Hoenn Journey Part 4: The Light Shines Forth
#4 of Hoenn Journey
Note: This chapter is the first combination chapter between myself and Secret shadow, who writes his own story titled Journey of the Chosen. All characters are copyright their respective owners, and neither of us owns Pokémon. At least, I don't think we do. Anyway, we come to Ian's first real challenge. Will he survive? Read and find out. ;3 Let the battle begin!
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As Latias and I shot over the ocean towards Slateport, I felt dread well up in my heart. I didn't know what the Revenant could possibly be planning that would end my life before the day ended, but it was bound to be unpleasant. The morning light reflecting off of the waves below us made it hard to stay completely invisible, especially with Jace on my back, but Latias and I managed without too much trouble. Through my new aura senses, I could feel how cold Jace and Gardevoir were getting, but there was nothing to be done about it at the moment. I only hoped that they wouldn't be too cold to fight once we got to Slateport.
As we flew, I frantically tried to piece together some sort of plan that would allow us all to survive whatever surprises the Revenant might have in store for us, along with how we might be able to protect innocent people from being harmed. I could only wonder at how effective we would be; none of us had ever been in a real battle or combat situation where people were actually trying to kill us. Not only that, but the nightmare I had endured for the past two days had also served to drain some of my strength, leaving me feeling weaker than I should have.
Through our bond, I could sense Latias paying close attention to my thoughts and plans, and considering them herself to try and see if she could help me formulate good ways to keep us all from getting killed. I smiled to myself and sent my love for her flowing through the bond, to which she responded by sending me her own. I could also sense she didn't like the fact that the Revenant was expecting us to come any more than I did, but she also knew that if we didn't go, many more innocent lives would be lost. She was feeling understandably worried for everyone's safety, but she was worried about me most of all since I was the one the Revenant was after.
Gardevoir, on the other hand, was calm and composed, her aura and thoughts calm and still as glass as she considered ways to keep me from being harmed and from having her heart broken again. This was what I sensed in her above all else; the overarching desire to protect me from harm, even if it meant she had to sacrifice herself. This worried me; I didn't want her sacrificing herself to save me any more than I wanted Latias to, but I could also tell that her devotion to protecting me was the only thing really keeping her going at this point, so I resolved to worry about it later, when we weren't about to go into a battle.
We were nearing the coast of Slateport when an almost unimaginably powerful surge of energy emanating from somewhere a little beyond the city washed over me, almost overwhelming my senses. I immediately tried to discern the exact nature of the source of so much power, but aside from determining the exact location of it, whether it was good or evil was hidden from my perception, which worried me immensely. Something with enough power to hide its nature from my senses would pose a huge threat to us if it was aligned with the Revenant.
There's some sort of huge power flux nearby; I can't figure out what it is though. I think we need to go check it out and make sure that whatever it is isn't related to the Revenant. I told the others, and they instantly agreed as I had suspected they would. Making a slight adjustment in our course, we were soon flying over thebay ofSlateport, passing by it on our way to find whatever was giving off so much power. The strange part of what I was feeling wasn't that it was so powerful; the strange part was that it didn't really seem to be giving off a dark aura or to really be doing anything aside from staying in a single spot. I could sense that even within her Pokéball, Nera was stirring as she felt the constant thrum of power being given off by whatever this thing was.
Slightly inland from thebayofSlateport, I finally caught sight of the object that was giving off so much energy. I pointed the spot out to the others, and Latias and I touched down a good distance from the object as Jace and Gardevoir dismounted slightly unsteadily before Latias and I shimmered and shifted to our human forms before we all cautiously approached what appeared to be a large seed pod of interwoven psychic and aura energy. Jace let Nera out of her Pokéball as we examined it so that she could examine it as well, and perhaps help us figure out what it was.
Nera, do you have any idea what this thing could possibly be? Do you think it's a trap set by the Revenant? I asked her, clenching my fists in nervousness and apprehension as she cautiously approached the seed-like object, sniffing the air around it slightly for some reason. She didn't answer right away, instead slowly approaching and slowly laying a paw down on the surface of the thing, and I held my breath; I half expected the thing to explode or something at any moment. After a moment Nera took her paw away from the object and stepped back a little, still staring at the thing in wonder mixed with confusion.
I have absolutely no idea what this thing is. I've never encountered anything like it before; most beings give off either an overall good feeling aura or an overall bad feeling one. But this? Whatever it is seems to strive for some sort of neutral balance between the two; it is full of equal parts good and bad. But as to whether it's a trap or related to the Revenant? I don't think it is, though-- at that moment the object suddenly pulsed with a ripple of power, and we all jumped back and took up fighting stances, ready for whatever might happen. Just for a moment, I thought I saw a man in black robes reach out and place a hand gently on the surface of the object, but then he was gone and I wondered if he had actually been there or not.
As soon as I saw that, the pod-like object suddenly started to disintegrate, slowly revealing what appeared to be a kid with silver hair wearing some of the strangest things I had ever seen; he appeared to be wearing some sort of armor, though why I couldn't say. He looked slightly sick as well, as though he had contracted the flu recently as well as having a scrape on his face, but other than that he looked fine. The kid suddenly took a huge breath, as if he'd been holding his breath for the past several minutes, and sat bolt upright, staring around with unfocused eyes until he caught sight of my friends and I standing a few feet away from him.
"How did I get here?" The boy demanded, and then suddenly his aura was everywhere; pressing against our minds in an insanely powerful attempt to read our thoughts and see our memories. The only one of us that didn't notice this was Jace, seeing as he had no way to even sense it, let alone guard against it. I had to struggle mightily to keep the kid from being able to read my thoughts as if I was an open book, and I could sense Latias having to fight with all her might against it as well. She and I were faring better than Nera and Gardevoir however; due to our bond we could shield each others' minds somewhat, while Nera and Gardevoir had no such advantage.
"Stop it! We don't know how you got here, just stop trying to get into our heads!" I yelled as I clamped my hands over my ears; the power behind the boys mental assault was truly astonishing, and it was actually starting to physically hurt. I tried my best to counter his assault with my own psychic powers, pushing back against his intrusion almost to no avail whatsoever. He insisted on gaining something from the five of us, even if it wasn't exactly what he wanted. Since he had no way to guard against such an attack, Jace ended up being the one who's mind was read, even though I was trying as hard as I could to defend him as well. As soon as Jace collapsed from the suddenness of having his mind read in such a fashion, the boy stood up and dusted himself off as he looked at us and the pressure of his consciousness against ours disappeared.
"I'm sorry about that, I needed to be sure, please forgive my forcefulness on trying to read your minds." he said as he stood, and I would have replied if it weren't for the fact that I was still trying to recover from the strain the boy's assault had put on my mind, rubbing my temples just like Latias, Gardevoir, and Nera were doing as we tried to alleviate some of the pain from his mental probe.
