In one way or another, conflict has existed throughout most of human history.
Wars, brutal and primitive, decided not who was right, but only who was left. The last nation standing, banner in tow, would gain access to their enemies' spoils, and live like kings, until the cycle was repeated with their own country. No people were safe – war never changed. One tribe instigated a battle, and only one tribe was allowed to finish it.
…
But, in the future, Pokemon had decided that they were no longer going to be used as tools of war. They rose up, revolted, and destroyed their old masters, forming lands and tribes of their own.
They all came to a consensus, that no matter what, they would avoid war. But as with man, they felt they were entitled to everything. And as one Pokemon took something another desired, so began conflict.
In one way or another, conflict will exist forever, throughout the history of all sapient life.
To combat the pettiness of war, Pokemon formed a camaraderie among themselves, to ensure that no one tribe was above another. They were successful, for a time, as they were few in number. But as population spread, resources became thin, and individuals wanted to spread their influence to the rest of the world.
So began the practice of Towns or municipalities, meant to connect a community under a single leader, a Guildmaster, who would support the town financially and politically. Then there came the question of how the supply the town; a single Guildmaster could not provide enough resources to keep the town stable. Thus was the formation of Exploration Teams, who would serve under the Guildmaster and provide labor and scavenging services, as a communal work force.
…
Then came the integration of other services into the work force. They soon became police as well, forming Rescue Teams to aid in the governing and search and rescue of lost locals. Some teams abandoned their Guildmasters, forming small communities elsewhere. Others overthrew their leadership, turning their area into a police-state. The most renowned of these teams, of both varieties, came together to form a single entity – the Institute of Coordinated Brigades. The ICB issued licenses to those deemed worthy of leading teams of several, either under independent or governed rule, to hunt for resources and aid in the recruitment and assistance of lost Pokemon.
…
Until, that is, the Top Weapon and the Time Gears were discovered.
We are here, in the present time. You, our audience, will have the ability henceforth to change time as you please, in the 'directions' of past and future.
Our mission is the find the Top Weapon, the Frontier Cube. We don't know what it does. We don't know what it looks like. We don't know how it works.
But we know that we, the People, need it.
Join us, Adventurer, and relieve us of our struggle.
1 Pride Over a Cliff
In the distant past...
A Charizard stood, bulky and scaly, facing a scenic overlook. His tinted eyes scanned the mountains he had flown over for years, the small villages that were cropped between crevices and rock formations.
"I guess this is it," he said to the Pokémon behind him, his small arms laced over his tanned belly.
"Yep," the other Pokemon replied casually. The Charizard heard the sound of air being bent with a sharp object. Whoosh.
"You're going to behead me?" the Charizard inquired with an amused smirk, his flames growing larger on his tail.
"Quite," the other Pokemon quipped. This was a very awkward conversation. Then, the Charizard spun on his heel to face his executioner.
"The sky is bright and blue outside, the mountains are well and brown, and the people are all fed and satisfied. My influence stretches throughout the entire world. I am a political face that unites all species to a common cause. Through trials and tribulations, I alone caused world peace. And now you want to kill me?"
"Precisely," the other Pokemon, an Alakazam, responded. "You have outlived your usefulness. Not to say that you are now useless. It is, ah, complicated." He wore clothes, a suit, fashioned to fit his proportions. It looked sloppy, tight, and clumsy, but he donned it with pride. "Please understand, Caesar."
"Stop calling me that," Caesar said. "It's in the past. I conquered, but for the right cause."
"And now that you've stopped conquering, you pose a threat to us. There is a 13.4563324 percent chance that you will instigate a revolt against us."
"I may not do so directly, but I run this world. And for your clan to challenge me is an insult. I would not even spit on the ground you walk upon."
"Your blood will stain it, though." The Alakazam's eyes began radiating very pink, very lethal energy.
"I would remark something snappy and cool like, 'try me' or 'come at me bro', but I can't. But I believe my achievements can speak for themselves. This will be the worst thing you've ever done. The peace the world shares will snap, and our equilibrium will vanish. War, famine, genocide... all for the sake of some post-human technology."
"Precisely," the Alakazam replied, whisking his sword around. It was very rusty, with black, corroded metal, concentrated near the tip. It looked painful.
"If I choose to fight you, hypothetically... what would happen?"
"We would accelerate our search for the Sky Engine."
"At the cost of the lives of thousands?"
"Millions if need be."
"You're an independent agent. You can make your own decisions."
"And my decision is this." Caesar looked at the Pokemon with sad, pleading eyes. The Alakazam stared back with cold, calculating ones. "Your chance of winning, with my weapon in active use, is around 57 percent. You can attempt to fight back. You may or may not win. Probability is on your side."
"Very well. I will not fight. But I will die on my own terms." Caesar knelt down, extending his long neck to the sword. "I have but a few final words. You may attack the spirit of adventure, but the soul of a true hero will never die. You will be stopped. The Time Gears – or whatever – are not yours for the taking. Do not think for a second that just because you managed to get the Hero of the New World to submit, you will do the same for the Laeti. They will overpower you and your Order. And you will be left with nothing."
"Brave words for a dying man. Are you ready to accept your fate?"
"It would take more than a single sword to force me to accept my fate. I live on, in spirit, in the young who will take up arms against you and your colleagues. The new force, the army that will bring your destruction, the Legion, will carry my banner on their shoulders and see to your death as among the first."
"I did not ask for a speech. And what Exploration Team could take me?"
"We're past petty Rescue and Exploration Teams. We're a full army."
"You talk as if you're there."
"I will be, once you strike that sword through my neck. Now do it with precision and vigor, to sign away your life with mine!"
"Very well, Caesar. Despite what Red said, you were never a true rival to me."
"I barely knew you back then. Red is dead and gone, too. I assume by your hand?"
"He was a true Guildmaster." With that, the blade came crashing down with a crunch. Ultimately, it took four blows to decapitate the dinosaur, but when the job was done, the Alakazam took the head in a hand and looked out over the cliff.
"Fear is the body's way of letting you know you're too weak to face life," he said wistfully, "but arrogance is the body's way of letting you know you're headed toward an early death. To think that one Pokemon, who single-handedly united the world, would display so much of the latter... Sickening."