Chapter 8: Tri~bulation Part 2
Note: ...Uh... I forgot... I'll get back to you all on that when I'm not as tired. Anyway, Chapter 8 officially ends here, though it's kinda vague. Big explanation part, even though that's as vague too. So yeah! Enjoy the nonsense~!
Disclaimer: I don't claim possession over characters originating from the franchises of Square Enix, Disney, Game Freak, and The Pokémon Company, Chun Soft, or Nintendo. They belong to their rightful owners. Few characters are original.
The moonlight scorched through the black clouds.
The Oran Forest was little a challenge for the three.
Sora, Riolu, and Chimecho made a bewildering discovery beyond this mystery dungeon! What appeared to be a clearing in the woods was actually a special refuge, which had formed quite quickly and strategically, for many of the Pokémon from Treasure Town and beyond. It was exhilarating how rapidly everyone had managed to collaborate and form a well-thought out refuge under such pressure. The area was lit quite well with torches surrounding both the circumference and the stalwart of a tree in the center of the refuge. Riolu and Chimecho easily made out a variety of friendly faces, at least most of which they considered to be this. They spotted one of the market's Kecleons, his purple brother nowhere to be seen. They saw Zubat and Koffing, though no Skuntank. Xatu and Chansey were seen working on pitching a tent of some sort. They recognized Team AWD's leader, Weavile. There were a few others from Treasure Town here as well, although both Chimecho's and Riolu's hearts nearly froze when they glanced at the center of the camp. At the base of the large tree was a gathering of very special characters.
Without giving Sora so much as a warning, the two rushed forth to greet their unlikely comrades! Sora followed quickly. On the other end, Bidoof and Sunflora replicated their actions, Cruce following just as quickly.
They arrived in unison, gathering as one with expressions of glee, nearly disbelief.
"Oh my gosh!" Sunflora started, joyous. She embraced Chimecho as soon as she could have, giggling with the utmost happiness. "You're okay! Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh, this is amazing!"
"Oh, thank goodness you're alright! All of you!" Chimecho responded, relieved to be in the arms of a caring guild member.
"Hey, hey, hey! What a coincidence! You all came at the same time, hey!" Corphish noted, glancing back and forth between the two groups.
"Ah, finally we found you guys..." Riolu approached Bidoof, lowering himself to one knee and patting his good friend on the head a couple times. "No more splitting up, alright?"
"Yep! Golly, this is... this is great, guys..." Bidoof nodded and sniffled a tad, his usual demeanor of becoming much too absorbed in a certain scenario showing once more. "It's making me mighty emotional here..."
"Yeah, Bidoof's DEFINITELY alright if he's sobbing up a storm!" Loudred commented, igniting a bit of laughter from the group of friends. Groyvle himself chuckled at their antics. It was a pleasant sight to see friends unite, especially since one of them was a very significant figure to him. Riolu.
"Riolu." Grovyle spoke over the cheerful bunch. He managed to siphon the attention of guild members and guild graduates alike. "All of you..." He included the rest of the apprentices of Wigglytuff, as if ready to present them with the dire news he seemed to promise earlier. "You have impeccable timing. Your appearances lead me to believe that many others who deserve to hear this explanation are still out there, so to speak."
"Grovyle, i-is that... Is th-that really you? Th-that Grovyle? From the future?" Riolu knew he was stammering, but the very thought of this was staggering. Here Grovyle stood before him. He knew it was the same one. He knew it was the very same Grovyle who he, at first, thought was a heinous thief. The very same Grovyle who he and Jovany escaped the clutches of the villainous Dusknoir with. The very same Grovyle who aided them on their quest to return the Time Gears to Temporal Tower. The very same Grovyle who sacrificed himself so that the future could brighten... could exist. So how did he?
"Hmhm, Riolu please. Compose yourself." Grovyle gave a cool, yet warm smile to the young Pokémon, a hand on the other's shoulder. "You and I have much we need to catch up on... But I fear the time to give you all my message is yet to come."
