Downfall Of A Legend

CHAPTER 12

"Who are you?! Reveal yourself!" Leader shouted, holding a hand over his mouth from the smoke. In the sky above, barely visible on the roof, two figures appeared on the edge. "Enough hiding!"

"We would never hide from you!" he was surprised, the voice belonged to a girl. Everyone watched in shock as the figures jumped from the roof, falling to the battlefield and disappearing in the cloud of smoke. They watched intently as it suddenly began to clear, two figures barely visible. "We're here to take you in, Leader! There's no point resisting!"

"Oh, isn't there?" Leader laughed, giving a nod to the others. Trevor and Jack nodded, pulling a pokeball from their belt and standing defensively in front of Leader. "I don't know if you are aware, but I have seven trainers willing to fight for me. More importantly, I've befriended the power of legendary pokemon," he grinned, holding his arms out to the side. "As the pokemon league champion of Unova and Kanto, I'm afraid you stand no chance."

"But with strategy, we will defeat you!" he frowned at the man's voice, disappointed in their choice.

"If you insist," he nodded to the pair, getting a nod back from each as they tossed a pokeball into the air. Both spheres burst open and released a graceful water serpent and blue dragon.

"Milotic, Hydro Pump."

"Salamence, Flamethrower," The pokemon fired their powerful attacks, quickly moving towards the smoke. Two more figures appeared inside the smoke, a powerful blue flame-like attack and blue sphere coming from the figures, exploding on contact with the opposing attacks. "Salamence, clear the smoke," Jack commanded, the dragon taking to the air. It flapped its wings, creating a powerful gust of wind blowing the smoke past the figures. The newer figures were revealed to be a large green lizard-like creatures with a long tail, and a shorter black mole with silver claws and plate covering its other two were an older man and younger girl. The man wore a white undershirt and grey pants, with purple overall straps and gloves, the lower half of his face hidden by a white beard. The younger girl wore a faded yellow blouse with pink wrist-cuffs, the sleeves a little too large for her arms and a pink ribbon around her waist, covering the top of her white leggings.

"That's...!" N's eyes widened, surprised to see the two familiar figures.

"We're Unova's Opelucid City gym leaders, Iris and Drayden the dragon masters!" the girl said cheerfully, grinning as she posed beside the large green lizards. "We came with full expectations of a battle, so we came prepared for your power!"

"With preparations, your power could never measure up to mine," Leader told them, snapping his fingers. On the throne behind him, the mouse jumped to the floor and landed beside its trainer, standing defensively. "Pikachu, Thunderbolt," the mouse's cheeks sparked, a powerful bolt of electricity striking the pokemon, the green dragon giving a pained shout as the mole bared its teeth beneath the armor plate.

"Excadrill, fight back with Metal Claw!" Iris commanded, the mole's claws flashing a gleaming silver as it burst forward towards the mouse.

"Iron Tail," the mouse dashed forward, grinning as it watched the mole swing its claws. Jumping above, the mole was surprised as the mouse dodged its attack at an incredible, feeling a powerful force in its back afterwards crashing it into the ground.

"Excadrill!" Iris called, the mole grunting as it stood again, jumping back to its trainer. The mole stood defensively, panting lightly.

"As I've said, you can't defeat me. I am too powerful for anyone in this world," Leader stated, grinning as the mouse stood defensively in front of him, grinning with its cheeks sparking. Iris and Drayden looked at each other, giving a nod.

"Haxorus, Dragon Pulse!"

"Excadrill, Focus Blast!"

"Salamence, Flamethrower," the dragon took a deep breath, expelling an intense stream of flames. The attack exploded the pair of spheres on contact, continuing and scorching the two opposing figures, scoring a direct hit.

"Excadrill!" Iris called, worried as her steel-type took the super-effective hit. The mole fell to its knees, holding itself up as it breathed heavily. The dragon's knees shook as it struggled to hold itself up, panting as well.

"Milotic, finish them with Hydro Pump," the serpent released a powerful blast of water, striking the mole with powerful force and pushing it back into the dragon, sending them both on their backs to the ground.

"Excadrill!"

