Foreword: Finals and pretty much anything else do NOT mix. Beware of crap. o_o;
And also, thus begins the end of the second season. (With, oddly enough, only nine episodes. So much for a series, ne?) Yes, expect the usual: Question/Answer, Bloopers, Trailer. I'm working on the first two in addition to this. ^_^
And thirdly, I know I shouldn't do it, but... Shameless advertising for the Masaki Fan Club! Join today and experience the randomness we go through! Let's see... RPGs, discussions about Sonezaki Masaki (and just about everything else, for that matter), funtastic polls, pictures, fandomy blurbs of insanity, and tons more Masaki funness! Sign up today at groups.yahoo.com/group/masakifc! (We've only got seven members! PLEASE HELP US!!)
*coughs* And now to regain my dignity...
***
Episode 20--
Long Live the Queen
Crocus trembled. She knew she was in big trouble. She knew it. None of her agents returned, meaning that all had failed. And she was positive that Keios didn't take well to failure.
She paced in the darkness of her room, awaiting Keios' arrival. She wondered if the Demon Ball would fail her.
She stopped.
'No,' she thought. 'I've worked for months since I found out what Keios REALLY was. I went through hours of labor to perfect the Demon Ball! There's no way it will screw up!'
Suddenly, there was a rush of cold in the room.
"Crocus..." Keios growled. "You have disappointed me... You know what I must do next, don't you...?"
"Yes," Crocus said with an unintentionally shaky voice. "But before you get rid of me, it's time that I get rid of your freedom!"
She whipped out her Demon Ball.
"Prepare to be enslaved by the hypnotic effects of my Demon Ball!"
She threw it at Keios. To her surprise, he caught it and crushed it into a fine powder with one hand.
"Crocus, did you honestly think I didn't know what you had in mind?" Keios inquired with a laugh. "I had my eye on you day in and day out. I watched you plan and create the Demon Ball, the one thing you believed would successfully capture me and force me to be your servant. However, what you didn't know is that I cannot be enslaved. I am a free being, and you cannot change that!"
Crocus trembled and fell to her knees. Keios watched her and began to laugh.
"No, Crocus," he said. "I will not destroy you yet. I have another idea in mind..."
Crocus looked up as Keios produced between his great hands a stone of bright green. The light within it pulsated as two bands of dark violet metal grew from behind it, joining together in a ring large enough to fit around Crocus' head.
"Crocus, do you know what this is?" Keios asked as he held it up.
Crocus couldn't speak. Instead, she shook her head with short, rapid movements.
"There is a rare stone found in certain craters called a Cosmos Stone," Keios told her. "It has the power to grant a certain number of wishes to whomever holds it before it fades away into nothingness. If a sample of Cosmos Stone is pure, it will be a dark blue color and will only grant wishes. On the other hand, if the stone is fused with a dark, demonic energy, then it becomes a Hell Stone, a bright green stone like the one you see here. The Hell Stone can be used as both a means to grant wishes or as a weapon of undefined and ruthless power."
The circlet descended into Crocus' hands. She stared at it blankly.
"Wear this," Keios instructed, "and go to the Prime's lighthouse yourself. With the Hell Stone, you will be able to defeat and eliminate him no matter what he does. In fact, you can destroy all of northeastern Kanto with the full power of the Hell Stone if you so desire. Take my gift and use it well, Crocus."
Crocus bowed. "Thank you, Master Keios."
Keios vanished in a swirl of dark energy, leaving Crocus to hold the circlet with the glowing stone. She felt its power and feared it, but she did as Keios told her, placing the circlet around her auburn-haired head.
The stone gave off a bright, green light as Crocus let out a bloody scream.
~~~
In the back of a grotto, Zero slept on a bed she had kept there. Her dreams were pleasant until she saw something.
Her eyes shot open. A hand reached under her pillow and pulled out her circlet, on which the blue stone glowed brightly.
"Something is coming," she whispered to herself.
She sat up and got out of bed before placing the circlet on her head. Her bare feet moved across the stone floor and out onto the grass fringing the bank of her lake. She stood over its pure waters and stared into them. Suddenly, everything became clear.
"The Prime," she gasped. "I must warn him!"
"Lady Aigori?"
She turned to see Reno approaching her from the side.
"Reno, good morning," she greeted before continuing. "I have an important message for the Prime. I need to go to him right away!"
"It's too dangerous for you to leave your lake," Reno told her. "Why don't you just tell me the message, and I'll go to him myself."
Zero shook her head. "I must go to him physically and completely. Not project my image*1* nor speak to him through dreams or thoughts. I must physically be in the presence of his human self. Will you help me?"
There was a long pause.
"Lady Aigori, it would be best if you stayed here," Reno finally told her.
"My message is of grave importance!" Zero protested. "If I am not able to speak with Bill, there is a good chance he will die!"
Reno stared at her with wide eyes before nodding.
"Alright. I'll take you to him," he finally said.
"Thank you, Reno," Zero said with a bow.
~~~
"Hope you're not planning anything outdoors today! Today's forecast is severe thundershowers with even a chance of hail later on today, high of 64. And now on to our next story..."
"A chance of hail," Bill scoffed as he glanced away from the radio next to him on the kitchen table and out the window, watching as little ice balls rained down from the darkened sky.
It had been like that for the past two days. Rain, thunder, lightning, hail, clouds so thick and dark it made morning (just like it was presently) look like night.
He sipped his cup of tea and continued to listen to the news on the battery-powered radio. The electricity was down, and the generators were only being used on the beacon (which was on for god knows what reason).
A faint scent came from the lit scented candles Penny had insisted on giving him for Christmas... and his birthday... and pretty much every other day that seemed to require gifts. He didn't complain. It's the thought that counted, and besides, a good lot of ones he didn't light up were used as paperweights in the cellar.
Jude stumbled into the room, still half asleep. She rummaged through the cabinets and managed to find enough to fix herself a bowl of cereal. After she did this, she sat down with her bowl at the table, stared at it for a moment, then pushed it aside and buried her head in her arms as she crossed them on the table.
"Good morning, Jude," Bill greeted.
He couldn't hear her response, but it WAS done in a harsh, "leave me alone" tone.
