Pokémon Journey

[canisaries]

Hey there! It's been a long, long time since my last review, but I did some recapping from my notes and I believe I remember enough not to be lost. Also, I actually already read and took notes of this chapter (8) way back, but didn't get around to reviewing, so that works as additional recap for me. Either way, let's get to it.

They'd lost their mother. I didn't know about any of the other marowak, but I had a sinking feeling that none of them had made it onto that chopper. I wasn't going to just release them. That would be a death sentence out here. Without a marowak to lead them, they didn't stand a chance in the wild. And as selfish as it was, I didn't want to let Acolyte go so early. I reasoned to myself that he wasn't ready to lead yet. I knew the selfish truth behind that lie. I just didn't want to lose my newest pokemon.

It's a bit odd that it's established that he selfishly didn't want to let Acolyte go, then stated that he reasoned that Acolyte wasn't ready to lead yet (unselfish reason), and then said again that the truth was actually selfish, which we already knew. Repetition isn't necessarily a problem, but it reads strangely when it comes across as an attempt to say something new to the audience despite it already being established.

Very minor thing, by the way, if you didn't notice, but I think it could make the sequence run a little more smoothly.

The elder professor sighed and I heard a long pause. "I was afraid of this day," he said. "It is not a happy day to lose a pokemon. How is he managing?"

"I'm not really sure, sir. I was injured in the incident and he left shortly after we arrived in Lavender. He hasn't really said anything about it."

Oak sighed heavily through the phone. "So much like his father, internalizing everything." I heard him mumble under his breath and couldn't make out the words. "Well, in any case, thank you. If there's anything I can do to help you at this time, please let me know."

Another minor thing in the same vein - sighing happens twice in quick succession, and I would have had it be acknowledged by saying "sighed again". That does get rid of the "heavily", but it can also be changed into "Oak sighed again ('through the phone' seems like an unnecessary addition), more heavily this time".

I left that place, only pausing to look back once. Blue was still standing there, looking down at the marker. A boy in a red training jacket and hat had joined him, both of them staring down at the marker in silence. I turned back, leaving the grieving trainers behind.

OMG THERE HE IS

"Please, Acolyte," I begged. "Please don't.

Missing ending quote.

He backed off, but kept his cold gaze on me. "Bah, this is why I don't work with other divisions. You're all a bunch of softhearted shits. No spine when it comes time to put the screws to your mark"

Missing period (or exclamation point, possibly) at the end of the quote.

---

As a person, I was happy to see the cubone crisis solved quickly, but as a reader, it felt pretty quick and convenient. This and the fact that the pickup was given "screentime" actually made me think that the person picking them up was working for Rocket, and I kept this impression up until it seemed to be deconfirmed by Vicious and Domino. Of course, it's still possible that it's a faction of Rocket they don't know about or another team entirely, but I'm taking their statement at face value for now. I do think that even then there actually isn't any problem in the dramatic structure, since we see that Marcus handing off the cubone continued to be relevant and had negative consequences for him, so it makes sense for the handoff to be written out, as it makes the reader remember it better.

I really liked the exchange between Marcus and Blue. I thought it was quite emotional, and it's cool that Marcus' kindness sort of gets "rewarded" with the moon stone, not that I think anyone should only be nice to people in hope of rewards - it's just a nice turn of events.

The Surge scene also changes up the playing field in an exciting way - someone other than Marcus now knows about the extortion, and it's a powerful ally.

That's it for my thoughts this time around, I think! Good luck writing onward, and see you around.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Heya, it took a while, but I’m finally coming around for that review exchange that we agreed to back in January. I noticed that I actually didn’t review Chapter 4 of this story yet, so I’ll be throwing it into the pile of chapters that I agreed to get through as a freebie:

Chapter 4

Spoiler: Line-by-Line

The first badge is difficult. The second? Well, there's a reason so many trainers wash out of the League. — Leader Volkner Denzi of Sunnyshore City​

Oh yeah, that’s a good omen for how Marcus’ Gym Challenge is going to go this chapter. /s

Even if I’ll admit that I’m a tad surprised that we’re seeing quotes from Sinnohan Gym Leaders when all the action in this story AFAIK will be in Kanto.

I stared intently at the catalogue, reading the prices with dismay. Gemma had suggested that we take a look at the trainer's market for a technical machine. I had no clue how they worked, but they could impart certain techniques into the minds of pokemon.

I take it that Silph Co are a bunch of anti-consumer bastards that refuse to sell reusable TMs in Kanjoh, huh? Unless you just rolled with the take that Pen/Pokédollars aren’t scaled to Yen in value.

Luna's list teased me with possibilities. Agility, an ability could increase her speed even more than her usual quick attacks did. Hex, a ghost technique that targeted injuries like burns and used them to inflict as much pain as possible. Then, the one that I couldn't take my eyes off, energy ball. A grass technique that would give us a legitimate weapon against Misty. It wasn't an instant win, but it could turn the battle in my favour.

Setting aside the lampshading by the Volkner quote, I actually wonder if STAB is a known thing that exists in this setting, since if so, that’s a sign that Marcus didn’t exactly research a whole lot about Pokémon battles before going out into the field. Since… uh… yeah, literally the only thing going for him on his present team against Misty if she’s got that Starmie is that canonically she doesn’t bust out Psychic moves on it for a 2-badge match. Oh, and Curie might be able to pull some baby antics if the story cuts him a break, which I’m not holding my breath on.

The list for my newest pokemon just baffled my mind. Ice beam and blizzard, shadow claw, and the most interesting of all thunderbolt and thunder. My mind danced with the ideas of forcing Misty onto her back foot with moves that would never be expected. Then I looked at the prices and sighed with all the earned frustration of a poor man in a rich world.

Misty’s Starmie: “Lol. Lmao.”

Perhaps if I'd had a sponsor I could have decked my team out. With my half of the bounty we had claimed, I could afford one. Only one. Only one counter to Misty. I sighed heavily. One wasn't going to win me the battle by itself and I was having serious doubts about my chances since the video session I'd had with Gemma in the morning.

I suppose that that’s a sign to review the tapes of how Misty handles challengers in your bracket, even if I strongly doubt that throwing Energy Ball on Luna will go anywhere since at least your Nidorino from last chapter won’t keel over and die from getting soaked.

"What do you think?" I asked, turning to Gemma. I showed her the page with my heart torn.

She scanned the page, looking over from her own catalogue of organic supplements and enhancements. "Why not both?" She said, knowing what I was torn between without asking. She shrugged. "Hell, I'll even buy a few of them for you."

Marcus:

I pulled the catalogue back. "Fine, I won't ask."

I was sick of charity and despite everything I tried, Gemma was insistent. I slammed the catalogue shut, making my choice and handing my order slip to the clerk.

I turned to look at Gemma and sighed as she scribbled a hasty pair of additions to her own slip. "I hate feeling like this, Gemma. I don't like you buying everything for me."

Not that you should really be looking a gift horse in the mouth right now, but why is Gemma being this generous to Marcus anyways? Does he remind her of a buddy she had that died from being cheap or something?

She shrugged. "I already told you money wasn't a problem for me. Consider it a loan, if it bothers you that much." She passed her slip to the clerk. "You can pay me me back in installments, no interest."

Couple of typos in this paragraph here.

I glared at her with frustration obvious on my face. "Gemma, seriously I don't want it. Use it on one of your pokemon or something." I crossed my arms and turned to take the small disk from the clerk. "I'm not going to just TM my way to victory."

[ ]

"Suit yourself, Novice." She took the three disks she had chosen and slipped them into a case in her bag. "Don't cry to me if she wipes the floor with you. You don't have a single counter to any of her pokemon."

I kinda wonder if we should’ve seen a bit more of Gemma’s reaction to Marcus here. For example, is she taking this in stride? Is she visibly annoyed that Marcus is pushing away her help here?

I sighed as we left the market. "Like I'm gonna just let that happen."

I mean, considering the opening quote to this chapter, Marcus… ^^;

"It's not about what you'll let happen," she retorted. "The second gym badge is the first real test of the gym challenge. It might still be a novice challenge, but it's intended to weed out the truly interested from the pretenders."

She crossed her arms and looked at me as we exited onto the street.

"Earning your first badge is easy. Your second?" She trailed off and I caught a far off look in her eyes. "It's meant to test what you're made of. It's meant to push you to the breaking point, to show you that you aren't invincible and force you to overcome some adversity."

I feel like this paragraph should be hacked up into a few smaller ones. Though not that Gemma’s advice doesn’t make sense in context, but it’s fairly similar in premise to Volkner’s quote in the opening. I wonder if there’s something that he could’ve said that would be a bit more materially different in nuance.

I smirked and the motion brought a twinge of pain to my still recovering nose. "Good thing that I've already learned that," I said with a dry tone. "Heaven forbid she send out a paras. I might collapse in fear."

She punched me in the arm, scowling. "Don't be a sarcastic little shit. Do you know the numbers?"

Small punctuation error here. And yeah, Marcus really is tempting all the fate right now.

I nodded, shit-eating grin still plastered on my face. "Less than half of all trainers manage to make it to their third badge, a quarter of those dropping out due to significant injury to their pokemon. I know what the odds are." I shrugged, unconcerned with the path I'd chosen. "I know what I want and I know what I have to do to earn it."

Yeesh, no wonder the entrance to Brock’s battlefield smelled of blood if one in eight Gym Challengers has a Pokémon mained or killed in battle by their third gym. I’m beginning to see how Plasma developed a following in this story’s analogue to B1W1 times.

Gemma smirked knowingly. "We'll see about that." She pushed a pair of TMs towards me, one green, one electric yellow. "For now, listen to someone who knows better. Sometimes, you just have to TM your way through a fight."

I can already tell that these TMs are going to be the sole reason why Marcus doesn’t get immediately curbstomped by Misty this chapter.

Introducing ourselves to my newest team member turned out to be a chore in its own right. After turning in from a hard day of training, I spent half the night researching training methods. Most of the league registered nido were trained from near-birth. Pack instincts were incredibly hard to break once ingrained in the mind of a pokemon and my new team member had fought me to the point of exhaustion. I couldn't find damn near anything about training freshly caught nidorino, save for a few warning videos where the nidorino gored the trainer.

Oh boy, does Marcus know how to pick his teammates there. I’m beginning to understand how he winds up having problems later down the road with Savage.

Fortunately, I knew one potential way to establish a relationship with my new pokemon. Nidos were pack animals. I had to kick its ass and establish myself as the alpha of his new pack. I wasn't entirely happy about that either. Something felt wrong with beating a creature that I'm damn sure was at least as smart as I was.

By the time the sun rose on the next day, my eyes were bleary and my head was splitting. I grabbed a coffee on my way out of the crappy motel I'd checked into at and met Gemma at the north gate of Cerulean.

Ah yes, the power of friendship™ in action. /s

I mean, considering how your Nidorino literally just tried to kill you the other day, I’m less concerned about the ass-kicking and more about whether or not you’re really going to be able to keep him in line, Marcus. Since this feels like a recipe for your Nidorino to wind up snapping out of resentment and goring you to death one day when he feels like trying to shake up that “pack hierarchy”.

We crossed the bridge out of town and passed by the now-empty tourney grounds. We kept to the route for the most part, only ducking off the route to keep away from other trainers when we'd left Cerulean far behind. I had Gemma stay upwind and out of sight. I needed the nidorino to respect me, not Gemma. I wouldn't be able to gain that respect if I had Gemma looming over my shoulder with her fearsome machamp. Hell, I would just be setting myself up for an ambush once I wasn't around her.

I mean, considering how it’s most likely Luna that’s going to be doing the honors, aren’t you just going to have the same issue the moment Luna’s not around to hold down the fort?

I raised the ball on my belt, Luna standing resolutely at my side. I glanced down at her and gave her my most confident smile. "Ready for this?"

She planted her feet and growled in agreement.

I raised the ball and set the auto-return function. It'd return the nidorino if he attempted to flee and got more than thirty feet from me. I tapped the release button, waiting for my newest pokemon to appear.

Huh. Wouldn’t have thought about that being a thing on Pokéballs, but it does make sense for a harder-edged setting like this. Especially for trainers getting a handle on their Pokémon that they haven’t worked out the “don’t set the neighbor’s porch on fire when you’re angry” kinks yet.

He materialized in a flash of red light, his head held low. He was small, much smaller than I remembered. Either he was a runt or he had just evolved from his nidoran stage. I had probably been one of his first real battles, and I had thoroughly embarrassed him in front of his pack before stealing him away.

So… yeah, great recipe for him actually following instructions and not just being an unmanageable PITA. Especially once he starts to be able to fling Thunderbolts off his horn. /s

I raised an eyebrow with as the thought that I might have already broken the pack mentality by capturing him. It would make things significantly easier.

He made no move to flee, no move to attack. He glanced between me and Luna as if he were analyzing us. I stopped, unsure of what to do. I'd been so sure of his guaranteed aggression, so sure that he would attack us on sight. I hadn't put any thought into a peaceful solution.

Huh, I suppose that that’s one way to sidestep the ethical quandries of having to “Authority Equals Asskicking” a sapient being. I suppose we’ll see whether or not things pan out or not.

Luna barked once, stepping forward. I didn't move a muscle, my eyes glued to the nido. He still made no aggressive moves, watching and waiting as Luna slowly stalked towards him. His tail flicked back and forth slowly and I made my decision before Luna could ruin our opportunity.

"Hold," I ordered. "He isn't dangerous," I said, watching the little nido shiver in fear. "He's scared."

I kinda feel that there should be some stronger indication that Marcus notices that his poison bunny is afraid before he gives the order to Luna to back down.

Though this is probably a sign that you should be more on-guard at the moment, Marcus. Since you know what they say about backing animals into corners…

Luna stopped and sat. Her eyes never left the nido and the tension never left her body, but she sat and obeyed my order. I saw the smoke curling out from my vulpix's mouth and knew she was not happy with my order, but she obeyed it without question.

I stepped forward, petting the back of Luna's head as I passed. I watched the nidorino's ears perk up and swivel towards me. "That's good," I murmured.

Luna: “*I sure hope you know what you’re doing, Marcus. Since just saying, ‘scared’ doesn’t mean ‘harmless’.”

I slowly lowered myself to his level, meeting his eyes and finding them surprisingly clear of anger. He had something twinkling in his eyes, something that I instinctively understood as good.

"Want something to eat?" I asked softly. I kept my voice low as my hand slowly dove into my pack. "I've got some treats that Luna over here is fond of. We'll share with you."

Ah yes, Marcus is going for the ‘through its stomach’ route of friendship. I wonder if that’s just general advice in this setting writ large, or if this is something that Marcus has done before in the past.

I raised an oran berry and smiled. His eyes followed it, leaving Luna for half a moment before flitting back nervously.

"You're with us now," I said, fighting the urge to let my feelings overwhelm me. "a member of a new family."

Family was something I'd lost. I'd lost mine with the death of my sister, with the words my Pa and I had said to each other. But a trainer built their own family.

I like how it literally took all of a paragraph to undercut Marcus’ cheerful and heartwarming “it’s okay, we’re in this together” moment. That’s certainly on-brand for this story.

I swallowed the lump in my throat as clarity came over me. "You're a part of my pack now."

He wasn't aggressive. He was scared. Lost and separated from his pack, he needed a new pack leader and he needed it now. I stepped back, my heart pounding in my chest. With one smooth movement, I raised Luna's ball and returned her without a word. She wouldn't do me any good growling and spitting fire like she thought as if she was a houndoom. I had to be the pack leader here, not her.

Well, this is either going to end great, or completely horrible in about five seconds depending on who that Nidorino was afraid of.

He cocked his head to the side. I heard a growl and feared for a moment that I'd made a terrible decision. I raised the berry and attempted my best calming smile. I still saw the twinkle of fear in his eyes and knew that I wasn't in any danger. He was just scared.

"It's ok," I said quietly. "I won't hurt you again. You're my pokemon. You're the first one I ever really caught on my own."

I’ll admit, when I saw the mention that the Nidorino was growling, I for a moment thought that Marcus was going to get jumped. I see that you went the less cynical route this time around.

I dropped the berry in front of him and lowered my hands. He crept forward and snatched up the berry eagerly, looking up at me with some confusion.

"You can come with me," I said softly. "You can be a part of something different."

Well, that and die in a blaze of glory later on in the story, but that’s a story for another day.

My hand dove into the bag again and produced another berry. I held it out in my open palm, keeping my voice low. "You're with me now. I know it's not like it was with your family was, but if you stay with me you'll become strong. Stronger even than your old pack leader ever was."

Boy Marcus is being all kinds of presumptuous there given the stats for how Gym Challenges wind up in this setting, but his Nidorino doesn’t need to know that just now. ^^;

He took the berry again, brushing his snout against my hand as he pulled the berry away. He devoured the berry and looked up at me expectantly, his short tail wagging excessively. I grinned back and knew that the beginnings of a familial bond were there.

If you’re going to use “beginnings”, the “was” there should be a “were”.

"That's a good boy," I said, dropping to one knee. He nuzzled into my hand, careful to avoid scratching me with the spines covering his body. "That's a very good boy."

D’aww…

"Any names yet?" Gemma asked. She had her feet up and a drink in her free hand. Her other hand had her pokegear up to her face, browsing through the day's news. "I still think your first idea was your best."

She glanced up at my nidorino as he shook off the confusion Luna had inflicted on him. He grunted angrily and blinked away the slow look on his face before bounding back after Luna.

"Fits him best."

I shrugged. "Pride?" I suggested halfheartedly, quickly losing my patience with the entire naming process. "It's alright, but it just doesn't sound great to me."

Oh, so Marcus’ Nido officially has a name now. Even if I myself want to know how on earth he settled on ‘Pride’ there.

"Well how did you choose Luna?" She asked. She bent down and scooped up Curie in her arms as my happiny bounded towards her. My baby had taken an absolute liking to Gemma, practically demanding that the new lady spend her time cooing in her face rather than training me and my team. "How did you choose Curie?"

"They just came to me, naturally. It wasn't like I was giving them a name. They had their names already and I just figured it out."

I stood up, grinding my teeth as I watched Luna spar with the nido. He wasn't quick, or even overly powerful. He didn't fight dirty or resort to clever tricks like Luna liked to.

Gemma: “And how does ‘Pride’ come into all of this again? Since just saying, people are actually called ‘Luna’ and ‘Curie’. I can’t say the same thing about ‘Pride’.”

Try as I might, I just kept coming back to the same name. "Pride," I repeated, glancing back at Gemma for reassurance. It was in my head now and I was spiralling into doubt with my ability to name my pokemon.

Hey man, at least you’re still doing better than “Charmander called Blaze”-tier, which isn’t exactly rare among younger fans of this series.

I got none as Curie incessantly bounced on Gemma's lap, delighted by the exciting new game. She burped and turned a violent shade of green. I suppressed a chuckle as Gemma learned firsthand why bouncing a baby after feeding was a bad idea.

Oh, so Curie

-ed all over Gemma’s lap, huh?

I turned back to Luna and the nido and made my decision. "Front and centre, team!"

Luna looked up at me as my nido barrelled down on her. She leapt over him easily and landed lithely in front of me. My nido attempted to skid to a halt, but he had already built up too much speed. He tumbled end over end and slammed into the tree with enough force to knock a half dozen berries from the branches.

I mean, on the plus side, Marcus will have extra provisions for when he’s back out in the field given that he’s got no stable income at the moment? ^^;

I waited until he had sauntered back over to me, watching him give Luna jealous glares as he joined her side. He plopped down haggardly as his chest heaved with exhaustion. He was raw, not in battle shape and often slow to react. It was a wonder that he'd put up the fight that he had against Luna the first time.

I mean, from Pride’s perspective, he was likely fighting for his life in that first battle with Luna, so…

"Alright, team, we have a lot of work ahead of us. Misty is a tougher test than Brock. She's got the type advantages and she knows that we're coming for her. I won't lie to you. This will not be an easy battle."

I paced back and forth, looking down at my troops with all the fiery confidence I usually lacked. They needed it from me, and to be completely honest, it would be good for me to avoid self-doubt.

