Welcome to the next chapter of Pokémon Insurgence, and boy is it a thrilling one. Today marks the end of the Abyssal Cult, but you can be sure that they won't go down without a fight!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon Insurgence; it is the property of its creators.

Having spent the last hour or so training up her Pokémon for the final showdown against Audrey, Natasha sighed in relief upon seeing that her training has born fruit. Specifically, the five Pokémon that she needed to evolve were able to evolve in time, the newly powered up Pokémon gazing at her calmly. The first one to evolve was her Golett, now evolved into an imposing Golurk. It's bronze armor was a lot more ornate now, a red feathered crest perched atop its head as a red cape billowed behind it in the cool breeze.

The next Pokémon to have evolved was her Lotad, which had evolved into a Lombre, before evolving into a Ludicolo with the help of a Water Stone. The Ludicolo sported a magnificent grey beard that reached the bottom of its dark grey robes. Atop its head was an intricate, royal blue wizards' hat, with a rim that was deep enough to hold a modest amount of water in it. After that was the Munchlax, which had evolved into a large but friendly Snorlax. The gentle giant had small trees growing out of its back and shoulders, a process that wasn't painful at all to the massive Pokémon. These trees were able to bear fruit, with the Snorlax using this to sustain itself for the day.

And finally, there were the two Clamperl who had both evolved into different Pokémon. The male Clamperl evolved into a Huntail, the dark-blue and black Pokémon letting out a low hiss from its mouth. On occasion, it would breath out small bursts of blue, draconic fire as a means of letting off some steam. Though it preferred to be alone, it harbored no hostility at all towards its comrades. As for the female Clamperl, it evolved into a Gorebyss, with the reddish-pink Pokémon sitting on the ground idly. It's back and tail were covered in hard dragon scales that protected it from hungry predators, the two seashells on its chest just as durable. Though it was a peaceful Pokémon for the most part, it was known to attack its prey with it's thin mouth and drain their body fluids, a habit shared with regular Gorebyss.

Once the training was finished, the purple-haired girl gave her comrades some quick but efficient treatment before recalling them to their balls. From there, she made her way towards Maelstrom 9, where her nemesis was awaiting her challenge. The rain bucketed down intensely, with the girl having no choice but to put her umbrella away as it was doing virtually nothing to keep her dry. However, she soon arrived at the edge of Maelstrom 9, the large body of water overflowing onto land. Putting on the scuba suit she was given, Natasha dove into the cold water and began swimming around the place. Almost immediately, she was taken aback by the beautiful sight before her; dozens of aquatic Pokémon were swimming without a care in the world, unaffected by the chaos brewing above them. After all, she was sure they wouldn't mind additional territory to control should Audrey get her way. Opting to focus on the mission, Natasha spent the next fifteen or so minutes searching the area for an opening, her eyes widening slightly at what looked like an artificial cave entrance a few meters deeper. Swimming through it, the purple-haired girl rose up to the surface, only to find herself at her destination.

The Abyssal Base was as cold and foreboding as she had expected, the perfect place for a bunch of maniacs who wish to flood the entire world. The front lobby had several machines built to survey the various oceans of the world, though what they were searching for was a mystery to the purple-haired girl. She thought about taking her first steps into the base, only to notice what looked like a set of blue tiles on the floor, causing her to stop right there.

"This must be an alarm of sorts; thank goodness I opted to look before I leaped." Natasha mused to herself, mulling over how she could deal with the obstacle before her. It was then that she remembered it, that strand of hair Damian had gifted her a while ago. Didn't he mention something about it falling off an Abyssal Cultist who took him hostage? Whatever the case, she now figured out a way to bypass this obstacle. Playing a few notes on her Quartz Flute, the purple-haired girl was soon greeted by her trusted friend Mew and explained the situation to them. Letting out a quick chirp, the New Species Pokémon used its power to transform Natasha into an Abyssal cultist, the latter expressing her gratitude as she proceeded to make her way past the tiles and deeper into the base. From there, the disguised teen found herself in the heart of the base, with several warp tiles littered around the place as a means of traversing the area. Additionally, there were more of those blue tiles on the floor, as well as a set of green tiles that we beside an entrance to a room at the back.

'Still getting used to the tiles, huh?" A voice called out, with Natasha turning to see an Abyssal cultist approaching her.

"Y-Yeah, I just got transferred here…" She bluffed, hoping that the grunt would buy it.

