DarkFoxKit: Oh… oh my… yes… it is… another update! And… on Christmas day too! I swear, guys, we didn't plan this.
Traveling Master: Yeah, since last week I had gotten sick and was quarantined. Which sucked, I mostly just laid in bed. But this week we were lucky enough to have time to continue writing and upload this chapter!
DarkFoxKit: Yup, and you can consider this our Christmas present to all of you~
Dust: I think you two are forgetting something very important as well!
DarkFoxKit: What are we forgetting?
Dust: This story's 1 year anniversary! It's been about a year since you two first published this story!
DarkFoxKit: Huh… I guess it has. Can you believe it, TM?
Traveling Master: Yeah, and it's all thanks to this one Christmas movie I watched that first gave me the idea for the story. And now look at where we are!
Dust: Barely two months in the story! You guys have been working on this for a year! My time limit would've been up by now! So nothing against you or the readers, but I think everyone is eager to see what happens next in this chapter! Since you two decided to leave it on a huge cliffhanger!
DarkFoxKit: You try writing when your co-writer gets sick, or has a very inconvenient shift time that makes it difficult to find time to write. Now enough with the stalling, get to the story so the readers can get to the chapter.
Chapter 35: A Battle of Survival
Dust saw Patricia aiming towards Berry with her two jaws, so he quickly jumped in front of her and used Protect. A second later Patricia's two jaws clashed against the white barrier, though the sheer force managed to shake the ground Dust and Berry was standing on. At first Dust thought they were safe for the moment, that is until he saw Patricia was grinning at them. He then noticed that cracks started appearing on the barrier. Dust's eyes widened in alarm as the barrier shattered, allowing the Mega Mawile to go through, and grabbed Dust with her two jaws.
"Dust!" Berry called out in worry.
Talon, Tippi, and Ivy all rushed in to try to save Dust from either being eaten or munched down into pieces by Patricia's jaws. Talon was coming in for a Quick Attack while Tippi was trying to go over Patricia using Sleep Powder. Ivy was coming in with her Vine Whip.
Seeing Team Silkwing coming towards her, Patricia grinned sinisterly before she stomped on the ground, and glowing blue stones came up from the arena and the walls. Talon yelped as he stopped in midair frantically, waving his wings in front of him, barely avoiding a stone that appeared right in front of him. Ivy and Tippi weren't so lucky, however. Tippi let out a cry of pain as a stone slammed right into her stomach, causing the Butterfree to fall into the ground. Ivy took a hit herself, but she was nowhere near as bad a shape as Tippi was from that Stone Edge.
Patricia slammed Dust into the ground, causing almost all the air to leave the Absol's body. "Looks like you'll be the first to go, you should feel honored. How long has it been since a Pokemon died to a Mega Evolved Pokemon~"
"Dust!" Both Berry and Shab shouted as they fired Water Pulse and Ice Beam at Patricia.
The Mawile grinned as she used her two jaws to face the oncoming attacks. Each opened up as one swallowed Water Pulse while the other swallowed Ice Beam.
"Shouldn't have done that~" Patricia smiled as she pointed her two jaws at Berry and Shab.
Berry and Shab's eyes widened as they paled. Patricia was shooting their Water Pulse and Ice Beam right back at them. Shab reacted quickly, being a fast fish, and used Tackle to knock Berry and himself out of harm's way, both barely avoiding the two attacks. Berry had her antennae around Shab's body when he knocked them both out of the way, breathing heavily from being shaken up.
"T-thanks, Shab… that could've finished us off…" The Goomy said gratefully.
"Anything for you, Berry," Shab smiled before turning his attention back to Patricia. "But we gotta help Dust before it's too late."
"We can't be reckless, Patricia can eat up our attacks and spit them right back at us," Berry warned.
"She's dangerous enough without that ability." Talon frowned, landing beside Berry and Talon. "Tippi's already down for the count."
Ivy was moving Tippi away from the arena with her vines, wanting to get her teammate away from danger. "Things aren't looking too good for us… that Stone Edge really hurt…"
"Don't we have any more items to use?" Berry asked.
"We used up most of our items in our battle with Team Crimson Raiders. We hadn't had a chance to restock," Talon answered.
"We could really use a few Reviver Seeds right now." Shab frowned.
Patricia placed one foot on top of Dust's body, pressing hard enough to make sure he didn't try to escape. She then looked at Berry, Shab and Talon with a smug look on her face. "Amazing, isn't it? Already half your group was damaged, and you still have yet to put a single scratch on me. But this is too easy, so how about we play a little game? I want to make this last as long as possible~"
"What do you mean?" Berry frowned.
"If it's too complicated for your tiny brain, little Goomy, then I'll put it in simple terms," Patricia stated, making Berry frown and Shab growl at the insult to his precious Berry. "I'm giving you a chance to try to knock me off of your leader here, and try to save him. If you fail, however, well, let's just say no Reviver Seed in the world is going to fix him up."
"Don't you dare!" Berry growled.
"Then go ahead and try. I'll even let you take a free shot~" Patricia replied.
"Maybe I shouldn't have eaten that Oran Berry," Talon sighed. "My Endeavor would've come in handy right now if I was still close to passing out."
"Don't say that, there was no guarantee that you would've been able to use another Endeavor without passing out yourself at that point," Berry said.
"And right now we need all the help we can get," Shab added. "We have a free shot, we better not waste it."
"But what can we do? None of us have any Ground or Fire attacks," Talon asked. "All of my attacks will be useless against her. If only Tippi was still conscious, she could put Patricia to sleep or something."
"This is really bad for me. My Dragon Breath and Sludge Bomb won't do anything to Patricia, the best I can do is use a Rain Dance and Water Pulse combo and hope it hurts her, or at the very least, confuse her," Berry stated.
"We'll do it together then," Shab commented. "If we combine our attacks, we might be able to help Dust get free."
"But wait, we still run into the problem of Patricia eating our attacks and spitting it back out at us," Berry reminded.
"Leave that to me," Talon spoke up, using a wing to point at his chest. "Patricia seems to only do that with special attacks, right? If I could keep her distracted, you two could hit her with your double Water Pulse attack."
"Just… be careful, I'd rather she didn't eat you too," Berry warned. "I'm not sure if I'll be able to save someone from her belly a second time."
"Are you three going to keep talking or are you going to stop wasting my time?" Patricia impatiently asked.
"Right then, I'll get started," Talon said before he flew up and used Agility to increase his speed before going towards Patricia with Quick Attack. "Here I come!"
Patricia didn't even try to block as Talon used Quick Attack against her. "Really? I give you one free shot and you use Quick Attack?"
But Talon didn't stop, he continued attacking Patricia, despite his attacks barely doing any damage to the Mawile.
"This is really pathetic. Do you know what the definition of insanity is? It's when someone keeps trying the same thing, hoping to expect a different result. But if it makes you feel better, your attacks almost feel like a massage~" Patricia taunted, her focus completely on Talon.
While Talon was distracting Patricia, Berry summoned rain clouds over the arena, causing it to start raining. Patricia blinked, wondering why she was getting wet all of a sudden. Berry and Shab then shot out Water Pulse at Patricia that was powered up by the rain. Patricia turned to see the spiraling waters heading towards her while Talon quickly flew out of the way. Patricia didn't have enough time to react as the double Water Pulse slammed into her face.
"Did we do it?" Shab asked, seeing how it was a direct hit.
Suddenly, the ground started to shake where Shab and Berry were. Before they could react, a glowing blue stone burst from the ground, hitting both Berry and Shab. Despite Berry's body being able to take some heavy blows, especially thanks to the Defense Scarf, the Stone Edge attack did quite the damage to her. Berry got up, wincing from the pain to see Shab was lying on the ground.
"Shab…?" Berry frowned, struggling to slither to the Feebas. "Shab… are you… alright?"
When Shab didn't respond, Berry got closer, seeing the Feebas was hardly moving. Fear came to her eyes at first, but when she reached Shab, she saw that he was still breathing, though his body was bleeding from taking the blunt of the rock attack, some of his scales were missing.
"Shab! He's wounded!" Berry called out to Talon in alarm.
