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Oceana Pacifica, East of Evergrand Plateau - Hoenn Region
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"Give me a regular report."
The Vice Admiral saluted, "Sir. All scans are normal. Another lovely day in Hoenn, sir."
Admiral Nauta sighed, and it turned into a groan at the end. His own naval attire, a dark blue suit that did little to hide the man's impressive bulk, was very much Sharpedo themed, for reasons that became obvious rather quickly to anyone who irritated the man Caleb Pravus had put in charge of the Arcean Fleet. "Another lovely damn day. No sign of the Irritant. Looks like another long day of thinning the prisoners…"
The gathered crew members aboard the ship that had long since stopped being a luxury yacht, grew grim faced. Only one person aboard the ship actually enjoyed watching the hunger of Pokémon like Sharpedo driven to the point of eating humans, and eventually craving them. Some in the pack were reluctant and would try to eat anything else. The largest, were not. Those were the ones selected to be moved out of the pens that acted as engines and had done so ever since the Arceans had been forced to adapt to a life at sea, aboard these very ships, so very long ago.
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Before the regularly scheduled slaughter of rebellious 'japs' could again start, the radar pinged. All eyes turned to the main viewer. A single, massive ship was coming from their southeast. The device pinged again. The first dot had friends. Many friends.
The Admiral's tones rang throughout every ship in Japan. "Contact, southeast Pacifica. Friendlies sound off."
None did. The other Arcean ships were either blockading the besieged dual regions of Kanto and Johto, or up north parked in Sinnoh for repairs. Japan's own Navy had tried taking on the invading Arceans, but they'd been effectively routed thanks to the brutality of Admiral Nauta. He'd battled the weak Japanese all the way down the coastline, many times personally getting involved against their ships and sailors, but eventually, he'd run out of targets in Hoenn. Apparently, these latest ships were not friendly. The Admiral grinned, revealing a mouth full of manually sharpened teeth. He'd taken the Sharpedo look to the extreme, as he genuinely loved his partners, and only one had been infused with Shadow. It was the one exception the Prophet allowed when it came to infusion, given the Admiral's effectiveness at controlling illegal sea traffic. It was an unpopular view, but he found that non infused Pokémon were more effective, since they listened better.
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Another ping, and yet more ships appeared behind the first groups in obvious formations. "Who the Hell has the 'nards to test my ship?" The Admiral growled, expecting an answer.
His well-trained crew, who while harshly treated, were also genuinely loyal, to a degree, gave him the answer he expected with the haste he deserved. The man was a genuine Mudbray, but he'd kept them alive when their families abandoned them to the Prophet's mercy for their rebellious tendencies, and he'd given them food, rather than turned them into it. The Arcean naval corps were where members of the population deemed insubordinate ended up, and the admirals all had leave to dispose of anyone they deemed not worth the effort of reforming.
"Sir! We have eyes on the Flagship. Putting it on screen now."
Once more, all eyes were drawn to the screen, and every crewmate on the deck flinched as they saw the imposing but unmistakable outline of the Dark Fleet. They had not truly sailed in millennia, not since they had lost their Guardian, and the imposing dark aura that had made ships flee in terror of their wake had vanished. The very large and very numerous cannons had made up for their lack of aura and had proven as effective as firearms ever had against humans. Once more, it seemed, the Dark Fleet sailed with Zigma's boon.
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The Admiral spoke again, undeterred. "I want the name of the ship I'm about to devour...I never got the chance to have a proper showdown with Japan's."
Fingers hammered buttons, as the crew raced to be the first to answer their Admiral's demand. One man shouted in the tense silence. "HMS Chekhov, sir! That's their name for it. Flagship of Rio's Dark Fleet. Evidently, both it and the fleet can, and have, deployed Trainers on Flying Types for battles like this before, in mass quantities."
The Admiral chuckled. "They'll find a sky full of ice, a harsh teacher. Ready the Walrein and Dewgong." He held out a hand, and through the power of technology and electromagnetism, summoned to his gloved fist a Power Stave that had been customized into an upgraded trident. At the top of the hilt was a blue gem, and it began to glow as the Admiral's voice rang throughout his own ship, and the others in his battle fleet. "Now, release the Sharpedo!"
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Heavy thumps echoed from every ship, as the pens holding the Sharpedo meant for battle opened and released the beasts into the sea. The Admiral's voice came again as he touched a pair of fingers to the blue crystal. "All pods! Mega Evolve!"
The rather obvious glow prompted the Dark Fleet to open fire, though their guns were not firing projectile bullets, nor were they aimed at the ships. Balls of still bloody chum encased in a sap that was waterproof, and yet still gave off a bloody scent in the water, hurtled by the mega evolved Pokémon, and as one they turned on instinct and followed the bloody balls, chomping eagerly into the meals that, when reached, would entrap them in tar-like sap miles under the ocean from their Trainers. It would dissipate with enough salt water, but by then the battle would be over.
Suddenly defenseless, the Arcean ships began listing as the Sharpedo and Carvanha acting as engines also moved for the food balls and dragged their ships as far as their anchors would allow. The Admiral glowered at the main viewer. "Fine. If that's how they want it, Carcharo shall be their opponent. I'm going up top." His final words were answered by a rising platform under his chair, that would bring him to the ship's topmost deck, an area reserved for the Admiral alone. It was also where he tended to launch from.
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A Dark Ball brought forth his favored Sharpedo, and the ever-angry beast glared at him. The Admiral pressed the trident again. "Mega Evolve! Carcharo, devour them all!" The man pointed, and the now mega evolved Shadow Pokémon obeyed, charging through the waves in a bloody curving line towards the Chekhov.
