The buzz of overhead lights was conspicuously absent in the convenience store. The open sign flickered on its front window, clashing against the shattered glass and splintered wooden barriers.

Blanche pulled a lukewarm bottle of water from a cooler. His stomach ached from the barely edible food he'd scraped together.

He took a deep drink before shoving it into his bag and continuing on his way.

There were plenty of places like that in Lumiose-3. Stores left behind but still stocked. The restaurants often stank of spoiled food, so he stuck to whatever non-perishable food he could find.

He would eventually have to leave the city to find proper food, but the day that would be necessary wasn't coming anytime soon. The vitamin supplements he'd found in a pharmacy seemed like a good thing to start taking.

The streets beneath his feet were pristine, as if they had never been walked on before. They all looked like that, but less so the closer they came to any of the plazas. Certainly not Centrico Plaza; it still looked like the crash site of a meteor.

Blanche sat down on the edge of the crater and stared thoughtlessly at the black sun.

He knew some about wave interference and how that applied to light. Two waves would collide and cancel out. He supposed it could be that which made the concentration of aura dark. Maybe it was more like a black hole. He really couldn't tell and couldn't be bothered to think further about it.

The days where he'd thought long and hard about those things were behind him, though he wasn't aware how far. Night and day seemed non-existent to him. He could only tell which was which on the outskirts, away from the light, or when there were two suns in the sky.

There was a tapping sound behind him. Footsteps? No, wishful thinking. Likely the wind blowing fallen trees down the street.

Someone came and sat down next to him.

"Greetings." The other boy flourished his woolen cloak. "My name is Santiago," he said with a smile.

Blanche stared blankly for a moment, the world still dull around him.

"I am just like you," he said.

"I see," Blanche said. "Did they make someone else like me?"

"I suppose so," Santiago said. "We have met before, of course."

"I remember," Blanche said, still staring at the orb. "Was the UR studying you?"

"After a sort," Santiago said. "They much preferred me to study them and their objectives."

"I see," Blanche said. "Where did you come from, Santiago?"

"The northern reaches. My home was in the mountains past Laverre," Santiago said.

"I see. What's it like outside of the city?"

"Isolated, I would say," Santiago said, still cheery. "Rather uninteresting. No people to have discourse with."

"I see."

"You have remedied that, however," Santiago said. "It's a pleasure to meet you in better circumstances."

Blanche kept staring at Aveline's star above them. The curve of the horizon seemed to move upwards from there, strangely enough.

Santiago stood up without struggling. "Let us be off, then. FLARE awaits."

"Why would we go there?" Blanche asked.

"To investigate, naturally. There must be some information on the cause of this event. Lysandre was an intelligent man, as I was told. It is likely that there is some information regarding this event."

"Don't use the past tense," Blanche said, following Santiago without a thought.

"Proper grammar is an important component of communication," Santiago said.

"I see," Blanche said.


It took a while for them to find an open entrance to FLARE. Concrete barriers and riot shields laid on the pavement in Jaune Plaza, though there were enough open spaces.

The lobby was dim and the overhead lights were shut off. The escalators didn't budge and darkness filled the hallways that led deeper into the catacombs.

"Have you tried entering this way before?" Santiago asked.

"No," Blanche said, content with the silence that followed.

Santiago clicked on a flashlight, waving it slowly over the environment, often where Blanche was looking than he.

"I was supposed to become a FLARE Ranger," Santiago said, his jolly smile almost infectious. "With only a few more tests they would have allowed me to join you."
"We'll join them eventually," Blanche said, pacing along with his shoulders slumped.

"The organization may not exist anymore, but there's sure to be something left behind," Santiago said.

They arrived at the airlock that sealed off the Pokémon Lab. The doors were open, likely as a failsafe in the event of a power outage. A few sparks fired off within, dancing along the scattered desks and chairs.

Blanche put his morpher on the table and fiddled with a cable. "LADY, open up the files on this computer. Don't overload the Infinity Battery, just connect to this room. Look for anything about the pipeline or… Aveline."

The computer lit up and buzzed. A text box quickly wrote out an affirmative response.

"That's quite handy," Santiago said. "Is that a Rotom?"

