Hall of Origins

The hall was nearly pitch black, as Arceus was draining energy from even the realm itself. Portals surrounded him, opening from all corners of the universe to drain energy for his own use. He admittedly didn't feel right doing so, but right now, Necrozma left him with little options. His eyes were closed, focusing on nothing but the energy and obtaining more of it, but there was obvious strain painted on his face.

His eyes shot open suddenly. A horrified scream escaped the Alpha Pokemon's throat, and he collapsed to the ground. "No…!" The connection he had with the energy was severed, cutting off their flow and causing the portals to suddenly spark and then shut. Arceus was left in complete darkness, panting desperately for air.

His eyes were wide, and he desperately tried to shake his head to deny it. "Not him…! NO!" Standing to his feet, Arceus raised his mighty hooves and bellowed, "NOOOOOOOO!" He crashed back into the ground, making the entirety of the Hall quiver from his might. From his forehead, he shot a brilliant golden beam that pierced through the dimensions themselves and opened a portal to his world.

Shock gave way to anger, and anger to absolute unrelenting fury. His eyes burned a fiery, hellish red with rage, as did the constant swell of energy that he emitted. Arceus's power became so fierce that the chairs of the Hall were crushed underneath from his presence alone. He burst through the portal with impossible speeds, tearing apart the Hall even further, and let loose an agonized wail.

"NEEECROOOOOZMAAAAAAAA!"


Underneath Necrozma's mothership

With the mere swipe of his finger, Necrozma destroyed an oncoming Flamethrower from Groudon and retaliated with a blast of his own. Rayquaza quickly intercepted, flying in the blast's path and managing to hold it in place with a Dragon Pulse.

"Not a chance!" Roared the serpentine Legend. "Now, Groudon, get out of the way!"

Needing no further incentive, the Legendary creator of the lands nodded and turned to get out of the way of Necrozma's attack when the voice of the dark demon rang out.

"There is no escape! Die!"

Rayquaza's eyes shot wide open as the ball of energy suddenly doubled in size and power. In turn, he unleashed even greater power with his Dragon Pulse, but it paled in comparison to Necrozma's might.

Thinking to abandon holding off the attack, Rayquaza looked back at Groudon to see how far away he had gotten. The draconian Legend cursed when he saw the land Legend slowly lumbering away, still well within the attack's blast radius.

So, he turned back to focus on keeping Necrozma's might in place for as long as possible, grunting from the continuous exertion of power.

Necrozma chuckled. "Trying to protect your ally, are you?" He extended his hand down at the crimson blast and laughed. "You should be more concerned about yourself, but if you insist on needlessly dying, allow me to obli-"

Necrozma was cut off by the sound of a tremendous explosion. On the ground, the trainers and Ultra Beasts were all swept off their feet by a tremor, and a series of smaller explosions began running down the underside of the mothership.

Necrozma gaped up at the ship with wide eyes. "Wha- What in the-?!" The ship's barrier began sparking violently, and suddenly, a large pulse ran all throughout the shield and completely dispelled it.

Turning away from the Legends, Necrozma summoned a barrier around himself and tapped on his right crystal to summon the holographic image of Xurkitree, who was hurriedly running about the main control room while an alarm blared in the background.

"Xurkitree! What is the meaning of this?!" Demanded the dark lord.

Meanwhile, Mewtwo warped in front of Rayquaza, grabbed hold of the large blast with Psychic and dispelled it by tearing it in two.

Rayquaza let out a tired sigh of relief. "Thanks," He said, bowing his head, "Had you not arrived when you did, it would have gotten ugly." His head perked up as he remembered something. "Oh, by the way, what happened with that girl? Are she and that Hydreigon okay?"

Mewtwo looked up at the sparking underside of the ship. "The Hydreigon's fine, as far as I know, but the girl...well, I assume she's responsible for what's currently happening above us."

The Sky High Pokémon looked up at the ship with wide eyes. "No way...I knew that girl was strong, but that's…" He shook his head. "Say, where is she anyways?"

Mewtwo stifled a growl in his throat and turned toward Necrozma to hide his expression. "I'm not sure, actually, but I don't suppose it really matters right now in comparison to him."

In truth, the clone Pokemon had an idea of what happened, though he didn't like it. The way she spoke made it seem like she knew she was about to…

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE ENTIRE FLEET IS GONE?!"

Xurkitree nearly fell over as his lord pressed his face straight up against the crystal, giving the Ultra Beast an uncomfortable stare into his eyes as well as a headache from the volume of his voice.

"E-exactly what I said, sir," Stammered the wirey beast, "That lifeform I told you about managed to drag the entire fleet into some kind of gravitational field and decimate them all in a single explosion! What's more, the effects of whatever it did completely destroyed the shields of the mothership!"

Necrozma balled his hands into fists furiously. He growled, increasing in pitch until he could no longer hold himself back. "THEN FIX IT AND ERADICATE THAT LIFEFORM!"

The force of Necrozma's rage could be physically felt all the way up in the mothership's helm, knocking Xurkitree off his feet. Quickly getting back onto them, the beast replied, "A-actually, sir, I've already scanned the area that the explosion took place in, and there isn't a single life force! It appears that whatever destroyed the fleet ended up destroying itself as well."

Mewtwo's eyes went wide, overhearing that. "No…"

"Pah," Scoffed Necrozma, his fury subsiding for the most part. "Fine, then. Just get to fixing the shields." He tapped his crystal, ending the call with Xurkitree, dispelling the barrier and turning back to face the Legends. "Guess I'll pay another visit to Ultra Space after this to restock my forces. Hopefully more beasts evolved themselves back into existence there. I knew I should have left some ali-"

Mewtwo hurled a Shadow Ball at the dark demon, which was easily caught and subsequently crushed. "I suppose I'll think more on that later. For now, there are insects that need crushing."

Rayquaza scowled at the dark demon. This battle was becoming far too tedious, and his remaining stamina was fading. So, he turned around toward the battlefield and called, "ALL LEGENDS, YOU ARE NEEDED AGAINST THE BATTLE AGAINST NECROZMA! IMMEDIATELY!" Though it certainly went against his morals to leave the humans without the aid of the Legends, he didn't have any other option. Surely, they could hold out against the beasts until then, right?

Braixen, along with the rest of Serena's Pokemon, stood over her defensively, facing away from her and toward the surrounding beast horde. There were so many of them now that they nearly blotted out the skies, and there had to be thousands around them on land as well. However, that came with its own benefits. With so many enemies crowded together, they had nowhere to dodge.

"Braaaiiii!" Cried Braixen, downing a paper beast with a Fire Punch. However, another immediately took its place and tried swiping at her, to which Braixen fried it with a Flamethrower.

She looked about and, finding that most of the beasts were preoccupied, looked back at Serena. Her condition was...unstable to say the least. Serena was crouched over, staring at the ground with wide eyes. She was hyperventilating, unable to cope with Ash's fate, and completely blocked out the world around her.

The fennec fox Pokemon looked down at her sadly. She herself felt horrible over Ash's demise as well to the point it was gut-wrenching, but the desire to protect Serena gave her the strength to focus on the fight.

A roach beast stomped its foot, forcing Braixen to shift her attention toward it. The beast smirked down at her and chuckled, mocking her and the rest of Serena's Pokemon for their dire position.

Braixen scowled at it and blew a Fire Blast from its mouth. The roach beast easily dodged it, allowing it to sail past and crash into a multitude of other Ultra Beasts. Furious, the beasts that were struck turned toward Braixen and roared while the roach smirked her way.

Taking a step back, the Fire-Type Pokemon continued snarling their way, but was unable to conceal its fear of them. The angered beasts rushed toward her, and the roach crouched down, preparing to blitz Braixen with a cruel grin on its face.

An explosion of intense, red-hot flames from behind the roach, as well as the agonized screams of the beasts, wiped that grin away. Whipping around to see what had happened, the roach was sent flying into the air by a lightning-fast Mach-Punch.

Braixen's eyes widened, and both her and the rest of Serena's Pokemon gasped as Ash's Infernape appeared before them, surrounded in a blaze of flame. Upon witnessing Ash's demise, it snapped, and its Blaze ability activated. Its eyes had gone completely red, and it wore an expression of unbridled rage.

Craning its head up, Infernape roared and unleashed a Flamethrower. Though with how intensified it was, it was more of a red laser than fire. The roach screeched in fear, but was unable to dodge before it was completely consumed by Infernape's attack.

Infernape roared to the skies, beating its chest savagely in some kind of primal, instinctual act of victory. "FERNAAAAPE!"

Serena managed to lift her head up at Infernape's voice. She stared at the monkey Pokemon, but was unable to emote on any other way than a barely-audible whispering hum.

A terrified imp beast stepped away from Infernape, accidentally knocking away a pebble with the back of its foot, which caused Infernape to snap its gaze toward it, let out a bloodcurdling guttural roar, and dash the small beast across the ground with a Mach Punch.

This caused a frightened gasp from another group of nearby beasts, and thus, the slaughter continued. Serena's team of Pokemon stared at Infernape, though not even they knew if they should be awed or horrified by the powerful Pokémon's display.

A particularly large insect beast took advantage of their distraction and blindsided Clefable. The Fairy-Type Pokemon gasped in fear, but was paralyzed like a Deerling in headlights.

"Go-ro!" Pangoro stopped the insect beast with a Bullet Punch to its gut. Its large stinger was mere inches away from the terrified Pokémon's face before being pushed away and subsequently assaulted by the rest of Pangoro's attack.

"GOOOOOO- GORO GORO GORO GORO GORO GORO GORO GORO GORO GORO! GOOOOORO!" Pangoro unleashed a flurry of Bullet Punches across the beast's body, creating literal dents all over it before sending it flying.

The giant panda Pokemon snorted and grinned, proud of its work. This left it open to an attack from a paper beast from behind that was quickly thwarted by a Flamethrower from Braixen they forced it to dodge out of the way.

It buzzed angrily, sharpening its arms when Pangoro whipped around with another Bullet Punch. The beast, however, managed to deftly dodge every single one of his punches, much to Pangoro's chagrin. It then decided to show just how completely overwhelming its speed was in comparison to the Pokémon's and slashed at his hands, knocking him backward and causing him to hiss in pain.

A substantially large gash ran down Pangoro's knuckles. Were it not for Bullet Punch's Steel typing creating natural armor, its likely that the Pokémon's hands, and possibly arms, would have been cleanly sliced down the middle.

Pangoro glowered up at the beast, hugging his now-bleeding hands against himself to try and stop the leakage. The beast, in turn, sharpened its arms once more. Braixen prepared to use Fire Blast against it when a mosquito beast crashed down behind her. She whipped around, but wasn't quick enough. It crashed its fist into her side, making her gasp out in pain and sent her flying across the ground

Braixen, managing to keep her wit in spite of the painful strike, unleashed the Fire Blast meant for the paper beast at her assailant. The mosquito looked behind itself, down at the still-helpless Serena and smirked as a devious idea struck it.

Looking back at Braixen, the mosquito flew out of harm's way, allowing the Fire Blast to sail past it at Serena. Braixen's eyes widened, and she let out a horrified scream, futilely reaching out to her trainer. Serena looked up at the incoming attack, life finally rekindling in her eyes as her survival instincts took hold. However, she had no chance of dodging the attack. Sylveon, Clefable and Pangoro, who had been occupied with the paper beast, could only look on in horror.

A flash of white obscured Serena's vision for a split second, and when it was gone, she could have sworn she still saw some kind of white Aura around her. Sprinting back to her feet, Serena managed to dodge the attack, albeit only barely. The edge of the Fire Blast scraped against her arms, making her wince.

Realizing what she had just managed to do, Serena stared down at herself in awe, but the Aura had gone as fast as it had appeared. "What just…?"

Braixen and the others ran to their trainer to see if she was alright, blasting away the paper beast and shoulder-barging the mosquito in Pangoro's case when they attempted to intervene. They worriedly crowded around her, noisily barking their own names in their own odd Poke-language Serena didn't understand, though she knew they were worried about her.

She smiled at them kindly to assure them she was okay. "Thank you for worrying about me," She said gratefully, "But I'm fine now."

Braixen looked at Serena's burnt arms, whimpering. Serena's smile remained unfaltering and she crouched down to meet her starter's eyes. "Don't worry about it," Serena said. "Everyone makes mistakes. You were just trying to protect me, so it's no big deal. If anything, I should be the one apologizing to you for making you all worry while I was just moping on the ground."

She ruffled Braixen's head and giggled, causing the Fire-Type's eyes to water. She jumped up into Serena's arms, to which Serena giggled and returned the embrace. This caused the rest of her team to join in, eliciting even more laughter from their trainer.

Though, her mind quickly wandered away from the touching moment as she looked back at where she'd just been crouching. Looking down at her burned arms, she wondered, 'How did I dodge that back there? And why don't my arms hurt?'

What was more concerning to her was her own sudden shift in mood. Ash's death was still fresh in her mind, which was what caused her paralysis to begin with, though now, she didn't seem bothered by it. Ironically, the fact that she was no longer bothered by it bothered her even more.

The mosquito beast from earlier crashed down from the skies before them once more, now annoyed. Serena forced these thoughts from her mind to focus on the battle in front of her, and motioned for her team to attack.

However, the ground suddenly trembled beneath their feet, catching everyone's attention. Another tremor occurred, with this one greater than the last. Then another, and another. Serena and her Pokemon tried balancing themselves to not fall over, but the mosquito, instead of using the distraction to attack, began looking around. Flying up into the air, it soon realized the cause, and its blood ran cold.

The world-eating Guzzlord was getting closer to the battle far faster than it had anticipated. A massive swarm of beasts began flying away at breakneck speeds, with the mosquito eagerly following suit. This left the trainers and wild Pokemon bewildered until they, too, saw the approaching goliath.

Seeing the Ultra Beasts fleeing, he pointed his finger at them and sent a dark ball of energy toward them. It completely obliterated every beast and wild flying Pokemon it came in contact with until it came to the hoard's head and plummeted into the ground. Upon making contact, a colossal pillar of black flames suddenly erupted from the ground that grew by the second. It spread outward, curving around in a circle until the entirety of the trainers, beasts, and Pokemon were surrounded. The flames then rose, towering higher and higher until they met with the bottom of the mothership.

"I don't recall giving any of you permission to flee," Hissed Necrozma darkly, paralyzing his minions with fear. "Ordinarily, the punishment for attempted desertion would be unending torture, but I'll make an exception for the sake of having a grand spectacle of a battle! Now fight! It doesn't matter if Guzzlord consumes you! I command you all to fight!"

Seeing as they were trapped, the Ultra Beasts turned back toward the Pokemon and hissed ravenously. Fear was just as evident on their faces as their usual primal fury as they descended upon the trainers once more.

Guzzlord craned it's head up to look at the Ultra Beasts and stretched the mouthed tentacles in its mouth toward then. Hundreds were snatched up in a single sweep, screaming in fear as they were forcefully dragged into the colossal beast's main mouth. The large beast chomped down once, and when it opened its mouth again, there wasn't a single trace left of what it had consumed. There weren't any blood stains, or remains whatsoever. It was as if they had never existed to begin with.

"How awful!" Remarked Clemont as he witnessed the beasts being mindlessly eaten. "Necrozma doesn't even care about his own soldiers! They're just toys for his amusement!"

Paul scoffed, preparing himself for battle as Guzzlord turned its hungry sights upon the trainers next. "They're still our enemies too. You should worry more about yourself than them."

Alain nodded. "I have to agree. It shouldn't take long for the beasts to be upon us once more, so pity for them will only serve to get in our way." He looked up at his Mega Charizard, patting its neck gently. "Plus, I doubt they'll have the same hesitation about killing us."

Gary, his usual smirk adorning his face, stepped to the front of the group alongside his trusty Mega Blastoise. "Then I say we hit 'em first! Blastoise, use Hydro Cannon!"

Nodding, Gary's Blastoise crouched over and pointed its massive cannon up at the incoming beasts. "Blaaas-toise!" The ground beneath the powerful Water-Type Pokemon's feet crumbled under the sheer power of Blastoise's attack. From its main cannon, a large jet of hyper-pressurized water blasted outward. It had so much force that it was causing friction with the air, and tore through any beast unfortunate enough to be caught in its grasp as if they were paper. However, it wasn't enough to stop all of them, and the massive swarm of Ultra Beasts crashed down upon them once more.

Gary quickly hid behind Blastoise, shielding himself as best as he could with his arms. "Stick together! Don't let them separate us again!"

"It's too late for that!" Cried Clemont. "Serena already disappeared somewhere, and I haven't seen Iris, Cilan or Dawn since the fight began!"

Luckily for Ash's friends, they now already had their Pokemon out, and they were able to create a living shield around them to prevent their separation this time.

"Alright, Luxray," Cried Clemont, "Use Discharge!"

"Ray!" Replied the electric wolf Pokemon with a nod. It stepped out into the crowd of beasts, immediately catching their attention. They attempted to swarm it, despite the fact that Luxray's body was sparking. This proved to be not only a great mistake, but also their last. Luxray unleashed an omnidirectional blast of lightning that struck the surrounding beasts, frying them alive.

However, Luxray's stamina was far from infinite, and the beasts managed to push their way closer and closer until the Pokemon's strength left it, and the beasts were left without any hindrance. Seeing this, Max quickly decided to act. "Jirachi, I wish for Luxray to be saved quickly!"

Jirachi smiled up at him and nodded. The Wish-granting Pokemon closed its eyes and hummed, letting some kind of white energy surround itself and, suddenly, Luxray appeared in front of them. It looked around in a confused daze, then let out a relieved sigh as it realized where it was. Clemont and Bonnie immediately ran to it, crouching by its side. Meanwhile, the rest of Ash's friends turned back to face the beasts at hand.

A fortress beast managed to ram straight through their initial defenses, knocking down many of the trainers and their Pokemon in the process. Riley and Lucario quickly intercepted, each holding an Aura Sphere in their hands, but suddenly abandoned the attack, using it to propel themselves backwards just in time to avoid a particularly massive mosquito beast crashing its fists down upon where they'd just been standing.

Turning around, the mosquito suddenly rammed its fist straight through the fortress beast, plucking out the black brick containing its eye and planting it on its own chest. The fortress screeched, its eye darting around in confusion. It was promptly silenced when the mosquito pinched it with its massive fingers, threatening to crush it and causing small cracks to form.

May stepped backwards, her eyes going wide. "What is it doing?!"

Max shook his head, just as lost as she was. "Beats me! It looks like its trying to destroy the other beast, but I don't have a clue why!"

Their question was soon answered when the fortress beast slowly started to cover the Mosquito from head to toe in armor. Its bricks soon lined every inch of its body, save for the face. It beat its fists together, breaking the bricks on them to the point they became pointed and jagged. When the process was complete the Mosquito beast pounded its chest menacingly and quickly turned its gaze towards May and Max.

An imp beast attempted to sneak behind the brunette, giggling as it positioned itself to sting. However, the mosquito beast rushed past the two trainers and buried its jagged fist into the imp's face, reducing it to nothing more than a purple stain on the ground. It then looked around at the other surrounding Ultra Beasts, hissing at them and forcing them to back away as it swatted at them with its arms.

"Now what is it doing?!" Cried Misty. "Is it trying to make more armor out of them too?!"

Brock shook his head. "More likely, it's just trying to get them to back off." The Pewter Gym Leader's face creased up, narrowing his eyes at the beast. "...So that it can take us on by itself."

Satisfied with the distance the other beasts now had between themselves and the group of trainers, it turned back toward May and Max, glaring at them. Both of the siblings looked on in fear as they imagined what this beast had planned for them. Max quickly attempted to ask Jirachi to wish it away, but the beast was too quick and delivered an armored punch straight to the wish Legend's face, burying it in a small crater. May and Max looked on in horror, which only allowed the mosquito the chance to follow up on his assault with them.

It raised its mighty arms, preparing to slam them down upon them when Lucario and Riley stepped in, forming an Auric barrier around the four of them and managed to stop the attack in its tracks. The Aura Guardians winced from the sheer force of the blow, gritting their teeth from the strain of keeping it in place.

"Get out of the way!" Yelled Riley. "Lucario and I won't be able to hold it for long!"

May snapped herself out of her stupor. "R-right, sorry!" She grabbed Max's hand and pulled him away from the two, then issued an order to her Blaziken. "Help them out, Blaziken!" She called to it. "Use Blaze Kick on its head!"

Quickly nodding, May's Blaziken leapt up and delivered a flame-encased roundhouse kick to the side of the large mosquito's head. Unfortunately, this only managed to make the beast's head move slightly, thanks to its new armor. It slowly turned its gaze to the Fire-Type Pokemon, who gave it a fearful chuckle. Abandoning its assault on Riley and Lucario, it whipped around, grabbed Blaziken's legs and brought it over its head to slam it into the ground.

"Oh no you don't!" Declared Brock. "Sudowoodo, use Hammer Arm on that thing's wrist!"

The false tree Pokemon saluted to Brock, then sprinted over to the mosquito beast. Sudowoodo pumped its arm back, which began glowing red immediately after. Just before Blaziken was about to be slammed into the ground, Sudowoodo delivered a punch straight to the beast's wrist which resulted in the formation of a crack.

It shrieked, releasing the Fire-Type and allowing it to land safely back on its feet. As May ran to check up on her starter Pokemon, the beast looked down at its wrist, it noticed that a large crack had formed all the way from its wrist to its chest. The fortress beast itself shrieked in pain, and the brick containing its eye writhed in place.

Enraged, the beast quickly turned towards Sudowoodo, aiming a devastating punch at its head. Brock, meanwhile, simply smirked. "Steelix, use Dig." Before the mosquito beast's punch could land, the floor beneath it suddenly exploded outward and Steelix barreled straight into the Mosquito beast sending it flying in the air.

"Now, use Iron Tail!"

At hearing this the snake Pokemon's tail began to glow so bright to the point it was nearly blinding and proceeded to slam the beast over the head sending it sprawling back into the ground. However, the beast managed to land back onto its feet, kicking up the ground around it. Glaring up at the iron snake Pokemon, the beast lunged up at it.

Its fists began vibrating, creating a buzzing noise somehow. They became so fast that it looked as if there were dozens of its fists. The beasts shot its arms up at Steelix, cascading it in a barrage of punches that created dents all over its body.

Brock's face contorted into a grimace. "No! Marshtomp, use Mud Bomb, quick!"

In response to its trainer's order, the mud fish Pokemon craned its head up to the mosquito, opened its large mouth and fired a ball of concentrated mud up at it in an attempt to save its teammate. However, the beast had a different idea. Grabbing hold of Steelix's tail, it swung the large Pokemon like a bat, slamming its head straight into the mud bomb and causing it to get caught up in the ensuing explosion, all while leaving the beast itself completely unharmed.

Brock clenched his fists angrily, glaring up at the mosquito. "This thing...it's different from the other ones!" Above him, the beast dangled Steelix by its tail, swinging it around in one hand mockingly. It then threw Steelix up higher, catching it by the nape of its neck and bringing its arm back, aiming the Pokemon at them. "This one's not just strong. It's smart too."

Alain stepped forward and snapped his fingers. The beast was about to throw Steelix down upon the group, but the familiar form of Alain's Mega Charizard descended down upon it, striking the mosquito in the shoulders with a powerful Dragon Claw. The attack staggered the beast, making it lose its grip on Steelix. A few of the trainers screamed as the large Pokemon nearly crashed on top of them, but Brock managed to return it to it Pokeball before that could happen.

"You did good, Steelix," Brock said to his starter Pokemon. He clipped it to his belt for the time being, with the rest of his Pokemon jumping in near their trainer. "You deserve a good rest for now."

"Indeed," Remarked Alain, catching Brock's attention as the black-clad trainer stepped past him with a Pokeball of his own in each hand. "Your Steelix put up a good fight, but this fight has gone on long enough."

Alain threw the two Pokeballs into the air, letting loose a Metagross and Bisharp, after both yelled out their respective names they took a battle stance awaiting their friends orders. "Bisharp, hop onto Metagross. Metagross, fly up behind that beast. Don't let it see you!" Nodding, the Bisharp leapt up on top of Metagross's metallic head, and Metagross soared up into the sky in pursuit of the beast.

Brock looked over to him and said, "I heard you were able to defeat Ash at his strongest, so you're incredibly powerful. What do you plan on doing?"

Alain smirked. "I'm going to finish this in one shot."

Brock looked at the trainer in confusion. "And how do you plan on accomplishing that?"

Alain smiled. "With this!" He held his arm into the air, watching his Charizard battle the beast anxiously.

The mosquito attempted to ram its jagged fist into Charizard's face, but Charizard evaded the attack by merely tilting its head and then retaliating with a Flamethrower to its face. In turn, the beast turned away, so the flames only hit the fortress beast's bricks and made a blind grab for the dragon's neck. Charizard flapped its wings, pushing itself away to avoid it.

Growling in annoyance, the beast reached behind itself and tore off one of the bricks, causing the fortress to beep in pain. Its cry was cut off when the mosquito knocked on the eye brick with its free hand. It then hurled the brick at Charizard, who turned around and smashed it with its tail, but when it turned back around, the mosquito already had its fist inches away from the Pokemon's face.

It looked to the sky and used Flamethrower once more, which pushed its head down just enough for the rocky punch to only scrape by. The momentum ended up carrying the beast pass Charizard. A smirk crawled its way up the dragon's face. It zoomed at the beast, catching the other arm and, before the beast could react, began spinning around in the air with it and hurled it toward Metagross and Bisharp.

Alain brought his arm down. "Metagross, Psychic! Bisharp, Guillotine!"

Metagross's eyes glowed blue, and the beast's unintentional flight path was cut short. Metagross had trapped the beast with Psychic, binding its limbs together tightly and holding it in place. It buzzed angrily, attempting to squirm out of the invisible hold. Bisharp, meanwhile, summoned two blades of white energy that encased its arms. They were so sharp that they cut through the air itself.

Grinning, the sword blade Pokemon leapt off of Metagross's head and descended upon the helpless beast. Both the mosquito and the fortress screeched in terror, but the sound was suddenly cut short as Bisharp used the powerful One-hit KO move to slice straight through the beast.

Ash's friends gaped up Bisharp's feat of power. "Guillotine is an instant kill if it hits!" Remarked an awed Brock.

"Does that mean...we won?" May asked hesitantly.

Alain chuckled, returning Bisharp to its Pokeball to avoid the damage from its fall. "I think it's fair to say so."

Above, the mosquito beast trembled. Its eyes widened, it began buzzing erratically. The fortress, however was silent. The brick that had its glowing eye was now completely dark. The trembling of the mosquito continued, becoming more and more spastic until it, as well as the fortress, appeared to explode into a cloud of grey dust and falling rubble.

Charizard and Metagross flew back down to the ground, with the latter floating above him to shield him from the aforementioned rubble. The other Pokemon did so as well, protecting their trainers as best as they could.

Gary, from underneath a crouching Blastoise, looked up in shock as he hastily dodged the falling rubble from the now dead fortress beast. After narrowly surviving the debris he looked back up and was quickly shocked by what he saw. The mosquito beast that should've been completely annihilated, had no visible sign of damage.

"No way…"

The beast, coated in grey dusty spots from the fortress beast's explosion, attempted to dust itself off. Across its body, there was no apparent damage. No cut, no bruise, nothing. It hadn't been injured or wounded at all. Its armor had been destroyed, but it was otherwise unaffected.

Paul scoffed, crossing his arms. "It was too good to be true."

"Then it just needs one last swing!" Declared Alain. "Metagross, Bisharp, repeat!"

Metagross nodded, turning toward its trainer, but once it looked back at the beast, it was suddenly smashed into the ground by a powerful punch. Before Metagross could get back up, the beast buried its hands in the ground and flipped the ground Metagross was buried in completely over and promptly buried it even further by slamming both of its hands into the ground.

"Metagross, no!" Cried a wide-eyed Alain.

Behind the beast, Bisharp drew closer with its Guillotine. It looked as if it was going to slice the beast clean in half when it suddenly whipped around and crumpled Bisharp's face with a devastating blow. Before the force of the attack could send Bisharp flying, the mosquito grabbed hold of the axe-like blade on its head. The momentum, combined with the beast holding the Pokemon in place, made Bisharp's body crumple in on itself.

It then turned toward Gary, who was still on the ground huddled underneath Blastoise, and hurled the now-unconscious Pokemon his way. Gary's eyes widened and he scrambled to his feet, but nothing he could do would be fast enough. Blastoise jumped in front of its trainer, and just barely managed to swallow a pained yelp as the blade on Bisharp's head was buried in its shell.

"Blastoise!" Cried Gary with worry. He hopped up to check on the wound. "Are you oka-" He cut himself off suddenly, gaping at what he saw. Bisharp's battered body hung limply from Blastoise's shell by its head. As for Blastoise itself, long cracks ran up all across where it had been struck, and part of the blade had pushed completely through. Small streaks of crimson ran down that area.

A red beam shot out at the unconscious Bisharp, returning it to its Pokeball. "Gary, are you alri-" Alain stopped in his tracks, his eyes becoming just as wide as Gary's once he saw the full extent of what his Pokemon had done. "O-oh my Arceus, Gary, I'm so-"

Gary shook his head, chuckling dryly. "Don't worry, it wasn't your fault." Taking off his bag, he shuffled through it until he pulled out a bright pink spray bottle. "Frankly, I'm just glad you didn't try and pull it out yourself."

Alain's face wrinkled in confusion. "What? What kind of idiot would do that?! That would just make it worse!"

Gary rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment and chuckled. He didn't dare to say anything more on the subject. Turning around, Gary hovered the spray bottle over the wounded area. "This might hurt a bit," He warned. Blastoise nodded, closing its eyes and awaiting the pain. A single spray from the bottle was enough to make the proud Water Pokemon hiss in pain and stumble forward.

Seeing as the trainers were now distracted, the mosquito beast looked around at them, deciding on who the best to strike would be. Then, another devious idea struck it. The beast turned to the crowd of Ultra Beasts and quickly laid its eyes upon another fortress that immediately recoiled and began beeping fearfully. The beasts around it quickly backed away, leaving it open and alone.

The mosquito chuckled. This made it all the more easier. It bent over, putting its hand on the ground before taking off toward its new target. Screeching in terror, the fortress beast froze up and closed its eye. A powerful jet of water suddenly crashed into the mosquito beast from behind, sending it sprawling facefirst across the ground.

Upon coming to a stop, it quickly looked up to locate its prey. The fortress beast had already disassembled itself, and had disappeared into the crowd of other beasts. Pounding its fists into the ground furiously, the mosquito whipped back around to find who had dared to interfere with its plan, and found Misty surrounded by her team of Water-Type Pokemon.

"As if I would just let you waste Alain's efforts!" Misty said, a confidant smirk planted firmly upon her face. "Your not going anywhere after what you did to those poor Pokemon."

The mosquito let out an annoyed buzz and made a mad dash towards Misty in hopes of ending her life quickly. Her Pokemon, however, had different plans. Upon getting close, the mosquito was quickly blasted in the side by another Hydro Pump by none other than Starmie. Brushing away the jet of water with its arm, the agitated beast rocketed at Starmie.

"Stop it with Confusion!" Misty ordered.

The starfish Pokemon hopped off of the ground, spinning like a razor in the air. Its gem began glowing, and all of a sudden, the mosquito felt incredibly dizzy. Managing to shake it off, the beast dug its hand into the ground as it flew and hurled a rain of stone at Starmie, blocking its view. Starmie, in turn, stopped the rocks with Psychic, but the mosquito burst straight through the stones and, before Starmie could react, sent the Pokemon skidding across the ground with a punch to its gem. When it came to a stop, the gem was cracked, and the light emanating from it darkened periodically like a broken lightbulb. Brushing off its hand, the beast turned back around at Misty with a fearsome glare.

However, Misty was more preoccupied with her Pokemon. "Starmie, no!" Pulling its Pokeball, she called out, "Return! You've done enough for now."

The beast intercepted the Pokeball's returning laser and dispelled it with a backhanded swat before lunging at Misty and her Pokemon.

Misty growled in annoyance, putting away Starmie's Pokeball for the time being. "This thing really is a pain! Gyarados, use Waterfall!"

The still-Mega evolved Pokemon, at its trainer's command, coated itself in swirling waters and rushed at the mosquito, who in turn pulled back its fist. The two collided, sending water and stone flying high into the air. They pushed against one another, with neither managing to gain the upper hand. Then again, neither was willing to give up either.

Misty took out another Pokeball, looking down at it. "This may hurt Gyarados's pride, but we need this thing taken down as quickly as possible." Her reflection showed on the ball's top, a grin crawling up her face. "But...I've been meaning to use my newly-caught ace anyways. Go-" The sound of another Pokeball opening from her back pocket cut her off, making her stop in her tracks. The ever-meddling Psyduck appeared in a flash of light, holding its aching head.

"Psy?"

Misty blinked at it in surprise, but that surprise quickly turned into fuming rage. "Ooooooooh! Psyduck, how many times do I have to tell you?!" She bellowed, nearly knocking the small Pokemon off of its feet. "You always do this! Why?! It's dangerous out here; there's a war going on! This isn't the time to-"

Her rambling was interrupted by her own scream as she ducked down just in time to avoid her Gyarados's body flying over her head. "G-Gyarados?!" The mosquito, having finally overpowered Gyarados, now set its sights back on the annoying girl. It ripped through the air with its speeds, nearly uprooting the ground as it flew.

Misty's eyes went wide. She instinctively went to scream, but from her fear, no sound came out. The beast was about to grab her with its mighty fists when it noticed Psyduck, who simply stared up at it blankly. It stopped just before Misty, blinding her with a cloud of dust, and grabbed the yellow Pokemon by its head instead.

"PSY-AI-AIIII!"

"Waugh!" Cried Misty, shielding her eyes from the dust. Though blinded, she still heard Psyduck's pained cries. "Stop! Leave Psyduck alone!"

The beast, of course, didn't listen. Holding the duck Pokemon up to its eyes, it squeezed its head harder. The pained shrieking that ensued brought a warped grin to the mosquito's faced. It squeezed even harder, which in turn furthered the Pokemon's agony. Psyduck furiously flailed its small body in a vain attempt to free itself from the Ultra Beast's grasp. Deciding to end this, the beast, made a move to crush the Pokemon's skull completely.

"PSYYYYYY!"

Psyduck's eyes widened, completely overshadowed by a brilliant blue glow. The beast was suddenly blown backwards by a powerful Psychic pulse from Psyduck. It screeched, utterly baffled by what happened, but was silenced when it crashed into the ground once more. Psyduck, meanwhile, was dropped back to the ground once its headache had worn off. Misty dove to the ground to catch it.

"...I take it back," She said, returning Psyduck to its Pokeball. "You're pretty cool." Upon pocketing the Pokeball, she took out Gyarados's and Starmies and promptly returned them as well before glaring at the motionless body of the beast.

"Is it over?" Asked Alain tentatively.

His question was answered when the beast lazily flipped itself onto its stomach, pushing itself back off the ground. The blood in its body swirled from its rage, making its body pulsate and become a deep crimson red. Raising its fists into the air, it let out a mad scream, unable to contain its fury any longer. Turning back down to the trainers, it crouched over and prepared to strike. In turn, Ash's friends gathered their remaining Pokemon together.

An Ursaring appeared behind the beast and before the mosquito beast could react, hit it violently over the head with a Hammer Arm sending it sprawling into the floor. Enraged, the mosquito attempted to lift itself up, but was suddenly stomped further into the floor by Gary's furious Blastoise who was not so quick to forget the pain that was inflicted upon its shell.

The mosquito beast shrieked in pain as it was subjected to the torment it put all its victims through. As Blastoise continued to crush the insect he couldn't help but grin in satisfaction at getting its revenge. He then raised his foot preparing to finish off the creature when suddenly in the blink of an eye the mosquito shot a fist straight into Blastoise's jaw making a cracking sound instantly rendering him unconscious.

Without thinking twice about the danger he was putting himself in, Gary rushed up to Blastoise and crouched down next to it. "You did a good job," He said, returning it to its Pokeball, "Now, you should take a long rest."

The second he looked back up, the mosquito already had its fist pumped back and ready to strike. Gary reeled backwards, his eyes widening. He would have likely been killed on the spot, but another trainer's order saved his life.

"Everyone, take it out, now!"

The Ursaring from before leapt up behind the mosquito beast, both of its arms coated in the light of Hammer Arm once more. The beast whipped around to smash its head in when an Aggron stepped in and used Flash Cannon, forcing it to shield itself with its arms instead. Hearing a slight buzzing noise besides its own, it looked to the side. It saw a Ninjask rocketing toward its face and, before the beast could blink, the Bug Pokemon used its claws to slice at the beast's eyes.

Gripping at its face in agony, the mosquito reeled its head back and let out a shrill screech that was promptly cut short by Ursaring landing the Hammer Arm to the back of its head and knocking it flat on its face. Before it could get up, a Torterra stomped down on its back and was surrounded by a Drapion, Electivire, and the other Pokemon that had attacked it. Ruthlessly, they beat every inch of the beast's body.

The trainers and their own Pokemon, meanwhile, watched with faces wrinkled in some sort of emotion they themselves didn't truly know how to describe. Even though it was their enemy, they couldn't help but feel almost...bad for it. Only when it stopped moving entirely were the six Pokemon brutalizing the beast returned to their Pokeballs.

"That's enough," Paul said simply.

With the Pokemon now gone, the trainers were given a gruesome sight of the beast. Within seconds, Paul's team of Pokemon had reduced it to a broken mess on the ground. Its arms were crumpled at multiple impossible angles, and its chest now dented inward. Many holes were torn all over its body, allowing the bubbling blood that normally flowed through its body to leak outward onto the ground in a steaming pool. The beast's remains occasionally twitched, but it was certainly dead.

Alain was the first to break the awkward silence that ensued with a whistle. "Well...I suppose that's one way to beat it…"

Paul raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you complaining?"

Alain shook his head. "No it's just that I don't want us to stoop to their level, we can't lose who we are or else we may become monsters just like them."

Paul gave him an annoyed look. "This is war, there is no morals we do what we have to do to survive and win. Those who think otherwise...perish."

As the two bickered, a paper beast managed to slip by Brock's Crobat and infiltrate the group, zooming toward Clemont with its sharp arms. Clemont looked up in horror, unable to react in time. May, however, wasn't about to let this slide.

"Blaziken, use Flameth-"

"Blaziken, Blaze Kick!"

May stopped herself, surprised by the command. She, along with her equally-confused Blaziken, turned around to the source of the voice only for the former to nearly be swept off of her feet as Blaziken Mask's Mega Blaziken rushed by and sent the paper beast flying with a brutal Blaze Kick. Blaziken mask himself soon made his way over to Clemont and asked, "You alright, kiddo?"

Clemont let out a relieved sigh. "Yeah, thanks to you, dad."

Blaziken Mask's face scrunched up uncomfortably, and he looked around at the surrounding trainers for fear of his identity slipping loose. In the end, he simply sighed, conceding that it didn't matter at a time like this. Smiling, he leaned down and ruffled up his son's hair. "Anytime, kid."

Their little bonding moment was cut short by an impossibly loud screech. Everyone, man beast and Pokemon alike, tried in vain to protect themselves from it. The roar shook them to their cores. Every single one of their senses was assaulted by the sound, forcing them to their knees. Whether or not the trainers themselves screamed, they didn't even know. If they had, it was drowned out by the roar.

Every minute that passed felt like an hour to them, but eventually, it subsided at last, and everyone collapsed to their everyone turned to the source they found that the massive ultra beast had turned its sights on the group of trainers with a look of hunger in its eyes.

Without delay, Guzzlord turned its massive body toward the trainers in hopes of finally getting a taste of a new meal instead of the same old Ultra Beasts that was fed to it for thousands of years. A large black tongue decorated with jagged spikes exited its mouth, licking the edges of its lips hungrily. The fanged tendrils coming from its mouth lunged out at everything in sight as it slowly walked toward the battlefield.

It scooped up beasts, trainers, Pokemon, even the ground itself up into the mouths of its tendrils before lazily flinging whatever it had taken into its main mouth. Thousands of screams rang out from the lives it was mindlessly ending in its eternal hunger as they rained into its mouth. At the hands of Guzzlord, there were no sides. There was no battle. Their screams were indistinguishable from one another.

Ash's friends gaped up at the beast in horror. They couldn't even bring themselves to move, and the same could be said about the other trainers as well. They were all paralyzed with terror. The silence was eventually broken by Gary, who rubbed the back of his head and attempted to hide his fear from even himself by chuckling. "Man...we're screwed…"

Paul was the first to truly recover, pushing himself back onto his feet alongside the rest of his Pokemon. He looked behind him, glaring in annoyance at the surrounding pillars of black flame. "Well, we obviously can't escape, so I suppose our only real option is to fight."

Misty guffawed, her eyes somehow widening even further in disbelief at what Paul had just said. "WHAT?!" Paul winced at the volume of her voice. "You want us to fight that thing?!"

Standing back up as well, Brock winced at the colossal beast. "Where would we even strike?"

Max's head perked up as an idea struck him. "Maybe we don't need to fight it at all!" Turning down to Jirachi, who had recovered from the nasty punch delivered earlier by the Mosquito beast, he asked, "Could I wish that thing away?"

"Um-"

Before the small Legend could answer, May jumped back to her feet, her eyes sparkling. "That's right! In fact, we could probably just wish Necrozma away too!"

Jirachi shifted uncomfortably, its eyes darting back and forth. "Uhh…"

Paul grimaced. "By the look on its face, I'd say that's a no."

The wish-granting Pokemon hesitantly nodded, affirming Paul's words and making everyone else's faces fall. "Y-yes...I'm sorry, but there are some wishes beyond my power."

Bonnie waved it off. "That's fine! Maybe we can just wish Guzzlord and Necrozma away somewhere, right?"

Jirachi shook its head. "I'm sorry, but that's a no as well."

"What?!" Cried the young girl. "Why not?!"

Jirachi's gaze continuously shifted under the pressure of the trainers' expectant gazes. "W-well...you see, my power of wishes is reliant on my own power, and if my wishes interfere with someone that has greater power than I do, then...they can resist my wish." It looked up at the immense beast, adding, "What's more, this particular beast appears to have many similarities to a Dark-Type Pokemon, and since my wishes are based on my Psychic-Type attributes…"

Paul groaned. "Then your wishes wouldn't have affected it either way."

The Wish Pokemon nodded, floating up above the group. "That's true, but my Doom Desire attack is Steel Type. I'm sorry, but I won't be of any more help than that."

"That's fine," Chirped Misty. "We have the power of teamwork on our side, with all of us working against that thing it won't stand a chance!"

Suddenly, a random trainer spoke up. "But you heard Necrozma that thing has eaten entire species down to their last speck! If Guzzlord is that strong what chance do we have!?"

"Because we're united and we have each other, remember it's not just us!" Misty yelled proudly. "We have the power of Pokemon and the Legends on our side, with all of us working together we're capable of anything!"

All the trainers and Pokemon looked on with awe at Misty's rallying speech and now had a new look of determination in their eyes.

"I'm not gonna die today!"

"We'll all get through this!"

"That creature doesn't stand a chance!"

"If I perish, I'm not going down any other way than fighting!"

All the trainers then thrust their arms towards the quickly approaching Guzzlord, pointing its way and ordered their thousands of various Pokemon to attack. Attacks of all elements shot out from the thousands of various Pokemon like a tidal wave that covered most of the battlefield. They raced forward, striking against the colossal beast like hail, but it didn't appear to be perturbed in the slightest. In fact, it didn't seem to notice their attacks at all.

One after another, the thousands of would-be powerful attacks from the united trainers bounced off of Guzzlord's skin as if they were nothing. Its left tendril arched upward, pointing its mouth down at the trainers below before plunging into them only a dozen yards away from Ash's friends.

May looked on in horror. "It doesn't even notice our attacks! How are we even supposed to scratch that thing?!"

Her question was answered when Guzzlord was suddenly hit straight in the eye by a Luster Purge. The massive ultra beast tilted its head back in pain and let out a loud pained screech that forced the trainers and Pokemon to cover their ears. Guzzlord furiously turned its head towards the perpetrator and found none other than Tobias's Latios who was giving the beast a savage glare. "Leave those people alone you monster!" Latios snapped.

Guzzlord shot out one of its huge clawed tentacles and before Latios could react it clamped down and trapped the Legend within its grasp. Latios attempted to struggle out of its grip, but quickly discovered it was futile. A grin slowly crept up Guzzlord's face as its prey desperately tried to escape. It slowly brought its tentacle over its mouth and Latios could do nothing but look on in absolute terror. "Release me this instant you vile beast!" Latios's demands fell on deaf ears as Guzzlord slowly lowered its tentacle towards its massive mouth.

A red streak zoomed over the trainers' heads, rocketing at breakneck speeds toward Guzzlord's eye. It was none other than Latias, who wasn't about to let her brother die twice. "LET HIM GO, YOU MONSTER!" Opening her mouth, she unleashed a powerful Hyper Beam that crashed into the massive beast's already-stricken eye, making it let out another pained shriek. Unwittingly, Guzzlord opened the mouth on its tendril, allowing Latios to fly away just in time.

Latios immediately went onto the attack once more, materializing another Luster Purge until he spotted Latias. 'I see,' He thought, 'They must have rescued me...now that I think about it, they look similar to me.' Flying up to meet her, he said,"Thank you very much for the save. If you hadn't done something I would have been killed for sure." Latios bowed. "My name is Latios I don't believe we've met before, Might I ask who you are?"

Latias reeled back in shock, but then quickly remembered that this wasn't the same Latios that sacrificed himself way back then to save her life, this would be awkward. "W-well my name is Latias."

Latios looked at her in confusion. "Latias? That sounds very similar to my name. We wouldn't happen to be related would we?"

Latias's face lit up. Finally, she had her chance. "Well, you see-"

"Hey, Latios!"

The two turned down and found Cresselia floating just a little ways beneath them, and Tobias atop her back. The black-haired trainer pointed beneath him to the ground, where the rest of his team were waiting on the ground. "Thank Arceus you're all right! When I saw that thing grab you, I assumed the worst." He smiled up to Latias, an action she didn't really know how to react to. "I saw you save him, and for that, you have my thanks."

Turning back up to Latios once more, he said, "Now, I'll need your speed for my plan to work."

Latios bowed his head to Latias. "I apologize," He said, "But my trainer requires my presence. If you'll excuse me…"

With that, he flew back down to Tobias, who hopped onto his back. Latias's eyes widened, and she instinctively reached out to her brother. "Wha- hey!" But in a flash, Latios and Tobias zoomed back down to the ground, leaving her alone once more.

Guzzlord, after having recovered from the strikes turned its furious gaze towards the quickly approaching team of Legends and shot out its two tentacles in hopes to subsequently trap and kill them.

They all quickly noticed the approaching tentacles and made moves to evade. Tobias then commanded his Pokemon to attack. "Latios hit it with another Luster Purge, aim for the eye once more!" Latios nodded in affirmation and unleashed the attack only to have it get swiped away by Guzzlord. The ultra beast retaliated with a brutal swing that nailed Latios straight in the face. "Latios no! Darkrai help Latios by delivering a Focus Punch straight to its tendrils!" Darkrai charged up the attack and delivered the powerful punch into Guzzlord's right tendril. Though it did no apparent damage, it did manage to stop the blow in its tracks.

"Great work Darkrai," Commended Tobias, "Now, Volcanion, hit that beast with a Steam Eruption!" Two cannons emerged from the ring on the legends back and proceeded to fire burning water straight into Guzzlord's face making it cry out in pain. "Perfect! Everything is going exactly as planned! Now, Meloetta, hit it with a-" Tobias was suddenly cut off when the Ultra Beast turned its sights on him and Cresselia and shot a massive glob of flame their way from the mouth of one of its tendrils.