"Didn't get much sleep either, eh?" he asked her.
She looked up at him. "What sort of person would!? Night after night, there's enough thunder to wake the dead!"
"Don't worry," he assured her. "The storms should subside soon."
"THAT'S WHAT YOU SAID YESTERDAY!!"
He calmly took a sip of tea without answering her.
"What makes you think that tomorrow, we'll wake up, and it'll be a sunny day?" she asked him.
"I didn't say it would happen tomorrow," he replied.
"Whatever. What makes you think it'll happen?"
"No storm lasts forever." He paused. "Unless of course you're on Venus... or all of the outer planets except for Pluto..."
"What if Earth DOES turn into one of those planets?"
"With today's environmental programs forcing the reduction of air pollution, I highly doubt that would happen right now."
Ash came into the room with a cheerful face.
"Hi, everyone!" he greeted before he sat at the table. "Hey, Jude! Are you gonna eat that?"
Jude narrowed her eyes at Ash and pushed the bowl of cereal across the table to him.
"Thanks!" he said, eating gratefully.
"How can the both of you be so cheerful in the morning?" Jude asked before burying her face again.
"I get a lot of sleep," Ash replied. "I couldn't even hear the storm last night!"
Jude rolled her eyes, though Ash couldn't see that.
"Anti-depressants," Bill answered as he stared out the window.
Jude looked at him. "Seriously?"
He smiled. "No. Actually, I'm naturally cheerful."
"Right. Whatever you're on, I'd like to be on it too."
"I don't do drugs."
"Suuure you don't."
Bill sighed.
~~~
Apollo and Artemis didn't join this scene. The reason why is because they were busy with a conversation of their own.
"Artemis, wake up."
Apollo gently nudged the white Sneasel. The Sneasel turned over and muttered something along the lines of, "Mmm... Giant chocolate Pikachu..."
"Artemis!"
He awoke with a start and sat up. "What!?"
"Artemis, I want to talk to you," Apollo said.
"Then go ahead," Artemis replied as he curled up on the bed again.
"Artemis, I want you to be awake when I speak so I know I'm not talking to nothing."
Artemis sighed and sat up again. "Alright. What's on your mind?"
"Artemis, what's our next step?"
"Next step?"
"We've defeated Antiwarp. Now what?"
Artemis yawned. "I don't know. I haven't bothered to foresee that yet."
"I'm asking you to do so now."
Artemis sighed and did so. "I see..."
"Yes? What?" Apollo demanded.
"We haven't defeated Antiwarp."
Apollo stared at him blankly. "But... We did! We defeated every Antiwarp shifter and non-shifter!"
"No, we haven't. We missed one."
"Who?"
"The boss."
"The boss?"
Artemis nodded. "Dr. Crocus."
"How tough can she be?" Apollo inquired.
"Tough," Artemis replied. "I don't see an easy ending to our battle."
"What DO you see?"
Artemis lay again, on his side with his back to Apollo.
"You don't want to know," the Sneasel finally said.
"I do!" Apollo exclaimed, pulling at his partner's side so that he was on his back, eyes wide and staring into those of the human. "Artemis, tell me!"
Artemis frowned. "My friend, there's nothing we can do to stop her. She's coming, and there's no way we can run."
The room fell silent. Artemis turned over again with his back to his partner as Apollo thought about this. Apollo turned away.
"Thank you, Artemis," he said before leaving.
~~~
"I know," Bill said after Apollo told him what Artemis foresaw.
"How could you have known?" Apollo asked.
"Crocus was absent in the battle," Bill replied as he looked through a stack of papers on a desk. "I knew I shouldn't underestimate her, and I'm sure that she wouldn't be too happy about having her underlings defeated. I figured she would come up with something to be done in retaliation for our actions, but unfortunately, I'm not sure what either. And of course, then we have to worry about her employer, Mr. Keios."
Apollo's eyes widened. "Keios?"
Bill looked at Apollo. "Have you heard of him?"
"Keios is what Lady Aigori fears the most," Apollo responded. "Keios is an evil thing, the reason why Ash, you, and myself have all been brought together."
"What else can you tell me about this Keios?"
Apollo shook his head. "Nothing. Lady Aigori refuses to talk about him."
Bill looked back at the papers. "Hmm..."
"I can tell you one other thing INVOLVING Keios, though..."
Bill glanced back at Apollo. "What?"
Apollo lowered his head. "Sometime, we're going to have to fight him."
"What?" Bill's eyes widened. He turned to face Apollo as what color was left in his face drained away. "But... If someone as powerful as Zero is afraid of him, then exactly how will we defeat him?"
"I don't know, but I'm thinking it has something to do with you, mainly."
"With me?"
Apollo nodded. "Ever since Contessa Loveland died, Lady Aigori seemed to have taken an interest in you in particular, saying that she'll have complete faith in you when we go to fight the battle, which has been named the Beginning of the End."
"But... What does Tess have to do with this?"
"I don't know. Lady Aigori never bothered to answer that."
Bill glanced back at the stack of papers and sighed. "It seems that ever since I had gained my powers, an endless amount of questions keep coming toward me each day I live with them."
"I've felt the same way, my friend."
Suddenly, there was a crash heard from somewhere above. The cellar door was flung open, and Jude called from the top.
"Apollo! Bill! You two had better come up here! And bring some Pokémon! Something's going on up here!" she yelled.
The two shifters looked at each other and gave each other a small nod before gathering PokéBalls and running up the stairs.
~~~
Crocus had definitely changed due to the Hell Stone. Her eyeglasses were gone, leaving her glowing, green eyes naked. Her light-skinned, sickeningly thin body was wrapped in a long, dark violet gown held to her shoulders only by dark violet straps. Her nails became blood-red claws, and her auburn hair on which the dark circlet sat dropped around her shoulders and seemed to have grown darker in color. Even her blackened lips had an evil look on them as she smirked.
A wind seemed to have picked up around her as she knocked down both doors of the lighthouse with a single bolt of lightning. She seemed to float into the room, staring at Jude, Ash, and Artemis with a sinister look.
"Move aside, kiddies," she said with a hollow, echoing voice. "I'm only here for one person."
"We're not going to let you hurt my brother!" Jude announced.
