For A Future Not His Own
CHAPTER 1
Previously in the Liberated Champions series...
"I accepted the pain of lying to them, Jack. But I never agreed to you lying to me," Jack was surprised to feel the man's hand gently press his chest, causing him to take a few steps back towards the others. "Gina, I want you to manage Jack. He's on the sidelines this time."
"What?!" Jack asked incredulously, watching Leader turn away from him. He stepped towards the man to question him, feeling another hand on his shoulder to stop him, courtesy of their silver-haired friend. "Leader, what are you doing?"
... ...
"Z, I'm gonna need you to protect Cynthia."
"What?" Krystal's eyes widened as she watched her friend's pokemon float in front of the champion. "Lex', what are you doing?!"
"Like I said, what I believe to be right," the girl responded, her expression turning serious as she stood below her pokemon in front of Cynthia, facing against her friends. "I said I wouldn't oppose Leader, but I'm afraid that defeating Cynthia is something I cannot allow Leader to do."
"Lexi...!" May blinked in surprise at the girl's brave actions, watching her take a deep breath to herself. "Are you sure about this?"
"Yeah, it's thanks to you, after all, May," Lexi told her, flashing the brunette a smile. "You said that I care about Leader, and I do."
"But then, why are you going against him?" Misty asked, the blonde giving a slight shrug while still smiling.
"Because it's my choice. That's what Leader's wanted for me all this time, for all of us," Lexi's eyes drifted back towards her friends, looking at each of them carefully. "He may have his own agenda, but he still wants each of us to choose for ourselves to make our life the way we want. So I'm only following his wishes."
... ...
"...You don't know anything about me..."
"Then you can tell us. We- I would gladly listen, just like I did with Lexi," May smiled, taking a step forward towards her.
"That's exactly why," May paused. "You don't know anything...You have no idea what Leader has done for me...The suffering I've had to endure that he put an end to...!" May began to worry as she saw the girl's fists clench tightly again at her sides. Then her face snapped up at her, revealing an angry glare. The brunette's hand hovered over the bracelet on her wrist, beginning to emit a dim glow from the gem embedded in it that matched the glow from a similar stone in the choker around Blaziken's neck, hidden slightly by its fur. "Because of what Leader's done for me, I owe him my life! And I will gladly repay that to the end no matter what he wants from me!"
... ...
"So what about that fight from earlier?" Jack's eyes narrowed on the blunette. "Was that a real fight? Or were you just acting to throw us off and lower our guard, so you can get close like this?"
"...As real as day and night."
... ...
"You know damn well we're still partners-"
"We agreed you tell me the truth, Jack, especially about this!"
"You made an agreement, too! And you could very well be betraying that right now!"
"Don't you dare say that, I told you I will not let-"
"You can't stop it, Leader! No one can!"
... ...
"We're all done! We got through to them!" Azelf said happily, the blunette giving them a happy smile.
"Really? So what did they say? Will they help us?" she asked excitedly, Mesprit landing on her head as the other two took her shoulders, all pointing into the sky.
"Ask them yourself!"
"...Eh?" the blunette blinked, everyone looking into the sky in question, their eyes widening in shock. A fair distance into the sky above them, what was perfectly clear and open a few moments ago, were now occupied by two anomalies. Both were circular in shape, glowing in a strange discolouration - one pink, one blue - as their energy seemed to ripple as if it were alive. But their surprise was not with the anomalies themselves. It was with the figures emerging from them.
"Oh, come on..." Jack muttered with a sigh, his eyes and Leader's narrowing carefully on the creatures while the other three stared with wide eyes in disbelief. One figure was mostly white in color, with pink lines running along its tail and neck, sharp-edged wings protruding from its back, and two large pink pearls on each of its shoulders. The other figure was built more like a canine, deep blue in color with streaks of a lighter blue running along its whole body and silver metal claws on each foot, as well as metal plating covering its chest, the sides of its head, and forming a mane on its lower back. Leader, Jack, Lexi, Dawn and Cynthia may have recognized them instantly the moment they emerged from the portals of energy, unnoticed by the others who were currently doing battle, but their presence was made known in the next moment alone. With a single devastating roar from both dragons, everyone on Spear Pillar, human or pokemon, their attention was now on the two legendary dragons of Sinnoh.
... ...
"...You know...about the Azure Flute...?"