"Cresselia, watch out!" Before the Legend could react both her and Tobias got blasted out of the sky and quickly began plummeting to the ground. It seemed all was lost until Latios was quickly able to catch the trainer in his hands and Cresselia on his back. Seeing that they were both safe Latios then looked down in concern to see if Tobias was okay, the trainer smiled at him in response and patted his head. "Thanks buddy, I don't want to imagine what would happen if you weren't here."

He returned Cresselia to her Pokeball for the time being, glaring up at the colossus. "Still, though, this thing is insane. I suppose Necrozma doesn't call it the planet eater for nothing."

The colossal beast stepped backwards and turned away from Tobias. It snatched at the air with its large tendrils and started grabbing any ultra beast it set its sights upon. The ones that were grabbed could only scream in horror as they were drawn into Guzzlord's colossal mouth used as nothing more than energy for the massive creature.

The beasts surrounding Ash's friends slowly backed away before flying elsewhere, all the while trying to avoid Necrozma's ever-watchful eye. The ebony wall of flames surrounding the battlefield forced them to stop in their tracks, though with all of the beasts stopping at once, they crashed into one another. The ones closest to the flames were suddenly pushed into them and subsequently reduced to ashes before they could even scream.

The beasts did not know what to do. If they stayed and fight they would eventually be eaten alive, but if they turn and ran they would be hunted down by Necrozma for desertion or incinerated by the colossal circle of flame. So, they did the only thing they could think of. Faced with complete annihilation of either the inhabitants of this world, their leader or his pet, they turned back around and faced Guzzlord.

One after another, they charged, bellowing to the skies. The skies were once again blotted out by their sheer numbers, and the trainers instinctively prepared to battle. However, the beasts flew past them, not even bothering to look their way.

"What?" Asked a trainer. "Where are they going?"

Their question was answered when they piled onto the beast, clinging onto every inch of it and viciously attacking it. Unfortunately for them, none of their attacks seemed to do any significant damage. Guzzlord simply reached up and grabbed its equivalent of a handful before lazily tossing them into its massive throat.

Ash's friends and the trainers looked on in disbelief. "No way," Uttered Clemont, "The beasts are attacking it?!"

Misty clapped her hands together. "This is perfect! Now, we can take it down!"

Paul eyed her judgingly, sneering. "And just what do you plan to do?"

The orange-haired girl gave him an odd look. "What do you mean? Attack it, of course!"

"Why waste your breath?" Scoffed Paul. "If they're attacking it for us, then we should sit back and allow our Pokemon to regain their stamina before attacking."

Brock shook his head, chuckling. "I never thought I'd hear the day when you of all people would say something like that."

Paul merely turned away from him, looking on at the colossal beast. "Are you complaining?"

Alain, after already having dug up his Metagross and returning it, leapt onto his Charizard's back. "On the contrary, now is the perfect time to strike."

When the purple-haired trainer gave him an odd look, he reiterated, pointing at the colossal beast. "Right now, those things at least pose an annoyance to the big one. Better yet, they're a distraction."

Bonnie snapped her fingers as she caught on. "While the big guy is eating them, we can attack it without worrying about getting attacked back!"

"I have to agree," Added Riley. "As it looks right now, that 'Guzzlord' creature will probably just end up eating most of the other beasts anyway so why not take advantage of it while it's distracted?"

Blaziken Mask chuckled. "I can see no better option," He said, grinning up at the beast, "And there's no time like the present!"

"Of course," Said Riley, looking around at the other trainers, "We'll need everyone in on this." The Aura Guardian crouched down, placing a hand to the ground to allow his Aura to flow freely across the battlefield. Once he had covered it completely, he relayed a message to the trainers.

"Now is the time." He felt many of them jump at the sudden sound of his voice. "Like it or not, the Ultra Beasts appear to be our allies against Guzzlord for the time being. We must use this chance to strike, for it could be either the greatest one, or our only. Once more, we need to fight!"

The sudden roar from the trainers and their Pokemon shook him from his focus, and he stood back to his full height. Chuckling, he remarked, "Well, that appears to have worked."

Paul let out an exasperated sigh and shrugged. "You lot are hopeless, you know that?" Misty opened her mouth to retaliate with what would have been a snide remark, but Paul held up his hand to stop her. "But...If we're doing this your way, then me sitting on the sidelines will only weaken us as a whole. Let's take it down."

Necrozma grabbed Uxie and Azelf by their tails and smashed them together, then promptly sent them careening elsewhere with a bright red blast. He was about to give chase to splatter their remains when he noticed that he had received a call from Xurkitree, sighed in annoyance, and tapped his crystal.

"What is it now, Xurkitree?" He demanded. "What could possibly be so utterly important that you need to interrupt me for a- What is this, the third or fourth time?"

Xurkitree was hesitant to answer, as he knew what he was about to say would only serve to drive his master into even further rage. Frankly, he believed his own life was in danger at this point, but continued, knowing that being silent after bothering Necrozma with a call would lead to an assured end.

"L-Lord Necrozma," He stuttered, shakily bowing, "I'm sorry to have to report this to you, but…it appears that the Ultra Beasts have…" He cut himself off momentarily, shuddering. "W-well, in s-spite of your warning, they s-seem to have...defected…"

Necrozma's eyes widened, and Xurkitree bowed even further to try and make himself appear as small as possible. The beast expected his lord to fly into a fit of rage and either go into a raving monologue, or simply destroy him or the Ultra Beasts in an instant. Part of him believed that Necrozma would just up and end the world on the spot, destroying the ship, Xurkitree, the beasts, obviously the planet's dwellers and even Guzzlord in the process. To his shock, he heard only a chuckle from his lord.

"I see. That is quite interesting indeed."

Xurkitree managed to summon the courage to look up at Necrozma, seeing that his lord was now staring down somewhere. Likely at the beasts. Hesitantly, he asked, "...Milord?"

"When did the beasts gain such spine?"

Xurkitree shuffled uncomfortably. "Erm...I don't...understand the question, sire."

It almost looked as if Necrozma was smiling to Xurkitree, though by the look in the dark lord's eyes, the beast knew it couldn't have been good. The glint in the demon's crimson eyes betrayed an idea, and one that could only lead to more suffering knowing him.

"I'm surprised, is all," Necrozma admitted, shifting his gaze to look at the black flames encircling the battlefield. "I warned them twice before, and even demonstrated my power by trapping them with those flames, and yet…" He looked back to where the beasts piled on top of Guzzlord, bringing a prismatic hand to his face in thought. "Still, they betrayed me. Why do you think that is, Xurkitree?"

Xurkitree carefully mulled over his next choice of words. "Well...perhaps they simply went mad from fear, being driven into a corner like that. They're like animals, lashing out at everything from their terror."

"Went mad?" Repeated Necrozma with a laugh. "Is that the best lie you can come up with?"

The beast flinched at that. "M-milord? Whatever do you mean?"

"You know full well what I mean," Replied the demon. "I have known you for millions of years, to the point that I no longer need to even read your mind to tell exactly what you're thinking. I know what you really think whenever you hastily try and come up with an answer to my questions you believe will appease me."

The light emanating from Necrozma's crimson eyes intensified, though his demeanor appeared to be calm. Despite this supposed calmness, the demon spoke with a certain piercing venom in his voice. "What will appease me is the truth. Speak your mind, Xurkitree."

Xurkitree hesitated for a few seconds, pondering what he should say next. He then let out a long-winded sigh, turned up at Necrozma and replied with a bravado he'd been lacking for millions of years. "If reading me is that easy for you, then you already know the answer."

"...I suppose so." Xurkitree could have sworn the invisible grin on Necrozma's face had increased in size, and the demon turned away from him. As he looked back down upon the beasts, he said, "I will spare them for now, then. Their act of rebellion will serve as nothing more than further entertainment for me." He let out a chuckle. "It's ironic, is it not? They fight against me out of spite, yet in doing so, they serve my wishes."

"...It is, Necrozma. Very ironic indeed."


It took mere minutes for everyone to seemingly forget about the death of Ash Ketchum. The ones who could only call themselves strangers to him, yet looked up to him as their chosen one. His traveling companions, who had ventured with him across entire regions through thick and thin, and whom had their lives saved by him on many occasions. Even most of the members of Ash's teams only seemed to care for a short while, and though the fact that the Ultra Beasts had attacked shortly thereafter was a forgivable excuse for them to focus on other things...it was still unnerving. It seemed like there was only one who was still remotely disturbed by his demise, that being Pikachu, who still stood over the motionless body of Greninja.

Pikachu looked on, with tears still in his eyes, as all the trainers and their Pokemon started to attack the giant Ultra Beast with everything they had. He had noticed that no one had showed much reaction to the death of his trainer and that made him confused and more so furious. How could all these trainers and Pokemon that had known Ash one way or another completely ignore the fact that he was dead? It felt like a betrayal for them to not even acknowledge what had happened.

Pikachu continued to look at the rubble where Ash had been killed. How? How could his best friend who had survived nearly drowning, almost suffocating, and being turned into energy for a massive tree be killed with the flick of a finger. He couldn't believe it. He refused to. But denial of reality proved difficult for the yellow rodent. Over and over, he witnessed the scene of his closest friend's demise in his head. Greninja's reaction only proved it further.

Like clockwork, two puddles beneath the small Pokemon gradually became bigger as Pikachu looked down at the ground. "Pika…"

His thoughts were interrupted when he saw a certain individual going through the rubble where Ash had disappeared. Anger soon began to swell within him as he realized who it was. Noivern with tears in its eyes, was desperately looking through the rubble for any sign of the man who had raised him from birth when he heard the sound of someone approaching. He turned around and found none other than Pikachu. A relieved smile quickly came to Noivern's face and he couldn't help but to dash right up to his friend and envelope him in a deep hug.

Unexpectedly Pikachu savagely shoved the bat Pokemon away which caused it to yelp in surprise. A now-enraged Pikachu gave the wyvern a death glare that made its blood run cold. How could its friend push him away like this? Then it saw the tears in Pikachu's eyes, and fully understood the hatred in his expression. Its wings sagged, and looked down at the ground.

"Pika-Pika Piiiii ka Pika! Chuuu!"

Pikachu demanded to know why Noivern had dared to act sad now of all times, especially after the way the wyvern had acted to Ash before his death. Noivern recalled growling at Ash when he extended his hand toward it. Lost in its rage over Hawlucha, it had thought of nothing more than vengeance. It obsessed over it, to the point it had no longer cared about anything other than tearing apart the Ultra Beasts for even being affiliated with Hawlucha's killer. Before Noivern knew it, two more friends were gone, and to one, it had given undeserved spite when he only tried to help. It might even be three with how Greninja looked.

Pikachu sparked his cheeks, threatening to electrocute Noivern. The wyvern Pokemon didn't move, merely bowing its head and nodding in acceptance. The fury Pikachu felt toward it was well-deserved. The rage and hatred it could practically feel radiating from the mouse Pokemon nearly overshadowed the hatred Noivern felt for itself.

Pikachu's glaring at Noivern narrowed until, suddenly, he closed his eyes and turned away from it to overlook Greninja once more. It knew better than to attack a...friend, though in his rage, he couldn't quite tell if it was right to call Noivern that anymore. Attacking Noivern would only lead Pikachu down the same path Noivern took, and Pikachu knew it. So, it let it go, and ignored the wyvern.

For minutes on end, neither Pikachu nor Noivern dared to move. Pikachu, for fear that his rage would drive him to do something he would surely regret, and Noivern for many reasons. Pikachu's being one of them, judging by how it last ended. The two heard the movement of a pebble suddenly, making their heads perk up. It happened again, and now that they heard it a second time, they realized it came from directly in front of Pikachu.

Beneath the yellow rodent, Greninja's limp body twitched. "Piiika!" Gasped Pikachu. Noivern couldn't help but lean his head to the side in order to get a better view. Though Greninja's eyes did not open, his body continuously twitched at different intervals. Eventually, Pikachu sent a small shock his way, which made Greninja leap onto his feet with wide eyes, gasping for air.

Pikachu quickly enveloped the frog Pokemon in a hug and Noivern couldn't help but frown slightly. Ignoring the wyvern, Pikachu asked the frog Pokemon if he was alright and if he had been hurt. Greninja stood still in his own thoughts before turning to the yellow rodent to reply. Greninja explained that he wasn't completely sure what had happened and that when Ash...disappeared, the bond was severed.

Yet, he was still alive, and that could only mean one thing. Pikachu and Noivern's faces lit up once they realized it. If Greninja still lived, then that must mean that, somewhere, Ash did as well. Greninja looked down at his hands unsure. He attempted to transform into his bonded state, surrounding himself with swirling water, but he collapsed to his knees shortly thereafter, with the water splashing down uselessly.

The ninja Pokemon balled his hands into fists in frustration, but Pikachu wasn't eager to give up this sliver of hope just yet. It was the only one they had, after all. He pat Greninja on the back, telling him not to worry about it. Him simply being alive was good enough for now. He suggested that he couldn't access the bonded state because Ash was too far away.

Upon hearing this Noivern perked up. So does that mean there's a chance his best friend was still alive? Is it possible that Ash was just teleported away? He had to believe it. He needed to tell Ash how sorry he was for everything he'd done. He'd be damned if his last memory of Ash was him hissing at his friend in rage.

Pikachu was about to reply when a deafening roar from Guzzlord made the three of them double over. Upon looking over at the beast, they saw that the rest of their fellow mons had engaged the massive Ultra Beast. To their shock, from what it looked like, the other Ultra Beasts were attacking it as well. Their faces wrinkled in confusion, Noivern decided to get to the bottom of this. It lowered its wings and offered to give the two of them a ride.

Greninja eagerly hopped aboard, though Pikachu was hesitant to say the least. Noivern gave it a pleading look, to which Pikachu looked away for a moment, growling to itself before eventually hopping aboard as well. Thus, Noivern took to the skies and raced toward Guzzlord. The search for Ash would have to wait for the time being, though they were confident he was still alive. That confidence would have to keep them satisfied for now.


"Charizard, use Dragon Claw!"

Upon Alain's command the dragon Pokemon's three claws began to glow with a violent green energy, and it dove down, dragging its empowered claws across one of Guzzlord's enormous tendrils before flying high to look down upon the damage it had done. Alain scowled when he saw no apparent damage.

"That one didn't work huh?" Alain turned his gaze away from the tendril and up toward the eyes. Unfortunately for him, they were already swarmed by other beasts, and even though they were technically allies at the moment, getting caught in the middle of them would certainly end up ugly. Thus, he looked around at other parts of the body for potential weaknesses.

Going near the mouth was out of the question, obviously. If they went anywhere near it they would most likely be sucked in and swallowed with no hope for escape. Along its back were a series of spikes, but they didn't appear to have anything that could be used as a weakness. It's entire skin looked to be armored, it was like this beast was made to be completely invincible.

Alain had his thoughts interrupted when Guzzlord's tendril suddenly turned around and shot a purple glob of what looked like sludge straight at the Dragon. Alain's eyes shot open, and he hastily yelled, "CHARIZARD, DODGE!" His Charizard was barely able to evade it in time by mere inches. When he looked back to where Charizard once stood he noticed that the ground had become a poisonous sludge pool. Alain tried not to imagine what would've happened had that hit him.

Meanwhile on the ground, Gary, alongside many of the other trainers, were launching attacks at the beast's legs to try and topple it. "Electivire, use Thunder! Dodrio, Tri-Attack! Arcanine, Flame Blast! Nidoking and Scizor, Hyper Beam!"

In response to their trainer's order, Gary's Pokemon unleashed their attacks alongside Misty, Brock, Clemont, Blaziken Mask and the hundreds of Pokemon from the other trainers, which crashed into the colossal beast's leg with a thunderous explosion. The trainers covered their eyes due to the resulting cloud of smoke that came after it.

"Did we get it?!" Gary asked loudly, trying to raise his voice over the volume of the detonation. He got his answer when some of the accompanying Flying wild Pokemon blew away the smoke with Defog. Not only was there no mark whatsoever, but Guzzlord appeared to have not even noticed the attack.

Gary sighed. "Seriously?" He looked down at Blastoise's Pokeball, regretting being unable to use it any longer, but he would have to be either insane or heartless to allow it to battle with those wounds.

"This thing is quite sturdy," Remarked Blaziken Mask. "My Mega Blaziken's Blast Burn had no effect."

Misty was quick on the uptake. "We can't give up that easily!" She chirped. "We probably just need to give it a few more tries!"

Chuckling, Gary retorted with, "Who said anything about giving up?" Readying themselves into position once more, the trainers prepared to attack. Their Pokemon charged up a colorful array of attacks, holding them until their trainers commanded otherwise. Gary held out his arm at the large beast and cried, "Once more, attack!"

Not too far away from Gary and the others, the six Champions watched with amusement. They had sent most of their Pokemon off to aid the trainers however they could, leaving them with only their aces at their sides.

"They're trying quite hard, aren't they?" Remarked Cynthia, her Garchomp at her side..

"You got that right!" Barked Alder alongside his Volcarona. " If only my old friend could see us now. All of us working together, he would be proud."

"I believe it's time we joined the fray," Suggested Diantha, her Mega Gardevoir awaiting orders.

Atop his mighty Dragonite, Lance nodded. "I agree. We've left it up to the ordinary trainers for far too long."

Wallace's Milotic encircled the secondary Hoenn Champion protectively. "It wouldn't do for us Champions to idly sit on the sidelines."

Steven Stone stood on his Mega Metagross's flat metal head, jotting something in a journal before closing it and putting it into his coat. "I believe you all are correct. Let us topple this mighty beast and swiftly move on to Necrozma himself."

United, the greatest trainers of the world faced off against the greatest of all Ultra Beasts. Atop their Pokemon, they faced Guzzlord, the Planet eater, racing up to meet it. (With Metagross and Gardevoir carrying those who could not fly with Psychic). It appeared to not even notice their presence amidst the masses of smaller beasts it was feasting on. Its bright blue eyes scanned the skies hungrily, thoughtlessly consuming all in its sight.

"Let's teach it a lesson!" Roared Alder. "Volcarona, use-"

"Hold it-" Interjected Cynthia suddenly, pointing down at Guzzlord. "There are Ultra Beasts all over it. If we attack thoughtlessly, we'll only end up hitting them and likely returning them as enemies."

To Cynthia's confusion, Alder laughed at that. "You don't give me enough credit," Retorted the old Champion. To match Cynthia, he pointed down at Guzzlord as well, only he was pointing slightly higher. Cynthia narrowed her eyes, trying to find what he was talking about. Whatever it was, it was mostly obscured by the swarming Ultra Beasts. Cynthia could scarcely get a glance at it with the occasional gap between them, but then, suddenly, she was able to see it for a split second.

"Is that...a crown?"

Alder grinned brightly. "Not only that, but it has a secondary set of eyes!"

"I saw it as well," Added Diantha with a nod. "The crown appeared to turn, signifying that it uses it as a another use of sight."

Cynthia quickly caught their meaning. "If we destroy it, then we can potentially injure or even cripple the beast!"

"So we have our objective?" Inquired Lance. "If so, then let us not waste any more time than necessary. Let us not forget that once Guzzlord runs out of Ultra Beasts to eat, the trainers and Pokemon will be next."

Wallace placed a hand to his chin, narrowing his eyes at the cloud of smaller Ultra Beasts. "How will we get past that swarm, then? If we try to force our way through, I doubt that they will hesitate to mark us as enemies once more."

"Then let's make them our allies instead," Suggested Steven. There was a glint in his eye representative of an idea. "I've been watching them for a while and, judging by Necrozma's words, it seems to me that they're being forced to fight."

"Oh?" Inquired Diantha with interest. "Yes, I suppose you might be right. If we can establish some kind of trust with them, or a gesture of good faith, then we might be able to establish them as allies even after Guzzlord is defeated."

The Hoenn Champion nodded her way with a smile. "That's exactly what I thought as well. You know that old saying keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Well, I say that would apply very greatly in a situation like this."

"Not to rush you or anything," Lance Interjected, "But if befriending those things is our new objective, then, well…" He motioned below them, and upon the Champions looking down to see what he was pointing at, they bore witness to Guzzlord snapping up another round of Ultra Beasts before bringing the tendril to its mouth and throwing them in. "...We should probably start off by preventing that."

"Agreed," Replied Steven, turning his gaze back upon Diantha. "I believe your Gardevoir and my Metagross would be best suited for this."

Diantha nodded. "Though our Psychic-Type attacks don't affect Guzzlord, they do affect the other beasts, as far as we know anyways. Thus, we can prevent that titan from consuming them altogether."

"Precisely," Commended Steven. "Should we rescue them, then that show of good faith might let us act without their interference."

Lance crossed his arms, smirking down at the swarm. "In other words, we help them and they stay out of our way?"

"Well, that's a crude way of putting it," Replied Cynthia, resisting the urge to plant her hand on her face, "But essentially, yes."

"Well alright then let's not delay further."

Steven nodded hastily. "Right you are. If you would, Diantha?"

Returning the nod, Diantha flicked her gaze Gardevoir's way, which was the only signal she needed. Gardevoir, along with Metagross extended their Psychic reach down to the beasts below. A group of Ultra Beasts screeched in panic, hurriedly flying away as fast as they could as the massive maw of Guzzlord's tendril closed in on them. It quickly became apparent that they weren't going to make it.

The beasts shut their eyes and let out one last terrified shriek as the tendril's mouth surrounded them and went to shut itself tightly. However, a blue glow suddenly surrounded the beasts, and they were yanked out through the gaps in the tendril's teeth before being whisked away to the Champions' location. Unknowing of this, Guzzlord retracted his tendril and opened it inside of its mouth. When it realized nothing had actually dropped into it mouth, it looked at the interior of the tendril questioningly, shaking it as if it would drop anything. When nothing happened, Guzzlord dismissed it and went back to reaching for more.

The rescued beasts flailed against the Psychic hold fearfully. The terror of nearly being eaten by Guzzlord still plagued them, driving them to furiously thrash at everything in sight. They shrieked and screamed, until one by one they noticed the trainers and Pokemon before them, and glowered at them darkly.

"Are you sure it's wise to free them?" Questioned Lance apprehensively. "Don't forget that, until only about half an hour ago, we were mercilessly slaughtering one another. Judging by the looks on their faces, I don't think they've forgotten either."

Alder simply crossed his arms, laughing heartily. "Well, change will never occur if we're not going to show them trust. Breaking down walls and building bridges, or something like that."

"You read that in a fantasy novel, didn't you?" Teased Cynthia with a smirk.

Once again, the redheaded Champion laughed. "Guilty as charged! Though, it's not exactly wrong, is it?"

Cynthia shrugged, turning away from him. "I suppose not."

Steven snapped his fingers, and Metagross released its Psychic hold on the Beasts. Looking at Diantha, he said. "Let's not keep them waiting any further. If we hold them any longer, the last thing they'll want is peace."

Diantha nodded wordlessly, merely flicking her gaze Gardevoir's way. The pink glow surrounding the beasts, now that Gardevoir ceased its grip, faded. Immediately, the beasts tensed up, raising their fists, pointing their needles and generally showing hostility toward the Champions. Cynthia noted that they seemed reluctant to do anything, though if that was out of fear or gratitude from their earlier save, she couldn't discern.

She did, however, take notice of an injury one of the roach beasts carried. It was a large red gash running from the left side of its abdomen all the way down to its foot, which Cynthia guessed had been caused when it was yanked out from Guzzlord's tendril-mouth. Perhaps either Gardevoir or Metagross had mistakenly dragged them against the teeth when rescuing them, which was a result of Guzzlord's bodily similarities to a Dark-Type interfering with their Psychic-Type. Upon seeing Cynthia staring at the wound, the beast growled at her and attempted to conceal the wound. A few of the other beasts held their arms over the roach defensively.

Turning back around to the other Champions, Cynthia asked, "Do any of you have a Pokemon that can use Heal Pulse?"

"I'm afraid not," Answered Lance. "And if you're asking me, I assume it's safe to say you don't have it either?" Wordlessly nodding, she looked to Wallace and Alder, finding similar replies via the shaking of their heads. The blond Champion next turned to Diantha. "What about you?"

The Kalos Champion shrugged. "Though it is certainly possible for a Gardevoir to learn it, mine has not, though I suppose we could try and force it, given the circumstances."

"Hold on a moment," Interjected Lance, "Are you planning on healing the beasts?"

Cynthia gave him an inquisitive stare, crossing her arms. "Why yes, I am. I noticed one of them had been wounded, and thought it might get us some good ground in the trust department."

Lance narrowed his eyes at her. "Are you sure that's wise? We still don't know if we can trust them."

The Sinnoh Champion sighed. "Well," She said, "We can't exactly get to Guzzlord's crown without going through the swarm, and we can't speak their language to get them to part." She nudged her head in the direction of the beasts, pointing her thumb at them. "But if we can establish some kind of trust with them, like I'm trying to do by healing them, then perhaps they could get the swarm to part and we'd be free to attack the crown."

A sly smirk crawled up her face, and her eyes seemingly darkened. Her irises became sharp, like a dagger. It would have been unnerving to just about anyone, save for Cynthia's fellow Champions. "And besides...if it doesn't work out and they become hostile, we can simply eradicate them and penetrate the swarm by force." She smiled brightly, completely wiping away her fearsome expression in an instant. "But there's no need for that if we can get them as allies, right? Right."

Lance blinked. He hadn't even realized his jaw had gaped slightly from Cynthia's terrifying display, and quickly regained his composure once he did. Clearing his throat, he replied, "I-I see. Yes, I suppose it's for the best, then. Please go ahead."

With that, Cynthia nodded to Diantha, who in turn did the same to her Gardevoir. Returning the nod, Diantha's Mega Gardevoir slowly approached the beasts, causing them to tense up and hiss at her. The Champions noticed that they were trembling more and more the closer Gardevoir got to them. It stopped suddenly and raised its arms out at the frightened beasts.

The beasts knew they didn't stand a chance seeing that many of their brethren were completely slaughtered by this Pokemon alone and they didn't even have the energy to put up a fight. They snarled at Gardevoir threateningly, trying to make themselves look as big as possible, though the Psychic could read their intentions and still acted in spite of their warnings.

They shivered in fear as they saw some sort of blue aura surround their bodies. They quickly closed their eyes awaiting the end...but the end never came they slowly opened their eyes and were shocked to see that their injuries all over their bodies had completely healed not one scratch could be found. They looked up to the Psychic Pokemon in confusion and it simply smiled back.

As Gardevoir returned to its trainer, Cynthia lulled her head back and sighed, preparing for what came next. "This'll be fun," She said sarcastically. Looking down at Garchomp, she ordered, "Bring me closer to them."

Garchomp nodded his head in affirmation."Chomp Chomp Garchomp!" The Dragon Pokemon slowly started walking towards the group of ultra beasts with Cynthia in tow. The Ultra Beasts tensed up for what they thought was coming their shock the Sinnoh champion merely held up a hand towards them. The beasts tilted their heads in confusion until she then started pointing towards the massive Guzzlord and made what looked like a parting motion with her hands repeatedly .

They stared at the champion for a long time contemplating what she was trying to tell them until the roach beast that had the nasty cut from earlier perked up with a thought. It turned to the other beasts and explained that she was trying to tell them to part from Guzzlord so they don't get harmed by any attacks, explaining to them that the Champions likely had some kind of plan.

At hearing that the beasts became even more confused, why would their enemies be even remotely concerned for their safety not even five minutes ago they were ruthlessly fighting to the death. Even though they had temporarily declared a truce, who was to say that they wouldn't just turn on them again after Guzzlord was defeated. They were invaders after all, and this planet's natives had sustained heavy losses.

The roach continued chittering with the other beasts in its odd alien language. Diantha noticed that her Gardevoir was attempting to read their minds to decipher what they were saying, though from its expression… "No luck, huh?" Gardevoir sighed, shaking its head.

The roach suddenly turned toward Guzzlord and it, along with the other beasts, rocketed toward the swarm at breakneck speeds. When they got close, the roach let loose a very loud chittering screeching sound which caused many of the Ultra Beasts to stop attacking the colossus for the moment and turn their heads back and look at it.

It, along with the other beasts the Champions had saved, from what they could understand, began speaking to the other beasts, and anxiously awaited what was to come from this interaction. After what seemed like a minute of the Roach beast trying to explain what the trainers had in mind the swarm looked towards the champions and nodded. They all quickly started to pile off of Guzzlord giving the Champions their chance to strike. Now that their window was open, the crown was revealed, and they quickly ordered their Pokemon to attack.

"Finally!" Roared Lance. "Dragonite, Hyper Beam"

"Metagross, Flash Cannon!"

"Milotic, use Hydro Pump!"

"Volcarona, my friend, let's finish this with Bug Buzz!"

Diantha wordlessly blinked at Gardevoir, who nodded and raised its arms, creating a massive Moonblast over its head and throwing it down toward the crown with the rest of the attacks.

Cynthia smirked. "Special moves, huh?" She crouched down, patting Garchomp's head. "Garchomp and I prefer things up close and personal. Now, burst right through that crown with Dragon Rush!"

The five elemental attacks from the Champions raced down at the crown with immense power. So much so that the nearby beasts, despite being nowhere near them, were nearly dragged along with them. The crown noticed an odd light and turned toward it. Its eyes shot open once it saw the approaching attacks, and Guzzlord itself tilted its head up to stop them. However, it wasn't fast enough.

The Champions' power crashed into the crown at full force, eliciting an unbearably loud cry of pain from it that nearly deafened the nearby trainers and beasts. Waves of crackling plasma were sent in all directions, scorching the land and skies. Guzzlord stretched its massive mouth, preparing some kind of attack as it screamed. That scream was cut off by Cynthia, who, alongside Garchomp, barreled straight through the crown and landed back on the ground behind it.

Guzzlord was rendered frozen stiff, only being able to occasionally twitch. Its bright blue eyes went wide, slowly inching them to look up to its crown. The ornament on its head barely existed anymore, with a massive hole having been punched through it thanks to the Champions' efforts. The hole occasionally sparked from the lingering energy before letting loose a violent explosion that destroyed the crown for good.

The colossus threw its head back, wildly flailing its tendrils and smashing the ground as it let loose an agonized wail. The nearby trainers were forced to flee for their lives to avoid its wild thrashing. Slowly, it came to a stop and turned its head toward Cynthia and Garchomp. Its blue eyes narrowed at her, and with speeds that caught everyone off guard, it fully whipped around and the tendril closest to Cynthia descended upon her.

Elsewhere, May and Max looked on at the beast from the back lines. Frowning, May remarked, "Even the Champions couldn't take it down… Without Jirachi's wishes, this thing is going to be tough to beat. I doubt that Blaziken would even have any effect." She quickly looked up at her starter Pokemon apologetically. "N-no offense."

Her Blaziken simply shrugged indignantly, though its pride had taken a bit of a blow. Jirachi shrunk slightly as well, saddened at its inability to do more. "I'm sorry…"

Max crouched down by its side, smiling at her reassuringly. "Aw, don't worry, Jirachi! Even though your wishes don't work on it, I'm sure everyone else is trying real hard!"

"I'm not so sure about that."

The two trainers and Jirachi turned around, finding none other than Paul. His cold stare made Jirachu's skin crawl. "What do you mean by that?" Asked May. "You don't think we stand a chance?"

Paul shook his head. "No- well, yes, actually." He looked up at Guzzlord, or rather the Champions sans Cynthia. "Seeing as not even those six could take it down and the rest of the Legends are off fighting Necrozma himself, I think our chances are slim."

May resisted the urge to scoff. "What, is that all you had to say?"

Once again, the purple-haired trainer shook his head. "Initially, I was referring to Jirachi."

Max looked down at the aforementioned Legend by his side. "Jirachi? What do you mean?"

"I mean that Jirachi's wishes aren't useless just because they can't directly affect Guzzlord," Replied Paul flatly. "Just think about it. There are infinite possibilities for wishes, and you just give up on using them because they can't kill or transport it?"

May tilted her head at him incredulously. "What are you getting at?"

"Oh for the love of-" Paul closed his eyes, forcing himself not to plant his face in his hands. Ignoring May, he stomped over to Jirachi. The Wish Pokemon's eyes widened, having been immensely intimidated by him. It instinctively backed away from Paul, but the trainer approached faster than it could flee. "Hey you," Said Paul abruptly, "Wish away the ground beneath one of Guzzlord's feet, will you? About to the point that half of its body would get submerged, but not anything more or less."

Jirachi reeled in shock at the trainer's sudden request, but decided to comply nevertheless. It hastily turned around and closed its eyes to prepare for the wish. A bright whitish-blue aura surrounded it before disappearing completely and, when its eyes next opened, May, Max and Paul heard a distressed shriek from the colossal beast.

When they looked up at it, they, along with the other trainers who chattered amongst themselves over what they were seeing, found Guzzlord half-sunken into the ground and squirming desperately to get out. Upon falling, its tendril was yanked away with it before it could bite down on Cynthia. It shrieked and whined as it ate the ground it was trapped in, not realizing with its limited mental capacity that it was only digging itself deeper and making its situation worse by doing so.

Paul's expression softened in satisfaction, though the difference was barely visible. "So, that one worked."

Without saying anything else, Paul began to make his way toward Guzzlord when Max suddenly stepped into his way, looking far from pleased. "Hey, you!" He shouted. "So, you just scare Jirachi into making a wish and then leave without even thanking her?!"

"Listen brat," Snapped Paul, "I don't have time for this. Every second we waste is another second that thing has to get out of that hole, so get out of my way."

He took out a Pokeball and threw it over Max's head. "Ninjask, stand by for battle!" The Pokeball let loose the Bug-Type Pokemon, Ninjask, who fluttered in the air by its trainers' side upon being released. "Ninjask, go find some of those flat-looking Ultra Beasts and lure them toward Guzzlord. You should easily be able to figure out what to do next."

Ninjask nodded hastily and zipped away toward the main swarm of beasts. Paul was about to step around Max and make his way toward the colossal beast when, to his chagrin, yet another annoyance stopped him in the form of May who asked, "Wait, why didn't you just make the entire ground disappear beneath it?"

Paul whipped around, having long since lost his already normally-thin patience. "If I did that, where do you think it would end up?"

"Uh...underground."

"The core, you moron!" He roared, making May and Max flinch. "Were you even paying attention to what Necrozma said about this thing? It eats entire planets, for crying out loud! If it got to the core, it would probably take it only an hour, and that's being generous, to completely eat away at it!"

He turned back away from them, pointing at the hole he'd trapped Guzzlord in. "Look there. With the way I had Jirachi erase the ground, Guzzlord is only halfway stuck, and what's more, it's positioned in such a way that eating its way out will be awkward and difficult for it to do without digging itself deeper." He next pointed at the trainers and wild Pokemon closest to Guzzlord. They had already seized the opportunity to attack. "This gives us time to act, as those trainers who are clearly smarter than you two have already figured out."

He stormed away, muttering, "Next time, stay out of my way," under his breath, leaving May, Max and Jirachi completely stunned.

Ninjask, meanwhile, set off to complete its mission. Though Paul had certainly become kinder to it and the rest of his team after his loss to Ash at the Lily of the Valley conference, Paul's strictness was still well intact. Failing him would not end pretty. The scolding it would receive for disappointing him sent shivers down the Bug Pokemon's spine.

With its immense speed, it quickly bridged the gap between itself and the nearest paper beast, slapping it upside the head with one of its front claws the second it came close. The beast whipped around, rubbing its now-aching head and glaring at Ninjask. It raved and hissed at the Pokemon, and though Ninjask hadn't a clue as to what exactly it was saying, it wasn't hard to tell that it was demanding to know why it had been stricken.

Ninjask's response was to hit it with another False Swipe and quickly zip out of harm's way once the small beast retaliated with the swipe of its razor-sharp arm. Hissing at Ninjask, the beast flew toward it. Ninjask flew away, and the beast gave chase.

The Bug Pokemon went around from paper beast to paper beast, repeating what it had done in the first place with every one it found. Soon enough, it had a miniature army of them flying behind it, all grinding their arms together to prepare to slice Ninjask to ribbons. That only made Ninjask's job easier. The sharper their arms were, the better.

The non-paper beasts looked on, having absolutely no idea what was going on with the cloud of paper beasts. It looked dire for Ninjask, but its Speed Boost ability combined with Agility let it move at lightning fast speeds or even faster. The only reason it looked as if the beasts were catching up was because Ninjask was letting them do so.

Once Ninjask was satisfied with the number of paper beasts it had on its tail, it swerved around toward Guzzlord with them quickly following in hot pursuit. The other beasts, seeing the cloud of paper ones approaching, quickly flew out of the way for fear of being sliced apart. Ninjask zipped up to the base of one of Guzzlord's tendrils, turned around to look up at the furious paper beasts, and waited.

Not even five seconds went by until the massive swarm of paper beasts blotted out the sky right over Guzzlord and made a mad rush right at Ninjask. The Bug Pokemon hunched over and flapped its wings spastically. The paper beasts stopped just before Ninjask, raised their arms, and slashed. Ninjask evaded the attacks with its immense speed, disappearing from sight in an instant.

The combined slicing attack from the paper beasts cleaved straight through Guzzlord's right tendril, severing it. The colossal beast howled in an agony nearly as great as what it felt when its crown was destroyed. It attempted to thrash about due to its pain, but its left tendril was already mostly crushed against the ground it was trapped in, and thus could scarcely move. The right tendril flopped around uselessly on the ground, though it nearly ended up crushing the nearby trainers who frantically fled from it.

Ninjask, as nothing more than a blur, appeared by its trainer's side once more, now adorning a satisfied expression on its face. Paul turned his head to the side, covering a smile with his fist. "Good work," Commended Paul, returning Ninjask to its Pokeball, "You take a rest for now."

"That was some strategy," Applauded Serena, walking up to him alongside her team.

Paul was about to reply, but whatever he was about to say was cut short when he saw the state Serena was in. Her clothes were shredded, littered with claw marks all over. She appeared to have burn and dust marks all across her body as well. This was shared with her Pokemon, but despite this, Serena adorned a bright grin.

"...What the hell happened to you?"

The bluntness of that question made Serena laugh. "Well, getting caught in the middle of a beast swarm would do that to you." She looked over at Guzzlord. "Luckily for me, they seem to be occupied with that huge one over there now, so I've been spending the last half-hour resting, though…" She looked down at her tattered clothes, giggling in slight embarrassment. "...I'm gonna need one heck of a shower after this…"

Paul sighed, only being able to shake his head at her. "Well, I guess it's your lucky day, then. Guzzlord is trapped, and one of those tentacle things it uses to eat has been cut off, thanks to me, so that just leaves Necro-"

Their conversation was cut short when the ground beneath their feet began trembling violently. "W-what the-" Cried Paul. "What's happening?!"

Guzzlord let loose its most violent roar yet, one that uprooted the ground around it and sent the closest trainers to it flying, as well as shattering their eardrums. It was lucky that the friends of Ash had already distanced themselves from it in the wake of the paper beast cloud, or else they'd have been deafened or worse.

Those who were not quick enough had their bodies sprawled across the ground at best, and crumpled like a metal can from the sheer force of the roar at worst. The stub where its right tendril used to be began twitching, and suddenly, a mass of black, bubbling flesh began crawling up into the air from it. Eventually, the bubbling flesh melted off, falling to the ground and melting through it like acid. Another tendril had been formed, and a mouth emerged from its tip soon afterwards.

Paul's eyes shot wide. "N-no," He stammered in disbelief. "It can regenerate?!"

Serena's jaw dropped. "Can this thing...even be killed…?"

Guzzlord dug its tendrils into the ground around it, managing to free its left one by tearing it off against the surrounding ground and generating a new one. It squirmed against the hole violently, trying desperately to pull itself out. It eventually stopped shaking itself against the walls of the hole and went stiff. Slowly, it opened its jagged maw more and more, to the point that loud cracks, presumably from the bones in its jaw being snapped, were heard all across the battlefield.

The blue glow from its eyes and mouth disappeared, being replaced by a harrowing fiery red. Crimson sparks of plasma appeared and disappeared all across Guzzlord's body, scattering themselves. They eventually crawled up its tentacles and into the mouths on each one where they formed into massive balls of energy. Another one that was utterly colossal in scope began forming in Guzzlord's main mouth as well.

Rayquaza halted his battle with Necrozma for the moment, sensing the incredible energy welling up within Guzzlord. He turned away from the dark demon and toward the colossal beast. His eyes wide, he asked, "Wh-what is...what is this power?!"

Necrozma looked past Rayquaza at Guzzlord and chuckled. "My, my. For Guzzlord to be resorting to using this...those peons must have truly angered it…"

To Rayquaza, this threat was now far too great for the humans to deal with alone. He coated himself in the emerald light of Dragon Ascent, crouching his body like a spring about to launch himself at Guzzlord when a translucent wall appeared in his way. Rayquaza looked around for a way to go around it, but it reached out in every direction as far as the eye could see.

Behind him, Necrozma floated down with his index finger outstretched. "Ah, ah, ah… Don't forget, worm, that your quarrel is with me."

Seemingly materializing from thin air, red rings of energy continuously closed in on the massive ball within Guzzlord's throat, making its size increase greatly with every passing second. It became so grand in size that Guzzlord's jaw began tearing as it stretched to accommodate it. The heat around the colossal beast increased drastically as well, making the earth surrounding it swelter and melt. The bodies of the trainers, their Pokemon and the beasts that had already fallen burst into flames before swifty being reduced to blackened ashes that blew away in the wind.

A low, growling noise escaped Guzzlord's throat, as did the high-pitched whistling that came with the very molecules that comprised the oxygen being burned to a crisp from its heat. That low growl escalated in pitch gradually as the beast craned its head toward the sky. The plasma surrounding it became more frequent, eventually becoming a literal storm that ripped through anything it touched.

A blinding flash of light ensued, and the ball of energy erupted into the sky in the form of a massive laser. Instantaneously, it crashed into the underside of the ship and sent an explosion outward in all directions. The shockwave from it dwarfed anything Guzzlord had done previously in terms of raw destructive might, obliterating everything it touched. The trainers stared up at it in horror, knowing they would never be able to escape it. Their Pokemon released themselves from their Pokeballs and forced their trainers to the ground, using their bodies to protect them.

Noivern's eyes went wide, still carrying Pikachu and Greninja on its back, as it saw the impending blast, and turned on its heel to fly away. However, it wasn't fast enough. Infernape, still blinded by its rage alongside the effects of Blaze, swung wildly at the air and ground. It ruthlessly attacked any beasts it saw, even when they went to fight Guzzlord, but now that they were gone...all it could do was rage. But that rage dissipated once its eyes landed upon the shockwave. The rest of Ash's Pokemon embraced one another, with the larger shielding the smaller ones.

Then, as the shockwave approached, everything went white.


A chokingly-thick layer of dark black smoke covered the battlefield, blotting out any light that the mothership's underside gave off. The only source of light was fire. And that fire was everywhere. It dotted the entire landscape, only adding further to the plume of all-consuming smoke. The crackling of the fire was what woke the first survivors.

One by one, trainers and their Pokemon began steadily rising from the ground, though their movements were groggy and rigid. At first, all was silent, but then the screams filled the air. Many trainers had their arms or legs bent out of shape. Some even had scathing burn marks adorning their bodies. They wailed in agony, snapping the other trainers out from their dazes and stupors...which allowed them to see the bodies…

Scattered across the ground were those who didn't make it; those who had nothing to shield themselves from the blast, or those or chose to shield their Pokemon instead. There were, of course, the charred corpses of the loyal Pokemon who had nobly guarded their beloved trainers and friends with their lives, making the ultimate sacrifice for that which they loved.

What was the reward for that loyalty? To have their corpses strewn about, many in more than one piece, or engulfed in the flames to be slowly reduced to nothing. That was the fate for many unlucky trainers as well. The beasts, however, hadn't been so lucky. Most of them were up close to Guzzlord, constantly attacking it, so when it fired the blast...they were all gone in an instant. Of course, there were some that had gotten far enough that their bodies were still recognizable.

The few beasts who were lucky enough to survive woke up alongside the remaining people and Pokemon. It didn't take long before their horrified shrieks filled the air as well. They ran to the sides of their fallen brethren, while others were left in a state of frozen shock. Their reaction was, oddly enough, very similar to their enemies'.

Man and beast alike pulled at the bodies of their loved ones, desperately trying to awaken them from their eternal slumber without success. Together, they were frozen in horror at the hellscape before them. Together, they screamed in agony and terror as a result of their disfiguring injuries. Together, they wept for those they had lost. Everyone was a victim of war. Everyone was forced to either witness death, or experience it.

The Legends watched on in horror. "It's...it's horrible!" Cried Reshiram.

Kyurem nodded and rasped out, "I was never particularly fond of humans after the separation, but this is…" The ice dragon looked over to Keldeo and asked, "Are you sure you want to watch this?"

To Kyurem's surprise, Keldeo nodded. He looked upon the fires and death with those of his own in his eyes. "I do. I'll burn this memory into my mind, and scour Necrozma from this world!"

"It...should never have come to this," Mewtwo uttered underneath his breath. Like Kyurem, humans were a mixed bag for him. They could be pure, irredeemable evil like his creators, or pure of heart like Ash and his friends. But he could not wish this upon even the likes of Giovanni.

Lugia glared darkly at the gruesome sight. "I've seen my fair share of wars," He said. "Wars between man and man, man and Pokemon, and Pokemon and Pokemon...but sights like this...never get any easier to see." He next turned that glare up to the smokey sky, narrowing his eyes. 'Just where the hell are you, Arceus?!'

"Necrozma...will pay for this!" Roared Rayquaza. "I swear to you, Pokemon and humans! I will avenge you, and save those who yet live!" He declared this not only for his pride as a Legend, but he couldn't help but to feel an unshakable guilt. Had he not called the Legends back, then...

Xerneas nodded. "I must go to them. I cannot save those who have fallen, but I can at least save those who aren't yet!"

"CURSE THIS WALL!" Roared Palkia, sending another Spatial Rend at it to try and pierce through Necrozma's trap. Unfortunately, it had no effect, and somehow, the wall was able to stop Palkia from warping through space to go through.

Dialga bowed his head, shaking it. "There is nothing we can do for the moment, save continuing the battle. If we can at least weaken him, perhaps we may break this wall and save those on the other side."

"Indeed," Spoke Necrozma, making the Legends turn back toward him with savage glares planted upon their faces. Ignoring it, the demon continued. "Though I no longer have my fleet, I can at least threaten the remaining fodder. I wonder how long they will survive? I can assure you that there won't be any at the pace you're going."

Bonnie's eyes slowly fluttered open. Her vision was blurry, and her mind was fuzzy. The young girl wasn't able to comprehend what was happening at first, only blinking upon her basic instincts. The first thing she saw was her father hunched over her, embracing her in his arms. Her head slowly tilted to the side, and she saw the flames.

A sudden cough escaped her throat, courtesy of the smoke, and she jerked backwards. The suddenness of the cough caused her to snap back to reality, and she let out a small gasp once she remembered Guzzlord's blast. "D-dad...you saved me!" A bright smile crawled up Bonnie's face, and she let out a small ecstatic laugh. "I love you, da-" She went to hug her father's arm, but upon doing so, caused his body to collapse to her side.

Bonnie's eyes went wide. "Wha-?! Dad-" The light in her eyes drained away in an instant as her, Blaziken Mask, fell onto the ground beside her. The back of his suit had been burned away, revealing his charred, blackened skin. His body didn't move at all, and his eyes were dark. His face was contorted into one that conveyed intense suffering, but he had stuck it out to save his beloved daughter.

"No…" Whispered the girl, too young to even begin to properly be able to process something like this.. "No…!" She crouched over her father's body, desperately shaking him with her frail little arms. "Dad, wake up! This...this isn't funny!" Tears quickly trailed down the young girl's face, leaking down onto Meyer's charred back. The impact of those tears caused a sizzling noise as well as a small trail of steam to rise up.

