Hello again! Welcome back to Time Crossed Heroes! Now, a lot of you figured the message, and even more complained that it was too easy. You want hard, then? I'LL GIVE YA HARD! This chapter will be level 1. The more you ask for it, the harder the cypher will be.
I actually have to thank all of you that said it was too easy. That was exactly what I needed to pierce through my writer's block. Now, let the chapter, BEGIN!
Let us begin!
Mind: BladeOfThePoet does not own Pokémon. Guardians of Altomare, however, he does own.
Pokémon Center, late at night
The Guardians had figured out the message hidden in the book, as well as the poorly hidden author. "Time and Space Guardians Must Unite" is what it said. It seemed pretty straightforward: get Palkia and Dialga together. But, they knew from experience that the simpler a task seemed, the harder it'd be.
"You've got anything, Mind?" Dragon asked the youngest of the Guardians. After finding that message, the Guardians had started to look online for Gir A. Tina's books, hoping to find something else. The deranged Guardian sighed.
"I've rounded up several books and isolated the grammar mistakes and bold letters in all of them…" Deranged, but still the group's little genius. "… however, it doesn't make any sense. Look." He pointed at the notebook he'd bought to write down stuff.
'Wr jhw krph, hqhplhv pxvw xqlwh. Wkh sdwk zloo qrw rshq wr vslwh' from Ancient Pokemon
'Iluh'v lqqrfhqw uhpdlqv oryh pxvw ilqg. Kh zloo ohduq wkdw oryh lv eolqg' from Anthropology and Pokeology
'Li wkh dqvzhu brx fdqqrw ilqg, wr brxu whdfkhu brx pxvw elqg. Wkh Fdvwoh ri Dxud krogv wkh dqvzhu' from Theory of the Reverse World
Dragon stared at the seemingly random letters in the paper.
"It must mean something. Keep at it, Mind. If anyone can find it, it's you." The Guardian made a mock salute at his leader, and stood up
"I need to go to the bathroom." He left for the inner side of the center while Dragon returned to the rest of the group.
"How's it going?" Flame asked, sipping on some chamomile tea. Her cravings had started all of a sudden, but so far they'd been pretty normal. Some bread and cheese, some tea, a slice of pepperoni pizza… All the solid things cooked to a crisp, but so far so good. "Is our bloodthirsty little genius doing his magic?" Dragon nodded.
"Give Caesar that which is Caesar's. He's nuts, but he's still the smartest out of all of us." Steel commented. "No one tell him I said that though. His ego is big enough as it is." The others all laughed at his statement. Sitting among them were G-May and Ava, the former of which was now In Probation for Guardian status. May's daughters were asleep on their mother's laps. Dragon was actually quite happy with the new recruits, maybe he could finally have a solid foothold in Kalos. Or at least send someone to recruit aura wielders (rare as they may be). Flame emitted a small burp, singeing a poor fly that was passing by.
"We should probably get on the move soon. Palkia and Dialga could be anywhere or anywhen in the world." Thunder said, fiddling with some of her shuriken. "Seriously, why couldn't that little bug just leave us alone? I miss my family…" She didn't notice Dragon gripping his chest when she said that. The leader closed his eyes and focused on his memories with Latias, Ritias and Ritios.
'Go away… Go the fuck away…' He recited in his mind. The void was coming back. He was with his family, his brothers and sisters, but being away from his Soul mate was having a negative effect on him. It wouldn't be long before the others started feeling it too. He knew all their mates were their Soul mates, and soon they would start feeling the void. Mind and Thunder would probably be the first to feel it. The two had known their mates for far longer than most other Guardians.
'We should find another connection point soon… before we start to lose it.' He knew the void's feeling could be maddening. His years of seclusion while he trained taught him that.
On the other side of the center, the older trainers, which means everyone except the now asleep Max and Iris, were once again away from the Guardians. They felt wary of them, seeing how remorseless they were when fighting. Yet they also… admired them for their strength and skill. Ash could feel the pain that Dragon had talked about, but instead of pushing it back like Dragon, he delved into it, trying to find out its meaning.
