To XXPay4XtraShippingsXX: First of all I would like to say thanks for correcting me on the Floette thing. I've played Pokemon Y but I seriously did NOT know Floette was all female. So thanks again ^-^
X.X
Do you think we'll ever find her?" Shauna asked softly.
Calem arched his brow at his friend. "Of course we will. No matter how long it takes." he replied. Shauna sighed sadly.
"I know, Cale. But to tell you the truth, I'm beginning to have doubt we'll ever find her... And I'm not the only one. Tierno and Trevor are starting to think so as well. They might've taken her to another region for all we know."
Calem narrowed his eyes and balled his hands into fists angrily. "So you're just gonna give up then?" he growled. Shauna quickly shook her head.
"No, no, no. Nothing like that, Cale. It's just-"
The sudden buzzing of Calem's Holo Caster is what cut her off. And not just Calem's, but everyone around them as well. Calem brought out his Holo Caster and placed it in the middle of the table and pressed play. Shauna leaning a bit closer to get a better look. They were a bit surprised when the holo image of Lysandre appeared. But there was something different about him. He appeared rather angry and foreboding.
"Lysandre? What could he want?" Shauna said.
"Pokemon Trainers. I come to you by Holo Caster to make an important announcement. Listen well. Team Flare will revive the ultimate weapon, eliminate everyone who isn't in our group, and return the world to a beautiful, natural state."
Gasps of horror were suddenly heard around them. Soon followed by frightened or concerned mutters. Calem and Shauna exchanged horrified glances before looking back at the Holo Caster.
"Unproductive fools are consuming our future... If nothing changes, the world will become ugly and conflicts will raze the land from end to end. I repeat. We will use the ultimate weapon and wipe the slate clean. I'm sorry, those of you who are not members of Team Flare, but this is adieu to you all."
Once the message was over, panick quickly took over. Shauna had both her hands over her mouth and was on the brink of tears. "T-they're joking." Shauna said shakely, "T-this can't be real! This can't be happening!"
"Shauna, calm down!" Calem snapped, "We need to think clear about this! Maybe there's a way we can stop this."
Shauna gritted her teeth as angry tears started rushing down her face. "Yeah, Calem? How? How can we stop this!?" she screamed, "We don't even know where to look!"
Calem opened his mouth to protest, but snapped it shut a few seconds later. Shauna was right. They had no where to look. They can't even find Natalie for Arceus's sake!
"Calem! Shauna!"
Both Trainers looked up to see Clemont and Valerie running up to them. "Clemont! Valerie!" Calem cried before running up to them as well with Shauna beside him.
"Where's Bonnie?" Shauna asked.
"She's with Jenny." Clemont replied, "Did you guys get the message?"
"Yeah." Calem replied.
"I sensed something like this was coming." Valerie said, her fairy like eyes darkening, "But I never would have guessed that Lysandre was behind all this. We must put a stop to him and Team Flare once and for all."
"Yeah. Accept we have no idea where to even look!" Shauna said.
It was then that Clemont cupped his chin in thought before his glasses flashed. "I might have an idea on where to look, though." he said.
...
"Is this it?" Shauna asked as she, Valerie, Clemont, and Calem all stood outside of a red cafe.
"This is the place." Clemont replied.
"Lysandre's Cafe." Calem read, "I never even knew the guy owned a cafe to begin with. What makes you think that Team Flare is here?"
"Because Bonnie and I have seen men and women dressed in tacky orange suits wall in and out of here on more than one occasion." Clemont replied. The four entered the seemingly empty cafe. Everywhere was red. Red walls, floor, furniture, you name it. It was then that Valerie suddenly stopped.
"What is it, Valerie?" Calem asked.
Valerie's gray eyes suddenly turned fierce and alarmed. "I sense a presence nearby." she said. Just she said that, a male and female Grunt suddenly jumped from over the counter and stood before the Trainers.
"Well, well, well. It looks like we've got ourselves some unwelcomed guests." the female Grunt hissed.
"Let's dispose of these fo-"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Shauna screeched in pure fear before bolting out of the cafe in full speed. Leaving everyone staring at the entrance with dumbfounded looks.
"Three." the male grunt corrected himself, "Let's dispose of these three."
Calem facepalmed before turning back to the Grunts alongside Clemont and Valerie. The two Grunts tossed out two Poke Balls revealing a Swalot and Scraggy. Both Valerie and Clemont nodded to one another before turning to the Grunts.
"You go on ahead, Calem." Clemont said, "We'll take care of these buffoons."
"Ha!" the male Grunt said, "Like he's gonna know that the entrance to the labs is actually hidden behind the bookshelf behind us and the password is 'Open Sesame!'" There was a moment of pure silence before the bookshelf behind the grunt suddenly opened. Revealing a dark passageway leading downward. The Grunt then facepalmed himself. .