"Of course, I've done my research on the past. You see, I've had a lot of spare time for reading..." Jack responded, smirking as his eyes carefully looked over every detail of the azure-colored flute in his hand. "It really is amazing up close..."
"Jack...What are you doing...?" Jack's eyes were brought towards Leader, who had begun to slowly step towards him with concerned eyes. Jack's smirk grew.
"I'm finally ending this."
... ...
"The flute...calls him..." everyone's eyes were narrowed on the clouds, as all life on Spear Pillar stared into the sky. At the source of the beam of light. At the very fabled source of light itself...
A white, four-legged creature, its abdomen wrapped by a golden cross-like wheel.
"This can't be...happening..."
"I'd pinch you, Krys', but...I think I need it first..."
"...Heh..."
"...What?"
"...Nothing..."
"No, go ahead. Can't be any worse than the literal god descending in front of us."
"...Well...sorry, but...Gina, you look ridiculous right now."
"Are you serious, you airhead?"
"I can't hel- Ow! Ooow!" the icy blunette squealed in a sharp tone, feeling her silver-haired friend swiftly yank on her ear. Feeling her friend release her grip, she glared at her. "Meanie..."
"Will you please consider the situation, for once?" Trevor sighed, crossing his arms. Krystal's glare quickly switched towards him.
"Well, I'm sorry I never planned ahead as a kid on how I would react on seeing that in-"
"Guys!" Webb quipped in a hush, quickly silencing the group as he pointed to something. The others followed his gaze towards Leader, who had been closely facing against the deities of time and space, but was now starting to back away carefully. The brunette beside him watched him curiously, her eyes noticing his had not left the godly figure descending in the sky, following his look and catching on to his actions. She quickly joined him in moving away, everyone seeing that the figure was descending directly in front of the two dragons. Right where Leader and May had been standing. Leader turned his body to start back towards the rest of his companions, but felt a hand on his wrist, stopping him.
"Ash, wait-" she started, but the man quickly shook off her grip.
"Now's not the time for this."
"But please-"
"If this were any other situation, I might've humored you at least a moment," he responded quickly, surprising the brunette. He gave a quiet sigh to himself, not raising his head to look at her. "But given this development, I'd say that is the least of my worries right now. And it should be the least of yours as well."
"...You have no idea how wrong you are," she giggled, her lips spreading into a smile. The brunette didn't notice the man's sharp gaze glance towards her for a moment, before turning back to his companions and starting towards them. May flinched as she felt her hand move instinctively towards him to stop him again, but stopped herself, hesitating for a few moments before starting towards her own group.
"Leader, what is happening? Were you planning for this? Why didn't you tell us?" Leader only closed his eyes in response to the icy-blunette's sudden rush of curiosity, turning his head away from the group towards the answers she sought.
"...I can't tell you, I sure wasn't...And I'm not the one who can answer that," he responded, the others giving a curious look as his eyes didn't shift from what he was looking at. Following his gaze, they noticed his eyes were resting on Jack, who stared at the heavenly figure with a grin.
"...It was...Jack...?" Webb asked quietly, giving a puzzled look. Trevor tightened his crossed arms closer to his chest, his eyes narrowing on the man. Gina's eyes narrowed on him as well, but for a different reason, while the remainder of the group save for Leader stared in confusion. Suddenly, Jack stepped forward towards the legendary figures towering ahead of them.
"Wait, what is Jack doing?" Dawn asked quickly, noticing the man's movement. This caught everyone's attention, especially Lexi's, as the man moved towards the two legendary dragons, as well as the heavenly figure who had just touched down on the surface of Spear Pillar. Jack grinned wider, holding his arms out to his sides as he moved closer.
"I welcome you, divine ruler of the heavens, Arceus!" the godly figure's eyes opened, revealing two green orbs which fixated on Jack down in front of them. "I welcome you to the surface of the beautiful world you had once created as a lush paradise for all of creation! I may be just a human in your all-seeing eyes, but I come here with respects to your divine power for a purpose!"
"What is he talking about...?" Max asked nervously, his eyes glancing anxiously towards Gary. "I thought we brought that flute to help us? How did he know we even had it before we came?"
"He didn't..." Cynthia started slowly, her eyes narrowing on the distant man. "...While you were fighting, he wanted to talk. And after I said only that we have a backup plan, he deduced the rest himself. In just a few moments."
