The world shifted back to normal, and I caught Mewtwo before he could collapse. Having to teleport such a large group twice in the same day, couldn't have been good for him. The Pokemon Center's door slid open the moment we appeared. I let Solais out, and then started to help Mewtwo inside.
"Oh goodness, is everything OK?" Nurse Joy asked.
"Everyone is fine. Mewtwo's just exhausted." I helped him over to a place to sit down. "Melanie, could you get us some water, please?" I asked.
"Sure." Melanie said. As she went to get water, Nurse Joy came over to check on Mewtwo, herself.
"What happened?" Nurse Joy asked.
"We had to teleport to Pallet town, and then back." I said. "He can teleport groups, but it gets more draining depending on how many is there."
"I see. So, he just tired himself out." Nurse Joy said. She stepped aside when Melanie returned with some water, so she could hand it out.
"Yeah, but he won't have to teleport us again today." I said. Mewtwo accepted one of the bottles of water, and opened it, then started to drink from what was inside. I took my own, but put it away for later. Of course, I had just had tea, several minutes ago. But still, better to have the water and not need it.
[Outside Fuchsia]
Pokemon scattered as the ground shook from an explosion. A slender form appeared from within the dust, holding up a barrier of light with her hands. She winced, in response to the drain. The attack that had hit her, left a crater in the ground that curved around her shield.
She had lost sight of her targets, and in the process of trying to find them, she was attacked. Her opponent revealed itself. A black Ninetales, its tails tipped in bloody red. A long white mane flowed from the top of its head, backwards along its neck. It billowed like smoke, and its only visible eye was focused only on her.
The fox growled, and began to ready another pitch-black orb at the tip of one of its tails. It swung, launching the orb at her, only for a flash of light to signal her evasion of it. Another explosion shook the ground, and felled the tree that the orb had struck.
This Ninetales seemed…wrong. Libra could tell from the colors alone that this one was different. Had it been a normal Ninetales, her power would've been more than enough. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. In the first moments of battle, she learned that it was also a Dark Type. It was aggressive, very much so. Its single visible eye carried the stare of a predator.
The Ninetales lunged at her, and she was forced to backhand it, only just barely redirecting its attempt at a bite. Her strike had left it dazed, just long enough for her to vanish. With no choice, she had chosen to return to base. She would find the other subject later. For now, she needed to evade this thing.
Frustrated at the loss of its prey, the fox channeled its anger, and howled. The forest around it fell dead silent, not a single Pokemon dared to make a sound. They didn't want to draw the…thing, to them.
[Zeryph]
Everyone froze at the sound that met our ears, and everyone turned in the direction we'd heard it from. It was the Pokemon from last night. There's no doubt about it. The very same one Dialga is sending us after.
"What was that?" Nurse Joy had been startled by it, worse than the rest of us. She'd gotten into cover behind her desk, just in case of trouble.
"That, was bad news." I said. "That sounded close. I think our target may be outside the city by now. Prepare yourselves." That was directed at my team. We're going to have to fight it, after all.
"Bad news?" Nurse Joy asked.
"Yeah, we saw it last night, too, while we were camping. An acquaintance of ours has asked us to deal with it. It's a Pokemon, but it's strong enough to threaten cities, and very, very hostile." I said. "Listen, as dangerous as this thing is, and strong as we are, I think there should still be some assistance ready. I would suggest preparing to receive emergency patients."
"You think it might hurt someone?" It's obvious that Nurse Joy is worried about this, more than my team, and certainly more than I am. Course, I have no reason to worry, and of course, a certain perk is taking care of it.
"I'm certain it will. Prepare an emergency aid team, same as for the storm, and alert the police." I said. "And, the Rangers. We might need backup if things go wrong. Just, watch out for stray attacks." My team and I started to head out. I took some paper and a pen, and wrote a note, quickly as I could. My handwriting wasn't great, in my first life, but it's much better here.
--Hostile Pokemon in forest near the city. My team and I are going to try and handle it, but we may need backup. Make sure everyone remains in their homes, and get help out to us as soon as you can. -Zeryph.--
Done with the writing, I folded it up and handed it to Evan. "Take that to the Police Station, fast as you can, then link up with us. We're going after the fox." I said. Evan took the note in his beak, carefully, then took off into the air with a hard flap of his wings. He shed his weights on the way up, causing a loud bang as they hit the ground.
