Alright, it's finally here! This next chapter should be pretty interesting to you guys, and there will be a follow-up shortly afterward. I have to wonder, though, if galladefenrir44 and I have been cursed or something... Oh well, on with the show!
A and Green stood on the beach, taking in the fresh air and sunshine, merely enjoying each other's company. A fidgeted; he wanted dearly to tell her what he thought of her, how he had been after leaving Kanto, never to see her again until very recently. But he didn't want to make any sudden moves either; his experiences had shown him it was sometimes better to lie in wait, then pounce when you're not expected.
So he just stood there, holding Green's hand until she had to sneeze. Then they simply looked at the ocean before them. Then Green asked
"Hey... Red?" A smirked and replied
"That's not my name anymore, you know. It would probably cause less confusion if you just referred to me as A for right now." She frowned and retaliated
"That implies your name will change sometime in the future. You told me your real name is Michael, but you called yourself Red in Kanto. Now you tell me that your name for right now is 'A'. So what am I supposed to call you, more permanently?" A chuckled and said
"You sound just like my Kabutops." He looked at his feet and sighed wearily, saying
"It's true, I change my name a lot, but I have my reasons for it. When I left Orre for Kanto, it was with the intent of starting anew; I even left my pokemon behind so I didn't have an immediate head start. I'm glad I did too." Green appeared confused and asked
"Why?" A blushed a bit and responded
"Well, if I had taken my team with me, I could have crushed Team Rocket like a bug. But if I had done that, then we wouldn't have met."
A was mentally smacking himself and yelling in his mind
"Stupid, stupid, stupid! You just had to go and say that, didn't you?! Now she'll suspect something, and probably look at you like a weirdo!"
Green was about to respond, but the arrival of two guards quickly transformed her inquiry into a yelp of surprise. A, however, secretly sighed in relief, since he was spared Green's questions, at least, for the moment. A turned to them and raised an eyebrow, whereupon one of them said
"You have been summoned to the Chief's Court for a meeting with the Warlord. He wishes to speak with you."
A felt his stomach drop, and he asked in his mind
"Oh no, is this about that wall? Well, I said I would accept the consequences of my actions, so I guess I better get that over with."
A nodded and asked
"Are you to take me there?" The rightmost guard nodded and said
"As well as your companion, the human named Green. This is her, I presume?" A nodded and was about to respond, but Green shouted
"Okay, enough, please! I can't make heads or tails of this! I can understand you-" she said, pointing at A, then motioning to the guards
"But I can't understand a blasted thing they're saying!" A nervously laughed and scratched his head, then told her
"We're just going for a meeting with the Warlord, the long-haired Gallade you met earlier." Green frowned in concentration, then said
"I don't remember him." A shrugged and said
"Well, you'll meet him when we get there. These two will be taking us, so we'll be there in no time." Green nodded and eyed the Gallade nervously. One of them approached her, and she backed away momentarily, where the guard immediately said
"Don't worry, I won't hurt you." Green sighed a mushroom cloud and said
"Dang it, this would be so much easier if I could speak to pokemon as well." A laughed with the guards and told her
"He's just going to take you to the Chief's Court. I'll be right behind you."
Green nodded nervously and closed her eyes as the guard placed a hand firmly on her shoulder, disappearing. The other guard did the same with A, and the two were soon at the steps of the enormous building, which Green seemed unable to tear her eyes away from.
"Wow, this is incredible! Did pokemon really create all of this?" A nodded and started to walk up the stairs, followed quickly by Green. The guards saluted A as he approached the doors, and they were opened for their entrance.
After they were in, A focused his attention to Rick on his throne, and he said
"What's up? Your soldiers came out of nowhere while I was at the beach with Green. Needless to say, I thought I was in trouble for something."
Rick looked at A and laughed. A gave him a disconcerted look until Rick said
"Sorry, but you should realize that you're in no trouble. If you didn't do anything, that is. Have you?" he asked, eyeing him skeptically. A shook his head and replied
"No, I've been at home, enjoying some time with my pokemon and Green." A took a moment to think and remembered to thank Rick.
"I forgot to tell you this, but thank you so much for asking Arceus to bring her back. I owe you one!"
Rick waved his hand and replied airily
"No need to thank me. I needed to get you out of your emotional ire." A smirked and said
"Well it worked." Rick nodded and responded
"I'm glad it did."
Green looked at Rick in awe and asked incredulously
"You're the reason I'm alive now?" Rick replied but forgot to turn on his translator. Green then said
"Ummm...I can't understand what you're saying. All I hear you saying is 'Gallade' over and over again."
Rick remembered and gave a dumb laugh before turning on his Poketch, then saying
"Sorry about that. What I said was that yes it was me. I'm happy to see that you and A here have become friends again." Green nodded and said
"Well, I thank you very much for the new chance at life, and the new chance to be friends with A again." Rick dipped his head and told her
"You are very welcome. However, the credit must go to Arceus; he could have denied my request at any moment."
A immediately thought of another thing he forgot to do and said to Green
"Green, that's Warlord Aeruthael. He's our gracious host and the one that's providing for me while I reside here."
Green nodded and said to Rick
"Well, it's an honor to meet you."
Rick bowed his head and replied
"The honor is all mine."
Green asked A
"And who are the ones around him?"
A looked at them all, gathered his thoughts, then told her
"Well the Gardevoir to his right is his fiancé and the princess of this city, Lady Alara. The Gallade and Gardevoir to his left Lady Alara's parents, the Chief and the Queen."
Green looked wide-eyed at them, and then curtsied to show her respect. Rick waved her off and said
"Don't worry, they're easy going. You're not insulting them by not bowing." Green straightened up and said
"Well, I just wanted to show them my respect. I didn't think I would be in front of royalty." Rick shrugged and told her
"You get used to it after a while."
A soldier suddenly appeared next to Rick with a report paper, which he handed to Rick. Rick read over the report, laughed, and looked at A.
"You broke your wall? How on earth did you...Don't answer that, I just read it."
A sweatdropped and laughed nervously while scratching the back of his head, saying
"When you're depressed, you do a lot of stupid things." Rick nodded his head and said
"Well that's true. I'm not going to dwell on this any other. It will be repaired in a moment's notice." A nodded and told him nervously
"Yeah, don't worry, I'll pay you back for the wall." Rick shook his head and said
"No need! I have enough money to build that den many times over. No charge." Rick wrote an order and snapped his fingers, summoning a soldier. He gave the report to the soldier and dismissed him. He looked back at the two humans and said to them
"Alright, so now to tell you why I summoned both of you."
A smirked and said
"I was wondering when we would get to this." Rick smirked and said
"Yeah, sorry for the wait. Anyways, today is Jean's birthday."
"Oh is it?" He turned to look at Jean
"Happy birthday!"
Jean replied
"Thanks A!"
Rick continued.
"You see, he wanted ALL of us to do something together. So he decided that we should go camping. But what do you say?"
A pulled Green aside and began to speak with her.
"What do you think? Goin' on a sort of mini-adventure? Camping out on the ground again?" Green smiled and said
"That sounds fun! I haven't done anything like that for a long time! Besides, there's not much to do in your home." A winced a bit, then turned back to Rick and told him
"We'd like that. We grew up traveling and camping out in our adventures. So doing this will be a walk down memory lane to us." Rick raised an eyebrow and said
"That went by better than I thought." A then asked him
"So when do we leave?"
"This afternoon. So I'm ordering all the camping equipment I can get."
"How are we getting to the campsite? Are we using the Mercury?"
Rick chuckled and told him
"No need to use the Mercury on this. I have a little thing called Titan Avion." A raised an eyebrow and asked skeptically
"How are we going to pack our things on that thing?" Rick smirked and replied
"I have my ways." A shrugged noncommittally and said
"Alright then! Me and Green will return to the house and pack our things."
