Draco: Can you believe there was a time when I intended The Legend of Ransei to be my last Pokémon fic? It just seems ridiculous at this point.
So, while Bulbagarden is going nuts over Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl and Legends: Arceus (mostly Legends), I am playing Generation VI games and doing my damnedest to avoid every spoiler I possibly can. So far, all I know is the names of Rei and Akari, that pre-settlement Sinnoh is called "Hisui", and that there are regional variants in Hisui (and I don't even know which Pokémon have Hisuian forms). If you try to change that, I will throw you into Hoenn's Core.
Speaking of, I'm just coming off the Hall of Fame. I enjoy ORAS in a big way, but in a character flaw that annoys even me, I have a tendency to find the most insignificant things that I wish had been changed, just because I am "annoyed by the most random shit". And in the case of the Hoenn remakes, one of those wishes is that you weren't thrust into the Delta Episode right as the credits roll. You're not thrown into the Looker Bureau events as soon as the credits roll on XY. You have a good deal of running around to do, first, and even then it only goes off when you step into Lumiose City. But in ORAS, Zinnia shows up as soon as you step out of your house following the Hall of Fame. Birch doesn't even get to thrust a starter Pokémon on you! Bulbapedia says he's supposed to give you the Johto option right after your first Hall of Fame entry, but Brendan getting robbed stops the flag from going off for me, I've gotta wait until after the fight with the Starcomer.
So I'm just sitting here, wondering how that could possibly be circumvented, and I think about HGSS. Crystal added the entire plot with Eusine and introduced a Bell that tolls for a legendary Pokémon, and turned Suicune into a stationary encounter; HGSS maintained all of that. (I still can't believe I managed to catch her with a Quick Ball like the other two, I had no business getting that lucky). So I sit down, and I think, did Emerald add anything that could conceivably serve the purpose of postponing the Delta Episode in ORAS, just a little bit? Something that could happen after the credits?
...Well, it added a separate Hideout for Team Magma and roaming caves for Kyogre and Groudon.
Now, let me be clear - I don't have a problem with the versioned Pokémon games. I don't wish that there had been a Z Version because there were X and Y Versions, I wish there had been a Z Version because the anime and manga both led up to encounters with Zygarde and the games didn't get that. (And also because I feel like Mega Diancie and Hoopa Unbound and Battle Bond and Core Enforcer should have been able to happen in Kalos, but that's just sentimental). I enjoy the versioning of the Pokémon games, and I understand full well that it's not a money-making ploy, it's encouraging socialization. You and your friends get opposing versions so you can fill in the blanks for each other.
But since Generation III, the Pokémon games have gone out of their way to make every legendary Pokémon available in every Generation. In Generation VI, there are four Generations of legendary Pokémon available in Hoenn. Ho-Oh/Lugia, Dialga/Palkia, Tornadus/Thundurus, and Reshiram/Zekrom are all given versioned availability, and Latias/Latios got the "one easy, one event" treatment from Generation III again. I'm writing this primarily because the enforced Delta Episode starter irks me, but I feel confident in saying that that's plenty of blanks for friends to fill in with each other without the mascots.
I'm doing what would be the Alpha Sapphire version of events because (a) I just came off a run of Alpha Sapphire, and (b) the Jagged Pass hideout was Team Magma's in Emerald. I might write the Omega Ruby version of things later on as an experiment in variance.
Pokémon and all related properties © Nintendo.
The Curious Case of Terra Cave
"Such a small town... It feels almost stifling."
When May stepped out of her home, ready for a new day, the last thing she expected was an unfamiliar voice making an unkind assessment. Turning towards the remark, she found the speaker to be a rotund man dressed in consuming hues of red... with the sigil of Team Magma emblazoned on his lapels. Curious, she made to approach him, and the man turned towards her in response. "Oh, here you are!"
May was a bit concerned to hear that greeting.
"You are the Trainer who stopped Team Aqua in Sootopolis, aren't you?" the man observed. "May, I believe? I, Tabitha, am here on behalf of Team Magma. Our leader, Maxie, wishes to speak with you at your earliest convenience. It is an important matter regarding the super-ancient Pokémon."
That got May's attention in short order.
"Here." Tabitha held something forward, prompting May to reach her hand out and catch it - it was a golden medallion, with the Team Magma sigil imprinted on it in red. "This Magma Emblem will allow you to enter our Hideout in Jagged Pass. Do come as quickly as you can."