Who... in the hell is this kid? He almost completely incapacitated us simply by trying to read our minds! I thought to myself as I straightened back up and settled back into a defensive stance, still not fully trusting this strange kid that had come from seemingly out of nowhere. "Who are you?! Do you work for the Revenant?!" I yelled at him as I started to gather my power together in case he was indeed in league with my nemesis, small, almost invisible sapphire sparks starting to manifest around my clenched fists as I watched him warily. The boy simply cocked his head in curiosity and confusion.
"The reve what? I've never heard of such a thing." the kid said, then muttered something to himself under his breath that I didn't catch. I started to make shallow probes at his mind in retaliation for his forceful mind reading earlier, though I opted for trying to be stealthy instead of going for brute force; if what I had sensed from his mental assault was accurate, there was no way I was going to get into his mind through force.
"What was that? I didn't quite catch what you said." I replied quickly as I continued to probe the kids mind. The things I was seeing in his mind didn't make any sense though; a few flashes of his parents, his siblings, and then some sort of silver flash that I couldn't make heads or tails of, all along with an overarching sense of something unseen, lurking just below the surface of the kids conscious thoughts.
"It's of no concern to you. Now where is this place? I was on a ship that was en route to Hoenn when a wave clobbered me overboard. And damn-it quit trying to read my mind in retaliation, you don't want to see it." the boy said in a rather annoyed tone, and I quickly retreated from his mind, seeing that he had obviously sensed my shallow mental probes despite my best efforts. I looked over at Nera, who simply frowned slightly and shrugged, and then we both looked at Gardevoir who shrugged as well. At this point, I couldn't see any reason not to tell him anything, but I was still a bit peeved at him.
"You still haven't told us your name." Was my response, and he put a hand to his forehead and his hair shimmered as I sensed him using some sort of power for a moment. Just as I was getting ready to dodge the attack I was suspecting was coming, he took his hand away and looked back up at us.
"My name is Evin." he said, but I was barely paying attention as I saw that he had just healed himself, the scrape on his face was gone, and he no longer looked as if he had the flu. I barely kept my jaw from dropping as I stared at him; I had never seen any human that was able to do anything like that.
"How... how do you have all of these powers?" I asked in a surprised and wary tone, still not entirely sure that Evin wasn't a threat to us.
"Well, you could say I'm not of this world. But that would be pushing it. I honestly don't know how I got my powers. Nor do I necessarily know how to use them all. I just know that I'm downright pissed at the god that keeps toying withme." he replied with a smirk, obviously amused at some private joke, though he did sound slightly annoyed as well. I looked at the others in confusion as the last thing he had said finally fully registered; something about a god that kept toying with him. As far as I knew, the only god was Arceus, who was actually a Goddess, yet this kid made it sound like there was something beyond even her.
Just as I opened my mouth to reply, Nera, Evin, and I turned and looked back towards Slateport as a wave of unimaginably evil power suddenly swept over us, momentarily overpowering my aura senses with its intensity.
"Arceus damn it!" I cursed, and Evin nodded as his expression turned to one of exasperation.
"I'm not even awake for two minutes and already I'm going to have a bad day," he sighed as he picked two Pokéballs off of his belt, "you don't happen to have any spare food on you would you? I feel like I haven't eaten in forever." he continued, but before I could reply one of the Pokéballs popped open and a shiny Zoroark appeared and roared at Evin, who sort of leaned sideways away from it.
Just who is this kid? He's certainly well-traveled. I thought to myself as the Zoroark finally finished roaring at him and he straightened.
"I'm sorry that you couldn't get out of there, but something unavoidable happened." he replied as he straightened, and then suddenly the Zoroark was ranting at him telepathically somehow, calling him a jerk for keeping her locked up in the Pokéball for five days.
Quit staring! Or you'll go blind! she snapped at the rest of us once she noticed us, and I smirked and would've laughed if it weren't for the fact that she was A) a strong Dark-type Pokémon, meaning she was immune to a good deal of my abilities, and B) she was angry on top of that.
This boy is not normal. He is far too powerful to be merely human. Latias said as she sort of hid behind me and clutched my arm tightly, which told me she was more than a little afraid of Evin. I wasn't about to judge him for being what he was though; in all honesty he didn't seem all that different from me, aside from the fact that as far as I could tell he wasn't a Pokémon. I glanced over at Jace as he sat up and groaned, holding his head in his hands, but he seemed to be okay aside from being rather irate at having his thoughts and memories gone through as if he were nothing more than a living information booth.
"Though we don't know who you really are, we really don't have time to waste right now. Something is about to happen at Slateport and we need to hurry." I sighed after a moment, and Evin nodded.
"OK, it's rather obvious that something bad is happening over there, but could you really spare some food for my Pokémon and I? We haven't eaten in like five days. I can pay you back later if you want." he said, and I sighed again as Latias let go of my arm and I took my pack off and knelt on the ground while I rummaged through it for a moment, seeing what I had for food. Seeing that I had several berry bars and a few medium-sized bags of Pokémon food, I pulled out a couple berry bars and two of the bags of Poké-food, tossing them over to Evin as I closed my pack and stood back up. As I did, I wondered to myself if I should change forms in front of Evin; even though for now he seemed trustworthy enough, it wasn't something that I wanted just anyone to know about.
I guess it doesn't really matter. He read Jace's mind, so he probably knows anyway; but even if he doesn't it can't be helped. I thought to myself and sighed yet again as I re-adjusted my pack. "So what are you intending to do now?" I asked as Evin almost inhaled one of the berry bars and his Zoroark did the same to one of the bags of Poké-food.
"I'm going to go beat the crap out of whatever it is that's causing so much anguish near Slateport. Even from here I can feel the torment of the people it is killing, not to mention the mob of darkness traveling with it." he said, and I looked him over curiously as he started to down the second breakfast bar.
"But how do you plan to get there? Run?" I asked, but instead of replying with a mouth full of food, he simply grabbed the other Pokéball off of his belt and tossed it, and suddenly I was looking at the largest white dragon-like Pokémon I had ever seen. Jace babbled something about this being Reshiram, the fire-dragon of legend, and I was once again impressed by just how well-traveled this kid was. Nera stared at him for a moment longer in wonder before walking over and giving me a light tap on the shoulder to get my attention.
That boy's inner power and radiance surpassed us all on his own. At first I though it was the legendary Reshiram in her ball, but now I can truly see that it is completely him. I don't know what he is or how he has so much power, but if he is on our side we should be nearly unstoppable when we face the Revenant. she said in awe, and I had to agree with her; whatever this kid might be, he did indeed seem to be on our side, and that was a huge plus at the moment. I nodded as I watched Evin empty the last bag of Pokémon food into Reshiram's mouth, which she ate in one swallow and Evin put the trash in his pockets as he turned back to me, dusting his hands on his pants as he did.