"Go, Calem." Valerie said, "We'll be fine. Stop Lysandre and find Natalie. She could be here as well."
Calem gasped softly before nodding determinedly. "Good luck." he said before running behind the Grunts and down the hidden staircase.
...
Calem gripped the cold, unforgiving iron railing as he walked down the stairs. His only source of light coming from the small red glows on both walls. A a dark, foreboding feeling rearing it's ugly head inside him as he made his way into the lowere levels of the cafe. The only thing he could hear was the sound of his own breathing and the humming of machines. As soon as his foot hit the bottom, it triggered a sensor that activated the lights. Calem shielded his eyes temporarily before slowly lowering his arms.
Standing in front of him with his head held high and hands behind his back was Lysandre. "Welcome." he said smoothly, "This world will eventually reach the point of no return... Saving the lives of all is impossible. Only the choosen ones will obtain a ticket to tomorrow. Do you want to have a ticket? I know your dear friend has one."
"Wait... You mean Natalie is here!?" Calem gasped.
"Was here." Lysandre corrected him coldly.
"Where is she now? Tell me! TELL ME!" Calem roared.
Lysandre remained calm and was completely unfazed. "Calm yourself. She is safe. But you, unfortunately, will not. Along with every other fool in this world." The robust man then turned around until his back was facing Calem. "You are here to stop me, I know. But I ask you to wait. I tried to save people-and the world-with the profit from this lab. But my efforts had no effect... The world was just too vast...and too full of fools that I couldn't save through my hard work alone... That's why I decided the only way to save the world was to take it all for myself."
Clemont and Valerie came running down the stairs and stood side-by-side with Calem.
"I don't expect that I will ever make all of you understand how I think and feel... The pain I've felt..." he then looked over his shoulder and glared at the trio. "Try to stop the ultimate weapon if you must, but to do so, you will have to explore our lab and have Pokemon battles with all you meet. Oh, and as for the Elevator Key," Lysandre stepped into the elevator, "I believe I am the only one who currently possess one." The elevator doors then closed.
"Damn it!" Calem cursed, stomping his foot in the floor.
"Calm yourself, Calem." Valerie said gently as she placed her hand on his shoulder.
"Yeah, Calem. We can do this." Clemont added.
Natalie... Calem then reached into his pocket and brought out the green flower petal he found in his room that morning. Floette... Is this what you meant about letting your Trainer seeing the future along with every other human and Pokemon?
"Let's split up." Calem said, "We'll cover more ground easier that way."
The trio agreed to meet up in front of the elevator once they've found the key. Calem wandered through the labs, battling Grunts he met and learning more about the ultimate weapon. Calem entered one room and soon found himself standing in front of a woman with blue hair and a strange visor on her face.
"Oh, oh, oh, oh? I've never seen you around. You remind me of that one girl who stopped me in the Frost Cavern." Mable hummed in a sing-song voice, "Well let's see if you're strong like her!" The scientists swiftly brought out a Poke Ball and tossed it out. Revealing a Houndoom.
"Greninja! Let's go!" Calem roared, throwing out his Poke Ball. The blue frog let out a cry before standing in a battle pose. "Greninja, Water Gun!"
"Houndoom! Dodge and use Sludge Bomb!" Mable countered. Houndoom the attack and fired a ball of poisonous sludge at the frog.
Greninja immediately shook the sludge off. Although he felt a bit weakened by it. "Use Water Gun one more time!"
Greninja attacked and left an affective punch on Houndoom. The dog skidded back due to the blast of water. "Now finish her off with Water Shuriken!"
"NO!" Mable wailed as her Houndoom fell to the floor in defeat. She then returned her to her Poke Ball and brought out another. "Go Weavile!"
"Greninja! Return! Flareon, let's go!"
"Weavile, use Low Sweep!"
"Flareon! Try to use Double Team!" Calem cried frantically.
Flareon mustered all the energy he could muster and created duplicate copies of himself. Weavile's eyes widened in surprise and confusion before she struck a copy. "Now use Flamethrower!" Weavile fell to the ground in defeat.
"The power of the Legendary Pokemon..." Mable said after she returned her Pokemon to her Poke Ball, "The power to steal life from all around it... It's a mysterious ability that even scientists like us haven't been able to really decode. What d'you think will happen to the world if we fuel the ultimate weapon with something like that?"
Hell. Calem thought after he returned his Pokemon. He soon regrouped with Valerie and Clemont. "Any luck?" he asked.
"None." Clemont replied.
"I sense another presence below us." Valerie added.
"Well how are we going to go down without a key?" Calem asked.