Sap balls flew past him without the Shadow infused shark so much as glancing at them, and the Rio fleet's reluctance to harm a Pokémon left them wide open. He tore into their right flank, arcing towards the flagship through five relatively speedy boats used for reconnaissance.
The flagship changed ammunition rather quickly, and soon, multicolored balls of blue, magenta, and orange hit the speeding shark, and forced it to veer away, as the water around it became filled with 'Pester Gas' for use in the aptly named Pester Balls, that helped the people of Rio without ghost powers traverse the jungles and drive off wild Pokémon without injuring them. Even infused with Shadow, the Pokémon's body could not handle the gas, and avoided water that had been tainted by it.
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"Carcharo!" The Admiral shouted, and his voice traveled across the water, gaining the Shadow shark's attention. The Pokémon's eyes went wide, as it saw the Stone the Admiral had evidently raised to the top of the ship as well. It glowed with seven colors and radiated the power of Infinity.
The Mega Sharpedo circled back to his Trainer, and leapt out of the water, matching the height of their own ship with ease. The Admiral had one hand on the Stone, and the other outstretched, as an offering. Carcharo bit down on his Trainer's limb with zero hesitation, and the man growled through the pain. "Dark...Burst!"
Shadow traveled from the Sharpedo to his Trainer, and then into the Stone as well. With time, the Shadow would devour it, and force the Stone to be found once more once it reconstituted itself, but if it meant wiping out the Dark Fleet, it would be worth it. Admiral Nauta fused with his Mega Sharpedo, and the two became one as the Shadow energy pushed their evolution to a new level.
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The resemblance to a Garchomp was a little unsettling, though the Admiral and his partner lacked scythe hands. Aspects of the shark had fused with aspects of the man, and the result was a deep bluish purple skinned monstrosity with hate-filled eyes, and a very much Sharpedo-like jaw, with three rows of deadly teeth. The shark man eyed the oncoming ships again, as flying dots that must have been Trainers filled the sky.
The Admiral's new gravely tones rang over the battle fleet's intercoms. "All firing teams...Ice Beam! Feed any that miss to the engines!" With that, the fused beast leapt into the dark blue waters, and began swimming towards his prey as their Trainers fell by the hundreds. The Dewgong and Walrein that yet lived on these horrible ships had long since learned what inaccuracy led to. It didn't matter if they didn't want to hurt fellow Pokémon, they had to hit successfully, or become chum.
All the Chekhov got in the way of warning was an easy to miss nose, rising from the point of the shark man's elongated snout. Thankfully, the aid coming to the flagship was under the water, and saw the threat outlined in the intense sunlight long before he came close.
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An explosion of glowing blue beams of water typed energy hammered the Admiral as he leapt for the flagship, jaws wide, and was sent skipping across the water as an Origin Pulse blindsided the Arcean's strongest water Trainer. The Trainers who'd acted as aerial support thus far cheered, as the massive blue form of Kyogre broke the surface. Atop the super ancient Pokémon's head was a woman, who gave the trio of figures atop the Chekhov a cocky salute. "Any enemy of these zealots is a friend of Hoenn! Name yourselves, strangers!"
The three figures atop the flagship, Queen Iara, their new green-clad Champion, and a man clad in blue with suspiciously Latios-like hair, conversed briefly, before the green one leapt over the side of the ship, and mounted a being that melted from the shadows. The massive form of Zigma coalesced from under the Dark Fleet, and the now floating Kyogre eyed the massive feline-esque chimera warily as she took the sky, and hovered before the Guardian of the western seas, and her Tamer.
A strong, and unquestionably feminine voice thundered in Haruka Birch's skull as she received her answer. "The Dragon of Unova sends his regards, alongside the Dark Fleet of Rio. We are to free your ports, be reinforced, and take back the northern half of this island. Guide us to your leaders."
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The woman atop the Kyogre ordered the super ancient Pokémon to rise, and she stared the leopard-spotted chimera down, even when the rear snakeheads loomed, watching always, above what mortals considered Zigma's 'face' to be. "First, we need to take those ships, and not with firearms, there are innocents aboard." The Tamer of Kyogre gave the Dark Guardian and her Tamer another look over as she spoke, "I will be honest...it is a little unnerving to receive aid in the form of the Dark Fleet from a nation that claims to stand in the Light...one might wonder if the Arceans aren't completely off base with their claims...though their actions thus far are still dishonorable. It's for better heads than mine to deal with. I'll guide you to the Champions once we handle those ships."
Zigma's feline head nodded once. "Lead on, Tamer of the Sea. This is your home; you know it best. But first…"
Just as the hovering chimera paused, her fangs lit with pure darkness, and clamped down upon the near-invisible form of Admiral Nauta, who had sped back towards his quarry in an enraged frenzy and tried to strike down one of the Tamers with stealth. He snarled in pain as the fangs embedded themselves deep into vital organs, and even with his Shadowy healing factor, the wounds seemed to resist closing, or even attempting to heal. "How...did you...see me...I am...a Shadow...darkness incarnate!"
Zigma stared down the shark man and clenched her jaw tighter as the sea below them filled with black blood. "You...are little more than a tainted imitation of the real thing...and it is time you stopped pretending to serve the Alpha."
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Nauta's eyes went wide as the Guardian's voice thundered painfully in his head, impossible to ignore, or deny, for the truth of her words was infallible. Darkness radiated off the hovering entity, as she spoke a final time. "In fact...perhaps it is best if you are simply...forgotten."
Zigma clenched again, and with shattering sound, the crystalline energy binding the Sharpedo and the man together broke before it could fully make itself permanent, and the fusion split apart. The shark fell towards the water, only to be stopped by a purple aura that kept it hovering in place for the moment.
