Chapter 34 - "Alola Awaits You."


"Solgaleo?" Lilo wondered as she looked at the legendary beast. "You can't be serious…"

"Is that one of the creatures from the book?" Cyan asked.

Kala simply nodded. She looked at her Litten who paled in size compared to the beast.

Emma sighed. "This isn't good."

"Boss, what do we do?" Plumeria asked. She had now turned her back to the trainers and was focusing on Solgaleo.

Guzma spit on the ground and then groaned. "We team up with the dimwits, and we take down Solgaleo together."

"Together, man?"

"Together, bro!"

Guzma shot a glare at Cyan. "I'm beyond angry with you morons, but I think it's our best shot if we team up to take down Solgaleo. What do you say?"

Solgaleo let out a roar, shaking the altar, which sped up Cyan's decision.

"We team up, and then we're turning you in," he snapped.

"Shut up."

Cyan examined the Pokémon before returning Venusaur. The heat that radiated off of Solgaleo told him that he'd be dealing with Fire-type attacks. "Alright. Go, Orangru!"

Guzma threw his next Poké Ball into the air. "Scizor!"

Plumeria followed. "Crobat!"

Kala, Lilo, and Emma all returned their Pokémon to give them some rest. They then tossed their next Poké Balls forward, revealing Dartrix, Mudsdale, and a moth-like Pokémon with massive wings. It also had heat radiating from it, and it looked incredibly difficult to train.

Guzma turned back to the two grunts. "You two stay back and don't get yourself killed or injured. We don't have health or life insurance."

"What's insurance?"

Solgaleo had had enough, and it roared once more as a warning.

"Scizor, use Iron Head!"

"Crobat, Poison Fang!"

"Use Future Sight, Oranguru!"

"Leaf Blade, Dartrix!"

"Mudsdale, hit 'em with High Horsepower!"

"Volcarona, Silver Wind!"

Scizor, Crobat, Dartrix, and Mudsdale all bound forward for their attacks while Oranguru and Volcarona stayed back. From Volcarona's massive wings, she unleashed a powerful silver energy which trailed behind her comrades. Meanwhile, Oranguru began to focus.

First was Scizor, who rammed his hard as metal dome against Solgaleo's body. It seemingly did no damage, but Solgaleo was distracted by it long enough to allow for Crobat to sink in her teeth and for Dartrix to slash wildly with his wings. Once again, Solgaleo's attention was turned, and it glared at the winged Pokémon. Mudsdale then took his opportunity and he tackled into the legendary with full force. This time, Solgaleo appeared to have taken damage, and it was knocked back a few inches. The force from Volcarona's attack helped push it back a little bit more, but Solgaleo tucked its head, and soon, everything got quiet.

Then, Solgaleo let out a roar, which let them know that it wasn't even close to done with them. Slowly, fire started to emit from its body, and it was soon completely engulfed in flames. It stepped forward, shaking the altar, and the nearby ponds started to steam from the energy that came from it.

"Watch out!" Guzma yelled before Solgaleo came crashing towards all of the Pokémon.

The altar was almost completely surrounded by flames, and for a moment, no one could see what was happening. There was a loud clank as though metal had smacked against metal, and then the fire slowly died down, revealing Crobat in front of the group, a thick blue forcefield in front of her eyes. Solgaleo was shaking its head as though it had run into a wall.

"Thank you," Guzma said.

Plumeria nodded. "That may be my only worthwhile Protect though, so we have to make every move from here on count!"

Guzma glared at the trainers. "You have any reads on its typing? I'm thinking Fire-type."

Cyan looked back at Solgaleo who was still shaking off the effects of the protect. "Before, there was a loud metal noise, and I'm thinking that Solgaleo might be part Steel-type."

"That's a fair assessment," Lilo said.

Emma nodded. "And I think there's a chance that it's not Fire-type. Had it been Fire-type, then that last attack would have destroyed Crobat's Protect."

"She's right," Plumeria added. She observed Emma's gothic style, seemingly jealous.

