Ash's team emerged from the connecting cave, finding themselves even closer to the snowy mountaintop. The temple that sat at the peak had never been closer. But all three of them knew that there was no time to gawk at the temple's beauty. Especially not when the rift just above it seemed to be attempting to rip the sky in half.
"Whoa...It's beautiful..." May commented.
"I've never seen the Temple this close up..." Akari agreed.
"But the rift looks even worse up close...we have to close it as soon as we can." Ash reminded them.
"Yeah..." Akari nodded.
"I hope this works..." May gulped.
"It has to..." Ash said as he started up the last leg of the mountain. May and Akari followed him up the mountain over the last few feet to the steps of the Temple. However, when they arrived at the base of said staircase, they were surprised to find Commander Kamado now dressed in black armor that Ash recognized as a Kalos design. He took a deep breath and took another step towards the Commander and he kept his gaze on the Temple, though it was clear he knew Ash and the girls were there.
"I see...so you decided to follow me up here Ash..." the Commander spoke solemnly.
"I have the evidence you ask for. I have what we need to stop this crisis."Ash replied.
"So you think you say…" Kamado responded.
"I do Commander." Ash insisted as he took the Red Chain out of his pack and showed it to the Commander.
"Explain." Kamado commanded him. "This is the Red Chain. The Lake Guardians told me to use this to bind the world back together once more. I have strong reasons to believe it will work."
"You believe that these simple chains will fix such a massive problem?" Kamado asked him.
"I do Sir. So please stand down and let us fix this." Ash begged.
"To put the fate of my people at the hands of what could be nothing more than a fairy tale...I do not know if I can do such a thing." The Commander replied, lowering his eyes in skepticism.
"What choice do you have Commander?" Akari piped up from behind Ash.
"I can move forward with the attack on whatever is inside the rift. Take it out the way I know how." He replied.
"You can't. You don't know what's inside there. If you launch an attack a lot of people and Pokemon could get hurt." Ash pointed out.
"Yet you ask me to put my trust in the legends of some unknown Pokémon. As well as their own creation that could cause just as much destruction."
"They can be trusted, Commander! I know they can!" Ash yelled. Commander Kamado was quiet for a few moments, finally seeming to be considering Ash's words. Finally, after what seemed like too long, he turned and faced Ash, taking off one of the pokeballs on his armor.
"...Then face me in battle. The stronger of our ideals will determine the winner." He announced.
"Fine then." Ash agreed, nodding towards the girls to stand back. Akari nodded back and moved out of the way, but May hesitated for a moment before finally taking a deep breath.
"Be careful Ash..." she begged before stepping back.
"I will May." He promised her before returning his gaze to his opponent. Kamado tossed the pokeball and sent out his first Pokémon, a Braviary.
"Braviary…alright let's go Pikachu." Ash said, nodding to his buddy.
"On it." Pikachu nodded back before he jumped onto the field and sparked his cheeks.
"Steel Wing now!" Kamado commanded his Pokemon.
"Ary!" Braviary screeched as he flew toward Pikachu with a lightning-fast Steel Wing.
"Counter with Iron Tail!" Ash called out. Pikachu encased his tail in iron and then charged at Braviary, clashing his Iron Tail with Braviary's Steel Wing, seemingly an even match of power on both sides.
"Grab Pikachu now!" Kamado ordered his Pokemon, prompting Braviary to grab Pikachu's ear in his beak before Pikachu had a chance to move away from the clash.
"Ack!" Pikachu yelped as Braviary took him high into the sky.
"Big mistake." Ash said with a small smirk. "Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"
"Take this!" Pikachu glared as he fired off a powerful Thunderbolt, causing Braviary to screech out in immense pain. Pikachu kept up his Thunderbolt until Braviary finally released Pikachu from his grip. Both Pokemon started falling toward the rocky ground below. Pikachu flipped through the air and landed perfectly on his feet while Braviary crashed to the ground and fainted.
"Hhmph." Commander Kamado grunted as he recalled Braviary and then sent out his next Pokémon. In a small flash of light, Golem appeared on the field.
"Golem!"
"Earthquake now!" Golem leaped into the air slammed his body hard into the ground, and launched a powerful Earthquake right toward Pikachu.
"Use Iron Tail!" Ash called out. Pikachu nodded and after coating his tail in iron once again, he slammed the Iron Tail into the ground and launched himself into the air to dodge Earthquake.
"Rock Blast!" Kamado countered. Golem suddenly fired off several large boulders as part of his Rock Blast. Pikachu's eyes widened as he realized that while in the air, he had no easy way to dodge. The boulders came quickly and Pikachu was hit by the attack over and over again, causing him to crash back into the ground upon his landing.