"The rest of you, drop weights and move. The faster we get to our target, the better. Let's go!" I was swept up onto Kaorah's back, and we set off into the forest at high speed, heading in the direction we heard the howl from.
I took Empowerment Seeds out and spread them around, then shielded my eyes as bright flashes filled the area. My team shifted into a practiced formation, which put me right in the middle with Mewtwo and Lexie behind me. Kaorah was put in front, Melanie and Solais had their positions on our sides. Evan caught up, and stayed above. Cerise was the only one that didn't have a set position, but she chose to stay in the trees behind us, so she had a clear shot.
"What did they say?" I asked.
"They'll get someone out here as soon as they possibly can, but it may take a while. We're likely to be on our own for most of this." Evan called from above. "I see it, straight ahead. Looks like there's been a battle, too."
"A battle? Do you think it was a territory issue?" Mewtwo asked.
"No, I can see…yes, blade marks. Kinda like…yours, yeah." Evan responded. That…does not bode well.
"Then that means she was here. Double time it. If she hasn't retreated, we might have a chance." I said.
"Chance for what?" Mewtwo asked. I realize that what I said didn't exactly come out right.
"A chance to heal her, and possibly, snap her out of whatever brainwashing Team Rocket has used on her." I answered.
"That makes sense. Setting her free would be a great idea. Especially if she could help us out with-"
"Focus. We're almost there, worry about the fight, not about her." I interrupted what Mewtwo was saying.
"Yes, you're right. We've got a fight to worry about." Mewtwo brought his blades to life with a flick of his wrists.
"Incoming!" We all scattered when we heard Kaorah's warning, avoiding a decently sized blast of fire. Lexie was the only one who didn't dodge, as it wouldn't really do anything to her.
"Well, looks like someone is a little worked up." I said.
Our target was waiting for us, and from the way his tails were waving, he was angry. No, scratch that. Based on the howl earlier, he's downright furious.
[????]
[Level 40]
[Ability- Flash fire]
[Moveset Unknown]
"Lexie, don't use any flames, he's got Flash Fire." I warned. Lexie's colors changed, indicating a shift in typing. "System won't tell me anything he's got for battle, other than that. He's level 40, so be very careful." His level was highlighted in red, actually. Although, not as scary as the "??" that the Trio has, or Arceus with level infinity.
[Mewtwo, I want you and Kaorah to keep his attention. The rest of you, attack from his flanks.] I said. [Watch out for those tails, though. If they hit you, it'll hurt.] Everyone scattered, right away.4
[BGM Suggestion]
[Devil May Cry 3 soundtrack- Suffer]
A flash of purple appeared, and arrows struck the ground, one for each of the fox's tails, causing them to seemingly freeze in place.
"It won't hold long, hit him while they're immobilized. Just watch out for his jaws." Cerise's voice was quiet, barely a whisper, yet I still heard what she'd said. I flashed her a thumbs up, without taking my eyes off of the enemy.
Kaorah was the first to make an attack, using Earthquake. And since it was immobilized, there wouldn't be any way for the fox to dodge it, so it took the hit directly. The power behind her Earthquake, sent Pokemon running. Well, those who hadn't already fled earlier.
This had the downside of freeing him from Cerise's Spirit Shackle, but it still would've done a fair amount of damage. Of course, that brings up another issue, no health bar. Which makes me think that this might be a first phase, not just a normal encounter.
And while the fox was recoiling from the hit Kaorah dealt him, Solais and Melanie attacked from his flanks. One with Night Slash, the other with a blast of lightning. When he turned to face them, Cerise and Lexie struck, with Leaf Blade and Double Kick. Although Cerise's attack didn't do much, it was still enough to draw attention onto her. Thanks to the trees, however, she was able to swiftly vanish in a flurry of leaves. With the attention on Cerise, the fox wasn't prepared for Mewtwo to hit it from the side.
There was a flash of blue when Mewtwo's hand made contact, and an explosion from the blast of energy. That was the unmistakable sign of Aura being used, which is…interesting. I don't know when, or how, he picked it up. From meditation, perhaps. Still, it's worth remembering, as training with it will give him an edge against Dark-Types. Especially when he isn't in his mega form.