I produced a trio of TM disks from my pack and held them aloft. They glinted pink, green and yellow in the evening sun. "However, we've got a chance. If we're smart and lucky, we can pull off another upset." I lowered the TMs and looked down at Luna. "You're up first," I started. "How does moving even faster than a quick attack sound?"

Oh hey, there’s a theme song for this:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPl_1RpBK_4

I groaned with exhaustion and stretched my legs. I tossed the pokegear onto the crappy motel bed and got to my feet. I crossed the room and stared down at the parking lot of dilapidated cars, happy to be looking at anything that wasn't more battle footage. I'd been poring over Misty's gym challenges for days, watching every one of her opponents and analyzing her battle style. I'd even gone back to her own league challenge, watching battles that taught me nothing about her current team to glean some weakness in her style.

I actually wonder if that’s a sign that the average schmo in Kanto isn’t well off, or if Kanto is just car hell like the American Midwest where the roads get salted every winter and it requires meticulous cleaning just to keep something on the road for more than a decade.

She was all attack, pushing the pace of the battle relentlessly. Very rarely would she pull back and play a defensive game, something that I mourned. I wouldn't have the time and opportunity to run circles around her like I had with Brock. Instead, she attacked until she knocked your pokemon out of commission, trusting her starmie's regenerative abilities to win her the day. The only league losses on her record were from Lance and Agatha themselves, two trainers that had both been undefeated for decades.

Waaaaaait, just how on earth are people completing their Indigo League challenges if Misty has just never lost to anyone except two people? Or are losses in Gyms not recorded by virtue of them occurring under the equivalent of level and headcount caps?

I had to admit that her style countered Luna quite well and downright terrified me when it came to Pride. I'd seen half a dozen videos of Misty's starmie just tossing nidorinos around helplessly and knocking them out without even worrying about a single blow. I'd turned it off after realizing that the nidorino weren't going to win that matchup.

Oh, well. Maybe Misty just does use Psychic moves in her matches in this setting after all.

It was demoralizing, to say the least. I was living my dream and yet I found myself up against a wall with prospects for victory bleak.

Luna: “*Just saying, we could just go and challenge Erika instead since two out of three of us will have type advantages.*”

Gemma had abandoned me a few days before for some family business, only after pushing the TMs she'd bought into my hands and demanding that I make myself presentable for sponsors. She wouldn't take the TMs back, but I was determined to make a good showing before I dared use the TM moves.

I kinda wonder if this whole “Gemma splitting from Marcus” moment should’ve been explicitly depicted, since I’ll admit that it felt a little anticlimactic for her to just get yeeted out of the plot (I assume temporarily) with no real foreshadowing.

I'd used Thunderbolt it on Pride and he just couldn't seem to get the hang of it. He had to stand there for several seconds while he charged up the necessary energy to fire off a bolt of lightning. Several seconds that we just wouldn't have against a murderous mermaid and her sea star.

You’ve got an extra word lingering around here that should be axed.

It made for a stunning spectacle to be sure, but I couldn't think of any situation where I'd manage to find Pride that kind of time in the middle of a battle with a starmie that outsped him easily and held the advantage at range.

I turned away from the window and sighed. We weren't ready. Luna was getting stronger every day, mastering the use of her two TMs almost effortlessly and even beginning to exhibit some rudimentary extrasensory abilities. It wasn't quite ready to be used in battle yet, but I still devoted an inordinate amount of time to her practicing with them. We needed every edge and I wasn't going to leave any stone unturned with less than two days to my challenge.

I like how Marcus just went and scheduled his match before completing his analysis on what Misty’s fighting style was going to be like. Since at this rate, he really would’ve been better off just doing odd jobs and grinding to take Erika on before Misty.

Pride's training however, was going about as poorly as it could have. He was still adjusting to life on a trainer's team. He had difficulty understanding some of my more complex commands. We were making some headway, but I couldn't help the nagging pessimism that told me we weren't ready.

Marcus already mentioned that he didn’t feel they were ready in the last section. It might’ve been worth taking a different tack here like him thinking something like that they’re in over their heads or outmatched, which is a little different in nuance.

He was tougher than Luna, but not by much. He could hit harder than Luna as well, but again not by much. He had speed to burn when running in a straight line, but he couldn't corner worth a damn. I'd taken to devising him increasingly difficult obstacle courses, but there was only so much you a ‘mon could realistically improve in a week. It looked like yet again I was relying on Luna to be my ace in the hole.

Luna: “*Again, let’s go and challenge Erika first.*” >_>;

Curie rolled over, whining at me from the bed and breaking my concentration. I smiled and let myself forget the upcoming battle. I could rest for one night. I did need to be fresh for the watching sponsors after all.

I crawled into the bed, my eyes half-shut in exhaustion. Curie cooed happily and cozied up against my chest. I felt Luna stir on the bed and crawl up against my leg. Pride rolled over on the floor, his loud breathing rhythmically slowing as my nido drifted off. I immediately lost myself to exhaustion and sleep mercifully took me.

I’m honestly surprised that Marcus could sleep with all that stress. That must’ve been one really long viewing session of Misty’s past battles.

I made my way down the corridor with my head held high. It was dark, darker even than the one in Pewter had been. I caught the faint scent of salty water and felt a cool breeze rush down the corridor as the league's challenge theme began to swell.

Well, it doesn’t smell of blood, at least. Though considering what Marcus has seen of Misty’s highlight reels, that’s probably just a sign that she cleans her facilities better than Brock does.

I nervously ran my hand through my newly cut hair and straightened the pale grey jacket that I'd bought to replace the ratty one I'd left home in. Gemma had appeared at dawn, handing me a new wardrobe and forcing me out the door and to a hairstylist. I wasn't used to the fuss of doing myself up all nice, but even I couldn't deny that I looked damn fine compared to the night before.

Let’s not get into how half of one of his ears is scar tissue right now, but I suppose it’s an upgrade over Marcus’ generally disheveled batting average over the last few chapters.

I emerged into the blinding light, blinking as my eyes adjusted to the dazzling arena. A massive wave pool dominated the field, with a pair of winding rivers that emptied into the pool cutting the land portion of the field into three roughly equal portions.

Misty was waiting on her platform, her hair up in a fiery orange bun. Her signature teardrop swimsuit left nothing to the imagination, sweat and saltwater beading up on her bare skin. A bright red whistle hung down between her breasts. It was intoxicating and seductive, even though I knew it was just for show.

Well, Misty certainly knows a thing or two about making a splash with first impressions. Though that makes me wonder if she’s also got that Goldeen outfit of hers chilling in a closet somewhere in this continuity.

I ignored the theatrics and pushed away the distractions. Misty was good. She wanted me off balance, thinking about her body, the music and a thousand other things besides the battle.

That actually makes me wonder how much “ooh, look at the distraction” head games are just part and parcel of a Gym Leader’s shtick in the Journeyverse. Since you’d think that while cheap, psyching out opponents would go a long way to maintaining job security.

I glanced out at the crowd for half a moment and felt my heart flutter. It was nearly full. For a novice match. I caught a glimpse of Gemma waving some absurd oversized sign and knew that she had been busy with more than just family business. Novice matches weren't spectated by this many people ever. I briefly wondered who Gemma really was, but I pushed the distraction away.

She certainly does seem to have handy access to a lot of toys. What, is she secretly a Rocket or something?

I took my place on my platform and it began to rise into the air. The massive screen across the arena wall lit up and the League emblem faded to Misty's personal crest, a single cerulean drop of water.

Small typo there.

"GOOD AFTERNOON LADIES AND GENTS, DO WE HAVE A TREAT FOR YOU TODAY!"

I jumped slightly. The speakers were damn loud here. That or the emcee had practically swallowed the mic.

"THIS WILL BE A NOVICE CHALLENGE TO THE CERULEAN CITY GYM. LEADER MISTY WILL USE THREE POKEMON WITH NO SUBSTITUTIONS. THE CHALLENGER MAY USE UP TO SIX POKEMON, WITH TWO SUBSTITUTIONS."

Wait, so is there just a tier for each badge out of 8 in the Indigo League? Or do “Novice” Challenges encompass something like the first three Gym badges or something like that.

The massive viewscreen on the wall flickered, mine and Misty's faces flashing across the screen to our respective sides of the arena. Three balls appeared under both our faces and I tightened my fists nervously.

I heard the roar of the crowd, and vaguely caught Gemma's shriek of encouragement over it. I blocked it out as best I could, focusing on Misty and only Misty. The lights were blinding and the noise was deafening but they seemed to fade away as I focused on my opponent.

Misty’s Gym Pokémon:

Marcus: “Is that really necessary right now?” >_>;

I saw her smirk with utmost confidence as she released her first pokemon. A staryu dove into the pool and disappeared under the surface. The tan sea star erupted from the surface a half moment later, spinning into a deft landing on the shore. It stood there motionless, a picturesque example of obedience and discipline.

I mean, it’s a sea star. Just how much do you expect it to move around outside of the water, Marcus?

My eyes met Misty's cold glare and I let go of my fear. I would be a trainer. I would crush this cocky gym leader and leave her team flailing in my wake. I was a pokemon trainer. My hand dropped to my belt, lifting the first of my three balls.

"Pride, let's show them what we're made of."

My nidorino appeared in a flash of red light. He pawed the ground aggressively and sighted his first target with an angry snort. He growled at the staryu and lowered his horn threateningly.

Misty planted her hands on her hips and leaned forward slightly. "Your move first, novi-"

Oh yeah, this opening’s going great already! /s

"I know how this works," I barked, cutting her off. She met my hard stare with a look of utter contempt, lifting her whistle up to her lips. I swallowed the lump that formed in my throat and pointed forward. "Pride, horn attack!"

Pride: “Um… wasn’t this the lady with those starfish things that were literally juggling Nidorino in your videos last night?”

He bounded forward as the staryu levitated off the ground and rocketed towards him as Misty blew two short blasts. They slammed together and separated half a moment later, blood dripping from the spikes on Pride's armoured shoulders. Pride spun on his front paws and attempted to kick the staryu with his hind paws.

I see that Misty’s not screwing around. Uh… yeah, don’t count on Curie’s baby antics to get you out of this one, Marcus.

The little tan sea star hit the sandy shore hard, but rose back into the air. One of the staryu's limbs was bent at an uncomfortable angle. The jewel in the middle of the sea star shone a dim red. Misty whistled once, low and long, sparking its bent limb began to bend back into position and the bleeding gashes to seal shut.

If you’re going to the hilt with starfish biology, Misty’s Staryu would actually be bleeding seawater, since starfish and related creatures like sea urchins actually circulate seawater with coelomocytes in place of a blood-based vascular system.

Though I see that starfish regeneration is fast in this setting. Makes me wonder if they can also reproduce by mitosis like the real thing or not.

I knew we couldn't let Misty finish healing. She still had two more pokemon to get through. Attack was the only option.

"Push the pace! Fury attack!"

Boy, you’d better hope that Misty isn’t rocking a Psychic move on one of her starfish, since otherwise this is going to be a short gym challenge, Marcus.

Pride was back on the staryu, slamming into it several times. He drove it further inland, away from the wave pool. Misty whistled twice in short succession. The staryu whined and spun as Pride came barreling back in for another attack.

The staryu connected solidly with Pride's jaw. He recoiled in pain and shrunk back as the staryu came to a halt and emitted a high tone. Its central gem began to glow as the tone built to a deafening level.

Then the sound was gone, drowned out by the beam of screaming psychic light that erupted from the staryu's gem. It hit Pride cleanly in the side, catapulting my nido across the arena and through one of the streams flowing into the wave pool.

And wow, Misty really isn’t screwing around. I was going to say that she was at least nice enough in the games to not sling Psychic moves at you, but that apparently changed as of Let’s Go Pikachu/Eevee.

I grimaced for Pride. That had to have hurt. He struggled back to his feet as the staryu floated lazily towards him, the same terrible tone as before building in volume.

"Get clear!" I shouted.

Pride heard the urgency in my voice and it seemed to spur something in him. He bolted as the staryu let loose a second psybeam that tore a shrieking path through the sand. Pride bounded out of the way and dashed along the edge of the shore, giving the staryu a wide berth.

Pride: “*Um… can I forfeit? Since I’m pretty sure that this isn’t a winning matchup right now.*”

The staryu turned and fired off another psybeam, this one weaker and only half charged. It ploughed into the sand in front of Pride, a vain attempt to lead the target.

"Tighten up," I shouted. "Don't give it the space."

Um… that might be a bit easier said than done with how high Staryu's base Speed stat is, Marcus. On the positive side, if Pride successfully so much as breathes on that Staryu again, he’ll likely down it.

Despite his unfamiliarity with taking orders, Pride was relatively bright. He knew that he would never win a duel with the staryu at range. His only chance was to get in close and pummel the sea star into submission. He turned mid-stride, avoiding another beam of psychic energy that carved uncomfortably close to his flank.

Wait, so does that Staryu have any speed penalty while on land? If so, you probably want to make that clearer, since at least on paper stats, Staryu has the means to keep this a ranged encounter fairly easily.

The staryu let loose with a barrage of beams, hoping to trip Pride up or knock him off balance so it could deliver another solid blow. They weren't half as powerful as before, but there were so many of them. The air seemed to saturate with psychic energy and my mind struggled to fight through the haze. We had to close the gap to stop the barrage, but there was no clear path to do so. There was no clear path to close the gap.

IMO, your last sentence in this paragraph is redundant.

Pride's chest was heaving with exhaustion as he struggled to stay in front of the psybeams. His feet were moving a mile a minute, desperately running an ever tightening circle around the staryu. Any misstep would have resulted in failure. A single mistake would have ended the battle. Pride fought through it all with every ounce of pride in his body.

>Pride fought through it all with every ounce of pride in his body

Then I saw it. One of the psybeams glanced off his flank and he shrugged it off with hardly a thought. We'd closed the distance now, cut the corners of the circle until we were within striking distance. The noose was tightened. The battle would end with the next exchange.

Luna: “*... Marcus? Misty has two more Pokémon after this-*”

Marcus: “You know what I meant, Luna. Let me have my moment.” >_>;

"Now!" I shouted. "Horn attack!"

Pride changed course more quickly than I had thought him capable of. He cut hard under the staryu's barrage and the sea star overcorrected hard. The psybeam tore into the sand harmlessly as Pride closed the last few paces completely unchallenged.

Pride gored the staryu on the edge of its gem, horn sinking deep into the base of the limb. My nidorino didn't let up. The staryu attempted to flee, but its levitation failed as it soared towards the pool. Pride bore down on it, determined not to let his quarry escape.

Well, I suppose now Misty’s gym smells like blood.

The staryu disappeared in a flash of red light. I breathed a sigh of relief and looked down at Pride. He limped back towards our side of the field, away from the water. His chest was heaving and I could see him fighting to suck down air.

I got down on one knee and leaned over the edge of the platform. "You remember the plan for this one?"

Pride: “*Wait, we still have a plan after that fight? Also, shouldn’t you be using a Potion on me or something?*”

Though actually, now that I think about it, is it ever established whether or not items are allowed in these challenges? If not, it likely makes sense to acknowledge it in passing sometime earlier as not being on the table for Marcus to use even with Gemma playing the role of trainer item fairy earlier on in this chapter.

"WHAT A START FOR THE CHALLENGER!" Boomed the emcee. "MISTY'S STARYU IS DOWN! THIS NIDORINO HAS SOME SPUNK!"

Pride nodded and turned back to face Misty as she released an absolutely stunning goldeen. I paused for a moment, marvelling at her pokemon's flowing fins and radiant colours. It hit me then that I'd never actually seen a goldeen outside of pictures. Pictures that couldn't do justice to the magnificent creature in front of me. I resolved right then and there to learn everything I could about aquatic pokemon, even if only to satisfy my curiosity.

Wait, so did Marcus just never get out of his hometown before this Gym Challenge of his or something? Since Goldeen aren’t that rare in Kantonian waters, just saying.

My attention turned back to Pride. He'd taken a few blows, but seemed to be no worse for wear after he caught his breath. He could take a fish. Even one as gorgeous as Misty's.

11 words thought seconds from disaster.

"MISTY'S CHOSEN HER GOLDEEN NEXT! CAN THE CHALLENGER STAY AFLOAT?"

I mean, if you have to ask the question, the answer’s likely ‘no’, just saying.

I grinned ear to ear, knowing that my next move would send shockwaves through the gym. Literally. "Pride," I started. "Light it up!"

He closed his eyes and I watched him bow his head in concentration. Sparks crackled along his flanks, electricity jumping along his spines as they raced for his horn.

I saw Misty's eyes widen in realization. I heard her voice panic as she shrieked at her goldeen to dive. I watched her little goldeen disappear beneath the waves and prayed that Pride's thunderbolt had the power required to saturate the pool.

Oh, well. Maybe Pride will manage to get past that Goldeen on his own after all.

A bolt of lightning erupted from my nidorino's horn. It split and forked into a half dozen spears that dove eagerly into the water. The surface of the pool broke as Misty's goldeen rocketed over the field in a desperate play to avoid the lightning.

The bolt ended as soon as it began. Pride shook off the stray voltage running along his spines and looked up fearfully as the goldeen plummeted towards him.

Pride: “*Wait! I didn’t sign up for thi-!*”

"Parry the horn!" I shouted, praying that Pride understood enough to follow the order.

I… wasn’t aware that Goldeen was trying Horn Drill (or whatever that is) there. It might make sense to add a brief mention of Goldeen aiming its horn while falling earlier on.

He lifted his head, aiming his horn at the goldeen. But Misty had trained her little fish well. The water type bent and twisted, angling her horn so that it deftly avoided Pride's clumsy attempt to stop her.

The horn gouged a deep red line down the side of Pride's face. My nido bellowed in pain and anger as Misty's goldeen dug in and used the leverage to catapult herself back into one of the streams that divided the beach.

Once again:

I grimaced as the easy victory I'd envisioned slipped away. Pride was going to have to work for it.

Bruh, you realize that the moment she sends her Starmie out, your entire team is just boned, right?

"Get ready," I shouted. "charge another bolt!"

Lightning raced down Pride's spines. He pawed at the sandy ground and snorted, glancing nervously over his shoulder at the river behind him.

Misty lifted her whistle, blowing a trio of short blasts. I raised an eyebrow, wondering what the wordless command meant.

Misty: “It means go ahead and warm up the bullpen for that next Pokémon of yours, novice.”

Movement in front of him drew my nido's attention. The river splashed and Pride loosed his bolt as the goldeen launched out of the stream.

She smacked her tail into the side of my nido, tearing a network of gashes in her beautiful fin. [ ] The goldeen catapulted herself back into the stream behind Pride.

We had barely a moment before Misty blew her whistle again and the goldeen launched back into the air, leading with her horn.

I think that it probably would’ve made sense to have a bit more of a transition between Goldeen tearing herself up smacking around Pride and her yeeting herself back into the water, since something about this transition feels very abrupt right now.

"Double kick!" I shouted.

Pride reared onto his front legs and slammed his hind feet into the fish's face. It sailed back towards the stream, bouncing twice and slipping back into the water.

Misty whistled another trio of blasts, in a different cadence than before. The water went calm. I scanned the trio of streams, waiting for Misty's goldeen to make herself known.

That actually makes me wonder just how common “secret battling language that outsiders don’t know about” is used as a battling tactic in this setting, since it’s sure working wonders for Misty against Marcus here at the moment.

Pride glanced back at me in worry and I nodded in calm assurance. He'd taken a few hits, but he could handle this goldeen.

Marcus, I just want to reiterate that you’re tempting all the fate right about now considering how often you keep telling yourself that Pride can handle a Goldeen while he’s clearly getting progressively beaten down.

"Get ready," I warned. "She'll try to gore you again."

As I finished the last word, the water type burst from the wave pool. She sprang high into the air, arcing down towards Pride and leading with her horn. Pride tried to turn, raising his horn in a late attempt to parry the horn attack.

Small typo there.

Pride: “*Wait, late attempt to parry the horn attack?*”

This time, the goldeen's horn struck true. It sank deep into Pride's shoulder and the water type stuck. Pride roared in pain but I knew that the round was done.

