It was Cypress.
Bronze was in shock, total, utter disbelief. It must be his oxygen starved brain failing to see the features of The Hood's face, and replacing it with something familiar. Bronze blinked again, but Cypress was still there, clothed in a elite Eclipse uniform.
"You!" Crystal yelled. "What...you?" "Yes," Cypress calmly began. "Me. I guess I can count myself lucky that none of you, especially you, Bronze, figured it out sooner. Oak was such a fool, putting me in charge. The nice, friendly, lonely Pokémon Professor." Crystal sputtered again. "But, you were at the lab at the time Cresselia was taken! I saw you in your office!"
Cypress cackled. "A hologram, my dear! The oldest trick in the book! You never even suspected! It's hilarious!" Cypress turned to a older man in a Eclipse Admin uniform, who seemed to be just as surprised as anyone else, although the horror was absent from his face. "Tyler. Are the explosives ready?" "Yes, my lord." Tyler replied. "Good. However, I don't think we will have to use them today, will we? I will keep them active, for...insurance. Before I leave, I suppose I owe everyone a explanation.
"When I was very young, I did not have many friends, and Pokémon were my only companions. As I grew, and my intellect along with it, I realized the amount of suffering that humans inflicted upon Pokémon, and using them to do so. I began looking for solutions to this problem, still disguised as an ordinary bureaucrat. I saw no end, except to somehow to reverse the very physical laws of the universe, and create a new world in place of the old one, where the existing incentives for the hoarding of resources and murder would be unthinkable."
"I had no means to do such a thing, of course. For years, I stewed in my own anger and hatred, looking at the evils perpetuated by organizations like Team Rocket and Team Aqua and Magma. Except that, around the time of the appearance of Deoxys, and the temporary petrification of the Pokedex Holders, I was visited by a certain spiritual epiphany. It revealed to me everything I would need to know to form such a organization to accomplish my goal, and which has been my guidance through my subsequent underground formation of Team Eclipse and eventually, around the time of the appearance of the Ultra Beasts, I went public with our intentions."
"All the while, I remained a unthinkable spy, someone who would know every movement of the forces of law that would seek to butcher us in the crib. It was I who knew precisely when and where to put a rally. It was I who knew the exact security of the prison I broke my new allies out of. I was behind Team Eclipse's movements and success since its inception. That is why, no matter what may happen from now on, you, the Pokémon Association, and every force behind the old order will never, ever succeed. We are too many, and too strong. The existing powers that be had a chance to bring peace and order. They did not. Now I stand as Giratina, the avenger, cast out of heaven for it's misdeeds, now returning to judge the nations!"
Black ran forward. "Big talk, huh? Tell that to the people you've killed, and their families! Say that speech again, right in the fact of the people whose Pokémon you murdered on with your weapons! What defense do you have to kill people who disagree with you, and take whatever you want? You are just as bad as all those groups that you say you hate, if not worse! You're just a hypocrite and a coward! After this, no one will ever follow you again!."
Cypress gave Black a very ugly look, and regained his composure. "Fools." he hissed. "They are all going to die, anyway. Those who do not wish for the new world will be destroyed by it. I simply speeded up the process." Black lunged, but Cypress sidestepped and delivered a swift punch to his neck, paralyzing him. Cypress held out a detonator for all to see.
"If anyone gets anymore ideas like that, I won't hesitate to press this button. I would like to try to keep civilian casualties to a minimum, but I am willing to destroy this city to make a statement, as there is no longer any motivation to conceal my true ambition! Do you understand?" Everyone stood glaring at Cypress, who smiled. "Good. I suppose I should be leaving now. Admins, please escort the remaining grunts back into the gun-"
"I CHALLENGE YOU, ECLIPSE LEADER CYPRESS!" A voice rang out from the collection of Pokedex Holders. Every eye turned to see Red, standing with pure hatred on his face. Cypress turned, regarded Red, and grinned.