"Hey, hey. You're not going to tell us?" Corphish questioned, being one of the first to hear Grovyle's words of inevitable proclamation.
"It is... sophisticated." The grass-type admitted, his eyes closing. "It's not easy for me to say."
"Well, Mr. Grovyle." Chimecho spoke up. "We'd be more than happy to spread your words of warning to everyone."
"I appreciate the kind offer, but I'm afraid that will not come to pass." At this, he received a handful of incredulous looks... "From what I've seen thus far in this time, Pokémon have run off. They have been scattered. I aim to explain the situation in front of a large gathering. Even then, I am worried. None of you know just how delicate this scenario is."
"And that looks like it'll pose a problem." Words from Vulpix's lips were finally heard as she looked back and forth at two very unlikely Pokémon facing each other aggressively at a reasonable distance from herself...
Sora didn't understand why, but his heart was racing. He was shaking with anticipation. This odd looking creature just had to be some clever Heartless or Nobody in disguise. Judging by the tentacles, it was not a very legitimate excuse for a guise. Then again, an otherworldly aura told Sora that perhaps this Pokémon was unlike anyone or anything he had ever faced. Even still, his heart was practically commanding him to raise his Keyblade against this opponent. He did so, conjuring his Kingdom Key in an ethereal mist near his mouth before biting down on its hilt, ready to battle.
Cruce wasn't able to comprehend the feeling entirely, but it was as if his soul was afraid. It was a flight or fight response from deeper within. This tiny fox simply must have been a Nightmare fooling all others through the use of illusion magic. He knew they had that ability... Thought maybe it was a being of honest emotion and integrity, due to the fierce glare it was giving Cruce. He could feel the light of emotion in this Pokémon, which should have doused his suspicions. Nevertheless, his spirit cried out to him...
The distant rainfall against the leaves of the canopy proclaimed the continuation of the storm...
"Stop it, you two!" Vulpix demanded, glancing and glaring at each of them. "I don't know what feud you have going with each other, but this is not the time to try and settle it!"
All eyes within the refuge were on them. Both of these Pokémon's qualities already diminished the idea of them being anywhere near orthodox.
"Excuse me." Grovyle spoke quietly, though his voice was clearly audible amidst the coming rain. "I know not of the quarrel between you two, but Vulpix is correct. Now is not the time." He was keen to both of their anomalous features: the Eevee's weapon and the Shaymin's tendrils. Just what were these Pokémon, aside from abnormal?
And just then, a solemn whisper descended upon Sora...
"Never forget..." These two words lacked a proper ending. Sora swore he heard his own mind complete the statement. "...those important to you..."
"Riku... Kairi..." He spoke these two names under his breath just after dropping his Keyblade to the pure, at the moment, grassy ground.
Vulpix blinked, her attention consumed by Sora's strange behavior...
...Darkness homed in on them in a split second.
Bit by bit, from one end of the Woodland Refuge poured in shadows and neoshadows alike. On the other end came a swarm of small imps, neon veins of green throughout their bodies. Heartless and Nightmares. Everyone in the refuge froze with disbelief. Their sanctuary was no longer a haven for anyone. Had they had the time, they would have dispersed a few scout parties to search the area for any foes. Alas, they did not... Neither did they make the first movement. Heartless and Nightmares alike simply watched as their hordes grew larger by the moment. Fearful as the Pokémon were, they shared the sensation that all dark eyes were piercing through them, reaching the opposing horde instead.
That was true.
As many of the Pokémon were more or less focused on working to the center of the Woodland Refuge, the shadows and imps swarmed around them, rather instigating a violent war amidst each other. A quick relief was spread across the refugees, despite them still being in grave danger.
"Wh-what's going on?" Someone shouted over the chaos of loud crashes, rainfall, and the booming thunder.
"We have to get out of here!" Riolu yelled, searching for any pathway through the bloodthirsty creatures of both legions.
"The Shaymin Village! To the East!" Bidoof hollered, barely audible to anyone who wasn't within ten feet of him.
"Won't they just follow us?" Loudred yelled, much more audible than Bidoof.