Rick stopped him and said
"No, worry about that later." He suddenly threw a bag at A, who caught it. A opened the bag and saw a slew of cash in it.
"There's $50,000. Take her shopping for clothes and whatever she needs. If you want to get something for the trip then get it with the money. Also..." Rick got up and walked up to Green. He then handed her a necklace and told her
"This is a Silph Co. official translator. It's still a prototype, but it can translate pokemon speech for you. However, it needs to be recharged everyday so that it continues to work. Also, here's the charger." He passed a charger to Green.
"Just take the battery out and place it in. You'll need electricity though, but A's sword has that covered for you while we're camping. We'll be camping for two nights, so be prepared to buy some stuff." A nodded and said
"Got it! Thanks! Let's go Green."
Green nodded and bowed her head in thanks to Rick. Rick waved goodbye at them and sat back down on his throne. A and Green left the throne room and looked around the area. Then Green took A by the hand and began leading him around, looking at the various things in the shops. A chuckled seeing the bright gleam in her eyes, and he asked her
"So, what do you want to get first?" Green looked at him in curiosity, then said musingly
"I'm not sure... what do you think?" A stifled his laughter and replied
"Well, if you can't decide right now, we might as well go and get some personal camping supplies." Green nodded and A got directions to the nearest General Store. Green's eyes were wide again as she saw the selections they had; everything from supplies to clothes, and even jewelry! A chuckled and thought
We might be able to do this in one trip."
They walked forward and began perusing the items, drawing attention from some of the other pokemon in the store. Green shifted uncomfortably while A rolled his eyes, having gotten used to it at this point. Soon they had sleeping bags and tents, as well as some traveling clothes for Green. They walked up to the counter and set their purchases down on the counter. The Gardevoir behind the counter tallied it up and A paid with the money given to them by Rick. The supplies were bagged up and Green walked over to the jewelry portion of the store, taking a while to go over everything while A stood off to the side, holding on to their current purchases.
He grinned as he watched her, and soon she summoned him, presumably for his advice. A gulped a bit, never having had experience in this manner before. She held up two sets of earrings to each ear, asking
"I can't figure out which one is better. What do you think?" A smiled a bit, then observed each carefully, trying to make a decision. He soon pointed to the set on her left, a pair of earrings inlaid with emeralds and said
"Those. I think those are better." She observed them carefully, then asked
"Why?" A chuckled and responded
"They bring out your eyes better than the other pair, I think. Plus, they're very fitting, given your name. But you know, if you want both, we still have plenty of money to spare." Green grinned and said
"So it's okay?" A chuckled and said
"Sure. We're still on a budget, but that budget's admittedly pretty high. So go ahead and get them both if you want to." Green threw her arms around him and said
"Thank you." A paused, stunned for a moment, before saying softly
"You're welcome" while also thinking
"I seriously owe that Gallade now, but I'll discuss that later. For now, I have a feeling my load is far from over."
For the next couple of hours, the two humans roamed throughout the stores the top den had to offer, Green grabbing some dresses along the way, also getting some ceremonial suits for A at her insistence. By the time they were finished, A was weighted down with a multitude of bags with various store names on them. He didn't mind though; seeing Green's glowing smile made it worth the trouble.
They returned to the 22nd den where they dropped off their supplies and Green began associating herself with A's pokemon more, using her new translator. She was vastly interested in the various personalities they each displayed, but with one thing in common; their love and respect for A, the trainer who had saved many of them from horrible fates.
Soon A had everything they needed packed and ready to go, and he bid his pokemon goodbye for the time they would be away. They all bid him farewell in return, and on the journey to Rick's house, Green remarked to A
"I'm amazed you were able to care for so many pokemon at once, and to get them all to love you the way they do." A shrugged and responded
"It gets easier over time. You learn every day, and since every day I was with my pokemon, I learned quickly about them. We have a mutual trust/love relationship. They trust me with their lives, some of which I've saved, even as I trust them with my life. It's one of the reasons, I think, that Arceus chose me to become his White Knight." Green looked at him in admiration and said
"That must be quite a proud position to hold." A chuckled and replied
"It certainly has its perks, I'll admit that. This sword, for instance" he said, motioning to Savior.
"I never dreamed, once in my life, that I would hold a weapon of this magnificence or beauty." Green nodded but didn't say anything, since they had just arrived at Rick's house. After he had the whole tem gathered together, he led them to the gates of the Sanctuary, where Avion was waiting. Avion was apparently saddled and prepped to carry a heavy load.
A looked at Rick and asked "You saddled that thing?"
Rick chuckled and replied
"Yeah, I figured that it's best to take Avion since he doesn't need fuel to keep going. Besides, Avion needs to stretch his wings. I'm not going to recall him for the time we're camping. He'll be somewhat of a guardian for us while we're there." A nodded in agreement and said
"Good idea."
Maiyu suddenly ran forward towards Avion yelling
"Avion! It's so good to see you again!"
A sweatdropped and said to Rick
"You're just going to let her get close to that thing?"
Rick chuckled again, surprising A. Then he said
"Once you possess a Titan they become quite tame. Maiyu seemed to have kicked up a friendship with Avion. Look!"
A looked and saw Maiyu hug Avion's leg and Avion nuzzling her with its beak tenderly. When Maiyu felt him nuzzle her she turned around and hugged his beak. Avion gave a happy screech and lifted her up until she was sitting on his head.
A gave a sigh of relief and observed to Rick
"Wow, it's pretty docile now. And to think, it was trying to kill us a month and a half ago."
Rick patted his back and walked forward to Avion. They then heard Maiyu ask
"Let's go! Avion wants to fly. Don't you boy?" Avion gave a happy shriek again; "That's a yes!"
Rick looked back at the team and said
"All aboard the giant bird...guardian...thing."
With that Avion lowered his head and let the team mount its back. Once everyone got situated safely on its back and all the gear and bags put in its cargo bags, Avion prepped itself for flight. Everyone held onto Avion's back spikes as he began to flap his wings and lifted himself off the ground. Avion then flew off towards the camping area. After twenty minutes, Avion was beginning to fly over the camping area and the Mt. Coronet mountain range.
Green held tightly to A during the trip, to which A was, well, up on cloud nine, to say the least. After all, how else would you feel when the girl of your dreams holds onto you, even if only for safety?
Rick looked down at a clearing in the forest and said to Avion
"Down there Avion!"
Avion chirped and descended into the clearing. Avion landed quickly and lowered his head so the team could dismount. Everyone quickly got off and took everything out of Avion's pack.
Maiyu hugged Avion before getting off, by sliding down his long tail and being caught by A.
Rick then said to Avion
"Alright Avion, you can remain out for the duration of the trip. Go ahead and fly around. I'll call you when I need you."
Avion chirped and flew off into the mountains, leaving the team to unpack.
A turned to the team and said
"Alright, let's set up!" He then put Maiyu on the ground, who hopped onto Alara's shoulders. He took his and Green's supplies, soon realizing he had accidentally only packed one tent. He facepalmed and thought
"Oh well, I've slept under the stars before." Green looked at him with some concern but quickly began to help set up the camp at large. Once everything was finished, A and Green walked together toward a nearby creek, and Green asked him
"So, what would you say one of your funnier adventures had to be?" A placed a hand to his chin in thought, then said
"Oh, here's a good one. It actually happened here in Sinnoh. Alright, so I was walking along in Pastoria City some seventy-five, seventy-eight years ago, when I notice this Altaria flying with difficulty. I realized that she was carrying a heavy load on her back. Interested, I followed her to a nearby warehouse, where she deposited the package and slumped on the ground. Then her owner, a real greedy... person, for want of not using strong language, began shouting at her to get up because she still had five more deliveries to go."
