Chapter Thirty-Three: Siege of the North Part II
This is not good! Max thought as he leapt aside, just barely dodging Abomasnow's ice beam attack. In the moments that followed, the other pokémon took advantage of Abomasnow's focus on Max and attacked. Cecil whirled in with a slash attack, which just barely chipped off one of the icy, unnatural spikes that jutted from Abomasnow's body; Emolga loosed a thunderbolt; even Cody, who had rejoined the battle to help face this newest threat, managed to sneak in with a headbutt attack.
But Cody couldn't get away in time, and Max winced as he watched Abomasnow's arm swing down, slamming the zigzagoon away in a powerful wood hammer attack, made all the more painful by the hard, rough ice that covered the arm.
Abomasnow is destroying us! Max said as he simply watched the next wave of attacks: a coordinated strike consisting of Deputy Zebstrika's flame charge and the flamethrowers of Deputy Zoroark, Aiden, and Kuro. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this did more than anything up until now in the battle; Abomasnow was sent stumbling backwards, steam hissing and a huge crater melted into the icy armor on his stomach.
Abomasnow quickly regained his footing, opened his mouth, and blew out a gust of freezing wind filled with snow and ice, which hit everyone who was anywhere in front of him. Max couldn't get out of the way in time, and instead did his best to huddle down, enduring the cold that passed straight through his feathers and right to his very core.
The blizzard stopped soon enough as pokémon not caught in the blast – Cecil, as well as some more of the deputies and guildmasters – attacked, drawing Abomasnow's attention back towards them.
This is crazy, Max thought as he shook the accumulated snow and ice from his body, though still he stayed where he was, neither retreating nor attacking. Can we even win against this thing? He acts like he's taken no damage at all… Maybe he hasn't. The only attack that's even begun to penetrate all that ice were all those fire attacks combined, and it looks like even that didn't get completely through.
"Aim where the ice has been weakened!" Guildmaster Mandibuzz shouted as she circled overhead, waiting for the right moment to rejoin the fray. "That's our best bet!"
"Come on, Max," Zeke said, suddenly at Max's side; like Max, he'd been caught in the blizzard attack, and his fur still seemed frosted. "You and the other humans have to keep attacking. Otherwise, even with all the guildmasters and deputies fighting, it looks like we might lose.
Max got a hold of his fear as best he could and pushed it back. I'm done with running, so there's nothing left to do but fight. "All right, then, I'll give it another go!"
He sprinted forward, nearly tripping a couple times as blood tried and nearly failed to flow through his half-frozen legs. But soon he was picked up speed, running headlong towards Abomasnow and letting determination fill him, hoping that Abomasnow wouldn't turn until-
Now!
He didn't have another choice except to fire off the dragonbreath he'd been preparing earlier than he'd wanted; Abomasnow had seen him coming from the side, and he was turning to face him. Though Max wasn't nearly close enough to have a good shot at the weak spot on Abomasnow's body, he still managed to loose the dragonbreath while quickly pivoting about and running away. His charge didn't come without a cost – before he could get out of range, Abomasnow's ice beam attack hit him in a wing, miraculously leaving it unfrozen but still filling it with pain.
Abomasnow rushed after him, but was soon distracted as the Four Warriors jumped into the fray, using their horns to slash at Abomasnow from all sides. They were soon forced to retreat by another wood hammer attack, though they didn't escape before the grass-type attack had done plenty of damage to Keldeo and Terrakion.
Another wave of attackers followed immediately after – Braviary, Mandibuzz, and Emolga all flying down from above, all shouting out loudly.
What are they doing, making all that noise! It's as if they want to be stopped! Max thought as he saw Abomasnow swing his head upward, take a deep breath, and then exhale another giant gust of freezing wind and snow before the flying pokémon could even get close. All three were sent tumbling upwards into the air for a moment before falling back down and crashing to the ground not far away from Abomasnow; all three were heavily damaged, and from what Max could tell, Guildmaster Braviary was almost completely frozen, barely able to move despite his best efforts.
