AN: Um, completely distracted by Invisible Man. Words; I lack them. Or is it straight train of thought? Either way, I don't have either.
Chapter 25. In Which Darius and May Arrive in Mossdeep and There is Trouble at the Space Center
When Darius and May left Lilycove, they waved goodbye to Tyler and Gabby. Gabby had received a call from the news station demanding that she and Tyler return to their assigned reports immediately or risk the loss of their jobs. It was with a heavy frown that Gabby waved goodbye, mumbling about missing history in action. Tyler simply grinned and ruffled Darius's hair, which annoyed the boy greatly. Tyler simply laughed and dodged Darius's (semi)-friendly swipe.
It took the children 3 days to make the journey from Lilycove to Mossdeep. Since Swampert wasn't big enough to keep them both out of the water while surfing, they flew with Ryuushi over the water. Because of the weight of the two children and the long distance however, they'd had to made multiple stops on the great boulders that occasionally stuck out of the sea. They'd had to sleep on the rocks too, so as not to have to worry about falling off Ryuushi's back while they were in flight. All in all, when they finally did reach Mossdeep, both children couldn't help but give a little cheer. They'd relaxed under the trees that grew on the shore for a while before setting out to explore the city. They were happy to discover that there was a Trainer's Inn just like the ones in Rustboro and Mauville, and they quickly booked two rooms. May voted to take a brief nap and meet up with Darius later. Darius agreed and set out in search of information. The only problem was, the city didn't have any kind of library or museum, nor any public place he'd be able to get information. The boy sighed as yet another person shrugged and waved him off.
"If it were space-related, I'd say the Mossdeep Space Center, but I doubt they'd have anything on some dusty old legend." The man tossed over his shoulder as he walked away. Darius sighed in defeat and closed his eyes, tipping his head back to face the sky. He wondered briefly if the whole trip hadn't been a waste. May couldn't have a gym battle because the gym leaders were away, and he was having no luck getting any info. Darius's eyes snapped open as he felt a small hand grasp at his shirt and begin tugging at the fabric. He glanced down to see a nervous young boy watching him, holding a strange rock in one hand and Darius's shirt in the other.
"Um, I might know someone who might know something." The boy murmured. Then he dropped Darius's shirt and clutched the rock tighter. "Well, he might know I mean. He knows lots of stuff afterall." Darius smiled encouragingly at the boy, who seemed to loosen slightly.
"Can you tell me where this person lives?" Darius asked curiously. The boy shook his head.
"I can't tell you, but I can show you. Wanna meet him?" Darius nodded and the boy smiled, taking Darius's hand and leading him down the road.
"He's not home a lot of the time, so he might not be there now." The little boy warned. "But I saw him today, so he should be home." The boy glanced down at the rock in his hand and offered it to Darius, still walking. Darius accepted the rock and turned it over with his one free hand, the other still being in the child's grasp. "He says it's called a 'King's Rock'." The boy explained, beaming now. "He said, that if you're a trainer, and you have your Pokemon hold that rock, then something cool will happen." Darius nodded and put the rock back in the boy's expectant hand.
"Are you going to be a Pokemon trainer when you grow up?" Darius asked the boy. The child nodded vigorously. He suddenly stopped however, and Darius very nearly ran him over.
"This is his house, but it doesn't look like he's home..." The boy said sadly. Darius shrugged.
"Thank you anyway." Darius said. The boy nodded vigorously, grinning.
"My name's Michael." The boy said. Darius nodded.
"Thank you for trying to help Michael." The older boy said. Michael ducked his head nervously and laughed before running away, still clutching the King's Rock. Darius watched him go before turning to look at the house he'd been brought to. It looked like every other house he'd seen, and he guessed that if he were to leave and come back later, he'd never remember which house was his destination. He began looking around to see if he could identify any landmarks, but hesitated as he spotted a man dressed in a white lab coat running down the road, nearly tripping over himself in his haste. Darius blinked in surprise as he recognised the man from Meteor Falls, Professor Cosmo.
"Are you alright Professor?" Darius called, waving to catch the researcher's attention. Cosmo stopped, nearly falling over and stared at Darius incredulously.
"You're the boy that fell with the bridge." He muttered in confusion. Then his eyes lit up and he beamed. "You didn't die! I'm so glad!" And then just as suddenly his eyes darkened with worry again and he ran up to Darius, catching the boy by the shoulders and looking like he was about to cry. "You have to save us!" He yelped. Darius frowned at the speed at which the man's emotions changed.
"What happened?" He asked. Cosmo shook his head.