Green looked up at him in horror and said
"This doesn't sound funny at all!" A nodded and said
"It wasn't, at first, but don't worry. It gets better later." Green hesitated, then nodded for him to continue. He recollected his memories and picked up where he left off.
"I hated to see a sweet pokemon like that get abused in such a way. So I walk up behind the man, then I pushed him and shouted, 'Hey, what do you think you're doin' with my Altaria!'".
Green's eyes widened and she asked
"Was it yours?" A chuckled and said
"Not quite. In fact, prior to that, I had never seen so much as a Swablu. But I figured I could rescue her from this fate and possibly save her life." Green hesitated again, then asked
"When does this get funny?" A grinned and said
"Right here. So I begin to argue with him, and he shouts that he's going to get the authorities if I don't get the hell away already. Then I whip out my badge case, which had been full at the time and included my ribbon for defeating the Elite Four and current Champion, Cynthia, and shout out 'I AM the authority!'. His eyes get all buggy, and he starts stammering. Finally he hands over the pokeball she's trapped in and goes out of his way to make sure I don't take the incident to court." Green then started laughing hard, and A heard footsteps behind him. Upon turning, he saw Rick, Alara, and little Maiyu coming toward them. Then he said to them
"Well hello guys! Need anything?"
Rick replied
"No, we just wanted to check on you and Green. How is she holding out so far?" A shrugged and replied
"Well it'll take some time for her to get used to living among pokemon, but she's okay so far. The translator you gave her helps out a lot." Rick nodded and said
"Good to hear. Be careful, it doesn't live for very long. The battery dies very quickly. So she should just use it when she really needs to." A questioned
"How long does it live for?" Rick scrunched up his eyes in thought, then said
"I give it four hours before it beeps, which tells you that it'll be dying soon." A nodded and said
"So I guess I should translate for her every now and then?" Rick nodded and responded
"Yeah. Don't worry, the people in Sanctuary can just talk to her telepathically, but it's somewhat of a pain. That's why I gave her the translator. So she can communicate."
Green then said
"I'll keep that in mind. However, I like being able to speak to you guys directly. It makes me feel a little less lonely." Rick raised an eyebrow and asked
"Lonely? A's here." Green nodded and amended
"True, but I love to interact with a lot of people." Rick grinned and told her
"Well there's no shortage of people here for you to interact with."
Green smiled at Rick and said
"I can see that." She suddenly noticed Maiyu.
"Oh! I didn't notice her earlier today."
Rick arched an eyebrow and asked
"Who?" Green pointed at Maiyu, but not rudely, and replied
"The Kirlia on your mate's shoulder. Is she your daughter?" Rick's face lit up in understanding, and he said
"Oh no! She's my baby cousin Maiyu. She wasn't with us earlier today. Me and Alara went to pick her up at her house. We now tend to not leave the Sanctuary without her. However she is like a little sister to me or a daughter. Me and Alara just love her so much."
Green looked at Maiyu and held out her hand to her, saying
"Hello there Maiyu! My name is Green." Maiyu ducked her head behind Alara's shoulder. Green then said
"Oh I won't hurt you. You can trust me. You trust A, don't you? You can trust that I won't hurt you, either."
Maiyu lifted her head out from behind Alara's shoulder and jumped to the ground in front of Green. Maiyu inched her way into Green's open arms. Green picked her up and cradled her.
Green giggled and said to Maiyu
"See? Nothing to worry about. I'm not a mean person."
Maiyu finally said
"I guess not, but time will tell." Maiyu stopped to sense her emotions
"You're confused. Why?"
Green was immediately surprised.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"I can tell by your emotions. I can also sense that you have a..." Rick immediately closed her mouth with Psychic.
Rick said to her
"Maiyu, what did I tell you about diving through the emotions of others without their permission?"
Maiyu began to speak, but she was still muffled by Rick's Psychic. Rick sighed and dismissed it letting her respond
"Not to do it. Sorry!"
"It's okay Maiyu, but remember what I told you." Maiyu hung her head and said
"I can't help it. My powers are still developing. I just pick up the emotions when I'm near someone."
"I'll have to teach you how to control that. Come on! Let's go get housed in our tent. We'll see you later A and Green."
A replied
"Alright sir, bye!"
"Goodbye!"
He and Green focused their attention back on the other side of the creek, amazed by the forestry. A said in passing
"You know, it never ceases to amaze me the wonders this world has to offer, and the fact that none of this has to exist at all." Green looked at him and said
"Well, I'm sure Arceus would have done it one way or another." A chuckled and said
"Sorry, when I look at something like this, I tend to get philosophical. If it helps, you can just ignore me when I get that way. It's helped some of my pokemon, I can tell you that much." Green giggled and nestled up to him, causing him to blush a bit, and she said
"I don't mind. During my middle-aged life, I had a tendency to wonder about life too. Especially when my pokemon began to leave, one way or another. It's hard to watch all of your friends get like that." A's grin faded and he said
"Yeah, I know exactly what you mean. But to be honest with you, I think we discussed this topic at the beach, and it only depresses me. Why don't we go back to camp? It's starting to get dark." Green nodded and they went back. There was already a fire, and both he and Green moved to sit by it. After a moment, Green moved close to him, sidling up to him. He tensed slightly and blushed, hoping nobody could see it.
"Geez, what's wrong with me? I should be having the time of my life here, but instead I get all nervous when she gets this close. Granted, I didn't strike up any relationships of this nature after I gave up looking for her, but I'm one of the top trainers in the world! I shouldn't be getting so nervous; she doesn't belong to anybody, she has no criminal history. So what's wrong with me?"
Rick returned to camp with Maiyu and Alara in tow. They sat together and Rick made a s'more for Maiyu. She ate it after Rick warned her about cooling it down first, and when she had finished the sticky concoction, she asked
"Can I have another?" A laughed and teased her, saying
"Hey little lady, leave some for us to enjoy!" Everybody laughed, and the atmosphere proved jovial for a while. Then Jean tossed a guitar at Rick and said
"Go ahead and play something, Rick." Rick nodded and tuned the guitar to his taste, then began strumming a light tune away. The atmosphere settled further and A relaxed noticeably, which prompted Green to rest her head on his shoulder, which caused him to blush harder. He had the distinct impression that Rick was laughing at him mentally, but he chose to not let it bother him.
Once Rick was finished, some of his other team members pulled out instruments of their own, and Rick switched the guitar for a violin. They began playing together, sounding discordant at first. But as they each got into the rhythm of what they were doing, their quality improved vastly. A was actually impressed that they could make such music with a diverse set of instruments. When they finished, they began laughing, which became infectious as he and Green joined in.
He and she began to chat softly for a while, not about anything in particular. Soon Rick stood and said
"Well guys, I'm off to bed. Tomorrow, we're going hiking...or whatever you guys want to do."
Sage then asked
"Wait, who's rooming with who?" Rick grinned and said
"Well I know with whom I'm rooming with. All couples together and the rest should play the dice game. A and Green, you will be rooming together."
A then replied nervously
"Why?"
"Because you're the only humans and she can't communicate with us without your help or the use of the translator. So she should stay near you." A nodded, accepting the argument and saying
"I understand. Alright, goodnight!"
"Goodnight!" Rick turned to everyone else.
"Goodnight everybody! I have to take Maiyu here to a bed." He said as he pointed to a sleeping Maiyu, who was asleep in Alara's arms.
