A/N: I must apologize in advance for the short length of this chapter, but you'll like it. Lots of action, but a lot of story as well. Enjoy the chapter and please review! Once again, I don't own Pokémon, though one day I will save up enough money in my piggy bank and eventually buy Nintendo. Then I would, but I don't now. Anyway, enough of me. Get reading already!
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Chapter 11 – Inner Conflict
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Time was at a complete standstill. Everything was covered in darkness, not a single light no matter where he looked. Artomis could hardly breathe let alone move, but his motivation to find out who that Lucario and Blaziken truly were forced him to try anything he could. But what the hell am I going to do? I don't even know if I'm still alive.
"Oh, you are alive. Hanging by a thread, but alive." Xatu formed in front of Artomis' sight, startling him a bit. "Now you have one of two options, first it that you die here, leaving your friends to fight this battle with this new enemy."
Heh, yeah, that sounds like a good plan. Let's just destroy the world while we're at it.
"Then I figure you'll accept the second option. In a few moments, you are going to have a very painful experience. This is going to help you recover once you re-enter the physical plane, so it is needed if you want to heal properly."
Letting out a chuckle, Art couldn't help but think of the prophecy he had read. Yeah, I'm ready for anything you throw at me. Let's just do it.
"I'm not the Pokemon doing the deed. I'm just here to tell you to accept the power that will be coming to you. There will be changes in everything from here, I suggest you all flee as soon as possible. This is a different battle than the one with Darkrai. This Trent seems to have even taken control of the Nightmare Demon, but what he plans to do with that darkness is unknown."
So once I'm up, start running. Got it. Anything else I need to know before I enter hell again?
Xatu showed a smile, "Yeah, start off with a walk when you first get back rather than a run. I shall be seeing you soon."
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"Trinity, Raichu! I need you two to cover me, I've got an idea." Karia was knelt down next to Artomis' body and lifted him in her arms. "I'll need about two minutes."
Watching as Zaphiel dodged a Flamethrower, Trinity glared at the Lucario. "You can't be serious?! What if it doesn't work the same as in our world?"
"What choice do we have?! If he dies, there's no hope in our world! Just trust me on this! If this is him, I'll be fine."
After staring into each others eyes a moment, Trinity soon gave a nod and turned towards their foes. "We'll hold them off. You just be sure you come back alive."
"You too. We've got a lot to do when this is all over." Watching as the Blaziken gave a final nod, Karia jumped back at the same time her friend dashed forward, countering a Shadow Claw from Darkrai to the now awake Eevee. Little by little the team was regaining strength, she just needed to make the final touches. Once she was far out of combat, Karia grasped the blade the was still in the back of the critical Riolu and swiftly yanked the blade out of his flesh. She knelt down and gently placed Art on the ground, laying the blade close to his arm. She then positioned her paws towards his body and closed her eyes. "If I don't survive this... Just remember I've always cared..." With a single tear rolling down her cheek, the Lucario began to pulse her aura, channeling it into the target ahead of her. Feeling a surge of Aura leave her body, she soon began to feel weak and let out a small whine. "Master... Please forgive... Ah!"
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"Do it now! Fire Blast!"
"Thunder!"
Both Trinity and Zaphiel released their attacks at the same time, the attacks crossing each other, which caught both Trent and Darkrai unaware. Both attacks landed hard and caused the large Pokemon to stumble. Quickly after Zaphiel's attack, he had to jump back to avoid a Fury Cutter attack from Ruby, who had snuck up from the side. "I knew there was something up with you the morning you tried to attack me!"
"Heh, what good is knowing that when you're about to get your ass beat? Come on little boy! You're no match for us."
"Zaphiel! Behind you!" The Raichu jumped up as soon as he heard Levinity's scream and watched as just below the tip of his tail a fireball shot past and blew into the wall.
Once he landed on the ground, Zaph turned towards the distant Ruby, cheeks sparking furiously. "You're mine, I don't care who tries to kill me, and you'll be dead be before anyone can throw an attack my way!" Jumping up, the Raichu released a Thunder attack at the traitor. Come on, Artomis. We need ya out here...
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Ah! Xatu! I... I think it's happening!
"Stay calm, it is going to hurt, but don't reject the energy flowing through you."
A wave of pain began to flood through Artomis' being, at points getting so intense that he would start to white-out. It was defiantly worse than any of his normal head-aches, and he could hear Xatu continuing to speak words of encouragement, but the fire burning inside him overpowered the words. Just as he thought he was going to die from the torture, his mind went blank.