The fox landed several feet away, then whirled around and whipped a Shadow Ball right back at Mewtwo, using his tails to launch it. Mewtwo vanished in a flash of light, and the Shadow Ball was caught by Solais, with her horn. She vanished into the shadows, just as quickly as she had appeared.
Kaorah had disappeared, as well, likely waiting underground for her chance to strike. But while she was out of the line of fire, Melanie took a chance of her own. I saw the bluish-white light fill the clearing, and then a ball of light slammed into the target, head on. The sudden Moonblast staggered him, and then Kaorah hit him from below with Dragon Rush.
This knocked him into the air, where he was then hit with an axe kick from Lexie, and a Mach Rush from Evan, both at the same time. There was a loud boom when he hit the ground, and it kicked up quite a bit of dust, though a Gust from Evan dealt with that issue.
The fox slowly pulled himself up from the ground, his single visible eye met my own, and I felt a chill down my spine. His front claws began to glow, then he vanished. When he reappeared, he was already mid swipe, and it wasn't hard to guess what he was going for.
Mere moments before impact, I felt something shove me aside, then there was the sound of the fox's claws striking something. Solais had caught the swipe with her horn, and at point blank, there was no way to dodge the full power Payback that she sent right back at him. The fox was knocked away, and it was clear that move had hurt. Even when dealing with type resistance, Solais knew how to make it work.
Lexie followed up for her, delivering a very strong kick to the side of the fox's head, producing a loud crack as it dislocated his jaw, and then Kaorah and Mewtwo blindsided him, both with very powerful attacks. A Dragon Rush and a strike that was charged with Aura. It was this that caused the fox to smack them away with his tails, before he created a smokescreen in order to allow himself a chance to retreat.
The quest we got from Dialga updated, removing the failure timer, and now stating that we could do the dungeon to fight him whenever we were ready to. This is good, as it means we now have plenty of time to really prepare.
The rest of our day, as well as tomorrow, and the day after, will be going towards training in order to prepare for phase two. We need to be as ready as possible. I shared the plan, and my team agreed. Although it's possible that the second phase may not be too different, we should still prepare for anything.
[Time skip, two days pass]
Early morning, the sun has only just begun to rise, and we're already up. We had just gotten our breakfast, and now we've gathered in the same place where we'd faced the fox the first time around. Most of the training had been focused on helping Cerise to learn how everyone else fights, so that she could better support them from a distance.
But, we had also tested her. Her aim is incredible, and the ability to fight as an archer from a distance, makes her one of the best ranged fighters on the team. During our training, she showed great skill, managing to not only hit her targets, but their shadow as well, in the same shot.
The main difficulty she had was dealing with someone whose weights were off, as well as having some trouble handling someone like Melanie, who could deflect her arrows. Her solution involved using the area around her to her advantage, by tricking her target into the shadow of a tree, then shooting that rather than the target's shadow.
Surprisingly enough, this worked the exact same as if she had hit their shadow directly, but not for as long. Still, it gave her more than enough time to reposition if she needed to. However, as we also discovered, she can't pin a target who's in the air, even if she hits their shadow. This puts her at a major disadvantage against Flying-Types. At least until we can figure out a workaround.
And something else happened, too. During our two days of training, Evan reached a point where he couldn't get any stronger in his current form. Although, he hasn't evolved into a Pidgeot, I get the feeling that it won't be much longer. Maybe this upcoming battle will be the last thing he needs.
"We're ready." Mewtwo said. "Just waiting on you." I prepared the spell for the dungeon portal, then cast it. A portal flared to life in front of us, and we began to pass through, one by one. On the other side was a long hallway, leading up to a large, heavy door.
"Huh? That's it? I was expecting a full dungeon." Kaorah said.
"It's better this way. Were we to have to face a full dungeon first, we likely would've been tired when we reached the fox. That wouldn't do well for any of us." Cerise said.
"You have a point. Still, I was hoping for more." Kaorah said.
"Alright everyone, seeds." I handed them out, to those who had use for them, anyway. Several bright flashes filled the hallway as they powered up. "Don't hold anything back. Just like with Darkrai, we need to fight at our absolute best." We started to walk towards what was going to be the boss arena.
