Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story. The OC's belong to their respective owners.
BGM: Wayward Cave (Pokemon Legends Arceus)
"Hmm? Now this is most peculiar…" Ingo rubbed his chin. "I could have sworn there were torches marked along the path."
"Well, don't look at me, I didn't take 'em down." Adaman said.
"...I never set foot in this place." Irida mumbled.
Adaman folded his arms. "It has to be Melli then. Not sure why he'd do such a thing."
"Remind me why he's part of the Diamond Clan?" Ruby asked.
"He reveres Almighty Sinnoh as the creator of time and Hisui, so of course, naturally, he'd fit right in. However…" Adaman scratched his head. "He's a bit of an odd one. He doesn't get along with most of the Diamond clan members, he keeps suspecting that Iscan is hiding something and above all else, he's… a jerk to put it best. Yet he always behaves when I call him out."
"I wonder if he's a Pearl spy?" Coco wondered.
"Not that I would know of." Irida said.
"Indeed, I would have suspected something like that but he shows no signs of being traitorous." Adaman explained. "...Wait a second, wasn't there an Alpha Crobat that lives here?"
"A-Al-Alpha…?!" Gloria whimpered.
"It must be taking a nap somewhere." Ingo said.
"Probably." Adaman nodded and then turned to Gloria. "Forgive my rudeness, but I'm curious. Why are you terrified of the Zubat line? Now, don't get me wrong, I don't blame you considering Golbat and Crobat tend to suck people and Pokemon dry of their blood…"
"I was ambushed when I was a wee girl… a Golbat and a Crobat ganged up on me when we were watching Volbeat and Illumise in Johto. Their fangs were this close to biting my neck until my bro and my best friend Hop got them off of me. Ever since then, I can't stand to look at 'em… and while I will admit Zubat aren't that bad, I know what they turn into… which is why I'm afraid of them too."
"Oooof, that'll just make anyone terrified just by hearing their names." Adaman said.
"Indeed." Ingo nodded.
Gloria sighed. "It sucks. I'm the Champion of Galar for Arceus's sake and I'm petrified of a fockin' Crobat…"
"Wait, Champion of Galar?" Akari spoke up. "As in, like… queen of Galar?"
Adaman's eyes widened. "My word, I didn't know we had royalty in our presence!" He said as he and Akari bowed before her. "Forgive us, your excellency. We had no idea that-"
"That's not what being a champion means." Steven chuckled. "She's not even royalty."
"Oh, she isn't?" Adaman stood back up. "Then how come you didn't say anything?"
Gloria sweatdropped. "Um… ye did that so fast, I dinnae what to say…"
Akari snickered. "She's got us there."
Adaman sheepishly rubbed his head. "Fair enough."
"Champion… Champion…" Ingo mused. "Somehow, that word just unlocked a memory…" He said. "Apparently, there is someone that looks just like me, yet I can't remember his name. That's unfortunate. I feel like we were quite the pair."
"I'm sure you'll get your memories back in no time." N said.
"Indeed." Ingo nodded as they found the torches leaning against a cliff wall. "Ah, there they are. I'll be right back. I will place these down at the proper junctions."
"Let me help you with that." Adaman said as he joined them. "Hang tight, we'll only be a moment!"
"Hurry back…" Gloria mumbled. "This cave is giving me anxiety."
Marnie took her hand, gently squeezing with her cybernetic hand, giving her a soft smile. "It'll be okay." She said as Gloria smiled back.
"Gol! Golbat Bat!"
"Mmmph!" Gloria stiffened as two Golbat started to swarm them.
"Geez, where'd they come from?!" Yang wondered.
"Sparky, Thundershock!" Nora called out her Flaffy.
"FLAAAAAFFFFYYYYYYY!" Sparky unleashed Thundershock on the Golbat, immediately shocking the duo as they out a few cries and flew away.
"Yeah, that's what I thought! Good riddance to ya!" Nora immediately turned to Gloria. "We're not gonna get them near you!" She winked.
"Thank ye…" Gloria smiled.
"What was that we just heard?" Adaman approached as he spotted the Flaffy. "...Golbat?"
"Yeah." Ruby nodded.
"Shoot, I forgot Golbat live in these caves… apologies Gloria."
"No, no, it's okay…"
"Hmm, something tells me Melli was behind this. This is probably his way of testing you." Ingo guessed.
"Testing us? I didn't think "testing us" was codeword for "trying to kill us"." Jaune said.
"I don't think he's going that far." Ren said.
"Ren, he picked up all the torches for us to get lost in, and may I remind you of a potential alpha… "you-know-what"?" Jaune shifted his eyes to Gloria. "I'd say he's trying to bump us off."
"I do agree, something about this is a bit strange." Pyrrha agreed.
"Mmm… even I have to agree on this." Adaman nodded.
"The good news is, we are about to leave these caves momentarily." Ingo said as they walked out of the cave.