"We'll be ready, and they will be weakened! EVERYONE, STAY CLOSE!" Grovyle shouted, possibly louder than Riolu has ever heard him shout. Nods were given in his direction. Everyone understood . It was time to flee.
"This way! Push through! Do your best to stay with us!" Grovyle commanded, uncaring whether or not he was forced to plow through a blockade of Nightmares and Heartless. They did not breakthrough unscathed, however. Many of the dark beings shifted their attention should any Pokémon have come to close. This led Cruce and Sora to fend the threats off with each other, yet Sora could have sworn he was doing less than he desired. He noted how the Keyblade simply phased through the imps, whereas a basic tackle proved to be much more effective. Now was not the time to give it regard. Pokémon were already pouring back into the corrupt Apple Woods; a place that would be dubbed the Deadwood Pass in that very escape.
Indeed, during this escape, a couple of the nightmarish, monstrous trees were encountered. They maneuvered slowly, however, therefore making it easy to evade them. Nonetheless, they were an intimidating sight...
…
This retreat came not without difficulty. Many times, Pokémon became overwhelmed and lost in the dense, very dark forest. They were recovered, only to have their rescuers lose their way. After a half an hour of this struggle, the trail to the Shaymin Village, cut as a path between the trees, was located.
"W-we're out!" Chimecho exclaimed as she and a few of her unlikely allies reached to point beyond peril.
"Heh-heh-heh! Finally." One of the refugees, Zubat, chuckled. His demeanor dampened when he realized somebody was missing. "...Koffing? ...Uh-oh, where's Koffing?"
"...Where's everyone...?" Chimecho asked, looking in all directions. She new that the mysterious Sora was with her and Zubat. And next to Sora was Riolu. They had managed to stay together, so perhaps the others were in a separate group by now.
"Let's head to the village from here. I think the others will see us there." Riolu declared, a bit of leadership showing in him. This was a fresh look to Zubat. In the past, he had always referred to Riolu as a wimp, and was not too far from the truth in terms of valor and confidence. It was refreshing in a time like this to see that he had changed. He had to wonder, though, where that snake was. Jovany, was it? "Sora, you see any of those shadow Pokémon, they're all yours. That key is pretty amazing!" He commended.
He would have like to express his gratitude in some other way than grinning with a Keyblade in his mouth. That was all he could have done. He took initiative with his partner and led the other two on the path to safety...
…
The determined water-type tore through the ranks of darkness leaping at him in all directions. The forest had become an annoyance. The endless waves of shadows prevented him from advancing.
Futachi had to think of something quickly. He was a step away from being overrun... It was time to push through. He gazed ahead, a burning resolve to crush all in his immediate path. With a shell slicing through one more shadow, he payed no heed to the many pursuing him any longer. It was his turn to pursue.
…
As they reached the Shaymin Village, their hearts were more at ease. Within the lighter rain, Grovyle, a few guild apprentices, and other Pokémon were already assisting the Shaymin villagers, along with Wigglytuff, Chatot, and Lopunny. Sora walked forward, scanning the village for the Pokémon who bothered him to a level of nearly battling. He was not here. He hadn't even heard his name mentioned. The only thing he knew about this figure was the transcendent feeling he experienced within his heart and soul. It was as if he was not the one in control. Neither of them were... Riolu let out a sigh of relief as he spotted some of the other townsfolk here already. He did take note, however, that some were still missing... Chatot flew over, setting down in front of he, Chimeho and Zubat.
"Riolu! Chimecho!" Chatot acknowledged, his head turning to see Zubat as well. "Ah, and Zubat?"
"Uh, heh-heh. Hey Chatot... Long time no see." Zubat replied, a drop of sweat rolling down his face. If he had ever lacked confidence, it was now; a hellish storm and a violent, supernatural attack of demons from another world without his two partners around anymore was easily discouraging. And now he had to deal with Chatot.