Serena's body laid on the ground, sprawled out on her front amidst her other Pokemon who had tried to protect her. After a few moments, she twitched and let out a pained groan, as did the rest of her Pokemon.

After groggily pushing herself back to her feet, she shook away her daze and blinked away her grogginess. She was quickly snapped out of it by Pangoro, who happily snatched her up in his arms, earning a laugh from her. The rest of her team eagerly joined the embrace.

"I'm so glad you're alright!" Chirped Serena happily. Though, that elation soon faded when she looked past her Pokemon out at the fiery desolate battlefield. Her team noticed this shortly afterwards, mirroring their trainer's expression.

"What…" Uttered Serena under her breath, "What is this…? What happened?!"

"Guzzlord happened," Groaned Paul.

Serena snapped her gaze over toward his voice. "Paul!" She cried, "You're okay!"

The purple-haired trainer was clutching at his side and being supported by his Electivire. The rest of his team was following close behind. "Yeah…" He looked up at the Pokemon at his side. "Thanks to them, I got lucky."

"You're hurt," Serena pointed out, walking toward him. Paul held up his hand to stop her.

"Don't concern yourself with me," He told her, "I just had a rough landing. Probably hit a rock or something when I got knocked down." He chuckled dryly, tilting his head toward his team. "Would have been way worse if not for them…"

Serena nodded silently. "That's good…" She looked away from him out toward the flames. The smoke was so thick that they couldn't see anyone else. "I hope everyone else is alright…"

"...We were lucky enough to be the furthest from Guzzlord," Paul said under his breath, "And I doubt many others share that luck…"

Having been knocked to the ground by the explosion, Cynthia awoke to her ever-loyal Garchomp leaning over her to protect her. Cynthia herself let out a half-choked shrill gasp. Her eyes went wide, and her entire body began to tremble. "Garchomp...Garchomp, no!"

A metal spire, kicked up by the explosion, had pierced straight through her Garchomp's back, impaling the land shark Pokemon. On top of that, just like with Blaziken Mask, the Pokemon's backside was completely charred black. The explosion would have pushed the spire straight through Garchomp and into Cynthia, but her lifelong partner had used its last moment to grip it, holding it in place so that it could not hurt her, and it died standing on its feet to protect Cynthia.

"GAAAARCHOOOOOOOOOOMP!"

Gary's eyes slowly opened to all the fire and smoke surrounding him and he was shocked, all around him trainers and their Pokemon alike lay dead. The horrible smell of burning flesh ruthlessly attacked at his nose. "H-how...what…?!"

His gaze shifted around himself, eventually landing it upon a small, black figure underneath a large stone. "What is…?" Curiously, he slowly approached it, and he let out a sharp gasp once he saw what it was.

"Umbreon!"

With great haste, he took out Umbreon's Pokeball and returned it before letting it out once more at his feet. Kneeling down, he reached for his medicine bag, only to feel nothing. "What?!" In a panic, he reached all around himself, trying to feel for what was no longer there. He then looked back at where he initially woke up in the hopes that he would find it.

He ran from Umbreon's side for the moment in a desperate attempt to locate his bag, scrambling from place to place, upturning rocks to see if it was buried and more, to no avail. Of course, he wasn't about to give up on it that easily. He took out the rest of his Pokeballs, unleashing his team all at once. "We need to find my bag!" He cried. "Umbreon's life depends on it! Don't come back until it's found!"

His Pokemon saluted and ran off in opposite directions to locate their master's bag. Gary, meanwhile, went back to Umbreon's side, sat down, and gently held his beloved Pokemon in his arms. "Hang in there," He cried. "Everyone else will be back before you know it, and then we'll be able to fix those wounds!"

He caressed Umbreon's head with his hand, running it down along its back with a smile. The Eeveelution didn't respond, or even move. "It'll be alright," He assured Umbreon, though at this point, he didn't really know if he was reassuring Umbreon or himself. "It'll be fine! We've gotten out of worse scrapes than this, right?"

Gary's smile faded when he felt something wet on his hand, and when he turned his hand around to look at it, his blood ran cold. It was painted red, and the red liquid dripped freely from his hand, meaning it was fresh. The wounds Umbreon had sustained back in Route 1's forest had re-opened, as well as many more it had sustained.

"No...NO!" Gary quickly took off his shirt and pressed it onto Umbreon's wound to stop the bleeding, then craned his head back around as far as he could and called, "HEY, GUYS, WE NEED THAT BAG, NOW!"

He waited for a response from his Pokemon, but apparently, they had already traversed so far that they were no longer with earshot. Cursing, Gary turned back around and called again, "HEY! I NEED HELP NOW! ANYONE, PLEASE, MY UMBREON NEEDS HELP! ANYONE, PLEASE!" For nearly half an hour, Gary called out to any potential nearby survivor for aid, but received no response from either his own Pokemon nor anyone else. But even when Gary's throat became unbearably sore, and his voice became nothing more than an exasperated whisper, he kept calling in the hopes that someone, anyone, would hear.

For if no help came, Umbreon was lost.

"Hey...please...any-hrrk!" Gary doubled over, letting loose a severe cough. When it was finally finished, he looked upon the hand he coughed into and found his own blood. He'd been yelling for so long that his body coughed it up in an attempt to get him to stop. Gary bared his teeth furiously, and whipped his hand through the air to get rid of the crimson liquid.

"HEY!" He roared in spite of his body's warnings. "I NEED HELP! IF ANYONE IS OUT THERE, PLEASE GET HERE QUICKLY! MY UMBREON'S LIFE IS IN DANGER!"

Even after pushing past his bodily limitations to call out one last time, there was no answer. It seemed, to him, that no one had survived Guzzlord's blast, and he was regretting telling his team not to come back until they found the bag. At this point, it probably wouldn't have even helped. He noticed that his shirt had become completely dyed in black, and when he lifted it back up, it was vastly heavier and soaked to the brim. It was useless now.

Umbreon no longer bled, at least, though at this point, it didn't matter. He violently tossed away the soaked shirt, letting out a cry of rage, and looked down upon his Pokemon's body. Come to think of it, Umbreon hadn't moved once since he'd gotten it out from underneath that rock. It hadn't even breathed. Looking up at the rock, Gary asked, "...You took that shot for me, didn't you? When the blast hit, you pushed me out of the way of that rock, didn't you?!"

Gary angrily pounded his fist into the ground beside Umbreon's body. A lone tear fell onto the ground next to its head. "Didn't you?! Why?!" He shook his head viciously as more tears freely flowed, as if trying to deny what had happened. "Why...why did you do that?! You weren't even supposed to battle anymore, let alone do something as dumb as that!"

Of course, Gary received no answer, and was left to cry alone over the body of his friend.

"Hey, Steelix, stay with me!"

Brock gently caressed the colossal steel snake Pokemon's head, rubbing underneath its eye. Steelix had managed to Mega Evolve in order to save its trainer, now sporting black burn marks all over its left side to prove it. It let out a pained groan and tried to move, then hissed when the pain increased drastically.

Brock attempted to hold it steady. "Hey, hey," Cooed the Pokemon breeder, "Don't move too much. You just gotta sit easy for a while, and everything will be fine."

Steelix let out a low moan, rolling onto its side as its body relaxed on its own. Brock could see its eyes beginning to grey, and quickly pushed his face into Steelix's to stop what was happening. "Hey, hey!" He snapped his fingers up next to Steelix's eye to keep it awake "I'm sure help will come soon, so-"

The snake Pokemon lulled its head backwards, and its eye slowly began to close. Brock forcibly held it open and yelled, "Don't you dare sleep, Steelix! Just stay awake until we get help, then you can sleep all you like!" The life in Steelix's eyes quickly faded, losing their color with each passing second. Brock continued frantically yelling to stop it from happening, but at that point, all Steelix heard was fuzzy mumbling. It seemed...so tired… Everything has become...quiet...and dark…

"Steeeeeliiii…"

That was the last thing the proud Steel-Type heard before everything went black.

"You...you idiot!" Cried Misty, collapsing onto her knees. Beneath her was the motionless body of Psyduck, or rather, Golduck. When Guzzlord had unleashed its blast, the sheer volume of the sound had given Psyduck its most agonizing migraine yet, causing it to evolve into Golduck. Its newfound Psychic powers, combined with the headache, allowed it to shield Misty and the rest of her Pokemon.

However, in doing so, the strain caused its mind to literally collapse in on itself, killing Golduck instantaneously. Its last act was to save Misty, in spite of the way she had treated it. Misty had allowed Golduck to travel the world, and she had put up with its shenanigans where other trainers would have abandoned it long ago.

"Get up, you dummy, get up!"

May and Max, upon seeing the approaching blast, uselessly raised the arms to defend themselves upon some kind of base instinct. Only minutes later did they dare to open their eyes, finding that they had been encased by a white barrier of sorts.

"What is this?" Asked an awed Max.

He received a response when the barrier faded, and Jirachi slowly sank to the ground at their feet. "Jirachi!" The two cried, rushing to its aid. A frantic Max asked, "Are you okay?!"

To their relief, the Wish Pokemon nodded, albeit it was clear that doing so took some great effort in and of itself. "I'm fine," Replied Jirachi, wiping at her eye and yawning, "Just...tired…"

May sighed, standing back to her full height. "That's a reli-" It was then she saw the destruction, and Max did as well. Their eyes widened, and they recoiled in shock ."What happened?! Don't tell me...Guzzlord did this!?"

Once more, Jirachi nodded. "I didn't have enough power to save everyone...nor could I stop the attack." She looked up at the two of them with shimmering eyes. "So...I wished for the safety of you…"

Max tilted his head. "The safety of us? What about…" His blood suddenly ran cold as he realized the implications of what he was about to ask. "What about everyone else, Jirachi?!" He asked, crouching back down to her side. "Is everyone else safe?!"

Jirachi stared at him blankly for a moment that seemed agonizingly slow for the young boy, then finally, closing her eyes, answered, "...No…" and a tear ran down her cheek.

Mesprit held a bright pink barrier around itself, as well as Dawn and her Pokemon team. However, keeping the barrier in place quickly became too strenuous, and it shattered like glass. It fluttered unsteadily back to the ground just outside the circle of Pokemon, where it collapsed from exhaustion. Dawn's Piplup rushed over to it to make sure it was okay, which thankfully, it was.

The Guardian of Lake Verity was still breathing, and appeared to simply be resting after having successfully defended Dawn and her Pokemon from Guzzlord's attack. Piplup sighed in relief and looked back at Dawn. Somehow, she was still asleep even after all that, which was worrying. She was breathing, which set Piplup's and the rest of Dawn's Pokemon's minds at ease, if only a little.

Though wobbly in its movements, Mesprit rose once more to overlook the battlefield, or what remained of it. Its tie to emotions was, at times, a burden. Now, it felt like a curse. The frantic emotions of rage, sorrow and everything in between raged all over the battlefield, and Mesprit felt every last bit of it. It was nigh unbearable. This war could not go on any longer.

Noivern hastily pushed itself off the ground the moment it reawakened to make sure Pikachu and Greninja were alright. It turned its head in every direction, scanning its surroundings and eventually finding the yellow mouse standing atop a boulder that had been lodged into the ground. Beside him, Grenina was crouched down, staring at something. Their expressions were dark, and their faces covered in shadow.

"Vern, Noivern!" It chirped happily. All it cared about was that its friends were alright. It flapped its wings, leaping into the air and flying toward its friends with a bright smile on its face.

That smile was erased the second it saw what they were looking at.

As Noivern landed upon the rock behind its friends, it bore witness to a horrific sight. Apparently, the rest of Ash's Pokemon, barring Infernape, had stuck together after his apparent death...and not many, if any, survived by the looks of it.

Kingler was burnt to a literal crisp, looking akin to an ashen-black stature frozen in time, its back turned away from the blast zone. Next to Kingler, there was a large puddle of bubbling purple ooze. At its center appeared to be two eyes and a mouth, both burned black and appearing to be wearing an expression of utter horror, now etched into its remains for all eternity.

Charizard was hunched over Bulbasaur and Totodile, and though the fiery dragon Pokémon's tail was still alit, its blackened back suggested that things hadn't gone well for it. None of the three moved.

Snorlax was stood up on his feet, standing tall over Buizel and Bayleef's bodies. Though there were no apparent markings on the two small Pokemon, they laid flat on the ground, completely motionless. Snorlax was covered from head to toe in the black burns, much like the rest of Ash's Pokemon. In spite of its normal apathetic attitude and laziness, Snorlax stayed on its feet to defend its friends.

Heracross was bent backwards at an unnatural angle, coated completely in hardened black ash. What was once its mighty horn, as well as its pride, had been snapped off and likely reduced to dust, as it was nowhere to be found.

Donphan was knocked onto its side, though unfortunately for the poor Pokemon, the way it had been knocked down left its unarmored stomach vulnerable to the flames. It lied on the ground, unmoving. Behind it was Quilava. Its own flames ceased to be, and Donphan's body had only marginally protected it.

Torkoal and Corphish remained petrified, coated in the black fallout. One of Corphish's legs had gotten caught in two stones. They reached out toward one another. It looked as if Torkoal had tried to use its body to protect Corphish, but it wasn't fast enough.

The only remains of Glalie were its two horns that sat lying on the ground against one another. They were chipped and cracked in certain areas, and the tip of one of them had broken off completely. The rest of its body had likely been melted or incinerated due to its typing.

Sceptile appeared to have been blown back several feet by the initial shockwave, and his body landed in between two large, jagged stones that jutted up from the ground. Though it had very few burn marks, its body was littered with large bruises and crimson scrapes all over. Blood pooled out from its body, leaking down from the jagged stones. It was already dry, and had apparently been for a long time.

Toterra's charred corpse stood over the bodies of Gible and Scraggy, protecting the two from the impact. The greenery on its back was burnt away, still flaming even now. Its legs were charred in a way that kept it standing, even in death.

Boldore's petrified body truly showcased the devastating force of Guzzlord's blast. A few feet away from it were three holes, likely where it had attempted to bury its feet in the ground to weather the explosion. Considering it was now several feet away from those holes, bent sideways under the force of the blast, and overturned onto its back...its attempt was not successful.

Krookodile had been embedded into a rock spire. Its head was pointed toward the ground, and its arms were limp. Its new prized glasses, which were a symbol of Krookodile's pride, power and spirit...laid at its feet in a pile of shattered glass.

Goodra was the closest to the three, collapsed on the ground beneath them in a heap. Its body was half-melted, sitting in a puddle of its own gooey body. What remained of its face was frozen in wide-eyed horror.

Noctowl, Swellow, Staraptor, Gliscor, Unfezant, Oshawott, Pignite, Snivy, Leavanny, and Palpitoad were nowhere in sight. It was likely that they were either swept away by the intense wind, incinerated completely, or buried by the falling debris.

The bodies of the Tauros were strewn all around the rest of Ash's Pokemon. It was apparent that none of them had survived. They were mostly charred black like most others, though there were some that arguably looked worse. One had a gaping hole that caved into its side. It appeared to having been hit by molten shrapnel, as the hole was sizzling and black. Others had been sent flying, impacting various sharp debris and rocks or metal that literally tore them apart.

Noivern let out a shocked screech and leapt off of the rock. It approached Goodra's melted remains, hovering its wings over it apprehensively. It wasn't even sure if it should touch the puddle for fear of worsening it.

The wyvern managed to rid itself of its hesitation by forcing it to remember those who fell previously. Hawlucha, Talonflame...and Ash...Now so many more had been slain by Guzzlord. It wasn't about to let yet another friend die!

Digging its wings into the puddle, Noivern began scraping the half-liquified Goodra together in hopes that it would cause the gooey Pokemon to reform or regenerate—anything, really. Just so long as it didn't die.

The sludge of Goodra's melted form slid right off the solid part of its body, escaping underneath Noivern's wings or falling off the opposite side. It was as if the sludge was actively refusing to stick together.

Noivern hissed between its fangs, then craned its head up toward Pikachu and Greninja, who were still frozen in shock over the gruesome sight before them. It wasn't as if Noivern didn't feel as they did, no, it felt sick to its stomach! Even now, it was trembling uncontrollably, which was probably what allowed Goodra's melted form to slip by its wings.

But now was not the time to worry. If they stood by idly and did nothing, then yet another life would be lost! Noivern puffed out its chest and let loose a Boomburst up at the two, obliterating the rock they were standing on.

Pikachu and Greninja yelped, being forced to snap out of their daze in order to land back upon the ground. They flared at Noivern furiously until they saw Goodra's state and quickly ran over to them.

Greninja, knowing that Goodra's body relies on water, sprayed the sludge with Water Gun to make it more compact while Noivern continued attempting to scrape its body together. After nearly an hour of grueling work, they had successfully forced Goodra together once more.

However, it still didn't move. Noivern grabbed hold of its horns with its talons carefully, and flapped off of the ground to make Goodra's body stand. Though, the moment Noivern let go of Goodra's horns, it fell flat on its face with a splat.

Noivern perched itself, its ears curling downward in sadness. The thought that Goodra's heart or brain already melting away poked and prodded its way into Noivern's thoughts relentlessly. The wyvern Pokemon bowed its head, ready to give up when Pikachu stepped forward.

The yellow mouse Pokemon sparked its cheeks, releasing a Thunderbolt at Goodra's body...to no effect. He blinked, surprised, but tried again nonetheless. The second try failed as well. As did the third, and the fourth, and the fifth.

As Pikachu was forced to stop its sixth attempt to take in a gasp of air, he nearly collapsed then and there. Gritting his teeth, Ash's partner growled and let loose the seventh attempt. The tenth attempt failed, as did the fifteenth and the twentieth. Greninja and Noivern could only look on helplessly. They wanted desperately to help, but couldn't. A small sliver of them believed, far in the back of their minds, that it was futile.

After the thirty-second attempt at resurrecting Goodra, Pikachu's strength finally left him, and he fell forward. Greninja swiftly stepped in and caught him before he met the ground, and when Pikachu looked up at him weakly, Greninja shook his head.

Pikachu's eyes began to water. Gently, Greninja set him upright and let go, walking back to Noivern's side. The wyvern could tell that Greninja was putting up a brave face. Inwardly, he was hurting. Noivern itself was failing to suppress its own tears, no matter how frequently it wiped them away. It had failed to save a fourth friend.

The mouse Pokemon sparked its cheeks yet again, mustering what little power he had left...which wasn't much. Tiny, barely-visible bolts appeared over Pikachu's cheeks, and he used Thunderbolt again. Only now, it was so small and weak that it couldn't even be considered a Thunder Shock.

He eventually stopped the pathetic attack, looking up at the friend it couldn't help sorrowfully. Pikachu halfway turned around, glancing at Goodra one last time before he would leave it behind. There was nothing left he could do. They tried so hard to bring it back, but…

"DO NOT GIVE UP HOPE SO EASILY."

Pikachu, Noivern and Greninja jumped at the sudden sound of a loud, booming voice. They looked around for the source of it, then looked at each other to reassure themselves that they hadn't gone crazy. They were relieved when they saw each other's expressions.

A nearly-blinding white light exploded from Pikachu suddenly, making the three Pokemon cry out in shock. That light branched out into pale bolts of blasting electricity that, without Pikachu even commanding it, crashed into Goodra and created a massive pillar of light.

Greninja and Noivern were forced to shield their eyes. The light was overwhelming. When it faded, the three Pokemon heard a cough from behind them, and found Goodra doubled over in a severe coughing fit.

Crying their names, the three Pokemon rushed to its aid, holding the gooey Pokemon steady. Goodra looked around unsteadily, its vision wavering uncontrollably. The three managed to settle it on its behind, and began frantically asking if it was alright. Goodra replied with slurred, half-competent answers at times, or with confused stares with others.

Pikachu blinked suddenly, and turned around. He could have sworn he felt something behind him, but there was nothing there. In the back of his mind at its farthest reaches, he heard a voice.

"THERE ARE YET MORE AMONG YOU THAT HAVE SURVIVED. FIND THEM, AND HOLD STEADY FOR THE TIME BEING. AID WILL ARRIVE SOON ENOUGH."

Bonnie knelt over her father for over an hour, letting her tears flow freely. There came a point when she literally had no tears left to cry, and dissolved into simple dry whimpering. After what felt like an eternity, the young girl finally raised her head and scanned her surroundings only to see her brother Clemont lying on the ground with Blaziken covering him with his own body.

"C-Clemont!" She yelped, shakily pushing herself to her feet and rushing to his side. With some effort, she managed to push him onto his back to check if he was breathing. After nearly a minute of anxious waiting, she saw his chest heave on its own, and let out a sigh of relief. She also checked him over for injuries and, luckily, found none.

The same could not be said for her father's Blaziken, however. It had since reverted to its normal state, and had the same blackened, ash-like burn marks running up the entirety of its backside. Bonnie assumed that Blaziken had jumped in the way of Clemont and took the full brunt of the attack, and unfortunately paid the price.

She would have likely cried over its death as well, and who could blame her? Despite her normally-arrogant attitude, she was still a little girl. A child, who had been thrust into the middle of war, and only now realized what that entailed. However, her father had already left her emotionally drained and tired. She didn't know what to do or what to think, if there was even anything to do.

Then, the ground quaked. She quickly looked around to find the source of the quake but there was so much smoke that doing so was impossible. Bonnie started to shake Clemont to wake him but he didn't grabbed hold of his suit by its shoulder and grabbed him in an attempt to drag him away, but her feeble little arms couldn't do it.

The quaking started to become more violent, as well as frequent, and Bonnie started shaking here brother even harder. "Clemont please I already lost dad I don't wanna lose you too, get up!" Her desperate cries fell on deaf ears. This went on for a minute until the quaking suddenly stopped. Bonnie looked around in confusion until her blood ran cold. Not even twenty feet away from where she and her brother were sitting was big blue glowing eyes watching her from the shadows.

They were absolutely massive, and though Bonnie knew this beast was enormous, it wasn't until now, when it was as close as it was, that she truly realized its scope. She wasn't even the size of an ant in comparison. Its gaze left her paralyzed, and she could only gape up at it in horror. The eyes flickered red, and through the smoke, its tendril descended upon her. She couldn't even scream.

As the colossal tendril approached, a small, glowing green speck of light floated past, in between the two of them. This evidently caught Guzzlord's attention, as the tendril suddenly changed direction to reach out at the light. Its tendril followed the light closely, trailing behind it until it suddenly snapped forward and clamped down. The force of it doing so, combined with its colossal scope and close proximity to Bonnie kicked up winds that nearly blew the small girl off of her feet.

"What...was that?!" She cried between grit teeth.

Guzzlord retracted the tendril to its mouth and threw in its new catch. It was about to go right back to Bonnie when another one floated by its eye. It quickly snapped that one up as well, tossing it in with the other. Then, yet another of the green lights appeared, as did yet another. One after another, these lights appeared from seemingly thin air, circling around the colossal beast.

Guzzlord snapped at them with its tendrils, greedily shoveling them into its mouth. Oddly enough, the lights began gravitating toward Guzzlord's main mouth, entering it of their own volition. The colossal beast didn't know what was happening, but it wasn't about to turn down a free meal, and kept grabbing and swallowing any in its path until all of them had disappeared into Guzzlord's gullet.

With the green lights gone, Guzzlord shifted its attention back upon Bonnie, who let out a shrill, fearful gasp. Guzzlord grinned cruelly when it saw the fear in its preys eyes. Without further delay the massive Ultra Beast brought its tendril down upon the girl and she screamed in horror, closing her eyes tightly.

Bonnie slowly opened her eyes and found that she was still alive. She looked up and found that the tendril had stopped mere feet from her. Guzzlord stood completely still with its eyes and mouth open in shock like it had just seen a ghost. This made the girl more confused until she saw something completely extraordinary. A massive symbol started to carve itself in Guzzlord's stomach.

It was a bright green "Z"

A brilliant, emerald-colored laser erupted from the top of Guzzlord's head, making its eyes widen even further. The beam grew to the point that it came close to the size of Guzzlord itself. The colossal beast's tendrils flailed at the air wildly, as if striking at an invisible assailant, before eventually going completely limp. Guzzlord's eyes flickered spastically between red and blue before cutting to black.

"KALOS...NO, EARTH! I WILL PROTECT YOU!"

The perfectly unified form of the Legendary Pokemon of Balance, Zygarde, appearing as a massive titan, soared up from the emerald green laser as it faded. It looked much like that of a golem in shape, it had four long drapes that protruded from its back and ran the whole length down its back to the ground much like a banner. Hexagon like shapes covered much of its hands, legs and torso. Ironically it's chest had symbols on it that looked much akin to the face of the Ultra beast it had just materialized from, Guzzlord. Finally it's head looked much like a helmet with four protruding spikes coming out of the top and a glowing white light right in the center of it just above the eyes.

Bonnie stood up, gasping. She recognized the figure, but couldn't believe that it was real. "Squi...Squishy?!"

Zygarde brought its massive arms together in such a way that they curled around the front of its massive chest. Colossal waves of emerald green energy manifested from thin air and were pulled into its arms, creating a brilliant white-sheened ball of pulsating light. "YOU HAVE DESECRATED THE BALANCE OF THE WORLD, INTRUDERS!" Zygarde roared. "NOW, I HAVE COME TO BRING BALANCE ONCE MORE! VANISH WITH THE LIGHT OF CORE ENFORCER!"

The Legendary Pokemon of balance unleashed the energy it had accumulated down upon the ground, carving a massive white "Z" into Guzzlord as well as the ground beneath its feet. The "Z" erupted with energy, creating a pillar of light that fully encased Guzzlord. The beast was torn apart by the light and flung upward, and eventually, every last trace of it was reduced to dust and scattered in the winds.

It heard cheers erupting from below, and turned toward them. The trainers, their Pokemon and, surprisingly enough, the alien invaders Necrozma had brought along with him were all cheering over the demise of Guzzlord. Zygarde also noticed a familiar voice, and to its further surprise as well as jubilation, it found its young friend, Bonnie. It smiled down upon her, until it noticed the bodies by her side. The other survivors had them as well...by the thousands.

Before Zygarde could think more on the subject, it heard the sound of clapping from behind, finding none other than the dark demon himself upon turning around. "Well done, well done indeed," Commended Necrozma, "To think it was possible for Guzzlord to have been slain. I had expected Arceus to do it, if he actually showed up, but this planet just has one more surprise after the other!"

"Alright!" Cheered Rayquaza. "Now that Zygarde's here, we stand a real fighting chance!" He was about to charge Necrozma when Zygarde unexpectedly held out a hand to stop him. Rayquaza was utterly baffled to say the least. "What?! Why, Zygarde!? With you, we might actually be able to put Necrozma down!"

"Don't be foolish," Replied the Guardian of Balance, shaking its head. "You all have been battered and beaten for far too long. Allow me to handle this from here on out."

Rayquaza's eyes went wide. "Alone?!" He demanded. "Are you insane?! That monster toyed with all of us! What can you hope to do by yourself?!"

Zygarde flared its emerald-green energy, creating a miniature storm around itself. "Buy you all time," It answered, "Until Arceus arrives."

Necrozma scoffed. "Arceus? He seems rather keen on not making an appearance. What makes you sure he will even bother to show up?"

Crouching into a battle position, Zygarde glared into Necrozma's cold, crimson eyes and replied, "Faith! I believe our creator and father will aid us in our time of need! He would never abandon us to simply die!"

That earned a laugh from Necrozma. "Oh, truly? I believe I've already said this to someone else, but look behind you. That right there is proof he cares more about amassing his power, as I've been told, than your lives." The demon uncrossed his arms, and his crystals glowed with a fearsome energy. "He cares not for you. He only wishes to secure victory against ME!"

Necrozma rushed forward, slamming his fist into the titan's face and sending it reeling across the skies. Zygarde managed to right itself in the air and pointed its fist at Necrozma. From it, Zygarde unleashed a hyper beam the demon's way, which was promptly backhanded without impeding him for so much as a second. Necrozma crashed into Zygarde's chest with his fist outstretched, knocking it back a few feet. However, he was genuinely surprised to see Zygarde shaking off the blow and dusting itself off.

"You're more durable than I anticipated," Admitted an impressed Necrozma. "However, do you really think that-"

Zygarde held out its hand, unleashing a Hyper Beam Necrozma's way that easily dwarfed the last. Necrozma halted his speech and blocked the attack with one arm, crushing it in his hand. The green titan appeared directly in front of the dark demon the moment the Hyper Beam was destroyed, attempting to ram its fist into Necrozma's face. Necrozma swiped away the intended blow and grabbed hold of Zygarde's wrists, holding it at bay.

"The time for talk is over, monster!" Roared Zygarde, its hands beginning to glow. A massive explosion erupted from them, completely enveloping both Zygarde and Necrozma. The green titan flew down from the explosion, looking no worse for wear, and turned to look up at it anxiously. It eventually cleared, revealing Necrozma to be completely unharmed, and returning Zygarde's stare with a cold one of his own.

"No time for talk, then? I had assumed you would have attempted to draw this battle out for as long as possible for the sake of buying time until Arceus arrives, but…" In the blink of an eye, the dark demon appeared before Zygarde. His arm was outstretched, holding a bright red ball of energy within. "If you wish to hasten your death, then I suppose we'll have no time for idle chat."

Necrozma unleashed the blast, sending Zygarde crashing into the ground below. Quickly resurfacing from the impact, Zygarde saw Necrozma rocketing down toward it, and fired two Hyper Beams from its hands to halt him. Necrozma swatted the attack away and made a move to drive his fist into Zygarde's face, which was stopped when the titan blocked its head with its massive arms.

The demon slammed his fist into Zygarde's arms with a resounding crash, and the Guardian of Balance swatted Necrozma backwards, if only slightly, to get him to back off. The two brought back their arms and crashed them together, creating a shockwave that ripped up the surrounding earth. Necrozma and Zygarde drove their fists against one another in an attempt to overpower each other. Suddenly, Necrozma smirked, and he blasted back Zygarde's arm before slamming his fist into the titan's face, causing it to become halfway buried in the ground.

Almost instantly afterward, Zygarde retaliated with an enormous emerald green blast that destroyed the surrounding ground and actually managed to blow Necrozma backwards. Raising a single arm to the sky, Zygarde fired a green laser and brought it down upon the demon's head. However, Necrozma grabbed hold of it with one arm, stopping it in its tracks, and with the other, shot a white blast at Zygarde.

The titan brought up its other arm to defend, but was too slow, and Necrozma's attack hit it square in the face. Taking the opportunity laid out before him, Necrozma rocketed forward and grabbed hold of Zygarde's head, dragging it across the battlefield. He smirked, and the hand holding Zygarde began to glow red.

Necrozma leapt up, hurling Zygarde high into the air alongside a crackling ball of energy, which detonated promptly thereafter. Not giving the Guardian of Balance any time for respite, Necrozma rocketed up into the explosion's cloud, slamming into Zygarde's chest and eliciting a small groan of pain from it. As the two flew out of the cloud, Necrozma pushed off of Zygarde and flew even further into the sky, awaiting the titan to unintentionally follow.

As the momentum from Necrozma's blow to the titan's chest carried it higher, Necrozma lurched down, meeting Zygarde's face with his fist. What Necrozma failed to notice that, in doing what he did, he allowed Zygarde to point its fist straight at Necrozma. The demon was sent flying away by a powerful explosive Focus Blast from Zygarde, whereas Zygarde hurtled back into the ground from the force of Necrozma's punch.

It didn't take long for Necrozma to recover, and he whirled back around, rocketing toward Zygarde at breakneck speeds with his fist outstretched. To his shock, Zygarde sidestepped the attack and grabbed Necrozma, slamming him into the ground below. Necrozma erupted from the ground in a fiery explosion and tore straight through Zygarde's chest, appearing on the other side.

He turned back around with a smug expression planted on his face, but it disappeared when he witnessed the same green lights from before floating toward the hole he had left in the titan. In a matter of seconds, the wound was completely healed, as if it had never existed to begin with, and Zygarde turned toward Necrozma.

"Injuries such as that have no impact on me," Zygarde stated confidently, "Or rather...us."

Necrozma nodded. "I see. So, you are a lifeform comprised of other lifeforms." The demon cracked his knuckles, creating crimson plasma in his hands for each one. "Then I suppose I will simply have to eradicate all of you at once."

The invader lurched forward with another punch, which was caught by Zygarde. Its hand glowed green, and Necrozma quickly found himself under assault from a massive string of point-blank explosions. Zygarde kept hold of Necrozma firmly, preventing any of the explosions from loosening its grip. Necrozma eventually warped out of Zygarde's hold and planted his hand on its chest.

He launched a massive beam from his hand, which caused Zygarde's body to seemingly explode. However, Necrozma wasn't so sure of his victory just yet, and turned around. True to his instincts, he found the green lights reforming into Zygarde's completed form once more. It had intentionally disassembled to evade Necrozma's attack, then quickly reformed before Necrozma could take advantage of the momentary weakness.

Necrozma held out his arm, creating a red ball of energy. Zygarde mirrored the action with a green one of his own. They rushed at one another, crashing together with the full brunt of their power. Waves of crimson red and emerald green scoured the earth and sky, tearing apart anything they touched as Necrozma and Zygarde battled for dominance.

Their fists eventually slid past one another, letting their blasts do so as well. Two colossal beams rushed past each other across the battlefield in a brilliant display of might from the warring powers. Zygarde retracted his fist and pivoted around the dark demon, aiming another blast at his back. The moment he fired, Necrozma disappeared in a blur, and Zygarde felt a sudden burning heat on its back.

With near-invisible haste, Zygarde whipped around, slamming its fist into Necrozma's side and sending the demon skidding across the ground. Zygarde quickly followed up by bringing its fists together and pointing them at the demon, unleashing an utterly colossal blast from them. Necrozma dug his claws into the ground, bringing himself to a halt, and barreled straight through Zygarde's attack.

In less than the blink of an eye, Necrozma took a swipe at Zygarde's head, completely cleaving it off. The Legends let out a collective gasp, along with the trainers that were able to bear witness to this spectacle of a battle. Zygarde's cells, however, reformed, and the titan bore no apparent injuries from the incident whatsoever.

It grabbed hold of Necrozma's arms and fired, sending him careening into the sky and eventually straight through the underside of the mothership. The sound of Necrozma's roaring was heard faintly from inside before he erupted from it amidst a swirling mass of crimson energy, brought his hands together, and unleashed a flurry of crackling red orbs upon Zygarde.

Cloaking himself in his own green energy to match Necrozma, Zygarde barreled through the attacks and rocketed toward the demon. In response, Necrozma gave up on his initial plan of attack and rocketed toward Zygarde as well. Their clash was so forceful that the area of the ship above them was warped and twisted before being torn into nothingness.

"To think that Zygarde possessed such power," Remarked an awed Ho-Oh. "The Guardian of Balance truly is something, are they not?"

Lugia nodded. "If this keeps up, then they might actually be able to hold that monster off until Arceus arrives after all." A scowl crawled down the Sea Guardian's face, and he narrowed his eyes. "That is assuming he ends up coming after all."

Lugia's counterpart gave him an odd look. "What do you mean? Of course he'll arrive."

The Beast of the Seas shook his head. "Right, right. I'm sure."

The violent, raging energy being unleashed from the clash of Zygarde and Necrozma increased to the point that reality itself seemingly couldn't take it, and a massive explosion blew them both away, as well as clouded the both of them in a large smoke cloud. An emerald green beam of light pierced through that smoke, dispelling so that Zygarde may find Necrozma.

But Necrozma was nowhere to be found. Zygarde looked around frantically, at the ground, the skies, the ship and everywhere in between, all with no luck. It then attempted to sense the demon, but still had no such luck.

"You are strong. That much I admit."

"Where are you?!" Bellowed Zygarde. "Our battle is not yet through!"

A dark chuckle echoed throughout the entire battlefield, chilling the spines of all who heard it. "Not yet through? Our battle was over before it began. In fact, this was never a battle at all. It was an attempt at amusing me in your coward father's place!"

The dark demon appeared before Zygarde, his arms crossed. The titan brought his arms together and blasted Necrozma at point blank, sending a massive white beam soaring across the skies. From inside that beam, Necrozma reached out his hand, and destroyed it with the simple swat of his arm. Sensing that Necrozma was on the verge of attacking, Zygarde soared higher into the air, clasped its hands together, and summoned the full course of its energy together.

"WE ARE NOT YET FINISHED!" Roared the mighty voice of the Guardian of Balance, its fingertips alight with powerful energy. "I WILL NOT ALLOW YOUR RAMPAGE TO CONTINUE! BEGONE FROM THIS WORLD WITH THE LIGHT OF CORE ENFORCER!"

A brilliant, gleaming white laser rocketed down from Zygarde's very core unto the dark demon. An emerald green "Z" was carved into the ground beneath him, and Necrozma himself was completely coated in that green energy. The "Z" exploded, and a gleaming pillar of light erupted from it into the sky. Unfortunately for Zygarde, this did not go the same as it did with Guzzlord.

Necrozma's energy erupted out into every conceivable direction like waves, completely tearing apart Zygarde's core enforcer as well as the ground. It seemed like the very fabric of reality was distorting under the mad demon's might, as everyone's vision suddenly became a shade of red. Or rather, Necrozma's red energy was blotting out any other color from appearing.

The proud Guardian of Balance was taken aback. Frightened by Necrozma's power, even. "Wh-what…" It stammered, backing away from Necrozma. "What is this...what are you?!"

"I have conquered life and death. I have conquered time and space. I have conquered millions of "Gods" and even reality itself! There is no word to describe what I am other than Necrozma." The dark demon appeared before Zygarde instantaneously. "Remember that name as one that hell itself fears." Then, Zygarde was crushed in Necrozma's grip, and scoured to the far corners of the world.

Necrozma watched as the green lights, being the individual Zygarde cells, scattered and disappeared. Simply shrugging, he remarked, "So, they survived even that? No matter. It will have nowhere to escape once I destroy this planet, but…" He turned back toward the Legends, who now all sported expressions of horror after witnessing Necrozma's display. "In the meantime…"


In one of the battlefield's craters

Deoxys awoke with a start, his eyes suddenly going wide. He sat up, heaving desperately for oxygen, though his pace caused him to cough uncontrollably. When that coughing eventually subsided, he looked down at his own body as if he didn't even recognize it, scanning it over completely. A vision of what Necrozma had done to him flashed before his eyes.

"What happened...to me…?" He recalled being killed by Necrozma. Nearly every part of his body had been destroyed. "Did I somehow...regenerate on my own? How is that possible?! The shock prevented me from thinking, and my regeneration needs me to actively will it, so how…?"

The DNA Pokemon shook his head. "It doesn't matter now," He reminded himself, "All that matters now is finding Necrozma and planting him in the grave!"

With that, Deoxys surrounded himself in the crackling amethyst energy of Psychic and rocketed out from the crater, not noticing a pure white glint of light that had been lying by his side. With Deoxys gone, it disappeared.


Thundurus and Tornadus attempted to approach Necrozma from behind, but the moment they got close, the dark demon grabbed hold of their wrists, slammed them together, and blasted them away. The Lord of the Forces of Nature, Landorus, leapt in from behind in an attempt to strike Necrozma with a double-handed slam, but it itself was struck when the demon whipped around and rammed his fist into its chest, making it double over and gasp in pain. That gasp was cut short when Necrozma slammed his fist into Landorus's face, sending it flying away, eventually crashing into the ground.

Zapdos, Moltres and Articuno quickly arrived on the scene, screeching furiously at Necrozma. They were eager for vengeance. No, they hungered for it. Articuno launched an Ice Beam at him, with Zapdos following suit via Discharge and Moltres with Flamethrower. Necrozma stopped their onslaught with ease, dispelling their attacks into dust that faded into nothingness with the simple wave of his hand.

"You three again?" Asked the tyrant, stifling a chuckle. However, the amusement in his voice was not lost on the Three Elemental Birds, causing them to hiss in rage. Necrozma shook his head. "I'll never understand the idiocy of you lot." He held out a hand, charging up an attack to blast the birds away when three more figures jumped up from their backs.

These three figures were the Legendary Beasts of Johto, Raikou, Entei and Suicune. They charged up similar attacks to the three birds, aiming to use their surprise attack to get in a blindsiding blow. Necrozma merely held out a single finger and swiped at the air, causing the beasts to be struck by an invisible force that sent them flying to the side.

"Now they try to send mere dogs after me?" Scoffed the dark demon, pointing his finger at the falling beasts. "Oh well. I suppose I could make some joke about "Dying like dogs," but frankly, that's beneath me."

From Necrozma's index finger, he unleashed a tiny ball of energy that rocketed down toward the helpless beasts. Just when it was about to hit them, a Fire Blast shot in and destroyed the attack along with itself. The beasts' fall was stopped by a purple glow that surrounded them, gently carrying them back down to the ground before disappearing altogether.

The Rainbow Pokemon, Ho-oh, appeared in front of them. The large bird flexed its mighty, rainbow-colored wings to act as a shield for the Three Legendary Beasts. "You shall not harm my creations!" Declared Ho-oh. "I will battle you myself!"

Necrozma was about to retort when a Hyper Beam struck him from the side. Merely annoyed at the interruption, Necrozma dispelled the ensuing smoke cloud with his arm to discover who had dared to attack him. "He's mine!" Roared Lugia, launching another Hyper Beam Necrozma's way. The dark demon lunged past it, aiming to bury his fist in the Sea Guardian's face. His punch ended up missing when Lugia appeared to have been yanked away to the side, and when he snapped his gaze upon Lugia to figure out what had happened, the Elemental Birds fired at his back with a combined attack between the three of them.

"Impudent…!" Necrozma hissed. Whipping around toward them, he shot a ball of energy their way, but a colossal Flamethrower barreled into it, causing it to detonate and be swept away before it could do any harm. Glaring down at the Flamethrower's source, Necrozma found Groudon smirking up at him. He rocketed down at the Pokemon of Land with crackling energy building up in his hand, but his target was warped away before he could touch them, and his attack only met with the empty land.

Palkia created a bright pink barrier around himself and rammed into Necrozma's side, carrying him across the barren landscape. Necrozma, in turn, buried his claws in the barrier and ripped it open. The demon pulled back his arm, to which Palkia used Spatial Rend. Necrozma's fist collided with Palkia's signature attack, eventually breaking through and dispelling it. But Palkia had already distorted space to warp away, leaving him without a target.

Then, another one presented itself to him. Or two, rather. Reshiram raised her head to the sky, creating a Fusion Flare above it. She quickly launched it at Necrozma, who easily caught it. Before he could destroy the attack, Zekrom surrounded himself in Fusion Bolt's lightning and barreled straight into Reshiram's Fusion Flare. Due to the nature of these attacks, Zekrom meeting with the Fusion Flare caused his Fusion Bolt to double in size and power.

"Now, Bolt Strike!" Called Zekrom. The calm-flowing, concentrated lightning from Fusion Bolt suddenly erupted into erratic plasma. That attack, combined with the powered-up Fusion Bolt caused Zekrom to begin to push Necrozma back. Or so it seemed. With his other arm, Necrozma sent a blast of light at Reshiram and smirked. He read Zekrom's mind and found that he intended to try and save Reshiram, and Necrozma would use that to swiftly end the two of them.

However, a powerful Blizzard crashed into Necrozma's attack, causing it to freeze before shattering like glass. "Not happening, demon!" Roared Kyurem. Keldeo hopped off of the Ice Dragon's back, over Zekrom's attack behind Necrozma.

"EAT THIS!" Bellowed the remaining Sword of Justice. "SWORDS DANCE AND SECRET SWORD!" An apparatus of six swords clashing together appeared over Keldeo's head. Each clash caused cracks to appear on the swords, eventually shattering each other, and their remains swirled around Keldeo before eventually fading into his horn. A Secret Sword greater than any that came before it manifested from Keldeo's horn and struck Necrozma's back.

The attack met with Zekrom's, causing an explosion that sent all the surrounding Legends backwards. Keldeo's eyes widened, realizing he was about to fall when Kyurem swooped in and saved him. "Thanks, Kyurem," Said a relieved Keldeo, "If it weren't for you, things would have gotten ugly."

Kyurem smiled at that, but replied, "Save your thanks for later, kid. We're still far from done."

A now-annoyed Necrozma aimed his hand at the two of them as they soared away, charging up a blast. "Still far, indeed."

A pink, gem-like Legend intervened, stepping in front of Necrozma. "Not so fast!" Cried Diancie. "I won't let a brute like you hurt anyone else!"

Necrozma placed his head in his hand, howling with laughter. "Oh, is that so, princess?" Mocked Necrozma. "Well, by all means, just try and stop me if you believe you can. I'm sure this will be entertaining."

Diancie frowned, though it was not due to the demon's insult. "So, the tales of your mind-reading were true. It's disturbing that you can simply peer into people's deepest thoughts at will." She narrowed her eyes at him. "All the more reason to rid this world of you!"

The dark demon scoffed at the idea of that even being a possibility. He held out his finger toward her causing the gem Pokemon to flinch. Another idea suddenly struck him, and he averted his gaze from Diancie, instead landing it back upon Kyurem and Keldeo. Slowly, he pointed his finger back toward them and said, "Very well then, if you believe you can save this world from me, why don't you start by saving them?"

His finger lit red, and he fired another blast toward them. Diancie made a mad dash for the attack, jumping in front of it. It hit her, causing a massive resounding explosion. Necrozma chuckled, believing that she had foolishly ended her own life when he felt a sudden surge of energy. The explosion caved in on itself before turning into a wall of pure white.

When that white light faded, Diancie appeared. She was completely unharmed, and had taken a new form on top of that. She had become larger, no longer possessing the brown stone on her underside. Now, the entirety of her body had become gemstones, and she wore a crown of them on her head. Two long, pink sash-like growths stretched out from behind her head, waving elegantly in the wind.

"If you thought that attack had finished me, then you must have not known that I, like Rayquaza, possess the power of Mega Evolution." The Mega-Evolved Legend smirked at him confidently. "So either you were too short-sighted to completely look through my memories, or you weren't strong enough to do so."

That remark earned a smirk of Necrozma. "If I completely read everyone's minds, then there wouldn't be the fun of a surprise factor when I'm crushing them, now would there?"

Diancie opened her mouth to retort, but Necrozma silenced her by driving his fist into her face before she could hope to react. He warped behind her, grabbing her by the back of the head and diving down toward the ground. He summoned a ball of energy in the hand that carried her, and threw both it and her down into the ground. The only thing that came back out was the ensuing explosion.

A horde of blue spheres suddenly surrounded the demon, driving away his smirk for the moment. They closed in on him, exploding into a cloud of steam what was promptly dispelled by the wave of Necrozma's arm. He found the Legendary Creator of the Seas, Kyogre shooting a smirk of his own Necrozma's way. "DROWN, DEMON, IN THE MIGHT OF MY ORIGIN PULSE!"

Several more of the light blue spheres appeared around Kyogre before launching themselves at Necrozma. With a single finger, Necrozma made a slicing motion with his hand and caused Kyogre's attack to explode before even coming close to him. "Do all of you make your own little one-liner or speech for your signature attacks? It was amusing at first, but now, the novelty of it has worn off."

Necrozma blitzed at Kyogre, appearing behind him. Suddenly, the Sea Deity found himself being struck by thousands of invisible blows at once, all the while it was helpless to do a thing about it. The last of those invisible strikes sent Kyogre flying toward Necrozma, and the demon leaned out of the way to let him sail past. At the last moment, Necrozma grabbed hold of one of Kyogre's tail fins and swung him like a bat at Rayquaza, who had been mere inches away from impacting the demon with Dragon Ascent.

Looking at his hand, the demon found that he had unintentionally torn off the tail fin he'd grabbed when he threw Kyogre. "Ah, well," He said, making the fin disappear with the snap of his finger, "Another addition to the collection, I suppose." With Rayquaza out of the way for the time being, Necrozma hurled Kyogre away and turned to locate the closest Legend, which happened to be-

"Latios, use Luster Purge!"

