The Awakening
Author's Note: Hey everyone! So this is a pretty short chapter but I made it short because it is only supposed to be a turning point in the previous edition of the story published by Gaht (please, please, please read that story first not only because it is good but because this story will make NO sense unless you read that gorgeous work of art). Hope you enjoy the story!
May was ecstatic. She had just received her third contest ribbon, putting her at a remarkable 75% success rate. Brendan ran into the green room, lifting her off her feet and nearly ramming her head into the ceiling. May didn't notice. She was laughing like an exhilarated maniac as Brendan spun her around while she dangled freely in his arms. "You won!" Brendan exclaimed. Then his expression twisted like a Kadabra's spoon.
"You know what that means?" May asked, smirking and anticipating a response from Brendan.
"I know what you're thinking May. But not now! Come on, I am not going to go on a victory shopping spree again!" Brendan pleaded.
"Fine, I won't Bren," May said with a compromising and dispirited attitude but perked right up saying "but you'll have to give me something I really really want."
"Deal," Brendan said.
"Then what will the gentleman be giving his lady tonight?" May said, straightening her posture to resemble that of a genteel woman.
Brendan played along: "I'm afraid I cannot answer that my dearest lady else the answer will have no value. Presume that it will most certainly be an unforgettable surprise."
"Then I suppose it shall be my greatest challenge to wait," she replied. Brendan set her down and held her hand. He'd know her for but a few weeks but she'd already shown him a part of himself that he could never have known on his own for fifteen years. May, everything she meant to him and everything that made her the girl of his dreams, could have never happened if he had chosen to stay home that fateful day 4 weeks ago. Though he was a kid, Brendan knew that no one like May existed elsewhere in the world. Someone who stood up for him when his own father would not. Someone who denied Dylan even though he was much better than Brendan. Someone who even let go of her idol, Lisia, because she knew Brendan was much more. He held her shoulders, not minding the sweat, and simply told her what he had always wanted to say "May, thank you. Thank you for—"
GROOOOOOO! The ground undulated and loosely balanced and unsecured items began to shake as the sound of explosions could be heard in the distance. A gust of blistering air flowed into the room, making the comfortable and celebratory atmosphere a hot mess (pun intended) in no time. Through the sweltering heat, Brendan could feel little pieces of ember and burnt organic material slightly brush and sting his arm. A few screams could be heard and Brendan, fearing the worst would fall upon them, pulled May close and sheltered her.
Meanwhile…
"You fool!" Stephen yelled as Maxie watched in terror as Groudon, the continent Pokémon, tore through the waters of Hoenn on a platform of moving magma; the Pokémon was making a beeline for Sootopolis city. With every foot it landed Groudon shattered any balance the men had and continually forced them to move to the more solid ground.
"I – I just unleashed it. It cannot be so p-powerful. It's going to kill us all if this continues," Maxie stuttered as he became paralyzed with true fear. "I have unleashed a plague on innocents!" he cried as his guilt caused his knees to give way, making him crumple to the ground like a Xerneas with 2 legs.
"It's going to the Cave of Origin," Steven noted. "Something's in there that's begging this tyrant to go there."
"Primal Reversion," Maxie said, his eyes widening as the heat from the sun began to weaken him to the point of collapse.
Stephen quickly pulled out his Pokenav and yelled into it: "Red, Blue, Yellow, Green. I repeat Code Red, Blue, Yellow, Green. Groudon is making its way to Sootopolis city from the East side. ETA: 15 minutes. Mobilize the Elite 4. It is a war for Hoenn now."
Elsewhere…
"Dumb lass!" Archie roared, "You wish to stop the betterment of all Pokémon? Do you wish to see Maxie and his penguins unleash terror on humanity? I thought not. Reviving Kyogre will bring what this Earth so desperately needs: a cleansing of the destructive ambition of man!"
