rose quietly, not disturbing Chari or her eggs, stomped a few steps away, then raised his wings parallel to each other vertically, and power flapped into the air. Within moments, he was on his way further north, into the mountains.

It took several hours, but from his aerial vantage, he eventually found a large enough waterfall that not even Magikarp would try to leap. He roared about what he was about to do to the local water types below, and they cleared away from the falls. He landed on a conveniently flat rocky surface just before the falls, and a Milotic popped up beside him. "The Unova Champion is your partner, right?" Blaze blinked, and then slowly nodded. "Then you are welcome to train and rest here."

She didn't elaborate on why the local seemingly wild Pokémon were such fans of Alex, and Blaze was focused on more important things. Like training. He stared down the epitome of a type advantage falling into the lake before him. Arguably, a waterfall was one of the strongest forms water could take. It would take real effort to stymie it with naught but flames. He heard the other Pokémon murmur as he inhaled, and let out an impressive, battle-worthy Flamethrower.

It roared towards the waterfall, and while initially the stream of water parted, it soon overwhelmed the flames, dousing them, no matter how much effort Blaze put into them. Five tries later produced the same results, and he furrowed his brows. He turned up the heat, then. His tail burned blue, and his Flamethrower matched the power of his Heat Wave as he fired again. This time, the surrounding heat was enough to instantly evaporate the fresh, not as voluminous water, and he realized, manipulating the heated air would also be important. Mentally, Blaze reached out to his Trainer, who was currently walking somewhere in Koria.

He pestered him to find footage of Leon's Charizard splitting Niagara Falls, and as they viewed it through shared sight, Blaze understood what he was doing wrong. Leon's partner had been flying before the falls, but he'd also been heating the air around him, subtly, but as only Charizard could without using a move. It required building up the flames in their bodies significantly enough to affect the temperature of the air outside their body.

Having a new appreciation for the frankly absurd level Leon's partner was on, Blaze had no intention of being deterred. After about two days of nothing but Flamethrowers, with the occasional thirty minute rest, he understood that his wings would be useful, and they had fueled his fire significantly longer. The steaming air around him made parts of the lake bubble, and it was the Milotic who maintained a small Ice Beam wall to keep the local Pokémon from cooking. A lot of them, even infrequent visitors of this particular place of water, were enjoying the hot springs-like heat the training Charizard was giving off, from the far edge of the ice barrier.

It was around this time, that Arthur appeared, mega evolved for some reason, with a twirl of his 'cape' and a bamf beside the fire lizard. He was immediately burned, and Blaze blinked, as he realized someone had Teleported to him. Arthur mentally allayed his guilt, and just tanked the pain. "You're close, brother…but you're not using your full power. I've watched the same Charizard you have, but here's the thing: auras don't show up on human cameras. I've uh…been gallivanting through Galar. I saw the Chairman's Charizard in action…watch…and learn."

Blaze let his fire die down, if only so that it stopped hurting his brother. The Milotic tossed a rather quickly gathered Chesto berry their way with her tail, and gave the final treatment to her wall. Some of the Pokémon grew cranky as the heat died down, but the massive water maiden was grateful for the break. Keeping up with a maxed power Flamethrower was hard, with just Ice Beam. Arthur caught the berry, despite both Pokémon's eyes now being closed, and he absent mindedly cured himself as he provided context for his team-brother.

Through a surprise invitation after arriving in Trainer-packed Galar, Arthur had been invited by a friend and rival to see the power of his human in action. Arthur was aware the region's League had held a tournament composed of Champions recently, not unlike the World Tournament, earlier in the year, though he hadn't heard who'd won. Or competed. Now, this exhibition match with a former World Champion, and a potential rising star was to kick off the early ranking period for the upcoming World Tournament.

Before Leon brought out his ace, he'd used his newest member, the blue Gallade known to Arthur as Lancelus, to absolutely obliterate his opponent's team. He could tell when people wanted the Charizard though and the experienced fire lizard was always down to battle. He'd been switched in for the final round, ace versus ace, and it was this round that Arthur replayed mentally with the recall of a psychic type.

The other Trainer's ace, a Golem, was giving the old Charizard a good battle, one hot enough to get his flames going. Leon raised a hand, and quoted the PokéDex, and the entire stadium heard his charismatic tones. "Charizard can spit fire hot enough to melt boulders! Let's test that! Flamethrower!"

Spikemuth was playing home to this match, in an effort Leader Marnie had suggested to Leon, and he had completely agreed with. Gigantamaxing and type advantage from a ground move would've easily crushed the annoying speedy boulder, but one on one in their base forms, the well trained rock type came at him relentlessly.

The air around Leon's Charizard began shimmering in a familiar way, but this time, Blaze could see the fiery purple aura surrounding the Charizard. It was a brief usage, to power up the attack, something actually allowed in the League rules. It was a natural reflex once Pokémon reached a certain level, to infuse their attacks with their aura, usually manifesting as love for their Trainer. The results of these moves were typically critical hits.

While the Golem had come hard after the Charizard with an ever more deadly Rollout, he'd fired Air Slashes at it repeatedly, and had blocked and countered several attacks with Dragon Claw. Thankfully, each miss reset Rollout's power to non-OHKO levels. Now, this final attack finished off the Golem, as the Charizard lived up to its dex entry. The crowd went nuts, and Leon met the challenger at the half field to shake their hand.

The memory faded, and Arthur nodded wordlessly at his old friend, before he bamfed away, just as quickly as he'd arrived. Blaze took the opportunity to have a lengthier break of an hour, and munched on some local berries the Pokémon had gathered specifically for him.

They were the ideal kind for a special attacker like Blaze, and he quietly wondered just who these Pokémon were, or who their Trainer was. He hadn't smelled any humans nearby, but they had a habit of popping up without being expected.

As he munched, a young Yanma landed near his pile of Wiki and Leppa berries, and asked if he might have one. Blaze nodded, and rolled a juicy Wiki berry towards the humming bug. They enjoyed them together in silence, until finally, Blaze rose to his feet, surprising the munching Yanma with just how huge he was. "Train hard. You'll become as large as me." The fire lizard said to the young bug, before stomping off.

As he returned to his spot, Milotic refreshed her ice barrier. This time, Alex chimed in on Blaze's thoughts. "I just got some insight into Firebending, that might help too. It's all about breath control. Between that and your aura, you should be able to match Leon's Charizard." Blaze nodded in his mental headspace, and then focused on breathing. He took in Alex's memories of firebending, and found he could very easily apply them to what he was doing. Slowly, as Blaze built his lung capacity with increasingly deep breaths like his Trainer did before taking a hit, the air began to shimmer again, and the water around Blaze's perch quickly reached its boiling point. There were several content sighs from behind the wall of ice as the Charizard resumed his training.

Blaze focused on his aura then, manifesting the red orange shield of energy across his body as he tapped into the Flame Plate affixed to his chest. He didn't mega evolve, but it did give him a bonus to fire moves. He let his bodily energy infuse his fire then, and the aura faded, as Blaze inhaled a final time for a solid thirty seconds. His body lit slightly from the inside, in the darkness of the new night, and then, came the Flamethrower.

Steam radiated off of the waterfall, and every Pokémon watching the Charizard just stared in awe. The fire was continuous, and the raging waters had stopped. Blaze had seen Niagara Falls though, from memories Alex had, and through the footage they'd just recently taken in. He knew them to be much larger than what he was currently stopping. There was one more trick to this that he could tell he was still missing. Somehow, Leon's partner had produced enough fire and heat to evaporate the Falls in their entirety, all at once, for sixty seconds. He'd spread it, somehow, and with a flap from his wings to test a thought he had, the Charizard suddenly figured out how. He grinned.

He parted the waterfall with his power several more times, before thanking the Milotic and the others, and departing. Oddly enough, the Yanma, who shared his modest nature, followed him on his trip, claiming a Trainer who trained a Pokémon like Blaze was one he wanted to meet and potentially join. Blaze explained to the little bug that battling hurt, but with time, Alex could indeed make him into a strong battler. He actually proved to be faster in the air than Blaze, thanks to his ability, but the Charizard had more stamina, and knew where they were going.

Eric caught the little bug in a ball once they arrived back at the lab and giving it to Alex was as easy as resetting the OT number to his. Once that was done, Blaze stomped out to find Chari relaxing with their eggs, where he'd left her. She gave him a look, and then did a double take that he recognized all too well. "More training?"

Blaze let out a flaming snort. "I'm not done yet…but yes. I will match Leon and his Charizard."

Chari just shook her head. "Everyone on your team also wants a fight with his Charizard. All your training will be wasted if your Trainer doesn't pick you when the time comes."

Blaze chuckled this time, shaking the ground as he sat, and rested. Steam was still rising off of him, as he hadn't cooled down during the flight. "I know my Trainer. He'll choose me. Terra can't hit with Earthquake, and Hydrus is too slow."

She gave him a look. "But Arthur is his ace."

Blaze snorted again. "We're all aces. Arthur has his own rival on Leon's belt. The Charizard is mine."

Chari rolled her eyes, but didn't argue further. Both Alex and Jess had been pretty good about spreading out the experience gain, with Terra being the exception. It was at that point that she noticed the massive earth tortoise had wandered off somewhere. She was glad. He slept too much, in her opinion. Her tail lifted, and then slapped the ground in annoyance. "Go on then. Niagara awaits."

Blaze shook his head, and laid down. "Not yet. Once these little ones hatch, and are ready for Trainers. Then I'll go." He got nuzzled by Chari for that, and while he was actually eager to get moving, he could linger a while.

As the days passed, he didn't range far, but when he did leave, it was to practice splitting lakes apart with naught but his flames. He learned how to make them hot enough for an almost guaranteed burn on his opponent, and he also learned that water types did not like having their homes disrupted by random fire lizards in training. He'd trained against their water attacks then, confusing many of them when the Charizard had roared for more. One Flamethrower soon became capable of stopping at least ten Water Guns, and he knew he was almost ready to try Niagara.

His latest clutch of little ones hatched eventually in the heat of the summer, and their mom. Within a few precious days, they were snapped up by eager Unovan teens who wanted a Charizard related to the Champion's. Eric kept track of the Pokémon he gave out, just in case they were abandoned. It did sometimes happen, for whatever reason, and Blaze was the one who volunteered to go and get them. Sometimes, they didn't want to come back, or have anything to do with their pre-Trainer family. Other times, they were traumatized, at which point Eric would, as a Professor, put a digital mark on their former Trainer's Trainer Card that signaled to the Jennies that the holder was a potential Pokémon abuser. The laws for such crimes had been harsh under Unova law, under the Dragon Empire, they were much more severe, their punishments more and more draconian, depending on the level of abuse.

Finally, the last of Blaze's little flames was taken in by a Trainer who'd just been ecstatic to see one of the Champion's Pokémon in person. The kid had the same spark in his eye most new Trainers did, and only time would tell if that spark would be stomped out, or flare up into a proper blaze that could beat their Elite Four. Since the war ended, very few people had made it through Damon and Nick, and even Will and Shauntal had done what they could to cover their type weaknesses. No challengers had made it past Hilbert all summer, so far, and thus Alex hadn't yet been needed in a Champion capacity.

When Blaze finally did leave, he brought Chari with him, and the two Pokémon took their Mega Forms as they raced towards one of the more famous borders between the States, and Kanadia. In the upheaval of the old world, the horseshoe shaped waterfall that most humans of the time knew as Niagara Falls had been raised. The great lakes merged together, but for quite a few centuries, the falls went silent, as the Kanadians kept the water of Superior Lake for themselves.

Some millennia later, when the first Dragon Emperor united the continent and recognized Kanadia as a State unto itself under Tao's banner, they agreed to reopen the ancient tourism spot, and the result was what Blaze and Chari saw, upon coming within range of it. From a certain height, everything looked small, but the two fire lizards were well acquainted with just how vast the Earth was, compared to them. They landed atop a roof that had a Charizard's face upon it, panting as they dropped their Mega Forms. Flying had taken most of the day, but flying west meant they gained time, if only a little.

Some minutes into their break, an old man came through a door they hadn't noticed, and smirked at them. He was more salt than pepper, and his beard was as curly as Alex's, with a similar style too. His hat had a Wyrdeer on it, he had a plaid overshirt on underneath his green and brown winter jacket, and long pants. Worn brown boots covered his feet, but his scent, was something Blaze recognized all too easily, or rather, what mixed with it. The human's happy grin and reddened eyes informed him as to what he'd been up to probably not too long ago.

"So, which one o' you is challengin' the Falls, hmm?" He looked between the pair of Charizard, and then settled on Blaze, who clearly trained more. It wasn't that Chari didn't, but her small size and rather consistent egg caretaking filled her time more than breathing fire at large sources of water. "Gotta be you then, big fella'. I take it you saw Leon's Charizard in action, an' now yer aimin' to match'im. Right?" Seeing Blaze's look of shock and confusion made the old man laugh. "Yer face says I'm right on the PokéDollar. Happens more'n you'd think with Charizard Trainers! Hahaha!"

He walked over to the edge of the building then, and Blaze followed. "Oi! We got a live one here, folks! Another challenger of Niagara Falls!" Some of the people below rolled their eyes, but a few, clearly tourists, cheered. The old man looked up at Blaze then. "Where's yer Trainer, lad? An' why…do you look so familiar…you famous or somethin'?"

Blaze tapped his skull, in answer to the man's first question. For the second, he knew what he had to do. He leapt out into the air over the gathering crowd, as word spread that yet another Charizard was trying to copy what so far, only Leon's had ever done. "Hey! Isn't that the Emperor's Charizard!?" "No way…why would he be…wait, the Flame Plate! The size! The glare! It is him!" Blaze circled over the pointing and easily awed humans, before landing before the old man again. Down below, they'd started chanting: "Blaze! Blaze! Blaze! Blaze!"

The old man ran a hand through his hair, lifted his cap in the process, and then adjusted it. "Right then. The Dragon Emperor's partner…" He looked the Charizard over again. Maybe, Leon's record was about to have another underneath it. "And yer sayin' he's in yer head? I'd heard he was psychic'r'sumthin'. Hmph. Listen up then, both of ya!" Surprising Blaze yet again, the old man leaped, seemingly on his own, to a higher perch on the building, and pulled a collapsible megaphone from his jacket pocket.

"Alrighty folks, both domestic an' foreign, we have ourselves a Challenge today! The rules'r'simple! No form changin! None o' that Dynawhatsit or Mega Evolooshun! Just like Leon's partner, ya need to face Niagara with what you already have! Do you understand the rules lad?"

Blaze shot into the air again, and roared. The crowd roared back. "Well go on then! I'll tell the ferry to clear out! Once they're gone, it's all you! Ye got three chances to stop the Falls for a minimum of a minute! Sixty seconds! Think ya can handle it lad?"

Again, Blaze roared, this time shooting a flame into the air. The tips of the old man's beard started burning, not because Blaze had been careless, but because he had very much brought the heat, and it was enough to start burning the man's face fur. Despite this, the man seemed amused, hyped even. "Go on then! Get in position. Wait about twenty minutes, so we have a nice large crowd. An' remember, there ain't no shame in admittin' it's too big for ya."

Blaze gave a derogatory snort as he sailed past the old man, and then down and over the massive basin of water before the falls. Water types like Blastoise and Gyarados, probably with Trainers, were moving the smaller water types from the fall's immediate vicinity. A very large, very old Lapras surfaced then, and cooed for the fire lizard to take a rest on his shell. Accepting the offer, Blaze landed carefully, and gave a nod of thanks to the old Pokémon.

The old Lapras eyed him, and a small smile broke his face. "Why do you wish to do this, fire breather?"

"To prove I am strong. To prove my training has not been wasted. To show those I've beaten that they lost fairly, to a stronger warrior…and to prepare myself for the strongest of them all." Blaze answered, eyes on the majesty of nature before him. The imposing Kanadian Wall loomed above the falls, and could still close the falls off in years when Superior Lake needed to refill. Then, he saw it. The scorch marks on the ancient metal, though they were recent, where the metal itself was not. Alex had told him that, according to Professor Aristole, humans of the ancient Earth had built this wall long before Arceus appeared, when one country believed their neighbors to the south had finally lost all sense and sanity, and had proceeded to shut out them, and the world, leaving them to their fate.

He was impressed that Leon's partner had scorched it so thoroughly, and briefly he wondered if he might not be biting off more than he was ready for. Then, he felt Alex in his head, brushing aside his doubts, and reassuring Blaze. They'd trained just as hard as Leon, they arguably had more knowledge of auras and how they related to moves, and in terms of strength, Alex believed Blaze was at the level Leon's Charizard had been not so many years ago, when they'd accomplished this feat. If not above it.

The Lapras had taken the time to ponder the Charizard's answer. Then, he spoke again. "Is strength all you care about? What will you do if you beat this…rival of yours?" He had a feeling he knew which Charizard this one was gunning for. It was the same with most who came to attempt to stymie the power of nature with their own.

Blaze snorted at the Lapras' words. "My strength is necessary…it protects my friends. My home. If I beat my rival…I will find another…again and again until I prove my supremacy to the world." His eyes shifted to the transport Pokémon then. "That is what we do."

"I am aware." The Lapras answered simply, and Blaze resumed ignoring him. Finally, several minutes later, he spoke again. "The Humans have signaled. They're ready. Good luck, firebreather."

The Lapras gave Blaze a 'toss' as he turned his frame and dove back under the water, and Blaze hovered closer to the falls. Then, he realized his mistake. It was far too damp here to burn as hot as he needed to. Still, he focused his mind and his breath, letting the roar of Niagara ring in his horns before soaring up, up, far into the sky. Well above what most Charizard could handle. Higher than he'd been when battling Lizardon.

At the peak of his climb, he circled in the air, folded his wings, and pointed himself downwards. As soon as he felt the air warm on his descent, he began burning internally, heating the air around him. He also started glowing, visibly, as he manifested his aura. The viewers below watched as the living comet soared down, then skirted above the crowd with a mighty roar, just far enough away not to burn them. They answered his roar with one of their own, and Blaze felt his special attack power rise as a result.

Blaze was smoldering by that point, and he let the human's cheers fill his ears, before the roar of nature's water did so again. This time, steam appeared around him as he flared his wings, guided the superheated air that had followed him, and upchucked his built up Flamethrower. The burning air hit the falls first, pushing them out in a growing circle of steam that his Flamethrower soon followed. He floated closer with his momentum, and adjusted the width of the Flamethrower with his tongue as he kept the fire coming.

A few humans in the crowd thought he was glowing with the power of a Mega Form, but others corrected them. With Fornia's blockade out of the way, many Alolans had visited their mainland cousins, and there were others in the tourist hot spot that knew some powerful Pokémon tended to gain auras when they became strong enough.

Blaze kept going, as Alex counted in his head. Thirty seconds in, and his flames were still winning. As before, the water was boiling and evaporating faster than it could flow, and for most of a minute, it seemed Niagara Falls had again been stymied. Then, the minute passed, and Blaze kept going as Alex kept counting. The pride he felt in his partner helped him maintain his Flamethrower, but eventually, Blaze needed to breathe, and nature needed to resume flowing. The scorch marks on the Kanadian's wall were even larger now, more noticeable, but they would fade in time, as Leon's had.

Suddenly very tired, Blaze flapped up towards the crowd, and propelled himself on the sound of their cheering back to the roof they'd landed on. Chari was there as well, landing just before he did, and catching him, as he fainted from the exertion. The old human showed up minutes later, and poured an Elixir into his mouth just to be safe, before he gave Chari some pets, and left the pair of fire lizards alone.

Word spread like wildfire once more: Redwood's Charizard had stopped Niagara Falls for a full two minutes, before he'd run out of breath and flame. While the method was different from Leon's, who had stayed stationary for his blast, Blaze's atmospheric inferno had caught several eyes, and cameras, and PNN played both Holociever footage and satellite footage as they covered the story. Though nobody had seen Redwood, most assumed he'd been nearby, and thus the pretense of his being around but out of the limelight stayed intact.

Blaze spent the rest of his vacation lounging, and making sure he could still battle. He was in peak condition when Alex called them to assemble, and Eric gave him a final checkup, before sending him and his ball into the PC.

Shruikan

Tao's Home Dimension - Circa Chapter 16

In the infinite cloudy plane that was Tao's home, Shruikan had been warned about becoming lost if he flew blindly into the blinding abyss. The Original Dragon wanted him alone today, though. Evidently, it was going to be a draconic lesson. Tao spiraled through the vast, golden cloudy aether looking very glad to be newly whole. By Shruikan's sense of time, they'd been in Tao's extra planar space for three months now, and the Original Dragon had taken the time to rest…in between training Alex and Jess of course. Little did Shruikan know, he was the first of the twenty or so Pokémon the humans had brought with them to get a special lesson with the Original Dragon.

The language of dragons, as Shruikan currently understood it, was based more on mental images and descriptions that draconic minds could easily make sense of. For those who could reach out with their mind, anyways. In this wordless tongue Tao 'spoke' in his mind with a resonance akin to thunder. "There is a place you should know of, in our world. A place for our kind, and only our kind." Shruikan followed Tao through the clouds, and as they inhaled them, their inner aura, the energy composing their very selves, separated from their physical forms, and hurtled towards the Earth. They aimed above Galar, further north than even Albion, and on Albion's far northern savage coast, north of even the rough inhabitants in the shaggy form of humans and Pokémon, there was a practically frozen archipelago. Tao's memories suggested that at one point in the past quite a few dragon types had lived within that relatively cold, but secluded, part of the world.

All these images of the past for comparison to the present flashed through from Tao's mind, as from the now mostly empty archipelago, they went west, past Neuberke and its Dragon Tamer populace, into seemingly empty open ocean. In these cold dark waters, there was a giant hole in the world, surrounded on all sides by waterfalls, and Tao halted their spirit selves just above it. As Shruikan stared at it, he felt an inexplicable desire to dive into it head first. "It is here you should go, when you have the time, and the desire to rest. There is a dragon below that can bring forth your potential. The true potential of a black Salamence. You will learn much from this place. If you are willing."

Their essences rose back into the sky then, into their bodies, and then out of the clouds. Shruikan mulled over what he'd seen as they returned to Tao's space, and it wasn't until the war with the Arceans ended that he remembered his odd little trip.

Present Day…

Shruikan's massive wingspan swallowed the miles between Unova and the place Tao had once shown him. He was exhausted from the lengthy conflict with Fornia, and his pivotal role in keeping the Arceans out of Kanadia. Evidently one of Pravus's plans had been to get past the massive wall, travel along it into Unova proper all but unchallenged, and then wreak havoc. Shruikan never gave them the chance. His dreams were plagued by the faces of dead humans, fried by the plasma he'd willingly aimed their way. He'd stopped regarding the Arceans as humans worthy of sharing the world with him when they'd been credibly proven to be infecting Pokémon eggs with Shadow. That didn't keep their fleshless sockets from staring at him accusingly when he entered the realm of dreams, but he ignored them all the same. They had chosen their paths. Being a Crusader for the Church of Arceus had been a position they'd sought out, and the Church had always had plenty of alternatives to being outfitted for war and slaughter.

When Alex had ordered them to get some rest, he'd taken to sleeping on the Kanadian's wall, something the Kanadians wanted stopped, when his heavy frame started making the ancient metal bow with the weight of his titanic form. By that point he had more than enough rest though, so he headed north, towards Neuberke. There was a so-called Dragon Tamer from the island's tribe of low hygiene hooligans in Alex's squad of Scales, and he'd been just ecstatic to see, and later meet, the massive black Salamence. Apparently one of their Chiefs had once tamed such a dragon, albeit a much smaller one.

Shruikan circled the largest settlement on Neuberke three times, and by the third, he was surrounded by dragon types who were greeting him. Some even had human riders on their back. One of them, atop a Noivern flew up to his nose, and stopped, stopping Shruikan as well. The ground below began to blow apart as his massive wings kept his titanic body in the air. "C-can I have a scale from your hide, O mighty Salamence?"

Shruikan leaned in to the human then, who met his gaze with the appropriate amount of fear, but also courage. The tiny hand of the teenager patted his snout, and Shruikan took in his scent. The large lips pulled upwards into a grin, and in response, Shruikan scratched an itch in mid-air, the only way he could, these days, and several loose, broken, or shedding scales fell away. He nodded at them, then.

With a whoop of glee, the human and his peers descended on the discarded dragonscale with their mounts, while up above, a rather ancient female Dragapult approached his head next. "You come seeking the Dragon Haven."

Shruikan rumbled an affirmative. The Dragapult simply nodded, and turned, streaking away rather quickly. "This way." She took off then, and Shruikan had to make an effort to match her speed. Some of the flock from the island followed after him, particularly Dreepy seeking the thrill of being used as ammunition. She sped out over the ocean and Shruikan knew what to expect next.

The massive hole in the ocean hadn't changed since the last time Shruikan had seen it, and the Dragapult he was following arced up and dove straight in with no hesitation. Shruikan followed, and heard the sentient draconic missile platform shout back at him. "Keep your wings close, and try to only hit the crystals!"

Shruikan had only a moment to arch a scaly brow and say "Hit?" Before he understood. Massive crystalline protrusions blocked his way down. They could've been dodged, if he was his former size but his girth now wouldn't allow it. So, he charged ahead, skull first, through the protruding crystals, bringing them with him on his downwards trajectory.

After a time, he came out into a wide space beneath the crust of the earth, and again, Shruikan had far too little time to look around. There were thousands of dragon types along the walls of this undersea crevasse, too many to count. Both known species and those unknown to humans were present in this massive space. Including several Dratini and other first form dragonlings floating below and peering up at the falling debris, and titan who came with it, from the basin of water far below.

Seeing littles in immediate danger, Shruikan flared his wings once he had space, and inhaled. The gathered dragon types watched with a quiet inhale as the Salamence glowed with golden plasma, and then launched a carefully aimed Charge Beam at each piece of debris. He watched as each piece disintegrated, all except for one. That single crystal chunk hit one of the cliff sides leading down to the water below. Shruikan made to blast it as well, until a rather large female Dragonite sped out and Mega Punched it into harmless debris. She gave Shruikan a nod, and then checked on the Dratini.

Shruikan stopped his descent once the danger was past, and flapped awkwardly, noticeably, in the open space as almost all eyes stayed on him from the dragon types perched around the space. The Dragapault he'd been following roared at him, and he resumed moving, deeper into this paradise of his kind. Many who'd been watching him, followed after his titanic bulk into another, far larger cavern, that had more than enough space for Shruikan, and the many dragon egg nests here. He landed by the Dragapult, and knew he'd have to be careful, in this space. Many of those with eggs had followed him in here, and now covered their nests in case the massive Salamence tried flapping over them.

A flash of blue and red flitted in his gaze then, and he recognized a pair of dragons from the Eon duo, a Latios and Latias, speeding towards them. The Dragapult bowed her head, and even her lil' Dreeps paused their ever present desire for violence to show these two respect. "This one is new here. Take him to speak with Him."

The Latias floated forward, speaking for the pair. She stared Shruikan down, and once the initial intimidation faded, he raised his scaly lips in an approximation of a smile. This made the Latias smirk, and turn, already speeding off. "Very well."

Shruikan tried not to panic as the Eon duo psychically sped him along with them, over the many nests that would've been disturbed by his wings. Eventually, he unfurled them, so the burden of moving his massive frame wasn't so taxing. They reached the other side of the large nesting cavern, and then dove down to a river cutting into the sides of the cavern, with just enough space above it to accommodate the black Salamence's size. It was a claustrophobic space that went deep, deep down into the planet, with only bitingly cold water to fill it, but the Latios and Latias expected him to endure it, and Shruikan was wondering just who the 'he' the Dragapault had mentioned, was.

He had to curl his wings again, but when the tunnel opened up, he found himself inside a dazzling cavern full of rainbow colored sparkling crystals that, to him and his sense of pressure, told him this was probably one of the deepest caverns on the entire planet, and the largest this far down into the mantle. The air was humid from the mix of heat from the rather close liquid mantle of the planet below, and the crystals, much like those Shruikan had crashed through, lining the upper walls and adjoining tunnel into this space. It seemed like the way they'd come was the only entry point.

As the Eon duo lifted him out of the tunnel, they followed the river over a massive cliff edge and saw where the water pooled below. And what was swimming within it. Massive white scales, on bluish green skin, and various points of infinitely white power that marked where the Zygarde's eyes were spiraled around and around in an endless circle. As its head rose, Shruikan remembered a story his mother had told him, of the oldest defender of the land that their planet had. The white Zygrade. Jormungandr, who was said to encircle the planet with his size. He'd assumed that was just a legend, but then, both he and his human had a habit of living through legends.

The Eon duo let him drop then, and Shruikan caught himself, gliding down to land on the small plateau of rock and ice that acted as a perch before the steep drop into the swirling, scaly abyss. He felt small again, as the sheer scale of the Zygarde's fifty percent form head, and tentacles, loomed closer to him, and outsized even his own large frame. As he spoke, it was with impressions as Tao had, but this time Shruikan noticed the rumbles accompanying the images were Words of the dragon tongue. He'd noticed only the older dragons rumbled when they spoke like this to others of their kind. It was a more primal, and honest, manner of conversing.

"Shruikan of Draconis Mons. I have heard of thee. Your form has been corrupted by the World Eater's energy. If you stay as you are, you too will go insane." An impossibly white vaguely iris shaped object shifted within the massive Zygarde's eye socket. "Alas, I will have to end you…" Shruikan lowered his head and growled at the massive dragon with a serious type advantage over him. He would not go quietly, though in that moment he realized his connection to his Trainer was severely weakened here. "Or...I would have...but it seems you have brought what I would need to Purge this taint. How came you by that Draco Plate upon your chest?"

Shruikan had to process for a few seconds, as the massive dragon's words resonated in his very being. His Voice was as forceful as Tao's, when he was using a move or his Hyper Voice, but this level of intensity just seemed to be the norm for this evidently usually solitary creature. He had no doubt that the World Serpent could have easily taken him with one attack. When he finally answered, it was in the language he'd learned from his Trainer's brief merge with a mind that had been antithetical to both his own and Alex's. "The Original Dragon gave it to me, once I finished training."

Jormungandr seemed to process that, and then spoke again, for the final time. "Then the Way is clear…activate it, and have it condense your form into one you prefer."

Shruikan blinked, as the elder dragon honed in on what he'd wanted for a while now, after growing to this size. He'd assumed he was stuck being massive, though. He activated the Draco Plate as he reached out to it, and instead of using the bond with Alex, he drew on the Plate instead and focused on armoring himself. Not as a sentient air carrier this time, but as a set of armor. He expelled the power he'd gained from Alduin into the Draco Plate, and the Plate purified it, before sending it back into his body's network of energy. Then, Jormungandr flashed with its own draconic power, though what exactly it did was beyond Shruikan's understanding. He assumed it was beneficial.

When the Light from the Plate lessened, he was smaller, and heavily armored in deep blurple colored plates that covered everything but his wings. The edges of his wings had sharpened plates of the strange metal, and he assumed they'd be deadly if used improperly. The armor eventually settled, and then Shruikan let it shift back into its Plate form, as he examined his changed body. He did not revert to titanic size, but rather found his very being changed. He was spikier around his head and jaw, and slightly larger than he'd been when they'd faced Alduin. He had a crest of black almost chitinous plated scales that rose from the back of his skull, to his tail, which ended in a sharp point now. A second, smaller set of leathery wings now sat at the base of his tail, and he flexed it, getting used to the new heft. He felt his physical attacks now would be equally matched with his special ones.

His claws and teeth were now as crimson as his wings and underbelly, his height was back to around twenty feet, though most of it was neck. Shruikan tested his wings, which were larger now, and still felt as strong as he'd been a few moments ago. Then, he noticed they too had changed. While not linked around the back like his Mega Form, the ancient genes Jormungandr had awakened with his Voice had resulted in a series of small scaly spikes lining the edges of his wings.

From the swirling basin of water and scale below, Jormungandr's unmistakable tone echoed. "Now…there is a move you must learn. Latios will show you. You will use it in defense of this world."

Shruikan bowed his head. "As you command, World Serpent." He looked up then, as he saw the Latios from before return. The Eon duo, in quite large numbers, had also been among the dragons he'd seen in this place. He was interested to learn what move they were talking about.

As the weeks passed, Shruikan practiced this new technique, and made the Dragon Haven a place he could come back to. He'd impressed quite a few females with his entrance, and while some had been turned off by his sudden lack of size on reappearing, most others were actually quite glad he was back to somewhat normal proportions.

When Alex gave the command to assemble, Shruikan took his time saying his goodbyes, and with one final gift, for his Trainer rather than himself in his claws, he headed for Koria, and found his natural speed, even with a smaller wingspan, more than enough to eat away the miles. He crossed east across the northern part of the planet, avoiding the Imperium entirely, and then swung around the eastern edge of the supercontinent, towards Ba Sing Se, and the place he sensed Alex residing in. He knew he was late to assemble, but late was better than never, and he'd come with quite a gift.

Arthur

Arthur was the first on Alex's belt to really get away from the ranch, and into the world after helping his team-brothers get what they needed for their own relaxation. Naturally, his first stop was Superior Lake, the home of Nimue, the Mesprit who had guided his father, and all of Albion, before Morgana and the Shadow took over the region. Arthur knew Alex very much intended to hit up Galar for some intense training before the World Tournament properly kicked off, but he wanted to head there ahead of his brothers.

Nimue rose from the lake's center and bamfed to Arthur, as he stopped walking, and reached the water. He bowed his head in respect, as the Mesprit appeared, and she smiled at the young prince. "What brings you to my lake, Once and Future King?"

Arthur faltered, and kind of scratched the back of his head. It was a distinctly human reaction, but the distracted Pokémon hardly noticed. "I uh…wanted to head to the Galar region. Not Albion, probably not even to Wyndon, but just…Galar in general. Seems like a good place to get stronger. Will my going there…set off anything? Will the false Queen…I dunno…sense me or something? I don't want to start a whole 'thing' while my Trainer has a special mission to deal with."

Mesprit giggled, leaning back in the air as she did, until she just flipped completely, and kept giggling. Finally, she composed herself, though her antics and cuteness had caused the Gallade to smirk. "No…you'll be fine. If Morgana wanted to track you, she would, and could. But she knows better than to set one foot in mainland Galar. Calyrex would Smite her within an hour of her arrival."

Arthur tilted his head. "Calyrex?"

Mesprit nodded. "I guess you should know the history if you're going to go there. Galar once had two kings, who descended from the first Hero King, a King in the North, and a King in the South. They were fierce Trainers, and when Galar faced its Darkest Day, they rose to smite it with the Fairy King's Sword, and the Fighting Master's Shield. They found those Heroes thanks to aid from Calyrex, and his brother." She shared a mental image then of the two Calyrex, one green and white with a massive green berry atop its head. It rode upon an icy horse, and Arthur psychically inferred that this was the southern ruler. The northern ruler was golden toned on his otherwise identical white frame and similarly massive noggin. His steed of choice was a ghostly purple horse, in contrast to the white one.

"The King in the South has been restored already, by Champion Victor, but the King in the North remains missing." Nimue gave him a knowing smirk. "Something you should look into perhaps. While you're there."

Arthur was well acquainted with powerful psychic type shenanigans by this point, and gleaned that, somehow, he'd probably end up involved with finding this King in the North regardless. "I'm sure I'll find something if I look hard enough. I'm more interested in finding Lancelus again. He's strong enough for the training I have in mind."

Nimue giggled again, but not enough for a flip in the air. "Lancelus. Of course. He managed to tame Leon in his time in Galar. I'm sure he's as strong as you are, by now. If not stronger."

Arthur bowed, again. "I intend to find out. Thank you for your guidance, Lady of the Lake."

Nimue watched the young prince bamf away, giggled to herself, and then returned to her lake to meditate, and keep an eye on Arthur from afar. His arrival would indeed set something in motion, but she had no intention of telling him, and potentially skewing Fate.

Wyndon - Galar Region

Actually reaching Galar, once he'd helped his brothers communicate their desires for their own vacation, was rather easy for Arthur. Everyone in New Tork knew him thanks to the footage of him almost soloing the entire Elite Four, and the information that he was visiting Galar spread like wildfire. Thus, when he arrived in Wyndon Airfield, he was greeted by a massive crowd, not there for him, but for the purple maned Chairman of Galar's Pokémon League, and the shiny blue Gallade beside him. Lancelus and his newest friend had made quite the stir since his joining Leon's team, and as strong as the Gallade had been already, Leon and his other partners had only made him stronger.

Lancelus came up to Arthur, and offered a sword-arm for an arm bump, which was gladly given by the Unovan Gallade. "Welcome, Arthur. Once we heard you'd be flying in, Leon suggested we come and meet you." As Lancelus finished speaking, Chairman Leon himself strode up to Arthur, and smiled as he offered a hand. Real, physical, in person Leon. The first thing Arthur noticed was the very similar quiet intensity he had. It reminded him of Alex, before a big battle. He was clad in a dapper scarlet outfit that made him look quite regal.

Arthur spoke first. "Chairman Leon. It's an honor. My Human and my team-brothers are huge fans of yours." He shook the hand then, as he subconsciously emanated awe, hero worship, and a cocktail of other amusing but genuine emotions.

Leon gave him a winning smirk. "I've been keeping an eye on you and your Human, Arthur. I saw how you two almost soloed the Victory League's Elite Four. Very impressive stuff, and all without Psycho Cut. I can't wait to Battle him."

Arthur fought down the wave of fanboyish excitement, and gave the legendary Trainer a nod. "I can assure you Alex is just as eager. So is the rest of the team. I'm sure we'll have an epic clash, someday."

Leon nodded. "A showdown worthy of the World Tournament, I think." He let the Gallade's hand go before the handshake got too awkward. He was very used to fans just continuing to shake his hand, caught up as they were in the apparent awe that came with meeting him. "What brings you to Galar? We're glad to have you of course, I'm simply curious."

By this point, the trio were walking towards the exit of the airport, with Macro Security keeping the cheering hordes of Leon fans from reaching them. Arthur spied more than a few Dragon Empire symbols on hats too, though. It seemed they'd won over some foreign fans as well. "I'm mostly here to train. First with Lancelus, and then after that…I'm not sure. I was going to travel around, see what kind of challenges Galar had to offer, in the wild."

Lancelus spoke then, "Bedivere, Percival, and Gawain are also here. I'm sure they could help you train too. As for what's going on in the wild…we'll speak of that later."

Leon nodded then, as they arrived at his personal Flying Taxi. It had the space of a limousine, and was pulled by a truly massive, steel gray Corviknight and driven by an older gentleman with a monocle and top hat. He looked like he belonged in another century, but Leon gave him a nod, as he opened the doors for the Gallades. "To Wyndon Stadium, then. Lancelus and the others have been using it. There's an Exhibition Battle later today, to kick off the early rankings for the World Tournament, but you two should have more than enough time for a good spar."

Once they were in, and buckled, the cab brought them the relatively short flight to Wyndon Stadium, as Arthur and Leon waved bye to the crowds that'd swarmed the airport. As they landed just outside of the stadium, Arthur just stared. Leon saw him, and chuckled. "Impressive, right? I hear the one in Unova is just as big."

Arthur nodded, though he'd seen their stadium only once. "Just as big, yes…nowhere near as…grand. It's still being built, though."

Leon nodded. "I'm sure it'll turn out to be a fine stadium, once it's done. I'm glad they decided to rebuild it. Driftveil's always seemed a bit…small, to me." Leon walked into the building then, which was again packed with thousands of his fans.

The crowd lost their minds when they saw Lancelus do a Gallade's approximation of a Charizard pose, and the famous trio proceeded to the locker room right beside the stadium's field. Bedivere, Percival, and Gawain were chatting inside, and they all turned in surprise as Arthur entered beside Leon and Lancelus.

It was as Arthur greeted his fast friends from their last meeting at Superior Lake that he noticed both he and Lancelus were noticeably taller than the other three. When they heard what Arthur had come for, they were eager to see the battle much like Leon was. So, they went out to the field, and Leon took the role of referee. He lifted his left wrist then, and activated the Rotom Watch. "Let the fans in, they're going to want to see this. Standard rates."