Solgaleo roared once more and then stomped its two front feet, getting everyone's attention. But then, above its head formed a purple cloud. Pink lightning struck down from it, zapping the legendary Pokémon and seemingly doing some damage. Oranguru, exhausted from the effort it required to build up such a strong attack, fell to one knee.

"How about we do our Z Moves?" Kala suggested. "Now seems like as good as time as any."

Guzma and Plumeria nodded, and all of the trainers took their positions.

"Scizor, use Savage Spin-Out!"

"Crobat, hit him with Supersonic Strike!"

"Breakneck Blitz, Oranguru!"

"Never-Ending Nightmare, Dartrix!"

"Give it all you got into a Tectonic Rage!"

"Volcarona, finish with Inferno Overdrive!"

The four trainers all did their poses and built up energy around themselves and the Pokémon. It was as though all the air had been sucked out of the altar and time stopped itself before the energy materialized and swirled around the Pokémon.

Scizor was first. He dashed forward and reached out his pinsirs, opening them up, unleashing a thick web that surrounded the entirety of Solgaleo's body and stopping him in place. But the legendary beast seemed unphased.

And then it was Crobat, who took off into the sky, and came back down like a ball of flames. She rammed the entirety of her body into Solgaleo, bouncing off as though it were nothing. Solgaleo winced from the pain, but remained standing.

Oranguru followed, and a white energy surrounded the entirety of his body. He ran forward and jumped into the air, crashing into Solgaleo directly with no care for what would happen afterwards. Solgaleo was now forced back a few feet.

Dartrix then unleashed a storm of shadows from underneath him. Hands built from ghostly energy escaped from the shadows, and they grabbed ahold of Solgaleo, seemingly pulling it into the ground and keeping it still.

Mudsdale was next, and he growled fiercely while the altar shook. Using his energy, he ripped a massive stone from the earth and tossed it forward. The stone landed on top of Solgaleo, but it cracked upon contact. The damage had been done, but now Solgaleo looked more angrier than ever.

Last was Volcarona who formed a ball of fire in front of her body. She flew out towards the legendary Pokémon, and moments before the two could clash, she unleashed the ball, taking over Solgaleo completely. The legendary roared from within, and soon, everything went silent.

All of the trainers' Pokémon retreated and they looked out into the smoke, waiting to see the results of their attacks. When the smoke had finally faded away, Solgaleo stood still.

"Did we do it?" Cyan wondered.

His question was immediately answered, as Solgaleo began to glow a bright yellow. It shot into the air, and then, like a meteor, it came crashing back down, blowing back all of the Pokémon and their trainers with ease. Cyan rolled against the ground, and once he stopped, he looked around at all of the Pokémon, noting that every single one of them had fainted.

"What was that?" he asked as he forced himself back to a standing position. He slowly lifted his Poké Ball and returned Oranguru.

"I think that was Sunsteel Strike," Kala said. She held Dartrix in her arms. "It's Solgaleo's signature attack."

"Can't get hit by that one again," Cyan responded. He turned to the others, who all looked downtrodden by the devastating loss. "We gotta keep going."

"Kid, if we keep going, we're going to get ourselves killed," Guzma warned.

Without responding, Cyan threw his next Poké Ball forward, and Salazzle materialized on the field. "I have a plan."

"You have a plan to fight a Legendary Pokémon?" Plumeria asked. "Unfortunately, boss. I'm out of this one. Crobat and Salazzle were my strongest Pokémon. Anything would just be sacrificial lambs."

Guzma nodded and he groaned as he stood back up. "Just keep your head down, Plumeria. I guess I'm battling with the dimwit." With that, he released his Pinsir from its ball.

"Samurott, you're back up!" Emma yelled while releasing her first Pokémon.

"I'm with you every step of the way," Lilo said. She confidently lifted her next Poké Ball, releasing her massive Araquanid. "What do you need us to do?"

"Help me get Salazzle to Solgaleo, and we'll take care of the rest."

Salazzle kept her usual expression, but her body did slightly shake with fear at the sight of the massive beast.

