=Chapter 44, Arceus' Warning=
(Jacob's PoV)
"So it's a straight shot from here to Lilycove City?" Jacob asked as they took a rest on Route 121.
"Yep, we should be there by tomorrow!" Segan said, stretching as he put his pack down.
"Thank goodness, I can't wait to earn my seventh badge." Karen groaned as she rubbed her back.
(Does Lilycove even have a Gym?) Sara asked him from his shoulder.
"No Sara, but we need to go to Lilycove to reach Mossdeep City, which does have a gym for us." He said, scratching her hair and making her giggle.
They had just left Route 120, and were supposed to be heading to Lilycove City, to keep on schedule with the ferry that will take them to Mossdeep City. But upon reaching Route 121, Segan told them that they could also go to the nearby Route 122, and from there to Mt. Pyre, where that mysterious trainer told Jacob to meet her.
Thinking about that girl's last words, when he was conscious at least, were still fresh in his mind even a week after speaking to her.
"Trainer… when you are ready for your next lesson, go to the base entrance of Mt. Pyre. There you shall take the next step toward Mega Evolution. If you succeed there you will then climb Mt. Pyre for your final test, and there you will either succeed or fail in claiming this Keystone from me!"
"Don't waste time… hurry, I do not know… how much time I have left."
Ever since he met that girl, he had this strange feeling as though there was some connection between his Keystone and her. While she and Missy the Mismagius, continued to interrupt him at the worst possible moments, she seemed to have his best interests at heart. She has taught him and Harold, and through him the rest of the team, how to make use of their bond to become even stronger. Yet he still didn't know who she was.
(Jacob?) Sara asked him quizzically. (Should we go to Mt. Pyre first, or to Lilycove?)
"I don't know Sara… that girl sounded like she really needed us to meet with her…" He said quietly. "She sounded almost desperate for us to do what she asked of us. Maybe we should go just to make sure she's alright if nothing else."
(But what about our seventh badge?) She asked now. (We only have about six months left to qualify for the Pokemon League Challenge, we need to qualify before it's too late so we can find out more about the Shadow Pokemon.)
"I know…" He said.
It was quite a predicament he was in, on one hand he wanted to see what that girl wearing the mask wanted of him at Mt. Pyre, but he also wanted to challenge for the seventh badge. He also felt like he needed to thank her for apparently leaving him Harold's Mega Stone, a greenish stone that Segan identified as a bit of Sceptileite.
They had sent it to Electra in Mauville City to have it personalized and embedded for Harold's use, so he could Mega Evolve, whenever Jacob learned to do it. They had to send it via air mail, via Pidove Airmail, because Roran declined the idea of going for them. Jacob had paid for the mail with what little money he had, as well as paying for the Megastone to be personalized.
It would take the Pidove about two weeks to get back to them in Lilycove City, but it was the price to pay. Roran could have made the journey in half the time, but Jacob didn't want to make his flyer upset or treat him like some carrier bird.
*Still, can't be helped that he also flat out refused.* He thought with a chuckle, as he and Sara remembered that little scene.
(He was a bit upset… to say the least!) She chuckled back to him.
Segan had asked if Roran or Latias would take the stone back to Mauville, since they were by far the fastest among them who could go back without losing any time, but neither wanted to leave Jacob's side. Or at least Latias didn't want to, saying she wasn't sure how to find Jacob again or where Electra was. And while Latias could have carried Jacob back, there was no way they could have continued toward their destination and lose track of each other without splitting up and meeting up in Lilycove.
As for Roran, when Segan asked him, he simply glared at the salon owner and made him nervous, before asking after Sara translated for them, "What do I look like, a Pidove?"
Needless to say, after that, they went to the nearest Pidove Airmail service, which happened to have small stations across every Route across Hoenn. There they sent the request to Electra, with a letter explaining what they wanted, and included the Megaston, as well as the money.