When he opened his eyes, he noticed he was standing in what seemed to be a blue cloud. There seemed to be no definitive shape, but then again, Art didn't know if he was even still alive.
"I could tell by your eyes... They're the same as the human you."
From his side, he turned and noticed the female Lucario from the battle before. "Are you saying you know me? I wish I could say the same to you, but I apparently had some kind of accident."
"Yeah, I heard everything from Trinity. I'm sorry to hear that you have no memory of your human life..." She sounded disappointed; it made Art a bit sad to know that he was missing something between the two of them. "Us being in this spot only proves one thing, that you are indeed the same Artomis that was my Master on our own world."
"How can you tell just by being here? What's so special about it?"
Karia looked down at her feet. "It's hard to explain, but with everything that's been going on, I'm sure you wouldn't be surprised. With how bad your injuries were, I had to use a forbidden ability known to only the Lucario race. Currently you are inside of my Aura, helping to rebuild your life force."
Closing his eyes again, Art tried to fight off the burning sensation that wad forming again, but soon stopped himself, remembering Xatu's words. "So you're using your Aura to heal me? Why would that be a forbidden art if it is a positive move?"
Looking back up, Karia's gaze locked onto Artomis. "Normally, the Lucario that uses an Aura Recovery... Shortly dies after the process."
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"Kaltora! Grab Levinity and get out of here!" Trinity threw a Thunder Punch at the Charizard in front of her, landing the blow hard in his side. Trent stumbled over a bit, but then knocked her back with a Wing Attack. She swiftly jumped to her feet and dodged the Shadow Ball launched from Darkrai. Once she took in her surroundings, she saw Zaphiel ahead of her and dash towards him. "Kid, this is your time! Use Thunder Wave at the peak!"
Dodging an attack from Ruby, Zaphiel only caught half of what Trinity said, but before he could ask, she kicked him up high into the air. Forcing his eyes to open, Zaphiel fought the pain to find that he was above both Darkrai and Charizard. "That's it!" Feeling his cheeks flare, he unleashed the powerful electric current down towards his foes. As the bolt landed, Zaphiel smiled, but as he began to decline, that smile quickly faded. "Oh crap! This is gonna-"
As the Raichu neared impact, Levinity jumped and caught Zaphiel with a Baton Pass and switched places, causing herself to land hard on the floor while he watched from a few feet away. "...Ugh, you alright Zaphiel?"
"I'm great, but why the hell did you do that?! You were already injured!"
"Because... Well, I don't know what to call it, really. You've still got a fight to win, I won't fight Kaltora anymore and I'll go back." She looked liked she had tears in her eyes, but before he could tell, Ruby appeared to his side and he was forced to move. The Sableye gave chase to Zaph again, but Levinity wanted to get one more word in before she fled, "You better come back alive... I want to see you again."
Kaltora ran up to his friend, not sure if he was more surprised that she took a hit for another Pokemon or that she was still awake after that fall. "You know, if you like the guy, you should just tell him. Don't get beat up all out of shape for it."
Levinity couldn't help but let out a small giggle, "You know me all too well, but that's not my style. He'll come around eventually." Taking one final look at the battlefield, the Eevee watched as Trent was standing unscathed from Zaphiel's attack, but Darkrai seemed to be effected. This is it, I hope they can do it.
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"Wait, so you could die because of this?! So why did you do it?!"
"...You were on the verge of death yourself, there was no other option. I would gladly give my life so that way you could live on. Back in our world, you did this very same thing to me once and cast Aura Recovery."
Artomis looked at the Lucario and gave an odd glance, "Didn't you say it was Lucario-specific? How could a human use it?"
"You were different. There was something done to you that-- Ah!" Karia took a step back as her body pulsed white a few times. "We don't have much time, but before we go, I want you to see something."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Close your eyes and clear your mind. I will do the rest."
Doing as he was instructed, almost as soon as he closed his eyes, a vision started to come into sight. There were people all around in a circle, mainly children and teenagers, but also a bunch of different Pokemon. Looking harder, he noticed that there also were several cracked eggs on the floor. His vision only looked around a little bit before focusing on a glowing form hidden in the back. It was a dim gold glow, and suddenly, he noticed he was moving towards it. There were cheers to the Riolu asking where it was going or doing, but it continued to ignore their calls.
