Many thanks to Jakayrta for helping with this chapter
Kyogre's eyes fluttered open. He quickly scanned the trench walls he had slipped into for his slumber. The walls were battered from where he had rammed his head against them, deep gashes from where he had flailed his fins. The walls were filled with tunnels, bored from the high-pressure torrents of water he had fired uncontrollably. Shards of ice randomly blossomed and adorned the walls of his trench due to his frenzy.
Kyogre recalled waking up to a searing pain that seemed to resonate from within his own head. His body moved with its own will and purpose, trying to do anything that would distract him from the pain, even if it meant inflicting some other pain to do it. Before he went unconscious he recalled a voice telling him, "I've given you the power to take back our world from the humans…kill any who stand against you."
Kyogre felt that the voice was familiar, but couldn't quite recall who it belonged to. He knew for certain that it belonged to one of the legendaries, but he hadn't seen them in so long that he could hardly recall what their voices sounded like, let alone guess what their motives were for waking him from his slumber, sending that message, and causing him to go on an underwater rampage.
Kyogre began to ascend to the surface, realizing that he should've been thankful that his tantrum had occurred within the trench and not near the surface; otherwise he might've created tsunamis that would've reached the coast. The act would be a one-way ticket to another brawl with Groudon.
A sensation that coursed through Kyogre's veins suddenly made him blind, deaf, and dumb to the world. An overwhelming sense of power could be felt in every fiber of his being; unsure if it was even possible, he felt more comfortable in his own skin than he ever had before. The power he felt was not something that he felt had been bestowed upon him, but more like something that had always been there, like a weight had been lifted off him.
It was then that Kyogre realized the flurry of movement around him. Water Pokémon of every variety swam in one direction. His eye rested on a group of Squirtles, one of them flinched at the sight of Kyogre's giant eye coming up beside them. The group huddled together, focusing their attention on one of their own. Cornered by his peers, the Squirtle in question relented and swam towards Kyogre.
"C-can I help you?" The Squirtle asked nervously.
"Where is everyone going?" Kyogre asked.
"You went through that painful experience didn't you? Everyone did. We thought that Manaphy might have also been hurt by it as some of our friends were killed in the midst of the frenzy," the Squirtle explained. Kyogre remained silent for a few seconds, a curt nod dismissing the Squirtle.
"Killed? What is the meaning of this? All these Pokémon went through a rampage like me?"
Kyogre looked around, seeing that all the water Pokémon around him moved with a single mind. Part of Kyogre couldn't help but feel pangs of jealousy towards Manaphy who was receiving the attention of the entire ocean for something that he had also suffered. He swam silently, all the water Pokémon moving out of his way as he joined in the flow towards Manaphy.
Kyogre quickly noticed that he was close to the Temple of the Sea when the ocean began to grow more and more congested with Pokémon. Had he not been a legendary, getting through the throng of water Pokémon would have been difficult, but at the sight of him the ocean of Pokémon parted before him. Kyogre wondered whether they did this for him out of fear or respect.
Floating before him was the Temple of the Sea, encased within a transparent bubble as it traveled beneath the ocean. The lowermost section of the temple was smooth like a cone and adorned with windows across its surface. Stone structures seemed to orbit around the temple like many moons.
The upper half of the temple was like a fountain, composed of several layers with the next being smaller than its successor. A length of stone extended from the top of the temple, spiraling around to the center. Rows of columns supported the structure near the top; the area around the middle was like the outskirts of a city with its own port.
As Kyogre drew closer to the temple, he noticed the expressions of the Pokémon around him were all filled with fear. Kyogre followed the direction of their eyes, all of them pointed upwards, towards the surface.
Some Pokémon weren't fast enough to move out of his way as he ascended through the waters, the Pokémon simply rolling off him as he breached the surface. There was so many Pokémon around him that one could not tell that they were even on the ocean; the only hint coming from the way the crowd of Pokémon moved in response to the waves.
Kyogre gazed up to find Ho-oh, lazily flapping his wings, hovering above the throng and Manaphy floating before him. Next to him was a Pokémon that he had never seen before with light purple skin, a dark lavender tail, and a burning cerulean aura steaming off his body, as well as Manaphy's.
"Why doesn't someone do something?" Kyogre overheard a Horsea say amidst the masses.