"Leave that to me!" Clemont said before he walked up to the keypad. A device suddenly emerged from his back and pressed against the keypad. "I'm hacking into the keypad." he said. There was a noise and the elevator doors opened. "Voila!"
"Wow, Clemont, you're a genius!" Calem said happily before he and Valerie ran in. Clemont entered the elevator next the trio road it down to the second floor. No words were exchanged even after it stopped on the floor.
Calem walked out first and made his way down the hall. After turning a corner, he spotted Lysandre looking up at something. When Calem got closer, he soon realized what it was. Standing behind plasma bars was the same tall man he had seen the other day and in his dream. "What the hell?" he whispered as Clemont and Valerie joined him. The tall man then turned his head slightly towards Calem. His exposed eye boring down at him.
"Listen, one who will face Lysandre..." he said in a deep, gruff voice.
"A terribly long time ago... There was a man and a Pokemon. He loved that Pokemon very much. A war began. The man's beloved Pokemon took part in the war. Several years passed. He was given a tiny box. The man wanted to bring the Pokemon back. No matter what it took. The man built a machine to give it life. He brought his beloved Pokemon back. The man had suffered too much. His rage had not subsided. He could not forgive the world that had hurt the Pokemon he loved. He turned the machine into the ultimate weapon. The man became a bringer of destruction that ended the war. The Pokemon that was given life must have known... That the lives of many Pokemon were taken to restore her life. The resurrected Pokemon left the man."
"Get the key back. It should not have been used. Everything will vanish again. Do you want to know unending pain...like I have?" the tall man whispered.
Calem, Valerie, and Clemont looked at one another worriedly.
"That is AZ." Lysandre said, "He has the same name as a king that lived 3,000 years ago. And for some unknown reason, he had the key to the ultimate weapon hung around his neck. It's finally time. Follow me to my chambers." Calem and Clemont stepped out of the way for the man to go through. Lysandre simply walked by them without even giving them a gesture.
...
"So did you find Natalie?" Valerie asked during their elevator ride down.
Calem bowed his head until his bangs shadowed his eyes. "No..." he whispered. Clemont and Valerie looked at one another worriedly until they heard the familiar ding when the elevator stopped and the doors opened to reveal steps leading up to Lysandre and another man. They stood in between two large machines. One with a blue button, and the other a red. Behind them was a large monitor screen. The room itself gave off a feeling of dread.
"So the Poke Balls we received and the Pokemon we've gathered are where they need to be. Add it all up, and it means all preparations are complete!" the large man with the creepy goggles said enthusiastically.
Lysandre nodded. "The only thing left to do is put the plan in motion. I'm counting on you, Xerosic." Lysandre then turned around and smirked when he spotted Calem and his the two Gym Leaders. "One push of a button, and we can activate the ultimate weapon from this room." As he casually sauntered his way down and over to the elevator, he added, "I believe being a choosen one means you have the potential to change the future! Whether we activate ultimate weapon or leave it safely underground will rest upon if you actually have this potential or not." The elevator doors closed and Calem, Clemont and Valerie all turned to Xerosic.
"Oh ho ho! You're certainly not the one I've been hearing about. The girl with the lovely dark eyes. Sweetest child in the world, actually. But I've been waiting for someone like her actually! And that's you! I to need to do a little research on you! Come, let us begin!" The scientist immediately brought out a Poke Ball from his pocket and tossed it out. Revealing a Crobat.
Calem stepped forward and brought out a Poke Ball before feeling Valerie placing her hand on his shoulder. "Be careful, Calem. I sense something wrong with this man."
"Don't worry. I will." he assured her before throwing out his Poke Ball. "Absol! Let's go!" he roared. The Absol let out a cry before standing in a battle position.
"Crobat! Use Cross Poison!"
"Absol, try to counter and use Night Slash!" Calem yelled.
Absol was struck by his opponent's attack before countering with a critical blow. Crowbat was weakened and hovered mere inches above the floor. Absol, however, was poisoned. "Hang in there, Absol!" Calem cried.
"Oh oh oh! Finish him off with another Cross Poison!" Xerosic laughed. The Crowbat nodded and immediately flew at full speed towards the poisoned Absol.
"Absol!" Calem cried. A glow suddenly illuminated from his pocket.
"What's that?" Clemont asked.
Calem reached into his pocket and pulled out the Mega-Stone he had found along side Natalie outside of Anistar City. "That's right!" Calem gasped, "Mega Evolution can only occur when a Trainer has a strong bond with his of her's Pokemon!" he then looked over to Absol, who managed to weakly look over his shoulder, smile, and nod. Calem nodded back and raised the Absolite. Both Pokemon and Trainer were engulfed in a bright light, blinding both Crobat and Xerosic. The light vanished and Absol's appearance had changed.
