It had been just my luck to find a hotel, which was fittingly named the Bisharp Hotel, was within walking distance of the C train station. It was a bit on the pricier side, but I was getting the feeling that this particular part of this continent in which the Isshu region resided, was a more expensive area to live in than most, and that further pushed up the price of things that would be lowered elsewhere for the same standard, or subsequently raised even higher due to demand.
I'd also found out from Cilan that it was within 2 miles, an half an hour's walk to the local Big Stadium. Suffice it to say, thanks to him, Isshuians really took physical sports seriously, to the point that it was nearly ingrained in their culture. I'd also managed to get tickets to a baseball game, which happened to be going on the same week we arrived there.
Unfortunately, it seemed that another rally of my favorite individual was also scheduled. The signature Team Plasma Banners were plastered all over the streets, they'd recently garnered a lot more support it seemed, and it was likely due to Ghetsis' great deception.
When we entered the city for the first time, seeing the Team Plasma banners everywhere was a rather unwelcome surprise. I wondered if Ghetsis himself, a sage or a higher rank than grunt would be giving the speech this time but we'd had the privilege of getting the big shot himself.
I'll give him that, he was a charismatic speaker. We'd seemed to catch the middle of the rally, as opposed to the start of it like the first time I encountered N.
"That's correct! Our lord N has combined his power with the legendary Dragon-type Pokémon and intends to create a new world. We herald the return of the hero of Unova, founder of this region.
"Pokémon are different from people. They are living beings who contain unknown potential.
"They are living beings from whom we humans have much to learn.
"They are beings whose greatness we should acknowledge! Beings who should be freed from our oppression!
"We, Team Plasma, invite you to join us! We all want to create a new world where people and Pokémon are both free! Ladies and gentlemen, I ask you now... Please, release your Pokémon. And so I end my plea to you today. Thank you one and all for your attention."
With those final words, Ghetsis departed, and the grunts quickly removed all Team Plasma paraphernalia, making it as if they were only there with words, and not like the effects of a parade. O chuckled a bit, wondering if they were lugging around the same things as their first introductory rally in Striaton City. It had also been Cilan's first time ever seeing a Ghetsis rally, but it clearly made an impact.
He was able to make the connection with the events at Dragonspiral Tower that he was able to see with his own eyes. The way Ghetsis was phrasing it though, resonated with many people due to his clearly, carefully crafted words.
Our ponderings were interrupted when the crowd dispersed, revealing two people. Upon closer inspection, I saw the familiar form of Iris, with an older looking man with a huge beard and moustache combination that would make a Beartic feel like a cub.
"Hey! Hey! You there with Cilan!" She called him by name, which immediately identified her as talking to me. I never really introduced myself to her, so of course she wouldn't be able to call out to me by name, as well as the fact that we really only saw each other that one time back in Nimbasa City with Burgh. as being well versed in Gym Leaders of her own.
"Hello, Iris, a surprise to see you here, and at a Rally no less. Who is this man with you?" I hadn't recognised him at all from anywhere, and he had a rather imposing figure, and was well muscled, despite having a white beard, hair, and eyebrows. It didn't seem like it was dyed, or anything, and thus, I could only currently conclude that he was legitimately a muscled old man. It certainly wouldn't be the first odd thing seen about this region, that's for sure. We stood at the same height, which was rather uncommon back home, and definitely not particular common here.
"Ah, Gramps? He's the leader of Opelucid Gym!" I wondered if she called him Gramps due to the fact that he was an old man, and she was a young girl. She seemed to be very familiar with him to the point that it was like he'd known her all her life.
"Well, that's a surprise. What is the Gym Leader of Opelucid City doing at a Ghetsis rally? Though there's also something urgent I need to speak with you about." So far, he'd been the only Gym Leader who looked to have seen a complete rally from start to finish. All of the others either caught the beginning, the end, or had never heard one before. If he was the only who'd seen a full rally, at their next meeting before the conference, he'd have a vast new amount of information to give.
"Well, for one thing, I'm the Mayor of this City, and two, I thought it'd be pretty valuable to witness the madness firsthand. But, that doesn't appear to be the case. It's nothing but rabble. The cooperation of people and Pokémon is how Unova came to exist to begin with. If a Pokémon really didn't want anything to do with humans, it would simply leave... Capturing a Pokémon in a Poké Ball doesn't mean you've captured its heart." He took a rather special note of the fact that Heji and Tensa were both out of their Poké Balls, casting a glance towards them with interest.