But the distraction did its trick. Before Abomasnow could turn his attention back to defending himself from ground enemies, practically everyone saw the opening and attacked. Keldeo, Virizion, Cobalion, and Terrakion attacked at once, with their horns; more fire from Zebstrika, Zoroark, Aiden, and Kuro further deepened the hole in Abomasnow's icy armor; others contributed with their own attacks, splitting Abomasnow's attention.
Abomasnow roared in apparent pain for the first time in the course of the battle, lashing out with an ice-punch at the pokémon who had dared come in close to use physical attacks. Cecil got the brunt of the attack, and he skidded into a drift some distance away before lying there, completely still, half buried in the snow.
"Cecil!" Alexa shouted as Max watched her fly down to his side, ignoring the fact that Abomasnow was now advancing on the fallen scyther.
We're doomed, Max thought as he nonetheless rushed forward again, joining others in an attempt to draw Abomasnow's attention away from Cecil and Alexa. He stopped short and launched his ancientpower attack, which landed at the same time as Cody's thunderbolt, a psychic blast from Elgyem, and another flame charge from Zebstrika. As accurate and determined as ever, Zebstrika managed to hit Abomasnow right at the previously made weak point in the ice, melting it further.
But like before, attacking at close-range came at a cost. Abomasnow swung out with another wood hammer attack, knocking Zebstrika out cold.
Max felt his heart tighten in his chest. About half of the guildmasters and deputies are down, Virizion and Terrakion aren't doing well against the ice attacks, Cecil's down, the rest of us are injured and tired, and Abomasnow's barely flinched. And… no, Kara, Zeke, no!
Zeke, with Kara perched precariously on his head, was running straight towards Abomasnow; there could be no doubt that Abomasnow could see them coming as drew back his arm, preparing to meet them head-on with an ice punch. There was no doubt that such a direct attack would do a lot of damage, and the damage they could possibly hope to do in return was not near enough to merit the cost.
Without thinking, Max rushed forward, hoping he could make it in time to stop them, or at least aid them. But they were already too far ahead. Max unconsciously slowed to a stop and watched as, just before they came within Abomasnow's reach, Kara shot off an electroweb attack, its power compounded by Zeke's own electricity.
The electroweb covered Abomasnow's entire body and sizzled against the ice, but it wasn't enough to stop the already thrown ice punch, which hit Zeke fully in the chest, knocking him out and hurling both him and Kara back.
But… It wasn't in vain! Max though as he rushed forward, the tiniest bit of hope surging through him. Abomasnow managed the punch because he'd already started it, but now he's having trouble moving, between the web and the electricity! Now's our chance!
Max wasn't the only one to notice the temporary immobility as all those still able to battle hurried to take advantage of Zeke and Kara's charge. Elgyem teleported in and psybeamed the back of Abomasnow's head at point-blank range, while the fastest and closest of those on the ground, Aiden and Kuro, attacked with fire fang, biting down hard on either of Abomasnow's arms and refusing to let go.
Not fire! Not now! It'll burn through the web! Max thought as he quickly let off another ancientpower attack and quickly ran away; seeing how badly this battle was going, he wasn't feeling nearly confident enough to try a dragonbreath. He looked back over his shoulder and saw his worries confirmed – the fire fangs had effectively burned through parts of the webbing, allowing Abomasnow some mobility once again. He threw the two fire-types off, and this time, they weren't able to get up right away again – both had taken quite a lot of damage already.
The Guildmasters, my team, everyone… They're being defeated one by one.
Cody saw the weakening web and the defeat of Kuro and Aiden too late; the zigzagoon couldn't stop himself in time to avoid the ice beam that encased one of his front legs in a visible layer of ice and brought him to a complete stop. Exhausted as he was from nearly two days of fighting now, he couldn't maintain consciousness anymore as he collapsed to the ground.