"A battle, you say? Actually, I think I will indulge you...just because I am opposed to Pokémon battles does not mean I am not prepared for one. It will also be a honor to defeat the one that Oak calls...The Fighter!"
Red glared at Cypress. "Standard rules. My Pokémon against yours. No items. If I win, you leave, and tell us how to dismantle the bombs. If you win, you can leave."
"I agree to the terms, and I swear upon every power in the third heaven and the third earth that I will fulfill this command, or may the Original One strike me dead... " Cypress said. "Clear out. Make a battlefield."
Cypress picked his team from a cart full of Poke Balls that had been wheeled out of the airship, while Red warmed up. Although Bronze was shocked by Cypress revealing himself to be the true mastermind behind Team Eclipse, he vaguely wondered where Jake was. He hadn't seen Jake at all. Maybe he had followed Stephan's advice, and was now on the mainland.
After the two trainers stepped on opposite sides of a space marked by Moon's berry juice, both sides supporters stepped back from the arena. After a brief reading of the battle rules by Emrett, it began.
Bronze soon realized that these two trainers were fighting on a level greater than anything he could dream. Red sent out Saur, and Cypress sent out yet another Venusaur. "Venusaur against Venusaur, eh? You will find that mine is far more powerful! Charge up!"
Cypress's Pokémon was enduring a attack from Saur, as it charged up for a Solar Beam attack. While this was going on, Bronze thought he noticed something very strange about Cypress's Pokémon. It seemed as if it was in some kind of blood-rage, attacking and enduring without any regard for itself. Red noticed this as well, and Cypress held up a small circular device.
"Xerosic made this for me a while ago. It uses a...certain type of energy to drastically increase the power of any Pokémon, at the cost of it's sanity. It still will obey me, however. Recover...and Solar Beam!"
Saur was blown away at by the attack, even though Cypress's Venusaur had fainted as well. "It had a undue strain on it, this one...the other members of my team will not be as fallible!"
Red sent out Gyra, and Cypress sent out a Feraligator. "Water against water! But I will still win this one! Screech!"
"Gyra, Protect! Aqua Tail, and fly!" The Feraligator didn't seem affected by the attack, but Gyra had went into the light of the sun, preventing Cypress from seeing what it was doing. "Is that...Dragon Dance?"
"Right! Hurricane!" The winds picked up, and Feraligator was battered around, eventually being tossed over the edge of the city border, falling down before Cypress sent it back to it's Poke Ball. "It fought well...Blaziken!"
Cypress sent out another fully-evolved starter. Red was beginning to notice a pattern, and kept going with Gyra. "Why would you send out a Fire-type against a Water-type-"
"ROCK TOMB!" Cypress yelled. Gyra was buried under the pile of stones, unable to battle. "Technical Machines are rather fascinating devices...I make good use of them whenever possible!" Cypress pointed at Bronze. "As I remember, Bronze, your very Charmander was the product of some experiments I had with them. Didn't you ever wonder why it had learned such strange and untypical moves?"
"Poli! You know what to do!" Cypress was about to have Blaziken use Protect before another attack of Rock Tomb, but Poli had already used Double Team. Avoiding the block, Poli gave Blaziken a powerful Focus Punch. "That move was less effective then what I hoped for..." Red said. "But now, I can do this! Brine!"
Blaziken fainted. Cypress seemed to have some modicum of grudging respect for Red, at least because of his battling skill. "You used Brine after my Blaziken had lost about half of it's energy, so it was even more effective. But why didn't you just attack with a Water-type move before, after you had evaded my Protect block?"
"Because you would have used Endure, and then attacked back with some other trick. But I have a question for you, Cypress."
"What would that be, Red of Pallet Town?"
"When you were fighting with Venusaur...it probably didn't even know what it was doing. You were using a Pokémon as a means to an end! How can you possibly reconcile that with what you say about Pokémon's rights?"