The sounds of weights being unlatched, broke the silence. Cerise was quite far behind the rest of the team, but we'll have time to fix that as we're heading to Cinnabar. The door opened as we approached, revealing the arena on the other side. An arena that looked surprisingly familiar, and for anyone that's played Monster Hunter World, then you definitely know how it looks.
Down below, in the arena's center, tails waving and visible eye glowing with fury, our opponent awaited. He was a lot bigger than he was outside, easily the size of an Alpha. Which also explains the red glow in his only visible eye.
His health was already down to half, indicating that he hadn't healed in the time we were training. Makes things slightly easier for us, but we're still in for a big fight. Although, after how well the first round went, and the two days of preparation, I'm sure we'll manage this just fine.
[Be prepared to put him down, just in case. Ready?] After several nods, I gave the signal to engage.
[BGM suggestion]
[Okami- Battle of Ninetails]
The fusion roared, Shadow Balls forming at the tips of his tails, before he launched them all with a single swipe. Mewtwo used a barrier for the ones sent at him, and at me. As, unlike Melanie, his barriers are more than strong enough to counter type advantage.
Kaorah disappeared into the ground to escape hers, and Evan took to the sky at high speed, easily evading his. Solais caught hers with her horn, absorbing the energy to save up for Payback. Cerise silently avoided hers, and Melanie shot her own down with Moonblast. Lexie's colors shifted with a light shudder, then she sent hers, right back to its sender, while also adding her own to the mix. The explosion cut off our line of sight, but not the rest of our senses.
Cerise was the one to capitalize the most, knocking several arrows and firing them off, all in rapid succession. One for each of the Fox's tails, just like before. The response was an angred roar, as the fox struggled against his binds. Kaorah took this as her cue, striking from below with a vicious slash of her scythe-like blades. Although not enough to kill the target, it did definitely wound him.
She quickly dove back into the ground, avoiding the Fox's attempt at retaliation.
[His neck, it looked like there was something under the fur.] Kaorah's voice echoed in my mind. Solais jumped between me and one of the fox's tails, deflecting it with her horn, and using the gathered power for a devastating Payback, earning a roar of pain. The Fox responded by sending a Flamethrower our way, but Mewtwo took care of that with one of his barriers.
[Think it's a control collar, or something similar?] I asked, while raising my right hand to shield my eyes from a Dazzling Gleam that Melanie had been preparing. The fox roared, and retaliated with another volley of Shadow Balls, much larger than before. Cerise was quick to shoot them down, then she rounded and sent an arrow straight at the fox's head. It only just missed, but not by enough. A small spray of blood was sent into the air, and the fox howled in anger.
His dark aura flared to life, and it was clear that, if he was mad before, he's absolutely furious now. However, since we can attack from so many directions at once, he can't focus on all of us. And, most importantly, he hasn't been looking up. As a result, Evan's been preparing an attack from above, without being noticed.
[Brace yourselves!] Speaking of which, Evan's warning was enough for us to all cover our ears. Then the ground shook as a full-power Mach Rush slammed into the target from above, catching him by surprise. The following boom likely would've deafened us, if not for the prior warning.
Dazed by the impact, the fox had no way of defending himself when Mewtwo slashed at the left side of his neck, but instead of drawing blood, there was the sound of something breaking. The fox's eye widened, and his power began to rapidly drain. It wasn't long before he was back to normal size, and he was exhausted.
Even though he was tired, he still saw us as a threat, slowly backing away as we approached. I held my hands up, an unspoken promise that I meant no harm. Kaorah emerged from the ground to my left, and shook the dust from her scales. Several flashes filled the arena as my team began to power down.
"Hey Zee? Does Evan look…different?" Melanie asked. Now that I can get a look at him, he does. It seems my prediction came true. Evan had evolved during the battle, I guess, during his dive from above. That certainly explains why the Mach Rush hit so much harder than before.
"Congrats, buddy." I held out my fist, and he bumped it with a wing. "Means you're all caught up now, until we start Mega training. How do you feel?" I asked.
"Incredible. After this, let's all go and celebrate." Everyone agreed with his suggestion. The quest reward had also popped. It's been a pretty good while since the last level increase. I'll get around to my stats in a little bit.