"He figured out it was the Azure Flute in only a few moments?" Gary asked incredulously, Cynthia giving a nod.
"Jack always was sharp..." everyone's eyes drifted to the younger blonde of the group, her fists beginning to clench at her sides. "...Though he never mentioned anything about Arceus...Or plans of his own..."
"Human..."nearly everyone on Spear Pillar flinched at the sudden telepathic voice, save for two men and the other legendary pokemon. The god pokemon slowly lowered its head slightly, its eyes remaining fixated on Jack. "...What is your name...?"
"...Jack," the man replied, his grip tightening on the object in his hand, holding it out towards the legendary figure. "Mighty Arceus, I have sought the Azure Flute to summon you here for a great purpose."
"What? He didn't 'sought'- or seek- Oh, whatever, he stole it!" Dawn sighed exhaustingly, giving up on determining the proper English. Jack noticed the heavenly figure's eyes shift towards the Azure Flute, the man slowly taking a step forward. Then another.
"Guys, we can't just let him do this...!" Misty said in a hush, the others sharing her worry about the situation. But who dared make a move against a so-called god?
"Mighty Arceus, I humbly ask you to lend me your power! My vision for this world will cause change so wonderful-"
"Hold it!"
"Wha- Leader?!" Krystal quickly reached out to stop the man, but he was already out of her reach as he quickly started towards Jack. Jack smirked, looking back over his shoulder.
"Wha- Ash?!" May gasped, noticing the man's movements towards Jack and Arceus. "What is he doing?!"
"Do not believe the words of this man!" Arceus' eyes shifted towards Leader, who had stopped beside Jack. "This man is in a disillusioned state, and summoned you without purpose!"
"You think a god would buy that so easily...?" Jack chuckled quietly, lowering his head and glancing towards Leader. "Besides...I'm the one holding the Azure Flute. That doesn't spell so well for you."
"You dare approach me, human?"Arceus bellowed, stomping one of its pointed hooves, easily piercing through the stone ground. Leader closed his eyes, resisting the urge to flinch, taking a deep breath to calm himself. The man straightened up, taking a few steps further than Jack before stopping, facing towards Arceus. Then, to everyone's surprise, he lowered himself to one knee, lowering his head."What is this...?"
"Leader...?" Trevor was unaware that his voice had uttered the word aloud, his eyes focused in disbelief on Leader - the man he respected, and had never once seen take crap from anyone - was now bowing.
"Mighty Arceus, I know you have no reason to believe me, but I speak the truth. I cannot allow you to lend your power to this man," Leader spoke, his left arm pointing back towards Jack, who narrowed his eyes on his former partner.
"What do you think you're doing, Leader...?" Jack asked slowly, moving his foot to step towards him, but his hearing stopped him.
"And why should I allow you to order me so casually, human?"the heavenly figure asked in a terse tone, Leader closing his eyes as he kept his head low.
"Because helping him...will only bring about war."
"What?"
"What?!" May and co. were unable to hold back their shock at their old friend's words, especially Lexi. Jack was her former friend, her companion, and her family. And he was planning war?
"...I see your game now..." Jack muttered quietly, almost in a growl, as he glared at Leader. The man in question didn't raise his head or give any response. But unbeknownst to anyone, hidden, he bit his lip after uttering those words. Those words may have needed to be said...but he hated lying so plainly like that.
"War...What exactly do you speak of?"the figure asked, Leader opening his eyes and taking another breath before beginning to raise his head.
"He speaks to deceive you, holy one!" Leader flinched, his eyes darting back towards Jack, who had started towards Leader. "It is he who is disillusioned! I mean to return this world to its former peace and beauty, and he means to stop that progress!"
"You know damn well-" Leader started as he turned towards Jack, getting to his feet before the two men suddenly flinched as Arceus pierced its foot into the ground again.
"My patience grows weary of you humans and your deceit!" the telepathic voice bellowed, raising the hairs on the back of the necks of everyone standing on Spear Pillar. "If I was summoned here without purpose, you will not favor how I choose to use my power in the coming moments..."