"Well, that's certainly something we both agree on. I think Pokémon are stronger together with Humans. My name's Kynexn, by the way. Nice to meet you." I extended out my hand for a handshake, which he graciously accepted.
"Name's Drayden, and, as you now know, I'm the leader of the Gym, as well as the Mayor of the city. You said you had something urgent? Before you answer that, is it about Team Plasma? If so then meet me in my office. Iris will show you the way there." Again, Drayden was likely used to discussing sensitive information as Mayor, and there was no way of actively or passively detecting the Shadow Triad by myself and even one bit of information lost to them would be too much.
Iris took me to his office which also doubled as a quick tour of the city. Despite her young age, she apparently spent so much time exploring the city that she knew shortcuts that not only did locals not know about, but could not access. She was very nimble and active, and judging by her compliments, she didn't expect me to keep up with her parkour. It'd be very interesting to see what would come of it later down the line.
When we arrived, I was greeted with two Dragon types, or at least what I figured were treo dragon types. I'd only seen Axew, and with its tusks, I could hazard a guess, based on the tusk scythes, that this Pokémon was likely the final stage of Axew.
They had rather imposing figure, being as how they were almost as tall as me, I had a good tenth of a meter on them but that wasn't really that much. The other aspect that stood out was the Tusk Scythes, which looked like they could easily cleave even a well armored in half, if not near instantly end them due to blunt force trauma. A very fitting choice for bodyguards, and of course, they could both easily remove anyone who overstayed their welcome.
I didn't say anything to them for now, instead focusing on Drayden and the task at hand. The once neutral ivory of Axew was replaced by a menacing black blade that had a stretch of red formed into it at the edge, giving the impression that their tusks had already been used for a gruesome purpose. Their claws were equally 'stained' leading to the impression that overall this was a really strong Pokémon.
The final aspect of their appearance that was really memorable was their golden plates accentuating their black scales, which I wondered if they came in silver, emerald, or any other previous materials colors. It would be s question to ask them for another time.
"Now then young man, what is it you want to talk about?" His tone was nice and casual, which was a surprise considering his office's general style. To speed up manners, I pulled the stone out of my bag and immediately revealed it.
Drayden's eyes lit up immediately with a look of shock and some slight suspicion, but it quickly faded and gave way to curiosity. A petty, or in this case not so petty thief wouldn't just walk up to the clearly bodyguarded, but looking just as able to wrestle his own bodyguards to the ground.
"Forgive my doubt of you just now if you will. It was momentary and foolish. But, that is still the meteorite that fell near the castle in the Resort Desert, yes?"
'Yes, and no. This only appears to be a normal, but oddly shaped stone, but it is actually the Light Stone, Reshiram's hibernative form." This drew his eye yet again. It was a very unprovable claim at the time based on scientific methods, but I had no reason to lie, and Lenora pretty much entrusted it to me."
Iris finally chimed in, unable to hold back her excitement. "Wait, are you sure?! The legendary Dragon type that is associated with the Hero of Truth?!" It certainly was a ultimate claim to make, but there were too many factors lining up that would give me any reason to doubt it.
"That is indeed a bold claim. But I figure you've got some degree of proof?"
"Not scientifically, yet, no. But, Reshiram has resonated with me ever since I've kept this Stone nearby, and I feel as if for some reason, there's just a general honesty that surrounds this stone. I've done some research on the timing of the Desert Resort being built, and this so called Meteorite impacting the area. The timing is exact, but that's still not what I wanted to talk with you about. Part of it we've already covered. I'm going to be taking on Team Plasma head on, but, I'm going to do it in a way that N, isn't.
He's going to attempt to forcibly usurp the title of Champion from Alder, whereas in doing so, he's willing to throw away part of made the connection between people and Pokémon great. Choice. So I'm going to want to battle you for the eighth Gym Badge, just in time for the League Season to start, so that unlike N, I will send a message that will resonate far beyond the scope he imagined." Both of them were listening intently, but their attention, as well as my own, shifted, when, upon finishing my mini speech, the stone that I was carrying began to shake very noticeably but not quite enough to call it violent. At that point, there was no need for further comment on that from any of us.