Talon flew over to them, frowning when he saw how bad in condition Shab was. "I'll take him over to Ivy, she should have a few more Oran Berries left, but after that we won't have anything else for this fight."
"An Oran Berry isn't going to wake him up though…" Berry frowned.
"Maybe it won't, but it'll stop the bleeding," Talon informed.
"You never cease to amaze me," Both Talon and Berry heard Patricia calling out to them. "You managed to knock me off the Absol, but besides giving me a bath, I'm afraid your attack didn't do that much."
"I'll get Shab to Ivy, try to stand your ground until Ivy and I join back up with you," Talon said to Berry before he, carefully, picked up Shab with his talons, careful to avoid touching his wound and missing scales.
Berry faced Patricia as Talon flew away with Shab, she was wondering what to do, before she noticed Dust was twitching slightly under Patricia. Patricia was also soaked from the rain and the Water Pulse attacks.
"Now you understand what true power is, little Goomy? I know once my master is done with you, he'll do wonders with your powers. Though at this point I think I'd rather have you for myself, considering all the trouble you caused. And don't worry, once I'm finished with your friends, I'll make sure to put your powers to great use-" Patricia was suddenly cut off.
The Mega Mawile's body was hit by an Ice Beam attack. Patricia was so focused on Berry she failed to notice Dust had prepared his attack earlier. Before Patricia could retaliate, her body started to freeze. She tried bringing her jaws down on the Absol, but at the last moment, her entire body was completely frozen. Dust ceased his attack, noticing how Patricia's jaws were only a few inches from reaching him.
"And I thought I talked non stop," Dust commented as he managed to break free from Patricia. His body was aching, but for the most part, he was fine.
"Dust! You're okay!" Berry said in relief as the Absol approached her. "Oh thank Mew, I thought Patricia was going to finish you off."
"I blacked out for a moment back there, but when I came back to my senses, I saw your combined attack with Shab hitting her. I was hoping it would work, but looks like even that wouldn't stop her. But with the constant rain and her body being completely soaked, I thought freezing her might be our best chance," Dust explained. "Where are the others?"
"They're…" Berry frowned. "Shab and Tippi are both out of this fight… Shab got hurt really bad too…"
Talon and Ivy hurried over to the arena. Dust saw they were okay for the most part.
"I squished some Oran Berry juice on the Feebas's wound, it's healing right now, but I don't think he'll be waking up any time soon without a Reviver Seed," Ivy informed.
"I think...our best option is to run away. We can't beat Patricia on our own, but if we can get away and get the help, we might have a better chance," Dust suggested.
The ice Patricia was in was beginning to crack.
"If we run now, we'd have to leave the others behind. They'll be too hard for us to carry all back with us. Patricia would catch up to us for sure," Talon warned. "She might end up eating them by the time we get back."
"And she might hide herself, where we won't be able to find her," Ivy added.
The ice was cracking more. The tip of Patricia's jaws was coming free.
"We have to do something, my ice isn't going to hold Patricia forever." Dust frowned. "We're out of items, two of our team members are down. Patricia is aiming to kill."
"You're the Dark type, don't you have any tricks up your fur or something?" Ivy pointed out.
Berry could see Patricia's ice was cracking and she quickly turned to the group. "This is no time to argue! Ivy, can you plant a Leech Seed on Patricia while she's still frozen? If nothing else, it'll start to drain her of her energy."
"Well it's a start, but it'll have to be after she breaks out, or else the seeds won't be able to get a hold of her while she's frozen," Ivy explained.
"Then you better be quick when she breaks out." Berry frowned.
"I'm always quick~" Ivy grinned.
Patricia's head began to glow silver just as she completely shattered the ice she was frozen in with Iron Head. Ivy ran around the arena while Patricia glared at Dust in annoyance.
"If you were hoping to just give me a headache, well congratulations, you succeeded," Patricia growled.
"Well it was worth a shot," Dust replied, making sure to keep Patricia's focus away from Ivy. "All that power and what do you plan to do with it?"
"As if I would tell you my plans," Patricia growled.
Ivy was behind the Mega Mawile, she then threw a golden little seed at Patricia's back. It was a good thing Patricia's jaws didn't have any eyes, or this would have been much harder to pull off. The seed went between the two jaws and landed on Patricia's back, planting itself there before little vines around out to cling onto Patricia's waist.
Patricia noticed the vines and gasped in shock. "When did this abomination get on me!?"
"Abomination? Please, this is mild compared to what you've been doing to those poor souls in the lab," Ivy snickered as she made her way back to the others.
"None of you are seeing the bigger picture, so how about you all just make this easy for yourself and give up? I promised I'll make it quick. I always do when I have my next meals~" Patricia grinned.
Dust noticed something was a bit off. Patricia was breathing a little heavily. "Guys, I know she's powerful and all, but I think she's starting to get exhausted. She had to deal with Al, had Berry force her to throw up, took on both Shab and Berry's combined attack, and now is being drained by Leech Seed."
"Don't think you'll be able to stop me that way. I'm done toying with you," Patricia growled.
Patricia began charging towards Dust and Berry. Ivy tried to stop her with a Leaf Tornado, but Patricia knocked the Snivy to the side by slamming her with Iron Head. Talon tried to attack Patricia as well, but he was quickly shoved away by a hit with Patricia's Iron Head as well. Dust prepared himself as Patricia was coming in. Berry gave a nervous look.
Patricia grinned sinisterly at Dust before she suddenly stopped right in front of him. Then, without any warning, the Mega Mawile grabbed Dust's neck fur and pulled him into a sudden dust cloud of hearts. Berry gasped, seeing what Patricia was doing. In an attempt to stop her from using Play Rough to knock out, or even kill, Dust, Berry frantically shot out Water Pulse into the dust cloud, hoping she was hitting Patricia with it.
Berry heard Dust cried out in pain, though whether it was because of her Water Pulse attack or Patricia's attack, she couldn't tell. Berry could only hope that she managed to stop Patricia. The dust started to clear and Berry saw a figure. She was hoping that it might be Dust, that perhaps he managed to protect himself, or that her attack managed to stop Patricia. She hoped with all her heart that Dust would be okay, but once the dust finally cleared out, Berry paled at what she saw.
Patricia stood facing Berry as one of her jaws held Dust by his neck. Parts of his fur were red now as blood was dripping to the ground beneath him. Dust was barely breathing, barely conscious, but he couldn't move even if he tried. Patricia looked at Dust, admiring her work before tossing the Absol to the side, his body landing on the ground like a ragdoll.
"And now it's just me and you, just like last time~" Patricia gave a toothy grin.
Dust was hurt, he was bleeding, he might be close to death again. Giratina had warned them that if Dust was close to death again, he would not survive it anymore. Berry felt her heart beating harshly against her chest. First Al, then Tippi, then Shab, and now Dust. Patricia was going to kill them all. Berry's body shook, but not with fear, it shook with rage.
Water began to surround the Goomy, her draconic energy starting to infuse with the water, turning the water into a water dragon that was moving around Berry. Heavy rain began to pour down on the arena. Ivy and Talon, who were still conscious, looked up, surprised, and getting soaked.
"That's it! Use your Power! I want to taste it for my own, see what it feels like!" Patricia shouted as she started drooling a bit.
Berry was about to have her water dragon attack Patricia, however, her power suddenly felt stronger as her body started to glow. In that moment, Berry snapped out of her feral-like rage when she realized what was happening. The water dragon suddenly dissipated into water that drained itself quickly, and the rain slowed down to a stop. Berry shut her eyes, trying to stop the evolution.
"What...what are you doing?! Why are you stopping?!" Patricia shouted, shocked at what she was seeing.
Berry's body stopped glowing, and she was relieved to see she was still a Goomy.
"No! Don't stop!" Patricia snapped. "What must I do to make you use your powers!? Maybe I should kill that Absol!"
"No! Stop!" Berry begged.
"Then finish what you started! I want to taste that power for myself!" Patricia growled.
"Berry! What's-" Talon began to ask when he saw Dust lying on the floor, badly beaten and bleeding. "Oh no…"
"She's picking us off…" Ivy frowned, though she felt slightly better due to the Leech Seed she had planted on Patricia earlier.
"Protect Dust!" Berry shouted to Talon and Ivy.