"So, am I leading the charge? Or are you?" he asked, and at this point I honestly had no idea what to think. All of my carefully laid plans had come crashing down with the sudden appearance of this kid from Arceus-only-knows-where, so now we had no choice but to wing it and hope for the best.
"We will lead." I said with a small smile, and Latias and I shifted forms as Jace recalled Nera and he and Gardevoir climbed onto our backs, while Evin recalled his Zoroark and climbed up onto Reshiram's back. Latias and I shot up into the air and circled for a moment, waiting for Reshiram and Evin to catch up before shooting away towards Slateport.
The good news was that it only took us roughly another twenty minutes to get to Slateport; the bad news was that we could now see the full extent of what we were getting ourselves into. Just like it had mentioned in the nightmare it had trapped me in, the Revenant had gotten Teams Rocket and Galactic to attack Slateport together in one massive swarm. The situation was worse than I could have possibly imagined as we got closer; the entire city was almost completely decimated, not to mention that there was no organized resistance against the two teams from the scattered Rangers and police.
I looked back over my shoulder as I heard Evin order Reshiram to do what she could to decimate the enemies reinforcements and tried to catch his attention, but he wasn't paying me any attention. Then, before I could try anything else, he jumped from Reshiram's back, all the way to the ground almost sixty feet below him. I just stared in shock as he rolled when he hit the ground, coming back up on his feet and knocking a Team Rocket member across the battlefield.
Man, what in the hell is this kid made of? I thought to myself, but then I realized I didn't have time to dwell on it and turned to fly deeper into the city, looking for someplace safe to land and change forms without being seen. Looking around quickly, I spotted a small alley hidden behind the wreckage of what had once been the Pokémon Fan Club. I quickly pointed out the spot to Latias, and we dove towards the spot as swiftly as we dared with Jace and Gardevoir on our backs.
"That... was absolutely terrifying. Please don't ever make me do that again..." Jace half moaned as he and Gardevoir got off of Latias and I so that we could shift forms. I gave a wry smile as our forms shimmered back to our human guises and we stood for a moment to get our bearings.
"How do you think you're going to get back to Dewford, Jace? Walk?" I laughed at him, despite the fact we had just landed in the middle of what amounted to a war zone, and he let out a rather pitiful moan. "But for now, that doesn't matter. We have more pressing concerns at the moment." He immediately sobered up and took a good look around before looking back at me.
"Right. So what's the plan?" he asked, and I sighed.
"For now? Stick together and free as many people as we can. The Revenant is indeed here somewhere, but for now it seems content to simply watch and observe. Evin jumped off of Reshiram somewhere in the southeast corner of the city, so let's start from here and work towards him," I said, and Jace, Gardevoir, and Latias all nodded agreement as we prepared to start trying to help the besieged people of Slateport. "Jace, go ahead and let Entei, Raikou, and Nera out. Take them and go down along the market and see what you can do there; unless I miss my guess at least some of the Team Rocket and Galactic members would rather run than fight one, let alone two Legendaries." As Jace picked the three Pokéballs off of his belt and released the named Pokémon, I continued darkly, "Too bad for them they'll be facing four."
Through my bond with Latias, I could sense her own anger bubbling just below the surface of her thoughts, begging urgently to be released upon the two evil Teams. I looked over at her and was only slightly shocked to see a severe glare etched deeply into her normally calm and loving features, her honey-gold eyes burning with rage and her fists tightly clenched at her sides as she tried to master her emotions. As Jace explained the situation to Entei, Raikou, and Nera, I walked over to her and lifted her chin to look her in the eyes. Not only did I see anger in them, but fear, and sadness as well; fear for Gardevoir, Jace, Nera, and above all me, and sadness for all of the innocent people that were being harmed for no other reason than a greed for power and a lust for destruction and pain.
"Don't worry, love. We will come out of this victorious and alive, I promise you. And we will make them pay for hurting so many innocent people." I said, and her features softened into a small smile as she gave me a small kiss that I returned, hugging her tightly as I poured my love for her through the bond, just like she was passing her own love back to me. After a moment, Jace came over and we released each other, both wondering why he looked so strange.
"Uh, Ian? Nera asked if she could go with you, Latias, and Gardevoir.. She says she wants to help protect you." he said as Nera walked up behind him, and I looked at her slightly askance, not entirely sure why she would ask to come with me instead of going with Jace. Letting out a rather exasperated groan, I nodded slightly.
"We don't really have time for this, but all right. Jace, take Blaziken with you instead." I said, tossing him Blaziken's Pokéball before turning to Nera and studying her for a moment as Jace released Blaziken and quickly explained the situation to him, to which Blaziken replied with his customary "Yes sir!" before they looked back over at me, finally ready to begin liberating Slateport. "All right. Let's show these bastards just how badly they've miscalculated, shall we?" I said with a dark smile, and Entei and Raikou let out ear-shattering roars as we ran out from behind the old Pokémon Fan Club and were immediately and unmercifully thrown into the tumult and horror of all-out war.
The moment we exited the small, concealed alley, we came across a group of civilians fleeing as quickly as they could from several members of Team Rocket. The Team Rocket members had an Onix, a Ninetails, a few Golbats, a Machoke, and two Dodrios following them as they chased the civilians, laughing the whole while. As soon as they saw us however, they turned and started to charge towards us instead, their Pokémon letting out loud cries as they followed along. I looked over at Jace as I sensed his thoughts to stay and help us fight them off instead of going through the market, and I looked back at him with a dark grin.
"Don't worry, we'll be fine. These are nowhere near a match for us!" I yelled at him over the sound of the approaching Rocket members, and for a moment he stood there in uncertainty before finally nodding and running off, down through the market, Raikou, Entei, and Blaziken following close behind. I nodded to myself, glad that he had followed the directions I had given him; he would be able to free anyone caught in the market with little trouble while Latias, Gardevoir, Nera, and myself began to make our way towards the center of Slateport. I turned back around to face the Team Rocket members as they surrounded us on all sides, leering evilly as they did.
"Give up, kiddies! There's eight of us here, and you've only got a Gardevoir and a Lucario to protect you! You're hopelessly outmatched!" One of them shouted, and I just looked at him for a moment before throwing my head back and laughing at the sky, unable to keep a straight face after hearing that. I could sense Latias, Nera, and Gardevoir's amusement as well, though they managed to refrain from laughing as I was doing.
"Outmatched? I think not. Now, leave us alone, or you will regret it." I said as I finally stopped laughing and looked back down at the circle of Rocket members surrounding us. They simply sneered, thinking that they had the upper hand and that I was only putting on a show of false bravado. As I looked around at them, I noticed one of them looking Latias up and down rather lewdly, and I glared at him in particular. "If I were you, dumbass, I would stop looking at her like that." I said, and he turned to me and sneered.