"Archie everyone and everything will die. Kyogre won't help Pokemon or people, it will only create destruction!" Shelly persuaded her leader. A hot gust of air blew into the room; Archie shielded his eyes from the searing wind.
"It is awake," Archie stated. "If Maxie feels his little dinosaur will bring the destructive ambitions of humans to full completion, then I'll show him the true power of KYOGRE!" Archie held up the blue orb. Its aura cracked Kyogre's casing as the Pokemon suddenly became animated, causing the cave to tremor and stalactites to break and fall. Kyogre moved its fins (arms? Wings?) creating massive waves as the water in the cave began to swirl and churn. Red lines began to glow fiercely along its fins and head as the Pokémon bellowed and destroyed the subterranean lake. It curled into a sphere as a blue crystal coating formed around it. In an instant, it was gone. "What are the surface readings?" Archie yelled into his mic. Only static returned.
Archie gripped the mic harder. "A small price to pay for a perfect world."
May and Brendan were still inside the green room, ducking under a dressing table to prevent falling debris from crushing them. May would occasionally shriek from horror as the beauty and happiness that once held their spirits up incinerated before them. Brendan grabbed her hand and pulled her close while using his other hand to send out Gallade. Not a word was said as Gallade instantly used psychic and froze all of the moving pieces and debris in the room, giving them just enough type to dash outside. As soon as they opened the door, however, the heat lashed out at them and dug into their skin, frying them alive as they struggled to stand inferno. "Gah!" May yelled, trying very hard to hold herself up. They looked around and not far off, the legendary red beast Groudon lumbered towards the Sootopolis crater, creating boiling water around it as the ocean begged for mercy as it made every step. "I-Is that… Is that it Bren?"
"That's the one. The continental Pokémon, Groudon" Brendan affirmed. Sirens around
the city blared: "All civilians, relocate indoors immediately. Legendary Pokémon capable of global destruction have been sighted within the region and drastic weather changes may cause heat stroke or death. We repeat: all civilians must relocate indoors immediately!" Brendan kept looking at Groudon. The closer it got to Sootopolis, the stronger its aura became. Heat waves were pulsating from its body, scorching the sea and land around it. "Shit. The fuckin' creature's gonna' try to undergo Primal Reversion isn't it?" Brendan said. "Steven couldn't make it in time," he said, shuddering at the thought. He turned around to make sure May was fine, but she wasn't. Her clothes and hair were drenched in sweat and she was panting heavily, but the glistening sweat made her shine a shine that would outshine Latios' luster Purge; she looked, ironically, as though she had been in the pool for hours. "M-may. A-are you alright. You need to sit. I'm sorry I dragged you outside. I-I shouldn't have been so jumpy to leave the indoors. Here, I'll let —"
"I'm fine Bren. Don't worry about me. Okay? I'll…I'll manage. We'll go through this together. I'm not going to lope inside like a worthless piece of trash knowing that you're going to go out and try to stop the monster. I'll never forgive myself if something were to happen to you. That day when you ran way to go to Lavaridge yourself, I never felt more empty or lost in my life. Bren, I'm never gonna leave that boy who let go his fear of Pokémon and his abusive father because he loved me." The intense heat weakened her, but she looked at him and gained strength like never before. "Brendan," she said, using his real name and not the nickname, "you know why this heat doesn't bother me? Because I look into those stormy gray eyes of yours and I feel the soothing, cool rain washing over me." Brendan smiled and tried miserably to hold back a full grin.
"We have to do something about that," Brendan said, pointing at the hulking mass of red glowing brighter by the second. "Hopefully, we ca—" GYAAAAAHHHHH! THWOOOOSH! An immense blue and white form emerged out of the sea. Pillars of water erupted out of the sea and began spewing chilly seawater into the sky as a torrential downpour began to swamp the land. The heat, at one point unbearable and infernal, suddenly dissipated, instantly being replaced by a cold, frosty downpour that washed everything away. The creature had an immense, elliptical head with white spots on the top. Its jaws were full of numerous teeth and its fins were like massive hands that were flattened for swimming. Its ferocious red eyes stared at Brendan, and then at Groudon. GYAAAHHHHH! It screeched, before diving into the water and sending a massive wave crashing into the city. Lightning flashed brightly, illuminating the entire town and catching the attention of the continent Pokemon, which suddenly roared and pulsated stronger heat waves that evaporated the drowning rain before it hit the ground.