"I apologize, mighty Arceus. But know that I beg you, please do not lend him your power. That is all I ask of you-" Leader started, moving to lower his head again in respect to the holy figure, but stopped as he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"You think I'm just gonna let you stop this? After all this time, all the work we've done to achieve this future, and you want to stop it?" Jack asked, Leader not giving a response. "...We became partners because we wanted that same future...To bring peace to this world...Why the hell aren't you trying to take this chance...?"
"...I already told you why," Jack's eyes narrowed as Leader turned towards him, his eyes expressing his dead-serious attitude towards the situation. But there was something else. Jack felt surprised, and thought he was imagining it, but it was as if there was...a glimmer of sadness in his eyes. Jack exhaled, his eyes turning back towards Arceus. "Please, Jack...You know I can't let you do this yet-"
"And yet you don't have the power to stop me. Not now," Jack replied sharply, turning away from Leader and starting towards Arceus, feeling a hand on his shoulder to stop him. "You know I'm not changing my mind, Leader."
"Maybe so...But I know there are some who can."
"What the hell are you talking about?" Jack snapped, feeling frustrated as he shrugged off Leader's grip and turned to face him. But his eyes were caught by what was behind the man. Jack could now see that a few feet behind Leader, stood the rest of his friends. "...What are you doing...?"
"If Leader thinks you're making a mistake, then something tells me you are, man," Mason chuckled, crossing his arms with a grin. Webb copied his actions.
"I can only assume this is because of what's been bothering you..." Gina said plainly, her eyes narrowing on Jack. The man noticed the faintest of smirks on her face. "...But if Leader has reasons to want to stop you, then you should know where my allegiance lies."
"She's right, you know," Jack's eyes hesitated towards Krystal, who to his surprise, copied his signature move with her arms crossed behind her back, flashing him a grin. "Or if you had told us what you were planning in the first place, then maybe we would've sided with you instead."
"...You...can't..." Jack hesitated, unable to get the words out to his friends.
"We're divided because you've always been an idiot," Jack's eyebrow twitched, giving a quiet sigh as he looked at Trevor, who stood with his arms crossed and his body turned away from him, eyes closed. "Krystal's right. If you had told us your plan, then we would all be in favor of helping right now. But, you had to be the idiot and lie to us, giving us a reason to question our trust in you..."
"...You would have, regardless...You never would have sided with me..." Jack replied slowly, turning his head away in shame.
"You really do underestimate your family, you jerk."
"...What...?" Jack felt a pain in his chest at the voice, part of him not wanting to look back at his friends to the source of the voice. But another part of him wanted to. Slowly turning his head, his eyes rested on the new figure taking their final steps to join the group, the blonde holding her hands behind her back with a beaming smile. "...Lex'...?"
"Leader may have brought us together to change the world, but it's not like that was the only reason. We all know that by now," Lexi's smile remained as she turned towards the rest of her friends, her smile becoming infectious to the group. Surprisingly, even Trevor and Gina. "We've all had our troubles in the past. I say that with confidence because...I had dug myself into a pretty deep hole. But Leader helped me out of it. And now today, I know I can stand beside him proudly, knowing that I'm here because of him. Not only that, but I'm standing here with all of you."
"Lexi..." Krystal started to feel tears forming in the corner of her eye.
"Come on, Jack...You're standing here with us, too. Because in a way, we're all the same, aren't we?" Lexi took a step towards the man, who only stared back in response. "I don't care if you and Leader are fighting right now. I don't even know why. But how many times have we fought and been fine about it the next day?"
"...This is nothing like that..." Jack replied quietly, the blonde smiling again as she held her arms out to him.
"Then I guess I'll have to try harder, huh?" Jack narrowed his eyes curiously at the blonde's words, noticing her next movement was much quicker. In an instant, Jack flinched as he felt the girl's arms around him, squeezing tightly.
"L...Lexi, let go..." he muttered, attempting to wiggle out of her grasp, which only made her tighten her grip. Jack looked towards the rest of his friends, noticing that everyone was smirking at the pair, except for Krystal, who looked more surprised with a hint of disgust. And to the man's chagrin, he noticed that Leader wore the biggest smirk of all. "I'm serious, Lex', let-"
"Nope," she replied calmly, tightening her grip even more. The man winced, feeling no strength to fight back against the girl. But in his mind, he wondered what the cause of it was. Was it that she was right? Was it because it was her? Or was...it because of...