End BGM
BGM: Coronet Highlands - Base (Pokemon Legends Arceus)
"And here we are, away from those infernal Golbat. We should consider ourselves lucky that we didn't run into that Alpha Crobat!" Ingo said. "Now the only things we have to worry about are aggressive Golduck and Parasect!"
"Well, better than the alternative…" Weiss said as Gloria took a deep breath and used both of her hands to slap her cheeks.
"Alright! Now let's meet this Sneasler!" Gloria said, her smile returning.
"There's the girl we know!" Ruby smiled.
Marnie smiled as well. "It sure is."
"You feeling any better?" Adaman asked, nudging Irida.
"Not… entirely." Irida mumbled. "Although, I will admit, this does get a bit off of my mind a bit."
Adaman smiled. "That's the spirit!"
"...I don't get it. Usually we're at each other's throats. Why are you so eager to make sure I'm okay?" Irida wondered as they walked along the path, making sure they wouldn't get in the path of an aggressive Golduck.
"Well… uh… how do I put this…?"
"Mana Mana~!" Manaphy cheekily winked.
Adaman looked at Manaphy. "What exactly are you giving me that look fo-..." He blushed. "Ooooh no, I know what you're thinking! Nope, I do not like her that much."
"Good, because sometimes I still can't stand you…" Irida mumbled.
"While it's true we can't stand each other… there's just… I dunno, this Ghetsis loser stole something from the Pearl Clan. It's true that we don't get along, but I'll be damned if I didn't help out a fellow Pokemon lover to get Kleavor back for you."
"...Admittedly, if our roles were reversed, I'd be finding ways to help out too." Irida said.
"See? Common ground!" Adaman grinned.
"Yeah! No need to worry, Irida! We'll get Kleavor back!" Akari said.
Irida gave them a sad smile. "...Thank you." She said, some color in her eyes returning as heard thunder clapping as they looked off into the distance to see a space time rift forming high into the mountain.
"Well, I guess we'll miss whatever's going on in that one." Whitley said.
"I'm sure it'll be fine." Willow said as they stopped at the entrance of a quarry, where Melli was waiting for them.
"Nice of you to show up." Melli said, casually leaning on the entryway.
"Melli, did you happen to have anything to do with sabotaging everyone by getting rid of the torches?" Ingo asked.
"What? You expect that the person who would do such a thing is moi? Oh Ingo, I thought you were better than that!" Melli said innocently.
"Another thing. An Alpha Crobat is mysteriously missing from Wayward Cave. Now, it could just be that we were extremely lucky, given how the champion of Galar has… issues with the Zubat line." Ingo continued.
"Champion of Galar? And who is this "champion", I may ask?"
"That'd be me…" Gloria said.
Interesting! Melli thought, hiding a smirk. "Fascinating. I had no idea we had a celebrity in our midst. Why, I had no idea that the Alpha Crobat could be missing. Who knows, perhaps Plasma caught the sucker."
"Mmmm…" Adaman folded his arms.
"But… I must confess, I actually did put away the torches. Think of it as an additional extra challenge that I cooked up for you."
"That cave is home to nasty Golbat, including that Alpha Crobat I've mentioned. You should be lucky that Miss Valkyrie had used her Flaffy to scare away those Golbat." Ingo said.
"See? Nothing to worry about! I'm sure if you met that Crobat, your little sheep will knock it down. I don't see any harm in it."
"We could've been ambushed!" Velvet said.
"Oh, why don't you go eat your carrots, you scrawny Lopunny? The humans that are above you are talking."
"Hey! That's my Lopunny that you're dissing, pal." Coco glared.
"Melli, I am only going to say this once. Let us through." Ingo said.
"Oh, you want to pass? Sure, if you can beat me in a fight. Champion of Galar! I request that we have a little duel."
Gloria raised an eyebrow. "Okay? Fine by me." She said, pulling out her Pokeball.
Oh, I'm going to enjoy every bit of this. He smirked, pulling out an Ultra Ball. "Go-"
"Enough!" Adaman spoke up. "Melli, this is no time for your games. We need to make sure Lord Electrode is okay. Now let us through this quarry. You can have your fun after we deal with Lord Electrode."
"Oh, fine…" Melli put the Ultra Ball away. "Party pooper…" He pouted. "But know this! I shall we waiting for you at Lord Electrode's domain!" He took off running.
"What was that all about?" Ruby asked.
"Sheesh, I was so lookin' forward to wipe that smirk off of his face." Gloria said.
"Well, there's always next time." Victor shrugged.
"Is he always like this?" Dorothea asked.
"I'm going to be honest, this is one of his somewhat better days." Adaman said.
"Better?" Raven raised an eyebrow.
"The way he insulted Velvet…" Oran turned to Velvet.
"I'm okay." Velvet gave him a reassuring smile.
