Oblivia, a region of old and legend, of mystery and wilderness, where deities themselves came to rest. The paltry islands of the archipelago were a haven for the legendaries of the world, yet the seclusion wasn't owed to the jealous cover of verdure or the temperate climate ever attracting humans. The sanctuary only existed under comprehensive and inexhaustible guard, though nothing so obvious as militia, ramparts or fortresses, nor anything as irresistible as laws.
The hallowed grounds were patrolled by secret sentinels who roamed the islands undisguised yet invisible, shrouded by their mundane appearance. Stantler roamed every biome from mountain to delta, lending their innate, stalwart defenses instinctively for it wasn't a talent they fully grasped.
It was their gimlet-eyed antlers that granted protection, the large tuning forks channeled essokinetic energy for spatial distortion granting varying degrees of reality warping and distance manipulation. These capabilities were seldom more than illusions and remained largely unspecified but the historic body count deterred most strangers and dubbed the region 'land of moving forests.' The mystique surpassed any tangible barricade, temping only rare individuals to brave the dark and unknown dangers of their ranges.
The legendaries were beholden to stantler for the peaceful refuge in these modern times, yet considered the inferior pokémon a resource and nothing more. They accepted the boon as a small token in return for their own nature-imbuing powers and regarded sating their hunger on the mortals as due payment. With this fallacy Raikou, Zapdos, Tornadus and Thundurus descended from their maniacal summer storm intent on a herd of stantler.
The big horn-pokémon remineralized in the alcoves of rock on Faldera Island, the basalt in the caldera retained remnants of Moltres's lava pools and created comfortable spheres of warmth in the heavy deluge. Raikou pounced on the stag, sabering the stantler's great head and scattered the herd across the volcano. Zapdos plunged, cloaked in blinding sparkles to snatch a fleeing doe and fawn. Tornadus swooped on therian wings, effortlessly overcoming the captivating quality of glowing antlers.
One terrified deer sprung over the treacherous terrain, her long shaggy tail flagged, instinctually warning others of danger. She was circumscribed by the attacks and bound toward the gorging tiger. The sight of Raikou's violet thunderheads gyring atop his mighty brawn and the glint of his scarlet eyes froze her in terror.
Serape stared at her leader's mangled head, images of the fresh carnage burst in her mind's eye while rage and dread roared in her chest. The legendary glared, examining the stricken pokémon as she quaked and heaved ragged breaths.
Then her glimmering antlers coruscated into an irradiant flare, the energy pulsed, shimmering in the air around her trembling form. Raikou's stiff whiskers twitched before he leaped forward, prestigious claws brandished to ravage. The thunder-pokémon never landed, the spatial aura rippling around Serape warped him into a different dimension.
The revelation of her new force coursed through her thoughts with every lash of her heart and swiftly settled over her. The enhancement to her connatural abilities felt intimate and righteous and were incorporated instinctually. "Bract," she whispered aghast, stumbling to kneel by the carcass.
She let her back legs buckle, and pressed against the lingering warmth. Blood soaked into her hide and forehead as grief stole over. They were dead, Ripre, her twin sister and her boys, Kilim and Kaross. Samara and her newly hatched fawn Numda, all dead. Murdered.
Serape's glowing rack of horns flared as the sound of crackling electricity rolled over stone. She stood mechanically, the virulence of rage driving her forward. When she cleared the crest Thundurus' and Tornadus' therian forms became visible.
The jade raptor stood talons-deep in a bay stantler while the vivid reptilian form of Thundurus held a blood covered egg in fog-cuffed claws. Serape caught the last of the legendary's words. "...So considerate, providing for a later time." Her rage burned like vitriol, she shuddered with horror.
"What's this?" Tornadus spoke, therian voice grating like the call of a falcon. His sharp, avian eyes detected the shinning stantler from the glistening lava puddles. "Join us!" he screeched and lunged for the deer before his brother could. Thundurus rocked back as his brother disappeared in the ominous aura.