For the wounded Admiral, his end was, to all appearances, quick and merciful as he completely vanished into the gaping jaws of the Dark Continent's Guardian, and was never heard from, or remembered, again. Zigma turned to the man's unfortunate partner, and with a flash of her dark aura surrounding his body, Carcharo was freed of the Shadow, and his painful memories of a genuinely good, if a bit deranged Trainer all at once.
His Mega Form had faded, but the latent experience from the many battles he'd participated in as a weapon of naval warfare all suddenly came back at once, and the already massive Sharpedo doubled in size. The eyes turned towards Zigma, blinked once in a respectful acknowledgement of the Mother of the Home Rivers, and then turned towards Hoenn, and the scent of Sealeo, and Walrein.
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Zigma's Tamer let the hungry shark go to sate his instinct, and then turned her eyes on the ships in the distance, soaring above as Kyogre moved below the ocean's surface. She spied the Hoenn girl in her pressure-adapted sapphire colored 'armor' trying to subtly send a message via Holoceiver to what appeared to be a very worn, very haggard Steven Stone. The call was brief, but she could guess what it was about.
The giant, seven colored rock was obvious, atop the highest deck of the Arcean's flagship. None had realized the Admiral's fate quite yet, and none had possessed the right attitude to risk their necks and take a peek up top. Admiral Nauta had killed people for less.
Thus, the Dark Guardian swooped by, gripped the stone with her massive paws, and lifted it easily into the possession of the Dark Fleet. She burned away the Shadow energy trying to taint it and warped it into a pocket space only those with true mastery of the dark typing could create, or safely enter. Moments after the theft, the massive form of Kyogre Aqua Jetted through the Arcean's main ship, and by no coincidence left the still-afloat other half alone. That one, had contained prisoners, but the decks that had been barracks, and 'rec rooms' for Arcean higher ups had been completely torn through. The momentum of the fifty-foot Pokémon's massive form went rather high with the move it had perfected with the aid of a human.
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That same human now guided the Legendary Pokémon back down, and they hovered slightly above the remaining battle group as Zigma began portaling prisoners away through holes of dark typed energy. "Incoming!" Was the only warning Haruka gave as Kyogre gave off a deep rumble, and the surrounding water rippled from the sheer force of it. It had rested well, for once, and today was finally the day to strike back. The Water Spout went high into the air, high enough to crystallize in the upper atmosphere, before falling back to the earth.
The self-titled Contest Queen then marked the ships below her with her eyes and psychically told the massive Pokémon where to aim specifically. The goal was to keep the casualties low, but with the power of an Origin Pulse, someone was bound to be unluckily caught in the crossfire. The streams of blue water energy shot into the massive icy Water Spout spread, and arced off the many pieces of ice, breaking them, and focusing the beams all at once.
The beams bounced around, and then downward, towards the parts of ships marked by the Tamer of the Sea, splitting the ships in half with pure water energy. Kyogre's aim was rather good, and always only the Arcean quarters and the main decks were the casualties. A few ships had managed to fire off cannons of their own, alongside Ice Beams from several Dewgong, though many had resisted firing at the Guardian of the Sea. To a water type, the idea of attacking Kyogre, outside of honorable Battle of course, was simply absurd. None aboard the ships had the heart to take down the Guardian as ordered, and moments later, more than a few directed their Ice Beams at the humans.
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Chaos erupted as meteoric ice chunks fell into the ocean, and on parts of what was still floating. Thankfully, Zigma's methods of saving people and Pokémon were as quick and efficient as spatial portals always tended to be. The majority were evacuated with haste, though there had likely been casualties. Such was the nature of Legendary scale attacks.
In the distance, atop the Ever Grande Plateau, a plume of fire and smoke filled the sky, and from the newly leveled Victory Road, which had been emptied during Arcean occupation, now rose a massive volcano. A red scaled Groudon roared up from the flaming mountain, and met Kyogre's gaze in the distance, and a tiny ruby-colored figure atop its head waved in their direction.
The Groudon was recalled into a Pokéball, and before they'd gone halfway towards the plateau, they were met by a Champion, atop arguably the strongest Salamence in Hoenn. Once the three Tamers had conferred for a time, the Dark Fleet split in two. The southern half moved for Slateport, and would be led by Rikuya, Champion of Hoenn and Tamer of the Land, in retaking the city from the Arceans. The northern group, and the larger, had split again. Some went for Mossdeep, and the many strong Trainers who'd hidden themselves well, while the rest moved for Lilycove City.
For her part, Zigma had again moved the prisoners to the safety of the Hoenn Tamer's last holdout, Sootopolis City, and then had continued on her way. The fleet had orders to regroup and head for Johto once Hoenn was free, for that was where the Dark Continent's Guardian headed from Hoenn, specifically to Mt. Silver, the place where the Champions of Japan had hidden themselves, and their allies, from the encroaching zealots.
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Mt. Silver - Johto Region
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"You know, only fools climb up here more than once."
The ever-snarky tones of Professor Gary Oak caused the man known as Red to smirk, humorlessly, down at what he was looking at. It was a clear day, gorgeous really. Perfect for war. The view below was filled by the armored forms of the zealots from Fornia, covering the northern slope of the mountain. Only the lakes north of Mt. Silver broke up their lines, not that it would matter.
"So far, my Mewtwo and the…other one Team Rocket made...have been holding them back, but…" Red was interrupted as one of the Mewtwo, the Y strand and self-proclaimed (but statistically supported) Ultimate Life Form, raised a bulbous three fingered hand from under its ragged brown cloak, and formed a familiar ball of psychic death. The Psystrike rained down on the Crusaders, catching only the slowest of those below, who had been foraging outside of their corp's shields. General Marius knew armies marched on food, and the Crusaders had effectively stripped the land from Sinnoh to their current position of much of the berry related fruits, not even bothering to plant the extra. All were needed, for Arceus's war machine.