"But what about you?" Talon asked.
"She seems to be only focused on me, so protect Dust!" Berry shouted once more.
"Don't you dare interfere!" Patricia warned. "Not until after she uses her outburst!"
In a desperate attempt to stop Particia from using Stone Edge to knock out Talon and Ivy, and possibly badly wounding them as well, Berry jumped at Patricia, using Body Slam on the Mega Mawile's head, trying to use her body to blind Patricia.
"Hurry! Get Dust and get away from here!" Berry called out to the remaining Team Silkwing.
"No no no!" Patricia shouted as she tried pulling Berry off, but she held on tightly with her body. Patricia tried using her two jaws to pry Berry off, but they kept bumping into each other, preventing the other from reaching Berry. "Get off me you stupid, pathetic excuse for a Pokemon!"
"Ivy, can you get Dust? I can't leave Berry to fight alone with this monster," Talon asked the Snivy.
Ivy nodded as she grabbed onto Dust's waist with her vines. "Just be careful. I'll come back as soon as I can."
While Ivy was struggling to drag the bigger Absol, Talon flew at Patricia while Berry was still clinging onto her. Talon used Aerial Ace and Quick Attack to try to chip away Patricia's health, along with the Leech Seed still doing its work.
Patricia managed to snag Talon's body with one of her jaws, making the bird squeak and chirp in distress. Berry, seeing that Talon was in trouble, jumped off of Patricia's face in order to grab onto the jaw that was holding Talon with her body, then Berry shot out Water Pulse to make the jaw open up, letting Talon go, in order to try to swallow her attack. Thankfully, while shooting out the Water Pulse, it also pushed Berry back and away from the Mega Mawile. Talon quickly flew away from Patricia before she could grab him again.
Talon landed beside Berry, and both of them were facing with Patricia, who looked tired, but still nowhere near defeated.
"I… don't really… like our chances here…" Berry frowned, panting a bit.
"No kidding…" Talon agreed. "Almost everyone on our two teams are out cold. Ivy has to make sure they're okay. And we're… pretty much on our last limbs here."
"The moves I have just aren't good against a Steel and Fairy type… she's immune to two of my best attacks. Dragon Breath and Sludge Bomb can't do anything to her." Berry frowned. "My Body Slam isn't doing much. And I'm almost out of Water Pulse… What should we do?"
"Good question…" Talon frowned. "Even if she weakens me to the point of near death, it wouldn't do us any good since I think I've used up all of my Endeavors back there with that other team…"
Patricia was approaching, smirking, she could tell that Berry and Talon were quickly running out of options.
"Now you see what true power is, little Goomy?" Patricia asked. "What's frustrating is that you were born with an incredible power, and yet are too scared to even use it to help your friends. Others dreamed of having your kind of strengths, so how about you do everyone a favor and give up? I'll promise to make it quick for the others."
Berry and Talon both glared, it was clear neither of them were planning to give up despite the hopeless situation. Patricia rolled her eyes. "Very well then, the hard way it is."
The Mega Mawile began to tower over the Goomy and Starly, ready to finish them off. Patricia was so focused on Talon and Berry that she failed to see flames coming towards her. Caught off guard, she was hit with the Flamethrower on the side, knocking her away from Berry and Talon.
At first Berry was surprised by the sudden Flamethrower, but then thought that perhaps Al had regained consciousness. Though when she turned towards where the flames came from, she was even more surprised to see a familiar Zoroark. She didn't have time to fully register why Crimson was here as a new presence was suddenly behind her.
"You know, she may be a crazy Mawile, but she has a point. You should've used your outburst on her earlier," Berry heard a familiar voice talk to her.
Berry turned around, seeing the familiar Hakamo-o standing there, looking rather annoyed. Berry gave a nervous smile as she slithered a little away from Blizza. "Hey… uh… Blizza… Crimson, I didn't expect to see you two here."
"Did you expect us to just lie in bed back at the medical room?" Blizza rhetorically asked. "Crimson had woken me up the moment he saw all those other Pokemon. I'm guessing ugly over there is the one behind the missing Pokemon?" Blizza asked while pointing at Patricia.
"So you decided to come to help us?" Talon asked, surprised.
"Why so surprised?" Crimson asked as he calmly walked up to the group.
"You… uh…" Berry hesitated before deciding to change the subject. "How did you guys know about what's going on here?"
"We're Crusaders. Even a Slowpoke would figure out what was going on. That Mawile made it pretty easy to track down where the battle was happening," Blizza answered.
"So what's the current situation?" Crimson asked. "So far all we know is that Patricia is behind the missing Pokemon, half your teams are knocked out, and you two are struggling with a mega evolved Mawile."
"We're both weakened, and the best moves we have against here are either used up or almost used up," Berry explained.
"Patricia has the ability to swallow your special attacks and use them against you, be wary of that," Talon warned. "Ivy, my Snivy teammate, is currently taking care of our unconscious teammates, but she can join back in the fight if necessary. She also did plant a Leech Seed on Patricia, which is helping us a little bit."
Berry looked around. "Where's Levi?"
Blizza grinned as she crossed her arms. "Oh, she'll be joining us soon."
"Team Crimson Raiders," Patricia acknowledged, having recovered from Crimson's Flamethrower. "I'm surprised that you decided to interfere with my plans. What reason do you have for coming here anyways? I thought you follow the philosophy of if anyone was weak and stupid enough to get caught, you should just let them be."
"Our ideas might be similar, we value strength and know that only the strong survive," Crimson started as he faced Patricia. "But one thing you seem to have forgotten is that we are still Crusaders for Unity Guild."
"Crusaders," Patricia spat before continuing. "The lot of you are nothing but a bunch of annoying, goody two shoes who can't learn to keep their noses out of other Pokemon's business."
"Let's get one thing straight," Blizza spoke up, growling. "The only Pokemon who will get to battle with the Goomy while she's using her full power is me!" The Hakamo-o pounded her fist against her other hand.
Why does everyone want me to use my outburst so much? Berry inwardly groaned.
Patricia laughed while pointing at Blizza. "After the performance you gave during your battle, I can see why that Goomy doesn't want to use her full power against you. You've done nothing but lose so far. Only reason you made it this far is because your teammates had to carry you."
Fueled by anger at the insult, Blizza was suddenly in front of Patricia before punching her in the stomach. Blizza used Drain Punch, which did knock Patricia back a bit. Being half Steel and half Fairy type, Patricia wasn't weak to Blizza's Drain Punch, though she wasn't resistant to it either.
"Say that again, I dare you!" Blizza growled, her teeth gritting. "I won't be looked down by anyone else, especially some wannabe Mawile who claims to be so strong. Only reason you're strong is because of your mega form. Without it, you're just some weak, pathetic Pokemon who's jealous of others. Instead of trying to steal power from others, how about you try getting strong yourself?!"
"You can work hard for years to make yourself strong," Patricia glared. "But some of us aren't born with the natural ability to get stronger, no matter how long or hard we work. It would just be a waste of our time and our life. My master found a way around that, however, and it's thanks to him I can be this strong without wasting years of my life on training! And you… heh, do you really think you can beat me?"
Patricia suddenly launched herself at Blizza. "WHEN YOU ARE FOUR TIMES WEAK TO FAIRY!?"
Blizza let out a surprised gasp as she was suddenly covered in dust as hearts and stars came out of the dust that Patricia trapped her in. Blizza felt an immense amount of pain. She had rarely ever fought with Fairy types in her life, because they were usually rare or docile. After a couple of seconds, Blizza's body was knocked away from the dust. She landed near Crimson, who only shook his head.
"We talked about this before, you shouldn't rush in with all that anger. Can you still fight?" Crimson asked.
After a couple of seconds the Hakamo-o slowly got off, spitting out some blood before replying. "It's...gonna take a lot more...then some fairy dust to knock me out."
Berry and Talon looked at Blizza worriedly, but both knew not to say anything, least they incur the angry Hakamo-o's wrath.
Then, both of them saw a familiar Gyarados floating in the air, quietly approaching Patricia as she was approaching them. It was then Berry remembered how Shab would float in the air when he would swim outside of the water.