Leon floated out above the field on his Aegislash then, who had been fitted with the unused human-carrying device that had been left on the field. Leon's iconic visage filled every screen in the stadium. "Ladies and gentlemen! These two Alpha Gallade are going to have a bout, to test their new skills! The match will start in twenty minutes, and both participants will Battle on their own power! That's right, it's a match with no Trainers! Get your tickets now!" Leon floated to the ref's box then, and waited, arms crossed and smirking, as his fans, and Trainers who'd probably just heard the news, began rushing to fill the stadium. Within ten minutes, the mostly Trainer crowd was eagerly murmuring.

Finally, the time to begin came, and Leon hopped back on his partner, hovering outside the energy barriers of the field as he shouted, "Let the match…begin!" The two Gallade began walking towards each other, slowly, and Arthur summoned Excalibur with a softer intonation of "Shine." His arms started glowing, burning with gold, but Lancelus hadn't even extended his swords, yet. Once he was in range, Arthur struck first, disappearing and reappearing via Teleport, to strike Lancelus in his helm, on the left side.

A blue arm rose to meet him, and Arthur shifted his strike to connect with the other Gallade's blade-arm. Instead, the blue limb swelled, into a shield, and deflected the hit from Sacred Sword entirely. Arthur frowned, and followed his strike with another, from his unused arm. It left a small mark on the shield, not effective, but not invincible. Before Arthur could process and adjust for the unusual technique, Lancelus' right arm came at him. Again, Arthur moved to parry a sword, and instead found a piercing lance-arm coming right for him, wreathed in flying energy. An Aerial Ace. It struck his left side, and Arthur leapt away, grimacing. The crowd, meanwhile, was cheering hard for Lancelus living up to his name. The limb reformed into their usual arm, but it was then Arthur noticed that Lancelus's arm was actually rounded at the elbow, not sharp, and his right hand was rather pointy, even for a Gallade.

Checking his memories, this had indeed been the case at Superior Lake, he simply hadn't noticed. It was quite impressive. "Playing with the malleability of our limbs to make something other than a sword. That's good. I'll have to try it sometime…but for now…" Arthur closed his eyes, and the crowd had paused as they heard the Gallade speak. This was pretty much how most of them knew, or guessed, immediately that this was the Gallade of the Unovan Champion, the one who'd almost soloed the Elite Four of the Victory League, and apparently had taken on all kinds of foes, and won, from massive Salamence, to human beings in powered armor, wielding powered weapons. There were quite a few videos of him and his brothers from the war, seen slashing through Arcean energy beams, or creating massive mobile rock fortresses. Apparently, Tao believed they would help the people of the Dragon Empire feel safer, and informed, though naturally any graphic parts of the war had been censored.

His identity was further confirmed as he tapped into the bond with his Trainer, and let that love resonate with the Mind Plate that was now part of his heart piece. His Mega Form swirled his cape as he bowed, and powered up Excalibur again. His arms burned gold, and with this relatively new sight to the Trainers of Galar, they began chanting his name. He gave them a smirk and a nod as they chanted and cheered, and he felt his attack power surge, somehow. He smirked at Lancelus then, who grimaced slightly.

Excalibur shifted from extruding Light energy to ghost typed energy, as Arthur came at the Gallade with his now-perfected Shadow Punch. It had taken a long time, but he'd finally grasped how to use the physical ghost move, and finally, he had the usefulness of the coverage that type provided. Lancelus blocked the first punch, but Arthur's second utilized another Teleport, behind the shield, and his spent arm blocked Lancelus's right elbow, as Arthur's left fist hammered the second Shadow Punch home.

The force of the blow, the speed of the Mega Form, overpowered Lancelus, and Leon grimaced, as he watched his partner roll, and skip, across most of the battlefield. He raised his left fist, the glove of which now held a Mega Stone, and Lancelus nodded when he noticed what Leon was doing. Brilliant white double helixed energy swirled around him as he took his own Mega Form. The main difference from Arthur's, was that in this form, Lancelus's shield stayed consistently formed from his limb. He leveled his right arm at Arthur. "Feel my…Sacred Spear!" His right arm began shining with Light energy, and Arthur was impressed, as it charged to meet the Shadow Punches he'd formed. Eventually, he blocked with Sacred Sword, and the crowd went wild as Light energy reverberated from the clash of two Mega Gallade.

Leon was proud for another reason though. He looked at the crowd, and saw the faces of Trainers who were very much enjoying yet another impromptu match their beloved Chairman pulled together out of seemingly thin air. Then he looked at the Gallades, and noted both of them were grinning like madmen, as the match became less about damage, and more about whose Light attack was stronger. Even though it wasn't very effective on either of them.

As the match went on, the speed and versatility Arthur had was being tested by the bunker that was Lancelus, who in this form, could extend his spear back from his elbow as well, like a haft-strike, and cover his blind spot with Counter. Arthur soon found spending a Teleport meant taking a hard counter from his opponent, and the hits he landed weren't effective to begin with, let alone when they were knocked off course by a cheeky elbow hit. Lancelus spun after Arthur's latest bamf around his shield, and said shield hammered into him, sending him flying across the field, this time.

Arthur recovered himself in mid-air, and then landed on his feet as he slid across the turf. Lancelus met his gaze, and nodded, and then began powering up their moves. Lancelus's spear-arm extended as far as he could stretch it, and began shuddering with flying typed energy. Arthur, for his part, had learned a different trick after mastering Shadow Punch. One that made all the long hours learning to condense ghost energy into a dense orb worth his time. The flames of his Mega Form burned around his fists as he formed Shadow Punches, and then between them, began condensing an entirely separate sphere of ghostly energy.

He held it down and by his side as it grew bigger, and the air started to swirl as Lancelus poured every drop of power he had for Aerial Ace into a single strike. Arthur did the same, drawing as much ghost energy as he dared, for his own move. Then, the ghostly ball of OHKO was ready, and Arthur waited, as Lancelus's charge burned over. As expected, the flying type energy boomed, sending the lance-armed Gallade at him like a white comet, but Arthur had already Teleported to his shield side, hiding in his opponent's blind spot before coming around the shield.

To the crowd watching, this happened so fast only Leon really kept up with the moves, but for Arthur and Lancelus, their heightened perception during their ultimate move had this occurring in slow, but inevitable, motion. Lancelus had seen Arthur bamf away, but he hadn't come from behind, as even more flying energy would've hit him there, he didn't appear above or near the lance, which only left the shield. As Lancelus processed this, Arthur's ball of ghost energy came around the edge of the shield, and once it touched Lancelus, the condensed sphere exploded.

When the dust finally cleared, Lancelus was on his back, in his regular form, and Arthur had a humming, golden sword arm to his neck. Seeing he was beaten, and being very close to fainting, Lancelus admitted defeat. He raised both his arms, and verbalized his mental voice. "I yield." The silence the crowd had held, until those words, ended as they cheered and whooped, and Arthur kept his Mega Form, helping Lancelus to his feet, as Leon flew over, and applied a Max Potion to his partner.

He addressed the crowd then, "Arthur of the Dragon Empire has claimed victory! Show these brave knights how much you enjoyed their Battle!" The roar of the crowd went up, and Leon, Arthur, and Lancelus winced, but they were all smiling as well. All in all, a good battle. "The Exhibition Match of this year's World Tournament will be held shortly! We will have a brief half hour intermission before it begins!"

The crowd rose then, as people began flooding the stadium-based vendors to gather food, merch, or just catch a glimpse of the two Gallade up close as they walked back to the locker room. Highlights from the battle were replaying on the TV in the locker room, and the other three Gallade waiting there congratulated Arthur on a battle well fought.

They chatted amongst themselves until Leon was back on the screen, for his match. He was facing a random Ace Trainer who'd evidently risen through the ranks in the last World Tournament, though they hadn't even come close to the Ultra class tier. A mix of wins and losses kept them in the Great class, but now, thanks to random chance, he was being given a chance to best Leon, and he'd brought the ideal tool for the job.

The match had no Dynamaxing, Mega Evolution, or Z Moves, and Arthur and the others watched as Lancelus all but swept the boy's team. The crowd wanted a Charizard at the end, though and it was Charizard they got, matched up against a hard fire/flying counter in the form of a well trained Golem. It was as Arthur took in this match, that he realized, through his link to his brothers, that Blaze could benefit from an insight the Gallade had. Auras did not appear on cameras used for TV, most of the time.

Arthur bamfed away from the others for a hot minute to give Blaze some advice, and came back just in time to see the Unbeatable Charizard Seismic Toss his opponent into the stadium's floor, and claim the win. Once they met Leon and Lancelus back in the locker room, Leon addressed the band of Gallade. "You mentioned you were here to wander into some Galarian problems Arthur? Well we've had disturbing reports from Glimwood Tangle of late. Galarian Rapidash have begun disappearing, and Leader Bede claims an 'aura of Shadow' has descended on the once luminous forest." Leon's intense gaze focused on Arthur then. "You know better than even Lancelus how to wield the Light, Arthur. Might I ask you to take Lancelus, and these Gallade, and investigate?"

Arthur bowed to the Chairman. "I'm happy to aid the Galar League's Chairman however I can." He looked at his comrades for this mission, and nodded, mostly to himself. "We will get to the bottom of this. Galarian Rapidash are exceedingly rare, and important to the health of the plant life in Galar. If they are being poached by Pokémon Hunters, we will stop them."

The Gallade formed their own psychic web as they departed Wyndon Stadium, and Lancelus brought them via Teleport to an anchor he had within Ballonlea. Percival was the only one without a Trainer, and thus the one susceptible to poaching. Lancelus covered him, while the others surrounded him in a diamond formation, immune as they were to being caught by poachers.

The few Trainers they encountered initially drew balls to catch them, until Arthur or Lancelus explained that they already had Trainers. Disappointed, but not deterred, the humans continued on, and Arthur sensed no malice from them. They trekked deeper north into the Glimwood, to the more unused and overgrown paths that mankind had laid down in an age now long forgotten to most of Galar, and the world. It was here that the Galarian variant of Rapidash and Ponyta tended to frolic, and rest. It was here that Arthur sensed the 'Shadow aura' of which they'd been warned, and he helped the others sense it too.

"That chill in the air…the creeping sensation traveling up your spine…the underlying malice in the darkness…that is what Shadow typically manifests as…but it always has a source. We can't sense the source of this…which means it must be a Dark Type responsible for what's happening to the Rapidash. Stay alert…"

The Gallade extended their blade-arms then, with the exception of Percival and Lancelus in the center of their formation. Then, Arthur sensed it. The mental and vocal distress of a young psychic type. Given what lived in Glimwood, there was only one or two species it could be, and the Hatterene line preferred much more isolated solitude. "Lancelus, take point. Cover Percival as you follow me…I sense something."

Lancelus nodded, taking the lead as Arthur dashed into the woods. Soon after, the others sensed what he had, but speed was essential for stopping evildoers, and Arthur preferred arriving early to showing up timely, but late. As he came upon the scene of this particular abomination, he recoiled in disgust. A Galarian Rapidash was lying on her side, already beyond fainting, as her magical lifeblood stained the forest's floor. The woods around the area were already turning dark and gnarled at the desecration of their friend, and it seemed that, somehow, even the flora of Glimwood was being infected by the Shadow, likely because of the fairy types who tended it. Fairy forests tended to be all but alive, and quite vicious to those who harmed them.

The one responsible for this tragedy was a Grimmsnarl, easily an alpha judging by its size, though as Arthur witnessed it drinking the blood of the fallen Rapidash, it grew even larger. Its eyes were overcome with mindless rage, and in one hairy claw, it held a baby Ponyta, one barely out of its egg by Arthur's estimate.

Arthur was angry enough to not notice his shift to his Mega Form, but it helped him strike an imposing figure as he leveled a flaring golden sword arm at the feasting Grimmsnarl. "Let. The Ponyta. Go." The Grimmsnarl slowly raised his head, and then roared at Arthur.

Instead of attacking though, his trademark snarl was interrupted, as a distinctly female voice emanated from the open, tusked mouth. "Little Lost Prince, alone in the woods. Reminds me of old times."

Arthur didn't usually get angry, and prided himself on being friendly and chill, like his Trainer, but as Morgana reminded him of the simultaneously worst and most embarrassing day of his short existence, he felt true, genuine rage. Thankfully Tao had taught all of them how to control and harness their anger, and use it to enhance their strikes. Cold anger, Tao had called it. All the force being angry gave, without giving in to the 'sloppiness' of 'hot' anger.

Thus, coldly, Arthur answered his father's killer. "Your first mistake... was assuming I was alone." Lancelus, Percival, Gawain, and Bedivere strode out of the woods behind him then, and extended their limbs for battle. Lancelus stepped up beside Arthur, nodded, and then extended his arms as well, readying the shield and lance. The Grimmsnarl looked between the group, and snarled. "Your second mistake... was assuming I'm still a Ralts..." His arm-blades focused then, and began filling the wood with an ominous hum. They burned with the Light, and the Grimmsnarl backed up from them subconsciously.

"Grendel...take care of these nuisances and bring me the Rapidash."

The evil presence withdrew then, leaving the Shadow Grimmsnarl with the squad of Gallade. He tossed the Ponyta behind him, no longer sparing a single Muk for it, and Shadow Rushed them, sending all but Lancelus flying from the naturally super effective attack. Arthur blocked the Shadow aura covered ogre fairy with Excalibur as he feigned a strike, but was running for the Ponyta.

Arthur caught the tiny psychic pony, but the little filly was clearly distraught still, and the source of her distress came from seeing her mother's torn corpse. Knowing all too well how bodies could leave dark, lasting memories, Arthur hid the tiny pony under a large mushroom that obscured the area with red light that was hard to see through. "Stay here, little one. I'll be back."

Arthur turned then, only to find Grendel beating on Lancelus's shield, while strands of his dark hair, manipulated by the Shadow in his aura, strangled the other Gallade. "We could use some help, Prince!" Lancelus said as his King's Shield took a beating from Play Rough, and Grendel's fists. Not wasting time, Arthur activated the Plate armor from his heart piece, and everyone who saw, including the sheltering Ponyta, just stared. He looked quite literally like a hero from a storybook. His cape was completed in the center by the pinkish purple armor plates, and reinforced with them, though they still somehow managed to billow. They were more flexible somehow than the plates on his arms, which focused his Excalibur into an even hotter golden blade, one akin to a plasma sword.

Arthur bamfed as he struck through the hair holding his allies, gracefully doing nine hundred and twenty degree spins after each landing, and eventually, Grendel noticed the pinkish purple armored hero slashing easily through his hair, and drew back, as Lancelus cornered him against two conjoined trees with his shield taking any desperate counter strikes from the fists or hair. Once they had Grendel cornered, Arthur psychically shared the plan with the others, and each of the Gallade smirked. They'd all sensed Arthur was a leader, but seeing him in action inspired a loyalty they hadn't quite realized they'd had until that moment, when he called them to action. It stirred something within them, and they found themselves willing to fight, and even perish, for this noble endeavor.

What he called for, was actually a technique he'd seen from one of Leo's anime, but had never actually been able to pull off with just Double Team, or Shadow Clones, as Leo called them. Arthur made a mental note to ask him about the dark typed version of the move, as the other Gallade agreed on their plan. First up, was Lancelus. Grendel snarled at him as he moved in first to strike uselessly at King's Shield, which was then followed up by Sacred Lance. The Light attack struck the Grimmsnarl hard, sinking through his hair, and into one shoulder.

Like a fluid wave of pain then, Lancelus danced out of the way and put his shield away, reforming his normal arm. Bedivere came next, with a series of Poison Jabs that hit the lance wound, followed by Gawain, who also used Poison Jab, a move taught by their respective Trainers. Bedivere's wasn't too famous, but Gawain, Lancelot's egg-brother, had been caught by Wally when he was a Ralts, and he had gone on to become arguably one of the best Gallade Trainers on the planet, after Nimue herself had bamfed him into Petalburg Woods, just in time for a fateful encounter guided by Future Sight. The poison typed pummeling left Grendel dazed, as the Trainerless Percival came in front of the Shadow Grimmsnarl, slammed his fists together, and blinded him further with a Dazzling Gleam learned during his time as a Kirlia. Unlike the others, he hadn't immediately evolved to his male form, but his special attack power was still garbage.

He wasn't going for damage though, just a daze. Arthur came in then, holding up the rear, and finishing their knightly barrage of moves with a dual Sacred Sword that left a glowing golden X on the Grimmsnarl's body, and which against a Shadow Pokémon, was super effective. Grendel fell, then and the Gallades shared arm-bumps, as his eyes went Poli patterned. The unconsciousness was brief, and as Grendel returned from it, the others kept him pinned as Arthur, still in his Mega Form, readied to question him.

A shrill cry interrupted them then, one full of pain, and loss. Each of the Gallade flinched as they felt the raw emotions of the little Ponyta. She came zipping out of the woodwork, saw Grendel, and then stopped before him and gave him a Double Kick right to the face. This pushed Grendel back into unconsciousness, but none of the psychic fighters moved to stop the grieving pony. She trotted over to her mom then, and just started crying, and the sound was enough to break the hearts of every Gallade present.

Arthur went over to her first, and dropped to his knees before the gruesome sight Grendel had left in his wake. "What is your name, little one?"

The psychic filly tried to stop crying long enough to answer, but kept failing. Eventually, she managed to choke out an answer. "Llamrei…"

"We must put your mother to rest, Llamrei…to ease the damage to the forest, and her spirit. I read once that a Galarian Rapidash, when killed like this, can become something truly fierce and restless if left alone. Will you help me?" Arthur turned his head to the filly then, and she let the last tears flow, then wiped her eyes with her tufts of hair by her hooves. "I…I'll try."

Arthur patted her head, just between her ears. "Strive to do, even as you try." Clearly she didn't understand the wisdom of his words, yet, but she nodded all the same. Arthur pressed his hands together then, much as Percival had. "Fairy energy will cleanse the wound and the body…and then we will lay her to rest." He glanced at his allies then. "I need a large enough hole, from two of you."

Being the Light user, Lancelus stayed laser-focused on the unconscious Grendel, knowing well that the honorless Pokémon would strike while pretending to be unconscious, if it could. If the Grimmsnarl tried, he intended to make it hurt for the attempt with a lance-arm to the face. Arthur emanated a Dazzling Gleam then, which was the pinnacle of the fairy typed moves he knew how to use. Llamrei helped him, adding her own power, and the fairy energy settled into the wound. Empowered by the Light from Excalibur, the darkness lingering in the gruesome wound and the body faded away, along with the blood, which turned from black back to the silver that flowed through Galarian Rapidash.

From the woods around them, Arthur felt eyes on their efforts, though he couldn't tell what was watching. He sensed a vague, but powerful psychic presence that seemed…lessened somehow. He knew it was no Hatterene, but whatever it was, it stayed hidden, watching, and did not interfere. Thus, Arthur let it be. In a fairy wood, it could just as well be nothing, and chasing after it could have him end up lost.

When the burial hole was ready, the Gallade and Llamrei psychically levitated the now passed Rapidash into the earth, and once they buried her, plant life erupted from the spot. Arthur and the others stared in genuine awe, as Llamrei's mother appeared, very much as a ghost, one final time to her daughter. They nuzzled each other, which sent the filly into a new fit of tears, and the mare stared at Arthur, nodding slowly, as she wordlessly asked him to watch over her little one. Arthur glanced at the pony, and then nodded. He would. Whatever came now, they were allies, until the end.

There was only one more thing to do now, in Galar. Arthur didn't quite know why, but he did know Nimue wouldn't have brought it up if it was nothing. As they'd had their moment with Llamrei's mother, Arthur felt the vague psychic presence he'd felt earlier, lingering behind them still.

Arthur silently stepped away and left Llamrei and the others to pay their respects and grieve, as he addressed the foliage. He couldn't have known, but the deceased Rapidash ghost had reminded the nameless presence of an old friend, long forgotten. Like so much else that had escaped his crown-like cranium.

"Calyrex." Arthur said. The foliage shuddered, and he recognized the invisibility that powerful psychic types, like Mew, were able to utilize at will. A brief intangible outline of the large-gnoggined Pokémon appeared in his vision, only to fade into nothingness again in a brief instant. "Calyrex!" Arthur shouted this time, and from the foliage appeared a Calyrex, in all his tiny white-gold glory.

He floated above the ground towards the Gallade, the simple intonation of his name enough to give him a measure of his power. "Caly...rex. Yes...that was me, once...someone important...but what did they call me…" The ruminating white rabbit looked up at Arthur, as the others noticed what he'd summoned. "Brave sir knight...do you recall my name? The name the Humans had for me...so very long ago…"

Arthur glanced at his contemporaries, and then shrugged. "Not off the top of my head...the King in the North, maybe?"

The Calyrex's eyes widened. It spoke with Pokéspeech as elegantly as a human noble did Common. "No...my long-forgotten title, yes...but my name was different...special. My idiot brother never claimed one, but my humans gave me mine…and I treasured it dearly."

Lancelus spoke up then. "Could you give us a hint, good King?"

Calyrex waved his words away. "I am no king...not now...hence why my name would be more proper… it was something like...fin? Fin-something? I don't have fins, but that sounds right. Just...call me Finn, I suppose." He floated over to the now buried Rapidash, and inclined his head, which was clearer than it had been in centuries. "I didn't...mean to intrude, but...that spirit…reminded me of an old ally...a friend from a buried past."

Finn stared at the grave, and the Gallade looked between each other, not knowing what to do with the amnesiatic PokéKing, which was when Llamrei trotted up beside him. It was her mother after all, and if there was one thing the little filly knew, it was stories. She couldn't get enough of them. Seeing all the Gallade bravely fighting the monster had reminded her of King Uther, and his stories, sad as they turned out to be.

This was a different king though, one her mother had claimed to see before. He'd been invisible then, too but psychic types could always recognize their own, if they tried hard enough. Llamrei had caught a glimpse of his large gnoggin, for an instant, before he'd psychically hopped away. Her mom had called him the Lost King, and his story was also sad. Once, the people of Galar had lived even north of Wyndon, at one with the forest, much like Ballonlea was in the present. Wherever this King had gone, there had been berries for everyone, even the Grimmsnarls. The forest enjoyed a lengthy peace. Then, one day, the King met a human called Oberon, and it was Oberon who gave the Lost King his lost name.

Llamrei looked up at the floating white-gold rabbit and said, "Finvarra. That's what the Fairy King called you in the story."

The Calyrex's eyes widened in visible shock. "My name! At last! The King of the Fairy Forests. Finvarra. Partner to…Oberon…" The shocked expression darkened, as with remembrance, came the re-ignited desire for vengeance. "I can sense him… He's out of his cage..." He looked at the Gallades again, and then first returned his gaze to Llamrei. "Thank you, young one. Thank you, for remembering what I once was. I need one of you fine knights to help me recapture my steed. Then, I must ride!"

Arthur opted out of what his Trainer would've dubbed, a 'fetch quest', as did Lancelus. Arthur, Llamrei, and Lancelus spent the rest of Arthur's free time sparring with Lancelus, and training up Llamrei as Alex would've. When the call came to Assemble, Arthur brought young Llamrei with him.

Cenomons

Cenomons, much like Terra, spent much of his initial time off snoozing next to the massive earth tortoise. Unlike his eldest brother however, he woke after three days. His Trainer's brother fed him, and then he was off, as he lumbered through the pasture's gate, obliterating it completely, and then made his way north. He hadn't initially known what to do with his free time, but then he remembered where Alex had first found him.

He remembered how the large framed human had turned down several other more eager Aron, before choosing him. It wasn't just because of his adamant nature though, Ceno had demonstrated a hunger both for ore and battling. He knew he'd earned his place among his team-brothers, but his own kin were another story altogether. Other Aggron weren't exactly common in Unova or any of the other States, at least until one got to the Stoney Mountains. Ceno didn't know what to expect from his home mountain, but when he found the tunnels of his long-abandoned brothers, they were empty of Aron, and had become home to the likes of Diglett and Dugtrio.

From their alpha, Ceno learned that his kin had apparently moved further north once the ore dried up. Evidently, over time the mere presence of the Diglett would regrow the mineral deposits, and at that time, the respective species would switch again. Their alpha watched the strangely crested Aggron, on all fours by necessity seemingly more than choice, head north and hoped that the balance of the two species wouldn't be thrown off.

Though the inhabitants of the territories he passed through were infamously violent when 'rivals' appeared, Cenomons wasn't challenged by most of them, once they took one look at his size and obvious power. He thrashed those who only had enough of a brain to react on instinct to his presence, and treated those who regarded him fairly in kind. That, was mainly where he got his directions from, as days passed, and he trekked further northward into the northernmost mountains that separated the north of Unova from Novatia and Ontarec.

Eventually, Cenomons ran into other Aron, munching away as idly as he had on whatever ore they could find. They stared at him as he passed by. By this point, the steel that Ceno had ingested, which hadn't been imbued with life by the Alpha Pokémon, had become a part of his massive frame. Alex had let him nom on basically the entire underground city beneath Sacreus, which had since been declared unsafe and evacuated as other Lairon and Aron from the mountains near Sacreus sensed what Ceno had done, and copied him. The locals had filled in many of the underground base's rooms with concrete, before abandoning the undercity, if only to keep the main city above from potentially falling into a sinkhole.

The result of his long-awaited feast was a massive body, now permanently locked on all fours just because of how heavy he was at his core. Eric had determined that this was likely how Aggron of the past had looked, in more ore-rich environments that hadn't yet been plundered by humans. Time and evolutionary pressure had made them rise to two feet to contend with Tyranitar and other mountain-dwelling rivals, but there were long-forgotten benefits to staying on all fours, too. Most Aggron tended to switch between the two, but Cenomons had found he now preferred using his hands to walk or run. Like the rest of him, they had grown bulkier to adjust to the sheer mass they had to support.

The further into the nest of his kin he went, the more Lairon he saw. He knew it would be a matter of time before he was challenged, and sure enough, as he eyed a vein of ore that looked tasty after a long hike north, another male got in his path. His armor was scarred from multiple battles, but Ceno could tell he'd lost them. He also seemed intent on defending this particular ore vein. "No farther." He growled at Ceno. "Mine!"

Cenomons let out a powerful snort from his snout, and the sound reverberated through his opponent, awakening something deep and instinctual. His eyes became enraged, his pupils focused solely on the lumbering stranger on all fours. "Hungry." Ceno answered in Pokéspeech. "Move." He started forward again then, and the rival Aggron grabbed his horns, not unlike how Alex grabbed a charging Tauros, but in this instance, the wild Aggron was pushed back, easily, as Cenomons moved for the ore.

Seeing him getting closer to the source of food, the other male headbutted Ceno, and the reverberation of their skulls echoed through the valley Ceno had wandered into, drawing the attention of every one of their kin. Such sounds presaged a battle, usually. "Ouch." Ceno said, growling, and glaring at the standing Aggron. He was about at his limit for patience. The smaller horn on his snout that curved up into a point glowed with steel energy, as Cenomons lifted his snout into the opposing Aggron's chin. Then, his larger horns broke free of his grip, smashing him to the left, and then the right. The final hit in this Triple Iron Bash sent the comparatively smaller Aggron flying into a nearby canyon wall, and Cenomons moved for the ore that he now saw as spoils for his win.

Nobody else dared to challenge the strange, foreign Aggron with the impressively large, if hindering, crest of metal that flared out from his neck and limited his shoulder movement. Eventually the other Aggron was back on his feet, and when he saw Ceno eating, he grew incensed. "We're not done!" He roared, but Cenomons ignored him, and kept eating. Furious, the wild Aggron stomped over. "Hey! I challenge!"

But Ceno continued to munch, looking very much like a bored rocky metal triceratops who was rapidly becoming tired of this. Perhaps returning to his own kind had been a bad idea. He couldn't even explain why he had, it had mostly been instinct that drew him back to them. "No challenge." Ceno answered, without a care in the world. "Done fighting."

That answer actually made the other Aggron blanch. "No…fight?" He seemed genuinely confused, but Ceno knew that confusion would turn to anger. It always did, with Pokémon that lacked intelligence. He didn't hold it against the Aggron though, without Alex, he would've probably been just as stupid. Thus, Ceno answered the indignant Aggron with Iron Defense. He'd need three of those, to become truly impenetrable, as Alex called it. Most of their strategies involved him slowing his opponent, and raising his defense by two to four stages, now that he was significantly slower than his kin, which were already not the fastest rock and steel types out there.

The other Aggron attacked with Metal Claw then, and Ceno sighed, deciding to ignore the flea bite of damage. His defense increased further, and now a metallic sheen covered his hardened carapace. Seeing this, his 'opponent' used Rock Slide, but that too Ceno simply shook off, and with a few paws to the ground, freed his source of food from the rocky pile, and kept eating. Again, his defense rose, and again, his body became a steel wall that many would have trouble getting past in a regular battle, let alone one in the wild.

The wild Aggron continued to strike Ceno, and the much larger and stronger Aggron ignored it completely. Whatever 'hit points' he lost were swiftly regained by his rather delicious meal, and the others of their kind just watched, as the clanging from the 'battle' echoed with each strike. Eventually, Ceno looked at the smaller Aggron. He was panting, and the steel tips of his claws were blunted by Ceno's heightened defense. "Are you done?"

The small crowd of intrigued Aggron line members laughed, which caused the male to rear up and roar at Cenomons. Finally at the end of his patience, Ceno's eyes narrowed, and in a flash, ground type energy surrounded his large frame, as he Bulldozed his opponent into the same canyon wall he'd impacted last time. Then, Ceno roared, in his face, and the semi-intentional Hyper Voice knocked him out.

"Well struck."

Ceno turned his titanic frame as a new male entered the scene, and judging by how the other Lairon parted for him, this one was this group's alpha, or at least, its leader. He lacked the size of a true alpha. "You lead these ones."

The much older Aggron was ragged compared to their kin, but Ceno doubted he was weak. "I do. Will you kill that one?" The male nodded at the now unconscious Aggron.

"If I wanted him dead, he would be dead." Ceno rumbled, "I have dealt enough death."

That seemed to amuse the old Aggron for some reason. "Most contests here involve killing one's rival. You ate his ore. He may return stronger than you, and not be merciful."

Ceno glanced at the unconscious Aggron, and snorted again. "I doubt it. I'm bigger than everyone here. He can keep his life. But not his ore."

The older Aggron hunched, to get more eye-level with Cenomons. A sign of respect, or that's how he took it. The old mountain eating beast inhaled his scent, and though it reeked of human and blood, he recognized what lay underneath. "You…are one of mine. Interesting…we thought all of my Aron lost or captured. I can no longer make eggs." The old beast again gestured to the still unconscious Aggron. Ceno hadn't killed him, but he hadn't gone easy either. "That one was to succeed me. Males pass their mountain to their sons, and females move to a different mountain, or claim one for themselves. I would have mine pass to an Alpha, of my lineage."

Ceno blinked. "You…want me to rule this?" He looked around, and remembered the area of his old home as well. That territory would be massive, and he would have to patrol it constantly to keep it clear of intruding species. "I prefer Battling. The sport, the honor. Beating up other Pokémon just trying to survive does not appeal to me."

The old rock eater blinked. "What you do with your territory, and what you allow inside, are your choices. Similarly, what this herd becomes is also your choice. Alphas are usually not so…level-headed. Eventually, another will come to this place, and the females, your mothers, will be subject to his likely violent rampages."

Ceno thought back to his childhood, and then recalled that many different Aggron and Lairon, all female, had watched over his tiny form, until he grew big enough to dig on his own, at least. He remembered fond feelings, if not the memories themselves, buried as they were with the trauma of his more recent ones. "But my team-brothers…"

The old Aggron snorted again, and thrusted his horns forward. The sound resonated in Ceno as they crashed into his, and again he felt the natural anger towards another male of his kind. He knew how to control that, though. He stood his ground, as the old timer tried to push him, and gauge his strength. The still 6 stage defensive tank that was Cenomons didn't move, but he didn't have to. The older Aggron was in his face, his blue eyes sparking with fury as he snarled at Ceno. "Weak. Your kin need you, and you abandon them for a human. For Pokémon not your own. We will duel, and when I win, I will teach you how to rule well."

The old Aggron rose to his full height then, instead of the slouch he usually had thanks to his worn down body. He began lumbering down to the very bottom of this canyon, where Ceno assumed this herd of his species line held their duels for leadership and mating rights. Then Ceno saw his pace, how long it would take the old fella to get down there, rolled his eyes, and went back to eating.

Ten minutes later, the old Aggron roared when he heard Ceno was still feasting, and that was the cue the younger Aggron took that signaled his opponent was ready. As he turned, he saw a sea of mostly blue eyes, staring at the half-eaten horde of minerals, and the massive beast who'd unearthed it. Ceno glanced at it, and then sighed. "Go ahead, little brothers and sisters. Eat. Become strong. Like me." That was all the motivation they needed, and the swarm of hungry baby metal eating monsters descended on the exposed vein.

Ceno used Rock Climb to descend then, and he arrived in a pile of rubble at the bottom of the valley, after setting off a small landslide. The older Aggron just shook his head. "Ready yourself, whelp."

That, made Cenomons growl, and the massive and now quadrupedal mountain eater stalked toward his sire. They began circling then, each step reverberating through the mountains, and their opponent. Not to mention their onlookers. The rumbling was enough to stir the now forgotten Aggron they'd left up above, who got back to his feet in time to see the clash begin.

Ceno started, with his vitamin-enhanced speed and training making him slightly faster than the other Aggron. The Earthquake he set off seemed to irritate his sire, but the old iron eater was ready for it. The earth responded to his call, sinking, and then rising below him, sending the somewhat lighter Aggron into the air as he drew in his fist, and began charging up his move. Ceno knew a fighting move when he saw one, and his Trainer's voice in his head suggested dodging.

Ceno moved with the earth, gliding through it as he shifted position. The old Aggron kept his focus though, landing and turning as he continued to charge his punch. Another Earthquake came from Ceno, but the old timer was ready. With a single stomp, he flattened Ceno's Earthquake, and used that exaggerated stomp to close the distance between him and his young rival.

Seeing the Focus Punch was going to hit, Alex's voice chimed in. "You're going to have to take the hit. You're sturdy though, so you can handle it. The counter needs to be spectacular, something with fighting energy. He might also be sturdy though, so let's hope he's not."

The Focus Punch landed then, and all the spectating members of their species cringed as Ceno took the rather powerful hit to his cheek. Realizing how sturdy Ceno was didn't help the old timer dodge in time, and Ceno countered with a Brick Break from his two horns. The two Aggron stared each other down as the damage took effect, and eventually the older Aggron fell to a knee. "Well...struck…"

The older Aggron struck at Ceno with a final Iron Head, and sent both of them into temporary unconsciousness. Ceno recovered first, and pulled himself back to his feet before roaring and claiming victory. Several Aron came down to their fallen leader with berries for him, and a small group gave several to Cenomons as well. He recognized them as the littles who had partaken of his claimed ore vein.

The two males recovered some strength, and Ceno eyed the older male expectantly as he spoke. "I can't say I won that... but I don't think I lost, either. I won't force you to stay…but I know your strength would help us."

"I'll stay for a time…" Ceno answered, "but I will eventually return. Until that time, my strength is yours."

The older Aggron took that in stride, and began showing Cenomons how a male Aggron ruled. It turned out that the three of them were the only males around for miles, and many of the surrounding mountains were divided between the far more common females. The role of the males was to visit such territories, and fill them with Aron eggs.

There was more though, much more, and both Cenomons and the smaller male he'd beaten easily learned how to rule. Ceno learned everything, over the course of several weeks, from how to treat rusting Aron, to planting berries where they would grow best. Like most of his team-brothers, Ceno did eventually meet a female he preferred, and after visiting her territory a few times, his gentler nature, for an Aggron, eventually won her over.

The old Aggron promised to look after his offspring when the call to assemble finally came from his Trainer, and Ceno made his way back to the ranch, eager to battle Trainer's Pokémon again. Someday he intended to pass his spot as the steel type with good move coverage to Canis, and return to the wild completely, but before that he intended to compete in the World Tournament that had prompted Alex to catch him in the first place.

Gelauros

"New concerns about Pokémon poaching in the Kanadia region have risen today, as the number of newly released Aurorus and Amaura has seemingly plummeted overnight. Kanadian authorities are in pursuit of the poachers, but recent reporting from the last few hours confirms that the Police have lost their trail in the tundra fields north of Superior Forest."

Gelauros was with his kin in the pen adjacent to the Redwood lab, another new addition to accommodate the herd that the Brain Trust was continuing to study. While they'd gleaned much about the species, they had been reluctant to release them in Kanadia or Galar because of how popular poaching Aurorus had become. Seeing Arthur pass by on his way to Teleport to Superior Lake, Gelauros asked him to bring him with the Gallade on his trip. Before they left, Eric affixed an Icicle Plate to Gelauros' chest, in case he needed to Mega Evolve. He and Arthur parted as soon as they landed in the southern part of the timeless forest, and with how massive it was, trekking to the north of it took Gelauros more time than he wanted to spend. Nobody told him time flowed slower there, so from his perspective, he was behind by the time he lumbered out of the rather delicious trees. Naturally, he'd snacked on their leaves as he trekked.

When he finally reached the tundra area mentioned on the PNN broadcast, he let out a loud call, for his kin, but received nothing in response. The same thing happened in the center of the barren landscape, so he tried a different tactic. He'd seen his kind communicate through electrical waves, but he had never had parents to show him how it was done. Once his herd understood he could control his power, Gelauros had picked up the trick, more or less. This, was his first chance to try it out in practice.

He closed his eyes, breathed deep, and let the cold air fill his neck sails. The gems across his body flared, as he finally sensed something; an Amaura he was fairly sure, but where there was one there would likely be more. Turning his massive frame in that direction, Gelauros prepared to do something his kind usually didn't do. Run. Not only did it take significant energy, but because of their size, 'speedy' movements could ruin or scare other Pokémon or their nests. Now was the time for haste though, and few Pokémon made their nests in places like this, one of the many reasons his ancestors had moved to and adapted for such environments.

The earth itself shook, as he began running, picking up speed like a truck as he thundered through the snow. He flared his sails again, sensed the Amaura again, as well as several Aurorus this time, and adjusted his course. There weren't many trees this far north, but he did eventually come upon a stand of them, and in skirting around it sensed that what he sought was hiding within the ancient, snowy forest. Irritated that he'd wasted time trying to avoid the trees, he eventually charged into them, and large branches and trees that got in his way were trampled as he went deeper. Then, he smelled it. The scent of unwashed human, the fuel their wheeled moving-boxes were powered by, and the scent of his kin.

Inside the gray, flat roofed compound that blended well with the surrounding forest, the Pokémon poachers were recuperating from a long night of hard work, and treating ice-burns. Then, the earth started shaking, slightly at first, but then more noticeably. The herd they'd captured most of began clamoring, and another Aurorus call roared from the direction of the shaking. Their leader stood, drawing the attention of his men as he did. He was clad in black clothing suited for colder climates, like they all were, but what distinguished him was a missing eye and eyepatch that he'd lost to an Archeops that hadn't appreciated being poached from its new home in the modern era. "Looks like we got one more, boys. Ready your Ice Heals."

Gelauros saw the black clad humans emerge from the bunker, and unlike his kin, didn't make the mistake of freezing them and then trying to free the others. He had no mercy for this brand of human scum, and the air hummed with electricity as Gel's form sparked, and the gray clouds over them grew darker, and angrier. The Charge Beam lanced through three of the fifteen or so humans at once, and the others scattered. One that looked like the leader, sporting an eyepatch, shouted to the others. "This one knows electric moves! Watch the Paralysis!"

Thinking that a good idea, Gelauros readied another electric attack. Electricity sparked down from the clouds above into his sails as Gel readied his next move. As the surviving humans dodged, they found their efforts futile, as a Thunder Wave passed over all of them, at once. With the poachers paralyzed, they could do nothing as a massive white foot came down on their leader, and turned him to bloody paste. Many of them finally beheld the Aurorus attacking them at that point, and some gibbered in terror about a 'white demon of snow' or something. Gelauros was beyond caring at this point. One by one he dispatched the humans, and when only four or five were left, he let them pile into their moving wheel-box, before igniting it with his electricity, sending it flying into the air, and then landing hard with a fiery crash. For good measure, Gelauros unleashed a Blizzard on it, dousing the flames, and anyone who might've survived the crash.