"Well, in any case Jacob boy, I think we should head to Mt. Pyre, if for no other reason than so we can check it out!" Segan said cheerfully. "Ever since Mt. Pyre's chimney collapsed over thirty seven years ago, there have been fewer and fewer tourists going there. But they still allow people and Pokemon to be buried in the cemeteries there. Besides, it won't take us long to reach it, and we'll only lose about maybe three or four days before reaching Lilycove City."
"Wait, how come Mt. Pyre doesn't attract anymore tourists?" Karen asked.
"Well, supposedly the chimney collapsed because of something, and it crushed two entire floors of cemeteries." Segan said, picking up his pack again and preparing to walk. "When that happened the path leading to the top of Mt. Pyre was lost, and the altar that once housed the two Orbs of Hoenn was lost as well. From what I know, the two Orbs were given to Ruby and Sapphire for safekeeping, and their children have taken them as well."
"Ruby and Sapphire?" Jacob asked. "Didn't we see someone named Alpha Sapphire before? Do you think he has any relationship to 'the' Sapphire?"
"Supposedly Alpha Sapphire is Sapphire' son, he must have inherited his father's trainer genes." Karen said with a shrug. "Well, do we go to Mt. Pyre or Lilycove Jacob? You're the one who has to head to Mt. Pyre, so you might as well decide."
After a brief conversation with Sara, they both decided to head to Mt. Pyre. "You sure we won't miss the ferry to Mossdeep City?" He asked Segan again.
"We have a good week before the ferry is scheduled to leave, unless you want to ride on Coral all the way there, which I don't recommend." He said with a chuckle. "So we should still make it with time to spare if we make a detour to Mt. Pyre."
"Alright, I guess our next destination is Mt. Pyre, and to see what mystery girl wants with me." He said.
"Onwards to Mt. Pyre!" Segan declared, leading the way and tripping over a rock.
"Hahahaha!" Karen laughed hysterically as Jacob helped Segan up.
(Anita's PoV)
Anita sat in the cover of the nearby woods, concealed from view from everyone except her two Pokemon, Light and Dark.
"Alright… there's our target again." Anita whispered as she peered through her binoculars. "According to the readings I've taken, that boy's got 'something' on him that is giving off weird signals. For some reason he's registering as a Pokemon, when he obviously hasn't got a single bit of Pokemon DNA inside of him."
"Umbreon?" Dark asked beside her.
"Yea, yea, I know…" She said dully. "It has to be coming from either that bracelet he's sporting, or something in that bag." She zoomed in on her target as they began making their way down the path toward Route 122. "Alright… I should go after the bracelet, but I doubt I'll be able to get at it easily… which leaves the bag… he's got to have something in that bag worth investigating but again… how to get at it?"
It would have been easy to just have Light put them all to sleep, but she didn't like doing things the 'easy' way. What she enjoyed was challenging puzzles that tested her intellect, and finding a way to separate the bag from its owner seemed like a much more challenge worth her time.
"Let's see…" She whispered as she fingered the Pokeballs strapped to her belt. "I have four Shadow Pokemon with me, one of em is a Pidgeotto that I still need to reshadowficate. This leaves me with three others that I can work with… so who would best go about this plan?"
"Espeon?" Light asked her now.
"Yea, I know, they aren't exactly the best for such delicate tasks, but we can handle the delicate job later when we accomplish the goal." She replied. "Ah, I know just the one! Let's see how a Stage 3 Shadow Pokemon works against them."
She pulled one of the Pokeballs out and tossed it lightly into the air, and in a flash of light her personal Shadow Pokemon appeared.
"Magnezone…" It uttered, its normally black eyes glaring at her with purple glints in them.
"Alright Magnezone, your target is that boy's backpack!" She said in a commanding voice, pointing at Jacob just as he was leaving visual range. "You're to attack the group and force them to drop their belongings! You are permitted to do whatever it takes to force them to drop their bags, I don't care how much you harm their Pokemon, but the bag is not to be harmed, is that clear?"