"It's those thugs that tried to steal my meteorite!" He blubbered. "They've gone and taken Orson and Delilah hostage!" Darius blinked in surprise. What was Team Magma doing taking people hostage in Mossdeep if they'd already awakened Groudon?
"Do you know what they want?" He asked the shaking professor. Cosmo shook his head.
"They sent some kind of weird notice earlier saying they were coming to take all the rocket fuel and resistance was futile." The man cried. Darius nodded.
"Take me there." He said shortly. Cosmo hesitated before nodding and running back the way he came, Darius following closely. The boy stopped only long enough to release Ayashii and send her to May. The girl would probably get mad at him if he went off on his own again afterall, he thought with amusement before running after Cosmo.
Steven sat cross-legged on the floor, arms crossed and eyes focused on glaring at the nearest idiot. The member of Team Magma kept flinching every time he noticed Steven's gaze, which gave the champion a large amount of satisfaction. He'd probably have been able to feel even more satisfaction if he could release his Pokemon and thoroughly arrest the damn criminals. What was stopping him was the belly-shirt woman. All the other members seemed to be following her orders, and Steven recognised that, whoever she was, she was the one in charge. She was also the one who'd taken his father hostage. Edward Stone had been visiting the Space Center during his time off when the members of Team Magma had appeared. Steven sighed and closed his eyes. One of the researchers had fled screaming when Team Magma had first entered the building, and Steven held only a faint glimmer of hope that the man would get away and be rational enough to call the police.
Steven's eyes flew open at the sound of someone pounding on the entrance door to the Space Center. The grunts looked at each other nervously before turning to the belly-shirt woman as one. The woman sighed and pulled a packet of gum out of her pocket, popping a piece into her mouth.
"You idiots deal with it." She sighed, strolling for the staircase. "Keep an eye on things Ninetails." She said to her Pokemon. The fire type, which stood over Steven's bound father, growled and yipped, turning to face the door.
"Wait a minute Marge!" One of the men yelped, sounding nervous. Marge turned and levelled a glare at the speaker.
"From the sound of it, there's only one person out there." Marge said in a low voice. "Surely you aren't telling me six members of Team Magma can't handle one civilian?" The man flinched back at the dangerous tone in the woman's voice.
"We can handle it!" Another man said in a shaky voice. Marge smiled.
"Good. I'll leave it to you." She turned and strode up the stairs, disappearing from sight. The six men glanced at each other nervously before turning to face the door. The person on the other side seemed to have given up with knocking, and Steven briefly wondered if they'd left. His question was answered however when one of the double doors was knocked off its hinges and Darius Stellon walked through the hole, looking around curiously as if he were browsing the contents of a store, and had not just kicked the door down. One of the men jumped back and yelped in surprise.
"You're the nosy dead kid!" He yelped. Darius turned to give him a glare.
"For your information." He said sourly. "Just because someone fell off a cliff doesn't mean they're dead."
"Darius! Long time no see!" Steven's father called jovially from his position on the floor. Darius turned and stared at the man incredulously.
"Ed? What in the world are you doing here? And tied up too?"
"Ah." Ed said. "I love space, and I thought I'd have a nice little visit to the Space Center during my time off, and next thing I know these hooligans are tying me up as a hostage! What nerve, right?" Darius nodded, a slightly exasperated smile on his face at Ed's attitude considering his situation. Two of the Magmas stepped forward, pulling Pokeballs off their belts.
"That's right kid, we've got a hostage, so don't you think of trying anything!" Darius turned his eyes back to them, and almost faster than Steven could see, he pulled a Pokeball off his belt, releasing a large Mightyena who quickly charged at the men, knocking them to the ground. He followed up with a Breloom who released several spores, knocking the men unconscious. Then he turned his attention to the Ninetails that still stood by Ed. Boy and Pokemon locked eyes, and they stared each other down until the Ninetails turned away and strolled up the staircase. Darius watched it go, slightly surprised, before shaking his head and hurrying over to Ed.
"Is, is it over?" A nervous voice asked from the doorway. Steven glanced over to see the researcher that had fled hiding behind the door that was still intact, peeking around the edge nervously. Darius smiled kindly at the man.
"It's safe Professor Cosmo, don't worry." The boy said, turning back to the ropes that bound Steven's father. Sighing, the champion rose to his feet and approached the boy.
"What brought you to Mossdeep anyway?" He asked, startling Darius. The boy blinked a few times before going back to the ropes.
"I was told in Lilycove that I'd be able to get some info on the ancient legends of Hoenn in Mossdeep, but I haven't been able to find a library or anything. Everyone I've asked has just shrugged me off too." The boy sighed as he pulled the ropes off Ed. The businessman laughed and stretched.