'What is this… It… it hurts so bad yet… I know it's been here for a while now…' He remembered his chat with Dragon, with him telling him about that void he felt. He also remembered how the Guardian had gotten rid of it…
Ash wasn't the only trainer having a strange feeling, however. In their room at the center, Max's dreams were filled with terrible images. Villages ravaged by war. Fields, once full of crops, now stained red with blood. The screams of innocents as their flesh burned and blood boiled under the unrelenting attacks of a red armored goliath. And the worst part is… he was enjoying it. He hated it, yet he felt glee, deep inside him, at the sight of those people dying. He felt like that was what he was meant to do, to bring pain and anguish to every corner of the world… at least he did until his dream was ended by Mind, in his Berserker form, grabbing him by the neck and pressing him against the wall.
"*Choke* W-what are you… d-doing!?" Max managed to gasp out, desperately trying to get oxygen into his lungs. The armored Guardian glared at him.
"… Control yourself…" The kid stopped squirming when his older counterpart said that. He couldn't have been talking about… "… Yes, I am talking about that. I felt him stir within you." Max's eyes widened, panicked. Mind let go of him, causing Max to cough a little to start breathing normally again, and turned back into his human form.
"H-How do you deal with it?" The younger one asked his counterpart. "I saw… so much pain… so much death… and I enjoyed it… all of it… I felt like it was my job… my destiny to do the same in real life…" Mind shook his head.
"That wasn't you, kid… that was him." The two knew perfectly well who he was talking about. "Listen kid, you have to learn to control him. Otherwise, the only thing you'll get is both YOUR death, and Ash's. Not Dragon, Ash. He holds the Paladin, and if the Berserker awakens and you're not the one in control, the Paladin will awaken inside Ash to kill you. And the technique he will use will kill you both." He let the weight of his words sink in, hoping to push the kid into the right path… into the only path he'd survive. He turned away, his cape swishing, to leave and return to his work, leaving Max to his thoughts.
The next morning
The gangs were once again on the move. Per Dragon's request, they were heading towards the next city at a moderate pace. It meant to give Mind the time to figure out the puzzle hidden in the books, and also to keep Flame from bouncing around too much. Dragon insisted that she should try to stay still, but each time she'd stikc her tongue out at him.
"S-So, have you guys had any luck finding a way home?" Ash asked, a bit nervous of his other self. Rather, he was nervous about the way he kept glaring at everything that moved. Every branch, every bush, even the clouds were subjected to his rapid glaring.
"None yet. I'm sure Mind will figure something out." He answered, before returning to his glaring. Five minutes of silence later, Ash couldn't handle it anymore.
"Why are you glaring at everything like that! You're making me nervous!" The young trainer whisper yelled at his counterpart. Dragon was about to snap at the kid, when he realized the trainer was right. He sighed and rubbed his eyes, looking tired.
"Sorry…" Ash did a double take at that. Did the Guardian just… apologize? "Ever since finding out Flame is pregnant, my overprotective mode fired up. She's a sister to me, like all the other guardians, but I have a far deeper affection for Mind and Flame. They've been with me the longest. Knowing that Flame's pregnancy is a risky one I… I can't help but be jumpy." For the first time since they began to travel together, Ash saw a bit of himself in the Guardian. He smiled at that.
"You know, we're not so different, you and I…" Dragon raised an eyebrow when the kid said that. "I mean, sure, you're definitely stronger than me, and colder. The way you can kill without question is… terrifying… but even so you still keep that will to protect we've always had. I'm kinda happy to see that not all the old me is lost." Dragon stared at the trainer for a moment.
"Who are you and what have you done with the other one?" The Guardian Leader asked, not entirely jokingly. Ash sweatdropped at the comment.
"Was that really so out of character?" The Trainer leader replied, feeling ashamed of himself. Was him being sensitive really so weird?'
"Kid, I was you, remember?" Dragon asked him. "Trust me, at your age I wouldn't have noticed something like that unless someone had screamed it to my face." Ash chuckled nervously, knowing it was true. The two smiled lightly. "Listen, I know our differences are plenty, and more often than not I want to punch you in the face," Dragon told the kid, "But it might be better for our teams if we try to keep it down. If the leader expresses hatred or anger, so will the rest of the team." Ash nodded, agreeing with the Guardian. Above them, Celebi was watching with interest.
