[Cabot] Cradle High Seas

[Namohysip]

The ocean waves roared in Cabot's ears. Cold ocean spray roused him from slumber, though a brutal headache--and that meant a lot, for a species like him--plagued him. Chilly winds and dark skies meant he was in the middle of a storm... But what happened? How did he get there?

Water brushed against his tail. He wasn't on a boat--he was on part of one. Driftwood. A shipwreck. And no island in sight to swim to.

The skies twirled with the signs of an incoming storm, streaks of red drifting between the clouds being the only indicator that something was not right. And far above those clouds was a great silhouette with glowing, red eyes and great, wide wings. Next to him, shadowy and oddly familiar shapes drifted face-down in the water. A Sandslash, an extinguished Ponyta, even a Clawitzer lay completely motionless in the water.

The figure in the sky was descending toward Cabot, the lone survivor of the shipwreck.

 

[Virgil134]

Cabot groaned, clutching his head as he slowly tried to get up. As soon as he did he felt his began head spin, prompting him to sit down instead.

What... happened? He remembered riding on Maple's back, with Pleo flying close by. They were gonna... fight someone... Eien. Right. They were on their way to fight Eien, when they got caught in the storm, and then... he fell.

Was this the Sea of Wonders then? But if that was the case, then why was there driftwood everywhere? And more importantly, where was-

"H-Huh?!"

Cabot's eyes widened when he noticed the Pokémon drifting face-down in the water besides him. A Ponyta, a Sandslash, a Clawitzer... the same type of Pokémon as his best friends and his captain! There's no way that could be a coincidence right?! But they were all back home, safe and sound, so who were these Pokémon and how did they get here?!

"H-Hold on!"

The Rampardos began to pull the Pokémon out of the water, starting with the Clawitzer who was closest to him. He leaned in to check the Clawitzer for signs of life, when a dark shadow fell over him. Cabot looked up which was when he finally noticed it.

There, all the way up in the sky was a great, winged silhouette with red eyes descending towards him. Cabot stared slack jawed and got back up on his feet, the earlier headache being nothing but afterthought now. Even if the silhouette was clearly too big, between the familiar shape and his shade having gone missing, could it be...

"Pleo? Is that you?"

 

[Namohysip]

Lifeless. Those shady creatures in the water were completely motionless, no signs of life whatsoever. The only other living thing in this part of the sea was Cabot... and the great leviathan above. Twisting waterspouts churned the ocean and sent saltwater over Cabot's raft; the darkening skies parted just enough to reveal a much larger Pleo with a sparkling, cracked Core in his chest.

"You... you just wanted to use me," Pleo said. "You and your... team... all you ever wanted was to use me for your empire! Take me from my home... take me from my friends... and then take away my self! You couldn't have the real Pleo... so then you made me!"

Winds kicked up. Pleo curled up and prepared for a dive-bomb attack.

"I'm not gonna fall for it anymore!"

Pleo is attacking!
Pleo: 1000

 

[Virgil134]

Cabot blanched and stared at Pleo in complete shock, stumbling over his own words as he tried to say something in response. Just before leaving Destiny Tower, Pleo had been nothing but kind and affectionate to him, so this was the last thing he would have expected his Shade to ever say to him!

"Wha... N-No! Th-That's not true!" the Rampardos cried. "We didn't want to use you, we wanted you to be our Protector! To reunite Anyilla and bring peace again! A-And when I noticed how sad you were feeling I proposed to Captain Nugget to let you go, and-"

Cabot abruptly stopped as he noticed Pleo kept on going and was now seconds away from striking him. With the piece of driftwood he was on offering barely any room to move out of the way, he braced himself for Pleo's attack by hastily taking a seed out of his bag and biting down on it.

Cabot used an Abyssal Seed! He gained +6 Defense and Resistance and became immune to the first three critical hits!

 

[Namohysip]

Pleo used Aeroblast on Cabot, dealing 145 damage! Cabot is Staggered!

Instantly, all of the driftwood around Cabot had become even thinner, and he was sent flying into the water with now-smaller pieces and fragments of the boat to climb onto. If this kept up, Cabot would run out of stable footing entirely...

Pleo roared once the winds stopped, his glowing red eyes searching for the Rampardos in the water. To Cabot's luck, his coloration made it more difficult to find immediately in the water. Instead, Pleo shouted at the water, "Oh, not using me? You were only stealing me away from my home, the ones who actually needed a Protector! You weren't using me? Only for power, uniting Anyilla under YOUR empire!"

Pleo's eyes locked onto Cabot. He was preparing something else; this one looked like it was going to be a beam of water.

"You wanted my power! That's all! You're the Bad Guys!"

Pleo's attacks are getting a little more accurate...
Pleo: 1,000

 

[Virgil134]

Cabot surfaced and latched onto another piece of driftwood, coughing up some seawater. After a brief moment to catch his breath, he looked at Pleo wide-eyed.