Cypress turned around and nodded to Henry and Eric, who nodded back. "Really, Red, it is quite simple. I would not want to have to fight a noble battle with a Pokémon that willingly would do such a thing, as a product of the brainwashing that is so prevalent in this dark age. Wouldn't it just be better for a Pokémon to fight for me, and not remember any of the pain it endured, while also being even more effective? Torterra!"
Torterra entered the battlefield, and immediately attacked back with Wood Hammer. Poli endured the hit, but Cypress ordered an attack of Stone Edge, dealing even more damage. Poli was still trying to fight, but Red saw that it was a losing battle. "Poli, come back! Aero!"
Aero flew above Torterra, and Cypress tried to fight back with Razor Leaf, although the attack wasn't quick enough. "Okay! Aero, Sunny Day...and Fire Fang!"
Torterra flinched, and Aero finished it off with another Fire Fang, and a blow of Iron Head. "Unfortunate...Samurott! Dig!"
Samurott dug under the ground, preventing Aero from locating it. "Aero, go back down and use Earthquake before he pulls any other tricks."
Red had acted too late. Samurott appeared behind Aero, and used Ice Beam. WHile it was recovering, Cypress had Samurott use Roar, and Poli was dragged out again. Samurott gave it a hard slash, and Poli fainted completely. "Good! Now, Roar, once again!"
Aero came out again, instinctively confused. "Wonderful! Aqua Jet!" Aero flinched, and Cypress attacked with Aqua Jet again, and again before Aero fainted.
Red saw what Cypress was doing. "Your Pokémon's action speed is extremely high after all those Aqua Jet attacks! But that won't matter...I am going to win! I am going to hold you to your word, Cypress! SNOR!"
As Red sent out his Snorlax, the opposing Samurott moved to attack again. "Cut it with your blades! Give this all your energy!"
Samurott's swords cut Snor with a thud. The big Pokémon seemed to be about to collapse...
...and then it grabbed Samurott by the head, and threw it over the edge of the city.
Cypress sent it back before it hit the water far below. "I would say that my Pokémon's energy is expended, and I assume that a Toxic attack was used somewhere in there. Your team is fighting at a level I have never seen before."
"That's right!" Red yelled. "This isn't any normal battle! I am pouring my emotions into my Pokémon, unlike you! Despite what you say, and what your thugs believe, you are the weaker one! Instead of channeling your indignation at the world into actually helping people, you just walk around in a hood like some spoiled brat, believing that you're a victim, and that everyone should do what you want! Your're nothing but a-"
"PSYCHIC!" Cypress had sent out a Delphox, and Snor's vast weight was negated as it was thrown into a durasteel wall with a crunch.
"Oh, Red...but I do care about this battle. This Delphox...let's just say that I have a uniquely strong bond with it. Your last Pokémon against mine, a perfect balance! By the way, since those archeologists that I kidnapped provided the information necessary to do a...certain action, I will be keeping them around. But, I might not, depending how arrogant I feel after this battle...if I win, of course! See how I just raised the stakes?! FIGHT BACK!"
Red set out Pika, and it attacked the Delphox with Iron Tail. "Don't flinch!" Cypress screamed. "Calm Mind! Raise your Special Defense to a maximum...and attack with Dazzling Gleam!" Pika was thrown back, the move nearly defeating it.
"Hahaha!" Cypress laughed. "Looks like nothing can truly best the bond that holds me and my Delphox together!"
"How can you say that?! After every experience you have had with Pokémon throughout your life...you still think that they want to help you kill people and commit genocide with this new world?!"
"Red, you seriously think that any intelligent creature believes that the world can be sustained as it is? Look at us! The human race is headed for extinction. Fundamental realities must be overturned. In the new world, there will be no hatred, greed, primitive reproductive instinct, death, pain, or anything other than perfection. Everyone will be happy, in eternal, fulfilling bliss, all under me-" Cypress seemed to flinch on the word 'me.' "I mean, us. My Pokémon are simply more educated than yours. It is basic evolutionary superiority."
Red looked at Pika, who was getting on it's paws. "NO! If everyone is never unhappy, the no one can be really happy! Me and my Pokémon know that...but you don't! And that is going to be your defeat, here and now!"