Thinking he was done, Gel turned towards the cages holding the fearful members of his species, only to feel a Pokéball bounce off him, getting his attention, as it summoned a Pokémon to the field. A Salamence, regular in size and shape but fully grown and male, appeared then and snarled at Gel. Then he saw its Trainer, the eyepatched human he thought he'd crushed. Both his legs were gone, but it seemed humans could survive such things apparently. Either that, or Gel hadn't noticed him dodge. He looked at the dragon then, and growled. "You have exactly one chance, Salamence. Leave. Abandon your Trainer and this life of stealing Pokémon from their homes…or I'll make you pay for helping this Trash personally." Ice flared out of the crystals on his body then, as Gelauros reverse Intimidated the dragon type.

Naturally, the Salamence's initial reaction was to deny the Aurorus, and Gelauros met his Flamethrower with a Charge Beam, before the icy wind exuded by his body blew the smoke from the move collision away. "Look at him! He will die here! You will too if you do not quit this place. Last chance, dragon." Gel readied an Ice Beam then, one that would more than faint a dragon and flying type.

The Salamence paused in his attack to look at his now crippled and very bloody human. Without legs, his career was over, which meant no more food, and with that much lost blood, the other humans wouldn't be able to save him in time. He was essentially being ordered around by a corpse. "He stole me too…" The Salamence snarled, as he turned on his Trainer. He'd vaguely known what his Trainer had been doing, but this particular Salamence's heart had been hardened to the suffering of the other Pokémon. His Trainer had stolen him as a Bagon yes, but then he'd made him stronger. Strong enough to fly. That was all he'd wanted as a Bagon, but now as an adult, he realized he wanted freedom more than he wanted his human to live.

"What are you doing!? Mukking scalehead! Attack the Aurorus!" The human was backing up futilely leaving a bloody trail in the snow, but the Salamence kept advancing on him. "No…no! Stop! Stoo-" and then the human's cries ended, with a definitive crunch. The Salamence shook his former Trainer like a ragdoll, and then tossed him aside with the other dead humans, stomped on his Pokéball, and then flew off into the sky with a roar of anger, disappointment, and rage.

Gelauros left the Salamence to his bloody vengeance, and instead focused on freeing his kin. The locks on their cages were already frozen, and that seemed not to affect them much. Instead, Gel summoned his electric attacks, and with careful aim aided by his long neck, was able to blow apart and overload the electrified cages and their locks. One by one the herd was freed, and without waiting, they began fast-trotting back to the tundra fields they'd been stolen from. He was a bit surprised they just left without waiting for everyone, but he could tell their flight instincts had kicked in as well. Eventually, the scared Aurorus would regain their senses.

Another roar of one of the human's contraptions signaled the arrival of more of them, and Gelauros whirled, facing them, as he Ice Beamed a wall between the new arrivals, and his fleeing kin. He readied a Charge Beam, but then noticed these humans were not poachers, but clad in different outfits altogether. There was still some uniformity to them, but he could tell by the partners they brought out, namely an Arcanine and several Growlithe, that they weren't bad Trainers. Their partners told him to stop, but Gel was more focused on the Arcanine, who'd remained silent. He glanced at his Trainer, and then trotted towards the massive, white Aurorus. "You freed the herd?"

Gel nodded, as he let the Charge Beam fade. "I did. Will your Humans capture them again?"

The Arcanine shook his head. "My Human is the Police Chief for this area. We will make sure they are safe."

Gel looked at the Arcanine, and then at his bundled up orange snowsuited partner. "Come with me. We will explain to them. Leave your Human here." It took several tries, but eventually, a paw from the Arcanine and a warning snort from Gelauros convinced his human to stay. The two Pokémon lumbered off then, following the trail of massive footsteps through the woods, and the path Gelauros had initially made through it. Arcanine found several lost Amaura on their way, and the trio scurried back to the herd once they saw them.

Gelauros approached the herd first, having informed the Arcanine of what he was up to on their walk here. An old female, old since she'd been revived and given a second life, met Gelauros as he approached the wary herd. "Long has it been since we have seen a white Aurorus…longer still since we saw one with such mastery of electricity. That is a skill many of us have lost, in our new lives."

"My Human showed me how to wield such power." Gel rumbled. "I can teach you, as well. This one's Human," He said, turning to look at the Arcanine, "will keep you and the others safe from the poachers. I will stay as well…for a time. To make sure."

The Arcanine trotted up then. "We will be nearby if you require more aid. If you need help, let out one of those roars that shakes the very tundra. My nose can find you, now."

The elderly female graciously accepted the aid, and thanked the Arcanine, who then ran back to his human. Gelauros was accepted as a part of the herd, but they moved even further north once they'd recovered. Gel stayed with them over the weeks that followed, learning firsthand how his species survived in the wild. Unlike his team-brothers, he didn't try finding a female. Aurorus tended to mate for life, and he couldn't stay with the herd indefinitely.

Sure enough, one day, Alex's voice echoed in his head for them to assemble, and moments later, Arthur appeared with his ball, offering him the choice to come back home. Gel bid his new friends a fond farewell, and then left as abruptly as he'd arrived in their lives. He wondered if he would some day desire the wild roaming lifestyle more, but for now, he enjoyed battling with Alex too much to stop here, right before the World Tournament.

Ictus

Unlike the rest of the team, Ictus and his dark-typed nature left to brood quietly behind the Redwood's barn. He dug a hole beneath the earth there, and just sat, growling at anyone who came near, unless they had food. Much like Terra, he grew larger as he rested and slept, and brooded on how depressingly easy it had been to take the lives of humans and Pokémon. Images of the carnage of war deeply unsettled him, and refused to leave him alone.

His days were spent sleeping, and his nights were spent glaring angrily at the entrance of his burrow, as he recalled the nightmares of the daylight hours. Unlike his teammates, his dark nature meant Alex wasn't constantly in his head. He was properly alone, or so it seemed. He was about to learn otherwise, as he wasn't the only dark type Alex had.

One night, as Ictus ruminated on his nightmares from the daytime hours, a new visitor arrived at his 'burrow'. Naturally, he growled, but this one growled back. Annoyed at the fellow dark type, one claw lit with bug energy, and struck out of the hole. It was then that he noticed his arm had grown bigger. Panicking slightly, Ictus began widening the hole, and crawled out of it as he fought the inner panic. As a Skorupi, he'd seen many of his kin dig too deep only to get crushed by the unforgiving earth, and their kind didn't really do well with ground typed scenarios.

Once he was free of the hole, he looked around for the intruder, and his gaze was drawn upwards, as the Umbreon, Shadow, yipped at him. "You're finally out. We were wondering when you'd realize you'd grown too large for the exit you made."

Ictus narrowed his eyes. "Why…am I so much larger all of a sudden?"

Shadow twitched his ears, and shrugged. "No idea. It's only the main ten who've started growing like that. You're the size of an Alpha, now. I guess you all hit a certain level at some point during the war."

Ictus grimaced, and then began climbing up the barn without damaging it too badly. "I heard you saw combat as well, as did Espeo. I wouldn't wish that experience on anyone."

The Umbreon shook his head as he stared at the moon from the top of the barn. "What Humans call war isn't much different from what Pokémon do in the wild. Yes there's more structure, and weapons, but it all boils down to one side fighting to dominate the other. It's not personal. Life should be preserved as often as possible, but even Pokémon have situations where we simply can't save everyone. The Humans we faced chose to start that war. Our Humans ended it. I won't be shamed by, or regret my actions. We stopped Humans who used the Shadow as a power boost. That's not a bad thing."

Ictus tilted his head, seeing the sense in Shadow's words. "I still don't care for it... but I understand the need."

Shadow nodded. "It often falls to Dark Types to do what other Pokémon can't, or shouldn't. We can typically handle the burdens others cannot. There's nothing wrong with disliking war."

"Battling is fun. Sport." Ictus snorted. "War is...very different."

The two Pokémon stared at the sky in unison now, and then the Umbreon smirked at his hulking ogre scorpion friend. "I'm pretty good at both, you know. War and Battling."

Recognizing his tone, Ictus smirked at the Eeveelution. "Oh, you are? You'll have to show me some time."

Shadow smirked at him. "How about tomorrow?"

Ictus rumbled in contemplation, then looked at his hole. "Tomorrow works."

One of the Miltank below them mooed up at them. "Go to sleep already!"

Shadow and even Ictus laughed. "Tomorrow it is." He skillfully backflipped off the barn, and then ran back to the hollowed out tree that housed the various Eevee that Alex had caught.

Ictus spent the rest of his vacation in the nearby woods with Shadow, as they practiced their dark typed moves on each other. Shadow was more of a special attacker, while Ictus battled with his physical moves. Despite not using bug type moves, he won repeatedly, until finally Espeo, Alex's Espeon, wanted a go. That battle Ictus did use bug moves for, and Espeo learned the hard way just how annoying a dark type's immunity to psychic attacks could be.

Eventually, Ictus and Shadow noticed Terra return with a mob of Turtwig in tow, and then one after the other, the other members of the 'Top Ten' as the Eeveelutions called them, began returning to the lab with their progeny or mates they'd found in their own adventures. Being disconnected, Ictus had no direct call to assemble. His came later, from Espeo, who had evidently forgotten he was supposed to inform the ogre scorpion to return to his ball and await PC retrieval.

Ictus bid his friend farewell, promising to spar again, and then did as Alex wished. If he was recalling them, that meant Koria was in the end stages, close to freedom. Or, Alex needed their power to ensure a victory. Either way, Ictus was ready for whatever the foreign region brought, and as a less well known face of his team, he expected he'd see some more use.

Lux

Throughout Alex's trek through Koria, Lux mainly had one duty: keep the egg next to his Holodex warm, and enjoy his time away from the plasma saber. He could make both devices radiate a comforting warmth that accomplished his egg-sitting duties. He loved being a sword, truthfully, but having Pokénet access was a joy unto itself. Soon after they completed the device, Lux had begun studying, lowkey catching up on all the advancements this iteration of humanity had made, as well as all the times they'd stumbled.

He studied everything, from the appointment of the Successor to the man who'd Tamed Arceus and the fragmented records of the Dark Times that followed, to the modern era, where the Imperium of Man recently wiped out Varangia, and claimed their lands as their own, now once again free to focus on their endless war with Eous. Much of Lux's free time was spent studying the Imperium's technology, as he 'hacked' their systems, but did nothing to interfere with them. Temere, Lux's new little electric brother, often wanted to listen to the 'rock and roll' the humans had made both in this era and the distant past. The two electric types shared these tunes with the egg, and Lux was deeply amused when he finally hatched, and turned out to enjoy the jams as much as they had.

Then, there was Nox. When Lux slept, often the darker spirit would possess the Holodex instead, prank calling numbers in Alex's list of random Trainers, and even trolling people on the PokéNet. Lux did what he could to clean up Nox's mess, usually by deleting troll posts, but otherwise let his ghostly little 'brother' do as he pleased.

Initially, Lux had wondered why Alex had chosen another team of ten, aside from just wishing to stay incognito. As they traveled, he could tell Alex was training them to be Gym worthy. There was more to it though, than just training up potential replacements for the World Tournament. The human had a plan in mind, Lux could tell, but he didn't verbalize it, or think about it openly. Being a ghost type, Lux couldn't just peek in his head, either. Alex would notice his presence immediately.

Eventually, as they traveled north through Koria, Lux just asked. In response, Alex said, "You're right. It's more than just having replacement or variety…I want our team to be the best…to be capable of saving the planet, if necessary. We can't do that alone though, even with ten of us. Even with twenty. Our team is, someday, going to protect the entirety of the planet. There's an ideal spot for each of you, I'm sure. But you ten, the originals, your purpose will mostly be Battling. And if you decide to retire, then one of the little brothers will step up, and train their replacement, and on the cycle goes. The other teams will have different purposes, but A and B will be those who wish to Battle, primarily."

"And if you have more than twenty, who want to Battle?" Lux asked.

Alex shrugged. "I won't. If you hadn't noticed, I haven't really been on any catching sprees lately. I have some good partners with some good natures. A bit of training, and they'll be strong enough to protect anyone they need to. Everyone else I've caught, with a few exceptions, have gone on to be adopted by my cousins."

"A globe-spanning team of Pokémon? That's going to be a lot to manage." Lux said, finding he liked the idealistic goal of making a world-spanning team of Pokémon powerful enough to protect apportioned areas of the world. If anyone could do it, it would be Alex, now that he had the Storm Crown.

Alex chuckled, and gave the floating ghost a pat. Sparks hit his hand, but he bore with it to give out scritches. "I'll be relying on a Rotom for that, I'm sure…not you, of course. You're tied to your crystal, and I'd rather have you at my side. We'd need to find the right Rotom."

Lux chuckled, and then zooped back into his hilt. "I'll keep an eye out for one."

Little did Lux know, he would soon encounter such a Rotom, but he searched anyways, scouring the PokéNet for a mind capable of coordinating the kind of team Redwood envisioned. Lux's main concern was that he wouldn't be able to care for them all, but that turned out not to be warranted. Alex kept all of his partners fed, usually giving them Pokébeans, or puffs, or berries while he traveled or walked around on foot.

Aside from browsing the web, Lux didn't do much else in his time 'off'. He kept apprised of the battling world, and found that the current favorite to win the upcoming World Tournament was the Indius Champion, with the Champion of Italia close behind. Famous as Alex was, he'd dropped off the map to fight a war, and then hadn't appeared for the initial victory celebrations. Tao had announced they'd be held with Festivus, and that months long holiday would serve as the official celebration of their victory. The intervening months were focused on resting, grieving, and recovering from the brief but bloody war.

Alex's efforts in the Spirit World didn't go unappreciated by Lux either. Reuniting the Light Spirit, or Raava, as the Korians knew her, would help ghosts everywhere. Indeed, it was her being ripped from Kora that had jolted him awake in his cave in the Majestic Canyon. Then Redwood had shown up. Lux didn't know where following Alex would take him, but he trusted that this was the Way.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 30, 2024

Chapter 43: The Summit

The Golden Throne, Olympia City - Olympius Mons

A heavy silence hung over the massive throne room of mankind's Imperator as the soon to be dead man's voice speaking on the Holovid filled the holy, and primarily golden decorated room. Massive crimson and gold banners of the twin headed eagle, a symbol that had appeared during and survived the Dark Times, decorated either side of the Golden Throne. Being far more than simply a seat for the Imperator, the throne was massive, and much like the one in Unova's Palace of Ideals, it rose to the center of the throne room like a mountain with a roof above it, though in terms of size, the Golden Throne was much, much larger than the one in Unova. It was covered in strange runes that were not Common, and various cabling and other technology led into the throne, enabling it to serve as the seat from which the Imperator of Mankind ruled His supercontinent spanning Imperium. The throne's occupant, the Imperator Himself had chiseled, classically good looks, a chin that could break mountains, and a jawline so symmetrical it embodied strength, and authority. His skin was pale in tone but tanned. What little of it could be seen from under His massive, golden, hand-crafted ceramite power armor that covered his massive fourteen-foot-tall frame.

"So, you see, Imperator, the Selenar Geniocracy of Apollonia has voted to decline your offer. I know you declared there would be a 'price' for our 'defiance', but the Gene Lords of Luna are still more than agreeable about trading with your Imperium. In fact, it's the best deal they've ever offer-"

The Imperator waved a massive, golden, power-armored and three-clawed hand reminiscent of a bird's talons, and the screen cut out. The claw opened and closed, humming with ominous plasma energy that crackled as golden lightning around the sleeping weapon. For months He had dealt honorably with the long-forgotten denizens of Luna, all five billion of them, hiding in massive cities beneath Luna's crust, where they'd been sequestered since humanity's first orbital colonies had been dropped from orbit onto the Earth, causing the human race to all but die off in the resulting cataclysm. Their people had stayed alive, using the technology of their age, and then later, technology they studied and copied via signals from their operators on the Earth. He had put up with their weird, primitive culture of Eugenics-controlled and amorally logical reproductive practices via cloning because of what He could gain from the Selenar, if He could but convince them to join Him intact. A siege of their lunar cities would, potentially, ruin what the Imperator sought from them.

The conquest of Varangia had disheartened His more…'moral' Legions of Thunder Warriors. There were some, brought up from what used to be Africa, poor souls of all walks of life rejected and imprisoned by society who were shoved into gladiatorial games for the amusement of Olympia's nobility. All Thunder Warriors were birthed from that crucible of battling, very high rates of death, and often ridiculous genetic enhancements. Others, like those of Germania and other parts of Europa who willingly sent in their best to compete in the games, still retained their noble bearing and sense of humanity. The gene cult of Apollonia would've given Him the knowledge He needed to perfect His Thunder Warriors. The Selenar might have helped Him, too. If not for the meddling dragon Pokémon that thought himself a ruler, making a counteroffer, or so his agents of the Vanus clade reported.

"Horus. My son." The fourteen-foot-tall golden armored panoply of the finest power armor the Imperator Himself had ever forged shifted towards his son, who stood like a statue on the extended platform that surrounded the peak of the mountainous throne's height. The Imperator was massive in size, though He could and had psychically altered how others saw Him. He was easily one of if not the most powerful psychic on the planet, and tiny concepts like morality or mental privacy did not restrain Him. His raven black hair framed his noble features, which showed no emotion as He spoke to the first of His sons, the Prime Archons. "The time has come. Inform the Iterators and the Obsidian Keep. Prepare the Legions. We shall take Luna by force. You and your 'wolves' will be the unyielding tip of the spear. I want the Gene Cult intact, Horus."

Horus looked much like his gene-sire, though his armor was slightly less bulky, and toned silver with gold trim. The almost comically small head surrounded by the hood-like shell of ceramite encasing it was also bald, unlike his father. The All-Seeing Eye of the Gyptians who had recovered him as a child adorned his armor's waist plate, and knee plates, and the Imperator's fist, gripping a lightning bolt, covered his chest. A massive alpha Midnight Lycanroc, killed by hand, had its pelt adorning the backpack powering the absurdly bulky power armor, with its head hanging over his right shoulder. Horus saluted his Imperator. "Intact. It will be done, Father. At long last. I will bring the last remnants of Old Earth to heel personally. You won't need my brothers."

The Imperator cared little for idle boasting, but He recognized that Horus had something to prove. "If you are so confident, what few space-capable assault craft we have are yours. Do not fail me, Horus."

As his twelve-foot-tall son stomped out of the throne room already geared for war and only lacking his signature massive power maul that he naturally only needed one hand to wield, the Imperator sighed, and gestured at His holoscreen that hung before His seat on the throne, now blank. "Give me Ozai."

Within moments, during which the Imperator waited patiently for a connection, the face of the primitive Korian firebender filled the screen. As always, he was sitting in his flame-encased throne, and as always, the shadows around him seemed too dark and imposing for a seat surrounded by light-giving flame. "My…Imperator." Ozai said with such a false tone, the Imperator didn't need his psychic power to sense the contempt below. He expected such, especially from his regional governors. Their greed was endless.

Often did they dream above their station, but humankind only needed one leader, and the Imperator was that leader. "Phoenix King Ozai. I've heard you've been having some trouble with the water savages. Word that they took out your daughter and her forces is spreading quickly. Were the Thunderhawks not sufficient?" His kind but intense eyes glanced away from Ozai as He saw the status of their flight group. "Almost every one of them was destroyed, by an unknown Bender, and a Lugia. The same Lugia that ruined your Admiral's fleet, if I am not mistaken. In all that chaos, it seems the Guardian's Avatar has eluded you yet again. You will receive no more of our weaponry, and we will be withdrawing a significant portion of our military forces. I have my own battles to fight. Your family has had three centuries at this point. Get your territory in line, Ozai. Completely. Or I will find somebody else who can handle the job. You have until my current campaign ends."

As the line cut out, Ozai swore. Vaatu murmured in his head. "We cannot face that one head on…not yet. There must be more, of what I need. You know what must be done." Ozai slowly nodded, seemingly to himself, and the pair of Fire Nation royal guards flanking his fiery throne took no notice. Vaatu was a being of Shadow, an entity that thrived on the darker emotions of humans and Pokémon alike, be they spirits or otherwise. Alive or dead, their hatred and suffering empowered him, but in this era of modernity and coexistence, his influence had waned.

Forcing Korians to needlessly suffer had not been something Ozai wanted to do. He wanted to break their hope, and then work them to their full use, but the Avatar had stubbornly remained intact, even after the beating he'd given the last one. He strode through his palace then, heading to the Medicum wing, where lobotomized servitors acted as perfectly precise doctors, and specialized in using the Imperium's medical technology. On the table in the wing's backmost room, was his daughter.

Her body had been perforated by some Snow Savage's attack, one who had figured out the ancient, and supposedly forbidden, art of the Water Nation. The ability to bend a person's blood. Her entire middle, lower right side, and left leg had been lost, and the organs within had barely lasted long enough for replacements to be grown and implanted. Her reproductive organs were also ruined, but he'd ordered those repaired enough not to bleed. The nerve endings were quite dead, due to blood loss, and while he could've repaired them with the Imperium's technology, now that particular distraction was out of the way, Aluza would have some use to her family.

He'd oft dreamed of what she would've been like if she'd not inherited his temperament and his libido, and now, he would find out. She likely wouldn't last with only her hands to bend from. Not against an Avatar, but she could lead and inspire fear. The Imperium's enhancements were durable and looked quite intimidating. It would take an effort to bring her down, especially once the cybernetic implants drugged her up and unleashed her on the enemy. The scarred half of her face had also been replaced, and while her left eye still looked human, the eyeball itself had been replaced and upgraded with the kind of technology the nobility of Olympus City enjoyed. The pupilless red ocular device hummed to life as it was connected to the rest of her augmentations.

One of the servitors beeped, as they finished their work. The replacement parts were silver, a mesh of cabling and metal that vaguely resembled a human shape but were more than proven in combat. More than a few of his soldiers, the older ones, had such cybernetic replacements. Some even shot fire, but the earthbenders they typically fought against did not restrain themselves from crushing limbs, and then retreating back underground to hide.

As the drugs woke Aluza up, Ozai frowned, and the entire back room exploded in blue flame, that turned orange as it burned on its own, away from the source of its initial heat. Ozai lowered a hand, and the fire, which had become tinged a dark purple red upon entering his control, lowered, and flared out. The servitors had already left, but the rest of the Imperium equipment was cinders, now. It no longer mattered. They would have to rely on their own technology now, and knowing the lesser Nations as he did, they would see this opportunity to band together and attack.

"Welcome home, Princess Aluza. You've looked better." The banished Princess blinked, processing his words, as she panted heavily, and then looked down at what was essentially her entire lower half. Her 'bits' still felt human, but there was something off. She assumed her reproductive capability was forfeit, now. She was acutely aware of where the enraged water rat had hit her.

"I was dead. Why salvage…this?"

Ozai looked her over, and then handed her clothing that would mostly hide her injuries, and her augmentations. "Because you only have one use left to your Family, and we need your edge. Your ruthlessness. The Imperium is withdrawing its military assistance for the time being. We are to get our region under control, full control, on our own. Presumably…we have until this current distraction ends. In that time, we are going to break the Earth Kingdom, but first, we need to prepare. Upgrade. Learn. Go to my Throne Room. Tell my Generals to recall their forces."

Aluza frowned. "You're retreating?"

Ozai shook his head. "I am preparing. The other Nations will strike at us eventually. Many will see the Imperium's preoccupation as an opportunity. I am acting before they throw our spread-out forces into disarray. We will be gone before their dim brains even notice, and when we return…we will do so with Fire." Ozai watched as his daughter's frown shifted into the grin he was looking for. Finally, his stern expression turned into a pleased smile every bit as sinister as hers. "I have a task for you..."

Ba Sing Se - Koria Region

"Now, a new era will begin for Humans and Pokémon alike…the Shadow will rise, on this planet, and so many others…"

Kora raised her fists, exhausted from the fight with Ozai already. Her age was showing, and the young Fire Lord was burning with the desire to win, while in the prime of his youth. By slaying her, he would cement his status over his older brother, and any who questioned his rule or preferred Iroh would be ultimately silenced by the gravitas of the act. Few individuals in Koria's history could claim to have killed an Avatar of their Guardian. It would put his martial prowess in the same category as the first Fire Lord

Now, the ascendant Fire Lord had successfully fused with Vaatu. Within her tired body, Kora heard Raava speak to her. "This Battle is not over yet, my Avatar…we must win!"

And with all four elements at her disposal, Kora very nearly did. Their battle saw them shunted out of the Spirit World, and while Kora was a match for Ozai thanks to four elements at her masterful command, when the young firebender was being fueled by Vaatu in a fresh fusion of flesh and Spirit. Kora had caught him in the act of freeing the Shadow entity, but not before they had done as Wan had, and used the massive surge of ghost flavored Infinity Energy to merge their essences into a single being. A new Guardian of Koria. Like the rest of the males in his family line, Ozai was a potent specimen of humanity, and quite adept at killing with the flames at his command. His fire-fueled flight and black and red flames seemed to sap her strength, as well as severely damage her skin and nerves with each hit he scored.

Ozai's black and crimson flames formed a shape like a phoenix, as they chased after Kora. She was exhausted by the battle over Koria's center, where they'd appeared after leaving the Spirit World. She'd never seen the Great Divide, and few people traveled it because of the rumors that a powerful, cantankerous Pokémon inhabited the canyon. Suddenly, she felt her foot burning as the shadow-fire 'beak' of Ozai's attack caught it, and the fresh pain stunned her, long enough for Vaatu's fire to engulf the rest of her limbs. Then, over the vast canyon, Vaatu slowly pulled Raava free of the latest incarnation of Wan and entrapped her in a cage of fire. "Isn't this a familiar sight, Raava, you helpless before me…but this time, you can't hide in your Human…this time, you will end. Forever. Then…the Era of Shadow shall begin again, and Koria's Guardianship shall fall to Me!"

Ozai moved his arms and struck the disembodied light spirit with his foul flames. Kora doubled over, and within her mind, she felt her connection to Aang vanish in a flash of heat. Ozai struck again, and Roku vanished. Another strike saw Kyoshi and Kuruk both, gone, shunted away from Raava into barely coherent energy traces along with their power and strength, and yet through it all Raava still desperately tried to maintain the connection, at the cost of not defending herself, so that the shock of their separation wouldn't kill Kora outright. If she died while they separated, the era of the Avatar would end permanently.

Each blow had affected Kora too, as she writhed in the fire's grip, her aged limbs burning in the black and red flame. Her masterful waterbending was the only thing keeping from being yet another burned corpse at Ozai's feet. Ozai and Vaatu glanced at Kora, and then grinned at what was left of Raava. Ozai's arms moved impossibly slow then, to Kora's perspective. She could almost see the energy in this killer's shredded body, how it moved, how it turned fiery under Ozai's command, and then, separated into positive and negative particles within his own bodily energy network, a trick firebenders could use, to produce something terrifyingly powerful. Black and red lightning struck Raava, and she fainted, shrinking down to miniscule size, Vaatu claimed his prize, and shoved her into the chest of his own Avatar.

The world shuddered, and Ozai doubled over, a manic grin on his face. A cloak of Shadow and fire engulfed him, and Vaatu's power radiated off of his shoulder armor, and his head. As the consequence of Vaatu's actions was registered by reality, Ozai's shadowy form pulsed with red, and Vaatu appeared atop this new cloak of flame and darkness, empowering his meat suit even further.

"I…am…Ascendent! The Shadow shall reign…forever!" Ozai shouted, as Vaatu's surge of power in victory raised him towards the sky. The energy of the planet's Harmonic Convergence shifted to Shadow as he bathed in it. With minimal effort, he bamfed himself the few hundred miles to Minjujuui City, the stronghold of Kora's rebels, which even now was being brutally burnt out by his ferocious firebenders. Ozai's appearance as a flame wreathed Champion of Shadow spurred on his soldiers, and the citizens despaired, as they knew his return meant their Avatar had lost. Even worse, with the 'death' of Raava, Vaatu became the dominant Legendary Pokémon in Koria, and this showed in Ozai. The Fire Lord was an unstoppable tornado of fire and carnage, and the man was actually laughing in the midst of his murder spree.

For her part, Kora had simply been dropped into the vast canyon they'd fought above, left to fall to her death by something as mundane as gravity. "There!" "There she is!" "Kora!" Two male voices, and one female echoed from below her as she hurtled through the air, and Kora lost consciousness. When next she came to, Raava was gone, and the world was tilted towards an Era of Shadow. Looking around, she saw Mako, Bolin, Asami, and Tenzin all looking worried, as they huddled in a narrow canyon within the center of the Spirit World. She looked above them, and saw a new, third hole in reality, further connecting Koria to the Spirit World by its mere existence. Kora's thoughts were slow, but she assumed that new Spirit Portal had been made when Vaatu ate Raava, and won. She tried to call on the other Avatars, but there was nothing. No Avatar State, no Light, just her very tired self, alone in the darkness. In a monotone voice, Kora recapped what happened for them, finishing with the revelation for Tenzin in particular, that her connection to Aang and the others was gone. If things stayed as they were, she would be the last Avatar of Raava.

Tenzin sat beside her, looking slightly less ancient than he did in the present day. "The other Avatars may not be able to help you anymore, but this isn't over yet, Kora. Koria needs its Avatar. Now, more than ever. Raava is not gone, and even without her presence, you remain our Avatar."

Kora just flopped her burnt arms. "I'm useless, Tenzin…and I'm not the Avatar anymore. Raava isn't with me. I can't fix this as I am…I'm too old…Ozai is too strong…and without the Avatar State…I'm no match for him." She forwned. She hadn't been much of a match with her power. Somehow, Ozai and Vaatu had been more in sync than she was with Raava.

The wise airbender put a hand on her shoulder. "There may yet be a way…come." As she stood, and they made to walk, the vertigo associated with approaching the Tree of Souls returned. "The ancients of our region used to travel the world from this spot, but always returned, in time, to meditate here, under this tree, and connect with the natural cosmic energy of the universe. You can do the same. Raava may be gone…but your spirit, the only spirit in history capable of bending four elements at once, has the power to stop Ozai…or at the very least, ensure that a new Avatar will rise to stop him."

"Sure." Kora said, still sounding defeated. "That might as well happen…" She sat cross-legged in the tree and waited. Slowly, though she was impatient, her emotionally exhausted state actually helped her spiritual connection, something she'd never had much mastery over, compared to Avatar Aang. "You've got this, Kora." "Beat that Ash Maker down!" "I believe in you, Kora." The encouragement of her friends, her team, and Asami most of all, spurred her on. She opened herself to the universe, and what happened next was hard to process into a memory.

There were incomplete flashes. A titanic battle between an astrally projected Kora limited to waterbending, and a Vaatu-empowered Ozai limited to firebending. Eventually, their clash came to a head, and through the overwhelming power of water, and type advantage, Kora was able to stun Ozai into unconsciousness, turning off his bending ability, and leaving Vaatu to rage-possess his body. Kora didn't let him act, though. His Hyper Beams had done enough damage to her. Instead, she reached a spirit hand inside Vaatu, and ripped Raava from his chest. In that moment she'd almost doubted she'd find her Light, but sure enough, Tenzin proved correct. The Light would not, could not, go out. The Balance was absolute. The sky turned less supernaturally dark, and more blackened by the ash of war and flame, and Kora's projection vanished, bringing her and Raava back to the Tree of Souls.

Kora leapt from the tree and rushed to the Light aligned part of the spiritual nexus. As she'd seen Wan do, she fused with Raava again, and again felt her power, though it was severely depleted. She would be the only Avatar to ever truly understand the difference between the power she'd had when whole, after millennia and over six hundred lifetimes, and the complete lack of those lifetime's experience and power.

"You are as strong as Wan, when he first began this journey." Raava said to her, weakly. Kora felt her energy fading towards sleep, and her own energy was spent. The stress of connecting to the universe and then projecting herself had been too much on her body. "This Battle…is not yet over…" Raava continued. "There will be another Avatar…the cycle will continue…rest now, Kora. Rest with me…"

Seeing their friend collapse by the portal to the physical world, Mako, Bolin, Asami, and Tenzin had rushed over to Kora. The Avatar looked up at her team and her airbending teacher. They were older than when she'd first met them. She could recall that day vividly, though. And all the days since, fighting firebenders, inspiring Korians, building a region-wide rebellion under the nose of the most technologically advanced people on the planet. She reached out to her boys, and hugged them close, while looking meaningfully at Asami. "Thank you…for being my friends. Don't give up hope…I will be back…and my next life…is going to crush Ozai…with rocks."

Bolin, realizing the life was leaving his friend, was a blubbering mess, but he still laughed at her joke, despite his turmoil. He tried to compose his snotty face. "Of course he will! He'll be an Earthbender! We'll crush the Fire Nation into ashy goo, just you watch, Kora."

Kora just smiled at him. "I will..." She said, weakly.

"How do you know she'll be a guy?" Asami said, narrowing her eyes. Naturally, she still wanted a chance to be with Kora. She did not yet understand just how different each incarnation was.

Mako chimed in then. "Avatar Kyoshi was female. The Avatar's gender always swaps. Yangchen was followed by Aang. Korruk was followed by Kora. That means our next Earth Avatar…will be a guy."

"Mako…" Asami said, softly, as she was the first of Kora's friends to notice. He kept on going with his knowledge, and needlessly hammering home the point that it was documented record that the Avatar's sex changed with each life, until he noticed what Bolin eventually had as well. Tenzin had remained quiet and watched as yet another Avatar passed into death. Few humans could claim to have seen such a thing twice, and he wasn't anywhere near done living yet. He intended the third Avatar to outlive him, though.

He closed Kora's eyes, and took in the soft smile she'd had, the last sight of her long life, that of her friends, having one of their many squabbles. Naga popped free of her ball, and howled, and as the sound traveled, Jimen's perception did too. Up into the still-connected energy bridge of Harmonic Convergence, and then off, towards the Earth Kingdom.

Avatar Jimen sat up in a cold sweat, the faint ring of a crying infant in his ears, and his newly conditioned muscles screamed in protest. "I can't believe we smoked Leaf in that tree…" He said, now understanding the significance. Unknown to him, or anyone living, the ancient Korians had also partaken of the herb beneath the spiraling trunk of the Tree of Souls. The custom had slowly fallen out of practice though, as reaching the Spirit World became more and more difficult over time, until eventually, a human coming through that space between spirit and physicality was a very rare occurrence.

Jimen readied for the day, met up with Alex, and then set about their tasks for the day ahead of them, aiding the Earth Nation rebels who were currently housing and feeding them.

The call to assemble had been answered swiftly, by most of his vacationing team. Alex would've given them a whole year after their ordeal, but the situation in Koria was coming to a head. Some took longer than others to arrive through the PC the rebels of the Impenetrable City had rigged outside of the Imperium's network. While Alex waited for all but Shruikan, who was flying to Koria on his own power, to return their balls and be transferred, he familiarized himself with the rebel cell that Avatar Jimen had seemingly bonded with most.

They were essentially what was left of the Earth Nation's army, combined with a group of civilians who had apparently been planning to completely overthrow the Earth Nation's king for some time. The resulting organization was a bit of a clusterMuk, but the goal was a free and fair society by the Earth Nation, for the Earth Nation, where the People would rule, and the Rich would not. It was a nice dream.

Since Alex had been a bit distracted in the Water Nation, with meeting Jimen and the imminent invasion, he had been unable to battle Leader Pokku, and because of how truly massive Ba Sing Se was, the city had a Gym Leader for each ring. The leader for the lower ring, full of hard-working poor people and criminals alike, was unofficially led by a man called Jet.

While Jimen searched subtly for the fragments of the past Avatars, claiming he and the others would know when they saw them, Alex was actually led around the underground base by Jet himself. He was a young adult man, standard Korian skin tone, with a full head of spiky brown hair, and a thin beard and mustache. He was very much acting and treated like a leader of the rebellion, but the Earth Generals thought otherwise. It was obvious who the common people preferred.

"And this…" Jet continued, in his charismatic tone, as they entered a new space, "Is our very own Gym...of sorts. We're right under the University's library. Sometimes students come down to watch Battles. Fair warning though, the League won't recognize my Badge as legitimate."

Alex just chuckled and switched on his Battle Recorder. "Don't worry about the League. In fact, I can make a case for you, if you Battle hard enough. They'll have to acknowledge a Champion's endorsement."

Jet arched a brow. "Truly? You'd do that for a man you just met?"

Alex smirked at the man. "Jet, from what I've seen in the short time I've known you, you're more than qualified to be this ring's Gym Leader. But we have tests for a reason. Treat this like an examination of your Battle prowess, and don't worry about the outcome."

Jet gave him a quizzical look. "The outcome is what matters, Alex. Victory, is what matters. I'd think a Victory League Champion would know that." He gestured to the stands then, and the manned spotlights shifted to roll over them at Jet's gesture. He shouted as he addressed both the foreign Champion and the crowd. "These fine people came to see their favorite Trainer win!" He took his spot on the opposing side of the field then. "I'd hate to disappoint them."

The crowd roared in answer to Jet's words. It was clear that they wanted nothing more than to see the tall, pale skinned, hooded, bearded westerner lose. "Unfortunately…" Alex said, as his Voice reached every one of them, causing a murmur as he quoted one of his icons, "The crowd can be cruel, Jet. It wants nothing more than to see one of us lose. If they think it will be me…disappointment is all they'll get! Canis, come forth!" His Lucario howled onto the field, and his aura burned to life around him in a deep blue. Since their sojourn in the Spirit World, he'd been eager to keep battling, and since Jimen said Jet preferred dark and poison types, Canis was up first as he could counter both and was immune to poison.

Jet's first choice was a scraggly looking Umbreon, whose coat had clearly never seen a comb. He almost looked as unkempt as his Trainer. "Shadow Ball!" Came the command, one easily countered by Alex, who called for a Dark Pulse. The more condensed sphere smashed the Shadow Ball apart before exploding on the field, and Alex followed up his momentum. "Aura Sphere! Close range." A melee attack with the sphere wasn't its usual use, but they'd been working on both, because apparently Ash's Lucario had mastered using the move at both distances too. Now that Blaze was with them again, Canis was following his lead, and emulating the techniques of those they wished to surpass.

"Double Team!" Jet ordered, and the scraggly Umbreon complied. Canis answered by closing his eyes, and the crowd began chanting; "Um-bre-on! Um-bre-on!" He tuned them out, instead focusing on maintaining his sphere, and sensing the aura of his opponent. Most psychic types couldn't do this with dark types, but Lucario were pretty much the exception to that rule. Aura was everywhere, and they could sense the 'absence' of it in dark types quite easily.

As the momentum built, Jet let it, and chose the moment Canis readied his attack to attempt a counter. "When you're ready, Quick Attack!" The multiple Umbreon began glowing white and running faster. They all pretended to leap, but Canis quite literally saw through their nonsense. As the Umbreon leapt, Canis moved just as quickly, and struck upwards under one of them.

He heard a forced exhalation of air, and the Umbreon clones vanished, letting the crowd watch as Canis's Aura Sphere smashed into the real Umbreon, sending it spinning across the field. All with his eyes closed. The Umbreon landed hard before Jet as the crowd murmured angrily, and then the ref examined and rose to call the faint. Before he could though, the Umbreon stood back up. Only Alex and Canis heard his words though. "I'm not...done yet!" His fur flared into spikes, and a Toxic attack came for Canis, who sidestepped it, eyes still closed, and fell back into his Dragon Stance.

"Oh come on!" Someone in the crowd shouted, as they got angrier. "How can a Pokémon attack without its eyes!?" Came another. "Gotta be cheating!" A third shouted, and that, was what the crowd latched on to. "No more cheats! No more cheats!" The three instigators, who now that Alex looked, seemed dressed similarly to Jet, joined in and egged on the chanting. He was starting to understand why Jet had been denied a real Gym Leader certification.

Alex sighed as the crowd continued, and the Umbreon steadied his feet. Then, Jet addressed the crowd as he subtly applied a potion to a battle that he'd told Alex wouldn't have items usable for the duration. "People! Please! Our Challenger is not cheating!"