"Oh really? Just what do you plan to do about it, huh? Cry?" he said, before uttering a short bark of laughter and turning back to leering at Latias. I clenched my fists as I glared at him, trying to keep myself in check and mindful of the rest of the Rocket members around me.
"If you don't stop now, I will make damn sure you will never see the light of day again." I growled, and he looked back over with an annoyed and angry expression.
"Ninetails, shut the kid up wou--" he started to say, but before he could finish his sentence I used my psychic powers to throw the Ninetails straight up into the air, before hitting it with a Water Pulse attack that sent it flying across the street and into a building, where it stayed, knocked unconscious from the impact. The Rocket members looked at me with fright now very evident in their auras and expressions as well. Before they could make a move to run or attack, I reached out psychokinetically again and grabbed the Rocket member that had been staring at Latias and threw him after the Ninetails, grinning darkly in satisfaction as I heard his head hit the side of the building with a sickening crack.
"Gardevoir, Nera! Handle the four behind us!" I yelled as I turned and Latias joined me as we faced down the four Rocket members in front of us. Don't hold back, Latias.. This is war, and we can't afford to let them live this time. I told Latias as we advanced on the four, who were backtracking slightly, almost turning tail and running as we advanced on them.
I know, love. I won't let them terrorize and hurt anyone else! Latias replied angrily as we both began attacking the Team Rocket members. In short order, all eight of them were dead, and their Pokémon were all unconscious. The four of us began to slowly fight our way across the city, freeing people as we went so that they could get out of Slateport and to safety. We were nearing theOceanicMuseum when we came upon several people running away from it as fast as they could.
"WATCH OUT, THEY HAVE A GROUDON!" They yelled frantically as they ran past us, and I let out a frustrated groan.
Arceus damn it! Of course they have a Legendary, and since the only two with enough power to stand a chance against it are me and Evin, and I'm the only one here, I get to be the one to deal with the damn thing! I thought to myself, and Latias snorted involuntarily at the grim, sarcastic humor in my thoughts even as she worried about me, knowing I was right.
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_ Ian, please be careful... This might very well be what the Revenant was planning..._ Latias said worriedly, and I hugged her gently.
"Don't worry. I'll make sure I don't get hurt." I said before letting her go and walking into the plaza in front of the Museum, leaving her, Nera, and Gardevoir to guard my back against any members of Team Rocket or Galactic that might decide to try and help whichever one of their members was controlling Groudon. The first thing I noticed was of course the huge red and gray Legendary Groudon, towering over eleven feet in the air and roaring at the sky, a Team Rocket Executive standing atop his head and grinning evilly as the Legendary below him blasted the surroundings with fire.
"So, the one our Master wishes dead the most shows his face at last!" the Executive laughed, leering down at me, and I looked back at him with shock. "Oh, don't look so surprised! Our Master, the Revenant, gave all the high-ranking members of all the different organizations orders to watch out for a Trainer; one with spiky black hair, wearing black clothes, and traveling with another male Trainer, a girl, and a Gardevoir. Though I don't see any other Trainer with you at the moment, you are obviously the one my Master wishes us to kill. And from what I saw you doing as you came through the city, rightly so." I cursed under my breath as I glared up at the man, my anger surfacing fully in my expression.
"And what makes you think that was everything I could do? What makes you think you can defeat me, when so many of your underlings failed to do that exact thing?" I growled at him, and he threw his head back and laughed.
"This," he said simply as he gestured at Groudon below him, still laughing. "Groudon, use Earthquake!"
I quickly levitated a few inches above the ground, the powerful Ground-type move having no effect on me whatsoever. The Earthquake ended after a few moments, having shoved great chunks of stone out of the ground and tearing up the pavement around me. I settled back to Earth and smiled darkly up at the Team Rocket member still standing atop Groudon's head, who looked slightly taken aback by my ability to levitate.
"Okay, so you can fly... So what? You can't dodge everything! Use Solar Beam!" Groudon roared at the sky as his body began to glow, his ability to amplify the sun's rays halving the time it took for the attack to charge. In less time than I would have previously thought possible, the powerful Solar Beam was unleashed straight at me. Unable to do anything else, I shot straight up into the air, dodging the attack in the process. As I rose, the air temperature around me dropped drastically, becoming far below freezing as I prepared my retaliation; with a cry, I let loose a powerful Ice Beam, hitting Groudon on his right arm, making his entire arm freeze solid and making him let out a loud roar of frustration as I settled back onto the ground gently.
"This is getting annoying... I've had enough of your games, kid. Time to die!" The Rocket Exec yelled, obviously thinking he sounded tough or intimidating, and I just started laughing myself silly at how pathetic he sounded; the more desperate he became, the worse it got!
"You obviously haven't figured it out yet, have you? Your strategy of intimidation doesn't work on me, you pathetic scum." I laughed at him, and he sputtered for a few moments, unable to come up with a reply. While he was busy sputtering, Groudon let out an almighty roar, and suddenly his consciousness was pressing against my own. Through his eyes, I watched a memory; a Team Rocket member, the same one sitting so arrogantly atop his head now, throwing a Master Ball at him and capturing him.
Help me! Get this foul human off of my head; I am unable to disobey his orders! I heard Groudon's voice, as deep as the sound of the Earth moving and enraged beyond reason, echo through my mind as I was suddenly looking back at him through my own eyes. I shook my head to clear it, and looked up at Groudon still towering over me as the Rocket Exec finally came up with something to say that I didn't hear over another one of Groudon's ear-shattering roars. I caught what he had said a moment later however, as Groudon's now unfrozen paw swung around and bashed me straight through the wall of the Museum. I groaned as I flew through both walls of the Museum and came down hard on my side uninjured; right before I had hit the wall I had used my psychic abilities to bash a hole in the wall so I wouldn't be crushed.
My anger erupted at that point; I sprang back to my feet, drawing as much power from within myself as I possibly could until I felt like I would explode. My clothes whipped about as if in a strong wind, dark blue lightning began to flicker around me, and the fabric of reality around me began to distort as immense quantities of psychic power began to radiate off of me in waves, forcing the Executive to his knees atop Groudon's head. I looked up at the Team Rocket Executive, and saw his expression had gone from smug satisfaction to terrified, and I bared my teeth in a feral smile as thousands of crescent-shaped blades of psychic power formed around me.