"Artificial intelligence. She developed herself," Blanche said, staring at the keyboard while LADY rapidly ran through text and video files with great speed.

The computer screen froze on a video file as a lock appeared over it. Within seconds, LADY broke through the encryption and began playing it.

It was dated in September of 2010, barely more than a year since the Heavens Shattered.


Lysandre stood in a pitch black room. The camera was recording behind him, and telling by the lighting, it was in front of a doorway.

Eighteen tiles were lit up around him, all inscribed in red light with each of the eighteen Pokémon types.

"I renew my petition to ascribe FLARE as the controlling force in Lumiose City. The city has fallen twice already, and under my guidance, it will fall no longer. You've requested my knowledge on Anomalies time and time again, as well as the expertise of my researchers. Even so, the United Regions continues to simply rebuild rather than reform. You cannot rely on the Aura Guardian forever nor in every situation."

"And what would you do with this power, Lysandre?" DRAGON asked.

"Create a fortress, a city that not even a god could destroy. Create an organization, a force that can face down the fiercest winds and emerge victorious. Create a field of influence so vast that rogue trainers and feral Pokémon could not hope to stand against."

"Would it stand against the United Regions?" Electric asked.

"Of course not. Anomalies are a force of nature. Their fields are already our subject of study, a subject in which, I might add, we are the pioneers in."

"I would still like to question how that is so," PSYCHIC said. "Your information of field strength is often determined before Aura Readers are deployed to an area."

"The answer is information that must be held in the highest confidence," Lysandre said. "I hesitate to share it as it may cause a rash response."

"If it is a cause for concern, it ought to be heard," DRAGON said.

"Very well. There is an entity in our employ that is neither human nor Pokémon."

The tiles hummed and hawed for a few moments.

DRAGON spoke and said, "Explain."

Lysandre nodded. "This entity was birthed of the overlap in AIAM fields during the Shattered Heavens incident. It takes a human form at most times and does not appear to have the ability to manipulate aura. It has a will of its own and can move as such, but it has been observed trending towards areas where overlap is the largest."

"What threats does this entity pose?" PSYCHIC asked.

"None. It possesses the immature mind of a shy teenager. It rarely speaks to those outside of our organization; within, it is slightly less uncommon. It demonstrates joy, sadness, relief, all human emotions, with the distinct exception of anger."

"Does it demonstrate any sort of symptoms of human mental illness?" PSYCHIC prodded further.

"No. It is a socially stable creature."

"Physically?" Psychic asked.

"In the current situation, the same is true," Lysandre said.

"Elaborate and do not mince words, Lysandre," DRAGON said. "Can it pose a threat to man and Pokémon in the future?"

Lysandre sighed and his head declined slightly. "Theoretically. Fluctuations of AIAM fields in its surrounding areas can lead to partial dissipation or increased energy readings in its body. If there were a situation where a large enough number of AIAM fields of a large enough amplitude were in a dense location, it is possible that the Anomaly's energy would… collapse inwards. An event horizon of aura could form. It would act similarly to a black hole that selectively absorbs AIAM fields. This has never been observed, but it may be a possibility."

"Hm."

The tiles were all silent for a few moments.

"Can this Anomaly die?"

"I will not suggest nor support killings where they are unnecessary," Lysandre said. "In any event, no, it is incredibly unlikely. The Anomaly may have initially formed during the Shattered Heavens incident, but it seems to feed off of AIAM fields in a way suggesting that it only takes a physical form in certain areas and exists intangibly everywhere else. If it were to die, then it would reform in another location with the knowledge that its murder was attempted. I cannot recommend fighting something you cannot kill, especially when it may have eyes everywhere."

"Is that a threat?" DRAGON asked.

"No. It's a warning. I cannot control this Anomaly. It is non-violent, though I suspect this is not due to its inability to manipulate AIAM fields. Its human form would allow it to manipulate tools and weapons, and yet it refuses to do so. The Anomaly has an attachment to one of my colleagues, like that of a daughter and father. He has given it the name of his mother and it has gratefully accepted. I suspect it simply wishes to be human."

"To be human is to be a threat. You understand this."