"We?" Artemis inquired.
"Yeah, she looks kinda scary," Ash added.
"If you don't fight her, I'll give you something you can REALLY be scared about!" Jude yelled, holding up a fist.
"WAH! Reminds me too much of Misty!!" Ash exclaimed as he pulled Pikachu off of his shoulder and clung to him.
Ignoring this, Crocus landed and chuckled. "Brother? So, I presume you're little Jude McKenzie, am I right? Yes... My employees had to track down your cute little Cyndaquil. I think you remember why, don't you?"
Ash looked at Jude. "Why?"
Jude handed him her PokéBalls. "Fight now; story later."
Ash nodded. "Got it."
Jude darted over, about to duck into the cellar, just as Bill came up with his Pokémon and Apollo behind him. Jude grabbed her brother by the arm.
"Good luck," she said.
Bill took one look at Crocus and nodded. "Thanks, Jude."
Jude retreated underground as the three humans released all the Pokémon they held and shifted into their three strongest: Ash into Pikachu, Bill into Kadabra, and Apollo into Skarmory.
Just then, Crocus sent out the first blast of her new powers. It hit the tiny Pokémon army headon.
Suddenly, everything went black.
~~~
Everything was dark and silent. Completely silent except for one whisper.
"Bill... Please... Wake up..."
'Zero?' he thought. 'Wait...'
He opened his eyes and looked up at Crocus, waiting for him with a smile on her face.
"I want to get rid of you while you're still conscious," she told him. "I want to hear you scream."
{Oh crikey,} Bill muttered.
The Hell Stone began to glow as Crocus let loose another bolt of green lightning. Swiftly, Bill shielded himself with Barrier, though it only softened the impact. He was struck, but slowly afterwards, he regained his strength and stood up.
{What is Crocus doing here!?} he thought aloud.
Crocus wagged a finger at him. "Dr. Crocus is long gone now. You may now bow down to Queen Lilith!"*2*
{I refuse to bow to a demon like you,} Bill told her bluntly. {And how exactly can you understand me anyways?}
Queen Lilith (as she called herself) smirked. "The Hell Stone gives me the power to do anything."
{The Hell Stone...?}
"Allow me to demonstrate!"
With that, Queen Lilith waved her hand in Bill's direction, channeling another surge of green energy at him. He braced himself for another attack while using yet another Barrier.
Suddenly, a silver arrow descended from the ceiling, piercing the ball of energy and striking the floor. The green energy fizzled out before it even struck Bill's Barrier as the silver arrow itself stuck straight up from where it embedded its arrowhead, still there, still tangible, and still glittering.
Both Queen Lilith and Bill looked up to see a Dragonite, on whose back rode Zero with a quiver on her back and a bow in her hands. As the two on the ground stared up at her, Reno went behind them and used a Revive on Ash and Apollo before instructing them to shift back.
"What a cute little girlie," Queen Lilith commented. "Too bad her little thorns don't stand a chance against the Hell Stone!"
As Lilith shot out another ball of green energy, directed at Zero, the pixie drew out another silver arrow and shot it directly at the ball. It pierced through, dispersing the evil energy before it grazed Lilith's face. The edge of the arrowhead slashed across her face as it went past her. She screeched and buried her face in her hands.
"My beauty!" she cried. "I was supposed to be a beautiful queen!" She growled and took her hands away, looking up at Zero. "You'll pay for this!"
Zero prepared a third arrow as Lilith sent a gust of wind. The girl on the Dragonite was able to shoot the arrow, but it didn't go far before falling, just like she did from the dragon's back.
{Zero!} Bill called out as he used Kadabra's telekinetic abilities to catch her and place her safely on the ground.
The Dragonite roared and fired a Hyper Beam at Lilith. She sent another wave of energy, countering Hyper Beam and forcing Dragonite into a wall.
"You can't beat me!" Lilith declared to Zero. "Not with the Hell Stone!"
At this point, Bill used Psychic on her. It struck Lilith squarely, forcing her backwards and causing her to fall on her side. She gasped and glared at him menacingly.
{Have you forgotten about me?} Bill asked. {I feel insulted.}
"You fool!" Lilith boomed as she stood back up. "How dare you knock your queen down!"
"Junsuisa YA!"*3*
Lilith only had a short second to look up as Zero shot an arrow of light at her. It hit her in the heart and transformed into a stream of energy that sank into her as she shrieked.
Suddenly, a voice echoed in the room. "Crocus. You have failed me. Accept your punishment."
"Master Keios!" Lilith cried.
"Keios..." Zero whispered.
Bill blinked. {Keios...?}
"Master Keios!" Lilith cried again. "Don't leave me! Please! Let me have another chance!"
"You don't deserve anything from me," Keios stated. "And so now, I'll even take back the Hell Stone... right after it takes away your life force..."
The Hell Stone began to glow green as it began to suck something out of Lilith. The pathetic woman twisted and screamed before collapsing on the floor. The metal of the circlet disappeared into the Hell Stone before it floated upwards and disappeared into a point of darkness.
Lilith's clothes turned back into the labwear she used to have as she groaned weakly. Bill cautiously stepped closer to her and looked at her.
"You're safe from me now, McKenzie," she said. "But mark my words... You won't be safe for long. I'm no longer threatening you; I'm warning you..."
She closed her eyes and vanished into a pile of dust.
There was silence.
"Shift back," Zero told him. "I want to talk to you, but perhaps you would be more comfortable in your normal body."
He nodded and followed her advice.
~~~
"Zero's here?" Jude half inquired, half repeated as she helped her brother up.
He nodded. "And she wants to speak with me... with all of us, probably."
Jude followed her brother up the stairs and into the main hall where Zero and Reno (who had just recalled his Dragonite) were waiting with Ash, Apollo, and Artemis. As soon as Jude and Bill joined the group, Zero turned to Ash and Apollo.
"I asked Reno to help me come here because I wanted to give the both of you something," she stated before handing Ash the quiver and bow she had used before as well as a sheathed sword to Apollo. "I asked the both of you to become shifters because, as shifters, your bodies gain a large amount of energy. Energy that could be used for the purpose of what you think shifting is, or energy to be used for the true purpose of shifting: shifting life force and energy.