"You know!" He said, stretching his arms over his head. "Young Steven here knows lots about history and legends. He's fascinated by the stuff." Darius turned a curious eye to Steven.
"You know anything about the legend of Kyogre and Groudon?" He asked. Steven cocked an eyebrow.
"What part of the legend do you want do hear?" He asked. Professor Cosmo interrupted however by clearing his throat nervously.
"Um, shouldn't you stop them from taking the rocket fuel first?" He asked nervously. Darius nodded.
"Probably." He stood up and turned to Steven, nodding towards the stairs. "Shall we see what's up?" He asked. Steven nodded.
"And afterwards, we can talk more on the legends and such." He said. Darius nodded, grinning.
When they got to the top floor, Steven was surprised to notice that the woman who had been in charge was nowhere to be found, nor was her Ninetails. He quickly stored the thought away for later however as he followed Darius's lead deeper into the Space Center. The boy had recalled his Breloom, but he'd let the Mightyena stroll alongside him as they approached the sound of voices. Upon rounding a bend in the hallway, Steven's eyes landed on a man whose posture, clothing, and air of command marked him as the one being in charge. The man turned as Darius strode into the room, Steven close on his heels.
"Hello again Maxie." Darius greeted casually, as if he were speaking with an old acquaintance. The man cocked an eyebrow at the boy and lifted a hand to stay the grunts that had jumped to their feet.
"I suppose I really must make an effort to remember your name boy." The man said coolly. Darius grinned at him.
"It's Darius. And you don't have to remember it if you don't feel like it. I just want to know what you're planning to do with the rocket fuel." Darius shrugged. "You've already awoken Groudon, so what could you possibly need this for?" Steven felt his entire body tense at the boy's words. Groudon was already awakened? How had that happened without his knowledge? The man with whom Darius spoke lifted his hands grandly.
"Now that Groudon is awakened, we have no further use for Mount Chimney as it is." He announced. "We are going to use the fuel to create an explosion that will awaken the volcano properly!"
"You're crazy!" Steven shouted at the man, staring incredulously. "Do you know how many people would be killed?" The man levelled his gaze at Steven, still smiling.
"Of course there will be deaths; there is always collateral damage caused in the coming of a revolution. But people will be so much happier after! You must see it." Steven could only stare at the man speechlessly. He felt Darius tense and shake slightly at the man's words. Maxie was clearly off his rocker.
"There is a way to avoid casualties Maxie." Darius said lowly, addressing the man. Maxie cocked an eyebrow and Darius continued, pulling a Pokeball off his belt. "Recognize that the world is what it is and accept it without this revolution." He was glaring now, his eyes cold as ice and sharp as daggers. Steven frowned internally. This wasn't the nervous Darius that hid from the police, nor was it the confident Darius that systematically dealt with Team Aqua and Team Magma's doings. This was an angry Darius. This was the boy Steven had pictured when he'd set out to confront him on his connection to Team Galactic. The boy's Mightyena leaned against his thigh, teeth bared and snarling at Maxie. The man took a step back, but he continued to smile.
"It seems I've hit a nerve." He observed in a voice that betrayed his sudden nervousness. He reached down and carefully pried a Pokeball off his belt, releasing his own Mightyena, which took up a defensive stance upon seeing it's opponent.
"It seems you have." Darius growled back dangerously. Steven came up beside the boy and released his Skarmory. He cautiously shot the boy a warning glare, but Darius ignored him. Maxie's words must have reminded him of what Cyrus had been trying to do back in Sinnoh. Wiping out the whole world, with no thought to the casualties.
"Let's even this out." One of the men behind Maxie said. He too had the air of a commander, though he obviously wasn't as high as Maxie. He released a Magcargo and grinned sharply at Steven. "In this battle, you're at a disadvantage." He pointed out. "The name's Mack, by the way."
"Kuraishi, Bite." Darius growled. The Mightyena snarled and leapt at Maxie's Pokemon, catching the scruff of it's neck in his jaws and pressing the smaller Pokemon to the ground, worrying at the flesh in his jaws as he did so.
"Don't think you can get away that easily!" Mack declared. "Magcargo, Flamethrower!"
"Blow the fire away Skarmory!" Steven commanded evenly. Skarmory flapped her wings and blew the Flamethrower off-course so that it failed to even brush Darius's Pokemon. Instead, the fire singed the coats of the other members of Team Magma that were simply hanging in the background, watching the fight uselessly. The assorted grunts jumped back with cries and yelps as they tried to avoid getting caught in the conflict. Mack turned to glare at them.
"Clear out you useless lugs!" He yelled, and they quickly scrambled to obey his orders.
