"OK everyone! The plan is a double sided spear maneuver!" Light yelled as the NAA forces reached Petalburg.
Since they had lost the elements of surprise and manpower, the NAA was forced back onto the offensive against Grace and the remnants of the human army. The plan of attack was simple. NAA forces would split into two groups and focus on breaking the enemy's line around the city. Once was broken, it would go down to the officers to take down the Olympian.
Walking slowly up to Grunt and Nate, Silver whispered, "Are preparations set for after the battle?"
"Yup." Grunt replied, "All of the Knights have been notified of the plan and intend to follow our lead."
"Same with the AKs." Nate replied.
"Good. Momo's already spoken with the rest of the troops so our plan is set."
"Are you sure she's OK with this?" Nate asked. "She seemed to have some misgivings at the meeting."
"She'll follow our lead. Trust me on this." Silver replied.
"Petalburg is in our sights!" Light cried, interrupting Silver's conversation. "Split up into two groups and prepare for our attack!"
"This is where I take my leave." Nate said, walking off to join Momo in the other group. "Good luck!"
"Same to you buddy!" Grunt called back.
"Hold position!" Light yelled once again. "Once the second spear is in position we will begin our attack." Lowering voice and going over to Silver and Grunt he asked, "Are you prepared for the battle?"
"We're prepared for what's ahead." Silver replied.
"I'm glad." Pausing for a second, Light raised his voice once more and said, "The second spear is in position! This is the final battle with everything on the line! Leave nothing on the table and commence the attack!"
The cries of battle could be heard for miles as the battle commenced.
"We're experiencing more resistance than expected!" Momo said over her communicator. "We are yet to break through the enemy line!"
"Unfortunately its the same here." Silver replied, taking a survey of the battlefield.
"Keep pushing!" Light cried. "Fight smart and we'll break through eventually. For now, there is a break between the enemy lines from attacking from two different angles. I'm going to infiltrate and bring the battle to Grace."
"Are you sure its wise going in alone?" Silver asked. "She mopped the floor with both of us by Oldale."
"It might not be the best idea but I need the four of you to hold back and break the enemy line." He replied. "Once our forces have the upperhand, you can join in the battle." He smiled slightly before adding, "Wish me luck." and flying off toward the center of the city.
Pulling out her communicator once more, Silver said, "Keep pushing the attack! Momo, Nate, Grunt, the plan is a go!" before returning to the battle.
In the Heart of the City
Light flew bravely into the city, still unsure as to which side the battle would favor.
"Where is she?" Light muttered as he landed. "There were no sightings of her on either battlefront..."
"Took ya long enough to get here." Came Grace's voice from above. She was laying down on a ledge of a nearby building, as if the battle was just another Wednesday afternoon for her.
"I didn't know I was expected!" Light replied as his opponent jumped to the ground.
"I've been expecting you since the battle started. But to be honest, I thought you were going to bring along a couple friends with ya." Grace smirked before adding, "It might just be a repeat of Verdanturf if you don't have a handicap."
"I've learned a thing or two since then." Light said before assuming a fighting pose.
"Show me what you've learned then!" The AK pilot replied before assuming a traditional boxing pose.
"Night Slash!" Light yelled before charging at the Olympian, in a near identical fashion to their first battle.
In much the same way as in Verdanturf, Grace raised her fists to block the blow.
"I thought you learned from our previous battles." She taunted.
"I can't reveal all my cards at once." Light replied as Grace began her counterattack.
Once again, Grace began a wild barrage of jabs, hooks and uppercuts, only unlike in Verdanturf, Light seemed to block these attacks withe ease, preventing a momentum swing in the Olympian's direction.
"So you have learned." Grace said, pulling out her baseball bat. "Fireball Drive!"
I have to keep her on the defensive, at least until the others arrive. Light thought before yelling "Iron Tail!" and sending all five of Grace's attack back to the sender.
Petalburg's commander copied Light's tactic and returned the attack to its original trajectory. This deadly game of catch raged on with both sides trying to force a mistake from the opponent.
"That's ENOUGH!" The AK pilot yelled, deflecting rather than redirecting the attack. "You might be able to deal with baseballs like that, but how about shotputs?"
"I can deal witht them just fine." The NAA officer smirked before launching a thunderbolt at himself. The heavy orbs stopped in their tracks a few feet away from Light before launching into nearby buildings with a large crash.
"What was that?" Grace asked, amazed that the attack had been deflected.
"Shotputs are made primarily of metal." Light explained. "By using an electrical attack on myself, I changed my magnetic field to repulse your shotputs."
