Welcome back everyone; in this chapter we'll cover the battle against the Infernal Cult and their leader inside the Fiery Caverns. What surprises will Natasha encounter in the treacherous area? Find out now in this very chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon Insurgence; it is the property of its creators.
Hekate Town
Upon arriving to the town, the first thing that Natasha noticed was how small it was, so small that she questioned whether it could even be called a town. All she saw in the clearing was a Pokémon Center, and a few houses. The only way out of the clearing was through the entrance she just came from.
"This can't be right…the map said there was a way to Route 12 here." She mused to herself, only for the miner beside her to chuckle quietly.
"Ohohohohohoho! You must be new here. Hekate Town's split up among three separate clearings, all of which are connected via these teleporters." He explained, pointing at the teleporters situated on both sides of the Pokémon Center. "The one on the left will take you to Route 12, while the other one will take you to the Fiery Caverns."
"I see. Thanks for the explanation." The purple-haired girl nodded in gratitude, the duo going their separate ways as she entered the building before her. As she handed her Pokémon over to the nurse and took a seat in the lobby, only to see a familiar face. "N-Nora?!"
"Natasha, it's nice to see you here!" Nora smiled, gesturing her friend to come closer. "I've heard about what happened in the Abyssal Base from Harmony. I…I can't believe that Damian got turned by Malde; it's all my fault…" The smile contorted into a frown, with the purple-haired girl resting her hand on her shoulder.
"Don't blame yourself, you had no idea that the whole thing with Malde would've happened in the first place." Natasha consoled her friend.
"I know…it's just that I can't help but wonder how it would've gone down if I hadn't of yelled at Damian back at the library. Perhaps…perhaps things would've gone differ—" The green-haired girl began, only for the miner from before to burst into the center.
"Trouble, we've got big trouble!" He called out, attracting everyone's attention. "The Infernal Cult has taken over the Fiery Caverns. They're using it as a base to plan an invasion of the nearby area!"
"The Infernal Cult? How'd they get here so quietly?" Nora mused, turning her head to face Natasha. "Come on, we've got to investigate this right away!"
"R-Right. Let's not waste anymore—"
Um, miss. You nearly forgot your Pokémon…" The nurse called out, a flustered expression forming on Natasha's face as she retrieved her Pokémon and thanked the nurse before following Nora out the building.
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The duo soon made their way to the Fiery Caverns and entered the underground mine, the air as hot and humid as its name implied. The place was also very dark, so the purple-haired girl brought out her Chandelure and had it light the way for them. Soon enough, the duo saw what looked like a pair of Infernal Cultists, dressed in their bright red garb as a means of honoring Groudon, digging into the walls with pickaxes.
"Why are we even here in the first place?" The first cultist asked in a dull, monotone voice. "I thought we already accomplished our task here."
"The boss is getting ready to make his big play; the fall of the Abyssal Cult has emboldened him to go through with the plan." The second cultist replied, his voice as monotone as his comrades.
"I see…" The first cultist accepted the answer, digging through the wall until he saw a lilac-colored crystal fall onto the floor. "This must be one of those crystal's we were ordered to find. But why would we need these dinky little things at all?"
"You dullard! Those things are what's keeping those teleporters in working condition. If we can gather enough of them, we may be able to create our own Crystal, like the one the First Auger used." The second cultist chided the man, the duo continuing to dig into the walls as the heroines were taken aback by what they just heard.
"T-They're making their big play soon?" Natasha replied in a hushed tone.
"Seems that way. I don't know what it is they're planning, but we won't let them get away with it!" Nora declared, the green-haired girl noticing a narrow pathway near the cavern roof that bypassed the cultists. Pointing it out to Natasha, the duo slowly climbed up the wall and onto the path, sneaking by the enemy and into a second cavern. The air was a lot more humid than before, for obvious reasons. There were small pools of lava on the floor, blocked off by heat-resistant guardrails to prevent an unfortunate accident. But what caught their attention the most was a small opening on the western wall, a dim light emanating from it. Intrigued by what could be inside this room, the duo made their way inside as Natasha was greeted by a familiar sight.
"Well what do we have here? Looks like this is spire No.6." She mused to herself, with Nora's eyes widening slightly.
"Who would've thought I'd find one here, a Spire of the Songstress." Nora stated, the duo approaching it cautiously. "I've been meaning to investigate these in my spare time, but time isn't a commodity I have a lot of these days."
"You're studying them too? I've found five of them all over the region and have solved the small puzzles on them. I still don't know what the scrolls are for, but I'm hoping to find out soon." The purple-haired girl admitted.