"May, we have to go."
"Where, Bren?" May asked. "The whole of Hoenn is like this. We can't be safe anywhere!" She sniffled, although her tears were either camouflaged by the water dripping down her or evaporated by the heat. "Mom, dad, Caroline… even Steven… they'll all…"
"Nothing will happen to them" Brendan interjected. "I'll make sure of that. The best we can do for them is to stop these beasts with whatever we have, got it? May, follow my lead; I have a plan." "What?" May asked, thoroughly bewildered. "Trust me, after all we've been through, you're going to have to trust me one more time… everything and everyone depends on what we do now."
"Bren, whatever it is, I'm ready."
"We need to release Latios and Latias, now!" "Latios, Latias go!" they screamed as the two legendary Pokémon erupted from their Pokeballs. "Latios, Latias, we need you to take us to Groudon and Kyogre over there. The madness must end now!"
"Understood, get on our backs now and hold on tight. It will take us approximately 5 minutes to reach there," Latios replied telepathically. May struggled to get on Latios, back, which became slippery due to the torrential downpour. Brendan placed his jacket over Latias like a saddle, giving May some grip, before lifting her up so she could get on. He himself swiftly boarded Latios and the two Eon Pokémon left with a deafening WHOOSH!. As they gained in altitude, they breached Kyogre's storm clouds and could see the grey mass that had begun to generate flooding all over Hoenn. Yet, there were immense holes in the storm system where burning sunlight and geothermal heat skyrocketed temperatures. Brendan spotted fires erupting in Slateport, Petalburg, and was that… Littleroot? He tried to talk himself out of it, saying that the light was playing tricks on him, but the longer he looked the more convinced he was of the danger that threatened his home. But no matter how much he wanted it, he could not save his family or May's: he needed to defeat the weather tyrants first. May clung desperately to Latias, trying not to look down. "May, uh, are you scared of heights?" Brendan inquired. May, with her eyes closed, nodded. "It's ok, I was scared of Pokemon too. But then I met you, and I faced my fears because I knew I would rather be beaten by wild creatures than to miss the sight of you." May opened her eyes but quickly shut them. "May… look at me. Just look at me and don't worry. I love you and I will jump from here if it means saving you." And May finally opened her eyes. She looked at Brendan, and finally gave her smile: a simple smile, but it was the kind of simple smile that pulled Brendan towards her since the first day.
"We're above Groudon," Latios told Brendan.
"Dive down, circle around them and Sootopolis city; we need to see everything that's going on down there." Latios nodded and rolled left along with Latias as they came down at a steep angle through the clouds and to the Earth below. As they shattered through the cloud layer, lightning from the primordial sea and fires from the desolate land began to lash out and crash all over them. Latias dodged and weaved through the dangers while Latios bulleted straight through the storm and fiery desert at top speed, then each made a wide turn around Sootopolis city crater. Brendan and May could see Groudon, who was considerably stronger now, move closer to the city. But out of the blue, (badun tsss…) Kyogre erupted out of the water and let a surf wave crash over the sides of the Sootopolis crater and onto Groudon, who was weak to water. Groudon belted out a reverberating roar as it began to send his heat and magma into the water around him, solidifying it and creating fresh land that Kyogre could not swim near. Kyogre used hydro-pump and fired a jet-stream of water at Gordon, which used mud-shot to stop the deadly blast of water. Groudon then used hammer arm and hit the water around him, creating massive shockwaves that picked Kyogre up and tossed it back. Kyogre then began rapidly swimming around Groudon, creating an immense vortex which began swallowing the Continent Pokémon. The vortex grew until it began to it collided with the walls of the Sootopolis crater, which shuddered with the force of the Legendary Pokémon.