Green "awed", making A smile. Then they both rose and made for the tent they would be sharing. Was it chance they only had one packed away, or was there some other force at work? A shook the thought out of his head and waited outside while he waited for Green to change into her nightclothes. Then she waited for him as he did the same, and soon they both had their sleeping bags set up, not too far away from each other. A was feeling nervous about this, but at the same time he couldn't help but feel some elation. Green turned to him and said
"Well, good night A. I guess we'll be talking more tomorrow, maybe along the hike or whatever." A nodded and put out the small light they had been given, saying to her
"Good night, Green. Sleep tight."
The next morning, A and Green woke up at the same time, which they both wound up laughing about. They waited for each other to be fully dressed, then went to get some breakfast. Soon Green wanted to go on a walk, and A was more than happy to oblige her. They roamed around, and soon her feet were asking for a break, so they lay on their backs, looking toward the open sky. Then Green said
"Hey A?" He looked lazily over to her and merely made a questioning sound.
"Hmm?"
"Tell me about your family. And I mean beyond your pokemon. I've brought it up before, but you always avoided the topic." A looked back up into the sky, sighing heavily and telling her
"I had my reasons for doing that. It's rather... painful to think about. One of the masters who trained me managed to help me overlook my guilt about the whole thing, but I still can't ignore the pain. Are you sure you want to know?" Green propped herself up on her elbows and said
"Absolutely. No one should have to deal with pain alone. Come on, what happened?" A smiled and thought
"Ah, that's why I love her. She goes out of her way to help others, especially when she knows they're hurting about something. I really must thank Arceus later for resurrecting her." Then he said
"Well, okay..."
He began to tell her his story, how his father had died when he was just a child, leaving him an Eevee who would become Umbra later. Then he told her about his mother, what she had been like and how she often would be scared stiff about him. Finally he told her about Jovi, which seemed to delight Green, until he told her the story about her demise. He couldn't look at her, since A was still convinced it was his fault. Soon Green said softly
"A, look at me." A slowly turned his head to face her, and she said, still in a soft voice
"You're not at fault. Nor is she. Neither of you had any way of knowing what would happen, and you shouldn't beat yourself up for not being able to control such forces. These things sometimes happen, and I know it must hurt. But you know-" she smiled and said a bit more firmly this time
"I don't think either your mother or Jovi would blame or hate you for it. You don't need to face it alone, either. If something's bothering you, you should tell me." A was touched, but he said
"That's very nice of you. But why are you interested? We never talked much when we were going up against Team Rocket, and we've only been reacquainted for a few days now. And suddenly you tell me that I should tell you everything. Now, I'm not opposed to that-" he amended himself before he made her angry, propping himself up also.
"But I want to know why you take such an interest in me, despite these barriers." Green blushed and stammered
"W-well, I just... thought it would be... nice... if we could, you know... break those barriers... get to know each other better... if you don't, though..."
A interrupted, saying
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, I didn't say that. I was just curious why you seemed so interested in me, that's all." Green smirked mischievously and said
"Don't you know curiosity killed the Meowth?" A chuckled and retorted
"No, stupidity killed the Meowth; curiosity was framed." Then he and Green began laughing loudly, and A felt freer than he had in a while. Just a few months ago, he was criticizing Rick and his team because they had been joking and cavorting about, yet here he was doing the exact same thing. And despite himself, he enjoyed it!
Then he and Green got back up and began walking through the forest, enjoying the sights and each other's company. A heard some rustling nearby, and wondered what it was. He walked over to the source of the noise, but no sooner than he did he found himself at sword-point, specifically Shadowbane. He froze as Rick pinned him momentarily. When Rick realized who he was pinning down, he quickly released A, who began rubbing his neck and said to Rick
"What the hell man!?"
"A? Sorry. I thought you were someone else." A frowned and asked
"Who?"
A roar then came from the trees and tentacles shot out and ripped many of the trees off the ground. A large monster ripped its way through the trees, stunning A, with Green cowering behind him.
Rick whistled and began to move back quickly. Before he hauled ass he said to A
"That thing. Project Omega. Hauling ass bye!"
Rick immediately took off running and Omega ran after him, passing A and Green, leaving them wondering what just happened. Suddenly they saw Ashlyn and Dartz running out of the forest.
Ashlyn saw A and Green and asked A
"Have you seen Rick and a hulking beast running through here?"
A replied
"Yes, they ran towards the mountains. What's going on?"
"Don't worry about it." She turned to Dartz and said
"Dartz go back to the camp and tell the others what's going on. I'm going to stop Omega."
Dartz nodded and ran towards the campsite. Ashlyn followed the trail and hoped to find Rick and Omega. A was left trying to piece together what was happening. He then noticed Wayland walking towards them.
Wayland asked A
"What was that roar I heard?"
A shrugged and responded
"Rick was being chased by some sort of monster." Wayland's eyes grew wide and he shouted
"Damn! Omega! I'm going to go see if he needs help." A shook his head and told him
"No! Stay here with Green. I'll go check it out." Wayland hesitated, then nodded and said
"Alright, but be careful."
A nodded and then said to Green
"If anything happens, go back to the campsite. Don't worry, I'll be okay."
A ran suddenly disappeared and left Wayland with Green. He jumped from tree branch to tree branch, following the destructive force of the next monster he was going to take on. A began to wonder if he was insane doing this, but his thoughts were cut short with the resounding sound of breaking rock, shortly followed by the roar of Omega. A dashed faster toward it and soon saw what looked like a hole in a mountainside. He winced as he imagined what it must have felt like to go through that.
Then he dashed in and spotted Rick being held up in midair by some weird tentacles coming from Omega's back. The monster was charging a dark beam of energy and aiming it directly at Rick. A quickly drew Savior and began unleashing a multitude of elemental attacks on it, whereupon it screamed in pain.
"Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! What the he...OW!" Omega turned and roared at A, "Who the hell are you!?"
A replied to Omega while lifting up his weapon
"The name's A! And I'm guessing you're Project Omega? At least that's what Rick told me." The beast roared at him
"You have no business here! Away with you insect!"
Rick said to A
"A, you don't stand a chance against Omega. Get out of here!"
A glared at Rick and replied
"We wouldn't know until we test my power out against this thing." Rick sighed and said
"I'm warning you, but go ahead and try."
Omega growled and said
"Fine! I'll take both of you on."
A scoffed and jumped into the air to slash down on Omega. Omega, however, took Rick and threw him at A, knowing both at the cave wall.
Rick growled at A, who was underneath him
"When I tell you to back off, I mean back off! I have more experience battling Projects."
A pushed Rick off of him and got up, asking
"What are Project anyways? And I doubt they're that strong if they are man-made."
Rick growled again at A and said
"Listen here! I don't have the time to explain this to you. You won't stay conscious from one hit from Omega. It's stronger than me." Rick then calmed down
"Listen, the tension is high, just try to be careful." A nodded and said
"Understood, sorry for yelling sir."
Omega got their attention, shouting
"Hey Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dumbass!"
Rick and A looked at Omega and managed to barely dodge two sharp crystals that Omega threw at them. A stuck Savior into the ground and created braces made of earth to hold Omega still while Rick went at it. Rick ran forward and struck it with a Focus Punch. Rick said to A
"Nice thinking!"
A replied
"Thanks! I thought that might help! Look out!"
Rick looked back at Omega and dodged an attack from the tentacles. Rick fired a Signal Beam to keep the tentacles at bay, while A struggled to keep Omega pinned to the ground with Savior. After a few moments of a struggle, Omega gave a mighty heave and freed itself from the ground brace and fired a beam at A, knocking him back.
Rick tried to slash Omega to protect A from the raging beast, but was kicked back almost immediately. Omega then tangled up A in her tentacles and slammed him onto Rick.
A asked Rick
"Any bright idea? We're getting our asses handed to us."
