A/N: Be sure to read the end! There's a little surprise waiting there... ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
P.S.: EEK! The XY games are out! ...It's a shame I don't have a 3DS, though. ...Or either of the two games... :(
The Hall of Origin
Arceus's Dimension
Arceus hovered over the marble pedestal as he watched the transparent, mirror-like, suspended image of Nate running across the hallway, Lucario and Pikachu beside him. Behind him were Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, Uxie, Mesprit, and Azelf. All seven Legendary Pokémon watched intently as the image switched to the perspective of Ho-Oh, who was closing in on the Ketchum Month Stadium; its screech pierced the air, blending with the surprised cries of the humans sitting in the stadium.
"All is going according to plan," Arceus said. "Soon the Plate will be recovered..."
"Are you confident about the proceedings, Father?" asked Dialga. "Ho-Oh's life is at risk. The corrupt humans await for it at that same stadium, with a trap in place."
Arceus was still, physically unresponsive. "Knowing Ash, he shall appear to save our dear friend from hands of evil and malice, as he always has done. Especially when the last of his own flesh and blood becomes embroiled in these perilous matters." The image shifted back to Nate, who was close to the waiting room. "He cannot deny his destiny any longer. And once he resurfaces, this will give us the leeway of retrieving the Plate from him."
"And what happens to him when the Plate is retrieved, Father?" Azelf asked suspiciously.
"He shall be punished, like any other ignorant human," Arceus replied sternly, his simple, straightforward tone conveying a dark atmosphere in the Hall, which terrified even his own Children. "Ash defied with great prejudice the path that I have gifted him, and in addition, he committed the most capital of crimes by stealing one of my Plates, without understanding the majestic and dangerous power it holds. ...He will face justice."
Azelf remained silent, as did the other Legendary Pokémon. Instead, they all watched the image as the situation unfolded...
Ketchum Month Stadium
Ketchum City
Nate, Lucario, and Pikachu ran into the waiting room, where the former immediately spotted Hugh watching the TV screen overhead. He ran up to his friend and had to push his shoulder a bit roughly, for the blue-haired Trainer had his eyes glued to the screen, as if he were being hypnotized by it.
"What?" Hugh exclaimed, looking at Nate. "Nate, are you seeing this?!"
"See what?" Nate replied, looking at the screen. His jaw instantly dropped open, and it might as well have touched the floor.
On the screen, the camera was recording the glowing, golden outline of a phoenix-like bird. It looked exactly like the same gravely-wounded bird Nate saw on the Time Flower Lyra and May showed him, and the bird he saw on the Time Flower he privately observed. His suspicions were confirmed when the bird gave out an earsplitting, almost triumphant screech, which seemed to startle the cameraman, since the recording trembled and the camera panned away for a split-second.
It was Ho-Oh, the Rainbow Pokémon.
Nate's eyes widened just as the camera panned away briefly again and momentarily recorded a group of men wearing golden suits standing beside one of the large TV screens, preparing a strange device. He tapped Hugh's shoulder, catching his friend's attention again.
"Do you know where the others are?"
"They should be sitting in the seats at the East Side. Why?"
"I have to get to them. And you're coming with me, Hugh. Something's gonna go down, and I need all the help I can get."
Hugh stood up, an eyebrow raised. "What kind of trouble?"
"Just...trouble," Nate replied hesitantly. However, Hugh spotted Lucario and Pikachu before frowning and crossing his arms.
"You know, Nate, ever since you learned you're..." He looked around to see if anyone else was overhearing him and then whispered, "Ash Ketchum's son, you've been acting very weird. Very secretive-like. I know it's shocking to know that your father saved the world from destruction, but you should've kept me in the loop about this. I would've helped you in any way I know how. I'm your friend and always have been. Don't you know that?"
"I know that, Hugh, always have," said Nate guiltily. "But I was told not to give you any details. It had to be between me and my destiny-"
"But you obviously need my help," Hugh interrupted, his eyes narrowing. "And it seems to have to do with the arrival of that strange bird-"
"Ho-Oh."
"Ho-Oh, Oh-Ho, whatever. What I'm saying is that I don't know what I'm getting myself into, and you need to fill me in on the details. Otherwise, I'm running blind."
"Well, you're gonna have to trust me on this." Nate stared at Hugh seriously. "Please, Hugh. I swear to Arceus, after this, I will tell you everything you need to know."
Hugh raised an eyebrow. "Everything?"
"Everything."
The blue-haired boy lowered his head, the bangs of his hair casting his face in shadow. Nate knew Hugh was thinking this over. After several seconds, he looked up.
"I guess I've got no choice then, huh?"
Nate smiled, just as the ground trembled and the room was filled with surprised screams.
Hilda, Dawn, Cheren, and all of the others stopped in their tracks just as the ground began to tremble.