"You think that any of you could beat me? You may have gotten far in this tournament, but it was a tournament for low level Crusaders like all of you are. You're no match for me as I am now!" Patricia snapped, having lost most of her patience by now, not noticing Levi was coming up behind her.
Crimson smirked. "Well something I learned from my loss is to not underestimate your opponent. You tend to get distracted when you do that."
Suddenly, Levi bit down on Patricia's jaws and head with her teeth. Patricia let out a surprised cry as suddenly being bitten down by a giant water sea dragon serpent creature. Levi lifted up her body, picking the Mawile up with her.
Not one to be easily taken, however, Patricia summoned stones from the floor as Levi was lifting her up. Levi let out a cry as the Stone Edge hit her stomach, dropping Patricia from her mouth, Being half Flying, Levi did not like being hit by the stones, though she was still conscious, and angry.
"That hurt you-" Levi started, only for Patrica to cut her off by using Crunch against her body, causing the Gyarados to yell out in pain. "Let go of me, you gremlin!"
Patricia held on tight, using her two jaws to continue grabbing Levi. Being this close, the Mawile then made her head harder as she used repeatedly used Iron Head against Levi. Despite being part water, the constant attacks from the steel move was still causing Levi a lot of pain.
"S-shouldn't you help her?" Berry frowned at Crimson. "She is your teammate, and she's getting hurt!"
"I know," Crimson calmly replied.
"How can you be acting so calm? You should be helping your teammates!" Talon shouted.
Crimson frowned as he turned to face Talon. "They are the ones helping me by buying me time."
"Buying time for what?" Talon asked.
Crimson doesn't reply, instead the Zoroark just smiled as he tapped his head. Berry, remembering watching all his previous fights realized what Crimson was doing.
"But we told you that she can swallow any special attack. Calm Mind won't make a difference," Berry stated.
"Do you have some kind of plan?" Talon frowned.
"Just shut up, both of you," Blizza grumbled. "If Crimson is doing something, just let him do it."
"Blizza, just like we practiced," Crimson said.
"Oh, we're doing that?" Blizza asked. "Heh, that stupid Mawile will never see it coming."
Berry and Talon looked at each other, wondering what Crimson and Blizza were planning to do.
Meanwhile, Levi had been trying to shake Patricia off, but the Mawile had been holding on with her jaws while constantly using Iron Head. She finally jumped off from Levi, seeing the Gyarados breathing heavily from the constant attacks. Blood was trickling down her body from where Patricia had recently bit her.
"Is that...all you...got?" Levi asked.
"You know, I've had my fair share of fish Pokemon, but you are the worst one I've ever tasted. When was the last time you washed yourself?" Patricia asked.
"Why you!" Levi shouted as she charged towards Patricia.
The Gyarados rushed with her head, intent on biting the Mawile, but Patricia just grinned. Before Levi could make contact with Patricia, the Mawile summoned another stone, right under Levi's head. The force of Stone Edge knocked Levi up. Her body fell backwards with a loud thud, causing the ground to shake a little.
"How is she able to use that many Stone Edge?" Talon frowned. "It's a powerful Rock type move, but it gets used up pretty quickly."
"It must be the whole modifications her master did to her," Berry guessed.
With Levi unconscious, Patricia turned her attention back to the group. "Finally got that giant sea snake out of the way, now, where were we?"
Crimson stepped forward to face Patricia. "I'll be your next opponent."
Patricia saw that Berry, Talon, and Blizza were behind him, all exhausted. She grinned as she focused on Crimson. "Ah yes, the leader of Crimson Raiders. Always letting his teammates do all the heavy lifting while he does all the easy work. Let's see if your illusions are any match for my mega evolution."
Despite the taunt, Crimson still remained calm. He grinned as he suddenly charged forward while creating two more copies of himself. Patricia was already expecting the Zoroark to use his illusions, having watched his previous matches, so she wasn't too worried about them.
When the first Zoroark jumped at her with Sucker Punch, she quickly thrust her jaws against Crimson, only for her attack to pass through. She saw the remaining two go to each side of Patricia before charging at the Mawile. Patricia used both her jaws to attack both Zoroark, but just as her jaws were about to bite down on either of them, her attacks just went through them. Patricia then grinned as she quickly turned around, as Crimson suddenly appeared, blocking his Sucker Punch. Before Crimson could react, Patricia grabbed Crimson's neck, holding him tightly.
"Did you really think I'd fall for your illusions?" Patricia asked.
Crismon grinned, despite being choked by Patricia. "Oh, but you did."
Patricia's eyes shot open as she dropped the Zoroark in shock. She turned around and saw Crimson standing there, his mouth opened as white energy was building up. At first she was worried, but after seeing that Crimson was about to use Hyper Beam, she only grinned.
"That was your plan? Well hope it was worth it! I'm gonna enjoy throwing all that energy back at you!" Patricia shouted.
The Mawile was about to bring her jaws forward so that she could absorb the attack, but suddenly she found that her jaws were stuck. Surprised, she looked behind her to see the Zoroark she grabbed earlier was holding onto her jaws.
"But, how?" Patricia asked.
Suddenly the Zoroark started to ripple as the body faded away, revealing a Hakamo-o. Patricia's gave a surprised gasp as she turned to face where she last saw Blizza. The Hakamo-o she thought she saw earlier suddenly disappeared.
"Sorry, but can't be having you swallowing any special attacks now," Blizza grinned.
"You little-" Patricia was cut off by Blizza tugging harder on her jaws, preventing her from moving.
"Crimson! Hurry up! I don't know how long I can hold her!" Blizza shouted as she was straining to keep hold of Patricia's jaws.
Berry and Talon quickly braced themselves as the Zoroark blasted out a huge, white, hot beam from his mouth. Patricia let out a scream as she struggled against Blizza's hold.
"You idiot! You can't hold me and dodge that supercharged Hyper Beam at the same time!" Patricia shouted.
"Heh, I know. But if it means wiping that smug look of your face and taking you down, then you better start clenching your teeth, cause this is gonna hurt!" Blizza grinned as she braced herself for the attack.
"WHAT!? YOU'RE INSANE!" Patricia screamed as the Hyper Beam consumed both of them in its bright energy.
There was an explosion, the entire area shook violently, some of the lights on the ceiling fell down and hit the ground. Berry was glad she didn't have any feet at the moment, otherwise she would've fallen down from how violently everything was shaking. Talon was holding onto her with his wings.
When the shaking and explosion calmed down, Berry and Talon tried to look through the smoke and debris.
"Is it… over?" Talon questioned.
"Don't you think that was overdoing it a bit? You could've really hurt your teammate." Berry frowned at Crimson, who was able to stay standing despite the violent tremors earlier.
Crimson was breathing heavily, having to lean on his knees for support. "We've...practiced this...before. Blizza uses...the Pokemon she's...holding onto...as a shield...She's probably unconscious...but that Mawile took...the full blow."
Crimson looked ready to drop from using that Hyper Beam, he was likely also still weak from his earlier battle with Team Silkwing.
"Really glad you guys didn't decide to use that on us," Talon remarked.
"Even we know...something like that...is overdoing it. That was more...for dealing with… a very strong wild Pokemon...or an outlaw," Crimson said in between breaths.
They likely would've used it on that Goodra back at the Waterfall Cavern rather than something like a Zubat or a Patrat. Berry noted to herself.
"Well, at least it's over…" Talon said in relief.
"Or is it?" A voice suddenly said through the smoke.
Before Crimson could react, Blizza's body was thrown right at him, knocking him off his feet. Crimson tried to get up, or to at least get Blizza off his body, but he had no more strength, using it all up from his previous attack. When he saw a figure walking from the smoke towards them, his eyes went wide before he looked at Berry.
"Go," Crimson said. "Get out while you still can!"
Suddenly alarmed, Berry and Talon tried to move, but Patricia, having had enough, rushed at them suddenly. She used Stone Edge that made stones suddenly pop up directly in front of the two. Talon's wings flapped frantically in his panic and shock, making him unable to fly right away, and Berry slithered back before turning around. The Mega Mawile stood over them, shadows covering her face, and her red eyes almost glowed with malice. Patricia was about to bring down both of her jaws to grab both of them, but Berry quickly tackled Talon away just before the jaws came down, grabbing onto Berry.