A bright pink laser tore through the air, rushing toward the dark demon. The attack was easily blocked and subsequently crushed in Necrozma's hand. Turning to face the perpetrator, he was genuinely taken aback. Six Legends stood before him, but that wasn't what he was concerned about. A human stood on the back of one of them, and from what he had just heard, that man commanded them.

"You must be joking."

"There is no joke, Necrozma," Retorted Tobias, "Together, we will end your reign of terror!"

"Really, now you Legends allow yourselves to be subjugated by one weaker than you?!" Demanded Necrozma, ignoring Tobias for the moment. Shaking his head, the demon said, "I didn't think it was possible you lot could become more pathetic than you already were, yet here you are setting my expectations to an entirely new level of low!"

"Subjugated?" Repeated Tobias. "I think not! My team of Legendary Pokemon was amassed through-"

"Bonds, friendship and more of trash like that, yes?" Necrozma interjected. "Spare me that nonsense. Your very existence irritates me."

Tobias scowled at him. "Then we'll be sure to end yours. Everyone, attack!"

Darkrai was the first to go, creating a swirling mass of dark energy in its hands before launching it at Necrozma, The demon swatted the attack away nonchalantly and rushed forward, slamming his fist into Darkrai and sending it flying away.

"Darkrai, no!" Cried Tobias. Turning to his other Pokemon, he ordered, "Hold him back on your own as long as you can! I'm going to rescue Darkrai!" Heatran, Cresselia, Volcanion and Meloetta nodded to their trainer and faced off against Necrozma. Tobias then zoomed away toward Darkrai atop Latios.

"That was probably the sorriest display of you Legends yet," Mocked Necrozma, "And what's more, now your master has left the rest of you to die."

Heatran attempted to draw first blood with a Flamethrower from below, which was easily evaded by the dark demon. Necrozma rocketed toward the ground in order to end the volcanic Pokemon, but averted the blow at the last second to avoid a burning Scald from Volcanion. Cresselia attempted to use Psychic to bind the demon, but Necrozma laughed at the pathetic attempt and shot back with one of his own which resulted in Cresselia shrieking in pain.

Necrozma began to crush the dream Pokemon in his Psychic grip, slowly increasing the intensity to draw out Cresselia's agony for as long as possible. Cresselia, meanwhile, could only scream in pain, helpless against Necrozma's overpowering might. Her own Psychic powers were no match for Necrozma's, and the demon made that abundantly clear with each passing second.

Shifting into its Pirouette Form, Meloetta shot two Focus Blasts at Necrozma, which were stopped and destroyed before they could even touch him. Necrozma physically grabbed hold of Cresselia by her neck, eliciting a choked yelp from her, and hurled her at Meloetta. Meloetta's eyes widened, but couldn't move out of the way before Cresselia's body slammed into her, sending them both crashing into the ground below.

Turning around, he swiped at the air, causing an explosion to manifest in front of Heatran at speeds the volcanic Pokemon couldn't hope to react to. Heatran didn't even have the time to yelp before it was sent flying by the explosion. Volcanion sent another Scald at the demon, which was redirected by the only the slight movement of Necrozma's fingertip. Growling at the demon, Volcanion opened the ring on its back into two tube-like structures and, from them, unleashed a Steam Eruption attack.

Necrozma smirked and, with the snap of his fingers, summoned Meloetta to his side. The song Pokemon looked around in confusion, while the dark demon hovered behind it. Necrozma grabbed her by the back of the head and drove her straight through Volcanion's Steam Eruption. Volcanion's eyes widened, and it quickly cut off the attack to prevent any further damage to its teammate.

In doing so, it received the body of Meloetta being thrown into its face, blinding it long enough for Necrozma to drive his fist straight into it thereafter. "Pathetic," Spat Necrozma. "You allow yourselves to be captured on the basis that that human could make you stronger, yet what have you to show for it?!"

A low, thoughtful hum was heard from the demon. "Yet still, when I read your minds, I find nothing but adoration for this 'Tobias.' Why is that? Your pathetic bond?" Another devilish idea struck Necrozma, and he turned away from the four Legends to look at where Tobias and Latios had rushed off to. "I wonder what might happen, should that bond be severed." With those harrowing words, Necrozma howled with dark laughter and disappeared from sight. Tobias's team cursed themselves for being unable to follow.

"Just a little closer!" Urged Tobias, patting Latios's side. The two were in hot pursuit of the quickly-falling Darkrai, who had lost consciousness after being subjected to the brunt of Necrozma's onslaught. "Come on...almost there…!" The nightmare Pokemon's body closed in on the ground with each passing second, with Tobias's blood running cold more and more the further the chase went on.

"Now!" Roared the black-haired trainer. "I've got you!" Just before Darkrai hit the ground, Latios swooped right by it. Tobias knelt down, hovering off of Latios's side with his hand outstretched, just in time to catch Darkrai by the wrist as Latios once again took to the skies.

Tobias pulled Darkrai up onto Latios's back, collapsing onto his backside and letting out an exhausted, and relieved, sigh. "Thank Arceus, we made it in time." Leaning forward, Tobias gently nudged Darkrai to stir it, eventually eliciting a groan from the dark Pokemon as it opened its blue eyes. "Hang in there," Said Tobias with a laugh, "I still have to keep that promise I made to Alice and bring you back to Alamos Town someday, so I can't have you dying on me."

"Such a shame you won't be able to keep that promise."

"Wha-" Tobias, Darkrai and Latios whipped around at the sudden voice. Above them, the dark demon hovered, his arms crossed and looking down upon them smugly. "If you're here, then that means…" Tobias's eyes widened. Gritting his teeth furiously, he glared daggers at Necrozma and roared, "My team! What did you do to them?!"

Necrozma's eye curled upward, making his version of an amused grin. Deciding to toy with Tobias, he replied, "Take a wild guess. With their precious trainer leaving them behind, they had no way to organize themselves or form a proper strategy against me. Because of you, they fell to my hand."

Tobias shook his head. "As if! I am the most powerful trainer in the world! My Pokemon wouldn't die so easily to the likes of you!"

The demon threw his head back, howling with laughter. "Oh, is that right? Perhaps I should prove it to you by killing your last two pets!"

"Pfft," Scoffed Tobias. He pointed up at Necrozma and ordered, "Darkrai, use…" He stopped himself, looking down at his Pokemon. Darkrai pushed itself off the ground, albeit shakily, and awaited the orders of its trainer readily. It narrowed its glowing blue eyes at Necrozma, positioning itself for battle. All it needed was an order, and it would attack.

Tobias, however, had other ideas. As he looked at Darkrai, Tobias noticed that it was trembling all over, and floating unsteadily. It was obvious that the beating Necrozma had given it was severe. Necrozma spoke up, interrupting Tobias's thought process.

"Sending a crippled Legend to fight me?" The demon chuckled darkly. "How cruel. But amusing, I must admit. Very well." He raised his hand to the sky, creating a white ball of energy between the tips of his fingers, hovering over his palm. "Allow me to show you your folly!"

"Latios, Luster Purge!" Tobias ordered hastily. Nodding, the jet-like Pokemon flew in front of his trainer and ally. He opened his mouth, drawing together swirling, pink energy and creating a ball out of it. When it became as large as Latios's mouth, he launched it in the form of a colossal pink laser at Necrozma. In turn, Necrozma laughed at Latios's and Tobias's pathetic attempt and shot his attack down at the Luster Purge.

Necrozma's attack punched straight through the Luster Purge with ease, tearing through it like it was tin foil. Latios winced, preparing to be struck by Necrozma's attack when he heard his trainer say something. "Wait, what is that?!" A red streak flew across the sky toward them, and Latios recognized that it was that 'Latias' from before that had saved him from Guzzlord.

Latias cloaked herself with Protect and barreled straight into Necrozma's ball of energy, carrying it away from Latios, where it eventually exploded. Latios's eyes shot wide with a worry he didn't understand, but let out a sigh of relief when he saw Latias flying out from the ensuing smoke cloud. She was covered from head to toe in burn and scratch markings, but they appeared to be minor.

When she flew to Latios's side, Tobias said, "Thank you. Had you not aided us when you did, it's very likely that we would have died."

"I didn't do it for you," Snapped Latias coldly, making the trainer shrink slightly, "I did it for him."

Tobias tilted his head, confused. "For him? You mean…?" True to Tobias's suspicions, she was referring to Latios based on the way she was looking at him. "Latios? Come to think of it, you two look very similar. Are you a joint species or something, like Plusle and Minun?"

Latias glowered at him and turned toward Necrozma. "It doesn't matter right now. What matters is that we stop Necrozma!"

"Well, I can agree with that," Replied Tobias with a smirk. "Darkrai, go back to the others! Latios, to battle!" At his trainer's command, Latios turned rocketed down to him, with Tobias hopping into the air just in time to be swept up onto Latios's back. "Now," Ordered Tobias, "Use Luster Purge!"

"Fool," Spat Necrozma. "Why are you yourself entering the battle? If you wish to die alongside your pets, so be it!" With the tip of his finger, Necrozma completely erased Latios's Luster Purge. He then rocketed forward and slammed his fist into Latios's stomach, sending Tobias flying. The Legend's eyes went bloodshot, and he let out a choked squeal of pain. He coughed violently, spitting small blobs of crimson from its mouth.

Managing to push back his pain, Latios locked his sight on his trainer and zoomed away from Necrozma to rescue demon had different ideas. He teleported in front of Latios, forcing him to stop to avoid crashing into the demon. Taking advantage of Latios's pause, Necrozma reached around and grabbed hold of him by the back of his head, causing him to shriek in pain.

"Normally, I would avoid ending a fight this quickly," Necrozma stated, "But you, your trainer and your teammates have been especially disappointing, and so I will end you quickly." Latios squealed in agony and thrashed uselessly against Necrozma's hold, to which the demon only squeezed harder. "That is...after you watch your precious trainer fall to an untimely demise."

With his Psychic powers, manifested as a dark red glow, Necrozma forced open Latios's eyes, forcing him to look at the falling Tobias. He flailed fearfully at the air falling past him and screamed as he fell. Though Latios quickly realized that fear was not for himself. Tobias's gaze was trained directly on Latios, his eyes wide seeing Latios in the demon's grip. He reached into his pocket, pulling out his Pokeball and attempting to return Latios to save him. Necrozma's eyes glowed bright, and the laser meant to return Latios to the ball was destroyed.

"So touching," Remarked Necrozma, "Even in death, his last thoughts are for you."

Latios forced his eyes shut, letting loose an ear-piercing screech as his thrashing became more violent. Even when Necrozma increased the force of his grip, Latios kept flailing to try and escape. Below, Darkrai forced itself up in spite of the pain doing so caused it and rushed at Tobias. Only this time, it quickly became apparent that Darkrai would not be able to return its trainer's earlier favor.

Just before Tobias hit the ground, the red-hued blurred form of Latias swooped in, carrying the trainer with her. Tobias, now feeling a change in the wind's direction and, for some reason, not the sudden thud of him meeting the ground, slowly dared to open his eyes. He let out a short-lived sigh of relief and turned to Latias. "Thank you- Latias, was it? If you hadn't come, I would have been killed for sure."

"Just how idiotic are you?!" Snapped an irritated Latias. "You shouldn't even be here you don't have any powers, your just getting in the way. I only rescued you because it's obvious you're precious to Latios.

Before Tobias could respond they heard a screech and both he and Latias turned to see Latios slowly getting crushed by Necrozma. Latias quickly dropped Tobias off and made a dash straight for Necrozma. Before Latias could reach her brother she was intercepted by a purple psychic glow. She turned quickly to the source and found none other than Mewtwo. "What are you doing?!" Latias demanded. "Get out of my way! I'm trying to save him!"

Mewtwo merely shook his head. "Do you not see that grip Necrozma has on him, if you were to attack Necrozma you'd most likely hurt Latios in the process which is what I'm trying to prevent."

Necrozma chuckled. "Fool." The hand clasping Latios's head lit red, and a high-pitched humming sound filled the air. "Just how, exactly, do you plan on stopping me?"

"It's quite simple." Mewtwo's amethyst-colored Psychic energy spiked out around him. "You will be too busy fighting me to kill him."

That remark earned a hearty cackle from the demon. "You? Fight me? Alone? Surely you remember how the last time went, or did that instance damage your brain?" Tilting his head to the side, Necrozma looked past Mewtwo, out at the open skies around them. "I don't know where the other Legends went, but it would be wise of you to wait for them if you value your own life."

"No need," Replied Mewtwo. "I already told them all to stay back for the time being." The clone Pokemon narrowed his deep, violet eyes at Necrozma. "And I won't need them to keep you busy until Arceus arrives."

"If memory serves me right," Started Necrozma, "That Zygarde thing said something similar not to long ago. You and I both know how well that ended."

Mewtwo opened his mouth to retort, then looked down at the still-struggling Latios, and stopped himself. Flaring his energy, he replied, "There's no use speaking on the subject further. It would be better if I showed you the full extent of my power!"

Rearing his head back, Mewtwo let out a bellow to the heavens above, letting loose every last inch of his power around himself. At first, Necrozma was completely unimpressed, but soon took interest once blue particles began seemingly manifesting around Mewtwo, covering his body from head to toe in a blinding white light. Tobias and the others, barring the demon, watched with widened eyes as Mewtwo's body began rapidly shifting in shape.

Mewtwo's tail dispersed, reforming on the back of his head where, slightly in front of it, a half-ring shape grew on his forehead. His normally-thin arms and legs grew thick, becoming almost like armor. From his shoulders, two dark purple v-shaped growths emerged, reaching down underneath Mewtwo's arms and looping back up to form an imperfect ring. His normally-bulbous three fingers shrank down into small oval-shapes and gaining a purple hue.

The light burst, exploding outward and revealing Mewtwo's new form. "This," Announced the clone Pokemon, "Is Mega-Evolution. It is a power I unlocked, proving that I have become one with the world I have come to love…"

He flared his energy once more. It completely overshadowed the energy of Mewtwo's previous showing, to the point that the ground and sky became warped from his sheer might. Above, the lights on the bottom of Necrozma's mothership began flickering spastically, and a few small parts of the ship itself caved in. "SO THAT I MAY BANISH YOU FROM IT!"

Necrozma tossed Latios to the side. Latias's eyes widened, and she went to save him when the laser from Tobias's Pokeball returned him. "Very interesting indeed," Remarked the dark demon. "Your power has far-surpassed that of the worm, even though he boasts of this same 'Mega Evolution.'" To test Mewtwo, he crossed his arms casually. Then, without moving a finger, he unleashed a violent burst of energy that could only be described as 'Chaos.'

Tobias, Latias and Darkrai were immediately sent flying far away, and Mewtwo wasn't faring much better. Though he could withstand Necrozma's power, at least to the point he wasn't blown away, it was arguably worse that he wasn't. Being subjected to the full brunt of the demon's terror, he felt the air being torn from his lungs, and his windpipe being forced shut.

The disturbance Mewtwo had caused with his own powers was completely crushed by Necrozma's, uprooting the ground below with such speed and power it was comparable to a meteor strike. Above, visible areas of the ship were completely ripped apart and crushed down to invisible sizes. Even worse than all this, to Mewtwo, was that he felt fear and could not deny it. Just as before, Mewtwo was rendered powerless and terrified in the wake of Necrozma..

"Isn't this a familiar sight?" Asked an amused Necrozma. "Can your newfound power withstand mine this time?" Mewtwo attempted to respond, but only managed to let out a pained grunt. Necrozma chuckled. "I expected as much. Perhaps this will be suitable motivation."

He raised his index finger, summoning a ball of energy. At first, it appeared to be small, no larger than the tip of his finger. Then, it began steadily growing. It soon outgrew Necrozma himself and kept going and going until it impacted the bottom of the ship. Several trainers and Pokemon cried out in terror, and the eyes of the other Legends widened from afar. To Mewtwo, it blotted out the sky completely.

"I will make you an ultimatum," Said Necrozma, his face beginning to contort with rage. "So far, this war has been nothing but a disappointment, and I see no further reason to continue it if Arceus refuses to show himself." He motioned to the colossal ball of energy above their heads with a nod. "Thus, I believe it is time to end this farce. Unless you can break free of my power and stop me, this world will end here and now!"

"Imbecile."

Necrozma's face wrinkled, both in confusion and rage. "Excuse me?"

Mewtwo lifted his trembling hand, managing to push it toward Necrozma in spite of the force of the demon's overwhelming might. "How are you this easy to trick?" From his hand, tiny sparkling orbs manifested and rocketed at Necrozma. In turn, the demon annoyedly swiped his hand at the air to dispel them, but at the last second, they weaved around his hand and plunged into Necrozma's impending attack.

Necrozma's eyes widened. "You…"

A grin crept up Mewtwo's mouth, and he blocked off the waves of energy that had trapped him by summoning a deep purple barrier. "Isn't this a familiar sight?" Mocked the clone Pokemon, throwing Necrozma's words back at him. "Rayquaza taught me this."

"FOOL!" Roared Necrozma, rearing his arm back in preparation to throw the colossal ball down upon the Earth. "YOU WON'T LIVE LONG ENOUGH TO REGRET-"

Mewtwo suddenly warped out of sight, causing the black orbs to grow into a horde of massive Shadow Balls within Necrozma's attack and detonate violently. The explosion destabilized it, causing the ball to distort in shape and begin to crackle with electricity violently. In a brilliantly cataclysmic flash of light, Necrozma's planet-ending attack detonated.

Below, those who witnessed the explosion closed their eyes and embraced one another, screaming in terror as they awaited their end. However, that end never came. A purple barrier manifested around the light, preventing it from expanding any further. In fact, it appeared to be shrinking. Mewtwo reappeared, holding the attack back with Psychic, though with immense strain.

"Not a chance!" Roared Mewtwo defiantly. "I was given power by this very world's essence! I, nothing more than an artificial lifeform, was welcomed by this world!" His amethyst-colored energy crackled around him in a vicious storm of plasma as he exerted himself to his absolute limit. "I won't...let you…!" He forcibly pushed his arms together, crushing the light in his barrier until it faded away completely. "DESTROY IT!"

As the crisis was averted, Mewtwo was allowed a brief moment of respite. He dropped his arms to his sides, letting out a relieved sigh. The Mega-Evolved Legend's eye tore back open suddenly, and he summoned another Shadow Ball in his hand before whipping it around and plunging through the air with it. Necrozma's fist smashed into the ball, causing it to detonate and sending the both of them flying backwards.

Dispelling the ensuing cloud of smoke, Necrozma had to applaud his adversary. "Well done," He remarked. "You certainly aren't the same fragile peon I broke in that forest three weeks ago."

Mewtwo shot a smirk the demon's way. "Broke? Ha!" He threw his head back and laughed. "You did nothing of the sort. I intentionally allowed you to believe you had broken me, and once your attention was turned elsewhere, I contacted Arceus and told him exactly where you were."

Necrozma brought a hand to his chin, tilting his head in thought. "Is that so? Well, you know the saying about fooling people." He disappeared from sight, warping behind Mewtwo with the intent to crush his head. "They never make it to a third time."

Just before the dark demon's fingers made contact with the back of his prey's head, Mewtwo disappeared as well. When Necrozma turned around, he was immediately crushed between two gigantic Shadow Balls that detonated violently. Mewtwo warped beside the smoke cloud, smirking at it. "Then let us finish the saying, shall we? How about 'Fool me three times, I've been soundly beaten?'"

Once again, Necrozma cast aside the cloud of smoke, now looking none-too-pleased. He rocketed toward Mewtwo, to which the clone Pokemon turned away from him and sped away. The demon fiercely pursued Mewtwo through the air, easily closing the distance but always missing his next attack by a single hair, all the while Mewtwo deftly dodged Necrozma's blows before taking off in another direction.

"Impudent…!" Hissed a scowling Necrozma. Flaring his crimson energy, he instantaneously closed the gap between himself and his prey with his arm pumped back. Upon attempting to strike, Mewtwo lurched forward, used Necrozma's swung fist as a launching pad, and drove a Shadow Ball straight into the demon's eyes.

Mewtwo chuckled at Necrozma as he flew past, watching the explosion completely consume the demon. It didn't last long, however, and he soon came flying out of the smoke at breakneck speeds. Mewtwo propelled himself backwards with Psychic and launched a multitude of Shadow Balls at his adversary, but Necrozma barreled straight through them and their explosions as if they didn't exist.

Necrozma's next punch missed Mewtwo by a hair as the Legend warped out of the way in the nick of time. However, the demon appeared behind Mewtwo instantaneously afterward and grabbed the extended growth on the back of the Pokemon's head. He attempted to use Teleport once more to escape from Necrozma's grasp, but the monster's own Psychic power overpowered Mewtwo's, preventing him from doing so.

Mewtwo was suddenly yanked down with immense force. Planting his fist into the back of Mewtwo's head, Necrozma barreled through the ground, using his adversary to shield himself from the stone and shrapnel as they burrowed deeper and deeper into the Earth's crust. Letting out a growl of frustration, Mewtwo constructed a barrier around himself, making it increase in size in an attempt to push himself off of the demon.

In turn, Necrozma smirked, and the hand he gripped Mewtwo with began glowing. A low, groaning sound emanated from Necrozma's hand, growing higher in pitch with each passing second, all the while the light grew with it. Mewtwo's eyes widened as he realized what was about to happen, and quickly poured as much power into his barrier as he could.

"You have impressed me thus far, Mewtwo," Admitted Necrozma, referring to the Legend by his name for the first time. "However, I'm afraid your time has run out."

A massive tremor knocked those on the battlefield clean off of their feet, tearing the ground asunder. The Legends were quick on the uptake, managing to save them by taking them in their Pyschic hold, warping space around them so that they landed without harm in Dialga's case, among other methods.

"What is going on?!" Screeched Rayquaza, deftly curling his body to allow a boulder to fly past. Geysers of intense crimson light began erupting, punching holes through the ground and decorating the sky. Were it not for the Legends, many of the trainers would have been vaporized. "Necrozma's power is staggering...but…" The serpentine Legend narrowed his eyes at one of the holes. "What became of Mewtwo…?"

Eventually, the light geysers subsided, leaving a cascade of massive, seemingly bottomless craters in their place, spread across the scoured land. Without thinking twice, Rayquaza coated himself in the emerald light of Dragon Ascent and descended into the nearest one. 'If Necrozma is already using this much power, he's probably losing patience. This does not bode well for Mewtwo.'

When the clone Pokemon next opened his eyes from within his barrier, he was met with a terrible sight. Everywhere he looked was pitch black. An endless void, only lit by magma and fire, as well as the crimson plasma created by the sheer heat. Speaking of that heat, it was unbearable. Even from within his barrier, Mewtwo could practically feel his skin burning. Utterly colossal steams of magma rained from above and rose from below like some kind of warped lava lamp. Flares of crackling flames did the same, curling all across the black skies and walls, if there were any. He couldn't fathom where he was, but one single thought wormed its way into his mind. This place was hell, or as close as could possibly be to it. Even the destruction created by Guzzlord paled in comparison to this.

"I'm surprised to see you're still alive, though that shield of yours looks like it's seen better days."

The Legend's eyes somehow widened even further as Necrozma appeared before him. Or rather, he had already been there. The area was so dark that Mewtwo simply hadn't been able to see him. Even now that he knew Necrozma was there, only the faint white light from his crystals and that of the surrounding hellish flames gave any indication that he was there at all.

"Necrozma, what did you do?!" Demanded Mewtwo.

"I had intended to erase you with that blast," Replied the demon, "But you are ever a persistent one." He turned away from Mewtwo, marvelling at the fiery void he created. "To answer your question, I simply attacked you while using actual effort, and the result of that is this. We appear to be somewhere in this planet's mantle, but that's neither here nor there." He turned back to Mewtwo, chilling him even in spite of the heat. "But since you yet live, I see no reason to end the fight just yet. Come, now." He opened his arms, welcoming Mewtwo to attempt to strike him. "Show me your absolute limit."

Without waiting for a response, Necrozma disappeared from sight, and Mewtwo summoned a Shadow Ball in his hand just in time to block a blow from the demon that was likely meant to cleanly tear his head off. Instead, Mewtwo was sent careening backwards straight into a passing flare that finally destroyed his barrier, and though he was lucky enough to have passed through the flare without injury, he was now subjected to the full extent of this fiery void's heat.

Managing to right himself in the air, Mewtwo hissed in pain. If he could feel his skin burning before, it was practically melting now. The second he created a new barrier, Necrozma appeared before him once more. His fist tore through the shield as if it were glass, and smashed into Mewtwo's abdomen. When he doubled over, Necrozma grabbed hold of the half-halo on his head, pulling it up so that their eyes met.

"What's the matter, Mewtwo?" Taunted the demon as he pulled back his other fist. "Can't handle a little heat?!"

Once again, Mewtwo was sent flying away. Near instantaneously, Necrozma appeared beside Mewtwo and drove his elbow into his abdomen, shooting him toward the crackling magma below. The demon rocketed down to pursue, aiming to grab hold of Mewtwo's throat and drag him down into the magma, but at the last second, the clone Pokemon formed a Shadow Ball beneath himself and detonated it. The explosion stopped Mewtwo's downward momentum, allowing him to drive his armored knee into Necrozma's face. Mewtwo then grabbed hold of the back of Necrozma's head and blasted him into the fire, where he disappeared beneath the boiling rock.

"Clever," Remarked the voice of Necrozma from behind.

Whipping around, Mewtwo was met with Necrozma, his arms crossed casually, staring at him as if nothing had happened. "Cancelling out both your momentum and mine to deliver a more devastating blow. I see you've been picking up on my tricks."

"How are you-" Mewtwo opened his mouth to reply, but cut himself off. He let out a sigh, shaking his head, and said, "I shouldn't be surprised at this point."

Necrozma nodded. "Right." Uncrossing his arms, Necrozma nodded, and in the blink of an eye, he was right behind Mewtwo once more. "Back to it, then?" The demon's fist smashed into the back of Mewtwo's head, sending him skidding across the surface of the magma ocean with Necrozma himself following in close pursuit.

Managing to right himself somewhat, Mewtwo hastily threw another Shadow Ball at Necrozma to impede him, which was promptly dispelled by the swat of the demon's hand. Necrozma raced after Mewtwo, and once he caught up, attempted to grab him by the arms. Mewtwo retaliated by forming two Shadow Balls in his hands and plunging them into Necrozma's arms to keep him at bay.

Mewtwo furled his brow, gritting his teeth as he pushed against Necrozma's arms with all of his might. This earned an amused laugh from the demon. Chuckling, Necrozma pushed his arms inward, easily forcing Mewtwo's arms, and the Shadow Balls, back towards him. Letting out a roar, Mewtwo flared his Psychic energy and pushed outward, forcing Necrozma's arms back to the point he could get an attack in.

Combining the two Shadow Balls into one, Mewtwo lurched forward with the intent to drive the attack into Necrozma's face. Necrozma, meanwhile, did the same with a ball of crackling crimson energy. It seemed like Mewtwo's attack would strike first when Necrozma's exploded suddenly, making the entire chasm tremble.

Mewtwo was blasted across the fiery void with speeds he couldn't hope to stop, soon crashing into a wall. He didn't have time to think on that before Necrozma started his onslaught anew. From the ever-black void, a large crimson beam shot out. Mewtwo stretched his arms toward it, managing to catch it with Psychic.

It quickly became apparent that it wasn't something he could handle, and Mewtwo warped out of harm's way, allowing it to fly past. The beam ripped through the pitch-black wall like it wasn't there and disappeared. The second Mewtwo looked at where the beam came from, another came his way. He deftly dodged it, and it ended up exactly like the first.

Dozens more appeared, each propelling themselves at Mewtwo one after another. Mewtwo flared his energy and took to the skies. One appeared in his flight path, and the Legend leaned his head back to allow it to narrowly scrape by his head before rocketing up past where it was as another attempted to strike his legs. He raced up along the wall, ducking, diving and dodging to evade each one that came near.

Two appeared at once, and Mewtwo was forced to stop in his tracks as they pierced the wall on either side of him. Mewtwo narrowed his eyes and caught wind of a faint red glint in the distance. He materialized a Shadow Ball in his hands and tossed it toward the light before diving down. Just as he expected, the laser completely obliterated the Shadow Ball and disappeared into the wall.

Scowling, Mewtwo muttered to himself. "Two can play at that game…"

He manifested several dozens of Shadow Balls at his sides and flung them at the red glint in the distance. "Eat this, monster!" Once the Shadow Balls began flying to their destination, they all suddenly multiplied in size, each becoming utterly colossal. They easily dwarfed Mewtwo himself ten times over, and crackled violently with energy. The flares and magma that touched them were obliterated, leaving them without a scratch.

Then, several more red glints appeared, and Necrozma's harrowing voice boomed throughout the chasm.

"Two can play at that game? In that case..." He chuckled, and the glints began glowing fiercely. "Game over, Mewtwo."

By the hundreds, crimson lasers shot forward, spiraling around one another like tendrils. Upon coming in contact with Mewtwo's Shadow Balls, they completely and utterly obliterated them. In fact, they swerved out of their way for the explicit purpose of destroying Mewtwo's attacks. Mewtwo quickly dove into the nearest hole and flew, with the light of the pursuing lasers illuminating the tunnel.

Mewtwo cursed inwardly as the beam following him grew ever-closer and sped up to evade. Something ahead caught his eye, and he squinted to properly look at it. A spot on the wall of the small cavern began glowing red, and with a thunderous crash, one of the other lasers burst through the wall and hurtled towards Mewtwo.

The Legend's eyes widened, and he quickly tore open a new path entirely out of the roof of the tunnel with Psychic, fleeing just in time to avoid the two colliding beams. This respite was short lived, and soon enough, another red spot appeared. Instead of waiting for the next laser to appear from it, Mewtwo sped up as fast as his Psychic powers could take him, narrowly passing the spot just before it erupted.

Several more red spots appeared, with Mewtwo barely managing to fly past each one before their eruption. They formed together into a massive beam that violently scattered about into countless different winding paths. Then, finally, one of the spots caught Mewtwo by his foot, causing him to wince and lose focus enough so that the massive beam completely overtook him.

He quickly summoned a barrier around himself to mitigate the damage, but it was crumbling with each passing second. Web-like cracks crawled across the purple barrier, threatening to break it like glass. So, Mewtwo closed his eyes, and teleported back up to the surface to escape just before Necrozma's attack shattered the barrier. But if he did so, why did it still feel so hot?

When Mewtwo next opened his eyes, he found that he was back in the hellish chasm, floating above the crackling magma ocean. "Wh-what?!" A wide-eyed Mewtwo stammered. "Why am I back here?!"

The dark chuckling of Necrozma froze him stiff. "You cannot escape," Hissed the demon, "Not from me."

Still chuckling, he raised his index finger toward Mewtwo, who flinched, preparing a barrier to block whatever the demon was about to throw at him. Slowly, Necrozma began to point his finger away from Mewtwo, his chuckling still going strong. A baffled Mewtwo hesitantly dared to look away from his foe up toward where he was pointing, and to his horror, found every last inch of the chasm was now lit by a source outside of the magma.

Countless red lights twinkled across the black void, revealing the formerly-covered ceiling and walls. They twinkled through the darkness, and now that Mewtwo's focus was on them, he picked up on a crackling, buzzing sound coming from them. The way they twinkled would have been beautiful, had it not been for the circumstances. Each one of those twinkles were one of Necrozma's homing lasers, and the demon had successfully brought Mewtwo into his trap.

"By now, these things must have carved in an entire cave system around us," Remarked Necrozma, "What with all your incessant fleeing." He pointed his index finger skyward, and the glow of red intensified all around them. The chasm began trembling, sending black stone crashing down all around them. The magma ocean below became unstable, and dozens of geysers spewed up from the molten sea.

Between all the chaos surrounding him, Mewtwo scarcely had a moment of reprieve between the constant dodging of it all, warping, side-stepping and generally pushing himself just to not end up as collateral damage. All the while, the maddening laughter of Necrozma that sounded akin to a hollow suit of armor filled the fiery void, with the deathly crimson twinkled growing with each reverberation of his stygian voice.

Necrozma ceased his cackling for the moment when he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. Contrary to the mass of crimson lights threatening to plunge through the walls and obliterate Mewtwo, one of them was a sharp, emerald green.

"So, he's coming to join the party as well?" The demon chuckled underneath his breath, turning away from the green light and back toward Mewtwo. "This might get interesting." He called out, "MEWTWO! YOUR TIME IS RUNNING SHORT! WHAT IS YOUR PLAN OF ATTACK, HMM?! OR PERHAPS YOU INTEND TO FLEE AND MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE TWICE!"

Mewtwo deflected a falling piece of rubble, reducing it to dust, only for another to fall upon him right after. "I cannot flee!" Roared Mewtwo. A geyser of magma impacted him from below, swallowing him completely. He formed a barrier around himself from within, pushing it away. "I know I have no chance of winning against you, but…!"

More of the geysers shot up at the cloned Legend. It was as if this chasm was sentient and actively trying to kill him. With Necrozma's power, Mewtwo didn't doubt it. "All I can do is stall for time, yet… Even still…!" The spouts violently crashed against Mewtwo's barrier, completely drowning it in the raging lava.

"I must…!"

A wall of purple burst from the lava, blowing it away in droves even as more came up from the ocean to attack Mewtwo. "I MUST FIGHT!" The lava itself was coated in the purple energy, forcing it back into the sea along with the falling rubble.

Necrozma chuckled. "Is that so? Then, pray tell…" The invader brought two of his fingers together. "How do you plan on fighting THIS?" The crimson lights burst, letting the spiraling lasers that made them up rocket toward Mewtwo. The emerald green one followed suit, revealing none other than Rayquaza.

A smirking Necrozma pointed his finger up at Rayquaza and shot a small white blast toward him. In turn, Rayquaza fired a Draco Meteor at Necrozma, and the two attacks destroyed one another. Rayquaza, still coated in the crackling energy of Dragon Ascent, pushed himself to his absolute limits to fly past Necrozma's lasers.

A surprised Mewtwo cried, "R-Rayquaza?!"

"Drop your barrier and brace yourself!" Roared Rayquaza in response.

At breakneck speeds, Rayquaza swept Mewtwo up and turned toward the roof of the chasm. Necrozma pointed his finger toward the two, and the lasers swerved to give chase. Noticing this, Rayquaza intensified his Dragon Ascent's power, resulting in a large green cone of energy forming at his front, which he used to barrel through the black earth of the chasm until, finally, he broke out and returned to the surface.

The emerald dragon let go of Mewtwo, and the two looked down upon the hole they escaped from with narrowed eyes. Just as they suspected, one of Necrozma's winding lasers shot out from the hole towards them. Hastily, they parted in time to let it fly harmlessly between the two of them. Another shot up soon after, followed by yet another. The lasers soared up from the earth in droves, reminding Mewtwo eerily of the molten geysers.

Necrozma's sinister chortling boomed across the skies of the battlefield, and soon after, the dark menace himself rose up from amidst the crimson beams to meet the pair of Legends. "So you managed to escape after all. For the time being, at least." He snapped his fingers, and the lasers changed course back toward the ground below where they rained hell upon the battlefield. The trainers and Pokemon that counted themselves lucky to have survived the Ultra Beasts and Guzzlord now found themselves under fire once more, and they desperately fled as fast as their legs could take them.

"Let us amend that, shall we?"

"Damn you, Necrozma!" Roared Mewtwo. "I will allow you to take no more lives!"

Necrozma threw his head back and laughed at that. "You say that, and yet dozens are dying beneath us with each passing second."

Mewtwo slightly recoiled at that, looking down upon the battlefield being ravaged by the attack meant for him. "I…"

"What, are you going to try and stop them?" Questioned Necrozma. "Even if you somehow managed that, who's to say I won't attack you to stop that from happening, or attack others while you're busy with that?"

"That's what he has me for!" Declared Rayquaza. Looking over to Mewtwo, he said, "Leave him to me for the time being. Your Psychic powers could stop those far faster than I could. It's the fastest way to-"

He was cut off when Necrozma warped to him and grabbed him by the throat. Glaring into the dragon's eyes, the demon asked, "What did I just say?"

"Rayquaza!" Cried Mewtwo, attempting to rush to his friend's aid only to be rendered paralyzed in Necrozma's Psychic grip. He attempted to break free of it, but even the power granted to him by Mega Evolution could not free him.

"Fool," Spat the demon. "I warned you what would happen and yet you took the bait hook, line and sinker." He increased the force of his grip on the both of them, evicting pained, guttural choking noises from the two Legends. "You can feel it, can't you, Mewtwo? Their terror and suffering, all ended in an instant and replaced with a void. All because of that 'Aura' you have."

Mewtwo's eyes went wide. "Wh-what?!"

"I thought you knew better than to feign ignorance, Mewtwo," Chided Necrozma. "I was interested in that new form of yours, and read your memory to find out. Through Aura, you were gifted that new form, but now you realize the trade-off." He chuckled and forced Mewtwo to look upon the battlefield. "Aura is the spiritual makeup of all life, as I've found through your memories. So now that your form embodies it, you cannot help but to feel the Aura of others, can't you?"

"N-no!" Cried Mewtwo. He tried desperately to push it out of his mind with Psychic, yet it didn't work. The very nature of his form and Aura forced him to bond with it, and in turn, forced him to feel the Auras of others. He felt the people dying as if their lives were his own, over and over and over again. He tried to shut his eyes, as if that would help him escape it, but Necrozma wrenched them open.

"On an unrelated note," Started Necrozma as he casually twiddled his fingers together, "I've been meaning to ask you for a while now. Why you're called MewTWO, I mean. Surely that implies there's a one, correct?"

When Mewtwo failed to respond, Necrozma continued. "There's no use trying to keep it from me, you know. I've already pried it from your memory alongside the knowledge of your 'Mega' form. So there exists another god on the same level of power as Arceus." Necrozma's eyes lit up, while Rayquaza's widened in horror. "How interesting. Yet, she chooses not to battle me, instead letting her subjects uselessly die trying to buy time for Arceus, all for the sake of protecting the Tree of Life."

The demon's grip increased, nearly crushing the air in Rayquaza's and Mewtwo's throats. "I wonder if she underestimates me. Am I simply not big enough of a threat for her to deal with?" He cackled madly, shaking his head. "Perhaps I will teach her just how great of a mistake that is after killing all of you. Seeing all of your corpses laid at her feet will surely teach her that, and in turn give me a far more amusing fight than anything you lot have demonstrated."

Dozens of jagged spears made from Necrozma's energy manifested around the two of them. "So on that note, you are no longer need-"

Necrozma dropped them suddenly, allowing the two Legends to fall back to the earth below. They managed to catch themselves mid-air and gripped at their own throats, heaving for air. Whipping around, Necrozma brought up his arm just in time to block an oncoming strike. A ball of crackling purplish-white Psychic energy crashed into Necrozma with enough force to actually blow him backwards.

"Wh-what?!"

Righting himself in the air, he glared fiercely at whatever it was that had struck him. He quickly calmed himself after having read the perpetrator's mind. "It's you. I'm genuinely surprised to see you yet live."

The ball of energy faded, revealing Deoxys in its place. Only now, he was coated head to toe in a brilliant, gentle white Aura. "I'm back from the dead," Declared the sole survivor of Necrozma's previous invasion, "To take you down with me!"

"A bold statement," Replied Necrozma, chortling in amusement. "I do hope you can entertain me this time...though…" He took notice of the white Aura crawling about Deoxys's body. "That energy...or rather, that Aura...it's unbearably bright, like that of that bird I killed not too long ago. Are these incidents related, perhaps?"

"You dare let your mind wander now, monster?!" Roared Deoxys, flaring his newly-acquired power. He blitzed toward Necrozma, crying, "YOUR END HAS COME! I WILL AVENGE MY PEOPLE AND THE LIVES YOU'VE STOLEN FROM MY NEW HOME!"

"Never mind," Said Necrozma, turning his head up to face the oncoming Deoxys. "It's unimportant. You, however, may prove to be a more entertaining fight than the others!"

Necrozma bitzed toward Deoxys as well, bringing his arm back and launching it forward so that their fists crashed together. A massive shockwave from the force of their strikes uprooted the nearest ground below. To both Necrozma and Deoxys's surprise, they met with equal force, and were thus left at a standstill as they drove their fists together. Eventually, Necrozma drove his fist forward, completely obliterating Deoxys's.

"Hah!" Jeered Necrozma. "Apparently this newfound strength of yours means little."

To the demon's further shock, Deoxys's arm re-manifested itself back into existence, and since Necrozma's arm was already past where the Deoxys's previous one was, he couldn't bring it back to counter Deoxys's next strike. In the palm of the DNA Pokemon's hand, he pressurized the surroundings together until a miniature void appeared, and when he released his hold on the void, it exploded outwards with enough force to send Necrozma flying backwards once more.

"Mewtwo, Rayquaza!" Cried Deoxys, catching the attention of the two Legends. "You two save the trainers and Pokemon!" He turned away from them, glaring at Necrozma. "I'll handle him."

Not needing to be told twice, Mewtwo and Rayquaza nodded and soared down to the land below.

Once more, Necrozma righted himself in the air, much more annoyed than before. That was, until he saw the state of his adversary and couldn't help but to throw his head back and laugh. Deoxys's entire upper body had been blown to smithereens by his own attack. "Fool. Could you not even withstand your own power, or was that some worthless last-ditch effort to take yourself out alongside me?"

His crimson eyes widened once Deoxys's body began reforming before his very eyes, leaving not a single trace of evidence that he'd been damaged. "Neither," Replied Deoxys after his head re-formed. "This is my will to destroy you! I will eradicate my body as many times as it takes so long as one results in yours going with it!"

"Regeneration?" Asked Necrozma. Your kind displayed no such technique when I eliminated them, so how can you perform it?"

In response, Deoxys let his energy explode around him, to the point that pieces of his body were burned away and then regenerated immediately after. "It is a technique I picked up somewhere along the way." Again, he launched himself at his mortal enemy, uncaring of the damage he was doing to himself. "ALL FOR THE SAKE OF KILLING YOU!"

Necrozma brought back his arm, charging a crimson ball of energy within his palm. "You are FAR from the first individual I've slain with the power of regeneration! It means nothing to me!"

Their fists crashed together once more, eventually sliding past each other and crashing into the other's face. Growling underneath his breath, Necrozma grabbed Deoxys's arm and wrenched it off before blasting the Legend point blank. From the blast, Deoxys's warped form, constantly in the midst of regenerating, gradually pushed through until his burnt head formed once more. With it, he re-formed his hand and returned Necrozma's favor, destroying his arm again to do so.

Necrozma backpedaled, brushing himself off. He glared at Deoxys, who goaded him on after materializing the destroyed arm. Creating two crimson balls of energy into each hand, Necrozma raced toward Deoxys and flung them at him. Deoxys merely smirked, floating still in the air and allowing them to hit him dead on.

The detonation of the attacks blew Deoxys to smithereens and clouded the area around him in smoke. From that smoke, the bright red arm of Deoxys fell. Necrozma swiped his finger through the air, causing the arm to explode. The dark lord failed to notice the other arm until it stretched out far beyond what would normally be possible and gripped him by the neck.

"Wh-what?!" Cried a wide-eyed Necrozma, mere milliseconds before the arm detonated with even greater force than the blast that obliterated Deoxys.

A massive eruption of crackling purple energy burst from Deoxys's smoke cloud, racing toward Necrozma's and blasting dead into it with enough force to immediately erase both clouds.

"PSYCHO BOOST!"

Grabbing hold of Necrozma, Deoxys hurtled the both of them into the ground, causing a massive explosion upon impact. From within the burning flames, Deoxys raised his arm, pressurizing his Psychic Power into his hand and flattening it into a spear-hand.

"I…" The DNA Legend drove the edge of his fist into Necrozma's chest, creating an array of plasmatic sparks that tore apart everything in their path. "WILL ERADICATE YOU!" The demon himself, however, merely smirked at Deoxys's pathetic attempts at harming him and grabbed his wrist, once again wrenching it off before blasting him off.

"Fool," Spat Necrozma as he rose above his adversary, aiming another blast his way. "Something like that is beyond your grasp. You should have stayed on your home planet and DIED LIKE THE REST!" Faster than what was perceivable, Necrozma's blast tore straight through Deoxys's body and erupted into a massive cloud of crimson plasma. In an instant, he disappeared entirely, swept away and obliterated by Necrozma's overwhelming might.

Necrozma was left alone, cackling far above the destruction he had caused. The skies were still red from Guzzlord's explosion, and nearly the entire area was still set aflame. The destruction he himself had caused still scarred the Earth, and he relished in it. Even more so when he heard the screams of the world's defenders below, though as he looked down upon the world, he noticed that the winding lasers had ceased.

"Pity," Remarked the invader. "It appears that those two actually managed to stop it after all." He sneered darkly at the scorched land, pointing his now-glowing finger toward it. "I wonder if they'll be able to stop it twice...wait a minute…" Something caught the dark lord's attention. Or rather, it was the lack of something. He gazed around himself, attempting to sense for the Earth-dwellers, yet found nothing. Not even the Legends themselves were present anymore. He couldn't sense anything. It was as if all life had suddenly disappeared.

Necrozma retracted his hand. "What is this...what happened?" He tapped his right crystal and bellowed, "Xurkitree! What happened to this planet?! Everything disappeared all of a sudden, and I'm far from finished with my most awaited conquest!" To Necrozma's fury, he only received static from his right-hand man's end. He tapped on his crystal repeatedly in an attempt to get it to respond, yet nothing ever came.

"Impudent…!" Seethed the demon, balling his hand into a fist furiously. "How dare he ignore me! If he believes that just because the Ultra Beasts are dead that he can suddenly refuse to serve me, then I'm going to-" As Necrozma turned his gaze skyward with the intent to help his subordinate recall the demon's terror, he was not confronted by the sight of the massive ship. Instead, it was only a reddish-black sky, clouded with ash from the flames below.

"What?! Where the hell did…?!"

"Confused?"

Necrozma whipped around and fired at the source of the voice. It was none other than Deoxys, though he was completely swallowed up in the attack and disappeared from sight. "That won't work this time," The voice of Deoxys assured. Necrozma's response was to repeat his previous action, seemingly destroying the DNA Pokemon once again.

"Is this some kind of illusion, Deoxys?" Questioned Necrozma, his burning red eyes scanning all around himself so that he may lay his adversary to ash for a third time the moment he revealed himself. "Since you lack any real power, even with that newfound Aura of yours, you rely on pathetic tricks in an attempt to trap me, is that right?"

Deoxys appeared before Necrozma, which resulted in a third attempt from Necrozma to destroy him. However, the beam meant to reduce Deoxys to dust was, itself, destroyed before it could hit its intended target. "So," Spoke Deoxys, unflinching in the face of Necrozma's attempt to kill him, "You've figured it out. Here I believed all you were was raw power, but it seems you possess a brain that can function beyond exclusively destroying whatever you set your eyes upon."

The dark lord appeared behind Deoxys. "And it seems that you possess quite the tongue for someone who lacks a head." He slashed his arm through Deoxys's neck with the intent to sever his head from his body, yet the attack phased straight through the Legend as if it weren't there at all and caused Deoxys's body to dissipate into particles, which quickly re-formed themselves further away from the demon.

The DNA Legend motioned around himself at the burning landscape. "In any case, the world you see before you is not Earth, but rather, that of your previous conquest." Deoxys glared at Necrozma with all the fury of a burning star, no longer caring to conceal the hatred he felt for him. "The planet YOU destroyed."

"Am I supposed to feel remorse?"

Deoxys shook his head. "No...what you're supposed to feel is everything you've inflicted upon my kind and those who live on Earth!" He held his arm out at his side, clawing his hand. "I WILL MAKE SURE OF THAT!"

Necrozma merely laughed and shook his head, amused at the prospect of such a thing. "I'm quaking."