"Magnezone!" It declared, before floating off without hesitation.
"Light, Dark, you two circle wide and wait for them to drop the bag, once they do, move in and drag it away once you get the chance. Magnezone should be able to last long enough for you to get the job done." She said, strapping her earpiece on and strapping the small cameras onto their backs. "I'll watch from here and instruct you as needed. Get going!"
"Umbre!" Dark said.
"Espe!" Light said, and both left to get behind the group without being spotted.
"Now to watch the fireworks…" She said with a grin, taking the binoculars and watching as her Magnezone drew ever closer to the group.
(Jacob's PoV)
"So how are we going to climb up Mt. Pyre Segan?" Jacob asked as they made their way to Route 122. "Do we need any special gear or something?"
"Not really, you can actually climb it fairly easily on foot." Segan said.
As they neared the crossroad which had a sign pointing them to Route 122, Sara suddenly clutched her head. "Sara?" He asked her, stopping when he noticed her and felt her fear.
(I sense something Jacob… something really bad!) She said fearfully. (It's like a cruel shadow is approaching us!)
As she finished her declaration, something sounded behind them, causing them all to turn around and look at a constant wave of electricity being shot out in random directions. The source of this was what looked like a floating three foot tall, disc like Pokemon, with two screws on each side of it, an antennae in the middle, and two magnets pointing forward and a third pointing behind it. It was glaring at them and releasing sparks of electricity, and Jacob saw it had a purple glint in its eyes.
"Magnezone… Magnezone…" It stated constantly, before pointing its magnets at them and releasing two powerful bolts of electricity.
"Watch out!" Karen yelled, pushing Jacob out of the way while also shoving Segan back at the same time.
As he was knocked down, Sara had to jump to avoid being thrown heavily to the ground, and Jacob's backpack slipped off his shoulders to roll away.
Unfortunately her act of heroism resulted in her being shocked by the attacks, lighting her entire body up and making her scream in pain.
"Ahhhhhh!" She cried in agony before the attack stopped, and she dropped to the ground in a heap.
"Karen!" Jacob shouted before Sara erected a protective barrier in front of them.
Segan rushed to her and began feeling her pulse and examining her, but Karen opened her eyes wearily and began standing up on her own again. "Ugh… that hurts…" She stuttered as she shook a little on her feet. "Why did that thing suddenly attack us?"
(Jacob… I sense only anger and dark thoughts from that Pokemon.) Sara whispered nervously as the Pokemon began charging for another attack. (It's a Shadow Pokemon, I've never felt such anger from anything else before!)
"What kind of Pokemon is it?" He said, pulling his Dex out and having it scan the new Pokemon before them.
[Magnezone, the Magnet Area Pokemon, Magnezone is the fusion of three Magnetons and thus considered the evolved form of Magneton and Magnemite. Magnezone's magnetic field is so powerful that almost nothing can escape its field!]
"But what's it doing here?" Jacob asked again as he pulled out his Pokemon and prepared to release one of them.
"Magnezone!" It screeched as it charged up another electrical attack.
"Worry about that later… just send out someone before we get hit again!" Karen yelled.
"Right, Harold you're up buddy!" He yelled, and sent out his starter.
"Sceptile!" Harold screamed as he appeared from his Pokeball, and leapt to absorb the electric attack that had taken the form of a sphere.
It had very little effect on his starter, something that Jacob noticed the Magnezone seemed to have no concern about. Its eyes still glaring furiously at them. "Harold, use Leaf Blade on that Magnezone!" He shouted.
"Sceptile!" Harold replied and ran forward, brandishing his clawed hands and bladed arms.
In a second he jumped and struck the Magnezone, but instead of being pushed back, it merely spun around, and shot back with a multicolored beam of light that looked like Signal Beam. It struck Harold point blank, and he grimaced in pain as he clutched his chest and took very heavy steps back.
"Harold!" Jacob shouted.