"No way!" Clemont exclaimed.
"Is that the power of both Trainer and Pokemon doing that?" Valerie added.
"Absol! Use Quick Attack!"
Crowbat let out an alarmed cry before being smashed against the wall and falling to the floor in defeat. "Oh ho ho! You're just as wonderful as the girl!" Xerosic said as he and Calem returned their Pokemon to their Poke Balls. "I'm sure her Pokemon are just as amazing as yours!" Xerosic tossed out and Poke Ball, this time revealing an eerie looking Pokemon called Malamar.
Calem threw out his Poke Ball, revealing Meowstic.
"Malamar! Payback!" Xerosic yelled.
"Meowstic! Dodge and use Disarming Voice!" Calem roared.
The blue cat managed to swiftly dodged the attack and preformed the move on Malamar. The squid-like Pokemon's eyes widened and he let out a screech of pain and despair. Calem snapped his fingers. "That's right! Fairy Type moves are effective against Dark Types!"
"Malamar!" Xerosic snapped harshly, "Snap the hell out of it and use Retaliate!" Malamar snapped out of it and charged Meowstic at frightening speed.
"Disarming Voice one more time!" Calem yelled.
"MEEEEEEOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWW!" Meowstic cried before unleashing a blast of noise upon Malamar. Instantly defeating him.
"Meowstic. Return." Calem said gently as he returned his exhausted Pokemon to his Poke Ball. He smiled at the capsule. He never felt this strong before. During his journey, he's battled with all sorts of Trainers. But the most challenging of them all was always Natalie. H- no. She taught him how to be strong. He didn't teach himself. If it weren't for Natalie, he wouldn't have been able to get this much closer with his Pokemon.
"Wonderful!" Xerosic exclaimed happily after he returned his Malamar to his Poke Ball, "Amazing! You have tremendous skill and bravery just like the girl! When you add that up, it means I will tell you all something very interesting. It happened 3,000 years ago. The ultimate weapon was used to put an end to the war in an instant. If we use that incredible power, we can finally free Kalos of the foolish humans that plague it! Behind me you'll find a red button and a blue button. One of them is the button for activating the ultimate weapon. Push one now! Come on! Push one!" the scientists said excitedly.
Calem suddenly felt a little unsure of himself. He stared at the two buttons as sweat started to appear on his forehead. C'mon. Think! What would Natalie have choosen? He thought to himself. He's seen the movies where it was always the red button that set off the machine or bomb. But this was reality. One mistake and it's curtains for Kalos and the world. Clemont and Valerie watched him raise his head, having made his decision, and approached the blue button. Sweat dripped from his forehead as he raised a shakey finger and pointed it inches from the button.
No one said a word. Everyone was silent. Even the machines around them sounded as though they had always fallen silent. Mustering all the courage he had, he pressed it.
"You pressed it! Oh ho ho! You pressed the blue switch!" Xerosic exclaimed happily, "Winner, winner! Congratulations!"
Calem, Clemont, and Valerie sighed in relief. But the moment was short lived.
"But I'm still going to activate the ultimate weapon!" Xerosic added.
"WHAT!?" Calem and his friends cried in unison.
"I know the boss promised that we wouldn't if you pushed the correct button, but I refuse to let the potential go to waste! I'll just use my remote, here! Click-click! And the power is ON!" The monitor screen on the wall suddenly switched on. Revealing the ruins in the center of Geosenge Town. "Come on! Look! Look at the monitor!"
Everyone watched in awe as the ground in Geosenge suddenly shook violently. Houses that surrounded the ruins suddenly collapsed when the ruins themselves rose up. The earth fell apart. Revealing more and more of a crystal like structure with edges that suddenly spread out like a blossoming flower. The ground eventually stopped shaking once the device stopped.
Everyone near Geosenge and outside of Geosenge watched the entire thing. Underground, the Team Flare Grunts, Admins, and scientists that were present watched the entire thing on the monitor screen. All in awe. Natalie hugged her purse that contained her Pokemon during the entire thing. Venice had been kind enough to let them stop by Sycamore's lab to get her Pokemon and Purse. She only blinked in curiosity once the screen turned off.
The moonlight eerily glowed down upon Geosenge as the ultimate weapon was reborn.
X.X
And the Biggest Troll in Pokemon of the Year Award goes to Xerosic!
No seriously. I was both laughing and upset that that major Team Flare Troll activated the machine anyway. I even told my friends that Nintendo might as well add a Troll Face on the monitor screen after it happened XD
And don't ask how Sycamore had Natalie's purse. Just don't. Please. Btw, Malva, Sycamore and Diantha won't be in the Team Flare secret HQ. They're practically in a different shelter basically. Remember: AU. Alternate Universe. It's 8:05 in the morning where I am.