"Impressive work; I had a hunch you'd get the hang of it." The green-haired girl stated, her eyes fixed on the spire. "Supposedly, these spires hold a scroll in them, which act as keys to Meloetta's secret lair. I'm sure you know this already, but Meloetta's a Mythical Pokémon, just like Celebi and Mew."
"I assume that she has a trainer to look out for, just like the others?" Natasha inquired.
"She did have a trainer, one who she loved very much, but she died in an unfortunate accident. The trainer's name was Luisa, one of Torren's most—" Nora began, only for Natasha to clutch her head in pain. "N-Natasha?!"
"T-That name…" The purple-haired girl winced, her headache soon subsiding as she was left with some questions. Who exactly was this Luisa? What happened to her? And most importantly, why did it cause her to react the way she did? The only way she can find out is by collecting the rest of these scrolls and find out the truth from Meloetta. "W-We're finding the rest of those scrolls, no matter what!"
"Fine by me." The green-haired girl agreed, eyeing up the spire once more. "Hey, Natasha. Do you mind if I solved this one?"
"No problem. I'd like to see how fast you solve—" She began, only for a quick rumbling to echo throughout the cave as a pair of Pokémon broke through the wall and confronted the heroines. The first one was a Glalie made entirely of molten lava and burnt rocks, it's red eyes gazing at the duo. The second Pokémon was a Froslass that was also made up of molten lava, the pitch-black rocks on its body resembling sharp spikes. The two Pokémon were ready to deal with the intruders, hoping to protect the stone spire. "I'll negotiate with our guests, while you handle the spire."
"Got it!" Nora agreed, getting to work on the puzzle as the purple-haired began to explain her case to the spire guardians.
"Hey there, we mean you no harm. I just wish to learn some answers from Meloetta about my past." She spoke calmly, with Chandelure opting to act as a translator for both parties, even though Natasha could understand what a Delta Pokémon is saying. The Froslass opted to reply to her statement, the Pokemon's eyes narrowing slightly as it wasn't sure whether to trust her or not. "I see…you two are close to Meloetta and you're worried that I'll capture her. In that case, allow me to prove my honesty to you two."
Going through her bag, Natasha took out her Quartz Flute and played a short melody on it, a small glow emanating within the alcove as legendary Mew soon materialized before the Fire-type Pokémon and began speaking to them, the duo listening fervently to it. once Mew had finished speaking, it soon teleported back to its domain with the wild Pokémon chirping an apology to the purple-haired girl.
"No need to apologize, you were just looking out for your friend. Speaking of which, did you want to tag along with me fore a while? I'm sure Meloetta would be more than happy to see you two after so long." Natasha offered, with the wild Pokémon accepting her offer. Taking out a pair of empty Pokéballs, she recalled the Glalie and Froslass into the balls before tucking them inside her bag alongside the flute. Just then, a small 'click' echoed throughout the room, the purple-haired girl turning to see that Nora had solved the puzzle.
"Phew…that was trickier than I anticipated." She sighed, retrieving the scroll and handed it over to Natasha. "I take it that everything went well?"
"Yeah, better than expected." She replied, tucking the scroll away. "I'm still a little taken aback by their arrival though; I guess I should've expected one of these spires to have a guardian of sorts."
"Did you encounter any other guardians throughout your journey?" The green-haired girl inquired.
"Well the one in Nasca Town had a Delta Bisharp nearby, but it was more into playing tricks on the locals. Then there was the one in the Whirl Islands, where Lugia resided, but it had unexpected guests that day. Furthermore, there was supposedly a spire hidden in the sewers that was guarded by a Delta Heatmor, but the guy I bought the scroll from said that his mate gave it to him after solving the puzzle. That's three spires accounted for, but the last two deviate from the formula. The spire in the Misty Way had no guardian, but it was located in an area that's rife with urban legends and whatnot, but the Koril Cave spire is the outlier here. There was no guardian, no folklore surrounding it, and was located right beside a bustling town. How it managed to stay intact for that long is mystifying to me." Natasha explained, a thoughtful expression forming on Nora's face.
"I'm beginning to understand now; these spires are protected one way or another, be it by local Pokémon or human superstition. Therefore, we can expect the last two to be guarded as well." She stated calmly. "But we should get to the task at hand; we've spent enough time here as it is already."
"Got it!" The purple-haired girl stated, the duo exiting the alcove and made their way deeper inside the cavern.
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"So, what do you think their leader will be like? If he's anything like Audrey, then we may be in some serious trouble." Natasha inquired, the duo continuing their trek through the caverns.
"Well if it means anything, the Infernal Cult was the first cult to have formed in Torren, followed closely by the Temporal Cult, who had worshipped Dialga. The fact that they've lasted this long goes to show that far more threatening than your average cult." Nora answered, the duo arriving in the deepest cavern only to hear what sounded like two people talking to one another. Quickly hiding behind a boulder, the heroines proceeded to eavesdrop on the conversation.
