Hello Pearlshippers! I know, I know. I'm a day late. Had a really busy week and had to squeeze in some writing today to finish it off.

A quick thing to note! Brandon isn't the same one from the Battle Frontier, he's someone I made up with the same name!

So, on with the fic!

Enjoy!

The Legacy of Aura

Chapter 10

A Queen's Power; A Bishop's Fall

Sinnoh Region – Spear Pillar

Soreimaru watched as Brandon stared into his son's eyes, transfixed as the truth came crashing down onto reality like a ton of unwanted bricks through a stainless steel window. He'd been masquerading around as Sir Aaron for so long that the noble sometimes wondered if he'd forgotten who he truly was, that he didn't know how to take the mask off.

All of that was moot now, at any rate.

He turned towards the beam of power pulsating into the tear in the heavens and reached towards the Staff of Life, which was corrupting its purity. He needed to get it back to what Ash had begun; to undo the corruption.

As his hand entered the stream it was buffeted back by insane force, threatening to tear his arm from its socket. Fuelling his Aura and focusing it all onto his arm, strengthening it tenfold, he braced himself and tried again. The power there still tried to resist him, pulling at his protruding limb in every which way as he defied its madness, but he made slow progress towards the staff implanted into its centre.

Grunting with effort, his white hair blown about wildly by the torrent, he finally grasped the shaft of the staff and ripped it free, removing its vast power from the matrix.

The beam spasmed madly, having its core shifted yet again into another direction. The hole in reality which it had been opening fluctuated, becoming indistinct and receding at the edges. The dreadful moans of beings beyond the ken of mortals faded slightly, although they still shook the heavens with their ferocity.

This finally galvanized Brandon from his reverie, his eyes tearing from Ash's and widening in horror when he saw what Soreimaru had clutched in his hands. "No!" He roared in crazed desperation. "You can't! You mustn't!"

Launching himself to his feet, he charged headlong towards the noble, eyes and hands glowing with the azure intensity his clan was famed for.

Soreimaru braced himself, whirling the staff around and swinging it into Brandon's incoming punch. Sparks flew and trails of Aura spat out in every direction from the point of impact, as two incredible power sources battled for supremacy. The air around the summit filled with a screeching sound, as though filled with static.

"You've gone too far Brandon!" Soreimaru yelled. "I would've stood by your side through almost anything! But this is too much! I won't let you sacrifice the entire world for the sake of our clan!"

The words only angered the enraged Guardian, his face drawn into a vicious snarl. He roared as he pushed his body to its limits, his own Aura reserves battling furiously against the staff. "Traitor!" He spat as his muscles strained with effort. "I'm going to build a utopia for the Guardians! You can't stop me!"

"Listen to yourself!" Soreimaru got out between clenched teeth, sweat dripping from his brow as he struggled with the intense effort. Handling the staff alone was taxing beyond comprehension. "Listen to what you're saying! This is not why you started this journey! What would your younger self say if he saw you now?!"

"Shut up! Shut up!" Brandon roared, using the anger to fuel his attack. The surge succeeded in pushing Soreimaru back and off-footing the noble. Seizing the initiative and taking full advantage of the situation, he powered on, bringing his now free fist around in a savage arc and slamming it full force into the noble's face.

Soreimaru cried out and dropped to the floor, his jaw shattered from the Aura infused punch, the impact shattering bone and cracking teeth. The shock and pain of the hit caused him to loosen his grip on the staff ever-so-slightly, but it was enough.

Brandon wrested the legendary weapon from the noble's lax grip, grinning in triumph. He charged head first straight into the beam, pouring all his power into the matrix through the staff.

The torrent of power surged stronger than ever before, the tear in reality stabilizing before rapidly expanding, growing out in every direction. The hole became limned in Aura and a terrible eye opened in its abyssal depths.

"Now come! Be reborn!" Brandon roared, emptying the last of his Aura reserves into the ritual.

Something stirred inside the portal. Something vastly ancient and radiating a terrible vengeance. A vast claw reached out from within, grasping the edge of the tear and pulling itself through. A terrible maw filled with too many teeth emerged from within, salivating with nothing but hate.

Everyone, from all across the Sinnoh Region, heard its birth scream. The tear in reality had become so vast that it was visible to everyone within a thousand kilometre radius, and the being that grasped and clawed its way through was larger yet.