"Oh no Pikachu!" Ash gasped.
"Finish it with Earthquake now!" the Commander yelled. Golem slammed his body into the ground once more and launched Earthquake again. Pikachu had no time to try and dodge and ended up getting hit hard with the super-effective move. He took on massive damage from the attack and ended up collapsing onto the field and fainting.
"Oh no..." May whispered, holding her heart out of instinct.
"Poor Pikachu..." Akari shared her sentiment.
"Well done Golem." Kamado nodded in approval.
"Golem!" Golem roared in response. Ash sighed to himself at his carelessness before walking over and gently picking Pikachu up.
"You did great buddy. Get some rest." He whispered before heading over to May, surprising both her and Akari. "Can you watch over him please May?"
"Oh…" May blushed a little in surprise as she took Pikachu into her arms. "O-Ok..."
"Ow…" Pikachu groaned as he slowly woke up. He looked up and was quick to realize that it was May holding him. A tired smile lit up his face and he snuggled into the familiar feeling of her arms around him. May gave a small smile as she too felt a familiar feeling as she held Pikachu. Ash gave them both a small smile before returning to the battlefield and grabbing a new pokeball.
"Basculegion help me out!" he called as he tossed the pokeball into the air. His Basculegion was released from the ball and roared out loudly, ready for a battle.
"Bas!"
"Rock Blast one more time Golem!" Kamado ordered his Pokemon. Golem put his hands out and fired off the attack once again, sending several boulders hurtling toward Basculegion.
"Use Shadow Ball to counter!" Ash called. Basculegion fired several Shadow Balls at the Rock Blast, causing the attacks to collide and explode, canceling each other out and opening up an opportunity for Ash. "Aqua Jet!"
"Culeg!" Basculegion answered as he coated himself in water and flew into the smoke, emerging on the other side and striking Golem with Aqua Jet before they could counter. Golem rolled backward from the hit and struggled to move after so much damage, which Ash quickly capitalized on.
"Now use Wave Crash!" he yelled. Basculegion again coated himself in water, this time more ranging and powerful waves, before charging in and striking Golem with a super effective Wave Crash. Golem was knocked backward and crashed into the ground where he fainted.
"Hm…" Kamado mumbled silently as he recalled Golem and then brought out the next Pokémon.
"Clefable!" a happy pink Pokemon announced herself as she appeared on the field.
"Use Meteor Mash!" the Commander ordered her. Clefable's fist began to glow with a star-filled light as she swung at Basculegion with Meteor Mash.
"Dodge it!" Ash called quickly, prompting Basculegion to leap into the air and dodge her attack.
"Don't let him get away! Use Moonblast!" Kamado commanded Clefable. The Fairy type formed a ball of pink energy in her hands and fired Moonblast while Basculegion was up in the air. With nowhere to go, the Water-type was hit and began to fall toward the ground.
"Legion!"
"One more Moonblast!"
"Fable!" Clefable cried out as she fired Moonblast again. Basculegion was hit again just before he crashed into the rocky ground.
"Basculegion!" Ash gasped. The smoke began to clear and revealed Basculegion fainted on the ground. He sighed and returned Basculegion to his pokeball. "Good job Basculegion. You did really well."
"They're even again…" Akari mumbled as she watched Ash take out another pokéball and throw it.
"Go Braviary!" he announced as his Braviary appeared on the field.
"Brav!"
"Clefable use Meteor Mash!" Clefable heeded the command and charged at Braviary with her fist glowing once again.
"Fly up and use Esper Wing!" Ash countered. Braviary too followed the order and flew up into the air to provide himself some time to charge the attack and then fired off an Esper Wing at Clefable. Using her Meteor Mash to defend instead, Clefable swung her fists, knocking down the Psychic energy before it can hit her. "Quickly now use Steel Wing!"
"Viary!" Braviary squawked as he flew at Clefable with his wings coated in steel.
"Use Meteor Mash again!" Kamado called for the counter. Clefable charged at Braviary with her firsts glowing yet again. The two Pokemon clashed with immense power on both sides. Steel Wing hit Clefable in the chest at the same time that Meteor Mash hit Braviary in the jaw. Both Pokemon flew backward from the hits and slammed into the rocky walls of the mountain. Once the dust settled, it was revealed that both Pokemon had fainted.
"Whoa…a double knock out…" May gasped as Commander Kamado and Ash both recalled their Pokemon. Kamado was the first to make a choice, sending out his next Pokémon. A large Normal type took the field and yawned through his entrance.