"Yeah, but first, what do we do with this guy?" I asked, referring to the Fusion we'd just defeated.
"I say let him go. He's had enough, and he clearly wasn't himself, either." Mewtwo said.
"I agree. Had he truly been intending us harm, the fight would've continued, even after the collar was broken." Cerise said.
"It was a fun fight, but it's over now. I'm satisfied with what I got. Maybe we'll face him again some day, under less dangerous circumstances." Kaorah spoke up.
"Yeah, but…first," Melanie motioned him over, and her hands lit up with golden light as she began to slowly walk towards him. Realizing she meant no harm, he began to slowly approach. When Melanie's hand made contact, the Fusion's injuries faded away. "There, all better."
"That wasn't…" the Fusion began, "thanks, I guess."
"Even if you were just our enemy, you weren't yourself. Healing any damage is the right thing to do." Melanie said, before beginning to check and make sure she hadn't missed any injuries.
"He could join us. We've got room for more, I'm sure." Evan said.
"I will have to decline." The Fusion said. "I am sending myself into exile, after…all that mess. I would rather not be caught by a Trainer. After all, it was a group that set me off, in the first place. Sorry to say that I don't have any information on who they are."
"It's alright. You're free to go and live your life." I opened a portal for him. "I wish you well, and I hope you find a peaceful place to settle down." I said.
"Thank you, for this chance to be free." He turned, and bounded off, vanishing through the portal and disappearing into the world outside.
"Are you sure that was a wise choice?" Mewtwo asked.
"I have a feeling that what he says is true. He won't hurt anyone that doesn't seek to harm or control him. So long as people stay out of his territory." I said. "Now then, let's go and get us something to eat. Then, I have to make a report to Dialga, and, share the information from that battle with Professor Oak."
[Break]
Since it was still fairly early on the outside when we got out. We took some time to rest after we left the arena. Then, we went for food when it was time for lunch. My report to the Professor was met with surprise. It's too bad that I didn't think about informing the fusion of Oak's lab. That would've actually been a pretty good place to stay, as nobody would bother him there.
Of course, Team Rocket's going to be on his tails, too. Especially once Libra has given a report on her encounter. If Dr. Fuji were to get his hands on the Fusion, we could be in trouble. At the same time though, if the Fusion goes up Mt. Silver, nobody's gonna want to go after him.
Word of my team's battle with the fox had also spread by now. And once again, we found ourselves being thanked for aiding Fuchsia. I have no doubt that the Fusion would've more than likely destroyed the city, had we not forced him to retreat. Especially with the Alpha Form he seemed to have.
No need to worry about that anymore. For now, let's focus on what's going on. My team finished lunch, and after a quick trip back to the Pokemon Center to pack, and then the Poke-Mart for supplies, we started preparing to set out. Considering his recent evolution, I had gotten some flight equipment for Evan, to use whenever we're traveling. It's so that I can fly with him, as he's big enough to handle a passenger. The only downside is having to return everyone. Mewtwo, most of all.
I made it perfectly clear to all of them, that this would only be done when necessary, as an alternative to making Mewtwo teleport such a large group. It took some convincing, but we were able to manage. If Mewtwo can work out how to use his powers to fly, then he won't need to be put away.
Kaorah's also capable of it, although her form of flight is very different. Not exactly safe for passengers, if they don't know how to ride with her, like I do. Especially with the weights off.
However, for this trip, Mewtwo would go with her, while I was to go with Evan. It took a little bit for us to get him equipped with the gear, and then returning everyone who wouldn't be out. Out of the bunch, Lexie was actually the least uncomfortable, having spent a lot longer in a Pokeball than the others.
Although now, she preferred to stay out. Still, she didn't complain. Especially since, in Galar, trainers couldn't let their Pokemon walk with them. Unless they were on the Isle of Armor or in the Crown Tundra.
Once I was sure everyone was secured, I gave the signal to get ready. Course, I wasn't going to mention this was, legitimately, my first time flying. Ever. In this life and in the previous one.
Mewtwo already knew, of course, but he didn't say anything.
"This should only take us a few minutes, if we go at high speed. We don't need our battle speed for this." Evan said. "Kaorah, you take off first. You need the longer run up. I'll be right behind you."