"That was mean though!"
"I agree. The way he just casually said that…" Blake shook her head.
"I did say "somewhat"." Adaman pointed out.
"Even so, something about that Ultra Ball…" Akari mumbled to herself.
"Let's go. We've no time to waste." Ingo said as they walked down the steps.
"Ah, Ingo! I was wondering where you ran off to." A voice said as they turned to see Volo walking down the steps.
"Ah, Volo. What can I do for you?"
"I was wondering if you had any insight on your memories ever since you showed up here one day. Have any memories returned?"
"Nothing too important, I'm afraid. I'm not sure where I came from or if I had any family. Regardless, I'm not going to allow these lost memories to derail me. I have full confidence that I will get my memories back one day."
"Glad to see you in full spirits. I was hoping if you had any info on what the inside of a space time rift looks like."
"I'm afraid I can't help you with that. I'm sure the other folk here might inquire something."
"Ah yes, what was it like? Surely there was something interesting!" Volo smiled.
"Eh… something about someone screaming "Avada Kedavree" or something." Ruby said.
"Something about a man wanting Spider-Man." Blake said.
"Someone saying they don't give a damn." Ghira said.
"I… think this one person didn't want to be called Shirley." Nora said.
"Something something… wanting to know what a Marshall Wallfrank looks like or something." Jaune said.
"General Kenobi, I remember that much." Summer said.
"Everything was all a blur…" Cynthia added.
Volo sweatdropped. "I… see… that doesn't help much. I was wondering if you saw what Almighty Sinnoh looked like." He said before shrugging. "Oh well, I suppose I'll see what's in there some other day." He turned around and walked off. "See you around!"
"...Was that odd to anyone else or was it just me?" Marnie asked.
"No no, something did feel odd about him compared to the other times we met him." Kali nodded.
"I'm sure he's just curious." Adaman said.
"...Who the hell is Spider-Man?" Irida wondered.
"I wouldn't worry too much about it. What we went through is nothing more than a headache." N said.
"I can believe that." Irida said as they walked off.
"Oh! Speaking of which." Ruby turned to Galactic. "Did you three get any headaches while going through the Space Time portal?"
"Uh… what headache?" Mars asked. "I was fading from existence but I don't recall anything about a headache."
"Really? You guys didn't go through a Pop Culture tunnel?" Yang asked.
Jupiter raised an eyebrow. "What's a Pop Culture tunnel?"
…Lucky! Everyone else thought as they walked through the Ancient Quarry, where some friendly Bronzor curiously looked at them while a Bronzong was giving them the stink eye before they walked out of the quarry.
"We're just a little farther now." Ingo said as they walked through the area, taking special care over some Teddiursa and an Ursaring, which was enough to make Yang's Teddiursa sad as Yang wrapped her arms around him to hug him.
"Okay, okay… time out!" Nora said. "I can't let this slide! You guys didn't even meet Deadpool?"
"Who's Deadpool?" Saturn asked.
"Guy dressed in all red, katana blades, has a mouth on him… probably be best friends with Ibuki…" She muttered the last part to herself.
"Nope, never met him."
Nora jawdropped. "HOW?"
"I guess we just got lucky." Mars shrugged.
"Oh, he wasn't that bad." Rosalina said. "...Aside from that one moment when he was talking to another version of himself."
"Yeah, I suppose we did get lucky." Jupiter nodded as they traversed through the area, weaving around a sleeping Luxray as they got to a clearing before Ingo turned to the left and walked up to a cliffside.
"Here we are. Sneasler's domain." Ingo said, pulling out a Celestica flute. "Allow me to call her up." He said and then played the flute.
Pause BGM
"Sneeese!"
Suddenly, Sneasler front flipped off of the cliffside and then landed on the ground. "Sneasler Snease!"
"Oh. My. Gosh." Weiss stared at her. "...She's beautiful!"
"Only you would call an ice type "beautiful"." Blake teased.
"I mean, look at her!"
"Ah, but this Sneasler is not an Ice Type." Ingo said. "She is a Fighting/Poison type!"
"She's WHAT?" Weiss said in surprise.
"Well, that's surprising." Blake said.
"...I don't care. She's still cute!" Weiss said, and then suddenly, a Pokeball opened up as her Weavile came out. "Huh? Razor?"
"Wea…" Weavile glared at Sneasler.
"Snease…" Sneasler narrowed her eyes… before they suddenly flashed their claws.
"Wait, what are you…?!"
"Hmm! Perhaps we should stand back. This could get interesting." Ingo mused as the two Pokemon circled around each other, both of them never taking their eyes off of each other. With a smirk, they both lunged!
BGM: Battle! Warden (Pokemon Legends Arceus)
The Free Climb Pokemon - Sneasler
Razor quickly used Metal Claw on her, where she blocked with her claws and then used Dire Claw to counter attack, knocking Razor back as Sneasler used Swords Dance and lunged at Razor, swinging her claws down.