Next its head burst through, spitting non-matter in blackened globs through the air. Two eyes, as large as houses, rolled around in their sockets as though testing them out for the first time before dilating back to normal. The iris was seemingly every colour at once, never staying the same and never staying consistent. Both orbs glared out hatred like no other, with a dull violet ringed sclera. The likeness to that of Ash's gaze when he used his Aura was uncanny.

It opened its vast maw, rows upon rows of serrated teeth parting to allow a viscous coated tongue to lash out and taste its surroundings like a horrible, malformed serpent God of a bygone age. Its eyes shot down and focused on the people below it, as well as the ranks upon ranks of World Government agents preparing to assault the mountain.

Then it roared for the first time in the material universe.

The sound was indescribably loud, with enough force to blow back the stormclouds and crumble stone to sand. All around the base camp people fell to the ground in violent shivers, blood leaking from their ears as their eardrums ruptured violently. Internal haemorrhaging was rampant. It was the sound of rage and hate at the most primordial level, the very origins of the emotions given to the airways by a being more ancient than time itself.

Brandon took in the sounds laughing, his face split by the biggest grin he'd worn in years. The roars filled his being with joy, not pain, and he welcomed the God like a willing supplicant who'd finally been blessed with a visit from the divine after years of worship.

Dawn removed her hands from her ears. She still remained sat on the ground, but couldn't tear her gaze from what was happening in the heavens above. Oh Arceus, what the hell is happening now?! She had no idea what was ripping itself from the blackness now hovering above Spear Pillar, but if experience dictated anything to her it was that nothing coming from unreality in this place was good for anything living in the world.

At any rate, a simple glance at the being was enough to make her want to cower in a corner and hug her knees. It was hard to simply hold back the tears. Fear became palpable, as though it replaced the air and forced its way into her body with every hitched breath she was forced to take.

Forcing her eyes away from the scene, she rested them on Ash, who was still laying paralysed on the floor at the base of the beam. His eyes were glimmering slightly, the only sign he still conscious at all.

Ash… Steeling herself, the bluenette pushed herself to her feet, finding resolve and replacing the fear with purpose. Whatever is happening, Ash is the key to stopping it. He always is. It doesn't matter what the situation, he will find and fix it. He's like that. The thought made her smile. It reminded her why she loved him so much and what attracted her to him in the first place.

Yes, she thought as she forced her legs to take one step after another. He's different from everyone else.

She didn't know what it was, but the fact remained true. There was a feeling that made you want to follow him. When in Ash's presence you knew momentous things would happen, things that would define the world for generations to come. He carried the aura of the legendary on his shoulders, something that nothing to do with his actual Aura.

Making ground was hard. The being in the portal was still giving voice to its rage, and all the energy seemed to have been sapped from her body. It was like wading through mud despite the fact that she walked over clear ground. Reality itself seemed to have turned against her and was trying to hamper her movements.

And then it was over. Just like that the cloying feeling that had dragged at her body vanished. She had entered the eye of the storm. Even the roars of the strange monstrosity bursting through the portal vanished.

Seizing on her sudden turn of good fortune, Dawn ran toward Ash, easily closing the rest of the distance between them.

"Ash!" She cried as she reached him, kneeling down beside him and trying to rouse him.

His eyes kept staring forwards, seeing but not seeing. His body locked in rigor mortis from the effects of having his Aura ripped from his body by the Staff of Life. He'd remained like this since seeing Sir Aaron's actual face, but Dawn didn't have time to wonder what the link was between the two.

The bluenette glanced about, trying desperately to calm her thoughts in this desperate situation, trying to decipher what to do and how to solve the problem she faced. I need the staff! Where did it go? She remembered it being ripped from Sir Aaron's grip as his mask was broken, but after that she'd lost sight of it.

Swivelling her head back and forth, desperately trying to locate it, she caught sight of it by the light glinting off its head. There!

The unmasked Sir Aaron held it rapturously in the beam of power surging into the portal. She knew immediately what she'd have to do, and didn't hesitate in the slightest despite the difficulty it proposed.

Standing up, she launched herself into a full sprint towards Sir Aaron's exposed back. Facing the heavens, he wouldn't see her until it was too late. Or so she hoped. She unhooked two Pokeballs from her belt, her coat and hair blowing out behind her, and launched them forwards with a snarl of determination.

