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Somewhere North of Mewsia City - Fornia Region

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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?"

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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.

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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.

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"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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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?"

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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."

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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."

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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.

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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.

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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."

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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."

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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.

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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."

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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."

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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.

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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.

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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?"

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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."

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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?"

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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."

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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."

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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!"

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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.

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"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?"

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"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?"

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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."

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

"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.

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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.

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"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."

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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."

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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.

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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!"

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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."

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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."

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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.

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Three Days Later, Valley of Death - Fornia Region

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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!"

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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.

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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.

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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!"

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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."

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"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."

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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.

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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.

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"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."

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"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."

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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."

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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.

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"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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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"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.

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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.

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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."

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"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…"

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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."

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"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?"

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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.

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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.

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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."

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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"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."

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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.