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The retaliation was swift as it arced up towards them with all the combined fury of flame, ice, and electricity, but Red was already there, floating in the air behind his Mewtwo. "Mirror Coat!"
His partner, currently still mega evolved into its X strand physical attacking form nodded once, seeing the logic. His lengthy psychic spoon, as long as he was tall, formed from thin air, and the genetic Pokémon twirled it as it shone with rainbow light, and sent the combined Tri-Attack beams back down at those who had fired them, where they smashed uselessly into the combined energy barrier formed by the Power Staves when in close proximity.
The Crusaders had been marching under such defensive cover ever since their newest General, Marius, had arrived to reinforce them, and drive them south. The General had taken most of the north, and the Arcean's Admiral had taken the southern islands, and even Hoenn last they'd heard. Still, nowhere was as bad as Sinnoh.
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The Champion of the region, Kohki, along with his team of would-be heroes, had managed to escape the Arceans when it became clear that Sinnoh was helping the invaders, or rather, a larger majority than expected had suddenly revealed their membership all at once, and had simultaneously crawled out of the woodwork to enact their 'righteous conquest'.
Gary sighed at Red. "This isn't working. Where's Cynthia? We could use that Rayquaza of hers…"
"She went north, to Sinnoh, to train. Last I heard." Red's tone was emotionless, and his eyes were locked on the north. "That dragon is probably already under their sway…and Kohki has, apparently, vanished."
"Vanished?"
Red nodded, wordlessly reaffirming what he'd already said, and Gary came up beside Red now, and stood beside him atop Mt. Silver's highest peak. He'd dressed as he usually did these days, with his classic (and warm) purple shirt, covered by his Gramp's lab coat. "I certainly hope they haven't caught that thing in a Dark Ball...a Shadow Rayquaza is a bit...out of our league. Sinnoh's was already ferocious on a good day..." There had been rumors that Champion Cynthia had some trouble taming the black scaled Rayquaza that had rampaged around the western part of the Sinnoh region, but Red knew that Legendary Pokémon could be difficult to bond with.
Red smirked again. "Mewtwo, both of them, can handle it if necessary...but you have a point. With that kind of firepower, we won't last long. They can't fight everyone. Not at once."
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"Red! Red, you need to see this!" The feminine tones of Leaf, as well as the familiar rumble of a Hydro Pump entered their ears as the cannon turtle brought his Trainer to the summit of Japan's most iconic mountain by propelling itself through the air with its cannons. The two boys turned as she landed. "Seems like your Unovan friends finally sent us some help! The others are on their way up. We're counterattacking. Now."
The smirking, red clad Trainer floated into the air on his own power once more, and joined the Mewtwo in the sky above Mt. Silver's conical snow-covered top. Gary summoned his Charizard, and was joined in the air moments later, by the other Champions, and their own flying partners. When Red had called, those with a Pokédex had answered. Kanto, Johto, Sinnoh, and even friends from Kalos had come, though Hoenn's remained absent.
It was Kalos's Prince, Calem, who floated over to Red then, on his Noivern. The tall Kalosian handed him something crystalline, and Red's eyes flared with crimson aura as he saw it, and then met his Mewtwo's gaze. The two psychic types, for Red had awakened his own typing in the Swamp, seemed to converse for a moment, and then the Y strand Mewtwo floated over as well. After a few minutes of further psychic discussion, they nodded in unison, and flew further above the gathered Trainers. That was when they saw the form their aid had taken.
Stolen story; please report.
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Rising quickly over the mountain's conical top, Zigma's feathery emerald colored wings darkened the sun, and her Tamer stood atop her head, arms crossed. She shouted down to them. "Champions of Japan! It's a real honor to meet you all, face to face. Your legends are heard even in Rio. By request of Unova's Dragon Emperor, we have come to aid you."
Red nodded, rising beside the pair of Mewtwo, as he addressed everyone. Seeing the sky above the mountain filled with Pokémon, the Arceans below began the long march up the mountain's relatively easy slope. "The time is now. We either win here, or let Kanto and Johto fall. Are you with me!?" He raised a fist, and the others cheered, but Red could see they were worn out. They'd been trapped in the very much inhospitable caves for weeks now. Most of Johto and Kanto had already been invaded, but the counterattack came now. Red pointed at the shield covering the forces below as he met Zigma's fierce feline eyes. "Can you take care of that shield? We can take them if we can hit them…"
The leonine chimera gave her best attempt at a shrug, and opened her jaws. Atop her head, her Tamer raised a dark crystal, that glowed with a similarly dark energy. The Dark Pulse grew in size, and the orb of darkness was mirrored above numerous red spots that appeared as Zigma enhanced her attack to surpass the energy level of the Arcean's shield. Then, she made them impossibly dense, with the nature of compressed dark typed energy. With a roar, Zigma sent the evidently heavy orb hurtling towards the Arcean's largest corps of soldiers, and when it hit the shield, it appeared to vanish.
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"Is...is that it?" The question came from one of the gathered Trainer's Togekiss, namely the girl riding atop it, alongside Hibiki, the man who'd gone toe to toe with Red on this very mountain, in his day. They were both much older, and while Red had continued to hone his battle prowess after their encounter, Hibiki had gone on to become, and greatly expand, the use of Pokémon Rangers, and Ranger battle tactics, across Japan.
Kotone got her answer when, quite suddenly, an orb of dark energy flared up under the enemies' shield, devouring them to a man with unsettling waves of pure black. When it faded, all that remained were Power Staves, still connected to the overall shield of their corp formations, but lacking the men who'd held them.
Zigma turned to the gathered Trainers, Champions, Breeders, and Pokédex fillers. "Well...you have weapons, now. Make use of them."
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Red floated forward, speaking for the uncomfortable Trainers gathered at his request. "That's not how we do things, in this land."