"B-But it's not just about your powers! I always cared about how you were feeling too!" the Rampardos insisted. "That's why I delivered that letter to your friends when you were at the palace! That's why I refused to fight you on Haipheh! That's why I helped convince Captain Nugget to let you go, so you could go back to Tromba and do what's right for everyone and not just us!"

He continued to stare at Pleo, before speaking up softly. "Don't you remember?"

Tears began to form in the corner of Cabot's eyes as Pleo's words about him being a bad guy kept ringing in his head. After everything that happened, did Pleo really feel that way about him? Even if this wasn't the same Pleo as the one back home, he and his shade were so close to each other before going into this storm, so why-

Wait, that storm!

Cabot glanced at the streaks of red in sky, before looking back at Pleo's sparkling core. He knew the Ultra Shades were connected to Eien, so was all of this because of her? Was the storm affecting Pleo and causing him to lash out? Just like... Just like the Shadow Machine had done to him in Shaymin Village...?

Cabot shook his head and climbed onto the driftwood, before standing up, wiping away his tears and shooting Pleo a now determined look.

"Pleo, please listen to me! Eien and that storm are messing with your head! We're friends, and I know you'd never want to hurt me on purpose, no matter how upset you are!"

A bright, golden glow enveloped Cabot as small floating rocks appeared to form a protective barrier around him, the Rampardos shifting his stance as he got ready to endure Pleo's next attack.

Cabot used Brilliant Invigorate! He gained +6 Evasion and +6 Attack!
Net stamina: -64
Net corruption: +80 Radiance

"I know this isn't you, so please try to fight this!"

 

[Namohysip]

"How can I know?!" Pleo countered immediately.

Pleo used Hydro Pump on Cabot, but he dodged it!
Pleo's attacks became more accurate!

"You... you just followed orders! What would happen if your leaders didn't listen? Would you... have followed along?!" He pointed at Nagant's hazy body. "What if all of my memories... are just from your side? What if they're all wrong?! I don't even know how scared the real Pleo must be!"

Pleo is readying another strike...
The waters are getting rougher...
Two ships are in the far distance.

"Prove it! Prove... that you're really my friend!"

Pleo: 1,000

 

[Virgil134]

Cabot bit his tongue, too focused on Pleo to notice the approaching ships. It was true, his Shade had inherited all his memories from him, not the real Pleo. But what should he say in response? Just because those memories were from his perspective, didn't mean they were all wrong, were they?

The Rampardos breathed in deeply. He just... needed to clear his head and think for a moment.

Cabot Focused!
Net corruption: -20 Radiance
Net stamina: +64

"... You're right. All the memories you have from the Cradle are how I experienced things," Cabot began. "There really is no way for us to know how the real Pleo was feeling or how scared he was."

He looked down at the surrounding waves for a moment, before turning back to Pleo and continuing on. "But that doesn't mean there's anything wrong with those memories. You know what I was thinking and how I felt during all of that, so you should also know that I mean it when I say that I care about both you and the Pleo back home. Besides, I couldn't bring myself to hurt you on Haipheh and refused to attack you, even when our friends were fighting. If I would have followed along, I wouldn't have done that, would I?"

"I don't know how you want me to prove that I'm your friend, but whatever it is, I'll do it," the Rampardos insisted. "I'm here for you, Pleo."

 

[Namohysip]

Pleo squawked a little, trying to find Cabot again, expecting an attack to land on him. But none came. His red eyes scanned the water and zeroed in on Cabot again. "I... I don't know!" Pleo said. "I don't know what would have happened if... if you were ordered! If they were watching, what would you do? Are... are you a soldier... or are you my friend?! I don't know!"

The ships drew closer. On both, there were countless hazy figures. On one, an Aggron led the charge, pointing at Pleo while they readied something on the boat. On the other, a Samurott, barking orders to the crew as they readied odd cannon-like structures on the ships...

Pleo is conflicted. His guard is down!
Pleo: 1,000

 

[Virgil134]

"I'm both a soldier and your friend," Cabot said. "The Empire means a lot to me, and I'm proud to serve in the Royal Navy, but that doesn't mean I'll hurt you just because they order me to. I first started getting doubts about it all when I saw how miserable you were in the palace. It just felt wrong. I've been here in Cibus for months at this point, so I've had plenty of time to think about it and what I would do if I got ordered to capture you now. And the truth is that I'd refuse. Even if they'd discharge me from the navy, I wouldn't care. It'd be the right thing to do. I'm not gonna fight that Pleo and especially not you."

The Rampardos hesitated a moment, before continuing on. "The Pleo back home is my friend and I care a lot about him, but at this point the two of us have spent even more time together than me and that other Pleo have. You're more than just some copy of him, and you're more than just my friend, you're... you're my son. And I'd do anything in the world to protect you."

Cabot called out to Pleo!

Cabot's eyes suddenly widened when he finally noticed the two ships. One appeared to be a Company vessel, while the other seemed to belong to... the group of pirates that tried to capture Pleo back home?

But he and Pleo were still in Cibus! Surely these ships had to be illusions, right? Then again, the illusions of his dead friends felt real, so if the same applied to any attacks fired from those ships...

"Pleo, look out! Behind you!"