"Okay, Lexi, that should be enough," Jack gave a quiet sigh of relief at Leader's words, noticing the girl's grip beginning to loosen. Leader moved closer to them as the blonde released the man, drawing her arms behind her back flashing an innocent smile, Leader giving an expectant look to Jack.
"What?" he asked, slightly glaring at the man as he tried to hide his embarrassment. To the others' amusement, he failed miserably at doing so.
"You know she's right, Jack," Jack was surprised at the sudden soft tone Leader was using. "Please...Pass on this chance. Just a little longer."
"...Leader..." Jack hesitated, his eyes drifting towards each of his friends, then back towards the man. He gave a quiet sigh. "...You know I can't..."
"...Huh?" Lexi blinked. Her expression slowly turned to confusion, staring at the man in disbelief. He still said no?
"Jack...You are certain about what you're choosing, correct? If you don't adhere to Leader's request-" Jack raised his hand with a weak smile, stopping the silver-haired girl's words.
"Then each of you will be against me, because you all choose Leader over me. I know...That's exactly what I've been wanting this whole time, ever since you guys started asking about the truth," Jack told them, confusing them further. "I've been telling you that I'm the one you should hate, and not Leader. He never wanted to, but I made him lie to you guys, so all the blame goes on me."
"And here we are, siding with Leader...against you..." Trevor said slowly, Jack giving a nod.
"It's about time, too. At least you figured it out before this all came to an end, huh?" he chuckled, the others only looking at him in concern.
"Enough!" everyone on Spear Pillar flinched, their attention drawn back to Arceus, whose foot was embedded in a third hole in the ground. "Your insolence suggest that you wish to make a mockery of me!"
"I assure you, Arceus, that is not the case. I apologize," Jack turned away from the group, surprising them as he started to walk towards the heavenly figure. "Just a minor distraction. Nothing more."
"What?!" Krystal asked in shock. "A distraction? You can't be serious!"
"...Like I said, I can't change my mind on this," Jack turned back to look at Leader. "You can try to stop me, but something tells me even Zekrom would have troubles facing against Arceus."
"...Then let's try telling Arceus the truth first. The real truth," Jack gave the man a confused look as he turned away from him, and didn't face the rest of his friends, but the other group on the mountaintop. He walked until he was halfway between the groups, stopping.
"W...What is it, Ash?" May asked carefully, getting a hopeful feeling as his eyes hovered over everyone in their group. Then it stopped on one figure in particular, but not one they had expected.
"Mesprit," everyone looked in confusion to the small figure, who had taken position on Dawn's head once again, the pokemon looking at Leader in confusion. "If I may, I'd like to ask a favor from you."
"...Sure!" the group was surprised as the small figure floated off of Dawn's head, now hovering slightly above the man's shoulder with a smile.
"Wha- Mesprit?!" Dawn asked incredulously, the small figure giving a wave as if to reassure her, before following the man as he started back towards his own group. "What is Ash doing...?"
"You think one lake guardian can help you now...?" Jack asked, arching an eyebrow as he gave Leader an odd look. Leader turned towards Arceus.
"Mighty Arceus, I understand if you do not believe either of our words. But please, at least listen to Mesprit," Leader said in a respecting tone, lowering his head towards Arceus once more. The heavenly figure eyed him curiously, then looked towards the lake guardian curiously.
"Listen to Mesprit? Leader, what do you mean?" Krystal asked, giving a curious look to the lake guardian. As it quickly clicked in Trevor's mind, he looked towards Leader.
"Arceus will listen to Mesprit because it's a pokemon, not human...And because it's the being of emotions."
"Emotions?" Webb asked, then it clicked in his mind as well.
"Mighty Arceus..." Leader started, raising his head and turning his head towards Jack. He noticed Mesprit hovering slightly above his own shoulder beside his head, glancing to it and giving a brief nod. "Allow Mesprit to tell you what Jack is truly feeling. Why he desires your power."
"What? You can't be-"
"Mesprit..." the small figure nodded at the god's voice, floating towards Jack and extending its two tails to either side of its body, the three gems on its body emitting a faint glow as it closed its eyes. Jack inwardly bit his lip, knowing what Leader was up to. His eyes glanced briefly to Arceus, then back to Leader.