But his words, which were softer than when he'd addressed them earlier, seemed to fall on deaf ears. The crowd continued to chant, and Jet just smirked, and shrugged at Alex whose expression suggested he was not amused by Jet's antics. "Enough!" The Word reverberated through the space, and Alex's eyes narrowed. "No more playing nice, Canis." He raised his enclosed fist then, within which was his steel Plate shard. "Mega Evolve!" Steely gray lines of aura met his partner's, and the Lucario's eyes widened, and sharpened as he felt the power surge, almost uncontrollably. He ascended to his Mega Form harmlessly, and the symbol of Infinity Energy briefly hovered over his Mega Form as he finished powering up. "Now Close Combat!"

The crowd booed, but Canis was already in motion. He punched the Umbreon from seemingly every angle, and this time, the faint was complete. Giving not one single Muk about the crowd's opinion, Canis was back to his starting position in an instant, and Jet recalled his partner. He Howled in victory, and his aura surged with enough force to blow back the crowd's hair, harmlessly. "Quite strong." Jet said, drawing another ball from his pocket. "But I do wonder how your Lucario isn't poisoned after punching Umbreon so much. Everyone knows they shoot poison when that low on health."

"Yea!" Came a shout from one of the rebels embedded in the crowd. Another followed with, "Seems awfully suspicious!" The crowd began chanting again, repeatedly shouting "Sus!" as Jet threw his ball, and a Drapion, an alpha by the size of him, appeared then. This too broke Jet's rule of using Pokémon at the B Team's level, a rule every Gym Leader observed, in an effort to help young Trainers grow, and face a fair challenge. Unless they requested otherwise.

Suddenly finding himself out of patience, Alex wanted to hurry along the rest of this match. Terra could've crushed the Drapion in an instant, but his shell was a bit iconic at this point, and he had no doubt there were Fire Nation plants in this crowd, likely intel gatherers. He recalled Canis, and called out his own Drapion then, and Jet's eyes widened, as he realized this one had to be part of Alex's regular team, not his Korian one, as it was just as large as his own Drapion. He opened his sly mouth to comment on it, but Alex spoke first. "Ictus. Earthquake."

Jet's eyes widened at the realization of yet another potential OHKO, and to his credit, he tried to counter. "Quick, use Dig!" Unfortunately, the ground being dug into shattered, and his Drapion instead found himself surrounded by an element he was weak to. Ictus made no move to free the buried rival scorpion ogre, as the Earthquake ceased. Jet, to his credit, what little was left, seemed at least concerned for his partner. "Hey…where's my Drapion? Drapion! Dig out of there!"

The crowd, naturally, disliked this, and the more annoying, and younger, of Jet's plants booed loudly, and the rest of the crowd soon followed. Finally, Alex sighed, after about forty-five seconds of this. "Ictus. Bring him to the surface." Ictus thumped the ground with a single claw, and with an explosion of dirt, the fainted Drapion was vomited onto the field again. "Now flatten the field, if you would. We want to be able to use it again." Ictus's other claw hit the ground, and the hole, and shattered topsoil, repaired itself seemingly with no blemishes, or outline paint.

Jet, finally realizing his strategy of losing and shaming Alex into forfeiting his win wasn't going to work, reached his arms up and behind his back then, and the crowd cheered, as they knew he was about to get serious. "I'm sure you know how we Battle in Koria by now, Challenger. Most of us who aren't Benders just have normal Battles…but I've never let that stop me." He drew a pair of Doublade then, wincing as they wrapped around his wrists, and began trading his life force, for their power.

Jet charged at Ictus then, and Alex sighed, walking up next to his partner as he joined him on the field. "Block the slashes with Throat Chop. Leave the Human to me. Don't let the swords recover." Ictus rumbled his acknowledgement and dropped into a low crouch. He skittered forward then in a serpentine pattern, and as Jet lifted both swords into an overhead spin strike, Ictus caught them in his claws, easily, ripped them from Jet's arms, and then dragged them over to the other side of the field in his dark typed grip, at which point the two Pokémon faced off. Jet had enough time to look surprised at being disarmed, until an earthy protrusion rose rapidly from the ground, and hammered his chin. Again, to his credit, he didn't immediately faint, but Alex trapped his fallen frame's limbs in earthy bindings quite easily. He felt earthbending interference from the crowd, but their control was weaker than his own hold on Jet.

While Alex had Jet easily subdued, the same could not be said for his Doublade. Battling on its own, the psychically linked dual swords parried Ictus's Throat Chops with Sacred Sword, and then countered with it as well. With the roundless speed of their traded moves, Ictus soon found himself with less health than his opponent. They separated then, circling each other warily, and Alex watched, propping Jet's head up with an uncomfortable earth pillow, so he could also watch. Ictus went for a Crunch, which while more powerful, ended up leading him into Crunching onto the blade blocking with Fury Cutter, while the Doublade countered immediately with Sacred Sword from its floating counterpart in a seamless display of dual swordsmanship.

Ictus growled an acknowledgement of the ghost's strength, before finally fainting, and Alex gained a new appreciation for how strong Doublade could be on its own. It was still weak after blocking so many strikes though and would only need a light hit to fall. Alex recalled Ictus, and the Doublade floated angrily towards him, freeing Jet with a pair of slashes. The hilt wraps returned to his arms then, and Jet wiped away some blood from the small wound his chin had sustained from Alex's earthy strike. "Not bad. You had me for a minute, there. How will you handle us now, I wonder?" He flourished the blades, and then charged.

Alex thought for a moment, and then smirked, leaping away from the linked pair of man and 'mon, as he drew a whitish-gold ball from his pocket. Red and blue circles covered the top and bottom of it, and he gave it a gentle toss, as he called out his youngest partner. "With him." He said, as the tiny fairy typed egg baby Pokémon came out before the somewhat ominous frame of Jet wielding a pair of ghost swords, who paused his advance at the sight of the tiny chirping egg baby. "This is his first Battle, but I know Astrum will do well." The Togepi briiped confidently and tapped the chest part of his shell as he stared down Jet without fear, like Canis did.

While initially not fond of the idea of being hurt in battle, seeing how cool Canis and his other 'big brothers' were had cemented the baby Pokémon's desire to battle. He trusted his Trainer to guide him through this first easy knockout, and his tiny eyes were on fire with the desire to win and prove himself. Jet frowned at Alex. "I'm not liable for the trauma the baby suffers. You brought him into this Battle, and I intend to win!"

Again, Jet charged, coming in low and fast for a hard strike on the Togepi. The Doublade hardened with Iron Head as Jet struck, and Alex gave the order. "Jump back, and use Protect!" Astrum did so, and Jet slashed uselessly at the brief but impenetrable shield, as Alex caught his tiny partner. He gave the little one a bearded chin rub on his cheek, a feeling he seemed to like as it tickled, and then Alex raised him over his head, bracing for the pain that would follow. For his partners though, he would gladly take an attack or two if it meant seeing them rise to be all they could be. "Now, Dazzling Gleam!"

Astrum had a vague understanding about his Trainer's seeming weakness to fairy energy, but he also understood that sometimes, battling together, meant hitting your allies. Astrum raised his tiny hands and his soft golden body glowed with intense pink light as the gleaming fairy attack blinded the audience, the battlers, and the ref. When the light faded, Alex's large pale hands were smoking, but he was smiling. Astrum's attack had enough surprising power behind it to knock down both Jet and his Doublade, linked as they were. Jet lifted the swords, but his ref called their faint before he could attack with them anyway. "The match is over! The Challenger from Unova has won!"

Jet glared at his ref, and then sighed, setting his fainted Doublade down, and recalling them. "I guess he has." He muttered, before turning to the crowd. "It's been a while since my last loss! Let's hear it for our Challenger, and that Shining Baby Boom!" That got a laugh from the stands, and chants of 'Baby Boom!' started. Astrum just waved, absurdly happy from his perch on his Trainer's hooded and hatted head. Jet came over then and handed Alex what looked like a homemade Gym Badge. "This is the Cause Badge. With this, you're one of us, now, whether the League recognizes me or not." He scratched the back of his head then, and Alex didn't need psychic powers to sense his guilt. "What do you think my chances of certification are?" He asked, somewhat quietly.

Alex's smile faded to a grim line. "You healed your Umbreon. You all but convinced your fans I was somehow cheating, even though any Trainer worth their Balls knows Steel Types can't be poisoned. I have a feeling this isn't the first time you've used these tactics, either. It's underhanded, Jet."

Jet shrugged. "Whatever it takes to win, Redwood. That's what I'll do. The Fire Nation must be stopped."

Alex's brows furrowed, and his eyes narrowed. "And what about when the Fire Nation is stopped? What excuse to Cheat will you use then? Keep this up, and you'll never be a Gym Leader, Jet. A Gym Battle is not about winning or losing." When he saw Jet about to shrug off his point, Alex preempted his cocky response by waving a hand, and calling out the partners who Jet had battled with, with three focused psychic presses. "Yes, you lost, but do those Pokémon look like they didn't enjoy every Second of that match?" They seemed tired, as fainted and then barely conscious Pokémon often did, but they were, all of them, also smiling softly. "You and your team mostly Battled with honor, together. That's what's important, Jet. That's what a Gym Leader needs to be able to promote and bring out in their Challengers. The bonds between Trainer and Pokémon."

Alex glanced up at his golden egg boi then, and smirked, offering a fist bump to him, despite the fact his fist was over half the size of the baby Pokémon's body. He felt a tiny, pointed fist bump, and grinned again. "I did most of that work this time, but in future matches, you should try to encourage that bond. Anyone can strive for victory at any cost. It's the truly great Trainers who are able to take their bonds to a Champion's level."

As Alex tried enlightening the rebel, Astrum was frowning. He'd sensed the pain in his Trainer's hand, and when it opened after their fist bump, he winced. The skin was seriously seared, but Alex gave away no signs of pain. "Our bonds…" Jet said, looking at each of his partners, and then nodding. "I…I think I understand. More or less." He nodded at Alex. "We'll work on it. Next time, you won't roll over us so easily!"

Alex chuckled. "That's more like it." Before they could continue, the top of Alex's head began shining with an impossibly white light, and Alex blinked, as he sensed the fairy power of his baby Pokémon partner suddenly grow exponentially. He just stared as his golden Togetic floated down to him, and the sight had the crowd, who was mid departure, pausing to watch as well. The newly evolved tiny fairy type took Alex's hands then, and seemed to hum, singing, as water droplets formed around his large limbs.

The water glowed with golden Light, and Alex watched the seared skin of his palms and fingers heal completely. He recognized Life Dew, but he'd thought Astrum had forgotten that move. It seemed that, like so many other Pokémon of late, his newly evolved partner had somehow gained the capacity to recall moves once known at a moment's notice, and in spite of his very brief span of days out of his egg. He landed back on his Trainer's head then and snuggled not unlike a bird into the Snow Liepard lining. Alex just left him there.

When he next found Jimen, it was up above, in the area of Ba Sing Se's University campus that, because of the nature of the city, was melded with an entire district that had families and shops within it. It was where students and travelers of all kinds met, a kind of crossroads in the very heart of the walled metropolis. He recalled his snoozing fairy chick then, as he knew people would see gold and attempt thievery. Evidently, Jimen had found the trace of a past life somewhere among the students, but hadn't yet been able to get in.

Alex, who spoke the language of Ba Sing Se primarily via currency and poorly paid campus guards, got them into the main quad of the campus, and from there, all they had to do was wait. Eventually, Jimen sensed someone, and stopped them. Having the imposing height of Redwood behind him also added a measure of weight to Jimen's efforts. They were clearly not students, and yet they'd been let in, as the guest tokens about their necks signaled.

In all, at the university at least, Jimen found two of his past selves, or at least fragments of them, and the pair had, upon seeing Jimen's eyes shine with Raava's Light, freely allowed him to attempt to remove that essence, and rejoin it to his own. In the end, Alex helped, as Jimen's initial efforts failed, but ultimately, they were unable to retrieve the fractured spirits. "They're…too ingrained…" Alex said, as he joined Jimen's attempts to mentally draw his past lives from the relatively young, around sixteen years of age, students. "What the Sage sensed here…must have been multitudes of fragments, given the size of the population." They were all slightly sweating, once they finished, and the younger looking of the pair voiced his desire to not do that again. Alex had nodded, dropping the issue and turning to Jimen. "It seems some of your past selves were shattered quite hard…if we found others with pieces of the same Avatar, then maybe we could try communally guiding them back, but…this is going to take a very long time, Jimen."

The Avatar nodded. "I know. But I'll do it anyway, until all are one, again." He turned to the students then, and got their names, which were both Lii. "Well, Liis, until I find the rest of…whichever Avatar is inside of you, do me a favor…don't die. I'll be in touch." He patted each of their shoulders with a firm grip, and Alex noticed he'd been gaining muscle, apparently. His arms were more toned than bulky, but their wiry strength was easily recognizable. The pair nodded, and then walked off, back to their routine, with the knowledge that a past Avatar, maybe the same, maybe a different one entirely, resided within them.

As Alex and Jimen stood in the busy square, a scream echoed through the area, and a large, fast shadow flew over the students, and citizens of the city. Alex recognized Shruikan, despite his new lack of size. He was still plenty large enough to intimidate his opponents, and to his Trainer's eye, he actually seemed more deadly, not unlike the vibes a Garchomp gave off. Alex mentally guided him up again, into a convenient cloud as the city's bystanders panicked. Once Alex found a secluded alley, he did a brief mental sweep for watchers. "Jimen...we have a tail. Would you mind distracting them?"

Jimen closed his eyes, seemingly listening for their pursuer, and nodded. "On it." There was the sound of earthbending, and then Alex fired the recall of Shruikan's ball. Few people saw the red beam shoot skyward, and none who did knew what it was. The Impenetrable City was far less open to foreign technology like Pokéballs, and its citizens tended to either know almost nothing of the outside world, or were surprisingly knowledgeable about it, thanks to the university.

Alex glanced at Shruikan's ball as he noticed what exactly the dragon was holding, and Shruikan rumbled in his head. "That was to be a surprise...a gift from the World Serpent."

"Hold onto it for me, brother. You can make use of it too." Alex said, as he sensed their earthbender tail finally break through Jimen's control. The man surged back up through the rocky street, looking quite irritated, and sweaty. His palms were encased in rocks, and his ensemble was almost entirely black, including a somewhat ominous cone shaped Kasa hat topped with a green tuft of what looked like fur.

"Avatar Jimen." The man said, as Jimen swiftly raised a rock-knife up against his throat. The hat turned towards Alex too. "Dragon Emperor. Earth King Kuei wishes to speak with both of you."

Alex recognized a 'secret policeman' when he saw one. His Scales served a similar function back home, albeit with almost none of the sneakiness. While there were more stealth-inclined Scales, he knew, or at least assumed, that Tao didn't have them watching the general populace too harshly. He'd seen several figures dressed like this man around the city, and now he could safely assume their purpose. It also explained the odd behavior he'd seen from the citizens around them.

Jimen glanced at Alex, and Alex said, "Is the Earth King going to treat us diplomatically, or is this a trap to try to score favor with the Fire Nation?"

The man glanced at Jimen, and then addressed Alex. "I do not know what he has told you, but the Earth King is no friend of the Fire Nation. He expressed a wish to speak with you and the Avatar as fellow people of importance, now you've arrived in the city."

Jimen gave Alex a slow nod, and Alex said, "Very well. We will speak with the Earth King, as contemporaries. I imagine you have a discreet method of getting to the Palace. Lead on, agent."

The grim-faced and beardless man made no effort to introduce himself, but instead earthbent a tunnel into the undercity tunnels, closing it behind them. In a city composed mostly of earthbenders and sitting on deep layers of earth and stone, Alex imagined there were many secret and intersecting paths used by all types of inhabitants. The scenery was lacking, but they made good time through the massive city to the palatial grounds. The Earth Palace was as large and ostentatious as Alex expected, though he was amazed at how much space was seemingly wasted with multiple gardens, with how shoved together the outer districts were.

The agent led them up an unnecessarily large stairway, to an equally unnecessarily large door. A pair of Excadrill were stylistically carved into the presumably stone door, and the space between their extended claws opened as the agent led them into the room. Jimen briefly glanced behind him, to double take, as he saw Alex suddenly garbed in his dragonbone armor, albeit without his Skiddo horned helmet.

Jimen, for his part, had pulled a worn, sandy, light green shawl from his bag, not uncommon clothing for the lower castes of the Earth Nation. The agent gestured at the Avatar, and the 'weakest form' of earth slid off of him in a pile of sand that showed just how much there had been in the garment.

The Earth King looked up from staring at the floor, to take in the new arrivals as they entered. The agent had given them a crash course on decorum, namely so they didn't look the Earth King in the eyes. Naturally, Alex ignored that primitive display of subservience not to be rude, but because among equals it placed one of them above the rest. If the Earth King was annoyed, he didn't show it, and Alex did give him the deepest bow his awkwardly tall frame could manage after meeting his gaze evenly.

Jimen also bowed low, fist to palm, as was tradition for the Avatar. The same simple greeting to the many Kings, Queens and lords Raava's Avatar had to meet throughout their lifetimes. The Earth King himself was as unapologetically shredded as every other earthbending master Alex had seen, and his bulging musculature was obvious even under the light green, tan, and dark green raiment adorning his royal personage. "So. The reincarnated Avatar again graces the Earth Nation's capital. I've wanted to meet you for some time, Avatar Jimen. Many eras have passed since we had Avatar Kyoshi to represent us." Jimen told the Earth King how honored he was, and the king turned to Alex then. "I know not how, but supplies from your Dragon Empire have been appearing all over my city, from what the Dai Li told me. How has this come to pass?"

Alex glanced at Jimen, and then said, "I provided aid to the rebels in Minjujuui City. As I'm sure you heard, the Fire Nation raided that base. Since then I assume that they've been given to whoever needs them."

The Earth King gave a stoic nod. "They have. Honestly... I was hoping this act of charity would repeat. My Nation is struggling, and these supplies popping up around the Earth Kingdom have reportedly helped much. I am curious as to how you got so much through our regional border though."

Alex gestured to his head. "Psychic powers. I was able to coordinate a large Teleport from the Empire. We don't have infinite supplies...but with a little diplomacy, maybe an ad campaign, I could convince those of the Empire who have excess to donate, and then I could bring it in the same way. If you need more, of course."

The Earth King looked Redwood over for a long moment, then nodded slowly. "We are not too desperate now… you and I can discuss what we need and what you can offer. Your initial kindness will not be forgotten."

Unable to stay quiet anymore, Jimen finally spoke up. "Earth King...I have to ask…"

The king only held up a hand though, which was enough to silence Jimen. "About the Fire Nation. About why my grandfather capitulated to those butchers, and why my father and I have continued that legacy of cowardice. Right?"

The guards to either side of the stylized Excadrill throne shifted uncomfortably, and Jimen kind of lost steam, as his brows furrowed. "Umm...well, yea... I was always taught that the Earth Kings of old would've never bowed to the Fire Nation."

The Earth King inhaled deeply, and then let out a heavy sigh. "The Nations of old would've never bowed to the Imperator. We stood together against their encroachment for years, in conjunction with all of Eous. Everything changed when the Fire Nation betrayed us all. They began slaughtering the Air Nomads and claiming Earth Kingdom land as their own. My grandfather had to make a choice. Send a kingdom he could barely keep functioning into a war against technology we've never understood, or capitulate to Imperium rule, and work to overthrow them the slow way."

Jimen frowned. "Then why has the Rebellion struggled just to form in your territory? Your Dai Li have rounded up hundreds of us!"

The Earth King met Jimen's gaze evenly. "There is something you should both see. Come." The two earthbenders beside the king shifted into action. With a unified series of hard steps and arm raising, the king's throne began levitating. They seemed strained, but like they knew where they were going, and two more guards came out of earthbended hideaways in the throne room to help them ferry their monarch.

The trek to wherever they were going in the massive palatial complex was long and slow going. Alex could sense they were going down underground, but the specifics of where they were in the city were lost on him. When they finally did arrive, they found a genuinely massive room, built like a hangar, within which were several long rows of people, every one of them earthbenders, training hard in their Nation's art, and garbed in various shades of green training clothes.

The Earth King pontificated from atop his throne, which was set upon a raised stage beside the room's entrance. "As you can see…some of your rebel friends have agreed to join our hidden Liberation Army. With this, we will boost the forces of the Rebellion, and anyone else, who decides to lend aid to the cause of freeing Koria. Between these valiant Earthbenders and the Water Tribes, we should be able to strike back at the Fire Nation." The Earth King finished speaking as his throne bearers set him down.

A few of the trainees looked their way at the sound, and Alex realized they were all wearing blindfolds. "This is impressive, Earth King Kuei...but I don't know if it will be enough to counter the Fire Nation."

The Earth King flashed a confident smirk at Alex. "There is one more event in our favor, that will make our victory assured, Dragon Emperor." As he spoke, the king's words had drawn the attention of his press-ganged soldiers. Several had approached him but he made no move to stop them, as he started monologuing. "The Day of Black Sun will see the Fire Nation reliant solely on their borrowed technology, and my spies in the Regiis Caldera report that the Imperator has withdrawn military aid to Ozai, for some fortuitous reason. That means no Thunderhawks, no Thunder Warriors, and no black armored psychic monstrosities to aid the Traitors!" There was a murmur among the troops now, who had removed their blindfolds upon recognizing their king's voice. Kuei had addressed them mostly with his last sentence, and now looked back at Alex. Judging by how a few of the fighters looked at him, they either liked his armor, or recognized it. "With charitable aid from the Dragon Emperor, we can crush the Firebenders before they even know we're coming."

The earthbending soldiers, each wearing dark green and black training uniforms marked with the Earth Kingdom's sigil, cheered a bit, at their king's words, but there was healthy skepticism in their motions. The people of Ba Sing Se didn't seem too keen on their ruler, and Alex empathized. There was a reason Jess was handling Fornia, and mid-western States that were still clinging to Arcean Church propaganda, despite the established fact that it was nonsense. Instead of accepting their new reality, many of the more rural and uneducated citizens, most of whom had been used as menial labor by the Church, had chosen to instead create their own reality, within which they were 'rebels' with a cause: violently opposing the Dragon Empire, wherever they could. So far, Jess had been rooting out their mini cults, confiscating their weapons, and shoving them in Riker's Island Prison with their 'brave Crusaders'.

One of the soldiers, an older looking woman in slightly more important looking and gold-trimmed garb, came up to Alex then. She actually was blind, and her eyes were gray and seemingly pupilless as she 'looked' off to one side but pointed directly at Alex. "You. With the giant, heavy feet. You should join us for an Earthbending lesson. It would do you good."

Alex was amused by the comparatively small old woman calling him out. Her hair was in a rounded shape, a style he vaguely recognized as being of the Earth Nation, and she seemed around Tenzin's age, but with earthbenders, he had learned that often their appearance belied their years. Earthbenders especially, tended to live a long time, even by modern standards. Earth King Kuei seemed completely done with her attitude, though. "Lady Beifong. Not even your esteemed family's reputation excuses this rudeness to a foreign visitor. An Emperor no less."

Before Alex could respond, the old woman made a face somewhere between surprise and disgust. "The new Dragon Emperor? Oh wow. That just means he needs my training even more."

Kuei glared at her, and the chamber shook slightly. "Toph…"

Alex held up a hand though, and stepped forward. "It's quite alright, Earth King. Toph...Beifong, was it? The daughter of the same Beifong who traveled with Avatar Aang? I'm pretty new to bending in general. Anything you can show me to improve my Earthbending would be greatly appreciated. I think Jimen would benefit from a lesson too."

Toph 'looked' Jimen's comparatively thinner frame over, and shook her head. "He needs to keep building his muscles. He already knows the basics. But you? I can tell you were educated, poorly, in an Omashu basement just from how you walk. Join the line, Stompy. And change into something you can move in."

Kuei was fuming quietly, but Alex was deeply amused by Toph's 'tude. Her students were also smirking, but for an entirely different reason. They knew better than anyone the hell the foreigner had signed up for. "I apologize for her insolence. The Avatar and I should converse alone, Earth Avatar to Earth King. My Dai Li will lead you back to us when your impromptu instruction is finished."

Alex and Jimen shared one of their many stoic nods, and then the Earth King was carried away again by his guards, and Alex heard something about Avatar Kyoshi. She was unfortunately not one of the displaced past lives that their sojourn into the spirit world had discovered.

"Alright Stompy. Show me what you've got!" Toph shouted, as she took a stance he didn't recognize. Her palms were facing upwards, her arms out before her, and Alex wondered how a blind girl was going to handle combat, earthbender or not.

Alex's attention snapped back to Toph, and he took the stance Boomi had shown him back in Omashu. The other soldiers were all watching after the hype around the tall and formerly armored foreigner, who'd spoken casually with both Kings and their teacher. He was in his own training clothes now, those he'd worn under Tao, in a different dimension, still as breathable and comfy as ever. Neither of them seemed to move, but mentally, Alex was trying to keep her from controlling all the ground and rock energy around them, and put up a decent effort, or so he thought.

In the end, she moved first, after realizing just how much of a novice he actually was, and that he could wait literally all day. One of her thin arms shifted with a hard jerking motion to her left, and three flat ended spikes of earth came for him. Alex spun, dodging them and sending them back through the air. Toph dodged two of the spikes, but the third hit, scratching her cheek. Alex watched her as she countered, and then realized how she was able to battle like this, without sight.

She hadn't been trying to control the nature energy like the Gym Leaders he'd fought, she needed it to help her see. As she raised a pillar of earth and began firing circular pieces of said pillar at him, Alex spun like Meelo had shown him. The Air Nomad had been correct; airbending movements were a very good counter to earthbender projectiles. Alex stomped the earth then, and the entire room shook. "Aaagh!" Toph went wobbly, grabbing her head, and Alex confirmed that quaking the ground while she tried using it to see through was quite disorienting.

She had asked for his best though, and he intended to bring it. As Toph was disoriented, Alex used the earth to propel himself into the air, and he knew any movement would probably be heard by her. Toph tried firing blindly to hit him, and Alex directed her projectiles up, making them land with him all across the field as he did. He knew it would be seconds before she countered, as he could tell she was definitely the better bender.

As Alex hit the ground, his approximation of an Earthquake rolled through the floor right at her. Toph raised her arms and a triangular wedge shield blocked the seemingly random rocks that struck at her. Alex was expecting the triangular rocks comprising Toph's shield that came flying at him. He smashed through them with his large fists, breaking them into chunks with his bending as he did.

From his left side, came an unexpected Toph, all but skating on a pair of earthy mounds that shifted her rapidly. By the time he saw her, she was already attacking, and instead of a counter, he shielded himself, drawing as many rocks as he could to his front and sides, like armor. Six earth spikes jutted at him this time, shattering the comparatively thinner cover, hard. He'd definitely have bruises, but his shield kept his ribs from breaking. He had a feeling they wouldn't be the first bones Toph had broken in this group.

He dropped to a knee as he realized the wind had been literally knocked out of him. Toph walked up to him then, only about a head taller than his kneeling frame. "Not bad, Stompy. I've seen much worse. Let me show you a more fluid set of stances. They will work better for you and your…spinning dodges."

And so, she did. Alex didn't know how many hours he and the others were down in that poorly lit cavernous space, but when he emerged somewhere behind the palatial complex, he had a better sense of the earth as a whole. Toph had been trained by her father's Excadrill, who while not blind, had understood the tiny female human who approached him needed his aid to be accepted into her society.

He'd essentially taught her to bend the earth and stone, when Korian society had all but given up on her, and the result was an earthbender who was a cut above the others, even the other instructors. By the end of her tutelage, Alex had learned how to use his earthbending to sense things around him that his eyes and psychic senses might have missed. Being able to tell what those things were would take time, as right now his earth sense registered them as indistinct blobs, but Toph claimed that practice would fix that.

The Dai Li agent who'd been waiting for him to finish was long gone, but a different one found him, as he donned his local clothing again out of sight. "Dragon Emperor. The Avatar and the Earth King await you. Come with me."

The walk was as uneventful as the first trip through the palace complex. They passed by several noble looking people, but while the hulking pale foreigner drew interest and rumors, he didn't so much as look at the nobles. Something the agent seemed grateful for. When they finally did arrive, it was in a well furnished sequestered sitting room, and the body language of Kuei and Jimen seemed far more relaxed.

Alex's mind brushed against Jimen's, a sensation he was used to by now, and Alex said, "What do you think? Will he be a good ally?"

Jimen nodded slowly, his expression blank, but something about the situation struck him as odd the more he sensed from Jimen, without prying, of course. Something he and the Earth King had talked about seemed to bother the Avatar, but he wasn't saying what, and Alex didn't have time to pry, as the Earth King spoke.

"Welcome back, Dragon Emperor. Jimen has been regaling me with your exploits, since you've met. He also mentioned that you could bend more than one element, but not all at once, like our Avatar. My Dai Li confirmed you can do this, so I'll forgo a demonstration. I'm more interested in how you learned to do this...and if other elemental typings could be learned…" Kuei said, as he gestured to a chair beside him, and across from Jimen.

As Alex sat on the rock-based chair that had apparently been upholstered at some point, his new earth sense revealed five other benders, presumably Dai Li, waiting in the walls around them. He paused then, pretending to ponder his answer as he recognized hostile intent from the minds of the Dai Li agents. He also felt as though his ability to use his psychic power was being dulled by something weak, compared to the power he could summon. It was hard to notice, but had he been as weak as, say, when he'd first learned in the swamp, his power would've been nullified.

"My skills aren't the kind of thing you can just...learn, King Kuei. But they do make me a very…unpleasant enemy." He said, and the Earth King's eyes widened. Alex let his aura burn to life through whatever was trying to jam him. The reverb echoed ominously through his voice as he stood and said, "What have you done to the Avatar?"

The Earth King opened his mouth, but as the illusion broke, Alex heard another voice, just under his. Whoever it was, they didn't seem to notice the facade was breaking. He was glad the Earth King was seemingly a puppet, after learning he'd done something to Jimen. It was likely a similar trick that had ensnared Kuei's mind. If he could break it, the real Earth King would likely be quite grateful. But first, he had to deal with the Dai Li.

The agents popped out of the wall as he stood and flared up his aura. Kuei's expression was blank, and he remained motionless as the Dai Li popped out of the walls and sent their signature rock fists flying at him. Or rather, they tried. The agents found themselves stuck in place by a shadow emanating from Alex. They'd been so distracted by his aura; none had noticed the Gengar waiting in his shadow.

"Keep them bound, Nox." Alex said as he focused on Jimen first. Their minds linked more forcefully this time, and Alex felt Jimen beneath whatever hypnosis-based conditioning had been done to him. It was his first experience with a brain that had been subjugated by suggestion, rather than a lifetime of lies and indoctrination. Thankfully, suggestion was easy enough to break with an emotional shock. Alex gave Jimen the sped-up version of his own history, which ended with him staring at his Pokéball in the smoldering ashes of his home, surrounded by dead firebenders, and thinking his partner within was gone.

Raava's Light filled the chamber as Jimen's mind broke through the brainwashing. Nox hissed but held his captives in place despite the Light. He sank back into Alex's shadow, as Jimen focused on the Earth King. "I will handle Kuei. Do not let the agents escape." The psychic reverb in his voice was not dissimilar from Alex's, but now instead of just Jimen's voice echoing with the power of Raava's spirit, the voices of the other Avatars, some Alex even recognized by their tone, could be heard in unison with the current Avatar.

Sensing a figure he and Nox had missed trying to flee, Alex reacted with the element he'd last used, simply because his network was still attuned to it. A balding Korian man with green eyes and three wisps of black facial hair came shooting out of the ground, and into a carpet that had been covering the floor.

Sharp rock blades tore through it, and the man, who was also dressed like the Dai Li, came at Alex with a potent, even desperate attempt to kill. The man hadn't expected things to go south so quickly. He'd assumed his methods of conditioning the Avatar had worked, as they had on the Earth King. Evidently powerful psychics could break such things.

The clash between him and Alex was the first genuine display of no holds barred earthbending that Alex engaged in. Thankfully, it wasn't nearly as intense as the bouts Toph had just put him through. The balding Dai Li agent was good, but his attempts to distract Alex and then hit him with bending simply didn't go through. Indeed, the foreigner held his own for almost a minute as the room shook from their battle.

Nox and Jimen continued their efforts despite the rocky clash from Alex and his adversary. Then, suddenly, it was over. Alex used the older man's own trick, and hammered the back of his skull with a chunk of rock from the wall that sent him unconscious, flopping onto the floor.

Behind Alex, Jimen had continued trying to break Kuei's indoctrination. His indoctrination went deeper though. Whatever had been done, had been going on for years, and Jimen lacked Alex's finesse and experience with minds. "It's not...working...the indoctrination...too strong."

Alex was tempted to intervene, but he decided Jimen needed the experience more. All he added was a hand on the man's shoulder. "Past experiences can often shock us and remind us of who we are. If I had to guess, the events around the King coming into power might break the indoctrination."

Jimen nodded, and Alex let him be, as he psychically tied up the bald Dai Li leader, and his friend. He only had one rope, but forty feet was enough for pretty much anything, and it came standard with most Trainer backpacks these days. When he was done, both he and Nox were keeping the skilled earthbenders levitating off the floor. Jimen still wasn't done though. Five minutes passed. Then ten.

Alex was content to let him keep going, that is, until he sensed other earthbenders heading towards them. "I don't want to rush you, Jimen, but we can't tie up the entire Dai Li order. More are coming."

Just then, Kuei snapped back to consciousness, and Jimen muttered, "Finally…"

Kuei looked around, as he panted heavily. "What...where…" About that time, the rest of the Dai Li showed up, bursting through the door and walls as they surrounded Alex, Jimen, and Kuei.

The agents shouted various commands to stand down and surrender the King, but Kuei held up a hand to silence them. "It is time you all knew the truth. The truth about the past two decades of-"

The balding Dai Li man spoke over the Earth King then. "King Kuei. The Imperator requests your presence at Lake Laogai."

Alex and Jimen stared as their hard work became glassy eyed, and then blank in expression and the eyes. "I... would be honored to accept his invitation…" Kuei answered robotically, before falling silent.

The balding man glared at Jimen and Alex then. "Release us! And perhaps I will...overlook...this insanity." He smirked far too confidently at Alex and Jimen, thinking them surrounded and beaten.

"What's insane…" Alex said, as his eyes lit up with an intense blue aura, "Is you, thinking you're going to get away with brainwashing the Earth King."

"It will be easier when everyone learns he was spirited away by a Psychic from a foreign land." The balding man sneered. "Even if you break him free again, his mind will be questionably influenced."

"You're right…" Alex said, as he redirected the power he'd gathered to teleport. "It's better for all that these events are forgotten…" His power flashed into the gathered minds of the Dai Li, and when the bright blue flash faded, the morally gray members of Ba Sing Se's secret police were dazed, confused, and unable to remember why they were all battle-ready in the Earth King's private room.

Alex, Jimen, and Kuei reappeared underground, in the secret headquarters of the rebellion based in Ba Sing Se, namely, a series of ever-changing earthbended tunnels that were maintained by the very citizens of the city above. Alex spoke, as they materialized in the room he'd been given. "I don't want to belittle your efforts Jimen...but I'll break his indoctrination this time." Kuei barely had time to look around the room he now found himself in before a massive palm was on his face.

The state of the Earth King's mind was chaotic to say the least, but Alex's actions had bought them some time. By the time the Dai Li remembered, the Earth King would hopefully have his affairs in order. It took about three minutes for Alex to find the suppressed memories, and free them of the hypnotic brainwashing the bald man employed.

When Alex finally lowered his hand, he gave Kuei a moment. "Your mind is yours again, King Kuei. Do you remember us?"

Kuei looked between him and Jimen. "Yes...the Avatar...and the foreign Emperor with a similar power. I apologize. Sometimes I could speak on my own power. Other times, like earlier... I barely realized my words were being manipulated...I'm a terrible Earth King...all my judgements throughout my rule are now in question. This will ruin the throne's authority...where are we, anyway?"

Jimen just stared at the weak-minded Earth King. "The rebel headquarters, under the lowest ring of Ba Sing Se."

Kuei's eyes went wide, and just then, the room's door burst open. "Nobody move!" A familiar voice came. Earthbenders and waterbenders swarmed in, and behind them came Jet, his Doublades ready to fight. He lowered them, as he saw Alex. "False alarm. Seems our newest ally also trips our Psyker detectors." His eyes moved past Alex then, as he noted a third person. Then, he saw who it was. "Why have you brought this self-important royal trash into our base?"

Kuei chucklesnorted in a derisive manner. "I am the Earth King, peasant. This is my city. You don't own the underground just because I don't devote resources to patrolling it."

"Kuei!" The name thundered through the small room, stalling Jet's anger, and that of the citizens with him as the Dragon Emperor whirled on the shocked noble. "Your elitist nonsense doesn't exist outside of your bubble. You are in the real Ba Sing Se now, and like every city, it belongs to the People who call it home. Not just you. You haven't even been the one ruling for most of your life. Your claim, and throne, is weak. Rotten. The people won't abide this incompetence forever. I've been here for only a few days, and I've seen that much. You have a choice, now that your will is your own, Earth King. Help the rebellion, or help your corrupt government, who's likely owned by the Fire Nation, the Imperium, or both, by this point." Alex looked at Jet, and head gestured for him to exit. This was, by their 'laws', his space after all. "We will await Your decision outside."

Alex let Jimen catch up Jet and the others on the situation, and once he had, they turned their angry eyes on Alex, though he wasn't the source of it. "I appreciate your words...Dragon Emperor." Jet started. "Your perspective is...odd, for a ruler, but you need to understand, now that King Kuei is here, we intend to hold him accountable for his laws. And no, we don't care that it was his Dai Li Chief controlling him from the shadows. You heard him. This rot has him already. He might even be a worse ruler, now that he's not being manipulated."

"We need to work together right now, Jet. Who rules your city can be settled later. Right now, that influence is useful." Alex then elaborated on why, namely, because he had benders like Toph Beifong on hand, benders they would need, for the plan that was coming together. "When he comes out, invite him to a summit. Give him a room, too. Gather your other allies. I can reach out to Akos. It's time we got our Muks together and took out Ozai. With most of Koria, myself, and Jimen, we can take him."

Jet looked like he was about to protest, but Jimen put a hand on his shoulder. "He's right, Jet. I will personally settle this. Once the Fire Nation has paid their debt to our region." The aspiring Gym Leader nodded and followed Jimen's lead. Eventually, a neutral-faced Kuei emerged from the room, and addressed the waiting group. "After some rumination on my- erm, our, situation I have concluded that what is best for the Kingdom and Koria itself, is working with her Avatar to better us all. I will honor my ancestor's wisdom and trust our Avatar to be a fair and neutral party in Korian politics."

Jimen had slowly been awakening another power, one that was his, and not inherited, one that grew each time Redwood's mind touched or affected his. He directed his thoughts at Kuei, and while Alex didn't sense the words, if looks could commit regicide, this one would have. "Your incompetence and weak will got my home and my family reduced to ash. If you think I will be impartial, you've made quite an assumption." Jimen stomped off then, without actually uttering anything, and bits of earth fell from the ceiling behind him as he went to bring the others together. The Earth King quietly retired to a room temporarily assigned to him, as he pondered how to navigate the Avatar's rage.

In the end, they had Professor Akamatsu, a leading Professor at the university, Gym Leader of the middle ring, and the man responsible for the secret underground 'Gym' below said university. With him was General Hao, the Supreme Commander of the Earth Nation's armies, and a man whose loyalty was forged in even his family line. For centuries they had served the Earth King's family with unimpeachable honor, though like everything else in Ba Sing Se, Alex expected that was a fraud too. Hao also served as Gym Leader to the upper ring of the city, but the local rumor was that he was considered the eighth Gym Leader of their region, and thus had never been beaten. With those two beaten, Alex had all of Koria's badges, with the exception of the Gym in the Regiis Caldera, the other contender for eighth Gym Leader of the region.

Once Jimen, Kuei, and the others had gathered, a pair of golden eyes manifested behind Alex. In the faint outline of their golden Light was some sort of immaterial object floating above the tall westerner's head, but it was hard to make out without obviously trying to stare at it and take in multiple facets of it. Jimen had heard him mention a Storm Crown during the explanation of how his Voice worked and manipulated reality, but seeing it firsthand put into contrast just how strong the Dragon Emperor was, and that Raava had not been exaggerating when she'd told him of the roadblock Alex Redwood would someday become, if he wished to be a powerful Trainer. Luckily for him, Jimen had no desire to be World Champion, but someday, in another life perhaps, he made a note to challenge the man properly.