"Don't worry, I'm still getting used to it, but I'll tell you what I know. Those tiles? They're part of a forcefield system that Audrey implemented a while ago. There are three fields currently in use; one for Audrey herself, one for the scientists, and one for the grunts like us." The cultist informed her. "As for what you're supposed to do…I assume you can ask around if someone needs assistance."

"I see. Thank you for the useful info." Natasha bowed slightly in gratitude, the disguised teen making her way through the base as a plan brewed in her mind. If she wanted to confront Audrey, then she would need to find something that has her DNA on it, but that was easier said than done. For now, she figured that obtaining a scientist's DNA would help her make some progress through the base, so she opted to begin her search there. A few minutes later, she found herself in a fairly large room that had the hallway to the next room blocked off by a purple set of tiles. But that wasn't the highlight of the room; no, what was the standout feature was a red computer built into the wall, hanging over a table that had a set of clothes lying on them. Taking a closer look at the clothes, Natasha saw that they resembled that of a scientists' uniform, a small hair embedded on the collar. Picking it up, she handed it over to Mew who promptly absorbed it, before using its power to transform its comrade, the purple-haired girl now disguised as a scientist. Glancing at the purple tiles, she opted to make her way there, but was halted by an invisible forcefield.

"Drat, this isn't the right one!" She cursed under her breath, now knowing that this forcefield could only be bypassed by Audrey herself. No matter, she was able to access more parts of the base now that she was disguised as a scientist, the purple-haired girl using the various maps on the wall to find out where her destination was. Eventually, she made her way to the room where the scientists were stationed, with the head scientist narrowing his eyes at her.

"And where have you been, young lady? You were supposed to be here fifteen minutes ago!" He demanded an answer.

"S-Sorry sir; I was doing research on Delta Pokémon of the Water-Type for Audrey. They could be of use to our cause." Natasha made up an excuse, with the head scientist staring at her for a moment before conceding.

"Fine, I'll let you off this time, but only this once. Anyway, we had just changed the password for the main computer system. This week, it'll be proteus, so make sure that you write it down somewhere." He told her, with the disguised girl bowing before him as he got back to his duties.

"Heheheh…sucked in, asshole." She muttered under her breath, a confident smirk on her face as she made her way back to where that red computer was. Logging on to it, she typed in the password and drained the sewer, hoping it would open up another area for her. Promptly logging off, the purple-haired girl quickly made her way throughout the base, before finding herself inside a small room that was divided in half by a small body of water. Hopping onto her Inflatable Lapras, Natasha reached the other side of the room, her eyes widening slightly upon gazing at the lone table. Lying there on its own was a spare change of clothes for Audrey herself, the purple-haired girl searching them before stumbling upon a strand of loose hair. Handing it over to Mew, she looked left and right before opting to take a deep sniff of the spare clothes, sighing deeply to herself as the Mew gazed at her in confusion. "A-Ah…sorry, I-I should compose myself in the future…" Natasha chuckled sheepishly, a blush present on her face.

"Mew-Mew~" The Mew chirped, using its power to transform its friend into the Abyssal leader herself. Natasha smirked to herself, realizing the immense power she had at her fingertips. Opting to make her way back to the purple forcefield from before, the purple-haired girl began her trek through the base. However, she decided to have a little bit of fun first; she would sneak up on unsuspecting cultists and clear her throat audibly, causing them to jump out of their seats in fright and promptly salute her. The best reactions were from the ones that were slacking off, the grunts rummaging through their stuff to make it look like they were working. This went on for twenty or so minutes before Natasha had her fill of fun, the purple-haired girl opting to get back to the task at hand and make her way beyond the purple forcefield. From there, she continued to walk through the hallway before approaching the deepest room of the facility, where she saw the real Audrey gazing upon a deep pool of water, with the legendary Kyogre kept inside a large crystal orb beside the pool.

"I see you're having a lot of fun masquerading as me…" Audrey commented, opting to maintain her focus on the pool of water before her as Natasha opted to have her disguise removed by Mew. "I'll concede that it was brave of you to infiltrate my underwater base; brave, but foolish of you…"

"It's over, Audrey. Call off your Lugia and end this madness now!" Natasha demanded, only for a quiet chuckle to escape from the older woman's mouth.

"And why would I? I'm on the cusp of victory, and there's nothing you can say to convince me otherwise." She continued, turning her head to face the teen. "Do you know that 97% of the ocean is unexplored? We know more about the moon than the thing that makes up most of this planet. A little humorous, don't you think?"

"Where are you going with this…?" The purple-haired girl inquired.