"Right. Well," Chatot began, ignoring the presence of the Team Skull member. Team Skull had, at one point, joined Wigglytuff's Guild. He and the guildmaster were blind to many of their schemes, which mostly revolved around Team Crimsongleam. Karma struck inevitably, and Chatot learned of their shenanigans, which nearly came too late. "Good to see you're all in one piece. I see the rescue team we organized exceeded all of our expectations."
"Rescue team?" Riolu questioned, his arms now crossed.
"Yes! We sent out Bidoof and Sunflora, alongside one of the Shaymin here, to search for any refugees! We have succeeded!"
"Actually, Chatot, we had a lot of trouble at the refuge we came to..." Chimecho spoke out, the same words about to be spoken by Riolu.
"Oh?"
"Yes, we did. Those dark Pokémon swarmed again. I think we lost many refugees."
"Squawk! And you came back here with them in pursuit?" Chatot raised his wings to his head as if stressed beyond reasoning.
"Excuse me, but I have reason to believe we will manage this threat." Grovyle was heard from behind Chatot. The assistant knew he was here, but he was skeptical. He simply couldn't believe that this was the same Grovyle from the future. It was not possible. "In fact, I think we will be safe from them completely... I must have everyone's attention. I have something I must share."
Riolu's eyes widened at this statement. Grovyle was ready to share the news with everyone? Riolu couldn't anticipate whatever he had to say. With as many times as he had dealt with it, the elusive concept of time travel was becoming far too complicated to capture. Although, if Grovyle was back, did that not mean he had to prevent the planet's paralysis once more? Riolu felt nauseous. He pressed his paws against his chest. There was no way he could participate in Grovyle's new mission if it meant doing it alone... without Jovany...
Obligation was in order. Chatot requested that Lopunny, who appeared to be making amends with Weavile of AWD, aided him in gathering a large crowd before bringing them into the central hut.
…
"Everyone! May I have your attention?" Grovyle's voice sounded over the crowd's varied conversations. It was a moment of déjà vú for Riolu, as he dreaded to hear anything along the lines of a catastrophe. Regardless, his eyes were on Grovyle. His old friend... Jovany's old partner...
It hit him. Why had no one asked about Jovany? Did they even care?
Sora himself was still an observer of events, despite having participated in a few battles by now. No one gave him much attention, even as an outsider. He wasn't complaining. It revealed how much these Pokémon put their close companions first. Of course, he was considered a new friend to Riolu, but he was fairly certain Riolu was still emotionally scarred by his loss.
The room went silent.
"...Everyone, I know it'd be an understatement to call what you all went through a tragic experience." He began, standing beside Wigglytuff on the stage overlooking the Pokémon in the small, yet capacious room. Before he could speak again, Wigglytuff questioned him.
"Grovyle, you knew about the attack on Treasure Town?"
"I did." He nodded. "Word spread very quickly to the refuge I first found myself at... For now, I have to tell you all the reason I have returned from the future." He scanned the crowd to reassure himself that he had their undivided attention. He spoke again. "As you know, the heroes of Team Crimsongleam, Riolu and Jovany, prevented the planet's paralysis at Temporal Tower."
Upon mentioning Jovany, Riolu was once again on the verge of vomiting. Already, he disliked where this was headed. He was so consumed in paranoia and grief that he did not even hear the quiet cheers a few Pokémon had given him. Sora gave him an impressed look. He had no idea Riolu was a hero of this magnitude...
"Yes, we have them to thank for that. I myself returned to the future prematurely to make sure that their job went undisturbed. However, I remained alive in that dark world... Everybody did. My mission was not yet complete. I worked my way to Temporal Tower to make sure Dialga, in his primal state, did not do anything to disrupt Crimsongleam's heavy mission. I trust you all know who Dialga is, yes?" He received affirming nods from the crowd.
"Yes, we were told that Dialga transformed into an emotionless being due to the warped flow of time." Chatot confirmed, which provided enough reason for Grovyle to continue.
"Excellent. Darkness usurped Dialga's being. He became content, I suppose, with the mass paralysis, and wanted to maintain a frozen world. He would have done so by any means necessary, even if it included using the Passage of Time. This is what I used to come to the past. More times than a couple, actually."