Razor rolled out of the way as Sneasler struck the rock wall instead as he used Hone Claws and then used Fury Swipes. Sneasler blocked most of the attacks with her claws, but got scratched on her arms as Razor then used a point blank Dark Pulse, making Sneasler flinch and took a step back.
"Wea!" Razor lunged ahead and used Metal Claw, but then Sneasler stood her ground and used Close Combat to punch and kick the Weavile into a rock wall. Razor bounced off the wall and fell on one knee, but he got back up on his feet as Sneasler did a "come at me" gesture as Weavile smirked and then used Dark Pulse again, striking the Sneasler but she jumped up into the air and Poison Jabbed him, but he rolled out of the way as Sneasler punched the ground.
"Snease!" Sneasler turned to the Weavile as he struck her with Fury Swipes. She responded with Dire Claw, slashing him away. Razor growled, taking a step as he suddenly felt paralyzed.
"Wea?!"
"What's going on? Why is he paralyzed?" Weiss asked.
"I'm afraid Dire Claw has an effect that can either poison, paralyze or make them drowsy." Ingo said.
"Weavile… WEAVI!" Razor fought through the paralysis, which was enough to surprise Sneasler as he jumped in and slashed her with Metal Claw where she backhanded him away and then used Poison Jab again, but Razor weaved his head to avoid it and then countered with a Dark Pulse to knock the Sneasler back.
The two of them charged at each other once more, their claws clashing against one another as both of them smirked as they both took a step back. Both of them seeming to wait for the other to strike…
End BGM
Resume Coronet Highlands - Base BGM
Until both the Weavile and Sneasler suddenly bowed, then Razor walked up as the two shook on it with both of them smiling.
N chuckled. "I believe they just found respect for one another." He said.
"I wonder what caused him to come out though…" Weiss said.
"Probably because this is an ancient Pokemon, I believe Razor just wanted to see how tough his ancestors were." Pyrrha said. "That's… just my guess, considering my Scizor fought Kleavor."
"That's probably it." Weiss nodded as Marnie walked over and used a Full Restore on both the Weavile and Sneasler.
"There we go." Marnie smiled as N brought out his own Celestica Flute and started to play a song. Sneasler closed her eyes and then nodded.
"Snease Snease." She smiled, tossing N the Toxic Plate.
"This Sneasler will help you climb the mountain and toward your destination." Ingo said. "However, it will take multiple stops."
"I wouldn't worry about that." Raven said as she picked up Oran and gave him to Sneasler as Sneasler started climbing up the mountain.
"Oh… I was just going to use my cosmic powers." Rosalina admitted.
"Yeah, but this is more fun." Raven said.
"Snease! Sneeeeease!"
"Good to go." Raven said, making a portal as Ingo looked at it in surprise as everyone walked in, then Ingo walked in after them and found themselves at the peak, which was also enough to make Sneasler do a double take.
"Snease…"
Oran smiled. "That was fun!"
Raven chuckled, patting his head. "Sure was, kiddo."
The group walked through some ruins, where some Nosepass and Sudowoodo curiously looked at them. As they continued to walk, they would see statues of Dialga and Palkia.
End BGM
BGM: Coronet Highlands - Summit (Pokemon Legends Arceus)
Adaman and Irida gasped. "The statues of the Almighty Sinnoh…" They both said before they turned to each other.
"Look, Irida, I know I said some things-"
"No no, it's okay. Maybe Almighty Sinnoh could be this Primal time lord that you hold so dear to. I'm not going to hold it against you."
"But hold on a moment! Perhaps Almighty Sinnoh could be a space lord! Probably has an awesome voice too!"
"I seriously doubt that…"
"Perhaps Almighty Sinnoh isn't just two beasts but one different beast entirely." Ingo mentioned. "...Forgive me, I'm just spit balling."
"A different beast entirely… could it be possible?" Adaman wondered.
"I never considered that." Irida said.
"Perhaps one day, you'll know the truth." Cynthia said as they walked past the ruins, unaware of a Pokemon rolling toward them.
"Tinka? Tinka Tink!"
"Hmm?" Nora turned her head, seeing a friendly Pokemon nudging her ankle. "Oh! Aren't you a cute thing!" She smiled.
"Um, Nora? That's a Hisuian Voltorb!" Ren said as everyone took a step back.
"Voltorb Torb!"
"Aww, it's a friendly one~!" Nora smiled, giggling at it as the Voltorb used Spark, but Nora tanked it like she usually does. "Ooooh, thanks for the power boost!"
"Voltorb?!" Voltorb cried in surprise before its eyes sparkled. "Volt Volt!" Voltorb bounced happily and rolled around her feet.
"You wanna come with me?"
"Volt!"
Nora grinned. "Sweet, I got a Voltorb~!"