"Wh-What's going on?" asked Dawn.
"I think I know..." Lyra replied, pointing at a nearby TV screen. It was showing a helicopter attacking Ho-Oh, who had fallen to the ground after taking a hit.
Curtis smiled as he watched Ho-Oh fall into the battleground of the stadium. "Phase Two is now underway..." he said.
"Ho-Oh's down!" exclaimed Cassidy as she watched Ho-Oh's fallen frame, sprawled on the stadium, shift. Everyone in the audience was now screaming in terror, with many of them scrambling out of their seats and retreating in a panic. She glanced at her fellow Sky Soldier grunts. "Keep it down before it can get back in the air!"
"Yes, sir- I mean, ma'am!" a grunt exclaimed in response before pressing a button on the spotlight-like device. An electric beam shot out of the device and hit Ho-Oh.
A new screech filled the air, and this time, it was filled with pain and agony.
"They've fired the stabilization device!" Omicron shouted as he watched the electric beam hit Ho-Oh, drawing a pained screech from it. "Activate ours!"
"Yes, sir!" a grunt exclaimed as he pressed a button on their own spotlight-like device.
Nate suddenly felt a stabbing pain in the back of his head. Clutching his head, he let out a pained scream as he fell to the ground.
"NATE!" screamed Hugh, preparing to run to his friend's aid, but he was suddenly stopped by Lucario.
"Wait..." it said.
"What?-" Hugh began.
Lucario lifted a paw, a light-blue Aura Sphere hovering centimeters away from it. "Wait," it said, with more sternness.
Elsewhere, in the outside hallway, Rosa suddenly collapsed to the floor, crying out in pain and agony as she clutched her head. Gasping in shock and horror, Kelly and Carla immediately knelt down to her side, preparing to help her, when Lyra stopped them.
"Don't," she said. The two women looked up at her and saw, with a surprise, that her eyes were glimmering, and she had a hand on her head in the same fashion as Rosa. Noticing their expressions, Lyra added, "This is supposed to happen. Let it pass..."
"WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THIS?!" Harrington snarled as Ho-Oh was held down by the two electric beams. "I DIDN'T ORDER FOR THIS!"
"Sir, I suggest we have to evacuate," replied one of his bodyguards. "This looks like a very dangerous situation-"
"Damn right! Let's go, everyone!"
"Oh, I don't think so, sir," a familiar voice said in triumph. Harrington and the bodyguards watched as Stark threw a Poké Ball, unleashing a dragon-like Pokémon with a dark-gray body, teal wings, a purple underside, a pair of teal circular patterns for ears, and a long and wiry tail. Everyone gasped in horror, and Harrington's eyes were magnetized towards those of the Pokémon; the left one was a sharp yellow with a black pupil, while the other was colored an intimidatingly bright crimson with a pale-blue pupil. The mayor shook his head and regained his composure, not wanting to break from his image as a strong and effective leader.
"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS, STARK?!" he roared. "THIS IS INSUBORDINATION AGAINST YOUR BOSS, I TELL YOU! YOU WILL BE SEVERELY PUNISHED FOR THIS!"
"Like I care," Stark replied, sneering. "You're not my boss anyway, Mr. Mayor." He glanced out of the doorway. "You may come in now, sir."
Harrington and his bodyguards watched as Enigma, the Sky Seven, several Sky Soldier grunts, and five Cryogonal (including the Shiny one) entered the room. Enigma walked up to the smaller Harrington, who felt himself shrinking, and looked down at him with a stoic expression. Then, his lips abruptly broke into a hungry grin.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mayor Harrington," he said in almost a hiss.
Harrington gulped nervously, feeling his control of the situation quickly slipping away...
The entire audience tried to flood out of the stadium the moment Ho-Oh was held down by strange devices, but there were very few doors, and as a result, there was a massive stampede. Several people fell to the ground and were trampled, while others nearly suffocated from the crushing mass of dozens of people grouped tightly. However, once they were able to get out of the audience seats and in more spacious rooms, they were greeted by Sky Soldiers, their Pokémon, and many Cryogonal.
Within several minutes, everyone in the audience was herded back into seats, just as the teams stationed beside the TV screens started tinkering with them, plugging strange wires into their frames. Several Electric-type Pokémon belonging to the Sky Soldiers unleashed their attacks on the screens, establishing a connection.
Soon, Enigma's face appeared on the TV screens. He was smirking triumphantly as he held out his arms melodramatically.
"Good afternoon, Ketchum City," he greeted. "Quite a nice game we've got here, huh?"
Nate gasped for air, the pain having subsided within seconds. The first thing he saw was Hugh, Lucario, Pikachu, and the other Trainers in the waiting room, all of them looking at him curiously. He was having a hard time hearing for some reason, and as a result, he could only hear just a brief string of indiscernible noises that attracted everyone else's attention to the screen. He stood up, clutching his throbbing head, and looked at the screen to see what everyone else was looking at.