"Haxorus!" the man's eyes widened as his dragon remained without motion, the mole remaining still as well. They gritted their teeth, recalling their pokemon and looking back at Leader.

"Now do you see? No one can stand up to my power, not even another trainer with a legendary pokemon," he looked at N, who gritted his teeth. "This is the end. Pokemon liberation is now the future of this world."

"We will never allow that!" Iris stated confidently, glaring at the man in anger. "Even if we lose, no one will accept this new lifestyle!"

"I'm afraid Unova's citizens have already submitted, I'm sure gym leaders of the same region have already realized this," the pair gritted their teeth again, frowning as they knew his words were truth.

"And you shouldn't be taking hostages! That's not fair!" the girl pointed to May, who stood blinking in confusion.

"You should not speak out without authority," Leader stated, pointing at them. The mouse fired a bolt of electricity towards them, they shielded their heads as the bolt collided with the ground in front of them, exploding and sending them a few feet back. The man fell to his back but the girl caught herself and landed on her feet, N and the group rushing down.

"What are you two doing here?" N asked, looking surprised.

"We know Unova was already taken by Leader, but we couldn't let him choose how we live," Iris told the man, grinning as she stood.

"We have voices too, we will not be ordered by a single man's thoughts," Drayden stated, standing again.

"Whoever you are, you came just in time," Max sighed, giving a smile.

"Hey! What, you haven't heard of us?" the girl asked, clearly offended as she glared at the boy.

"No time for that, Iris. We must focus on defeating Leader," the man stated, the girl giving a nod as she turned back towards the opposing trainer.

"You all decide to stay by them? Despite losing your friend fairly and knowing you have no chance?" Leader asked, looking intently at the group. They all looked at each other hesitantly, unsure.

"...We could never join you," Gary told him, fists clenched at his sides. Leader frowned, closing his eyes.

"Then I'm afraid you must be eliminated," the group gasped as he pulled a sphere from his belt, the Master Ball. "Nothing personal, you knew the consequences so you chose your fate."

"But I've thought ahead of that," everyone looked confused at N, who grinned. "Before we came here, I called a few acquaintances of mine to come help if we needed it."

"But that didn't work out, did it?" Leader asked, looking at the dragon-type trainers.

"Their arrivals took me by surprise," Leader looked oddly at him, realizing what he meant. "I didn't anticipate their arrival, so my backup is still ready."

"You had backup this whole time?" Dawn asked, looking surprised at the man.

"That means nothing, I will destroy them as well for helping you," he stated.

"You can't win, Leader! Give in before this goes crazy!" his grip tightened on the sphere, looking strangely at his hand.

"What is this...? My body is...Don't tell me...Am I actually feeling threatened? There's no way, these weaklings can't do anything to stop me!" he shook his head, squeezing the sphere again.

"Ash, please!" his head snapped back towards the throne, where May stepped forward with a concerned face. "Give up now! If you do, we won't arrest you or anything, you can walk away clean!"

"I'm afraid it's not that easy," the brunette held a fist to her chest, watching as the trainer lowered his head. "Ambitions are what power the mind, and that is what controls our body and actions. With my ambitions, my body will move to the heavens and achieve the top rank of this world," he laughed quietly to himself, looking back up at her with a grin. She felt a tug at her heart, his eyes burning with anger.

"Leader, I'm afraid to say this is kind of a commotion. I think we should leave," Webb called to the trainer, the others giving a silent nod in agreement. He looked at each of them, giving a nod.

"...Alright, we will take our leave then. But know this: the world will soon be under influence of pokemon liberation, and nothing can stop me from achieving that goal," he stated, raising the sphere in his hand into the air.

"Now," N whispered to himself, snapping his fingers at his side. The others glanced oddly at him, but were confused as they looked back at Leader.

"Your tricks will not affect me," Leader told them, moving his finger to the button on the sphere. His eyes widened in shock as a small strange sphere of purple and black energy appeared in the air, firing at him. He dodged, grunting at the pain in his arm as the sphere grazed it. Another sphere appeared and exploded on the ground by his foot, stumbling, the sphere sliding from his hand and bouncing off the ground and rolling away.

"The Master Ball!" Dawn gasped, pointing at the sphere. The group looked at the sphere on the ground, then at Leader.

