Chapter 10: When Friends Embrace
Giratina, Articuno, Regice and Darkrai sat around a table. They were in the library of Veilstone City. They were all in human form to stay inconspicuous. They came here when Darkrai told them about Team Galactic. Articuno also wanted some tea
"Their center of operations is to at the northern end of Veilstone; I believe this is where they are keeping the Lake Guardians." He said when Giratina described to him the events that happened before they fought.
"What is the goal of this 'Team Galactic'?" Asked Articuno as he was sipping his drink.
"I do not know too much about them, but from what I've heard, their goal is to create a new world; one that has no violence or conflict."
"How do they intend to reach that goal?" Asked Giratina.
"They want to take control of Palkia and Dialga and reshape our universe." Answered Articuno grimly.
"Dialga and Palkia are much too strong for them to handle." Said Giratina defensively.
"They are using a method that somehow involves the Lake Guardians. I can detect strong psychic energies radiating from the building. Faint, but still detectable. They have attempted to hide their crime." Put in Darkrai.
"We should have a plan before we storm their base." Said Articuno.
"Agreed." Said Giratina.
Darkrai pondered for several moments.
"Okay, here's the plan: Regice and Articuno bash in through the front door while Giratina sneaks in and does what he came to do. I'll patrol the perimeter of the building to look for anything suspicious. But be careful. If they've found a way to enslave the guardians of Time and Space themselves, then all of us are subject to it. Stay alert." He finally said.
"Sounds good to me. I haven't had a good fight in years." Said Articuno cheerfully.
30 minutes later
"Good luck guys!" Called Darkrai.
"Just make sure we don't get killed or there's literally going to be hell to pay!" Answered Giratina.
Giratina gave Articuno and Regice a look. They were both stationed on opposite sides of the entrance.
"3…2…" Whispered Articuno.
"Thank you for helping me, guys." Remarked Giratina.
"…1."
"Ice Beam!" Yelled out Articuno, freezing the door.
"HAMMER ARM!" Roared Regice.
The doors shattered into a thousand pieces. Which wasn't surprising, considering Regice's strength.
"Go!" Called out Articuno.
Giratina switched to ghost form. He sneaked past the grunts running towards the entrance. He could hear screams from behind. And explosions.
I do not envy them.
The stairway was too small to fit him, so he just flew upwards toward the next level, leaving a hole in the ceiling. Besides, stairs were too cramped for his liking.
"What's happening?" Said a voice incredulously from below.
"Something blew a hole in the roof!"
"They've infiltrated the building!"
"Quick! Alert every member! Tell them to bring out their pokémon and help! We're getting torn up at the entrance!"
He smashed through the third floor. He noticed that he was not alone.
There were four grunts guarding that floor. They were about to attack him when a blast of dark energy hit all four of them. They collapsed. Knowing Darkrai was watching his back comforted him.
This is what I've come to do.
He tore ceiling apart, leaving a gaping hole. He rammed through several rooms. Then he saw them.
Arceus, what have they done to them?
Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf were in a chamber. A bright blue light came from the chamber. Energies of the same colour were being sucked away from the chamber.
Those wretched humans are taking their Aura to keep them Lake Guardians in stasis.
Without hesitation, he charged an Aura Sphere and launched at the tank. The room was lit by a flash, and then returned to normal.
All three of them floated before him. They slowly opened their eyes, except for Uxie. They all faced him curiously.
"Thank you." They whispered in unison.
"I'm just glad your safe."
"Giratina, you must stop him from reaching Spear Pillar!" Said Mesprit urgently
"Why is he going there?"
"To enslave Palkia and Dialga." She answered
"How is he going to accomplish that?"
"The Red Chain." Stated Uxie.
"What is that?"
"Now, is not the time, to ask; if you care for your friends, go!" Azelf shouted.
Without another word, he dashed off. "Follow me!" He yelled at Articuno and Regice. Darkrai followed closely.
He arrived at the base of Mt. Coronet to find the man and his grunts climbing the mountain. They were having a fair amount of trouble. Around the man's shoulder was a blood red chain that appeared to be made out of gems. Giratina figured that there would be a copy of it hidden somewhere; he couldn't possibly control both Palkia and Dialga with just one.
He knew he had to destroy it to prevent a catastrophe.
You shall pay, miserable human. Do not dare tamper with the rules of life again.
He roared, switched to his ghost form, and flew.