Rick said
"Well I do have a 'bright' idea. But I'll need you to distract Omega for a few moments so I can summon the power to use the ability. It's called Rising Sun and it supposedly weakens Omega or hurts it." A thought for a moment, then asked
"So I just have to distract the beast?"
"Yep." A cracked his knuckles and neck, saying
"Alright, it shouldn't be too hard considering that it just kicked both our asses with little effort."
"Fine, let's just keep going the same way we've been fighting."
"But that hasn't helped."
"So it's either plan A or plan B."
"I'd rather do plan A then."
"Alright. Be careful, if I see that you can't handle it, I'll help."
"Thanks."
Rick summoned Sovereign and began to concentrate, while A jumped to the opposite end of the cave.
A took a deep breath and got Omega's attention by striking it with a fireball. Omega slowly turned around and glared at A. A suddenly vanished and repeated the process a couple of times. Omega eventually caught on to the pattern and vanished as well, shocking A.
A suddenly heard a growl behind him and instinctively bowed his head to dodge the claw attack from Omega. A scrambled away from the beast and fired more attacks towards Omega, only succeeding in enraging it more and more. A kept the process going until Omega wrapped one of its tentacles around A's legs and dropped him to the ground. Omega then stood over him and drew its claws.
A suddenly heard Rick yell
"A close your eyes!" A complied and Rick used the ability.
Sovereign began to glow brightly and then fired a ball of light at a point in the cave, enveloping the room in a bright light. Omega roared in pain and staggered to stay standing.
Unexpectedly, Rick fell to his knees gasping for breath and the light ball shattered, leaving Omega panting from the pain. A slowly opened his eyes and saw the scene before him. He staggered up to his feet and went to check up on Rick.
He asked Rick
"Sir, are you okay?"
Rick replied
"I thought I could have held the ability. But I was only fooling myself."
"Sir, don't worry about it. You hurt Omega. It's incapacitated."
Rick raised his head and looked at Omega. His eyes shot open and he yelled
"Look out!"
A looked and was unable to dodge a monstrous punch from Omega. The punch made him fly through the mouth of the cave and land many yards away, near Green and Wayland, unconscious. Green immediately went to check on him, but Wayland decided to take him to Anna to have him healed.
He teleported them all back to the campsite and helped Green carry A's unconscious body back to the medical tent, Wayland explaining the situation as best he could. Soon Anna began working on him with Green close by. Anna insisted she go and relax, but she didn't want to leave A's side right now. She blushed as this occurred, but remained strong.
Within the next hour, things had settled down commensurately. Ashlyn had come and gone, and her mate approached Green and asked
"Hey Green, how is he?"
Green replied
"Your friend Anna told me that he has a concussion and some bruising from the fall. However, he's supposed to be okay in the morning. He's been sleeping peacefully for a while now." Dartz nodded and said
"That's good to hear."
Green suddenly gasped when a glowing red 'A' appeared on A's forehead. Dartz saw it and walked over to check it.
Green asked him
"What's going on with him?" Dartz shook his head slowly and said
"I think I know, but I'm hoping I'm wrong." Green narrowed her eyes at him and said
"I need more of an explanation than that."
Dartz suddenly said
"You should get some sleep. You've had a long day. Don't worry, when you wake up everything should be normal. Don't tell anyone about this though."
"Why?" Green asked worriedly.
"I'd rather Rick not know about this." Green hesitated, but soon complied.
"Alright, but what are you going to do?" Dartz looked at A and told her
"I'm going to view his dream through his mind. We Dark types can do that and my minimal psychic abilities help improve the skill."
Green nodded and lay down on her sleeping bag. She then said
"Please make sure that he'll be okay." Dartz nodded and said
"I will. Goodnight."
"Goodnight."
With that Green drifted off to sleep and Dartz concentrated on entering A's subconscious.
A's dream;
A and Green were sitting on a bench in Cerulean City, having just enjoyed a fabulous dinner at one of the fanciest restaurants the city had to offer. A sighed in contentment as he draped an arm over Green's shoulders, and she snuggled into him.
"So, how did you like dinner?" A asked her. She giggled and replied
"It was magnificent. I think this anniversary is going off well." She and A had been married for five years to date; five of the happiest years of A's life, and of hers.
"Well, it doesn't end there" A told her. She looked up at him in surprise and asked
"Oh? What else do you have in store for me?" A smiled and held up a blindfold, telling her
"It's a surprise, and I don't want to ruin it." Getting the hint, Green put the blindfold on, and after A was certain that she couldn't see, he began to guide her through the city, ignoring the stares they got. He suspected that Green could feel them, though, as she was shifting uncomfortably.
"It feels so strange walking around without being able to see" Green remarked, turning her head to try and see around the blindfold. A squeezed her shoulder lightly and gently told her
"Don't worry, I'm here for you, and I always will be, even if I'm on a mission." Green reached up and brushed his hand, smiling and saying
"I know you will."
For the next ten minutes, A guided her through the city and over the golden bridge, aiming for a special destination. After they had arrived, A positioned Green perfectly, then said
"Alright, you can see it now." Green fumbled with the blindfold for a moment, then looked at her surroundings. She discovered that he had taken her to Cerulean Cape, one of her favorite places, and he had positioned her so she could see the sunset, one of her favorite times. She gasped at the brilliance the setting sun had on the clear ocean, and A asked her
"Do you like it?" She turned to him and threw her arms around him, shouting
"I love it! You prepared this surprise ahead of time, didn't you?" A smiled and said
"Guilty as charged. I would do anything for you, you know. I love you." Green giggled and blushed, but said seductively
"Why don't you show me just how much you love me?" A chuckled and placed his hands lovingly around his wife, and they both closed their eyes and leaned in. When A didn't feel her lips against his, however, he opened his eyes and saw Green wasn't there. He whirled around in an attempt to find her, shouting
"Green?! Where are you?! Where did you go?!" Suddenly the scenery began to dissolve around him, and he whipped Savior out of its sheath, still turning and trying to find Green. The ground shifted beneath him and he pitched forward, shouting in surprise. He adjusted his weight and landed on the ground with his feet. When he looked up, he saw he was no longer on Cerulean Cape. In fact, he didn't believe he was in Kanto anymore. Surrounding him was a mess of dead, blackened trees. A went to inspect one and saw they were still solid, just dead.
"Hello?" he called out, "Can anybody hear me? Green, are you here?"
He received no answer, so he began to walk through the trees. The scenery didn't change, though, so he began to mark the trees so he wouldn't get lost. But after he had made the tenth cut, something caught his attention. He watched as the tree healed itself, despite its dead appearance. After looking further, he realized his trail had disappeared.
"What in the Distortion World is going on?" A wondered aloud.
"Maybe I could help" a familiar voice said, and when A turned, he saw his first friend, the one he missed dearly, standing before him, looking as young as the day he evolved.
"Umbra?" A asked softly but incredulously. The Umbreon nodded and said
"Good to see you too, Michael." A motioned around him and asked
"Am I dead?" Umbra chuckled and said rather darkly
"No, not yet. Just follow me, okay?"
A raised an eyebrow, but he was not about to repute his friend when they had just met back up.
"Okay," A said "lead the way." Umbra turned without a word and began walking along through the trees, looking like he knew exactly where he was going. After several moments of uncomfortable silence, A genially asked
"So, how have you been? Life treating you well?" Umbra didn't answer but kept on walking. A was perplexed. Even when he hadn't been able to understand him, at least not fully, Umbra never missed an opportunity to speak with him. So to do so now was confusing. More time passed as they walked, and A tried again.