He started out of Littleroot Town, prompting May to glance at the medallion curiously. It looked rather insignificant, but she had been up and down Jagged Pass a few times, leaving no stone unturned, and there had been no 'hideout' of any kind to be found. Confused, she turned it over, finding the face opposite the emblem sported only a small black dot.
With a hum, she slipped the medallion into her bag and made to prepare.
+x+x+x+
A few hours later, Latias deposited her atop Mt. Chimney.
May took a moment to sputter the soot out of her face first before she started down Jagged Pass. As she began to descend, she drew out the Magma Emblem that Tabitha had given her; she wasn't sure what this was supposed to accomplish. Yet, as she started to descend, she heard a strange sound from the medallion - a ping. Confused, she turned it over, finding that the black dot on the backside was blinking with a blue light - and as she started to make her way down the pass, the pinging became a little more rapid, the same way her Dowsing Machine would change pitch - and colour - as she got close to something.
One set of steps, two sets, three... and then she was standing before the twin slopes. As May hesitated, trying to figure out which path she should take, the pinging of the medallion went silent; then a sound like stones being shifted drew her attention, and she found a gap opening up in the rock face, just a couple paces east of the stairs.
Slipping the medallion back into her bag, May approached the gap; it looked like a bog-standard cave at first glance, but she knew that couldn't be the case. Stepping inside, she found the interior also looked like a bog-standard cave, save for the artificial lighting affixed to the stalactites... and the Team Magma banners draped over the stone ahead of her.
A voice interrupted her assessment. "Intruder detected." May started as someone approached her from straight ahead. It was a woman in Team Magma's red hues, with a pair of small horns affixed to a hood that was drawn over her pink hair; she was very lithe, a sharp contrast to Tabitha's bulk.
She came to a stop about five steps away, affixing her gaze on May intently. "Analyzing... Oh?" Her expression changed, though only slightly. "You... The Trainer. In Sootopolis. ...Team Aqua. You... stopped them. Why... are you here?"
"She is here by my invitation, Courtney."
The woman turned around in a shock. "...Leader Maxie."
She quickly stepped aside, giving May a clear view as a familiar bespectacled individual approached, folding his hands behind his back. "May," he greeted. "Thank you for agreeing to meet with me." He glanced around. "Welcome to the Team Magma Hideout. Do forgive the confinement and lack of décor. We of Team Magma were less fortunate than Team Aqua, and so needed settle for what we could."
He turned to face May again. "Do come in. Let us make ourselves more comfortable." Then, to the woman; "Courtney, will you join us?"
"Yes... Leader Maxie," Courtney agreed.
+x+x+x+
The base was a bit on the cramped side - being dug out of the side of a volcano meant they couldn't exactly just make as much room as they needed - but Team Magma did have a barracks to rest in, small rooms for both its Admins, and an office for the Leader. Though a bit cramped, Maxie's office did have a desk large enough to do paperwork on, a bed that looked rather comfy (if a bit un-level), and a model ship that May found... strangely familiar.
Maxie took his seat opposite the desk, and Courtney stood at the ready next to him as May elected to stand by the door. "Now, May. Allow me to explain why I asked you to meet me here. It is regarding the super-ancient legendary Pokémon."
May beckoned for him to continue.
"The Primal Reversion that occurred in Sootopolis... It is a phenomenon similar to Mega Evolution. And like Mega Evolution, it is not limited to a single Pokémon. Two legendary Pokémon are known to be able to undergo Primal Reversion. One is Kyogre, who calls forth a rain fit to return everything to the beginning. The other is Groudon, who summons a blazing sunlight that would bring about a terrible end."
Maxie folded his hands before him on the table. "These two super-ancient Pokémon have clashed many times throughout history. Whenever one would appear, the other would follow suit. And their conflict would bring devastation to the world around them. Never has one appeared alone... until Archie awakened Kyogre in the Seafloor Cavern, infusing it with the power of the Blue Orb and initiating its Primal Reversion."
He raised his gaze to May. "You quelled Kyogre in the Cave of Origin, and for that, we owe you great thanks. But it did awaken, and I have reason to suspect that Groudon has also awakened. Even now, it must be searching throughout Hoenn for Kyogre, intending to clash with it once again."
After a moment, May narrowed her gaze at him.