It was, in short, an extremely boring meeting, involving talk of troop numbers, no small amount of political bargaining between Kuei and Alex, and a standard check-in with Akos, who claimed the Water Tribes, both of them, were more than ready for an assault by the proposed day. The Earth King secured the leftover supplies he'd wanted, and Tao offered more than Alex recalled they'd had. He didn't ask their source, though. Tao had essentially taken over running the metropoli of the States. Each one had first invested in building, maintaining, or repairing their production infrastructure through workshops, smiths, carpenters, and others who could build such things. After that, had come a focus on strengthening each city's ability to generate enough currency to support their people. A tricky task, but one Tao coordinated quite easily, the more connected the cities became. Roads and communication were also regularly being upgraded or maintained. Either he'd found unused Arcean caches of supplies, or he'd simply requisitioned some to be made upon learning of the Earth King's interest from his ever-present awareness that hung over his Tamer, as a result of their bond.

When the meeting ended, and most of the local Korians including Akos left, Alex sensed Tao reach out to Jimen, and himself in their minds. "Stay a while, and listen, if you would." The two men shared a look, and then nodded at the golden eyes. "Those gathered with you were not the only guests at this meeting. Alex, you will recall Iara and Nelinha of Rio, as well as former Indigo League Champion Red. Joining them is the heir apparent to Kalos, former Champion Calem, Japan's current Prime Minister, and Galar's own Pokémon League Chairman, Leon. They have all been here, on my side, listening patiently. Avatar Jimen, you are speaking to leaders and figures of authority across most of the planet not yet controlled by the Imperium of Man."

Jimen blinked, wondering if the names would be on the test. "Uhh…nice to…meet you all? Is there a reason I'm still here?"

The eyes pulsed with power. "Yes. Raava's Avatar has often acted as the officially recognized voice of Koria. Or at least you used to, before madness and greed claimed the Fire Nation. My Tamer and I have asked you all to this meeting of minds to outline a new…plan, of sorts, for the inevitable conflict with the Imperium of Man. A system of rule that unites us but does not lend dominant authority solely to a single member of this alliance born mostly of fighting Fornia. Naturally, the Dragon Empire will head this effort at first, though that may change as history unfolds. I have spoken with some of you about the necessity of forming a proper union against the Imperium. Without one, we will fall to them. All of us. One by one. In an effort to stop this, I propose an agreement; an attack on one of us, is an attack on all of us. The Imperator will be reluctant to start a war with half the planet at once. Through this alliance, we will appoint Wardens of each area of the globe, in charge of defending the area they're assigned, and leading the military forces of said area. As discussed, Minister Suzuki, Red will be appointed the Warden of the East. To aid Koria, and whatever regions of Eous request our aid, should the northern lines of Eous's border ever fall to the Thunder Legions. Alex will guard the provinces of the Dragon Empire, and the northern parts of the Dark Continent from the various outposts the Imperium has around our shores. Nelinha will be the Warden of the South, to keep an eye upon Atlantica, who up until now has remained a neutral party, uninterested in world affairs. Her territory will be Rio, the southern half of the Dark Continent where most of its residents reside, and Atlantica itself, should we convince them to join us."

Iara's amused voice echoed across the psychic connection. "I'm sure they will love that. A guardian from their hated enemies. Do not expect favor from Atlanticans. They're too absorbed with themselves."

"All the same…" Came Nelinha's voice, "I would still try to protect them from the Imperium. They're getting more desperate for manpower and sailing further away from the African Horn to find labor slaves. More than a few of our friends with the seafaring folk have run afoul of Imperium slave ships of late."

"And that is why you are the Warden. You have the power, Nelinha. Use it well. Each Warden will have a company of our Scales to call upon in the event of an attack, and our efforts to elevate those psychic individuals across our combined regions will begin once this meeting ends, and if all parties are still agreed to the terms." Tao said, before continuing. "In the north of the supercontinent, Calem will be the shield against the largest border our combined territories will have with the Imperium. Scale companies are currently on standby, should you discover an invasion on your doorstep. Has there been word from Paldea?"

"None." Came Calem's Kalosian accented Common. "If they are worried about the Imperium, or if they have allied with them, yet remains to be seen. Italia has seen more incursions, some led by actual Thunder Warriors that seemed equipped for stealth, but Paldea is protected, both by the Mediterra range, and what is left of their now mountain-bound neighbors."

Alex could almost hear the man bow before he replied. He'd liked Calem's battling style as Champion, but he'd always be a sucker for a Charizard. In fact, Alex knew little of the former Champion's post-title life. "I am glad our newest…Emperor…is already so willing to defend the regional land he's been given. I will protect our Kalos, and Norstad as well."

At that, Tao chuckled. "Norstad has its own Wardens…those who watch Helheim's Gate, the one escape route for Varangians who flee from the Imperium. With Norstad's limited resources, the remnants of Varangia have begun setting up towns in the neutral territory agreed upon by Norstad's High King, and the Imperator in ages past. But yes, Calem, you should be first to assist them, if they come under siege."

Tao paused then, for a moment, and Alex sensed the end of his speech approaching. "This is not a matter of if the Imperium will strike at us, but when. Make no mistake, the Imperator desires world domination, and the methods he will use to achieve it will turn our world into a radioactive husk of what it is now. I am eternally thankful each of you has agreed to aid this endeavor, in an effort to broker lasting peace. Alone, the Imperator would ignore us. United, we present too large of an obstacle to simply attack and crush, like Varangia. He will not risk Eous joining with us, which brings me to you, Jimen. Your past selves who couldn't maintain their essence have scattered the world over. If you wish to be truly whole again, or as close to it as you can get, you will have to travel, and search for these reincarnated fragments across the planet. As you do, we would appreciate it if you could endeavor to unite Eous. The more unstable it becomes, the greater the Imperator's leverage. That is all, for now. Good luck with your assault on the Fire Nation."

The eyes faded, then and the two men were left to ponder the developments they'd been told of. Jimen broke the silence first as he met the intense gaze of the Dragon Emperor. "I am glad the rest of the world finally seems to understand how dangerous the Imperium is. Would that they'd realized sooner." With that, Jimen left. Alex couldn't even argue, as he was correct. The world's governments had ignored the violent expansion of the Imperium, and now half the planet was under their cerasteel fist. Their female populations suffered the worst. The men, they killed or tortured, and the children...just vanished. The only thing the Imperium had ever left in its wake was rubble and death, but they loved gaslighting the world into believing their lands were all just like Olympia. Their city-mountain was a gleaming, golden capstone on a mountain of slave labor, and brutality perpetuated by their totalitarian, autocratic, and fascistic laws and practices. Alex had, like his granduncle, believed that the 'Free Nations' as he termed them, should've been doing a lot more to help Eous maintain their border with the Imperium, but when Koria had fallen, the powers that be refused to interfere in 'internal region politics', despite the companies of Thunder Warriors openly accompanying the Fire Nation's military.

The next meeting was with the Earth Kingdom's forces, at which, Alex arrived just in time for the Dai Li's entrance, which caused everyone to look up and away from the circular map table that was the centerpiece, and really the only piece, within the chamber. They came out of the walls and from the ceiling, rock hands ready to strike at whoever they were here for. General Hao seemed unamused by their intrusion, but Professor Akamatsu gripped his books tighter. There was tension in the open-air columned war council chamber, and as the balding Dai Li man leading their order strode into the chamber, hands linked in his robes behind his back.

"Greetings, Professor. General Hao. Earth King. Avatar." He nodded to each of them, and pointedly ignored Alex. Instead of angering the foreigner, he summoned his armor, crossed his arms, and smirked at the man whose name he still hadn't heard or been told.

Seeing Alex's reaction, and the reactions of others in the room, General Hao strode confidently towards the man, whom he towered over at a height of six feet and three inches. He put his hands on his hips then, and it was clear he intended the man to address him, first. "Former Grand Secretariat Long Feng." Hao helpfully boomed, "You were informed of your dismissal, and forthcoming indictments of High Treason against the Royal Family an hour ago. My soldiers report you haven't packed, and you don't seem to have informed the Dai Li of their new leader. Well, really their old leader, but regardless. What are you doing here?"

"Our Earth King has been psychically influenced by a foreigner. You of all people should know we have contingencies for this, General. I am here to enact them." Long Feng said, glancing at Alex. His eyes narrowed as he saw the now once more armored man smirking.

"No." The word echoed through the chamber with the voices of past Avatars, and the current one. "You are here to be arrested, detained, and if I have any say in it, executed for High Treason."

Long Feng seemed unbothered. "It seems our beloved Avatar is also under the foreigner's psychic sway. Dai Li, detain them, until this mess is sorted out."

King Kuei spoke then, "Dai Li, ignore that order. You have some nerve, Long Feng. All this, especially after brainwashing your King!? I may agree with Avatar Jimen in this instance. As the grieved party in this crime, and your Sovereign, I will be the one who ultimately decides your fate. I could still be lenient. It isn't too late."

The Dai Li shared looks, and one of those on the ground said, "Earth King, your judgment may not be sound right now… Long Feng is who we take our orders from, in this situation."

Long Feng just smirked. Then, he looked at Kuei, and Alex sensed him about to use his code phrase. His eyes flared with aura, and a pair of rock hands clamped onto his shoulder guards, as they did. The flare had been brief, but he had made his psychic ear blockers with more than enough time.

Kuei just glared at the man, as he realized what Alex had done. The tiny, psychic ear protectors had faded as quickly as they'd been made. "And that is all the proof I need. The only one attempting brainwashing here is the former Grand Secretariat."

Jimen stood up then and brought his arms forward. Dai Li agents came tumbling down from the pillars and ceiling where they'd been hiding as stealthy backup. "Dai Li! Avatar Kyoshi was your creator, and by every measure, you have Failed her!" Jimen stomped the ground, and then shifted the stonework of the floor to gather them before him. Once he did, he spoke again. "I will remake you. From now on the Dai Li once again serve their Avatar! Never again will you be used as secret police. Not without an Avatar leading you. Do you understand!?"

The Dai Li agents shared looks but stayed quiet. Finally, one spoke up. "I will follow you, Avatar. You should be aware...there is a base hidden under Lake Laogai. Long Feng was keeping some sort of giant metal monster from the Imperium in there." Other agents spoke up then, also confirming their renewed allegiance to the Avatar. One by one, they knelt to Jimen, and Long Feng was seething.

Seeing this shift in power, General Hao suckerbended Long Feng with a sudden rocky protrusion to the gut. As he doubled over, the General produced metal cuffs, and bound the former official. "I can think of no one better than the new Dai Li to take you to your cell." The General boomed. Wordlessly, two Dai Li agents stood, and forcibly escorted their former leader to the prison.

As they locked him in what was essentially a metal box, one agent spoke low to Long Feng, as they slipped him an 'upper class' meal. It was just roasted Ducklett, but given he was in prison it was better than roast Rattata, which was what the other prisoners got. "The Dai Li will not all bend so easily to the Avatar, Long Feng. Sir." The disgraced official nodded slowly, smirked, and bit into his meal. In time, his brutal stealth corps would free him, indoctrinate the King again, and set him free. All he had to do, was wait.

With the Dai Li's bid for power seemingly stopped, the meeting continued, with General Hao presiding over the plan. "With the gathered Earthbenders from the Undercity and the Earth King's conscripts, we will take back our kingdom in a brutal forward charge, scattering the few Fire Army troops still left in our land. Once they're dead, we will rebuild the fortifications it has taken them three centuries to get past, as we mov towards the coast. They've been retreating hard, and word from our spies says the Imperium has all but completely militarily abandoned the Fire Nation. We will never have a better chance to strike back at them in our lifetimes, and if we allow them too long to regroup and prepare, they will continue to overpower us."

Akos and the Water Nation were apparently planning to make use of all the ships they could, and strike from both the north and south shores of the Fire Nation's largest island, atop which sat the summit of said island; Regiis Caldera. A city built within a volcano, which had never fallen to invading forces, Fire Nation or otherwise. The volcano was said to give them power, a source of heat with which to power their flames. Hao continued. "We will need to breach the Gates of Aluzon, as the Earth Nation will be charging right up the caldera. The Water Tribes will meet us there after stealthily landing on the northern and southern shores of the main island, and we should all arrive just as the eclipse of the sun begins. It may not stop all the Firebending, but it will reduce their average soldiers to basic Humans. We need to capture and rockbind as many of their hands as we can, before the sun returns."

Finally, Hao looked at Alex and Jimen. "The two of you will be taking a small squad ahead. You are to infiltrate the bunkers built into the caldera, and find the one the Phoenix King is hiding within, before the eclipse ends. Do you think you'll be able to do that?"

Alex shrugged. "He's the Phoenix King for a reason. He's likely the best Firebender in the region, or one of them. If the fire returns completely before the eclipse ends, that volcano may become active. I've spoken with General Meelo. He said he would personally have a herd of Sky Bouffalant on standby for a hasty retreat. Non-Earthbenders get priority. If the volcano does erupt, those who bend the earth will have a much better chance of surviving. Magma is mostly liquid rock, the skilled benders among you should be able to stymie it, if not stop it completely as you withdraw. And as for Ozai himself…" Alex looked at Jimen. "I mean no offense to your skills, Jimen, but you've only mastered earth and fire. I've seen enough Airbending to know you have a way to go, and you haven't even tried Firebending, apparently. I'll weaken Ozai first. If he has Pokémon with him, my job will be to damage him, make them faint, and ideally, force a final desperate showdown between the two of you, before the pure darkness entity inhabiting him manages to kill me. In fact…before we leave, you and I are going to go over the basics of Firebending. You need to be able to at least block his attacks."

With the meeting finished, Alex brought Jimen to Toph, who'd been promoted after the attempted coup, and the discovery that their old leader was in league with the Dai Li. Apparently, Toph had quite literally beaten his attempt to turn the other benders down. Not that any of them actually wanted to serve the same Dai Li who'd pressed them into service. Toph drilled them on earthbending, while Alex showed Jimen what he knew of firebending, once Toph was done with them. Tao's floating golden eyes of exposition also showed up, to share firebending wisdom this time, and chat with Toph, who'd stayed near them out of boredom, and the chance to converse with floating, golden eyes that apparently belonged to some Legendary Dragon Pokémon. That was the kind of weirdness she lived for.

Phoenix Resort - Su Oku River, Occupied Earth Nation Territory

It had taken Okuz far too long to find his uncle, and when he did, it was a sight he wanted to burn from his eyeballs. The old man was lounging in a bath robe that did little to hide his obese frame, and only a simple cloth covered the man's 'Royal Family jewels'. After Zhao's usurpation of his plans in Minjujuui City, and the double military failures that followed that mess, Iroh had quietly retreated to a nearby hot spring resort suspended atop a waterfall for some well deserved R&R.

Okuz relayed what he'd learned to his uncle then, in this state of undress. How he'd found Minami, among a bunch of Earth Nation rebels fleeing from Zhao. About what she and Izumi had apparently gone through at the Fire Academy, and what the Imperium had ultimately done with his daughter. Or rather, what Okuz assumed they'd done with her.

"Izumi is safe, Okuz." Iroh said, as he nonchalantly sipped some Jasmine tea the servers had gotten for him. Despite not having currency, his status as a Fire Nation royal, and Conqueror of Ba Sing Se, afforded the old, retired General whatever he desired. Once he'd taken a sip, he met his shocked, and skeptical nephew's eyes. "I saved her myself. Not long after you and your sister's search for the new Avatar began. She's been in the Fire Nation ever since, fomenting unrest and rebellion against the automated atrocities your father has committed upon his own people." He seemed nonchalant, but the old general had one eye slightly open, just in case his nephew did, in fact, take after his murderous brother.

Okuz's eyes narrowed, and his brows crashed together. "You didn't tell me!? You knew I was out of the loop! You knew the entire time! For over a year! Now my daughter is a rebel, Traitor to everything her Nation stands for! And so are you!"

Iroh snorted. "The Fire Nation gave up what it stood for long ago, Okuz. It is time you chose your side in this conflict, my nephew. Time you knew how I chose mine."

Okuz sighed, and rolled his eyes. "I've been listening to your 'conquest of the Impenetrable City' stories for over two decades, Uncle. I know how it goes. Despite grave losses, you took the Earth Nation's capital, and effectively ended the war. Mostly."

Iroh nodded sagely. "I did conquer the unconquered city. I stood atop a mountain of corpses, nephew, as I claimed my victory. Brave soldiers, all of them, like you. Like me. Like Ozai. And what did they die for, hmm!? Control of a government so corrupt, they willingly accepted our terms of rule, and their King didn't so much as negotiate for his people. Our Fire Nation propaganda, our small, isolationist bubble in this world calls my slaughter a victory, but it made me understand the worth of a life and turned me on to a different path. A better path. I can never bring those equally brave Earth Kingdom soldiers back. I will have their faces, and the faces of the young men who trusted me to see them to victory, haunting me for the rest of my days."

Iroh set his tea down then, and turned to face his nephew fully, as he sat on his knees. "You will live far longer than I, Okuz, and your decisions will affect your Nation and your people. You are a man, now. It's time to start asking yourself the big questions. Who are you? What do you want? Are you the latest scion in a line of murderous tyrants bowing and scraping to a foreign ruler? Are you the Rebel Prince who will lead our Nation out of this darkness? You must decide what you will protect, and why." Iroh glanced out at the ocean beyond the waterfall, which the hot spring resort was suspended above. "There is a Firebending technique I must show you. How to redirect lightning."

Okuz blanched, and he saved his thoughts for musing on later. "Only Royals can bend the cold-blooded fire. And even among us…only Father and Aluza have ever managed it. Before them, it was considered a myth. You can't redirect something so powerfully charged."

Iroh tied his robe closed, and Okuz thanked Arceus this lesson wasn't going to be in the nude. "Actually, you can. Come, and I will show you."

Within minutes, they were on one side of the river the resort inhabited, practicing the method of taking in energy, guiding it down into one's center, and then forcing it up and out in another direction, typically through the other arm. It took Okuz the better part of that night, and the next morning to master it to Iroh's satisfaction.

Around noon, a distant crack in the air, like thunder, drew Iroh's attention, just in time for him to see a massive Royal Fire Navy capital ship pulling into the harbor below the resort, despite how low the tides were. "Okuz! It seems your sister has come for you." Iroh said, as his nephew joined him.

Iroh didn't have to guess how his brother felt about his recent activities, namely, what he'd done to aid the 'rebels' against Imperium occupation, back home in their own Nation. He knew Ozai would have learned of his treachery by now, but he hadn't expected Aluza to be sent to fetch them, or that she'd find this rather secluded place.

The augmented Fire Princess stomped down the ramp of her ship, both of her feet now resembling Fire Nation style shoes made entirely of metal. When she looked up, she saw her relatives, already heading towards her. "Uncle. Brother. At last, I've tracked you down." It was still Aluza's voice, but there was a slightly metallic ring to it now.

Okuz embraced his sister, after taking in the shock of her new appearance. "Aluza...I'd heard what happened after I uh...left, chasing down Tenzin, but...I didn't realize...I'm sorry. I should've been there when you needed me." He treated her as he always had, and that made Aluza's otherwise perfect visage of forced kindness crack with a small, sad, smile. Iroh stroked his beard quietly as he took her, and her Royal Guard retinue, in. Each of them had their genetically viable Charizard mounts out beside them, which wasn't too uncommon of an occurrence during such pomp and ceremony, but to Iroh, the entire situation smelled like tea made with a too-ripe berry.

"Father regrets banishing us, Kuzkuz. He wants his family back beside him when the savages of the other Nations try to regain their hold on Koria. You are both to accompany me home. Immediately. Gather your things, and join me." Aluza moved towards her ship, then.

Okuz and Iroh only had a few minutes to even discuss her news, such was her hurry and newfound almost robotic swiftness. The climb up to the resort and back gave them just enough time for a conversation. "Uncle…she…can you believe what she said? Our banishment is over…we're regrouping, together, and striking back, together. It's…a lot to take in after three years without…royal life."

"And what has your time away showed you, Prince Okuz? Is Koria prospering under our iron rule? Are its people happy, and prosperous? You have seen the region your father has wrought. It isn't too late to choose sanity, over the madness that has claimed him, and our ancestors."

Okuz whirled on his uncle, his anger finally boiling over after the emotional rollercoaster of a day he'd had. "Madness? That 'madness' has seen the Fire Nation dominate every other element! Our people live and prosper and are happy, as they should be. In time…the rest will understand their place, Uncle. As you should. We can get Izumi, put an end to this rebel nonsense. Family needs to stay together. That's what you taught me out here." He pointed at the ship below. "That's my family. Not a bunch of Dirt People and Snow Savages who hate me because of who my father is. We finally get to go home, Uncle. Home. Food. Fresh Flamin' Fire Flakes. Banquets that could feed a kingdom. Do you not miss your Royal status?"

"No. I have had enough of Fire Nation politics for a lifetime. If something sounds too good to be true, nephew, then it usually is. My brother is not a forgiving man…and he hasn't forgotten your disrespect, or your sister's." Iroh said, as he packed his bags anyway. He didn't intend to send Okuz back to his sister alone. There was a look in her eye that he disliked, but even then, he couldn't bring himself to imagine the young woman he'd lived with for three years would betray them.

Okuz waved his hand. "He's clearly forgiven Aluza! And she disrespected him, and our family, far more than I did. This is happening, Uncle. Don't ruin this for us." They started back down to the harbor then, their belongings secured, as Iroh silently pondered. Finally, he spoke.

"On my word as your Uncle, Okuz…I won't let my brother tear us apart, too." Okuz wasn't even listening to his uncle though, and he strode right between the line of Charizard, and fully masked Royal Guards of the Fire Nation. Iroh strode on then, straight into the den of subtly snarling Charizard. He recognized their agitation as something they did before battle. Every single one of their eyes was narrowed and burning for a fight. A fight, he realized, they knew was coming. Atop the ship's plank, was a very pissed off looking Caeruleus.

Since literally clawing her and her Trainer away from the disaster in the north, she'd been downright wild, in her anger, her tail flame was now a consistent blue, even in her base form. Only Aluza could safely feed her now, and if left to herself, the fuming fire lizard was so angry, she didn't eat. She simply seethed and being with her Trainer seemed to both increase her rage, and soften it with the guilt of losing to a moon rock and an angry penguin, costing Aluza her beauty. Aluza knew her partner sought revenge, and she fueled that desire, knowing Cae would never leave her side to indulge in vengeance. Their time would come, and as before, she intended the water rats to never even see her coming. This time, the Imperium's personal stealth field generators built into her augmentations, which extended to her mount, would keep them hidden for multiple deadly lightning strikes, not just one.

The royal guards all turned as Iroh and Okuz approached the ramp to the ship. They were in perfect formation, and their Charizard were on their outsides, next to the edges of the somewhat narrow docking port. Iroh saw several preparing to fly, and he surmised their strategy. Aluza was at the top, and addressed her Captain. "Set our course for home, Captain. We leave once everyone is on board…"

"Yes Princess!" The man said. He was an older Korian man, of the Fire Nation by his orange-brown eyes, and the only man whose face wasn't completely hidden. "You heard the Princess, men! Raise the anchors. We're taking the Prince and the General home!" The soldiers marched up behind them, and once on the deck of the ship, Iroh realized just how akin they were to a fish in a barrel. The Charizard of the Royal Guard fanned out around the ship's deck, hovering above it. Naturally, every Fire Navy ship was thoroughly fireproofed.

Okuz looked around as the Charizard took position, and Druk popped out of his ball as he did, snarling loudly. His snarl was answered by roughly thirty two others, and one roar, from Caeruleus. Iroh was already staring Aluza and Caeruleus down. Cae was already in her Mega Form, perched atop the ship's control mast like a Corviknight ready to pounce on an unsuspecting Wooloo.

Okuz stared at his sister, his face a delicious mix of betrayal, hurt, and building rage. "Aluza! Sister! What are you doing!?"

From her own perch just outside the entrance to the control mast, Aluza gave her brother a manic grin. "Taking you home…in a bag, like Trash. Just like Father ordered…so he can burn you and our Traitorous Uncle away to Nothing, personally. He wants to be sure the traitorous branches of the Royal Line are permanently seared off!"

Aluza moved her arms then, in a pair of circular patterns, one he'd only seen their father use before, specifically, when he used the lightning that seared off half her face. As fate would have it, just enough of her energy network was still human, and could allow her to separate her inner energy into positive and negative. Too many uses would eventually fry her new implants, but she only needed one, for this.

"Use Rock Tomb!"

The timely call from his uncle saved Okuz's life, as the lightning pierced through two boulders, and still had enough residual force to blow out the back of them, right into Okuz's face, covering it in tiny scratches. Druk, for his part, had mega evolved, and was dogfighting the other Charizard with fire. With so many of them, it was easy to cause confusion, sow anger, and in short order, Druk had most of them fighting among themselves. This didn't work on all of the Charizard though. There were a few well trained enough to come after him, to note the slight differences in his form. Druk beat them down with Thunder Punches, only to then find himself in the path of a Flare Blitz from his seemingly insane sister. She roared incoherently at her clutch-brother, and came at him with every intent to kill.

Meanwhile, Okuz looked up at his savior. The Silver Comet of Ba Sing Se. The silver-blue Emboar who had broken the infamous wall of the Earth Kingdom's largest city with naught but his fists, determination, and a whole lot of fire, now stood before him. He was a bit of a recluse in his old age, but the old boar was by no means done battling just yet. Unlike his Trainer, his body had stayed hard, his moves practiced. Iroh simply nodded without looking at him. "You know what to do, Hyeseong (Hey-song)." The Emboar nodded, and smashed his fists together eagerly, as he and Iroh dashed towards Aluza.

That was when Okuz noticed, both his team, namely his Blaziken, Kingdra, Greninja, and Ampharos, and his uncle's Volcarona were also holding off quite a few of the other Charizard. Ken handled any attacks focused on the ground, and was making leaping spin kick through the ranks of the Royal Guard, while the Volcarona easily redirected the multitude of Flamethrowers from the angry fire lizards by spinning amidst them, and dispersing their attacks completely. Counter attacks came hard, and the sky around the ship was utter chaos.

Aluza saw the old man coming, and wrongly assumed his boar would be the bigger threat. All Hyeseong was, was a big, burning distraction. His punches seemed slow, heavy, and Aluza leapt away from them, gracefully spinning her arms in opposing circles as she separated the positive and negative energy within herself, and in that gap, created searing plasma. When she fired at Hyeseong, the great boar simply stacked his arms atop each other, and took the hit. Electric attacks didn't do much to him, but when he didn't keep coming for her, she had just enough time to turn, and find her uncle.

His strike was swift, and brutal. The chop at her throat connected, and Aluza began coughing as her implants struggled to get her air. Then, she was on the defensive, forced to bend or burn as Iroh opened his mouth, and essentially unleashed a Flamethrower at her. A Flamethrower that Hyeseong took up, as Iroh turned, and shouted, "Okuz! Let's go!"

His nephew nodded and began recalling his flagging partners. Strong as they were, taking on almost forty Charizard at once would tax any team. Druk had managed to stymie his sister's enraged strikes with Dragon Claw, and hearing the whistle to return from his Trainer, marked her face, and then turned and dove. He knew he would be the main mode of transport, for their escape. Iroh joined them soon after, and the Mega Charizard and Dragonite flew hard through the air, a literal cloud of Charizard behind them.

Caeruleus emerged from the pack at its head, and once she did, another lightning bolt from Aluza perched on her back came streaking towards the pair. Iroh's Dragonite let out a heart-wrenching squeal as once more, Aluza's lightning proved critical, almost deadly. The damage fainted her, but the fall would end her. Iroh had a choice to make, and he made it swiftly. "Go, Okuz! I will hold them off! You must escape! Druk! Run!"

Okuz tried to pull Druk around, but the Charizard stubbornly refused. "Uncle!" Okuz shouted, as the old man recalled his fainted partner, and began to plummet. Iroh summoned his Volcarona, and while the fiery bug wasn't quite large enough for riding on, it did keep the overweight General from dying, and instead he was 'gliding' down, perhaps faster than either of them wanted. That, and a pillar of fire from Iroh, was all that kept him from slamming into the ground. He still rolled from the impact, and fell into a ready position as his Volcarona scattered searing scales around the riverbank they'd landed next to. From above, Okuz could see the area.

Iroh went down just upstream of the resort, as Okuz was carried into the distance. Anger drove the Fire Prince to curse at his starter, but like Iroh, Druk understood the situation was quite dire. He had his own emotional turmoil about his sister attacking him with the intent to kill, but right now, keeping his Trainer alive took priority and he would not waste the old human's noble sacrifice. And so, Okuz watched, as Caeruleus came in like a blue meteor. His Charizard was fast though, fast enough to outrun the others, who had stopped at the cornered Iroh's position, rather than uselessly chase after Okuz. Banished, and now alone and wanted by his own family, the Fire Prince would receive sympathy from no one, or so they reasoned. All Okuz saw of what he assumed were his uncle's final moments, were flashes of fire, and then lightning, streaking into the sky. Finally, a massive incendiary boom erupted into the sky behind them, and Okuz could not see what happened next, as Druk continued his panic-speed flight away from the near fatal ambush.

Minjujuui City, Earth Kingdom - Koria Region

With very little effort, the freshly supplied Earth Army began taking their Nation back. King Kuei started with Ba Sing Se, as the walls rose once again, and another wall was added, further expanding the massive city's reach across the Earth Kingdom. The fast-moving earthbenders quickly and brutally retook their ancient forts and then continued, spreading west from the giant city's borderlands, now once more defended by its signature, if not so impenetrable, walls. Alex stayed with Jimen, but there was no sign of Ash as they continued to spread the news to Earth Nation villages: the Avatar had returned, and the Earth Kingdom was on the rise again. The initial news was met with praise and thanks to the spirits, the gods, and most often, Jimen himself. Very quickly, word of their 'stone savior' traveled ahead of the army.

It took about a week and a half before they finally reached Minjujuui City, during which, Jimen trained hard with Alex, as did his Gible, newly recovered from stasis and just ecstatic that his Trainer was alive. Through training while traveling with the A Team, and a timely pile of Exp Candy from Tao to push him over the edge, Jimen had a Garchomp on his belt by the time they arrived in the city. Alongside his land shark was a Magikarp, a Budew, and a Meditite he'd found along the way. There, they found Meelo and Tenzin, still recovering from their duel with a Librarius of the Obsidian Keep, a sanctioned psychic of the Imperium. Their rebel HQ was above ground, now, and Minjujuui City's President was now openly supporting the resistance effort and claimed to have been all along. The actual rebels knew this to be nonsense, but it sure was convincing to the somewhat sheltered citizens of the city, and their votes. By the end of that week, and in only two weeks since departing from a recaptured Ba Sing Se, the Earth Nation had recovered. Resources lost to them for decades were now returned, though in one of the many meetings they had discussing such resources, King Kuei and the others kept finding that, across the board, the Fire Nation had stripped their mines of every mineral that wasn't basic stone and had done the same for the new mines they'd drilled with reckless abandon during their occupation. It was no exaggeration to say that the Fire Nation had essentially mined the mainland of Koria of every mineral-related piece of wealth they'd been able to dig up in three centuries.

This did not, however, stop the Earth Nation. All across their historical territory, local earthbenders did their own mining, after King Kuei humbly asked for their assistance in finding iron, and the components for steel armor. While he and the others prepared for the coming eclipse, Alex and Toph had taken Jimen to Nomad's Isle. With the departure of their fiery overlords, Minjujuui's President had begun work on an actual Pokémon battling stadium, complete with practice fields, and situated within the harbor itself. So far, it was shaping up to be a white stone building of opulence, with gold trim and other pieces of painted metal to suggest wealth to onlookers. Because of the pool of three available Nations worth of benders that lived within the city, construction went rather quickly. Firebenders welded beams, earthbenders shifted them into place and kept the scaffolding strong, and waterbenders kept everyone hydrated, and cooled off. In a matter of mere days, it was already adding to the skyline of the growing city.

Alex and Jimen, when not learning how to master their earthbending from Sifu Beifong, as Jimen had started calling her, had practiced their firebending as well, under the floating golden gaze of Tao, when he could spare a moment. They'd learned much of the basic techniques, but there was one, that they practiced even then, that Jimen kept having trouble with.

"I just don't see how a dance is going to help me in combat." Jimen said, for about the twentieth time. "We should be learning how to draw and control heat, steam, hells, maybe even Lightning! This…dance maneuver seems excessive."

Alex glanced at Toph, who gave him a nod, and a smirk. He cuffed the Avatar on the back of his skull. "This 'dance maneuver' was taught to Avatar Wan. In his day, there was no other Firebender, or any bender really, who even came close to his skill. Just memorize the positions. It will make sense when we piece them together and add some flames."

Having a mental connection with their mentor also helped, as Alex could pretty much divine what the dragon wanted, and what the correct final product looked like.

While initially reluctant to firebend, for good reason, the more Jimen used the flames, the more he learned of what firebending was supposed to be, the less reluctant he was to use them. Personally, he intended to leave the Fire Nation to rebuild itself once the rest of Koria brought them down. He would lend them minimal Avatar related assistance, and his successor could deal with them. That would be their Nation's punishment, for committing the atrocities they had. He could already sense several of his past lives not in favor of this choice, but this was his era, the one Kora had fought to make for him. Everywhere they'd gone throughout the Earth Kingdom, he'd found very old people, who had stories for him of how Kora helped them. Because of her fight, and subsequent end, Jimen wasn't really able to connect with her outside of dreams. She and Raava were closer than any of his other past lives.

Reality snapped back into focus, as the Original Dragon's voice thundered in his skull. "You two are ready. Move through the forms, and bend your flames with them." It was still hard for Jimen to focus on manifesting the sun's heat as flame while also doing some silly dance, but he tried, at least. He was out of sync with Alex, but as he flowed through the stances, and more importantly guided his fire through them, he realized how this form could be quite useful, in combat. When he and Alex finished the set, arms pointed at each other as they spewed fire, the flames did something odd.

Rising like a tornado between them, they harmlessly expanded past the firebenders, into a whirling cyclone of fire that was somehow all the colors of the rainbow, and more. "The Infinity Flame." Tao said, helpfully. "Very few Benders manage to even summon this fire…I believe with mastery and time, you will be able to wield it, Avatar Jimen."

Jimen, while impressed by the flames, wanted no part of them, a fact made obvious as he answered the dragon. "I don't want more fire. In fact, I believe I've had more than enough for today."

"You are a Firebender, Avatar. You represent all of Koria's elements, not just those you prefer." Tao answered.

Jimen's brows furrowed, and Alex glanced between him, and the golden floating eyes, as they both went silent. "I will never forgive the Fire Nation for what they've done, Dragon. Never. They took my home, they shattered our region's peace, and sold us out to the Imperium. And for what? So they can be abandoned three centuries later? No. I am going to crush the Fire Nation, as it is, into dust. They will be left to fix the pieces, but the rest of us won't be helping them. My successor will. I refuse."

Tao's eyes pulsed with gold, as their silent argument continued. "Your duty is to all of Koria, Avatar. If you ignore one part of it, all will suffer. Ask your past selves, if you think I am wrong." With that, the golden eyes vanished into nothingness, and Alex glanced around, noting that Toph had also left at some point.

"Any word from Ash?" Jimen asked, as he growled softly to himself with frustration.

"No... and we really should've heard something, by now. The eclipse is approaching. His Lugia would make this invasion plan more...robust. But Sages can get...tunnel vision, let's call it, when it comes to training." Alex said, pondering not for the first time whether or not he should try mentally reaching out. Oranguru had implied before that doing so was considered rude by some Sages, but none of those Alex had met struck him as the type to care about such things. "When the invasion begins, I'll poke him mentally. Until then, we should assume Ash Ketchum won't be joining us."

"Kind of a big assumption…" Jimen muttered. "He did say he'd help us, right?"

Alex closed his eyes, and mentally projected himself just above the Mind Sage's Island. He mentally and unobtrusively probed the area around Ash, and sensed his Pikachu, and the Sage himself. The Sage gave him a slow, mental nod, but Alex could tell he was mid-training. Seeing they were busy, he departed, and opened his eyes. "It seems he will join us at the right time, and the right place, and not a moment before." As for how, his aerial perspective of the Mind Sage's Island had revealed its shape to him, one he hadn't really noticed on his prior visits. It uncannily resembled a massive Alakazam head, and he wondered if a three-hundred-year-old specimen, once trained by a rather insightful and spiritually centered Avatar, could grow to be island sized. It wasn't entirely unheard of, but most people didn't believe the tall tales of random gigantic Pokémon.

Jimen left the training area then, and Alex looked around the now deserted Pokémon battling fields. He began training his B Team then, with more than a few pairing off with one of their senior teammates. Terra and Hydrus acted as good training dummies, with their strong defense. Blaze and Astrum began trading Air Slashes and dogfighting in the air, while Canis and Arthur began trading punches with increasing speed.

It was then he noticed that the fighting types had a psychic fairy filly tailing them, and Alex went over to meet her, berry in hand. As he fed the hungry filly, he decided to make them all breakfast, and it was namely Leo and Pruina who helped him set up the cookware he had stuffed in his bag. Near the end of the effort it took to feed twenty Pokémon, Alex felt two sets of footsteps headed their way with his earth sense. Tenzin and Minjujuui's President had agreed it was best if their 'faux Avatar' remained out of sight from the public, and he knew Jimen's gait by now. Soft, for an earthbender, but determined. These steps were different, familiar, but he hadn't committed everyone's to memory yet. Glancing up, he saw Professor Akamatsu, and General Hao.

Hao spoke first over the more nerdy, and soft-voiced professor. "Mister Redwood! Er…Emperor Redwood, rather…" "Alex, will do." He said, cutting in with a smirk. "Erm…right…" Hao continued, "Alex. We've been told that you've been collecting Gym Badges from our region. I'm guessing you simply never had the chance to challenge us, what with the attempted coup, and helping the Avatar find his past lives. Thus, we decided to come to you. We know your skill as a Trainer, but what we need, is for your team to be in top shape…" Hao trailed off then, as he noticed there were quite a bit more than six Pokémon around the Unovan.

Akamatsu however, didn't miss a thing, and continued smoothly. "I take it these are both of your squads, the one that made you Champion, and the one you're training up right now? I assume we will be facing the younger ones, yes?" Alex nodded, and the professor pushed up his glasses, just right, so the sunlight above the canyon-like battlefield obscured his eyes. "I ah…I was wondering…you see, I heard you actually have a Togetic on your team…and not just any Togetic…a Golden one."

Alex arched his brow, and then turned his head slightly, to look back at the now lowered Snow Liepard fur hood that was currently acting as Astrum's nest. "I do…and yes, his feathers are a bit golden colored." As his Trainer's words registered, Astrum raised his tiny head, and yawned, before looking at the two humans, and chirping cheerfully from his perch on his Trainer's head. Dogfighting with Blaze had tired him out quickly. "The one with glasses is a big fan of yours, bud. That's Professor Akamatsu, of Ba Sing Se University." Alex said, chuckling. Hearing that, the little angelic Pokémon fluttered down from his hood, and over to the Professor.

Astrum greeted the man, who completely lost his professional bearing, as the tiny fairy chick started chirping. "Oh my...such plumage!" Akamatsu gave Astrum a head pat, and he chirped happily. "I have a gift for you, Golden-feathered Togetic." The Professor reached into his scholarly green, tan, and dark green university robes. "A Light Stone." He said, unveiling a light blue glowing stone. "Or as they say in the west, a 'Shiny' Stone. It is yours, if you want it."

Astrum glanced at Alex, who nodded, and then chirped happily, before accepting the stone. Alex was used to seeing more golden Light stones, and he quietly waited in growing anticipation as his partner stared into the bluish-white Light he'd come to associate with Raava. It made sense that a stone with Light energy affinity would adapt to the closest source, and in Koria, that was the Light Spirit.

As Astrum's stare continued, he eventually tucked the Light Stone into his feathers, and waited to use it. He flew back to Alex then, sensing his slight disappointment at not, potentially, seeing a new form or gaining a Togekiss. "I'm sorry…but I think I need Jimen around for this to work. I don't know why…it's like a…feeling."