He shook wildly, bucking off the water type. She bounced into the sand and flapped wildly in an attempt to right herself.

Pride stalked towards the downed fish, another storm of lightning rippling along his body. He was growling low and angry.

I dunno, that doesn’t seem really ‘done’ there, just saying. Even if at this rate, Pride’s likely going to be walking funny for a while after this.

Misty already had her ball up, returning the goldeen before any real damage could be done. The crowd erupted in raucous applause and I felt it in my chest.

… Wait, so did Pride actually use Thunderbolt there? Did Misty just read the writing on the wall and forfeit? Or…?

"I DON'T BELIEVE IT! CHALLENGER WRIGHT HAS CRUSHED OUR LEADER'S GOLDEEN WITH A THUNDEROUS ELECTRIC MOVE!" The crowd was roaring, Gemma's shriek loud and clear over the din. "THIS NIDORINO HAS TAKEN DOWN TWO OF MISTY'S POKEMON, CAN IT KEEP GOING?"

From how much of a chapter there is left to go through here, color me skeptical about that. Though I’ll admit, I was expecting Pride to do a lot worse in this battle up to this point.

I nervously bounced back and forth on the balls of my feet. This had all just been an elaborate show. I'd learned something in my research. Misty had a preference for the dramatic finish. She liked to let trainers whittle down her pokemon just so she could crush them emphatically with her starmie. She was an entertainer through and through, and her battle style showed that beautifully.

Kinda makes me wonder how those ‘lead’ Pokémon of hers feel about that given that they’re more or less being expressly trained as cannon fodder before Starmie swims out and saves the day.

Misty dropped the whistle back to her chest. She wouldn't need it with her starmie's psychic telepathy. She raised her last ball. We both knew what was coming. She smirked at me from across the field and tossed her ball in the air.

The starmie that had kept me up for the past week spun through the air with ease. It stopped short of landing, the arena humming with psychic power. The starmie let out two low, threatening tones and I vaguely heard the crowd roar with delight in response.

Marcus + Pride:

My arm went up with Pride's ball and he disappeared with a flash of red light. A thirty second timer appeared on the screen. I didn't need it. I knew what my choices were. I knew what my only real choice was. Curie couldn't fight this battle.

Oh, so Marcus isn’t going to try the baby antics again. Yeah, I wouldn’t want to do that either with how rough and tumble the last two fights had been.

"WHATS THIS? THE CHALLENGER IS BURNING ONE OF HIS SUBSTITUTIONS!"

"Luna!" I tossed her ball and she appeared with a prance. She tossed her head to the roof and let out a pitchy howl. Her tails flared and she planted her paws in the soft, damp sand. "Let's finish strong."

I can already see Misty doing her best impression of Bender across the battlefield at the moment. Though wait, how many substitutions does Marcus get for each of these battles? Since I’m not sure if it’s ever been explicitly communicated before.

Misty cocked her head to the side, smirking at me with supreme confidence. As far as she knew, I had played my only trump card with Pride's thunderbolt. I had shown my hand and ensured her victory. How wrong she was.

Er… yeah, unless you took the time to level up Luna considerably, I think Misty’s confidence here is pretty well-founded considering how Starmie basically outclasses her in every base stat. :copyka2:

"Ready to watch your vulpix get washed away?" she spat in derision. "That was a nice trick, but there's no overpowering this water type master!"

I smirked back with the confidence of someone who knew he still had a few tricks to play. "We'll see who's the one that's all washed up!" I looked down at Luna and met her fiery eyes. "Agility!"

And suddenly, for no reason at all, the Gym speakers started blaring EDM at 130 BPM.

Luna rocketed off as I finished the command, appearing as little more than a rusty tan blur as she streaked across the sandy field.

The starmie rose into the air, putting itself out of physical range. It let out a powerful tone and I felt reality bend to its will.

"Faster!" I shouted. "Another agility!"

Um… Starmie can’t learn any moves along the lines of Haze, right? ^^;

Desperation crept back in. One hit would be all it needed. One blow and Luna would be vulnerable to a follow up that would put her out of commission.

Luna redoubled her efforts as an unseen force slammed into the sandy beach behind her. A plume of sand kicked into the air and I realized that Misty was not kidding around. She would pummel Luna into the ground to prove that I hadn't actually earned my Boulder badge.

Just saying, if you could burn her Starmie and somehow stall through things without dying long enough, you could win this match by default.

"On the offensive!" I roared. "Just like we practiced!"

Luna stopped for half a heartbeat, green light swirling in her jaws. She loosed spat up the energy ball and leapt away. Another telekinetic slam pounded the sand where Luna had been standing.

The energy ball tore through the starmie's limbs. One of the sea star's limbs crashed lifeless to the sand as two more hung on by the barest threads of tissue. It shrieked a shrill, pained tone as it dove for the water.

Once again:

Though that makes me wonder what Gym battles with Pokémon that can’t just casually regrow their limbs are like. Since if this is what the second battle of an average Gym Challenge is like… .-.

"Again!" I shouted. "Before it gets underwater."

Luna surged forward. Green light began to leak from her mouth, giving her tan blur a green streak. She skidded to a halt at the shoreline and let the growing ball of green energy loose.

It sheared into the starmie's bloodied legs again as it fled. Blood sprayed again as it disappeared into the surf, leaving a pair of limbs behind.

Just a reminder that this is technically off-spec if you’re modeling Staryu and Starmie off of starfish. Though Gym Challenges in this setting are officially something else if nobody in the crowd’s so much as batting an eye at blood spraying all over the battlefield sand like this. Though I suppose that’s only to be expected given that the Pokémon in this setting clearly are cut from the “force of nature” mold akin to The Sun Soul.

I frowned. We hadn't beaten it. Not even close. We hadn't even dealt it any lasting damage since it could just regenerate those limbs for the next bout. All we'd managed to do was annoy it.

The wave pool began to stir and I felt my heart skip a beat. Now we were well and truly at a disadvantage. Our opponent had found her way into her own terrain. Now we would face the wrath of the sea.

Time for a Surf? Since this sure sounds like it’s time for a Surf.

"Luna, another agility!"

My vulpix took off in a blur as the starmie burst from the cresting wave. The severed limbs had regrown and its gem was shining with psychic light. I felt the roar of the crowd in my chest and I knew it was hopeless. Luna was beyond fast, but there was nowhere to run.

Starmie:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBURLdhmmZ8

Luna: “*You’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you?*” >_>;

Luna barrelled inland with a roaring surge of water at her back. The furious starmie soared high above the wave, jets of water forming up on each side of it. Luna skidded and scrambled away from the first jet, but the second struck true. It hit my vulpix on her flank, sending her stumbling. She tried to keep moving, but she'd lost too much speed to stay in front of the tidal wave.

And let’s check in on how Luna’s doing right now:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Yw5jkAHgME

I was at a loss, but my starter had better ideas. She turned on a dime, her body glowing with psychic enhancement. The wave bore down, starmie blaring with a psychic tone. Luna dashed across the water faster than my eyes could follow. A spray of water kicked up in her wake, the only visual cue where she had gone.

Though well-played, Luna.

My vulpix leapt up above the storm of water, moving faster than I could see. Green light erupted from her jaw, a series of energy balls screaming down onto Misty's starmie.

The wave crashed down onto the shore, pounding the beach into a frothy mess. I lost sight of Luna as she fell towards the surf and felt my heart beat inside my chest. We had dealt a devastating blow, but I doubted that the match had been decided yet.

I mean, there were two pages of content left in this chapter when I’d gotten to this point, so one way or another, this match is going to wind up ending soon.

The surf receded and I spotted Luna, sopping wet and covered in sand, but still stubbornly conscious. The starmie was unfocused, concentrating on the enormous amounts of water surging back into the pool.

Luna looked up at me, an expression of complete and utter displeasure on her vulpine face. She was sopping wet, something that I'd only witnessed once when she fell into the pond near my farm.

So Luna’s never gotten rained on while Marcus has gone around in the field. Though I suppose that she’d just dive back into her Pokéball in situations like those.

The starmie let out an angry tone and spun back from the water. It closed on Luna as she struggled to her feet, terrible psychic noise building as its gem began to glow.

I had moments, not enough for Luna to fire off an energy ball. She was spent, her chest heaving in utter exhaustion. She couldn't run. She couldn't fight. She could only watch as the battered starmie toyed with the final moments of her battle.

I mean, you could always just withdraw her from ba-

"Confuse Ray!" I ordered, silently praying that she had the strength to give Pride a ghost of a chance. It wasn't much, but it was all I had.

… Or you could do that. That works, too.

Luna's eyes glowed as she flared her tails. A trio of eerie lights twisted forth as the starmie loosed a devastating psybeam. It pummelled into my vulpix, finally knocking my starter out of the battle.

I raised my ball, defeat setting in. Luna had been my only real hope. She had been my only counter to Misty's terrifying sea star. Curie was just a baby. Pride didn't have the speed and agility to contest the match, let alone try to run out the clock. We were completely and utterly done. All that was left was to play out the match.

Just saying, you should’ve tried to inflict that burn, bro.

"CHALLENGER WRIGHT'S VULPIX IS DOWN FOR THE COUNT! MISTY'S ACE TURNS THE BATTLE ON ITS HEAD YET AGAIN FOLKS. CAN HE TURN THIS AROUND, OR IS THIS CHALLENGER FINALLY SUNK?"

I raised Pride's ball as my heart sank into my stomach. He appeared on the field, his head held high. He growled at the starmie and I felt my own pride swell at my newest team member. I stiffened my spine in response. If he was going to face his fate with defiance then I would too.

He’s going to manage to pull a rabbit out of his hat, isn’t he?

"Pride, horn attack!"

The starmie spun towards him, wobbling almost imperceptibly. My eyes widened. Luna had done it. The confuse ray had landed. We had our ghost of a chance.

Yuuuuuuuup. Even if the truly impressive ending would be Curie managing to save the day via chip damaging some infinitesimally small sliver of Starmie’s health.

Pride charged without fear, his horn lowered in anticipation. The starmie blared another tone and built the same terrible noise as before. I swore as it let loose a powerful psybeam. It went wide, the starmie's aim compromised in its confusion. Pride closed the gap in a bound, burying his horn up to the base in one of the starmie's limbs.

Whelp, you asked for a miracle, Marcus, and there you go.

It shrieked in pain, recoiling instantly. It spun, using its telekinesis to catapult Pride away as oozing purple goop leaked from the wound. It shook violently as it levitated away and I saw our opening. It was hurt. The poison likely would interfere with its regenerative abilities, at least until it could purge itself. We had our ghost of a chance.

You said the underlined already verbatim a couple paragraphs ago. I would suggest something more along the lines of “Even if just barely, our ghost of a chance was getting more and more real” to build off of the “slim hope” from earlier.

Pride landed on his feet, skidding to a halt and growling angrily. He lowered his horn, seeming to know exactly what my next command would be.

"Thunderbolt!" I shouted to the heavens.

Pride was already beginning the charge, electricity jumping along his spines. I heard the noise in the arena fizzle and die as my nidorino primed the finishing blow.

Misty's starmie rocketed forward, abandoning its long range abilities. The confusion had compromised its aim and it couldn't be sure of a knockout. It spun as it closed and I clenched my fists. It was close, so close.

inb4 double knockout in this match

A bolt of lightning erupted from Pride's horn. It jumped through the air, impaling the starmie's central jewel before arcing again into a dozen forks that drove into the sandy ground. It was over as soon as it began, but the damage had been done.

The roar of psychic power faded and the starmie crashed into the sand. It remained motionless for a long moment, its gem dark and silent. The crowd was silent. I was silent. Misty was silent. The the silence popped and the crowd erupted with noise.

"LEADER MISTY HAS BEEN DEFEATED. THE CHALLENGER HAS EARNED THE CASCADE BADGE!"

Small duplicate word there that could stand to be tidied up. Though wow, Marcus actually pulled it off. I’ll admit that I was fully expecting Marcus to flame out at a couple points.

The roar of the crowd was the sweetest noise a guy could ever have asked for. I raised my fist, savouring the applause that was meant for us. Pewter had been a private victory, but this was a proud statement to the world. Marcus Wright had arrived on the League stage.

I looked down at Pride. His eyes met mine and I knew that we would be champions together. Together, we could do anything.

Marcus + Pride:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04854XqcfCY

Luna: “*Hey, can you do that after you get me healed?*” @.@

"The first field test of the Project Catalyst prototypes will begin within the week."

The short man scowled in disapproval. "I see," he said. "What results are we expecting from this? We know the device isn't ready."

"Yes, but this test will provide us will real world data. Archer has been demanding it for months, and he wants a test not located in some super remote location."

Oh, hello, Team Rocket. I was starting to wonder when you would join the chat.

He frowned in response. "I'll see what I can manage. Civilian casualties must be kept to a minimum," the shorter man replied. "And what of Silph? We must have their prototype, else all this is for naught."

The tall man smirked. "The director outright refused my latest offer. Perhaps it is time to begin applying more than cursory pressure?"

Oh, so this is how Journey’s analogue to the Silph Co. takeover happens, huh?

The short man nodded. "I loathe direct confrontation, but it seems we are left with few choices. If the director will not yield the ball then we will take it."

Yuuuuuuup.

"Then the war for our future begins in earnest," the tall man replied. "There is no retreat from this. Our foe will make itself known and begin real opposition."

Can’t tell if this is going to be Mewtwo or Arceus considering the events of Legends: Sinjoh.

"It is what we prepared for." The shorter man sighed. "Pray that Kanto is ready for the storm."

The tall man nodded. "Then I shall alert the necessary operatives. Silph will be placed under siege until we possess what is rightly ours."

Oh, well I suppose that’s one way to tell that Marcus is going to bumble into Saffron City sometime in the very near future.

Pokedex entry #121: Starmie

This peaceful creature lives on the ocean floor. Despite their formidable psychic abilities, this creature is relatively docile. Their diet consists of microscopic plankton and algae. When threatened, starmie have been known to tear off their own limbs and leave them for the attacker.

Many divers have reported that when gathered in large numbers, starmie will synchronize their gems to pulsate in time with the rest of the swarm. it is unknown what the purpose for this is, but theories range from outlandish ideas like interstellar communication to a much simpler mating display.

I like how this also directly correlated to behavior we were seeing Misty’s Starmie exhibit in battle. Nice touch there.

Novice Trainer KT#07996101, current roster

Luna, Vulpix

Curie, Happiny

Pride, Nidorino

And the team grows. Wonder how long it’ll take for Marcus to get a full team of six.

Alright, made it to the end. That was certainly quite the ride. Once again, the battle choreography was top notch, and you did a really good job at selling a sense of suspense and tension throughout the chapter that made it hard to predict where things would wind up going while still having the outcomes feel satisfying. I also felt that by and large that the worldbuilding you showed off, while definitely deep on the gritty end of the spectrum, seemed to come together fairly well and feel quite internally consistent. So good job on that as well.

In terms of weaknesses, there were a few points here and there where I saw some flubs with spelling or duplicate / missing words that are probably worth stepping through to remove. There were also a couple of points in the battle with Misty that felt like they were missing a bit of extra detail that made it a bit hard to follow what happened (the moment where Pride drops Misty’s Goldeen comes to mind). There were also a couple worldbuilding deets like the Staryu/Starmie blood that I didn’t quite see eye-to-eye on, but that’s easily dismissable with “my story, my rules”, especially since it was used to great effect to establish the overall tone and stakes of a Gym battle in this setting.

Glad to finally be poking my head back into this story again, @Joshthewriter . It’s been an embarrassingly long time, but thus far, this has been a pretty solid introductory arc to your story, and I’ll be looking forward to where you take things from here as Marcus’ journey progressively goes off the rails towards some of the wilder stuff I’ve heard that lies ahead down the pipe.

 

[Joshthewriter]

Journey

Death of Duty

Part 7: Fall of the Pokemon League

Defeat​

---

We need to be better than our primal nature. If we are not? Nature may take its course. — Professor Samuel Oak​

---

Savage growled, a deep and predatory noise that vibrated the loose rubble around us both. His pupils found me, dilated, and refocused on the puny little human who dared to call himself master to a King of the Beasts.

"Savage," I said slowly, gauging how to handle this. My hand found it's way over his ball and I contemplated the idea. It would end the threat right now, but I'd still have to handle Savage at a later point. If there even was a later point. I was going to tame my savage beast of a pokemon. I was a trainer.

I planted my feet and looked the ancient tyrant in his golden brown eyes. "Savage," I said with as much strength as I could muster. "Yield."

He tossed his head back and let loose a primal roar. My bones shook, my teeth rattled, and my knees went weak.

"No," I replied calmly. "I'm the one in charge."

He snorted in reply and lowered his gaze to Acolyte, who stepped in front of me protectively. Artemis landed beside him, appearing at the most opportune moment. Savage growled intently and nodded at me in a vague gesture.

Acolyte shook his head, letting out his own growl of warning. Next to Savage's throaty bellow, it sounded like a mewling baby. Nevertheless, the intent was clear in the way Acolyte hefted his club. Acolyte stood with me.

Violet light enveloped Savage, lifting him suddenly off the ground. My tyrantrum slammed up against the shattered façade of the Silph Tower, roaring in pain. He thrashed wildly, his heavy clawed feet scrabbling uselessly at the ground.

"Trainer Wright," came a cold, musical voice. "return that beast before he hurts someone."

My eyes narrowed as I looked at the Champion. "Lance," I started. "You've got a lot of ner—"

"The tyrantrum," Lance repeated with a coldness that belied his true nature. "Return him now."

I meekly dropped my hand to my belt, eyes glancing to the little girl at Lance's heel. Sabrina's eyes were glowing faintly, no doubt she was the one pinning my pokemon to the building.

Savage disappeared in a flash of red light. I slotted the ball back into my belt, knowing that my tyrantrum would demand a reckoning with me if we survived this. Artemis and Acolyte disappeared into their balls a moment later.

"Lance," I began slowly. I'd looked up to this man, I'd seen him as a perfect heroic protector along with the rest of the region. That carefully cultivated image was shattered along with Kanto's disfigured landscape. He was just a man, flawed like all the rest of us. "You've got a lot to answer for."

He set his jaw and placed his hands on his hips, his trademark cape flowing down from his shoulders and framing his figure "That reckoning comes for us now, Trainer Wright. It is time for all to be laid bare." Lance turned and gestured for the man at his side to come forward. "It is time to face the real foe."

My blood ran cold as I clenched my fists. I found myself wishing that I hadn't abandoned my weapon. "Giovanni," I began coldly. The man that all of Kan-Jo had been hunting for stood implacably at Lance's side, as if he hadn't set the entire damn continent on fire.

Giovanni smirked as his gaze passed over me, seemingly taking pleasure in passing me over for the crowd slowly forming behind me.

I glanced around. Surge was there, Harding, McCulloch and the rest of Zapdos squad at his back. Dozens of weapons trained on Giovanni, the Rangers and the Gym Trainers present forming up into a loose circle around the Champion and the two Gym Leaders at his back. A charizard and pidgeot swooped down, landing heavily as Leaf and the boys dismounted the two pokemon. Janine was there a moment later, slipping off the back of her venomoth and eyeballing me. More and more trainers teleported in by the moment, swelling the crowd behind us into the hundreds.

Surge stepped forward to join me, his weapon trained on Giovanni. "That's enough now, Giovanni. It's over."

"You're right," replied Lance. "this is over. This needless carnage is now over. You are to immediately stand down and prepare for battle with a Legend-Class threat."

Surge's rifle lowered slightly. "I… I…" Surge glanced at me, then back to the Champion. I saw the hesitation in him and I knew that Lance's order would be followed. Surge was a soldier at heart. "Yes, sir." He turned to face the crowd, pointedly ignoring my glare. "Everybody stand down," he ordered.

Lance nodded in satisfaction. "Good," he said, his gaze moving back to the assembled forces. "I leave you to your men. Prepare them for battle. Our foe will be upon us in mere minutes."

I broke from Surge's side and stepped towards Lance and Giovanni. Both men's eyes found me and I knew I had the attention of the crowd. "So all of this was a lie?" I shouted. "All of this destruction, all this death to stop one man, all of it endorsed by you… and for what?"