"To be human is to have a breaking point. I do not believe it would be pertinent to force it to become a human with nothing left to lose. Do not threaten it or its father figure, and I believe it will react favorably. It provides information on other Anomalies unknowingly, and seems to intuitively know the biology of every Pokémon it interacts with. It is creating advances in a science that was once thought to be only spirituality and legend. We cannot afford to lose it nor its expertise. That would surely be our undoing as this world grows harsher."

"...I see," DRAGON said. "We will speak of this again at another point. Please continue your proposal for the reconstruction of Lumiose… I suppose it will be Lumiose-3, under the leadership of FLARE with you at the helm."


"What you are searching for is not mentioned further in this recording," LADY said. "Would you like for me to find information on this 'pipeline'?"

"Yes, but… I need to sit down. Thank you, LADY," Blanche said. He collapsed into a seat and deflated without another word.

If his head was spinning before, it was blending itself now.

"Error. No mentions found."

Santiago looked between him and the computer.

Blanche called, "Look up Xerneas and Yveltal."

"One thousand and eighty results found within FLARE. All seem to be logs of fairy tales and legends."

"Damn it." Blanche leaned back further in thought. The headrest tapped against the center of his neck. A thought popped into his head. "Please give me a three-dimensional schematic of FLARE."

A cylinder appeared that stretched deep into the crust. There was a rod of clarity at the very center.

"That's not very efficient," Santiago said, forcing a frown.

"That's where the pipeline is," Blanche said. "LADY, show me the closest point to that area."

It seemed like a maintenance shaft, almost like a stray wire in the display. A small panel facing inwards from a room highlighted by the discplay.

Blanche nodded, his face still blank. "Let's go."


Two murals reflected one another. One red and one blue, in the ceiling and the floor, both surrounded by black tinged with sickly green.

Blanche leered at the window, trying to see into the pit. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't make out the bottom.

Santiago had a strange look on his face. "What's down there?"

The blue and red lights continued revolving.

"Xerneas and Yveltal, I'm assuming," Blanche said before his expression strained. "Why weren't they absorbed too?"

"Xerneas and Yveltal are the embodiments of life and death," Santiago said. "Perhaps they're too powerful?"

"I don't…"

"They should be released if FLARE is containing them," Santiago said. His fists clenched in the same moment, as if his bones had turned to steel. "Humans weren't meant to meddle with Legendary Pokémon."

"In another world, maybe. In that world, maybe everything is alright. But things aren't alright," Blanche said. He put a hand up against the glass. For a moment, it was warm. In the next, it snapped at his skin like ice. "I need to figure out a way…"

Where was MissingNo? Was there any aura for it to manipulate? How far would he have to travel to gather enough Infinity Energy to make it real? What was a messiah without its staff? Would he have to martyr himself? Would it work? Would he leave Santiago alone in the world as plants reclaimed everything? Would he doom the other boy to that life in pursuit of that uncertainty.

Santiago mirrored him. "They should be released. That is the directive. Humans were not meant to contain Legendaries. To do so only leads to disaster. When it was done in the past, it Shattered the Heavens and created a hell on this Earth. I was made to prevent that, not stand by as it occurs."

"We can use them to bring everyone back. Maybe… maybe they'll know how to fix everything else, fix… Aveline."

Santiago tapped a knuckle against the glass. A web of cracks exploded from the point of impact.

"What are you doing?" Blanche asked.

"Freeing them," Santiago said.

"You… you can't! We need them, I know I can't do anything yet, but if they leave, reawaken, or disappear… there's nothing else! What happens if you wake them up and Aveline absorbs them?"

"They will be given a choice," Santiago said. "That is the place of man on this Earth. That is what I have been taught, and that is what I shall do. Humans are below them. They cannot hope to contain forces of nature, and attempts to do so have only brought ruin."

The glass shattered and fell into the pit, almost soundlessly. The air deafened Blanche as the sudden change in pressure washed over him.

"You say that like…"

Santiago gave him a sad smile, the same smile he'd always given, but the intent did not seem the same. "I'm just like you. Inhuman. Are you not an android as well?"

Santiago leapt into the seemingly endless ravine.