"Have you found anything interesting along your travels?" Umbra still didn't talk to him, and A asked
"Umbra, what's wrong? Did something happen?" Finally, Umbra responded harshly
"You'll see when we get there." A stopped in place, shocked. Then he said
"Umbra, what's going on with you? This isn't like you at all. Have I done something?" Umbra looked at him directly, his red eyes flashing, and he said coldly
"The answers you seek lie ahead. Come."
A followed him until the trees began to spread apart a bit, then Umbra led him into a clearing, saying
"This is what you have done wrong." It was a scene out of A's worst nightmare; all of his pokemon lay dead in front of him, some bleeding profusely, others in various stages of rot. A shouted in horror, then ran to a few, trying to rouse them. He worked especially on Rose, despite that her body was severely decayed. He stopped when she fell apart, and he scrambled away from her, toward the forest and vomited. After he was finished, he looked at the scene again and felt dry heaves, but he could expel no more from his body. Then he looked at Umbra, who was walking to the middle of the field, surrounded by the corpses of his team. Umbra looked at him then, his eyes flashed again, and he began to grow old once more; it looked like he was dying right in front of A's eyes.
"Why, Michael? Why did you let us all die like this? You could have done something about it, but you just stood there and watched us die. I trusted you to watch over them, and my children, but it seems I was mistaken to trust you in the first place. It seems I made a grave error in giving watch of my children over to you." A had tears in his eyes as he shouted
"No, it's not like that at all! I don't even know what you're talking about! You know I would rather die myself than watch all of my pokemon die!" Umbra laughed scornfully, and the dead pokemon surrounding him, to A's horror, began to laugh with him. Then Umbra hissed as he fell to the ground, dead,
"Then how is it that you stand and we do not? You are the one at fault here! It is because of you that we all lie dead here, and if you had never entered our lives, we wouldn't be this way!" A covered his ears and screamed in emotional agony and horror, then he ripped Savior out of its sheath and shouted to the general area at the top of his lungs
"WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS?! I SWEAR WHEN I FIND YOU, YOU WILL FIND NEW MEANING FOR THE WORD PAIN!"
"Oh, is that right? And just what do you think you can do to me, whelp?"
A whirled around and saw a shadow behind him. A pointed his sword at the shadow and asked
"Are you the one who killed all my friends, you bastard?!" The shadow laughed derisively and said
"Weren't you listening to your friend? You are the cause of their demise! But don't worry, you'll soon join them. Of course, I wouldn't depend on their forgiveness when you reach them." A reacted and fired an inferno at the shadow. It simply passed through it, and the shadow laughed again, saying
"Despite your training, you aren't thinking clearly. Don't you know shadows are insubstantial? Bah, no matter. Even if that weren't the case, you could not hope to match me. The irony of this place is that I cannot be destroyed here, since this is your mind. You, on the other hand, are at my mercy. Too bad for you I don't have any." A ignored this and began dashing to and fro through the shadow, striking with various elements. For five minutes he did this, executing all sorts of complicated maneuvers. When he finished, he stood in the same place and watched incredulously as the shadow made no movements. In fact, nothing had happened, as if A had never moved against it at all.
"What did I say to you, weakling Arceus Knight? I cannot be defeated in here! This isn't your nightmare, it is my reality! You can do this again and again, but it will be the same song and dance. And this is a tango you can't dance!" A growled and replied
"Bastard! It doesn't matter how much I have to do it, I will hit you until you no longer stand!" The shadow snorted and said
"Oh? So what if I don't stand? What if I crawl?" The shadow's form shimmered and crawled, and after a short period, the shadow was revealed as a large spider, slightly larger than an Ariados.
"Crawl into my web, said the spider to the fly." A narrowed his eyes and retaliated
"Do you know what happens to spiders when you put them into a fire? They die, just like everything else!" He slashed Savior in the direction at the enemy, releasing a torrent of flames. The spider didn't move; instead it replied
"If everything dies with fire, then you are no exception." Webbing emanated from both ends of the spider, and a shiny mirror was created in front of the spider. The mirror absorbed the attack, then threw it back at A, who barely managed to dodge. He growled in frustration, and the spider said
"What's wrong? A little singed? Haven't you learned? You can't burn a demon; hellfire is natural to us." Suddenly, tight bands restricted A's movements, and he saw very thin but strong webs surrounding his body, nearly invisible.
"And now, a little roach is nothing but lunch." A growled again and shouted
"Damn it, do I have to say it again?! I will not stop until you learn a new meaning for pain! But I suppose if that has to be heartburn, then come and get it, you son of a bitch!" The spider chuckled and crawled its way toward him. When it was merely five feet away, A ripped out of the webbing and stabbed Savior in its direction.
The spider began to laugh and transformed into Rose, and A impale the imposter with Savior. A stood in horror. Then he shook his head, shouting
"No, I won't fall for it! You're nothing more than a manipulative monster, relying on the fear of others to survive." A stared the imposter deep into the scarlet eyes it was currently using and said
"Without that, you are nothing more than a pathetic weakling, and I'll prove it." A pulled his sword out of 'Rose' and jabbed to the monster's head. Savior skewered the imposter in the head, and it screamed, ominously sounding like Rose. 'Rose' fell to the ground and the monster appeared next to A. Then it looked down at the scene, saying to A
"That was brutal. Don't tell me that you thought that was me. How heartless! I wonder, you refuse to kill pokemon, so why would you do that? That wasn't me."
A whirled around and slashed at his foe, yelling
"Because you only prey on fear! I know in my heart that isn't really Rose, and none of my pokemon are gone, except for Blitz and Umbra! And to make sure that never happens, I will kill you here and now!"
"Oh?" The monster began to laugh, and then it said sarcastically
"You're just too smart to fall under my illusions, aren't you? But what if I bring someone that isn't part of this? I drew you into this dream, and I can draw 'her' in as well." It then closed its wings, then opened them revealing a startled 'Green'.
"You can't say she's not real. Just watch." He slapped 'Green', making her cry out and bleed from her nose. A darted forward and grabbed Green, slashing at his enemy at the same time.
"Even if she isn't real, you still won't win over me. Good doesn't always triumph over evil; I'm not naive. But you won't win this." The monster snorted again and said
"In case you keep forgetting, you don't have the strength to take me down. I'm the perfect Rocket Project. I outmatch the power of the Arceus Knights themselves. But you will not win this fight!" A positioned Savior above his head and behind his body, saying
"I forgot nothing, I'm simply going to prove you wrong." Then he swung Savior down, striking the earth below him and sending an earthquake toward it.
The monster waited for a second, then stomped on the ground, dispelling the earthquake.
"How pathetic! Did you really expect a weak attack like that to harm me? Let me show you pain." The monster suddenly teleported in front of A and knocked Savior out of his hands. He unexpectedly grabbed A by his neck and slammed him through one of the trees. The monster, still holding his neck, stretched his arm to an incredible length and slammed A through many more trees before slamming him on the ground. A lay still for a moment, then chuckled and began to push himself up, saying
"You call that pain? I suffered far worse from a paper cut." A stood and spat blood to the ground.
"If you're going to fight, put up or shut up."
A summoned Savior back to his hand. The sword flew from its place on the ground, and when A had it securely in his hand, he fired a Dark Pulse at the monster. It stood in place and caught the dark twister in its hand; it morphed the attack into a ball, then forged it into a sword.
"Put up or shut up? I've been the one dealing blows so far." He suddenly vanished and reappeared slashing at A, who ducked under the slash. The force of the swing sliced an entire few acres of dead trees behind them. A covered Savior in electricity, secured his grip, then swung upward, shouting
"But you're not the only one who can!"
The monster smirked and let A's sword phase through him, as if he was a ghost. It began to laugh at A's failure, then taunted him.
"You're not going to hurt me in here. Either way, I already cut you." A regarded him with a confused look.