In spite of Necrozma's indifference, Deoxys smirked. Instead of using his arm to attack, like Necrozma anticipated, he unexpectedly ripped it off instead, throwing it into the winds where it disappeared among the flames. Necrozma gave him an incredulous look, looking up and down between Deoxys and the flames that had taken his arm.

"And what exactly was that supposed to be-"

"Pain Split."

Against his will, Necrozma doubled over, grabbed hold of his arm and let out an agonized shriek that only stopped when the realization of what he'd just done hit him. "What was...what did I…?!"

Deoxys regenerated his arm, only to tear it off once more, sending a wave of burning pain racing through Necrozma's body once more. He did it again, and again and again, relishing in the agonized screaming of his despised foe. "How long I have waited-" He pierced himself through the chest with his arm, tearing out a piece of his body and dropping it into the fire. The dark lord doubled over, clutching at a wound that wasn't there, yet uncontrollably letting loose a shriek of pain as if it were real. "-To hear that sound."

He impaled his own eye with his finger, twisting and turning it about while Necrozma helplessly clutched at his own. The dark lord was rendered paralyzed by the alien sensation, completely helpless to Deoxys's whim. "At long last…!" Even despite what Deoxys was subjecting himself to, watching Necrozma writhe in their shared agony was a pleasure that far outweighed it. "AT LONG LAST, YOU WILL KNOW WHAT WE FELT! WHAT YOU MADE US FEEL!"

He drove his hands into his abdomen, tearing himself to pieces and laughing at Necrozma's thrashing. "NOW YOU REALIZE WHAT IT MEANT TO ALLOW MY BODY TO BE DESTROYED!" Deoxys tilted his head to the side and drove his clawed hands deep into his own neck. The one responsible for the extinction of his race uselessly clasped his neck on an instinct he couldn't control. "I RESOLVED TO SUBJECT MYSELF TO THIS, ALL FOR THE SAKE OF MAKING SURE YOU DID TOO!"

The ecstasy began to take its toll on the Legend's psyche, making his eyes go wild as he mutilated himself over and over to equalize the horrors he inflicted upon his kind. With the wave of Deoxys's hand the illusion he created warped, and suddenly the two of them were engulfed in the flames from below. Deoxys's body burned away and regenerated, and of course, Necrozma was left helpless to do anything about it.

"DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT I TOLD YOU, NECROZMA?!" Roared Deoxys, jabbing his finger toward the dark demon. "I WILL ERADICATE MYSELF AS MANY TIMES AS IT TAKES TO ASSURE YOU GO WITH ME!"

A dark, chilling chuckle echoed all throughout the desecrated planet, drowning out the sound of the crackling flames engulfing the two. That chuckling steadily rose, becoming more frequent and terrible as it evolved into laughter and then mad, mindless howling.

Necrozma threw his head back, practically screaming his horrific laughter to the highest heavens above. "So…" The pitch of his voice rose, carrying with it a disturbed sense of elation. He opened his arms, and welcomed the flames that licked at his black armored body as if he was welcoming an old friend he hadn't seen in years. "This is pain...this is what I made them...an uncountable number of life forms...feel…"

Lowering his head, the demon stared at Deoxys, only now there was hardly an ounce of rage present. But...the DNA Pokemon couldn't help but to shrink at the monster's newfound expression. It was just as, if not more so disturbing as his rage, and Deoxys could hear every instinct of his body screaming at him to flee.

"What the hell…" Uttered Deoxys under his breath. "What the hell is wrong with you?! Now you feel remorse?!" He jabbed his thumb straight through where his heart would have been in the hopes that it stopped Necrozma's. "THERE WILL BE NO MERCY FOR YOU! NOT AFTER EVERYTHING YOU'VE DONE!"

Yet, Deoxys's attack seemed to have no visible effect. In fact, Necrozma laughed once more, burying his head in his right hand and shaking his head. "To think...all this time, I was subjecting them all to that." He removed his hand from his head, and through the gaps between Necrozma's fingers, Deoxys bore witness to a new life in the demon's eyes. A warped one, created entirely from Hell.

"If that is what they felt this whole time, then perhaps I'm better at this than I first thought."

In the blink of an eye, Necrozma appeared before Deoxys and grabbed hold of his throat. Deoxys frantically stabbed and tore at himself to force Necrozma to let go of him from the pain, yet in stark contrast to how the demon reacted before, this only elicited another disturbed laugh from him.

"I must thank you," The universal conquer said, "For enlightening me to the full extent of my methods." He tightened his grip on Deoxys's throat, all the while the Legend frantically mutilated himself in a fruitless endeavor to alleviate that grip. "Hahaha...pain...I've known of its existence since my birth, yet I never truly knew what it meant until now."

A red glow appeared in his hand. "So I must thank you, Deoxys. My further conquests will be far more entertaining, so your service is no longer required."

The Legend ceased his useless self-destruction, instead opting to try prying himself from Necrozma's grasp. Yet this, too, proved useless. 'How is this possible?!' Deoxys thought to himself. 'Not even five minutes ago, that monster couldn't even move due to the pain, yet now he acts as if it isn't even there!'

His eyes widened once he came to a realization. 'I lost myself when I attacked him. I practically drowned in ecstasy while making him feel hell, but it never occurred to me that Pain Split could carry that over too…'

He looked down at his hands, which glowed white brightly with the power of his newfound Aura. 'I've heard that Aura can be used to sense emotion, but I had no idea it could be used to make others feel it too…'

Deoxys's face wrinkled with guilt as he closed his eyes. 'I created even more of a monster than he was before…'

As Necrozma scoured Deoxys from the world, reality itself seemed to shatter around the dark lord like glass. The pieces of the illusionary world Deoxys created fell into the flames of reality below, disappearing into nothingness. Deoxys himself staggered backwards, the destruction of his Trick Room/Camouflage mix disrupting his concentration. A sharp gasp escaped his throat, and he instinctively clutched at it, heaving for air.

Necrozma granted him no reprieve. In the blink of an eye, his fist obliterated Deoxys's upper half. The swipe of the back of his hand was all it took to do the same to the rest of the Legend. A tiny, near-invisible piece of the Legend's flesh morphed back into his full form, only to have his head gripped from behind. "Does this hurt?" Rasped the dark lord into Deoxys's ear. Giving him no time to respond, Necrozma hurled him toward the ground and raced after him, delivering a double-handed bash that splattered Deoxys across the ground upon impact.

As Necrozma crashed into the ground, he ripped his hand out of the reddish-blue goop that was Deoxys's remains. "If you can still hear me, let me say that I'm glad you have those regenerative abilities." He lit up another ball of energy in his hand, waiting for the moment when Deoxys inevitably regenerated. "So that I may inflict this pain on you over and over again." The moment when Deoxys's features became somewhat visible as the puddle reformed, Necrozma thrust the ball of energy into it and allowed it to detonate.

The ensuing explosion tore up into the sky in a massive pillar of flame. A small portion of Deoxys's remains that had been splattered earlier managed to halfway regenerate, allowing the Legend's head to poke out. His eyes shot wide as Necrozma erupted from the flame pillar and launched himself toward Deoxys, tearing his head from the puddle and throwing it into the pillar, where it was reduced to ashes.

"Pick up the pace a little, would you?" Jeered a laughing Necrozma as he dug his pointed finger into the puddle. As he twisted his finger throughout it, reveling in the pain it was causing Deoxys, he mocked him further by asking, "Were you not going to avenge the rest of your worthless race? How about saving what's left of those who live here?"

Deoxys's response came in the form of the puddle beginning to bubble until a fist jutted out from it and attempted to strike Necrozma. The demon caught it by the wrist, smirking down at Deoxys. He ripped the arm off, but the rest of Deoxys quickly re-formed, crashing into Necrozma with a Psycho Boost that blasted the surrounding land apart.

"Still got some fight left in you?" Asked Necrozma. He threw Deoxys back, but the Legend quickly caught himself. "I wonder how long that will last. How long can you withstand the pain?"

"This pain…" Started Deoxys, clenching his fists. "...Is nothing compared to the pain I felt watching my family die at your hands!" His energy exploded outwards, sending wave after wave of Psychic power crashing against anything it came in contact with. The remains of skyscrapers were blasted apart along with the ground they were rooted in. Debris was ripped into the air before becoming naught but dust. Nothing could stand up to that power, save Necrozma, who still smirked at his prey without so much as a scratch adorning his black body.

"I told you this before, Necrozma!" Bellowed Deoxys. "I WILL DESTROY MY BODY AS MANY TIMES AS IT TAKES TO KILL YOU!"

Deoxys's body began to morph. He raised his arm, which became more jagged as did the other. His legs became bulkier and armored, and three triangular growths grew backward from his head. His upper chest around the area of his crystal became muscled as well, fully connecting with his arms. "I'll take you down with this, Necrozma!" Brazenly declared Deoxys. "Attack Form!"

Intrigued by this, Necrozma asked, "Oh? An 'Attack Form?' So your bodily reformation powers don't simply extend to regeneration? Most intriguing...but…" He rushed at Deoxys, who did the same to him in turn. Their fists clashed together with far greater force than their initial clash, yet just as before, Necrozma's fist completely obliterated Deoxys's arm. "...Ultimately, disappointing."

Faster than what Necrozma believed to be possible from his opponent, Deoxys used the imbalance of his body created by the destruction of his arm to pivot around to Necrozma's back, using the remaining arm to slam Necrozma into the ground. Necrozma, of course, rocketed back up immediately after and blasted Deoxys point-blank, thinning the Legend's body to nearly nothing.

The slim form of Deoxys burst from the blast, coated in flame, and seemingly disappeared from sight. Necrozma, however, knew better than to believe it were so and whipped around, sensing the Legend's intent to kill. He meant to deliver what would have been a punch that once again splattered the DNA Legend across the ground, but to his genuine shock, Deoxys's thinned, inflamed body leapt above the punch, delivering one of his own between Necrozma's eyes.

An annoyed Necrozma attempted to grab hold of the Legend's arm, but the moment he began to reach out his arm, Deoxys disappeared from sight. Necrozma's eyes widened, and he was genuinely taken aback. "What? His speed was nowhere near that level before…" He quickly went to block as he sensed Deoxys approaching once more, only to be struck from behind. Again he attempted to strike at Deoxys, yet his fist only caught empty air.

"Impudent…!" Necrozma channeled energy into the tip of his finger and spun in a circle, sending a crackling wave of energy across the skies. Yet, this did nothing to stop Deoxys. In fact, each and every one of his next blows came faster than the last, to the point not a millisecond went by where the demon was not struck from all sides. Yet none of Necrozma's counterattacks so much as touched him.

"This is..." Spoke the voice of Deoxys, seemingly from every direction. "My Speed Form!" Like bullets, every inch of Necrozma's body was pelted by attacks from the invisible Legend. His form could no longer be perceived, and therefore, could not be touched either. "Power means nothing if you cannot hit your target!"

"Speed means nothing if you cannot even damage your opponent!" Countered Necrozma. He spread his arms outward dug his fingers into the open air. "FACE OBLIVION!" A piece of reality itself crumpled into itself around Necrozma for but a split second, but that tiny instance of time was all the demon needed to pull Deoxys into his grasp. "HRRRAUGH!" The space Necrozma bent inward was annihilated, painting the sky crimson with his power. Everything within was erased completely.

Everything except for a blue barrier, that was.

The barrier shattered, unveiling Deoxys in yet another new form. He was coated in bulk, to the point his own face was hardly visible from within. Every inch of his body was broad and flat, allowing for any and all damage to harmlessly bounce off of him.

"If you cannot damage your opponent indeed, Necrozma."

Necrozma simply scoffed at that. Eyeing Deoxys's new form up and down, he asked mockingly, "What now, a defense form?"

"Precisely," Answered Deoxys with a nod. "You will never kill me, Necrozma! Not until-"

Necrozma promptly cut Deoxys off with a beam to his face. "Until I've fallen like your family, I'll pay for the monstrous actions I've committed, and so on and so forth." He rolled his head and groaned in annoyance. "I've only humored you this long because you've impressed me with your fighting prowess, but I will suffer no more talk of justice. It becomes grating on the ears after the millionth or so time, and I'm not exaggerating with that number."

"Is that so?" When the smoke coating Deoxys's face cleared, there was not a speck of visible damage. "Well, you're going to have to suffer me a little longer then, you piece of scum!" Deoxys raced at Necrozma, his fist pumped back. Necrozma chuckled and followed suit. When their fists collided, Deoxys's arm trembled, but managed to stay in one piece. That was, until a bright glow began emitting from within.

The light intensified within Deoxys's arm, and eventually that light began erupting in bright pockets. Meanwhile, Necrozma looked on with a confident smirk. "Trying again for self destruction?" A glow of his own manifested from within his hand, and the second he opened it, a wall of crimson scoured Deoxys's body from sight, reducing him completely to dust. "I know you're still alive, so you had better start making this fight actually interesting."

The light-drenched arm suddenly appeared in Necrozma's face out of nowhere, making the space lord's eyes go wide. "WHA-?!" A thunderous boom shook the skies, and from the explosion, Deoxys raced toward the demon in his Speed Form. Just before his fist met with Necrozma's face, he shifted into his Attack Form, and the ensuing strike blew Necrozma backwards.

Necrozma quickly righted himself and fired at the DNA Pokemon, to which Deoxys shifted into his Defense Form, tanking the blow before shifting back into his Speed Form and blitzed toward Necrozma. "NOT LIKELY!" Roared the demon in turn, flaring his terrible crimson energy and following his prey. At blinding speeds, the two crashed against one another. Deoxys would have been splattered once more had it not been for his timely transformation back into his Defense Form to tank the blow.

With both of them at a standstill, Deoxys changed his arm into Attack Form, aiming to smash his fist into Necrozma's face, but the demon dashed his hopes by leaning his head out of the way, letting Deoxys's punch fly past him harmlessly. He smirked at Deoxys darkly, then smashed his own fist into his opponent's face. Even with Deoxys's Defense Form active, Necrozma's fist tore straight through the Legend's head.

Granting Deoxys no reprieve, Necrozma plunged his hands into his body and wrenched it in two, taking hold of the pieces in his hands. "Even with all this power…" Necrozma's hands alit, and he pointed them, and Deoxys's torn body, to the ground. "YOU'RE STILL TO WEAK TO AVENGE ANYONE!" He planted his hands together, engulfing Deoxys's body in a massive ball of light. "WHAT MADE YOU THINK YOU COULD SAVE THIS WORLD IF YOU FAILED THE LAST?!"

Necrozma hurled the ball into the ground, obliterating the land for miles. The clouds of smoke blotting out the skies were blown away, only to be soon replaced with new debris from this explosion and dropped into a pit of black. A massive black crater was carved into the landscape, drowning in hellfire. The demon descended into those flames, unperturbed even as they hungrily attempted to eat at his armored flesh. From within those flames, Necrozma scanned the burning stone and eventually settled upon a spot.

He knelt down, grabbing at a small, flaming gelatinous glob hardly the size of his fingers. When it began bubbling, he made it still by sending a shock from his fingers into it. "What's the matter?" He taunted. "Have you become so weak that you can no longer regenerate?" He shocked the slab of flesh, burning it away until it barely became visible between his fingertips. To add even greater insult to injury, he vigorously shook it up and down, laughing as he did. "Or have you simply lost the will to fight any longer?"

The tiny piece of flesh was suddenly shot out of Necrozma's hand by a thin, purple laser. Necrozma's gaze snapped over toward the source of the annoyance, finding a disheveled, nearly-collapsed Deoxys on one knee. He was heaving for air, evidenced by the frantic rate at which his chest was rising and falling. Yet, he was still alive. "As if...I would ever lose the will to fight…against you!"

Necrozma couldn't help but scoff at the sight of Deoxys, throwing his head back and laughing. "Well, color me impressed with that stunt of shooting that piece of your flesh out of my hand, but you aren't convincing anyone in that state." He summoned another massive ball of energy over his head and marched toward his prey to finish this nuisance once and for all. "You're so pitifully weak I can't even sense your life force. Where did all that talk of endlessly regenerating in order to kill me go?"

Deoxys poked a temporary mouth into his face if only to spit in Necrozma's, though what came out was simply another flesh glob. It was eradicated by a stray bolt of plasma from the ball of energy long before it could come in contact with Necrozma. "It...never changed!" Declared Deoxys, even still. "I won't die...not until you do!"

Necrozma's eyes curved upwards. It was the demon's equivalent of a sadistic grin. "Then I will look forward to seeing how you regenerate from this."

He brought the orb down upon Deoxys's head, blasting the crater even wider than it already was. The skies and land alike all became alit with hellish flame that spread out in wave after wave. Even the monstrous mothership's underside was burnt black. The explosion uprooted the ground, creating a hailstorm of dust and rubble. Its force was felt around the entire planet.

Deep in the fiery, ashen hellscape Necrozma carved into the Earth, the demon himself scanned every inch of the crater for his adversary. There was not a trace. Not a single speck of dust, nor atoms or even the particles that make them up was left for Deoxys to regenerate from. Nodding to himself, Necrozma floated out of the crater to marvel at his handiwork,

"That takes care of another peon in the way of my duel with Arceus," He said proudly. "Though, I must admit, he gave me a far greater battle than anyone else save Arceus himself." Necrozma turned his gaze upward into the billowing clouds of smoke that coated the skies. "The other Legends yet live. If Arceus still refuses to show himself, then I suppose I will simply have to slaughter the rest of his children...but…" He glanced back down into the fiery pit. "...I doubt any other will pose a greater challenge than Deoxys, so…"

Necrozma held out his finger, pointed outward with all the edge of a blade, and hovered it higher and higher until he pointed to the very heavens themselves. "I'm not going to waste my time any longer. This invasion is over."

Yet another crimson ball of energy appeared atop Necrozma's fingertip, becoming larger and larger, eventually crashing against the underside of the ship and breaking through. The demon pumped another pulse of energy into it, making it nearly explode on the spot. The frantic crackling of loose plasma from the ball tore apart everything it touched apart, atomizing the smoke, fire, land and even his own ship. His victory all but assured, Necrozma issued one final message from within the minds of all who were still yet breathing, all across the world.

"Your god refuses to show himself, and all others who opposed me have been disposed of. Therefore, I will annihilate this planet and take with it my victory!" The chilling chuckle that followed this nearly stopped the hearts of everyone then and there. The trainers still scattered elsewhere across the battlefield who had desperately tried to find safety now that their job was complete, their loyal Pokemon who fought alongside them to the death, the ordinary citizens who were watching their loved ones take part in the battle from home, and those who chose to isolate themselves in their final days. All were rendered paralyzed with terror in the face of their demise.

"Yet, you may take one last sliver of pride knowing that this planet has given me far greater trouble than any other, even without your god. My fleet is destroyed, and my men have all either betrayed me or perished...but…" The orb of energy meant to obliterate the world surged with energy, painting the skies with lightning. "That is beside the point. I bid you all...FAREWELL!"

With his parting words to the lifeforms of Earth unveiled, Necrozma pointed to the ground, and unleashed armageddon upon the world, as he did so many times before. The colossal ball of energy descended, inching closer and closer to the ground. The loud booming of the mothership's horn rang out across the world, beginning its escape before the world's explosion. Necrozma himself stayed behind, watching the world-ending attack intently. He would not be willing to miss even a second of it.

"YOU WILL NOT HAVE YOUR WAY! NOT THIS TIME!"

A white light that outshined even the world-ending ball appeared before Necrozma's very eyes. Or rather, it was a void. The demon's attack exploded, but the particles froze in place before reversing their movement, spiraling around the white void until it was swallowed completely. However, that was not all that was destroyed. The flames from below stretched up to meet the light, ending up exactly the same as the ball. The entire field of flames, the smoke, the debris, all the destruction was sucked into the void in a massive spiral of divine light.

An intrigued Necrozma held his hand up to the mothership, stopping its ascent with Psychic. "Now...what is this?"

"It is as I told you, Necrozma."

As the brilliant light's consuming of the desolation ceased at last, that light itself dispersed, leaving a singular being in its place. It was Deoxys, resurrecting himself from the jaws of death yet again. What's more, he held a new form to his name. It easily dwarfed his Defense Form in size, while still retaining the sleekness of his Speed Form. Areas of his body, particularly in the arms, legs and shoulders, was adorned with bulk.

"Should my body be obliterated without a trace…"

A thin growth of the Legend's malleable flesh stretched out from his shoulders and down his back. The way it flowed in the wind made it look as if it were a cape. Crystals of similar composition to the one that had previously adorned Deoxys's chest now appeared all over his body. They ran up his arms to his shoulders, and down his legs to his ankles. A singular one, shaped like a four-pronged diamond, was placed firmly in the Legend's forehead. It shimmered with a brightness that rivaled the sun.

"Even that will have no bearing on my will! My will to take vengeance for my old home and to protect my new one!"

Trails of blinding white energy not unlike that of his forehead-crystal circled around Deoxys. Though they appeared to be calm and gentle, making a low humming sound as they flew, Necrozma could sense that they possessed a dangerous power behind their facade of tranquility. Uncrossing his arms, Deoxys jabbed a finger Necrozma's way.

"I will not die! Not until I've taken you down with me! That I swear to you, Necrozma!"

The dark demon eyed Deoxys's new form with intense interest. His eyes were wide with an excitement he hadn't felt since his previous duel with Arceus. The sheer power Deoxys was letting loose with every second made him tremble with anticipation. An anticipation he could no longer suppress.

"How interesting," Remarked the invader. "This power...perhaps you might be able to actually inflict damage upon me after all." He opened his arms, welcoming Deoxys to strike him. "Come! Let us see if you will finally be able to enterta-"

Before Necrozma even knew what had happened, he was struck by an invisible blow and sent flying. "What?!" Stopping his unintended flight, Necrozma flared his energy and rocketed toward Deoxys. In turn, the renewed Legend did the same. They pulled back their arms, and for a third time, their fists collided. In stark contrast to what happened the previous times, Deoxys was not only able to withstand Necrozma's power, but he matched it as well.

"So, you truly have changed," Remarked Necrozma. "I am beginning to think that there is more to this white glow, for it to have appeared before me three times now."

"This power is my resolve!" Roared Deoxys. His voice sounded different, like there were two of him speaking at once. "Nothing else! It is my will to defeat you given form!"

Necrozma hummed to himself in thought, eventually nodding in apparent agreement with the Legend. "Perhaps it is as meaningless as that."

Deoxys's eyes went wide with rage. "You dare call it meaningless?!" The white Aura making up his body became wild, engulfing him completely and allowing him to push back against Necrozma. "The faces of my family frozen in terror, even after they were already slain by your hand...not just there, but here as well! Maybe you don't remember them, but I could never forget! Even now, when I close my eyes, I can see them!"

Necrozma's eyes widened when he saw that he was being pushed back. Deoxys's eyes glared into Necrozma's as he burst forward with all of his might. The once-calm white Aura encasing him practically exploded, driving Deoxys forward with every step. "That's why…" The blinding Aura encased the both of them, drowning them in their power.

Necrozma could not believe what he was seeing. "Am I...being overpowered?!"

"I...will!" The Auric light overtook Deoxys's form, to the point that the only thing visible was a pure white form sharing the face of the Legend. To Necrozma, it no longer felt like he was fighting Deoxys. He couldn't even sense Deoxys's life force, or anything at all, from the being he was fighting. "DEFEAT YOU!"

Deoxys completely overpowered Necrozma, launching the both of them into the ground and below. It took no more than a few seconds for the ground itself to become infused with the Auric light before Deoxys, his fist dug into Necrozma's back, to burst from the ground and soar back into the skies. An annoyed Necrozma grabbed Deoxys by his wrist and freed himself by hurling his adversary, though it took nearly no time at all for Deoxys to right himself and start his assault anew. Necrozma eagerly obliged.

The dueling godlike beings soared throughout the skies of the battlefield, clashing against one another and uprooting the ground with tremendous shockwaves as they went. Even with how far above the ground they fought, nothing above or below them could withstand their might. They spiraled around one another, clashing their bodies, coated in their godlike energy, against one another as they flew. To an outsider, it looked like two glowing orbs, one red and the other white, were flying across the skies with immeasurable speed and leaving only destruction in their wake.

Deoxys and Necrozma readied themselves for yet another clash, but their fists scarcely slid past one another and into each other's faces. Their heads jerked back, but both refused to give in. A red glow appeared in the palm of Necrozma's hand, which Deoxys matched with a white one of his own. Two massive explosions ripped through the skies, leaving colossal, elongated craters below. Inside of the explosions, neither Necrozma or Deoxys budged. The power of their own blasts had almost no impact on either one of them.

"I WILL END YOU!" Roared Deoxys, charging his power to his absolute limit.

"YOU WILL DIE TRYING!" Retorted Necrozma, following suit.

A series of blinding twinkles dotting the entirety of the visible skies for those still on the battlefield was the only indicator they received before it was set aflame by a monstrous explosion. The underside of the mothership was blasted open. Hyper intensified flames ravaged the empty ship, incinerating the halls that once acted as the deployment station of the Ultra Beasts. Even still, Xurkitree silently watched the battle from within.

Within the flames, even still, they fought. Necrozma brought up his arm, stopping a punch meant for his eye. He formed a ball of energy in his other arm, which he thrust into Deoxys's chest. The Legend tore a hole open where Necrozma was attempting to strike, letting the ball fly straight through without causing him harm. He regenerated in such a way that caught Necrozma's arm within his chest, and with the demon trapped for the moment, aimed another punch between his eyes.

Necrozma caught the fist with his other hand and ripped the first one back out. He then tore the Legend's arm off. Or, he tried to, at least. Due to Deoxys's newfound durability, Necrozma simply ended up pulling the Legend behind him and giving him the perfect opportunity to strike. Deoxys aimed a savage kick to Necrozma's ribs, who blocked it with his arm in the nick of time. A backhand from Necrozma threw Deoxys off of him, setting them on even ground once more. '

The demon rushed forward, attempting to dig his jagged fingers into Deoxys's head. Deoxys caught his hand, as well as the other when Necrozma tried it again. Their fingers clasped together, Necrozma and Deoxys pushed against each other in a desperate struggle for dominance that ended with Deoxys pulling his right arm up, ripping it off in the process, and regenerating it in the fraction of a second to slam his elbow into Necrozma's head.

The blow sent Necrozma soaring down to the ground below, with Deoxys following in hot pursuit. When the Legend caught up, he smashed his fist into Necrozma's back, hurtling the both of them into the charred stone. A crimson pillar of light erupted from where they landed, flinging Deoxys's body into the air. Necrozma appeared above him soon after and delivered a double-handed slam to the Legend's head which threw him right back into the ground.

The ensuing cloud of dust, as well as a large portion of the ground surrounding Deoxys, was obliterated as the Legend let out a deafening war cry and unleashed his blinding power. His lifelong adversary smirked down upon him and descended. The two clashed fists for a fourth time, erasing a portion of the land beneath them. Something behind the demon caught his attention, distracting him long enough for Deoxys to overpower him and throw him higher into the air. The gleaming blue beam of Roar of Time crashed into the demon thereafter, which only proved to be naught but a nuisance to him as he knocked it aside.

"So, the cavalry has arrived?"

Deoxys turned to the newcomer as well, though he only expected to find Dialga. What stood before him was not just the deity of time, but far more. Lugia was looking past Deoxys, glaring hungrily at Necrozma with a fury that matched that of the DNA Pokemon's. Keldeo stood atop Kyurem's back, a Secret Sword already prepared. Beside Dialga was his brother Palkia, standing tall above the other Legends. Mewtwo, looking worse for wear, floated beside Rayquaza, anxiously awaiting the demon's next move. Every Legend that took part in the battle appeared stood across from Deoxys and Necrozma, and they were all prepared to fight.

But Deoxys was not about to let this battle end just yet. "Stay back!" He bellowed. "Get away from here! He'll kill you!"

The Legends, who hadn't even noticed Deoxys until he spoke up, nearly had their eyes pop out of their heads when they saw him. "Wh-what manner of-?!" Stammered Palkia.

A flabbergasted Dialga remarked, "That form...and more importantly, that glow! His power...it rivals Arceus himself!"

Rayquaza couldn't believe it. "How is that possible?!"

"It doesn't matter," Said Mewtwo, summoning a multitude of Shadow Balls at his sides. "This works out for us! So long as we have Deoxys's new power on our side, we at least have a fighting chance until Arceus arrives."

"That's right!" Cheered Keldeo. "Now we can finally fight on equal terms!" The young Legend's Secret Sword crackled with energy, nearly bursting at the seams with it. Glaring murderously at the demon, Keldeo roared, "You're all but finished, monster! I will avenge my friends!"

"Don't be hasty," Chided Kyurem. "He who is rash is guaranteed to fall prey to a fatal blun-"

The ice dragon was cut off when Necrozma warped in front of him. Kyurem's eyes went wide, and he opened his mouth to say something but was cut off when Necrozma grabbed the top of his head and slammed it into the ground. "You should have taken Deoxys's advice and fled, you pathetic lizard."

"Wha-?!" Cried a surprised Keldeo. "How dare you?! Eat thi-" He was promptly silenced by a lazy backhand from Necrozma, sending him skidding across the ground.

"NECROZMA!"

The demon whipped around, raising his arm just in time to block a strike from Deoxys. Necrozma smirked at his foe, eager to once again fly into the heat of battle. The hellish glare Deoxys gave the demon gave meaning to 'if looks could kill.' Then, the two took off once more, disappearing from the other Legends' sight and leaving only a cascade of ground-shattering shockwaves in their Legends were thrown backward, unable to cope with the battle taking place before their very eyes.

"Such speed!" Remarked Groudon, shielding himself with his large arms. "I cannot keep up with them!"

"To think Deoxys of all people became this strong," Mused Rayquaza. He recalled seeing Deoxys's body laid to waste in Necrozma's grip when the battle began. "Does this newfound power have to do with that…?"

The Ruler of Space took to the skies, his signature pearl embedded in his shoulder glowing brightly with energy. "Even with this sudden boost to Deoxys's power, he should not have to fight that monster alone! Come, Legends of the Hall of Origin! Let us strike Necrozma down once and for all!"

"YEAH!" Cried the other Legends, pumping their fists skyward. As one, the original children of Arceus raced toward Necrozma, save for one who stayed behind.

Dialga was plagued by something. "Where in Father's name is Giratina?! Why hasn't he shown himself yet?! Surely he wouldn't risk losing his chance at freedom, so why…?" He shook his head to dispel those thoughts. "That is on him. With any luck, Deoxys alone should be able to last us until Lord Arceus arrives." With that, the time deity raced after his fellow Legends in pursuit of Necrozma's annihilation.


As Necrozma and Deoxys soared across the sky in their battle, the Legends followed in close pursuit. "I'LL HAVE YOUR HEAD!" Roared Lugia, charging a fearsome Aeroblast. He was promptly stopped in his tracks when Necrozma grabbed Deoxys by the wrist and hurled him into the Beast of the Seas, sending both of them crashing into the ground.

"Get off of me!" Hissed Lugia. "I don't care how powerful you've become! Just stay out of-" However, as the Beast of the Seas got back to his feet, he saw that Deoxys had already disappeared.

The next to try something was Keldeo, who raced up an ice bridge created by Kyurem to deliver a Sacred Sword to Necrozma's back, but Necrozma grabbed the extended horn and crushed it. Keldeo's head snapped backward, stunning him long enough for Necrozma to clutch at the helpless Legend's throat. Kyurem launched an Ice Beam at the demon, to which Necrozma intercepted it by throwing Keldeo into it. Keldeo was frozen solid on the spot and fell to the ground behind the group of Legends.

"Keldeo!" Cried Kyurem. He was about to go to the young Legend's aid when he heard Necrozma's chuckling. The moment he turned toward it, the demon smashed his fist into Kyurem's face, and he was knocked behind the group as well.

"Attack him all at once!" Bellowed Palkia, flying to the head of the group. "We won't stand a chance unless we act as one!"

"Hah!" Barked Necrozma. "You don't stand a chance either way!" He leaned his head to look past Palkia and scoffed. "Well, would you look at that. The weakest of the bunch has come for a second beating."

A confused Palkia turned to look at what Necrozma was talking about. Not too far behind the Legends was Tobias, standing atop his Latios with the rest of his team not far behind. "Everyone," Commanded Tobias, pointing to the demon."Attack!"

"Hmph." Tobias's trusted partner Darkrai attacked first, molding a Dark Pulse in its hands, though Necrozma warped to it and slammed it into the ground with the underside of his fist before it could use it. Heatran fired a colossal Inferno at Necrozma, which was easily dispelled with only the swipe of the demon's finger through the air. A red beam of light manifested where he slashed, tearing apart the fiery vortex and blasting Heatran out of the sky.

Meloetta shifted into her Pirouette form with a Focus Blast in hand, holding it behind her and aiming to throw. Necrozma simply chuckled to himself, shaking his head, and warped behind the small Legend. The confused Meloetta's eyes widened, and she frantically looked around for the demon when he grabbed the back of her head. She didn't even have the time to realize what was happening before Necrozma blasted her into the sky.

Poor Volcanion was stopped in its tracks before it could even try to attack when Necrozma warped to it and delivered a savage backhand, sending the Pokemon flying towards its trainer. "Psychic!" Hastily cried Tobias. Nodding to his trainer, Latios's eyes lit blue, coating Volcanion in a similarly colored hue to stop it in its tracks. The raven-haired trainer then pulled out a Pokeball, returning Volcanion to it and quickly returning the ball to the inside of his coat.

"That leaves only us," Cursed a scowling Tobias. "To think the strongest trainer would be dispatched of so easily."

"What do you think you're doing?!" Demanded Palkia. "Leave! Get out of here!"

Necrozma, cackling, appeared in front of the trainer with his hand outstretched. "He can't leave yet! The fun is just beginning!"

Tobias's eyes went wide, and Latios turned away from the demon in the hopes of escaping. Yet even with Latios's jet-like speed, it could not hope to outspeed Necrozma. A horrified Latias rocketed toward the demon, believing she was about to witness her brother die for a second time. Of course, her speed meant just as little to Necrozma, who was now mere inches from Tobias and Latios with a crackling ball of energy forming in his hand.

Necrozma turned away from them and raised his arm, blocking a blindingly-fast strike from Deoxys. "NECROZMA! YOU WILL TAKE NO MORE LIVES!"

The demon smirked at him cruelly, pointing his free hand toward the escaping Latios and Tobias. "Is that so-"

Necrozma's eyes went wide as Deoxys began to overpower him, forcing him backwards. His smirk disappearing, he retracted his hand and aimed it at Deoxys. The two disappeared from sight, and a hellish storm of shockwaves began ripping through the skies as the two godlike Legends began dueling once more. The rest of the Legends scattered as the shockwaves broke their formation. They had to keep moving just to not end up as collateral damage.

"Such power!" Remarked Dialga, ducking his head to avoid one of the innumerable clashes.

"Those two are far above us," Stated Palkia, swerving through the sky. He brought up his arms to guard, but the next clash sent him flying back regardless. "How did Deoxys attain such power?! Was this Father's doing?!"

The lord of time shook his head. "Lord Arceus likely could not afford to give away any of his power if he wants to win. Even now, he must be stockpiling it, but…" For a brief, split second, he caught a glimpse of Deoxys and Necrozma as their fists met before they disappeared once more. "...Is this...something else?"

Lugia, meanwhile, was not as impressed. The only thing he was focused on, the only thing he could focus on, was ending Necrozma. "Bastaaaard!" He growled between his teeth. "Eat this! Aeroblast!"

The vicious funnel of wind missed its mark, unable to come close to the speed of Necrozma and Deoxys. It did, however, catch the demon's attention. "He's a rather persistent one, isn't he?" Necrozma turned toward Lugia, opening his hand to blast him away, but Deoxys warped in front of him. The demon caught Deoxys's fist when he attempted another punch and blasted him high up into the air. "I'll need you to stay out of my way for a moment, Deoxys," Before Deoxys could retaliate Necrozma hit him point blank with a massive Hyper Beam attack that completely disintegrated him. "That should keep him away for now, but just in case..."

He narrowed his eyes at where Deoxys once stood until he found the scraps of what was left of the Legend and froze them stiff with Psychic. "There's no reason the fun with him should end just yet, so he can watch what happens next." Chuckling, he turned his sights upon Lugia and the other Legends. "You really should have stayed back and watched the show, but if you wish to participate, then I will be more than happy to oblige."

He glanced behind him at what remained of Deoxys. Even now, he was pushing against Necrozma's Psychic to regenerate. "So," He said under his breath, "He still resists." The demon chuckled darkly, his crimson red eyes gleaming as ideas of what he would do to the Legends appeared in his head en masse. "I suppose that I'll have to make this quick...but I can still have my fun!"

Laughing like a maniac, he descended upon the Legends, and the one who started this massacre would be his first victim. Faster than the eye could perceive, Necrozma smashed his fist into Lugia's chest. The Beast of the Sea's eyes went bloodshot, and he let out a choked wheeze meant to be a cry of pain. "I can sense your fury," Necrozma whispered into Lugia's ear. "Yet from your memories I've gathered, you were always so calm and collected before I arrived." The demon chuckled, a sound utterly maddening beyond reason to Lugia. "I suppose I just have that kind of effect on people."

At that, Lugia's rage overruled the pain he felt, and it pushed him past his shock to fire a Hyper Beam at the demon. Unfortunately for Lugia, Necrozma warped out of harm's way the moment the attack was launched, and slammed both of his fists into Lugia's cranium. The shock sent him crashing into the ground.

Necrozma's attention was caught by the Three Elemental Birds' screeching. "You lot as well? Perhaps the first beating wasn't enough, but I'll be glad to remedy that." Articuno launched an Ice Beam at him, to which Necrozma flared his energy and smashed straight through the attack, catching the Ice Bird in a brutal clothesline before throwing him at the others. Moltres and Zapdos dodged their comrade, honing in on the demon.

Necrozma rushed forward, grabbing the two birds by their beaks. The momentum nearly snapped their necks then and there. They were slammed together and thrown higher into the sky where the demon awaited them once more who brought his fists down upon them and blasted them down with Lugia. "Now then," Said Necrozma as he dusted off his hands, "Who's next?"

"Now, as one!" Rallied Palkia. "Everyone, attack!"

"As one, hmm?" Mused a smirking Necrozma. He opened his arms to welcome their attempts. "This shall be interesting."

Palkia and Dialga led the charge, facing off against the invader on either side. The deities of Space and Time launched their signature attacks at Necrozma, who easily caught and subsequently crushed them. In the blink of an eye, he warped behind Dialga and delivered a bone-breaking punch to his back. For Palkia, Necrozma warped in front of him and bashed him with the back of his hand, nearly caving the powerful Legend's face in.

Rayquaza attempted to strike from below with a Dragon Ascent. It was easily dodged by Necrozma warping out of the way. The demon charged a ball of energy in his hand and hurled it up at Rayquaza. The serpentine Legend tried desperately to lose the pursuing attack, but found that it matched his every move. Glancing down at Necrozma, an idea struck him. He suddenly lurched down, descending upon Necrozma with the intent to either strike him with Dragon Ascent or the homing ball.

"Fool." Necrozma quickly caught on to Rayquaza's schemes and fired another ball at him. At Rayquaza's speed, he had no way to dodge without slowing down, which would have allowed the other ball to catch up to him. So, he shut his eyes tightly and braced for impact. Rayquaza crashed head first into the second ball, resulting in a massive explosion. The Legend was apparently stopped in his tracks, as the first ball quickly caught up to him and created another massive explosion.

Necrozma awaited Rayquaza, or rather, his body falling from the smoke. Yet when the smoke began moving oddly, it was not the Sky High Pokemon that fell. Mewtwo, with a league of Shadow Balls at his sides, descended from the smoke upon Necrozma. "Take this!" He roared. The Shadow Balls grew to immense sizes, doubly that of Mewtwo himself. Yet, it proved fruitless. Mewtwo and the Shadow Balls were easily stopped in their tracks by Necrozma's Psychic hold, and before the clone Pokemon knew what hit him, his own Shadow Balls were driven into him and shook the land below with their detonation.

"Mewtwo!" Cried Rayquaza, flying from his smoke cloud. He raced down after his friend, but the demon had other ideas.

Careening down after Rayquaza, Necrozma slammed his fist into the nape of the dragon's neck and hurtled the both of them down from the skies and into the ground. A deafening crash shook the landscape, and from within the crater that ensued, Necrozma ripped his hand from the collapsed dragon's body. "That makes eight," Mused Necrozma, floating out of the crater. "Now for the rest. And speaking of which, here comes the ninth."

Necrozma whipped around and grabbed at the throat of the approaching Legend, which happened to be a yellow, electric Pokemon that almost resembled a wolf or a cat. At first contact with Necrozma, the wolf unleashed immense amounts of crackling electricity into the demon. To its shock, Necrozma was completely unfazed. He was even smirking in the face of its power, which none had ever done before. It let out a yelp as it was tossed into the air slightly so that Necrozma could grab it by the leg, then slammed it into the ground repeatedly.

The Rainbow Pokemon Ho-Oh approached from behind, with its creations, the Three Beasts of Johto, racing at its sides. Before they could react, Necrozma turned around and hurled the now barely-conscious wolf Pokemon into them, scattering the Beasts like bowling pins. Ho-oh's eyes went wide and screeched out to its beasts with worry. That proved to be a mistake.

Necrozma warped in front of the phoenix Pokemon, his arm pumped back. Ho-oh had no chance to flee or retaliate before Necrozma buried his fist in its chest. It cried out in pain, doubling over, which gave Necrozma the perfect opportunity to strike again. Retracting his fist from the large bird's stomach, he then jammed it into the underside of its beak, leapt above it, and slammed his fist into its head. Ho-oh was left stunned, only being able to make weak choking noises before collapsing onto its back.

Celebi and Jirachi watched Necrozma's rampage in horror, but before they could use either of their signature abilities to undo any of it, the demon himself deemed them suitable for his next targets. He warped behind them, grabbing them by the back of their heads and slamming them together before blasting them away and flying to the next. The unassuming Shaymin's eyes widened in horror as it realized who that next target was. A cackling Necrozma raced toward it, a ball of energy readied in his hand.

The helpless Shaymin, realizing it had no chance of escape now that its Sky Form had worn off, shut its eyes tightly. Necrozma hurled the ball at Shaymin, but before it made contact with the small Pokemon, a large, shiny golden ring appeared in between them. It grew larger than the ball, revealing an odd blue space in its hole, and when the ball made contact with that hole, both it and the ring disappeared from sight.

Necrozma stopped in his tracks, allowing Shaymin to hastily flee from sight while the demon was distracted."What's this?" He looked around, musing to himself about what had just transpired when that same ring appeared again,right in front of his face. Believing it was meant to do the same to him as whatever it had done to the ball, Necrozma quickly blasted at it. Just before Necrozma's attack met with the ring, the ball of energy he had fired was launched from it into the blast, and the two attacks detonated in Necrozma's face.

"Ha ha, you fell for it!" Taunted the small genie Pokemon, Hoopa, as it placed its ring back upon its left horn. "You seemed scary before, but now I know you're not that smart!" Hoopa then devolved back into a fit of mocking laughter, unaware of the gravity of what it had just done.

The dust cloud enveloping Necrozma burst as the demon inside blitzed at Hoopa. The genie Pokemon could never have known what was about to happen to it, because at speeds far exceeding light itself, Necrozma slammed his fist into the small Pokemon's chest and sent it flying. Still, it was granted no reprieve. Necrozma raced after it, grabbing it by the head and dragging it through the ground as he flew. His hand alit, and he launched Hoopa with another crimson ball of energy that dragged it across the battlefield until it exploded with ungodly force.

"Annoying peon," Spat Necrozma in disdain.

The charred body of Hoopa flew from the fires of the blast, eventually skidding to a stop at the feet of none other than Xerneas. "Oh my," Said the Life Pokemon, kneeling down to the unconscious Hoopa, "This isn't good. Victini, would you do the honors?"

From atop Xerneas's back, the Victory Pokemon Victini hopped into the air, happily chirping, "Tini, Tini!" Lightly, the small Legend tapped Xerneas's nose, and the deer Pokemon's body practically lit up like a star. Necrozma watched on with interest.

Xerneas reared up on her hind legs and stabbed her front ones into the ground. Immediately, a massive white pulse of pure life energy flowed across the landscape, and anything it touched found their stamina restored and their wounds gone. All across the battlefield, wounded trainers and Pokemon got up from their knees, staring at themselves and one another in wonderment. Hoopa and the other Legends also had their wounds restored, and they displayed a similar state of confusion. However, the corpses littering the burned land were still. There was no bringing them back. When the wave of life came upon Necrozma, it literally bent itself in a way that made it so it didn't touch the demon, who chuckled at that.

"So, they have healers," Mused the demon. "That could get annoying, so I suppose I should end those two especially quickly."

With that, Necrozma rocketed toward them, his fist pumped back. Noticing this, Xerneas prepared herself for battle. Victini hopped onto her back and supplied her with power once more in the hopes of warding off the demon's onslaught. Hoopa, meanwhile, giggled to itself and threw its three rings into the air. They grew to immense proportions far greater than Hoopa's own size, and from those rings, four Legends emerged and placed themselves in between Necrozma and the healers.

"We will not allow you to harm Lady Xerneas!" Declared Reshiram.

"Get out of here!" Cried Zekrom to Xerneas. "We will likely need your help later, so run!"

The Pokemon of Life nodded. "As you wish." With that, Victini boosted her power, and she quickly bounded off into the distance to await when she was next needed.

Groudon, meanwhile, sent a toothy grin Necrozma's way. "It's payback time, you freaky alien bastard!"

"Stay out of my way!" Hissed Kyogre. "If anything, I'm the one who should be saying that!" The proud God of the Ocean glanced at the portion of his tail fin that had been ripped off, glaring darkly. Turning back to face the demon, he declared, "I'll make you pay-"

Necrozma's fist smashed into the Sea God's forehead, and before the four Legends even know what hit them, one of their members was already skidding across the jagged ground. "I have very little tolerance for speeches at the moment," Said Necrozma, blowing the smoke generated from the punch off his fist. "Between Arceus, Mewtwo and Deoxys, I've already heard more than I care to for the rest of my infinite life."

"Why you-" Seethed Groudon. "That's it! I'm finishing you hear and now!" Everything got much hotter suddenly, forcing Zekrom and Reshiram to step away from the God of the Land. The patches of black on Groudon's skin burned red suddenly, and Groudon himself began growing far larger than he was before until he stood at nearly double his previous height. "EAT THIS! PRIMAL REVERSION!"

Necrozma was not impressed. "Am I supposed to be intimidated?"

Groudon's face furled with rage. Baring his razor sharp teeth and raising his massive arm to the sky, the God of the Land bellowed, "YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO DIE!" And buried his arm into the ground where Necrozma once was.

"Fool," Spat Necrozma, hovering over Groudon. "I have long since lost patience with you weaklings. You should have stayed out of the way until I killed Deoxys, but apparently you wish to accelerate your deaths!"

Without giving Groudon a chance to respond, Necrozma shot a Hyper Beam out of his hand that struck the land creator point blank in the chest. The ensuing explosion created a massive smoke cloud that obscured the demons vision, though he was more concerned with the rest of his prey. "That should do it. Now to finish with the others."

Necrozma turned toward Zekrom and Reshiram, his eyes giving off a sinister glint that chilled the two Legends to the bone. "Starting with you."

He raised his arm to the sky, forming a crackling, red ball of energy betwixt his jagged fingers meant to swiftly bring an end to the lives of the Dragons of Yin and Yang. Zekrom and Reshiram winced, but crouched into battle stances regardless, for there was nothing else they could do. Necrozma's face fell suddenly, befuddling the two dragons. The ball in the demon's hand faded and he whipped around to deflect Rayquaza's Dragon Ascent.