"...That's… lovely." Ren sweatdropped.
"Weird, aren't Voltorb usually explosive and hostile?" Ruby wondered.
"The Voltorb here are friendly and excitable. However they tend to be a nuisance to folks when they discharge. As a result, they tend to plug their holes before kicking them out to town." Ingo said. "Curious how your friend doesn't seem to mind…"
"She's got a high resistance to it." Jaune said as they walked further ahead until they came across Electrode's domain, where Melli awaited them.
"There you all are! I've been waiting for you."
End BGM
"Oh, hello Melli." Ingo greeted.
"I don't know why you're going after Lord Electrode. I'm sure that this is actually a blessing from Almighty Sinnoh. This lightning gave him absolute power! He's loving it!"
"No, I'm pretty sure this is making him suffer." Adaman said.
"Hmph, if that is what you believe. But first, I propose that we have a battle."
"Again? You're still at this?" Adaman asked in dismay.
"No no, let me handle this real quick." Gloria said as she approached him. "I believe he wished to fight me."
"Indeed, I have! Choose your Pokemon, miss champion!"
Gloria smirked, immediately calling out her Cinderace. "Raaaaaaace!"
"Fascinating, that's a good pick. As for me… I choose… this!" He smirked, proceeding to whistle… and right on cue, the Alpha Crobat swooped down.
"CROOOOOO!"
BGM: Danger! There's Trouble! - Version 3 (Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX)
"Mmmph!" Gloria immediately stiffened.
"An Alpha Crobat?!" Ruby exclaimed in shock.
"Race Race!" Cinderace immediately squared up, throwing a few air punches and ready to fight the massive Crobat. He turned to Gloria with a thumbs up, but his smile disappeared as Gloria was trembling like a leaf.
"No... no...!" Gloria whimpered, her legs giving in as she collapsed, her pupils shrinking, her breathing heavy and quick to the point where she was almost hyperventilating. She almost immediately put herself in a fetal position.
"Gloria!" Victor immediately got by her side as did everyone else.
"Hahahaha! So it's true then! You get panic attacks over the sight of a Crobat! You call yourself a so-called champion of Galar, yet here you are shaking like a leaf! And here I thought Scots were rambunctious lunatics! Turns out you're not truly Scottish, in fact, you're just a wee little noodle just like the rest!"
"Keep talking, big guy and I promise you, it won't just be the legs!" Nora glared.
"Why? I'm just having some fun! There's nothing wrong with it~"
"Nothing wrong with it?!" Byleth was in complete disbelief. "You're exploiting a girl's worst fear just for some self gratification!"
"Get it away, get it away, get it away..." Gloria kept muttering to herself as Cinderace was giving Melli a dirty look.
"So what if I am? If this girl can't handle an Alpha Crobat, then she can't handle Lord Electrode! And if she can't handle a Crobat just by looking at it, then frankly-"
"That's enough, Melli! Cease this now!" Adaman yelled.
"Why should I? None of you seem to realize that Lord Electrode's been blessed! I'm stopping you fools from interfering with Almighty Sinnoh's blessing! You've interfered with Kleavor, Lady Lilligant, and Arcanine's blessings from Almighty Sinnoh! Don't you realize what you're doing? Ghetsis kidnapping Kleavor is punishment from Almighty Sinnoh!"
Irida's eyes widened, tearing up when she heard that. "Almighty Sinnoh... punished me...?"
"You heard right, Irida! If you left Kleavor in that state, Almighty Sinnoh wouldn't have taken him away from you!"
Ingo tipped his hat down. "Such insolence..."
"And now, it's time we end this charade." Melli smirked. "Crobat, be a good boy and use Cross Poison on the champion!"
Jupiter gasped. "He's planning on attacking her?!"
"That little...!" Mars growled as the Crobat unleashed Cross Poison on Gloria.
"LRRRROOOOAAAARRRRRD!"
Instantly, Zacian came out of Gloria's Pokeball and blocked the attack with her own sword, deflecting it away... and slowly approached Melli with a snarl. The mere presence of Zacian was enough to intimidate even the Alpha Crobat.
"C-Cro..." The Crobat gulped.
"Hmph! You don't scare me." He called out his Skuntank and a Skorupi, however, even they were unnerved by the angry Zacian. "Tch, whatever! All of you don't deserve to go into Lord Electrode's domain! And another thing, Champion of Galar, you are nothing more than-"
Suddenly, a bandaged fist went flying into his face, punching him straight into a rock wall.
End BGM
"You have some nerve..." Marnie said, a shadow cast over her cybernetic eyes as she grabbed him by the collar. "You can insult my girl all you want... but when you exploit her fears and attempt to hurt her with it..."
The shadow disappeared, her eyes turning red. "That's when you cross the damn line!"
"Ha! You don't scare me."