"Just think of all the wonders lurking below the depths; ancient civilizations, lost treasure, and incredibly powerful Pokémon. That reminds me, you know about the Aqua-Hoenn conflict, right?" Audrey inquired once more.

"Yeah, I learned about it back at the museum. You should know after all; you were there with us that day." Natasha retorted.

"Indeed I was; talk about a trip down memory lane. However, there's one part of the story that's been kept secret from the public, a secret that I was able to squeeze out of a member of Interpol through…intense interrogation. Following the aftermath of the storm, reports came of beachgoers finding tons of things that have been raised from the depths of the ocean. Most of it was unimportant junk like bottles and shoes, as well as the occasional bit of treasure. But the most important find was a never-before seen Pokémon; a squidlike creature that resembled a Tentacruel, but was much, much stronger. Some people thought it was an evolution of Tentacruel, one that would only occur in an environment with high water-pressure, while others suspected it to be an entirely different creature altogether." The Abyssal leader began her explanation, enamoring the teenage girl with the intriguing tale.

"So, was this creature a legendary Pokémon, along the likes of Kyogre and whatnot?" Natasha inquired. "What was its name? Its type? Where can I find one of these things?"

"My, an inquisitive little snowflake, are we? As much as I would like to answer them all, I'm afraid I'm unable to as of this moment. You see, the original specimen was released back into the ocean, but not before a few tests were performed on it. What this research found was that this creature wasn't one-of-a-kind; there were hundreds of them lurking in the depths of the sea. However, this whole event was kept hush-hush. It would be terrible if everyone knew about the creatures the oceans held. Everyone would go above and beyond to catch these monstrosities, and with good reason. But as you would expect; these creatures are much, much weaker out of the ocean." Audrey continued, turning once more to face Natasha. "I assume you know why we're after Kyogre?"

"I-I've heard tales about Kyogre being regarded as the god of the seas; perhaps you wish to use it in order to control all these deep-sea Pokémon you talked about." The purple-haired girl assumed.

"Looks like all those years in school paid off after all!" The older woman smiled, though it wasn't a warm one at all. "Kyogre itself is an incredibly powerful Pokémon, especially when it's powered up by the Blue Orb. But its true value lies in its title as the modern-day Poseidon. It can command and control the denizens of the sea to do its bidding; having Kyogre on its own would be great but having it and an army of deep-sea creatures with power comparable to legendary Pokémon, would be even better. By then, the Abyssal Cult would be undefeatable. As we're speaking, Lugia is whipping up a storm powerful enough to cover the entire world, enabling my army to grow stronger than ever. Meanwhile, Kyogre is calling upon the first of my beasts from the ocean to appear before me; perhaps I'll even grant you a gaze upon this beast for being such a…worthy adversary."

"W-Wait, all of this would require a power source of immense—no, you couldn't have…" Natasha began, before the answer dawned upon her.

"Seems you answered your own question. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't be able to power up Kyogre and Lugia, but all that changed when I received a shard of the crystal that once powered the Augur and his Pokémon. Better it remain in my hands than in Jaern's, as the saying goes." The cult leader confirmed her suspicions.

"Now that's the one thing I'll have to concede; I wouldn't want the crystal in that bastard's hands at all." The purple-haired girl stated, her gaze softening slightly. "But is all of this worth it? What have you sacrificed in order to achieve this goal?"

Upon hearing that question, Audrey opted to face the pool of water once more, a low silence permeating in the area for a few moments. "I've lost everything in pursuit of this goal; a most respectable career, my child, and so much more…" She admitted, with Natasha opting to take a closer look at her, particularly, her hair. It reminded her of Damian's hair, but that couldn't be right, could it?

"In a way, I guess I know what it's like to lose something. I've lost almost all my memories, so I don't even know if I have a family out there, looking desperately for me. But that doesn't give you the right to flood the world in the quest for power. I will stop you here, even if it means facing Kyogre itself!"

"So you wish to stop me? Very well, I'll take care of you right now. Who knows, if you put up an entertaining fight, I'll keep you around. After all, you were more than comfortable enough to sniff my spare outfit…" Audrey smirked, causing the purple-haired girl to jump back in shock as a fierce blush appeared on her face.

"Y-You know about that?!" She exclaimed.

"No, I didn't. But your reaction gave it all away…" The older woman retorted. "In fact, I'm so confident in my victory that I wouldn't even need to use my other Pokémon. Kyogre itself should be more than enough to deal with you."

"If that's the case, then I'll defeat it within a few minutes!" Natasha boasted, opting to send out her Gardevoir, the Nuzzle Pokémon gazing calmly at the Kyogre.