The emerald dragon nearly fell to the ground, but managed to swerve back into the sky to avoid the crash. "You're finished, Necrozma!" He roared in spite of how easily his attempt on the demon's life was dashed. "Take a look behind you!"

Though quickly losing the sliver of patience he had left with the Legends, Necrozma obliged. Behind him stood the entirety of the Legends that had shown up to the battle, save Deoxys. "Oh, right," He said casually, "You lot must have been healed by that annoying deer." Necrozma rolled his shoulders and head. "I suppose that means I'll just have to kill you all before you can be healed."

Rayquaza and Lugia opened their mouths to make some sort of retort, but Necrozma was quick to forcibly shut them with Psychic. "Do be quiet, would you?" He asked, though they had no way to do anything but comply. "I find your speeches, declarations and, honestly, your voices in general to be utterly grating on the ears at this point, but…" The black demon chuckled darkly. "Perhaps your screams will be different."

A small ball of white energy appeared over the tip of Necrozma's index finger, which he pointed at the horde of Legends. They were about to either move out of harm's way or launch an attack of their own, but found themselves unable to move. Rayquaza opened his mouth, charging a Hyper Beam, but his jaw was once again snapped shut, resulting in the attack exploding within him. He let out a yelp, nearly falling to the ground. He was swept up by the demon and tossed in with the others.

"Pay close attention now," Ordered Necrozma, a hint of laughter in his voice. He moved the ball back and forth in the air, chuckling to himself as he did. "Especially you, Lugia. You may remember this one, provided I didn't damage your feeble little brain, that is."

The Beast of the Sea was puzzled at Necrozma's meaning. He pondered over it, and when he came upon a conclusion, his eyes went wide. His heart practically dropped in his chest. "So you do remember!" Exclaimed Necrozma. "Good. Now let's see what happens when everyone is included!"

Before the legends could react they were completely surrounded. On all sides, pitch black holes were torn open from, seemingly, reality itself. "Now…" Agonizingly slow, he pulled his arm back. The Legends felt their hearts practically beating out of their chests. Sensing their fear, Necrozma opened his hand, summoning one of the white balls on each of his fingers. "Let the games begin!"

He launched the five balls toward the holes, and the moment they touched, chaos ensued. The Legends were released from Necrozma's bindings, though "released" was...inaccurate to say the least. They were still prisoners of Necrozma's twisted game. When the first ball exited its portal Victini was instantly struck in the face sending them flying into one of the holes. It entered a land of pure, pitch black darkness for but a split second, then found itself uncontrollably hurtling toward Shaymin.

The unwitting Shaymin had a split second to realize what was happening before Victini slammed into it and sent it flying. Not even five seconds later, one of the white energy balls smashed into the poor Legend and swept it into another hole. When the ball, with Shaymin still forcibly attached to its front, exited the next hole, it crashed into Keldeo and sent both Legends flying again. "What the-" Keldeo was cut off when another ball struck him in his side, knocking him over. "Gah!" He cried. "What's happening?!"

Lugia easily dodged one that came his way and cried out, "Don't try to attack or block them! Just keep dodging them for now!"

Palkia, however, was not complacent with that. Raising his arm, he bellowed, "SPATIAL REND!" Using his signature attack, he cut open a hole in space itself. "Come, follow me! We'll use this to esca-" He was cut off suddenly when one of the white balls flew out from the hole he tore open and struck him in his chest. "Wh-what the-?!" The ball began glowing even brighter than usual, emitting a high-pitched ringing sound before exploding violently and sending the Deity of Space sprawling across the ground.

"As if it were possible for you to escape." Spoke Necrozma with a laugh. "As I've told you before, I've long since surpassed the limits of space and time. They mean nothing to me! Did you really think I wouldn't be able to control them as well?"

Dialga flew down, helping his brother back to his feet. "Are you all right, Palkia?" He asked.

Palkia nodded to him, then turned toward Lugia. "Necrozma said you 'remembered' this...whatever it is. How did you escape it?"

"I didn't," Replied the Silver Legend. "All I did was survive until he decided to let me go, though…" His face wrinkled, both from fury and pain just from remembering being trapped within that pit of torture. "That escape only came about through his boredom...The only thing we can do at the moment is to survive long enough for Deoxys to regenerate, then maybe he can help us get out of this mess."

Dialga nodded. "That, or until Lord Arceus arrives."

A deep-seated scowl crawled down Lugia's face at that. He turned away from them and flew into the air. "Personally," He said over his shoulder, "I wouldn't count on him. You should start moving. I imagine Necrozma will be adding more of those balls until all of us scarcely have room to breathe." With that, he took to the skies and flew elsewhere in the bubble of holes.

"You've made an excellent case, Lugia," Necrozma said, a small hint of a chuckle buried somewhere underneath his voice. He raised his finger, and dozens more of the orbs manifested around him. "In fact, I think you're right! Five isn't nearly enough for the lot of you, so let's add more to the pile, shall we?!" Howling with psychotic laughter, the black demon hurled the orbs in with the others.

"Oh great, Lugia, now you-" Groudon was interrupted when one of the orbs struck him across the face. Growling in annoyance, he began charging up an intense Flamethrower. "Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm not about to just run away from these things!" He bellowed. "I'm going to fight back and destroy as many of these orbs as he throws at us!"

With that brazen claim, the proud creator of the world's lands unleashed a massive, crimson beam from his mouth. The flames were so superheated that they had gone from gas to erratic, sparking plasma that blackened and melted the ground it soared over. That beam raced through the skies until it crashed straight into one of the gleaming orbs, yet...proved completely ineffective. The orb pushed through Groudon's Flamethrower as if it was nothing more than paper. At the last second, Groudon snapped his mouth shut and braced for impact. When the orb made contact with his arm that he brought up to protect his head, it exploded thunderously, clouding the entire area in smoke.

The nearest Legends were forced to cover their mouths, doubling over and coughing in response to the thick black smoke. "G-Groudon!" Cried Jirachi between coughs. "A-Are you alright?!"

There was no answer, save for the laughter of Necrozma from outside.

"Yes, a blinding cloud of smoke was just what the show needed!" He opened the palms of his hands, creating several more of the orbs. "Now, let's see how you fare against thi- hmm?"

Necrozma stopped his spiel once he saw something odd within the dome of portals. The black smoke began twisting around, quickly raising in speed and spiraling higher into the sky while fading from view as it dispersed. When it disappeared altogether, Rayquaza was in its place, his Mega Form still shining brightly. "As if that could work on us!" He roared. "Nothing so simple could hope to stand in our way!"

"Hmph," Scoffed Necrozma. "Perhaps so. Back to square one, then?" The demon then pointed toward the group of trapped Legends, and the orbs he created soared into the portals to join with the others in the terrible pit of pain.

Thus, the Legends were thrust into the full brunt of Necrozma's hellish show. Groggily, the God of Land began to stir once more, rubbing his aching head as he stood back on his feet. Given no respite, Groudon's large physique made for an easy target of the orbs, and he was smashed back into the ground before he knew what had hit him.

Frantically, the Legends dodged the orbs as best as they could, but what was initially an ease for the more nimble of them became more and more difficult as time went on. The demon, in all his cruelty, began periodically throwing in another ball with each minute that passed. The larger Legends stood no chance, and they were reduced to pincushions in no time at all.

Palkia hissed in pain as yet another ball struck him for the umpteenth time. This one in particular was especially painful, and infuriating even more so. It struck the bright pink pearl embedded in his arm, the source of not only his ability of governance over time, but his very life force as well. "Enough of this!" He bellowed. The stricken pearl began glowing brightly, energy from the large Legend's surroundings manifesting around the pearl and traveling up to Palkia's arm. Rushing to one of the portals, he roared, "I AM THE LORD OF SPACE ITSELF, AND THESE DAMNABLE PORTALS ARE NOT ABOVE ME! SPATIAL REND!"

He slashed at the portal, aiming to use his would-be overwhelming might to cleave straight through the wall of portals...yet even that could not free them. Palkia's signature attack, upon making contact with the portal, was absorbed. It disappeared into the hole's endless darkness without a trace, shocking the Deity of Space. "W-what?!" He cried, frantically looking about. "Where did it-?!" He sensed his own presence from behind and whirled around with lightning-fast haste, coating his arm in the energy of Spatial Rend and bringing it down upon the other attack he launched previously, negating the both of them.

"Oh?" Spoke Necrozma. "Again with the escape attempts? How many times must I say it?" The demon snapped his fingers, and the orbs suddenly stopped in their tracks. The Legends dared to take their eyes off of the projectiles, albeit hesitantly, to gaze upon Necrozma. Millions of thoughts raced through their frantic minds as to what the demon could be up to, and those thoughts were instantly put to rest when he snapped his fingers.

Outside of the dome of portals, hundreds upon hundreds of orbs appeared, surrounding them all. The faces of the smaller Legends went pale, and though the larger ones put on a defiant face, they hid their own fear badly. "There is no escape from me! Only one being has ever achieved such a feat and he is currently splattered in the sky!"

Necrozma closed his fist, and the storm of orbs closed in. Faster than any of the Legends could hope to react to, the orbs already present within the portal dome began moving again, throwing themselves and the Legends in every direction. It all became so much worse once the other orbs entered. Not even the fastest, smallest, nimblest of those amongst the Legends could hope to dodge at the speeds the orbs were flying at. When they bounced off one another, the orbs diverged in opposite directions like some kind of twisted pinball machine, and the Legends were subjected to the full brunt of it.

They pelted the Legends like hail. No, bullets were more accurate. Attempting to dodge the orbs at their speed and numbers was akin to trying to dodge individual drops of rain. It was impossible. Every last inch of their bodies was thrashed relentlessly. They couldn't even be sent flying from each blow, because they were met with the next so quickly thereafter. Only one Legend could still think properly amidst all of this. Lugia, who's rage had long since boiled over. He could still think, but his mind was focused completely on one thing: Tearing Necrozma limb from limb.

Necrozma reveled in their suffering, throwing his head back and laughing endlessly at their torture, which only added fuel to Lugia's maddening fury. The demon held out his hand and bellowed, "I DON'T THINK YOU'RE TRYING HARD ENOUGH!" He shut his hand with a loud, metallic-sounding clank, and the portals themselves began to close in.

It took only seconds before the orbs themselves no longer had room to move either, which spoke volumes to what became of the Legends. They were either pressed up against one another or smothered with the orbs. It was a wonder that none of them detonated, for if they had, they would all have perished instantly. Necrozma would not allow the show to end so easily, now that he had found a way to alleviate his boredom. So, the only Legend still capable of proper thinking cried out to the others, "EVERYONE, USE PROTECT!"

Lugia's voice snapped the others back into reality for but a split second, yet that minuscule instance provided just enough time for many of the Legends to summon enough strength to create a massive Protect that ended up combining into one huge but very cramped barrier. The orbs buzzed loudly outside the Protect as they were crushed against it, clouding the view of the Legends within. The Legends themselves were put in an...uncomfortable situation to say the least.

Between their barrier and the crushing force of the orbs and portals, the lot of them were squashed up against one another. Groudon, having been on the ground when the barrier was formed, became the unfortunate stepping stone of the majority of the Legends. The larger of the Legends, such as Kyogre and the Lords of Space and Time couldn't so much as move an inch, and the smaller ones were either crushed between them or pressed up against the Protect. Yet still, one poor soul found themselves especially squashed amidst the Legends. Tobias, surrounded by his team, was forced up against the bottom of the shield at its edge.

This protection soon became a weapon for Necrozma to use against them. Wails of anguish filled the bubble as Necrozma slowly brought his opened hand into a fist, crushing all inside. Their bones did not break, but they felt as if they did. Necrozma continuously healed any wounds they incurred as their bodies were crushed, but made sure to keep the agony they felt very much intact.

The Legends were utterly helpless in Necrozma's grasp. They were nothing more than toys to him. Though they felt far too weak to keep hold of the barrier, Necrozma would not let them let go. He forced the stamina from their bodies and into the shield. They could not control their own actions, puppeteered by the dark demon. Though initially amusing, Necrozma soon found their cries grating his ears once it became clear that they did not have the power to escape him.

"This is starting to become tiresome," Growled Necrozma. "We have been fighting for hours and none of you have anything to show for it!" He shook his head in disappointment. "Oh well. It was fun while it lasted, but now is your end, worthless scum!" The demon aimed his hand at the portals, readying to crush the Legends trapped within.

Necrozma was stricken across the face and sent sprawling across the ground. Digging his claws into the ground to stop himself, he glared up at his attacker. "Must you ruin my fun, Deoxys?"

Deoxys, coated from head to toe in the blinding white Aura, replied by pointing his hand toward the portal dome. With Psychic, pulled them apart along with the orbs and focused them into a single point where they were crushed into a space smaller than a mere particle of dust. "WE NEED TO ATTACK HIM NOW!" He rallied, spurring the Legends back to their feet. "ALL AT ONCE! LET US FINISH THIS ONCE AND FOR ALL!"

The Beast of the Seas nodded, taking to the skies. "I've been waiting to hear that! It is time I eradicate you, Necrozma!"

Necrozma chuckled, floating high into the air as the Legends rose up to meet him on all sides. "So, this is the grand finale, then? It's laughable that you think, after everything you've thrown at me, that you still have a chance." He shrugged, laughing to himself at the prospect of his demise. "But do what you will. I'll not have you die until I witness every last sliver of hope you cling to crushed at my heel!"

"It is YOUR twisted game that will be crushed!" Retorted Palkia, readying a Spatial Rend.

Dialga nodded in agreement, summoning a Roar of Time. "Indeed! Even if we fail here and now, I have no doubt that Lord Arceus will strike you down in our stead!"

"No more will die at your hand, monster!" Deoxys declared, amassing the full power of his newly-attained Aura and his own Psychic energy, concentrating them into a single ball. "NOT ONE MORE!"

Mewtwo, still clad in his Mega Evolved state, surrounded the dark demon in a dome of Psychic energy, pressured into multiple points with such force that they became almost solid. "This world...it accepted me unto it, even though I was not created naturally. It is my home, and the home of billions of others! I will not let it die by your hand!"

"I have failed far too many times in slaying you, Necrozma," Admitted Rayquaza, "So…" The serpentine Legend's body was coated in a shimmering, emerald-green light. "I WILL NOT FAIL AGAIN! Articuno. Zapdos. Moltres. Lugia. Mewtwo. Lord Arceus...and those who were slain here trying to protect our world. I will make it up to you! Here and now! I SWEAR IT!"

Atop Kyurem's back, Keldeo raised his head high, summoning a Secret Sword from where his horn once was. "I swear…in the name of the Swords of Justice...in the name of my friends-!" The massive blade of concentrated energy gleamed brightly, acting as a beacon in the surrounding darkness. "In the name of justice, and to all those who fell to your hand-!" Keldeo lowered his head, pointing the blade at where the demon's heart should have been. "Necrozma...I will kill you!"

"Indeed!" Bellowed the Ice Dragon Kyurem. "To ruthlessly lay waste to such noble warriors...you are truly the lowest of scum! I will aid young Keldeo in his quest for vengeance!"

Below, Groudon once again shifted into his massive Primal state and let out a deafening roar. "NECROZMA! I WILL NOT STAND FOR THAT HUMILIATION YOU PUT ME THROUGH EARLIER! I WILL MAKE YOU PAY!"

Kyogre, too, reverted into his Primal Form. High above the mothership, the weather itself began changing erratically from the Lords of the Land and Sea's power being in such close proximity to one another. "YOU WILL REGRET WHAT YOU DID TO MY TAIL FIN! I WILL SCOUR EVERY LAST INCH OF YOUR BODY FOR THAT GRIEVOUS MISTAKE!"

Reshiram raised her head to the sky, allowing her red-hot flames to spiral from her body into a large, red ball above the White Dragon of Truth. "I am the harbinger of what is true!" She cried. "I am Truth! And your truth is death, Necrozma!"

"To create our ideal world is a task not possible so long as you remain within it!" Declared Zekrom. The electricity harbored within his tail exploded outward, coating his body in a sphere of crackling blue lightning. "I can say with certainty that not just my ideals, but those of everyone living in this world, mean your demise!"

"I must admit," Said Tobias, standing atop Latios's back, "As a human, I feel out of place here amidst such powerful Legendary Pokemon...and yet…" He glanced around at his team that floated at his side and grinned. Smirking up at Necrozma confidently, he said, "I have my own Legends by my side! Time and time again, there was no enemy that we could not triumph over so long as we were together! And together, we will bring you down and save this world!"

As Tobias's team of Legends cheered at their master's speech, Latias soared up next to Latios, glaring fiercely at the demon above. "I don't care what it takes! I won't lose my brother a second time!" A swirling ball of mist manifested in front of her mouth, steadily growing in size. "Even if it means triumphing over the impossible, I will save him just as he saved me!"

The small Jirachi clasped their hands together, closing their eyes. "It is my wish," They said, "That we will survive...that this world will survive!" A bright, silvery sheen coated their body in a dance of swirling light. As Jirachi opened their eyes once more, there was no longer a hint of fear or trepidation. There was determination to make that wish a reality. "But that wish cannot come true with you around!"

Hoopa looked over to where Necrozma was floating and couldn't help but giggle to himself. "I've seen CLOWNS scarier than you!" The small Genie Pokemon reached up to the two rings dangling from her horns and threw them forward. They stopped in the air abruptly, and two blue portals manifested in their holes. "Though you may as well be a clown yourself."

"You brute!" Huffed Diancie. "To think you would dare strike me in such an uncouth fashion! But that is not even the worst part of what you've done…" The princess-like Pokemon coated herself in a ball of pristince, shimmering pink crystals similar to the ones dotting her body. That ball shattered, and Diancie was once again in her Mega Form. "All those people and Pokemon you killed. Even poor Ash too! He saved my life, you monster!" Seemingly from thin air, a multitude of jagged crystals manifested around Diancie and pointed themselves at the demon. "So I will avenge him, and everyone else, right now!"

Ho-oh sent a scowl towards the demon. "Even though I have only known you for a short while. I can already tell your pure evil incarnate, and that is more than enough incentive to wipe you off the face of this planet, monster!" Suicune, Raikou and Entei barked up at Necrozma in agreement. The three beasts of Johto surrounded themselves in a coating of ice, electricity and fire respectively.

The four Tapus flew not too high above the ground, and their bodies seemed to fold in on themselves to look almost like the heads of tiki pole statues. From each of their bodies, a brilliant golden beam shot down into the ground. After a few moments, the ground began to quake and crack, and four gargantuan humanoid figures emerged. They bore almost no features at all besides looking vaguely humanoid, and the light of the golden beam shrouded their bodies.

What was most striking about them was that they lacked heads, yet still were able to move seemingly on their own. The Tapus descended upon the giants and planted themselves atop them, essentially becoming their heads. Letting out shrill war cries that burst the very ground beneath their feet, the giants raised their arms in a circle, and several streams of that golden energy swirled up from their bodies toward a single centerpoint where, slowly but surely, a similarly-colored ball of energy began forming and growing by the second.

A horde of massive vines rose up from beneath the ground around Celebi. They twisted around her, forming a gargantuan shell of armor that looked vaguely similar to the small Legend. Disheveled horns grew out from its head where there once was antennae, and a series of spikes traveled down its back. Celebi's bug-like wings were replaced with what looked like crooked bones of a bird's wing. The vine armor's head began stretching, resulting in the vines tearing and cracking until a massive mouth formed. From that mouth, an utterly colossal Solarbeam blasted out toward the demon.

Every single one of the Legends, at last finding some semblance of a chance at finishing Necrozma once and for all, pushed themselves to their absolute maximum. Their greatest attacks manifested, all aiming at the demon in the hopes that it might finally put him down. For if not, they were doomed, and that thought drove them even further. It was kill or be killed, and now they finally had the chance to kill.

"Now is the time!" Cried Xerneas from below, Victini flying by her side. She raised her front hooves and prepared her strategy. "Geomancy...Geomancy...GEOMANCY!" Using her signature technique thrice over, Xerneas elevated her power to untold heights. Just before Xerneas stabbed her hooves into the ground, Victini tapped her on the horn and granted her even greater power. "NOW, EVERYONE! TAKE MY POWER AND USE IT TO FINISH HIM!"

A rainbow-hued explosion erupted from the Pokemon of Life, enshrouding all that it touched in a brilliant multicolored glow, yet like the previous pulse Xerneas emitted, this one, too, refused to touch Necrozma. The Legends collectively let out a gasp as they felt not only the injuries they sustained in the portal dome disappear in seconds, but their strength and vitality skyrocket as well. Though oddly enough, it seemed to have no effect on Deoxys.

"T-this power!" Exclaimed a wide-eyed Mewtwo. "It's like Mega-Evolving for a second time!"

Palkia nodded in agreement. "Indeed! This will be more than enough power!" He raised his arm skyward, preparing the full might of Spatial Rend. "NOW, EVERYONE! ATTACK!"

"AEROBLAST!"

"SPATIAL REND!"

"ROAR OF TIME!"

"PSYSTRIKE!"

"DRAGON ASCENT!"

"SECRET SWORD!"

"GLACIATE!"

"PRECIPICE BLADES!"

"ORIGIN PULSE!"

"FUSION FLARE!"

"FUSION BOLT!"

Tobias pointed up at the demon and cried, "EVERYONE, ATTACK!"

"MIST BALL!"

"DOOM DESIRE!"

"HYPER-SPACE HOLE!"

"DIAMOND STORM!"

"SACRED FIRE!"

The four giants unleashed their combined attack, letting loose a skyward pillar of golden light. Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres shot their signature elemental attacks at the demon with high-pitched screeches that utterly dripped with hatred. Following their creator's Sacred Fire, the Three Beasts of Johto unleashed their own elemental attacks, similarly to the Elemental Birds. Azelf, Mesprit and Uxie raised their heads to the sky and collectively launched a Future Sight attack into the sky. Victini hopped off of Xerneas's back, waving goodbye to her before soaring up higher into the air. She shrouded herself in a fearsome layer of flames that shaped itself into a "V" before rocketing up toward the demon.

Deoxys's white Aura exploded outward, coating the very skies themselves. "I'LL SEND YOU TO HELL! PSYCHO BOOST!"

The combined force of nearly every Legendary Pokemon's signature attacks ripped apart the air as it flew, leaving a void in its place. Even as those attacks closed in on Necrozma, the demon simply chuckled arrogantly. "Perhaps I should take this with at least a grain of seriousness." He held his arms outward on either side, and a dark crimson barrier surrounded him. "COME!" He challenged. "I WILL ACCEPT YOUR CHALLENGE!"

The combined might of all the Legends attacks quickly closed in on their target and crashed against Necrozma's barrier with force the likes of the world had never seen before. Necrozma himself disappeared into a wall of white. Loose streams of the godly energy raced out in all directions, scouring the entire battlefield for miles. Even the mothership's exterior stood no chance, especially with the hole that had been blown open in it previously. Everything the energy came close to was obliterated in an instant and replaced with void. Time, Space and reality itself was wrent asunder by the sheer power of their combined force. This was the power of the Legends of the Hall of Origins.

From inside that chaos, Necrozma's barrier quickly began to give way. Web-like cracks stretched across its entirety within seconds, taking the demon aback. "Perhaps I did not give them enough-" He faltered for but a moment, nearly allowing the energy to pierce his barrier. "C-credit. But I am infallible! If they wish to kill me…" Necrozma forced his arms back out and another, thicker barrier appeared the moment the first shattered. "YOU WILL HAVE TO TRY HARDER THAN THAT!"

Mewtwo couldn't believe it. "There's no way! He's withstanding even this?!"

Palkia was not about to let their efforts go to waste. They had come too far for an attack of this magnitude to be repelled. "LEGENDS OF THE HALL OF ORIGINS, REDOUBLE YOUR EFFORTS! WE ARE BUT INCHES AWAY FROM FINALLY RIDDING OUR WORLD OF NECROZMA!"

Palkia's rallying words quickly took effect. The other Legends pushed themselves far beyond their limits, even when it caused them pain. They winced, but carried on, for they knew the alternative was oblivion at that monster's hands. Mewtwo took it upon himself to plant the image of Necrozma and an obliterated Earth into the minds of the Legends. Though Mewtwo inwardly berated himself for doing so, the action quickly took effect.

To prevent that future by any means necessary, the Legends of the Hall of Origins unleashed every last ounce of energy held within their bodies, even if that meant destroying themselves. Many of them could feel their muscles burning, pleading with them to stop. Their bones began to ache and groan, threatening to snap under the pressure. Yet still they pushed on even further. They could not back down now. Not when victory was so close!

The resulting force of their increased energy output nearly swept the Legends themselves away. The new energy exploded thunderously when it met with the energy already pinning Necrozma. With reality itself beginning to break, the battlefield was reduced to fields of rubble instantaneously. The ground ripped apart and was shot high into the air, creating a wave of rock and dust that ate away at the existing land more and more, dwarfing even the one Necrozma created in his battle against Keldeo.

To the demon's horror, his barrier began to break once more. "WHAT?!" He shrieked. "HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?! THEY SHOULD NOT BE ABLE TO AMASS SUCH POWER UNLESS-" His eyes went wide, and a vision of the white Aura that encumbered Deoxys flashed before his eyes. "That must be it! But...what in the hell is that energy?!" Before Necrozma could think on it any longer, more cracks crawled up his barrier until it was completely covered in them.

At the last second, Necrozma unleashed a massive explosion far greater than any he'd done before against the Legends' energy. "DIE, WORTHLESS SCUM!"

Reality could not withstand this pure concentration of power any longer, and the Legends found themselves blown backwards as their attack collapsed in on itself. The Legends' combined attack exploded with such force that it shook the world itself violently. Horrific earthquakes ravaged the world, sending the ones who stayed behind during the battle into a fearful frenzy. Buildings collapsed, people were thrown from the ground, entire forests were knocked flat, and yet none of that destruction came close to what happened to the sight of the battle.


Far outside of Goldenrod City's remnants

The surviving humans and their accompanying Pokemon at last made their way out of the massive Ilex Forest, stopping upon a large, flattish hilltop to rest for the moment. As they turned to look upon what had once been the great Goldenrod City, they were saddened, but not surprised, to see that it was in ruins. A massive cloud of smoke blotted out the city itself and much of the forest, drifting out floating high into the sky just after the end of the massive mothership.

Yet, they knew in spite of the smoke that there was nothing left but a hollow black crater coated in flames. There could be nothing left, and even if the city were rebuilt, it would have taken decades to restore it to its former glory upon such a scarred landscape. Perhaps it would never be rebuilt at all, remaining an ugly, sorrowful scar upon not only the world until nature took its course, returning land to fields and forests.

"Okay," Said Gary, plopping down onto the soft grass, "Break time, everyone!" A wry grin crawled up his face upon hearing the collective sighs of relief from the remaining humans. When it had come time for them to leave the battle, for they would likely only be a hindrance to the Legends in the fight against Necrozma himself, Gary ended up taking the mantle as a leader of sorts for the time being. It wasn't his intention to, he simply assumed some kind of mantle when he gave the order to evacuate.

In spite of the tragedies that had befallen the survivors, of which were innumerable, none of them cried. Gary himself, after having to leave his faithful Pokemon and, of far greater importance, dear friend behind in that hellish landscape, could not let loose the full extent of the tears he owed just yet. For if he did, the others would surely fall into that pit of despair as well, and that was something no one could afford to do just yet. Not until this war was over.

One, however, was not convinced by the crowd's smiles, laughs or blank gazes into nothing. Though she herself, too, did not mourn the lost just yet, she felt uncomfortable in the way everyone was putting it off. Including herself. Sitting down next to Gary Serena asked him, "Hey, Gary?"

"Yeah?" Responded the brunette, his trademarked smirk ever-present on his face. Though, it faltered slightly when he saw the seriousness in Serena's gaze. "...What's up?"

Serena looked off into the billowing smoke, struggling to find the proper wording for what she was about to ask. "...Do you think it's...odd that we don't feel anything?"

Gary hummed to himself in thought, furrowing his brows. "It's probably...just, like, adrenaline, ya know?" He sat back up, looking at the ground beneath him. He could still practically see Umbreon's body laying before him in that hellscape,and had to wipe away his eyes to rid himself of the sight. True to Serena's word, he didn't quite feel sad, or angry, or...anything at that sight. Yet he could feel a yearning for it. A natural instinct, almost, to cry at the deaths of the lost. But he couldn't.

Still trying to remain the ever-rational thinker, Gary tried his best to make sense of it. "...Like I said, it's probably adrenaline. Our bodies think we're still...about to die, so they're keeping us from breaking down." Without waiting for a response, he held up his hand and shook his head, in denial of something Serena wasn't even accusing him of. "Anyways, it's not important right now. What we need right now is to hold ourselves together. When Necrozma's defeated, we'll worry about that stuff then, but that probably won't happen for a wh-"

Gary trailed off from what he was talking about when he, and many others including Serena, noticed a brilliant white light from within the smoke. It was small, or at least, it appeared to be, but its radiance was unmistakable. It was so bright that it could be clearly seen from outside the massive smoke cloud after all. It grew larger suddenly, immensely so. No one even had the time to ask aloud what it was when a tremor, far greater than any they had felt before, which included the initial erasure of Goldenrod City and Guzzlord's massive explosion, swept them clean off of their feet.

They were thrown several feet into the air, eliciting an array of panicked cries from the survivors. Luckily for them, the wild Pokemon that had managed to endure, namely the Flying-Types, took to the skies and grabbed hold of them and the non-fliers. And though they were now safe from that ungodly quaking, a far worse threat now reared its head. That great light grew larger and larger with each passing second. A new array of terrified screams arose from both people and Pokemon once they realized it was approaching fast.

Having no possible option of escape, the survivors futilely shielded themselves and one another with their arms, closing their eyes to await their inevitable end. But that end never came. At least, they believed it didn't. When next they dared to open their eyes, they let out a collective gasp. The survivors were met with a world of light at every turn. It should have been blinding, yet it was almost...soothing.

When the light disappeared, the world around them returned to the burned hellscape they had just previously escaped from. Still adding to the ever-growing list of oddities, the sight of the burned world...didn't bother them as much as they would have thought. It was like an apathy to it all was being forcefully driven into them. But...that apathy came with a lack of not only sorrow, but also fear. And on top of it all, they heard a voice speak to them suddenly.

"THE BATTLE IS NEARING ITS FINALE, YET THE LAND IS STILL TREACHEROUS. MAKE YOUR WAY BACK TO THE FIGHT, FOR YOU WILL BE NEEDED. ABOVE ALL ELSE, DO NOT FORSAKE YOUR LIVES."


Silence. That was all that could be heard from what became of the battlefield. Silence, and the dust and smoke that drowned the air. What was left of the battlefield after that massive attack was a crater. The entirety of what had once been Goldenrod City had been burned, flattened, and reduced to nothing more than a giant, blackened hole in the ground. There was nothing left. Or so it appeared.

Keldeo awoke with a groan. Finding that he'd been laid out on his side, he attempted to stand back on his feet but a sharp aching all over his body forced him into immobility. It was then that he noticed his surroundings, or rather, a lack thereof. The only thing he could see was grey dust everywhere, along with the black ground beneath him. "What…" He asked sluggishly, under his breath. "What happened?"

A short gasp escaped the young Legend's mouth as the memories of what happened hit him all at once. "Kyurem!" He cried, frantically turning his head about. "Kyurem, where are you?! Are you alright?!" He received no answer, adding to Keldeo's panic. His fears were abated when he heard a pained groaning somewhere to his left. Ecstatically, he shouted, "Kyurem! Is that you?!"

After yet another groan, the voice responded, "Yes, it's me, kid."

Keldeo couldn't help but to let out a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness. I thought I lost you for a sec...but where are the others?"

His question answered itself when he heard yet another groan from his right, though it sounded somehow even scratchier than Kyurem's, as if it were a growl rather than a groan. "Damned fog or smoke or whatever the hell this is," Cursed the voice. "Aeroblast!" A forceful gust of wind made Keldeo turn away from the source of the voice, and when the wind died back down, Keldeo's eyes went wide.

Everywhere he looked, the ground was black and flattened like a pancake. The other Legends were sprawled across the ground, either slowly making their way back to their feet or still motionless but visibly breathing. "I suppose that answers your question," Rasped the Ice Dragon. He turned toward Lugia and said, "Thank you for getting rid of that fog."

"Don't mention it," Replied Lugia. He hovered into the air, peering about the scarred battlefield for any sign of their foe...and there wasn't a sign of him. Lugia's heart skipped a beat. For the first time since the day the demon laid waste to the Elemental Islands, the Beast of the Seas felt real, genuine hope. "Did...did we do it? Is that monster dead?!"

Groudon stomped his foot into the ground, awakening the Legends that still slept with a start. "I don't see any sign of him, and I doubt even he could survive something like that!"

Deoxys was not convinced. "And yet...we're still here." He looked at his own hand, twisting and turning it about to see what the Aura would do in response. As he expected, it curved around with his hand without issue. But that was what was troubling to him. "Besides a few scrapes, bruises, and the aching of our bodies after what we just pulled, we are all relatively unharmed. I know for a fact, after fighting Necrozma and seemingly matching him for a while that if we survived that blast, there's no way he didn't."

This immediately set the other Legends on edge, and Lugia could feel that ever-burning rage return just as swiftly as it had gone. The young Keldeo, however, was not quick to give up on hope just yet. "H-hold on a moment," He said. "We probably survived just because we were outside the blast itself! Necrozma was trapped within it, right? So, we didn't take the blast's full power, be he did!"

Dialga hung his head, letting out a long-winded sigh. "I wish I could have such optimism, Keldeo, I really do, but...I have to agree with Deoxys. Even though he was trapped within the center, the rest of us weren't all that far away from its proximity either. It's a miracle we survived at all, but if we did, there's no way he didn't."

"And here I thought I'd hidden myself well."

The Legends whipped their heads around toward where the horrific voice came from. Necrozma appeared before them, floating just above the ground. The Legends that were still grounded jumped into the air, readying an attack. Yet, Necrozma merely laughed at their hostility. "Really? You're still going to keep fighting this meaningless battle?"

"Of course we will!" Roared Keldeo, a Secret Sword already rising from his broken horn. "We'll never stop! No matter what it takes, we'll kill you!"

"Is that right?" Scoffed the demon. He held out his arm, making the Legends flinch, but instead of attacking he simply trailed over his arm with his finger. "That attack of yours was certainly impressive, no doubt about that...and yet…" He showed his arm to the Legend. "Not a scratch."

Lugia's eyes practically popped out of their sockets. "W-what?! That's impossible! We threw everything we had at you! There's no way you can be unharmed after something like that!"

The demon chuckled at Lugia's rambling. "And yet the proof of my claim lies before your very eyes." He threw his head back and laughed, howling up into the sky still clouded out by the only remaining ship of his fleet. Once that laughter eventually died down, the demon shrugged. "I admit, you had me worried for a moment, yet there isn't a single speck of damage adorning my body to show for your efforts."

The hearts of the Legends collectively sank. Shock gave way to terror, and Necrozma knew it. He raised his arm to the sky, forming another ball of energy that steadily grew larger and larger. "So, I will take my victory here and now! Your power is exhausted, and your god has abandoned you, so I will obliterate this planet without a tra-"

Beneath Necrozma, a shadowy, blackish-purple void appeared. Before the demon knew what was happening, Giratina rocketed up from the portal, grabbed Necrozma by his foot, and just as swiftly as he had come, turned back around and dragged him down into the Distortion World with him. Once Giratina and Necrozma disappeared into the void, it disappeared, leaving the other Legends staring with wide eyes at where they had just been.

"Uhh...what just-"

Another void appeared in the air, with Giratina quickly flying out from it. The Legends' eyes somehow went even wider once they saw what was behind Giratina. From within the world of distortion, Necrozma, coated head to toe in erratic crimson energy, blitzed toward the portal with ungodly speed. At the last second, Giratina closed the portal off. The last thing they saw of the demon was him preparing a blast of energy before the portal was shut entirely.

"That should take care of him for the moment," Said Giratina nonchalantly. "I left him in a completely empty area, so he shouldn't be able to do much damage to the outside world. Though, it took me quite some time to even find an area like that within the Distortion World, so I must apologize for my late...ness…"

The Lord of the Distortion World cut his explanation short once he saw the faces of his fellow Legends. "...What?"

Keldeo vigorously shook his head to return his facial expression back to normal. Tentatively, he stepped up to the intimidating Legend and asked, "S-so...is he trapped?"

"For the moment, yes," Replied Giratina, "Though the Distortion World is not infinite." He turned away from the other Legends and glared at the space where his portal had just been. "I could feel the reverberations of the battle throughout the entirety of the Distortion World. A monster like that will eventually find his way back out of the void I left him in, and then we'll be in even bigger trouble. If he gets to an area where there's any physical objects, then anything he destroys there will end up getting destroyed here as well."

He turned back toward the Legends, his expression softening as much as possible for a Legend like him. "Though, even with his speed, he wouldn't know the Distortion World as I do, and if we're lucky, he might end up getting even more lost."

"And…" Keldeo was hesitant to ask this. "If we're not lucky?"

Keldeo flinched when Giratina's expression furled into a heated glare, though it was aimed past Keldeo at nothing in particular rather than the young Legend himself. "Then I suppose we have no choice but to wait for Arceus." He didn't try to hide the disgust and fury in his voice when he spoke his father's name.

"Well, regardless of the circumstances," Started Palkia, making his way toward his older brother, "I am glad to have received your aid, as I'm sure everyone else here thinks too."

"Indeed," Followed Dialga with a nod. "In truth, I was beginning to believe you were not going to show up to the battle."

An audible bang rang out from behind Arceus's sons, though it was too quiet for any of them to hear.

"I don't need the thanks of puppets!" Snapped Giratina. "I only came to your aid for the sake of my freedom and my own life. If Necrozma destroyed this world, then the Distortion World would surely follow suit. Saving you was a byproduct of that. Nothing more."

The Space-Time Deities' faces fell. "I see…" Said Dialga. "If that is how you feel, then we will not bother you."

"But what do you mean by puppets?" Inquired Palkia.

Giratina narrowed his eyes Palkia's way. "The fact that you need me to explain why only proves that you are one."

Another bang, much louder than the previous one, followed the last. Some of the other Legends' attention was caught, and they looked around for its source.

"I'm saying this for your own good," Hissed Giratina. "Arceus is not to be trusted, let alone revered in the fashion you and the other Hall members do."

"How can you say that?!" Demanded Dialga. "Lord Arceus is our creator! Were it not for him and Lady Mew, none of us would have come into existence!"

"They created us for the sole purpose of subjugating us!" Giratina retorted. "You saw what he showed you! You saw what he did to me! You saw what he did to his first creations besides us when they were deemed 'failures'!"

A third bang echoed across the battlefield, now alerting everyone in the vicinity besides the three arguing deities. Keldeo tilted his head to look past them, and his blood ran cold. "G-G-GIRATINA!"

However, Giratina could not hear the small Legend over the booming sound of his own voice. "And don't even get me started on that witch Mew! She does nothing but sit within her precious tree and play childish games every second of her life that isn't regarding the Hall of Origins, then has the gall to demand that we treat her with the same respect as Arceus! Do neither of you realize how many lives could have been saved if she were here?!"

"GIRATINA!"

"WHAT?!" Giratina sent a deathly glare Keldeo's way, expecting him to shrink at the sight of him. However, Keldeo's skin was already as pale as a sheet, and he wasn't even looking at him. Rather, he was looking past Giratina at something else. Confused, he turned around to look at whatever Keldeo was afraid of, not realizing that he himself would be subject to that same terror when his eyes landed upon what Keldeo was looking at.

BANG!

With yet another resounding crash, a black portal that had appeared in the exact place Giratina shut his grew as large as Keldeo. Two sets of jagged, black prismatic claws tore through the hole and grabbed at its edges. "Wh-what is this?!" Stammered Giratina. "That's impossible!"

The claws pushed outwards, forcing the hole in space-time to open farther before retreating back within and disappearing. No one dared to say anything, nor take their eyes off of the portal. No one even dared to move for fear of what might happen should they do so. A crimson red light erupted from the portal, slamming into Giratina's face and sending him flying across the battlefield before eventually skidding to a stop where he laid motionless.

The crimson light dispersed, revealing none other than the black demon with his fist still outstretched. Gone was any hint of any emotion within Necrozma's eyes. There was no ecstasy nor rage, nothing of the sort. However, the crystals on his arms were no longer white. They were a bright red, like that of a dying star. Retracting his arm, the demon spoke. "As I was saying...no, actually. I have a better idea."

The demon soared high into the air. Two pulses of energy from his crystals coated the area in a crimson red glow. "No more games. No more playing around." The Legends could feel themselves being crushed beneath Necrozma's presence alone. They could scarcely breathe, let alone move. Running was out of the question, yet every sense in their bodies was screaming at them to do it. "Instead, I will allow you to bear witness to my true power…"

"AND SLAUGHTER YOU ALL LIKE DOGS!"

Swirls of blood red energy trailed into Necrozma's crystals. Tobias's eyes went wide. "He's raising his energy!" He cried. "We can't afford to let him become any stronger! Heatran, distract him with Flamethrower!" Nodding to its trainer, Heatran craned its head up toward the black demon and spewed a jet of flame from its mouth. However, just before it struck Necrozma, he disappeared from sight.

"W-what the?!" Stammered Tobias, taken aback. "Where did he-?!"

A wave of terror struck him suddenly. He whipped around toward Heatran, his Pokeball in hand, but it was too late. Necrozma appeared in front of the fiery Legend with his hand already pumped back. Heatran instinctively clamped its jaw down, but it made no difference. Necrozma's fist plunged straight through the lava dome Pokemon's metal teeth, making its eyes go white. With his hand in Heatran's innards, Necrozma raised his prey high into the air and prepared to finish it off.

"HEATRAN!" Cried Tobias. He pressed the button on Heatran's Pokeball to return it, while the other Legends, especially the other members of Tobias's team, raced down to save their comrade. Yet, all of their efforts were futile. In the blink of an eye, Necrozma unleashed a blast from his hand that sailed into the sky. Tobias and the Legends were sent flying backwards, and when they regained themselves and looked upon what had happened to Heatran...there wasn't a single trace of it.

Necrozma blankly gazed at his hand for a moment before descending into laughter. "Yes...perhaps now, we can have some real fun."

Tobias wasted no time getting back on his feet. "What did you do?!" He demanded, his eyes going wild from rage. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HEATRAN?!"

Necrozma did not answer the trainer, nor even acknowledge him. Instead, he turned toward his left where he was immediately struck between the eyes by Deoxys. "I'LL KILL YOU!" He roared furiously. Yet, Deoxys's attack could not even phase the demon's newfound might. In fact, he actually laughed at the attempt.

"Is that so?" He inquired, an apparent amusement in his voice. "But if you kill me, then…" He held out his hand, trailing it amongst the Legends until it finally landed upon Rayquaza. "Who will save him?"

Deoxys's eyes went wide and he pushed off of Necrozma, racing toward the serpentine Legend just in time to catch Necrozma's blast before it hit. To Rayquaza, all of this had happened in a mere split second. "Wha-?!"

"GET OUT OF HERE!" Commanded Deoxys. "I WON'T BE ABLE TO HOLD IT FOR MUCH LONGER!"

Not needing to be told twice, Rayquaza swiftly bolted out of harm's way, allowing Deoxys the room to push Necrozma's blast toward the ship and let it fly past. He let out a small sigh of relief and turned back toward the demon, only to have his throat immediately grappled by him the moment he did. "How foolish," Taunted Necrozma with a spine-chilling chuckle. "Why would you let yourself die for him knowing that I'll just kill him anyways?"

Deoxys grabbed Necrozma by the wrist. "What do you mean die?!" He demanded. "I'm not dead yet! I won't die until you do!"

"I beg to differ."

From Necrozma's hand, an erratic pulse scoured Deoxys's body. The Psychic Legend winced, but felt nothing. He decided not to dwell on it further and instead seize the opportunity laid out before him. He wound back his arm, intending to sever the demon's grip on his neck but found that his blow met only air. Or rather, there was no attack at all. Deoxys's fist never made contact with Necrozma's face, for it was already gone.

A thick, pitch-black dust ate away at Deoxys's flesh like a locust swarm to any vegetation within their line of sight. He attempted to regenerate the missing limb to mitigate its effect...but nothing happened. His regeneration stopped working.

"What is this?!" Cried the Legend, now fearful for his life. With regeneration no longer an option, he attempted to blast away the dust, only to find that his other hand had met the same fate as the first. With no other option, he pitifully attempted to rid himself of the dust by flailing what was left of his arm, with no success. "What did you do to me?!"

"This," Spoke Necrozma, "Is my true power. That of destruction. Your body is becoming a void and eating away at itself until there is nothing left, much like a star when it is reduced to a black hole."

Necrozma glanced behind him at Rayquaza, who, shrouded in Dragon Ascent, rushed to Deoxys's aid. "GET OFF OF HIM!"

Rayquaza's attack was easily caught by the demon, who sneered down at him. "Oh, pitiful Rayquaza…I wonder how many more you will fail to save." A red glint appeared in the arm that held Deoxys. "Now sit down like the dog you are and watch the fireworks."

A wall of red consumed Deoxys entirely. From within that wall, the Legend's body quickly melted away into nothingness. Yet, he was not even focused on his own destruction. His glistening eyes saw something far into the distance: a light brighter than even the Aura that once coated his body. And inside that light was two figures. "Mother...father...is that you?"

That light he saw...soon disappeared. "I'm sorry...I failed to avenge you…"

When the blast died out, there wasn't a single trace of Deoxys remaining. Rayquaza stared at where the alien Legend had once been in disbelief. His shock prevented him from saying anything. There was so many things rushing in his mind that he wanted to say, and yet none of those things came to be. Deoxys, who at one point had been a bitter enemy for him, and just recently his greatest savior, was gone. And he didn't know what the hell to do now that he had failed him too.

He had no more time to wallow in self-pity as Necrozma bashed his head with the bottom of his fist, sending him flying into the ground. The demon sent a chilling glance at the Legends, making their blood run cold, before disappearing from sight in a blur of crimson.

Entei barked out in shock as Necrozma warped in front of him, slamming his fist into the beast's jugular and sending it flying. The other two beasts, snarling in rage over their fallen brother, leapt at the demon. A smirking Necrozma easily caught them by their throats and blasted them into the sky. As their ascent reached its climax, Ho-oh came to their aid and caught them. Upon flying back to the ground and setting them down, the massive phoenix glared at Necrozma and launched a rainbow-hued Sacred Fire from its wings.

Necrozma responded by rocketing forward, easily tearing through the flames before burying his fist in Ho-oh's chest. The phoenix Pokemon doubled over, letting out an agonized squak that was promptly silenced when Necrozma grabbed Ho-oh by the tuft of feathers on its head and slamming it into the ground. He raised his arm in preparation to sever Ho-oh's head from its body but was interrupted by an Aeroblast that was easily dispelled.

"I'LL TEAR YOU LIMB FROM LIMB!" Bellowed Lugia as he sped toward the demon, the Elemental Birds in tow.

"Hmph." Unimpressed with Lugia's show of murderous intent, Necrozma lurched forward and silenced him by smashing his fist into the Sea Beast's face. The three Elemental Birds trailing behind let out a squawk and hastily flew out of harm's way as Lugia's body flew past. When they turned back around, the demon was already in prime position to make them share Lugia's fate.

Before Articuno and Moltres could react, Necrozma grabbed them by their beaks and smashed them together before blasting them into the ground. Thus, Zapdos was left to fend for itself alone before it even knew what had happened. In the blink of an eye, Necrozma rammed his fist into Zapdos's chest, making the Bird of Lightning screech in pain.

"Doesn't this seem familiar?" Asked the demon, repeating his previous action. "It seems like so long ago when I first came to this world. Let's relive some old memories, eh?"