Zigma, who had begun to descend, paused unnaturally in the air, and then reappeared in an eyeblink before the floating Red. That close, he understood just how massive she was. The comparatively massive feline eyes narrowed at the tiny human, and her Tamer gave a shrug that very much suggested Zigma was doing her own thing and would not easily be deterred if she decided to have a psychic snack.
Red's crimson aura shield tightened around his body, for all the good it would do against a legend, but he wisely let her speak uninterrupted. "You do survive in this land, yes? Fight with honor? A code of Battle?" Red looked quietly to one side. "I do not care if you dislike such weapons. You may not need them, but they might." One spotted paw gestured to the regions behind them, and on such a clear day, it was easy to see smoke rising from Olivine City, and Cinnabar Island as well. "Will you not give your people the chance to fight for their freedoms?"
Red's eyes, burning with an appropriately crimson aura, narrowed. "That is how villains do things. Team Rocket. Magma. Aqua. Galactic. Flare. They use such devices, as well as Pokémon, to achieve their aims. Such things should be smashed, and never again made, as the ancestors willed." He gestured as well. "I've Battled almost all of our country's Trainers by this point. I have faith in them. Next time, crush the weapons too."
While the Guardian and former Champion were arguing, the two Mewtwo had, seeing an opportunity, dove into the fray on either side of the now fractured Arcean line. The X strand, Red's partner, shared his views on this particular issue, and in short order, his spoon proved itself superior, again, to any Power Stave, smashing them all to pieces.
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Irritated, but evidently unwilling to argue, Zigma turned towards the easternmost army group of Crusaders, and prepared another strike, only to find that the corps had mobilized en mass and were now ascending atop Pokémon capable of flight. In short order, the sky was a frenzy of deadly energy beams, Pokémon moves, and naturally, death. Typically, battles were several hundred feet up, and Mt. Silver's summit was not merciful to those who fell. Neither were its inhabitants.
As the battle grew, it soon became apparent that the local Pokémon were helping as well, as best wild Pokémon could. While typically weaker to those who'd been trained, in large numbers, they were rather strong. Several of the original Pokédex fillers had also embraced Ranger tactics, and made full use of their wild allies, and even summoned in others as well through the use of their Signs.
Soon, the slopes were covered in battling Pokémon and humans, and Mt. Silver's northern face became pure chaos.
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Several Miles North of Mt. Silver - Holon Region
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"At last...back to war." The scarlet and gold armored form of a giant strode to the front of his mode of transportation, and glimpsed the flash of energy beams and Pokémon moves in the distance. His armor was considered to be the 'Mark III' of the Crusader pattern, even though 'Mark II' hadn't even been widely distributed to all forces. In Fornia and Japan, the soldiers had received what suits had been made, and their old ones were used on newer recruits, primarily for reinforcing Texico City.
The Crusaders under General Marius smirked at his enthusiasm. The aged man lived for conflict and had just finished destroying an old student of his who'd taken up living in a backwater nation like this. He'd mastered electricity fairly well, but he'd ignored the other elements entirely, and had fallen to his old teacher's power, as all the others had before him.
General Marius had been the mind behind the original idea of using the One Dragon's legendary power of subjugation, namely his devastating multi typed breath attacks, and condensing them into a powerful, portable weapon. Even while he was asleep, they had done it, and the Prophet's dream had come to fruition much quicker than anticipated.
Arceans had, according to their history, never actually warred with anyone. Any conflicts they did have, were usually in States they had held sway over, and had usually been against the rebellious 'counterculture' of whatever region they'd been taking over at the time. Thus, General Marius had a track record of victory, though even he had been stalled by winter. Like a true 'Spartan', he had refused to campaign in a blizzard, so Pravus had sent him somewhere else.
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As the General's airship, the crimson painted Thunder Eagle, sped ever southwards on the standard Arcean combination of tandem rotor blades and powerful engines, Marius sighed. The land below was mountainous, snowy, and likely cold. But at least it wasn't thousands of miles of flat land and nothing but white in every direction. One had to be mad to be able to fight in such conditions, which certainly explained the Prophet's choice in switching around leadership.
The airship landed on the remains of what had once been an entire corps of their forces, and Marius' personal guard followed him from the ship's hold. He had his own personal army with him, and additional ships carrying the bulk of the hundred thousand strong force landed soon after. Like their general, their armor was scarlet, though it had been greyed by months of functioning under perpetual ash clouds. Now, they would turn it scarlet once more.
"Ahh...Mewtwo...interesting. Two, no less, and with the strongest, ideal Natures...Giovanni did not skimp. Let us see how they handle...a Titan. He drew a Pokéball from the scarlet cloak that adorned his back and bore the Church's symbol.
Despite being a normal ball, the occupant was very much still infused with Shadow, as was obvious to any present who could see such things. The General summoned his Regigigas to the field and pointed at the two battling genetic Pokémon.
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The soldiers immediately around them suddenly focused their fire and forced the pair to retreat under their Barriers. Three Pokémon moves, also of fire, ice, and electric typing, forced the combined attacks into a stalemate, and canceled the energy out with the usual explosion. From the dust, came the reigning Indigo Champion, and the Legendary Beasts he only summoned on special occasions, but respected him enough to answer when he did call.
Silver glanced up at the pair of Mewtwo, who both blinked in recognition of the boy they had both once seen, clinging to Giovanni's leg. It was one of their earlier memories. Then, he spoke, his harsh adult male baritone shattered the pair's memory and brought them back to the present. "I have this! Go, find Red. You'll need him to take that thing down!"