We're doomed, but I can't run anymore. I won't run, even if I'm dooming myself.
Before anyone could do anything, Abomasnow closed the distance between himself and his most recent target, picking up the unconscious zigzagoon and slinging him under his arm. Abomasnow turned and began to head towards Cecil and Alexa, the latter of whom – though mostly uninjured – began to panic, though she still refused to leave Cecil's side.
I've gotta try.
Max ran forward for what he feared would be the final time, letting his determination fill him and coat his talons as he ran, his dragonfire-coated feet melting the snow beneath him with each step.
If I can just flap my wings and jump, get enough air to reach his stomach and really tear into the gap in his armor with a dragon claw…
Max came to a stop halfway between Alexa and the approaching Abomasnow, making absolutely no attempt to be discreet about what he was doing. Abomasnow shifted his attention and dropped Cody to the ground, apparently to allow himself full movement in the fight that seemed imminent. He locked eyes with Max and sped his approach, once again winding back his arm for an ice punch.
Suddenly, the purplish energy around Max's talons disappeared as he stood there, paralyzed, unable to look away from Abomasnow's empty gaze.
I have to do it, he said as he tried to make himself move, fight, even run – to do something rather than stand there, just waiting to be finished off.
But he's just too… too… There's no way I can fight him. There's no way I can fight Guildmaster Abomasnow, even if I can work up the courage again. Abomasnow is-
No, not Abomasnow. That thing is not an abomasnow. It's a monster. No heart, no soul, just a pokémon possessed by the ice that encases it. I have to go. I have to fight, or I have to run, I don't care, I just need to do something!
But he was completely paralyzed by fear as Abomasnow's shadow fell over him, and up until the last moment he could do nothing to avoid the fist of ice that slammed into him like a wall of force, sending him sliding, tumbling across the snow as his vision faded in and out.
He eventually rolled to a stop and opened his eyes to find himself looking back the way he'd come. Blackness was closing in fast at the edge of his vision, but he could see Abomasnow steadily advancing, ignoring the attacks from the few others who were still conscious enough to battle. He could feel the rumble of the ground as the demon's steps drew nearer – or maybe that was the pounding of his heart sounding through his body, he couldn't tell. His vision darkened further, and for a moment, he almost thought he was drifting into complete unconsciousness, and he fought against it. Soon enough, though, he realized that the darkening was something else, something very different: a giant shadow over everything he could see that was slowly growing darker, as if some cloud was descending from above, its shadow becoming steadily more concentrated the lower it came.
I… I don't understand, Max thought as he slowly pushed himself into a sitting position. With some difficulty, he managed to tear his eyes away from the nearing threat of Abomasnow and instead looked up.
And right as his mind managed to comprehend the white pokémon that completely filled his vision, three voices – Reshiram's deep, booming roar, accompanied by the higher cadences of Vulpix and Bulbasaur on his back – shouted a battle cry that shook the entire battlefield.
Frozen in place – this time by awe rather than fear – Max watched as the still diving Reshiram opened his maw wider and let loose a waterfall of flames that cascaded straight onto Abomasnow. Max felt heat rolling off from the attack, though he couldn't watch to see what was happening; the fires were too bright for him to so much as look in that direction, nonetheless actually see anything through the torrent of flames. He shielded his face as best he could and looked away until a massive downdraft from Reshiram's wings drove him practically into the ground as the elegant dragon pulled out of his dive, ceasing the attack and zooming right overhead.
When Max looked forward again he saw that, though Reshiram had not yet landed, there was now someone standing between him and Abomasnow. Or, rather, two someones. Though both looked shaken by their jump to the ground from Reshiram's back, they nonetheless stood their ground boldly as they faced down Abomasnow who, though now lacking the spikes of ice armor that had so thoroughly encased and defended him before, seemed more enraged than ever as he charged towards the two tiny pokémon of Team Rebirth.