Just as she reached his back, both Pokemon materialized beside her. "Typhlosion! Lopunny! Double Mega Punch!" All those years of practicing coordinating really pay off in times like this.

They both roared as their synced attacks came forwards in a glittering arc of blazing physical energy. Dawn prepared to reach for the staff the second their attacks hit. She knew she wouldn't have long to capitalize on his distraction. This man was dangerous, and she wasn't about to underestimate his capabilities even for a second.

The three of them closed, getting within a hair's length of Sir Aaron's back.

Time suddenly turned slow, and Dawn glanced around, watching her Pokemon close in on their target in extremely sluggish movements. Even as sweat dropped from her brow it hung in the air as though suspended by some unseen force. What is happening?

Sir Aaron turned to glance over his shoulder, a wicked smile cracking his disfigured face, his eyes blazing with untold amounts of power. "Thought that I'd fall for that again?" He said, the only person moving in real time.

Dawn was forced to watch on, her movements seemingly too slow to do anything to stop anything he was doing. He grabbed his Pokeball belt and hoisted it up into the beam. The capsules dissolved, along with their contents, and turned into glowing balls of respective energy, glowing all different colours as suspended spheres of light. Then, as one, the energy clusters shot into Sir Aaron's body, and he threw his head back in ecstasy, rejoicing as his body absorbed the additional power.

Her eyes widened in shock. What on earth did he just do to his Pokemon?!

Still grinning he turned to face her fully, his long spiky black hair blowing about wildly behind him. "I'm on the verge of ascension. Feel blessed that you've been allowed to witness this moment, little girl. I only do you the honour because of your relationship to my son, and the fact that you actually managed to push through my barrier, most normal people would have collapsed under the strain." He closed his glowing eyes and breathed deeply, savouring the moment. "I shall become what the Guardians were always meant to be. What Tensuiromo, in his vast wisdom, wanted us to be! I no longer have any need for Pokemon."

Before she could wonder what he meant by that, he suddenly vanished from her sight, appearing instantly behind both Typolosion and Lopunny seemingly at the same time, his movements were so fast that it played tricks upon her mind. By the time that the light had travelled to eyes, he'd already moved. It was incomprehensible to imagine a human being, or any living being for that matter, being able to move at such speed.

Swinging the staff around he smashed both Pokemon in the back, and as if by some unseen signal, time resumed for their stricken forms. They were sent smashing forwards, straight into one another at incredible force. Blood and teeth ruptured from their mouths as they shrieked in agony from the impact, before crumpling to the floor in a heap.

Typlosion! Lopunny! No! How?! How is he doing this?! Dawn thought with sudden panic, still unable to move her body more than a centimetre a minute.

He appeared back in front of her and gave a mocking bow. "Impressive, isn't it? I can use Alakazam's teleport all on my own. Imagine the possibilities of humans using and mastering every ability that Pokemon have access to! I'll finally achieve that potential." His eyes flicked to the side, reacting to something Dawn hadn't even noticed. "Oh, and if you think you're beneath my vision, I'm sorry to disappoint you."

Vanishing once again he reappeared moments later beside the beam of power, where a girl with dull brown hair, wearing the cloak of Shinonome, had been creeping upon the matrix of the ritual. Look out! Dawn wanted to cry out, but her mouth refused to react.

Sir Aaron opened his mouth and a searing torrent of flames burst forth. The Flamethrower attack blazed brilliantly in the dull light, catching the girl in its full torrent. The flames washed over the stone slabs paving the apex of Spear Pillar, turning their cream surface a scorched black. Before the attack had even died down, Sir Aaron chuckled. "You've quicker reactions than I thought, Leaf."

Knelt down in a protective stance, Leaf held her hands out, pumping her Aura into a barrier that had shielded her from the intense flames. Her eyes were narrowed at the man before her. "Uncle Brandon," she spat. "I was wondering when you'd show your true colours."

Dawn's mind swam at those words. Uncle? They're related? Could then Ash possibly also be…?

Brandon seemed amused, raising one eyebrow slightly. "So you knew who I was despite the effects of my mask?"