He reached a wall and it seemed he may have even bumped into it, but noticed there was hole in the wall just off to his left. The vision followed his thoughts and stepped into the crevasse, looking up at the surprised boy staring down. He had long, brown hair and vibrant blue eyes, dressed in a red jacket and jeans while sitting crouched on the floor.
"Hey there, I'm Artomis! Did anyone see you come in here?" The form Art currently possessed gave a nod, and the human him let out a sigh. "Nothing is ever easy. Guess I knew they would figure it out. Guess everyone's got to face the music at some point. What's your name, anyway?"
After a moment, Art watched as the human looked closer at him, putting a hand to his chin. "I think I understand, you're Karia, right?" Art felt himself nod. "Nice name. Well, Karia, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you just got me in a bunch of trouble."
Artomis soon felt himself get drawn out of the vision and found himself sitting in darkness. Once again, several thoughts were running through his head, but there was one that stuck out most. He remembered the human's face he stared at, wondering if that was truly who he was. Studying the image in his mind, he looked at the eyes to see the reflection coming from there. He noticed that it was staring down at a Riolu, which must have been the very same Karia that had helped him. Karia... I'm sorry...
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Falling backwards, the Lucario's back slammed against the wall as she was trying to finish the memory, but something forced her back. After she opened her eyes, she noticed that the Riolu's body was covered in a black ball of light. She was really worried on what this could mean. "Come on, don't quit on me now! With all we've been through, you better not die on me!"
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"You don't know who you're dealing with! I will kill you all!" Jumping into the air, the massive Charizard landed just before Zaphiel and swung his tail, knocking the electric Pokemon to the side. Trent then turned to Trinity and began to chuckle as he took a single step closer. "You're all alone now! Where are your friends when you need them most, birdie?"
Leaping back, Trinity avoided the Slash attack from the large fire type and countered with a Fire Blast to the large foe's head. It wasn't long before he shook the intense heat off and was back to his pursuit along with the Sableye. She looked over and was a little surprised to see Darkrai motionless, but soon turned back to the situation at hand. Damn it all! Even with support, this guy is just too tough! Watching as the dragon moved closer, Trinity was surprised when she watched a blue ball fly hard into the stomach of Trent. As he landed on his back, the Blaziken turned to where the attack originated. "Karia! Perfect timing! How's-"
"Grab both the Raichu and Kadabra and get out of here. I can handle this by myself."
Trinity stared at her partner grimly, "You mean... He didn't, did he?"
"I shall bring him back too. Artomis is... not doing well, but he's alive for the moment."
Giving a nod, the Blaziken made sure that Trent was down before rushing to the fallen Cyrus and lifted him onto her shoulder. Over a few feet was the knocked-out Zaphiel, who had in fact impressed Trinity with how well he fought. She lifted him onto her open shoulder and turned back towards the Lucario, watching as Trent started to recover. "Alright, he's all yours. Just don't do anything I wouldn't do."
Watching as Trinity fled out of the tunnel, Karia stood about 30 feet away from the Charizard, who was now back on his feet. "You're a fool, Trent. You will never have your way as long as we're around."
Trent gave a cold stare, and then burst out into laughter. "We? I believe you are now all alone in this fight now, and even though Darkrai is down, Roberta and I are plenty enough to take you down."
"...No, you're wrong. I'm not alone. Though Artomis is not what he used to be, he is still with me every step of the way." Karia took a step back and tucked her arms to her side, a blue sphere forming between her paws.
"Are you sure about that? Arty didn't have the slightest clue on who you were!" Ruby casually walked up and leaned against the Charizard's leg, a smile covering her face. "I mean, he isn't who you think he is anymore."
Tossing a glare to the Sableye, the Lucario then launched the sphere forward. As she watched the sphere, she felt a swift breeze and watched as a golden sphere rushed by her and molded with her own attack. Forming a large dark green sphere, the combined attack flew directly into the chest of the dragon, causing it to fall to the ground. Turning around, Karia stared wide-eyed at the source of the attack. "How did you..."
"This isn't a time to talk. We need to leave while I still have enough energy to move."
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"Where's Art?! Oh man, did you guys forget about him or something?!" Not even a moment after waking back up, Zaphiel had really begun to worry about the fate of his friend. He had suddenly started to regret sitting up as fast as he did, a light headed feeling tingling through his body as he started to notice his surroundings.
"Calm down and stop struggling! I need to get you finished so I can help the others that were injured." Faith was holding onto a bloody Raichu tail, trying to patch up the wound. Looking around the hospital quarters of the Guild, she let out a sigh as she noticed the unconscious Cyrus. "Must have been one hell of a fight to knock him out cold."