"These weapons you hold in your hands are powerful tools used by two of the original Three of the prophecy, which will be told to all of you in good time. They have played a part in the prophecy time and time again, and they will help you in the final part, the Beginning of the End, in which you fight Keios himself. If used properly, you will be able to transfer your pure energy into these weapons and use them to purify Keios. If that cannot be done, we will have to undergo a more drastic measure, one that involves Bill's gift, which will be revealed if and when the time calls for it."
She stopped briefly to give a nod to Bill. He only stared at her blankly.
Zero turned back to Ash and Apollo and continued. "Do not use these gifts now. When the time comes, Reno will teach you when and how to use them. These arms are not only powerful, but they are also fragile. They can purify Pandemonium*4* before destroying themselves and those who use them. That is, if used improperly and for the wrong reason. Do you understand?"
With wide eyes, Apollo and Ash nodded.
"Good." Zero turned to Bill. "The time is fast approaching when you finally learn the truth about your destiny and its link to the prophecy. Soon, I will come for you and tell you all you need to know."
"Thank you, Zero," he said, bowing slightly to her.
"Don't thank me yet," she replied with a smile. She then looked up at Reno. "I believe it is time we departed. That is all I wanted to do."
Reno nodded and led Zero out of the lighthouse and into the calm, night air.
Apollo and Ash admired the weapons they were given*5* as Bill, Jude, and Artemis were left to hang on to Zero's words.
"I wonder what she's gonna give you," Jude muttered to Bill.
"I don't know," he admitted, "but there's a part of me that's reluctant to find out..."
~~~
A council of eight sat in a room of white marble, around a round, wooden table with a sun carved into its surface. All eight wore different colored cloaks, one for each color of the rainbow with an old man in white sitting opposite from a young man in black.
In the center of the table, where the center of the sun would be, there was a silver bowl of water sitting in a hole in the center with its edges attached to the wood of the side of the hole. In the bottom of the bowl, submerged in crystal-clear water (no doubt holy), was a large piece of Cosmos Stone embedded in the silver. Each member occasionally glanced at the waters, but the old man had his eyes glued on them.
"So, with Lady Aigori's help, the Three are victorious," a lady in blue stated.
"Quite impressive for all of them, especially Lady Aigori," the man next to her, in a cloak of green, commented. "It is apparent that she has been fully revitalized after her latest reincarnation. However, could the Three have survived without her?"
"I should say so," a woman in an orange cloak replied. "With the added energy from becoming a shifter master, the light inside the Prime would have revealed itself."
"You and I both know that it is much too early for the light to come out," the young man in black stated. "And everyone here knows that the light will only come out at the right time. The light wouldn't have played a role, and the Three would have died under the power of the Hell Stone."
"What do you think, Marcus?" a girl in yellow asked, turning to the old man in white.
"Do not underestimate the power of the Three," Marcus replied, taking his blue eyes away from the bowl. "The Heavens look upon them and tell us that they are not meant to die just yet, especially due to evil forces. No matter what the Hell Stone Lilith possessed was capable of, it is this divine word that protects the Three and would have saved them."
"Are you saying that... god Himself is protecting the Three?" The man in red's eyes widened.
Marcus looked back at the bowl. "Perhaps."
"Preposterous!" the man in black muttered. "Hmph... god!"
"Why is it so unbelievable, Lucius?" a woman in purple questioned.
"Because..." Lucius couldn't think of a way to finish that sentence.
"Because it's not true?" a scratchy voice finished.
A cloud of darkness swirled in the bowl.
"Keios!" the group gasped.
"What are you doing here?" Marcus growled.
Keios laughed as the Cosmos Stone at the bottom of the bowl turned a violent green. Suddenly, the room became darker as the stone walls turned to a dark purple. Slowly, when everything was dark enough, a dark cloud rose from the bowl, eventually producing Keios.
"High Rise Circle," he addressed to the group, "be enveloped in darkness!"
Keios released bolts of darkness which struck seven of the eight members of High Rise Circle, turning their cloaks into dark versions of their pastel-colored clothing, just like their light hearts turned dark. This happened with all of them except one. Marcus.
"I refuse to allow you to take me over!" Marcus declared.
"Very well, then," Keios said. "I'll allow my new puppets to be rid of you..."
With that, he nodded to the seven. They each stood up and walked over, as if they were zombies, towards Marcus. Marcus backed against the wall, trying to remain apart from them. He succeeded until finally, like savage dogs, six leaped upon him and killed him.
Keios watched on with an evil grin as the seventh, Lucius, stood by his side.
"I have grand plans for High Rise Circle, Lucius," Keios said.
"And we'll be here to obey your every command, Master," Lucius responded.
***
End episode 20*6*
---
Footnotes:
*1*: This is what she did in Antivirus, though it doesn't explain how she could have been hurt by the virus. I suppose we can just imagine that that was the side effect of the wish she made on the Cosmos Stone.
*2*: Lilith is Dr. Crocus' given name (or first name). And yes, she's going overboard, but that's the Hell Stone's doing.
*3*: Japanese. It literally means "purity arrow."
*4*: The capital of Hell, according to Milton's Paradise Lost. (I've never read the work; I just came across that bit of information one day in the dictionary when I was trying to find out how to spell "pandemonium." ^_^;
*5*: I'm sorry. I just have to stop and marvel at the fact that I had managed to fit the words "Ash," "weapon," and "given" into the same sentence, as in "Ash was given a weapon." o_o; Bah. Then again, it could be worse. I could fit "drunken," "Professor Ivy," "weapon," and "given" into the same sentence. As in, "A drunken Professor Ivy was given a weapon." Now THAT would be scary. (It's not that I don't like Professor Ivy. She's okay to me now. It's just that you have to be drunk to put up with those aides of hers. I mean, if I were sober, and I had to deal with three, identical, nasaly-voiced, ill-mannered nerds, I'd probably shoot myself. -_-)
*6*: And thus ends the final episode of Warp Series 02: The Antiwarp Saga. And yes, it gave you the taste of the fantasy stuff you'll wind up seeing in the third season (though I'll still draw next season out longer, with Quantum Leap-y episodes thanks to a request from Shadowcrawler). Stay tuned for the "DVD extras"!