Talon rolled on the floor, before looking back, his eyes widened in horror. The Goomy not only saved his life, but sacrificed her own. Patricia had Berry trapped in her jaw, fully intending to swallow her and not let her go this time.
"No! Stop it! Don't eat her!" Talon shouted, his wings flapping around frantically.
"This time, you won't be getting away," Patricia said to Berry, completely ignoring Talon.
Talon, seeing this, had flashes of his parents and his siblings being eaten alive by a powerful Serperior. He could remember them shouting for help, shouting for him to get away. Talon shut his eyes for a moment.
No… I'm not that helpless little bird who could only fly away while the rest of his family got eaten. I've grown since then… I'm a Crusader now. As a Crusader, it's my job to help those in need! I won't run, I won't fly away from this anymore! Talon snapped open his eyes before he flew up into the air and started to dive down towards Patricia, aiming for the jaw that had Berry in it.
Talon pulled in his wings to dive down faster, his body started to glow as determination filled him. A blue aura surrounded the Starly's body, turning into a giant cloak of a bird. While Talon was still diving towards Patricia's jaw while his attack was changing, his entire body glowed white as well. Talon began to grow bigger, his wings getting longer, the hair on his head growing and curling, his talons getting sharper, and his tail feathers getting slightly longer too.
Time seemed to slow down as Patricia was about to swallow Berry. In that same moment, Talon having evolved was only a few feet away from the Mawile. Patricia then noticed the oncoming attack, and seeing Talon was surrounded by a blue aura in the shape of a bird. She let out a gasp, trying to defend herself, but before she could Talon attacked her, hitting her right on her stomach. The force of the blow caused Patricia to let Berry go as Talon pushed her body back towards one of the stones she summoned earlier. The stone shattered the moment Patricia made contact with it, causing dust to cover the area.
Berry was confused by what happened, even more so when she saw a bird landing next to her. The Pokemon looked like Talon, but was bigger compared to before.
"Berry, are you alright?" The Bird Pokemon asked.
"Y-yeah, I think so… uh…" Berry looked at the Pokemon. "Talon…? Is that you?"
"Yeah, of course it's me," Talon answered. "But did you just see what I did? I don't think I ever used a move like that before! I think it was… Brave Bird? Yeah, I think that was Brave Bird!"
Berry blinked a few times. "You… learned a new move? And you evolved?"
"I what?" Talon asked as he looked over his body. After a couple of seconds he slightly chuckled. "Heh, I guess I did. I remember seeing Patricia about to eat you, and it reminded me of what happened to my family. But I knew I couldn't just do nothing. I suddenly felt a huge surge of power, but I just assumed it had to do with whatever move I used. I didn't think I would actually evolve."
"Wow… you look… impressive… I think you're a… a Staravia now, right?" Berry remarked, looking the newly evolved Talon over. While it's not as drastic as Levi's evolution, it definitely makes Talon look more intimidating in a way.
Talon blushed slightly at the compliment before remembering the situation they were currently in. "We shouldn't let our guard down yet, we still might have to deal with Patricia."
Berry and Talon were on guard, but when they saw the Mawile, she was lying on the ground, not moving. Her body glowed before it reverted back to her normal Mawile self, no longer mega.
"I think… you knocked her out," Berry softly remarked, seeing how Patricia was a normal Mawile again, and didn't appear to be getting back up.
"Better to be safe than sorry," Talon remarked as he hopped over to Patricia. After watching her closely, the Staravia began to relax. "You were right, she's unconscious. Let's check on the others, then we can get the authorities here to take her away."
"That won't be necessary," A new voice said from the shadows.
Before Berry or Talon could react, vines shot out and wrapped around Talon and Berry. Even Berry couldn't slip out, despite her body being slimy. As the two struggle to break free from their bindings, they see the newcomer enter the arena. When light shone upon the Pokemon, Berry gasped as she saw a green and blue , serpine-like creature slither up to them.
Is that… a Serperior…? But… I've never seen one with those colors before. They're usually white and green. Not lime green and blue. Berry frowned. And this one's got a tight grip… there's something about this Serperior that's making me feel drained.
"I must say, I was not expecting Patricia to be defeated while in her Mega Evolution form. Even though I warned her from using the method, I'm sure it was for a good reason," The Serperior chuckled slightly as he finally reached Berry and Talon. "Now let's see who we have here. Ah yes, Berry, the unique Goomy who's powers come from an unknown source. Did you inherit them from your parents? Or perhaps you are a new, unique Goomy? I look forward to getting to know you more."
Talon looked to be having a hard time breathing, though it wasn't because of the vine that had him trapped. He looked to be sweating, and hyperventilating as he was looking at the Serperior. Berry was worried that Talon was going to pass out at any moment.
"Ah, I almost didn't recognize you. Congratulations on evolving, but it doesn't matter what form you take, I always remember the eyes of my prey. To think you've grown this much. It was a real shame that you managed to get away, but you'll be joining your family soon," The Serperior smiled as he stuck out his forked tongue, tasting Talon. "Ah yes, I still remember the taste, still fresh in my memory."
"Talon! Get a hold of yourself!" Berry called out, seeing how Talon looked like he blacked out for a second there.
Berry spat out some toxic purple sludge at the strange colored Serperior, in hopes of making him let them go. But the Serperior just chuckled as he used another vine to wipe off the sludge like it was just a minor inconvenience.
"Don't worry, I'll get to you later. I'd appreciate it if you didn't try to interrupt my meal," The Serperior smiled before tasting Berry a little. "Hmm, I can see why Patricia was so keen on having you for her own. You have a rather, unique taste."
How powerful is this Serperior? Not even a super effective attack did anything to him! Berry paled, this whole situation was reminding her of that wild Goodra back at the Waterfall Cavern again.
"STOP IT!" A familiar voice called out.
Ivy was running towards the damaged stage, jumping up to it, before facing the Serperior with a defiant look on her face. The Serperior was surprised by Ivy's sudden appearance, and for a moment it caused him to stop for now.
"Why isn't this a surprise," The Serperior chuckled as he leaned closer to Ivy. "Tell me, are either of these two your teammates?"
Ivy glared at the Serperior. "The Staravia is my teammate. The Goomy is a friend. I'd rather you didn't eat them."
The Serperior laughed even more. "I wasn't sure what that Staravia was thinking when I saw him fighting alongside a Snivy on the same team. Perhaps he needed a third member and somehow you ended up on the team. I figured he'd be too traumatized to even get near our kind."
Ivy's eyes widened for a moment. "How… how would you know that Talon would be traumatized by our own kind?"
"My sweet little Snivy, can't you see by his reaction. This isn't his first time meeting me," The Serperior gave a sickly grin. "I always do love a good reunion."
Ivy paled as she looked at Talon. She had seen him evolve earlier when trying to take down Patricia, and she thought it was the coolest thing ever. But now seeing how Talon looked like a terrified little bird by this Serperior, she couldn't help but feel her heart breaking a bit to see how badly this was affecting her kind hearted leader.
"What… did you do to him!?" Ivy demanded angrily.
How is Ivy not scared of this Serperior? He could easily take her down even if they come from the same species… does… do they… know each other…? Berry noted, watching the interaction between the Snivy and the oddly colored Serperior.
Ivy then frowned. "It was you, wasn't it? You were that wild Serperior who ate Talon's family, weren't you?"
"Wild? Now isn't that being quite rude," The Serperior sarcastically replied while faking concern. He lightly chuckled before continuing. "My dear, if you are going to accuse me, I suggest knowing all the facts before making any such accusation. For example, I was never wild when I first met your little bird here. I was fully civilized. And ate them? Such a harsh word. I prefer...dining with them."
"You DINED on them! Why would you do such a thing, D- Undergrowth!?" Ivy snapped, almost slipping something up.
Oh yeah, they definitely know each other. Berry frowned.
"Why? That's like asking why Flying types fly, why Water types swim. I was famished and I happened to come across this Staravia's family," Undergrowth explained. "And right now I'm rather annoyed. It's not often I come back to see my precious assistant defeated. I can only assume the worst has happened concerning our plans. But I also feel rather generous. Would you be so kind as to come with me and take some of the others?"