Cypress was confused, but then he saw that Pika had been siphoning electricity off a generator from a nearby building, wisps of electricity still in the air. "No! Delphox, Prote-"
"VOLT TACKLE!"
After the smoke cleared, Delphox was still standing. But then...
...it collapsed in a heap, receiving cheers from all the Pokedex Holders, and yells of abuse from the Eclipse members.
Cypress himself seemed to be about to yell something, and even drew breath to do so. Instead, he sent back Delphox, and put his Poke Balls back on the cart. "As I said, I will honor the terms of the fight. However...there is something that I must do...some action that I have been yearning to perform ever since I knew how!"
Walking over to Emrett, who had been holding some kind of package the entire time, Cypress grabbed the bundle and began to unwrap it. Even Cypress's own men seemed confused at the purpose of this action. Cypress uncovered the contents, which Bronze recognized to be the Mysterious Vial from the Anthien Museum.
Cypress began to speak. "This vial contains a great entity that was foolishly imprisoned in the elder days of the world. Even now, it writhes in confinement and justified anger at being so constricted. Now, let its power be mine! Let me be indwelt before your very eyes!"
Before anyone could react, Cypress threw the vial down to the ground. It shattered into many pieces, despite the museum label saying that it was nearly unbreakable. Nothing seeming to happen, until purple smoke curled its way from the broken pieces and floated into Cypress's nostrils and open mouth, his eyes closed in euphoria.
After the last bit of smoke vanished into the man, Cypress crossed his arms and grinned in triumph at the assembly. Then, he began grimacing, clearly feeling some sort of pain that was making it harder to maintain a triumphant pose. Cypress then began frowning, and muttering in confusion. "No, no, this isn't right. It isn't right. It's in my head...my skin..."
Cypress screamed so loudly that Bronze covered his ears. Dropping to the ground, he writhed and screamed in such agony that Bronze felt like he was going to vomit in disgust. Cypress body twisted itself into unnatural angles, with black fluid flowing out of his eyes and mouth. Horrific scars and gashes burned across his skin, and purple smoke curled across his wracked frame. The other Eclipse members looked on in horror, trying to find a medic.
Suddenly, Cypress arched his back so quickly it broke, and with a final cry of; "FATHER!" he crumpled into a bloody heap.
A medic finally came from the gunship, and after running some tests, pronounced Cypress dead. "No brain activity or pulse. Cause of death: High force trauma from a unknown cause."
Admin Tyler wailed and knelt over the broken body of his leader. "No! Come back! I need you! The world needs you!" A stretcher was procured, and what was once Professor Cypress was loaded on to it, to be taken back to the gunship.
Bronze, getting over his shock that Cypress had died in such a gruesome and unexpected way, noticed that the sky was suddenly clouding over. The temperature was dropping rapidly as well.
Wait, what was that? Had he imagined the corpse's ruined chest rising and falling? No, it was still. Up until then, the corpse had not even displayed the illusion of life.
Then, very faintly, Bronze swore that the body's index finger moved. Then, it definitely twitched. The medics saw this and jumped back in fright, some sending out their Pokémon. Then the hands moved, and this was seen by everyone. All the grunts reacted in horror, screaming and panicking. The Admins were more surprised than frightened, and Emrett looked curious. The Pokedex Holders stood their ground, although they had no idea what was happening.
Cypress spread his ruined fingers, and shook his head. The scars and gashes on his body began to get smaller, and the viscera and blood started to vanish. Eyes still closed, Cypress curled his legs, stretched his arms, and haphazardly rolled off the side of the gurney.
Awkwardly balancing on his still healing legs, Cypress began to feel his head and chest, as if for the first time. Bronze nearly choked on the feeling of pure evil coming from the newly reborn leader.
Standing fully upright, Cypress looked like he had just gotten out of his beautification session. Not a scratch on him, uniform perfect, and smiling, he finally opened his eyes.
They were glowing scarlet.