"Not for certain, but I had my suspicions." Leaf answered, carefully getting to her feet and staying in a guarded stance. "I knew what happened to you years ago, before you suddenly disappeared. I wasn't stupid enough to believe the reports of your death on the news. That was highly unlikely given your abilities. When you saved me from the government's agents after they tried to purge the Guardians I was almost sure that it had to be you." She shook her head sadly, "I was happy to follow you. You gave us hope again. But after a while I began to see the insanity festering beneath. You started losing it, becoming more and more extreme. When Ash joined us it was a sigh of relief. I won't let you ruin all the good Shinonome can achieve!"

"That's a nice speech, but it will do little to help you against me now." He sighed. "It's a real shame. I really wanted you by my side. I thought at least those with the Ketchum name would understand my vision."

"Vision?" She laughed. "What vision? Some dystopian dictatorship where the Guardians reign supreme over all? That's not a vision, that's a power fantasy you psychopath! This group was founded so that the Guardians could be of some help to the world, to aid it and watch over its peoples. That's the Shinonome I'm a part of. Not the one that destroys towns to frame the government!"

Now Brandon was angry, his brows furrowed in a deep V. "And you think the World Government is any better?! They're as corrupt as can be! And the League?!" He spat on the floor. "Please! They're nothing more than a puppet organization at the beck and call of the World Leaders!"

"I'm not trying to defend them!" Leaf returned venomously. "I don't claim that they're saints, pursuing justice all over the world! We wouldn't need to reform the Guardians if that were the case. But what you're trying to accomplish right now is worse than that! You've lost your way, Brandon! I won't help you any longer!"

Brandon rolled his shoulders and shrugged, cocking a vicious smile and tilting his head to the side. "Well, you're no longer in a position to stop me."

He vanished again, appearing behind her with his staff raised over his head. He brought down the weapon hard in an overhead swing. It came down in a savage arc, only to hit a shield of sparking azure energy over Leaf's head. He blinked in surprise, clearly not expecting such defence.

Leaf glanced over her shoulder at him, boasting a smirk of her own. "Wondering why your staff hasn't burst my bubble yet? Guess you didn't realize it can't break Aura powers used by the Ketchum bloodline?"

His brows furrowed again, betraying his emotions. He hadn't known that, and not knowing something was something he wasn't prepared for. "No matter," he said, withdrawing the weapon. Holding up his free hand it burst into azure power, before being engulfed in fire, a violet glow, an icy blue and the colour of every other element simultaneously. They all merged into one, becoming a veritable rainbow of power.

Leaf saw it and her eyes widened, she tried to leap back to dodge the incoming blow, but by now Brandon was too powerful. He caught up to her easily, slamming his fist into her stomach in a powerful underarm blow. The elemental attack sliced through her shield as though it was nothing but air, and the power behind it caused her to double over as her stomach was voided of its contents by his merciless fist.

She was sent careening backwards, slamming into the rubble of one of the disintegrated pillars, hitting it hard. Blood shot from her mouth but the worst of the damage was avoid by her Aura, which she'd coated her back with just before impact.

Free of opposition, Brandon moved back towards the beam of power, where Dawn was still stuck in slow motion. He moved past Soreimaru's downed form, taking a second to stand over him and gloat in his triumph. When he got back to the ritual site, he turned towards the bluenette and smiled at her. "About time to bring about my new world, wouldn't you agree?"

He turned his back on her, forcing her to watch, as he stepped back inside the beam, and poured more power into the tear in reality.

Realm of the Gods

Paul awoke with a start, his eyes bursting open as though jolting back into consciousness from a bad dream. He got to his feet and looked around, holding his head. The scenery was totally unfamiliar, and he couldn't place anything to anything. And, he realized with surprise, that he wasn't alone.

Two familiar faces were still laid unconscious around him, laid on the floor in haphazard positions. From the look of them they'd been there for some time.

He walked over to Hilda and grabbed hold of her shoulders, shaking her steadily to try and rouse her from her slumber. She groaned and opened her eyes, looking up at him blearily. "Paul…? Where are we?"

He shook his head. "I have no idea."

He offered her a hand and pulled her to her feet, although she still looked out of it and wobbled slightly.

She put a hand to her head and pushed it against her eye, trying to stem to pain that was pounding inside her skull. "Ouch. The last thing I remember was the house being torn apart… and falling through the air… everything after that is a pure blank."