And also, thus begins the end of the second season. (With, oddly enough, only nine episodes. So much for a series, ne?) Yes, expect the usual: Question/Answer, Bloopers, Trailer. I'm working on the first two in addition to this. ^_^
And thirdly, I know I shouldn't do it, but... Shameless advertising for the Masaki Fan Club! Join today and experience the randomness we go through! Let's see... RPGs, discussions about Sonezaki Masaki (and just about everything else, for that matter), funtastic polls, pictures, fandomy blurbs of insanity, and tons more Masaki funness! Sign up today at groups.yahoo.com/group/masakifc! (We've only got seven members! PLEASE HELP US!!)
*coughs* And now to regain my dignity...
***
Episode 20--
Long Live the Queen
Crocus trembled. She knew she was in big trouble. She knew it. None of her agents returned, meaning that all had failed. And she was positive that Keios didn't take well to failure.
She paced in the darkness of her room, awaiting Keios' arrival. She wondered if the Demon Ball would fail her.
She stopped.
'No,' she thought. 'I've worked for months since I found out what Keios REALLY was. I went through hours of labor to perfect the Demon Ball! There's no way it will screw up!'
Suddenly, there was a rush of cold in the room.
"Crocus..." Keios growled. "You have disappointed me... You know what I must do next, don't you...?"
"Yes," Crocus said with an unintentionally shaky voice. "But before you get rid of me, it's time that I get rid of your freedom!"
She whipped out her Demon Ball.
"Prepare to be enslaved by the hypnotic effects of my Demon Ball!"
She threw it at Keios. To her surprise, he caught it and crushed it into a fine powder with one hand.
"Crocus, did you honestly think I didn't know what you had in mind?" Keios inquired with a laugh. "I had my eye on you day in and day out. I watched you plan and create the Demon Ball, the one thing you believed would successfully capture me and force me to be your servant. However, what you didn't know is that I cannot be enslaved. I am a free being, and you cannot change that!"
Crocus trembled and fell to her knees. Keios watched her and began to laugh.
"No, Crocus," he said. "I will not destroy you yet. I have another idea in mind..."
Crocus looked up as Keios produced between his great hands a stone of bright green. The light within it pulsated as two bands of dark violet metal grew from behind it, joining together in a ring large enough to fit around Crocus' head.
"Crocus, do you know what this is?" Keios asked as he held it up.
Crocus couldn't speak. Instead, she shook her head with short, rapid movements.
"There is a rare stone found in certain craters called a Cosmos Stone," Keios told her. "It has the power to grant a certain number of wishes to whomever holds it before it fades away into nothingness. If a sample of Cosmos Stone is pure, it will be a dark blue color and will only grant wishes. On the other hand, if the stone is fused with a dark, demonic energy, then it becomes a Hell Stone, a bright green stone like the one you see here. The Hell Stone can be used as both a means to grant wishes or as a weapon of undefined and ruthless power."
The circlet descended into Crocus' hands. She stared at it blankly.
"Wear this," Keios instructed, "and go to the Prime's lighthouse yourself. With the Hell Stone, you will be able to defeat and eliminate him no matter what he does. In fact, you can destroy all of northeastern Kanto with the full power of the Hell Stone if you so desire. Take my gift and use it well, Crocus."
Crocus bowed. "Thank you, Master Keios."
Keios vanished in a swirl of dark energy, leaving Crocus to hold the circlet with the glowing stone. She felt its power and feared it, but she did as Keios told her, placing the circlet around her auburn-haired head.
The stone gave off a bright, green light as Crocus let out a bloody scream.
~~~
In the back of a grotto, Zero slept on a bed she had kept there. Her dreams were pleasant until she saw something.
Her eyes shot open. A hand reached under her pillow and pulled out her circlet, on which the blue stone glowed brightly.
"Something is coming," she whispered to herself.
She sat up and got out of bed before placing the circlet on her head. Her bare feet moved across the stone floor and out onto the grass fringing the bank of her lake. She stood over its pure waters and stared into them. Suddenly, everything became clear.
"The Prime," she gasped. "I must warn him!"
"Lady Aigori?"
She turned to see Reno approaching her from the side.
"Reno, good morning," she greeted before continuing. "I have an important message for the Prime. I need to go to him right away!"
"It's too dangerous for you to leave your lake," Reno told her. "Why don't you just tell me the message, and I'll go to him myself."
Zero shook her head. "I must go to him physically and completely. Not project my image*1* nor speak to him through dreams or thoughts. I must physically be in the presence of his human self. Will you help me?"
There was a long pause.
"Lady Aigori, it would be best if you stayed here," Reno finally told her.
"My message is of grave importance!" Zero protested. "If I am not able to speak with Bill, there is a good chance he will die!"
Reno stared at her with wide eyes before nodding.
"Alright. I'll take you to him," he finally said.
"Thank you, Reno," Zero said with a bow.
~~~
"Hope you're not planning anything outdoors today! Today's forecast is severe thundershowers with even a chance of hail later on today, high of 64. And now on to our next story..."
"A chance of hail," Bill scoffed as he glanced away from the radio next to him on the kitchen table and out the window, watching as little ice balls rained down from the darkened sky.
It had been like that for the past two days. Rain, thunder, lightning, hail, clouds so thick and dark it made morning (just like it was presently) look like night.
He sipped his cup of tea and continued to listen to the news on the battery-powered radio. The electricity was down, and the generators were only being used on the beacon (which was on for god knows what reason).
A faint scent came from the lit scented candles Penny had insisted on giving him for Christmas... and his birthday... and pretty much every other day that seemed to require gifts. He didn't complain. It's the thought that counted, and besides, a good lot of ones he didn't light up were used as paperweights in the cellar.
Jude stumbled into the room, still half asleep. She rummaged through the cabinets and managed to find enough to fix herself a bowl of cereal. After she did this, she sat down with her bowl at the table, stared at it for a moment, then pushed it aside and buried her head in her arms as she crossed them on the table.
"Good morning, Jude," Bill greeted.
He couldn't hear her response, but it WAS done in a harsh, "leave me alone" tone.
"Didn't get much sleep either, eh?" he asked her.