Harold tried to stand back up, but before he could even move again, the Magnezone shot again with its Signal Beam, striking Harold when he was down. Harold collapsed to the ground, and he looked to be in serious pain, but still the Magnezone charged up another Signal Beam to strike him again.
"Harold Return!" He called out, recalling his starter into the safety of his Pokeball, just as the Magnezone released its attack, hitting nothing but dirt.
"Magne… zone… Magnezone Magnezone Magnezone!" It screeched angrily, sending jolts of electricity in random directions as its target was no longer there.
"Latias, you're up!" He shouted, taking Latias' Premier Ball and releasing her next to battle their attacker.
Latias appeared in a flash of light, and looked determinedly against who she was facing. (Something tells me, this isn't just a friendly battle Master Jacob?) She asked politely as the Magnezone stopped attacking randomly to focus on her now.
"No, it's another Shadow Pokemon Latias." He said. "Be careful, this thing is really powerful!"
(Well let's see what it can do then!) She said confidently.
"Magnezone!" It screeched, creating another ball of electricity and launching it at her.
"Watch out!" Segan yelled, but Latias had already dodged it, nimbly doing a loop to avoid it.
"Latias, counter with Dragon Breath!" Jacob ordered.
(You got it!) She replied, before opening her mouth and releasing a purple flame from it at the Magnezone.
The attack hit the Magnezone, but despite the power of the Dragon type attack, it merely shook it off and fired back with another Signal Beam. It hit Latias with full force, and she recoiled from the attack, being party psychic making her just as vulnerable to it as Harold was. (Ugh!) She said painfully, floating backward and trying to clutch her head with her clawed hands.
"Latias return!" Jacob said, not wanting to risk her getting hurt like Harold, and recalling her back into her Pokeball. "What does it take to stop this thing?"
"Magnezone is a Steel type Pokemon!" Segan yelled as the Magnezone began screeching angrily again at its lack of a target. "Steel types are heavily resistant to many types of attacks! Steel types are one of the most dangerous types of Pokemon to face if you aren't prepared for them!"
"Well do we have anything that is strong against it?" Karen complained as she reached for her team next.
"Well, fighting type moves are effective against steel types!" Segan said.
"Then this one's all mine Jacob!" Karen yelled proudly, before releasing her Riolu. "Lance, rise to the challenge!"
(Anita's PoV)
Anita watched as the group finally wizened up and started using fighting types to counter her Magnezone, but she wished it wouldn't go so overboard. "Oh well, that's what I get for giving the thing leeway." She commented, before switching her optical visual eyepiece to the cameras strapped to Light and Dark. "Alright, there's the bag you two, now slowly drag it out of there."
"Umbre…" She heard Dark say into the mouthpiece strapped to the camera.
"Yes, I know, it's probably heavy, just drag it out of there as fast as you can!" She said.
"Espeon?" Light asked her now as her camera showed Dark beginning to drag it off foot by foot using his teeth.
"No, you can't use your psychic powers, if you do that Kirlia will detect you." She answered Light as she too helped drag it off with her own teeth. "I'll meet you two by that small lake we passed by, the one near the rock cavern."
"Mmmbre…" Dark said through a mouth full of bag, before she shut off the camera.
"Now, to get Magnezone without being spotted…" She said, turning her attention back to the battle, in which her Magnezone was starting to lose due to the physical power of the Riolu. "Now… how to get it out, without being followed…"
She smiled as she held the jewel necklace, before her plan took shape in her mind.
"It's going to be a tight squeeze, but if I can just get the beam through… it would work…" She said to herself.
(Jacob's PoV)
"Lance, Power Up Punch!" Karen yelled enthusiastically as the Magnezone began backing up.
"Rioooo!" Lance shouted as he ran forward and punched the Magnezone square in the middle, causing it to stutter in pain.
"Magne… zone… Magne… zone!" It sputtered painfully, levitating lower and lower with each moment.
"Think we should capture it?" Karen asked as Lance readied another attack.