"Passage of Time, golly..." Bidoof spoke. "This is making my head spin."
"It's a bit difficult to understand, and... it becomes even more so." Grovyle gave a look of regret, his eyes shifting to the ground. "After Dialga was hindered long enough in the future to allow completion of Crimsongleam's mission, my team and I... disappeared..."
Riolu knew that feeling. Not of disappearing, but of someone so close simply vanishing in a pale, golden luminescence, leaving him to travel across the ravaged Hidden Land... He was thankful enough that Jovany returned to him. He refused to even question it. All that mattered was that his friend was with him. Alive. Well. Did the same happen for Grovyle, then?
"But you returned, hey?" Corphish asked, receiving a look from the grass-type that gestured the words... "sort of".
"I was told that I and my teammates cannot disappear. We played a valuable role in this world... Dialga was there, but he was not the cause of our return. In fact, he was prone to disappear as well, but he did not. It was the cause of a greater power." Grovyle explained, this coming as a bit of a shock to Riolu. He wasn't fully positive, but he thought Dialga was the one who returned Jovany to him...
"Grovyle, you helped us while in the future...?" Riolu asked, showing gratitude through his sickness. "I wish I could have thanked you."
"Returning to see the world in motion was all I needed, my friend. As I watched the dawn, I felt victorious. Things returned to normal in the world. After our long, tiresome journey, we were, at last, triumphant."
Riolu knew that feeling also. After having placed the Time Gears into Temporal Tower's clock, he was blessed with a vision of the land's returning grace. He knew he was seeing this with Jovany, and that was the greatest feeling he ever had, so quickly to be followed by the worst.
"...It was foolish of me to think that was the end... Why else would such a great power preserve those who saved a world in the time to come? I, among others, soon believed that this mighty will did not exist, as but a year following the crisis of paralysis... it came yet again."
That received plenty of gasps and frightened murmurs. The same question was on everyone's mind. "How?", Followed by "Why?". Riolu threw up in his mouth, yet forced himself to swallow it back down. There was never a more appropriate moment that he wished he was deaf. He knew he had to hear this simply because it was important. It was his world. His home. Yet, now the level of difficulty of saving it has skyrocketed exponentially higher.
"It pains me to break this terrible news to you all." Grovyle shook his head, having expecting these reactions.
"I know it was Darkrai who caused it all: he sabotaged Temporal Tower. Wh-what led to time's collapse this time?" Riolu asked, a single paw over his chest.
"Darkrai? I have heard mention of that name." Grovyle admitted, prior to answering the other's question. "Yes, I have heard he was the one who instigated Temporal Tower's collapse. I doubt he is behind this, because this time..." Again, hesitation. The air was filled with a dreadful pessimism. "Our time, our space, our world... All three are hanging in the balance." Much to his expectations, many in the room were not sure what this meant. Truthfully, all they needed to know was that it was far worse than the planet's paralysis. 'Now, these three orders are endangered by three separate sources. Each of them are deadly. We have witnessed all three at the Woodland Refuge."
Sora and Vulpix found themselves staring at each other. Sora would have probably done this with Shaymin had he not vanished. That or glare at him, which would have happened almost entirely on its own. In any case, he was not sure why this girl caught his attention. The opposite was also true. She was not sure why he caught hers.
"I know little about the two forces which faced each other there. One of my newest acquaintances could tell you all something about one. The force I have faced call themselves Organization XIII." Grovyle explained, overlooking the entire crowd back and forth. Voices rose a little.
"Organization XIII...?" Sora said aloud. He recognized these words. What did they mean exactly?
"Yes. They call themselves Nobodies. And they..." He glanced for a moment at Sora before finishing the thought. "...are the cause of the second sabotage on Temporal Tower."
"W-wait a moment!" Chatot called out, fully in belief that this was the same Grovyle of the future, due to his vast knowledge of the situation and prepared way of presenting it. It was rare for Chatot to have believed stories like this. "Who exactly are these 'Nobody Thirteen' Pokémon?"