"Hm… they're getting to an understanding, but not quite there yet. They still have a ways to go before they can return home…" The little sprite muttered to himself, flying away.
"Hey, I was wondering…" Dragon turned to Ash when he spoke again. "What's it like, being married to Latias?" Dragon thought about it for a few seconds.
"It was hard at first, I'll admit…" He started, "When we first started dating, she and I were kinda wary of being together. You know, different species and all. In less than a year, though, we were perfectly comfortable with each other… I still remember the first time we kissed, the first song we danced too… Hell, I even remember when she went into heat and we…"
"OK, that's enough info!" Ash was as red as a tomato, mental images threatening their way into his mind. Dragon laughed before continuing.
"About 4 years ago, though, things got harder again. A group called The King's Hunters appeared out of nowhere and started hunting down and killing all pokélovers they could find. Most of my brothers and sisters we met while they were running away from the Hunters. They were cold, ruthless, and downright evil. In our world, Flame's mother was a senior member. She nearly killed her own daughter when she found out Flame was a Pokémon's mate. So did May, actually, although her attempts ended worse than Johanna's." Ash turned to look at G-May who, while scarred almost entirely, was still very much alive, while he remembered hearing Mind say they had killed Johanna.
"Uh… How didn't Johanna die in your world?" He asked, confused.
"Yeah, she did. But that was during the War of Aura. Or the Unsung War, however you want to call it." Dragon shrugged. "Some of May's injuries were just her trying to get Max and Kirlia apart. She really didn't know when to stop…"
"I'm right here you know?" G-May asked, annoyed.
"I do." Dragon answered bluntly. Choco then ran between the two Ashes, regarded them for a second, then, facing Dragon, raised her arms.
"Up, up!" The little pokemorph exclaimed happily. Dragon's visage softened considerably as he grabbed the girl and lifted her off the ground, resting her on his shoulders. Dragon and the girl chuckled.
"You know, despite what you were before," The Guardian Leader said to his world's May. "You did very well on these three. They might take after their father though." Mind burst out laughing.
"HAHAHA! He got ya, May." Mind smiled brightly. The rest of the Guardians couldn't help but smile with him, knowing that having his own sister back would prove a great asset in keeping down his bloodlust. Well, all except one.
"Yo,Steel? Earth to Steel?" Poison nagged Steel, who seemed deep in thought. Poison sighed. "Hey, Mind! He's gone in deep this time!" Whenever something was bugging him, Steel would go into a deep state of thought. When he entered this state, very few things could disturb him. Like a sheet of steel, he remained unperturbed for large periods of time, until an external force woke him. It could be hunger, cold, heat, or…
*ROAAAAAAAAR*
… The Berserker roaring straight in his face as loud as his lungs would allow. All the others had to cover their ears until the roar was over and Steel…
"Huh? What's wrong?" Was confused. He looked around. "Huh? When did we leave the center? How far along are we?" Riley sweatdropped at his other self.
"You've been out for that long?" Poison asked her fellow interrogator. "Seriously, we left like an hour ago. What were you thinking about?" Steel returned to his serious demeanor at that question.
"… It's about the Hunters…" The Guardians turned to him when he said that. "It just… It doesn't make any sense. Their leader in this time line is a descendant of King Roland, which means that he either had another son or he didn't kill his own children. Either one wouldn't make any sense." Understanding dawned in the rest of the Guardians.
"Roland was first killed by his sons after he killed their mates…" Flame's words made the trainers understand what she was getting at. "But if this guy truly is a descendant from Roland then…"
"… the three princes and their mates were never killed." Cilan finished the thought. "Then, in that were the case…"
"There would be no reason for them to actively hunt pokelovers." Dragon finished. He turned to Ava, curious. "So that raises the question… why were they after her?" Ava had heard the conversation, and turned to face Dragon.
"I guess that question was going to emerge sooner or later…" She sighed and lifted her shirt up, just a bit, barely enough to show her belly. Her swollen belly. "Your friend's not the only one who's prego with twins." The revelation was met with intense silence.