Lance sighed and waved Giovanni back. He stepped to face me, his cape billowing around him. "Morals are often the first casualty in the war for survival. I would think that a soldier such as—"

"I'm not a soldier," I spat forcefully, waving Surge off as he tried to stop me. "I'm not even a Ranger. Not if it means giving up on what's right."

Lance smirked. "And what is right, Trainer Wright? What would you have me do with the instrument of our destruction mere minutes away?"

I opened my mouth but found no more words of protest. More Trainers were appearing by the second, teleporters working frantically to assemble Indigo's forces in the square. Lance continued with a grim scowl.

"We do the only thing we can," he continued. "We fight against fate or we die. Let the bleeding hearts of the world argue my morality after I have gathered the instruments of our salvation." He smirked again at me and I decided that I really hated Blackthorn's greatest son. "Which I have done. The forces gathered today are here because I willed it so. Your Rangers… the Gym Leaders and their Trainers… my Elites… all of Rocket… all are an extension of my will. All answer to me."

I was frozen to the spot. Silence reigned over the crowd. Lance had admitted it all and it wouldn't change a damn thing. He was the Champion and we were all but pawns in the grand game that he had been playing.

Lorelei appeared beside him, her gaze as cold as ice. A massive, muscled brute that had to be Bruno stood head and shoulders above the group. A withered old crone was there, hunched over her cane and staring at me knowingly.

"This dissent has run its course," Lance continued, knowing that no opposition would dare stand against him now. "Our true enemy is here. It is a creature of hatred, borne from our desperation. We must stand together now if we are to have any hope of survival."

Silence was his answer. It was all the reply he needed. Lance glanced at Surge, then to Giovanni at his right. "Prepare yourselves for battle," he said coldly. "the enemy will show no mercy. Do not show any in return."

He turned away, swishing his cape with him as he returned to conversation with Giovanni and the other Elites. I could hear murmurs behind me, the growing crowd dissatisfied by his grim countenance. None stepped forward though, a foul mood coming over the mass of people.

Surge placed a hand on my shoulder, pulling me back to face him. "Not now," he hissed in my ear. "Not here. This isn't the place to do this."

I turned with him, slowly walking back towards the gathered trainers. I scowled at my CO. "We can't just let them—"

He cut me off with a look I'd never seen on him. He was utterly defeated, resignation in his eyes. "We can and we will. We don't win this by fighting amongst ourselves."

"When did Rocket and Giovanni become one of us?"

He shook his head and I saw him grit his teeth. "I don't like it any more than you," he replied harshly. "But we have our orders."

I stopped cold and stared at him. I felt a calm certainty come over me and knew that this was the path I had to walk. "Orders…" I muttered.

He stopped and faced me, seeming to expect something from me. "Is that going to be a problem, Ranger?"

I was quiet. I looked over at Lance and Giovanni. Agatha's eyes locked with mine and she nodded almost imperceptibly. She knew something about my destiny, something about me that I couldn't even place. I was meant for more than orders.

I looked back at Surge and I knew what I had to do. The Champion had treated this all like some sort of game in pitting Kanto against itself. It sickened me, overriding the nascent obedient culture Surge had been trying to instill in me.

"It is a problem," I stated plainly. I had made my choice. I knew what I had to do. "Like it or not, you've been a willing participant in Lance's sick game. We all have." I shook my head. "I'm not going to be a part of it anymore. I can't be. Not if I want to change things."

"Wright—"

"I resign my position on Zapdos squad and among the Rangers." I looked him in the eyes, facing down the living legend. "I wanted to help change things. I wanted to make the world a better place." I shook my head again. "I can't do that as a Ranger. I can't do that while bound to your command. Not if your command is that of Lance's."

My CO simply looked at me with a wide grin. "I accept your resignation," he began, pride welling up in his voice. "On behalf of Zapdos squad, I thank you for your service."

I couldn't help the look of surprise that came to my face. I had expected anger or surprise, not beaming pride.

"You came to me, just a desperate kid, in way over your head. Hell, I still think you're in over your head, but you've risen to every challenge that's been put in front of you." He nodded to me. "You've gone as far as I can take you. It's up to you to take the next step."

I snapped into a salute, letting my look of surprise fade into a determined expression. "It's been an honour, sir."

He returned the salute. "The honour was all mine, Trainer Wright." He lowered his arms to his side and frowned. "Do me one favour?"

I raised an eyebrow.

"This is gonna be a shitstorm like nothing I've ever seen." He glanced over his shoulder at the Champion and his Elites. "Don't get yourself killed here. I know that's a lot to ask in a fight like this, but if things look bleak and it doesn't look like we're gonna pull out a win, then I want you to stay down. You can't change things if you're dead."

"I can't promise that," I replied.

Surge shrugged, but I saw the concern on his face. "You wouldn't be you if you could." He gestured at Oak, Janine and the boys. "Tend to your Trainers. We're going to need all of you if we have a shot at winning this."

I nodded as Janine approached us. "Thank you, sir."

He gestured over his shoulder. "I should get back to my men," he said. His gaze found Janine. "Take care of him, Lady Anzu."

She nodded in response, grabbing my hand. "I plan to."

Surge turned and made his way towards Harding and the rest of Zapdos Squad. My former CO didn't look back.

"Did you really just quit?" Janine asked with a surprised grin. "You left the Rangers?"

I nodded grimly. "I had to. Someone has to change things."

"I know you did," she replied calmly. She put her arms around me and for a moment I just enjoyed the contact. "You were never just a soldier. You're more."

I turned, breaking the contact with her. "I won't be anything if we can't make it through this fight alive."

Agatha's warning was fresh in my mind. Someone was going to pay for my life. I couldn't have it be her. "Just… promise me something."

"Anything,"

"Don't die. Please."

She smirked with earned confidence. "That's not going to happen."

I slowly nodded as we walked back towards Oak and the others. It wasn't a promise, but it was the best I was going to get from her. She was a fighter, probably even more so than I was. She would never make a promise that might keep her out of the fight.

"Luna and Curie are alright. Neither of them were seriously hurt at all," she said. "Two is bringing them down as quick as he can."

We stopped in front of Oak. I grimly nodded, trying to formulate some sort of plan. Elias appeared from the crowd, nodding at me from behind the boys. A half dozen Silph Trainers were at his back, waiting for my lead.

A flash of light erupted behind me, accompanied by a sudden pop of teleportation. Will and Karen appeared from the ether, joining my slowly growing group.

"Marcus," Oak began. "the cyborg got away."

"That doesn't matter anymore," I replied. I looked away from Oak, meeting the gaze of both Red and Blue. "We have a much bigger problem."

"Mewtwo," Oak intoned. He glanced over at the Champion and then back to me. "Lance means to use us all as cannon fodder. The trainers are a distraction meant to provide him an opening."

I nodded. "And we're going to prove ourselves as more than just fodder." I looked around at the group. "We're going to stop this. We're going to fight."

Leaf shot me a harsh glance from behind Red. She looked hurt, as though I'd suggested some terribly cruel course of action.

Oak scowled. "How do you plan on doing that?" he asked. "Mewtwo survived an explosion that wiped an island off the map. As far as we know, it's indestructible."

I shrugged. "It's still just a pokemon." I glanced around, trying madly to formulate some sort of plan. "We know what type it is, we know what it's weak to." I grimaced. Simple type advantage wasn't going to be enough. We needed more. We needed to level the playing field.

"And we know that Giovanni plans to capture it," said a new voice. Gemma emerged from the crowd, another small group of trainers in tow. She looked fine, dirt and dust notwithstanding. "He retrieved the prototype Master Ball from the Silph Board just before the shield went up."

Luna and Curie stepped out from behind the group of trainers. Two hovered another half-step behind them. I felt my heartbeat relax slightly as relief washed over me. My team was safe. They stepped in behind me, hardly missing a step.

I nodded, mind still racing despite the small measure of relief that gave me. "Then his plan is likely to hit it with the ball after it has exhausted itself against the rest of us." I scowled as I considered it. Giovanni would kill us all with his plan. Even if it worked, we were little more than a distraction. "He still wants to capture this thing and use it. That's his endgame."

"So," Janine started, deferring to me. "What's the plan?"

I looked around. Everyone was looking to me. Every trainer, prodigies like Red and Blue, living legends like Professor Oak, hardened mercenaries like Will and Karen, and the veteran Silph trainers like Elias and Gemma all were looking to me.

I took a deep breath to calm my racing heart. Then I made the plan. "None of us are a match for it. I doubt that even Lance and the Elites are. We don't win this by going head to head." I gestured around at the devastated square. "We win this by fighting dirty. We draw it into the square and hit it from every angle with everything we have."

"What if that isn't enough?" asked Blue, loud enough for the crowd to hear. More people were crowding around us, listening to the forming plan. "You said it yourself, we can't fight it conventionally."

"Use the cover that the square and all the buildings give us," I replied. "You hit it with your best shot and then get the hell out of the way before it can retaliate." I looked around at the crowd. Attentive faces were hanging on my every word. "Don't be a hero. Don't throw your life away thinking that your bravery makes you invincible. That's what Lance wants." I shook my head. "We win this by surviving and letting the big guns do the heavy lifting."

I looked around at them all. There were a lot of scared faces looking back at me. "This is going to be a fight like no other," I continued. "one that a lot of people aren't going to walk away from. I'm scared too, but I know one thing." More and more people were looking to me. "This battle will decide the fate of Indigo. Which means that we will not lose. We will not lose because we cannot afford to lose."

"What if I'm just a novice?" shouted a trainer from the crowd.

I frowned. There was the wrench in our defense plans. I knew the League would be pulling in every trainer it could right now. There were a lot of people here woefully inexperienced for a fight like this. "Stay back and support those of us who can fight. Move wounded off the field, use status attacks, anything but directly fight this thing."

I looked out at the crowd. They all looked back at me. Red, Blue and Leaf. Elias and the Kalosian woman. Oak and Ash. Janine. I swallowed the lump that had suddenly formed in my throat. Maybe I wasn't a Ranger anymore. But I could still be a leader, I could still make a difference. All these people were looking to me for strength. Strength that I'd earned through bloody sacrifice. I could be something more.

"The world will remember this day," I boomed with the most commanding voice I could muster. "They will remember the people here as heroes who fought against impossible odds." I thrust a fist into the air and watched as my salute was returned by the crowd. "For Indigo!"

The crowd erupted with a muted war cry. I stood there for a long moment, just watching the crowd. The cry grew until it was deafening, more and more people joining in. The mood lifted suddenly as the crowd fed off itself. Then I lowered my arm and the moment ended. I watched the crowd slowly fan out, Trainers taking up positions among the rubble and bombed out buildings.

Janine approached me, Oak and the others a step behind her.

"I have one last play to make," I said. "Time to bring in the big guns." I pulled back my left sleeve, exposing the thin blue marking that wrapped around my wrist. "Hopefully it's enough to tip the balance in our favour."

Oak nodded, approving of my mad plan. "Articuno," he said proudly.

I nodded. "It promised to aid me in return for driving Rocket off of the Seafoam Islands." I looked over at Leaf with a knowing smile. "Just like Zapdos promised to aid you."

Leaf's eyes went wide. All trace of her earlier disgust was replaced by surprise. Almost like she hadn't even thought of the idea. "So we call them," she replied.

"If there was ever a time to call for help…" I trailed off.

My mind flitted to Riley. He'd been marked by Moltres. I had no clue where he'd gone after we'd parted ways in Sevii, but I hoped he was somewhere in the crowd and thinking the same thing I was. Three Trainers had been marked, three Trainers had been promised aid. Hopefully it would be enough. It would have to be.

I looked around the small group gathered around me. Inspiration struck and I knew that this battle was the key to Giovanni's endgame. Whatever his plan was for Kanto, this was the point upon which it hinged. If we didn't win here, we needed to be ready for what came next. We needed to be proactive.

"I have a plan," I said. "A plan to change the League from within, to deal with the circumstances that led us here properly." My eyes met every single one of them. "And we'll need everyone here to pull it off."

"That's a bit ambitious at the moment," retorted Karen with a curt glare. "Why don't we just focus on—"

"No," I interjected, putting more force into my voice than I had before. "this is too damn important. Giovanni is about to wipe the board clear for him, using Mewtwo to do his dirty work for him." I looked around at them all. "The people in this group are some of the strongest Trainers outside of the Elites. We have the power to force our own change. We just have to survive this battle. We need to be alive so we're still on the board after this battle." I sighed heavily, knowing that was not guaranteed. "I know that's a lot to ask, but—"

"I'm in," Red said suddenly. I saw his breath quicken and knew he was quashing the same fear I was. "whatever the plan is, the League needs to change." He gestured at the crowd behind him. "Too many people are going to die today, win or lose. I say that we change things so this doesn't happen again." He knew what I was getting at. He knew what he was meant for.

Leaf's hand found Red's and I saw the two tighten their grip on each other. She didn't say a word. She didn't have to.

"It'll be difficult," Janine said. "Even as a Leader, I barely even have any influence over League politics."

"I never said that it would be easy," I continued. "But it needs to be done." I pointed at the crowd. "For the people who can't do it themselves. For everyone who has to live under this gods forsaken system."

Oak nodded to himself. "We're with you, Marcus. All of us." He looked at me grimly. "For the mistakes I've made… for the promises that I've broken…"

"For Saffron," said Gemma, breaking into the conversation. "and the people hiding in their homes."

"For the ones who can't stand up for themselves," said Leaf. "for the Trainers about to face something beyond anything they could imagine."

"For Clothos," said Blue in a solemn voice. "for Pride, for Free."

"For mom," Red added, his voice barely more than a whisper. Leaf squeezed his hand tighter and he looked up at me. "and everyone else we've lost."

Ash finally stepped forward from his place beside Oak. "This is how you win," he said with no small amount of pride in his voice. "By coming together. In my world… I was the last one left fighting for good. But here… you all have each other. You can lean on each other for strength. You can win this together."

"Then let's fight," I said. I looked around at my friends and allies. Determined faces looked back at me. The die was cast. We were in this now until the bitter end. "Together."

---

I pressed myself up against her, taking comfort in the contact. Janine pressed back into me. I didn't know how long we had until Mewtwo made its way through the city, but I would take the moment of comfort while it lasted.

In truth, we hadn't needed to come up here to call to the God of Snow. I likely could have done so from the ground. But a moment of peace alongside Janine, a moment to breathe away from the carnage below, had seemed right when any moment could be our last.

Janine turned her head to look at me, seated behind her on Shimmer's back. The massive venomoth was the smoothest flight I'd ever experienced. I almost envied Janine, riding on Artemis' back was an exhausting endeavour compared to this.

"I see Lance and the Elites," she said. "Top of Silph Tower."

I nodded. "They're staying above the fighting until we've committed against Mewtwo."

"Cowards," Janine remarked coldly. "They should be leading the trainers on the ground."

"More trainers teleporting in," I said as a group of five appeared on the roof. Another group of five appeared a half moment later, one of them instantly recognizable as the most powerful trainer on the planet. "The Grand Champion is here."

Janine whipped around to look. "Damn," she said. "They're calling in everyone. Looks like Alder and the Unovan Elites as well."

She turned to look at me again. "Whatever you're gonna do, you better do it now. We don't know how long we have."

I nodded. I pulled back the sleeve and stared intently at the icy blue marking on my wrist. "Articuno," I started, praying that the reclusive god was listening. "You promised to aid me in an hour of need. This is that hour. We need you. We need the might of a god on our side."

I felt the presence of an unknowable mind brush up against mine. It was cold. It was distant. But it was unmistakably there. It enveloped me completely, Janine and the burning city simply fading away as if they no longer existed.

'Marcus-Trainer,' said a cold wind on my neck

I sucked in a breath sharply. The mind of the god was a turbulent storm, a force of nature that was bound to no man. I felt a chill creep into my bones and felt the gods displeasure thrum in the cold.

'You call for my aid against the product of humanity's hubris.'

"I do," I replied quickly. I centred myself in the moment, holding onto what little of reality I could still sense. Janine's hand squeezed my own, grounding me in the reality of the moment. "We can't win this fight, not without help. Not without a god or two of our own."

'Humanity's problems are theirs to solve. We are not your guardians, nor your executioners. We simply exist among the balance of nature.'

"You promised to help me when I called!" I felt the god's mind echo with disapproval. "I'm calling you now. This creature… it won't stop at just humanity. It is a destroyer, built to combat those like yourself."

'And you believe that it would continue its warpath against my kin?'

"It is an apex predator, learning its place among the natural order. Once it has supplanted humanity, it will move on to test its strength against you and your kin." I squeezed Janine's hand tighter, desperate to avoid becoming lost within the contact with a god. "You talk of balance… this creature exists to uproot the balance of nature. It will not rest until it has found a new world order, one with it atop the ashes of the old."

I felt Articuno's presence retreat for a moment. Janine looked at me with some measure of hope as my vision returned to me. I shook my head slightly. Another long moment went by in silence.

"Please, Articuno," I continued. I was desperate now, pleading with the ancient deity. "I need your help. We need your help. We can't do this without you."

The snow god's presence came roaring back. I felt my mind dwarfed by the contact and tried to retreat from the pokemon. My thoughts became muddled until there was only the ethereal voice of the being I'd called to.

'We three have marked humans in the past. Long have we been protectors of nature's balance. Long have we called upon our marked to be our voice and our influence among your world. We have been called, for the first time in eons, we have been called. Three champions have called for the aid promised to them, three champions of three gods.'

Articuno paused for a moment, seemingly conscious of its overwhelming presence in my head. I felt it retreat slightly and my thoughts became clearer.

'My kin and I will come, Marcus-Trainer. We will meet your destroyer in battle and protect the balance of this world. Know that your words tipped the balance of our decision in your favour. Humanity is in debt to you for your actions today.'

I sighed audibly as Articuno's vast presence retreated from my mind. My body sagged as exhaustion washed over me and I steadied myself on Janine.

"Well?" she asked.

"It's going to help us," I started. "They're coming."

"They?" she said in confusion.

"All three," I replied, exhaustion seeping into my voice. My gut ached, a twinge of pain remaining where Artemis had impaled me. "The Storm Raptors. Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres."

She paused for a moment. I felt the somber demeanour in her as she looked down at the burning city. "Saffron will surely suffer today."

I steadied myself on her. "The city can be rebuilt. As long as we survive this."

"Will we?" she asked carefully. She turned to look over her shoulder at me. "Marcus… Rocket was one thing… they were just human… this, Mewtwo…"

I clenched my jaw. "I know." She hadn't been a part of my meeting with Blaine. She didn't know what I knew. She didn't know about Ash, or Lance's real involvement with Mewtwo, or what Mewtwo even was. Hell, I hadn't even had time to tell her why I'd just resigned from Zapdos squad, or what had happened with Agatha in that mirror world.

"We don't have the time to go over everything right now, I know." She shook her head slowly. "But I'm scared. I'm scared and I don't know what to do." She looked back to me. "I'm not used to that, you know?"

I nodded. My hand found hers on Shimmer's side. "I am too," I admitted. "We're about to fight an indestructible god with three more gods of our own." I took a deep breath. The idea was haunting. "People are going to get hurt. A lot of them." I offered her a weak smile. "But we'll be alright. We're together. That's what matters."

I hugged her then, holding her as tight as I could. Janine pressed back into me and the whole world seemed to just melt away. It was just us, suspended beneath the canopy of smoke.

I pulled back slightly, swallowing the lump that had formed in my throat. The board had been set. The die had been cast. All that remained was the battle. All that remained was the final stages of the game.

"Take us down," I said quietly.

We swooped silently down towards the plaza. Shimmer deposited us in front of Oak and the boys, disappearing into her ball a moment later.

"It's done," I said solemnly. "The birds are with us."

He nodded back at me. "Then we have a chance."

I put on a brave face, one that I knew Oak could see right through. "A puncher's chance, but that is all we'll have." I paused for a moment, looking around the square. Most of the trainers had gone to ground, taking up positions in cover and arraying their pokemon alongside them. "Is everyone ready?" I knew the answer. There was no way in hell we were ready for this.

Leaf answered me. "I actually have an idea that might help."