"Because, the legendary said that if we try attacking him, Manaphy will get hurt" an Octillery replied to the Horsea.
Ho-oh's eyes fell on Kyogre, a curt smile forming on his beak as he nodded at the Pokémon with the burning blue aura. Before Kyogre could even speak, his body suddenly became outlined with the same blue aura that the mystery Pokémon and Manaphy had around their bodies. Kyogre found that it was impossible to even move, as his body was lifted higher and higher into the air, the multicolored ocean of Pokemon gasped in awe and horror as they watched Kyogre fly.
Kyogre tried to remain calm, taking deep breaths as he continued to lift up into the air, he was not accustomed to being airborne for so long. He tried convincing himself with closed eyes that the skies were just another ocean and that he would be fine, no matter how high they dropped him they would be merely returning him back to his home. Eventually his rising stopped, he was now level with Ho-oh, Manaphy, and the mysterious Pokemon that he felt was responsible for lifting them.
"Kyogre, how are you?" Ho-oh asked with the utmost attempt at sincerity in his voice. Kyogre immediately recognized Ho-oh's voice as the one that had spoken into his head before he went on a rampage and blacked out.
"What is the meaning of this Ho-oh?!" Kyogre demanded; relieved that he could at least move some parts of his body. He briefly looked at Manaphy. "Release Manaphy." Kyogre ordered. "Now!"
"All in due time my friend. Worry not, I have no intention of bringing harm to Manaphy, I shall release him soon," Ho-oh said, attempting to console the legendary of the sea. Kyogre stared closely at Manaphy, noticing that his eyes were closed and his shoulders were limp and slumped.
"What have done to him!?" Kyogre roared.
"Do not worry, he is not hurt. If anything, I have made it safer for him as he is now. I merely had Hypnosis used on him; he's asleep and won't be waking up for a while" Ho-oh explained.
"He doesn't know Hypnosis! Then how could he have-" Kyogre's eyes fell on the light purple Pokemon who had said nothing throughout the entire conversation.
"What is that?" Kyogre inquired.
"Oh him…worry not, he is not important. Consider him as a new an addition to my dogs."
"What do you want with Manaphy?"
"Manaphy? I don't care about Manaphy; I want to talk to you! You are far more important" Ho-oh corrected.
"Then what do I owe this wonderful meeting?" Kyogre retorted.
"Is that any way to treat someone before they give you a gift?"
"What gift could you possibly give me?"
"Why the very thing that you deserve."
"That being?"
"Allow me to explain myself before I answer that question"
Ho-oh and Kyogre exchanged gazes for a few silent seconds before Kyogre relented and closed his eyes, sighing, "Speak."
"Wonderful. As you probably noticed, you suffered a painful headache that caused you to go on a rampage wherever you were at that moment. You and every single Pokémon experienced that same sensation at the same time. What I have done is that I have removed your dampener," Ho-oh explained, going into further detail about what dampeners were and what their removal meant. Ho-oh went on to explain why he had removed every Pokémon 's dampener, doing his best not to rant on too long about what he had planned for humanity.
"What do you gain out of this?" Kyogre asked once Ho-oh had paused long enough to allow him to speak.
"Gain? This isn't about what I gain; this is about what our entire species gains and what nature itself gains from what I am doing. Would you not consider what I am doing the ultimate selfless act? What you have given the world is the greatest gift that it has ever received, a gift that makes up nearly 70% of our planet. These humans overfish the denizens of your domain; they poison and litter in your ocean. They are the only species on this planet that produces and invents new forms of garbage. With your dampener removed, you are the most important Pokémon on the planet now. I have given you the ability to defeat Groudon, once and for all. He would think thrice before deciding to battle you now with you dampener removed, nevermore would you ever suffer a defeat at his claws" Ho-oh paused once more, letting Kyogre soak in the idea of his newfound power.
Kyogre liked the idea of being able to defeat Groudon, but he had no strong vendettas against the humans, at least not enough to want to wipe all of humanity.
"Can't you see how magnificent this world could be without humans, and with you as my partner it can all be possible. None of the blood would have to be on your fins, all I ask is that you merely join forces with me and let the Pokémon of your domain help me. The ability to win against Groudon is not the gift that I intend to give you. Do you want to know how I found you?"
Do I even have a choice? Kyogre thought.