"Buddy, I can skewer you in many different ways that they'll have to write a whole damn book about it. Where should I start first? Your chest? Your stomach? Your shoulder blades? How about your knees? Better yet, how about I go for your fuckin' throat!"
"Hahahaha! You can go on all you want, but you and your dumb dog won't scare me one bi-"
RRRRIIIIIIIIP
Melli stopped, feeling a blade pressing against his neck. His eyes shrinking as he looked down. He could have sworn that blade wasn't there a second ago... come to think of it, why is there a blade coming out of her arm?
"Give me a reason. I beg you." Marnie said coldly. "Do I detect some fear in your eyes?"
"N-Now hold on a m-moment... let's talk this through!" Melli whimpered.
"You should've thought of that before you opened your Arceus damned mouth! Maybe I ought to carve those lips off... or better yet, cut off your tongue."
"Marnie!" Victor said. "That's enough..."
Marnie shifted her head toward Victor, her eyes still red. Both of them looked at each other as Marnie slowly nodded and backed away.
"Oh bless you!" Melli praised, sighing with relief. "I could give you a hug and-"
Victor clenched his fists. "You know... I consider myself to be a reasonable person, and normally, I am. That said, however, you were messing with my younger sister."
"Y-Y-Younger sister? Th-then..."
BGM: Danger! There's Trouble! - Version 4 (Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX)
"That's right. Unlike my sister who's pretty much a party animal, I'm more on the laid back side. However, when you go and mess with my youngest and only sister..."
Victor pulled out an Ultra Ball.
"Then the nice guy act disappears." He tossed the Ultra Ball up in the air, opening up to reveal…
"BAAAAAAXCAAALIIIII!"
"What the heck is that?" Weiss wondered.
Victor also pulled out a Tera Orb, aiming directly at Baxcalibur and proceeded to Terastalize him, where they saw the Dragon jewel on his head.
"Wh-what in...?!" Melli whimpered.
"Ice Beam." Victor said in a low voice as Baxcalibur unleashed Ice Beam on the Alpha Crobat, freezing it on the spot. "Dragon Glaive!"
Energy shot out of Baxcalibur's crown jewel. "BAAAAAAX!" Baxcalibur took a running start before quickly flipping over and unleashing Dragon Glaive on the Crobat, shattering the ice and KOing the Alpha Crobat.
Melli gulped. "Skuntank! Skorupi!" He called to them, but noticed that both Pokemon hid behind rocks. He slowly turned to Victor, the Terastalized Baxcalibur, Marnie and Zacian.
"A-Adaman! Help me out here!"
"Why should I? You brought this upon yourself." He said in disgust.
Melli's eyes widened. "You would abandon a fellow Diamond Clan member?!"
"From where I'm standing, you're no Diamond."
Melli looked at them fearfully as he pulled out a smoke bomb and threw it down, quickly making a get away... only for Ruby to intercept him, holding her scythe and transforming into her Zinogre form.
"Where do you think you're going?" She growled as he turned around to see everyone having their weapons drawn.
He pulled out a mud ball, looking directly at Ruby as he attempted to throw it, when two Shadow Balls struck him. "Gah!" He yelped as they looked up to see two Misdreavus coming toward them.
"Misdrea! Misdrea!"
"Misdreavus Mis!"
Ruby looked at the other Misdreavus, noticing that it's features looked a bit more feral and it's ghostly wispy "hair" looked much longer and pointier. "Huh...?"
"Is that a… Hisuian Misdreavus?" Nora wondered.
"No, I think that's a different Misdreavus." N said as the two of them glared at Melli.
"Misdreaaaaaa-" Misdreavus used Hypnosis on Melli.
"Hnnngh! Nnngh…! Mmm…"
Melli fell to the ground.
End BGM
"That should do it." Ruby nodded, going back to normal as the other Misdreavus looked at Ruby. "Um… hi there." She said as the Misdreavus curiously floated toward her, playfully circling around her.
"Vus Drea!"
Ruby pulled her hand up as the Misdreavus nuzzled against the hand. Ruby smiled. "You're cute." She said as she turned around to see the other smaller Misdreavus nuzzling up to Akari.
"I see kids in ancient days were just as disrespectful just like in our time." Zhang muttered under his breath.
Victor approached Gloria. "You okay? Gloria?" He knelt down as Gloria's head was in Byleth's chest. "Sis?"
"The sight of the Alpha Crobat put her into a catatonic state…" Bereto said as he was examining her. "I don't think she has it in her to fight that Electrode."
"...That Electrode…" Nora turned to Ingo. "What typing is it?"
"Grass/Electric, why?"
Nora clenched her fist. "The rest of you stay with Gloria. Comfort her."
"Wait, you're going in there ALONE?" Irida said in surprise.
"Of course not. I got Magnhild with me. Let's go."
"Tuff!"