"Vulpix, now!" Reshiram shouted as he turned as tightly as he could, though he still couldn't possibly make it back in time to defend her from the oncoming threat. "His defenses are down – rid him of the last of Kyurem's influence!"
Reshiram… he got rid of all that ice in a single attack, Max thought, slowly, almost calmly, awestruck as he still was. And Vulpix… Can she really…?
Neither Bulbasaur nor Vulpix faltered as they stood their ground, waiting as Abomasnow came close and closer, so enraged that he seemed more likely to trample them than to use any actual attacks. Max thought he saw Vulpix mutter something, and Bulbasaur shake his head ever so slightly. Then they continued to wait, until Abomasnow towered over them, until it was nearly too late.
And then, right at that last moment, Vulpix took a breath and fired off an overheat attack, the bright beam of fire hitting Abomasnow right in the stomach.
Abomasnow at once seemed to go stiff, though his momentum carried him onward, sending him tumbling forward. Bulbasaur managed to jump out of the way, but Vulpix seemed almost incapacitated from the force of her own attack. Abomasnow half fell on top of her, and the both of them skidded some ways before coming to a stop, right next to one another.
"Did… Did she do it?" Max whispered breathlessly as he managed to get to his feet. He walked over in a sort of shocked daze, reaching them just as Bulbasaur was helping Vulpix to her feet.
"You're sure you're okay?" Bulbasaur was asking.
Vulpix nodded, then turned and, cautiously, poked Abomasnow in the arm with one of her paws. "Abomasnow? Guildmaster Abomasnow, are you back to your old self?"
Abomasnow shifted and groaned, but didn't respond.
Before Vulpix could attempt to rouse him again, Max felt another gust of wind from above, and the ground shook as Reshiram landed just behind them. Max, still all but speechless as he stood uselessly near Team Rebirth, turned with them to look at the living legend, the pokémon said to embody half of the Spirit of the land itself.
Leaning his head down and giving Abomasnow an appraising look, Reshiram said, "This Abomasnow will be fine now, I can see that well enough." Then, he raised his head and looked out over all the pokémon present. There were the guildmasters and deputies, all either unconscious or severely wounded; there were the guild pokémon, who throughout the course of the fight with Abomasnow had hung back, unable to do anything against the monstrocity; and then there were the few pokémon who remained of the false Northern Guild's army, the dozens who had been too caught up in both the destructive powers of Abomasnow and the incredible arrival of Reshiram to either flee from the fight or retreat back into the guild.
Reshiram looked from one group to the next. Then, in a voice loud enough for all to hear, he said, "This battle is over." And turning to Kyurem's forces, he added, "Anyone who wishes to continue the fight may take up the matter with me."
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"The entirety of the guild has been secured," Elgyem said when he teleported back into the main gathering space of the Northern Guild where Reshiram, the guildmasters, the deputies, the Four Warriors, the humans and their teams all sat; it was the only place in the Northern Guild large enough to accommodate Reshiram, who filled nearly a fourth of the cavernous icy room. "And the guards are stationed at any entrances to here, so we will have our privacy for now."
"So does that mean we can wake wake Snowy up, Reshy?" Emolga asked excitedly, as spirited as ever despite the fact that her wounds had only received the most basic of treatment as of yet.
Vulpix smiled; she hadn't quite realized until now how much she'd missed the guildmaster these past couple of weeks. Even now, after everything that's happened, she's still cheerful. And when we finally got a chance to breathe after Abomasnow was taken down, she welcomed me back like I never did anything wrong.
She caught Bulbasaur looking at her, grinning, and she guessed that he was thinking the same thing. Emolga could bring a smile to almost anyone's face, no matter the situation.