With a blast of air he shot Serape off the island and into the sea. When he couldn't find his brother he roared and sped across land and ocean to find the culprit. "Show yourself Hoopa spawn!" The deer was swimming to the closest island, her glowing antlers bobbed in the darkness of the storm and ocean. She turned to face the legendary and surged the new power around herself as Thundurus dived.
His large claws raked air as he tumbled into another dimension. The harsh impact with the water had dazed Serape, only sheer will kept her lucid. Now she stumbled over the sandy shelf of shore and collapsed in the shallows.
Monferno fished the deer from the water and into the cover of trees. The large group of apes had congregated to mourn a family member's gruesome death and were witness to the stantler's awesome power. They displayed their burning manes brightly to disguise Serape's lit antlers from Zapdos' sharp eyes, who wheeled in the sky, calling for his comrades. Once the stantler regained consciousness she stepped into the open, acting as a clear beacon for the hunting raptor.
As Zapdos banked close she warped him to the cheer of the flame-pokémon. Over the passing hours they shared their grief and trauma, and kept Serape from succumbing to empty numbness. They poisoned themselves with hate, and marveled at the potential to rid the islands of predators completely. In her madden state Serape acquiesced to the wild hope glittering in the little pokémon's eyes.
With the stantler's amplified talent it didn't take long to marshal other pokémon, soon it was the hunters who began to fear and flee. Serape infected all other stantler with the burning fever and inspired other unlocking of powers in many of the deer. The strange genocide was nearing completion when word of a legendary reached the leaders. Palkia was approaching from the island's shore, seeking an audience.
"That's far enough, you're not welcome here." The stantler's voice rang with hatred.
"Peace Visionary, I am no threat to you," Palkia said in a melodic baritone. Serape snorted her derision. She had grown lean since the murder of her family, her face was sharper, her dark eyes appeared hard and black, two acidic pits mirroring the dowsing balls of her antlers.
"Disappear and take your empty words with you. Your kind are forbidden here." Others gathered around her, infernape, stantler, and the rest of the pokémon in the campaign. Palkia assessed the assembling audience calmly.
"When will it end?" he wondered, including everyone by speaking aloud.
Serape glared, her deranged gaze felt dangerous. "Never, I'll never stop."
Palkia considered her words stoically. He stood easily on two great legs, his endless wings were folded along his curved back and flanks, yet brushed the ground. "Careful, do not mistake yourself invincible."
The company of stantler roused at the quiet threat, many had awakened their cosmic powers and the warning spoke privately to each. "This isn't Serape's crusade, we fight together. We could banish you," one of the deer stated.
Several infernape chortled, one chieftain spoke up. "Careful Palkia, you may answer to smallfolk yet."
Palkia didn't reveal any emotion, simply saying, "Regardless, Visionaries, I will restore my brethren."
A sound akin to a snarl issued from Serape. "I'll see it's your only function, you're disgraced. I banish you forthwith." Her antlers flashed into a brilliant beacon and suddenly many other's flared up until energy thrummed in the air.
"Such resolve. How long would you keep it, I wonder?" Palkia murmured, keeping his helmed head suspended in range of attacks.
"As long as my family is dead." Serape's words quelled an infernape, who seemed to like her response and banked his own.
A thoughtful look glazed the ancient's eyes. "Not unreasonable then." The gathered stirred in surprise. "And if you are reunited, what could we resolve?" Visible confusion surged through the audience but Serape was silent, frozen with a sudden, overwhelming ache to see her family. Her stillness drew attention and soon all eyes were on her. "Yes," his voice had gone soft, "all is not lost. Now, what of this unrest?"
Pokémon whispered among themselves, suspiciously glancing from Serape to the towering legendary before them.
A girafarig pushed through the herd to sidle along Serape. "Accept this and all our work will be lost. This is more than him, more than all of us, it's predation." Serape's unfocused stare dragged across the crowd coming to rest on the girafarig. The acrid in her black eyes was staggering, the concentrated power of her glowing crown of horns compelled submission. The girafarig backed up a stride.