"You know this alone won't be enough to stop it. You cannot chang-"
"Then I'll have Mesprit tell you my intentions. As well as everyone else here," Leader replied in a serious tone, Jack beginning to feel nervous. "I don't care if I sabotage my own image in Arceus' eyes. I will do whatever it takes to prove to Arceus that you can't be trusted, if I have to use the goodness of their hearts in wanting to stop me, the concern from Lexi and the others, the darkness in my own heart, I don't care. If all else fails, I will make sure Arceus trusts no human on this mountain if it means there is a chance to stop you."
"...Think about what you're doing...Our future is right there, right in front of us, so close and you want to make us fail now?" Jack snapped, his temper starting to get the better of him. Leader stared back silently in response, his serious demeanor not changing in the slightest.
"I already told you that future is not my first priority."
"Sadness..." the two men were snapped out of it, their attentions brought back to the lake guardian, who circled around the entire group with a frown. "There is such sorrow here...such pain..."
"Hey, you weren't supposed to go in our heads," Krystal said, crossing her arms with a slight glare to the moving figure. Trevor sighed quietly to himself.
"Emotions come from the heart, genius, not the head," he quipped, the icy-blunette's glare predictively moving to the smart-mouthed man. Leader and Jack ignored the two starting to argue, and instead watched Mesprit float past them and towards Arceus.
"Sorrow, you say...?" Arceus asked, the small figure giving a nod.
"Each of them has suffered, greatly. Especially the one called Jack...and Leader," the small figure turned back to look at the two men in question. "The darkness in their hearts...they bear resentment, and anger towards the world. And their desire for power...for control...it is powered by greed."
"That still won't be enough..." Jack muttered, smirking to himself as he looked towards the heavenly figure.
"...Greed, you say...for power alone...?" the lake guardian nodded.
"They have suffered so much...but one of their greatest pains hurts even me..." Mesprit added, floating back down towards the men. This caught everyone's attention, all eyes on the small figure as it landed gently on Leader's head. "Especially you..."
"What are you talking about...?" Leader asked slowly, unsure as to what the legendary was getting at. Mesprit leaned forward off his head and looked down at him, meeting the man's cold and confused eyes with a frown.
"...A broken heart..."
...
... ...
... ... ...
"...The main concern was Jack's greed," Leader said, ending the few moments of silence as he cleared his throat and moved towards Arceus with the small pokemon on his head. Leader and Jack shared a common thought in questioning the small pokemon's motives.
"E-Even so," Jack cleared his throat as well, following after Leader. The pair also shared the hopes of moving the situation along past what Mesprit said, to each of their own hidden embarrassment. But alas, Mesprit's words had reached and grabbed the attention of everyone on the mountaintop. Especially two girls in particular. "Even if Mesprit tells the truth, you have no reason to trust him over me! I am the one who summoned you here, and I humbly ask that-"
"Are you ordering me on that fact alone?" Jack stopped, swallowing his breath at the god's sharp words. "It may be true that you summoned me here, but that does not mean I am forced to comply with your humanly desires. Many humans have come here in the past, demanding for my power, but not one of them had left to tell the tale."
"...Uh...That doesn't sound good..." Max uttered nervously, the others sharing his concern at Arceus' words.
"D...Divine Arceus, I mean no disrespect in my request. I would never dare try to command you against your will, I merely ask-" Jack started as he lowered his head, but flinched as everyone heard the heavenly figure's foot pierce the ground once again.
"And I would never comply with a human driven by greed," Jack felt the corner of his mouth twitch, biting his lip at the god's words. "Human known as Jack, you are not fit to receive my power. But perhaps there is a way to prevent my descent from having been for naught," everyone's eyes watched curiously as Arceus's eyes fixated on Mesprit still atop Leader's head. "Mesprit...Tell me. What exactly do these humans desire?"
"What...?" Leader began to feel concerned as he glanced up at Mesprit on his head, who only looked back at Arceus nervously. The small figure looked down at Leader, who saw a glimmer of worry in the small pokemon's eyes as it hesitated. "Mesprit, please...Just don't-"
"The truth, my child!" Arceus bellowed, Mesprit flinching slightly as it looked back up towards the heavenly figure. Leader's concern grew more intense as the small psychic-type hesitated in silence.
"...He only wishes for redemption..." Mesprit started, its eyes drifting down towards Leader's own again. "...To recover from the humiliation he once faced...especially from the one he was closest to..."