"I'm not even going to bother with Groudon. If I kill you, I can simply recall him using the Master Ball I'm going to take from your cold, dead corpse." I said darkly as I unleashed my assault of blades, not even giving the man a chance to scream as he was literally ripped to shreds by my attack. The biggest difference between this time and the last time I had used this attack was that this time, each one of the thousands of blades was intended to go straight through whatever it hit, effectively shredding his body into jerky-like strips and forming a mist of blood that wreathed Groudon's head. I ran straight towards Groudon as my attack ended and leapt over his head, performing a somersault in mid-air, grabbing the Master Ball from what remained of the Team Rocket Executive, and attempting to recall the enraged Legendary. For some reason though, the Master Ball would no longer recall Groudon, and I landed heavily on the ground, noticing as I did so that all the remaining Team Galactic and Rocket forces were now fleeing out of the city and into the woods along Route 110. I jumped slightly in shock as Reshiram landed right next to me, having almost completely forgotten about her and Evin as I had been rather preoccupied with staying alive.
_ _
"What did you do? Without the master that thing is going to finish leveling the city!" Evin exclaimed as he hopped off of Reshiram's back, landing right next to me.
"I thought it would return to the Pokéball if I just recalled it, since all it wanted was to be freed from the executive's control." I frowned as I said it, not entirely sure why it hadn't worked.
"It was a good sounding theory, but in this case that's not what's going to happen." Evin said as he shook his head, and I looked at him, still rather confused as to why exactly it hadn't worked. "Do you have a heavy ball I can use?" He asked, shaking me out of my thoughts, and I just stared at him, becoming yet more confused.
"Why do you need something like that? It's already a captured Pokémon, it can't be caught again." I said, and Evin simply smiled.
"In most cases that would be true. But I'm not most cases. Now do you have one or not?" he replied, and I sighed and dug one out of my pocket and tossed it to him.
"So what do you intend to do?" I asked, and he smiled again.
"Oh not just me, you. You're going to help me with it. We need to weaken it like trying to catch a wild Pokémon, and then you will see why." he said with a small smile, and I sighed.
"Oh joy." I said sarcastically, thinking to myself just how bad this day was turning out to be for me. Evin was the first to take off after the Groudon, and as he approached it he shot its tail with an aura sphere to get its attention. Groudon roared with anger and frustration just as I managed to catch up to Evin, and then he unleashed another Earthquake that began to tear up the ground even more. With a rather exasperated sigh, I hurriedly grabbed one of Evin's arms and levitated a few inches above the ground. As soon as the Earthquake ended, I dropped Evin like a sack of potatoes and ran off to the right, shooting an aura sphere of my own at the raging Legendary.
My aura sphere hit with about the same effect Evin's had and only angered Groudon more as it tried to smash me flat with Hammer Arm. Groudon's attack missed, but hit the ground with enough force that it made another mini earth quake, and since I wasn't levitating at the moment, I lost my balance and came to a skidding stop on my arms and knees just as Groudon started to use Solar Beam. As the powerful attack was charging, I remembered what the Revenant told me during the nightmare it had captured me in, and I thought I was about to be obliterated by the attack and turned to my side to shield myself with my arms. But the moment the beam was about to be launched I saw Evin appear in front of me.
"Are you crazy! Get out of here!" I yelled at him, but he paid me no heed as the attack was launched.
This kid is going to get us both killed! I thought to myself, only to be completely astounded by the strange boy in front of me as he held his ground and deflected the Solar Beam back at Groudon with some sort of aura shield. Groudon's powerful attack was reflected back upon him, grazing his left shoulder and causing him to roar in pain as he used his other paw to cover his wounded shoulder. As I regained my feet with what I was sure was a rather bewildered expression, Evin nudged me with his elbow and pointed at Groudon's left leg, forming a large aura sphere as he did. I followed his lead, forming a large aura sphere of my own, firing it at the exact moment Evin fired his. The spheres both hit the exact same spot on Groudon's leg, knocking it out from under him and causing him to crash to the
ground with earth-shattering force.
_ _
With Groudon struggling to regain his feet, I watched as Evin enlarged the Heavy Ball I had given him earlier. Suddenly, the ball began to glow brightly as small sparks started to jump around it, right before he threw the ball straight at Groudon. I watched in doubt as the ball arched through the air and struck Groudon's side, causing the Legendary to dissolve into ruby light and be sucked into the ball. The ball rocked crazily for several moments, and just about the time I was sure it was going to break, it clicked and made the all-clear sound. I stared in speechless shock at the Master Ball in my hand as it shattered, slightly afraid of Evin. If he could catch a Pokémon that had already been caught, he was a huge threat to me, seeing as I was a Pokémon. Then, all thoughts of Evin vanished as I felt the world-corrupting evil of the Revenant's presence wash over us.
_ _
_ _ Evin showed very adverse effects to being in such an evil presence and collapsed to the ground holding his head in pain, while my being a Pokémon allowed me to endure it with little more than a grimace as my adrenalin began to rush through my system, and I could feel Latias' worry for me multiplying a hundredfold as the Revenant's dark form materialized from the shadows, mocking me by clapping as if applauding my performance on some stage set up for it's sick amusement.
"That was an excellent performance. I will simply never tire of watching humans die in the manner that you ended that wretch's life. Your skills and powers are impressive, but they are still infinitesimal to my own. Thus I wonder how it is that you of all people were destined to defeat me. That thing groaning in pain beside you, I could understand if he were the prophesized one; but you? You do not possess anything that is necessarily a threat to me." It said as it clapped, and I glared at the wraith-like form as it boasted of it's own superiority. It's words struck a chord within me though; I was still wondering exactly how I was a threat to it as well, merely being in the presence of the Revenant was enough for it's power to try to force me to subjugate myself to it. Then I did something I regretted; I tried to sense the Revenant's thoughts.
_ _
_ _ I regretted it the instant I delved into the Revenant's mind; I immediately became aware of the overwhelming mental struggle between Evin and the Revenant as it battered at the boy's psyche. Some of this power struggle spilled over into my own mind, and I felt as if I were drowning in evil as I heard the screams and cries of millions of people and Pokémon within the echoes of the Revenant's sharp, piercing mind. I immediately withdrew my mental probe and shuddered as I realized that the Revenant was still watching me closely with an evil smile distorting it's features. I could tell that it found great joy in the torment of others and was pleased with itself by having shown me what it had been doing to Evin since the moment it had first arrived.
"What are you trying to do to him?!" I yelled at it, and the Revenant simply laughed.
"He possesses far too much power to go unchecked. I am going to break him and enslave him to my will, so that the world itself will be doomed to darkness and I will reign supreme over all, as it is only a matter of time before this child's mind breaks." it said, and with that I began to assault the Revenant with everything I had, holding nothing in reserve as Nera, Gardevoir, Reshiram, and Latias all watched from a relatively safe distance. The Revenant laughed as every single one of my attacks blasted through it with no more effect than if I was attacking smoke; aura spheres, psychic attacks, dragon claws, and even ice beams had absolutely no effect as they simply passed through the Revenant as if it didn't exist. Then it launched it's own attack; a huge wave of darkness blasted outwards from it's location, blasting me across the plaza and causing a lot of damage to my body.