"Distortion World no! Why the heck would I go with a monster like you?" Ivy hissed.
"Well it's either that or I'll just continue on with having my meal," Undergrowth stated. "Besides, it's not very nice to call me a monster, especially since it's in your nature as well, my little Ivy~"
Berry blinked, looking at Ivy. Are they… related…?
Ivy looked both disgusted and angry. "I'm nothing like you, Undergrowth. I don't eat other Pokemon like you do."
"Of course, not now~" Undergrowth replied. "The first Pokemon is always difficult, but afterwards it gets easier. I know you've thought about it before~"
"Never! I wouldn't!" Ivy snapped as Undergrowth leaned in closer to Ivy.
Ivy looked around nervously, noticing the Serperior's body was curling around her, cutting off potential escape routes for her. Still, the Snivy glared defiantly into Undergrowth's eyes. Berry saw this, and frowned, noticing Undergrowth's smirk at Ivy.
"Why don't you come back with me, my little Ivy?" Undergrowth gently suggested in a soothing voice. "We missed out on many things since I had been away. Perhaps it's time we do a little bonding."
"You…" Ivy hesitated. "Why suggest that now?"
"My dear, being away for so long has made me realize what I truly miss. And if I'm going to have to leave, I want you there with me," Undergrowth answered. "I may have made mistakes in the past, but perhaps you can help me become better?"
"... If I do that... you would let my friends go?" Ivy asked, still staring into Undergrowth's eyes.
How could Ivy just believe him? I thought she was smarter than that… Berry frowned, noticing something was off.
Talon hadn't said anything, in fact, Berry wasn't even sure if he was still conscious, he appeared to be looking at them, but he also looked like he was staring off into space.
"I promise they will not be harmed, all you have to do is come with me, and I can show you what our kind are truly capable of," Undergrowth offered.
Ivy had a strange, almost far away look in her eyes, which Berry noticed, and was worried about. Something was definitely wrong. Undergrowth pulled out another vine from his neck, and had it go behind Ivy, gently pushing her towards him.
"Ivy, snap out of-" Berry tried warning Ivy, only for the vines to wrap around her mouth.
"I… I like… that…" Ivy slowly said as she moved closer to the Serperior.
Undergrowth grinned.
Suddenly, the doors were shoved opened. "That's enough!"
A familiar looking Togetic came flying in suddenly, and behind him were Kuro and Trixx, who had shocked expressions after seeing the arena and how everyone was heavily injured.
Undergrowth glared at the newcomers, annoyed at being interrupted once more. "Again with the interruption. I must say, you all have impeccable timing. But if you think you three are enough to stop me, you're more than welcome to try."
"Who said it was just us three?" Kuro asked.
Suddenly Magnazone and a couple Magnamite and Magneton came rushing through the door as they surrounded the Serperior. Sparks were coming off the end of their magnets.
"Undergrowth, you are wanted for theft, kidnapping, smuggling and murder. You are under arrest. Release the Staravia, Goomy and Snivy and surrender peacefully," The Magnazone ordered.
Ivy didn't even seem to be looking at them, she kept looking at Undergrowth. Berry looked around, relieved to see help had arrived, though she didn't like how not-so-worried the Serperior appeared to be. Talon still looked to be spacing out.
"Do you really think you could arrest me?" Undergrowth chuckled. "After all… I'm not an S-Class Outlaw for nothing, as I'm sure you're aware of, Officer."
He's an S-Class Outlaw!? Berry paled, just now realizing how dire their situation was. An S-Class Outlaw was so dangerous and powerful, not even the officers would be able to face them without a very high ranking Crusader team backing them up.
Undergrowth then turned to Ivy. "My sweet little Ivy, pay close attention. I'm about to show you what we are truly capable of."
Undergrowth looked towards the Magnazone, giving the electric steel type Pokemon a sinister look. Berry started to shiver from just seeing the Serperior's face.
There was a sudden wind, and the wind pushed twisters upon twisters of leaves. The leaves cut through the Magnazone's steel-like hide easily. The others were blown away as if they were nothing, hitting the walls behind them. Kuro and Trixx groaned, realizing that neither of them stood a chance against this Serperior. The Magnazone officer fell to the ground, his steel hide covered in cuts, some looking quite deep. Undergrowth smirked sinisterly. His body almost looked like it grew a little. Berry could feel Undergrowth's body getting stronger after using that Leaf Storm attack somehow.
So this is what an S-Class Outlaw is like? Can the others even stop him? Berry gulped.
Undergrowth grinned, before looking at Ivy. "You see that, my little Ivy? You could be capable of that too, one day, if you'll let me train you instead of being stuck at the guild."
Undergrowth raised Ivy's face to him with his vine under her chin. "Wouldn't you agree, my little Ivy?"
"Yes… I do agree," Ivy answered back, sounding more monotone than excited.
Kuro and Trixx were unsure of what to do. Togetic was teary eyed, seeing how their attempts had failed. When he first ran into Kuro and Trixx, they had managed to convince him to betray Patricia and Undergrowth. He believed with the help of Magnazone and the others, they would be able to stop them, especially after seeing that Patricia was unconscious. But now, all hope was lost to the Togetic.
Berry felt something, or rather, someone coming into the area. Her antennae lifted up as she looked up from where Undergrowth was holding her. She saw another Absol. This Absol stopped and looked to the side, seeing all their injured and unconscious teammates on the floor, though the Absol's eyes were on Dust the most. Seeing how heavily injured Dust was, with his fur covered in blood, the Absol's body started to pulse, their fur shifting. Despite where Berry was, she was able to see the Absol's eyes, how they gave off an intimidating blood red glow.
Berry gulped, realizing this Absol was Eclipse, Dust's mother, and recalled Dust's words about how he warned the others of his mother's bad side.
The sudden pressure Eclipse gave immediately drew the others' attention on her.
"E-Eclipse?" Togetic asked in surprise. "I thought you were staying behind to make sure Chihiro didn't get out in case she was working with the kidnappers."
Eclipse turned and faced the Togetic, her glare sent a shiver down his spine. "I already knew that she was innocent. But until her name was cleared, the authorities wanted me to stay. Once I learned that Dust and the others were battling with the real kidnappers, I came immediately. Though it would have been better if you had decided to confess earlier."
Eclipse growled, causing the Togetic to flinch. The Togetic decided not to get in Eclipse's way as she was clearly angry, and ready to unleash her wrath on anyone she saw fit right now.
Thankfully for the Togetic, her attention was on the Serperior. Berry, however, didn't feel very lucky since she was being currently held by the Serperior, and seeing how Berry had let Dust get hurt like that, it wouldn't surprise the Goomy if Eclipse decided she was just collateral damage.
However, as Eclipse was approaching Undergrowth, her pressure appeared to be enough to snap both Ivy and Talon out of their own trances. Both of them looked up, surprised, seeing the Absol approaching them.
"What the?" Undergrowth was surprised to see both Talon and Ivy suddenly back to their senses.
It was then Undergrowth felt a heavy pressure behind him. As he turned to see who it was, he paled when he saw Eclipse. Her pressure was so intense that Berry was having trouble breathing.
"You… what are you doing here, Eclipse the Reaper?" Undergrowth frowned.
For once, Undergrowth did actually look concerned at seeing Eclipse. Though her pressure didn't have the same affect on him as it did with Berry, he was somehow able to remain standing… or at least not on the ground, having trouble breathing, like Berry was. Talon and Ivy weren't much better. Ivy lied down on the floor, unable to take the pressure herself. Talon looked like he was having trouble breathing like Berry was.
"You thought you could get away with this," Eclipse growled. "This is your one and only chance. Surrender or else I'll show you why they call me the Reaper."
Eclipse exerted even more pressure, causing the Serperior to flinch for a moment. He quickly recovered as he tried thinking of his options. If he had noticed Eclipse earlier, he could've used Berry, Talon and Ivy as a bargaining chip, but since she managed to get this close, Undergrowth was unsure if he'd be able to take them as hostages before Eclipse could attack. He then noticed that Magnazone was starting to get up, despite taking a direct hit from Leaf Tornado. He knew his options were limited, and if he wanted any chance of getting out of here, he'd have to go for the best one.