She looked up at him. "What sort of person would!? Night after night, there's enough thunder to wake the dead!"
"Don't worry," he assured her. "The storms should subside soon."
"THAT'S WHAT YOU SAID YESTERDAY!!"
He calmly took a sip of tea without answering her.
"What makes you think that tomorrow, we'll wake up, and it'll be a sunny day?" she asked him.
"I didn't say it would happen tomorrow," he replied.
"Whatever. What makes you think it'll happen?"
"No storm lasts forever." He paused. "Unless of course you're on Venus... or all of the outer planets except for Pluto..."
"What if Earth DOES turn into one of those planets?"
"With today's environmental programs forcing the reduction of air pollution, I highly doubt that would happen right now."
Ash came into the room with a cheerful face.
"Hi, everyone!" he greeted before he sat at the table. "Hey, Jude! Are you gonna eat that?"
Jude narrowed her eyes at Ash and pushed the bowl of cereal across the table to him.
"Thanks!" he said, eating gratefully.
"How can the both of you be so cheerful in the morning?" Jude asked before burying her face again.
"I get a lot of sleep," Ash replied. "I couldn't even hear the storm last night!"
Jude rolled her eyes, though Ash couldn't see that.
"Anti-depressants," Bill answered as he stared out the window.
Jude looked at him. "Seriously?"
He smiled. "No. Actually, I'm naturally cheerful."
"Right. Whatever you're on, I'd like to be on it too."
"I don't do drugs."
"Suuure you don't."
Bill sighed.
~~~
Apollo and Artemis didn't join this scene. The reason why is because they were busy with a conversation of their own.
"Artemis, wake up."
Apollo gently nudged the white Sneasel. The Sneasel turned over and muttered something along the lines of, "Mmm... Giant chocolate Pikachu..."
"Artemis!"
He awoke with a start and sat up. "What!?"
"Artemis, I want to talk to you," Apollo said.
"Then go ahead," Artemis replied as he curled up on the bed again.
"Artemis, I want you to be awake when I speak so I know I'm not talking to nothing."
Artemis sighed and sat up again. "Alright. What's on your mind?"
"Artemis, what's our next step?"
"Next step?"
"We've defeated Antiwarp. Now what?"
Artemis yawned. "I don't know. I haven't bothered to foresee that yet."
"I'm asking you to do so now."
Artemis sighed and did so. "I see..."
"Yes? What?" Apollo demanded.
"We haven't defeated Antiwarp."
Apollo stared at him blankly. "But... We did! We defeated every Antiwarp shifter and non-shifter!"
"No, we haven't. We missed one."
"Who?"
"The boss."
"The boss?"
Artemis nodded. "Dr. Crocus."
"How tough can she be?" Apollo inquired.
"Tough," Artemis replied. "I don't see an easy ending to our battle."
"What DO you see?"
Artemis lay again, on his side with his back to Apollo.
"You don't want to know," the Sneasel finally said.
"I do!" Apollo exclaimed, pulling at his partner's side so that he was on his back, eyes wide and staring into those of the human. "Artemis, tell me!"
Artemis frowned. "My friend, there's nothing we can do to stop her. She's coming, and there's no way we can run."
The room fell silent. Artemis turned over again with his back to his partner as Apollo thought about this. Apollo turned away.
"Thank you, Artemis," he said before leaving.
~~~
"I know," Bill said after Apollo told him what Artemis foresaw.
"How could you have known?" Apollo asked.
"Crocus was absent in the battle," Bill replied as he looked through a stack of papers on a desk. "I knew I shouldn't underestimate her, and I'm sure that she wouldn't be too happy about having her underlings defeated. I figured she would come up with something to be done in retaliation for our actions, but unfortunately, I'm not sure what either. And of course, then we have to worry about her employer, Mr. Keios."
Apollo's eyes widened. "Keios?"
Bill looked at Apollo. "Have you heard of him?"
"Keios is what Lady Aigori fears the most," Apollo responded. "Keios is an evil thing, the reason why Ash, you, and myself have all been brought together."
"What else can you tell me about this Keios?"
Apollo shook his head. "Nothing. Lady Aigori refuses to talk about him."
Bill looked back at the papers. "Hmm..."
"I can tell you one other thing INVOLVING Keios, though..."
Bill glanced back at Apollo. "What?"
Apollo lowered his head. "Sometime, we're going to have to fight him."
"What?" Bill's eyes widened. He turned to face Apollo as what color was left in his face drained away. "But... If someone as powerful as Zero is afraid of him, then exactly how will we defeat him?"
"I don't know, but I'm thinking it has something to do with you, mainly."
"With me?"
Apollo nodded. "Ever since Contessa Loveland died, Lady Aigori seemed to have taken an interest in you in particular, saying that she'll have complete faith in you when we go to fight the battle, which has been named the Beginning of the End."
"But... What does Tess have to do with this?"
"I don't know. Lady Aigori never bothered to answer that."
Bill glanced back at the stack of papers and sighed. "It seems that ever since I had gained my powers, an endless amount of questions keep coming toward me each day I live with them."
"I've felt the same way, my friend."
Suddenly, there was a crash heard from somewhere above. The cellar door was flung open, and Jude called from the top.
"Apollo! Bill! You two had better come up here! And bring some Pokémon! Something's going on up here!" she yelled.
The two shifters looked at each other and gave each other a small nod before gathering PokéBalls and running up the stairs.
~~~
Crocus had definitely changed due to the Hell Stone. Her eyeglasses were gone, leaving her glowing, green eyes naked. Her light-skinned, sickeningly thin body was wrapped in a long, dark violet gown held to her shoulders only by dark violet straps. Her nails became blood-red claws, and her auburn hair on which the dark circlet sat dropped around her shoulders and seemed to have grown darker in color. Even her blackened lips had an evil look on them as she smirked.
A wind seemed to have picked up around her as she knocked down both doors of the lighthouse with a single bolt of lightning. She seemed to float into the room, staring at Jude, Ash, and Artemis with a sinister look.
"Move aside, kiddies," she said with a hollow, echoing voice. "I'm only here for one person."
"We're not going to let you hurt my brother!" Jude announced.
"We?" Artemis inquired.