"I don't know if its wild, but it's worth a try!" Jacob said.
"Alright, in that case… Pokeball…" Karen began saying as she readied a Pokeball to capture it, but just as she did the Magnezone vanished in a bright red beam of light.
It was silent as everyone stared at where the Magnezone had been, but no longer was. "Where the heck did it go?" Karen yelled angrily. "I almost won that fight! How dare it just go and shock me and then just vanish without even letting me finish it off!"
"It looked like it was being recalled into a Pokeball." Jacob said as Sara relaxed, no longer feeling the Magnezone's presence. "But, who recalled it and where too, there's nobody else around?"
"I think a better question is… where did your bag go?" Segan asked suddenly, causing them all to look around. On the ground was Karen's sleeping bag and pack strapped to it, as well as Segan's pack. But Jacob's backpack was missing from where it had rolled to.
"My bag!" Jacob shouted as he looked around, trying to find it.
(Anita's PoV, Ten Minutes Later)
"Alright… let's see what we have here!" She giggled enthusiastically as she took the bag from her two Pokemon. "Nice work you two, now let's see if we can find out where those IV's were coming from."
"Umbreon!" Dark said as he watched her open the bag and began digging around.
The first thing she found were a couple of pots and pans, then she found a few random spices and a berry bag. But as she emptied the bag she found that it was still stuffed with items that should not have been possible. One after another she emptied item after item, spare clothes, bags of medicine, potion bottles, food items, bags of treats, water bottles and a few spare Pokeballs.
"Jeez, does this thing even have a bottom?" She asked as she detached the sleeping bag from it and felt it. "Huh… what's this?"
She felt her hand grasp around what seemed like some kind of book and pulled it out. The book was about seven inches tall, five inches wide, colored purple with a large black 'A' on its front cover. It also had a very familiar yellow symbol on it, with four green spots that made it look even more familiar, like she had seen it before.
"Now this is interesting…" She said as she took her scanner and had it scan the book.
Almost instantly it began beeping like crazy, and gave off readings for her. "31 straight IV's… found our source… but why is it giving off these readings?" She asked as she opened the book and found only a single page inside, and an ornate yellow pen embedded in the front cover. "One page… what the heck?"
She examined the pen and pulled out a notepad to test the ink, but as she wrote, no ink came out.
"No ink… interesting…" She whispered as she took the pen and examined it closer.
It looked like an ordinary pen, but it was still heavily ornate. Out of curiosity she took the pen and wrote in the notebook itself.
*Test*
The words instantly vanished as soon as she finished writing them, and she was amazed at what she had seen. "Interesting… a pen with invisible ink unless it's written on this book, yet the words vanish as soon as they are written, why?"
As she examined the notebook further, she didn't notice a portal opening up behind her.
(Arceus' PoV)
He sat in the middle of the Sanctuary, feeling the thoughts of his student beginning to reach him, as the book was being written in. Yet something was strange, he felt… curiosity… and that wasn't the same curiosity that his student was known for.
*Test*
His eyes snapped open.
(Someone else has the book!) He stated as he rose to his full height. (Jacob is in trouble!)
He turned around and began walking, creating a portal which would take him to wherever the book was, always having an open connection to it via his mind. No matter how far apart they were, he could always find his student, so long as the book was with him.
He stepped through the portal and vanished as it closed behind him.
(Anita's PoV)
"I need to exam…" She started saying before her Pokemon got her attention, looking behind her and making her look behind as well. "What the devil…"
She saw a portal beginning to open up, a rift in space, and just as she began backing up, a huge ten foot tall Pokemon walked through it. It stood on four powerful legs, and had a golden ring wrapped around its midsection, which mirrored the symbol on the book she had clasped in her hands.
"Arceus… this book has the power to summon Arceus?" She asked in silent wonder as she beheld the Alpha Pokemon.
Yet that wonder was short lived as it glared down at her, and the book she was holding.
(What are you doing with that book?) A thunderous voice bellowed in her mind.