"In that case, let's attack!" Guzma yelled. "Pinsir, use Stone Edge!"

"Araquanid, Liquidation!"

"Aqua Tail!"

The three Pokémon all unleashed their long-ranged attacks, and they crashed into Solgaleo. One by one, the large stones that Pinsir had used crumbled into dust as they collided with Solgaleo's body. And then the water attacks simply bounced off, doing nothing to the beast.

"We gotta get close," Lilo muttered. "Crunch!"

"Razor Shell!"

"Pinsir, show 'em your strength and use Storm Throw!"

Now, the three Pokémon ran forward. Araquanid jumped into the air and formed a set of black jaws in front of his face before clamping them down on Solgaleo. The legendary beast let out a cry before swiping at the Bug-type, knocking him back. Then, Samurott slashed, getting Solgaleo's attention. With a simple loud roar, Samurott was thrown into the air. Finally, Pinsir followed. He grabbed ahold of Solgaleo's front paw and tried to pull it, but to no avail. Instead, the legendary looked down at Pinsir in disgust.

"Now!" Cyan yelled.

Before Solgaleo could strike Pinsir, Salazzle came falling from the sky. She released a poisonous liquid from her body, and it collided with Solgaleo, making it cry out from the pain. It backed up, and slowly, a purple veil of energy started to emit from its body.

"Yatta!" Cyan exclaimed. "Poisoned!"

"Toxic," Plumeria said. "And because of Salazzle's corrosion ability, she poisons Steel-types too."

"No matter how strong Solgaleo is, something like Toxic is going to be devastating the longer that we wait it out. We gotta keep it moving!"

"Dodge!"

"Dodge!"

"Dodge!"

The four Pokémon continuously moved around while Solgaleo started to frantically swipe for them. Pinsir, using his Storm Throw, repeatedly grabbed the others and then tossed them out of the way. Meanwhile, Salazzle would shoot fire from her mouth, blasting Solgaleo to get its attention. It appeared like it was working too, and Solgaleo was beginning to slow down.

But then, it turned its attention to the trainers ignoring the Pokémon completely. The four Pokémon caught onto this, and they ran to the front of their trainers, ready to protect them at all costs. Solgaleo began to glow with a white energy, and it slowly started to run forward. White energy exploded from the front of its face, and it was soon at a full charge.

"Here it comes!" Cyan yelled.

Solgaleo crashed into the four Pokémon, and there was yet another explosion of smoke and dust, bringing the altar to silence. Slowly, the smoke faded away, revealing that Salazzle and Araquanid had fainted while Pinsir and Samurott were heavily damaged. Solgaleo remained standing, but it was still.

"What is it going to take?!" Guzma snapped.

Cyan didn't answer, but instead, he just held out his hand calmly. He never once took his eyes off of the beast. And within a few moments, Solgaleo collapsed, shaking the altar.

"Wait…" Guzma said. "Did we just take down a Legendary Pokémon?"

Kala started to laugh, her nerves becoming too much for her. "I think that just happened."

Lilo smiled at Cyan, and she looked at him with a sense of pride and slight jealousy. "You're really good."

Cyan didn't respond. He returned Salazzle and then walked forward, holding out his hand. He was soon within inches of touching the beast before there was one more explosion and a flash of light.

Everyone's attention was stripped away from the beast. They all looked past Solgaleo towards the ponds where another portal seemingly ripped itself into existence. From the portal emerged not a beast, but a man.

The man wore a light blue suit and had a cold expression on his face. He was a man that Cyan and Kala were familiar with. The last time that they saw him was after Cyan had caught Oranguru, but he remained fresh in their minds.

"Enhalus…" Cyan muttered. "What are you doing here?"

"Did you complete your Island Challenge, Cyan?" the man with pale skin asked.

Cyan shook his head. "I have one more battle to go."

Enhalus closed his eyes. "That is a shame."

"Who's this guy?" Plumeria asked.