Undergrowth grinned, though he was lightly sweating. "Perhaps if it was just us two, I'd be interested in seeing what the Reaper can do, but for now, I yield."
Berry was surprised at how easily Undergrowth was yielding, but then again, she wouldn't want to face Eclipse with that amount of pressure she was producing herself.
The Mangazone officer floated over, though he looked quite weak, he was surprisingly still conscious. Berry remembered some of her lessons with Dust and Otti about Pokemon's abilities, she remembered reading that the Magnemite line could have the ability Sturdy, which prevented them from falling unconscious if they were healthy but was hit by a devastating attack.
"Thank you...Eclipse for your assistance," Magnazone said before turning his attention to the Serperior. "Undergrowth and Patricia are under arrest for the many crimes you have commited. You will be questioned later concerning the missing Pokemon, your reasonings, as well as any other plans or Pokemon you may be working with."
Undergrowth was looking off in the distance, as though something had caught his attention. After hearing Magnazone, he turned to face the officer while grinning. "By all means, I'm more than willing to comply. But I must warn you, the things that I know, the information that I have, it can cause very serious problems for others. You may regret having me captured. So I think it's in everyone's best interest that me and Patricia take our leave, least sensitive information ends up going public."
"You're not going anywhere!" Eclipse hissed.
"Oh, I'm afraid that's not up to you," Undergrowth grinned.
Suddenly, Undergrowth's body, and Patricia's body glowed for a second, before they vanished. Berry and Talon fell to the ground at Undergrowth's sudden disappearance. Talon landed with a THUD while Berry landed with a PLOP.
"What the Reverse World happened!?" Eclipse snapped, angry that Undergrowth suddenly disappeared.
"It seems as though they teleported out of here," Magnazone deduced. "But neither Serperior or Mawile are capable of using Teleport. There must've been a Psychic type nearby watching them, providing an escape route in case they were to get caught."
Eclipsed growled, angry that Undergrowth had managed to get away. But seeing how nothing else could be done, she decided to drop her pressure. She then turned her attention to Kuro, Trixx and the Togetic. "You three, go to the Medical room and get all the workers there. There are Pokemon in critical conditions here. Alert the staff too, tell them if they see any suspicious Pokemon, they are to detain them until further notice. Especially if they are Psychic types."
"Yes ma'am!" All three of them quickly said before hurrying out of the doors.
Eclipse then faced Magnazone. "I suggest you eat an Oran Berry. The sooner you heal, the sooner you can go back and release Chihiro. I think you have seen enough to know that she's innocent."
"Yes, Eclipse," Magnazone quickly said as he exited the arena.
Seeing how it was now just Eclipse and the remaining teams, the Absol walked towards Berry, Talon and Ivy. "Are you three okay?"
"We're… better than the rest of our teammates…" Ivy answered.
Talon looked too shaken up to say anything.
"We… didn't stand much of a chance against Patricia… Team Crimson Raiders came to help us… and it almost wasn't enough," Berry answered, looking at the unconscious Zoroark, Hakamo-o, and Gyarados.
"You'll most likely be asked questions later as to what happened. So I suggest taking this time to recover," Eclipse suggested.
"Wait, before that… what happened to Patricia, I don't think it was normal," Berry said. "She… seemed like she evolved, but didn't stay that way permanently, but she became so much stronger and looked different. When we managed to knock her out, she returned back to normal."
"Sounds to me she Mega Evolved, though I didn't think it was possible. That method of evolving had been lost, along with most of the records concerning the humans. It's a miracle you three are even conscious," Eclipse explained. "You can learn more about it later. I must attend to my son."
Eclipse walked towards Dust. She had a small back with her that she kept at all times. She took out a few Sitrus Berries and crushed them with her claws. She began to rub the Sitrus Berry juice over Dust's fur, which was quickly healing whatever wounds he had under his fur. She knew that the berries would help Dust, but the rest depended on him, and she could only pray that her son would be alright.
Ivy looked over at Talon, seeing that he hadn't moved from his spot on the floor. She walked over to him, to see if he was alright. "Talon? Are you-"
"Don't come any closer!" Talon suddenly flapped his wings wildly, making Ivy back away. "You… you're related to that Serperior, aren't you?"
"Talon! N-no, it's not what you think," Ivy tried explaining herself. "That Serperior, he's not...It's complicated."
"You almost joined him!" Talon snapped. "You didn't even try to fight back!"
"Talon, I don't even know what was happening. At first I remember him holding you and Berry with his vines. He tried convincing me to go with him but after that everything is blurry!" Ivy explained.
Berry frowned, while Talon and Ivy were arguing, she looked over at Dust and Eclipse. Berry slithered over to see how Dust was doing, and she also wanted to see if the others were okay too. Though as soon as she got close to where Dust and Eclipse were, Berry suddenly felt a slight pressure coming from Eclipse. She then stopped in her tracks when she saw the Absol glaring at her.
"Berry, my son may trust you, but so far since being your partner, his life has been put in more danger than before when he was with me. If you wish to continue staying on the same team as my son, I suggest you leave us be for now," Eclipse warned.
"Oh… I'm… sorry…" Berry timidly apologized before she slithered away from them, not wanting to get on Eclipse's bad side, even though she was 99% sure she already was at this point.
But she isn't wrong. Ever since Dust and I became partners, he had come close to death several times already… and I keep letting it happen… maybe it's better Dust stays at the guild as a researcher than a Crusader member after all… or until we can recruit someone who could keep him from getting hurt… Berry frowned to herself, feeling hurt at Eclipse's words.
And so the final day of the tournament had passed. Despite surviving the tournament, and even putting a stop to Undergrowth and Patricia's plan, it felt more like a loss than a victory. Tension was high among friends, wounds that would take time to heal. The only thing anyone could do that night was recover as the tournament finally came to an end.
Tippi, Shab, and Dust were feeling better, though they noticed that their teammates weren't their usual selves. Tippi was surprised and happy that Talon evolved, but wasn't so happy when she found out there was tension between him and Ivy now. Shab and Dust noticed Berry had been very quiet, especially around Dust. She wouldn't even ride on his back anymore.
Al was taken back to the guild, along with the rest of Team Destruct while they slept off their drugged food.
Eclipse had told Dust that she needed to take care of some things but that she would return shortly after to check on him. As she left, Dust noticed his mother giving a glance at Berry, who only looked away. He wondered if something had happened between the two while he was unconscious.
Cliff and Phantom were conscious again, both of them were happy to see Team Night Tide, Cliff especially, though she noticed how odd Berry was acting around Dust, which did worry her. Spooks filled Phantom in on what was happening. When Chihiro was released from prison, both Dreepy were so happy they all but tackled their grandmother in a big hug.
The Togetic had confessed that he had been working under Patricia to find out what was going on in the tournament, about the truth of the disappearance of Pokemon. But by the time he discovered it, he was in too deep, and it took a while for him to be able to tell the officer about it. But he had no regrets, other than waiting for so long to do what he did to get Patricia under arrest.
As for Trixx and Kuro, Kuro decided to explore on his own for a while, while Trixx was looking for a new job in White Leaf Town, not wanting to be a part of the whole conspiracy of the tournament.
While the Pokemon were recovering from their plight, Grace was standing on the outskirts of town. She was frowning as she looked out towards the woods. "And so it begins…"
Meanwhile, Undergrowth and Patricia were working somewhere underground in a hidden lab. Patricia was lying on a bed, still looking weak, but conscious. Undergrowth rubbed the vine with Berry's slime against a napkin, and pushed the napkin under a microscope.
"I'm sorry, Master… It was my fault we got discovered. I let my hunger get the better of me," Patricia sighed.
"Yes, while your mistake did cost us many of our resources, sometimes sacrifices must be made for the greater goal," Undergrowth stated while observing Berry's slime. "Don't worry my dear, we still have many plans for the future."
Meanwhile, a familiar Persian wearing an orange suit had entered a building. He sighed, after having an unsuccessful day of trying to get an interview with any of the Pokemon that were caught in last night's events. The authorities were stubborn, but he was so close to convincing them to let him pass, until Eclipse had shown up. The moment she did, any chance he had of getting a word from Dust or the others were shot down.