"...Redemption...?" Krystal asked slowly, her eyes narrowing on the man. "...That's...all he wanted...?"
"...That's right, Arceus. All we've wanted was to be recognized - to be accepted by everyone, even those who have ridiculed us in the past. I beg of you-" Leader started as he lowered his head, but his voice got stuck in his throat at the god's next words.
"And what of the other one?"
"...What...?" Leader slowly looked up back towards the god. "...I...Arceus, that is the intention of both of us. I don't-"
"That is your own intentions, human, but not Jack's. You think I can't tell when you're trying to keep something from me, Mesprit?" Arceus asked in a terse tone, the small pokemon flinching. Leader glanced up, feeling the small figure float off his head. It looked down towards Leader again, but this time expressed a much more sad expression, before floating towards Arceus.
"Mesprit...please..." Leader asked, the small pokemon sensing the sincerity and desperation coming from his heart as it moved away from him.
"The truth, my child!" Arceus bellowed once more, Mesprit clenching its eyes shut as stopped by Arceus' head. The small pokemon slowly opened its eyes again, looking back towards Jack, waiting in silence for a few more moments. Then it lowered its head.
"...Extinction..."
Moments passed in silence. Time seemed almost as if to freeze at that moment, as if Dialga itself had stopped everything in place, but the soft whistle of the breeze in the sky proved that theory wrong. Leader and Jack stared in concern at the small figure who floated in the air by Arceus' head, not having heard anything. And thankful for each of them, without their knowledge of it, since neither of them had heard Mesprit's response to Arceus, then neither had anyone else atop the mountain. Arceus' eyes suddenly moved back to Jack and Leader, then closed.
"...Very well, then..." the two men's concerns were now on the heavenly figure, who remained still with its eyes closed as moments passed by. Leader's hand subconsciously drifted to his belt, his fingers beginning to grip on a specific purple sphere. Then Arceus' eyes snapped open, everyone seeing something they feared to see from the god. Anger.
"...Especially in summoning me, such destructive desires I cannot allow to exist!"
"...Eh...?"
"What...did it just say...?" Krystal could barely manage to utter those few words, everyone's voices caught in their throats. Only moments ago did Arceus speak the phrase, time seeming to freeze on the mountaintop once again, but that was easily proven false as the two dragons behind the heavenly figure each stomped a foot onto the ground. Everyone snapped out of their daze and looked in shock to the dragons, except for Leader and Jack, who remained focused on Arceus.
"This...doesn't look good..." Gary uttered nervously, noticing the deities of time and space avert their focus towards Jack. "Don't tell me...when it says it won't allow it to exist...!"
"You can't be serious," the heavenly figure felt frustrated at the ignorant response, its eyes focusing on Leader. "Everyone has dark desires within them! That's part of being human! What matters is how we act on them, and I can tell you-!"
"That he sought my power to make those desires a reality," Leader bit his tongue, trying to maintain his composure. "If a human lives with such darkness in his heart, nothing good can come of that. And having the ignorance to summon me to help him with realizing such darkness is something I cannot ignore."
"...Guess you have a point..." Leader's eyes moved to Jack in surprise, noticing the calm expression on his face as he put his hands in his pockets, eyes closed. "...It would be pretty stupid to just let me walk away at this point. But, it's not like I'm just gonna stand here and wait for it to happen. If that were my fate, I would've done it a long time ago."
"Jack, don't...!" Leader watched as the man stepped towards Arceus again.
"You would be so ignorant as to try and fight me to spare your life?" the figure asked, Jack stopping again with a smirk.
"I'd rather die in a fight with god than die silently."
"...Then so be it!" everyone's eyes widened in horror as Arceus didn't move, but the two dragons behind it did, coming around the heavenly figure and looking down at the man. "I suppose it does take some sense of courage to face me so boldly...I suppose I will make it quick for you."
"We'll see about that!" Jack smirked again, watching as the gems on the two deities began to glow, Palkia drawing back its arm and Dialga rearing back its head. Jack quickly moved his hand to his belt, unclipping a sphere and tossing it straight up, the beam of light bursting down on the ground in front of him and taking form of a blue dragon with sharp-edged red wings.
"You cannot escape my judgement now, human!"
"Salamence, Flamethrower!"
"Dragonbreath!"