"Oh, you naïve little girl…if only you knew the magnitude of your actions." Audrey stated, taking out the Blue Orb from her pocket and handed it to the Kyogre as an incredible power coursed through it. Within moments, the Sea Basin Pokémon had reverted into its Primal Forme, an ear-splitting roar escaping from its mouth as it conjured up a rainstorm as intense as the one outside the underwater base. Within moments, the Kyogre used its power to conjure up a wicked bolt of lightning, the powerful blast of electricity striking Gardevoir head on only for the latter to absorb the electricity without much struggle due to her special ability. The Nuzzle Pokémon, powered up by the lightning bolt opted to conjure up a series of smaller but equally as potent blasts of electricity, the barrage striking the Kyogre head on as a low growl of pain escaped from its mouth. However, it was far from defeated, the powerful deity channeling an ancient power to conjure up a glowing silver ball of energy before hurling it at the Gardevoir, the attack striking her head on as she was sent flying backwards a few feet, the powerful attack knocking her out in one hit.

"O-Oh my…" Natasha exclaimed in surprise, taken aback by Kyogre's power as she recalled her injured companion. Luckily, she was able to make up her mind without hesitation and opted to send out her Scizor next, the Frozen Claw Pokémon eager to deal with the legendary Pokémon before it. Immediately, it lunged towards the Kyogre, dodging a few Ancient Power's that came its way before assaulting the Sea Basin Pokémon with a series of swift punches and kicks. And though the assault managed to stagger the large beast, it was still raring to go; opening its maw as it began collecting power. Soon enough, it fired an almighty blast of water that sent the Scizor flying back several feet, crashing into a series of cardboard boxes as Natsaha quickly ran over to check on her ally. "Scizor! Are you alright?!"

"Sci…" It replied weakly, unable to continue fighting as the purple-haired girl recalled her comrade.

"Had enough, my little snowflake? There's not a Delta Species you have that can withstand my Kyogre's power." Audrey taunted her, causing the girl to think to herself as she was caught in a rough position. What does she have that can dish out a lot of damage, and can withstand an attack from that thing at the same time? It seemed that she had nothing that satisfied both conditions; nothing except…

"Snorlax, I choose you!" Natasha declared, sending out her Snorlax as the large Pokémon let out a low grumble of sorts. It opted to start things off by drumming on its belly with its hands, powering up to the max before eating a Sitrus Berry to regain its energy. But the Kyogre wasn't fazed by this at all, opting to conjure up a ball of ice-cold energy before firing it into a beam at its enemy, a low groan escaping from the Mountain Pokémon as it withstood the attack. But despite all odds, it managed to withstand the attack, catching the Abyssal leader by surprise.

"What? How could it withstand an Ice Beam from a Primal Kyogre?" The older woman inquired.

"For all your careful planning and whatnot, it seems that you forgot about Snorlax's ability to withstand Fire and Ice type attacks with ease; a trait shared with its Delta counterpart." The purple-haired girl retorted, pointing a finger at the Kyogre. "Finish it off with Wood Hammer!"

Letting out a cry of determination, the Snorlax raised it's right arm in the air, the limb glowing with a vivid green as it slammed own onto the Kyogre's head as it crash-landed into the floor and created a large impact crater. When the dust died down, it showed that the Kyogre had reverted to its normal form and was barely able to get back up.

"Woo-hoo! We did it Snorlax!" Natasha cheered, giving her comrade a congratulatory hug before recalling it to its ball, her opponent taken aback by her unexpected defeat. She had one of the strongest Pokémon of all time under her command, yet she was defeated by some insolent child.

"I can't believe I lost to you again; I must really be losing my touch…" Audrey muttered bitterly to herself.

"And let me guess; despite my victory over you, it means nothing in the end because you have some back up plan ready. Am I right?" The purple-haired girl inquired sarcastically.

"Indeed. Even though it's been defeat in battle, Kyogre can still call upon its subjects from the depths below. Just take a look at the water beside me…" The white-haired woman called out to her foe, the duo watching as the water began to stir. "The first soldier of my army is about to report for duty, ready to deal with you for good. Sure, you might be able to put up a fight against it, perhaps even knock it out, but you can only last for so long until all your precious Delta Pokémon have been knocked out. And once that happens, I'll—" She continued, only for the base to begin quaking for a few moments.

"W-What was that?" Natasha inquired, now on full alert as she reached for another Pokéball.