Evin, on the other hand, was largely unaffected as his aura shield seemed to be operating of it's own accord, and the Revenant cast a mildly annoyed glance in his direction as it shot a bolt of pure shadow at him. I tried to intercept the attack, but as soon as I got to my feet the Revenant focused on me once more with a myriad of attacks; blades of shadow that sliced whatever they passed through, not unlike my own attack of psychic blades, and bolts of pure shadow that battered at my form until it hurt to even think of moving. As I lay bleeding onto the ground from a myriad of cuts all over my form from the blades of shadow the Revenant had been throwing at me and with my left arm broken, I glanced over to see what was happening with Evin.
The bolt the Revenant had shot at him had been deflected by Evin's barrier again and had blasted a large crater into the ground were it landed not too far away from him. Not a moment later, I watched in surprise as the Revenant's expression change from smug confidence to anger as I felt the balance of power in the area shift slightly. Evin slowly began to stand up, his face beet red from the pain the Revenant had been inflicting upon him since it's arrival, and I wondered if the Revenant had succeeded in breaking his mind and enslaving him to it's will.
"Get out of my head!" Evin yelled as he clutched his head between his hands, and suddenly I sensed a huge influx of power beyond anything I had ever felt before, centered around Evin. Everything around his form was distorting and being crushed from the sheer force and amount of energy bursting out of him, and over the sound of this I heard Evin yell at Reshiram and tell her to attack the Revenant. I honestly wasn't sure what another Legendary could do against the Revenant, seeing as all of my own attacks had simply passed through the dark being. Then I felt a surge of power radiate off of Reshiram as she powered up a Fusion Flare attack, right before unleashing it on the Revenant. I covered my eyes for a moment as a bright flash of fire surrounded the Revenant, and then to my obvious shock I heard the Revenant give an aggravated growl as it had actually been hit by the attack!
I moved my hands to see what had happened to the Revenant, and I smirked as I saw it was on fire and rather enraged as it howled at Reshiram and unleashed a startling barrage of shadow attacks that she was hard-pressed to dodge, taking a few hits as she evaded them. Seeing a small window of opportunity, I slowly picked myself up out of the rubble I was lying on top of, grimacing as my broken left arm hung uselessly at my side as I shot an aura sphere with my other hand that actually hit its mark. Unfortunately, it had the effect of shifting the Revenant's attention to me as well as Reshiram, and now I was having to duck and dodge shadowy attacks as the Revenant began attacking me as well as Reshiram. As we both dodged the dark figures attacks, we rained as many of our own attacks down on it as we could, only to see the Revenant shake them off as if they were nothing, and become ever more aggravated.
As I picked myself up out of yet another pile of rubble I had been blasted into, beginning to feel my strength waning from the sever beating I was taking, Evin's Zoroark came in out of nowhere and bashed the Revenant with Foul Play. To my surprise, the attack hit with such force that it actually knocked the Revenant to pieces, though it proved to be only temporary as its form melted into the shadows and reformed again.
Wow.. Reshiram and that Zoroark make a perfect team for fighting the Revenant; Reshiram's special ability stops the Revenant from being able to pass our attacks through itself, and that Foul Play move becomes just as powerful as the Revenant.. I thought to myself, before looking up as Evin walked over and helped me up out of my pile of rubble. He seemed to be doing fine now, but the Revenant on the other hand seemed to have lost it's mind after being blasted apart. It was busy roaring in the completely opposite direction as it blasted the empty countryside apart, only to stop and block nonexistent attacks before laughing and saying it didn't feel a thing. It didn't appear to have noticed that Evin had helped me up, or that Reshiram was also recovering from the severe beating she had taken. "What the heck is going on?" I asked Evin in confusion.
"Zora has it trapped in an illusion. After being knocked to pieces, it gave her the perfect opportunity to trap it. But for now you need to get recovered. There's no telling how long it will keep being fooled. I just hope it's possible that it can tire itself out." He snickered in response, and I felt a small smile ghost across my features despite myself. I followed Evin's advice as I began to heal myself, wincing a little as the bones in my broken arm popped back into place with an audible crack. The Revenant seemed to be slowly becoming aware however, as it stopped going all-out on the empty countryside. "Beware! It's about to discover the ruse!" Evin yelled just as the attacks stopped completely, and he charged off towards the Revenant while pulling out a strange-looking knife of a style I had never seen before. Just before the illusion trapping the Revenant faded, Evin buried the knife deep into the Revenant's face. I had nearly fully healed myself by that time, but I was completely exhausted as I joined Evin on the battlefield.
Reshiram and Zora also took their places around the Revenant as Evin was perched on the Revenant's shoulders, twisting the knife in it's face. Evin gave a mighty pull on the handle of the knife, and with a snap the blade broke off and lodged in the Revenant's head as it took a swing at Evin with shadowy claws. Evin grimaced as he looked at the ruined knife before throwing it away and hopping off the Revenant's shoulders to join Reshiram, Zora, and myself so that we formed a rough diamond around the evil wraith-like being as it began to howl with mad laughter as the blade fell out of its body.
I initiated the gang attack on the Revenant as I unleashed a powerful Ice Beam, Evin used an aura sphere, and Reshiram used Fusion Flare. Just before the attacks hit, the Revenant unleashed a powerful pulse of darkness that ignited all three attacks away from it. As the smoke cleared, Zora came in and bashed it with Foul Play again and the Revenant was knocked to pieces yet again, but before she could get clear the shadows grabbed her and we all heard the Revenant's mad laughter all around us. IT quickly stopped though as Zora used Night Daze and blasted everything around her, freeing herself from the shadows and retreating over to Evin.
"You damn little pests! I shall destroy you all!" The Revenant snarled, sounding like the most insane person in the world as shadows enveloped Evin and Zora, obscuring them from view. I watched with horror, not entirely sure what was happening to them, but sure that whatever was happening was not good. Once more, I put all my remaining power into forming psychic blades all around the Revenant and blasted it with a powerful aura sphere even as the blades were slicing the shadowy form to pieces. At the same time, Reshiram unleashed another Fusion Flare on it, and for the next three minutes all that could be heard was a groaning wail of agony before it changed to mad laughter. Two dark spheres shot out of the smoking hole that was where the Revenant had been; one hit Reshiram and sent her crashing into the nearby forest, while the other one hit me and blasted me into a wall chest-first and cracking my ribs before I landed in yet another pile of rubble.
The Revenant gave a small chuckle as this happened, and once again its form twisted and reshaped itself back to its original form. Evin and Zora were still enveloped by the dark globe, and now Reshiram was out of the fight as well, lost somewhere in the forest.
It's... over... I'm exhausted... I've got nothing left... I thought to myself; the Revenant was far more powerful than I had ever expected it to be.