"Instinct." Alex said, nodded slowly. He smiled at his youngest partner, and gave the fairy chick chin scritches. His wings fluttered faster, as he did and the tiny golden Pokémon rose in the air as a result. Alex relented, and spoke again then, looking up at his partner. "Don't ever apologize for not evolving, Astrum. You can decide when to use that Stone. Just be aware…it may change if we leave Koria with it."

Astrum's face darkened, then. "I wouldn't mind leaving…this region is…hmmf."

Alex handed him one of his favorite berries, and then offered his ball. It did much to shield the emotionally sensitive Togetic from the emotions of humans about to go to war. The more they converged on the Fire Nation, the more the negative emotions grew. "And yet you withstand it anyway, to stay with us. I knew you were strong. As a Togekiss you may even be able to calm the emotions of many Humans and Pokémon, and potentially stop wars before they begin, or drag on too long. It's a sorely needed ability in some parts of the world…but you decide when you are ready to evolve. You'll know when the time is right. Trust your instincts."

The Togetic returned to his ball then, and Alex looked between the two Gym Leaders. Hao was stroking his beard, watching the scene, and learning. He'd heard of how western Trainers treated their partners, and Redwood already had quite a few badges. Hao had never even considered the measure of his own partner's intelligence. In truth, these days their 'League' was more of a game for Fire Nationals, and the occasional regional traveler. Such foreign Trainers didn't usually stick around, though. Akamatsu, for his part, was scribbling notes rapidly, with a modern pen, and had folded his pad away by the time Alex looked back at them. The professor spoke. "I think a simple two on two should suffice. We will Battle in the western style, since there are two of us. We have no need to examine your bending prowess. Toph is impressed by the ferocity in your strikes, and how they're always in control. The martial art movements you've shown our Lieutenants have also caught on in popularity, due to how well they dodge fire, when done right. Demonstrate your Battle prowess here, and we will find you worthy of both of our Badges." The professor pushed his glasses up then, and they caught the light filling into the stadium from the setting sun. "Be warned though…we will not fall easily."

Alex smirked, and untied the Water Nation clothing, letting it fall as his black and white robes became free, and unrestricted. "They all say that. Come at me with your Aces. You won't win otherwise." The twenty balls in which his team resided rotated behind his back in a slow circle, and with a gesture, he sent two out at once, before they floated back into place again. General Hao's Gigalith was a mass of light bluish-green protruding spikes from a blurple colored body of rock. Such crystals were common to what the Roggenrola in the crystal caverns under Ba Sing Se often ate, even though that composition of Gigalith was considered 'shiny' in other regions. The crystal Gigalith and Professor Akamatsu's Blue Core Minior came face to face with Pruina and Arbor, and as the battle began, the Quick Claw around the Lapras's neck flashed.

"Ice Beam the field, Pru. Don't forget the pillars." Alex ordered. Pruina launched her attack at the ground then, and around the two rock types, masses of ice rose from the ground. Next up, in terms of speed, was Arbor. "Leaf Blade, on both of them, then go high."

Hao and Akamatsu shared a look, and then simultaneously shouted, "Use Protect!" Rocks formed around the Minior, and the Gigalith covered itself with a barrier of pure nope energy that Arbor's blades skirled across uselessly. His Sceptile's agility made moving across the ice via the pillars easy and as ordered, he sailed high into the air, as Alex called their next moves. He raised a fist, first. "Arbor! Mega Evolve! Pruina, use Surf!"

Green lines of energy emanated from Alex and his partner, and once more, they connected, and catapulted his partner to a superior stage of evolution. While he floated in safety suspended by the Infinite Energy of mega evolving, the rocks fell from the Minior, and the barrier faded from the Gigalith, just in time for a wave of water to come rushing at them. Oddly enough, as they both took the super effective hit, the rocks returned to the Minior's body. The Gigalith seemed much stronger, and tanked the hit but that didn't surprise Alex. Hao was a military leader after all.

"Gigalith! Meteor Beam on the Lapras!" Hao shouted. The mass of living rocks and crystals hunched, and the bluish green crystals in its body began humming as they drew in power from the universe, not unlike how Alex, Ash, and Jimen had in the Tree of Souls.

"Minior! Use Acrobatics! Keep up with the Sceptile."

"Dodge, Pru!" Alex ordered, as the Meteor Beam readied. She slid across the field with obvious skill, and Ice Beamed a wall in front of her as the Gigalith rocked in place and fired. Seeing her ice wearing away, the Lapras resumed her Ice Beam, and as the beams collided, they exploded. Pruina went sliding back but managed to right herself from the ultimately glancing blow that her efforts had turned the Meteor Beam into. Arbor, for his part, was parrying the Acrobatics of the spinning psychic star rock with Dragon Claws, as they zipped around the field.

Seeing an opening, Alex smirked. "Get it above the Gigalith, Arbor! Then use Sunny Day!" Sensing the plan from his Trainer, the Mega Sceptile nodded and sprinted low across the ice like a ninja, his Mega Form's claws easily digging into it for traction. He charged at the Gigalith, and Hao tried to counter. "Use Smack Down! Don't let it above you!"

But the summoned rocks from the Gigalith were too slow, and Arbor was too fast. As ordered, the Minior followed Arbor up, still trying to land Acrobatics, but as the Mega Sceptile used the Gigalith to get air, he launched a pod from his tail into the sky, and then used his speed to vanish seemingly into thin air, once the Minior followed. It spun in place, under the now brightly burning seed pod, searching in vain for the speedy grass dragon.

Alex and Arbor were again in perfect sync, and as if fate understood that, his next hit was critically effective, and large enough to hit both rock types. "Solar Blade!" Reappearing in a flash at the foot of the Gigalith, Arbor's arm blades were lowered by his waist, humming with grass energy as they absorbed the sunlight, and struck. From his crouch, his oversized tail that had been raised in the air gave his swing momentum, and the massive flash of green lit up the sky above Nomad's Isle, as the move struck home with perfect natural critical effectiveness, and the Gym Leader's partners exploded with damage. When the smoke from the impact cleared, the two rock types were in a fainted pile, the damage from Surf earlier more than enough combined with a critical Solar Blade to get the challenger the victory.

Alex walked up beside his partner then, as his Mega Form faded. "You…have become seriously strong my grassy Samurai friend." He patted Arbor's shoulder, handed him a favored berry, and then popped a pair of Revives into the pair of fainted Pokémon. Pruina also skated over, demanding nuzzles and scritches, which she got for being just the best icy tank.

Akamatsu had an expression that suggested he'd expected such an outcome. Hao, on the other hand, was still staring, jaw agape. "I don't even…how…" He shook his head, and let out an echoing, booming laugh. "HahahaHA! I'm starting to see why King Kuei and Avatar Jimen appreciate your aid, Dragon Emperor. You would be a fierce enemy." He bowed then, one closed fist pressed into an open but covering palm, in the style of respect used in Ba Sing Se. Akamatsu mirrored him. "Someday, we should have a full team Battle…and I shall have to find four more partners. Heh. Did you not say Trainers from other regions used only six Pokémon, Professor?"

Akamatsu chuckled. "The kids do, but only recently did the western Pokémon Leagues approve the use of ten at once, in preparation for the next World Tournament. It's going to be bigger than any they've had before, since the number of Trainers worldwide has skyrocketed." He gave Alex a meaningful glance then. "A lot of people now have access to Mega Evolution, though whether they can safely wield that power for them, and their partners, remains to be seen."

Alex nodded in understanding, guessing that the greatest minds of Koria had figured out what the Brain Trust had. Unchecked Mega Evolution was a real problem, for the Pokémon who suffered an improper ascension's side-effects when used by humanity, a species that had, to date, weaponized every increase in firepower they'd ever discovered to better slaughter their fellow humans, those labeled as 'the enemy'. Despite that, the World Tournament was the ideal stage from which to teach the world how to properly use the Plate shards, and their bonds with their partners, to achieve balanced Mega Evolution.

As Akamatsu and Hao left, Alex resumed training, and did so for the next week as they waited on standby. By that point, his older team members had gone over with him what they'd experienced and learned in their time off, and had focused those lessons into several new, and useful moves for their younger teammates. He even took Lux out, to go through blade forms that, in his opinion, were far too rusty. Bending nature energy would always be useful, but having a plasma sword rivaled that utility, especially when his sword could also possess other things, if needed. Jimen also joined them with his own team, for some last-minute level grinding.

Finally, the day of the invasion arrived, and Alex was feeling confident in his and Jimen's chances. Their teams were stronger, and several of Jimen's Pokémon had even evolved after a bit of training. Everything hinged on them getting Ozai alone, and Alex pissing Ozai off enough to focus on him, instead of the Avatar. At first. The fleet of repainted ships in Minjujuui's harbor had been built and donated by the city to the Earth King. Surprising everyone, Kuei was the first Earth Monarch in millennia to peacefully cede territory the Earth Nation historically saw as its own to non-earthbenders. Minjujuui City would remain independent, and in return for this, all of the city's war-capable ships had been upgraded, armed, and given to the Earth Kingdom for the invasion of the Fire Nation, and ideally, an end to the war.

Alex and Jimen were with the earthbending tanks, an invention that had by itself made the Earth Nation capable of holding almost two whole centuries against the Fire Nation, and the Imperium. The Thunder Warriors had been relentless foes, but they were no longer around to keep their ash-making friends safe. The tanks resembled centipedes with gray metal sides, and green tops, but they were flexible, and after three centuries of warfare, some open, some not, they had been upgraded with the capability to extend sideways as well and allow a few troops to push much larger forces back, behind fire-resistant metal. In the center and simultaneously foremost position of the tanks, was an earthbender capable of steelbending, an art that Toph Beifong was renowned for having created, mastered, and then taught. They were required for the tanks to be able to extend. Her discovery, and subsequent disciples, had proved that Earth Nation citizens were capable of bending three types of energy, while other Nations only had two at most, with the second type being unlocked typically by particularly skilled benders of water, air, or fire.

Toph was the leader of their particular tank, and after a few long hours of going over plans in tight quarters, she and the rest of them were more than ready to get things underway. Each tank also had a waterbender, or at least, those attacking Aluzon Harbor did. The harbor was renowned for its ship-stopping defenses, developed by Fire Lord Aluzon, with Imperium technology. The result was a series of laser-guided flame turrets that only needed a single firebender to operate. Between them, stationed at key points along the harbor, and the massive net of flammable razor wire between the two large flame-topped pillars at the harbor's entrance, the port had not once been breached in three centuries of warfare.

As Alex and the others in the main attack force sank to the bottom of the volcanically active ocean, their waterbender kept a sphere of air around them, while the earthbenders, Alex and Jimen included, moved the tank along the ocean floor, and up the slope of the volcano that constituted Capital Island, at the summit of which, was the Regiis Caldera. Up above, the ships that had dropped the tanks before the now-active 'gate' of Aluzon peeled off to either side, and though the Promethium turrets tried to hit them with intense, focused flames, they remained out of reach, as if they knew the distance of those turrets.

Fire Army scouts reported that multitudes of civilian craft were rowing to meet the invading forces, and once those people in the rafts were aboard, the Earth Nation's new fleet approached the harbor in an encirclement, and the firebenders aboard each ship, members of the local rebel cell in the Fire Nation, made the turret's attacks useless. The ships countered hard with cannons that launched massive steel-coated boulders loaded by earthbenders, and when they hit, they made short work of the turrets.

For his part, Alex noticed a lack of Pokémon use in this fresh conflict, though even as he had that thought, from one of the wrecked turrets, an Imperium augmented Magmortar rose, turning its surroundings to molten rock in rage, and vengeance, for its Trainer. It leveled a cannon arm at one of the ships, but instead of Promethium and all its purging glory, a bolt of pure electricity hummed to life, and then fired. The shot streaked towards the ship, and hit the command tower, as the ships Minjujuui had were, naturally, similar in design to the Fire Nation's, their command center and engines seemed to be in the same places.

While the ship's Trainers began summoning their partners to counter the Magmortar, similar scenes kept happening across the harbor. Enhanced fire types, usually enhanced to use electric moves to great effect, began firing back. Their shots were powerful enough to stop the currently widespread tank formations, stalling their forward momentum. It took effort to get them going again, and Alex could tell the benders were flagging. If they lost their energy before they even reached the base of the volcano, before the eclipse even started, they'd never have a chance.

Alex summoned Terra, and with his Voice, spoke to the ten or so people per tank. "My Torterra will move the tanks! Focus on countering the fire tossers!" Alex kept any stray fire turret shots from his friend with a massive, concealing stone dome, as he stomped his trunk-like feet into the ground, and began moving all the tanks, quite rapidly, towards the base of the volcano that housed the Phoenix King's throne. The benders, naturally, moved with the tanks, and as they reached the steeper slope leading up to the volcano's cone, Terra paused, glancing at his Trainer. "Give us a Siege Pattern Alpha, bud."

The grass tortoise nodded, and again slammed his bulky feet into the earth. Around them, the fortified structure composed entirely of fire-resistant rock formed new layers, and detailing, with holes by perches in his tree for his team mates to fire from, It was mostly Eremus, as the long, slender dragon could fit under this pattern of structure that Terra could create. With Rock Slide and Stealth Rock, he gave the firebenders and their partners a rock typed pummeling that Toph and the other earthbenders began making good use of.

Jimen summoned his partner then, and the Garchomp snarled at the sight of firebenders. After a checkup at Minjujuui's Pokémon Center, he'd been cleared to battle, and seemed very happy to be by Jimen's side again. The rather adamant Garchomp leaped from his ball into the ground, and began covering their flank with impressive Earthquakes, and the occasional Dig through a line of Fire Army soldiers as he moved through the earth with as little effort as his Trainer did. They attacked in unison, and Alex, as someone who also had a ground typed starter, could see how close they were. Reuniting after a tense and lengthy separation had apparently been what was needed to maximize their bond, and thus, Alex had given the pair Earth Plate shards. There had been quite a lot of them, albeit mostly inactive, across the Earth Kingdom. There were quite a lot of soldiers in the harbor, for a Nation who claimed to control the whole region. They were falling though, as the combination of benders and type advantaged Pokémon in water, ground, and rock types countered the enhanced fire types the Fire Army seemed to prefer.

As Alex and his group began to ascend the volcano, that's when the Fire Army countered. Hard. A sea of red, maroon, and emotionless white face masks began streaming down from the top of the volcano, like a wave of human lava. Throughout the harbor, from the many civilian buildings, entire companies of troops hustled out, and joined the fray. With them, were fresh Pokémon, revive items, and even a pair of Predator class Imperium war tanks, that Ozai had essentially had his people copy from the genuine article, down to the last detail, and in complete secrecy. The word 'Purgation' was branded on each of the tread-wheeled tanks. They had one main long-barreled gun atop their body frame, with two additional side turrets fashioned to the sides of the main gun.

As they began rolling out and the Fire Army began descending on them, Alex swore. He'd been briefed on the mainstays of the Imperium's arsenal, and he knew a single plasma blast from such a tank, let alone three, would punch easily through their comparatively well-made but primitive shielding. The earth tanks were meant to counter ground bound Fire Army troops, not Imperium tanks. He called out Arthur and Canis. "I need you two to each take down one of those tanks. They're sticking together, and so should you. Watch yourselves, and take some Potions with you." The pair glanced at each other, nodded, took several Max Potions, and then sprinted towards the approaching tanks while weaving through fire and rocks. Arthur, for his part, was wearing a green hood, and though he was a Gallade quite obviously, he still looked quite heroic with it hiding his face. At his level, all his opponents saw was a blur, and Canis, who was very much vulnerable to fire types, struggled to keep pace with him.

Gathered from across the Earth Nation, what Kuei had devoted to the harbor in terms of manpower was enough to match those who'd been hiding in the harbor. There was a city's worth of Fire Army troops coming down from above, though, and most of their forces were now cut off from the center with the Avatar in it, by the extra Fire Army forces. The battle became more desperate, as it seemed on average, the combination of better training and cybernetic enhancements gave the Fire Nation's Pokémon a serious edge thanks to their enhanced power and large move pools. The balance to this, was Alex's own team, who he'd been dispatching one by one to aid areas across the harbor. Most, like Gelauros, Hydrus, and Leo, were using their Plate's armor to keep themselves hidden, and well protected. There were more red bodies littering the ground than green ones, but the day wasn't over yet.

As Alex turned back to the approaching firebenders from above, now about halfway down the cone of the volcano, he noticed another force, and the one seemingly intended to put down this attack before it gained steam. A force of what had to be forty Charizard, give or take, was ascending from the city atop the volcano, and began diving directly towards where Alex and Jimen's group was below.

Mentally, Alex recalled his partners, and advised the others to do the same, returning them to their balls as they returned to the moving fortress that was Terra. Their group was the one who needed aid, now. Thankfully, Arthur and Canis had both, quite easily, punched straight through the inferior building materials of the Fire Nation. Lacking Boron Carbide and the advanced understanding of complex ceramics and resin-based coatings the Imperium built with, the Fire Nation had replicated the Imperium's tech with mere steel, and complex circuits from other regions. After that, the servitors that remained had put it all together, and made it run. Straight into the fists of two high leveled fighting types, which was one of the many reasons past kingdoms and civilizations had, unlike the Imperium, completely abandoned firearms and things like tanks, in favor of more powerful Pokémon. Bullets did little when an opponent could use Psychic, multiple times, and even turn them on those firing. The State's own military had heavy vehicles, but they were designed to work with certain species of Pokémon, and Alex had been one of the minds behind advocating and coming up with new patterns for more species, once they had coalesced into the Empire. He knew Tao was quietly building up their stock of such patterns, many specifically designed for the particular teams each Scale had, but it was early days, early enough for said patterns to be much more than designs on a computer.

With the Purgation Tanks knocked out, the Earth Army was able to regroup, and form ranks before the oncoming tide of firebenders from above. Alex recalled Terra, as he regrouped with his tank squad, and had his team on hand again. He gave them each potions and elixirs as they recovered, and he was frowning, as he knew he'd just given them a break specifically to get over being in a war. They assured him, via Terra, that they could handle it, now. Several had a lower opinion of the firebenders than they had for Arcean Crusaders, though given three centuries, Alex was sure Pravus would've matched Ozai's depravity.

As the firebenders above came close enough for their fireballs to start hitting their tank's shields, Toph frowned, and shouted, "We need to get out of here! We have a mission."

"How!?" Jimen answered, as he blocked several fireballs from an enterprising squad of Fire soldiers. Toph slammed a foot into the ground, her equivalent of looking around. "Can't go over it…" She said, as she felt the descending footsteps. "Can't go around it…" She continued, feeling the ships still cut off around the harbor's edges by both sides and their movements. Finally, she turned to the volcano itself and took a bending stance. "Gotta go through it!"

The elderly master earthbender made a series of rapid punches towards the volcano's cone, bending the beginnings of a tunnel into it as she did. She grabbed the sides of her tank then, slamming it back closed around them, just in time for everyone to fall back within it. "Move us forward, I need to focus on Bending!" Toph's loud but commanding tone filled the tank, and those within who could earthbend did as asked.

Outside the newly made tunnel, the descending firebenders felt the earth beneath them shudder, and as Toph began carving their path up to the volcano's summit, she also cut a line through their ranks with the vibrations of her bending, and sent quite a few of the firebenders tumbling to their deaths, or at the very least, to a bed in which to heal their broken bones after falling down a mountainside.

Several Miles North of the Boiling Rock Prison - Fire Nation Waters, Koria Region

Akos stood as the new Chieftain of the Water Tribes from the front of the tribe's hand-crafted ships. They could cross oceans, it just wasn't extremely comfortable, even for a waterbender. Akos's ship was one of the few that was larger in size, capable of deploying quite a few waterbenders at once, and powered entirely by bending. As the heroic Trainer who'd beaten the Fire Princess, and the new husband of one of the north's most influential priestesses, he'd been agreed upon by all as the ideal candidate to lead not just their tribe, but the southern tribe as well in this time of war. His father's warbands had, upon hearing their little Akos was now the north's Chief, agreed to, eventually, pass him leadership. For this assault, their forces would work in tandem, and much of their time had been spent traveling. It was made easier without the Fire Navy's blockade slowing their passage.

Akos had raided a Fire Nation outpost in their territory, but before he'd demolished it and given it to the sea's icy depths, he'd befriended one of the Talonflame who'd been kept there as a messenger. Hawky, as he was now known, had been flying messages between Akos and his dearly missed father ever since, but he hadn't mentioned Ara's fate yet. That wasn't the kind of thing his dad needed to be burdened with before a battle. He simply hadn't mentioned her, as there had been plenty to say about his own travels.

Akos had simply not answered his reply's questions about her, and instead had gone on to explain the plan they'd concocted with the Earth King and some 'foreign assistance'. Hakoda had agreed to the plan and began gathering the scattered Southern Water Tribe ships together. Akos and his people would invade the Fire Nation's largest island from the north, and Hakoda and his warriors would take the south, while the Earth Kingdom's forces struck and softened the middle. The rest of the Water Nation's ships would engage the Fire Navy when they appeared, or at least, what was left of it after Lugia had given it several Aeroblasts. Bolstered by their home Nation's fleet, the decimated Fire Navy was around the same strength of numbers they'd had for the initial invasion of the Northern Water Tribe, and they were, apparently, all gathered around the Fire Nation's primary island.

To balance the disparity in force strength, Akos had brought his people to a large source of waterbenders, likely the largest in Koria, after three hundred years. He turned to his canoe-bound troops then, and raised his voice so they could hear him. His voice cracked at first, but clearing his throat fixed the issue. "We -ahem- We are floating before the Boiling Rock. One of our allies in the Fire Nation told Yue about it. Inside this superheated hell, these Ash Makers are holding members of the Water Nation with the same reasoning they used three centuries ago when they slaughtered the Air Nation. The time has come. We need to get in, free our people, potentially make some Firebending allies, and then sail as hard as we can for the Regiis Caldera! Waterbenders! With me!"

The Boiling Rock, like most Fire Nation buildings, resided in a volcano that was deep beneath the ocean. Akos's plan, such as it was, was to overwhelm the guards with his forces, and the steam caused by the cold ocean meeting the isolated, superheated water within the Rock itself. Together, the northern waterbenders lifted a massive wave over the stoney walls. They'd left their ships outside, and the sudden addition of hundreds of gallons of cold ocean water caused the entire prison to be drenched in conveniently bendable fog.

Akos and his people infiltrated easily as they rode the wave in, and many of them, veterans of multiple attacks by the Fire Navy, showed little mercy to the guards, and their necks. With thick steam everywhere, they could take down guards near instantly. Finding the right prisoners was also a time-consuming exercise, as quite a lot of the inmates seemed to belong in a place like this, locked far away from society. Eventually though, Akos found the cell block where they kept the waterbenders. The air was dry, the heat was excessive, and as the languishing prisoners saw him enter in a cloud of mist, they readied what strength they had left, as Akos and the others quietly worked on their cells.

So far, the alarm hadn't been sounded, thanks to their resident expert ice knife thrower nailing the guards on watch with critical strikes to their necks. They would be found eventually, but for now there was still time. In short order, Akos had most of the waterbenders free, when he noticed another group, far in the back, and huddled in a crowded cage.

They were all women, and the younger ones still had paint on their faces, though it had started to run. One of the women around his age leapt at the bars, gripping them as the metal seared her hands. "Wherever you're taking them...take us, too!"

"Your hands!" Akos said, unable to focus on more than the sight and scent of the teen's burning flesh. He waved over one of their healers, and the teen hissed as she began healing the burns. "Who are you ladies anyway? Why does the Fire Nation have you all together?"

"We're the Warriors of Kyoshi Island. We've proudly fought the Ash Makers for almost three hundred years! Who are you?" She said in a mistrustful tone.

"I'm the new Chieftain of the Water Tribes. Akos. This is a jailbreak." Akos said with a smirk. "Tamaroq, are these...Keeohshi Warriors a real thing?"

The man who served as his foreign knowledge expert nodded, and dispensed what he knew. "They served and idolize Avatar Kyoshi. They're elite warriors, but not benders, they're strictly female, and Kyoshi Island is largely isolationist. Or at least…it used to be. The Fire Nation burned many of the villages to ash in Avatar Kora's era, during one of the many purge campaigns they launched to draw her out of hiding. They thought attacking Kyoshi's home would draw Kora to them, but Kora never showed, and the Fire Nation never completely took Kyoshi Island, as the Imperium didn't want to waste resources on such a small, unimportant place. The Fire Nation used the same tactics they used on the Southern Water Tribe. That's probably why they're here with them."

Akos looked at the caged women. They were standing now, hope and vengeance burning in their eyes. "There must be three generations of warriors in here…" He looked at each of the women and then made a judgment call. "I'm definitely going to let you ladies out, but before I do, I have an opportunity for all of you. An opportunity to stop the Fire Nation. Permanently." Akos elaborated on their situation then, and every single Kyoshi Warrior offered to aid the invasion. Once they ate real food and slept on something other than stone, of course.

Eventually, about forty minutes after their infiltration, most of the steam had evaporated, the Rock's water pumps had compensated for the surprise excess water that had cooled the boiling sea around the prison, for a time, and almost drowned their inner systems. Then, the guards had been found with half-melted ice knives in their necks, and the Warden's voice came over the vox speakers throughout the prison. "Attention all guardsmen and women. We have been infiltrated by the northern Water Savages. If you see one of those overly moist wastes of DNA, burn them to nothing, especially if they're out of their cells!"

Currently, Akos and his people were hiding in a secret garden one of the warriors, the one around his age who was called Suki, had been tending to. Only her fellow Kyoshi Warriors knew of it, and it gave them a place to avoid the constant patrols. "We have two options, as I see it." Akos said in a hushed tone, drawing in the exposed dirt of the secret corner in the prison. "Either we somehow free the prisoners, incite a riot, and ride a wave of cooled water back out of here, or, we wait them out, until tomorrow night, and make our escape then."

Suki shook her head. "This place is hidden, but the guards will find it eventually. We can't wait that long, either. Your eclipse invasion will have ended by the time we get there. We can free the prisoners, but they won't riot without a spark. Can one of you muscled men start something? The trash in here is too scared to start a fight with any of us."

Akos swiped his thumb across his nose, and smirked. "I can certainly try."

The plan went into motion, then. Two of the Kyoshi Warriors, older ones, took down a pair of guards and assumed their identities. Then, they waited, and participated in the lockdown procedures, until the Warden got tired, and retired for the night. The Rock remained on high alert, but most of the guards were wiped from searching so fruitlessly. Around three in the morning, the cages loudly slammed open with a buzzer that echoed through the prison, and slowly, tired prisoners emerged from their cells, and milled in the general area. Then, the doors to the rec area outside opened. "I guess we get rec time now, since we couldn't have it earlier." One of the prisoners muttered, as they wandered out into the yard.

By the time one of the actual guards saw this, and ran to the control room to fix it, all he found was smoldering, useless controls. The prisoners were out, and only brute force would get some of them back in, now. There were some in here they never let out, not even for rec time, and there was a reason for that.

Akos, for his part, had minimal success. After punching three tough looking men that were apparently all in the same impressively effective rehabilitation group, he finally gave in, and explained that he needed a riot. The three men wanted in on his obvious escape attempt, and with a group as large as theirs already, he figured three more couldn't hurt. With only two words, the men managed to incite a fiery uprising, and chaos rippled through the prison as prisoners began fighting guards, other prisoners, or taking the opportunity in the chaos to steal some of the guard's food. In terms of quality, it was barely above the gruel the prisoners got.

Once more, Akos's people took out the tower guards, the two who'd stayed at their posts anyway, and the group of roughly sixty people began moving swiftly but silently towards the blind spot in the guard's towers outside of the prison's foundational exterior. The waterbenders raised a massive cloud of steam from the boiling waters, again, which did absolutely nothing to help the prison guards attempt to regain some measure of control. Furious, the Warden's voice soon came over the vox speakers again, as chaos reigned in his prison. "This is a diversion! All guards who can hear my voice, keep an eye on the edges of the Rock! Nobody escapes alive, do you hear me!? NOBODY!"

With most of the top layers of water heat directed and drawn into the air for cover, the waterbenders froze a path across the mostly boiling lake, and though it began melting rather quickly, they managed to get everyone over without touching the water. "Keep up the steam cover." Akos ordered. "We take everyone up and over, one by one. Once we're back on the ships, we can steal a larger one from their harbor. They won't notice. Then we should have enough food and room for everyone to reach the Fire Nation." His benders nodded and set to ferrying the people up by way of a water-propelled pulley system, with a cold, icy grip to hold onto.

Only one person ended up being too burly for their ice handle, which only became stressed as his grip shifted uncomfortably on the cold rung. It didn't help that the wall of the submerged volcano was hundreds of feet high, but it did spur his grip to hold. For as long as possible, anyway. Three of the northern waterbenders caught the falling man, one of the riot starters, but his panicked yell basically alerted the entire prison guard force on the rim that there were prisoners out here with them, in the steam.

It also alerted something else, something Akos and the northern tribe hadn't counted on being in a prison. In days past, when the Fire Nation and their Imperium handlers had razed their capital to the ground, their Legion of Thunder Warriors had done so with a pair of tanks designated as Immolator Tanks. In Koria, they had used upgraded Immolators, with twin-linked plasma beam cannons. In the days of those raids, going up above to Agna Qel'a was a rare thing indeed. The northerners had made do for quite some time below the ice, but eventually, the Legion had departed. There were stationary versions of that very formidable weapon though, and one such installment had been added at the behest of Prime Archon Lorgar, when he'd required the prison for holding truly deadly opponents, namely psychic airbenders losing control in the face of their ongoing genocide. The Imperator himself had ordered that nothing escape from the Boiling Rock, and for three centuries, though their airbender prisoners were now long gone, likely dead, the plasma beam turret remained.

Though Akos could barely see through the fog, it was hard to miss the smell of burning ozone, and the twin giant, focused beams of plasma shooting over their heads. This time, the waterbenders were ready when the prisoners were about to squeal. Their mouths were silenced, and the benders on the pulley sped up their efforts to double time. Getting down was easier, and fun, but before the big prisoners went, each was thoroughly warned not to yell on the way down, no matter how fun or terrifying it seemed.

Two waterbenders went first, as Akos watched for incoming firebenders. The ice slide they made behind them was much sturdier than their pathway across the now once more boiling sea, and the inertia of the sliding escaped prisoners was canceled out as the waterbenders below caught them in watery spheres, lifted them onto their flagship, and then drained the water from their clothes.

The twin plasma turret fired again as Akos leapt onto the ice slide. The beams were again nowhere near him thanks to the fog, and the sound of a following explosion filled the air behind him, as the poorly maintained turret surrounded by hot steam exploded in the Warden's face, compounding his failure with burns.

The northern fleet began moving then, and Akos helped them with their efforts. "We can almost have a rest! Once we have larger ships, we can all relax! For a few hours, anyway." Though the waterbenders quietly groaned, they made good time around the Boiling Rock, and soon found their harbor. Using his Empoleon this time, Akos surfed over to the largest ship, crouching as Pado Aqua Jetted up the black iron side of the flagship.

The crew was slightly above their usual night crew strength for the middle of the night. They hadn't gotten official word from the prison, but it was hard to miss the warning sirens and the firing of the plasma turret. They were ready to send in troops at the Warden's word, but after the lull in action, the command crews had gone to bed.

"Did you hear? The Phoenix King recalled the Army! Does…does that mean we lost?"

"No. We took over the Earth Kingdom. Brought down Ba Sing Se's walls. Crushed any rebellions that rose up after. We have barracks in every village from Minjujuui to the Penetrable City, keeping the Phoenix King's peace. The war has been over for years, at this point."

"Wow…when you line it all up like that, it kinda sounds like we're the bad guys."

The only forewarning the guards had was a slight mist rising rapidly over the ship's deck. Akos chose that moment in the guard's conversation to interrupt. "You are." He said, popping up, in full Water Nation warrior war paint. All the steam and heat had made it run a little, but that just made him look more haggard, and frenzied.

One by one, his men expertly took down, and then froze the crew of the ship, and once the liberated prisoners started coming aboard, one of the guards shouted, "ESCAPED CONVICTS! ESCAPED CONVICTS IN THE HAR-" He was cut off as his mouth was forcibly filled with water, which then became ice. He struggled to breathe, until he remembered he had a nose. Patches of ice covered the other guard's mouths, though in time their breath would melt them.

For a long moment, nothing happened, and everyone stayed still. Then, a pair of searchlights swung towards the harbor, passing over the ships, and then focused on theirs as they saw it powering up to move. Sirens blared to life again, and Akos swore. They'd been noticed too early. There were three other ships in the harbor, small, but easy enough for a single man to disable, if said man was also a Trainer. "Get going! Head for Sozinawa, on the northwest shore of the Fire Nation's largest island. I'll be right behind you."

"Good luck Chief!" One of the waterbenders shouted, before joining the effort to get the ship moving on their power, as the Kyoshi Warriors focused on spinning up the engines. Akos leapt to the nearest smaller ship, called out Amaroq and Tuhan, and headed for the engine room. By that point, the other crews of the ships had recognized the commotion and had begun preparing to follow the escapees.

Akos and Tuhan smashed through them with a combination of waterbending, Thunder Punch, and Tuhan's Metal Claw tore apart their forged engine. Akos recalled his partner then, put as many sheets of metal between him and the engine as he could, and still was sent flying, when it went boom. He wasn't burned, just winded from the concussive force, and Pado popped out of his ball to help his Trainer onto the next ship.

The steps were the same for the next two ships, and by the time he leaped for the third ship, which was already on fire, the crew had him surrounded as he stood, burned and bruised by the hits the other crews had gotten in. "Last chance, lads…" He said, wiping away blood from his mouth. "Just walk off your ship, and none of you have to get broken bones and serious burns."

"Firebenders get burned all the time!" Their Captain snarled. "Kill the Snow Savage!"

With a disappointing lack of hesitation, the crew's firebenders pushed their fists towards Akos, and let loose. Just before they did, Akos brought Amaroq out again, and the canny night wolf landed a Rock Tomb around his Trainer. The non-benders charged forward then for the gaps in the rocks, only to find their swords snared by water. With tentacle water arms not dissimilar from those Aratak had used, Akos began tossing them into the burning, oil-coated sea. The smart ones stayed under, and swam out from under the oil slicks. The screams of the dumber crew members who'd surfaced filled the air, and broke the morale of the remaining, unburned crew. All but their Captain ran for the relative safety of the dock, but that was also on fire, and the only other solid ground required a gondola to reach.

Seeing his Lycanroc, the Captain called out his own Pokémon, a Magmar. Amaroq was a bit worn after battling most of a harbor, and Akos gave him a Max Potion, one of about thirty Alex had given him. The revitalized Midnight Lycanroc howled, and then met the Magmar claw to claw. The test of strength lasted several minutes, and the ship below them rumbled from more damage than expected, but not too surprising from being adjacent to multiple exploding ships.

The test of strength went to the rock type, and Amaroq followed that victory with a Stone Edge as he guided the Magmar's frame down, right into the rising stone of his move. The damage was enough to knock out the Magmar, and Amaroq sent it flying into its Trainer, before being recalled by Akos, swapped for Pado, and after a brief Aqua Jet over the flames, they began surfing towards their stolen Fire Navy ship in the distance.

Akos tried to get their attention, so they could slow down, but water was not the best element for that, and the night was quite dark. Pado swam the rest of the night, but Akos could tell he was flagging, and that was bad right before yet another battle, a hard one, in the form of the upcoming invasion. In the dawn's light, the ship saw him and Pado, and stopped, and Pado gave a last burst of speed to get them to the ship, before he finally fainted. Akos water-surfed once he did and raised himself up to the deck with a tornado of water, before landing, and then falling to the cold iron-worked floor.

The next time he opened his eyes, he was in a lavish chamber, for a ship, and by the decor, realized this must have been the old Captain's quarters, or quarters of someone high up. Yue was with him, and as he gained consciousness and smiled at the sight of her. She frowned and slapped him. "What the actual Muk do you think you were doing!? You can't just go off on your own and keep expecting to come back alive!"

Akos was surprised by the slap, mostly because Yue strongly disliked violence. He did recognize as a sign that she cared though, but there was something more going on, that much, he could tell. "It's nothing my team and I couldn't handle. Honestly, the hardest part was escaping the engines before they blew. That's where most of the burns came from." He inspected himself then, and found the burns long healed, along with the other injuries he'd gotten.

Yue wasn't relenting, though. She got in his face, and the look there, somewhere between pain and fear and anger, made his heart literally lurch. "The only reason you can go out there again and fight is because of our healers. It would've taken you weeks to heal on your own. You almost died Akos, and you need to stay alive."

"Is dying so bad?" He said, averting his eyes, knowing the words would hurt her, but, in his head, he thought it better Yue was ready for any eventuality. Aluza's mechanical revival had been revealed alongside the broadcast that called the Fire Army home. If they met again, she wouldn't stop trying to kill him. It was why he'd been training Pado and Amaroq more than, say, Tuhan, who was weak to fire. "I don't want to leave you, and the Tribes, but I can't control what fate has in store for this battle. At least…I'd see my sister again."

He expected the slap this time, which covered the other cheek. He made no move to dodge it, though, and Yue continued. "No, you wouldn't. You'd be dead, Akos. You wouldn't see anything. Not your sister, and not your child." She stormed out of the room then, and it took Akos longer than it should have to register her words.

"Wait, what!? Yue!" But she was already gone. As he made to follow her, he realized he lacked pants, and looking around the chamber, he couldn't find his, or any others.

In about five minutes, Yue came back with clothes. Akos had, in the meantime, come up pantsless for all his searching, and was in the process of covering himself with a discarded Fire Nation symbol banner that had been dropped to the floor and left there. It was better than nothing. The two lovers talked then, and Akos realized he'd been a bit of a Mudbray, now that he had context. He also had a new appreciation for life. He reassured her that he would come back, one way or another.

Some hours later, a siren screeched through the ship, waking Akos and Yue. He grabbed his pants, put them on for the first time, and found his attire suited to someone who was both Trainer and Chieftain. On his head, was an old Lycanroc head that had been made into a symbol of power in the northern tribe. Out of reverence for its great life, it had adorned the heads of many of the tribe's Chiefs. Short sleeved hardened leather breastplate for the tropical climate, armored gloves, knee-high boots, even a proper Trainer backpack, all various shades of blue and clearly of the Water Tribes. His clothes also had retained the Snow Liepard fur lining. When he came out onto the deck, his warriors were gearing up, painting their faces, and sharpening their weapons. Ahead of them was the Fire Nation's largest island. Three conical mountainous shapes rose on the horizon, but only one of them was smoking, signaling it as an active volcano.

Sozinawa was an average Korian village, the main difference being, it was seemingly empty. Akos brought out Tuhan and held up a hand for the others to wait. "Anything, Tuhan?"

His darker Lucario closed her intense eyes, and her lumpy 'hair' flared outwards. About a minute later, she opened her eyes, and shook her head. "Deserted...strange."

Akos gave the sign to move forward, and the group of just over a hundred waterbenders and warriors began filing into the village. "There should be at least a-"

Akos was cut off mid-sentence, as he and most of the northerners got their first look at what the Imperium and the Phoenix King did to humans who couldn't prove their use in a meaningful way to the Imperium or the Fire Nation. The servitor was a grotesque fusion of man and machine. Cables ran in and out of its body, most of its face was metal, with a grill that it seemed to be 'breathing' through. What was left of its face was sunken, malnourished. Its feet were gone, now replaced with tread wheels for faster movement, and four additional arms, each bearing a different type of farming tool, had been surgically implanted into its back.

The most horrifying part though, were the eyes, which very much seemed like they were still suffering, as they turned on the group of waterbenders. For a long moment, neither side reacted, then, the abomination began rolling towards them. It stopped a respectful distance away, and up close it wasn't any better. Pieces of the poor Fire Nation soul could still be seen in what was left of their primarily red clothing.

"A-A-Agrimat unit 00897351, awai-ai-ai-ting orders."

The waterbenders shared a look with Akos, and he spoke to the technological nightmare. "Uh…go…tend the fields."