Paul grunted. "So you don't remember much more than me then. I was hoping you could shed some light on this… place?" He said that looking at the insane arrangement of stars in the skies above, despite the fact that the suns shone brightly and the heavens were painted a rich blue. "What the hell even is this? Seven suns?"

Hilda glanced around her, looking at the idyllic landscape. "It's beautiful… wherever we are."

"How come it's just us three?"

"Huh?" Hilda asked, confused and looking across at him.

"The whole town was destroyed in whatever it was that attacked us. I saw the other houses disintegrate around us as we were carried through the air. Yet I only see the three of us here." Paul mused, squinting against the brightness to try and see anyone else further down the valley.

Walking slightly away from where they had laid, Hilda crouched down to examine the grass, sifting through it with her fingers.

Paul approached her, curious. "Find something?"

She nodded. "I think so. Look." She said pointing to the depressions left in the pristine fields with slight gaps between them, leading off down deeper into the valley. "Looks an awful lot like footsteps, don't you think?"

He tilted his head, examining it before nodding. "Nice find. From the indentures it looks like there were two people walking side by side."

"Maybe we're not alone here after all." Hilda mused, standing back up. She noticed Barry still laying sound asleep and drooling over the grass and sighed. "I better go wake him up."

"Do you have to? He's much easier to deal with like this." Paul sighed.

She took it as a joke until she saw his face was deadly serious. "Unfortunately not," she said, walking over to his slumbering form. She put her hands on her hips and nudged him with her foot. "Wake up you idiot! Or we're leaving you behind!"

Her efforts did little to stir him. Instead he simply rolled over onto his side and started snoring happily.

Hilda's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "I said wake up you big dummy!" She roared and kicked him hard in the arse.

Sure enough, he bolted awake, jumping to his feet with all the energy that he was renowned for. He whirled on the brunette and narrowed his eyes in anger. "Hey! What gives?! Do you want me to fine you?! Huh?!"

"Shut up you moron! Look where we are!"

"Huh?" He asked, finally realizing that they were no longer in their shared home. "This isn't Pallet Town. Where the hell are we?"

"No idea," Paul said, shrugging his shoulders as he joined them. "Hilda found some tracks and we are gonna follow them, see who laid them and where they lead. Hopefully it will shed some light on this place and how we ended up there."

"Paul!" Barry cried out, running over and hugging the purple-haired trainer. "I'm so glad you're okay! When the house started falling apart I feared the worst!"

"Get off me dumbass!" Paul cried out, flailing at the blonde desperately clinging to him.

Hilda cleared her throat loudly. "Ah-hem, if you two lovebirds are quite finished?"

Paul managed to pry Barry from him and nodded. "Let's find some answers."

The three of them gathered themselves and followed the mysterious footprints down into the valley.

The trail ended at the foot of a vast mountain. The valley continued onward after that for what seemed like eternity, constantly sloping downwards and always flanked on either side by perfectly shaped mountains.

"The trail ends here. Looks like we're climbing." Hilda said examining the slope. "It looks immaculate… look how smooth the stone is."

Paul shrugged. "Smooth or not, whoever it was climbed up here, so we will too. We'll just have to be careful not to fall."

"I'll be the first to the top!" Barry exclaimed, setting off in a sprint. He didn't get far up before face planting hard, slipping on the surface and sliding all the way back down.

Bursting out in laughter, Paul hauled him to his feet. "You really are an idiot you know."

"Ugh, come on. We don't have time for this idiocy." Hilda sighed, climbing up steadily, carefully placing each foot and using her hands for extra stability.

The two men looked at one another and shrugged before following her lead. The three of them made steady progress towards the summit.

Paul was the first to reach the top, pulling himself up and looking out. "What... the... fuck..." He said in utter disbelief.

Hilda followed him up and when she saw what he was seeing, she was rooted to the spot, her eyes as wide as dinner plates.

When Barry got there he was more than a little curious. "What has got you guys so…?" He said, his question cut off as he finally got over the final ledge and stared off into the abyss. "Woah…"

A vast nothingness met their gaze, filled with spiralling helix of pure golden energy. The many shining spirals reached from the darkness into the strange sky, except the sky here didn't mirror the one behind them.