"When the dampeners were removed I knew that I wanted to talk to you and one other legendary of the sea, but how do I find you in a place as vast as the entire ocean?"
Ho-oh gave a nod towards the psychic Pokémon that suspended Manaphy and Kyogre. The Pokémon 's eyes glowed and a barrier appeared below Ho-oh, the rainbow legendary using it as a platform to perch himself on.
"I noticed that all the water Pokémon were heading in one direction to see one of the three important legendaries of the sea. Oddly enough, this legendary is smaller and weaker compared to the other two. Do you not find it strange, that while you created the ocean, Manaphy can command all of its inhabitants, including you? And why? Because if Manaphy dies your ocean will suffer. He is a weak link, and although he is my Pokémon brother, I find it insulting to categorize him with you. Were it not for you, there would be nothing for Manaphy to rule over. You should have complete control over anyone who swims in the ocean. It is your right as its maker. Which is why I give you this gift," Ho-oh said, his head motioning from Manaphy to Kyogre. Manaphy's unconscious form floated towards Kyogre.
Kyogre stared at Manaphy, then back at Ho-oh in confusion.
"What do you expect me to do?" Kyogre asked.
"What I expect you to do would not be possible if I had not removed your dampeners. Using an ice move, you can easily freeze Manaphy in such a way that he is not damaged by it. Humans refer to this as cryogenics. Manaphy would stay alive and you would be able to keep your ocean seeing as Manaphy's life and the ocean's existence are tied to one another. With Manaphy out of the picture, but alive, you would be free to rule the ocean as you wished. I promised you that no harm will come to Manaphy in doing this, I will even have him guarded by my newest dog" Ho-oh motioning towards the psychic mystery Pokémon that continued to keep them aloft.
Suddenly, something burst out from the ocean and sent any unfortunate Pokémon that were in that area of water flying. Before the figure collided with the rainbow legendary, it became outlined with the same psychic aura that Manaphy and Kyogre had around themselves. Standing before Ho-oh was the Guardian of the Seas: Lugia.
"Ah, the second legendary that I was hoping to find" Ho-oh said nonchalantly.
"Ho-oh!" Lugia bellowed. "Please tell me you have not done what I think you have done!"
Lugia visibly strained against his psychic bonds, unable to move a single millimeter out of place. He was only allowed the movements of breathing, blinking, speaking, and moving his eyes.
"Why yes. I have started the liberation of our species. I have decided that I will no longer continue that pointless charade you had me do for several years. If anything I surmise that you were merely attempting to stall me and buy time…for what I'm not sure," Ho-oh said dismissively.
"Release all of us this instant!" Lugia barked.
"You are in no position to be giving me orders, but as it so happens, I was planning to release Manaphy anyway. As for his fate; that is not for me to decide" Ho-oh clarified. Kyogre's body began to descend back towards the ocean with the utmost care as well as Manaphy. Lugia remained level with Ho-oh and the other Pokémon, watching as the ocean embraced the two water legendaries once more.
"Who is this?" Lugia asked, referring to the Pokémon that was currently restraining him, the psychic blue outlines disappearing from Kyogre and Manaphy.
"Do you like him? His name is Mewtwo. Humans created him in their attempt to modify Mew. I've decided to recruit him with my final creation orb, because unlike you, I do not waste precious gifts from Arceus", Ho-oh spat at Lugia, distaste evident in his voice.
"CREATING MY FAMILY WAS NOT A WASTE!" Lugia hollered with all his might, now livid with rage.
Lugia stared into the eyes of Mewtwo, finding them lacking the luster and vibrancy of life.
"You…you robbed him of his free will! YOU MONSTER!"
"You speak as if this creature has a soul. He was made by human hands, in a tube, not a womb. I found it fitting that a human creation be the very thing that ends up destroying them. I can debate as to whether he has a soul or not all day with you, but I have more pressing matters to attend to at the moment," Ho-oh replied. He then turned towards Mewtwo.
"Mewtwo, give Kyogre and Manaphy some room," Ho-oh asked Mewtwo.
The ocean of water Pokémon below Kyogre and Manaphy was abruptly pushed back, leaving an open circle of water for the two to float in.
"The rest lies with you Kyogre. I have given you the key, all that needs to be done now is to turn it and undo the lock. I would go as far as to say that it is your birthright to rule this ocean," Ho-oh reminded.