"—and as it turns out, everyone was interpreting the prophecy wrong!" A familiar voice spoke to what looked like a commander of the Infernal Cult.
"Hmm? What do you mean?" The commander inquired; a hint of curiosity etched on his face.
"I found out the truth behind the prophecy, and it had fantastic news! That chosen hero? They'll defeat all the other cults just fine, but not only would they lose to us, they'll end up joining us." The older man continued with glee, with Nora narrowing her eyes at him upon recognizing who he was.
"That's wonderful! And since the only candidates for the hero are the Gym Leader of Amphitrite City, and that group of kids, I don't think they're going to be joining us willingly." The commander continued.
"Exactly, which makes our gift even more powerful than we believed. I do hope we end up getting that lass with the Delta Call." The librarian chuckled, with the commander following suit as the heroines soon confronted the duo.
"What is wrong with you?!" Nora snapped at the older man, catching the villains off-guard. "You were there at the library when we heard that prophecy! You were supposed to be on our side! You told us how important that prophecy was—special information that the cults didn't know! Yet here you are, sharing it with the Infernal Cult, taking away the one advantage we had. I hope Zenith rewards you as a traitor deserves…"
"Ohohohohoho, I'm more than happy to reward myself as a traitor deserves, except I was never a traitor to begin with." Zachery retorted, removing his disguise and cast it aside. His once purple-hair was now a mixture of red and purple, his outfit consisting of a deep red jacket over a white, long-sleeved shirt, topped off with white trousers. "Your advantage was gone the moment I heard that prophecy! A shame neither of you asked my name back then; you really should have, as names are more powerful than you can imagine."
"So you were working at the library this whole time, just to hear the prophecy?" Natasha demanded, narrowing her eyes at the Infernal Leader.
"But of course! It was the only reason I even considered working at that dump. That hair dye was a pain in the neck to wash off. But all that waiting, all that effort was worth it to hear the oracle talk about the prophecy, about our victory. Not even Audrey's defeat could frighten me or my cult, for it was foretold that one of you will join us." Zenith boasted.
"You talk as if we'll ever help you!" The green-haired girl shot back.
"Even in the face of imminent defeat, you still resist. Very well. If you two want a fight, then I'll be happy to indulge you. Hopefully this battle will show me which one of you would be the better catch." He stated, taking out two Pokéballs and threw them, an Excadrill and Rhyperior emerging from the devices.
Realizing that they would have to work together, Nora and Natasha sent out their Celebi and Scrafty respectively, the two Grass-types wincing slightly from the heat of the cavern. But for the sake of their trainers, they endured the heat and stared down their foes. The Excadrill started things off by burrowing into the ground, kicking up some dust and debris in the air. It soon emerged from the ground a few moments later, with the Rhyperior slamming its heavy feet onto the ground to create a potent tremor. This had caused some stalactites to fall from the ceiling, with the airborne Excadrill batting them towards its enemies, with the Grass types, narrowly avoiding the attacks.
Opting to go for a swift counterattack, the Celebi channeled its inner energy to conjure up a ball of vivid green energy and flung it at the Rhyperior, landing a direct hit as it staggered back a couple feet. Meanwhile, the Scrafty lunged towards the Excadrill, dodging a series of quick slashes before kicking it in the face, sending the mole flying back towards the Drill Pokémon as they crashed into the rocky wall. It then followed up by retrieving a few explosive seeds from its pants and flung them at the enemy, their bodies assaulted by a series of small explosions as they fell to the ground, their bodies pelted by some small rocks.
"Hmph, you got lucky there…" Zenith commented, recalling his injured Pokémon before taking out two more Pokéballs and threw them, a Chandelure and Volcarona emerging from the devices. Almost immediately, the Volcarona conjured up an oppressive gust of hot wind, striking both Grass types directly with Chandelure following up with a Flamethrower directed at Celebi. However, the Scrafty pushed Celebi out of the way and took the attack, holding its ground for a few moments before getting flung several feet back, crumpling on the ground as Nora took the time to digest what had just happened.
"Y-Your Pokémon took the attack for me…" She commented, with Natasha making her way to her injured comrade.