"Ugh!" She moaned as she grasped her head, the sheer volume was enough to drive her crazy, and beside her Dark and Light moaned in pain as well.
(I WILL NOT ASK AGAIN; WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH THAT BOOK!) He yelled even louder, taking a step forward and using his powers to shove her onto her back.
She looked up and glared at the Alpha Pokemon, shaking the voice out her head and trying to concentrate. "What's it to you?" She yelled back. "I'm trying to examine this book, if I want to take a look at it, I very well will!"
(Is that so?) The Alpha Pokemon asked quietly, before his eyes glowed and she felt herself ripped away from the ground and shoved within an inch of his face, suspended in midair. (Then tell me… what have you done to the owner of that book?)
Without needing any further information, she made the connection between the book, that boy, and Arceus. "I aint telling you didly squat!" She said back, and began reaching for her necklace once again, but this time her hand was wrapped in a psychic aura and shoved back to where it was before.
(I can see into your eyes… you will not have your way…) He uttered, before the jewel around her neck was ripped away and tossed out of range. (I will ask you one last time… what have you done, to Jacob Beryl?)
Now she was terrified, all of her confidence vanished without her necklace around her neck. "I didn't do anything to him, I just stole his bag!" She said instantly. "He's fine, I swear, I just stole his bag nothing more!"
(I see… then 'nothing more' is all you will ever do, 'forever more'…) He said quietly, before his eyes began glowing dangerously.
Realizing what he meant by that, she began squirming, trying to break free. "DARK, LIGHT!" She screamed desperately.
(Umbreon!) Dark cried as he ran at Arceus, trying to break his concentration with a fierce strike of his claws, but the Alpha Pokemon continued to focus his energy on her.
(Espeon!) Light cried as well, and began using her psychic powers to break his hold, but she could not break it entirely.
Yet it was enough that Anita was slowly being pulled away from Arceus. With one almighty yell he released a Hyper Beam from his mouth, and blasted Anita directly, but just in time Light created a powerful Light Screen and Dark jumped in front of her to absorb the attack.
All three of them were shoved backward and her two Pokemon lay in a crumpled heap, in pain and exhausted.
Anita wearily got back up and saw Arceus using his powers to replace all of the items into the backpack, and ripped the book away from her and place it in the bag as well. (Heed my advice, 'Anita Rig'…) He declared as he created another portal behind him. (Do not threaten or interact with that boy and his friends from here on… I will NOT allow any harm or unwanted influence to come to the boy! If you value your existence, you will NOT pursue him any further! The next time you threaten him, in whatever way, direct or indirect… you will face 'my' Judgement!) He turned around and glared at her, and for just a split second, his eyes turned an even deeper shade of red. (And I will not spare you, again!)
With that declaration he walked through the portal, pulling the bag with his powers behind him, and vanished as the portal closed behind him.
It was silent as she felt her heart racing, before she shakily put her glasses back on. "Jacob Beryl… and Arceus… what a discovery…" She whispered nervously. "Well… if ever there was a bodyguard for a Trainer… that is one. But what's the connection… how do they know each other… and why is Arceus so protective of that one boy? What makes 'him' special?"
"Ummmbreon?" Dark asked wearily as he stood up as well.
"No… let's leave him alone for now… like Arceus said… I'm not one to defy or challenge a god's will…" She replied as she helped Light up and began looking for her necklace. "We'll head back to HQ for now, we have all the data we need. We can proceed to developing Stage 4… now we just have to wait for Viridian to carry out his end of the plan, and get that bloody legendary class Pokemon for us. Or we could always just use him and be done with it…"
She turned and eyed Mt. Pyre, before shaking her head in disbelief. "Tampering with the elements is a dangerous game… this had better be worth it." As she walked on she thought up of something else. "This encounter never happened, understood you two? No need to tell the boss or the others what we found… let's keep this to ourselves."
(Umbreon…) Dark said with a nod.