BGM: Thunderstruck (AC/DC)
Nora turned to Gloria. "I'm doing this for you, girl." She said as she bravely walked toward the arena. N attempted to follow her, but Cynthia stopped him.
"Let's wait." She said as N nodded.
Skuntank and Skorupi watched Nora and Magnhild approach the arena. The latter turned to look at the duo as they flinched and quickly pulled away the KO'd Crobat.
The duo walked into the arena, where several Voltorb fell off the tree… and then an Electrode landed on the ground and turned toward Nora, angrily looking at her as it started to glow yellow. Nora brought out her own hammer as she and Magnhild got ready.
Lord of the Hollow - Electrode
"EEELEEECTROOOOOODE!"
Electrode rolled directly toward Nora, striking her with Thunderbolt as she used her hammer as a lightning rod as Magnhild jumped in and swung her hammer into Electrode as Nora did the same, batting away the Electrode.
Electrode angrily glared at the duo, unleashing another Thunderbolt as the two stepped out of the way as Nora switched to her grenade launcher and shot a few grenades at him. Electrode responded by unleashing Energy Ball that would follow the two around.
However, Magnhild got into position and swung her hammer into the Energy Ball, sending it high into the sky where it exploded into fireworks as Magnhild jumped in and used Brutal Swing into Electrode.
Electrode rolled into some ruins as a result and angrily revved up and charged, slamming right into Nora to roll her over, but she held her ground and countered by swinging her hammer to knock the Electrode away.
"ELEEECTROOOODE!"
Electrode jumped up and slammed into the ground, shaking the ground and causing multiple Voltorb to rain down on the duo. The two of them looked at each other and with a nod, they both swung their hammers into the Voltorb, smacking them into Electrode.
Electrode responded by charging up Chloroblast. Nora decided to do the same by charging up her own electricity while Magnhild quickly hid behind a pillar to avoid getting electrocuted.
"TROOOOOOOOOOODE!"
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
Both of them unleashed powerful explosive electricity, the two of them slamming into each other to create more electrical explosions as lightning bolts shot out everywhere, striking the tree, the ruins that caused them to fall.
One stray lightning bolt shot out of the arena and struck Melli right as he started to come around. "BZZZZZZZT…" He fell over once more.
Nora and Electrode were pushed back as Electrode growled while Nora smirked as Electrode shot out an Energy Ball again, but Magnhild jumped in and batted away the Energy Ball into the tree, making a few Voltorb drop to the ground. Magnhild jumped in and swung her hammer into the Voltorb into Electrode who started charging up Chloroblast again as Nora did the same, both of them clashing against each other and unleashed powerful electrical explosions as Magnhild hid behind the tree.
Once the electrical explosions ended, Electrode exhaustively stood and tried to roll into Nora, only for her to swing her hammer into him to knock him into the tree to knock him out, the yellow aura disappearing.
End BGM
"Electrode…" Electrode shook it off and looked at Nora. The Electrode's perpetual frown immediately turned into a smile as he rolled over and nuzzled her in gratitude, also giving her the Zap Plate. "Electroooode!"
"You're welcome, big guy." Nora smiled, patting it on the head as Electrode happily rolled away.
"I dunno…" Adaman said as he walked into the arena. "He looks pretty relieved to not be suffering anymore."
Nora chuckled. "Yeah. …How's Gloria?"
"Still catatonic. Poor girl's been through a lot over what Melli just did." He let out a growl. "Honestly, who the hell does such a thing…"
Nora sighed. "Asshole…" She mumbled before turning to her Tinkatuff. "Atta girl!" She winked.
"Tuff Tuff!" Magnhild smiled as everyone else walked in, where the Voltorb rolled over to Nora and happily nuzzled up against her as Zacian was carrying Gloria on her back.
Immediately, they heard a rocket go off as they turned to see a rocket heading straight for Electrode, and then the rocket opened up as an electrical net wrapped around Electrode.
"Elect?!" Electrode said in surprise as he simply turned to his assailant in annoyance where they would see a Plasma Grunt holding a rocket launcher with Ghetsis and Darkrai right next to him.
BGM: Tension (Super Mario Galaxy)
"That didn't go very well…" The Grunt said.
"I knew that wouldn't work." Ghetsis chuckled.
"Then why did you-"
Ghetsis smirked. "For one very good reason." He said as Ingo stared at Ghetsis.
"You look… familiar…" Ingo narrowed his eyes.
"You see… that was just the warm up." Ghetsis smirked. "Bug types always did have the type advantage over Grass types."
"What are you-" Weiss was quickly interrupted by loud footsteps.
"Guys, something's coming straight for us!" Blake exclaimed as a large creature leapt over Ghetsis and Plasma and landed on the ground between them and Electrode.
Irida gasped. "L-Lord Kleavor…?"
However, Kleavor looked entirely different. It had armor all over his body. Shoulder plates, a mind controlling helmet that made his eyes red and rocket boosters on his blades.