But as Vulpix turned back to see Emolga jumping on Abomasnow's stomach, her smile didn't remain for long. Everyone's more focused on Guildmaster Abomasnow right now, but what happens when they turn their attention back to me? I have Reshiram's approval now, and they can't very well argue with him… But how many will trust me? I don't think I could even face most of my guild, after all they've been through thanks to me.
Vulpix pushed her thoughts to the back of her mind as Emolga jumped to the ground and Abomasnow slowly sat up. "Emolga?" he asked, his voice soft but gruff. "And… Everyone? Braviary, Mandibuzz, Elgyem, it's good to see you all." He said this almost mechanically, as if he was still trying to figure out what was going on. "And… You couldn't be Reshiram, could you?"
"Indeed I am," Reshiram said simply.
Abomasnow looked around, confused, for a few more moments, before his face grew grave. He looked first to Zoroark, his deputy, and then to everyone else once more. "What did I do?" he asked solemnly.
"Then you are aware that you did something?" Reshiram asked.
"I suspect it, and you just confirmed it," Abomasnow said. Then, turning more desperately to his deputy, he asked once more, "Please, tell me what I did."
Zoroark smiled, her typical carefree demeanor showing through. "Calm down there, old guy. You've just been through a bit of a fight, don't want you to get all worked up now – and it wasn't your fault in the first place, I don't think anyone's gonna blame you once we hear the whole of it."
"Just tell your story from the beginning, Abomasnow," Reshiram said, his gaze stern but not judgmental. "Then we will fill in what you see unaware of. You clearly know that something was wrong with you, which is different enough from the others who were possessed by Kyurem who have since been awoken."
"Kyurem?" Abomasnow asked. "That's… Is that who did this to me?"
"Yes," Reshiram answered patiently. "Now tell us what happened."
Abomasnow shook his head. "I don't remember. Not entirely. Some time in the last few years, I realized I was forgetting things. At first, it wouldn't be long – just a conversation that I couldn't recall at all. Then… Whole days, simply gone. It must have caused quite some confusion for you, Zoroark."
The deputy nodded. "That was about three years ago, now. You handed over control of the day-to-day activities of the guild to me after I caught you in your confusion on multiple occasions. You wouldn't tell me what was going on."
"That's because I didn't know, but I didn't want to worry you more," Abomasnow said. "I thought it would be something I could deal with myself. A little more rest, perhaps.
"Rest didn't help. Things got worse, and I couldn't understand what was happening to me. By the time I forced myself to acknowledge that something was seriously wrong… well, by then, it was too late. Whenever I tried to mention it, or even hint at it, it would trigger the blackness – apparently, I went about my actions as usual, but I couldn't remember any of it afterwards. I tried to leave the guild, but either the blackness would start again, or I'd find myself unable to move forward. As if my legs were growing heavier with each step."
Vulpix shivered a bit and looked down at her feet, just to be sure the icy manacles were still gone, as they had been even since Reshiram's awakening. That sounds exactly like what happened to me, she thought when she was satisfied that her paws were ice free. But he isn't mentioning any ice. So how did it happen to him?
"I had no idea what was happening, or why. My only clue were nightmares… But like the blackouts, I could never remember what happened in them when I awoke. Eventually, I blacked out again, and I woke up here… And I honestly have no idea how long has passed since then. I remember that I missed the Solstice Games – I blacked out before it, and for its entirety. I woke up aroune when pokémon were sent to search for you four," he looked to the Four Warriors, "and after that… I don't recall exactly when it was, but none of you had been found yet. And now I'm here."
"Silly silly Snowy!" Emolga said, with her usual cheerful insensitivity. "That was weeks ago!"
"Nearing a month ago, actually," Elgyem mused aloud.
Reshiram turned to look at Deputy Zoroark. "And you suspected nothing?"
"No way!" Zoroark said. "I mean, he'd been acting a bit odd, don't get me wrong. But he was also his usual grumpy, uncommunicative self – I think he's talked more now than I've heard him talk all together in the years I've been deputy. No offense, big guy."