All the Team Galactic members turned to look for the source of the sound, but all they saw was a group of pokémon flying towards them. Not to worry, they thought. "Probably just a group of migrating pokémon." Said one of them.
Then they realized what was heading for them.
These were no ordinary pokémon. They were legendaries. Specifically Articuno, Regice and Darkrai.
"What are they doing here?" Screamed someone.
"They know what we're trying to do!" Another said hopelessly.
"Take out your flying pokémon and try to slow them down! I'll go ahead!" Commanded the leader.
Darkrai and Regice hurled blasts of energy at anything that moved. The leader summoned a Charizard and rode on it as it flew upwards.
Many pokémon were knocked unconscious before they could fight. The rest unsuccessfully tried to hit the flying legendaries. Behind Darkrai and Regice, Articuno was summoning Hail. In a few moments, the entire mountainside was affected by a raging hailstorm. Darkrai had to shield himself to avoid getting injured by it.
Articuno then charged up a Blizzard. Soon, a howling blizzard was attacking every pokémon in its vicinity. That, coupled with the Hail, totaled most of the pokémon. The ones left were battered and tired. Darkrai prepared to use Dark Void with a smile.
He was going to enjoy giving them nightmares.
Giratina chased the Charizard. It was difficult, as his size prevented him from entering small areas. Mount Coronet had plenty to offer. His ghost form could pass through walls and objects, but the experience was extremely uncomfortable and confusing. He would rather not risk his life for the sake of going through walls.
The Charizard veered around the mountain. Giratina followed suit. Giratina was still in ghost form, so there was no way the man could see him, even with a vision aid.
They gained altitude. It got cold enough that frost appeared on Giratina's wings. They flew into the clouds. It blurred Giratina's vision; clouds were much denser than he thought. He couldn't see the where the Charizard was. He narrowed his eyes in frustration, but then one of Teacher's lessons came back to him.
Every living being, whether it's an Oran Tree or a god like Arceus herself, has a unique Aura. It surrounds them. It keeps them alive. Giratina, if you ever have to find anyone you can't see, find them through their Aura. No pokémon can disguise his or her Aura. The only possible way is to take someone else's Aura, which is fatal for the user. Taking someone's Aura without consent is considered a crime against the laws of nature. Doing so will grant the person eternal pain, even after death. Guilt will consume the user. When you take someone's Aura, you cannot control the amount; it always drains the victim completely, which is death. You can only control the amount if the user decides to give his or her Aura to you. As I said, you can see things through their Aura. You must stop looking at things like you normally do. Sense them. Know you can find them. And when you do, nothing can blind you. Nothing. Aura is eternal. As long as Aura exists, so will your vision.
Giratina chewed on the words thoughtfully. You must stop looking at things like you normally do. Giratina still wondered what Teacher's cryptic statement meant.
He broke through the clouds, only to find that the Charizard was still below him. He had long since reverted from Ghost Form. Suddenly, a flash erupted from the clouds below, severely blinding Giratina and filling his head with sounds. Giratina lost control for a moment and plummeted.
He could not see how fast he was falling, but he could feel it. Fast enough to make a two-kilometre hole. He desperately tried to float and succeeded in stopping his fall. He felt blind. Tears welled up in his eyes as he realized he would not be able to stop the man in his current state.
Sense them.
Teacher's words rang in his head. He looked up. He searched for the Charizard's Aura. He found the man's Aura. Suddenly, he could see a whole new world. Strange blue lights. Even purple. Many of these formed the shapes of various pokémon down below. Some simply floated around. He was surprised to find a huge a source of Aura above him. It was above both the mountain and Spear Pillar. His attention turned back to the man.
I've found you.
He locked onto both the man and his Charizard, in case they decided to split up to confuse him. The man landed on the peak. In his hands were two blood red chains. They were glowing slightly in Giratina's vision. He let loose a Dragon Pulse that landed right in front of the man. He turned and saw Giratina. He screamed. Giratina wasn't surprised.
Most people reacted like that when they saw a giant snake creature flying at you. And most people knew snakes couldn't fly.
"Charizard! Fire Blitz!" The Charizard covered itself in fire and charged towards Giratina. Giratina dodged the attack with Shadow Force. He appeared behind the Charizard and slashed at it with Dragon Claw.
The Charizard roared with rage and turned to swipe at Giratina, only to be met with an Aura Sphere to the face. It collapsed.
"Giratina, the keeper of the afterlife. I could not have expected less. I never knew you would come after me. But since you are here, we should make the best of it!" The man said.