"You'll feel it soon." Suddenly A's shoulder exploded with blood.
A jumped back, grasping the shoulder but ignoring the pain. He transferred Savior to his right hand, saying
"This is my strong hand anyway."
He twirled Savior through the air, creating a hurricane, tearing up the trees and sending them all at his enemy. The monster began to grin, then started to spin in the air, creating a twister. The twister immediately smashed the trees into pieces, and the monster roared, directing the segments of trees towards A. A smirked and didn't move.
The segments tore through his body, and the remainder of his face smirked as he crumbled to earth and red water. The monster appeared surprised until he was skewered through his back. It turned to see that A threw his sword. A smirked and said
"You think you're the only one who can manipulate?"
A disappeared, reappearing behind Alpha and ripping his sword through him, then jumping back before it could retaliate.
The monster looked back at A, and then at his wound. He let the blood run until a hellhound appeared from the pool of blood.
"Get 'em boy!" the imposter shouted. The hellhound, crouched and leapt toward A. He secured his grip on Savior and began twirling around, holding his sword up and slicing the hellhound up. He stopped and smirked, then raised an army of earthen mannequins. His sword lit up, he pointed it at his enemy and shouted
"Charge!"
The monster cracked its neck and raised its right hand, stopping the mannequins in their tracks. He suddenly made his hand into a fist and the mannequins crumbled. It yawned and laid down on the air, then called out to A
"Hey Michael! When you begin to really fight, please tell me. I'm falling asleep here."
A vein pricked up on A's head, then he calmed down. He used Psychic on his sword to send the monster flying and dashed behind him, hitting it with Night Slash. The monster yawned again and stood up, brushing the dust off himself.
"Okay, looks like you're no fun anymore." It then pointed at A, who wondered what he was doing until he saw a black energy ball charging at the tip of his finger. A braced himself for the attack and saw a large black beam flying at him. A held his breath and took the hit after seeing that there was no dodging it. He covered his sword with an extra layer of steel and twisted his feet into the ground to gain leverage. Then he tilted his sword up as he was being pushed back, deflecting the worst of the move. He fell over from the energy exerted during the maneuver.
A got up off the ground in pain and opened his eyes to be met with a punch from the monster. It lifted him up and said
"You know, Arceus Knights are supposed to be powerful." It punched A again.
"You, on the other hand, are the weakest so far." It punched him again, this time making A cough blood.
"I don't see why Arceus chose you." This time it kicked A back onto the floor and pressed its foot onto his chest, then shouted
"Pitiful Arceus Knight, don't you understand?! All your efforts are for naught! I dwarf your power; your weak blade has been the instrument of your loss! You rely too much on a blade that hasn't completely accepted you yet!"
A stared daggers at Alpha, then spat blood in his face, with yet more defiance.
"Screw you. How could I expect you to understand matters that you don't take the time to look at? Real power isn't determined only by physical strength. It's also determined by one's willingness to stand up for themselves, their willingness to fight for those they hold close. But most importantly-"
A spat more blood in his face again, then continued
"It's determined by one's ability to never give up, no matter how grim the situation. Look at you; how many have fallen to your feet and begged for mercy? Hundreds? Thousands? Well, I'm breaking your streak. You'll never get me to give in, no matter what you do. This may be an old song and dance, but it doesn't matter to me; I've never been much of a dancer anyways. I refuse to play by your rules."
The monster wiped the blood off its face and took its foot off A's chest. It walked around him for a second, giving A a chance to catch his breath. Then it spoke again.
"Alright. Let's me guess, you think that you'll defeat me because you've faced bigger enemies before? Cipher and Team Rocket? Those fools are nothing compared to me. You believe that you may win this war by your will power. However, the fact of the matter is that you will lose." A staggered up to his feet and looked at the monster as it ran its claws through the fabric of space as it walked, causing the scenery change.
"Let me show you what the future has in store for you.
A summoned his blade to his hand again, and he began to hear the whispering in his ears and mind again.
"Whatever he shows you, remember that it is nothing more than an illusion. He believes that we are not connected. The truth is, you simply haven't found the right path to unlock your full power. You must be willing to hurt back, or else you can't keep your foe down. Remember those words."
Once the scenery changed A noticed that the area changed into a barren wasteland… if that was even possible. A noticed that they were in the middle of what looked like the Sanctuary, only that everything was destroyed and ravaged. There were corpses everywhere, mainly of Rick's team. The monster chuckled at the sight and led A to another area of the Sanctuary, where he saw the corpses of dead Ralts and Kirlias. A backed from the disturbing sight and threw up.
The monster laughed and said evilly
"This is a reality that you will have to accept. You will fail and all their lives will be at your fault. A reminder that no one is invincible, not even you and that ridiculous sword." It smirked.
"But the best is what happens to Green." A immediately glared at his foe.
"Oh yes, Team Rocket's shooting target." A immediately swung Savior at the monster, but it disappeared and reappeared behind A, saying
"Do you know how much blood she will shed? It surprises me how much blood such a young girl can carry." A whirled and shouted
"But it never surprises me how little a bastard such as yourself carries! And if you weren't scared of being hit by my sword, we'd see that! But you know as well as I do that you are too weak to deal with pain. Oh, you act high and mighty now, but what happens when you actually get hurt? Face me like a man, not a coward!" The monster smirked again and held its arms out wide, taunting
"Very well! Attack me, I won't move or dodge." A suddenly lunged forward and plunged Savior through its chest. The monster chuckled and said
"See? Nothing happened to me." It grabbed A's wrist.
"But I can't say the same for you." It immediately slashed A's chest with his claws. A retaliated by firing a beam through the monster's chest. It laughed and slashed him again. It then lifted A and threw him to a building, which shattered the scenery sending them back to the dead forest.
The monster appeared again and launched Savior out of its chest. The sword flew and spun through the air and stuck into the ground next to A. The monster walked up to the wounded A and brought out tentacles from its body. A lifted his head to look at the enemy and was whipped by the eight tentacles repeatedly. The tentacles then held A down and kept him away from Savior. The monster's' smirk disappeared as it charged another beam on its finger and pointed it at A's head, point blank.
A closed his eyes after he knew he couldn't fight the hold, and he contemplated how wasted his time as an Arceus Knight had been. He suddenly heard a snarl and opened his eyes to see the Umbreon from Rick's team tackling the monster, making him let go of A.
For the first time, the monster appeared irritated.
"You! I don't remember inviting you." He snarled and replied
"I don't need one to kill you!" He immediately attacked the monster, distracting it. While it was distracted, A grabbed his sword, covered it with fire, then swung at his foe, catching him by surprise and pushing him back in pain. Alpha suddenly retaliated by punching A in the head and making him roll back to his original location.
The monster and Dartz then lunged at each other and wrestled on the ground for a few seconds until it kicked Dartz off of him. Dartz landed next to A in a heap and asked him
"You okay?"
A laughed, either from the pain or from all the hits to his head
"I'm alright. Just a little beat. What are you doing here?"
"Green was worried so I came here to see what was going on with you. I didn't expect to ever see Alpha again though."
A said to him with a surprised tone
"You know what this thing is?"
"Yeah, he's called Alpha. He's the strongest Rocket Project. I'll explain that to you later. For now I have to beat him out of your head and reseal him."
A tried to stop him, saying
"You're not planning to fight him alone, are you?" Dartz shrugged him off and said
"I've done it in the past. I know how to fight him." Dartz suddenly turned into his human form and summoned his spear.
"I'll make it quick! You rest."
"How did you summon that spear?"
"I'm not answering questions. Stay out of the way A."