I turned to her, raising an eyebrow. "Something to give us an advantage?"

She frowned and hesitated. "Not… exactly. But it might be a way out of this fight."

"Leaf," Red started. "you can't—"

"I think… I remember Mewtwo. From before Papa and I moved to Lavender..." She trailed off but she had this look on her face like she wanted to say more. "I… I think it was my friend."

That got everyone's attention. Leaf looked suddenly nervous with all the sudden attention.

"So what?" Blue asked. "You gonna ask it nicely to not kill us all?"

Silence was his answer. Blue looked at Leaf incredulously, then to Oak, then to Red, then to me.

"That's insane," Blue continued. "the murder machine isn't gonna stop its rampage because you were its friend once upon a time."

"It might," I said suddenly. My gears were turning, plans and courses of action playing out in my head. "It's a good idea. The best one we've had yet." I shrugged. "We know for certain that force hasn't worked up to this point. Why not try reason?"

"Marcus," Oak interjected with some force. "Mewtwo isn't capable of being reasoned with."

"But how do we know that?" I replied. "It wouldn't reason with any of the scientists on the project. But why would it have any reason to?" I shook my head and gestured towards Leaf. "She says she had a positive relationship with this thing. That's enough to make success a possibility, which was explicitly not the case a minute ago."

I turned towards Leaf. "Do you think that you can get Mewtwo to listen to you? Maybe point it towards Lance and Giovanni, or get it to just leave?"

She looked back at me with a hard stare. "I don't know," she said quietly. "It was a long time ago… I don't know."

"Are you willing to try talking to it?" I asked. I caught the withering glare from Red, but the boy remained silent. "Ask it to leave. Nicely. Before this turns into a massacre."

"It already is a massacre." Oak interjected again. "We have to fight. We have to—"

I spun my head towards the professor. "Look around us, Oak! Mewtwo didn't start this fight. We did. Humanity did. We did this to ourselves." I shook my head. "You wanted a way out of this mess. Here it is."

It was quiet for a moment. Oak didn't reply, didn't even look back at me. He just stared blankly into the smoke and dust.

"I'll do it," Leaf said, her voice small among the noise present in the plaza. "I'll talk to him."

"What if Mewtwo doesn't listen to her?" Red asked quietly. He met my eyes, almost pleading with me for some answer that didn't put Leaf into danger. "What then?"

I scowled. "If it comes to that…" I knew what he was asking me. He wanted to know what happened if Mewtwo simply killed Leaf the moment she started talking. "Then we fight."

He scowled down at the ground, his eyes hard. Leaf's hand found his and squeezed.

"Spread the word around," I ordered, looking towards Blue and Janine. "We need to give this a chance. We wait for Mewtwo to strike first. We wait for Leaf to plead our case."

Blue and Janine nodded, disappearing into the plaza in different directions. Oak didn't move, still staring blankly into the smoke as Red and Leaf quietly embraced each other. Ash for his part stood in silence beside Oak, a somewhat amused expression on his face.

"It won't work," Oak murmured as I sidled up to him. "It's here because of the Master Ball. It's here because humanity found a way to threaten it. It's here to eliminate the threat."

"Give her a chance to prove that the people here aren't the threat," I said, scanning the smoke for movement. "Give her a chance to make a difference."

He sighed heavily. "I fear that even with that chance…" He trailed off and sighed again. "Lance and Giovanni have controlled everything to this point. They've run the board, they've set the pieces, they've… they've…" He trailed off again, lost for words.

"They're in your head," I said in a matter of fact tone. "They've been there for years."

Oak looked down at the ground crestfallen. "They've been in my head since I found the boys in the wreckage of my son's home." He looked over at Ash, then at me. "Years of hell…"

"All led to this moment," Ash said quietly. He turned to face Oak and put a hand on the old man's shoulder. "The Oak that I knew… he believed in me. These kids need the same. They need you to believe that they can pull off the impossible."

"Belief…" Oak murmured. "Is that enough?"

"It is. It has to be," Ash replied. He lifted his hat and attempted to brush back the wild tangle of jet black hair. He placed the hat back down on his head, apparently satisfied with his hair. I couldn't see a difference. "If my story isn't over…" He looked over at me. "Then this isn't the end of theirs."

I opened my mouth to say something, but a flicker of movement in the smoke drew my gaze. A bubble of clear air floated into view. The figure within raised an arm and all at once, the smoke and dust billowing into the sky seemed to grow still.

Then the figure moved again and I got my first glimpse of Mewtwo. It was smaller than I'd expected, probably even a little bit shorter than me. I couldn't tell from across the plaza. A long tail swished behind the humanoid body, its limbs skinny and atrophied. A long tube of flesh sprouted from the back of its elongated skull and connected to a point just above the base of its tail.

I could feel an angry presence in my head. It brushed aside my thoughts, rooting me to the spot and blocking out any coherent lines of thinking. I found myself looking up at the tower with Giovanni and Lance on my mind. My fists clenched. I'd make them pay for this farce. I'd—

A tap on my shoulder drew my attention back to my surroundings. Janine was pressing something into my hand, something cold, hard and sharp. I felt the anger lessen suddenly, fading into a dull roar in the back of my mind. I looked down at the black metal trinket.

"It's called a sharp charm. I brought a spare in case I lost mine," she said with a hint of frustration in her voice. "It'll protect your mind from psychics." She sounded tense and her body was held so stiffly I could see her shaking. "It usually works better than this."

"It's Mewtwo," Leaf said. She seemed unaffected by the pressure in our heads. "He's angry." She scowled and took a step towards the creature. "He's so angry."

I glanced over, watching her continue towards Mewtwo. I could hear the crowd growing restless. No doubt the rest of the trainers were feeling the same effect I'd been just a moment ago. I could still feel it in the back of my mind, a dull roar that served to cloud my thoughts.

"Go quickly," I urged. Leaf turned her head to look at me. "Talk him down. You think it'll work, then it'll work." I glanced around at the rest of our group. Red and Blue seemed similarly unaffected, but Oak was shaking on the spot with Ash looking on with concern. "Go," I said again. "We'll give you as much time as you need."

She nodded back at me and then broke eye contact. She walked towards the living weapon with no trace of fear in her step.

"I don't like this," Red said, eyes following her. "I really don't like this Marcus."

I crossed the small distance to stand at his side. "I'm not in love with it either, kid. But we really don't have a better plan, do we?"

He shook his head. "No." The scowl on his face said it all. He wore the frustration plainly, his clenched fists and furrowed brow telling me exactly what he thought of the plan. "She can do it," he said

Mewtwo moved, turning its head to look at Leaf. The creature floated over to her, then turned its head very deliberately to look at our little group.

"It… it's… it's right—"

A scuffle behind me tore my attention away from Leaf and the clone. Ash had Oak's hand caught in a vice grip, the old professor grunting and trying to get free.

"Control yourself, Profess—"

Oak's other fist cracked against Ash's face. Blood spurted from his nose and the raven haired boy went down in a flurry of curses.

Blue was closest. He hit Oak from the side with a flying tackle, but he was too late. Flare unfurled her wings and let out a deafening roar tinged with unusual fury.

My head snapped back to Mewtwo and Leaf as I felt the anger in my head fade. It was replaced by a solemn sadness.

Leaf was speaking faster now, becoming more animated in an attempt to keep Mewtwo's attention on her. She placed a hand on Mewtwo's shoulder and I felt the sadness shift into disappointment.

We'd failed. I knew it in that moment. We'd invalidated any of Leaf's arguments. We hadn't given her the time she'd needed. I opened my mouth to call her back.

Mewtwo moved again, placing its hand over Leaf's. The two disappeared with a heavy pop and it felt as though an immense pressure lifted from my mind.

"Where did they go?" Red exclaimed. "Where is she?"

My mind kicked into gear, immediately preparing for the worst. Mewtwo had been taken Leaf. Mewtwo had been friends with Leaf. Mewtwo was only getting her off the field so she didn't get hurt. Which meant that Mewtwo would be back.

"It's coming back," I said confidently. "everybody get ready!"

My hands dropped to my belt, releasing my team minus Savage. The rest of our group took their cue, other trainers in the crowd following suit in turn. We all stood there in quiet terror for a long few moments, eyes scanning the eerily floating clouds of dust.

Then it was back, reappearing where it had disappeared with a heavy pop. It gazed out at our hastily formed army, all the trainers and soldiers deployed against it.

'I'm sorry.'

Those two words were all the warning we got. Mewtwo waved its arms and the ground simply folded onto itself. Walls of earth and stone were thrown up and collapsed onto portions of the plaza, crushing swathes of our defense in an instant.

Red's espeon lit up like a morning sun, blasting away the curtain of concrete indiscriminately. Oak and Blue's alakazam joined Red's psychic in clearing the rest of the falling rubble. From what I could tell, some of the trainers in the plaza had reacted the same. Too few to mean much of anything in this fight.

Our psychics pulsed, flinging the remaining airborne rubble back into Mewtwo. The creature deflected our return barrage into the ground, kicking up a plume of dust that it dispelled with a thought.

We moved as one, Red and Blue charging ahead in the lead. Our pokemon followed us without needing orders. Janine and I flanked to one side as Oak took the other. More trainers were taking that as a signal to mount their own attacks.

It wasn't enough. I could see that. Our ranged fire was a fraction of what it was before Mewtwo's opening attack, with countless trainers dead or buried amongst the rubble. Those that were left were either the smarter and stronger trainers, or either very lucky. Even if the ones left were the stronger among us, there was very little we could hope to do.

Mewtwo waved its arms again and the ground rippled beneath my feet. I felt myself tumble into open air and flip end over end. I landed hard on a panel of light and I was vaguely aware of Two chattering in my ear.

I slid off the panel and hit the rough hewn ground, collapsing as my left knee crumpled. I sucked in a breath and forced myself back up as I finally heard what Two's voice was saying.

"Marcus-Trainer, Curie is down."

My blood went cold. The fight was already lost, that much was clear. I glanced over, trying to find the group. I couldn't see them in the gloom, couldn't see Janine. I couldn't even see where Mewtwo was in the dust kicked up by his attacks.

"Take me to her," I ordered. If the others were alive, they'd have to tend to themselves. This wasn't a winnable fight. Mewtwo had proven that in short order.

Two chirped and gestured for me to follow. We rounded a mound of rubble and my heart practically stopped. Curie was trapped by the debris, her lower half crushed beneath the mound. Blood was flowing out onto the ground beneath her, a growing puddle signifying worse injuries that I couldn't see.

I dropped to my knees. I didn't have any healing items. I didn't have anything that would help her.

"She will survive in her ball," Two began with the same analytical tone as always. "So long as you are able to get her medical care promptly."

I raised Curie's ball and returned her, praying that she would be alright. My hand placed her ball back on my belt and then curled into a fist.

A deafening crack came from behind me to interrupt my train of thought, followed by a thunderous impact. Indignant anger welled up within me, not all of it mine. That was fine. I was pissed. I wanted to fight. I didn't mind being angry for that.

I whirled around, looking at Two. "Where is it?" I asked.

"50 meters to your left," he replied immediately.

"Rest of the team?"

"Unknown."

I nodded. My hand found the three balls still on my belt. Two of them would be useless until Agatha made her play. The third would be useless until I could get him under control... My hands relaxed slightly. I didn't need to control Savage. I just needed to point him in the right direction

My feet pounded the ground as I charged in the direction Two had indicated. The eerie silence was gone, replaced by countless cries of anguish. I passed by countless trainers working frantically to free others from the rubble, ignoring all of them.

Mewtwo rose from a cloud of dust, deflecting a bolt of lightning into the base of Silph Tower. It lashed out, decimating the pair of trainers unlucky enough to be in it's immediate vicinity. Mewtwo lifted a hand, a swirling ball of shadows growing within.

A jet of flame torched the lower half of Mewtwo's body. It retaliated, flinging the shadow ball at the unseen attacker.

"Light screen!" I shouted over the roar of Mewtwo's quarry.

Mewtwo flared with violet light, more shadow balls forming in a helix around it. Two raised a panel of light in front of the magmortar that had torched Mewtwo. The barrier held up to the first two shadow balls, but winked out as the rest of the barrage struck home and bisected the magmortar.

A scizor buzzed towards Mewtwo, pincers outstretched. Mewtwo grabbed it with its telekinesis and slammed it down onto the magmortar's corpse. The bug buzzed angrily, trying to rise as Mewtwo peeled off its carapace.

Mewtwo reeled suddenly as a ball of white hot lightning slammed into its side. It spun and abandoned the scizor as the second half of the attack struck home.

Oak and his team hit Mewtwo as it turned, each of his pokemon unloading everything they had. Lightning and fire washed over it. Ice speared into its torso. Reality screamed and warped under the assault and the indignant anger in my head spiked.

A bubble of energy rippled off of Mewtwo, completely blunting Oak's assault. It waved an arm and the bubble expanded violently.

Two slammed a barrier down in front of us a fraction before the bubble hit us. I ducked behind my porygon, scanning the battlefield to see who was still standing. Oak was still up, his alakazam weathering the storm with both spoons raised. Janine was absent, along with Red and Blue.

The bubble popped and Two dropped the barrier. Mewtwo rounded on Oak, the professor's alakazam panting heavily. He raised an arm and a shadow ball swirled into existence.

Another ball of white hot lightning hit Mewtwo from the side again, and this time I saw the little pikachu within. It retreated as Mewtwo lashed out with a telekinetic slam that pulverized the surrounding area. Blue followed up the opening Red had created, his arcanine charging from a different direction.

Mewtwo spun, meeting the arcanine with a wave of its arm. The fire type slammed into the front of Silph Tower, bowling over a charging nidoking. Both pokemon lay deathly still in the billowing dust.

Red's pikachu was back, hitting Mewtwo again from an oblique angle and knocking it off balance again. Another flash of light grew into a huge furry form, already rearing back to strike.

Another wave of Mewtwo's arm sent the snorlax crashing through our rapidly organizing forces. It bounced twice and came to a rest somewhere out of view. Mewtwo spun and sent another wave of rubble crashing out with a vague wave of his arm again.

Two slammed another barrier down just in time, deflecting rubble away before it could wash me away. I lost Oak and the boys in the chaos and held tight to Two. It subsided a moment later and Two dropped the barrier.

Karen was there this time, her houndoom leaping at Mewtwo. An umbreon was a half step behind the houndoom, a murkrow flapping just above them. Mewtwo tried to retaliate with the psychic bubble again, but Karen and her team smashed through it unmolested.

Will followed her through the opening in the bubble she had made, his pokemon arraying behind him. They spread out as Karen charged, violet light rippling through the air between them.

Karen's team hit Mewtwo harder than anything I'd seen yet. They tore into it, fangs, claws and beak ripping chunks out of the creature. It tried to strike back, flailing wildly with enough psychic power to level everything around. Will's team managed to blunt enough of Mewtwo's tantrum that it couldn't do much more than knock a few of us off balance.

Mewtwo spun, tearing the houndoom off of itself with a spray of blood. It gazed around at Karen and her team, hesitating for a half a breath before moving. It rose off the ground a fraction and slammed back down. Mewtwo disappeared into the ground and for a long moment there was quiet save for the settling of debris. Then Mewtwo tore back upwards in a tremendous spray of rubble.

Two and I went flying as the ground bucked and threw me skyward. I lost Karen and Will in the chaos, finding and then losing Red and Blue a moment later. I hit a barrier and stopped cold as the breath was forced from my lungs. Two and I slid off and I hit the ground hard once again.

I tried to rise, my already aching knee completely failing me. I hit the ground hard and tried to draw a breath. My chest was aching and each attempt to breathe only caused more sharp pangs every time.

Someone grabbed my arm, hauling me to my feet. Elias made sure I was steady before letting me stand on my own. He stood a half step away from me, panting hard. A scizor, armoured carapace riddled with dents and leaking sticky ichor, swayed on its feet a few paces away. An electivire. I realized belatedly that the magmortar had been his.

"Too strong," he croaked. His voice was hoarse and ragged. Whether from the anguish of losing a pokemon or the strain of breathing through the dust and smoke, I couldn't say. "Can't kill it."

"Don't have to," I said, my voice similarly ragged. "just occupy its attention." We just needed to give the birds time to show. We just needed to hold Mewtwo here until they arrived.

He nodded grimly. He knew what that meant. So did I. Wordlessly, we turned and charged back towards Mewtwo.

I paid no mind to the carnage we sprinted past. I didn't have the luxury of time to waste. Anyone still up that wasn't fighting, was running. Anyone not up was likely dead or dying. Janine crossed my mind with that thought, but I shoved it down. No time to spare any focus for that at the moment. No time to spare the aching in my knee a thought.

Mewtwo loomed in the darkness, flashes of lightning and flame illuminating the scene every few seconds. A little yellow blur was darting through a storm of shadow balls and telekinetic blasts. A larger beige blur darted around the periphery of the battle, firing off orbs of green energy and streams of flame.

Luna.

I breathed in sharply. She was alive. I changed direction as Elias charged straight ahead, circling around to get around Mewtwo. His scizor hit Mewtwo from the side, savaging the creature's ribcage. Blood flowed freely as Mewtwo hesitated for the second time. It was only a half a moment of indecision, but I saw it. We'd hurt it.

Mewtwo erupted with the psychic bubble again, throwing Elias' scizor into the chaos. I saw him go flying as the bubble hit him before Two slammed a barrier down just in front of Luna and I.

"Same strategy," I said hoarsely. "keep pushing."

Luna nodded and Two chirped. My starter brushed against me, offering a moment's solace in this nightmare. Then the barrier dropped.

Luna rocketed off, already moving faster than I could follow. I could see Red's pikachu moving too, wreathing itself in blue lightning.

Mewtwo repeated the same attack, throwing up the same glowing bubble as before. Two slammed a barrier down in front of me, but there was nothing more he could do. Luna and the pikachu were sent careening away, Red disappearing back into the chaos.

My hand found the last ball on my belt. I lifted it and pitched it, praying that my tyrantrum wouldn't hold to a grudge at a moment like this. He appeared in a flash of red light and stretched to his full height with a deafening roar. He locked eyes on Mewtwo and I knew that he saw the true threat.

It was in that moment that I truly saw my newest pokemon for the first time. For Luna, it was me and the family we'd built. For Acolyte, it was what he had to protect. For Savage? It was being the strongest, bar none.

"Savage," I croaked as loudly as I could. He glanced back at me and I saw his predatory glare fall on me. "Kill."

He turned back to Mewtwo and I saw it click for him. Mewtwo was the target. Mewtwo was the strongest. He leapt into action. Savage pounded towards Mewtwo, jaws outstretched.

Mewtwo didn't hesitate. It simply lifted an arm and stopped Savage in his tracks. The world went quiet and I heard Savage whimper in pain. Then Mewtwo spiked him into the ground, half burying him in the ground with the force of the impact.

Things went quiet, Mewtwo carefully and curiously taking in the scene. I had a solemn realization that I was the last one standing.

A mottled purple gash was torn across the sky. Mewtwo gazed up as the realization hit me. My hands dropped to my belt, resting on the two battered balls secured there. This was Agatha's play. The Elites were coming now. Lance was coming now.

I tapped both of the weathered balls. Pride materialized first, forming from a stream of purple miasma rather than digitized light. Vector coalesced a moment later. They both turned to face me, standing between Mewtwo and myself.

"I'm sorry," I whispered. So much guilt welled up. I'd let them both down. I'd gotten them both killed. "I'm so sorry."

They drifted closer to me, not walking so much as sliding over the ground. Pride placed one of his paws against my chest and gently shoved.

I stumbled backwards and tripped, falling onto my ass. I looked up at them dumbfounded. Pride shook his head, Vector mirroring him. Two chirped and whistled an inquiry at them. Pride replied with a curt growl.

"They do not want you to fight," Two translated. "You will die. Mewtwo is too powerful."

I looked up at my pokemon, my resolve fading. All that had happened and they were here to protect me from an impossible fight. Fate seemed to have a sick sense of humour. I'd gotten them both killed and still, they were here in the same circumstances that had gotten them killed.