"...They aren't Pokémon at all. In fact, they appear to be humans." Grovyle clarified.
Humans...? Riolu thought to himself, having enough of a temporary distraction from his nausea.
"I have been told they came here from 'darkness', to where they had been banished. They came from a different realm entirely, traveling through the broken space of our own world. But they were not able to break our fabric of space in order to travel through it. To do that, a being powerful enough from this world must have done so. Therefore, someone upon this world is in league with Organization XIII. I'm afraid I could not give you any details. It's too difficult for me to completely understand."
"Whoa, this is all hard to understand." Sora admitted his knowledge about the situation. If he thought he was lost prior, now he had to be dreaming this up. He knew he was not dreaming in any case, but this transformation, these odd feelings and memory loss, and the Heartless were all so surreal to him.
Heartless... He remembered the name... He raised his head slightly to speak.
"After all we did..." Sora heard Riolu's voice over his. Another comment of Riolu's was directed at him. "A-and there's still you, Sora. And your blade. And the ocean! Why are the water levels so high like you all say?" Riolu focused on Grovyle as he asked these questions. Grovyle noticed his questions, yet did not seem to take them into full consideration as his attention was absorbed by Sora and Vulpix.
"Anything you see that is irregular could be linked to the Nobodies. Now, your ability... 'Sora' …to conjure this key-shaped weapon is curious. And you, Vulpix. \The water-type Nobody tried to kidnap you. Why is this?"
"I don't know, he just snatched me right up!" Vulpix stated truthfully, looking shyly around the room as if she did not want this kind of attention. A sudden epiphany dawned on her. She looked to Sora, an inquisitive expression on her face. "Key-shaped weapon?"
"Yes." Grovyle nodded and continued to speak among the quieter murmurs. "I have never seen such a thing. All I know of is the cross-shaped weapon that my newest acquaintance wields. He appeared around the time the Nobodies had. He and... others..." He looked off to the side, estranged by the appearances of these "others".
...There was silence... Not a soul in the room knew what to do, say, or think. Was their world doomed? Not all hope was lost to the fullest extent, yet that point was not too far.
"...Riolu..." Grovyle mentioned the young explorer's name.
"Y-yes?" Riolu responded attentively, straightening out as if answering a superior's call.
"Where is Jovany...?"
...Again, silence. Every Pokémon was staring at Riolu... Thunder clapped in the skies...
That was it, and Chimecho and Sora knew it as they turned away from Riolu before anyone else had a chance to. He shoved his way to the exit and stormed out of the hut, on the verge of tears once again, which he broke into upon walking into the falling rain once again. As he dropped to his paws and knees in the swampy grass, the shaken Shaymin glanced at him. He heard his name called plenty times from within the hut. Riolu ignored the calls. In his teary breakdown, he payed no attention to the Shaymin approaching. They were not the only ones. Sora, Grovyle, and Vulpix came from the hut, calling Riolu's name. He stood up abruptly.
Riolu cried out, turning away and sprinting for the Sky Peak explorer's trail.
"Wait!" One of the Shaymin called over the others' calls. It raised a paw, still yelling out to Riolu. "The Peak is infested with shadows! You'll be torn to pieces on your own!"
"He's not on his own. He needs to know he has us." Grovyle spoke, managing to keep his cool. "Come on, you two. Help me talk some sense into him." Without a moment to spare, he leaped forward, giving chase after the emotionally stricken Pokémon. Following a quick nod to one another, Vulpix and Sora followed. Sure enough, the members of Wigglytuff's Guild rushed out of the building and gave no moment's thought to pursuing Riolu up what one Shaymin had called the Shadow Summit.
If this many Pokémon of the guild giving chase to Riolu was not enough, one more arrived, black scratches lining his body and almost blending in with his tattoos. This black blood dripped from his arm, dampened further by the rain, or perhaps his own water-type moves. Aware of the guild members ahead, he broke into a sprint after them.
Futachi dared the Shaymin to stop him.