A nodded and rested while Dartz stepped forward and took a battle formation. Soon though, the battle was becoming intense, and A couldn't stand to wait around any longer, injuries or not. He grabbed Savior, which began to pulse in his hand. He looked at it in astonishment and felt a strange force push him back to the ground.
Then he heard the same voice, the one that had been plaguing him for a while now, ever since the team's battle against Avion.
"Do you remember my words, A? Tell me, are you willing to hurt this monster back?"
"Isn't that obvious enough already? I said I wanted to make it pay, and find a new meaning for pain! Who are you, anyway?"
"I am the very sword you wield. I was rather pleased with the name you bestowed upon me. It's quite fitting, given your nature and duty. But now we are getting off track. You are not powerful enough to defeat this monster, you realize that, yes?"
A growled and replied
"Of course I know it, but I don't want to stop! If only I could unlock Judgement, then I might stand a chance." The voice chuckled, then said
"Believe it or not, you have already twice activated Judgement on my blade." A's eyes widened and he said
"That's impossible! X told me my Battle Form would be unlocked when I used my ultimate attack! So why didn't that happen? And when did I use Judgement twice without realizing it?"
"You first used it in your battle against Avion. That electric attack you unleashed at the peak of your anger was certainly above your usual level. Surely you know that."
A stopped to think on that for a moment, then the voice, apparently Savior, continued.
"Your second use of Judgement was during your battle against Alpha. You summoned one of the strongest winds, a hurricane, and controlled it. That certainly takes power."
A thought for a few more seconds, then said
"Okay, but if I've used it twice already, then how has my Battle Form remained unlocked?"
"You've been holding yourself subconsciously back. You must let go, to accept the power that flows through you. You do not yet have the capacity to hold your form at length. We must finish this battle here, then I shall train you to your ultimate level, where you can hold your true Battle Form for any length of time you choose."
A breathed deeply, his wounds flaring up again, and he asked
"Okay, so how do I unlock it? I could really use it right now."
"Clear your mind like you never have before. It must be completely empty. Then, you shall feel my presence. My image may be revealed to you; I do not know on that point. However, it will be painful the first time. After that, it becomes much easier."
A took another deep breath and said
"Alright, here goes nothing." He closed his eyes and began to remove himself from reality. His pains, his worries, all his problems vanished. Then he felt something, something he couldn't get rid of. And it seemed to emanate from his sword.
A gasped as his eyes flew open; it felt like molten lead was being poured through his veins, and he worked hard to keep himself from shouting out in pain. He closed his eyes and heard a resounding CRACK!
He stood and opened his eyes, and he saw what appeared to be his true Battle Form. He could see that he was wearing highly polished silver plate armor, with his sigil stamped onto the chest piece. The armor would have been heavy, but A's immense strength allowed him to move around easily. He spotted a flash of white behind him, and upon looking he saw a long, white cape with silver trim. There appeared to be something else on it, but he couldn't quite figure out what. Finally he looked at the sword in his grasp, and he couldn't help but gasp in amazement.
Savior had transformed as well. Now it was a claymore, a very long one by the looks of it, almost four feet long total. The last six inches, give or take, of the blade bulged out in the shape of a diamond, and set into the exact middle of it was a diamond-shaped opal. A checked the cross guard and gasped again.
He saw the main opal, set into the cross guard, exactly where the blade and hilt met. It was far larger than before, and the pommel was now made of a thick, heavy disc of metal, presumably to balance the blade out. Although it was very long, and though it must have been heavy, A found he could easily hold it with one hand.
Alpha looked at him and roared
"NOT AGAIN!"
A didn't speak. Instead he challenged Alpha by pointing the claymore at him. Alpha roared again and lunged for A, who suddenly punched Alpha, launching him into a tree. Alpha jumped back on his feet and charged for A. A tilted his head and sighed. He stuck the claymore into the ground and a rock fist shot out of the ground and hit Alpha before he could reach A.
A grabbed Alpha's leg and slammed him on the ground multiple times before throwing him into the air and firing an ice blade at him, freezing his wings. A waited for a few seconds and began to count down.
"3...2...1". Once he finished Alpha crashed down hard onto the ground.
A walked up to Alpha and kicked him, forcing him to roll on the ground until he stood up. A lunged for Alpha and repeatedly slashed Alpha. Alpha fell on his back in pain, and A stood over him.
Alpha still defiantly laughed and taunted A, saying
"When did you grow a backbone?"
A growled and lifted his claymore to end Alpha, but suddenly his form shattered and he was left wondering what just happened. A then thought out loud.
"What happened!? I thought I could hold that battle form."
He looked down at Alpha who was now laughing and jabbed his claw through A's gut and began to lift him up. Alpha got up as well and said
"Oh your trump card just failed you. Nighty night you sham!"
Alpha charged a beam onto his finger and aimed it at A's heart. However, he was suddenly thrown off by a shadow blade from Dartz, who looked at Alpha and chuckled.
Dartz then said to Alpha
"I wouldn't do that."
"Oh? So the mangy mutt lives?"
"You'll be surprised. I needed some time to prepare."
"For what?"
"Look behind you."
Alpha looked back and saw his sarcophagus in the middle of the field.
"What!? How!? The Sealing Spell!"
Alpha looked back at Dartz and was met with a flying kick from the Umbreon. As he was kicking him Dartz yelled
"Never take your eyes off your enemy!"
Alpha staggered back and A managed to get on his feet. Dartz then said to A
"Hey A, want to help me with this?"
A looked at the sarcophagus and then at the staggered Alpha and nodded.
"Gotcha!"
They both then swung their weapons at A, baseball style, and they sent Alpha flying into the sarcophagus. The barbed wire in the sarcophagus held Alpha in place and the doors of the sarcophagus closed as Alpha was saying defiantly
"A, really soon you will make a mistake that will anger Arceus. You think yourself as so good; let's see how you react when the Judgement comes down at you!"
Dartz ran up to the sarcophagus and closed the doors yelling
"That's enough out of you!" He then sealed it shut and let out a sigh of relief while saying
"It's over!"
A walked up to Dartz and pat him on his back
"Thank you for saving me."
"I couldn't have just let you get killed. Then how could I have faced Green?"
A then sweatdropped and asked nervously
"Umm...by any chance were you here for the beginning of my dream?"
"Yeah, don't worry about it. I'm keeping my mouth shut. I expect you to keep your mouth shut about this dream too. Trust me, don't speak of it." A nodded his head and replied
"Alright. Now what?" Dartz told him
"Wake up! I'll see you on the other side." Dartz then suddenly vanished. The scene turned black for him, and he felt lighter than air.
He burst up on the operating table, gasping for breath. He hurriedly checked his body over for the injuries he sustained during the battle, but found nothing.
"Then it really was just a dream." His attention was diverted as Green flung herself into his arms, hugging him tightly and saying
"Oh, thank Arceus! I was so worried that something had happened to you, something that couldn't have been fixed!" A smirked, than patted her on the back and said
"I'm fine. It was just a bad dream is all." She pushed herself back, and A's attention was caught as he spotted dried blood that came from her nose, and there was still some flowing, too.
"Green, when did you get a nosebleed?" A asked her. Green regarded him with confusion, then wiped at her nose. When she drew her hand back and spotted the blood, she flinched in surprise. Then she mumbled
"I didn't even feel my nose bleeding. I guess it had something to do with our altitude or something." A didn't say a word as he climbed out of the bed, worry filling the pit of his stomach. He remembered the scene from his dream, and he thought
"Was that a nightmare... or something else?"
Ta-da! So, what do you think of A's Battle Form? BTW, before anybody says anything, GalladeFenrir44 and I both worked on the Dream Battle. We had an equal part in it, with the exception of the very beginning. So there. Anyway, keep a sharp eye out for the next chapter, which I plan to get out soon! Cheers!