"Do not lis-" Lugia was abruptly cut off as his mouth was sealed shut by Mewtwo's psychic aura.
"I can understand if you're having doubts, but I must know one thing. When you had your dampener removed, did you come here searching for Manaphy of your own accord or was it because of responsibility. Did anyone in your ocean inquire as to whether or not you were well after having your dampener removed? I did at the beginning of our conversation. I can't help but notice that whenever you fought Groudon, there were no water Pokémon there to aid you, yet when Manaphy gets a headache, every Pokémon in the seven seas comes to check up on him." Ho-oh drove the final nails in.
There was no sound except for the gentle crashing of waves. Kyogre was torn in what he should do. He looked at Manaphy and heard Ho-oh's words echo through his mind. Over and over again.
In a flash, Manaphy was suspended within a pyramid of ice bobbing along the surface of the sea. Ho-oh's eyes began to glow with glee; Lugia closed his eyes in despair; his grunts of disapproval had fallen on deaf ears.
"Now my King of the Sea, I leave you to attend to your subjects and inform them of the new rules under your leadership" Ho-oh began to say his goodbyes. The surrounding Pokémon floated stiffly in the waters.
"Oh, don't try to free Manaphy now that you've frozen him. Seeing as his body is mostly water, trying to shatter the ice or thaw it in the improper way may have severe effects on his body that may be irreparable," Ho-oh warned.
"Don't worry, I have no intention of doing anything like that to our frozen friend" Kyogre chuckled, his focus now on the legions of Pokémon dumbstruck by what happened, unsure of what to do next in the face of the new ruler of the ocean.
Once they were several miles away from Kyogre's position, Ho-oh motioned for Mewtwo to stop. Below them was ocean, not like the miles of Pokemon back at the temple of the sea. Ho-oh turned towards the frozen Lugia, scowling at him with every iota of intense malice he possessed.
"What do you intend to do to me?" Lugia asked solemnly, "He could've killed Manaphy, Kyogre, and me at any moment."
"Due to our past history together, I am willing to show you mercy this one time. Make no mistake. If we are to meet again, I will be forced to kill you. What you do now is of no concern to me. Do not interfere with my goals and I shall not attack you. Go and hide, run to the ends of the earth, or find a manner of death that you believe will be most befitting of you" Ho-oh replied.
The glowing blue aura that outlined Lugia's body dimmed out of existence. Lugia rapidly flapped his wings to recover from the sudden descent; he had been freed without warning.
"What do you plan on doing now?" Lugia stared at Ho-oh with grim curiosity.
Ho-oh smiled and went on to explain his motives as he had done earlier with Mewtwo. It required all of Lugia's self-control to not attack Ho-oh on the spot, to end the rainbow legendary's life and relieve him of his madness.
"I know the look you're giving me as it was the same one that he gave me when I told him of my intentions," Ho- oh replied. He motioned towards Mewtwo, his visage expressionless.
"You've essentially killed him. Without any will of his own he is merely a shell," Lugia growled. He made no effort to disguise the repulsion he felt.
"I did not rob him of his free will; I merely used the orb of creation to turn him into my puppet. He is fully aware of what is going on at this very moment. He can perfectly hear our conversation and see us. His mind is still intact, but his body is no longer his own, it belongs to me and will follow any order I give it. Would you like me to demonstrate?" Ho-oh offered.
Mewtwo, as if rehearsed, made a psychic blade extend from his arm and swung the blade to his own throat, stopping only millimeters from the flesh.
"I can have him kill himself on a whim, his mind by now has many thoughts that he would like to voice, but is unable to. I can only imagine how frustrating it must be to go through that. He cannot even shed a tear unless I tell his body to do so," Ho-oh gleefully chortled.
"Why not kill him then? Why prolong his suffering? I have never known you to take pleasure in the suffering of Pokémon, regardless of their origin. Has he wronged you so severely that he deserves this?" Lugia asked, trying to keep his voice calm.
"Aside from attempting to kill me when I told him my plan, he has not wronged me in any other way. I had considered eliminating him once he was on the brink of death at my feet, seeing as he is a perversion of nature, the pinnacle of humanity's insults towards our race. Yet, I stayed my claws and realized that it would be such a waste of resources to simply kill him. How poetic would it be for humanity's creation to be the very thing that wipes them off the face of the earth? He has already proved his usefulness in capturing Manaphy, putting him to sleep, and restraining you. He can only be free if he dies or I willingly release him, both of which I highly doubt will happen."