"This isn't over yet!" She yelled, beginning to get flustered. "Time for some Full Court Press!"
Grace raced back into close range and began a Close Combat-esque technique. While this assault was less controlled than the previous one, it was nonetheless effective.
She's getting flustered and her technique is suffering. I just need to weather the storm and the victory should be ours. "Thunderbolt!" Light yelled, creating space with the close range electrical attack.
"Fine! If that the way you want to play!" Grace responded and pulled back out her fencing blades and jumping back into the fray.
"Didn't you learn from the shotputs?" Light taunted as the AK pilot's attacks narrowly missed their mark. "If I can make those miss using my magnetic field, I can make your blades miss just as easily. Thunderbolt!"
"I have learned." Grace said, sticking out one blade to catch the incoming attack and the other into the ground. "You really quite a bit on your electrical attacks. If I provide them a ground, then they'll pass harmlessly over me and into the ground. I can keep slashing at you all day, but how long can you hold off my moves without your trump card?"
As the battle wore on, Grace's prediction turned out to be correct. While none of her attacks were hitting the mark, the constant pressure they provided on Light was quickly wearing him down until one blades slipped past Light's guard and opened a gash across his stomach.
"Iron... Tail!" Light said, knocking the Olympian back just far enough so that he could jump backwards and collapse onto the ground.
"Not... so... tough now are we?" Grace said catching her breath. She walked slowly across the battlefield to both savor her victory over the infamous NAA commander and to regain her strength.
"Your stamina is your weakness." Light said as his soon to be executioner walked toward him.
"It's pretty obvious right now isn't it?"
"I've known since your little sneak attack near Old-Gah-Oldale" Light said, coughing up a little bit of blood. "You haven't just been using hit-and-run attacks to wear down our forces, despite their effectiveness. You've been utilizing them because you don't have the stamina to fight long drawn out battles."
"Congratulations on figuring it out. Too bad it hasn't done you any good."
"Oh but it has. As long as my troops keep pressing the attack, our commanders will eventually reach here. Without your stamina, they'll easily take you down. Your best bet would be to surrender now."
"Says the guy bleeding out on the ground." Grace said, raising her blade for the final blow. "I guess this is Goodb- Ahhh!"
A Shadow Ball came out of nowhere and struck the AK pilot before she could deal the finishing blow.
"Nice... Job Silver." Light croaked out painfully as both Grunt and the shiny Eevee hit the battlefield.
"Time for round two bitch!" Grunt cried, before rushing headlong into battle.
"Just keep pushing the offensive." Light explained. "She's already worn out from fighting me. She's on the verge of collapsing now."
"I've still got some gas left in the tank." The Olympian said, as she and Grunt circled the battlefield firing their respective weapons. "In fact I think I've got just enough to finish up two more NAA commanders."
The arrows and bullets flying across the battlefield were suddenly blown away by a Leaf Storm attack before Momo dropped in saying, "How about four NAA commanders?"
"Where's number fo-"
"Sonicboom!"
As Nate's attack connected, Grace was sent tumbling to the ground.
"No No NO!" Grace yelled, as she slowly rose back into the air. "I was so close! I refuse to lose this way! Olympian Assault!"
The final attack of Petalburg's commander sent a storm of both arrows and shotputs hurdling toward the four remaining NAA officers.
"Let's go guys!" Silver yelled. "Swift!"
"Leaf Storm!"
"Sonicboom!"
"Bullet Barrage!"
As the projectile attacks collided, Light was left to watch the conclusion of the battle from the sidelines. At first, it took everything the NAA officers could muster to keep Grace's attack at bay but the fatigue from her battle with Light soon set in, and they soon gained the advantage. Once the Olympian's firing rate decreased enough, all of the attacks, Silver's, Momo's, Nate's and Grunt's began leaking through and struck the AK Pilot for massive damage. Grace landed on the ground a few moments later barely clinging to life.
"Nice Job everyone." Silver said, "Nate! Take her into custody."
"Yes Ma'am!" He responded quickly.
"You've all fought long and hard." Light said as he limped over to the others. "I want to congratulate you on the conquering of Ho-" He was cut off by the sound of Grunt's gun firing at his feet. "What's going on?" He asked confused.
"Grace isn't the only one going into custody today." Silver explained. "You've lead too many soldiers to their death to not be heal responsible Light, or should I say Shoteneko?"
Light's eye's widened in surprise for a second before regaining composure, "It's been a while since I've been called by that name. If you've found out about my real name, I suppose you also heard about my affiliation with The Slash?"
"Yes. We have." Momo replied meekly. "Your belief in that ancient hero has given you a hero complex Light. We... can't have someone like that in command here."