"Yeah, she looks kinda scary," Ash added.
"If you don't fight her, I'll give you something you can REALLY be scared about!" Jude yelled, holding up a fist.
"WAH! Reminds me too much of Misty!!" Ash exclaimed as he pulled Pikachu off of his shoulder and clung to him.
Ignoring this, Crocus landed and chuckled. "Brother? So, I presume you're little Jude McKenzie, am I right? Yes... My employees had to track down your cute little Cyndaquil. I think you remember why, don't you?"
Ash looked at Jude. "Why?"
Jude handed him her PokéBalls. "Fight now; story later."
Ash nodded. "Got it."
Jude darted over, about to duck into the cellar, just as Bill came up with his Pokémon and Apollo behind him. Jude grabbed her brother by the arm.
"Good luck," she said.
Bill took one look at Crocus and nodded. "Thanks, Jude."
Jude retreated underground as the three humans released all the Pokémon they held and shifted into their three strongest: Ash into Pikachu, Bill into Kadabra, and Apollo into Skarmory.
Just then, Crocus sent out the first blast of her new powers. It hit the tiny Pokémon army headon.
Suddenly, everything went black.
~~~
Everything was dark and silent. Completely silent except for one whisper.
"Bill... Please... Wake up..."
'Zero?' he thought. 'Wait...'
He opened his eyes and looked up at Crocus, waiting for him with a smile on her face.
"I want to get rid of you while you're still conscious," she told him. "I want to hear you scream."
{Oh crikey,} Bill muttered.
The Hell Stone began to glow as Crocus let loose another bolt of green lightning. Swiftly, Bill shielded himself with Barrier, though it only softened the impact. He was struck, but slowly afterwards, he regained his strength and stood up.
{What is Crocus doing here!?} he thought aloud.
Crocus wagged a finger at him. "Dr. Crocus is long gone now. You may now bow down to Queen Lilith!"*2*
{I refuse to bow to a demon like you,} Bill told her bluntly. {And how exactly can you understand me anyways?}
Queen Lilith (as she called herself) smirked. "The Hell Stone gives me the power to do anything."
{The Hell Stone...?}
"Allow me to demonstrate!"
With that, Queen Lilith waved her hand in Bill's direction, channeling another surge of green energy at him. He braced himself for another attack while using yet another Barrier.
Suddenly, a silver arrow descended from the ceiling, piercing the ball of energy and striking the floor. The green energy fizzled out before it even struck Bill's Barrier as the silver arrow itself stuck straight up from where it embedded its arrowhead, still there, still tangible, and still glittering.
Both Queen Lilith and Bill looked up to see a Dragonite, on whose back rode Zero with a quiver on her back and a bow in her hands. As the two on the ground stared up at her, Reno went behind them and used a Revive on Ash and Apollo before instructing them to shift back.
"What a cute little girlie," Queen Lilith commented. "Too bad her little thorns don't stand a chance against the Hell Stone!"
As Lilith shot out another ball of green energy, directed at Zero, the pixie drew out another silver arrow and shot it directly at the ball. It pierced through, dispersing the evil energy before it grazed Lilith's face. The edge of the arrowhead slashed across her face as it went past her. She screeched and buried her face in her hands.
"My beauty!" she cried. "I was supposed to be a beautiful queen!" She growled and took her hands away, looking up at Zero. "You'll pay for this!"
Zero prepared a third arrow as Lilith sent a gust of wind. The girl on the Dragonite was able to shoot the arrow, but it didn't go far before falling, just like she did from the dragon's back.
{Zero!} Bill called out as he used Kadabra's telekinetic abilities to catch her and place her safely on the ground.
The Dragonite roared and fired a Hyper Beam at Lilith. She sent another wave of energy, countering Hyper Beam and forcing Dragonite into a wall.
"You can't beat me!" Lilith declared to Zero. "Not with the Hell Stone!"
At this point, Bill used Psychic on her. It struck Lilith squarely, forcing her backwards and causing her to fall on her side. She gasped and glared at him menacingly.
{Have you forgotten about me?} Bill asked. {I feel insulted.}
"You fool!" Lilith boomed as she stood back up. "How dare you knock your queen down!"
"Junsuisa YA!"*3*
Lilith only had a short second to look up as Zero shot an arrow of light at her. It hit her in the heart and transformed into a stream of energy that sank into her as she shrieked.
Suddenly, a voice echoed in the room. "Crocus. You have failed me. Accept your punishment."
"Master Keios!" Lilith cried.
"Keios..." Zero whispered.
Bill blinked. {Keios...?}
"Master Keios!" Lilith cried again. "Don't leave me! Please! Let me have another chance!"
"You don't deserve anything from me," Keios stated. "And so now, I'll even take back the Hell Stone... right after it takes away your life force..."
The Hell Stone began to glow green as it began to suck something out of Lilith. The pathetic woman twisted and screamed before collapsing on the floor. The metal of the circlet disappeared into the Hell Stone before it floated upwards and disappeared into a point of darkness.
Lilith's clothes turned back into the labwear she used to have as she groaned weakly. Bill cautiously stepped closer to her and looked at her.
"You're safe from me now, McKenzie," she said. "But mark my words... You won't be safe for long. I'm no longer threatening you; I'm warning you..."
She closed her eyes and vanished into a pile of dust.
There was silence.
"Shift back," Zero told him. "I want to talk to you, but perhaps you would be more comfortable in your normal body."
He nodded and followed her advice.
~~~
"Zero's here?" Jude half inquired, half repeated as she helped her brother up.
He nodded. "And she wants to speak with me... with all of us, probably."
Jude followed her brother up the stairs and into the main hall where Zero and Reno (who had just recalled his Dragonite) were waiting with Ash, Apollo, and Artemis. As soon as Jude and Bill joined the group, Zero turned to Ash and Apollo.
"I asked Reno to help me come here because I wanted to give the both of you something," she stated before handing Ash the quiver and bow she had used before as well as a sheathed sword to Apollo. "I asked the both of you to become shifters because, as shifters, your bodies gain a large amount of energy. Energy that could be used for the purpose of what you think shifting is, or energy to be used for the true purpose of shifting: shifting life force and energy.