"Well that boy is just full of surprises; I'll have to finish dealing with him once I'm done with you!" The Revenant shrieked with laughter, a cruel smile on it's features as it floated towards me; I watched it with a sense of doom, knowing deep down that I was about to die. Just as the Revenant stopped in front of me and raised its arm to unleash another attack on me from point-blank range, I heard the sound of someone running. I looked up, and instantly fear wrapped its icy fingers around my heart as I saw Latias running at the Revenant in human form, before she tried to kick it. The Revenant simply batted her aside as if she was nothing, sending her skidding across the torn apart pavement in front of the Museum. The Revenant laughed once more as it turned back to face me, thrill evident on its shadowy face, and I heard its voice echo in my head.
Pitiful pathetic creatures. Did you really think you would survive a true encounter with me? Even if I haven't gained my full strength yet, can you now see how futile your efforts truly are? And to think some vague prediction names you as being someone or something that would be able to destroy me. You all make me laugh so hard it hurts! It's voice echoed as it gave a cruel smile while I lay on the ground, panting and hacking up blood even as more blood ran from the myriad of wounds I had sustained in the brief and bloody battle.
The fight had barely begun, and it was already over; I had failed to come even close to the amount of power the Revenant wielded. Apparently dismissing me as no longer being a threat for the moment, it turned its attention to Latias, who was glaring at it from where she sat on the ground several feet away; the same spot she had landed in after the Revenant had tossed her aside. Her expression was torn between extremes of fear, rage, and the pain that was leaking across our bond to her; no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't contain all the pain I was feeling at the moment, and some of it was now transferring across to her. I tried desperately to move as the Revenant advanced on Latias, tried to get up, to protect her from this living nightmare.
"N-no..." I said weakly in between hacking coughs that spattered the ground below me a frothy crimson, trying desperately to get to my feet. The Revenant turned back towards me and laughed; that same cruel, cackling, insane laugh that sounded like a long, drawn-out scream of pain, the same laugh that I remembered so well from my nightmare.
There is nothing you can do to save her. You will get to sit there and watch as I slowly, painfully kill your mate, and then I will start in on you. I will rid this world of the foolish notion that I can be defeated once and for all! The Revenant's voice echoed in my head once again as it stopped laughing, shadows beginning to flow across the ground towards it, twisting and twining their way up the fringes of its robes and down its right arm to coalesce into an extremely long, curved blade of pure shadow. The Revenant continued to laugh as it turned away from me and back to Latias, slowly dragging just the tip of the blade along her side, leaving a long, shallow cut. Latias let out a piercing scream as shadowy chains erupted from the ground and bound her in place tightly so she couldn't move.
"NO!!" I yelled as I felt her pain added to my own through our bond, and I redoubled my efforts to get up, almost managing to make it to my feet. Just before I could stand however, shadowy chains burst from the ground and wrapped themselves around me, slamming me back to the ground and breaking my already cracked ribs, causing me to yell in pain as I hacked up more blood. The chains bound my form to the ground tightly as I struggled against them with all my strength as the Revenant slashed Latias' side again, this time a little deeper as it cackled with glee at its sick game. "I SAID NO DAMN YOU! LEAVE HER ALONE, IT'S ME YOU WANT!!" I yelled with all my strength as I continued to struggle against the shadowy chains constraining me, and the Revenant simply turned back and pointed at me, and a gag of pure shadow wormed its way over my mouth, covering it so that I could barely breathe, let alone yell through it.
The shadowy gag was the foulest smelling and tasting thing ever; and it succeeded in keeping my mouth clogged to the point where I wanted to vomit from the taste. Satisfied that I would no longer be yelling at it, the Revenant turned its attention back to Latias and opened another gash, this one right along her cheek just under her eye. I yelled as best I could through the gag as Latias let out another scream, but the gag contained all the sound and again I wanted to vomit as the taste of the gag was coupled with the nauseating amount of pain I was feeling; both from myself and from Latias.
I SAID, LEAVE HER ALONE!! I yelled at the Revenant telepathically, sure that that was one way that I would not be able to stop me from yelling. To my surprise, the Revenant actually flinched a little, and for the first time since our battle had begun, two burning, blood-red dots appeared underneath the hood that were its eyes.
"You are quickly becoming tiresome, Chosen One...," It said. As soon as I heard it say that, I began to struggle even more desperately as the Revenant glared down at Latias and continued, "I think the time has come to end this pitiful female's life." I watched in utter horror as the Revenant raised its blade high overhead and prepared to swing towards Latias' neck, but at the last moment before it swung I turned away, unable to bear the sight of that evil blade beheading my beloved mate.
Retreating deep within myself, at first I found only anger; all-consuming, burning, raging fury against the Revenant for hurting everyone around me, everyone I cared about, especially Latias. But then the rage was gone, extinguished without a trace by a tide of overwhelming sadness and a sense of failure; I had failed, and now the world was going to be plunged into darkness for all of eternity. At that moment, I had lost all hope that I would find some way out of this and save everyone, and sadness for myself and Latias bit deep into my soul; sadness for the family I had one day hoped we would have together, and now we would never know.
Then, in that moment, I felt something deep within my mind; a sort of stirring, as if something long-buried was waking for the first time. Suddenly, it began to expand at an astounding rate, quickly becoming a raging torrent of power that far surpassed anything else I had ever felt from within myself before. It exploded throughout my entire body, from head to toe, and made me feel as if I had been hit by lightning. I let out a loud cry and arched my back, opening my eyes as whatever power this was became yet more powerful, and time seemed to have slowed down or stopped entirely. I looked on in surprise and wonder as a bright, powerful flash of light exploded out of my body and obliterated the shadowy chains and gag constraining me, turning them into shrieking wisps of darkness that slowly dissipated.
Feeling a strange, rather feathery weight all over my body and an even stranger weight in my right hand, I looked over and gasped as I saw a long, gracefully curved blade of pure white light shimmering in my grip. Then my jaw dropped in astonishment as I saw that the rest of my body was completely encased from head to toe within graceful, shimmering armor, all made entirely of light. I looked away from the strange sight of the armor and blade and back to the Revenant, still poised over Latias with its blade raised high, frozen in time like a bug in amber, and I instantly understood what this power had woken for; it was how I would defeat the Revenant and save Latias.
As time began move once more, I focused on the spot where the Revenant was swinging its blade towards Latias. Focusing solely on that one spot, I felt a curious sensation; like how I imagined lightning must feel as it seared its way towards the ground, if lightning could feel of course. With no warning, I was suddenly standing right in front of the Revenant with just enough time to raise my own blade of light to block the slash of the Revenant's blade of shadows. The blades met with a curious sound; a combination of a hiss and a clear, vibrant ringing that persisted and echoed strangely for as long as they touched. I glared at the Revenant as we crossed blades, and for the first time I saw what might have been doubt in its stance, and to a lesser degree felt fear in its aura.