"Skarmory, use Steel Wing!" Steven called sharply. Skarmory launched towards Magcargo, striking the Pokemon and knocking it out in one fell swoop. Mack turned back to the battle incredulously.
"I wonder who has the disadvantage here?" He asked slyly, grinning as Mack recalled his Pokemon, already reaching for another ball. Beside him, Darius remained silent, even as Maxie was forced to recall his Mightyena, using the Pokeball to free his Pokemon from the bloody teeth of his opponent.
"You're even fiercer than when we fought before Groudon." Maxie observed, taking another step back as he released his Crobat. Kuraishi turned to glance at Darius before lifting his head and howling, the sound echoing through the hallways and sending shivers down Steven's spine. Then the Pokemon began leaping around, first to the left, then back right, then a false lunge at Crobat, and then leaping back again, only barely letting his paws touch the ground. Each movement seemed faster than the first, and Steven quickly pulled his attention back to his own battle. Mack had sent out a Slugma while Steven had been distracted, and Skarmory seemed to have been hypnotized.
"Snap out of it Skarmory!" Steven called. The bird didn't react however, and Mack laughed.
"You've lost this battle already!" He called back with a laugh. "Flamethrower Slugma!"
"Dodge it!" Steven cried out. Skarmory seemed not to hear him, taking the attack directly, without any attempt at defence. The attack caused her pain, and Steven quickly recalled her before she could suffer too much.
"Aggron! Take out that Slugma!" The champion called as he released his Pokemon. Aggron roared and charged at Slugma, but as he approached the fire-type, his steps slowed, and soon he seemed to be under the same hypnosis as Skarmory. Steven gritted his teeth.
"How do you like my fire magic?" Mack asked, laughing. "No Pokemon can resist my influence! Prepare to suffer!" At his words Slugma's body seemed to explode in flames, scorching Aggron, who grunted in pain even as he stood entranced by the strange power Mack held.
"Cheap tricks." Darius's voice muttered from beside him. Steven's head swivelled to see the boy eyeing Mack's Slugma. His face was back to the calm and curious one he wore when battling, and Steven couldn't help but feel a tad relieved. Darius turned to glance at his own battle. Kuraishi had taken out Crobat, and Maxie was down to his Camerupt. The boy had switched to an Altaria, and he caught the bird's eye, nodding to Steven's battle. At his motion, the bird left Camerupt and flew at Slugma.
"Switch for a minute." He said to Steven. The champion blinked at him in surprise as the boy shifted his attention to Steven's opponent.
"Use Gust to kick up the wind!" Darius commanded. The bird screeched and began flapping her wings, quickly creating a buffeting wind that swept through the whole room. Steven noticed with curiosity that the temp seemed to increase rapidly as the wind blew. "Steven, can you have Aggron destroy one of those windows?" The boy asked, surprising the champion. When Steven looked at him questioningly, the boy grinned.
"We need to get cooler, fresh air in here. Otherwise we'll be roasted alive like an oven." Steven nodded and turned to look at Aggron. The Pokemon was looking around in confusion, seeming to be free of whatever Mack's trick had been.
"Aggron, use Headbutt on the windows!" He called, silently apologizing to all the scientists that worked at the Space Center in advance. The floor to ceiling panes of glass looked expensive. Aggron gave him a brief look of confusion before charging at the windows. Glass shattered and instantly the room seemed to cool as Altaria began blowing the hot air out the window.
"Intense heat can cause hallucinations." Darius explained to Steven as he watched Maxie and Mack's Pokemon struggling against the powerful wind that continued to flow about the room. "Slugma's flames heated the air around it, causing anything that got too close to fall under the influence of the illusions." Steven couldn't help but chuckle.
"I know the physics of it, but I'd never have thought of applying it to a battle." He admitted with a chuckle.
"Have Aggron use Iron Defence." Darius said quickly, a light glimmering in his eyes. Steven looked at him curiously but nodded.
"Aggron!" He called. The Pokemon, who seemed to have heard Darius's words, nodded, hunching down and strengthening his skin.
"Don't release the defence!" Darius called. Aggron nodded slightly, building his defence higher.
"While you're immobile, we'll strike!" Mack shouted. "Slugma, Overheat!"
"Defend Aggron while using Dragon Dance Ryuushi!" Darius called to his Altaria. The bird bobbed her head and began weaving her body in intricate motions, even as the wind kicked up by her flapping wings kept Slugma's attack from reaching Aggron.