"Right, see you both in Cinnabar." As Kaorah and Mewtwo went to take off, Evan turned his head back to look at me.
"First time flying, right?" He asked.
"How did you guess that?"
"Eh, from the way you act. Subtle, but the hints are there. Not to worry, you'll be fine. Especially if the System gives you immunity to fall damage. Still, shouldn't go jumping off a cliff or something, even if it did." Evan said.
"Ya know, I never did mention this, but uh…I was afraid of heights, in my first life anyway. I don't really know if that carried over or not." I said. There was a small boom as Kaorah and Mewtwo took off into the air.
"Whelp, no time to figure out if it did or not. Just relax and enjoy the flight. Even if it did carry over, I promise you, you will not fall." Evan spread his wings, and we took off when he flapped them. I was quick to pull down some goggles I had, in order to keep the wind out of my eyes.
Evan chose to climb to an altitude just barely above treetop level. And his new form was much faster than he had been previously. I wonder if he and Kaorah would end up racing, eventually. That's very likely, now that I think about it.
And, thanks to Gamer's Mind, I was able to relax and properly enjoy flying for the first time. My fear of heights was still there, but it was heavily suppressed. For which, I am thankful. I will say, without having to deal with that fear, flying is quite nice.
We were quick to pick up speed, and Evan caught up to Kaorah fairly quickly, making sure to stay out of her wake, as the turbulence could cause us some trouble. Getting to Cinnabar only took us a few minutes, thanks to the speed we were going. We passed over the volcano as we arrived, and landed on the southern shore. I let the rest of the team out, allowing them all to stretch, before we started going into the town.
Our flight in had attracted attention, mostly because of Kaorah and Mewtwo. Ash and the others haven't gotten here, yet. I guess there is still a bunch of stuff they have to go through before they get here.
The Cinnabar town is actually a pretty nice place. Shame what happens to it, in a couple years. When that volcano blows up, the town is wiped out. Mewtwo also appears to be uncomfortable here. I didn't need to ask why, of course. That is because the Pokemon Mansion is here. As is the Cinnabar Lab, and very likely, Dr. Fuji.
Assuming he's still here of course, and not in a Team Rocket base somewhere. Both are very, very possible. And considering the attention our arrival drew, they likely know we're here, too.
As we headed to the Pokemon Center to get checked in, I started to go through the level up I got. Although the two thousand from the quest wasn't enough, there was also what I got from Fuchsia, in general.
[Zeryph]
[Level 6 (0/5,500 to next]
[HP- 310/310]
[Mana- 500/500]
[STR- 45]
[END- 46]
[AGI- 43]
[INT- 50]
[LCK-41]
[CHA- 43]
[PER- 50]
[WIL- 45]
I put my points into Agility, as it was the lowest attribute out of the bunch. As far as the fox escaping, he really did, in the end, but he wasn't being driven mad. As far as the collar goes, I had decided to give it to the Professor, and see if he could figure it out. If we can, then we'll have something ready in case of more Fusions coming through.
I hadn't actually needed to tell Giratina, either. I guess he saw the fight as it happened. Saves me from having to find a mirror that's out of sight in order to get his attention. I can imagine how boring the distortion world is when there's nothing to do.
It's fortunate then, that the Fusion had been pulled into an arena, rather than being allowed to escape into the forest, as we would've lost him, then. Still, the quest is done, and he didn't get to hurt anyone.
Onto what we're in Cinnabar for. I've decided that we're going to take a few days to train, and go through a dungeon, perhaps another training battle. We need to prepare for Blaine. Course, my team doesn't have a Rock-Type, or a Water-Type. We do have a Ground-Type, thanks to Kaorah, but I'd rather have an extra, just in case.
Especially since using Earthquake in the middle of a volcano is a really bad idea. We'll figure out a strategy when we get to it. We also need Ash to catch up, and our group needs to be together from here, to Viridian. Including a visit to Cerulean City, as well.
This is because, "Mewtwo Strikes Back" is coming up, and with the events of that movie already being on a very different course…we need to be ready. But the question is, who is going to be the problem?
Mewtwo or Libra? Both are equally worrying, but, there's also the possibility that…never mind. I just hope that things don't get really, really ugly.