"And that's just the beginning." Walking into the room, Trinity set down the medical supplies that Faith had sent her to get from the storage room. "Artomis and Karia are still trapped in that mess."
Knocking the Chansey back, Zaphiel dashed up to the Blaziken and struggled to stand, but was determined to ask his question. "Who the hell are you anyway? I mean, you and that Karia just show up out of nowhere, and when you try to help, you seem to bring even more trouble!"
Trinity was not surprised about his accusation, nor was she surprised at how upset he was. "I will explain everything once they return from the cave. I just need you to trust in us for now until Artomis gets back here in the Guild. He will need to hear the same story to fully understand who he is."
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"You think you can just leave like all the rest? Ha! There's no way I'm letting you go when there is still so much to do!" Trent was once again on his feet, but when he looked ahead, he saw something unexpected. "...What? How the hell did he turn into a Lucario?!"
Staring at the dark form in front of her, Karia noticed he had the Peacekeeper in his left paw. His fur was completely black and the stripes were a navy blue, really enhancing the bright blue eyes he had. Both arms still had the claw scars, left being crimson and right a gold. "Are you alright? I'm surprised you're even awake right now."
"I think I'll live. Once I get used to my new body, things will be much better. We need to go and I was given a last resort item for just in case."
Once Trent noticed Artomis pull something from his charred pouch on his hip, he released a Flame Blast at the two, but before the blast hit, the black Lucario had used his badge on Karia, causing her to vanish in a flash of white. At the same moment, Art's body flashed a blue for a moment as a smile formed on his face. The blast hit him singly, the fire knocked him back into the wall behind him as the fire spread out. As the Lucario lay still on the floor, Ruby quickly ran up to investigate the outcome. "Is the brat dead? If not, grab him and the Darkrai. We need to put are next step into motion."
Once Roberta was close, Art's eyes shot open and he reached forward, placing his palm on her head and releasing a powerful blast from his palm. The explosion of gold sent Ruby flying to the side, causing her to land hard on her back. The Lucario then reached to the sand below him and held his paw out above his head, a smile forming again. "Don't worry, we'll find you soon."
"Oh no you don't!" As Art moved his arm, a Flamethrower left the massive jaw of the Charizard. Before the flame even came close, the badge was placed on him and he disappeared. After the flames died down, Trent cursed once he noticed the spot before him was empty. "We may have lost one, but we can work with the Darkrai. Get him back to the lab and start preparing the team. Not only will we invade the Guild, but we'll test our prototype in the act."
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"We really need to change the location of our Badge Base! This room is filled past capacity!" Faith was the first to walk up to Karia as she formed next to the bed that held Cyrus. "Are you hurt? More importantly, can you stand and walk? I'm completely out of beds."
Karia looked around, completely surprised and almost jumped at the sight at the Chansey, but was very relieved once she saw a few friendly faces. "No, I'm fine. Where am I?"
"You're at the Twilight Brigade main base. If you're here, Artomis should be coming. In other words, I'm going to need you to move."
"Uhh... Sure." She stepped forward, not really understanding what had happened. Once she saw Trinity next to the Raichu, the Lucario gave her a nod. Once her team mate replied with thumbs up, there was a small bell from behind her. Turning around, she saw a lightly singed Lucario lying on the floor. "Artomis!"
Everyone who was paying attention went silent and looked at the newest change in shock. He slowly sat up and looked around at the faces, feeling a bit embarrassed. "Yeah, I'm here. Exhausted, confused, but even worse, starving as all hell."
Zaphiel ran up, almost running into Faith as he smiled. He was about eye level with him as he sat on the ground. "Good to see ya, man. Don't know why you're so damn tall, but I'll live with it."
"We're going to need to get him on a bed." Karia stepped up close and knelt down next to him.
Zaphiel gave her a confused look, "He's fine. Hell, I'm sure he'd be fine- Oh crap!" As he spoke, the Lucario's eyes rolled back and his body fell into Karia's arms as he passed out. "What's wrong with him? I didn't do that when I evolved."
"It's because of how I healed him. It's a miracle he was awake long enough to get back here... Ah..." She felt herself start to feel weak, losing her grip on Artomis and falling to the floor beside him. She heard Zaphiel and Faith talking, but couldn't make out the words. I should have known this would happen... At least we're all alive.