As he finished speaking, Silver turned back to see the aforementioned titan charging at his beasts with building speed. "Shadow Impact!" Came the command from the red armored General commanding the titan, and at his words, it picked up its pace, and sent Entei, Suicune, and Raikou flying into the mountainside behind the floating form of their Trainer. Psychic was being used liberally, and many of the Trainers atop the mountain had been levitated into the air, though it took them a moment to realize who was orchestrating it.
Serena's Delphox had a reputation for her masterful manipulation, and Leaf's Alakazam was outclassed only by legends when it came to psychic power. Together, they kept those who needed to fly, and battle, out of harm.
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As the pair of Mewtwo ascended to the top of the mountain once more, they found themselves no less embroiled in conflict. The sky was a shifting array of colors, often based upon type of move, but though the invaders each had belts of ten Pokémon, those gathered here had trained more than enough partners to fill out four extra spaces in preparation for the World Tournament.
The brown-shrouded Y Mewtwo looked around. "I do not...see him. Or sense him."
Red's voice came from above and behind them. "Where are you looking? I'm here. Right up here." The crimson aura-shielded human was smirking, and holding up a strange crystal that was glowing with psychic typed energy, manifesting as a crimson light, and radiating power to rival Mega Evolution. "Which of you has the power to answer a titan?"
The two Mewtwo shared a look, and both started forward, only to pause, and again lock eyes. Their auras, both deep blue and radiating raw power began sparking as the edges collided. Red's Mewtwo took advantage of the closeness and struck impossibly fast with his psychically manifested spoon. The Psycho Cut was smashed through with a Psystrike, and the Y strand Mewtwo raised both arms, calling down a hail of follow up strikes as it pummeled the other into the mountain.
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It turned towards Red then, and in an eyeblink, it was before him, three fingered hand raised towards his. Their auras blended, and the crystal flared in Red's palm as he started the chant that, apparently, Kalos' top scientists had insisted was necessary for activation. Calem had helped him memorize it. "Full length…"
"Genetic Series…" The Mewtwo answered, reading his mind easily.
The two spoke again in unison. "Heavenly Burst!" The red coloring of Red's aura swelled as the two became one, and the genetic Pokémon reached a new stage of its evolutionary path. Because it had been mega evolved on its own power, the new fusion retained many aspects of the Y strand Mewtwo's characteristics.
It was a lucky thing, for just as they finished, they raised a four-fingered hand, and halted the Shadow Beam that Regigigas had launched towards the impossibly bright red light. The beam had also cleared the smoke around the pair's vicinity, and all of the combatants around and above the mountain paused, as they bore witness to a power only dreamed of.
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The sky was bright red, and the reason for that coloration floated above all of them. The lengthy head tail of Mewtwo's Y form had split into two, and the semi-halo that surrounded the Y strand's Mega Form had become a full, blazing one, burning red above their head as the waves of power emanating from the new fusion of man and Pokémon. Their head sported a pair of uncannily catlike ears, and Red's seemed to have been lost somewhere in the mix.
The fused pair clenched their fingers as they glowed bright with the power of Mirror Coat, and the beam of darkness went streaking back into the Regigigas, who was too slow to counter its increased speed.
The elemental titan fell with a heavy crash next to the creature that controlled its actions, the human who was a General of his people. The man's third generation suit, one with no Melmetal essence, only ceracrete metal blends 'borrowed' from the Imperium of Man, revealed a hidden feature of the Arcean's latest armored suits.
His back-embedded jetpack brought the General high above his titan, and he spoke a single word. "Automatize!"
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Regigigas rose, but as it did, it was missing parts of its metallic body, and the foliage that had grown upon it with time. Shadow poured from the missing pieces, and the General spoke again. "Now...smother the red one. Shadow Grip!"
The enraged, and heavily damaged titan charged towards the fusion of human and Mewtwo with a speed that should not have been possible with its size and nature, each of the six long fingers blazing with pure darkness.
As they saw their opponent approaching, the fused pair agreed, they needed to use an attack that would remove their enemies in one blow. Then, they could use this new Light energy coursing through them to heal their land, and retake Japan all the way to Sinnoh. A shadow from the late noon sky covered the fighters, and all looked directly up, as Zigma appeared above them all, and fired a sticky, sludge like substance, that certainly looked poisonous, at the feet of the Regigigas. The elemental golem's momentum faded as the tar-like substance stopped it and forced it to stand in place. Once it was stuck, Zigma roared. Their opening was before them.
The fused pair's crimson halo moved as they did, to behind their back. Their arms outlined a circular pattern, forming a familiar symbol made of pure Light and psychic type energy.
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The halo burned brightly as they raised the dual typed Taijitu move over their head and let their mental baritone thunder across the mountain range. "Erupting...Heaven Sphere!"
The fusion of man and Pokémon let their arms drop to either side of them, and the burning orb exploded into thousands of red meteors, each of which sought out, and struck down, an Arcean soldier. Many fell to their ends, though just as many were saved by their armor's ability to take heavy landings rather well.
The largest sphere met Regigigas' Shadowy hands and burned the foul energy infusing the titan away. The orbs exploded on impact, filling the battlefield with bursts of smoke, and Regigigas' was no different as it took another direct hit, and finally fainted.
General Marius, who had deflected the orb meant for him with a single punch, began moving through the smoke towards his airship's LZ, suddenly found himself face to face with the ultimate fusion of Pokémon and human. The General sneered at the abomination, but a sneer was all he got.
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"It would be best for all if you simply...forgot...all that you have been lied to about by your vaunted cult." The four-fingered hand with typically bulbous fingertips radiated crimson psychic power, and the General visibly reacted with disgust.
"Foul creature! I will never submit to your mind trickery!" The General stood strong in the face of the fused abomination's psychic power, but in the end, a single poke to the wrinkled forehead removed almost all of his memories involving loyalty to the Church of Arceus, and his blind devotion to the cause faded, as Marius gained perspective on just how atrocious his actions had been. What the psychic and normal type left behind, was a shell of the former man, a husk, not fit for command.