"Snor..."
"A Snorlax…" Ash mumbled under his breath as he picked his next pokeball and threw it. "Decidueye let's go!"
"Decidueye!" Decidueye announced himself.
"Snorlax use Body Slam!" Kamado ordered the Sleeping Pokemon. Snorlax obeyed the command and jumped into the air, trying to use Body Slam and land his giant body on Decidueye.
"Stop them with Aura Sphere!" Ash countered. Decidueye flared open his wings and fired Aura Sphere at Snorlax, hitting the massive Pokemon and sending him flying despite his massive weight. "Now use Triple Arrows!"
"Decid!" Decidueye chirped as he loaded his feather bow and fired three arrows at the falling Snorlax. His massive body left too much of a target to miss and each arrow landed on their target, causing even more supper effective damage. Snorlax crashed into the ground so hard that the entire mountain seemed to shake.
"Snorlax no!" Kamado gasped as he focused on the dust cloud rising from the impact. Ash grit his teeth in contrast, hoping that the battle was finally over as the girls on his side hoped for a similar outcome. Finally, the dust settled and everyone saw that Snorlax was laying on the ground, now fainted. "Impossible!"
"Alright! Way to go Decidueye!" Ash cheered as he ran to his partner and hugged him.
"Ueye!" Decidueye chirped happily.
"He did it!" May and Akari cheered at the same time, catching them both off guard. They both quickly looked away from one another as the tension began to rise again. Meanwhile, Commander Kamado recalled his Snorlax as Ash recalled his Decidueye. The two trainers faced one another as an awkward silence passed.
"Well...it seems you have won..." Kamado sighed before he suddenly dropped onto his knees and bowed, surprising everyone by his actions. "Forgive me for suspecting you, Ash!"
"I-It's alright...you were only worried about everyone at the village and acted hastily. I know you were just trying to save everyone…" Ash answered.
"He's right. We really do have a way to solve this crisis, Commander. We just all have to work together." Akari insisted. Commander Kamado was quiet for a few more moments before getting back onto his feet.
"Then let us finally end this. Together." He announced.
"Right." Ash smiled, happy to have the Commander's confidence in him restored. Suddenly everyone heard a flurry of footsteps running up the hill.
"Ash!"
"Akari!" everyone turned around and they were surprised to see Irida and Adaman running to join them.
"What are you two doing up here?" Akari wondered.
"We're here to help." Irida answered.
"However we can." Adaman nodded, making Ash smile.
"Thanks you two." He replied.
"So what's the plan?" The Diamond Clan Leader asked.
"Everyone just follow me and be ready for a fight." Ash answered as he began to walk up the Temple steps. Everyone else nodded and began to follow him, but May moved a bit faster to catch up with him, drawing his attention.
"Are you sure about this...?" she whispered softly.
"I am. I have you here." He answered in a low voice, earning a blush across May's cheeks.
"...Ok...just please be careful…" she answered.
"You do the same..." he replied as everyone arrived at the base of the temple's altar. Ash looked up at the rift before pulling out the Red Chain, hoping what he needed to do would become clear. Nothing happened for a few moments, but all of a sudden, Adaman groaned and held his head.
"Adaman?" Irida wondered as she drew everyone else's attention.
"Something wrong?" Ash asked.
"There's some kind of...voice...inside my head..." he answered, obviously in some discomfort.
"A voice?" Akari wondered, confused by the statement. Ash however realized quickly that it had to be telepathy. He'd experienced it enough times before after all.
"What is it saying?" he asked.
"It's saying...you who hold the Red Chain...try to catch me then!" Adaman answered, surprising everyone.
"What?" May wondered aloud.
"Adaman what are you saying? Catch you?" Irida asked with a similar confusion.
"Not me...whatever Pokémon is speaking to me. It's saying that the frenzied one is coming and that he wants to help us stop him." Adaman clarified.
"What Pokemon could possibly-" Kamado tried to question him, but May suddenly cut him off when she noticed something.
"Up there!" she gasped, pointing to a portal that has suddenly started opening up above the alter's stage. Everyone quickly followed her gaze and looked up at the portal as it grew inside. Slowly, a very large Pokemon began to emerge from the portal. He had dark blue skin and a diamond crystal in his chest. Spines lined his neck and back, and a powerful presence that made just about everyone shudder. The Pokemon landed on the stage before them and roared loudly.
"What the?!" May gasped.
"Who's that Pokemon?!" Akari echoed her sentiment as Ash grit his teeth.
"It's Dialga!"
To be Continued...