 

[Namohysip]

Pleo's crimson eyes scrutinized Cabot with every word, but they softened over time. He had been readying an attack, ready to blast Cabot into the ocean depths... but something seemed to click. Something Cabot said must have jostled loose memories and thoughts and, for a precious moment, Pleo's eyes flickered to their normal color, and he was lucid. Just in time to hear Cabot's warning.

"Huh?!"

Pleo spun around, but then squawked again and dive-bombed the ground. The pirate ship fired first--it looked like it had been some kind of strange harpoon, or maybe another oversea weapon meant to down large creatures or ships. It grazed Pleo's wings, clipping one and sending him spiraling into the sea. A well-aimed Aeroblast softened the water when he landed.

Sailing over Pleo's head was an ominous capture sphere--it resembled an Apricorn of Cabot's world. The harpoon and Apricorn volleys went overhead in a wide arc; had Pleo not been warned, or had Pleo still been in a rage... those would have hit him.

But instead, they sailed over each other. The company ship and the pirate ship, on opposite sides of the sea, shouted and scrambled against each other. The harpoon struck the Company ship, tearing a massive hole in the hull; the volley of Apricorns landed on the pirate ship, which had gone eerily silent.

Both ships began to sail adrift... And Pleo rose from the sea on his back, coughing out seawater. He couldn't fly. He could barely swim. But he was afloat...

The storms calmed with Pleo's heart, even as his core broke apart in his chest...

 

[Virgil134]

Cabot stared with his mouth agape as the two ships took each other out, before snapping back to reality as Pleo surfaced on his back. He looked down at the now much calmer sea and hesitated a moment, before shaking his head and looking back at Pleo.

"Pleo! Hold on!"

The Rampardos jumped into the sea, ignoring the discomfort the water gave him and he swam over towards Pleo. As soon as Cabot got close to him he began to fumble with his bag, careful not to lose any of its contents, before pulling out his Sitrus Berry and offering it to Pleo.

 

[Namohysip]

Pleo pushed the berry back, and instead reached a wing out to provide the Rampardos with a proper spot to stand. Pleo really was huge now... It may not last long, but was this what Pleo would eventually become once he was fully grown? Would that be long after Cabot was old and gone?

"It's okay..." Pleo tried to smile. The red lights in his eyes were flickering out again. "I think... it's time. Sorry for the trouble, but... I think it's over. I..." He held a breath, then nodded. "...She's going..."

The red disappeared. Pleo went limp; the core dissolved completely. But then, finally, Pleo felt like himself again.

 

[Virgil134]

Cabot's eyes widened once again upon seeing Pleo go limp, prompting him to hastily climb onto him.

"Pleo! Are you okay? Please say something!"

Pleo stirred and slowly opened his eyes, before giving back a weak nod.

"I-I'm alright... I'm myself again..."

Cabot let out a sigh of relief, before flopping down onto Pleo's belly out of exhaustion. "That's good to hear..."

For a moment the two just laid there as Pleo drifted in the water, enjoying their brief moment of rest until the Lugia craned his head towards Cabot and began to speak up.

"I'm sorry about everything... I don't know why I acted like that..."

Cabot blinked in surprise, before sitting upright and giving Pleo a reassuring look.

"Hey, it's okay. You've got nothing to apologize for," the Rampardos insisted. "Eien and that storm were messing with your head this whole time."

"B-But, I hurt you..." Pleo said as tears began to form in the corner of his eyes.

"You don't have to worry that, I really am okay," the Rampardos said, before spreading his arms and leaning back a bit so Pleo could size him up. "See? I'm not that injured. Besides, you did a lot better then when I lost control of myself. All that matters to me is that you're safe."

Cabot stood up and embraced Pleo's head, nuzzling his child in order to comfort him. After a few seconds, Cabot noticed Pleo started to feel a little better, prompting him to let go and step back with a small smile.

"Though, I'll have to get used to you being so big," he chuckled.

"I think I can change back to how I used to be," Pleo murmured, before tilting his head. "Do you think I should?"

"Well, I think you should be whatever size you're most comfortable with, though if you're unsure you can always stay big for now to see how you like it and change back later," Cabot replied. "That said, as long as you're like this I could ride on your back, which will make getting out of here a bit easier. We should join the others as soon as you feel like you can fly again."

Cabot took out the Sitrus Berry again and offered it to Pleo, prompting the Lugia to stare at it for a moment before nodding back.

"Right! Let's go help everyone out."

 

[Namohysip]

In the open ocean, it was difficult to see any proper landfall. The skies were clearing, though, and that let them deduce where the storm was at its worst--and, therefore, where surely Eien and the others were fighting. While Pleo may shrink if he wished later, his size would prove to be a great boon for this flight onward; their arrival would be swift.

As they flew, a new power awakened within them both.

Cabot's Eternal Spirit awakened!
"Sail the high seas!" - Once per battle, Cabot can move to an adjacent zone as a free action. When he does so, anyone in any zone he touches can travel with him as a free action; Cabot himself and those who travel with him gain a 25% damage reduction for that turn.