"...You have every reason to be suspicious of us, for being so well-informed," Maxie conceded. "I will not deny it. We of Team Magma had our own ambitions, just as Team Aqua did. Were it not for everything that had happened, I, the great Maxie, would just as well have awoken Groudon myself." He raised his gaze. "But as I said before, we of Team Magma were less fortunate than Team Aqua. Archie was able to achieve what he set out to do, and instigated Kyogre's Primal Reversion... and so showed us the consequences of attempting to use a legendary Pokémon for one's own ends."
He shook his head. "We have no intention of seeking out Groudon for ourselves. But if Groudon is currently moving throughout Hoenn, seeking out Kyogre... it poses a threat of its own."
May wasn't so quick to lower her guard.
"I see words alone fail to convince you," Maxie observed. "Then accept this, as a token of good will. Courtney?"
Courtney abruptly turned to him. "Leader Maxie..." Then, after a moment, she started to approach May, who remained on her guard until Courtney held something out - a familiar stone. "...Here. A Mega Stone... Cameruptite. You... can use Mega Evolution. You will be able... to use this."
Uncertainly, May accepted the stone, and Courtney returned to Maxie's side as the Magma Leader began to speak again. "Where you will find Groudon, we cannot be certain. But I am certain of this much. Wherever it may be, the sun will shine brightly. I have no doubt the Weather Institute will be aware of this. If you consult them, you may be able to determine where Groudon can be found."
He got to his feet. "It will not be easy to find it. That is why I asked you to come here, rather than coming to you. In the same way as the entrance to this hideout was exposed by the Magma Emblem we gave you... The cave in which Groudon lurks should expose itself in response to the Red Orb you carry." His gaze fell. "The very orb you carried into the Cave of Origin, and exposed to the energy in Hoenn's Core, that the super-ancient Pokémon require for Primal Reversion. If you confront Groudon, you will most likely instigate its Primal Reversion."
Courtney turned to May. "Preparation... will be necessary. ...Ha."
+x+x+x+
May's timing could not have been more opportune. No sooner had she landed outside the Weather Institute on Route 119 than they had in fact detected strange weather patterns, in the form of abnormally bright sunlight on Route 118. As fast as her Mach Bike would take her, May rode south until that radiant sun was shining down on her; she ended up skidding to a stop in the beach sand after overcompensating on a turn, and left her bike where it lay as she opened up her Bag.
Sure enough, the Red Orb was starting to resonate as she drew it out. She followed the resonance until she was practically against the rock formation at the intersection of Routes 119 and 123... and the symbol emblazoned on the Red Orb began to appear on the rock face, shining the colour of lava.
Ω Omega.
The rock seemed to melt apart around the symbol, leaving a smooth, open cave - and the sunlight on Route 119 intensified, becoming so extremely harsh as to be suffocating. May could feel the Red Orb in her hand reacting with what was inside the cave, and she knew that the Primal Reversion was imminent; setting the orb back into her Bag, she took a deep breath and started inside.
Towards the Desolation.
Draco: Alright, time for the gameplay ramble. How would this pan out if it was actual gameplay?
So, first things first. You do NOT need to hunt the cave in order to initiate the Delta Episode. As soon as you talk to Maxie or Archie in the Jagged Pass hideout, Zinnia is in Littleroot waiting to talk to you after having mugged the other player character for their Key Stone. And things progress pretty much as normal from there. If you arrive in Littleroot between Tabitha leaving and Zinnia showing up, Birch is gonna frick himself over to give you a Johto starter.
The actual gameplay of hunting down Terra Cave or Marine Cave pretty much plays out as it did in Emerald when you only had one left, maybe with a little bit of entrance relocation to account for the different aesthetics in the routes. You don't get there fast enough, you're gonna have to figure out where it went all over again. Though maybe have it stay put after you open the cave door and the weather has gotten a hundred times worse.
And... this one might be cheeky, but let's say Groudon and Kyogre have matching levels in Generation VI. With a post-Kalosian Exp. Share and raising the team properly, I've never gotten to the Cave of Origin without being able to one-shot the Primal with a super-effective hit from my starter. Hell, this time I stopped my levelling at Lv. 50 (for separate reasons) and I still knocked out Kyogre with three shots of Thunder from a Castform. (I didn't have any other options for non-damaging status conditions, okay?) If you don't have someone with False Swipe (or Hold Back), I don't know how you'd catch your version mascot without a Master Ball. So having the fight post-Elite Four wouldn't be too much different.