He let out a Metagross and a Magnezone. They both let out blasts of energy at Giratina. He dodged them easily. Suddenly, several pokémon attack him from behind. The other members had arrived.
For several moments, Giratina covered in a mass of pokémon, all biting and attacking him. He was about to be overwhelmed when an achingly familiar voice called out.
"Hyper Beam!"
The beam blasted away some of the pokémon. It gave Giratina just enough space to get out of the mass of pokémon.
He fired a ball of energy and shattered it into glass. It took down another bunch of pokémon. Out of the corner of his eye Giratina saw one of the shards fly into one of the chains. It cracked. He used Shadow Force to rip it in half. The man looked at the remains of it in disbelief. His face was a contorted mask of rage.
Suddenly something bound Giratina. His body seemed to stop listening to him. He fell to the ground with a thud, unable to do anything. What he saw next made him feel an emotion he normally never had: fear.
The man was going to use the Red Chain on him.
"If I can't have Palkia or Dialga, I guess you'll do. You'll find life as my servant very satisfying." He gave an evil grin and tossed the chain at Giratina. Giratina could not do anything; he was still bound.
Giratina closed his eyes and waited for his mind to be suppressed. Somewhere, another familiar voice roared in rage.
"ROAR OF TIME!"
A blast of energy exploded right in front of Giratina, destroying the chain and sending both the man and Giratina flying. The man fell right off the mountain screaming. Giratina flew through the air, spinning in random directions. Giratina felt the ropes bounding him disappear.
He fell back to the ground but kept rolling. He tried desperately to grab onto a rock or ledge with his wings, but unfortunately could not get slow his tumble. He was actually glad he couldn't see how high he was; it would be a painful drop.
"NO!" The voice roared. "I CAN'T LET HIM DIE!" Another voice murmured in agreement.
Giratina could sense pain and grief in the being's voice.
Regice? Articuno? Darkrai? No, it can't be them. I could sense their Aura way below. Who are they? What is their intent? I can't believe anyone would go out of their way like that to save me.
A rush of air blew into his face. He felt one of his wings touching the leg of someone. The fur on it felt soft. He grabbed onto it.
His savior grunted at the weight but did not drop him. He felt himself slowly being pulled up. When he felt himself lying on solid ground again, he let go of his rescuer's leg. He smelled something sweet. He felt something warm pressing against his head.
"Is he okay?" The voice asked.
"I'm not sure." Said Giratina's rescuer. Giratina was sure the voice was feminine.
"Giri, it's me! Dialga!" The voice said nervously.
"…Dialga?"
"Don't you remember me?"
"Y-yes. I missed you."
"Me too. I felt crushed when I learned of your disappearance. I thought you were dead."
She ran up to him and pulled him into a tight hug. He hugged her back. After a few seconds she stopped the embrace. She stepped back and looked at him.
"You don't look very well."
"I got hit by a Roar of Time and almost fell off a mountain. Of course I don't look well."
She laughed. "Of course. You've become much bigger though. Your about 3 feet taller than me." She then noticed that his eyes were still closed. "Can you see?"
"A flash blinded me."
"Your eyesight will come back in time. Try opening them just a little."
Giratina tried to see. He found himself looking into a pair of warm green eyes. She blinked.
"A-Arceus?"
She shook her head. All of Giratina's memories of playing with Arceus' daughter came back to him.
"Thank you for saving me."
She leaned forward, so close that their heads were touching.
"Your welcome. Its good to have you back." She whispered softly so that Dialga couldn't hear. She then turned around and walked away gracefully.
A deep red blush came to Giratina's cheeks. He stared absentmindedly.
She seems to have grown up while we have been apart.
A nudge in his side brought him back to reality. "We should go back to the Hall of Origin. Everyone's been wondering about what happened to you." Said Dialga.
A flight of stairs had appeared on Spear Pillar. They appeared to lead into the sky.
Dialga gently lead Giratina towards the stairs. He thought as they walked.
I've missed this place. I wonder what comes next. I've had enough adventure for one year.
It's good to be with my friends again.
Authors Note: The man who tried to use the Red Chain was NOT Cyrus. He is someone else. The story is currently a while before the anime/manga. About one and a half thousand years. Ever notice that there's no mention of modern things (eg. cell phones, cameras, cars, etc)?
I am sorry for any confusion that I may have caused you. Keep reading!
GL HF GG,
~Vingle