"Wait, they're after you because you're pregnant?" Mind asked, shocked.
"They want to know what the Hybrid will look like." Ava said. "I didn't want that kind of people near my children, so that's why I ran away. I'm surprised none of you noticed earlier." Dragon shrugged.
"I guess some things are easy to miss when you don't fully know someone's aura." He explained, not wanting to admit he had, in fact, not noticed something that blatantly obvious.
Elsewhere
Floating above the Spear Pillar in Sinnoh, the Legendary Council was in session. The council was formed by unique Legends, such as Kyogre and Groudon, and, in case there were clans of the species like Darkrai and Latias, the strongest of their clan was chosen to be their representative in the council. One particular, downtrodden Latias of Altomare was her kind's representative, as well as Latios's since he was, well, dead and the new one sent to guard Altomare was still settling in. The council was gathered around a Celebi, who was chuckling nervously at the sight of so many powerhouses around him.
"Now, will you please explain just what is going on here?" The Alpha Pokémon, Arceus, spoke with a tone that left it very clear that he would not take any Tauros shit. An orb materialized in the middle of the room, showing a group of travelers. Latias smiled brightly when she saw that her secret love, Ash, was in that group. Her smile turned into confusion when she saw one of his companions.
"Uh… Why are there two Ashes?" She asked timidly, knowing that that was the question in everyone's mind. Lugia glared at the Celebi in front of him.
"Indeed. Why is my chosen one here TWICE?" Every legend that had had an encounter with Ash was either staring or glaring at the little sprite.
"Uh… well, you see, uh…" Celebi grabbed his head in frustration. "Damn it all, this is the Lati garden all over again!" Everyone perked up at that. Palkia took a step forth, looking almost angered.
"Celebi. What. Did. You. DO!?" As the keeper of Space, he could feel that a severe transgression had been committed against his domain. The sprite sighed.
"Ok, first off: I am not the Celebi of this timeline. He and I are good friends, though." Celebi explained. "I was flying around my own timeline while taking a look at neighboring timelines. Things had gotten WAY too boring in mine, so I was looking for some entertainment… so I sent those guys you see in Aura Master garbs from their timeline to this one." Just as he said that, the orb showed the group being attacked by a platoon of Team Plasma grunts, all of which were, to the surprise of the legends, defeated by the aura masters, without the use of Pokémon. "They're actually kind of holding back right now. If they went full out those grunts would be nothing more than a blood splatter." Everyone looked positively horrified at that. Lugia in particular seemed surprised. "That's not the only difference between the two timelines. My Ash is far smarter than the one you guys have. He moved to Altomare, got married, has a couple of kids…" He failed to notice Latias looking even sadder when he mentioned the wife and kids, but Arceus didn't miss it. The half wheels at his sides glowed brightly, showing the signs of a Judgement attack being charged. Celebi gulped.
"You will tell us everything"
"Y-Yes sir!" Celebi knew doing so would cause trouble in the long run, but if he didn't reveal everything to Arceus then he'd get blasted out of existence.
"Now, tell me: Who is the chosen one married to and what are the names of his children?" Arceus's question had two intentions: the first one was to make Latias let go of the boy. Maybe knowing the name of the man's wife, even if he was another timeline's version of him, would give her closure. The second intention was, simply put, to satiate his thirst for knowledge. The God Pokémon only hated one thing: Not knowing. "Well, come on now. We don't have all day." Celebi sighed in defeat, ready for the shit storm that was about to follow.
"His children are called Ritias and Ritios. Ritias is the oldest by some years." The Legends were all confused by the strange choice in names. They almost sounded like Pokémon names…
"And his wife?" Arceus prodded. Celebi took in a deep breath, afraid of what was to come.
"… His wife is… Latias of Altomare"
All hell broke loose.
AAAAND CUT! I am ending this one here people. Good luck figuring out the cypher! There's a hint hidden in the chapter. If you manage to figure it out, PM me! Don't add it in a review, cuz that would spoil the fun! I'll give you one more hint, though: The magic number is 3! This is BladeOfThePoet, logging out!