"But how...?" Leader muttered, holding his arm from the pained sensation. Everyone's eyes widened as the sphere lifted into the air, hovering towards the group and stopping in front of N. He grinned, taking the sphere and holding it. "Impossible..." he muttered, gritting his teeth in frustration. Suddenly he felt a strange presence, looking to the side of the room, then snapping his eyes to the other.

"What's up with him?" Misty asked, looking oddly at Leader. He continued to snap his gaze around the room, then he looked towards the group again.

"So it's you..." he said in a low tone, his eyes piercing through the group. "Show yourself! Your hiding is meaningless, I know you're there!"

"...Impressive," the group minus N gasped, snapping their heads around at the unfamiliar voice. In a strange flicker, three figures stood before them. Each was a tall man in a strange black outfit, as well as black cloth covering their mouths and thick white hair.

"You were able to sense our presence, you are indeed no ordinary person," one figure stated with no emotion.

"Of course, I am one step from ruler of this world," Leader told them, anger in his eyes.

"Wait, who are you?" Max asked, looking at the strange trio.

"We are the Shadow Triad, beings of the shadows. We came to assist under order," a figure stated, the three holding a hand across their chest.

"Order? Wait...This was your backup?" Brock asked, understanding as he looked at N.

"From my days in Team Plasma, these three continued allegiance in serving me. I took that opportunity to have them help, in case we did fail in our primary objectives," N explained, the group nodding in understanding.

"Wow, that's awesome! And now we have Zekrom!" Dawn exclaimed happily, clasping her hands together.

"That means nothing, unfortunately. Zekrom will not respond to anyone's commands but Ash," Gary stated, the others frowning. "We can only hold it and make sure it doesn't get out, or we'll never win."

"I must admit, your help has surprised me. Nonetheless, no one gets in my way," leader told them, nodding to Trevor and Jack.

"Milotic, Hidden Power," several green orbs appeared around the water serpent, darting towards the three strange figures. In a flicker, they disappeared and re-appeared at the side of the room, away from everyone else.

"We are beings of shadows, we contain dark powers to control at will," one figure stated, their emotionless faces looking at Leader.

"Salamence, Dragonbreath," the dragon expelled a green flame-like attack, the figures disappearing just before the attack made contact. They appeared again by N.

"I need you three to retrieve the girl, she's important to our success," he whispered, the figures giving a nod.

"You can't run forever!" Jack called, the dragon releasing a blue sphere. The figures disappeared, the attack passing through the group and exploding behind them. Two figures appeared at the side, but the third was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's the third one?" Trevor demanded, his emotionless eyes staring at the pair.

"We are not three, we are joined as one. We are always together," they stated together, disappearing. Trevor and Jack glanced at each other in confusion, Leader snapped his head towards the throne.

"Stop where you are," Leader held his hand towards the throne, the mouse facing it with its cheeks sparking. "The slightest movement towards her and she'll get the attack."

"What?" May asked, confused. N gasped, realizing Leader had caught the Shadow Triad in action. How could he have found them so quickly? "Ash, what are you talking about? Why would you attack me?"

"The Shadow Triad is currently standing around you," she looked surprised, looking around her. However, she only saw the others she had stood by earlier. N gritted his teeth, closing his eyes with a frown.

"...Stop," Leader looked back towards the group, the trio appeared back by N. "I'm sorry, I didn't expect him to sense you so quickly."

"We apologize, our lack of speed is what gave him the time to find us," one figure told him, the other two giving an agreeing nod.

"And now, if you please...My pokemon," Leader held his hand out, a serious look as his opposite palm remained pointing towards May, where the mouse's cheeks were sparking more.

"Ash, you can't attack her!" Max shouted at him.

"What I want is clear, and if you can't cooperate then we're going to have a little problem with her health, aren't we?" he asked threateningly, the younger boy frightened at his serious tone.

"You three, you'll need to focus your powers on one spot," N whispered, the trio listening carefully. "Focus on a spot that will startle her, so she moves without thinking."

"You planning is meaningless, a single movement and she gets it," the trainer looked back at May, grinning. "Do you trust your friends with your life?"