Jack's eyes shifted slightly to a beam of light aim in the air to the side of his own dragon, quickly taking form of a much larger black dragon whose size countered the Sinnoh dragons'. In the next moment, the combination of Flamethrower and Dragonbreath collided with Spacial Rend and Roar of Time, the shockwave sending Max and Dawn off their feet, while the rest of the humans somehow managed to hold their ground. Leader and Jack gritted their teeth, knowing fully well that Salamence wouldn't last long against the deities of time and space, even with Zekrom's help. Leader even questioned how long Zekrom would last against not just the two dragons, but then the matter of Arceus as well...
"Ice Beam!"
The two men were confused to see a powerful beam of ice come from behind them, joining their own attacks against the Sinnoh dragons, managing to overpower them. Dialga and Palkia were surprised to see their signature moves overpowered, bracing themselves as they had no time to avoid the oncoming attacks, exploding on contact. Not only did Jack and Leader turn around to see the source of the attack, but so did everyone else on the mountain. And for those who didn't know about it earlier, were they ever shocked now.
"Good job, Kyurem!" May beamed, having separated from the rest of her group and standing a short distance behind Jack and Leader, her appreciation being dedicated towards the great dragon of ice standing beside her. The moment its eyes met with Zekrom, the black dragon growled in a low tone as it recognized its former opponent from history long since passed.
"What the hell...?" Leader's eyes glanced back to Jack as he muttered the question to himself, breaking into a smirk as he looked back towards May, who flashed him a thumbs-up and a smile.
"Did you think I would just stand by and not help?" she asked, Leader feeling something warm inside of him that he had not felt in a long time.
"You dare defy ME?!"
"Zekrom, back!"
"Salamence, you too!" the two dragons took into the air and burst out towards the sides, narrowly avoiding Dialga and Palkia's Dragon Pulses as they exploded where they had once stood. Jack and Leader managed to hurry away before the attacks had made contact, having made enough distance for safety as they slowed their running pace to a stop by May. The brunette only beamed at Leader, who couldn't resist returning a smile as he looked back towards the trio of creation, Zekrom and Salamence having flown behind them and floating in the air by their trainers, just as Kyurem stood by May. "I'll be honest, today was already surprising enough...but now this? Seriously, what else are people hiding here?"
"We can laugh about that later, because our focus right now is them," Leader said, his eyes fixated on the two deities. He glanced over to May. "Have you and Kyurem fought together before?"
"...Ah...No, this is the first time," she said, feeling slightly embarrassed as she glanced to the dragon. Leader smirked.
"Just maintain confidence. You've always been good at that, so it shouldn't be a problem for you," May smiled at the man's words, her eyes meeting his.
"I learned from the best," Leader almost felt disappointed in himself for getting such a warm feeling in his chest at not only the brunette's words, but also her image. Her eyes displayed such determination, the grin on her lips clearly showing that any doubt before this moment had been wiped away, Leader almost felt...reminiscent. His mind flashed images of the brunette, but much younger, and yet still holding that same level of confidence. He had been gone so long...Changed so much...But how had she managed to stay the same?
"Hey, how about we save the loving moments for later, too?" there it was. Leader gave his usual quiet sigh, his eyes turning back to Jack with no amusement, seeing the man smirking with his arms crossed behind his head. "Oh, I'm sorry, were you in the middle of something?"
"Just focus on Dialga. May, I want you to help Jack," Leader spoke, his eyes settling on the opponent he chose for himself. "I'll take Palkia."
"But what about Arceus?" May asked, feeling concerned. Leader glanced briefly at the heavenly figure.
"...Something tells me he won't interfere unless he's forced to," the man said calmly, exchanging a glance with Jack, each giving a nod.
"Then let's give him a reason to!" and in a moment of perfect synchronicity, the three dragons broke apart, Zekrom heading out towards the right while Salamence and Kyurem flew to the left, the Sinnoh dragons watching them carefully. "Salamence, Flamethrower!"
END
And here we go again. Reading over my plans for the plotline, I've come to realize I have changed the main storyline from what I first started with when I was writing Blast From The Past but hey, hopefully this isn't too bad of a change. All things considered, I think it'll hopefully work out well, some things I'm not too confident on and you'll see why (mostly personal conflictions, but you'll see).
Anyway, hope you enjoy the first chapter to the continuation of the Liberated Champions series, which will be the final installment and conclusion!