"These weapons you hold in your hands are powerful tools used by two of the original Three of the prophecy, which will be told to all of you in good time. They have played a part in the prophecy time and time again, and they will help you in the final part, the Beginning of the End, in which you fight Keios himself. If used properly, you will be able to transfer your pure energy into these weapons and use them to purify Keios. If that cannot be done, we will have to undergo a more drastic measure, one that involves Bill's gift, which will be revealed if and when the time calls for it."
She stopped briefly to give a nod to Bill. He only stared at her blankly.
Zero turned back to Ash and Apollo and continued. "Do not use these gifts now. When the time comes, Reno will teach you when and how to use them. These arms are not only powerful, but they are also fragile. They can purify Pandemonium*4* before destroying themselves and those who use them. That is, if used improperly and for the wrong reason. Do you understand?"
With wide eyes, Apollo and Ash nodded.
"Good." Zero turned to Bill. "The time is fast approaching when you finally learn the truth about your destiny and its link to the prophecy. Soon, I will come for you and tell you all you need to know."
"Thank you, Zero," he said, bowing slightly to her.
"Don't thank me yet," she replied with a smile. She then looked up at Reno. "I believe it is time we departed. That is all I wanted to do."
Reno nodded and led Zero out of the lighthouse and into the calm, night air.
Apollo and Ash admired the weapons they were given*5* as Bill, Jude, and Artemis were left to hang on to Zero's words.
"I wonder what she's gonna give you," Jude muttered to Bill.
"I don't know," he admitted, "but there's a part of me that's reluctant to find out..."
~~~
A council of eight sat in a room of white marble, around a round, wooden table with a sun carved into its surface. All eight wore different colored cloaks, one for each color of the rainbow with an old man in white sitting opposite from a young man in black.
In the center of the table, where the center of the sun would be, there was a silver bowl of water sitting in a hole in the center with its edges attached to the wood of the side of the hole. In the bottom of the bowl, submerged in crystal-clear water (no doubt holy), was a large piece of Cosmos Stone embedded in the silver. Each member occasionally glanced at the waters, but the old man had his eyes glued on them.
"So, with Lady Aigori's help, the Three are victorious," a lady in blue stated.
"Quite impressive for all of them, especially Lady Aigori," the man next to her, in a cloak of green, commented. "It is apparent that she has been fully revitalized after her latest reincarnation. However, could the Three have survived without her?"
"I should say so," a woman in an orange cloak replied. "With the added energy from becoming a shifter master, the light inside the Prime would have revealed itself."
"You and I both know that it is much too early for the light to come out," the young man in black stated. "And everyone here knows that the light will only come out at the right time. The light wouldn't have played a role, and the Three would have died under the power of the Hell Stone."
"What do you think, Marcus?" a girl in yellow asked, turning to the old man in white.
"Do not underestimate the power of the Three," Marcus replied, taking his blue eyes away from the bowl. "The Heavens look upon them and tell us that they are not meant to die just yet, especially due to evil forces. No matter what the Hell Stone Lilith possessed was capable of, it is this divine word that protects the Three and would have saved them."
"Are you saying that... god Himself is protecting the Three?" The man in red's eyes widened.
Marcus looked back at the bowl. "Perhaps."
"Preposterous!" the man in black muttered. "Hmph... god!"
"Why is it so unbelievable, Lucius?" a woman in purple questioned.
"Because..." Lucius couldn't think of a way to finish that sentence.
"Because it's not true?" a scratchy voice finished.
A cloud of darkness swirled in the bowl.
"Keios!" the group gasped.
"What are you doing here?" Marcus growled.
Keios laughed as the Cosmos Stone at the bottom of the bowl turned a violent green. Suddenly, the room became darker as the stone walls turned to a dark purple. Slowly, when everything was dark enough, a dark cloud rose from the bowl, eventually producing Keios.
"High Rise Circle," he addressed to the group, "be enveloped in darkness!"
Keios released bolts of darkness which struck seven of the eight members of High Rise Circle, turning their cloaks into dark versions of their pastel-colored clothing, just like their light hearts turned dark. This happened with all of them except one. Marcus.
"I refuse to allow you to take me over!" Marcus declared.
"Very well, then," Keios said. "I'll allow my new puppets to be rid of you..."
With that, he nodded to the seven. They each stood up and walked over, as if they were zombies, towards Marcus. Marcus backed against the wall, trying to remain apart from them. He succeeded until finally, like savage dogs, six leaped upon him and killed him.
Keios watched on with an evil grin as the seventh, Lucius, stood by his side.
"I have grand plans for High Rise Circle, Lucius," Keios said.
"And we'll be here to obey your every command, Master," Lucius responded.
***
End episode 20*6*
---
Footnotes:
*1*: This is what she did in Antivirus, though it doesn't explain how she could have been hurt by the virus. I suppose we can just imagine that that was the side effect of the wish she made on the Cosmos Stone.
*2*: Lilith is Dr. Crocus' given name (or first name). And yes, she's going overboard, but that's the Hell Stone's doing.
*3*: Japanese. It literally means "purity arrow."
*4*: The capital of Hell, according to Milton's Paradise Lost. (I've never read the work; I just came across that bit of information one day in the dictionary when I was trying to find out how to spell "pandemonium." ^_^;
*5*: I'm sorry. I just have to stop and marvel at the fact that I had managed to fit the words "Ash," "weapon," and "given" into the same sentence, as in "Ash was given a weapon." o_o; Bah. Then again, it could be worse. I could fit "drunken," "Professor Ivy," "weapon," and "given" into the same sentence. As in, "A drunken Professor Ivy was given a weapon." Now THAT would be scary. (It's not that I don't like Professor Ivy. She's okay to me now. It's just that you have to be drunk to put up with those aides of hers. I mean, if I were sober, and I had to deal with three, identical, nasaly-voiced, ill-mannered nerds, I'd probably shoot myself. -_-)
*6*: And thus ends the final episode of Warp Series 02: The Antiwarp Saga. And yes, it gave you the taste of the fantasy stuff you'll wind up seeing in the third season (though I'll still draw next season out longer, with Quantum Leap-y episodes thanks to a request from Shadowcrawler). Stay tuned for the "DVD extras"!