"Still, not all was lost," Dio said to himself.
The Persian then used his front paw to pull out a device as he used his claw to press some buttons on it before placing it against his ear.
"Hello? It's Dio," The Persian said, hearing another voice through the device. "Looks like Undergrowth and Patricia managed to escape. Which, I must say very nice work. It would've been...problematic if they were captured. Especially Undergrowth. It's a good thing you managed to teleport them out of there."
Dio listened to the other voice respond, occasionally nodding.
"Yes, I can see why you wanted me to keep a close eye on Team Night Tide. They do seem to have potential. Unfortunately I was unable to get a word with them, but in due time I'm sure we'll be meeting again very soon," Dio gave a toothy grin.
Oragonking: Traveling Master: Patricia isn't exactly bigger than her normal kind. Main reason she was able to eat Al whole was because of her Master. She told Berry before that he has a way with Pokemon, meaning he's done he's fair share of experiments. Patricia is one of the many, many experiments he has done. This is how Patricia is able to do things a normal Mawile is unable to do.
FoxyKhai0209: DarkFoxKit: You'll see, or you've already seen, how the teams handled her.
Psychic Nature: Traveling Master: Heh, glad you loved the suspense. We've been working on the tournament arc for awhile now. We do have plans for Waterfall Caverns, as to who will be going, and what will be happening, can't say. Just gonna have to wait and see.
Lonelyboi69: DarkFoxKit: You should probably brace yourself for more vore, not because we're into that stuff, but because it fits with some Pokemon to eat their meals whole. I'm glad you liked the last chapter, with the whole Mega Evolution, and the ancient human race thing. We hope you enjoyed this chapter too.
Ember: DarkFoxKit: Well, if Patricia never told them of her plans, then nobody would know what she was doing or why she was doing it. I can see why people make the villain tell the heroes their plans, so the audience would know what they were doing. And… I can't tell if you're talking about Patricia or not, because you switched the pronouns to 'he' and 'his', Patricia is female. But if you are, no, Patricia was not planning to kill Berry. If she did, her Master would've had her head.
Patricia and her Master do have to transport the machine, though they move it as the stadium gets set up. Nobody knows what the machine truly is, so anyone who's watching would just assume it's all part of the equipment and set up.
Traveling Master: I wouldn't say Al has a split personality exactly, it's just that when Spooks fed him that potion, it had so much energy that his body was reacting faster than what his brain could process. Think of it as if someone had barely woken up and drank Red Bull, coffee, or some other high caffeinated drink.
And I agree, Charmeleon always do feel like they are supposed to be super strong. I think we can thank Ash's Charmeleon for giving us that idea. And while Al is strong, strength alone doesn't win fights. And can't say much about whether Al is or isn't Berry's father, brother, cousin, or even a former roommate. Al's past will be revealed, but it will be some time to when we actually go over his past.
DarkFoxKit: We may or may not have Z Moves come in. With Mega Evolution, and possibly Dynamax, they can work without humans. But Z Moves? We're not sure how that will work. Besides, there's way too many Z Moves for us to keep track us. I never cared for them in Sun and Moon. But we'll see in the future. As for Dust, he does not know about his own Mega Evolution, he just knows the concept of Mega Evolution.
Traveling Master: Eclipse does care for her son, but before all this had happened, Magnazone had personally requested Eclipse to watch over Chihiro. She would have most likely stayed to investigate herself, but ended up having to stay with Chihiro. Plus, if she was there, Patricia would then have to worry about a Master Ranked Absol keeping watch. This way both Chihiro and Eclipse would be unable to intervene with Patricia and her master's plans.
DarkFoxKit: Thanks. I think the treatment has been successful, but I'm still wary and keeping an eye on things.
Star Libra: Traveling Master: Considering that Dust and the others have never seen Mega Evolution before, there's a slim chance Dust will be Mega Evolving.
Questi0nnaire: DarkFoxKit: I think you spelled this fine. So why would Berry4Goodra be insensitive to me?
Yes, you're right, the structure/machine Patricia was using was from Team Galactic. There are going to be many things that may or may not be remnants of other evil teams.
It's a stone, not a chain. The stone is meant to be a Mega Stone, not the Red Chain that was used to summon Dialga or Palkia.
I will be saying this now; no, the boss is not Otti or Mew.
Well, as you likely saw in the chapter, the evolution did distract Berry. The evolution doesn't always trigger right away though. That's why she's not always trying to hold it back, it only triggers once in a while, and it distracts her.
Traveling Master: Yup, you guessed it, sorry can't tell cause it's spoilers. But we do have plans concerning Al's plast. So Dust and Berry will be playing a key role in it. As for the dragon move, we did show Al using Dragon Claw during his fight with Blizza. But the other move where is body was covered in flames was something he did unconsciously. He normally uses the same moves when fighting more wild.
Berry did something similar, somewhat. During their battle with Team Volcano, she had attacked them by using some kind of water dragon attack. She wasn't exactly unconscious, but she wasn't exactly clear in the head either.
Heh, just when you thought Dust and the others had the upper hand, Patricia pulls the classic video game boss move. She was backed into a corner, but now she's all powered up.
DarkFoxKit: By the way, to answer your question, Mega Mawile's ability is Huge Power. And yes, a Steel/Fairy type is the worst type combination for Team Night Tide, which made Patricia the perfect foil for them. As for the FEAR strategy, Talon already used up most of his Endeavor moves, he can't keep using it, yes even in this story, Pokemon have limited PP. Besides, it would've been very anti-climatic if Talon defeated Patricia using his Endeavor move. But I'll let you be the judge on how well we handled the battle.
Yes, you will see more Mega Evolved Pokemon in the future. Mega Evolution doesn't necessarily require humans to pull off. There had been wild Pokemon Mega Evolving before. Z Moves on the other hand definitely does require humans. I don't know how we could possibly pull off Z Moves in this story, not to mention there are way too many Z Moves, and neither I nor TM are all that interested in using them. Just don't expect to see Z Moves in this story.
We're not going to mention much about Dynamaxing right now.
Humans don't have to be reborn as only Ghost type Pokemon. Their spirits just become Ghost type Pokemon, that doesn't mean they're reborn as Ghost types. Rebirth is something completely different from their spirits just becoming Ghost type Pokemon.
… Really…? The only serpentine Pokemon is Giratina's Origin form? Did you… miss all the serpent-like Pokemon? Or did you mean something else? You really do need to watch your words because one word missing can completely change what your sentence means. But it looks like you seem to think a human turned Pokemon or reborn as a Pokemon is Mawhile's boss… which, no, it isn't a human reborn Pokemon. I don't even know where you got the idea. Again, please go over your review/questions before sending it. We have to do a lot of decoding before we can even try to answer your questions because we have trouble understanding what you're writing.
JoJo's Bizarre: Traveling Master: Heh, nice reference, though not exactly, but meh. Close enough. XD
Star Virge: DarkFoxKit: Yes, yes there is.
Star Leo: Traveling Master: Bad guy always has to have some kind of second phase, or a power up. It's the classic villain move.
Greatest Guy: DarkFoxKit: The machine getting wrecked does put a pretty big setback on the evil plan. Good thing Chihiro wasn't around to hear this pun… Let us know what you thought of the battle.
Guest #1: DarkFoxKit: Thankfully no, I didn't lose my hair. I only needed light chemotherapy, which doesn't cause hair loss. But I do have to keep an eye on things.
The Moonfox Collective: DarkFoxKit: Yeah. Though there's going to be more vore due to the fact that's just how some Pokemon eat their meals.
Traveling Master: As you probably just saw after finishing this chapter, there was really no chance for Dust to Mega Evolve. And even if he did, I'm still not sure if he could handle Patricia. Sure he mega evolved, but Patricia has experience mega evolving, as well as the type advantage.
Heh, Team Silkwing sure has that uncanny ability to make others underestimate them. But thankfully through their hard work and determination, they are able to find a way to beat their opponents.
DarkFoxKit: Team Silkwing was made to be an underdog kind of team. Which is why they get underestimated a lot, but will also become strong by endgame. It was a joy to use them for this.