Kala answered, "Enhalus. We've met him a few times since Cyan started his challenge. He's always seemed a bit strange."

Guzma glared. "His fashion sense is abysmal."

"What are you doing here?" Cyan asked again. This time, he appeared much more serious.

Enhalus looked around, focusing his attention on the defeated Solgaleo. "Originally, I came here to battle and capture Solgaleo. It stood in the way Necrozma," Enhalus said calmly.

"Necrozma?" Kala wondered.

"The light in Alola is truly incredible, don't you think? The light here shines brighter than anywhere else in this world," he said, seemingly ignoring the trainers. "Necrozma wants that light."

Cyan turned to Kala to see if she knew anything that he was talking about, but she appeared just as confused as Cyan.

"Solgaleo was Alola's last hope of defense, it seems. Its power combined with Necrozma's, my master will be able to absorb all of the light with ease."

"What is this freak talking about?" Guzma asked.

Cyan shook his head. "No. No. No! We'll stop you! We'll do everything we can to stop you!"

"Are you challenging me to a Pokémon battle, Cyan?"

"The most important battle of my life!" Cyan yelled back.

Enhalus smiled, but it didn't appear genuine as though he had read how to smile from a book, something that the duo were not comfortable with, and he slowly drew out what appeared to be a form of Poké Ball from the inside of his light blue suit. He expanded it and leisurely raised his hand.

But before he could choose his Pokémon, there was another explosion similar to the one from before, and another hole tore into the sky. The group's collective hearts sank as they waited for whatever was going to come through. And then, something did. A massive black creature slowly came through the portal. It had a prismatic body with large arms and small legs. Its eyes were beady and evil, and its movements looked slightly mechanic as it made its way towards the ground.

"Welcome, Necrozma," Enhalus said calmly. "Alola awaits you."

The creature roared. It landed in front of Enhalus and then turned towards the trainers.

"Cyan, I apologize for what is going to happen today. But, this is the end of your world," Enhalus said before he threw his ball into the air. "Naganadel, assist me!" From Enhalus' ball appeared a large insectoid Pokémon. It was purple with a giant stinger making up its backend. It pointed towards Cyan and the group, ready to strike.

"You know what that thing is?" Cyan asked.

Kala shook her head. "Unfortunately, no."

Lilo huffed. "This day is never going to end."


AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Alright. Now it's Cyan, Lilo, Guzma, and Emma going up against Enhalus and Necrozma. It's starting to look a little hopeless for our heroes.

REVIEWS:

CrescentApple - "I'd say this was kind of off for the good guys to immediately attack Team Skull when they didn't didn't even want to fight. But I suppose when they battle team Skull so often because of wrong-doing the good guys expect a trap. It's was a quick but interesting short battle. Cyab took out two of Guzma's Pokemon. I don't know if it's because Cyan had gotten a lot stronger now, which is true, or Guzma wasnt going all out because he was trying to conserve his strength. But they set up for the next chapter looks like it's really going to be cool and exciting. 8 on one again a legendary." - I think Guzma was nervous, but maybe not holding back. Also, I agree that it's a bit out of character that the good guys would attack, but I kind of see them being in panic mode. They don't quite understand what's happening.

wisdom-jewel - "This is interesting. I wonder what Team Skull was trying to stop. Though I don't blame the four trainers for jumping to conclusions since Team Skull has bee a thorn on their side for a long time. I doubt it is any Ultra Beast since Aether isn't part of the story." - Necrozma! But, I think that even Team Skull had no idea what they were getting into, as it appears Guzma thought Solgaleo was a threat.

pokemonking0924 - "I know that Cyan and his friends can't stand Team Skull but I would think that the groups behavior was strange considering that they didn't want to fight. Just goes to show that despite how responsible they are with their Pokemon, Cyan and his friends as still kids jumping to conclusions (although it just might be due to their history with team skull). Looking forward to seeing what you have planned for Solgaleo." - I might go back and rework some of the dialogue to maybe make it make more sense as to why Cyan and the others attack first. It is a bit clunky, I think.