Intuition breathed through the lead infernape's mane of fire, he sensed his private war slipping away and spoke up, ardently. "What! You would break your own laws? See! They do what they want with impunity! I'll say it again - this isn't a sole crusade, what are you offering us?!" The impassioned words broke Serape's trance. She bristled at the legendary, fearing she was being tricked.
"How dare you, have you no honor?" she shouted, cutting off Palkia's words.
He spoke as she dragged in a breath. "Your terms then, or should I leave you to your fate?" Only Serape's harsh breathing could be heard in the issuing silence.
"We don't need you," she spat venomously.
"No," he disagreed without elaboration.
"Be gone."
"Do not be so quick to shut yourselves away. We deal with threats you could not understand, we manage them and in turn you. We restore the world for you, we are mutually bound," he spoke to everyone now with an ageless quality gracing his words.
"The Hunters-"
"Are there for balance, it is the natural order and will not change. You are bestowed strengths, how you utilize them is your affair." Palkia's speach trounced the protest.
Serape snorted. "We'll banish all necessary. We aren't the ones who need the secrecy and protection from humanity. Whatever feud ensues will be dealt with. You'll do what you must, as will we."
"As you wish but I implore you reconsider, any callous manipulation of an ecosystem is corrected by Zygarde. He is not as merciful as I." The colossal immortal spread his grand wings and vanished in a glow of pure light.
Unknown to the residents of the islands green cells began appearing.
Tiny, viridescent organisms soon dotted trees and rocks, and mystified the inhabitants. Migratory flying and water pokémon recognized the imminent danger and fled, warning of the disaster that was to come.
Serape stood on a hillside staring at mindless waves crashing on sand, her eyes stung from lack of sleep but the memory of her slaughtered herd still refused her rest. She used the hatred as a crutch but when she was alone numbness consumed her. Nothing brought her solace, not food, not unity, not solitude - except for hot rage she felt nothing.
A small sprite floated into her sight, its dimly glowing rings caught the deer's attention. "You must be the troublemaker I keep hearing about, Serape," it said warmly.
"None other. Be gone, immortal." Serape flared her rack to banish the legendary.
"Tsk, tsk, the pupil doesn't dismiss the master, dearie."
The stantler startled, never before had something resisted her power. "Who are you?"
"Why, who do you think?" Hoopa said and cackled.
"What do you want?"
"Such hospitality! For once the rumors were true." Hoopa laughed delightedly. "To help you. Zygarde is here and will soon wreck havoc on your little game."
"This is a war, and I don't need your help."
"I'll help anyway, we're old enemies, Zygarde and I. He unbinds me."
"Where is he?" Serape's voice cracked with malice.
"Well, all around dearie, don't you see?" Hoopa pointed to the moss-like specs crawling over the island and slowly Serape did begin to see.
As Zygarde condensed he began evaluating the balance of the islands and what had tipped it. At 10% Form he ran over the land and ocean, lending strength to the depleted dirt, grass and air. Resources fellow bacteria needed to thrive and complete their purpose.
He found surviving predators, the strongest and most cunning that had evaded the stantler, and shielded them. At 50% Form he slithered into a cave and began to amass energy from the collective bacteria.
Hoopa hunted for him and the entirety of Serape's army searched at this critical stage of his development. Weeks of forming later he stepped out of the cave in Complete Form, and minutes later Hoopa appeared to feed off his pulsing aura until she reached critical mass and became Unbound. The titan battle that ensued splintered the islands.
The sundering was a great cleanse, a harsh rebalancing to natural order. Surviving stantler combined their strength, the entrancement was instinctual and granted unlimited power. Together they tore the veil of reality, opening spatial portals and wormholes to varying dimensions.
The whole of Oblivia winked out of existence to drift in a dimensional pocket, in a space later called the Rift.
A/N pronounced [səˈräpē] Congrats if you made it to the end, I know it was rough wording.