"There are casualties in every war." Light cried. "I've delivered you Hoenn and this is how I'm repaid!?"
"We can do this two ways. Either come queitly and avoid a scene or be beaten into the ground like Grace over there." Silver proclaimed confidently.
"Don't make us fight you Light!" Momo cried, "We just want to see you get help!"
"I don't need the help you're offering!" Light cried, sparks now flying all around him.
"I wanted to avoid a scene, but looks like we don't have a choice... Grunt! Let's take him down!" Silver commanded.
"All right boss lady. This is for collapsing a cave on me!" Grunt yelled, firing a rocket toward his former commander.
"Dark Pulse!" Light countered, destroying the projectile before it could hit, and rushed in with a Night Slash attack.
"Protect!" Silver cried, preventing his attack from landing, and leaving him open for a close range barrage from Grunt's guns, sending him flying backwards.
Struggling back to his feet once again, more blood began to pour out from the wound Grace inflicted. "Thunderbolt!"
"Giga Drain!" Momo cried, covering for her comrades by absorbing the attack. "Please surrender Light. I truly don't want to do this!"
"Then why are you? Fury Swipes!"
"Because its the only way. Quick Attack!" Silver cut in, striking the Meowth directly in the neck, knocking him unconscious.
"Momo. Tend to his wounds. He will atone for his actions." Silver said before turning to the gathering NAA forces. "Attention NAA! The one known as Light has been deceiving you! He was not leading you out of a want of a free independent state, he was doing so to emulate a long dead hero: The Slash! If left in command, he would have lead us into oblivion!. While in command, he lead many of your comrades to their death to appease his delusions and for that, he will atone! If any of you have a problem with this arrangement speak now or forever hold your peace!"
There were a few moments of silence before someone began chanting, "Silver! Silver! Silver!" And soon the entire crowd was yelling her name and "Long live the NAA!"
I'm sorry Light. Momo thought as she lent the fallen commander energy and carried him to the nearest medical facility.
In a small house just outside of Petalburg
A young woman stares out into the distance toward Petalburg.
"What's the matter Ashley dear?" A slightly older woman asked, sitting across from her.
"Huh?" The dark haired girl replied, struggling to ground herself back in reality. "Sorry Mom, its just... The dark haze surrounding Petalburg since the beginning of the war lifted."
"That's wonderful news! Why don't you sound happy? Doesn't that mean the war is over?"
"It should... but the haze only lifted for a second. And now its even darker than before and slowly spreading across Hoenn."
After a moment of silence, Ashley's mother said, "You want to investigate, don't you?"
"What?! No!" Ashley replied defensively. "I can't! I have to take care of you."
"I can see it in your eyes honey. I've known you for all 18 years of your life and I know what that look means." She smiled before continuing, "And you don't need to worry about me. If this ol' ticker has lasted this long, I think it'll be OK for a day or two if you want to check out the city."
"Really?" The daughter replied, revealing her mother's intuition to be correct.
"Yes really. Just be careful OK?"
"Of course Mom!" Ashely replied, kissing her mother on the cheek. "I'll be back as soon as I can!" She then grabbed a jacket and ran out the door toward the recently war-torn city.
In the back alleys of Rustboro
A Typhlosion wearing a fedora leaned up against a tall building and listened to the chatter on the street.
Nothing interesting. As usual. He thought. Maybe there's another bounty I can pick up...
He was just about to walk away when he heard two people talking
"Hey did you hear about the New Age Alliance?" One said.
"Yeah. They completed their takeover of Hoenn in Petalburg right?"
"There's more to it than that! There are rumors going around that Light's commanders turned on him at the end of the battle."
"What?! No way!"
"I swear! His own Alliance is now treating him like a criminal!"
A betrayal in the NAA? That sounds interesting. Maybe I should stir up some trouble over in Petalburg... He thought before tipping his hat upwards and walking out of town.
AN: And thus ends the second Arc of Pokemon New Age! Silver's covert rebellion has succeeded and the NAA is now completely in her control. That subplot has been a long time in the making and was hopefully executed well enough for you guys. Feel free to leave a review with your thoughts on the big finale!
Big thanks to Isetba for the submission of Ashley and Emperor Blaze for the submission of Volc the Typhlosion! Both of them will play a large role in the upcoming Arc.
While many of our plot points have been tied up here, there are plenty of questions left unanswered: Who are the people pulling Silver's, and now and NAA's strings? How will Light deal with his incarceration? And will this world find peace? Find out in the third, and final Arc of Pokemon New Age!