The Great War

Both could be found walking silently towards the most urbanized section of Johto, densely inhabited by humans. Zoroark waited for a bit, before asking:

-I imagine that now would be a good time to start the first stage of the Revolution project. I suppose we're here to acquire the first piece?

Without changing his facial expression at all, Delta answered:

-In fact, Zoroark. We're here seeking for one of the three primary elements of this war, an army.

-And we have come to look for the one who will enable us to find our recruiters?

-Correct. To win a hopeless war, it's necessary an impossible army. An army that won't fear, won't quiver, won't back off and won't rebel. The key we have come to acquire will open the path for the next two, who then will open the path to the last three.

After a while more walking undisturbedly, they entered the frontiers of a great city. Known for being of an urban nature, nobody bothered questioning themselves upon seeing an Alakazam and a Zoroark. Especially considering that Zoroark was using illusions to disguise as a middle-aged human, giving the impression that it was just a retired trainer spending time with his Pokémon. Both already located inside the dense residential zone, they ceased their walking and stopped in front of a penitentiary. Despite Zoroark standing without a precise idea of why they were there specifically, Delta was already foreseeing the events unfolding. He commanded calmly:

-Zoroark, I need you to attack this penitentiary.

This got Zoroark's attention. Delta continued:

-It's not necessary to wound any humans, unless you deem absolutely necessary. Unleash the chaos, attract all possible attention away from the maximum-security cells. There is someone I need to talk to.

Comprehending his intentions, Zoroark nodded briefly before undoing his disguise and calmly walking inside the penitentiary. Scratching his claws along the floor in order to announce his presence, he noticed when five police officers stared at him, confused. One of then, a woman, started reaching for the radio attached to her waist, when Zoroark put both hands above his head, thinking happily:

"Night Daze."

His arms were briefly coated in a menacing scarlet aura, right before he slammed both of them in the ground, releasing a powerful scarlet shock wave of Dark-type energy. Caught off guard, four of the officers where struck, while the woman from before dived behind a piece of furniture which barely endured the hit. Instantly she stared screaming on the radio for reinforcements. Two of the four officers were knocked out by the shock wave, the remaining two recomposed themselves with difficulty, already sending out two black and orange mutts. The beats immediately started building fire deep down their throats, getting ready to expel them while Zoroark gathered more Dark-type energy for a Dark Pulse.

Vicious, or The Iron-Masked Marauder, as he called himself prior to his confinement, was sleeping peacefully in his maximum-security cell. Waking up startled to a loud bang and a sudden quaking in the room's structure, he instantly rolled out of the bed and went to spy through the gap armored with tempered glass. Right afterwards, he backed off with a startled yelp as a bright pink glowing blade of energy shot through the gap he was looking through, before starting to trace a triangular trajectory through the door, apparently ignoring all the reinforced steel and releasing a shower of sparkles all the while. The Marauder swallowed hard when the large triangular piece of reinforced steel was swiftly lifted away from the rest of the door and thrown against one of the concrete walls, effectively shattering it in a rain of dust and pebbles. Emerging from the dust cloud, Delta revealed himself to the Marauder. Looking slightly downwards to shoot a glance at the fallen figure, he extended his hands with the palm turned upward and gestured with his fingers. As if hit by a powerful unseen force, the Marauder was instantly shoved upwards and properly rotated so he was back on his feet. Due to the shock however, he still staggered and almost fell, but managed some equilibrium. Once he was done, Delta wasted no time and extended his mind to the Marauder's, creating a one way telepathic link, speaking in English so he could understand:

-The Illustrious Iron-Masked Marauder. I suppose the subtlety of my entrance may have dazed you, but I need you to focus.

Without offering time for an answer, he plainly grabbed Vicious by the collar of his orange prisoner clothing and dragged him to the center of the hallway. Holding him there, he asked seriously:

-I don't have much time, neither do you. I will offer you this chance only once: I will get you out of this place, will give you the opportunity of obtaining what you always wanted and I will give you freedom, if you offer me your loyalty for the time being. You have ten seconds to answer me.

Letting go of him, Delta waited while observing the Marauder stagger out of shock and fall on his rear. While still dazed by the suddenness and weirdness of everything happening within the last few minutes, Vicious still managed a rational line of thoughts, which he used to consider the Alakazam's proposal. He barely had any contact with any Alakazam, let alone telepathically, he had no parameters to know whether he could trust him or not. After all, he was a Pokémon! But he heard himself running out of time, in the form of the noise generated by two panting officers shooting out of the stairs with pokeballs in hand. One of them pointed them out for the other, and both released two more mutts, which the Marauder easily identified as an Arcanine. Building fire in their throats simultaneously, they expelled twin stream of concentrated and certainly deadly flames towards the Psychic-type. The approximation of the roaring fire was more than enough for the marauder to make a quick decision. He screamed in panic:

-Alright! My loyalty, my help, whatever you want but get me out of here!