Abomasnow looked like offense had indeed been taken, but he of all pokémon realized that now was not the time to focus on that. "Now tell me, what did I do while I was out?"
"It seems you organized and led an army on Kyurem's behalf," Keldeo said when no one else spoke up. "You sent more than half of the Northern Guild away in order to have the guild to yourself, and you indirectly helped Kyurem to awaken Zekrom."
Abomasnow's eyes opened wider as he looked around the room desperately, as if hoping someone would contradict Keldeo's statement. Then, seeing the truth of the situation, he hung his head and said, "I don't deserve to be a guildmaster anymore, if that's the case."
Vulpix felt someone's gaze on her, and she turned to see Reshiram looking at her intently. But he looked at her only for a moment before turning to Abomasnow again and saying, "You had no control of your actions, just as Thundurus, Landorus, and Tornadus were oblivious to their doings; you need not shoulder the blame. That aside, we are missing one important piece of information, and the blame might lie therein. When exactly is it that you met Kyurem, or how did it otherwise gain control over you?"
"I don't remember anything about how it started," Abomasnow said. "As far as I could tell, the memory lapses had no trigger. They simply began."
"Kyurem must have approached you at some time, though," Reshiram insisted. "Spiritually, if not physically. The Spirit is not a thing so easily tamed that Kyurem could choose pokémon at will from among the land and take control of them. It must have had contact with you first."
Cody suddenly stepped forward, saying, "He would've felt really cold and dark. I don't remember much, but… he offered me a deal of some sort. I refused, and that's when he took over."
"Your nightmares were probably a lot like that first encounter," Vulpix added as well. She sat up straight and kept her eyes trained on Abomasnow for his reaction, purposefully ignoring the number of resentful gazes now trained on her.
Abomasnow thought for a moment, then said, "I thought it was a dream… I thought I just hit my head."
"You've remembered, then?" Reshiram prompted. "If so, tell us. We need any information we can get."
"I don't remember it well," Abomasnow began. "It must have started about five years ago, before the Winter Solstice Games. Before the games had begun, I found a cavern that had collapsed since the year before, so I was doing my best to clear out the debris and refreeze the passage so that it would be suitable for use again. Then… Beneath some of the ice debris, there was a hole, like a large tunnel going deeper."
Reshiram let out a sort of sigh and said, "Of course, that is where Kyurem would be. The same place he first fell to earth, and the same place that I hear Thundrus, Tornadus, and Landorus cornered him – in reality, he never left that crater." Reshiram pulled himself out of his train of thought and, looking back to Abomasnow, said, "Please, continue."
Abomasnow did as he was told. "There had never been any hole or tunnel there before, so I went in to see if perhaps some pokémon had taken up residence before I sealed off the hole. It went fairly deep, but eventually I found myself in some larger ice cavern, beneath the bulk of the glacier…"
He shook his head. "After everything was said and done, I thought the cave was just a dream. After it all happened, I woke up partway down the hole, not far down from the original cavern – the bottom of the pit I sat on was just more ice. I thought I'd fallen, hit my head, and had an odd dream because of the circumstances. It certainly didn't seem like anything worth fussing over."
"And that dream was…?" Reshiram asked.
"Well, the big cavern at the very bottom of the tunnel – it was freezing, and dark, and something about it put me on edge. It was so cold that, before I could get farther into the cave, my body froze up. I couldn't move. And then… There was a voice, and I got the sense that there was something formidable in the darkness just ahead, and I just couldn't see it. It asked who I was. I answered, and demanded it let me go. It said… It told me I could go free if I gave up my Spirit. I obviously refused, though it continued to insist on it for some time. It threatened my guild, and I almost gave in; whatever it was, I believed it could truly destroy the entire guild with ease, like it said. But still… Giving up my Spirit seemed so unnatural. I couldn't possibly agree.