"You've become so distorted since that incident, that I cannot even recognize you as the same Pokémon I once knew. Madness has twisted you," Lugia declared. He shook his head sadly.
"You wound me Lugia. I have not been driven mad. My goal is noble. I simply mean to have nature reign, as it should. That is why I chose to let Manaphy live. His death would be detrimental to my plan for nature to thrive once more."
"You incarcerate him for being a possible blight in your utopia, a utopia stained with blood! You knew he would never agree to your plans!" Lugia countered.
"That no longer matters as what's done is done. You have failed and I have succeeded in getting closer to my goal. The difference between us is that I can command obedience where you cannot. I heard about that scuffle you had with your own three birds. If they truly respected you, they would have stopped instantly at your command like I know my dogs would have. Your birds may be powerful, but they are too impulsive. They allow themselves to be ruled by their emotions, rather than your commands. One would think that being bestowed that gift of power you gave them, they would be more grateful to you and obedient," Ho-oh replied scathingly.
"I do not intend to have everything around me completely obedient and under my control like you do. I simply let them live out their lives in the way that they see fit so that they may be happy," Lugia explained.
"And that my old friend is why you fail." Ho-oh shook his head and sighed.
"Do not refer to me as your friend!" Lugia barked.
"A small part of me had hoped that you would see my reasoning a join me, especially after what humans had done to you and your…family. A human attempted to collect you and your birds as if they were property. I saw that humanity allowed this transgression to go unchecked. Humans attempted to take away your child and use it for their own wicked ends. Humans found your brother and broke him down to the point where he had no emotions, and for what? So that they could utilize him as a weapon, not as a creature or an ally," Ho-oh squawked.
Lugia did not know what to say, what Ho-oh had said was true with regards to the actions that humans had taken. His eyes had become fixated on the waves that traversed the ocean's surface.
"Do not think for an instant that my judgments are skewed. I quickly gave up on looking for humans with pure hearts and decided to watch what they did to our world. You support humans, as I imagine several legendaries would for one reason which I am about to refute. As I watched the legendaries interact with humans, I noticed a pattern amongst almost all of them. They were all aided by the efforts of humans, but if humans had not been there in the first place, there would be no need to aid them at all. A human hunter chased and nearly killed Celebi, Latias lost her brother because a human stole what they were both guarding and nearly destroyed their home and Mew nearly lost his life because humans tampered with the Tree of Beginning. Should I continue? Shall I tell you the horrors I saw in the Orre region? Shall I speak of the past wars humans have had, using us as weapons?"
Lugia and Ho-oh remained silent, the only the sounds being the sound of their flapping wings and the salty wind.
"Ho-oh, what you say holds some truth to it, and in some aspects of it…I agree…," Lugia relented. Ho-oh's eyes sparkled with the hope that he would have another legendary join his cause.
"But I feel that you are going on about it the wrong way. There must be another way to deal with this problem. Can there be no spoken compromise between our species and theirs?" Lugia added, lifting his head up, his eyes no longer downcast. All that Lugia saw was the glimmer of hope in Ho-oh's eyes fade away and turn cold once more.
"There may be other alternatives, but this is the only right way to deal with this problem. Be gone Lugia, I shall not have you waste any more of my time. I have a lot to do and I no longer have anything to say to you," Ho-oh murmured disappointedly, turning his back on Lugia, Mewtwo doing the same.
"Remember my warning" was all that Ho-oh said before he burst off into the horizon, leaving an evanescent rainbow behind him and a burning blue aura beside him.
Lugia remained in the exact same spot for several minutes. He rationalized that he did that because of the shock, or that he needed the time to collect himself, or that he wanted to put as much distance between him and Ho-oh as possible before he started to move. Regardless of the reason, he stayed there for a good amount of time in silence.
Lugia was torn as he stared at the sea, feeling that it was now tainted by Kyogre's decision to join Ho-oh. Yet he needed to find his family, and to do this he would have to search the ocean currents for them.
He plunged into the opaque depths of the sea, hoping that the family he had created, like he had done with the legendary birds, was safe.
I will explain the orbs of creation in the next chapter.