For good measure, the crimson fusion of human and Pokémon destroyed the man's Pokéballs, releasing and cleansing his partners all at once. It was at that point that Zigma again flew over. Throughout the course of the fighting, she had been inhaling, and purifying, the Shadow energy forcibly infused into many of these Pokémon. Some were more infected than others and would need a Light wielder to remove their affliction. It was the kind of Shadow corruption that changed one's very being, on a genetic level, and seeing it used so commonly from the Pokémon she attempted to free of the foul substance made the dark Guardian's heart ache for them, and their suffering.
Knowing that such things required tampering with Eggs, the closest thing Pokémon had to sacrilege, ignited her fury as well. The humans were learning once more, and if their rapid knowledge was not curbed, there would be another Judgement War in the end. Thankfully, the General's Pokémon had been second generation, infused in the early days of Fornia's tampering. Each of them grew large and healthy as years of battle experience under the west's strongest General came back to them all at once.
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The other Arceans hit by the fused pair had been similarly affected by the fusion of Light and psychic energy. The indoctrination that had been working its effects on each of their minds since before they could walk seemed to vanish, along with the psychological compulsions to praise and obey their Prophet. The Trainers gathered were all bruised and covered with the grime of war. Several had been wounded rather seriously but said wounds had been healed when the fusion of human and Mewtwo had guided its attack into the wounded as well, proving beyond doubt that the Light could both heal and hurt, when necessary.
With the last of their energy, the fused entity curled itself up into a fetal position, and a wave of cleansing Light exploded from its body, passing over every single human, and Pokémon, on Mt. Silver. The Shadow infusions that had resisted Zigma's efforts were burned away, and the genetic damage done was repaired, in moments, by the power of Mewtwo and his inherent understanding of genetic code. The terrain healed as well, and flora soon began to cover the mountain's lower slopes in greater abundance, though the top remained snow-covered.
Red and the once more brown cloaked Mewtwo fell towards the mountain as their fusion ended, and the two were caught by the X strand's telekinesis, still in his Mega Form. Having healed from the earlier Psystrikes with a Max Potion he'd applied himself, the melee combat form glanced between his Trainer, and his newest ally, whose own Mega Form had dropped.
"Well done...that move of yours even struck those still in their balls. You have both effectively cleansed this entire army group...without Shadow Pokémon giving them the advantage, our Trainers will have no trouble rising to meet these invaders."
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The gathered Trainers floating or hovering in the sky around the three cheered, and below, the armored forms of confused Arceans began moving northeast, to their nearest friendly port. Many had simply left their Pokémon, but quite a few had produced regular Pokéballs for them, and recaptured their partners.
At that moment, horns of many ships began sounding from their south, namely behind where the battle around Mt. Silver had been fought. Rising higher for a clear view of Kanto and Johto below, the gathered Trainers saw that the fleets had arrived from Hoenn, and with a pair of super ancient Legendary Pokémon in tow, no less.
The anchored Arcean ships tried to resist, at first, but the Dark Fleet's Trainers, strengthened by their conflicts in Hoenn on this long, war-torn day, made short work of rebellious ideas. Over half of the Crusaders the Arcean's had thrown at Japan were either captured or had been killed in the fighting upon Mt. Silver. The army group formerly under General Marius, men who had seen, and not forgotten, the numerous subduing campaigns they'd enacted under his orders soon rejoined their fellows, and the rumors began spreading as the typical ingrained fear of speaking out against Caleb Pravus was gone.
Stories were shared, truths were revealed, and for once accepted as likely being true, rather than compulsively assuming they were just more lies perpetrated by those who would never live to see a Saved world. Slowly, the mood involving their former leader turned, and the Arceans formerly under Marius headed en mass for their home region. The Dark Fleet let many of them pass unmolested, though some received cannon fire to their hulls, and sank into the ocean. Those, typically, were ships that had yet sported trapped Pokémon, for use as engines and weapons. Those headed west now were going on classic old Earth styled engines, which required fuel. Thankfully, the Arceans had never lacked for such things, and always had reserve tanks in the event their Sharpedo were immobilized somehow.
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Sacreus Science Lab - Fornia Region
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"All of them? Even Marius?"
"Yes sir!" The Arcean Lieutenant responded, saluting as he did. The new and growing bruise on his left cheek was inspiring more loyalty than ever. "Whatever Red did, dissenters are now the majority in Japan. Many are calling for your head, others have hijacked ships and joined the Dark Fleet. Expected projections assume they'll retake Sinnoh within a week, and then move on to Alola."
"Hrmmm. We can't have that...Alola needs to stay out of this." Caleb Pravus sighed, and looked down upon the chamber they were setting things up in. "Doctor, how long until we are ready?"
The mechanical, almost hollow voice emanated from the stiff form of Doctor Ein, who'd become more machine than man once they'd found most of his ribs, and a few spinal segments, had been shattered by his fall. His feet had been melted, and that term was generous for what had been left after standing for hours upon the back of a Primal Groudon in battle. "We are ready now, my Prophet."
A grin spread across the not unappealing visage of the Arcean's Prophet. "Excellent...let us begin. Get the deer."
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The cyborg shuffled off to do as commanded, and returned soon after with a very small, very young white and teal colored Xerneas. The first that had, to their knowledge, ever been successfully cloned. The man keeping it in line, the Arcean Church's own Head Bishop, and resident Light user, followed behind it, holding in his cupped hands a Dark Ball that had since turned gold, thanks to its occupant.
Pravus summoned the last of the legendary influences they would need. The sleeping form of Azelf, curled tight, floated by instinct to the exact center of the room. It had resisted Shadow infusion thus far, but now, it would give them what they desired.