"Then it relented. It simply let me go, and after that, I don't remember anything until I woke up, and the tunnel seemed as if it was never there, except to a dozen feet down or so."
Reshiram's eyes narrowed. "It simply gave up? Surely it said something else before it let you go."
Abomasnow shook his head. "He only said that because I had resisted so well, he would grant me that boon – said that he would do me a kindness, and harm neither me nor my guild."
Reshiram nodded sagely. "That would be it. That's how he took control of you."
"What do you mean?" Cobalion asked.
"While the bodies of Zekrom and I slept these past ten years or so, our Spirits were still perfectly alert – we used the time to discover as much about Kyurem as we could. I will explain more in time, when all of you have had the chance to rest and recover, but for the moment, know this. At the time Abomasnow so unluckily stumbled upon Kyurem's resting place, Kyurem was conscious, but incapable of action. It couldn't force its control upon the guildmaster as it has since done with you," he looked to Cody, "and with the other human who remains under his command.
"So Kyurem resorted to its tricks. Had Abomasnow given his Spirit over, he would have died right then, and been completely taken over by Kyurem. But since Abomasnow refused, Kyurem turned to its last resort. He let Abomasnow go – something that it would have never normally done. It hungers too much; letting something go is not in its nature. Though there was no deal, such an act no doubt inspired some amount of gratitude in you, Abomasnow, some sense as if a favor had been done for you."
"I wouldn't phrase it that way," Abomasnow said. "I was grateful to be alive, not to him for letting me live."
"The gratitude, the idea that it had done a favor for you, wouldn't necessarily have been a conscious thought," Reshiram said. "It's a natural sentiment whenever someone does something they needn't have, to your benefit. Even in the worst of situations, it still often applies. I suspect Kyurem managed to worm some of its own Spirit into you, through that sentiment, even though you didn't make a deal. And from there, that fragment of Spirit grew until it could control you completely, for long periods of time. And because of how the Spirit was put in you, it only influenced you, I suspect; it seems as if you somehow kept a rough approximation of your voice and personality, even when you lost control of your actions. It was a form of possession quite unlike what happened to the three weather gods, just as that in turn was somewhat different from what has happened to some of the humans."
"But it is gone now, correct?" Abomasnow asked. "Kyurem can't take control of me any longer?"
Reshiram looked over to Vulpix. "Yes, indeed, thanks to that human there, as well as thanks to my own fire."
Cobalion suddenly took a step towards Reshiram and said, "Reshiram, forgive me for saying so, but I can't hold back any longer – you're being tricked. You must not trust that human; she has been under Kyurem's control before. She attacked pokémon of her own guild and stole the Light Stone in which you resided, and unless we get rid of her now, we'll only be walking into ruin."
"Cobalion speaks the truth," Virizion added, casting a glare in Vulpix's direction. "I vouch for what he says, and no pokémon in here could possibly deny that she is still under Kyurem's influence. That necklace of hers proves it. Can you not sense it?"
"And your both being completely unfair!" Max suddenly spoke up, much to everyone's surprise, including Vulpix's. "I don't know everything that's happened with her since she left the guild, but you did all you could to bring Reshiram to his senses, right?" Max asked.
Max, your support means a lot to me, but I don't want Cobalion and others hating you, too, just for sticking up for me, Vulpix thought. She answered, "Yes, but… I still see where Cobalion and Virizion are coming from."
A deep, rumbling growl echoed out of Reshiram's throat. "I do not appreciate the two of you questioning my judgment, Cobalion and Virizion. Nor do I appreciate you of all pokémon lending any sort of credibility to their bias, Vulpix." Reshiram said. Then, looking specifically to Cobalion and Virizion, he said, "I see much more clearly what she is than you two do, I can assure you of that; just because I bequeathed to you some of my powers in order to guard my stone does not give you two any authority to do my thinking for me, nor does it give you any abilities even close to equal to my own. I know what she is, and what she has done, and why it is Kyurem has a hold on her. I won't deny that she is to blame for that, and she'd best not deny it either."