Zapdos responded with a shrill war cry, unleashing a powerful Discharge in every direction. Of course, Necrozma was left completely unharmed. He allowed himself to act as a lightning rod, channeling the electricity up his arm and onto the tip of his finger. Necrozma pulled his arm back and cackled madly, aiming to plunge it into the electric bird when he sensed something approaching on his right.

Lugia, looking as fit as ever, raced toward Necrozma. The rest of the Legends weren't too far behind, save two already disposed of. Though, the ones he had brutalized not too long ago now appeared just as fine as Lugia. "This must be the work of that pesky healer," Necrozma surmised. Chuckling, he tossed Zapdos into the air and, with the butt of his hand, sent it flying away. "I suppose I'll have to take her out quickly, then...but in the meantime…"

The demon looked down upon his finger, which still crackled with the concentrated lightning of Zapdos, and raised it toward the incoming Legends as a devilish idea struck him. "Let's take out her guardians." Necrozma infused the lightning with his own power and launched it at Lugia, who only had a split second to see the attack before having every sense assaulted by it as it wreaked havoc upon his body.

The Beast of the Seas froze in mid-air, locked in a vicious fit of spasming as his skin was burnt black. "Lugia!" Cried Ho-oh. Immediately rushing to Lugia's aid, Ho-oh attempted to dispel the lightning with a Safeguard, unknowingly falling right into Necrozma's trap. The lightning branched off of the Sea Beast, enveloping the Rainbow Pokemon in its clutches as well. But it didn't end there. Almost immediately after the lightning caught Ho-oh in its grasp, it jumped to the nearest Legendary afterwards, that being the Three Beasts of Johto, and continued until every single one of them was in its grasp.

Thanks to Groudon's Ground typing, when it came time for the lightning to jump to him next, he remained completely unaffected. "Something as cheap as that couldn't hurt me!" The colossal Legend boasted as he charged a Flamethrower. "Hang in there, guys! And eat this, Necrozma!" Groudon unleashed the fiery plasmatic stream from his jaw, only for Necrozma's form to blur and then disappear the moment it made contact with him.

Groudon stepped backwards, looking around for the demon frantically. "Wh-where did he go?!" He received his answer when Necrozma's fist slammed into the top of his head, dragging him off of his feet and slamming him face first into the ground. Not vying to give the land creator any reprise, Necrozma grabbed him in the same place he had just punched him, dragged him high into the air, then rocketed back down and repeated the process, resulting in Groudon slamming into the ground like a meteor.

Dusting off his hands, Necrozma next turned his sights on the other Legends, who were still caught up in his electric current. He crouched down, preparing to blast himself at them when the yellow wolf-like Legend from before stepped in his way. It crouched into a battle position and snarled at the demon with all the savagery of a wild animal.

"How curious," Remarked Necrozma, unfazed by the mysterious Pokemon's ferocity. "You seem to have either evaded my lightning...or perhaps it never affected you at all?"

The wolf-like Legend lunged at Necrozma, its claws coated in fierce blue-hued lightning. Necrozma backstepped, easily evading the attack. Or so he had thought. The lightning from the wolf's claws seemed to have a mind of its own, and when it was flung from the claws after the wolf missed its swing, the lightning followed Necrozma anyways almost like a magnet.

Necrozma, of course, easily dispelled it and taunted the wolf into trying again. The mysterious yellow Pokemon slammed its front paws into the ground, sending waves of electricity throughout the ground in waves, and lunged at Necrozma for a second try. The demon smirked at it and, before the wolf realized it, caught it by the throat. Immediately, the wolf went to tearing at Necrozma's arm tooth, nail and lightning. Or at least, it tried to.

"The more I peer into your memories," Started Necrozma, peering into the wolf's soul with his burning crimson eyes, "The more I am intrigued by you. You certainly possess power akin to that of a Legend, and yet you are not one. Arceus does not even know of your existence, but…" A choked whimper escaped the wolf's throat as Necrozma began to crush it in his grip. Now more than ever did it frantically flail in the demon's grip, its growls soon turning to whimpers. The savage, animal-like glare it had given Necrozma mere seconds ago became a pathetic plea for its life, yet when it met Necrozma's own eyes, it saw only a burning hell in wait.

"Thinking on it more would only be a waste of our time, wouldn't you agree?"

A red glint appeared in Necrozma's hand, causing the terrified wolf to scream. That scream was abruptly silenced, and the wolf disappeared into a streak of red that soared into the sky, eventually fading into nothingness. The demon's bounty was, unfortunately for him, cut short by another rainbow pulse. When he turned back around, the Legends had been freed from his lightning trap, and they looked ready for battle once more.

"You will SUFFER FOR THAT!" Snarled Lugia. He spread his wings, letting out an earth-shattering roar. "YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT HUMILIA-"

Necrozma appeared behind Lugia in a blur. The Beast of the Seas went silent, simply standing in place for several seconds until he was bombarded by a series of invisible strikes. Once the final hit was struck, Lugia went limp once more. "Do be silent, will you?" Implored Necrozma. "I've had it with talk of vengeance and justice for one day."

He turned to the others. "And as for you…" The Legends tensed up, awaiting what the demon would do next. But they never could have anticipated the sheer speed and ferocity at which he tore them apart. Necrozma's first victims were the Lake Trio. Appearing before them in the blink of an aye, he grabbed the tails of Azelf and Uxie, swinging them around like clubs at Mesprit to knock her away before going on to the others.

Rayquaza was the first to try and intervene. "Damn you, Necrozma! I'll make you pay for what you did to Deox-" But Necrozma was having none of that. He slammed the serpentine Legend over the head with Uxie so forcefully that it severed the small Legend's tails, sending her flying and Rayquaza face first into the ground.

The demon whipped around and hurled Azelf at Dialga, who attempted to intervene with a Giga Impact. Though the strike didn't actually harm the Deity of Time, it did stop him in his tracks with a surprising amount of force, along with his concern for the Pokemon of Willpower. That small distraction nearly proved fatal when Necrozma delivered a brutal uppercut mere inches away from the diamond perched in Dialga's neck.

Dialga's eyes went wide as the blow ripped any air within the deity's lungs straight out, stunning him long enough for Necrozma to grab him by the neck and swing him over his shoulder at Palkia, slamming him straight into the pearl in Palkia's arm and sending them careening into the ground with a thunderous crash.


The Pokemon of Life winced as she felt a violent trembling in Dialga and Palkia's life forces. "That monster is acting faster than I anticipated. At this rate, I won't be able to keep up." Hastily turning toward Victini, Xerneas hastily asked, "Please, provide me with another-"

"Found you!"

The demon, having at last located Xerneas, wasted no time in ending her healing spree. He rammed his fist into her abdomen with a sickening crunch, sending the Pokemon of Life skidding across the blackened battlefield. She eventually came to a stop when she slammed into a rock spire, but her body went limp, and her eyes had rolled into the back of her head. Liquid crimson oozed from the area Necrozma struck, now sporting a sickening hole.

"Vi- Tini!" Cried the shocked Victini. The Victory Pokemon quickly rushed to her aid, but was smashed into the ground before making it far.

The demon knelt over Victini, sneering down at her. "So, they call you the Victory Pokemon?" He grabbed her by the wrist, dangling her at eye level. "You must be kidding. 'Infinite energy?' 'The power to grant victory to whom you side with?'" He let go of the small Pokemon for a moment, only to immediately change his grip to the entirety of Victini's body below the head, making her cry out in pain. "To have such a moniker while being so pathetically weak. How laughable!"

Necrozma hurled Victini high into the air, sending a ball of energy trailing after meant to put an end to the small Pokemon. However, just before the red ball came in contact with the Victory Pokemon, a familiar golden ring appeared. The moment Victini made contact with the ring's center, both she and the ball disappeared from sight. Necrozma waited apprehensively for what it would do next, and after a few seconds of intense staring, the ring spat the ball back out at him.

Quickly intercepting, Necrozma rushed forward and slammed his fist into the attack to dispel it, causing it to explode around him. Though it did no damage to the demon, Necrozma felt something metallic clamp around him in the ensuing explosion in some sort of bind. The smoke surrounding him was dispelled by Hoopa, who haphazardly blew it away with her hand. She smirked down at him, confident that she had caught him in her trap.

"You got caught in my rii-iing!" She taunted, pointing at Necrozma and laughing mockingly. The demon looked down at the binding and, true to the mischievous Legend's word, he had been halfway caught in the center of her ring. The lower half of his body must have been on the opposite side of the ring's portal, but as it stood, it prevented him from moving.

Necrozma scoffed. "What, did you believe you could trap me? A lowly creature as pitifully weak as you?" The glow of Necrozma's crystals intensified, coating the entire area in a dark red hue. An ungodly force of energy manifested, seemingly coming from some omnipresent source and trailing into the demon as he prepared to eradicate the annoyance and her ring from the face of the Earth. Though, to his surprise, Hoopa didn't look afraid. In fact, she smirked at him and giggled mockingly.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you!" She warned, pointing at the ring. "If that ring breaks, then the portal will too! The other half of your body is on the opposite side of that portal, so if it breaks, then…" She made a motion with her hands, implying something being torn in two. Shrugging, she continued. "But, I guess it won't matter anyways, since it's going to happen to you no matter what!"

She giggled mischievously, reaching her hands out towards the ring and preparing to cut off the portal. The Djinn Pokemon dared a glance at Necrozma's expression, eager to see his terrified expression before finishing him off, but he did no such thing. A low chuckle emanated from the dark demon, his crimson eyes nearly paralyzing Hoopa as the simple act of looking at them nearly caused her heart to stop from terror.

"W-what," She stammered, now struggling to find words with her bravado suddenly missing, "W-what are you l-laughing at?!" Necrozma only continued to laugh, chilling Hoopa to the core. A brisk wind blew by behind the Djinn Pokemon, making her subconsciously let out a shrill gasp. Finally, the demon responded, only his voice came from the wind.

"It's amusing that you lot still find slivers of hope even now." Hoopa's heart practically stopped when she felt him leaning in toward her ear. "I will make sure to erase them all."

Finally finding the strength to move, Hoopa whirled around and hurled the ring on her other horn at him...but there was nothing there. The demon grabbed the back of her head and descended to the ground where he slammed her face into the blackened dirt. Over and over, the helpless Djinn Pokemon unwittingly had her head meet with the ground until Necrozma lifted her over his head and repeated the process one final time.

Hoopa was left a twitching, barely-conscious mess in the dirt when Necrozma removed his hand from her head. Hovering over the collapsed Legend, Necrozma pointed a finger at her, lighting up an energy blast at its tip. But, the ever-mischievous Hoopa had one final trick up her sleeve. She reached down to the ring that was perched around her waist, slipped it off, and hurled it into the air. The ring suddenly stopped its ascent and dropped an item from its portal.

It was an odd purple bottle, almost entirely adorned with rings. There was even an opening at its base that looked like a ring, allowing six more to be curled around it. The top of the bottle looked vaguely like Hoopa's head, even having, yet again, three more rings on its horns and where the real Hoopa's hair would have been.

Once the bottle hit the ground, its top broke off and clattered against the rocky floor. A sinister blackish-purple mist leaked out from the bottle, forming a massive cloud. Necrozma halted the execution of Hoopa for the moment, interested in what this new scheme of the small Legend's was. The black smog spiraled high into the sky, morphing into a massive blob that eventually began to take shape.

"Go, Hoopa Unbound!" Cheered Hoopa.

A massive titan appeared from the smoke. It had grey skin, with large tufts of magenta-colored hair sprouting on much of its upper body and head. From the waist down, it could have been mistaken for a court jester, but the rest of its body looked anything but. It sported a massive tail with an arrowhead at its tip. Floating around its chest were six massive arms, detached from the rest of its body yet floating beside it nonetheless.

At the center of its chest was a seemingly bottomless void that no light could touch. It was encased by, unsurprisingly, another ring. Speaking of rings, they adorned practically every inch of the titan's body. Two around each ankle, one on the wrist of each arm though some had a second one just before where the elbow would have been, three on each of its massive black horns, one around its waist, and finally, a small one that perched the titan's hair up in a massive oval-shaped tuft.

"YEAH!" Chirped the smaller Hoopa, pumping her fist into the air. "You're in trouble now, Necrozma! Hoopa Unbound, get 'em!"

Grinning down at Necrozma with a crooked smile and jagged teeth, the titan crossed its arms and bellowed, "HOOPA HOOPA RI-"

Necrozma pointed his finger at Hoopa Unbound and unleashed the blast. The smaller Hoopa doubled over, letting out an agonized wail. But in spite of that agony, she was faced with a far greater horror when Necrozma lifted her chin with Psychic, forcing her to watch as the crimson beam disassembled her other self, eventually reducing it completely to dust.

"You were saying?"

"AAAAUUUUUGH!'

Necrozma nodded, satisfied with her answer. "I thought so."

With that, he once again pointed his finger at the downed Hoopa, cackling as his finger alit with energy. It grew larger with every second, showing Necrozma was intent on finishing the pesky Legend for good. Hoopa fell face first into the ground, her eyes dulled. She couldn't hope to escape anymore, or even bring herself to try. Without any effort whatsoever, the demon had thwarted her plans, brutalized her, and made her feel the pain of her own death. There was nothing she could do anymore. She closed her eyes and prayed that the others would be all right.

A ball of crackling flames smashed into Necrozma's side suddenly. The energy at the tip of Necrozma's finger faded as he turned his attention toward it. The flames dispersed, revealing Victini, who was eager to repay the debt she owed Hoopa. "TINI, VICTINI!"

Hoopa weakly reached out to the Victory Pokemon. "No...run...don't waste your life...on me…!" But in her broken state, her voice was far too feeble to reach Victini. This could not be said for Necrozma.

"Run?" Before Victini knew what was happening, Necrozma already had his hand around her throat. "She already had that chance when you saved her with that ring of yours, and yet she opted to throw her life away."

His grip on the Victory Pokemon intensified, making her squeal out in pain. "Honestly," Said Necrozma, "What were you hoping to accomplish?" Again, the force of his grip increased, eliciting another agonized yelp from Victini. "Vengeance? Returning the favor?" Victini let out a wail as the audible snapping of bone rang out from her body. "Or perhaps it was simply idiocy!"

Necrozma hurled Victini into the air and aimed to finish her off the same way he did last time. With the last of Hoopa's strength, she summoned her ring in an attempt to save Victini yet again. A metal clank was heard as it made contact with something suddenly, and Hoopa's heart sank when she saw that Necrozma had caught it. He turned toward her with a heart-stopping glare and snapped the ring in two. Just behind him, the ball of energy he'd thrown at Victini met its mark and detonated.

Another wave of unbearable agony wreaked havoc upon Hoopa's body due to the destruction of that ring, and yet in her weakness, she could not even move. She wanted to scream, to cry, to do anything, but her body was simply too weak. Her eyes greyed out, and soon enough, they closed.

The demon pointed his finger at the downed Legend and charged up a blast to finish her off when a powerful gust of wind swept her into the air, further annoying him. The wind carried Hoopa higher and higher until, eventually, she landed in the hands of Landorus. The Master of the Forces of Nature nodded to his two accomplices Thundurus and Tornadus, then handed Hoopa off to Jirachi and hurried the two away.

Behind the Forces of Nature, four massive golden titans stood, towering over the rest. Landorus raised his arm, much like the commander of a military force, and ordered them to attack. Necrozma, meanwhile, shook his head in disappointment. "Honestly, do you really expect to defeat me with your pitiful power? It's like you don't even have a head or something."

Necrozma lurched his finger toward Landorus and fired a beam that completely tore his head from his body. Thundurus and Tornadus's eyes went wide, and they jumped back from Landorus's body. Even the Tapus, in their giant form, were visibly shocked. Landorus himself hadn't even the chance to know what had hit him before he was gone, leaving behind only his body with what was once his head covered in smoke. After a few moments, Landorus's body went limp and fell to the ground.

Thundurus and Tornadus were torn between fleeing and fighting, resulting in them freezing up like a deer in headlights. Never in their wildest nightmares would they have imagined Landorus, the one so powerful that he alone could keep both of them from rampaging, would have been killed so easily. The thought terrified them into paralysis, and so they didn't know what to do.

Necrozma did not share that sentiment.

In the blink of an eye, his fist tore straight through Tornadus's abdomen and out the opposite side. The Cyclone Pokemon's eyes cracked over, completely bloodshot, and he let out an agonized wail. Thundurus, in an adrenaline-fueled panic, futilely attempted to save his counterpart with a Thunder from above. Necrozma chuckled, smirking at the storm cloud forming above his head. A massive bolt of lightning descended upon the demon, to which he held his arm high, along with the body of Tornadus.

Thundurus could only watch in horror as Tornadus, still skewered on the demon's arm, was fried alive by his attack. The Cyclone Pokemon spasmed horribly, the powerful lightning coursing through his very veins and tearing apart his nervous system. But Tornadus's suffering never seemed to end. Even as he was impaled by Necrozma, he somehow didn't die, and the lightning kept coursing through his body long after Thundurus had cleared up the cloud.

"It's too soon to say goodbye, don't you think?" Necrozma asked. He twisted his arm in Tornadus's chest, further adding to its pain. "I can't let you die just yet. Not when we've just started getting to know one another."

Having more than enough of this abhorrent farce, the titanized Tapu Koko stomped forward and swooped the demon and Tornadus up in its massive hand. It pulled its hand back to look upon its capture, yet in its hand it found only the lifeless body of Tornadus, and no demon to be found. In a panic, Tapu Koko and the other titans frantically looked around for the demon, only enlightened to his location via his laughter from above.

The demon held a struggling Thundurus by the back of his neck. The Bolt Strike Pokemon futilely flailed in Necrozma's grasp, letting loose an array of shocks and winds that did nothing to phase the monster. Necrozma's hand flashed red, spreading that colorization to fully encase Thundurus. Necrozma crushed Thundurus's throat, making him explode into a small cloud of bright red dust that quickly faded into nothingness.

"On second thought, nevermind. I've endured you all long enough."

Unleashing his terrible energy around himself, Necrozma raced down from the skies to put an end to the four guardian Tapus. Tapu Koko visibly flinched, but prepared to intercept regardless. He pumped back his fist, roared like the warrior Pokemon he was, and clashed with the demon...resulting in the titan's arm being destroyed instantaneously. Tapu Koko reeled back in shock, leaving himself wide open for Necrozma's next attack.

The demon blitzed toward Tapu Koko itself, the titan's head, and smashed his fist into the guardian's outer shell with such force that he was completely detached from the rest of his titan and sent flying far into the distance with a massive crack on its shell. Then, Necrozma turned his sinister sights upon the others hungrily, making them shudder even with their massive titan bodies.

Nevertheless, the proud Guardians of Alola would not back down, even if they were down a member. The bull-like Tapu Bulu was the first to step up to the plate, crouching down and attempting to ram its pointed head into the demon. Necrozma sidestepped the attack and pointed his finger at the passing titan, obliterating it with a Psychic blast from his finger. With Bulu itself now exposed, Necrozma warped to him, grabbed him by the horns, and threw him at ground-shattering speeds at Tapu Lele.

Upon impact, Tapu Lele's titan reeled backwards, and Lele herself was blown clean off. Necrozma grabbed the two with Psychic and pulled them back towards himself, making sure to dispel Lele's titan with the swipe of his finger. All that was left was Tapu Fini. The most serene of the Tapus, Tapu Fini braced for battle against the demon, positioning herself for battle.

Smirking, Necrozma held Bulu and Lele together, enveloping them in a bright crimson light. The two Tapus were launched from Necrozma's hands in a crackling, plasmatic fireball that hurtled toward Fini in a spiraling trail. The serene Tapu brought up her arms in front of her head. When her comrades unwittingly crashed into her, she was nearly blown off of her feet. Gritting her teeth, she dug her heels into the ground and pushed against it, managing to at least stand her ground.

Yet, her efforts meant nothing. Necrozma warped behind the fire-encased Tapus and smashed his fist into their backsides, driving them straight through Fini's titan's arm and into Fini herself. "DIE!" Roaring that simple but terrifying word, the demon erased the last titan in one fell swoop with a wall of crimson, carrying the three screaming Tapus with it into nigh-oblivion in a deafening explosion.

"Now then…" The demon turned away from the explosion, narrowing his eyes at the escaping Jirachi who was flying toward the main group of Legends as fast as she could, though Hoopa was holding her down by the looks of it. He let out a sinister chuckle, his crimson eyes gleaming hungrily. "There's no reason to keep the others waiting any longer."

The unwitting Jirachi, meanwhile, was heavily gasping for air. Never before had she flown so fast, and now, she was carrying the limp Hoopa beneath her. "Just...hang in there!" She cried to Hoopa. Jirachi had already expended most of her energy using her wishes to heal the Legends after Xerneas was struck down, so her stamina wasn't exactly up to snuff at the moment to simply wish them back to the group. "We're...almost...there!"

True to Jirachi's word and to her own shock, the Wish Pokemon could see Groudon's tall, red figure not too far in the distance. What's more, he, and what appeared to be the other Legends that had yet to become a victim of the demon's rampage, were racing toward her at breakneck speeds. Apparently they could see her as well because they seemed to be calling out to her. To greet her, perhaps?

An elated Jirachi couldn't help but to cheery out in joy. "We are almost there! It's only a matter of time until we can get you another healer, like maybe Sui-"

A black blur appeared in her way suddenly. "I don't think so." Jirachi's eyes went wide, and she tried to pull herself to a sudden stop, but at the speeds she was moving, doing such a thing was impossible. Before her, the demon, in all his terrible might, stopped Jirachi's heart with only his hellfire glare. Though it only lasted for but a split second, Jirachi was left with a horrific thought: That it was intended to have only been for that short instance.

It was then she realized that the others hadn't been calling out to greet her. But rather, to warn her of a danger she hadn't even known she was in. And now, she was neck-deep in it.

Hastily, Jirachi cried out, "I WISH TO TELEPORT TO THE OT-"

But before she could have hoped to complete that wish, Necrozma drove his fist into the Wish Pokemon's face with a sickening crack. She was sent hurtling across the skies to the horror of the Legends watching helplessly from below. Those who could fly immediately pushed themselves to their limits in a desperate attempt to stop the demon from taking yet another victim. In their horror and Jirachi's agony, Necrozma reveled, laughing like a madman. But to Jirachi, the pain paled in comparison to watching Hoopa's body fall.

"Why the rush?" Asked Necrozma, winding his arm back to deliver another blow. "Come now, entertain me, wish granter!" He drove his fist into her gut, making her let out a disturbing, guttural noise that no living thing should break. What's more, his fist met with the closed eye held on the small Legend's chest, nearly bursting it in the process.

Again, Jirachi was sent flying from the blow, with the demon racing after. He sped up past Jirachi, twisting his body around to wind his arm back as much as possible before driving it into the Wish Maker's head. She descended to the ground with all the force of a meteor, yet still, Necrozma was not done with her. He crashed down beside her, kicking up the surrounding ground and hurtling her back up in the air where he, upon warping above Jirachi's flight path, stopped her clean in her tracks with another bone-shattering blow to the chest.

Smirking cruelly, Necrozma struck her with the edge of his hand and, quicker than light itself, grabbed her head to stop her from being flung away. The result was Jirachi's eyes going white as her neck was completely severed from her spine, yet this was undone by Necrozma immediately after. "You can't die yet!" Jovially declared a cackling Necrozma. "Not until you grant my wish!"

The brutalized Jirachi opened her bleeding mouth, now devoid of most teeth, to ask what he wanted in the hopes that granting it might allow her, and everyone else, to survive. Yet, she was cut off before she could even speak when Necrozma drove her into the ground with another punch.

"Scream for me."

Necrozma descended upon her again, this time letting loose his fists without restraint. Jirachi, absolutely powerless to do anything against him, could only take his countless attacks. Time after time, Necrozma's fists were driven into every inch of her body, only to heal the wounds he created each time, but leaving the pain intact. No, the demon would not let her die so easily. Not until his wish was granted. Yet, he never gave her the chance to do so.

"SCREAM!"

He opened the palm of his hand, creating a mass of crimson energy within it. Poor Jirachi scarcely had the time to realize what was happening until it was too late. A colossal beam completely enveloped her, yet Necrozma himself prevented it from flinging her away by keeping her in his Psychic grip while it burned away at her flesh. Jirachi could not fulfill the demon's morbid wish even if she wanted to, for he gave her no reprieve.

When he became bored with the beam, he immediately leapt to a new method of attack. Necrozma threw her into the ground with Psychic, then barreled into her himself with his claws once again wrapped around her throat. She was dragged across the charred ground, her face forced to endure the brunt of the shrapnel that was kicked up by doing so.

The demon turned upwards, hurling Jirachi high into the air and warping in her path to slam his fist into her chest. She wasn't launched far, as Necrozma immediately warped behind her, backhanding her higher into the air and, after teleporting again, driving the edge of his crystal into the back of her head to throw her back toward the ground. She slammed into it, bouncing back up straight into a plunging strike from the demon.

When Necrozma tore his fist from the battered Legend, making sure to heal any fatal injuries, he once again grabbed hold of her neck and held her in the air, summoning a ball of energy in his other hand. "So, about that wish?" Asked the smirking demon. Jirachi didn't respond, merely hanging limply in Necrozma's grip. Had he a mouth, he surely would have been grinning. "I see. Back to it, then?"

He was about to drive the plasma into her face to start the beating anew, but stopped suddenly, glancing behind himself. The other Legends were getting closer, and upon further inspection, he noticed Suicune carrying the unconscious Hoopa upon its back. "...Scratch that." The ball in his hands grew twice its initial size, intensifying in power to the point that Jirachi could feel her skin burning just from being close to it. "Let's finish this now."

Jirachi closed her eyes and winced. It was all she could do in the face of the end. She was beaten within an inch of her life over and over, more times than she could even count. When she received a fatal injury, the monster had healed it so that he could lengthen her agony even more. She was too weak to even hope to resist, though the effort would have amounted to nothing either way.

But she knew she still had to do something.

So, she decided to make one last wish. Her small, trembling hands slowly reached up to the three blue tags on her head and ripped them off. "With these…" She wheezed, "We might...have hope…"

Necrozma couldn't help but to jeer at that. "Is that so? By all means, go ahead, then!"

"I wish for their safety." Jirachi clutched the three tags in her hand, nearly ripping them in the process. The eye on her chest opened, unveiling a near-blinding light that coated the Wish Maker from head to toe. "I couldn't save Ash, but May and Max...and the other Legends…" She glared down at Necrozma in defiance. "Everyone! My wish is that everyone in this world is saved from your hands!"

She spat a glob of blood at him and released the three tags so that they could fly far from harm. "And that you die so that may happen!"

Necrozma obliterated the blood with nothing but a glance before it could reach him. "...So...that is your final wish, then?" He shifted his gaze toward the tags that fluttered away in the wind. They stopped suddenly, courtesy of Necrozma's Psychic, and flew right back into his hands. "You know, the thing about wishes is…" The tags were lit aflame and burned away to a crisp before Jirachi's eyes. "Wishes don't come true."

He planted the plasmatic ball straight into the eye on Jirachi's chest. In a crimson flash of light, she was carried away with a massive beam that sailed into the horizon. The Legends' eyes widened in horror. They had failed to save yet another from the demon's clutches. She was right before their eyes, and they could do nothing! Necrozma turned toward them, welcoming them with his maddening laughter.


Elsewhere on the battlefield.

The surviving humans, who were in the midst of making their way to what they believed to be the center of the battlefield, stopped in their tracks suddenly upon noticing a bright red beam sailing high above them before promptly disappearing. From that laser, something small and black fell to the ground not too far away from them with a thud.

"What is that?!" One of them cried out.

At first, no one dared to go near. The laser in and of itself was already concerning enough, but none of them even knew what this blackened, charred thing was. As they chattered about it amongst one another, eventually, two people recognized the thing.

"Jirachi?!"

May and Max raced from the crowd, much to the horror of the others, and knelt beside the blackened Wish Pokemon. "Jirachi!" Cried Max as he scooped her into his arms, uncaring of the searing heat that stung his skin when he did so. "What…" He was absolutely mortified by the look of his friend. She was coated in black ashes, sealing her third eye shut. Dots of red, though cauterized by the heat of the plasma she was ejected from, poked out from the spaces that weren't black, leaving only a few scarce areas of her face still white.

"What happened to you?!"

When Jirachi opened her eyes to look upon her two closest friends, it was accompanied by a smile. "May...Max…" She looked between the two of them. "I wished that...you would survive…"

The young boy wiped away his tears, only for them to be replaced by more. "U-us...what about you?!"

May, finding her own tears inescapable as well, pulled something out of her pocket. It was the wish-maker from the Millenium Comet Festival. "Remember this, Jirachi?" She held the item for Jirachi to see. "I...I k-kept it all this time...you remember it, right?"

Nodding weakly, Jirachi's smile brightened. "You did… I remember… I'm so glad...to have such good…" She was too weak to finish the sentence, only able to let out a raspy whisper of a breath. Her eyes became white and glistened, and her vision blurred. "If only...I could hear that song...again..."

May and Max's eyes widened in horror when their friend stopped talking, her body laying limply in Max's hands. "J-Jirachi…?!" Max gently shook her in a desperate attempt to get her to stir, but to no avail. May took off like a bullet toward the crowd, frantically asking if anyone had a Pokemon that could heal. Though it sickened him to the point he felt like he was going to vomit, Max knew that his friend was already gone. No wish could bring her back.

"JIRACHIIIIIII!"


Necrozma clasped his hands together. "Well, now that the trash has been taken out, let's not keep the others waiting, shall we?" The demon quickly turned his sight towards his remaining victims who were still left frozen from shock. He leaned down, preparing to lunge at them, but stopped upon noticing something behind them.

Six figures were racing toward the demon at breakneck speeds, all wearing expressions of untold fury upon their faces. Tobias, atop Latios, spearheaded an assault to avenge the fallen Heatran. "YOU'RE DEAD, NECROZMA! YOU HEAR ME?!"

Necrozma mockingly pretended to yawn. "So I've been told."

The infuriated Tobias let out an almost-inhuman sounding growl, and his Pokemon pushed themselves past their limits to speed up. Palkia was quick to try to put an end to the trainer's suicide mission before it began, jumping in his path. "Stop, human! You'll just get yourself ki-"

Tobias and his team raced past the Lord of Time, cutting him off. "HUMAN OR NOT, MY POKEMON AND I ARE A TEAM!" He grimaced, aggressively wiping away a tear from his eye. "We made a promise, my Pokemon and I...that we would stick together no matter what! AND THIS BASTARD TOOK THAT AWAY!"

Latias took to the skies after Tobias and his Pokemon in hot pursuit. "You idiot! Are you trying to get the rest killed as well?!"

Either ignoring her or simply not hearing her, Tobias pointed toward the quickly-approaching Necrozma and cried, "EVERYONE, YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO!" Nodding to Tobias, the five Legends leapt into the frey. Necrozma merely shook his head and crossed his arms to allow them their fun. Darkrai positioned himself on Volcanion's back, his hands above Volcanion's water tubes.

Volcanion launched a powerful Steam Eruption, followed by Darkrai pouring a Dark Pulse into it. The spiraling dark energy was swept up into the Steam Eruption's powerful stream, crashing alongside it and engulfing Necrozma. "Now," Ordered Tobias, pointing toward Cresselia and Meloetta. "Use Memento and Helping Hand!" The two nodded in response, and Cresselia expended nearly the entirety of her energy to create a pink stream of light that was transferred to Latios. Meloetta hopped beside Latios, clapping her hands together and granting him an even greater boost to his power.

Tobias nodded, satisfied with his team's performance. "Excellent work. Now…" His glare intensified. No expression humanly possible could fully encumber the rage he felt, and he knew his Pokemon felt it as well. The loss of Heatran...a powerful ally...and a dear friend. This monster had taken too much from too many, and the most powerful trainer to ever live would be damned if he would just allow him to get away with it. He pointed toward the demon and ordered, "LUSTER PURGE!"

Mirroring his trainer's seething glare to a T, Latios opened his mouth, let out a fearsome screech that chilled the nearby Latios to her core, and unleashed a massive blast of purple energy from his mouth. With all the buffs he had received, the Luster Purge became so large in scope and powerful that it completely erased Darkrai and Volcanion's combined attack before it even made contact, and Necrozma disappeared within its depths.

With the attack underway, Tobias gently pat Latios's head and hastily turned back toward the other Legends. "What the hell are you waiting for?!" He shouted, motioning for them to come forward with his arm. "Get over here! This won't hold him for long!"

The Legends all blinked out of their stupors simultaneously. When Tobias had rushed past them and began his miniature assault on the demon, to their chagrin, they had all stopped and just watched like Deerling in headlights. After berating themselves mentally, they nodded to Tobias and began moving toward him as fast as he could. The trainer himself let out a relieved sigh and next turned to address Latias.

"Excuse me," He said, "But do you think you could attack Necrozma as well? We'll need everything we can throw at him if we're to stall for ti-"

Latias cut him off before he could finish. "What were you thinking charging at Necrozma like that?! Were you trying to get my-" She stopped herself and shook her head, realizing that a revelation like that might interrupt Latios's Luster Purge, which would be unendingly bad for everyone. "...Your Pokemon killed?! Do you not care for them, or are you simply so much of an idiot that the death of the last one didn't tell you that you shouldn't interfere?!"

She instantly realized the error she had made, but it was too late. When Latias went to apologize, Tobias snapped, "You say that, and yet you're not doing anything to help like I asked." The sheer fury adorned on his face made him seem more beast than human, in spite of the dangerous calmness of his voice. Latias actually shrunk from the weight of his stare, but he turned it upon Necrozma soon enough.

"You yourself must have lost much in this terrible war," He said. Immediately, the sight of Ash disappearing into nothingness from Necrozma's blast flashed before Latias's eyes, "So I'll cut you some slack, but don't you ever question the love I hold for my Pokemon again." He pointed at Meloetta and Cresselia, whose fury matched Tobias's as they, too, glared death at the demon. Volcanion and especially Darkrai shared it as well. "My Pokemon are my friends. Any real trainer would tell you the same."

He clenched his fists and teeth to the point that Latias heard audible cracks. "For what he did to Heatran...to our friend…!" Tobias turned back toward Latias, and the look upon his face nearly stopped her heart. If it had seemed like a beast before, then his expression could now only be comparable to that of a demon's. His eyes were sunken and red. His face was so wrinkled that he looked to have aged decades from how he did previously, but what struck Latias the most were his tears. In spite of his fearsome expression...he was crying.

"He...will pay with his life for what he did!"

"I'm getting tired of hearing that nonsense."

Tobias and Latias whipped around, finding, to their horror, the demon standing beside Latios's massive Luster Purge. He held the neck of Cresselia in his hands, who was too weak to even make a sound due to the exhaustion of using Memento on Latios. Without thinking twice, Tobias pulled Cresselia's Pokeball from the inside his shirt and attempted to return Cresselia to it. Necrozma smirked and pointed his finger at the ball, shattering it.

"NO!" Cried the trainer. "Everyone, attack now!"

The rest of Tobias's Pokemon and Latias quickly sent an array of attacks up at the demon, who in turn blocked them with ease with a barrier. "I'll pay for what I've done," Continued Necrozma with a lazy shrug, ignoring the desperate cries from Tobias and his team, "I will be brought to justice, and so on and so forth. Hearing that over and over—it's all just so-" In but the blink of an eye, Necrozma infused Cresselia's body with his energy and crushed her neck, completely obliterating her without a trace. "-Tiresome."

Tobias's world darkened around him. It felt like all of his senses had dimmed down to nothing in his utter disbelief at what he had just witnessed. Or rather, every ounce of his being refusing to believe it. Then, he felt heat. It was unbearable, to the point that he felt like digging his nails into his head to try and make it stop, yet he still couldn't move. His vision went completely red, and the emotions that had all died out gave way to one singular thing: blind rage.

"KILL HIIIIIIIM!"

Screeching like banshees, Tobias's four remaining Pokemon took off like bullets at the demon that had stolen away yet another dear friend from them. Necrozma chuckled to himself, shaking his head before descending to meet them. Meloetta closed in from behind, a Focus Blast readied in her hands. Necrozma warped behind her and drove her head into the ground. From above, Volcanion and Darkrai attempted to free her by once again using their combined Dark Pulse and Steam Eruption.

A still-chuckling Necrozma raised Meloetta's body to block it, but instead of simply having her take the attack, he unleashed a massive beam that reduced her to dust instantaneously. As the beam quickly rose up to the two Legends, their eyes went wide, and Darkrai bolted out of harm's way by a hair. Volcanion, however, was not as lucky. The beam completely devoured him, overheating the steam generator within him to the point that it, and him disappeared in a massive explosion that sent Darkrai flying.

Necrozma raced after Darkrai madly, already preparing another blast within his hand to finish off the Nightmare Pokemon. Tobias, however, would be damned to let that happen. "GIGA IMPACT!" He roared atop Latios's back, with Latias not far behind. Surrounded in a mass of swirling energy, Latios intercepted Necrozma by crashing into him with full force. The demon caught the blow easily, holding it back with but one hand even as the attack's stray energy crackled against his flesh.

"Honestly," Started Necrozma, "I'm utterly baffled as to why a human such as you is still here." With the back of his hand, he swatted both Latios and him to the ground. When Latios attempted to get back up, Necrozma took him by the neck and hurled him away. Latias hurried off in pursuit of her brother, leaving Tobias completely alone.

Still, in defiance, Tobias merely replied with a seething glare. A shrugging Necrozma sighed, shaking his head. "You probably don't even know yourself. Surely, you must realize that staying here will only serve to grant you and your pets a swifter, more painful death than the one that would have awaited you with the annihilation of your world." He pointed his finger down at the fallen trainer, the tip of his finger alit with energy. "In any case, I suppose I'll just erase you n-"

Darkrai descended before the demon, putting himself between him and Tobias. He turned back toward his beloved trainer, telling him to run with a nod before firing a Dark Pulse at Necrozma. Tobias couldn't even open his mouth to protest before Darkrai's body landed behind him. "What the-?!" He cried. "D-Darkrai, no!" He ran toward his partner on instinct. His rage had faded, giving way to fear for his partner Pokemon.

He never made it. Tobias was blown backwards by a thunderous explosion, letting out a pained grunt as he fell onto his back. He pushed past it, shoving himself onto his feet to race to Darkrai's aid, only to find a cloud of fire and smoke where his friend once was. Then, he became still, and his eyes were frozen wide. His shock had frozen his entire body stiff, like his mind had gone into sensory and emotional overload and just...stopped. Necrozma floated down beside him, putting his hand upon Tobias's shoulder.

"How tragic," He mocked. "To have your friends all die before your eyes and knowing…" He leaned down to speak right into Tobias's ear, hissing, "That you sent them to their deaths." The demon retracted his head to stand back at full height. "But it should all work out fine, won't it? Once you meet them again, that is." He lightly nudged Tobias toward the fire that had consumed his best friend. "Don't you wish to?"

The blank-minded Tobias his eyes still wide from the shock, nodded in response to the demon's question, ushering a dark chuckle from him. "I thought so. Come along, now."

"NOT A CHANCE!"

Necrozma turned at the source of the sudden voice and was immediately rammed by Rayquaza's Dragon Ascent, carrying the both of them away from Tobias. "YOU AREN'T MAKING HIM FALL FOR THAT TRICK TOO!"

"Annoying-!" Necrozma raised his arm and slammed Rayquaza into the ground with his elbow. He readied a ball of energy in his hands to finish off the Sky High Pokemon when he noticed that Rayquaza wasn't alone. Just about all the other Legends had caught up at last, and the others weren't all that far behind. "...Fine, then. I suppose I'll have to slaughter you all for good!" He glanced to his side, finding Latios and Latias racing back toward Tobias. "But first…"

Tobias snapped out of his stupor at the sound of Latios and Latias, and with his regained senses re-came fear. The words of Necrozma ringed in his mind to the point it was deafening. Because...it was true. In his overconfidence as the most powerful trainer, he pit his Pokemon against a foe they had no way of winning against. Heatran's death only added to his stupidity, and Cresselia's somehow furthered it! In essence, he was their murderer for testing fate so. But even if it cost him his own life, he would still save Latios.

"GET AWAY!" He cried, making Latios and Latias stop in their tracks. The desperation in his trainer's eyes made Latios feel an emotion...he couldn't even begin to describe. All he knew was that it sent shivers to his core. "LEAVE, NOW! I CAN'T LET YOU DIE TOO!" Tobias reached into his shirt and pulled out Latios's Pokeball, smashing it into the ground and breaking it. "GO, NOW!"

Latias nodded and turned to flee, only stopping when she saw that her brother was not following. "Latios?" She asked. "What are you doing? You heard him! We need to leave!" Latios didn't respond. He was obviously at war with himself, unable to decide between obeying his trainer and saving his closest friend. That was until he felt Necrozma's murderous gaze piercing his soul. With one last scream from Tobias ordering him to flee, Latios solemnly turned and fled with Latias, forcing back the pain of the sting he felt from leaving his friend behind.

Necrozma rocketed after them in hot pursuit, shouting, "I DON'T THINK SO!" Tobias stepped in front of him, raising his arms in some feeble attempt to halt or slow the demon. Without even acknowledging the trainer's existence, he rocketed past him, knocking him to the ground. He raced after the two fleeing Legends, closing in on them in mere seconds. The Legends were helpless to do anything, save for Dialga, who had an idea.

When Necrozma struck the diamond on Dialga's chest, he only missed by a hair, which unfortunately could not be said for Palkia's pearl. Though it missed, the damage to the crest that held the diamond had messed with his temporal abilities, making him unsure if using them would be safe. But the doubts he held already led to the deaths of many other Legends, and now, the risks of not trying to use them outweighed the opposite.

Puffing out his chest and stretching the wing muscles on his back, the God of Time called upon his temporal might and roared, "TIME FREEZE!" Then, everything stopped. The halting of time discolored the world, coating it an odd whitish color. All but Dialga were frozen as the temporal passage was rendered null, freezing them in a state of horror as they looked upon Necrozma and the Eon Duo.

Dialga winced, feeling a sharp pain from the damaged area of his crest. "My powers are weakened, " The Time Deity said to himself, "But...it should hold for now." He leapt into the air, floating toward the three. He knew better by now than to bother trying to impede Necrozma. It was likely, even in stopped time, that attacking Necrozma right now would hardly do a thing and result in him getting killed, with the Eon duo following suit in spite of his efforts. So, he focused his attention on those two instead.

As he got close, his heart nearly stopped from a sudden chill. He dared a glance at the demon and found, to his horror, that he was staring right at him instead of Latias and Latios. Dialga immediately stopped in his tracks, backing away from the demon. "Wh-what trickery is this?!"

"There's no trick." The haunting voice of Necrozma shook Dialga, far more in his realm of frozen time than in normal reality. The discoloration on him slowly faded, and he removed himself from his position in the stagnated realm to turn to the Time Deity. He smirked down at Dialga, crossing his arms. "It's as I told you before: I have long since conquered the limitations of time and space.'

A searing pain unlike anything Dialga had ever felt before wracked his body, travelling through every inch of it. Necrozma had driven his fist into the diamond perched at the base of his neck, completely destroying the crest in the process and leaving only a miniscule shell to carry the diamond. The gem itself was covered in cracks. It was a miracle that it didn't shatter, taking along with it Dialga's life. The pain overpowered Dialga's senses, blinding him long enough for the demon to blast him into the ground and release the frozen time.

With time again unbound, Latios and Latios resumed soaring away from Necrozma at top speeds. The burnt body of Dialga crashed beside the remaining Legends in a heap, making their eyes go wide. "D-Dialga?!" Cried a wide-eyed Palkia, rushing to his aid. With the Legends distracted with Dialga, Necrozma turned his attention back upon the escaping Eon Duo and disappeared as a blur of black.


Latios stopped suddenly, with Latias following soon after. "Why did you stop?" Asked Latias. Latios stared down at the ground beneath them, glowering with a pitiful expression. He did not respond to Latias's question, instead turning back toward the others. Seeing this, Latias immediately flew in front of him to put a stop to whatever he was about to do. "Oh no you don't!" She exclaimed. "You are NOT going back there!"

"I must!" Protested Latios. "I cannot bring myself to flee at the cost of my trainer's life! Nor would fleeing solve anything, for if Necrozma wins, we will die regardless!"

"He's right, you know."

The moment the Eon Duo whipped around at the voice, they were greeted with the demon's hand, alit with plasma. A thunderous explosion ensued, and they were blown across the sky. Necrozma gave chase to Latios, holding another ball of energy in his hand. He was about to finish Latios once and for all when he noticed Latias speeding toward him.

"YOU WON'T KILL HIM!" She declared, pushing herself past her limits to raise her speeds to their absolute maximum, resulting in her barely being able to see as she rocketed towards the demon. "I WON'T LET MY BROTHER DIE TWICE!"

Necrozma scoffed at her assertion. "You believe you can save him, and yet when your precious Ash fell, you were nowhere to be found." Latias stopped in her tracks, her eyes wide. That single comment froze her stiff, giving the demon the opportunity to easily turn his finger away from Latios and toward her. Necrozma's eye curled up; his version of a grin, and shot the blast at her. "I wonder what he'll say when you meet him."

Latias shut her eyes tightly as the deathly light fast approached. She grunted as she felt something ram into her side at breakneck speeds, and when she looked back upon what had struck her, her heart stopped within her chest. The burnt body of Latios was flung from the explosion and skidded along the ground to a stop. "L-Latios!" Cried Latias, wasting no time in flying to his side.

When she knelt beside her brother, she hurriedly turned him onto his back. It was obvious that the wounds were lethal. "Why?!" She demanded, tears dotting her eyes. "Why did you save me?! I was supposed to…"

Latios, in spite of his injuries, smiled up at her. "I...don't really know myself. You called me 'brother' and something just...snapped. Something...in the back of my mind just…" His body jerked suddenly into a coughing fit. Latias went to help him, but he managed to hold up his hand to stop her, and sat back into his previous spot. "A voice...that sounded just like mine...screamed at me...telling me to protect you…"

He wheezed again, doubling over and letting out a small stream of blackish-red liquid from his mouth. He hastily shook it off, turning toward his sister. "P-Please!" He shrieked, "Save...my trainer! Save Tobias! I don't want...either of you...to die!" His eyes somehow widened further as he noticed a red glint of light fast approaching, and used the last of his strength to send his sister flying back toward the other Legends with Psychic. "GO-!"

Latios's final cry was silenced abruptly, and he disappeared in a pillar of crimson light. The Legends watched, their jaws agape, as yet another of their ranks was slain. Yet none of them were as stricken as Tobias and Latias. Latios's trainer crumbled to his knees and fell forward, screaming into the blackened dirt in anguish. Latias had failed to save her brother, watching him die to save her yet again. But...just like before...she would put her feelings aside for now in favor of his last wish. She would protect the Soul Dew and this world...and begrudgingly, Tobias as well.

Turning toward the collapsed trainer on a dime and painstakingly swallowing the lump in her throat, Latias snatched him up by the scruff of his shirt and took off into the distance. Quick to intercept, Necrozma raced after them. "You will not escape!" He declared. "That peon's final wish will mean nothing once I scatter your ashes along the-"

An intense ray of fire intercepted his chase, to which he turned his ire toward the attack's source. "Not gonna happen!" Roared Groudon. He stomped his massive foot into the ground, letting loose massive, jagged spires of flaming rock from the ground that stretched up toward the demon. "I won't let you take anyone else, you sick freak!" Necrozma raced through the spires as if they were as flimsy as paper and knocked Groudon flat onto his back with a fierce punch to the cheek.

"Fine then!" Necrozma bellowed, his earth-shaking might coating the entirety of Goldenrod City's remains in red. It was becoming ever-more apparent that his patience was wearing thin, hanging on by only a thread. "I have put off your deaths long enough! All at once, I will remedy that mistake once and for all!"