"Lord Kleavor!" Irida yelled. "Wh-what… WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?!"
"He now works for Team Plasma." Ghetsis smirked. "Kleavor. Attack that Electrode! As for the rest of you…" Team Plasma threw down Pokeballs, consisting of Probopass, Electabuzz, Luxray, Golduck and a Gengar.
"Kleeea… VOOOOOOR!" Kleavor lunged directly at Electrode.
"LORD KLEAVOR, NOOOO!" Irida screamed when suddenly, Sneasler got between them and parried the Kleavor.
"Snease!" Sneasler glared as Kleavor swung his axe arms down at her, but Sneasler blocked the attack as she unleashed Dire Claw at it while Electrode helped her out with a Thunderbolt.
"Alright, that's it!" Ruby immediately used her semblance to meet up with Ghetsis, readying her scythe only for Ghetsis to call out Hydreigon.
"Oh, dear Ruby… you are quite bold to face me after what happened last time."
"I'm not afraid of you."
Ghetsis smirked. "Commendable, but I would be more worried about your mother." He said as a Plasma Grunt aimed a dart gun directly at Summer who was more focused on keeping Oran safe. He fired the dart gun at her.
"NO!" Ruby immediately aimed her scythe at the dart and fired with pin point accuracy, knocking it away from its target. "Nice try." She smirked.
Ghetsis smirked. "Not good enough." He said as the Plasma grunt pushed a button on the gun as the dart sprang back to life and went straight for Summer.
"What?! A remote controlled dart?!" Ruby said in horror. "MOM! LOOK OUT!"
Rosalina turned her head, immediately seeing the dart as she swiftly used her telekinesis to stop it, but then the grunt hit another button as the dart teleported away and struck Summer in the back of the neck.
"Nnngh!" She grunted as purple energy went inside of her as Summer could feel the malicious energy go inside of her. Rosalina instinctively put her hand on Summer to try to block away the maliciousness coursing through her with Mavis using her semblance to back her up.
"Two region's worth of Spiritomb wisps inside of her was in that dart." The Grunt said nonchalantly.
Ghetsis smirked and turned to Ruby. "Your friend's cosmic power? We found a way to get around that."
Ruby trembled with rage. "You… YOU…!" She growled as electricity crackled around her body.
"Lord Ghetsis!" A voice called to him.
"What is it?" Ghetsis asked.
"We have returned to base. We have captured the target."
"Excellent." He smirked as he turned to his henchmen. "Fall back. We have stalled long enough."
"Stalled…?" Ruby wondered.
"Did you really think I would want an Electrode that's capable of Self Destructing in my own base? You must be naive." He said. "Kleavor! Come." He ordered as Kleavor fell back as Sneasler and Electrode both looked on in confusion as Ghetsis threw down a flash bang to blind everyone.
End BGM
"What was that about…?" Akari wondered, noticing Irida falling on her knees.
"Lord Kleavor… he couldn't even hear me…" Tears fell from her eyes as Adaman immediately knelt down to put his hand on her back.
"Ghetsis…" Ingo closed his eyes. "That man seems very familiar to me…" He mumbled.
"Heeeeeeeeeey!" A voice cried as they turned to see Calaba on Ursaluna, the Pokemon urgently running toward them.
"Calaba? What are you doing here?" Adaman asked.
"It's awful! Team Plasma had outnumbered us… they captured Lilligant!"
"What?!"
"Not only that…" Calaba growled. "...They captured Arezu too. She was defending Lilligant when they knocked her out!"
"They captured Arezu?!" Mars said in horror.
Adaman growled with frustration, clenching his fists. "Ghetsis… this. Means. War."
"You see!" A voice called out as they turned to see Melli leaning against the entryway. "This is Almighty Sinnoh's punishment! Ghetsis turned Kleavor into some machine and now they captured Lady Lilligant!"
"Melli, you have no right to call her "Lady"!" Adaman growled.
"My point still stands that Almighty Sinnoh is punishing us all for not keeping them under such a state! This is all because of-"
SMACK!
Magnhild threw her hammer directly into Melli's crotch.
"MMMMPH!" He grunted as Cinderace ran over and punted Melli in the gut to kick him down several feet away from them.
"Tinka Tuff TUFF!" Magnhild said in annoyance.
Meanwhile, in Plasma's HQ…
"Mmmph!" Arezu was shoved into the ground as she watched them haul away Lilligant. "You bastards!" She yelled as she tried to break herself free, but to no avail. She punched the wall in frustration as she looked at a monitor inside of her cell.
Her eyes widened, gasping.
What she was seeing was a few Plasma scientists conducting electrical experiments into Cresselia.
"These guys… they're not even human…"
Ibuki: Honestly deserved!
Yeah, I hated Melli in Arceus, so writing him getting his just desserts feels oh SO cathartic.