With a dark flash, Ho-Oh was released into the chamber as well, and the furious phoenix screeched only once before the Azelf, prodded by its owner, bound it with a sinister series of red crystalline chains. From talons to beak, the bird was muzzled. The remnants of Team Galactic who'd been desperate to ally with the Arceans had not been lying about the effectiveness of the chains. Ein shuffled forward, dragging the white-furred hind behind him. Ho-Oh paused in its rage, saw the creature, and then her eyes went wide.
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Within the center of the circular testing area stood a simple pedestal, upon which was a mostly white crystal that had multicolored pieces of red, orange, yellow, and varying shades of both blue and green, as well as purple, floating around within it, aimlessly. Ein gave the hind a nudge, and the tiny Xerneas began emanating, and focusing, its Fairy Aura through its barely grown antlers into the crystal upon the altar. It was, essentially, the only move the Doctor had taught it. Azelf levitated Ho-Oh directly over the object absorbing the seven colors of energy Xerneas' horns were giving off. The crystal turned entirely black as it absorbed the seven colored light. The bird struggled against the bonds, but a similar human creation had been used once to summon, and temporarily bind, the aspects of Time and Space themselves. In this underground realm of Shadow worshipers, Ho-Oh was quite far from the Light, and any chance of divine intervention.
As the bird struggled, she felt her wings gain ground against the restraints, and hope returned, but only for a few moments, as she realized she was still bound. For whatever reason, the Azelf had given her minor wing space. The reason became evident, as she saw the particles of rainbow light fall from her wings towards the strange creation below. It absorbed the particles, and even the single feather that had fallen in her struggling against the chains. Even infected with Shadow and bound, Ho-Oh was a creature of the Light, and maintained some semblance of sanity. For the moment.
The Light particles from Ho-Oh's rainbow wings turned the pure black crystal into a pure white one, and Caleb Pravus, as well as his gathered underlings and the robotic Doctor Ein, all shared a grinning expression. When the Prophet spoke, it was in an excited whisper. "Next comes yellow..." He held up the Z-Crystal that had been 'acquired' along with the one that was serving as the base for their newest creation. It was a standard Z-crystal shape, though it sported additional diamond shaped protrusions at the top and bottom edges. A black eight-pointed star sat in the middle of it, and it began radiating a dark energy as Pravus drew upon it and guided it into their creation with a burst of Z-energy that Ein had determined would be necessary for their plans. The crystal shone with a flash of yellow light, and retained that coloring, as it hummed with the gathered powers of four Legendary Pokémon.
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"And finally..." Doctor Ein intoned in his much deeper and changed voice, "The reddening..." He gestured to the Prophet, who manifested the same dark blade that had pierced and brought low Thor himself. An aura of Shadow surrounded him, though it flinched as he neared their creation. In this stage especially, it was strong enough to weaken beings like him. In the next, that would no longer be a problem.
Pravus raised his dark sword to one of Ho-Oh's bound talons, and slashed, cutting just between the top of the claw, and bottom of the leg, where the two met, and quite a bit of blood flowed. The sparkling crimson droplets fell onto the yellowed crystal, and a sinister aura formed as Pravus began speaking the words that had been whispered to him through the Shadow. "Black, white, yellow, and red. Form this power, and complete my Dread!" Two Darkrai-like hands extended from the aura by his shoulders and hung on either side of the strange crystal. The Dark Plate he'd affixed to his armor flared with energy as he bent reality to his whim and summoned those who evidently needed to have a hand in this, the final process of forming the ultimate weapon. It was harder without the Nexus to draw upon, but after this, he would not need a Nexus ever again. After this, immortality would be his.
Hundreds of Unown poured between the tear in the barriers of reality, and the dark hands bent them to the Prophet's will. The confused and then controlled psychic Pokémon floated in a pattern around the yellow and red colored crystal, forming it naturally as their simple bodies reacted to the stone the humans were trying to create. The Unown's power activated the phoenix's blood, and the crystal absorbed it, taking on the crimson coloring slowly until it pervaded the entirety of the crystal. As the process finished, the Unown, torn from their own dimension, were released, and Teleported back on instinctual fear. Pravus did not care though, for he had his prize.
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The still smoldering ruby-colored crystal seared his hand's flesh as he picked it up from the altar. He grinned, as he felt the rage of the consciousness that evidently was still within, even after the work had been finished. "Yes...scream and thrash as much as you like, little dragon. Your power is now mine."
The aura surrounding the Prophet darkened his form, the red crystal disappeared in the forming maelstrom of dark energy and appeared again as a pair of menacing ruby-colored eyes. Two words came from him now, as he finally put the last stage of his plans into motion. "Dark Reversion!" He felt the Darkrai that was a part of him finally reawaken and become the embodiment of the element it represented better than almost any other Pokémon. The Prophet cackled, sounding very much mad as the power of their great work remade his form, and his partner's.
Japan was merely a setback, a costly one, but one that had distracted the dragon from focusing his forces on where they should have been, in order to stop this very process. Pravus was under no illusion that the Original Dragon had an idea of what he was up to, but there was no way the divine lizard could've known how far along they were. Only Doctor Ein, the Bishop, and his personal Lieutenant knew enough to be dangerous, and none of them had loose lips. "We go to Alola..." The Prophet said, as he once more resumed his fused form of human and Darkrai. They were stronger than they had ever been, and the Reversion was not yet complete. "We will stop this...Dark Fleet...before they ever become a threat."
The Doctor, the Bishop, and his top Lieutenant saluted the swirling maelstrom of sentient darkness before them in standard Arcean fashion and answered their master. "Yes, my Prophet!"
The maelstrom of Shadow energy ascended then, through miles and miles of rock and stone, up to the surface, where they would have space to take their final form.