The servitor seemed to try to blink, and it twitched in place as it tried but couldn't fulfill its task, which by design, caused it immense pain. "E-E-E-Error. F-Fields cannot-ot be plowed. A gi-i-i-ant boulder is b-b-blocking the p-plow."

Akos winced. He almost wanted to put this monstrosity out of its misery, but, this loyal Fire Nation citizen, likely a supporter of three hundred years of systematic genocide not just of Air Nomads, but of psychics, or Psykers as the Imperials called them, had suffered this fate at the hands of their own ruler. Or his puppet masters. "Go prepare to plow the fields. We will remove the boulder."

"U-U-Understood." It wheeled away then, surprisingly nimble, and quick, when it actually had a task. The brutality of what they'd just witnessed made the waterbenders pause for a minute. They'd all heard the rumors of course, but actually seeing a servitor up close was a new experience for the relatively isolationist northerners.

"We should kill them. All of them. Leaving them like this is wrong, Akos." One of his waterbenders said, and Akos turned to meet the man's gaze. Hahn had been the likely choice for Yue to wed, before Akos showed up, and took on a Fire Royal. There was a reason Ozai's line was feared. Both Sozin and Aluzon had led many campaigns to 'cull' the Water Nation and keep them from rebelling. Naturally, this had only made them rebel further, and Avatar Kora had been a large part of their consistent, unified resistance, and coordination with the Earth Kingdom.

Even if Hahn had the personality of a Basculin, he did also have a fair point. Akos countered with his own. "Do the people who committed genocide on the Air Nation deserve our mercy? By this point, they've likely killed almost as much of the Water Nation, in total. Not being able to work seems to be painful for them. You want to help these Ash Makers? Move the boulder. Let production resume. I'm not going to cry over the fact that the people who helped slaughter my Nation and our Airbending friends were lobotomized by their own King. Their choices led to this fate. I'm going to help the Rebellion, and the people who actually deserve our aid."

Akos continued on then, and there were murmurs, as the group continued to walk. Right then, he couldn't have cared less about potential mutiny. Without breaking stride, he chucked Tuhan's ball towards the boulder as they walked by the field. With little effort, she smashed it apart, though how it had even gotten in the middle of the field was a mystery. With Psychic, she sent the shards sailing into the nearby ocean, and then joined Akos, who was already looking at the Regiis Caldera. "Muk."

Servitors buzzed as they resumed working, and finally, the constant 'mind' numbing pain they'd felt was alleviated, at least until something else blocked their work. Akos was more focused on the distant volcano housing the Fire Nation's capital city. A tide of red armored humans was pouring down towards the harbor, which was smoking. "Warriors! Mount up!" Akos said, as they saw the road exiting the village extend towards the harbor. The part of the village near the water was abandoned, but as the waterbenders called out their Snow Liepard mounts the tribe had domesticated and trained from the wild population for mounted land travel, they ran through the other side of the town, which was bisected by the fields. Here, there were people, and Tuhan barked a warning as she easily kept pace with the Snow Liepards that Akos and the others were now riding.

Akos gave the hand signal to charge through the town, and it soon became clear; this was where the firebenders and citizens deemed worthy of retaining their minds lived, in Sozinawa. Apparently, none of them had the time or skill to move giant boulders, they just assumed the food would come as it always had. He saw the rich, finely dressed people looking out from their finely crafted windows as the group of waterbenders, supplemented by three squads of Kyoshi Warriors from three different generations, thundered through their moved fast enough to avoid the local guards, who by the time they heard about the invaders, could only see a faint cloud of dust in the distance that marked their passing.

"Look! What is that!?" One of his waterbenders shouted, and Akos followed his eyes towards the volcano's slope. A line of disturbed earth was sending quite a few firebender soldiers tumbling quite far down the volcano that housed their capital city.

"That's probably the Avatar, which means the plan is shifting, and our friends in the harbor need us! Double time, people!" Akos shouted, before giving his Snow Liepard a pat to go faster. He'd made sure to bond with the big cat on the ride over and had managed to allow it to tolerate his presence and let him mount it. He saw the intense yellow eyes side-glare at him, but he increased his speed all the same, and Akos murmured a thank you by his ear, as he crouched low to reduce the drag of the wind on his partner.

The Snow Liepards, also sometimes called Polar Liepard, if they lived on the poles of the planet, were built front heavy, like a polar bear, but their back legs were also well developed. They needed to be, to be able to propel over a ton of furry, angry Liepard at whatever it was hunting, usually Eiscue. They weren't the best for long distances and had been known to take a chunk of their rider if they were ridden too long or too hard by someone inexperienced, but for a short sprint into combat, they were devastatingly effective.

"When we get there, you can take out whichever of the red wearing Humans you like." Akos told his mount. He intended to let the big cat do as he pleased, as he was an alpha of the tribe's 'domesticated' pack. As they approached the harbor, the entire island shook. Akos looked for the source, and spotted lava, purposefully flowing out and down to the harbor below. It was unnaturally curving though, and while he'd heard of firebenders controlling lava, seeing it was something else entirely. Royal Fire Nation guardsmen were guiding the lava from the backs of their Charizard, while others coaxed more of it from the volcano.

The molten rock could be turned and sped up by firebenders, but this did not make them true lavabenders, as only people of the Earth Nation, or its ancestry, could truly control the molten rock, and usually only with great effort. Instead of falling on their enemies though, the lava flowed into two previously unseen channels carved into the earth around the harbor, just as the sun above all of them began to be overshadowed by the moon. The earthbenders in the harbor lowered their eye shields, but the firebenders were not powerless. The magma nearby gave them an alternative source of heat, which hadn't been the plan. General Hao had been sure the Fire Army would be completely crippled by the eclipse, and in that time of powerlessness, they'd be able to capture the soldiers, lock down the harbor, and take it for the Earth Kingdom.

The tide's turning ultimately came when, as planned, waterbenders from both the northern and southern tribes came in from the side roads to the harbor and joined the fray. As the battle became more desperate, with the firebenders not surrendering, and the earth and waterbenders having to put them down rather than risk tying them up, Akos looked at the summit of the volcano. The line of earth rising up the slope had ceased, and he sincerely hoped that Alex and the others were alright in there. Then he heard a furious roar, and from above the massive group of wheeling and dive bombing Charizard, came a black Mega Charizard, burning like a blue meteor, as she Flare Blitzed herself at Akos.

Sahqoreyth · Mar 30, 2024

Chapter 44: The Day of Black Sun

Somewhere in the Fire Nation - Koria Region

Okuz had traveled far to reach this part of his home nation, all in search of his daughter. He'd heard no word from or about his uncle and hadn't even risked visiting a Pokémon Center on his way back home. He arrived to find a nation in turmoil. Everyone who wasn't a soldier of some description seemed like they were a rebel, and those who were neither, had been turned into grotesque lobotomized servitors. Having spent most of his existence on the Royal Palace grounds or a ship, seeing how his people actually lived shocked Okuz to his core. He understood better now why his daughter had joined the rebels, and just how depraved his ancestors really were, if they'd willingly agreed to any of this.

Eventually, he had given in to the need to work with the rebels to seek out Izumi, though he had yet to show his face to them. With his Greninja, he had contacted the rebels in secret, and they had tasked him with helping the people of the Fire Nation. All the reserve Fire Army soldiers saw of him was the blue Nuo mask depicting a long-forgotten dragon type native to the Fire Nation.

Guised as he was, he stole mainly food from noble families he'd met and chatted with at the palace. He saw firsthand why his father empowered these men in particular, and while he was tempted to take them out, that wasn't the mission, and random high-profile murders would draw unwanted attention.

After about two weeks of fetch quests and midnight heists Okuz was finally introduced to the Council of Ash, so named for the numerous villages Ozai had supposedly ordered burnt to nothing, for everything from sedition to civil disobedience. The council also wore plain wooden masks, which according to Okuz's intel was new, and he sighed under his own. The leader, a womanly shaped figure, spoke first. "You have done much for us, stranger. And in so short a time. I would be curious to know how you moved through the Fire Nation so quickly, and with such ease. In fact, there is much about you that must be known, before we officially bring you in."

"I propose a display of trust. We all remove our masks, on three." Okuz said, and the womanly figure at the head of the trio nodded. Okuz began counting, and as he began taking his mask off, the rebels removed theirs as well. "Three."

There was a slight gasp, as Okuz expected, but his own reaction was a smile. To the left of the bald androgynous figure heading the rebels, was his daughter, garbed in deep red and scarlet robes that had completely hid her form, up to her neck. "Izu-" he started, but the figure leading the trio stopped him.

"You…" They sneered, as the room suddenly became hotter. "A Royal...that's how you moved so fast. Your Charizard. Why are you helping us, Fire Prince Okuz?" The third member of this traitorous trio, a fairly standard bearded Fire National by the look of him, frowned as he heard the name. Izumi, for her part, was silent, unreadable.

Okuz answered the leader first. "My Uncle. He showed me the Region my family has helped make...but by the time I understood the truth, my sister had already killed him...for his memory, and what's left of our family's Honor, I will help you."

The leader narrowed their eyes in confusion, and suspicion. "General Iroh was captured alive...your father is having him, and his Pokémon, executed tomorrow during the eclipse. When the General will be powerless to resist." Seeing Okuz's confusion, they explained the Fire Nation's worst kept secret, and said, "The other Nations are planning to invade while the Firebenders are weakened. They've spent the last several weeks rallying their scattered army and sailing to encircle the Capital. The Phoenix King intends to hide himself, and his nobles, from the invasion. We intend to free your Uncle during the attack. There are some among us with Earth Nation blood. They will be the ones charged with freeing the General. We were hoping Izumi would distract Ozai, but...you would do far better I think."

Okuz nodded, remembering a conversation he and his father had about Fire Lord Aluzon, and his own family. After the slaughter of the Air Nation, Aluzon's family, mostly cousins as he recalled, had tried to assassinate the man's lineage, so their branch of the family could be in line to become Fire Lord of the ascending Fire Nation. That wasn't the first time his family had tried killing each other either, or so Ozai had claimed. Nor would it be the last. Okuz had been certain at the time that his own family unit would never betray each other, but it seemed fate was determined to bring them face to face again.

"I will distract my Father. Your best chance to reach my Uncle will be when they move him from the Dragonpit." Okuz said, nodding in agreement to the lead figure's suggestion.

The rebel leader glanced at Izumi, and then back at Okuz. "You're sure? Ozai would keep his own brother in such a place?"

Okuz nodded as he frowned. Originally, the pit had been for taming dragon types, and building bonds with the sometimes ferocious and cantankerous creatures who'd nested there. When Aluzon took over its management under Sozin's government, it became little more than a glorified slaughterhouse, a place where he had thrown his prisoners, namely members of his own family, who he believed had betrayed him, or intended to. Apparently, the dragon types had eventually refused to kill for him anymore at one point, likely becoming sick of being used like weapons, and for that insolent disobedience, the Fire Lord of the day had executed all of them. Now, it was a bone-filled pit of ash and despair. "Yes. The Dragonpit has a…history of containing volatile members of my family. No other place could hope to hold my Uncle."

The figure nodded again and bid Okuz to follow the three of them further into their hideout, though he did once more don the Nuo mask. They were dirty, living in squalor, but the fire in the eyes of his people had not yet died, and if Okuz had his way, it never would.

Present Day - Fire Nation Capital

Akos looked at the oncoming blue meteor that Caeruleus had become and narrowed his eyes. He was sick of being outmatched by Mega Evolution. "Pado." They had seconds before impact and Akos intended to use them wisely. Alex had explained how achieving Mega Evolution with Plate shards worked, but Akos had only tried it a few times, with no success and no one to ask now that the Dragon Emperor had found the object of his quest. His Empoleon appeared at his call, and met his Trainer's gaze. Akos pulled out the Splash Plate shard that Yue's father had given as part of her dowry, and the steely penguin nodded in understanding.

As Pado turned and faced down the now much closer Caeruleus, several things happened at once. Energy surged in Akos's palm, as he felt his need for the power the shard possessed activate it. Pado drew on this power and connected to it as tendrils of his own water energy reached out to resonate with the Plate fragment in his Trainer's hand. He began ascending to his Mega Form, right as the Flare Blitz landed. The fire energy surged against water and ice as the Mega Empoleon traded the steel type for ice. This made his water even colder, and Akos shouted as this occurred. "Aqua Jet!"

As Pado summoned the power, the area around the clashing Mega Pokémon blew away those who'd been fighting nearby as fire and water battled for supremacy. It wasn't Aqua Jet that Pado used though, as the freezing water he summoned focused on his sharpened, and now ice-encased, flippers which were crossed, and blocking the reaching, burning claws of Caeruleus. Luckily for the ice penguin, he was able to overpower the Flare Blitz with a Liquidation fueled by Mega Evolution and send the furious Charizard spinning away into the ground.

The dust from the colliding moves cleared, and Akos finally got a better look at his friend. His 'crown' was made of ice now, his wings were tipped in dry ice so cold, it emanated cold vapors in waves that fell from each flipper. The power of Mega Evolution had split his tail, and the two yellow nubs on his back had extended into fins as well. He seemed well designed for the water, but at this level, he could do far more than swim.

As Caeruleus rose from her blue smoldering crater ready to kill, Akos gave his next order, as he looked around for the Charizard's rider. "Use everything you have to take it down!" Pado nodded, and this time Liquidation covered his arms and back fins, before he leapt at the Charizard.

Somehow still keeping with her trend of brutally critical lightning strikes from a position of stealth, Akos was ready for the Fire Princess this time, and had he not seen the shimmer of her stealth augments fading with her lightning-based attack with a critical perception of his own, he very likely would have joined his sister in an early grave. As it was, he leaned backwards far enough to fall to the ground, and the deadly lightning surged just over his head. He glared at Aluza from his position on his back, but she was already melding back into the shadows, and with a pulse of energy from her new augmentations, she vanished completely. Or so she believed.

Ready for her this time, Akos followed her footsteps easily in the dust of the battlefield, and as she began charging up another strike, Akos countered. Or rather, pretended to. He sent a linear line of water towards her but pretended to lose it in the ground. Seeing that as an opening, Aluza struck, and Akos telegraphed it easily, for as strikes went, it was not a good one. For once. The wear of generating and using lightning without the sun was affecting Aluza and as her bolt struck at Akos, he raised the water he'd purposefully dropped from the ground, curved the volatile plasma in one smooth bending motion with the tunnel of water, and sent it back into the Fire Princess.

Aluza barely had time to widen her eyes, before her own attack hit her, and lit up the battlefield darkened by what remained of the eclipse. The Fire Princess was immolated as her entire body was suffused with enough lightning to make her skeleton briefly visible through her skin, and her Charizard shrieked with rage. She'd been going Dragon Claw to Liquidation with Pado but seeing her Trainer die sent her over the edge. An edge a nearby Shadow entity had sensed her approaching and had been waiting for her to cross. As Akos went to very publicly and very brutally behead the fried Fire Princess, making absolutely sure she was dead this time, black and red shadows began emanating from Caeruleus, who had hunched over, and then averted her eyes as Akos raised his Wailord-bone sword to take her beloved Trainer's head.

Memories flooded Caeruleus then, the first face she had seen was Aluza's, and that evil, sadistic grin when she'd read her partner's nature, noted her shininess, and called her perfect had solidified the young golden Charmander's immediate and unconditional love for the human. Now, in the wake of the hole the loss of that genuine love created, a new emotion entered. Since the battle on that bloody beach Caeruleus had become increasingly angry. Seeing her partner mutilated and then once more used by her father as little more than a tool hadn't helped, and now, seeing her best friend die caused something to snap shut within the Pokémon. The door to her heart shut, never to be opened again, and she let the berserk rage finally, completely, take a hold of her, surrendering all she had been, to the Shadow.

Pado stared at the slumped Mega Charizard, brows furrowed, until his Mega Form's eyes saw the creature's aura turning unspeakably foul. Having a Lucario like Tuhan on the team had its benefits, and as if to confirm his suspicions, the night form Lucario popped free of her ball, and snarled at the Mega Charizard. Akos saw what was happening, as well, and given that Tuhan had come out on her own, he guessed the Shadow was involved. This was one of Alex's last lessons he'd shared on their trip, and one that Akos had personally looked into, in what little free time he'd had lately. It turned out Koria was no stranger to Shadow infusions, though what differentiated them from other regions was how, sometimes in ages of war or turmoil in Koria, wild Pokémon would succumb to the darkness seemingly all on their own.

With a little aid from a librarian in the Northern Water Tribe's scroll-based archives hidden deep under their iceberg, Akos had learned of a method by which waterbenders could cleanse the Shadow from a Pokémon's aura. This was his last and newest trick; one he had never even attempted before. Drawing what water he could amidst the battlefield around them, which continued to rage with neither side gaining ground, Akos formed a double helix swirl of water around the Mega Charizard, and began channeling his feelings into her, as best he could. Those of calmness, love, peace, joy.

Normally, his efforts would've worked. The water responded to his emotions by shining with soft golden Light in the face of building Shadow. Unfortunately for Akos, the source of this Shadow was greater than he would ever be. The black and red tones of Vaatu began seeping into the water Akos was using, as they emanated in shadowy swirls from Caeruleus. He tried to let those parts of the tainted water go, but his efforts were for naught.

Pado slashed at the water, but even as ice, it ran black and red with Vaatu's influence. Tuhan fired several Aura Spheres at the water, and though they beat the Shadow back, it simply resurged within seconds. The Shadow taint then began moving for Akos, as it knew well who he was now and wanted its foothold in the Water Tribes back.

Though he struggled to cut the connection, Akos found himself forced to continue to bend, as the Shadow taint followed the energy he was using to bend the water back to its source through the empty air, twisting and spiraling as it did. Leaping for his Trainer, Pado Aqua Jetted them both far out of Vaatu's reach, but he already had his prize. Caeruleus's Mega Form underwent a change, then. Her tail painfully split in two to about halfway down its length, but both tips continued to burn with blue flames. Another pair of horns jutted from the back of her lower jaw, and sharp looking spikes popped out along the edges of her wings. Her incisors also grew in length, now coming down past her mouth, when it was closed.

With a heartbroken shriek, Caeruleus took to the air then, and began flying towards the volcano. Her new master had plans for her, and they did not involve the Chief of the water rats.

Meanwhile…

Toph and the rest of her squad were sweating, as she punched them a path into the Fire Nation's most important volcano. Several times they'd had molten lava pour down on them, but Jimen, Alex, and the others continued pushing the tank further in, as Toph hurriedly cleared them a lava-free pathway. It was hard though, carving a path and blocking up what was behind them so the lava couldn't follow. Moreover, a lot of the 'earth' here was actually obsidian, which while bendable, tended to break instead.

This didn't deter Toph though, and eventually, she made a final punch, panted hard as the rest of the squad moved the tank forward, and then yanked open and leapt through the front of it, into a large inner chamber surrounded by lava flows and pools of magma. There were safe pathways to walk though, which meant they had been man-made. Eventually, they walked straight into a group of what seemed like Fire Nation civilians, across a large cavern heading down into its bowels. Alex could sense a deep mass of dragon energy, and he felt Tao's sadness. There was no time for him to elaborate though, for Alex sensed a familiar energy, coming from one of the firebenders, specifically the one wearing some kind of spooky blue dragon mask.

"Okuz? But why is he wearing a mask…" Alex had no more uttered the name, than Toph's face grew twisted with rage.

"The Fire Prince!? The one in the mask, eh?" And with that, she was off, sliding down the rocky side of their part of the cavern. Something hissed below, hiding in the darkness, but Toph was undeterred. With a sigh, Alex and the others followed her down. The cavern seemed to go deeper, but Toph ambushed the other group on the top of the path down.

The earth swallowed every group member but Okuz, as Toph launched herself off the far wall of the cavern and landed among them. She delivered a rock-covered fist directly into his guts and Okuz went sailing back into the nearby stone wall of the path, breaking an ovular depression into it from the force of the impact, and his mask came tumbling off. Toph pinned him there with her bending as she encased all four of his limbs with rock cuffs, and then charged, raising a sharp spike to deliver death this time, straight for his hated face. Or rather, she tried, but found her control of the elemental energy blocked by another bender.

Alex and the others caught up to her, but it was the tall foreigner who was stopping her from enacting vengeance. "Toph…you need to calm down."

Her head turned towards him, but her blank eyes didn't make contact. "Calm!? He's the Phoenix King's son! Next in line to lead the slaughter of my people! Let go!"

The force of Toph's anger overpowered Alex's control, and the sharp rock surged within an inch of the Fire Prince's face. This time, an intense blue energy limned the sharp tip of it, as Alex switched to a psychic hold instead. "Toph, we need to think about this! Why would the Fire Prince be down in a prison?"

Toph blinked. "Wh- prison?" She stomped the ground hard enough to shatter it, and then waited as her method of seeing informed her of what she'd overlooked. "There…is someone down there…in chains…and there's also…bird cages? Their metal is weird…"

"My Uncle is down there..." Came the raspy voice of Okuz. "We were going to free him, get him out of here, while I distracted my father. But I'll accept an Earthbender's judgement…"

Jimen chimed in then, "So you know where Ozai is?" Okuz nodded, and Toph let the rock spear fall, as the Avatar continued. "Lead us to him. Your friends can free your uncle, and if Toph still wants you dead after that, well, I won't stop her."

Alex glanced at the rest of Okuz's party then and earthbended them free of the ground, frowning slightly. "None of you seemed too concerned about your ally getting all but impaled."

The lead figure dusted themself off, the woman, if one went by body shape and tone of voice, spoke through her covered mouth. She and her companion were dressed from head to foot for stealth. "The Prince's fate is his own, and I will not get in the way of well-deserved vengeance. Take them to your father." She said to Okuz. "We will free General Iroh."

Just then, from the bottom of the pit, came a loud smashing sound, like chains being broken, followed by an ominous hiss that echoed through the cavern. "Ssssssskeeeeelllll…" To Alex's ears it sounded like an irritated groan, the kind one makes when they're woken up early. He looked at the two figures then, frown deepening. "I don't recognize that call...are you sure you've got this?"

The other woman, smaller but lithe by comparison nodded as she pulled out a Pokéball. "Nothing in the Dragonpit is beyond our skill level. Go. Do what you came here to do." The pair leapt into the pit then, and Alex freed Okuz from his binds.

"Lead on." Toph growled, still fuming. "And understand that if you so much as breathe wrong, I'll resume what Alex stopped me from doing."

Okuz swallowed visibly, but nodded, and retrieved his mask. "U-understood. This way…"

As the group proceeded on, a roar echoed from behind them, like a hauntingly beautiful song, that was also, as Alex understood it, a sound-based move. Looking back, he saw flames lighting up the so-called Dragonpit, but he decided to trust the rebels to what they were doing. His attention snapped back, as Okuz spoke. "So, uh…I take it one of you is the Avatar...?"

Toph seemed to snarl and raised an arm to end the Ash Prince, but Alex stepped in front of her, taking up the Zuko's attention, and keeping the earth steady. Toph's head moved towards him, and the old woman huffed, and turned, continuing on. "You've seen Earth." Alex exhaled hard through his nose then, encouraging the air to take on the aspect of the element around them. Flames appeared to shoot from his nostrils. As Okuz's eyes widened at that, the tall foreigner spun, and with an open palm blasted the Fire Prince's face with a gust of wind. "But…you're a…" Okuz stammered. Alex continued. "Did your eyes lie to you? Shall I repeat the demonstration? Perhaps with the force Toph would prefer I used? What do you think, Sifu? I could probably blast him all the way out of our tunnel, with enough air."

Toph side-eyed him, annoyed, but amused as they moved. "Do it, Stompy."

Okuz sighed and hung his head slightly. "There's...No…no need." He fixed Alex with a stare then. "Please…whatever becomes of my Father, he's earned it…but my Nation has suffered enough. He's turned most of the lower castes into Servitors."

Behind them, Jimen snorted. "Some servitude would do your arrogant people some good."

Okuz shook his head. "Not…that kind of…he lobotomized them, Earthbender." Okuz said, guessing at the man's element by his garb, and assuming he was some kind of elite bodyguard for the Avatar, like Toph and the others seemed to be. Jimen stiffened, as he realized what Okuz was talking about. The practice was especially common in the Earth Nation. Strangely black garbed men from the Imperium would show up or pass through their cities and towns, and all the rings of Ba Sing Se, and in their wake, were missing people. The homeless. Criminals. The bureaucratic efficiency of the Imperium had cataloged Koria's entire population and had their medical records on file as well, typically collected by force, or at birth. They gave, from their perspective, the Trash of the world, a chance to make it better. In His name, they became tireless, and brainless, automatons programmed only to serve, and obey.

"The Imperium turned themall...into mindless automatons. Surely…nobody deserves that. Surely, we can agree on that much..." The members of the Earth Nation in their group were stone silent, and frowning, at the Prince's information. The assumption had always been that the Fire Nation was living it up on their tropical islands, and the rich certainly were, but if most of the lower castes had been similarly butchered, that changed things. He looked back at Alex then, still not quite able to believe his region's Avatar was so obviously a foreigner, and one that seemed almost familiar somehow. He pressed on anyway. "Please…if you are able to beat him, I beg mercy for my Nation."

"Your Nation may decide to hang you, Fire Prince. For the crimes of your forefathers." Alex said, sounding ominous.

To his credit, Okuz stood straighter. "Then I accept my fate."

Alex glanced at Jimen, who after a long moment, nodded. He looked back to Okuz then. "Koria will need all four Nations to once more repel the Imperium. Your people may be on the front lines for that, but at the very least…we won't cut your throats you and your people survive. Redemption through service, let's call it. The Earth Nation will, like the Water and especially Air, never forgive you for this, in your lifetime. This stain will mark your people forever, Okuz. But that is the deal your...Avatar offers." He mentally confirmed Jimen was on board with his words, and once again, the Avatar stated that he did not care, and would not aid the Fire Nation in rebuilding themselves. Like Toph and the others, when Alex asked their opinions, for all they cared, the Ash Makers could starve and die on their volcanic hellhole, and not one member of the other Nations would shed a tear for them. "Tenzin and Meelo would." Was what he answered them with, and then he focused specifically on Toph through their mental battle connection. "Avatar Aang and Avatar Kora would care too."

With that offer came a long pause, but finally, Okuz seemed to exhale with relief. "Alright…I'll take it. That's probably a better deal than we deserve…anyway…it's just around this corner." They rounded the corner, and the masked man pointed at the steel bunker at the end of a lavabended tunnel, dug into the rock. "You'll find the Phoenix King in there."

"Tie him and stay with him." Toph ordered the other two earthbenders with them. She turned on the door, then. "Time to kill a Phoenix." Toph leapt at the door then, pounding it down with ground energy surging through her bodily network. Jimen and Alex leapt through after her, sailing over the smaller earthbender's frame as they did. Ozai was enjoying a steaming cup of tea, which he nonchalantly sipped and put down as his opponents entered. The servant carrying it scurried away. Ozai looked between the three of them and ignored Toph, first. Evidently, he thought the old earthbender of no consequence.

"So. The Universe has decided to deliver he who I've sought most right to me, on the day of my greatest Military triumph. You were not lying, Vaatu. Today is a good day." Ozai said, in a tone that oozed sleaze. His voice seemed perfectly suited for the 'obvious Eousian villain' look he had going. Red and wide gold trimmed pauldrons covered his shoulders. Hanging down from them was a robe of red, more gold trim, and black highlights. His color scheme almost reminded Alex of Nox when he mega evolved, or the tentacled kite creature he saw in the ice around Chief Unalaq.

As Ozai stood from his gaudy throne, his ensemble burned away, mostly, leaving him in dark scarlet pants, and totally shirtless. The man was extremely well muscled, and Alex could tell even blocked as he was from bending at the moment, fire typed energy was running through his body's energy network. Also revealed without the shirt was a classic belt of six Pokémon, three on either side of his waist. "Let us begin!" Ozai said, dropping into a combat crouch.

Checking how much time they had left for the eclipse and finding it to not nearly be enough, Alex glanced at Jimen, nodded, and stepped forward. "Fire Lord Ozai…" Alex said, smirking as he verbally demoted the murderous egomaniac. "I have traveled your region, earned its Badges, and according to my friends, you are the penultimate challenge a Trainer can face, in Koria." He raised a Pokéball at the man. "I Challenge you."

Ozai seemed to sigh, though it was also an opportunity to enhance his breath control. With a swift, and practiced throw, a crimson and gold colored Pokéball came hurtling directly at Alex, who by pure reflex, raised the arm he'd outstretched to take the hit, instead of his face. At the last second, spikes that he recognized from his Pokédex entry studies appeared on the ball's shell, striking the one in his hand, and skirling down his arm as it spun from the force of the throw. It ground hard against his aura shield, but the shield held, surprising Alex. Such hits had popped it before, and while it wasn't too hard to reform, it did take valuable time. Apparently learning to control his body's energy flow for elemental attacks had strengthened it.

The ball, which belonged to Hydrus, began beeping, and then its center turned yellow. Alex grimaced, and popped it open, to find it empty, and sparking. His hardest type resistant counter to fire was out, for this battle, as Hydrus was now back within his PC's boxes, safe and sound and more than a bit disappointed. As Alex looked up again, he saw Ozai leaping at him. In the space of these brief seconds, the ball he'd thrown hadn't even opened yet. He'd only used it to distract, and cripple his opponent's stratagem thanks to his critical effectiveness and shredded throwing arm.

Taking control of his own body's energy, Alex met the self-proclaimed Phoenix King in an intense melee, and quickly learned that the man's strikes were brutal, and wild. Not for a lack of control, but simply because Ozai's body generated enough heat even without the sun to light anything his limbs came close to, on fire. Namely, Alex's clothing.

As Alex glanced in surprise at the flames licking over his borrowed clothes, Ozai saw his opening, and struck. A near critical smoldering foot to his jaw sent Alex spinning, as this time his shield did vanish and he went soaring across the battlefield. He reflexively patted out his singed beard, and then thanks entirely to his psychic perception, realized what Ozai's plan was. His ball had since opened in the opening strikes of their melee, and a rather foul looking Turtonator had come out of it. It was clearly an older specimen of the species, given how high its shell spikes had grown. It hadn't moved to attack him, for he still had no Pokémon of his own out yet, but instead the spiked dragon turtle had crouched on the ground, ominous and explosive spikes raised into the air, for Ozai to bounce him off of.

Alex glanced back at the man, who looked entirely too confident, and smirked. Then, he Teleported. Ozai's brow creased, and then an unbidden 'oouugh' escaped his body as Alex appeared behind him, and using his own oversized feet, delivered a rather angry spinning roundhouse kick into his spine. By no coincidence did this also send Ozai towards the crouching dragon turtle, and as he emitted fire from all four limbs to kill his inertia, Alex finally had time to draw. He had a hard counter for the Turtonator, at least, and now that the eclipse was evidently over, they would need every advantage they had. "Eremus! Sandstorm!"

His sand dragon had grown larger in the course of their trip, mostly thanks to seeing more use than he had before, and taking regular vitamins as he grew in level. He'd put in the maximum effort for his training, and now, it showed, as he'd begun to grow larger. Thus, his wings had little trouble calling forth the sand his Trainer desired. Once that was done, another command came to him. "Take out the Turtonator."

Having landed amidst the sudden onslaught of sand, Ozai didn't see Eremus, and honestly, he didn't care about the Pokémon aspect of this battle. Pokémon could be replaced, he could not. There was only one Phoenix King. Thus, he began chanting in the secret tongue of the Fire Nation's royal household, but to Alex's ears, he heard him invoking Vaatu as well. Not intending to give him the chance to channel Shadow, Alex launched himself forward in the same manner Ozai had used to stop himself from hitting his Turtonator. He lit up his fist with his aura as he came hurtling through the sand, only to have a crimson and burning black tentacle of Shadow rise from Ozai's shadow to snare his limb.

"Such…Power…"

Ozai continued chanting throughout this exchange, and Alex leapt back, brows furrowing. The aura around his hand burned to a shining gold, before falling back to the intense blue. This, brought echoing laughter from the writhing shadows around the chanting Fire Royal. "It is wise to be cautiousss…we wouldn't want any Shadow infecting such an important person…"

As Vaatu finished taunting, Ozai finished chanting, and Alex swore quietly. He leapt back even further as the Phoenix King roared, his flames now burning black and red. His eyes were red, glowing not at all unlike Jimen's and even Alex's when they channeled their power. The difference was plain though, for tendrils of that same crimson power were also flowing out from Ozai's ocular organs, and into his very veins, lighting them up as well. Somehow, it seemed like every chakra point in his body was being flooded with intense Shadow energy all at once.

As he came within inches of being able to strike Alex, the victorious Eremus made his reappearance, slightly worse for wear, but still more than capable of hammering a human with a Dragon Tail. Again, the air was knocked from Ozai's lungs, and he went skipping across the room, slamming into the wall beside his throne. He was slow to get up again, but his connection to his shadowy patron was still intact. The same could not be said for several of his ribs.

As Alex mentally checked on his allies, Ozai hit a button on his throne's arm. The entire room began to rise, up through the volcano, and the sandstorm gradually faded. "Jimen, be ready to tag in once his Pokémon are down." Alex said within his mind.

Hearing this, and feeling the room move, Jimen looked to Toph. "Alex and I can handle Ozai. Go back to the others, make use of the Fire Prince, and take out any additional reinforcements Ozai has hidden here."

Toph turned her head towards the clashing regional leaders, and then nodded. She'd felt the heat both Ozai and Alex had produced. She was out of her weight class here, but she could make use of Okuz. Dashing and sliding out of the bunker as it rose through the rocks, she kept the nearby tunnel from collapsing on the Fire Prince and her people, and once the shaking ceased, grinned in Okuz's general direction. "Come on, hothead. We're going on an adventure!"

Up above, as the mountain above Alex and Jimen opened, revealing its peak to be fake, they were raised high into the sky. Despite the size of the room's floor, the whole structure still felt precarious. Evidently Ozai had planned to orate from up here at some point or had done so already in the past. Now, it would give him the space to unleash the only Pokémon he'd ever needed to beat challengers to his title as the strongest Trainer in the Koria region.

"Agni." Ozai's flight capable Charizard popped free at the sound of his name, and Alex had to stare for a moment. It was very much infused with Shadow, but there was something different. Other examples of infusion he'd seen had always had an overpowering aura, flowing off of them in uncontrolled waves of rage that unbalanced their body's natural rhythm. There was no such issue with this one. Its heart was closed, rage burned in its eyes, but no more than it did in his own Charizard's, or Leon's, or Ash's.

"Eremus, come back." He said, recalling the sand dragon, after applying a potion. "Blaze. You're up." His own Charizard came out with a similar flash, and immediately, the two adult males of the same species locked eyes. They stomped forward, taking their positions for a proper battle, wings raised, ready to launch into the air. The aura of Shadow that burned around Agni flared upwards, not unlike how Connor's aura shield had when he'd achieved a measure of power by ascending to the next level through his fighting spirit. Blaze answered it by thwacking his tail against the ground, and snarling. Crimson and orange aura flared to life around his form.

"You look confused, Dragon Emperor." Came the fused and mocking tones of Ozai and Vaatu. "What you see before you…is a perfect Shadow Infusion. Now fall before it!" Ozai pressed two of his fingers to the crown sitting atop his hair then, and Agni ascended to the dragon typed variant of his Mega Form.

Alex readied himself to do the same, but his Charizard glanced back at him with his right eye and shook his head. "Now is not the time for bravado, Blaze. Mega Evolve!" Again, the Charizard shook his head, bringing more laughter from the Shadow's latest champion.

"So much for the lauded skill of Unova's latest Champion. Agni! Shadowflame!" Ozai shouted, and as ordered, Agni responded. Black and red flames roared from his mouth, but Blaze didn't move, despite Alex's call to dodge. Instead, he roared defiantly at the flames, and raised a single claw. To his Trainer's surprise, the dark flames parted around his outstretched claw, falling uselessly away from the intense light of his aura shield. "I've gotten Stronger." Came Blaze's mental voice. "We all have."

Sensing the pride that Blaze's words inspired in the rest of his teammates, Alex nodded, slowly. They'd filled him in on what they'd been up to with their much deserved break but seeing them in action made it clear that he needed to re-evaluate their skills. He looked at his disguise, or what was left of it, and nodded then, again, mostly to himself. Alex tossed the Water Nation parka, now mostly singed and burned, revealing fully the black and white clothes beneath. Then, one hand reached behind him, into his bag, for his hat. He kept the brim facing forwards and raised a hand towards Blaze. If they weren't mega evolving, he was freed up for other kinds of energy infusion. The Light radiated from his palm, into Blaze's aura and he shouted the move, "Flamethrower!"

Aura shining brighter now, Blaze opened his burning maw, and white-hot flames billowed out, empowered with the Light. Much like Shadow moves, against a Shadow infused Pokémon, an infusion of the Light also did double damage. Blaze's aura also seemed to stay shining with that Light as the move ended. "You have this." Alex told him. "Take to the skies." Smirking, Blaze shot into the air, and the slightly off-balance Agni followed him only a moment later, but it was enough for a height advantage. Shadow flame and Light flame danced in the sky, as Alex focused back on Ozai. His hat wasn't the only thing he'd pulled out, for this. With his other hand he'd subtly retrieved Shruikan's gift, a Soul Dew from an Eon Duo. It floated behind his back and up under the primarily white robe-like garment that covered his shirt and upper body.

Furious, the self-proclaimed Phoenix King came at the foreign ruler, rocketing forth with fire from his feet. Alex was glowing blue again, but too late did Ozai and Vaatu realize it wasn't quite the same color as before. The energy suffusing him was more of a blurple color now, and as Ozai came at him with a fiery punch, the Dragon Emperor caught it in his large palm. The fire had apparently returned in force with the sliver of sunlight now free of the moon, which meant things below were about to turn hotter.

Alex twisted Ozai's wrist suddenly, and brought his body downwards, at the perfect angle for his knee to meet the firebender's face, specifically his nose. Reeling back from the blow with copious amounts of blood spraying from his nostrils. Furious firebending came at Alex then, and the foreign Emperor struck through each burst of flame, with moves Ozai recognized as belonging to the Dragon Style of martial arts. Alex spun through each of them, and then countered as he inhaled, and shouted a Word.

Ozai didn't hear exactly what word was uttered over the crack of thunder above and around them, but the result was fire from his opponent's mouth, a torrent of flame enough to even offset Ozai. Furious, but unable to counter as he struggled to block, the Phoenix King found himself sliding backwards from the sheer force of the flames that, by the laws of physics, they should not have possessed. "All of you…out! Now!" Ozai ordered, and then, four flashes of light from the remaining balls on his belt revealed a Houndoom, a Tyranitar, a Coalossal, and a Tyrantrum. Together, and empowered by Vaatu as much as Agni had been, they countered Alex's shout.

When the smoke cleared though, the Unovan was across the field, frowning. "So, you admit defeat? You're breaking the rules of Battle, Ozai. I'll do a Triple, but five on one is ridiculous."

"I make the rules!" Ozai roared, as blood continued to flow from his nose, making him look crazed, manic even. His cool, ferocious demeanor had been beaten out of him, and now the despotic tyrant was nothing but fury and pain. "Kill the foreigner! NOW!"

"Arbor. Take the Tyranitar. Canis, the Tyrantrum. Pruina, take the Houndoom, and Adamanteus…show the Coalossal what a quadruple Ground weakness is like against us." His own team, each hardened by their own battles in Koria, popped free as he called on them. Only Adamanteus was under leveled for this, but the quadruple advantage would probably make up for that. "Alright, go!"

As each Pokémon charged forward to battle who Alex had assigned them, a shriek came from above. Alex looked up in time to see another Mega Charizard in its dragon-typed branch form charging Blaze from behind. Something was off about it, though. Shadow also infused it, but where Agni was perfect, Caeruleus was overflowing with evil rage, so much so that it altered her form. His proud Charizard spoke into his head then. "Focus. I…have this…" Both dragon lizards bathed his aura shielded form in blue flames then, but Alex sensed even then his shield was holding.

Alex wasn't buying it though, as he knew how tired Blaze was already. Thankfully, he too had a unique and overpowered counter for dragons. "Shruikan! Help your brother out!" He channeled what he'd seen of Pokémon Base players then and threw his Salamence's ball as fast as he could towards the three Charizard. Shruikan popped free with a shriek that also made the sky break with a thunderclap, and Caeruleus only had time to turn her head, before Shruikan tackled her in the air, and sent her spinning away from Blaze. Alex turned back to the growing chaos that was engulfing the volcanic peak as the majority of his B team took on Ozai's entire belt. He was glad he had several in reserve though, for there was still a war to fight below.