It wasn't something I was wanting to broadcast to everyone, but looks like I've got no choice. "I don't deny it," she said. "I made a deal with Kyurem with a human, that much is true. But I regret it. And I'm doing what I can to make up for it."
Reshiram let out a satisfied huff. "And that is why I trust her anyway. Only a human with the Spirit of a hero could have possibly awoken me, and with the threat of Kyurem looming ever nearer and Zekrom currently under its control, I have no choice but to rely on her."
Bulbasaur leaned over to Vulpix and muttered, "That's hardly a ringing endorsement of your character. 'I have no choice' my bulb, you stopped him from destroying everything in his path. You'd think he could praise you a bit more."
In spite of the situation, a smile tugged at the corners of Vulpix's mouth. Count on Bulbasaur to criticize a god on my behalf.
Turning back to the matter at hand, Vulpix saw that both Cobalion and Virizion seemed more subdued and, to her amusement, Emolga's smile was wider than ever and carried more than a hint of smugness.
"Would anyone else like to debate my choice of ally?" Reshiram challenged. "Or would you have preferred me to stay locked in the Light Stone forever over waking up for her?"
No one spoke up.
"Good. That is all that needs to be said for now. I suggest we reconvene later, when everyone present has had a chance to heal and rest. I'll tell everyone the whole of the story of Kyurem as I understand it then." Reshiram said as he got up and headed towards the exit. "For now, I am going outside to spread my wings for a bit. I won't be gone long."
"I should think not," Elgyem commented, taking everyone by surprise.
Reshiram seemed both unamused and perplexed by the offhand remark. "And why do you say that?"
"Well, just listen for a moment," Elgyem said.
Everyone was quiet as they listened, but all they could hear was the howl of wind outside. And Deputy Swadloon said as much. "It's just the wind, idiot. Sheesh."
"Not just wind – a blizzard," Elgyem said. "I teleported out for a bit when I heard the wind picking up. I assure you, the storm came in quite fast."
"Fast nothin', the sky was completely clear an hour ago," Swadloon said as she waddled past him, into the curved tunnel that led to the outside. "I won't believe it 'til I see it."
Everyone waited in silence for a minute until Swadloon reappeared, her leafy blankets tucked tighter than ever around her body, the blankets themselves now covered in snow.
"Idiot's right," Swadloon said in her usual, sarcastic monotone. "Don't know about gods like yourself, Reshiram, but the rest of us certainly aren't going out anytime soon."
Reshiram's eyes narrowed, though whether he was angry at the blizzard or Swadloon's demeanor was anyone's guess. "I see no reason in wasting my energy in a flight outside, if that is the case," Reshiram said. "Like the rest of you, I will wait here, both until you have healed and until this blizzard ceases. But after that, there will be no more waiting for our enemy's next move. We know where it is now; as soon as we are able, we take the fight to Kyurem."
Sorry this chapter took so long! Laziness and lack of motivation on my part was the main cause, though school never helps. However, my motivation's back now, and I think I might be able to get back to a chapter a week? Hopefully?
More importantly, OHMYARCEUSTHERESAGENFIVEPMDG AMECOMINGOUT. You guys do realize I came up with the idea for this fanfic and committed to it almost SOLELY because I wanted a Gen 5 PMD game so much, right!? IT'S TRUE. I'm so freaking psyched. AND IT LOOKS BEAUTIFUL, and yet it's still keeping to the traditional PMD gameplay, which I love. Not saying I wouldn't have been open to change, but keeping the same battle system certainly doesn't hurt anything. But really, guys, look at this fic. Well over 200,000 words and I'm not even done quite yet. If THAT'S not a testament to how much I've been looking forward to this Gen 5 PMD game long before it was ever even known to be a thing, I don't know what is.