"You're certainly on a respectable quest. Very well, meet me in my Gym and we will have our match."
"Ah, but there is one final request I'd like to make. I want to battle your real team, not your League team. So far the League Strength has been rather familiar, but I'm curious as to if it scales backwards, starting from you. I could be wrong, Lenora might have Pokemon that rival yours."
"I can't say I've ever received such a request, but to do so means that you clearly know your way around a Pokémon League. I will also honor this request."
"One last thing… you're probably going to be seeing a very interesting battle style. It is a bit… unorthodox."
We made our way to the Gym which was rather stylised on the outside, but the inside was where the designers shined. On the outside there were two dragon heads, one white, and one black, and I could only conclude that they were for all intents and purposes based on Reshiram and Zekrom, if not stylised. Nobody had seen the dragons for thousands of years, but the main details that survived the test of time were that Zekrom was the black dragon and Reshiram was the white dragon.
Since I'd seen Zekrom with my own eyes at the castle dedicated to it, I figured that the other castle had to be white to match the former black of the other. Inside this design continued with patterns that resembled scales, as well as a few small and large statues. If anyone expected anything OTHER than dragons to be at this gym, then they were clearly blind with how unapologetically devoted to history this place was in a stark contrast to the rest of the futuristic city. There were even murals of the two dragons imbedded in the dragons' scales which gave the impression they were designed to be as tough and enduring as the dragons they represented.
The announcer for the match gave the special stipulations that we'd agreed upon. "This will be a 6 on 6 match. Both opponents are able to freely substitute at will. Healing breaks will also be allowed.
A quite unusual setup compared to the typical Gym battle format but I also wanted to show Drayden just what Team Plasma was up against. With the match underway, I called Heji to the forefront.
Drayden sent out what I figured was his strongest Pokémon first, his Haxorus. When they were both in position the announcer started the match. "Begin!"
For the first time in a long time I started the match with a direct instruction, but that would soon be where the similarities ended.
"We're going all out. Heji, start things off with Iron Tail." A rather simple assessment, based on how easily Brycen's Pokémon went down, facing the real team of the eighth Gym Leader should require us to not hold back, and we weren't going to. That first attack was going to determine the course of the first match, with it being no different than the opening move of chess.
As expected Drayden was carefully examining our first move as well. He called out a defense, not sure how strong Heji was. "Counter it with Dragon Claw." There was no concern in his voice, not that that was a bad thing, it just meant he had as much confidence in his Haxorus as much as I had in Heji.
The two attacks clashed, and it was almost immediately clear that damage had been done. Most of the damage from the attack was countered with the Dragon energy, but some still managed to get through, and manifest itself in the form of an actual visible dent in the plates where I didn't think it was possible. The damage was below the plates and not visible due to it being the skin underneath the plates and scales that was affected.
There was more than a little recoil with the two of them being pushed back, with the Haxorus pushed back further, and shaking off the damage.
"Well then, Heji looks like we're gonna be setting up some shards." Heji gave a quick, 'You got it.' before quickly moving around the field, and placing what would be described as large icicles, using his tail. It outwardly appeared that he was going to be shattering the ice into shards, as would be one way of weakening a dragon, but when no further actions besides the initial placement, it seemed the Haxorus was at a loss.
No attack was ordered or counter deployed, which I found odd but I'd never seen him battle before, so what did I know? This however would prove to be the ultimate downfall due to the fact that once Heji was finished practically transforming the stage, the barrage that was expected initially came in all at once from all sides. There was barely any time to react, but that reaction certainly saved the Haxorus's eyesight as it closed its eyes and covered them to protect its vision.
When the shards connected they made a rather gruesome sound as iron that was as cold as Cold Storage itself pierced into the flesh underneath the plates. It cried out in pain, and when the primary assault was over, it was immediately clear how much damage the attack had really done. Upon coming out of shock, the Haxorus looked at itself and practically fainted on the spot.
The smallest of movements caused immense pain and Drayden was very cautious of what had just happened. Without further hesitation, Drayden returned it to its ball and quickly put it into hibernation mode. "That certainly is a very powerful Luxray you've got there. I'm honestly not sure how to proceed."