My eyes settled on Mewtwo. He was gently probing the rift in the sky. Movement beyond that, from the top of Silph Tower drew my attention. I'd done what had been asked of me. I'd fought. I'd inspired our gathered forces to fight. For all the good it had done, we'd proven Mewtwo could be hurt.

I'd done enough. For once, I was at peace with that. There'd been nothing held back, no tricks, no gambits, nothing. I'd filled the role I'd been given, played my part with everything I had.

I looked up at Pride and Vector. "I'll stay down," I said. There was nothing else I could do. Luna was gone in the chaos, Acolyte had disappeared after the first encounter with Mewtwo, the same as Artemis. Savage hadn't even been able to touch it. "For what comes after."

Pride nodded solemnly. I wondered for a long moment how much he knew of what Agatha had seen in me. She had said my destiny lay beyond this catastrophe. She had known something about the future, something about the role I'd play.

A deafening roar announced Lance and the Elites' attack. The rift screamed in thousands of discordant voices as tendrils of shadow reached from the other side.

Two pulled up a series of barriers over my head, clouding my view of the battle. I turned to him.

"We must leave the field," Two suggested. "If we are to survive."

I lifted Savage's ball. He was still buried, but I wasn't about to leave him. "Then let's move," I said. "Before we aren't able to run."

Two chirped in agreement. He dropped the barriers and I ran as hard as I could.

---

Pokédex entry #233 — Porygon-2

An update to the initial Porygon platform by Silph Co, the 2.0 update is closer to programmer William Sonezaki's original plans than the 1.0 version. After the initial 1.0 version was rushed out to production, William Sonezaki left Silph. Only one Porygon 2.0 is known to exist, in the care of an Indigo Ranger, after being updated during a moment of crisis.

Processing power is more than double the original, allowing for the formation of a learning algorithm as well as an evolving morality matrix. Porygon 2.0 is far closer to the traditional idea of an artificial intelligence, capable of adapting and learning with every encounter.

---

Intermediate Trainer KT#07996101

Trainer, Marcus Wright, current team:

Luna, Ninetales

Artemis, Aerodactyl

Two, Porygon-2

Curie, Chansey

Savage, Tyrantrum

---

Hey everyone! I'm back with an update, for both the story and my current situation.

Originally, this chapter would have covered the entire Mewtwo battle… As you can see, I had to cut it off. I was hitting 15-16k and I wasn't done yet. On top of that, Marcus got his ass handed to him and it stretched the realm of believability to have him still up and fighting after this point.

So, I've cut that bit out and repurposed the actual fighting into another interlude chapter like Janine's POV as well as dole out some more background info from Lance's perspective.

Now, in terms of me? I'm doing well! Mental health support is well regarded in Canada and I'm receiving the help I needed. Thanks everyone for sticking with me during this difficult time!

 

[Joshthewriter]

Journey

Death of Duty

Part 7: Fall of the Pokemon League

Deicide​

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We attempted to create the most powerful Pokemon in existence… We succeeded. — Ichiro Fuji​

---

I stood at the roof's edge, gazing down at the plaza below. More trainers were still teleporting in, hundreds by the minute. I clenched a fist and attempted to centre myself before the chaos began. Too many would be dead by the day's end. It was a tragic, but ultimately necessary sacrifice to ensure the future of humanity.

"Lance," Giovanni said. The taller man, still clad in a tailored suit, joined me at the edge. He nodded with the modicum of respect that was expected of my position. At least he still offered the expected deference.

The Viridian Gym Leader had a habit of squirming out of tough situations. He'd done so with Mewtwo. He'd done so with the mess with Silver in Kalos. He'd done so with Rocket. It set me on edge when every battle these days seemed to exact a heavy toll on all except for him.

"Giovanni," I grumbled in reply. I offered nothing else, just a curt side glance that he wouldn't be able to glean anything from. No sense in tipping him off that I was aware of his eventual betrayal.

We stood in silence for a moment, watching a pair of trainers rise atop a venomoth. They banked away from the tower, giving me and my Elites a wide berth. "The moment comes," I said slowly. I was aware of his machinations behind the scenes. I knew he would betray me for his own goals when the moment presented itself. "The culmination of everything we've worked towards since you let Mewtwo escape."

Giovanni sighed. "I suppose you will not see reason, then?"

"We destroy the abomination," I replied with the hint of a feral growl behind my voice. "It is too dangerous to be allowed to exist."

The Viridian Leader remained stoic. He'd been pushing me to reconsider destruction of the Master Ball after capture. This was likely the nature of his betrayal. He would never allow an asset like Mewtwo to be thrown away needlessly. Not when control was still a possibility, however thin.

He nodded. "I understand, Champion." He stepped back, returning to his place beside Sabrina.

It wasn't more than a minute before the first group arrived. Alder and his Elites, flanked by a pair of Saffron psychics and their kadabra. The two gym trainers disappeared a moment later, no doubt off to collect more of the foreign Leagues.

Adler grinned and wrapped me in a crushing hug, nearly lifting me off the ground. He dropped the hug and stepped back to survey us. "Some mess you lot made for yourselves. Something about a rampaging psychic?"

I straightened my cloak, shifting to adjust my cloak. "I would prefer to wait until everyone arrives," I said, trying not to let my frustration show. Alder's boisterous demeanour grated on the sensibilities Blackthorn had drilled into me. "So as to not repeat myself needlessly."

Alder frowned, but restrained himself from replying. He rejoined his companions and the rooftop returned to silence.

Seven more trainers arrived moments later, arrayed in a circle around a floating metallic bell. Each wore flowing robes, coloured to reference the types they specialized in. The bronzong disappeared into a ball on Elite Lucian's hand and the group turned to us.

Then she stepped out from her group, clad in flowing black robes trimmed with gold. She seemed to softly glow in the gloom, her pale skin the colour of the moon.

"Lance," said the Grand Champion, her tone calm and measured. "Perhaps an explanation is in order." Cynthia Shirona crossed her arms, scowling intently at me.

The two Saffron gym trainers with the Sinnohvan delegation disappeared again a moment later. I had little hope that they'd garner any more support. Diantha and Kalos were still refusing collaboration between Leagues after the incident with Silver on the Riviére. Hoenn was still a smoking ruin. Paldea and Galar were simply too far for even Saffron's teleporters to bring in a timely manner. This was all the support we were likely to get.

I cleared my throat and stiffened my posture. "I thank you all for coming on such short notice. As you may have surmised, we have a situation unfolding that threatens everyone."

"One of your own making," Cynthia interjected.

I nodded slowly. "Let me start from the beginning." I gestured towards Giovanni, a small attempt to deflect some of the blame. "Leader Giovanni and I revived an abandoned project with the intention of creating a countermeasure for the increasingly dangerous threat of hostile legends." I motioned him forwards, allowing Giovanni to explain.

He stepped forward. "The creature is a hybridized clone of Mew, spliced with human genetic material."

I shot him a glance. That was a poorly veiled attempt to disguise what he had done. My stomach turned as I shifted the blame from Giovanni to myself. I'd ordered him to do whatever was necessary. It was ultimately on me more so than it was him.

"We'd hoped that by creating a hybrid of sorts, the creature would be stable and compliant, whereas our previous attempts created unstable and unruly subjects."

Alder snorted. "Clearly that didn't happen."

Giovanni nodded grimly. "The creature surpassed all of our our wildest estimates. It was obscenely powerful. We had, for all intents and purposes, succeeded in creating our countermeasure."

Cynthia looked out at the ruined city. "Some success," she remarked.

"Our failure was born from a place of human weakness," Giovanni continued with a scowl. "The creature discovered the breadth of our experimentation. To put it simply, it snapped due to the stress."

"I can't help but notice the vague explanation of said experiments," Cynthia said. "Should I expect them to be as inhumane and unethical as they seem?"

Giovanni remained silent. Cynthia glanced over at me for an answer. I nodded slowly. We'd done horrible things to create the object of our destruction. We'd sacrificed thousands of children, replaced them with shoddy clones so that their families were none the wiser. We'd used them up like nothing more than a resource, feeding them to the experiment in ever greater numbers.

"We forsook our humanity for this," I said solemnly. The guilt weighed on me, pressing down atop all the other responsibilities that rest on my shoulders. "This destruction is the penance exacted for that hubris."

The rooftop was silent for a long moment. I had no doubt that the two other champions were levying their judgement in my direction.

"What's the plan?" Adler asked, breaking the silence. "How do we win this?"

I stepped forward, ignoring Giovanni's pointed stare as I produced the Master Ball from the folds of my cloak. "We have arrayed our forces to delay it as much as possible. Rangers… Leaders… Trainers… Army… They'll do what they can to damage the creature and we will hit it once that battle is concluded."

I saw Alder and Cynthia's scowls. Their elites mirrored their expressions.

"Are we expecting the forces below to be effective?" Alder asked carefully.

I shook my head. "Minimally," I replied as I returned the ball to my cloak. "There are some elements of the defense that may be more effective than others, but they will serve as little more than an attempt to exhaust the creature's strength."

"How many?" Cynthia asked.

I hesitated. I didn't want to answer that. I had hardly wanted to know the answer myself. Too many people who relied on me were dead, dying, or soon would be.

"How many?" she repeated.

"Two to four thousand trainers depending on how quickly they responded to the League alert," I began. "Fourteen of the sixteen Indigo Gym Leaders. There were an estimated fifteen thousand KNA troops within the city at the beginning of the battle, but casualties thus far have been heavy and with comms as they are, there is no way to know how many are still active."

A disquieting murmur spread across the rooftop. I knew why. Damn near twenty thousand people were being used as cannon fodder. Not to mention the civilians cowering in the ruins. Saffron was the largest city in Kanto with nearly two million people packed within the walls. I had no doubt that casualties would stretch into the hundreds of thousands with the state of the city.

"So…" one of Alder's Elites began, a woman with long black hair and deep purple robes that marked her as the ghost specialist. "Are we not talking about the fact that the city is a warzone?"

Alder turned as if to quiet her, but turned back to look at me. "I'm curious as well," he added. "Kanto hasn't seen war in nearly fifty years, since before Oak was Champion. I'd love to know what's actually wrong, considering that there ain't much of Saffron left untouched. You aren't telling us everything."

"True," I replied, reticent to expand on that. "My region is undergoing some unrest at the moment and—"

"That's putting things lightly," Cynthia interjected, cutting me off. Her cold glare told me that I'd hear more about this later if we both survived. "However, it can wait until the threat is dealt with."

I nodded. "Thank you, Grand Champion." I turned back to look at Alder, glaring daggers into the uncouth Unovan. "If there are no more—"

"Lance!"

I swung my head towards the interruption, scowling. It was Sabrina. The young Saffron gym leader was perched on the edge of the roof, looking down into the gloom.

"It is here."

The scowl on my face deepened. "Then we are out of time." I turned to face the gathered group. We were the strongest trainers in the world, Elites and Champions from three separate regions. If this didn't work… I let the thought die. It would not do to dwell on that possibility.

"Our plan is to hit the creature as hard as we can. It is a psychic type. Any ghost, bug or dark types among our teams will be of utmost importance." I raised the Master Ball again. "I will hold at range with the ball. Once we have weakened it, I will attempt to capture the creature."

"What happens after?" Cynthia asked.

I caught the pointed glare that Giovanni shot me. I paid it and him no more attention than the cursory glance.

"We destroy the ball with it inside. Ending the threat of this creature is our utmost priority."

Silence reigned over us. The sounds of battle rose from below. It did not sound like it was going well. I turned towards Agatha and nodded. It was time. She disappeared into the floor beneath her, leaving only a shadowy smudge on the rooftop.

Alder sighed heavily and looked around. "Alright, I'll ask the question we're all thinking."

I turned to look at him.

"What happens if the ball doesn't work?"

I remained silent. There was no answer to give. If it didn't work, we were dead. Humanity was dead. If it didn't work… we lost.

Alder shook his head slowly. "Alright… good to know."

Sabrina was peering down over the edge of the roof. Her expression was grim. We were likely out of time. I glanced down alongside her.

Agatha had opened a massive rift in mid-air, purple miasma pouring from the gash in reality. I could already see the forms of ghosts dancing around the edges, beginning to trespass upon the mortal realm. Mewtwo sat just below the rift, gently probing the portal to ascertain what had occurred.

My hand was at my belt, releasing the trio of dragonite that had been with me for years. All three had been companions since before I was even Champion. They roared, loud and proud even as the din of battle below had gone quiet.

A series of flashes around me signified the release of our group's teams. I pulled myself atop the closest dragon, Wrath. He was my starter, so to speak, the first dragon that I'd bonded to. I felt him quiver beneath me, felt the connection between us deepen and immersed myself in the link.

He roared and I felt myself roar along with him. The brothers to each side echoed us, joined by half a dozen other pokemon. Then, with Mewtwo distracted by Agatha's portal, we launched our attack.

Wrath and his brothers separated from the group of pokemon descending from the rooftop. Three pairs of powerful wings flapped to give us some distance from the group as the dragons' maws swirled with vibrant energy.

I knew that there were likely trainers still alive down there. I pushed that thought from my mind. We could not hesitate. Their sacrifice would be remembered.

Wrath and his brothers erupted, the trio of hyper beams burning with enough intensity to light the plaza for a long moment. They were not the only pokemon attacking, but it hardly mattered. More were streaming towards Mewtwo from the ground. A steelix and a gyarados among others.

None of it mattered. Mewtwo erupted with a bubble of psychic light and the world stopped making sense. I clutched to Wrath, feeling him flail wildly beneath me. I was vaguely aware of his brothers fading from the link and knew that they were gone. We had lost, in one fell swoop, in a single attack.

The light faded. Wrath desperately tried to right himself, but the ground was rushing up too quickly and his wings refused to cooperate. We hit the ground with a heavy thud and a pained whine from Wrath. Two more heavy impacts nearby told me that his brothers' bodies had landed as well.

I clambered off my dragon and fell to my knees at his side. His wings were in tatters, the membranes shredded into fleshy bits that clung to the structure of his wings.

"Wrath…" I murmured. My hand fell to his ball. He disappeared in a flash of light. He was alive. He was the only of the three brothers left. War and Fury were gone. I closed my eyes and pressed the lone ball against my forehead. "I'm sorry, my friend."

A presence touched my mind. I knew what it was. There was nothing else it could be. No others were moving to my aid. I was alone. I rose to my feet and turned to face the abomination. My hand went into my cloak and horror filled me. The Master Ball was gone.

'Champion,' it said within my mind. 'Was this destruction worth it?'

"This was you," I replied coldly. An indignant anger filled me. "This was all because of—"

The pressure within my head spiked, pain wracking me down to the core. I shut my eyes, attempting to bring up my mental defences. It didn't work, Mewtwo was simply too powerful.

'This city burned long before I arrived.'

I felt the pain and pressure in my head recede slightly. Enough so that I could open my eyes. The first thing that struck me was the lack of motion. Everything stood still, even the dust and smoke simply floated serenely in the surroundings. It was as if Mewtwo had simply paused it all.

'I will ask again, Champion. Was it worth it?'

I paused. The creature was baiting me. It wanted to talk. I'd give it what it wanted. "It was a necessary travesty," I began. "Devastation awaits us all. I did what was required to prepare humanity. I did what I did to give us a chance at survival."

Mewtwo shook its head slowly. 'You robbed children of their future. You fed your own people to a madman until I emerged from the massacre. Was it worth it?'

I took a breath, steadying myself. It wanted me to justify myself, to give it a reason for the circumstances that had led to its birth. It wanted me to prove myself the monster that I had become. I would not cave. Mewtwo had been borne from hope and desperation, I had to show it that or else all would die. "You were meant to be our saviour," I began, trying to pivot the conversation. Hope filled my voice. "We built you to fight the battles that we could not. We created you because we needed you."

'You needed a monster?' Mewtwo responded with indignation. 'You cut me to pieces and put me back together a thousand times, stitching together people and pokemon until you got something that worked.'

"We needed a god," I replied. The warmth and hope faded from my voice. "Humanity needed a god."

Mewtwo looked at me harshly. 'You got me,' it said. 'A monster, created by monsters.' It raised an arm, a ball of shadowy energy springing to life in its palm.

The remains of the hope died in my chest. I stood in resolute defiance as a strangely cold wind swept through the plaza. Indigo's champion would face this fate with pride and strength. I would not close my eyes.

A cold blue spear impaled Mewtwo at the base of its outstretched arm. It flash froze, the shadow ball dying as quickly as it had formed. The arm snapped off at the base and smashed to the ground, shattering into countless pieces.

Mewtwo turned towards the new threat, the stump of its arm glowing as it regenerated. A shadow ball was already forming in the creature's other palm.

Blue-yellow lightning washed over the creature from the opposite direction, throwing off its aim and practically blinding me. The shadow ball smote the ruined base of the Silph Tower, shearing through a metal beam.

The unmistakable glow of flame cut through the gloom and I saw burning wings pass over me. The unnatural chill vanished in a moment, replaced by heat so oppressive that every breath was a laboured chore.

I sucked in a hot, sooty breath. The Storm Raptors had arrived. Kanto's guardians of nature were here to right the wrong that had been done.

Mewtwo spun, throwing up a psychic shield that blunted most of Moltres' opening attack. The heat and flame still licked at Mewtwo, melting flesh down to the bone.

Another beam of pure ice speared Mewtwo from behind. The psychic barrier popped audibly and Mewtwo stumbled forwards with the frozen spear impaling it through the heart.

All three birds swooped into the square, seemingly sensing weakness in the creature. All three opened up with heavenly fury. I lost Mewtwo in the maelstrom.

There was a heavy pop and Mewtwo reappeared above the trio. Skin and flesh alternated between frozen solid and melted to the bone, the rest of it smouldering and charred while spasms of electricity coursed through Mewtwo's body.

The damage hardly seemed to matter to Mewtwo. A helix of shadow balls appeared around it, plunging downwards towards the three gods.

They never connected. All three of the Raptors pivoted in place, meeting Mewtwo's attack with their own. Explosions rippled through the air and I was finally broken from my trance. I ran for cover.

A thunderous rumble from above tore my attention back to the fight. Zapdos screeched in a piercing tone and the sky opened up. Mewtwo was smote by a bolt from above, the electricity sending it into convulsions as the skeleton within was illuminated.

More fire and ice poured onto Mewtwo from the other birds. Reality warped around the psychic, but even the creature could not stop it all.

Pain and anger spiked in my head. Mewtwo lashed out uncontrollably and I heard the unmistakable groan of a building beginning to fail. Mewtwo reached out with the charred stump of an arm and a loud crack tore through the noise of the birds' assault.

Things seemed to go quiet for a moment. Then Mewtwo swept the charred stump out and the Silph Tower screamed. Half the tower separated from the rest, toppling onto Moltres and smashing into the block of apartments beneath it.

There was a muffled screech before Mewtwo motioned downwards with the stump. The screech suddenly died as Moltres was ground to a bloody pulp beneath the building.

They would not be enough. The Storm Raptors were foes that Mewtwo had been designed to fight and kill. Even together, they wouldn't be enough.

As if to prove my thoughts true, Mewtwo seemed to sense its advantage. It reached out again, ignoring the spear of ice that impaled its gut even as a bolt of lightning wracked the creature's body.

The chunk of Silph rose from where Moltres had been crushed. I saw the pulpy remnant of the god, saw the crushed and mangled feathers. I saw the dead god. Then Mewtwo flung it again.

The other two Raptors were ready for it. Both of them flapped hard, narrowly avoiding the chunk of building as it landed hard several blocks away. I felt the impact shake the city.

Mewtwo rocketed after Zapdos, lifting and flinging another section of the Silph Tower at Articuno to keep the two separated. Zapdos turned to meet Mewtwo in the air, wreathing itself in living blue electricity.

It didn't matter. Mewtwo dove through the maelstrom of lightning, grabbing the god by the neck with its remaining arm. There was a loud crack and Zapdos' head jerked violently to the side. With a wave of the stump, Mewtwo tore half of Zapdos' body away.

The god's separated halves landed with an unceremonious thump. They twitched and sparked erratically, but there was no doubt in my mind that it was dead. Mewtwo had eradicated any hope that might have been had.