It was like a twisted reflection, the stars transformed into hateful eyes that glared at those who dared to look upon them; the clouds red with anger and raining blood down into the fathomless void below. They'd only just laid eyes on it, but it was clear that something terrible had occurred here recently to upset the balance and corrupt the whole system.

Even as they watched one of the golden helix began turning black, its vitality ravaged by the growing nightmare.

"What is happening here…?" Paul asked no one, utterly mesmerized by what he was seeing.

Without warning, two golden lights shot through the endless abyss below and righted themselves beside them, landing on top of the mountain in an effortless grace.

"So it's already begun…" the first one said as he alighted beside them. He had long white hair and carried a strange staff, his eyes were completely blue and held an internal light, shining out between the rings that covered their surface. "We're almost out of time."

The second person was a woman who looked vaguely familiar. She had long white hair that flowed out behind her and a gaze filled with the power of the ages. She wore long flowing robes similar to the man's and her eyes matched his own. A smaller staff with a half-moon for its head rested in her deft hands. And it was only when she turned to face them that it all clicked into place.

"Wait… you're…?" Paul stammered.

Delia smiled. "It's nice to see you again Paul. It's been a long time."

"Not for them it hasn't." The man said with a dry chuckle. "Time moves differently in the realm of the makers. While we have been down there for two hundred earth years, it has been less than a day for everyone else, even here."

"I see." She said with a wry smile.

"Wait… you're Ash's mom?" Both Hilda and Barry said.

She lowered her head in acknowledgement. "I am, although I must confess that feels like another lifetime. Everything seems different now. I have a new perspective on the situation."

All three of the group stared at her. She seemed a world apart from the woman they once knew. There was an aura about her now. She had a sage presence to her, as though the wisdom and knowledge stored inside her mind could eclipse that of every library in the world. It was hard to resist the temptation to kneel.

"And you're here, just like you were always meant to be." The man said, smiling at the three. "You have a purpose to fulfil that will help shape the course of your world. A purpose that no one else can do." He laughed then, as though privy to a joke that no one else was. "I'm sure Brandon wasn't aware that he was being manipulated when he saved you."

"Brandon?" Barry asked, confused.

"Forgive me for not answering your questions, for I'm sure you have plenty more," the man continued. "But now we must prepare. Something terrible is happening to your world and we must act fast to put a stop to it."

"But what can we possibly do? We're honestly not that special." Hilda said, still looking very confused.

"You're more special than you know, trust me." The man said looking out over the abyss before turning back to face them. "Now listen carefully to what I have to say…"

Sinnoh Region – World Government Base Camp

The skies were still filled with raging thunderclouds and the shrieks from the emerging God were enough to stifle all but the loudest of sounds.

Still the League and government agents assembled. They gathered at the base of Mt. Coronet and prepared to assault it, Pokeballs primed and strapped to their belts. A mix of fear and anticipation filled their eyes.

Dante stood at the forefront of the army atop a raised stand, so all assembled could see him, his coat billowing out behind him in the savage gale and making him look like some war hero of old, strong and stoic; utterly unstoppable.

"Do no fear the beast that even now roars its foul hatred across our skies!" He bellowed, his massive chest pounding out each syllable to override the terrible cries from the top of the mountain. "It holds no power over us! It can't scare us away! Because we are Legion! We march together under one banner! The World Government controls this world, and no dead God will take it from us!"

His proclamation was met with cheers and shouts, as the crowd was whipped into a battle frenzy.

"Hold you heads' high men, for this battle, this day, will go down in history! You've all been chosen for your skill! Your determination! Your valour and your honour as the government's best agents!" He pointed behind him where the sky was rent asunder by the portal. "That is our target! Those of the foul terrorist group Shinonome would see this world destroyed, and will try and block our path! But we won't let them! We'll smash their defences and put an end to their evil once and for all!"

More cheers and roars erupted from the throats of those gathered, including all assembled Champions and Elite Four, this time much louder and much more fervent.

"For honour! For glory! For victory! For the World Government!" Dante bellowed with all his might, dropping him arm and leaping down from his perch, charging up the slope.

A savage war cry erupted from the throats of thousands as they followed their leader into battle.

To Be Continued…

If I have a busy week the release dates may fluctuate by a day or so, so I ask you all to keep that in mind. But I will be trying to keep to the week schedule as much as possible!

Hope you enjoyed!

Until next time, Peace Out!