"Don't mind me…I was starting to get interested in her plan." A voice called out, the duo turning to see Malde, or at least what was left of the man that was Malde approach the duo. He had fully accepted his new appearance and radiated an air of unease that caused the teenage girl to freeze on the spot.

"W-Who are you and how did you get here?!" Audrey demanded an answer from the hybrid before her.

"My power was able to break through those barriers you put up. As for who I am, or was, I am Malde; father of the Sonata City Gym Leader, Harmony. She thought that the treatment didn't go well, but she couldn't be more wrong. I feel better than ever. I've been improved and empowered, and I wish to share my gift to the world. I extend this offer to the both of you, Natasha, Audrey." Malde informed them. "However, there is a small price for this offer; the crystal that Audrey possesses."

"You want the crystal? You must be joking. That's the only thing keeping Kyogre from going on a rampage! Even in its weakened state, it would kill us all without breaking a sweat!" The cult leader shot back. "You better turn your tentacle-covered tail and get out of here, right now!"

"It wasn't me that wanted you to join. I want to heal the world while you seek to conquer it; our goals differ too much for you to be of any help to me. But having Pokérus…it's a most illuminating experience. Things are revealed; you remember things that were suppressed. Things such as the memory of a mother who abandoned her child. Of being raised by an uncaring stepmother because his mother chose a Pokémon over him. Even after remembering all that, Damian still wanted you healed." The Deoxys hybrid dropped a bombshell, catching Natasha by surprise.

"N-No way…" Natasha began, her eyes widening with surprise as she saw her friend walking up towards the trio, the purple-haired girl horrified by his new appearance. Like with Malde, he too was now half Deoxys. "N-No…this can't be real. This has to be a sick joke; I refuse to believe this is real."

"It is no joke, Natasha. Damian is the son of Audrey, head of the Abyssal Cult. He is also my right-hand agent in healing this terminally ill planet." Malde told her bluntly.

"D-Damian, I…" Audrey was at a complete loss for words as to what she was witnessing. "…you're all grown up now. Y-You're one of them now, what happened to you? I…I left you. This is all my fault…"

"There is a way you can atone for your sins; this is what he wants. Just hand over the crystal and we can heal you. After all, the crystal would be an invaluable asset to our cause." Malde ordered her, but she refused to budge. After all, it was the only thing keeping Kyogre in check. "She's not giving it to us…take it, Damian."

Before she could protest, Damian snatched the shard of the crystal from his mother, a sudden spark forming in the Kyogre's mind as it regained its composure. Turning around, it shot a death glare at its former captor, the base quaking as the Sea Basin Pokémon approached her. With no other choice available, Audrey dove into the body of water with the Kyogre following afterwards, as Damian watched the scene before him.

"Mom…" He commented sadly.

"You did the right thing, Damian. Together we're going to heal the world. You'll be a hero; no one will ever look down on you again. Let's go, we have people to help." The older man told him, gesturing the white-haired boy to follow him, the latter giving Natasha one last glance before following him out the base.

"Damian…" Natasha commented sadly, wiping a tear away as she made her own way out the base. She was going to save him, no matter what the cost was. But unbeknownst to her, a mysterious figure emerged from the shadows, wearing a hooded robe that resembled that of the legendary Giratina. The figure had seen the entire thing go down, pleasantly surprised to see that the Abyssal Cult was finished for good.

"One down, the Mistress will be most pleased. The shards will return to us. Earth…it's almost time to come back to the mirror." The figure commented, before quietly fading back into the shadows from whence they came.

And with that, the Abyssal Cult has been defeated for good. One down, four more to go, or six more if you choose to include Malde's group and the Giratina cultists. The next chapter will have the gym battle against Anastasia so that'll be something to look forward to. Thank you all for reading and supporting my story, I'll see you all in the next chapter.

Acquired Delta Pokémon:

D. Venusaur

D. Charizard

D. Blastoise

D. Dugtrio

D. Crustle (Cake)

D. Golem

D. Ambipom

D. Muk

D. Reuniclus

D. Scizor

D. Volcarona

D. Sunflora

D. Gardevoir (female)

D. Gallade

D. Quagsire

D. Raichu

D. Hydreigon

D. Pidgeot

D. Golurk

D. Plusle

D. Minun

D. Ludicolo

D. Heatmor

D. Emolga

D. Drifblim

D. Roserade

D. Snorlax

D. Haxorus

D. Weezing

D. Dunsparce

D. Huntail (male)

D. Gorebyss (female)

D. Vespiquen

D. Chandelure