Letting lose a smile, Delta said:

-As you wish.

Extending his right hand forwards with the palm facing the Flamethrowers, he utilized his signature Psychic, stopping both stream's forward momentum and making them coil around an invisible core, creating a huge spinning ball of unstable flames. Reaching out slightly and tapping Vicious in the shoulder, both flashed out of the prison in a Teleport, leaving behind the fireball to destabilize completely and explode. In the following day, the newspapers would surely contain reports of how the explosion could be heard from blocks away.

Reappearing in a clearing, located in a plateau a few kilometers from the penitentiary from where could be seen the rising trail of black smoke, Delta levitated smoothly until his feet touched the floor again. While the Marauder certainly didn't have the reflexes to reappear back on his feet, Delta did the favor of stopping his fall, and rotate him once more so he was standing safely. As the blue glow faded away from his form, Delta waited patiently for good five minutes while Vicious finished processing all the events from the last minutes, finally understanding what exactly he had agreed to.

Taking even less time than Delta had expected, an Bidoof quickly approached without a hint of intimidation. Standing beside them and undoing his illusion, and almost giving the poor Marauder a heart attack in the process, Zoroark revealed his true form and directed a brief nod towards the Alakazam, trading a few glances of understanding with him. Redirecting his attention towards the newly arrived collaborator, Delta noticed through his calm gaze and folded arms that he had already come to terms with the situation. He then proceeded to speak:

-I believe the tension of our previous situation might have distorted your judgment, perhaps concealing your true will. To be fair with you, I will redo the proposition: I offer you freedom from all your sins and the chance to realize your dream in exchange for two things, your help and your loyalty for a determined period, that starts now and I will announce when it ends. Do you accept? If you don't, I will let you here to wander, to hide from the human police and do whatever you want of your life.

Surprised that he actually had the chance to change his choice, now with a way better condition in case he refused, Vicious decided to spend time to properly think about the proposition. The cells of maximum secured that he was used to live in where plainly uncomfortable, and the fight against the boredom was incredibly unbalanced. Plus, this stranger had offered him the chance to realize his dream. Considering his dream involved a mythical Pokémon, also known as the Voice of the Forest, he was hardly taking this seriously. But if he can play his cards right, perhaps he can make use of these mysterious Pokémon. After all, that vulpine was capable of creating illusions and taking on an entire penitentiary with only his own power, and this Alakazam... well, he had owned Psychic-types before, and the only one who he has ever witnessed to surpass the one before him was Celebi herself! It was definitely worth a shot. Letting loose a grin capable of splitting one's face in a half, he answered:

-I accept your proposition.

But, after thinking for a few more seconds, he had to ask:

-But, I wonder: how a just freed outlaw can be of help for you?

Keeping his rigid expression, Delta answered him:

-The Dark Balls. I heard and read some very detailed reports about them, and If I'm not mistaken, you're their developer, right? Plus, as your quadrupedal mechanized transport suggests, you're skilled with almost any kind of machinery.

Unable to restrain his curiosity, he asked:

-But how can a Dark Ball be of utility for a Pokémon?

Letting his expression darken slightly, Delta answered:

-Something big, very big is about to start, something bigger than any human could ever understand. But, to give birth to this enormous event, is necessary help from someone, someone legendary. The only problem is that she would never offer this help willingly. There is where your Dark Balls enter.

Starting to comprehend his paper in this enormous scheme, Vicious smiled, asking:

-And who would be this 'legendary', may I ask?

Letting out a smile of his own, Delta extended again his hand, turning his palm upward and, on cue, Zoroark created an illusory Pokémon right above it. Taken aback by the shock and surprise, the Marauder stumbled and nearly fell on his rear again, both eyes wide open. He was still staring at a tridimensional, static and extremely realist model of no one but Celebi, The Voice of the Forest.

-C-Celebi? – The Marauder stuttered out.

-Yes, Celebi. I imagined that, in case you refused my earlier proposal, revealing Celebi's paper as victim of this kidnapping would pick up your interest. I researched you, Vicious. I know you have searched Celebi for most of your life. I know what you did and lost trying to obtain her. When I offered you to realize your dream, that's what I meant: If you agree to my terms, I guarantee you that Celebi will be yours. Not ours, yours.

Recovering from the initial shock, Vicious was immediately possessed of a devilish pleasure. Approaching again, he asked:

-When do we start?