"What kind of move is that?" May asked Brendan.
"I dunno, I think it's whirlpool but Kyogre's power is so much stronger because it is nearing the Cave of Origin. Normal moves morph and become something destructive and immeasurably powerful in its state. But Groudon isn't just giving up… is it?" It wasn't. Red light spilled through the water that created the vortex and created a translucent bluish-red mixture of terror that swallowed an entire portion of the ocean and was begging to tear down into Sootopolis. Steam began to rise, covering the scene for a while, but the red light grew brighter and stronger, revealing a raging inferno that was churning inside. GROOOOOOOOO! The vortex broke as fire surged outside. A spiraling pillar of fire climbed up as Kyogre was forced away from Groudon. Burnt and beaten tentacruel and magikarp were fleeing for their lives as even Mitotic and Gyrados fled the raw power of the giants.
High above the turmoil, Brendan turned to May and said "May, I want you to stay up here and watch the fight. I don't want you or Latias going anywhere near those monsters yet… it's too dangerous."
"W-What are you going to do?" May asked him immediately.
"Latios and I are going to dive into the action. I'm going to try to distract them and weaken them. I'll do my best to prevent their advance towards Sootopolis. When the time is right I want you to strike both Pokémon with everything you got. But if something happens to me or Latios before you attack, I want you to leave. Don't think about me; think about everyone in Littleroot. Once Groudon and Kyogre have primal power, we'll need to save those who we love most. Just… tell mom that I love her and that I hope she and Steven have a happy life together."
"Why don't we JUST ATTACK TOGETHER?" May spat, enraged that the boy she loved may leave her forever. "Not five minutes ago I said I'll never leave you, but you want me to stay behind and wait again? I understand I'm not the perfect girl and all, but if you really don't want to be with me anymore at least just tell me, Bren!" May said as tears made her eyes sparkle in the sun above the destruction below.
"May, you are the most perfect girl anybody could ask for. I would be an ungrateful bastard and no better than my own father if I ever turned away from you. I ask you to leave not because I don't think you can fight, but because if even the smallest scratch were to fall upon you I couldn't bear it," Brendan said, trying to convince her to stay.
"No, if anything were to happen to you I couldn't bear it either. It's not like you are expendable Bren! I lo-." May quickly argued before she was interrupted.
"But I am May; I am expendable." May looked at him in shock, and even the Eon Pokémon were in disbelief. "May, you told me that you lost Max years ago because of the reckless actions of some punk. You and your parents suffered tremendous pain and I do not want to be a reason for that pain to happen again. My mom loves me, but even if she loses me she will marry Steven and start a new and beautiful life. If anything, I'm the only reason that Norman ever beat her, the only reason she has marks across her body, the only reason that she couldn't live a happy life! If I die, there is no reason to mourn me May" he said, pulling her in for one last kiss. May closed her eyes, tears rolling down her cheeks as she refused to pull away from Brendan as she clung to him as she never had before. Her time with Brendan, from the day he met her inside her house, to the dance they had together, to the crazy places they had been to in the last few days, all flashed before her as he slowly pulled back.
"I'll be back May, and I promise to never leave you again, never to scare you as I am now, and never let your beautiful smile ever leave your face," and with that, Brendan and Latios dove into the infernal blaze and hurruicane below. A single tear flowed past his cheek and into the air.
Author's Note: So... I hope that was a ton of fun because here come 20-30 more chapters on the same stuff though in different tone and fashion. Like Gaht, I intend to deviate from the original storyline of the games from time to time although it will be the primary framework for the significant chapters of this story. Please leave honest reviews (nice or mean, I don't care) and I'll do my best to let the fan service and originality flow! See you next Saturday in another post!