"Whatever you're planning, it won't hold out against a double attack!" Maxie called, seeming to have regained a touch of his confidence back. "Flamethrower!" He called out, just as Mack called the same attack. The two tongues of fire flew towards their targets, and while Ryuushi's wind blew some of it out, the fire continued to fly forward. Before the fire could burn Aggron however, Ryuushi landed in front of him, using her body to shield Aggron from the attacks. As soon as the Flamethrowers petered out, she took to the air again, slightly singed, and continued to kick up a wind, weaving and bobbing in the Dragon Dance as she did so.
"I don't know what you're planning, but I doubt you can keep that strategy up!" Mack laughed. "Flamethrower again!" Camerupt and Slugma released their fire again, and again Ryuushi took the attacks instead of allowing Aggron to be hurt.
"What are you planning?" Steven asked Darius as he watched the dragon nervously. While it was true that fire-type attacks didn't have much effect on dragon-types, the Pokemon was still taking two powerful attacks at once, and repeatedly, and it was starting to show. Darius didn't respond however, watching Altaria intently.
"That should do it." He muttered before glancing around the room in a brief moment of confusion. Before Steven could ask what he meant, they boy grabbed his wrist and dragged him forward, charging straight for Maxie and Mack. The two men had only enough time to blink in bewilderment before Darius tackled them to the ground, pulling Steven down with him.
"Now Ryuushi!" He yelled. The dragon screeched and suddenly the entire room was filled with burning blue flames. Steven felt sweat collecting on his body as the temperature skyrocketed in the heat of the dragon's attack. He shifted his head slightly to glance at Darius, but the boy only winked and squeezed his eyes shut. Following his example, Steven did the same, and seemingly just in time. A huge flash lit up the insides of his eyelids, and he gasped as the heat shot up even higher then before. His head began to swim even as the darkness returned to his eyelids. He waited a minute to check that the heat seemed to be fading before cautiously pushing himself into a sitting position, opening his eyes as he did so. The entire room was covered in soot. Ryuushi lay on the ground, panting. Both Slugma and Camerupt, who seemed to have been in the middle of the inferno, lay unconscious. Aggron too was badly singed, though he was in better condition than the Magma's Pokemon. Darius rose to his feet and allowed Maxie and Mack to stand as well. The two men blinked in shock as they took in the condition of the room.
"For just a second, Ryuushi brought this room to a quarter the temperature of molten lava." Darius said calmly, staring at Maxie and Mack. He didn't say anything else as the men continued to stare. Steven could tell that they recognised what the boy had left unsaid. Finally, Maxie spoke quietly.
"We've failed to make the volcano erupt... and we've failed to control Groudon, even after we woke it." He looked down at his hand and slowly curled it into a fist. "Perhaps we are somehow misguided in our attempts to expand the land?" He stared silently at his hand, and Mack stood beside him, also quiet, staring at the floor. Maxie then looked up a Darius slowly.
"If we have been mistaken, then perhaps Archie too?" He asked, almost hopefully. The man shook his head and nodded to Darius, recalling his Camerupt. "There are things I need to look into. Farewell, Darius." He tipped his head to Steven and walked stiffly towards the stairwell. Mack glanced at Darius and Steven as well before recalling his own fainted Pokemon and hurrying after his boss. Darius watched them as they left and then turned to Steven, cracking a lopsided grin.
"I hope you've got a spare change of clothes with you." The boy grinned. Steven looked down at his suit to find the entire front covered in soot. A twist of the body showed him that the back of his suit was burnt, his skin showing through some of the more severely burned areas. Steven reached up and patted the top of his head to find that even his hair was a touch crispy. He shifted his eyes to Darius.
"Weren't you wearing that same outfit last time I saw you?" He asked, noting Darius's own clothes. The boy was still wearing the same black T-shirt and blue jeans that he'd been wearing the last couple of times the champion had seen him. Darius looked down and tugged lightly on the hem of his shirt, shaking loose some of the soot and laughing nervously.
"Well actually, it seems I hadn't thought pack a spare change of clothes, so I've just been washing these every chance I get. Every time I stopped at a Trainer's Inn, and Lynette let me use her washing machine while I was recovering there as well." Steven cocked an eyebrow, shaking his head.
"Come to my place- I'm sure I've got a change of clothes that will fit you too." Darius laughed awkwardly and rubbed the back of his head.
"Sorry about this." He mumbled. Steven shook his head and recalled Aggron into his Pokeball even as Darius did the same with Altaria.
Opinions? I've never been satisfied with this chapter. Darius was OOC, which is kinda ridiculous, considering I'm the one who created him in the first place. I'm going to blame his methods in this chapter on my mental state at the time of writing, and the fact that he's been concussed and hospitalized multiple times, and he reached his 'bullshit' threshold.