Across from Alex, Ozai had lifted himself up on familiar black and red tentacles. An ominous pattern of crimson appeared on his hairless chest skin, the same color as the energy in his eyes. Almost like a face, and yet not. "Enough of this farce!" He shouted, and then Vaatu's voice echoed out. "How long are you going to hide, Raava? I will beat you as often as I must, until the Convergence ends…" Ozai seemed to inhale then, and Alex knew an empowered attack when he saw one.

Once again, several things occurred in the space of the same few seconds. Jimen leapt out from the earth bunker Toph had constructed. Astrum leapt free of his ball, sensing that now was the time he would be needed. The ongoing war pained him, but the Light's call, and the peace it brought, overpowered that feeling, at least for the moment. Finally, Ozai released his relatively slow charged attack, and what Alex saw as a ghost typed black and crimson Hyper Beam came lancing towards him from out of the man's chest, with the intent to blow him away, down to the last atom.

Intense purple energy met a shining blue light aura as Astrum used his Light Stone; the soft blue Light around the three surged, high into the sky. Clouds of ash caused by the war below had begun to cloud the area, and Ozai's reserve forces had begun making the combined Earth and Water Nation armies pressed to stay alive, let alone win.

Then, from the parted clouds came a cry familiar to many of those fighting below, who'd been a part of Admiral Zhao's disastrous siege of the Northern Water Tribe. Ash's Lugia came down through the hole in the clouds fast, spinning and leveling out over the volcano's peak. Alex's eyes met Ash's as the titanic frame of his Lugia moved past to the battle below. The two shared a nod. "Leave Ozai to me, Redwood." Came the thunderous and yet calming mental tones of Raava and Jimen.

Alex looked back to Jimen and nodded, then focused on mentally helping his team. He sat behind the shield Astrum was projecting and focused on channeling the Light of his radiant Togekiss to each of his battling partners. In terms of appearance, Astrum looked like most of his kin, with the exception being his golden feathers. It was hard to believe he'd hatched not all that long ago, but then, Pokémon did grow quite fast, especially when trained.

One by one his team took their opponents down, and then moved on to help anyone having trouble. Finally, all that was left was the battle in the sky, between the three Charizard and Shruikan. Seeing his fliers were having trouble with the two dragon type Charizard, Alex reached out to Blaze again. "Seems like you could use a Mega Form." Irritated by how right his Trainer was, Blaze launched a Dragon Pulse into the face of the mutated and enraged female Charizard, and then disengaged into a spinning dive.

Alex raised the Flame Plate shard high, and his fire lizard ascended to his Mega Form. Caeruleus tried to stop him, but once Blaze was finally faster, he floated around her attacking form, landed on her back, and drove her into and across the hard surface of Ozai's raised platform as his mouth fired a Dragon Pulse into her back point blank. With a triumphant roar from the following cloud of smoke, he left her fainted form in a heap, and circled around for the killing shot. Both he and Alex were reluctant to end another shiny Charizard, but they could feel her rage, and despair. The depths of mutation the Shadow had caused were also well beyond their skill to reverse. It was kinder to let her join her beloved Trainer, than force her to live, be cleansed, and try to survive alone in the wild after a lifetime of being treated like royalty.

The final Dragon Pulse did its work, and much like Pravus's Lugia, her body faded away into particles, and vanished completely. Blaze launched upwards then, to help Shruikan. He had been successfully holding off Agni with what looked like balls of rather damaging condensed plasma, and as Blaze marked his return to the fray with another Dragon Pulse, Agni dodged right into the super effective move from Shruikan. Ozai's Charizard went down in a smoldering heap, and both Blaze and Shruikan roared in victory. Alex healed them before he recalled them for a well-earned rest in their balls. Then, he looked up at Jimen.

The Avatar was high above him, and at that moment, he sent Ozai sailing into the volcano's peak, and rolling down the mountainside. "Help the others!" Jimen shouted as he rocketed past. "I can handle Ozai!"

A bit winded, bruised, and singed, Alex nodded, and psychically levitated his partners who hadn't battled yet, or weren't too worn out behind his tall frame. He jumped into the air and hopped onto Eremus as he headed for the battle below. "Arthur, Leo, Canis, Nox, Cinder, and Sensus! Help anyone not in red. Move them towards the ships in green." Six balls popped open, and his partners leapt into the fray as they reached the bottom of the volcano. "Ictus, Gelauros, Ceno, Temere, Nox! Knock out any remaining Firebenders." Five more balls were psychically yeeted into the ongoing battle, and as they began taking out firebenders with their powerful moves, the momentum shifted in the earthbender's favor.

Alex helped out as well, mostly by earthbending alongside Eremus. Of Ash and Lugia he only caught glimpses, but it seemed like they were busy dealing with the ocean bound troops Ozai had intended to bring in as reinforcement.

Back behind the volcano, Jimen continued to hammer Ozai, and while Vaatu could numb the pain of his breaking body, eventually Jimen had beaten it so thoroughly into the mountainside, his bones wouldn't allow him to stand. Crimson and black tentacles shot painfully out of his back at that point, and Vaatu shouted at his counterpart. "This vessel is almost dead, Raava! I look forward to reincarnating, into someone new!"

Jimen's eyes burned with the Light and narrowed. Vaatu needed to be imprisoned, not reincarnated. Any chance of de-fusing him from Ozai had vanished decades ago, though. By now, their bond was permanent in ways Raava had never dreamed to make her own. A mistake made by her good intentions that had cost her Avatar dearly in terms of power.

Covering his fists in rock swords that he heated up with fire from within, in a passable attempt at making a plasma sword like Lux. Jimen rocketed towards Ozai who dodged twice, before the Avatar struck with a perfect slash, and removed his left arm at the elbow. Ozai clutched his cauterized stump, only for the other arm to be sliced away as well moments later. Jimen let himself fall then, and spun in the air, taking Ozai's legs. "You will be Bound to this crippled shell for the rest of Time, Vaatu." Raava said imperiously through Jimen, "And I shall be your Jailor."

Ozai's body convulsed again, and the man cried out in pure agony, as Vaatu fired a final Hyper Beam from his chest, but Jimen dodged it easily with his airbending. With a wave of his hand, Raava's power ripped a hole in space to the Spirit World, and the Avatar did a full flip in the air, bringing an arcing, burning foot directly down on Ozai's torso, still glowing with Vaatu's 'face'. The strike sent him sailing through the gap, and Jimen/Raava followed. Ozai landed hard before the Tree of Souls, stunned by the impressive amount of pain that even Vaatu couldn't numb now. Then, it was replaced with fresh pain. Pain he was familiar with.

Avatar Jimen burnt the stumps of Ozai's legs, fully cauterizing them, and then grabbed his bangs, lifting him up by them and setting them against the Tree of Souls as he leaned in close, and let Raava's power fade. "For every innocent you've burned…or worse…you will persist in the Tree for a century. Your body will not die. Your soul will not reincarnate. You will rot in the prison you should never have been freed from."

"I'll get out, Raava…" Vaatu snarled, taking over Ozai's mouth. "You know I will! I will be free again! It is our Destiny to fight!"

Raava's energy surged through Jimen then, and he let her use his mouth, as her deathly calm tones mixed with Jimen's baritone. "You will break free, eventually. And then, I and my allies will put you right back again. The Shadow will never reign over the Earth again. I swear it."

Ozai took over then, snarling, "You can't guard us forever…and you are not the only one with allies…"

Together, Jimen and Raava answered him. "We aren't going anywhere."

With that, a sphere formed around Ozai. Rock, ground, water, ice, fire, electric, psychic, and flying typed energy all coalesced in a multicolored sphere around the mutilated form of the former Fire Lord, and Jimen guided him into the tree's hollow, sealing up its entrance with a powerful barrier composed of said energy. Ozai shouted, but this time, no sound could escape the hollow within. As if understanding who now was imprisoned within it, the Tree of Souls began showing the mutilated Fire Lord what he and his lineage had wrought on Koria. It started from the beginning, which at first had been a series of large forest fires, indiscriminate burnings displacing thousands of Pokémon, and of course, the attempted genocide of a pacifistic people. Each atrocity played before his eyes, and would continue, on repeat, for as long as he was trapped within the tree.

Outside the tree, Jimen sank to a sitting position, and exhaled. "I meant what we said, Raava. I'm not leaving him. Not even for a moment. Not now."

Her voice answered him in his mind, a sensation he was used to by now. "Your destiny is not to sit here and play guard to Vaatu. But you are correct, until the Shadow has lost its last Champions on the Earth, and the Convergence of the planets ends, Vaatu is at risk of breaking free. For now…we must wait, and let our friends handle the rest."

Jimen's brow furrowed. "But…how will Alex and the others know? They didn't see us come here."

"In time, they will return to free us. For now…Koria must find its way without an Avatar."

Low Orbit Around Luna - Earth Sphere, Outer Space

(It's recommended that you read through the Ranger's Path for this part of the chapter, if you have not already, and want to know the full context of what is going on.)

Silence. That was what Horus and his loyal Thunder Warriors heard, sealed as they were within the newest mark of freshly forged suits of power armor that the Imperium had dubbed the Crusader pattern. With an enclosed and intimidating helm reminiscent of a knight of Old Earth's Middle Ages, boots that could magnetize to metal surfaces, and an upgraded backpack with air filtration and longer battery life, the new armor promised to change how the Imperium would eventually conquer Terra. It was still in the prototype stage, but Horus's men were now fully enclosed within it, making their current maneuver possible.

Life support systems on their similarly prototyped voidships were off, as were all other systems. Horus had aimed his legion, as members of the thirteenth and seventh legions took fire from Luna's orbital defenses, and then fired his depowered ships silently through the void, at their targets. It was a good plan, the only flaw being that Horus had underestimated Luna's Pokémon defenses, while suitably avoiding their more traditional ones. As they came within drop distance of Luna's surface, Horus saw something move outside their ship's main window.

It was large, resembled a bat, and most importantly, had a rider upon its back in a white space suit that, according to his knowledge, was not what the Selenar wore when needing protection from the vacuum of space. The figure on the Pokémon's back pointed at his ships, and though he knew it was too late to save all of his men, he gave the order anyway, powering the ship back on. "We're spotted! All Thunder Warriors drop! Now!" He hit the button that opened his own ship's hatch, just as the bat creature fired a pink energy laser that sliced through his ship, and two others. The warriors he was with had all jumped, and were now free floating in the void, towards Luna's asteroid-marked surface. Looking to his side, he saw no other droppers, and knew his warning had come too late for the other two ships.

The bat creature readied another pink energy blast, and Horus roared over his helmet's internal voice operated exchange system, or vox, "Open fire! All of you!" New as he was to fighting in the void, Horus learned the hard way, by way of losing two of his men, that changing one's inertia while free floating in space could take them wildly off course. The two men in question had opened up their bolter rifles with fully automatic fire, and sprayed wildly at the bat creature, before being pushed backwards through the void from the recoil and heading towards Terra. It would take them hours, if not days, to finally reach the atmosphere at which point their fall through it would likely incinerate them. "Single shots!" Horus added, furious at losing even more men. The other Thunder Warriors of the thirteenth and the seventh hadn't even made it close to Luna, and one of the thirteenth Legion's few remaining ships was smoking and falling purposefully back towards Terra as well.

The bat creature, who had initially blocked the bolter fire with its wings, had learned the hard way that bolter shells exploded on impact, though they didn't punch through its wings, they left a smoldering mark on them. The remaining Thunder Warriors under Horus kept themselves on course, firing randomly into space almost as often as they fired at the Pokémon to keep from meeting the same fate as their unfortunate brothers, who were now out of ammo. More of the sixteenth legion's drop forces came from the other ships then, as Horus had bought them the time needed to deploy. This seemed to anger the bat creature, and it flared its wings out, resembling Luna when it was full, and glowing just as bright, before it began scything through the empty vacuum, and slashing the power packs of Horus's men.

It was too fast to hit at that point, though Horus fired as often as the rest of his men, half of those who had dropped had succumbed to the effects of the void upon losing their oxygen, or having their suits torn open. It was not a strong start to an operation he had confidently declared to his father that he could handle, but he'd taken bigger fortresses with less Thunder Warriors.

"Ignore it!" Horus commanded, as they began hurtling closer to Luna's surface. "Brace for impact!"

A regular human would've broken their legs, and probably the rest of their body, if they impacted on the moon's surface at the speed Horus and his Thunder Warriors did. Luckily for them, their gene-enhanced musculature was akin to a shock absorber, and their bones modified to be stronger than reinforced cerasteel. With machine-like speed, upon landing, the Thunder Warriors headed for the nearest Selenar building, and in short order, breached it.

With brutal, almost mechanical efficiency, Horus and his men took out any humans and Pokémon who got in their way with the precision that made their exploding ballistic rounds so feared by their enemies. His golden Arcanine, the only Pokémon Horus needed, tore through their defense of mainly Magneton and Magnezone with powerful, and similarly gene-enhanced Flamethrowers. While the Imperator typically forbade modifying the genes of Pokémon, Horus had ignored that edict, and turned his Arcanine into a living wildfire. Instead of a mane of fur, a mane of flame encased his body. The Imperator had forbidden him from having any more Pokémon upon discovering his disobedience, but the extremely fast golden lion hound was all he'd ever needed.

It didn't take long for the Selenar leaders to realize that their forces weren't leaving so much as a scratch on the Imperator's warriors. If more had successfully landed, they would have already been forced to surrender such was their brutal efficiency. So it was that, after a brief meeting of the Archetypal Heads, the matriarch known as Heliosa made a Holocall. Not to the self-proclaimed Imperator of Man, but to the head of the secret city, lying on the dark side of Luna that played home to the secret globe-spanning organization known as Pegasus. "Director Colress." She said, once he answered, "The Selenar accept your previous offer of alliance. We will support the Dragon. We will even give you limited access to the Magna Mater. Are these terms agreeable?"

Colress, who had since been made the permanent head of Lantea City, took far too long, for her liking, to answer. Finally, he said, "They are. I'm glad your people have finally seen sense. The ship schematics our initial deal proposed will be sent over to our computers, and then, we will aid you against the Imperium's incursion."

The Matriarch shook her head, and while her demeanor was as calm as a humming processor in standby mode, the tone of her voice gave away how dire things were. "I don't need your grunts. Send me the Wolf."

Colress eyed the woman for another long moment. Most of her physicality had been 'upgraded' by her cult's decree. She embodied the 'caregiver' archetype of humanity, or so the Selenar claimed. While most of her altered white body was hidden, the defining feature of the Selenar's public diplomatic face were the mechanical white 'wings' protruding from her back, that in actuality acted as spare arms, or in times of war, laser projectile shooters capable of firing pinpoint and deadly plasma beams.

"Alright." Colress finally answered. "Give us their coordinates in your compound. We'll send him over."

"Coordinates sent. Please hurry, Director." The matriarch reiterated, before cutting the connection.

Geralt Redwood, who'd been discussing Ciri and Triss's eventual fate with the newly cemented director of the organization inhabiting the secret moon city when the emergency call came in, arched an eyebrow at Colress. "I take it I'm being 'volunteered' for this. Do I have any backup? These are Thunder Warriors, right?"

Colress interlocked his fingers despite them being covered by his full body gray tech suit and met Geralt's altered ice blue eyes evenly. "No. Just what you bring with you. I can lend you my Pokémon if you want to fill out your belt, but Apollonia likely has Steel Types like mine, and you can safely assume the Thunder Warriors can counter them. Also. There's a good chance one of the Imperator's Prime Archons will be there, leading the strike. I want you to capture him, if possible."

Geralt looked at the man in disbelief. "How am I to capture a ten-foot-tall man in thousands of pounds of armor? And what is my motivation to go help these strangers that've wanted nothing to do with us, until they need help repelling an invasion?"

Colress sighed, before answering. "They're twelve feet, actually. Cirilla and Triss can stay up here indefinitely should you succeed, but we are not a hotel service. They'll be given work. Since they've already figured out where we are, they will help you repel this breach of the Selenar's defenses. The more people you capture, the more inroads you make with the Selenar, the longer I can convince the powers that be to let them stay, despite their...psychic instability." Having the two psychic fugitives from the Imperium of Man had put a target on Lantea City that his superiors had not cared for given the Imperator's obsession with the technology of the Selenar hive cities. If they had their way, the two women would've been killed and disappeared already, but thankfully, they knew Geralt as well, and that the White Wolf would inevitably find out what they had done and turn on them for it. Pegasus needed all the Burst Rangers they could get, and that meant keeping them happy.

Geralt stood up then. "Consider me motivated. And thank you, Colress. Erm. Director Colress."

Colress waved his words away. "Thank me when you come back alive, and intact. Take the teleport in the third room. I'll see if I can't call in a favor or two for more help. Good luck Ranger."

Geralt knew he'd need far more than luck if a Prime Archon was involved, but he said nothing as he strode with purpose back to his shared quarters. They'd been given one room, split in the middle by a bathroom, but the ladies were on his side as he returned, and then brought them up to speed. As expected, their reaction was explosive when he mentioned what they were going up against.

"I know it's difficult, Triss, but it keeps you and Ciri safe. Gear up and hide your faces. We're leaving from the third teleport room." Geralt said, as he summoned Srebro and Stahl to the sword holsters on his back. The Doublade seemed eager to see action again, after so many months hiding on the moon.

Triss pinched her brow. "It's not difficult, Geralt, it's impossible! We don't stand a chance against the Imperator's sons! They're monsters! Barely even classifiable as Humans at this point."

Geralt just smirked at her. "Monsters... are my specialty. If you'd rather stay behind, I understand." He was well aware that few humans, even the Imperium's own subjects, could ever hope to match one of their Imperator's personal gene clones. His 'material' as Triss had called it, was the base for every 'son' that the Imperator had crafted in one of his secret laboratories. In terms of raw physical strength and psychic ability, most Prime Archons could claim to be second in power only to their father. Only those like Geralt, who also altered themselves beyond that of a base human, could hope to stand against such creations.

"Oh, I'm going with you!" Ciri interjected. Triss looked like she was about to protest, then stopped.

"Honestly, Ciri might be your best chance of coming back alive. I'll stay here and try to get you more backup." She pulled out four Pokéballs then and handed two to each of them. "These should cover the types you two don't have on your belts. Good luck."

Geralt and Ciri left the room once they were ready and reported to the designated teleporter room. Inside waiting for them was an imposing woman, covered in ice blue feathers, with what looked like black leather beneath them. Her helm had wings resembling an Articuno fanning from either side of it, and a long mane of long blue molted tail feathers formed a crest that reached down to her thighs with its length. In her right hand was a spear, though Geralt's enhanced eyes could tell it was a modified, and sharpened, power stave. A weapon infamously wielded by the Arcean Church's crusaders.

As soon as she spoke, Geralt realized they'd met before. "Finally. I am Yennefer, of Valaskjalf. Your leader asked my King for reinforcement, and since the Asgard and Pegasus have a long history...apparently...here I am." She looked Ciri over, seemingly unimpressed, and then the intense violet eyes fell back on Geralt. "I suppose there are worse males to help. I will join you on this Archon hunt, White Wolf." Geralt fought down a slight flush as he better recalled the exact details of their first meeting, namely his nudity and tortured body, and Ciri naturally read that completely the wrong way.

She didn't scold him though, for the sheer coolness of the woman before her had the young woman spellbound. She had hundreds of questions, but the woman from Valaskjalf was already on the teleporter with Geralt, who now seemed as over his earlier embarrassment as Yennefer was.

Ciri joined them, and Colress's voice filled their ears as the teleporter powered up. "Remember, if you manage to capture any of the Thunder Warriors, I can make staying up here indefinitely much easier. Ideally, we want the Prime Archon. The Selenar have determined that the one leading this assault is Horus. Good luck!"

Geralt was fuming as the words registered and the teleport went off. He'd conveniently left out that it was the damned Warmaster of the Imperium, Horus, they'd be facing down. "Colress, you son of a-" The rest of his words were lost under the sound of the electrical bamf, and the next thing Geralt saw was darkness. Evidently the Thunder Warriors had found the power supply for this area and filled it with exploding bullets. Geralt didn't elaborate on his sudden outburst of anger, but both Ciri and Yennefer understood it. There were Prime Archons, and then there was Horus, first among them, the Imperator's alleged first born, and essentially his right hand in all matters of war. That was who Colress wanted them to capture. With three people.

"Are you good in the dark, Yennefer?" Geralt asked quietly. He received a grunt in response, and then reached for Ciri's hand, as he guided her. "Stay close, kid."

Yen didn't answer him, as they marched on silently, and it seemed she didn't need light.

They traveled quietly through the unfamiliar darkness towards the booming sounds of gunfire, and eventually came upon a scene common only to those who experienced the Thunder Warrior's fury, and those who meted it out. A long, narrow, and once elegant corridor had been turned into a killing field. Words in Unown lettering marked it as leading to a council chamber, and on the side closest to the trio the small squad of Thunder Warriors had set up a makeshift barricade behind their dead comrade's armored bodies.

Both projectile weapons of the ballistic and laser variety primarily bounced off of the absurdly armored forms of the remaining squad of twelve Thunder Warriors. Geralt noted their armor was upgraded, compared to what he'd seen before in pictures and from afar. His sharp eyes took in the details of the regular warrior's armor, and realized it was a prototype, which meant there would be exploitable weaknesses.

In terms of coverage, the designers had solved the age-old issue of joint mobility by adding more armor to them. Whether straight or curved, the armor plating seemed to move with the wearer. Then, his eyes fell on the most obvious target. All that extra armor brought more weight, that even Thunder Warriors had trouble moving. Their backpacks were bigger now, and while they were also covered in ceramite, they likely had more vital cabling within them now. Geralt signaled to Yennefer to fall back slightly, before he spoke.

"Their new armor could face a charging Tyranitar and come away unscathed. The most obvious target is the backpack. Without those, they'll be slow, and stuck in here." He looked at Yennefer. "Have your Articuno freeze them, first. That should make them brittle enough for Ghost to break through. Once they slow down, we can focus on Horus. Do we know what Pokémon he uses?"

"An Arcanine." Ciri offered, trying to be helpful. "One that's constantly on fire. The Imperator's edict is not to alter their genes…but it's obvious that Horus has. That Arcanine is all he's ever needed."

Geralt nodded, and looked at Yennefer then. "Can you distract him?" She nodded, and powered up the power spear. Red, yellow, and icy blue lines of power met at the sharpened tip of it, and a series of correspondingly colored simple runes lit up on the insides of the altered power stave.

"Let's go!" Geralt ordered in a loud whisper, and from behind the surviving Thunder Warriors of the sixteenth legion, the air became reminiscent of Norstad. One or two turned their comparably tiny heads to glance at the sudden temperature change their armor systems reported. Most were focused on Horus's order to charge forward, when the powerful Ice Beam lanced across their backs. Yennefer's Articuno followed the Ice Beam with a harsh Blizzard, and while the structural integrity of their power armor was fine, the cold, well below that of space, began sapping the power from their prototyped backpacks.

Only Horus shrugged off the attacks, like an icebreaker ship in the arctic. He whirled around as he broke it with no effort, massive warmaul ready to crush more skulls into bone meal. His deep baritone boomed from his vox speakers in his armor as he shouted, "Who dares!?"

Yennefer answered him with a fierce shout from above Horus's titanic armored frame, and she learned firsthand why it was a bad idea to announce one's attack to a son of the Imperator. A normal man, even one like Alex Redwood, would've had little time to do more than block the fierce strike. Horus, instead, spun his massive maul into a downward swing, and then used the momentum to swing it upwards in an arc as he simultaneously turned to face his opponent, and aim the brutal head of his weapon at her. Yennefer's eyes only had time to widen, before it slammed into her midsection, and sent her flying.

Geralt meanwhile had Ghost Drill Run along the still forward facing legionnaires, and as he flashed across them and landed, several packs exploded, while others started leaking fluid. Geralt, seeing Yennefer get hit, shouted at Ghost as he moved to catch her. "Stone Edge!" With Srebro and Stahl, he let them yank him to where he needed to be to catch the Articuno rider, and found himself landing on soft feathers as her Articuno caught them, and stopped their momentum with ease.

His sharp eyes only had seconds to take her injury in, but given how the front part of her navel was bowed inward, it didn't look good. Several ribs had to be broken, to say nothing of her reproductive system. "Watch her." He said to the Articuno, who nodded. Ciri, who'd watched the Articuno rider's opening with awe, as she'd climbed up high just above the tunnel's entrance, and then horror as Horus dispatched her with ease, still had a ball in her hand, but seemed stunned. "Ciri!" Geralt said, getting her focus. "Help Ghost."

Swearing inwardly for not taking Horus himself, Geralt approached the man now, and seeing this, the Prime Archon grinned. "So eager to die too? Odd, you don't…look like a native…" His eyes narrowed then as he took in Geralt's mutated features. "In fact…you seem more Abomination, than Human…" The power maul began sparking, as Horus readied it to terminate a mutant.

Serbro and Stahl, while usually preferring to be wielded one at a time, both agreed that this man before them was a monster. Normally Doublade fought on their own, but Geralt's altered body had the speed to keep up with them. They could, after many hours of training, also read his mind, namely the intended location of his attacks. If they had any hope of winning, they'd need to 'behead' the power maul, or disarm the Prime Archon.

One moment, Geralt was approaching the Prime Archon, swords out, the next, Horus felt his ghostly blades pierce his thick armor at his waist, and he realized quickly the armor's senses would not be enough to track this mutant's speed, aided as it was by a pair of ghost types. Horus quietly marveled at the idea of making a Pokémon into one's weapon, something that was apparently common in the barbaric regions not under the Imperium of Man. Then, after the third such strike, Horus read Geralt's moves, and countered with the kind of speed that made the Thunder Warriors and all the Imperator's sons the effective killers that they were.

Geralt's eyes followed the massive man's movements as he brought the maul around, but too late he realized his body, even like this, wasn't fast enough. Srebro and Stahl caught the power maul on their blades as they used Protect in conjunction with each other. Horus's strike sent them sliding across the smooth metal flooring, and once Geralt came to a stop, he healed them, and drank something himself, to give his body the boost it would need.

His Burst Heart could've also given him the speed, but he didn't want to use it around the Imperium unless he was about to end all their lives. The potion was a blend of the herbs that had changed his body, with a kick. Colress had given him several in potion form, claiming they were some kind of mystical herb, or something, as well. Said herbs were reported to be beneficial to one's health, but the scientist turned Director had apparently enhanced them for combat.

Geralt's eyes went wide, pupils filling into large black orbs, before sliding painfully back into their usual vertical slits against an ice blue iris. He leapt back towards Horus, faster this time, and his swords began to strike true against the Prime Archon's armor. He had to stab into it each time, thanks to the sheer bulk of the armor covering his twelve foot frame, but his swords struck flesh. Being ghost types, they drained the Prime Archon's vitality, once they entered his being.

Horus, despite his reflexes, now found himself in the same situation Geralt had. He could see the mutant's moves, but his titanic frame wasn't fast enough to stop them. As Geralt continued his attack method of 'stab it until it dies', Ciri and Ghost had been dealing with the Thunder Warriors. Ghost's Stone Edge had taken six of them by surprise, which was when a Thunder Warrior with a steel-blue two handed greatsword, also sparking with electric plasma, faced down the Lycanroc and Ciri, after breaking free of the ice.

His mocking tones came through the faceplate covering his features. "A little girl? An untempered woman thinks to face the might of Horus Aximand and the Sixteenth Legion!?" He laughed, a deep, mocking sound as it emanated from his faceplate.

Ciri, for her part, just smirked. "So, wait, you're also named Horus? Is that not terribly confusing?" She glanced at the twelve foot titan that Geralt's blur of a form was currently battling in epic combat. "I guess you must be Little Horus. Differentiating by size seems easiest."

Her words made the greatsword in the warrior's grip shiver, and a few of the yet surviving Thunder Warriors let out their own chuckles. "Silence!" Little Horus said, swinging his sword uselessly at his brethren, before leveling it with one hand back at Ciri. "It is an Honor to share the Prime Archon's name, wretch!" With that, the nine foot tall giant charged her, and the sword swung. Ciri called out her Honedge as he struck, but the first form ghost type all but gave under the force of the blow. Then, immediately following that, Ghost appeared with a spinning Darkest Lariat, in his bipedal form, which sent Little Horus flying.

Smelling blood, the wolf landed as Little Horus went soaring back into one of his yet standing comrades, still firing down the corridor, despite the shenanigans behind them. Ciri felt her left cheek, and a line of pain across it, running almost to her ear. It was a deep cut, for having barely grazed the sword. Evidently the field of force it generated was just as sharp as the actual metal of the blade. Seeing her Honedge had fainted, but yet clung to her arm, she recalled it, as little Horus got to his feet.

Nothing on Ciri's belt, she realized, had enough power to take on a Thunder Warrior. With one exception. Maybe. A royal purple Luxury Ball was pulled into her hand without her even noticing, and she pointed at little Horus and the clustered Thunder Warriors. Though their armor was powering down, it didn't take much effort to point and shoot down the hallway at the Selenar defenses. "Queendra! Blizzard!" Ciri shouted, thumbing open her ball. The Pokémon within appeared with a sparkle, and the purple Kingdra, a female, used her implants from the Imperium to immediately take aim, and attack as ordered.

Another, much more potent Blizzard attack joined the Kingdra's, and together, they effectively froze the remaining Thunder Warriors. Their guns stopped firing, their armor became stiff, impossible to move as the components froze in place, and their weapons stopped firing as they suffered the same fate.

There were noises down the hallway turned battlefield as the hail of exploding bullets ceased. Horus, who had taken to shifting his bulk to force Geralt to hit the deepest parts of his superior crafted Terminator class of power armor, glanced at his frozen troops, and decided enough was enough. He raised the wrist-mounted bolter on his left hand, switched it to a flamethrower, but before he could pull the trigger, an increasingly frustrated Geralt was there, to capitalize on the outstretched limb. Srebro and Stahl sank into the heavily armored joints, slicing through thick ceramite plates, fiber bundles, and then eventually skin, as the promethium flames washed over his troops, before they almost immediately sputtered out.

Realizing what he'd cut as Horus's arm started leaking fuel, Geralt grinned. "Bitter Blades." His Doublade shone bright with flame then, igniting the flamethrower's fuel source, and simultaneously draining Horus of yet more vitality while restoring their own. Geralt was already backflipping away as the armed arm exploded, and left only a fusion of mangled flesh and advanced technology in its wake. To his credit, Horus didn't cry out, but rather had been bringing his power mace around. Again his titanic reach caught Geralt on his swords, and though they'd fed well on the Prime Archon's vitae, the repeated hits from the massive maul were taking their toll.

As Geralt realized this, a figure leapt over him, despite her injuries. His potion was beginning to wear off as well, but he still saw, in slow motion to his perspective, a sea of raven black hair as Yennefer came back to the battle, and this time moved silently for the pack that powered Horus's massive armor. As her power spear struck true, Horus threw a small spherical object. "Remus! Free my Warriors!" He then delivered an armored fist into Yennefer's face, dislodging both her and her spear. His armor was sparking, and now very much susceptible to the vacuum of space, but he hadn't given in just yet.

A truly massive Arcanine appeared with a flash then, and not for the first time. Horus preferred to keep him in his ball, to stay 'fully charged' the way Horus saw it. As ordered, a torrent of fire bathed the Thunder Warriors, and though they steamed, the genetically altered giants didn't immediately move.

Then, as the Flamethrower ended, came the counter. "Hydro Pump! Then Stone Edge!" Queendra fired first, and with critical effectiveness, hammered the mutated Arcanine in his midsection. A moment later, the snarling form of Ghost, who'd been biting through the throats of the Thunder Warriors still on the ground, now leapt in front of the Arcanine. Seeing Horus had turned back to trading blows with Geralt, Remus acted on his own initiative, and bathed the icy stones in fire. Several melted, but Ghost rage-raised several more, and his move also struck the Arcanine.

While looking slightly worse for wear, Remus wasn't done yet. The fire that replaced his species' normally full and fluffy mane flared back to life, and then plasma arced along his conductive, and spine-like orange fur. The Thunderbolt arced towards the purple Kingdra, hitting her square in the chest, but the sturdy dragon type weathered the hit. As Ghost readied another Stone Edge and Queendra did the same for a Hydro Pump, the floor in front of the unmoving Thunder Warriors rippled, and Ghost leapt away as what seemed like an Earthquake hit Remus, and sent the somewhat immobile Thunder Warriors toppling. They twitched within their still mostly frozen armor slowly as masked warriors of the Selenar followed the Lunatone responsible for the ground attack.

"Blizzard!" Ciri shouted again, and again, both the Articuno and the Kingdra combined their attacks, freezing the downed warriors in place, as the spray from the Hydro Pump had made them damp as well. Furious, Horus turned to take in this disaster, which was when Geralt ended their duel. The Ranger was behind him as soon as he turned. He'd been getting slower since Yennefer's attack, and she seemed to have withdrawn after making it, and taking a giant sized fist to the face. Geralt was amazed she'd even been able to move, and assumed the Heal Pulse from the Articuno had played a part in helping her stand for another attack.

Now, he spun his Doublade up the giant's back like a spinning beyblade of death, The right half of the massive, bulky, and quite vital power systems in the Terminator pattern power armor split away cleanly, and in the air, Geralt rotated his body the other direction, his swords all too eager to spin with him, as artificial gravity brought them down on the other side of the bulky housing, and split that as well. Geralt landed with a flourish, and sheathed his blades as he readied his method of capturing the giant of a man.

Sparking, bloody, and now trapped between three competent Pokémon Trainers and a contingent of Selenar forces, Horus understood when he was beaten. Worldbreaker, the mace crafted for him by his father, the Imperator Himself, fell from the now depowered hand of his armor, and the rest of it fell into a kneeling position, as it finally failed from all the many stab wounds. Horus tried to move, but the armor, another gift forged by his father, was now essentially the ideal cage for him, in that its thousands of pounds of weight kept him firmly pinned.

"Fangst." Geralt said, and his wrist began glowing, ominously as the Rotom in his Wolf Styler awakened. A trail of plasma surrounded the Prime Archon, almost at the same time about five of the white armor clad Selenar, and their Full Moon form Lunatone did. Geralt yanked Fangst as he encircled the armored titan, and then bound him tight, further entrapping Horus within his technological prison. Fangst had wrapped around the two fallen pieces of power pack as well. Geralt knew if he delivered the son of the Imperator with his armor, Colress would never bother him again about having Triss and Ciri hiding on the moon and living in his precious city.

"Release the Prime Archon." One of the Selenar said, forceful, but emotionless in tone. "He must stand trial for his crimes."

Geralt wagged a finger and whistled. In a flash, Ghost was behind him, on all fours again, and snarling, daring these newcomers to test his strength as well. More Thunder Warriors would've been harder to deal with. Reduced in number as they were, the ambush had made them almost too easy, and Ghost had barely gotten his pulse racing. "Not quite, lads. This one is for the Director. You are welcome to the rest, but I'm taking Horus here back with me to Pegasus."

Around them, the lights came on, as the efficient mechanics of the Selenar, having learned the fighting had moved on, had been repairing the electrical grid and vital subsystems throughout the conflict. Geralt tapped the communicator in his ear. "I have the package. Bring us home."

Ciri had busied herself recalling her partners and helping Yennefer. They limped within range of Geralt and his prize as the teleporter activated and robbed the Selenar of a Prime Archon's armor schematics. The group reappeared before a large drawn black curtain bearing the symbol of Pegasus in silver upon it, an equine with wings straddling what looked like the letter V, in the middle of Pegasus' command center. Geralt had to blink though, for as they materialized, he noted several Magnezone waiting for them, floating alongside giant triple barreled and mounted cannons that seemed familiar in design, if more mobile now thanks to their tripod legs. It seemed Yennefer's spear wasn't the only repurposed Arcean tech being reverse engineered and improved upon.

A slow clap filled their ears, and Director Colress appeared on one of the balconies overlooking them. "Well done, Ranger. Rider." His gaze became neutral as his eyes fell on Ciri. "Psychic." He made his way down one of the ramps to their floor before he spoke again. "You may recall Fangst, Geralt. Let him recharge. First, we get Horus out of that armor…and at that point I'll need you to bind him again. Ciri, take Yennefer to our medical wing, the doctors there are expecting her, and your Pokémon."

In short order, base technicians and mechanics alike were examining the power armor and removing it piece by piece. Horus was not one to go quietly though. As soon as his right arm was freed, he grabbed the throat of one of the technicians, and snarled from within his ceramite prison. "Barbariansss…you are unfit to so much as look at my armor! Cease your prodding! The Imperator will consider this, and my capture, an act of war!"

There was a hum then, and Fangst circled Horus's arm several times, then his exposed torso, and finally his thick neck. Once more, Geralt yanked tight, and the giant released his gasping prisoner, raging as he struggled against the plasma bonds. "Hurry it up!" Geralt yelled.

"Forget the rest, sever the stump of his arm and lift him out of it. We can study it later. The Styler won't hold him forever." Colress ordered, and his orders were followed swiftly. A hum of blue plasma from what seemed like a plasma sword modified to be more of a plasma saw was brought over to Horus's mangled left arm, and then severed. The giant of a man roared, before his implants knocked him out and began trying to heal the wound. This only helped those who were imprisoning him do so, and by the time he came to, he was in a plasma cell, in a bare room, in which he occupied the center. A hastily reinforced cot was all he'd been given. There wasn't so much as a toilet, that he could see. He shouted in fury and disbelief at his situation, swearing vengeance and screaming expletives as he punched the plasma walls of his cage, but his words reached no one.

In the Director's office, a very pleased looking Colress debriefed Ciri and Geralt. "You've proven that my Burst Ranger project was never a failure, Geralt. With a few more like you and Greif, we could have an answer to the Imperator's sons."

At that, Ciri scoffed. "You do not know the Prime Archons. Rarely if ever are they accompanied by as few troops as Horus had, and every one of them fights differently, with the same speed that took out an Articuno Rider. Horus is the only one who only has one Pokémon partner, too. The others are not so underequipped. You were lucky the Selenar depleted his forces so thoroughly."

Colress just chuckled. "Luck had nothing to do with it, but a certain Ultra Recon Ranger did. Now then, with these acquisitions, and the situation in Koria resolved, Geralt, I'm sending you and whoever you wish to bring with you home for the holiday. Your mission is to relax, and by the end of it, convince your cousin to come up here. I suggest taking a look in your Granduncle's basement. He has a few important notes on legends stored away in there that will lead Alex to the Stargate."

Geralt tilted his head. "His basement was cleaned out. We never found his old papers on those myths he spent his youth chasing."

Colress blinked, and then chuckled harder. "No lad, the main house's basement."

Geralt blinked. "It doesn't have one."

Colress shook his head. "I believe it does. One of your elders should know, and failing them…ask your neighbor, old Tom, about it. He likes to spend Festivus with your family, as I recall."

"He knows more about your house than you do." Ciri said, chuckling to herself.

Geralt ignored her. "Thomas Gladstone? What does he have to do with this?"

Colress tapped his nose and smirked. "More than you'd think. I bet that cousin of yours could find the basement in moments, if he but looked. I leave the 'how' to you, Ranger. You have your task."

Geralt left the office then, and Ciri was behind him. He was pondering, wondering just how exactly his now passed relative tied into the Stargate, and Pegasus for that matter. His time in Lantea City had shown him a people dedicated to preventing natural disasters and keeping Legendary Pokémon from the hands of the scum of the Earth, or worse, but from what he'd gathered of Pegasus and its members, his family had standing with the organization, though of what kind, and why, nobody had said, even when pressed. It seemed the answers were lying underneath the main house of the old ranch.

Since Ciri and Triss were stuck up in space now, Geralt had no intention of bringing anyone back to the Earth for the Festivus season. He and Ciri caught Triss up on what had occurred in Apollonia, and after a few days of rest, Geralt departed for the planet below with new orders and a new mission.

The Redwood Saga (Pokémon Fanfiction, Crossover)

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