Blanche, with nary a moment of hesitation, jumped after him.


AIAM FIELD PATTERN: BLUE

Designation: CGI

Artificial Teleport Request Inbound

FLARE Designation: Zephyranthes

UR Designation: Prototype: Santiago


A light exploded from Santiago's chest apropos of nothing. A similar light exploded from Blanche, slipping out from between his fingers.

A wind kicked up beneath them as they fell. Glass rushed past them.

Santiago's morph suit was a deep green, highlighted with orange. His cloak morphed into a cape and fluttered off of his body as he fell, seeming to fly upwards.

"You can't do this!" Blanche yelled, his helmet.

"But I must," Santiago said, diving further.

Wings exploded from Blanche's back as NSPACE formed and the Flying-type drive clicked into place. He turned his body into a pin, impacting Santiago's back.

He pulled the other boy around by the shoulder, and through the rushing wind, punched him in the jaw.

"We can help them! We just need a chance!" Blanche yelled.
"Cyrus said as much," Santiago said, shoving Blanche off of him. "During his interrogation, he claimed that Team Galactic would create a world free of suffering. You were born into the hell he created, don't be foolish!"

"We can do it!" Blanche said, kicking Santiago in the chest. "We can move forward, we can try again- We don't need to control them, we… we can find another way!"

"The definition of insanity is to try the same thing over and over," Santiago said as his fist snapped Blanche's head to the side. It felt like a bullet train. "I suppose that is why you humans seem so deranged. Your stubbornness is admirable, but it hurts you in the long run."

"Stubbornness is how we live," Blanche said. "We live even when it hurts."

"Do you, now? There are quite a few psychological reports on you, Amaranth," Santiago said. "The boy who fights to die. As subsidiaries of the United Regions, FLARE and Interpol are very transparent with their reports. Your own leader believes you to be unstable but an asset in the field. Your very presence is a wild card. The other FLARE Rangers sought out a counselor for you, as Nurse Joy noted. I've heard the reports myself. The only way you live is to risk your life and die. I've seen everything about you, and I know everything about you. You are certainly a prototype. Strong is some areas, but in possession of the most glaring flaws."

"I'm human," Blanche said. "I'm human! I'm alive, damn it! I've stopped running away from that, I know what I am!" He brought his hands around Santiago's neck, though the false flesh did not cede. "I know what I'm here for! You're not stopping me! I'm going to change the world!"

"For the better?" Santiago gripped his forearms. Metal creaked. "Or for worse?"

"For the people that live in it! My friends, my enemies, my allies, my nightmares, my dreams, my pain, my sorrow, my everything! They're all a part of me, and I'm not letting that due go unpaid!" Blanche reared his head. "I'm going to live! I'll bring them back, and I'll keep fighting as long as that's possible, even if it kills me! I don't want to be a hero, but for them… I'd do anything!"

"Then you're not a hero," Santiago said, throwing Blanche back. "You're going against nature. Humans aren't meant to control things greater than them."

"You're wrong! That's our nature- to conquer nature! To bend it to our will and create a better world from it! Even if the world is against us- against me… I'll keep fighting. I'll fight as long as I need to. I'll fight until the day comes that everyone can fight for themselves!"

"You'll be fighting until the stars go dark and entropy ensues," Santiago said.

"I'm fine with that. That's the most that something, someone like me can hope for." Blanche smirked, eyes wide and manic. Blood was smeared across his face as his shattered helmet clung to his head.

There was no fire in Santiago's eyes, but he fought anyway. He couldn't respect that. He didn't fight for what he believed in. Maybe he could have, but not in Blanche's world.

"By honing my body, I've honed my mind. By honing my mind, I've honed my soul. By honing my soul," Blanche reared his fist back. The Gear, whatever it was; all of them, none of them, was a formless shape before it snapped into physicality. "I've honed the drill that Creates the HEAVENS!"

His wings created a backdraft before he shot towards Santiago. Around his arm was a drill laced with Infinity Energy, burning like static with every type swirling into it.

They reached the floor at the bottom of the pipeline.


There was a gaping hole in Santiago's chest. Oil seeped out of it, coating wiring and electrical implements. It dripped into the cone that pierced through every bit of the pipeline's reinforcement.