"You will not touch her again!" I snarled at the Revenant through gritted teeth as I gave a mighty shove against the Revenant's sword, the curious hissing ring of our blades fading slowly into oblivion as the Revenant was sent skidding backwards across the torn apart pavement from the force of my shove. I growled at the Revenant as we now glared at each other as equals; light on the one side, and darkness on the other. Before attempting anything else, I turned back to Latias and swiftly slashed through the chains that bound her to the ground, and they dissipated with shrieking wails as they dissipated into nothingness. "Go. Get away from here. It's too powerful for you to stay here with me." I said, and though she looked quite unhappy about it, she nodded before standing up and kissing me before running back towards Slateport holding her wounds.
Latias rejoined the others at the edge of the plaza, and I noticed for the first time the large group of stunned onlookers included not just Latias, Gardevoir, Nera, Jace, Raikou, Entei, and Blaziken, but also all the Rangers, police, and even the few other Trainers that had been helping liberate the city. They were all staring at the Revenant and myself with pole-axed expressions as they watched powers so far beyond them being wielded like toys on a playground. I turned back to the Revenant and started to slowly walk in its direction, my shimmering blade at the ready as I watched its burning red eyes.
"You think you can defeat me? So you can manipulate light the same way I manipulate shadows and you can teleport like so many other Psychic-types; so what! You will never defeat me!" the Revenant growled at me, and I took advantage of its moment of arrogance to use my new teleportation ability to appear directly in front of it and slash at its torso. Fast as I now was, however, the Revenant was still faster; it simply melted into a pool of shadow and dispersed, flowing across the ground in a myriad of directions. A mixture of aggravation and relief flooded my system as I watched the Revenant flee, and I cursed.
"If I can't defeat you and I never will, then why are you running?" I said calmly, smiling a little as I now knew I controlled a power that the Revenant feared, and it was obviously afraid of me. Or at least of the power I had unwittingly called upon. Suddenly, I felt very tired, and I watched in fascination as the armor and blade shimmered and disappeared in a small flash of light. As the individual motes of light dispersed, I put a hand up to my ribs and pushed gingerly, expecting to end up hacking more blood onto the already blood-soaked ground. To my surprise however, I felt no pain whatsoever, and I looked down to see that every cut, bruise, scrape, and broken bone I had suffered while fighting had been completely healed, all without conscious effort. I was so absorbed in what I was doing that I was startled when Latias ran up and tackled me into a hug, wrapping her arms around me tightly.
Is it gone love? I smiled and hugged her back just as tightly as I began to heal the cuts along her side and the one under her eye.
"Yes, I believe it is. It's gone, at least for now..." I said, then I finally remembered Evin, and I looked over to see what had happened to him. I distinctly remembered the Revenant saying it would have to finish him once it was done with me, but I wasn't sure what that meant as the last remnants of darkness finally dissipated, revealing Evin on his knees, holding his Zoroark as his cracked shields finally began to fade. "That kid from before, he has some massive power. He actually hurt the Revenant badly for a moment with something he did. He isn't an ordinary person... not by a long shot." I remarked as I watched him for a moment.
Do you think he's okay? Latias asked, and I grimaced.
"I'm not sure. The Revenant was focused on breaking his mind so it could enslave him, so there's no telling what it did to him. Though from the sound of it, that kid stumped the Revenant good when it said it would have to take care of him after it was done with us... speaking of us, where is Reshiram?" I asked, and we both looked in the direction Reshiram had fallen, seeing smoke coming from the trees and I wondered if she could have survived the blast. Jace and the others slowly filed over to where Latias and I were sitting, though none of them went to go see if Evin was okay, and I could sense that they were rather afraid of him. I, on the other hand, wasn't about to sit on my ass just because I was tired.
Latias and I stood slowly, the others following as we walked over to where Evin was being verbally assaulted and growled at by his Zoroark, upset by the fact that Evin had not warned her of the fight they were getting into beforehand. It was a good thing she was talking in poke-speak, seeing as she was saying some rather rude things and calling him names I was sure he wouldn't appreciate very much. Evin rolled his head on his shoulders as we approached, looking totally exhausted from the ordeal he had just been through.
"What in the hell happened? My head feels like a rhino has been sitting on it after keeping that shield up for so long." he mumbled in a tired tone, and we just sort of looked at each other, trying to figure out what the heck a rhino was. For a moment, all Evin did was look around for a moment before looking back down at us and getting a peculiar expression. "In a way, I sort of envy you all for being from this world, because at least you all mostly know what's going on. I on the other hand, am still asking myself the same question since I first got here..." he continued, his expression suddenly devoid of emotion or motivation as he stared at us before looking back up at the sky. I walked over and offered him a hand, which he took and I helped him regain his feet, noticing as I did so that his eyes were bloodshot, I assumed from the intense mental struggle he had been having with the Revenant.
"Where is Reshiram?" he finally asked as the thought seemed to pop into his head, and we all just pointed at the smoking trees in the forest. He cursed under his breath and finally told Zora to be quiet, as she was still muttering angrily at him. "Zora, can you go over there and see if Reshiram is okay? I do kind of not want to go for a walk at the moment."
"Oh no! I'm not leaving you here in this condition! She will be fine until you can get up to go get her yourself." Zora said, and Evin just sighed, before trying to take a step and stopping with a groan of pain. Then his expression went slightly blank, and I felt him lower the mental barriers he had erected around his mind during our fight with the Revenant and reach out with his thoughts to contact Reshiram. I didn't pay any attention to what they said however, feeling as if it would be rude and an invasion of their privacy to eavesdrop. After a moment, he blinked and shook his head slightly as he ended the link to Reshiram.
"She's not in any immediate danger. Her pride seems to have suffered a harder blow than her body, so she just doesn't want to talk right now." I watched with slight amusement as Zora smirked and almost laughed, before seeming to think better of laughing at a powerful Legendary.
So what do we do now? she asked, and Evin's expression went blank again as he tilted his head to the side.
"For now, we just do what we have to until the ship that Dawn and Rika are on arrives. Rika has already sensed my presence, but after my recent fight with the Revenant, I think she's too busy going nuts to even know what my thoughts are now. Right now I also need and ice pack for my head; my brain is still feeling overwhelmed after what that thing tried to do."
** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ **
Alright, for those of you that didn't get this before, all characters belong to their respective owners. This was a co-op chapter between myself and Secret shadow, who writes his own story under the title Journey of the Chosen. As per usual, read, review, comment, as long as it is constructive. And also as per usual (you know it's coming):
Trolls will be shot on sight.
Flames will be used to make s'mores, and then will be deleted.
Thank you
~Zeraxen Sar'athin