"Of course, I'd do anything to keep you and your friends safe." The purple-haired girl smiled back, a faint blush forming on Nora's face as the latter recalled her Scrafty before sending out her Gorebyss, the draconic Pokémon coiled up on the ground. Mulling over which foe to deal with first, it settled for the Volcarona, rearing its head back and sprayed a blast of scalding hot water from its mouth. While that was happening, the Celebi opted to tap into its mental power in order to ensnare the Chandelure, the Ghost type caught off-guard as it was being lifted into the air by its opponent. Without warning, it was soon flung towards the Volcarona and crashed into it, the duo collapsing onto the floor. This gave the Gorebyss an opportunity to fire another blast of water at some remaining stalactites, causing them to fall onto the enemy Pokémon and bury them beneath a large pile of shattered rocks, a sigh of frustration escaping from Zenith's mouth.
"This wasn't how I hoped things will go…" He muttered, recalling his Pokémon before opting to send out his last one, a Magcargo. However, he soon took out a Mega Ring and activated it, the snail encased in a multicolored ball of light as a wonderous energy coursed through its body. soon enough, the ball of light shattered, revealing Magcargo in its new form. Its shell had been broken up into an armor of sorts that coated its body, which was now twice as long as its initial form. The Gorebyss opted to go for a Scald once more, but the attack vaporized into steam before it made contact with the snail, catching Natasha by surprise.
"So it's immune to Water-type attacks." She commented.
"That's right! It's my secret trump card against a certain Gym Leader in the event that he's the one who'll join my side." Zenith bragged, his Magcargo glaring at its foes. "Incinerate those pesky brats!"
The Magcargo reared its head back and fired a powerful stream of flames at its opponents, only for Celebi to conjure up a wonderous wall of light that shielded the duo from the oppressive flames. Once the attack ceased, the heroes opted to begin their counterattack, with Celebi starting off by using a mystical power to lift the fallen rocks and fling them at the Magcargo, knocking it off balance. The Gorebyss followed up by gathering a ball of draconic energy in its mouth and fired it at the enemy, the ball exploding on contact and sent the snail flying back a couple feet. But it was the Celebi who'd deal the finishing blow, conjuring up a series of sharp leaves imbued with psychic powers and flung them at the Magcargo, the leaves puncturing its gooey body before getting burnt to a crisp from the heat. The Lava Pokemon promptly collapsed onto the floor, reverting to its original form as a mildly amused look formed on Zenith's face.
"Not bad." He admitted, recalling his Magcargo. "Truth be told, I'm hoping that Natasha's the one who joins the Infernal Cult. Her Delta Call would be a major boon to our cause."
"Give it up Zenith! Whatever you're here for, we won't let you lay a hand on it!" The purple-haired girl shot back, with the older man laughing back at her.
"How naïve…you say that as if we're gonna walk away empty-handed." He retorted, turning to face the pool of lava behind him. "Groudon, duke of the earth! Rise up and show yourself to your loyal servants! I vocare immortali terra!"
The ground began quaking violently, a loud roar echoing throughout the room as both girls quickly recalled their Pokémon. They watched the pool in awe as the massive figure of Groudon emerged from the depths and stared down the humans before it, a faint look in its eyes that indicated that it…recognized the Infernal cultists.
"Excellent…it's willing to join our side. We're done here." Zenith stated, as a flustered look formed on Nora's face.
"W-Wait a minute! How did Groudon join you so easily? After all, it took the combined power of Lugia and a Crystal Shard to have Kyogre join Audrey's side." She exclaimed.
"Oh, the innocence of youth. Did you really expect us to catch Groudon? And I thought you'd done your research on the Infernal Cult. As the first cult to ever exist, it's only natural that we were able to catch the legendary we worshipped long ago. All we did was wake Groudon up from its long slumber. Now if you'll excuse us, we've got a plan to commence." The older man stated, as he and the commander hopped onto Groudon's back, with the large Pokémon burrowing through a wall.
"This is bad, this is really bad. With Groudon at their side, it's only a matter of time before they move into action. The worst thing is that I have no idea what they're planning, meaning I can't form a proper plan to counter it." Nora stated, a look of fear etched on her face.
"So what are we going to do about it?" Natasha inquired urgently.
"Unfortunately, there's nothing we can do for now; we simply don't know enough about their plans. However, something Zenith said made me think about Perfection. I'm heading back to the library to do some research. The best thing for you to do is head to Selene City and meet the Gym Leader; she's a good friend of mine." The green-haired girl suggested, making her way out the cave on her own as Natasha pondered to herself. She knew that Perfection had their hands on the three Dragons of Unova; Reshiram, Zekrom and Kyurem, but what was their end game with them? Whatever the case, she would have to head to Selene City and find out the truth.
Another chapter wrapped up nice and neatly. The next one should have a Gym Battle in it so that's something to look forward to. Thank you all for reading, I'll see you 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
D. Bisharp
D. Scrafty
D. Luxray
D. Metagross (Spider)
D. Glalie
D. Froslass