"Well, I did warn you, but we're also not finished yet. After this match I have more information to give you."
His next Pokémon was one I'd not seen on my travels, unlike with making the connection to an earlier stage. It certainly was a unique dragon as up to this point I'd never seen a two headed let alone a three headed dragon. What I found odd was the positioning of the two additional heads. They seemed to be where grabbing digits would have been, instead of having them.
This dragon also actually had wings, which was what I was more used to, with the exception of that land shark Garchomp, dragons having wings or, being long like Dragonair. But even then it was more like a shark wyvern than a dragon, but still they both had wings.
"Interesting… a three headed dragon… three times the blindspot reduction potentially. But also three times the vulnerability." I had no idea why I was spouting my analysis out loud but at this point I didn't really care either.
"Alright then Heji, let's give them your speciality." That was all the confirmation he needed before he began dashing around the field again. This time, however, as he was going from spike area to spike area, he was creating a series of linked charges. It was clear what he was doing but there wasn't much that could be done due to Heji moving at lightning speed. The Gym was by no means small, but it was still obviously smaller than Nimbasa's Big Stadium, and even the local Big Stadium. Even at that increased scale, putting things into context, lightning moves fast.
The entire diameter of the Stadium could be traversed by a bolt of lightning three times in just one seconds. For all intents and purposes, to the standard Human eye, and even some Pokémon eyes, Heji was teleporting.
When he finished his setup, there was no doubt that the field had transformed. Continual arcs of electricity were buzzing all around. The Hydreigon was pretty much trapped now.
"I think we both know what's coming now." Was all I needed to say.
"In that case, Hydreigon, ready a Dragon Pulse."
The dragon braced for an impact but unfortunately it was to no avail. The Dragon Pulse absorbed some of the damage but it was not enough to stop the full onslaught. Unlike with the Haxorus, the Hydreigon was not as well armoured, and took a much more direct series of impacts of the Frozen Iron Shard, with a dash of electricity it lead to a very damaging combination. The visible damage was more or less prominently featured on the Hydreigon due to it being a blueish colour. We said we were going all out and we meant it.
Yet again, upon seeing the damage Drayden quickly assessed that all it would take was a paralysing strike and the match would be over, if his Hydreigon couldn't block such a devastating attack. "I see now what you meant about being unorthodox. It is clear that you've thoroughly worked out a strategy to block us from being on the offensive. Because of that, I hereby acknowledge your victory."
"Drayden has forfeited the match! The victory goes to the Challenger!"
With the match over, I was presented with the eighth badge of the Isshu region, which granted me access to complete in the Pokémon League. I tucked away my badge case, and continued my conversation with Drayden back at his office again.
"So you're going to be taking on N at the Pokémon League. From what I can tell, there shouldn't be a problem dealing with Zekrom. However, there's the matter of Reshiram still being in stone form."
"As I said earlier, Reshiram will awaken when it's ready. I'm going to show him the proper way to change. His show of force means he's no different than the Humans he holds in low regard due to Pokémon battles and many other aspects. Whereas we've put in the work, and have symbols that further solidify our bonds."
The badges were physical symbols but even without them our journey was one we'd still remember.
Drayden chimed in with a sagely nod. "I appreciate your conviction. It is rare to see such things in youth these days. But I feel as if you're not finished yet."
"You'd be correct. As it stands, we have defeated two Pokémon League Champions up to this point. Even if he defeats Alder, which is damn near guaranteed, due to him being out of practice, it still won't be a good enough metric. I don't blame him though… if anyone I blame Ghetsis. He likely indoctrinated N somehow and sheltered him from the world or something. He thinks that just because he defeats the Champion, that's it, everyone is suddenly forced to listen to him over a legend." I gave a sigh and Drayden understood, it seemed, and his next move was to ask if he wanted any of this information to be shared
"Some, yes, at the very least, tell them that I've seen Zekrom with my own eyes, N has been chosen, and so have I." There wasn't much more that needed to be said after that, and with that, we parted for the time being.
Cilan was waiting outside where I told him the short version that told him I was headed off to the Pokémon League. He'd been doing a lot of thinking on his own, and had decided that following the holder of the Light Stone was going to be a once in a lifetime experience.