Articuno was fleeing now. Cobalt blue wings flapped away through the smoke, still harrying Mewtwo with beams of ice and howling winds. The god killer was unperturbed. It would not be denied its prey.

Mewtwo disappeared into the gloom, only visibly by the blinding violet light it emitted. It closed with the Raptor's silhouette, flashes of light and sound tearing through the smoke.

Articuno hit the earth with a loud crunch, wings snapping and pulverizing under the impact. The snow god didn't move.

Mewtwo floated serenely down towards the square. Its flesh was still smoking, even as it knitted itself back together and replaced its dying body with fresh parts.

'Do you see, Champion?' the creature asked. 'I am what you made me. I am a monument to all of your sins.'

I stepped out from where I had hidden, meeting Mewtwo's gaze with my own. "Do you see?" I asked in return. "This is what we made you for, these are the foes we created you to destroy." I scowled and shook my head. "It was your purpose, to be the destroyer who is also our saviour."

'I choose no purpose but my own,' Mewtwo continued. 'I will—'

A violet swirl interrupted Mewtwo mid-sentence. I followed the light back to the ball. Giovanni simply nodded at me once, not giving anything away with his expression.

I opened my mouth to say something, but the Viridian Gym Leader simply disappeared with the telltale pop of teleportation.

Then it was quiet. I slowly looked around. I was alone. I slowly made my way through the ruined plaza, finding my way to where Articuno had fallen.

The snow god had landed where my dragonite brothers had. All three of the pokemon were dead. All three were broken.

I fell to my knees, the enormity of our defeat sinking in. We had lost. Three Leagues had been defeated. Three gods had been slain. Giovanni had captured Mewtwo.

"We lost…" I muttered. "Gods above… we lost."

---

Pokedex Entry #150 — Mewtwo [CLASSIFIED ENTRY]

Mewtwo is an experimental creation, fusing together human and Pokemon DNA to create a super weapon intended for combat against hostile Legends.

Most of the information on Mewtwo's capabilities and temperament are the matter of guesswork. Capture or destruction of Mewtwo is considered the highest priority for the Indigo League.

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Indigo League Champion — Lance Wataru

Indigo League Champion, current team:

Wrath, Dragonite

Goddess, Dragonair

Guardian, Aerodactyl

---

Told ya I was back!

As always, hit me with your thoughts in the reviews! See you all soon!

 

[Joshthewriter]

Journey

Death of Duty

Part 8: Ending and Beginning

Resurrection​

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The lives of the dead are placed in the memories of the living. — Elite Agatha Kikoku​

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I picked my way through the rubble, stepping atop a concrete slab with stray bits of rebar jutting out. My left knee twinged with pain and my ribs still ached deeply. I was on the mend, but even with the impromptu healing I'd been given during the battle it was slow going. I still needed to pace myself, lest I push myself too hard and reopen the wounds in my gut.

A long, lonely howl filled the air, echoing through the shattered city. We now shared this city with wild pokemon. More and more, they were migrating into the ruins and establishing dens and nests in the tangled wreckage that Mewtwo had left behind. I didn't see the pokemon that was howling, but I could feel its presence looming over Silph's courtyard.

Two chirped, drawing my attention to a pile of rubble. I hopped down from the slab and crossed the distance, glancing over at the others. None of them had spoken more than a few words since we had left the camp. I didn't even know names, just that one of them had been a Johtan trainer who was stuck in Saffron until he could find a teleporter to get him home.

Acolyte was out in a growing flash of red light, looking around warily. He had been tossed by Mewtwo's opening attack, getting trapped in a collapsing storefront and buried for the better part of a day. I'd found him when I'd gone back to the square after leaving Curie with the Ranger medics. With Oak gone and the boys gone off to find Leaf, there was no way to get him back to Pallet for the cubone yet. I didn't even know if the lab and colony were alright, there hadn't been time to get the details from Oak and the boys during the battle.

I'd found Savage the same day, unconscious and buried in rubble. He was back in his ball, awaiting his own turn in the overburdened Rangers' healing machines. With the destruction that had been wrought, he was far down the priority list. I had no doubt that the loss we had all suffered would be felt heavily by my self-crowned king of beasts.

I gestured down at the rubble between Acolyte and myself. "Two pinged it for us," I said morosely. I glanced at my porygon. "Anyone alive?"

Two's silence was answer enough.

I nodded knowingly. Acolyte didn't need me to elaborate. There had been survivors of Mewtwo's wrath, but they were few and far between.

"Wright!" called one of the others, breaking the private memorial to the person under the rubble beneath me. "Got a visitor!"

I looked up from the ground, finding the source. It was the Johtan. I stopped dead when I saw the young woman running towards me.

She had her arms around me and pulled me into a crushing hug before I could even properly register her presence. "Thank Mew," Sarah said with no small amount of relief. "You aren't dead."

I returned the hug weakly. The reference to Kanto's prankster god unnerved me and left a pit in my gut. "Not for lack of trying," I replied. I pulled back from the hug and she seemed to sense my reticence. "What are you doing here?" I asked, desperate for a change in subject.

"Help for Yucca," she said quietly. "it… it's bad. Half the village is just… gone. Most of the buildings collapsed in the initial shockwave, and the fire that sprung up afterwards claimed everything else."

My face must have betrayed the pain. I saw her face crease with concern. "Your parents are alive," she said quietly. "Everyone else is gone. Most didn't make it… the ones that did just up and left."

"Your folks?" I asked. Her expression gave me all the answer I needed. I reached back out and pulled my oldest friend into a hug. We were both in pain. We both needed support, but she needed a different kind of support than I did. She needed someone to be there for her.

"We need you to come home," she said between sobs. "We all need it." She pulled back and I saw her glance over at Acolyte. "They might not have said it, but they need you." She paused and hesitated. "Yucca needs you."

I nodded slowly. Janine was gone to Fuchsia to organize her city's disaster response. Surge was gone to Vermillion, airlifted out of Saffron for emergency surgery. Oak was dead and the boys were gone off on a hunt to find Leaf. I was alone and adrift, purposeless and directionless for the first time since I had started my journey. My home needed me. My family needed me. I'd left them behind, but I knew that I couldn't walk away now, not anymore.

"I'll come," I said, surprised by how small my voice sounded. "they have all the manpower they'd need here. I'm just… I just… needed some way to help."

She nodded. "I get it." She turned away from me and looked up at the shattered remnant of Silph Tower. Mewtwo had torn it down and used the shattered pieces of building as weapons to crush and kill Moltres and Zapdos. All that was left was a jagged spear reaching for the grey stained sky, barely four stories left. "You were here?" she asked.

Once again, I nodded. She didn't press when I refused to elaborate. I didn't have the words to explain how small the battle had made me feel. I didn't know how to explain how hopeless everything seemed now, with Mewtwo gone and Giovanni waiting for his moment to strike.

"When can you leave?" she asked, shifting focus away from the battle and back to me.

"I just need to pick up a couple of my pokemon from the camp medics," I said. "Curie and Savage were hurt bad enough that I couldn't bring them out with me." I deliberately left out that Savage's pride had been the thing that had been most injured, and that all I knew about my tyrantrum was that he didn't like me. "Everything else…" I trailed off and lifted my pack to show that I had everything else I needed.

"Then we can go?" she asked.

I nodded and turned to my team, recalling them wordlessly. "Let's get out of here."

I stepped through the flaps of the hospital tent and silently dismayed at the chaos. The smell of blood was thick in the air, death's unmistakable stench settling in underneath it. Chaos pressed in from every angle, beeping machines and bustling medics mixing with the pained moans of people and pokemon alike.

My eyes found the Ranger I'd entrusted Curie and Savage to earlier. I pushed the chaos from my mind and pushed my way through the crowded tent. I reached him as he finished attaching a new IV bag to the patient on the makeshift surgical table and glanced over at me.

Wordlessly, he pointed towards the row of healing machines at the back. "Your chansey was pushed down the priority list after she was stabilized," he droned, "her injuries are severe enough that it's not likely she'll make a full recovery, particularly her legs. She'll be lucky if she walks again."

I felt numb at that. Curie was done, essentially no longer a team member. She'd never fight again. I shut that away and closed my eyes for a moment, catching my breath. "The tyrantrum?" I asked as I opened my eyes.

He shook his head. "He hasn't been into the machine yet, priorities shifted." He glanced up from the patient as he affixed a new IV bag. "None of his injuries were half as severe. He should be fine, given some limitations to strenuous activity for a few weeks."

I nodded and thanked him, leaving the Ranger medic to his work. I made my way over to the machines at the back and gave my trainer ID to the attendant. He disappeared into another tent compartment, leaving me alone in the chaos.

"Wright," said a solemn voice. Elias was there, his white hair stained with ash and soot. "wasn't sure you'd made it." He nodded. "Good to see you."

"Glad to see you're alright too," I replied. I turned to face him. His face was tired, and his jacket and pants were torn in several places. It had likely been days since either of us had gotten a chance to rest and recharge. I doubted that I looked better. "Your team?" I asked. I knew his magmortar had never made it off the field, and his scizor had been in bad shape the last I'd seen.

He grimaced and I regretted asking. "Misery disappeared during the battle, shortly after she healed you. Pyro is gone. Scythe… didn't make it either." He shrugged and looked down at the floor. "Everyone else is alive, but we're hurting right now." Elias looked back up at me. "After your tyrantrum went down, we just ran. Found a tunnel to hole up in while everything went to shit." He frowned. "You?"

"Curie took a bad hit. Won't be able to fight again. Artemis dislocated a wing, but she should be ok in a month or so, less if I can get her some kind of healing. Savage is… alright, but I hadn't even had a chance to tame him as a tyrunt yet." I sighed in earned frustration. All of this was just so overwhelming. "I… don't know what I'm going to do."

He nodded, and I got the sense that he was grateful for the distraction from his team. "I don't envy the work ahead of you," he started. "especially with the plan you laid out for the future." He sighed heavily. "Three months is not a significant amount of time to recover and prepare for the next steps."

My shoulders sagged. I'd felt such confidence when I'd made my pitch to make the League better from within. Now, it just felt pointless. "I don't know what's going to happen," I said, and my tone betrayed my lack of confidence. "but we need to be ready."

He nodded once more. "We will be. My team and I will be there when you need us." He held out a hand. "Things need to change, and I trust the novice I met on the beach in Vermillion to lead that change." His face twisted into a weak smile. "He's… he isn't a novice anymore."

I took his outstretched hand and shook it firmly. "Thank you, Elias." I paused. "That means a lot to hear right now."

The medic returned through the flap from the back, a pair of pokeballs in his hands. "Wright!" He called, eyes raking the tent for me. He seemed surprised to find me so close and pressed them into my hands without another word.

I slotted them into place alongside the rest of my team. With a nod to Elias, I turned and headed for the door to the medical tent. Sarah was waiting there, a weary scowl on her face.

All around me, people just looked tired. I was tired. We'd lost and yet… people still kept going despite it. We kept going, even in the face of all the tragedy. We survived.

I knew then that I had to go on. That I would go on, for the people that needed me to. I pressed past a woman in a ratty Indigo News cap as she entered the tent and joined Sarah in the long walk through the devastation to what was left of Yucca.

Three Weeks Later

My hand stayed where it was on my ball belt, nervous anxiety gnawing a pit in my gut. Despite what needed to be done, I was motionless. Luna purred at my side, her snout lifting my hand off the ball it rested on and pulling my attention away from the task before me.

The whole team was at my back. Artemis lazed in the scant heat of the sun, her newly healed wing stretched out over the grass. Acolyte leaned against his club a few paces away, waiting for my order. Two hovered at my shoulder, waiting for me to release the final member of the team who was in fighting shape.

I glanced over at Sarah, who had her own team arrayed behind her. Her growlithe had evolved, along with her pidgeotto. She'd added a sandslash and a politoed, with a young nidorina being prepped for the coming tournament. They were all out and ready, waiting for me to let Savage loose.

"You ready?" I asked again.

She nodded once more.

My hand dropped back to my belt and I lifted the ball. I tapped the release button and hoped with everything I had that I hadn't doomed us all.

Twelve tons of living stone rose. He tested his leg, lifting it and setting it back down. He stretched for the first time since Saffron, for the first time since he'd suffered his first true loss. Once or twice he'd been let out of his ball, but only while sedated and given treatment for his leg.

Savage turned his head slightly and seemed to suddenly realize that our assembled party was there. He froze, his predatory, golden eyes finding and settling on me.

I saw him then, more truly than I'd ever seen any of my pokemon before. He was fury and fire, primal instinct driven by regal might. Still, I looked deeper. I saw fear and confusion. I saw pain and frustration. I saw loss so similar to my own. He had been beaten, worse than he'd thought possible. But he hadn't been broken.

"Savage!" I called, pausing for a moment as he inhaled slowly. He watched me, but made no motion to move on me. "We lost," I said solemnly. I didn't know how much he understood, but the tone would be enough. "we lost and there was nothing we could do about it."

My tyrantrum snorted at that, as if to argue the point. A threatening growl from Artemis stifled his retort as quickly as it began.

"I want us to fix that," I continued. "I want us to be ready for the next battle." I met his eyes, hoping with everything I had that he would understand. "I want us to be ready to kill that thing when it shows its face again."

Savage rumbled his assent and for the second time since he had evolved, my tyrantrum was in agreement with me. Mewtwo had to be killed. Savage's pride would demand that it be him who did the deed. His capacity to do so would be determined by his work as part of my team.

"Fight with us," I commanded. "Fight as part of this family and we will deliver you the victory that you crave." I glanced over at Sarah, who was watching entranced. "Fight with me, and you'll be remembered forever."

I knew then that he understood my words. I'd doubted it before, but as Savage's eyes raked over the team and fell back on me, I knew his answer.

Savage tossed his head back and roared with all his fury, shaking the very ground we stood upon. Artemis joined him a moment later, Luna and Sarah's Arcanine howling along in unison a moment after that.

I nodded, clenching my fists. Less than three months. We had less than three months to prepare. We would be ready when the time came.

One Month Later

I speared the shovel into the pile of loose earth and left it there. Despite the unnatural chill from Kanto's Mewtwo induced winter, I was sweating. I should have been sweating in the mid-summer heat, but with all the crap that had been thrown up into the atmosphere it was much colder than it should have been. Add that to the volcanic winter that Hoenn was currently in the throes of and our world was quickly turning inhospitable. I turned away from the pit I'd been digging and lifted the towel off the last post I'd placed, wiping my brow with it.

I looked back at the row of fence posts. I'd gotten another 8 posts in today and was just about ready to wind down. I'd be done with the fence posts tomorrow if I kept up the same pace. I'd have gotten more done if I let my team help, but I'd kept them busy with training alongside Sarah almost every day since we'd arrived.

Plus, it felt better to do this myself. Pa couldn't help me with his injured leg and everyone else that could have helped had died or left. It helped to keep me from dwelling on what had happened in Saffron anyways. I knew that if I stopped to think about what and who we'd lost, then I'd lose any forward momentum as I shut down in grief. I couldn't afford that, not anymore. Not with what I had planned.

I heard Luna howl mournfully, a lower pitched howl answering her from the destroyed forest a half moment later. I froze. It wasn't the first time that I'd heard that howl. Something was hanging around the farm, probably drawn by the activity. There weren't many settlements that were still active in the area. My mind went to the possibilities, lingering on the idea that a houndoom pack might have moved into the area.

I turned and pushed the idea away, tossing the towel onto the ground, and hefted the last of the posts I'd had Savage drag out for me off the ground. I drove it into the pit and grabbed the shovel again. I poured a few shovels worth of dirt into the hole around the post, then packed it down as hard as I could. I kept at it until the pit around the post had been filled in.

Satisfied with my progress for the day, I shovelled the rest of the loose earth into my wheelbarrow and slowly started making my way back towards the small log hut that Sarah and I had built along with our teams.

I passed through the what was left of Yucca Village with a morose apathy. I hadn't cleared out my family's farm house yet, except to find a few of the valuables that Ma and Pa had sold off to help with the rebuilding process. We'd cleared a few of the other collapsed houses though, and been salvaging the materials to use in rebuilding what we could. Right now, that was just the cabin and the low-set stable for the Pokémon to sleep in, but we'd cleared space for a silo and a barn at one of the berry fields. It wouldn't bear crops until we could clear the debris, but it was the beginning of a return to normalcy. Normalcy was something that was sorely needed these days.

The makeshift graveyard stopped me, just like it always did. I set the wheelbarrow down and approached the grave that I'd dug for Margaret. Sarah and I had dug a dozen more in that first week home, for the residents of the village that hadn't been fortunate enough to be outside when Mewtwo had hit Saffron. At the very least, they could rest forever in the place they'd lived their whole lives.

"Hey sis," I started. "almost done the fence. I'll probably be done the posts tomorrow. Then it's just a matter of actually putting up the boards, once we find a sawmill that can supply us." I paused and shrugged. "Who knows if the soil is still any good, or if the sun's gonna break through the dust clouds, but it'll probably help Pa feel a little better to have the fence back up."

I heard footsteps approaching, but I didn't turn. It was Sarah here to visit her folks. Ma hardly ever left Pa's side anymore, and he couldn't walk on his own at the moment. We four were all that was left of our sleepy little hamlet.

"Curie's still helping Pa with all the eggs she can produce. Won't heal his leg completely, not with the bone having set wrong. At least he should be able to walk again soon enough. Not like the hospitals have room for anybody of our means right now." I sighed hard as my chansey's injury weighed down on me. "Curie's not happy to be excluded from training, but she won't be able to fight anymore. She'll be lucky if she even walks again."

"She'll adjust," Sarah said suddenly as she looked up from the gravestone in front of her. "she already is. Your mum's taken a liking to her and I think she'll warm up to your Pa once he's able to get out of bed and move around. At least then, he won't be such a grump."

I frowned and turned my head to look at her. She looked so different from how I remembered now, so much harder and colder than the warm, friendly girl I'd grown up with. Her hair was cut short and there was hardly a remnant of the soft curves that had once defined her. It reminded me a lot of myself after I'd joined the Rangers and begun training in earnest. Another reminder that training was a hard life. "Still," I began, "it'll be a tough transition."

"It will," she admitted. She turned with me and walked away from her parents' gravestone, back towards the wheelbarrow. "It's gonna be a tough transition for all of us."

I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

She shrugged nonchalantly. "We live in a world of monsters," she started solemnly. "Now everybody knows that. There's no more ignoring it and acting like everything is fine."

I nodded along. She was right about that much. Public perception of the events in Saffron had mostly focused on the fact that creatures just as powerful as the ones that had levelled half of Hoenn dwelled in Kanto as well. There was no more hiding from potential extinction. The fact that the League was responsible for the creation of this particular monster had been met with surprisingly little outrage, likely due to the fact that most of the upper echelons of the Indigo League were dead along with the entirety of Kan-Jo's civilian government, thanks to Rocket's spiteful attack at Indigo.

Of the existing League power base before Saffron, only Lance remained, and he was a shadow of what he had been. Half his team was dead, along with all of the Elites and a good portion of Indigo's Gym Leaders and their trainers. Indigo had effectively dissolved overnight as a cohesive region. Now, with the Indigo Congress gone, most of the responsibility belonged to the local city governments and the few surviving Gym Leaders that remained. Chaos and anarchy reigned in several cities, Celadon and Saffron chief among them.

"I wanted to talk to you," she said in a hard tone. I braced myself, knowing what she wanted to talk about. "About what happened in Saffron."

I shrugged. "What's there to talk about?" I asked. "The League created a monster. It got loose and we all paid the price."

"There's gotta be more to it than that," she replied. This wasn't the first time she had pressed me on this. She probably knew I was holding something back. "You were there! Hell, you outright said as much when I found you in the relief camp."

"There is more to it," I said, confirming that for her. "But none of it matters now."

Her scowl told me what she thought of that.

I reached out and put a hand on her shoulder. "Look," I started. "I know it's tough to hear. There's nothing we can do about Mewtwo, or the people responsible for it. There's nothing we can do but train and be ready for the Indigo Conference. We have little over a month, and I think we can be even more prepared.