Sparks flew in Santiago's eyes.

"Wouldn't you rather the Legendaries be freed?" he asked, looking up at Blanche. "Wouldn't you rather live in that world?"

"I can't anymore," Blanche said, his head shaking. The rest of his body did the same. "I… I have to try to create something better. I'd rather create a world where everyone can be free. No Anomalies, no forces that siege cities of people just living their lives, no gods, no masters. You could have been a shepherd."

Santiago's cloak soundlessly dropped to the floor, having overcome wind resistance once and for all.

"My purpose was to guide you to the right path," Santiago said. "To change the world. To become an alchemist. To become the Alchemist." His gaze turned towards the ceiling that isolated them from the empty world above. "Have I succeeded, I wonder?"

"You've done fine," Blanche said. He was never one to take a life lightly, even if some would not call it a life. "Did you believe in what you were doing?"

"...I wanted to be human," Santiago said. "They told me to be like you. They thought you were something like me, and tried to replicate that. I… saw you. You're not a FLARE Ranger. At least… that's not all you are. You're a… person."

"So are you, Santiago," Blanche said, putting on a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "I'm sorry it had to be this way."

"It could have been another," Santiago said, his voice becoming wispier, more broken. "But each moment is a point of no return. Once you pass the point…"

"You can only go forward, because you can never go back," Blanche said.

"I.. suppose that works too," Santiago said. "I have… a question."

Blanche nodded, shutting his eyes tight as he grimaced.

Oil was bubbling from Santiago's lips and it smelt like burning gasoline. "Do life and death mean anything to… something like me?"

"Someone like you," Blanche said, "Is someone like me. Someone like me dies for others because they attempt to die for me. Someone like me lives for others because they attempt to live for me. I think… you would have liked all of my friends. You met Shauna, right?"

Santiago blinked. The rest of his body was immobile.

"She would have warmed up to you. Maybe you'll see her too, one day. Maybe we'll see each other again," Blanche said. "But I'm sorry that day is so far away."

Santiago stopped moving.

Blanche stood and grabbed the other boy's cloak. He draped it over the other boy's body and clasped his hands.

"Arceus, Helix, God, whatever you are… please be kind to him. I know he's not human, that he's like me… but that's not his fault. You don't have to forgive me; hell, I'd be surprised if you did, but please… just give him a chance."

Blanche tilted his head back as his arms fell to his sides. Blood dripped down the outside of his suit, blending with the red and seeming as if he were melting.

"The Alchemist is someone who changes the world, huh?" Blanche murmured, raising his hand to his chest.

His morph suit disappeared and left only the Battery in his hands. Blood was already soaking into his clothes, staining them red. He felt woozy, as if he'd lost something that kept him bound. Scars that had healed opened again. The tissue all but dissolved, leaving only what remained of his unmarred skin.

Blanche fumbled with his pocket knife, not even swearing when he sliced across his finger. He pried open the back on the Infinity Battery, the side which was least protected from incoming damage.

He looked at it as it whirred within, the blade so close to the whirring machine he could practically taste battery acid.

"My name is Blanche. I am eighteen years old as of this moment, and I will never forget it. Not this minute, not this second. The Alchemist is the one that changes the world…"

Blanche took one last look around him. The cocoon and the tree were still revolving around each other, as if nothing had happened.

He looked back at the Battery and raised his knife.

"...I guess that duty falls to me."

The blade plunged into the sealant around the Infinity Energy. It made a small sound, like that of glass cracking.

Infinite amounts of heat seared Blanche for a fraction of a fraction of a second.

At the same time, the Tree of Life was lit as if it were a candelabra. Not a nanosecond later, the Cocoon of Destruction was fully shattered.

Deep within the Terminus Cave, a sleeping giant awoke. Each of its one thousand hexagonal eyes gleamed as it began slithering towards the surface.

Xerneas exited its endless slumber. Yveltal was reborn. Zygarde felt the unbalance in the world.

Three cries echoed in his consciousness before it faded away entirely.

And thus, the Heavens Shattered once again.


AN:

See? Just like Evangelion.