Rayquaza swiftly went to intercept whatever Necrozma was about to do, and was promptly grabbed by his two front horns and put into the ground. The demon noticed Mewtwo closing in on him, and just before the clone Pokemon could strike, Necrozma warped behind him and blasted him away. He then raced off toward the others, eager to reduce them all to scattered limbs.

Keldeo and Kyurem stepped in his path. "Eat this!" Cried Keldeo, jumping behind the demon, "Sacred Sword!" The young Legend's horn stretched upward into a deep reddish-orange blade and descended upon Necrozma's back, only to be easily grabbed by him. Necrozma raised Keldeo off the ground, coating his finger in crimson light. He was about to finish the annoyance, who was now desperately squirming in Necrozma's grip, fearful for his life, when Necrozma noticed an Ice Beam from Kyurem closing in from behind.

Whipping around on a dime, Necrozma hurled Keldeo into the attack, resulting in him instantly being frozen solid. "K-Keldeo!" Cried the Ice Dragon, cutting off his attack for fear of harming the young Legend. This gave Necrozma the perfect opportunity to attack. He grabbed hold of the ice-encased Keleo and slammed it over Kyurem's head, stunning him, shattering the ice and sending Keldeo's body flying.

He was about to finish the job when Zekrom, shrouded in Fusion Bolt, attempted to ram into Necrozma's side. Though the demon easily blocked the attack, it still pushed him away from Kyurem and allowed him to recover. The demon scoffed in annoyance and blasted the black dragon away. He turned around and looked to the sky behind him, where Reshiram was in the midst of charging a Fusion Flare. Upon seeing Necrozma looking at her, she immediately went to throw down the incomplete attack at him. In turn, Necrozma chuckled, pointed his finger up at her, and made her own attack explode in her face.

The demon dusted off his hands, turning back around to address Kyurem, but the Dragon of Grey had beaten him to the punch. Massive icicles floated around him on all sides, their jagged ends pointed toward him with the obvious intent to skewer him. "GLACIATE!" Roared Kyurem. At his command, the giant icicles closed in on Necrozma, resulting in a haze of white, chilled air to rush out from the area and cloud out the vision of Necrozma.

Azelf, Mesprit, Uxie and Mewtwo descended, dispelling the fog to reveal, much to their relief, that Necrozma had been encased in a massive glacier. Knowing that it wouldn't hold him for long, the four used Psychic around the ice to keep it in place for the time being.

"That should hold him," Said Kyurem, putting Keldeo onto his back, "For now, at least."

"You should know by now that this won't work."

Necrozma erupted from the ice, rocketing up from it and ramming his fist into Mewtwo's abdomen. When the Lake Trio Trio attempted to intervene, Necrozma grabbed Mewtwo by the throat and used him to bat away Azelf. He then threw Mewtwo into Uxie, sending the both of them away and leaving Mesprit along with the demon. Seeing this, Kyurem launched a Blizzard attack at Necrozma, who merely smirked down at him.

The demon disappeared from sight, and Mesprit was frozen solid, her face locked in a state of horror and shock. "No!" Cried Kyurem. "Again?!" His heart sunk in his chest. He could practically feel Necrozma's murderous intent along with his mocking condescension running through every inch of his body as if it were his own blood...and he knew what the demon was about to do.

Kyurem stomped the ground, uprooting a rock that he then threw up at Mesprit to break the ice and allow her to, he hoped to Arceus and whatever lay beyond, escape. His hopes were dashed when the demon appeared in the stone's path at the last moment and reduced it to dust with his finger. Grinning down at Kyurem, Necrozma put a hand on the frozen Mesprit, and Kyurem felt a coldness worse than any ice he could have hoped to produce wrack his body as Necrozma crushed Mesprit's frozen body, shattering it like glass.

The once-prideful Grey Dragon collapsed to his knees, his eyes still frozen wide in horror. Whether it was the doing of his own conscience or the demon invading his mind, the scene of Mesprit's demise—that he was responsible for—flashed before his eyes over and over again. It haunted him, and rightfully so, endlessly. All the while, he could hear Necrozma's mocking laughter, booming louder every time Mesprit's body was destroyed.

"I wonder how you will explain that one to Arceus." Said Necrozma, rubbing salt even further into the wound. "That you were directly responsible for the death of a comrade. Even if you somehow win this war, will your precious lord-father ever accept you again?" He sneered down at Kyurem. "Or perhaps, in his fury, he would strike you down as well?"

From behind, Ho-oh and the Beasts of Johto lunged at Necrozma. Without even glancing their way, he struck them down with a series of impossibly-fast blows that shattered bone and torn muscle, rendering them as nothing more than crumpled meat that fell past their target pitifully, collapsing to the ground. Necrozma didn't even recognize their existence as he felled them.

"NECROMZMAAAAA!" Screeched Lugia for the umpteenth time, once again racing futilely toward Necrozma with the Three Elemental Birds in tow. The four opened their mouths and launched a Discharge, flamethrower, Ice Beam and Aeroblast which were easily deflected away toward Rayquaza, who was rushing in to join the frey, stunning him.

Necrozma lurched forward and rammed his fist into Lugia's chest, making the Sea Guardian double over onto the demon's arm. The demon, in turn, tossed him up and grabbed his tail, using him as a club to bat the three birds away for the time being before tossing Lugia to the ground. "You know," He said, "I was actually going to save you lot for last. A poetic finale, you know?" He shrugged, shaking his head. "Oh well. I suppose I can just finish you off now, seeing as you're so eager to rush to your doom."

Defiantly, Lugia glared up at him and spat, "Go rot in hell!" He then launched another Aeroblast at the demon, and though it did nothing, it allowed the Sea Guardian to push himself away and regain his bearings. Necrozma hastily raced after him, closing in on him in less than a second. As a last-ditch effort, Lugia unleashed a Hyper Beam at his assailant, but the attack was easily deflected.

Necrozma grabbed hold of Lugia by the head and dragged him back down to the ground, plunging the both of them through it and using Lugia as a shield against the jagged shrapnel that relentlessly sliced and dug into the Sea Beast's skin. Necrozma's hand alit, and he blasted Lugia even further down while he himself raced back up to the surface. A massive pillar of red light erupted from the hole, carrying Lugia with it. The demon descended from the sky, slamming his fist into Lugia's back with ungodly force against the rising pillar.

Once the light eventually stopped pouring out from the hole, Necrozma threw Lugia to the ground, warping in his path at the last second to drive his fist into the Sea Beast's back and eliciting a pained shriek from him. He tossed Lugia to the ground, pointing his hand at the fallen Legend, and said, "I honestly don't know why I expected more from you. I might have simply spoiled myself with Deoxys, but it feels like you've gotten even weaker since our battle back then."

The pain from Lugia's injuries meant nothing in comparison to the pure, unadulterated fury he felt, and he used that anger to push past his pain in order to snap, "I'll kill you!" The half-crumpled Lugia turned around and attempted to lunge at the demon, snapping many of his already-broken bones in the process. He was stopped in his tracks when Necrozma blasted him backwards, where he grinded against the black dirt to an eventual halt.

Necrozma warped to him and raised his arm, preparing to finish the job when he heard the screeching of the Three Elemental Birds from behind. "...I will allow you to live for now," He said, turning away from Lugia but making sure to send a glancing eye-grin his way, "If only so you will witness the deaths of your charges beforehand."

But Lugia was not yet finished. These injuries meant nothing to him in comparison to the fury he felt gnawing away at his sanity. The fire of his hatred burned away at his pain. He craned his head up and roared, "GET OUT OF HERE, NOW!" Accompanied by this order, he launched an Aeroblast between Necrozma and the birds, stopping them in their tracks.

"You're more persistent than I gave you credit for," Remarked an annoyed Necrozma, glaring back at Lugia, "But there will be no escape for them." He turned back around to face the three birds. The second his eyes made contact with theirs, a wave of terror pierced at the hearts of the Elemental Birds like knives, and they did not hesitate to turn tail and heed Lugia's orders.

However, to Lugia's horror, Zapdos suddenly flinched and faltered in midair. It had been pushing itself far too much, resulting in a severe burning pain in its crippled wing. This slight falter resulted in it falling behind the other birds, and Necrozma caught up before long. He grabbed hold of the injured wing, piercing the hole with his jagged fingers and eliciting an agonized screech from the Bird of Lightning.

"Oh dear," Remarked Necrozma as he examined the wing. "To think that a single lowly human could have done this. So much for being a 'Legend' amongst your kind." Kyogre attempted to intervene with an Origin Pulse, launching a hail of concentrated water orbs at the demon, but without even looking back, Necrozma sent them flying right back at him along with a blast of his own. The proud Sea God was pelted ruthlessly by his own attack before being swallowed up in a massive, deafening explosion.

Zapdos used the distraction to use Discharge, sending waves of crackling lightning in every direction, though they, of course, did nothing to the bird's attacker. With his free hand, Necrozma grabbed hold of the back of Zapdos's head and whispered into his ear, "I wanted to do this to the ice one as a nice little callback to when we first met, but I suppose you will have to do."

The Legendary Bird of Lightning began flailing violently, much more spastically than it had previously been. Its mind was assaulted with flashing images of people, Pokemon, its fellow Legends and an uncountable number of other beings. He saw them die. Felt them die as if the bird itself was doing so. It was subjected to the collective agony that they had all felt, from both their perspectives and those of their loved ones.

Every blow taken, every injury sustained, it felt them all. It felt itself die in the most torturous ways possible over and over without mercy or reprieve. Trillions upon trillions of voices screaming out in fear, agony, sorrow, anguish and more before going silent only to begin anew immediately afterwards. It felt its body melt away into nothingness like Deoxys. Being frozen solid and subsequently shattered like Mesprit. Having its soul ripped in twain, and that other half of its soul being destroyed like Hoopa. Zapdos was subjected to all of it.

Then, everything went black all of a sudden. Zapdos's spasming body came to an abrupt halt, going limp in Necrozma's hand. Its eyes were whitened over, and its jaw slack. "How ironic," Necrozma said, jiggling the motionless body of Zapdos in his hand right in front of Zapdos's gaze. "The Legendary Bird of Lightning getting his brain fried! It's quite laughable, really." He tossed it down right in front of Lugia, who's eyes were still wide with shock, and when Lugia attempted to crawl toward Zapdos, the bird was blown to smithereens before his eyes.

That shock soon turned to rage. In an instant, Lugia's fury skyrocketed to the point that it was blinding. No longer able to form coherent words, he fired a Hyper Beam from his mouth with a savage roar. The attack was easily negated when Necrozma, with but the tip of his finger, completely erased it from existence. "This is the end, Beast of the Seas." Chuckling, the demon descended upon the snarling Sea Beast, but was interrupted by a brilliant flash of white beside him.

"...Yet another trick up your sleeves, I see?" Instead of finishing Lugia off, he grabbed hold of him by the nape of his neck and flung him away for later. "It won't mean anything."

Around the blinding light, fearsome red flames and blue electricity spiraled in circles around itself, carrying the light with it. The light, fire and electricity weaved together, becoming more concentrated and dense until it suddenly froze in place in a sheet of ice. That ice promptly shattered, unleashing a wave of the four elements in all directions. The remaining Legends watched in awe at the feat of power, but Necrozma was not impressed.

As the light faded, a single, grey dragon was left in its wake. It was colossal in scope, easily matching Primal Groudon in size. Thick, armored scales coated its body from head to toe, as well as a soft-looking fur akin to that of Reshiram's. The energy-generator in its tail had disappeared, leaving a long, smooth one in its place. Instead, the wings were replaced with two of the generators. The dragon's eyes opened, unveiling purple pupils surrounded by a haze of gleaming yellow.

"I AM THE ORIGINAL DRAGON!" It roared, craning its head to the sky and letting its fearsome power explode outward. From the generators on its wings, plasmatic blue flames erupted in intense jets. The pure aura it exuded shocked even Palkia and Dialga. It glanced over at the unconscious Keldeo, then turned and glared fearsomely at Necrozma and bellowed, "AND WITH MY POWER, I WILL HOLD YOU UNTIL ARCE-"

In an instant, Necrozma cut the Original Dragon off by slamming his fist into its gut with such force that it reverted back into Kyurem, and Zekrom and Reshiram were thrown from their conjoined body. "Wh-what the-?!" The three stammered before the demon blasted two away and left only Kyurem.

Necrozma clenched Kyurem's throat, dangling him high in the air. The few remaining able-bodied Legends immediately jumped at him, but he swatted them all away with but the flicking of his index finger and held them still with Psychic. "Watch," He commanded simply, "As yet another of you fall, and you're helpless to do a thing about it."

His grip increased in intensity, making the Ice Dragon sputter and choke for air desperately, flailing about in a desperate, futile attempt to escape. The Legends all writhed against the Psychic hold that pinned them in place, but it meant nothing. The demon's grip became tighter and tighter until audible cracks could be heard from Kyurem's neck, and just when it seemed like his neck would snap, Necrozma loosened his hold and allowed him to breathe.

"Hold on a moment," Necrozma said, squinting his eyes as he looked about for something. "Something's missing…" He continued scanning the battlefield, humming to himself in thought, until finally, his gaze landed upon what he was looking for. The unconscious body of Keldeo. "Ah, there it is. Can't have anyone missing the party, can we?"

He forced Keldeo awake and held him in place with the others, intentionally turning him toward Kyurem, who was now flailing more frantically than before. Now it was no longer a matter of saving his own life. He couldn't let Keldeo see something like this. After everything that had already happened, it would destroy him.

"K-Kyurem?!" Cried the abruptly-awoken Keldeo. He tried to get up to aid his friend, but found that his body would not move. Upon looking back up at Kyurem, he also noticed Necrozma's grip on his neck, and his face contorted in horror. "Get off of him, monster! Get off!"

This merely caused Necrozma to laugh. "Ah, there we go. Now, let's continue, shall we?" Once again, he clenched his hand tightly around Kyurem's throat, continuing the agonized, desperate sputtering for air from the Ice Dragon. As Necrozma's claws slowly crushed his throat more and more, Keldeo's demands for him to release Kyurem quickly turned to pleading, only earning heartless laughter in response.

"Please, no!" Cried Keldeo for the umpteenth time, tears now streaming freely from his eyes. He knew it was hopeless, somewhere at the back of his mind. Any mercy that this monster had ever shown anyone was only so that he could kill them later for his own amusement. But he still pleaded nonetheless. It was all he could do. "Let him go, I beg of you!"

To everyone's shock, Necrozma loosened his hold on Kyurem and allowed him to continue to breathe. "Fine, fine," He said with a shrug, though still holding him in his grasp, "I'll let him go for now, if only to allow him to witness the death of this world."

That was more than enough of a relief for Keldeo, in spite of the harrowing words that accompanied it. He allowed a smile to adorn his face...and that was his greatest mistake. Necrozma snapped his arm back, making that smile disappear in an instant. No one even had the time to protest before a resounding crack made everyone's hearts collectively stop for a moment. Then, Necrozma tossed Kyurem's limp body before Keldeo, chuckling.

"You know," He said, "If we're all being honest here, I ended up avenging that Mesprit creature." He pointed down at Kyurem's corpse, sneering. "After all, it was his fault that it died." Damn well knowing what would follow, he snapped his fingers, dispelling the binds that held them.

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Keldeo and Rayquaza were the first to lunge at him, to which Necrozma effortlessly slipped past the serpent, grabbed his tail, and used him as a whip to send Keldeo flying. Mewtwo rapidly approached from behind and Necrozma whipped around with an overhead slam prepared, but the clone Pokemon teleported Rayquaza away to stop the attack. From behind Mewtwo, Groudon and Kyogre launched a Flamethrower and Hydro Pump, with Mewtwo himself summoning a mass of Shadow Balls at his sides.

Necrozma made a crushing motion with his hand, turning the attacks back upon Mewtwo and catching him in a massive explosion. The demon rammed Mewtwo out from the explosion and planted him into the ground. When Mewtwo attempted to push himself into the air, Necrozma grabbed his tail and slammed him into the ground and proceeded to mercilessly beat him, driving his fist into the clone's skull over and over.

It was only when Mewtwo's Mega Evolution faded did the demon stop his onslaught, and by that point, he had already created a crater beneath them. But even still, Mewtwo pressed on. "It cannot...end here!" He wheezed, reaching out to Necrozma. "This world...accepted me…! I must protect it!"

Mewtwo's arm was grabbed, and he was picked up and tossed right back to the ground like trash. "If it's any condolence, your world will survive longer than you." He readied a blast and pointed it straight at Mewtwo's head. "For after I lay waste to the rest of you, I still have a partner to visit."

The Clone Pokemon's head perked up at that. 'A partner?! Here?!'

Apparently he had allowed himself to think too much on the subject, because Necrozma continued, saying, "But perhaps I've said too much. It's not as if you'll see it anyways."

The demon grinned down at his prey, the ball of energy in his hand intensifying and crackling as more and more energy was pumped into it. "Not happening!" Declared Rayquaza, racing past Necrozma and taking Mewtwo with him. The demon hastily unleashed the blast, nipping Rayquaza's tail. The serpentine Legend let out a pained shriek, spiraling down from the skies and crashing back into the ground and accidentally dropping Mewtwo upon crashing.

Necrozma raced after him, his fist already doused in chaotic energy meant to end Rayquaza once and for all, but was deterred by a Flamethrower from Groudon. The distraction allowed for Palkia to intervene, using his powers over space to warp them out of harm's way. The Space Deity winced in pain and gripped at the cracked gem in his arm, causing Rayquaza and Mewtwo to re-appear nearby.

Before Palkia could recuperate, Necrozma struck him across the face. "Come on, "God of Space,"" Taunted the demon, already revving up for another attack, "You're the strongest one left! Act like it!"

Groudon was not about to take this sitting down. He crouched down, preparing to charge at Necrozma to defend Palkia, but Kyogre held him back. "What are you doing?!" Demanded the Lord of the Lands.

"What I'm doing," Started Kyogre, "Is for your own good. There's no point in staying here any longer! We'll be killed!" He looked past his counterpart at what remained of the Legends. The only one left without a wound was Celebi, who was currently cowering behind a rock. Kyogre couldn't blame her. He couldn't even hide the fact that he was scared witless anymore, so it must have been tenfold for her.

Groudon turned back toward him, a look of disgust upon his face. "What are you saying?! Have you gone mad?! Lord Arceus will be here any minute! If he sees us fleeing as our brethren die in our stead, he will never forgive us!"

"Lord Arceus isn't coming!" Roared Kyogre, the runes on his fins intensifying with light alongside his rage. "If he was, he would have intervened long before any of us died! Why can't you see that?! We're nothing but cannon fodder at this point!" He motioned to the corpse of Kyurem by their side. When Groudon attempted to look away, he forced him to look back. "Arceus has abandoned us! Our best bet is to find some way off our planet, or else we'll uselessly die with our brothers and sisters!"

Groudon simply stared at him, horrified, for a moment before turning away. He stared downward, his eyes closed, and replied, "...I'm disappointed in you, Kyogre. I have faith in our father, and considering how great a portion of this world he allowed you to rule, you should too."

"Wh-what?!" Balked Kyogre, rearing backwards. "This has nothing to do with that!"

The land-creator nodded. "Indeed, it does not. Because I know, regardless of the gifts bestowed upon us by Lord Arceus, that he is counting on us to defend the world until his arrival." Turning away from his counterpart, Groudon glared at the demon. "When we had used Arceus's initial battle against Necrozma as an excuse to fight, we lost Arceus's faith, so we have no right to lose ours in him."

He stomped his foot into the ground, using his almighty power over it to rend it into a molten pedestal. Raising his head high, he roared, "AND I WILL WIN BACK THAT FAITH!" The land beneath him jolted up into a massive spire, launching Groudon toward Necrozma. Kyogre closed his eyes, turned away from his brother as if he were already dead and muttered…

"Damned fool."

"NECROZMAAAAA!"

Necrozma held Palkia by the neck with his fist held back to deliver a finishing blow, only noticing the approaching Groudon too late to stop the massive Pokemon's flame-coated shoulder barge. The demon was knocked away, allowing Palkia to fall back to the ground and breathe once more. Groudon pushed himself off of Necrozma with a Fire Blast meant to keep the demon at bay. He then stomped his foot, rending the ground around them.

The earth beneath their feet curved and bent around the dueling gods, becoming jagged spires sharp to the tip. "PRIMORDIAL SPIRES!" Fueled by his war cry, the land became red as magma raced up to heed the command of its creator. The spires were infused with this magma to the point that they nearly melted, but with further intensification on Groudon;s part, they hardened to the point that they became diamonds and closed in on the demon.

Knowing this wouldn't hold Necrozma for long, Groudon called upon the power of his very being's core: the Red Orb. His body grew and bloated as every last ounce of his energy manifested within him. Magma from all beneath Johto itself raced to its master's calling and merged with him to increase his power further.

Necrozma burst from the ground he'd been entrapped in, simply smirking at Groudon before rocketing towards him. On the sidelines, Rayquaza already knew how this would play out. At this rate, Groudon would get killed without even slowing that monster down. But he had a plan to buy him some time. Taking to the skies, he raced after Necrozma and fired an Ice Beam to his back. If he could freeze him, if only for a moment, then it could buy time for Groudon's attack to hit...and if they were lucky, time for Arceus to arrive.

The demon's chuckling made him realize he had committed a grave mistake. Necrozma sidestepped out of the way of the Ice Beam, but not before adding his own power to it and sending it toward Groudon. The creator of the lands couldn't have possibly reacted to the speed at which it hit him, freezing his head solid. Rayquaza attempted to intervene once more, but the demon's Psychic grip made him plummet back to the ground.

Frantically, Groudon clawed at the ice and squirmed, flailing about as the oxygen in his lungs left him. Palkia and Dialga attempted to go to his aid, but their wounds, much to their fury, prevented them from taking action. They could only wince and turn away, accepting what was to come. With his clawing, the heat of the magma and the fiery attack currently charging in his mouth, the ice eventually melted...but it was already too late.

Groudon madly searched the skies for his adversary until he felt something tap his chest, and when he looked down, his blood ran cold. Necrozma, his hand placed upon Groudon's chest, smirked up at him. When Groudon attempted to blast Necrozma, he found that his body would not move. Necrozma turned back around to Rayquaza, smirked at him with the tilt of his head and said, "Watch."

A massive red laser blew open Groudon's chest and tore out the other end. Groudon's eyes went white, and his jaw slack. He convulsed for but a moment, then became still as the laser passed through him. Eventually, Necrozma cut the beam off and shoved the corpse of Groudon onto its back with a resounding crash.

Rayquaza's world went dark as his heart sunk. Millions of images and words flashed in his mind, but for the life of him, he couldn't think straight enough to make sense out of any of them. All that he knew was that he felt a terrible chill run all throughout his body, as well as the sudden horrific urge to vomit. But the Psychic grip that held him would not let him do so. Necrozma warped before him, craning back his head and cackling madly.

"Kyurem may have gotten off easy," He said, "But I cannot WAIT to see how Arceus reacts to this! To think, the one appointed to be guardian of the world KILLING a fellow Legend!" He continued laughing as the horrific sickness that wracked every last inch of the dragon's mind and body tortured him. When he managed to stop himself, he turned away from Rayquaza and hissed, "You get to survive until then. May you wallow in your despair until your precious master gets here. If he even bothers to show up and save you, that is."

The demon was about to train his gaze upon the remaining two Legends, but then an idea struck him. "Hold on a moment." He stepped toward Rayquaza and grabbed his remaining chin spike, snapping it off like the other and eliciting a pained screech from the serpentine Legend. A bestial cry, no longer containing any semblance of sanity, was all he could muster before letting his head sink to the ground. "That was bugging me. Now, sit there for now. My offer to kill you still stands…"

He turned toward Palkia and Dialga, a murderous, wanting gleam in his eyes. "But until then…"


"O-oh A-Arceus no!" Whimpered Celebi from behind the boulder she used to hide from the demon. Though she dared not glance out from the corners of the stone for fear of incurring Necrozma's wrath, she didn't need to see what had happened to know that it did. "G-Groudon…" With Groudon dead, the world's lands would stagnate. With no volcanic eruptions, no new land would be formed, and the currently-existing one would eventually turn brittle and grey. His passing incurred a turning point for the world...one that could not be undone.

Or could it? If Celebi could muster the strength to pass back through time...perhaps she could warn everyone of the danger. She could un-make this war, death and destruction...but… The injury Dialga had sustained to his gem warped the fabric of time, and thus, her ability to move through it. "Can I even still do this?" She asked herself, looking down at her own hands as if they were alien to her.

She mustered what little courage she had left to peer around the edge of the rock. That monster was hovering over Dialga and Palkia, the only ones left who still had some semblance of a fight left within them. But their gems were both horrifically damaged, and they looked on the brim of being shattered. They stood defiantly, but on trembling legs. From fear or weakness, she didn't know. It was obvious that they would be killed, and rather easily at that.

"But if I can traverse time," She mused aloud, "Then perhaps I could save them...I could stop all of this from happening!" With a new hope in sight, Celebi held out her arms and attempted to open the rift of time once more. It was far more strenuous to do so with Dialga's injury, to the point she felt horrifically dizzy just trying. But still, a blue spark appeared in her hands. It was proof that it was working.

The spark became larger and eventually opened the rift that she'd been hoping for, though she had expended nearly every last ounce of her energy to make it. It was apparent that it wouldn't last long. The moment she relinquished her grip on it, it began to shrink, and so she hurriedly entered it, making it by only a hair before it closed behind her.

Celebi found herself in an ethereal tunnel that stretched out, seemingly, forever. Floating around this tunnel were "Bubbles" of sorts that carried images within them. These bubbles were instances of time itself immortalized, laying themselves out for Celebi to traverse through. After letting out a sigh of relief, Celebi looked out at the bubbles and said, "Now then...where to go?"

Her first thought was to go to the exact moment in time Necrozma touched down. If she could meet Arceus and show him the dire future, then the Legends together, with Arceus at their side, could muster the entirety of the world's forces and combat him without having to expend their strength on the Ultra Beasts.

But then, just before touching the bubble that would have taken her to that time, she had an idea. "What if...I went even further?" Passing by the bubble of time that told the tale of Necrozma's assault on the Orange Islands, Celebi traversed further down the literal timeline. Though, as she did so, she noticed an ever-increasing force of sorts attempting to push her back.

"For only three weeks of time to have this much force…" Before, she could have traversed back hundreds or even thousands of years without breaking a sweat. The only theoretical limit she had was Dialga's birth, as that was the "beginning" of time. For their world, at least. "Dialga won't last much longer…" She continued to push through the force even as it became more and more solid. It felt as if the front of her body was being flattened against a wall, but…

Right in front of her eyes, she saw it: The bubble in time that led to the first Hall of Origins meeting since Lord Arceus's ten-thousand year disappearance after the betrayal of Damos. Though she herself didn't see it, the next meeting told her that in this one, Deoxys first imparted knowledge of Necrozma. This was the key to stopping Necrozma before his reign of terror could begin.

"Almost...there…!" The sheer force weighing back against her forced her eyes shut. She could feel every muscle in her tiny body burning and shaking from the strain, and just when she felt her body would collapse, her fingertips touched the bubble, and she was whisked away through time and space back when it all first began.


Hall of Origins

"Might I have thine attention?" Boomed Arceus, silencing the Legends that muttered to themselves. With a small, satisfied nod, the deity continued. "Today," He said, "We commemorate the achievements of Zygarde, the keeper of order. He, along with his companions, fought off total world extinction."

Many of the other Legends took to applauding and cheering at the news, and amidst the jubilant noise, Celebi appeared at the back of the Hall in a small flash of light, gasping for air. She looked down at herself and her surroundings to make sure it was all real, and she nearly burst into tears when she realized that it, indeed, was as real as could be. She had successfully travelled back to the past in spite of Dialga's injury.

"I did it!" She cheered, her voice drowned out by the cheering Legends. The moment was too much for her tiny little heart. "I'm back!" She believed they were doomed. That Arceus, just like Giratina and Kyogre said, had abandoned her. But it seemed as if their Lord Father had gifted her some luck after all. And she would put it to good use.

Piping her head up, she cleared her throat and spoke. "Lord Arceus, I-"

She let out a gasp as something clasped around her body and pulled her backwards. She didn't even have time to scream before she was whisked back into the temporal tunnel, away from the Hall of Origins before sight of it disappeared completely. However, her voice did not go unheard. The Leader of the Hall tilted his head up at the sound of Celebi's voice.

"Celebi?" He asked, "Did you say something?"

The Celebi from that time, not knowing of what was to come, shook her head. She couldn't possibly have known what was to come when she answered, "No, milord. I did not say anything."

Arceus nodded to her. "I suppose it must have just been my imagination then. In any case…"


After being wrenched from the hole in time, Celebi's heart nearly stopped. She was in the grasp of the demon himself, who sneered down at her mockingly. "And where do you think you're going? Surely you don't want to miss the grande finale?"

Celebi didn't even have the strength or will to attempt escape, not that it would mean anything. "Wh-what? How- why?"

Necrozma abruptly silenced her, squeezing her in his grasp. She screamed in agony as her bones were nearly shattered instantly. "Let her go!" Cried Dialga, attempting to go to her aid. However, his injuries prevented him from doing anything more than standing for a brief moment, followed by him collapsing once more. When Palkia tried to do the same, he was knocked aside without effort.

"Now, now," Chided Necrozma, "Do be still. Your deaths will come shortly." He turned his sights back upon the prey in his hand. "And to answer your question, I've already shown you that time and space mean nothing to me. Did you really think that time travel was beyond my grasp?" He chuckled darkly as an idea struck him. "I must thank you, actually. To be honest, I feared that I would end up destroying everything one day, but thanks to you, my dear Celebi, I now realize that I can traverse back to the beginning of the universe itself and start my conquest anew!"

He reared his head back, laughing maniacally to the skies above. Though the crushing grip this monster had on Celebi was painful, it paled in comparison to the shame she felt. How could she have been so naive?! They were doomed. All of them. She knew that now. It was no longer enough that their world would be destroyed. Because of her, everything, over and over again, would be destroyed and re-created without end to satisfy his sick sense of amusement.

Necrozma's laughter eventually died out, and with the flick of his wrist, Celebi was reduced to dust and disappeared without a trace. She didn't even have time to scream before being erased from existence entirely. "Now that that's done…" He gazed over at Palkia and Dialga, his eternal hunger for destruction burning in his eyes. "Time to finish off the rest."

"You...bastard!" Spat Palkia. He shoved himself off the ground and raced toward Necrozma, his arm pumped back to prepare to use Spatial Rend. He heard Dialga protest, but couldn't quite fully make out what he was saying. It didn't matter either way. Not anymore. "Spatial Re- argh!" He winced suddenly, clutching at the gem in his arm and falling to his knee.

Necrozma warped above him, his arm raised to deliver a would-be killing blow, but instead used blocked an incoming Hyper Beam from the still-collapsed Dialga. The demon was not impressed. "Your time has RUN OUT!" The laser was completely and utterly overpowered by one of Necrozma's own, and it crashed into Dialga with a world-shaking force behind it. The lord of time screamed out in agony as his body began to disassemble, but his screams were soon drowned out by the roar of the blast.

"DIALGA!" Pushing past his pain, Palkia leapt up, summoned a barrier around himself from his gem in spite of the pain it caused him, and leapt into the beam to save his brother. It wasn't long before he was sent flying back, but managed to hold his ground. Just behind him was the fallen body of Dialga. Collapsed, burnt, yet still alive somehow. Giratina awoke at last, only to be met with the horrific sight of his fallen brethren scattered across the battlefield. Then, he saw Palkia and Dialga. With the last of the energy held within his pearl, Palkia reached out toward his brother and warped him out of harm's way...and was completely overtaken by the beam.

When Necrozma cut the attack off to gaze upon the status of his quarry, he found Palkia, burnt almost completely black and sprawled out on the ground, his face, half-buried in charred dirt. Hovering over him hungrily was the demon, eager to finish off his prey once and for all, but stopped upon noticing the pearl in his arm. He waved his hand over it, and it began to repair itself.

Palkia was baffled when his vitality suddenly increased back to normal. Raising his head, he dared to ask, "What are you-"

Necrozma dug his claws into the gem's socket suddenly and ripped the pearl right out. Palkia's eyes went white, and he let out a horrific, deathly scream before falling limp. Giratina, for the first time that he could remember, felt utterly sickened to his core. "You sick BASTAAAR-" His attempt at vengeance was immediately suppressed as the demon's Psychic hold constricted him and planted his face right back into the ground. Like the rest, he was helpless. At the monster's mercy. All he could do was send a fiery death glare his way, which only served to amuse him further.

"A fine gem indeed," Remarked Necrozma, marveling at the pearl he'd stolen. "It will make a fine crown jewel to my collection. From this world, at least." He snapped his fingers, and a multitude of objects appeared above him. The blue wing-scale from Lugia. The two chin-horns from Rayquaza. Keldeo's horn, and Palkia's pearl at their center.

To say Giratina was disturbed by this was an understatement. "You've been...collecting our body parts?! What the hell are you?!"

This only served to elicit an amused chuckle from Necrozma. "It's not as if I picked and chose your world exclusively." He snapped his fingers once more, and Giratina's eyes went wide. The sky was almost completely covered in an assortment of limbs, spikes, gemstones and other bodily adornments from the millions of other civilizations he'd destroyed. There were lockets of alien families, half-singed pictures of others. And that didn't even scratch the surface.

Tilting his crooked head Giratina's way, Necrozma asked, "Enjoying the show? It's not often I show my full collection off." He snapped his fingers, and the items, along with Palkia's pearl, disappeared into thin air. "But enough about that…" Necrozma turned away from Giratina, pointing a blast down at Palkia's head. "Let's finish the job."

Giratina thrashed wildly against the binding to no avail. "Get away from him!" He roared. "GET AWAY!" His attempts at escape only elicited amused, psychotic laughter from Necrozma. He couldn't even enter the Distortion World to escape it. Dialga looked on helplessly, and though his eyes were wide in horror, his body was too weak to obey his commands. Not even to open his mouth and scream out to his brother.

Palkia weakly looked up at his killer. His vision was becoming blurrier by the second, and it was becoming harder to keep his eyes open. He no longer felt any pain...he just felt tired. So...so tired. As Necrozma's laughter and the screaming of Giratina faded away, so too did his vision...and soon...everything went black.

Necrozma retracted his hand suddenly and turned toward the skies. "It's about damn time you showed yourself." A confused Giratina followed the demon's gaze, and though what he saw should have made him feel relief...it only served to make him feel an unending rage. Golden-white streams of light flittered about the sky, trailing together like massive rivers to one singular source.

The demon eagerly rose to meet that source. "Finally! I was beginning to think you had simply left your children to die-"

"NECROOOZMAAAAAAAA!"

A horrific bellow, sounding akin to a despairing wail, rang out across the skies with an explosion of blinding white light following. Necrozma's eyes went wide as a massive beam tore open from the heavens beneath him and swallowed him in its brilliance. That beam, blotting out the sky itself in its scope, tore up through the entirety of the mothership with ease, splitting it in half and at last piercing the deathly metal vale to unveil a brilliant afternoon shine.

As the light settled, only one being remained. His eyes were red with a fury untold by anything this universe had ever seen. The deaths of his children pushed him over the edge, allowing a grief-infused madness to take hold. His form was that of divinity itself, shrouded in a blinding light. At long last, the Alpha Pokemon, Arceus, had arrived to avenge his children.


Ash awoke to a world of pure, empty white. It should have been blinding, yet he felt nary a sliver of pain or even discomfort whatsoever. "Where...is this…?" He pondered. Then, he remembered. Talonflame...had died in his arms...and he lost control of himself. "That's right...I attacked Necrozma, and then…" He chuckled dryly. "Guess this is the afterlife?"

"NOT YET, ASH KETCHUM."

A being of pure white somehow outshining the landscape around them appeared before him. Its form was indescribable and the sheer scope of its size seemed to go on forever. The sheer force its presence radiated alone should have felt suffocating if not crushing, yet...it was soothing. It reached a...hand? Out toward Ash politely, welcoming him to this new world.

"What...are you?" Asked an awed Ash.

"...I HAVE BEEN CALLED MANY THINGS," Answered the being. "FOR INSTANCE, 'THE CREATOR,' 'INFINITY,' 'GOD,' BUT I DO NOT CONSIDER MYSELF ANY OF THESE THINGS." The being hummed to itself in apparent thought. "BUT YOU MAY CALL ME 'AURA.' I AM, IN A SENSE, THE PROGENITOR OF THE UNIVERSE."


The room was nearly pitch black. A screen replayed the final moments of the Greater Humanity Project. Codename: Project Zero. As Zero disappeared in a great flash of light, carrying with it the entirety of Necrozma's fleet of ships, The Man shook his head letting out a sigh of disappointment. "Millions of dollars of investment and years of research gone to waste," He said, taking another puff from His cigar, "I hope it was worth it."

He then tapped a button on a remote, changing the scene laid out before Him. The invading demon, Necrozma, was surrounded by either dead, dying or severely injured Legends. Necrozma plunged his hand into Palkia's arm and tore out the pearl embedded in it, taking Palkia's life. This scene laid out before Him was what he once thought to only be possible in a dream. Now...it was laid out before His very eyes, and He could scarcely believe it.

A wry grin crept up The Man's face. This was going better than He anticipated. But the lack of any visible damage upon his body was slightly concerning. Nothing that He couldn't remedy in time. The screen flashed white, and Necrozma disappeared. Arceus stood in his place, his eyes red with fury. The Man stood up from His chair hastily, tossed the cigar away, and exited the room. Ryder awaited Him just outside the door, kneeling.

"Sir," He said, "The device you ordered is readying completion."

The Man nodded. "Excellent. I will go to the labs to retrieve it." He walked past Ryder toward an elevator at the end of the dark hallway, but stopped suddenly when Ryder asked Him a question.

"If I may...what is the status of Project Zero?"

"Terminated," Replied The Man simply. "Zero annihilated herself along with Necrozma's fleet."

Ryder nodded. If he felt anything at all from hearing that, it was masked behind the black of his visor. "I see. So, she found her own answer after all."

The Man nodded as well. "It would seem so. It's a shame for all of that work to be lost, but more can be made now that I have the data." With that, he made His way toward the elevator, pressed a button to open it, and went inside. "After I return, I have another mission for you."

Without hesitation, Ryder stood back to his feet and nodded. "It will be done, sir."

The Man descended deep down several hundreds of feet below ground, and when the elevator doors opened, He was greeted with the sight of His scientists scrambling about the laboratory, chatting amongst one another as they worked. When they caught sight of The Man, they instantly stopped what they were doing and saluted. "Sir!" They said in unison.

Walking past them without so much as a word, The Man approached another scientist. He was an old, bald man, saluting to The Man like the others on wobbly legs. The Man pushed him aside and put His hands on the desk behind him. "This is the device, I presume?"

The old man hastily nodded. "Y-yes, sir! It was made to your exact specifications! It should be ready within a few hou-"

"We don't have a few hours!" Hissed The Man, grabbing the scientist by the collar of his shirt and scaring the breath out of him. "All I need to know is if it fires."

"Y-yes it does, sir!" He replied, frantically nodding his head. He was promptly thrown onto his back, and The Man swiped the device up before stomping away. "W-wait!" Cried the old man, jumping back up to his feet and following The Man. "It's not stable yet! If it fires too many times, then-"

The Man stomped past him, shoving him aside with his shoulder. "I'll only need one shot."

The old scientist was taken aback, but continued protesting regardless. "I'm only telling you this for your own good! Arceus and Necrozma are still alive, and you can't shoot them both with one-"

He let out a sharp gasp as he was picked up and planted against the wall with almost inhuman strength. For the first time, he peered past the shadows that cast themselves around The Man, and into his eyes. It was so terrifying that his frail old heart nearly stopped then and there. The Man brought his shadowed face unbearably close to the old man's and hissed, "Do not cross me right now. One wasted moment will kill us all! Are you trying to make that happen?!"

The old scientist struggled to find an answer. His breath was caught in his throat, and the only thing he could muster was pathetic wheezes meant to be words. "N-nho- I-I I'm...n-not-" The Man continued pressing his fist up against the poor old man's throat, suffocating him. Just when he thought he was about to pass out, he was able to muster the last of his strength and wheeze out, "N-no, sir!" And he was dropped onto the cold, hard floor in a heap.

As the other scientists rushed to the old man's aid, The Man walked away from them down a large hallway. At the end, a double-rotored helicopter laid at its end. There was already a pilot at it's head, and The Man wasted no time in stepping in, taking the co-pilot's seat, and lifting off. A large, silo-like metal tube surrounded them, with its top opening up to allow the helicopter to escape out into the burnt hellscape of the battlefield.

"It's about time I finished this."


Author's Note

Creator- I hope all of you loved the slaughter I laid out before you to feast on. I would have loved to see your faces when you read the title of this chapter. This is probably the darkest, and EASILY the longest, chapter yet, even more so than 4, 10 and 11. This is probably the most accurate title name for a chapter so far. No character I write is safe. I'm a truly evil writer. On another note, Hydra and I have both started college, and thus we will be often plagued with work until December. We're still trying to find time to work on this, though. On top of all of that, I had to move and that took up a large portion of my time. So, I hope these three months of waiting were worth it.

Hydra- Yeah unfortunately college has been rough and we haven't been able to work on this as much as we would like, but hey at least we were able to bring you guys this chapter and oh boy would I say the wait was worth it wouldn't you agree I'm not sure we'll ever release another chapter as long as this one… well there may be ONE more down the line but that's not for awhile hehe.

DarkPugLord23-"If this chapter's supposed to be a stroll in the flower garden, then considering what happened here, I'm almost certain (and a little paranoid) that this will turn out like Game of Thrones, with basically everyone dying. Also, love the 'Berserk Ash' part. It's not often you see characters like him lose self-control and threaten to murder their enemies. Can't wait to see what happens next chapter!"

Creator- Well, I hope this chapter's slaughter was gruesome and horrifying enough to meet your expectations. Like dominos, they fall… The berserk Ash part was inspired by Shulk from Xenoblade Chronicles when (SPOILERS) Fiora dies early on in the game. Glad you liked it, and I hope you liked this one as well.

Hydra- ah yes this was by far the most sad chapter we have yet to do it's hard to believe anything could ever beat the emotion that was brought up in this one. ;)

Thor94-"Wow! it is a really bloody war.

Damn necrozma acting skills are godlike level (the scene sounded touching, but it was too easy to success).

And the end is really sad, so ash is dead, and look zero sacrificed herself to take down most of necrozma ships, she also met that godlike entity.

But when you plan having ash also meet that universe supergod and receive his more powerful than necrozma godlike power up?

Excepted if you permanently killed ash for good and instead, you planned another guy receiving the amazing power up to avenge ash (but wouldn't really like this, want ash being the one receive the beyond necrozma ultimate godlike power, and obliterate the damn alien and his main ship and save the world for good)"

Creator- And now it has become all the bloodier.

I'm glad I established Necrozma's love for acting earlier on, so that his slaughter would be all the more devastating. In all reality, him acting out scenes as if his enemies are really getting to him is just him trying to liven up his conquests a bit more. It's more amusing to him when his enemies believe they have a chance of winning.

So there was at least one happy thing this chapter, that being Ash's survival. But Zero came to an unfortunate end.

Well, I suppose that fourth question is already answered now.

Hydra- Isn't it nice to finally see everything coming together after reading up to all the build up that led to this moment.

Amourshipper35- "Wow I can't believe ash is gone and that zero gave her life to save everything and everyone."

Creator- Truly unfortunate about Zero. There was no way to prevent it! *Evil laughter*

Hydra- For future reference just remember not everything is always as it seems.

KaiserFaust-"Well, Necrozma no longer has his giant fleet. Or the Ultra Beasts that remained in any of the ships that were destroyed. And Ash is dead, as far as I can tell. I have a big hunch that Necrozma isn't using full power here. And by that? I mean I think Necrozma can go Ultra. I'm excited. I'm impatient for the next chapter. I'm hoping it does have Ultra Necrozma. I love the story so far. Now, to quote Solo Wing Pixy from Ace Combat Zero: The Balkan War: "Here comes the snow.""

Creator- In hindsight, maybe I should have established the fleet towards the beginning of the fight, so that way more of the world would be destroyed and left in ruins. Oh well. And you would be right. Necrozma's full power will be demonstrated soon. However, we have something...different planned for him. Something far more...sinister… Here comes the snow indeed, my friend.

Hydra- Hee hee the truth is much closer than you realize my friend.

ObiBooceKenobae- "As someone who doesn't know much about Pokemon, I am confused for most parts, but that doesn't take away the fact of how descriptive this is written. Keep up the great work guys!"

Creator- I'm glad you can at least appreciate the work that goes into this thing, even though you don't really like the series itself. I admit, this fic isn't exactly beginner friendly. Thank you for yet another review!

Hydra- Well regardless on whether or not you do understand it I am grateful nevertheless that your taking the time to read through our story so for that thank you.

EeviumZ- ""this next chapter will make this one look like a stroll through a flower garden."

Arceus help us... oh wait.

Holy Miltank, this got really dark. I LOVE IT.

I'll admit, Necrozma fooled me. And I'm not one to be fooled when it comes to stories. Nice job.

I'm incredibly excited to see the climax of this whole thing. See ya in the next chapter."

Creator- By now, I'm sure you realize the significance of that quote. Blood has rained. And now, it has only gotten DARKER. YEEEEEEE. I was hoping the viewers would genuinely believe in Necrozma's moral transformation. That way, it's even more shocking when he...well...you know. The climax isn't too far now.

Hydra- I wonder what's going to happen will Necrozma completely destroy the planet or will there be someone with enough power to stop him. I guess your gonna have to find out. :)

TheInquisitor- "*reads the description*

Well those filthy Xenos had it coming."

Creator- Are you referring to Xenomorphs? I'm assuming you're making some kind of connection with them and the Ultra Beasts since, here, they're both alien creatures and many of them resemble insects. But I never mentioned the Ultra Beasts in the description, so I'm incredibly confused. Would you mind enlightening me as to what the actual fuck this review means? No offense intended, my friend.

Hydra- uh ok…

MegaCharizat- "Rayquaza. was. awesome! the way he came to mewtwo's ade, and he even was able to dance with necrozma—at least for a while, but that's still awesome!

mewtwo and ray are my favorite legendaries, and in the beginning when mewtwo got disposed of so easily, I was quite irked. but listening to his plan to go to the hall of origin? badass! and not to mention arceus's arrival! my god, this entire chapter was awesome, and just because of this chapter, your story has become one of my favorite! keep it up!"

Creator- I'm glad you enjoyed it, and you'll be delighted to know that this is far from the only time these two team up together. Chapter 14's opening scene is a prime example of this. Thank you for reading and reviewing, and I am ecstatic to see more reviews from you in the future. Reading people's reactions to my work always gets me pumped up to keep going.

Hydra- yes those two are definitely some of my favorite characters in this whole fic. When writing about those two I just love the friendly brolationship they have.

Creator- Well, that's that for today then, folks! I look forward to hearing about your reactions to this bloodbath of a chapter in the R-E-V-I-E-W-S, my guys. Please review. My life depends on it. Anyways, I will see you, my lovely readers, in the next chapter when everything ends. We're in the endgame now.

Hydra- Well that's all for today folks I hope we didn't break your hearts too much and I'm sorry if we killed off any of your favorite characters, but unfortunately it could not be avoided.

Extra Question: What was your favorite chapter so far? It helps us greatly to get feedback from you guys so we know how to structure our chapters later on. Though this chapter was good, I think I'll always hold Chapter 5 dearest to my heart. It was the first real time it felt genuinely fun to write. There was also Chapter 15 which could say the same. So that begs the question: what was your favorite to read?