Her scowl didn't lessen. Nothing I could say would make it better. The people in charge of defending us from monsters had failed. That was something that the survivors had to struggle with. We had to live with the mistakes they'd left us.

The surviving Gym Leaders and their trainers were taking up leadership roles in the absence of Congress, but people were still terrified. Trust in the League was utterly nonexistent. That didn't change that it was the only semblance of order remaining. People were scared and desperate, and they grasped for the barest semblance of order that the new leadership provided. We were devolving towards feudalism in most places, into factional groups that hardly had the means to work together anymore.

"Can we even come back from this?" She asked. I heard the fear in her voice. "How the hell are people supposed to just go on and act like the League is good?"

I drew in a slow breath and gathered my thoughts. I'd been ruminating on that ever since Saffron. "That's why we're training," I started. I left out the part where I was training for a much darker reason. Where I was training to kill the man responsible more than anything else. "We train to replace what we lost with something better."

Her scowl softened slightly. "You sound so… idealistic."

I wasn't. If anything, I had far less confidence and optimism in the plan to change the League from within than I'd had in Saffron. Still, it was the best plan we had. Being honest with myself, it wasn't a plan I was comfortable with anymore, not with the doubts I had in myself and my motivations. But it was all I had.

My shoulders shrugged almost unconsciously. I felt like I was anything but idealistic. She didn't need to know that. "How's your training going?" I asked, desperate to change the subject as we turned to leave the graveyard. I hefted the wheelbarrow and followed her towards the log cabin.

It was her turn to shrug. "They're getting stronger so much faster than I thought they would. Still don't know how well they'll fare in the Conference, but we should at least make a decent showing for a Novice."

That drew a smile out of me. "The benefits of intensive training with stronger trainers. You get stronger that much faster."

She nodded. I felt the tension of our previous topic slipping away as attention turned to our pokemon. "You planning on joining us anytime soon? We could really use you out there. Your team needs you leading and teaching them as well."

It was my turn to nod. "Yeah," I admitted sheepishly. "tomorrow's probably the last day of digging the posts. Without any operational sawmills…" I trailed off as Sarah stopped dead. I glanced over and saw who Sarah was looking at. I dropped the wheelbarrow.

Janine approached me cautiously, looking over at Sarah and then back to me. "You're terrible at answering your gear," she said. "I've been calling all day."

I nodded solemnly, pulling her into a crushing embrace. "We don't exactly have power at the moment," I replied. "and the solar pack you got me hasn't been able to pull a proper charge through the dust clouds." I grimaced. "Probably should find a generator when we can."

She let go of me and I saw a glimmer of a smile cross her face. The tension between us faded and I let myself truly relax for the first time since Cinnabar. She looked over at Sarah and held out a hand. "And you must be Sarah."

My childhood friend nodded and shook Janine's hand. "Nice to finally meet you," Sarah said. "Marcus seems very fond."

Janine smirked and shot me a wink. "I'm somewhat fond of Marcus myself," she grinned and I felt myself letting go of the tension in my shoulders with every moment of her presence. "Though I will say that he is terrible about keeping in touch when he's asked to."

Sarah cracked a grin. "Off in his own world, living in his head." She shook her head, smiling gently. "So, what brings you out to Yucca?"

Janine looked at me, unsure about what to say. I realized suddenly that she wasn't sure if Sarah knew what was really going on.

"I've explained everything to her," I began. "There's a few things she doesn't know about, but that's just because it wasn't entirely relevant to what's going on."

Janine nodded. "The boys found Leaf," she started. "Mewtwo dropped her north of Cerulean."

"How is she?" I asked. Over a month in the wilderness wasn't out of the ordinary for most trainers, but Leaf hadn't been prepared for that kind of trek and her pokemon had still been exhausted from the battle in Saffron.

Janine shrugged as we turned towards the cabin and I lifted the wheelbarrow again. "She's alright. A little dehydrated and malnourished, but she'll be fine."

I nodded. "Glad to hear it," I replied. Leaf was a good kid and she'd gotten close to Red. With how important Red apparently was, finding Leaf unharmed was a stroke of luck in the shitshow that Kanto had rapidly become. "But I'm guessing that's not why you're here."

She sighed and nodded. "You'd be right." A scowl spread across her face. "Surge asked for you. Said it was important. With the state he's in…"

The meaning was clear. My old CO didn't have long. "We can fly to Vermillion—"

"No," she said suddenly. "Will brought me. He's meditating in the stable while he waits. We're teleporting in."

I let the wheelbarrow down beside the cabin and turned to face her. "When do we leave?" I asked.

"Soon as you're ready," she replied.

I glanced over at the small cabin nervously. Then an idea crossed my mind and I looked back at my girlfriend. "Do you… want to meet my parents?"

She raised an eyebrow. She knew how my departure had been. She knew everything about me. "Are things…" she didn't finish the question.

I shrugged. "Yes and no. Hard to be too mad about how things went when every day might be the last." I pondered that for a moment. It was true enough, even if my Pa and I were still on shaky ground.

She raised an eyebrow at that last statement, but chose not to press it. "I'd love to meet them," she said, hooking her arm into mine.

We turned towards the house. I glanced over at Luna in the clearing behind the cabin. She seemed to sense that I was looking and halted the drill she was running with a sharp growl. Two and Artemis halted, turning to look at me as well.

I felt her then, not words but a warm sense of comfort touching my mind. Her presence retreated a half moment later and my pokemon resumed their training.

I knocked twice as I pushed open the door, trepidation gone. "Ma… Pa…"

My mother turned from the woodstove, smiling at me. She froze for a heartbeat as she saw Janine, then grinned wildly. "Well… I know you said that you'd met someone, but I never expected to meet her so soon."

Janine smiled politely. "Nice to meet you, Mrs. Wright."

Ma shook her head. "No need to be so formal, dear. You're among family here." She reached out for Janine.

Janine reached out to shake her hand and Ma pulled her into a crushing hug. She let out a small squeak of surprise, all the noise she could make as my mother squeezed the air out of her lungs.

"It's so good to finally meet you," Ma said as she released her hold on Janine. "Marcus has been very coy about you. Wouldn't tell us anything other than your name and that you were a Gym Leader." She barely paused as she fawned over Janine. "At such a young age, you must be very proud!"

"I'm a relatively private person," she replied. She glanced over at me. "so I do appreciate that Marcus hasn't said too much."

I nodded quietly. As happy as it made Ma to meet Janine, she wasn't the one I was worried about.

"Dinner is just about ready," Ma continued, oblivious to the silent exchange. "We did have some venison, but the last few stantler went to the pokemon, so it's just—"

"I'm sure it's fantastic," Janine interrupted. "I've had my share of hungry nights. Part of being a trainer and all." She smirked. "Ask Marcus about the stew I gave him on the day we met?"

Ma nodded, shooting me a worried glance. I hadn't sugarcoated the life of a trainer when she'd asked, but she hadn't really pressed me on whether I'd been eating enough. I had a feeling that was going to change.

She hurriedly filled five wooden bowls with a thin stew. We'd salvaged what we could from Yucca's food stores, but stretching the meagre supply of root vegetables and non perishables was proving to be difficult.

"I'll help your father in," Ma said with her ever-present smile, ignoring the fact that I'd gone hungry for my chosen life. "We'll just be a moment."

Sarah dragged one of the log stools over to the table and gestured for Janine to take the chair beside me. We all sat, quietly waiting as Ma helped Pa out of bed.

"So you'll be stealing Marcus away?" Sarah asked, breaking the silence.

Janine nodded. "Unfortunately I will," she began. "There are some things that I need him for, some things he needs to do before the Indigo Conference gets underway."

Sarah nodded and I felt a little bit of sadness behind her smile.

"Shouldn't be longer than a week or so. Just enough time to get him back here for some final preparations for the Conference."

I perked up at that. "What are we doing?" I asked.

Janine frowned. "Lance… changed the Conference admission requirements. If you don't have eight badges, you're relegated to the Junior Conference." She sighed heavily. "It wasn't supposed to be limited. Indigo barely has enough high-level trainers left to run the conference without the change. I… don't know what Lance is doing and it scares me." She scowled. "Not knowing what someone like Lance is thinking is scary on a good day. We… haven't had many good days as of late."

My stomach dropped out beneath me. I only had six badges. "So I need two badges in less than two months, both of which will need to be Expert level challenges…" I trailed off. I was confident in the fighting members of my team, but that was a big ask of them. That was a big ask of me.

"Just one," Janine replied confidently. "I think." She shrugged nonchalantly as she amended her statement. "I think I convinced Sabrina the pre-teen bitch to give you Saffron's badge. She wants to talk to you first, but from what I understand that's going to be her test of you."

"So, one gym challenge and a mysterious test by a young psychic?"

Janine nodded. "And with the losses Indigo took… you've only got four options open to you, all of them over in Johto."

I raised an eyebrow. "Which gyms?" I asked.

"Ecruteak, Olivine, Mahogany…" she trailed off and paused. "and Blackthorn."

My eyes lit up and I knew she saw. She knew what my choice was, she probably had already known which I would choose before she'd said anything. My confrontation with Lance had been very very public.

"Blackthorn's current leader is Claire of Clan Wataru, younger cousin of our dear Champion."

"I can beat her," I said. I'd done research on Johto's gym circuit, but I'd never really considered any of them as actual options. I was Kantoan, I'd battle the Kantoan gyms. But if I couldn't earn that last Kantoan badge? Beating Lance's cousin would be a satisfying alternative.

"I don't doubt it," she said. "so long as Savage is ready to fight."

I nodded, going quiet as my mind went immediately to battle preparations. I barely noticed Sarah's crestfallen expression as matchups played out in my head.

"So I'm not going to be eligible?" Sarah asked. "I only have three badges at the moment."

Janine shook her head. "You'll be relegated to the Junior Conference."

Sarah frowned. "That sucks."

Janine could only nod sadly. "It… it's tough because I do see the reasoning. I don't know how many Intermediate trainers really stand a chance against top-level opponents." She gestured at me. "Marcus wouldn't have been able to back when I met him, and he'd already earned his first Intermediate badge."

"She's probably at about that point," I said with no small amount of pride. Sarah had grown in leaps and bounds since we'd started training together. "and improving even faster than I did when we went to Sevii."

Janine smiled again. "Good to hear. Junior Conference or not, we need everyone pulling together to make this work."

Ma and Pa came back through the door, my father sporting a cane under one arm and my mother supporting the other. He looked as though he was twice the age he had been when I'd left home. I couldn't tell whether it had been the stress of Margaret's death and my departure or the shattered femur he'd suffered when our house had collapsed atop him.

"Marcus," he said in his low, gravelly voice. "I see you brought a guest tonight."

"This is Janine," I said. My voice held strong, even though I very much felt it want to waver. "Gym Leader of Fuschia City."

Pa looked her up and down as Ma helped him down into his seat. "Glad to meet the woman who stole my son's heart." He glanced over at me and I saw some semblance of approval. "Gym Leaders are the closest thing we got to leadership these days. I can't imagine how difficult it's been.

Janine sighed. "True enough," she started. "It's been… challenging, to say the least. But Saffron caught the worst of it and we're doing what we can to help with relief efforts." She glanced at me, then back at Pa. "I don't know if the Saffron Gym has reached out yet, but—"

"We're fine," he replied brusquely. "We have a roof over our heads and enough food to last. That's more than a lot of people can say right now."

Janine opened her mouth, but I placed my hand over hers. She glanced at me and I offered her a quick shake of my head. Pa wasn't going to accept an offer like that, even if we needed it. The old man was stubborn as ever.

"The offer stands," Janine replied anyways, holding her ground as she turned back to face Pa. "Anything you need, I can have delivered in short order."

Pa grunted, his mouth drawn tight. "I'm sure there are others who need the help more." He shook his head. "We don't deserve special treatment just cause you're sweet on my boy."

Janine's expression hardened slightly, but the soft smile didn't fade. She nodded. "I understand," she replied. "Self sufficiency is important to you."

Pa raised an eyebrow at the statement. It wasn't a question. "We've stood on our own two feet ever since my Pa set his roots down here. Wasn't a time in my life we ever had to run to the Gym for help, and I don't intend that to start now."

"Then think of my personal assistance as an attempt to return you and yours to that state. We've suffered a great tragedy. The only way to get things back to anything close to normal is to help each other."

Again, Pa shook his head. "As I said, others likely need it far more. Help them first. We'll manage ourselves, same as always." His frown told me enough. He wasn't going to tolerate Janine pushing this any further.

"Janine came to take me off again," I said, breaking the awkward silence. "I should be back before the conference."

He nodded slowly. "I see," was the terse reply.

"Sarah will still be here until the conference," I interjected in a vain attempt to wrest the conversation away and reassure my father "We'll stock up on game before we both leave."

My father looked at me, contemplating my response. I knew he had agreed that the League needed change, but he didn't like that I'd taken that task upon myself. He didn't think it was my problem.

"Pa…" I started, practically pleading with him to drop it. "It'll be ok."

Slowly, he nodded. "I suppose there's no stopping you," he remarked. "I've seen what happens when I push you too hard. I'm not keen on losing what's left of our family."

I felt the tension slowly fade away as Pa broke into a warm smile. He glanced at Janine, then back to me. "Curie stays," he said. It was more a statement than anything.

I nodded, agreeing. Curie… would never fight again. She was an exceptional healer, but the lower half of her body had been utterly ruined. She'd be lucky to walk again. "Curie stays," I confirmed.

"Then all that's left is to wish you luck," Pa said quietly. He looked over to Janine and then back at me. "Now," he began, "I'm sure that you two have some stories that you can share without scaring the two of us too much?"

Janine smirked and I caught the guilty look she shot me. "How about I tell you about the time that we went on vacation and Marcus tried to fight a tyrantrum with a taser?"

The looks my parents shot me could have curdled milk. Unperturbed, Janine launched into a passionate retelling of the time Empress had nearly killed me on Sawtooth Island.

We popped back into existence in one of the training yards behind the Gym. The sea was at our back and the sun was starting to set behind the city's docks to the east, casting long, reaching shadows on the yard.

I reflexively felt for the balls on my belt, keenly aware of open slot. There would be two open slots after we stopped in Pallet on our way to Johto. Janine had called Blue at the lab and while the cubone were still fine, they'd been mostly left to their own devices since Saffron.

"Our services are needed back in Fuchsia," Will said before we had barely settled onto the ground. "We should be back before morning."

Janine nodded absently. "Than you, Will. That will be all."

The spindly bald man reached out and touched his hand to Karen's shoulder. They disappeared with a faint pop and Janine and I were alone.

"So," she began as we turned towards the building. "that was fun."

I shrugged, following her. "It actually went better than I thought it would. Pa… he's changed."

She offered me a smile. "No choice but to change," she said. "we don't get the choice right now. Not with how the world is. Not without—"

A low, mournful howl interrupted Janine. She swivelled on the spot, hunting for the source as her hand dropped to her belt. My hand was already at mine, resting on Luna's ball. I knew that howl, knew now that it had been following me ever since Saffron.

We didn't need to search for long. It came out of the shadows, eyes glowing a vibrant red and white fur reflecting the evening sun. A long, curved horn with a wickedly sharp edge emerged from the side of its head. Its bladed tail whipped back and forth furiously as it stalked forward.

I felt the blood drain from my face, glancing over at Janine as an omen of disaster emerged from the shadows.

"An absol…" she said, trailing off into silence. She looked away from it, at me. "That's not good Marcus. They don't show up unless something really, really bad about to happen."

"You think I don't know that?" I hissed, without looking away from the absol. My mind raced through the reasons it could be here, through the thousand things that could go horrifically wrong with the plan to change the League. "Why do you think it's here?"

Janine was silent for a long moment. When she finally spoke, her voice was soft and meek. "Not for anything good," she murmured.

It stopped, refusing to look anywhere but directly at me. I took a step to the side and its gaze followed me. I looked over at Janine. "Whatever the reason…" I looked back at the absol. "it's here for me..."

She was quiet. "Are you sure?" she asked.

I considered it for a long moment. "The howl… it's not the first time I've heard it. First in Saffron… then in Yucca… now here…"

"Marcus…" she said, her voice hushed. "you know what they are. Harbingers of death, premonitions of destruction…"

"And it's here for me," I said quietly. My hand finally moved from Luna's ball, brushing over the open slot. "I know why." I swung my bag off and my hand dove into it, closing on one of the empty balls within.

She glanced at me quickly, as though even a moment of averting her eyes would bring catastrophe down on us. "You aren't actually thinking about—"

"I am," I confirmed as I dropped my bag and lifted the ball. I met Janine's gaze and offered her a confident smile. Whatever was going to happen, it was here for me. Good or ill, I would trust in that. At the end of the day, it was a pokemon and I was a trainer. "I think that's why it's here. I think it's here because it knows that I need help. It knows that I need it."

I approached the pokemon, watching carefully as it regarded me with cold, unflinching eyes. I took a deep breath and steeled myself for disaster.

"You're here for me," I said.

Slowly, methodically, the pokemon nodded.

"I don't know if this is a good idea." I couldn't help the grim smirk that came to my face. "It probably isn't. But that's never stopped me from doing something before." I raised the ball in my hand. "Are you ready to come with me, or are you just going to howl in the distance?"

The absol cocked its head to the side and looked curiously at the ball. It looked back up at me and met my eyes with its piercing gaze. With slow, measured movements, the living portent of doom pressed its nose into the ball and disappeared in a flash of digitized light.

I turned to face Janine as the ball clicked softly to signify its capture. "Let's go," I said quietly. "I have a feeling that this can't mean anything good for Surge."

She approached me, looking at me like I was crazy. Maybe I was, but a strange sense of confidence was coming over me.

"Are you sure about that thing?" she asked.

"Omen," I replied with a strange calm. "his name is Omen."

---

Intermediate Trainer KT#07996101

Trainer, Marcus Wright, current team:

Luna, Ninetales

Artemis, Aerodactyl

Two, Porygon-2

Savage, Tyrantrum

Omen, Absol

---

The second last arc of Marcus' journey begins! It's been a fun ride, let's enjoy this roller coaster for all it's worth! (Please ignore the fact that it has no brakes)

 

[ShiniGojira]

Alrighty! Hello and here's your review from le' catnip!

Summary of Chapter 13:

MC, Red, Blue and Erika all discuss on how to deal with Team Rocket but were interrupted by a spying Porygon. Then Erika gets hurt and they rush to storm the casino where they eventually meet up with Giovanni.

Reviews of Chp 13:

This chapter was real great. I'll be honest and say that I don't quite remember too much about the previous chapter, only the early ones. But I did quite enjoy it even without remembering much.

Like, I love how Porygon was used here in spying on them, a real interesting way to use the little blocky duck. Though really, it is a bit odd that our MC could capture the Porygon, I would've thought Team Rocket had it in a pokéball or something already, unless like people can still catch other people's mons but I don't remember that being the case so I guess TR did a bit of a goof here?

Anyway, the casino scene was great. Nicy rushed and I really felt the urgency and desperation in our MC making his way down with the other two. Made the whole 7k chapter feel like a breeze to read through.

Oh and then the Giovanni scene was cool. He really does feel intimidating here and I like how he specifically tosses Red some shade, guess he saw Red's true potential or something. The next chapter's fight with him is gonna be epic from what I could barely remember, though Pride's probably gonna die here if I'm not misremembering things.

Here's my line-by-line comments (it's not a lot but the chapter was too immersive for me to really take down too many notes):

"Yes," she said "that's the entire point. You're the distraction."

Missing a comma here

It means that I can't set foot in that game corner without my every move being watched by Rocket and these two are underage and can't even get in.

Didn't stop them from doing so in the games lol

A porygon!" Erika shouted over the digital scream. Her hand was dropping to her waist, but there was no time.

Oof plan's spoiled. Guess they gotta rush now

What do we do?" Red asked. I heard the fear in his voice, and remembered that he was just a kid.

Kill it

We were alone underground, outclassed by our opponent, with no hope of escape. We needed a miracle.

Huh, can't they just teleport out of there? Unless there's some sort of limit I'm forgetting but like Blue can just yoink them out with his Kadabra, no?

Anyway, that should be it for now. Hope you have a great rest of your day!