"...I trust you, Ash," he looked intently at her, the brunette smiling. "The question is, could you hurt me?"

"...I feel in a matter of seconds, I will be forced to," he looked back at the group, where the Shadow Triad were each forming a dark sphere in their palms, the three combining. "So you don't care about this girl's health, then? Very well."

"We're not attacking you," he looked intently at the figures' faces, the trio launching the attack. Leader stood without movement and watched the sphere get closer, then breeze past his head. He turned around, watching in surprise as the sphere continued towards May.

"H-Huh?" the brunette gasped, her eyes widening as she saw the attack coming towards her. Her body froze from fear, terrified as the sphere came dangerously close to hitting her. Luckily, with the Shadow Triad's careful precision, the sphere barely missed her head and moved past, exploding on the top of the throne behind her. Leader's minions gasped, shielding their eyes from the sudden close-range explosion. May felt the force behind her, stumbling forward down the path.

"What are you planning?" Leader demanded, looking back at the Shadow Triad.

"We only follow orders, we do not act on our own," one responded, the others giving a nod. He looked back at May, who regained balance and was standing a few feet away.

"Ash, please listen! You can't keep doing this, you're hurting your friends! you're hurting me!" May told him, taking a step forward.

"Not another movement or sound from you!" she froze, shocked at his tone towards her. "I don't care if you're a girl...If you were my friend...If we were closer than friends...none of that matters now. What matters is you keeping quiet and staying under safe protection, so keep quiet and you won't get hurt!" he snapped, the brunette stepping back with a horrified expression.

"Y...You..." she couldn't finish a single word from shock, not expecting anything like this. Not from him. "...Ash..."

"I don't respond by that name anymore, that weakling is dead," May felt like her heart was in someone's palm, and they were squeezing it. Hard. "I am Leader, the strongest of all trainers and spreading pokemon liberation across the world. Nothing will get in my way, not even you," he looked back at the opposing group. "Jack, Trevor, destroy them."

"Last chance to give Zekrom back peacefully, or we'll have to use force," Trevor told them, the group looked at each other hesitantly. "...Milotic, Hydro Pump," the serpent released a powerful blast of water.

"Salamence, Flamethrower," the dragon expelled a powerful stream of flames, soaring alongside the water.

"Everyone, duck!" Brock shouted, everyone diving to the ground with the Shadow Triad disappearing, the attacks soaring over them. Getting to their feet again, they looked back and saw a large scorch mark on the wall behind them with a large puddle on the ground. "We have to get May over here somehow."

"If your friend manages to get him talking, enough to be distracted from us, we can be of service and get her back in a matter of seconds," one of the figures stated, the others giving a nod.

"Alright, let's try that," Misty nodded, looking over at May. The brunette blinked from surprise, noticing the expectant looks from her friends. She thought for a moment, then thought they must want something. And the only think she could do at this point...was talk.

"Ash, come on," he looked at her, she held her arms out to her sides with a smile. "I only want to talk."

"I can't afford distractions at this point, so stay quiet," he said sternly.

"I only want one minute, please, I just want to talk to you. Tell me why you started all of this," she told him, a tinge in the trainer's chest as he saw her smile.

"...They're being hurt...The pokemon..." she waited, smiling. "...Trainers are hurting pokemon every day, and I never realized it on my journey. Every region, all that time I spent traveling, I never realized pokemon were being hurt."

"There are always good and bad trainers, Ash," May told him.

"But I couldn't let that happen. Pokemon deserve to live here more than we do, they deserve a peaceful home more than humanity. I'm only trying to help them with that, I'm trying to provide a peaceful environment where only the ones who can get along can live," he explained, fists tightening at his sides.

"But what about the bad trainers? And the bad pokemon?" May asked.

"...They have to be eliminated. This world was made for pokemon, by pokemon, and humanity is only getting in the way," he stated, lowering his head.

"But this whole time, you've been saying you want humans and pokemon to live side-by-side in peace," May looked puzzled, tilting her head in confusion.

"...I've been lying. Besides me, only one other person knows my true plans for this world."

END

Stay tuned for the next chapter, the finale of "Downfall Of A Legend"!