His eyes widened in horror. It was Enigma.
As his ears adjusted, he could hear the syndicate leader speaking. "-game we've got here, huh? And we also have a surprise guest appearance, in the form of Ho-Oh, the almighty Rainbow Pokémon, stated to bring purity to the world! ...A duty it fails to fulfill." His smirk disappeared. "Is it neglect? Incompetence? Passiveness? Either way, it has stood in the sidelines, watching as the world suffers under the grip of evil, corruption, and greed! Like a member of the audience, like yourselves, when it comes to a Pokémon battle! But unlike a Pokémon battle, there is no game, no competition. It is the burden of reality. One where we all suffer greatly.
"Either way, Ho-Oh has failed to live up to its duty, and like a corrupt politician who betrays the trust of the inferiors he was entrusted to serve and organize, I believe it should be in the best interest of all of us to relieve it of its mantle. But Arceus entrusted the duty to Ho-Oh for an unknown reason, and to remove the duty from Ho-Oh would be to fly a plane across a forest while blindfolded. We don't know what would happen. So, we shall settle for the next best thing."
Enigma snapped his fingers, just as the image switched to a recording of a helicopter that was hovering above the stadium, steadily descending towards Ho-Oh as it continued to struggle against the beams that held it down. Nate gasped as he saw the side-door of the helicopter open, revealing a cage. He immediately burst into a run, and he heard Hugh, Lucario, and Pikachu follow closely behind. As the four ran down the hallway, they continued to hear Enigma's speech through the TV screens.
"We make Ho-Oh do its duty. After all, it's in the best interest of the humans and Pokémon it was entrusted to protect."
"Ugh... Why'd I just get that headache all of a sudden?" asked Rosa as she rubbed her head.
"We'll explain later," Lyra replied quickly as she helped the Trainer up. "For now, we've gotta fight these Sky Soldiers." She looked at the others. "Let's go."
Everyone else nodded.
Trip was among the crowd that watched a salesman's handheld TV set in the Ketchum Center as Enigma continued his speech. He quickly moved his way through the crowd and ran towards the fountain of Ash and Pikachu, watching as the water spouted out of it.
"The Sky Soldiers are back," he thought. "What does this mean? What're we gonna do?..."
Suddenly, screams pierced the air, and the photographer watched as numerous Sky Soldier grunts appeared on the streets, discouraging any means of resistance. Trip acted on instinct and whipped out his camera, taking pictures whenever he could. After a few seconds of this, two grunts whipped their heads at him.
"HEY!" one of them barked. "NO PHOTOS!"
As the two grunts closed in on him, Trip pulled out a Poké Ball and threw it in the air, summoning his Serperior, which slithered between him and the grunts.
"SERPERIOR, ENERGY BALL!" ordered Trip.
Serperior promptly opened its mouth and formed a light-green sphere of energy, which hovered in front of its mouth. It then launched the sphere from its mouth at the two grunts, hitting them and launching them backward. The other grunts' attentions were attracted, and they summoned their own Pokémon.
"Real great, Trip..." he thought as he put away his camera and prepared himself for battle.
Using a map on the wall, Nate, Hugh, Lucario, and Pikachu quickly found the balcony where Mayor Harrington was supposed to be at...and also Enigma. Summoning all six of his Pokémon, as did Hugh. Quietly sneaking up at the doorway, Nate took a quick look inside the room. He saw Enigma speaking into a camera, which was being manned by a Sky Soldier grunt. Also occupying the balcony were the same seven people with differently-colored cloaks at the bell tower, as well as half a dozen more grunts. There was also Harrington and his bodyguards, all of which were tied up and gagged. ...Except for Harrington's assistant...
"If we all band together and use Ho-Oh's power, we can change the world for the better!" announced Enigma, smiling triumphantly.
The air was filled with an astounding silence, as if the mute activation had been turned on for a radio. Then, before Nate and Hugh could make their moves, they heard someone from the audience shout out defiantly, "NOT EVEN IN YOUR DREAMS, YOU WANNABE!"
"What was that?" Enigma asked, almost curiously. He retrieved a walkie-talkie from one of the Sky Seven and pressed a button. "Omicron, Fox, who is that?"
"It's some guy at the South Side of the stadium," replied Fox. Nate recognized Fox's voice as Cassidy's.
Just then, another voice, this time belonging to a woman, shouted, "What in Arceus's name are we doing, just sitting here, everyone?! Ash Ketchum wouldn't want us to surrender like this! He'd want us to fight back, to take back control! Come on, everyone! LET'S FIGHT!"
Numerous members in the audience roared in agreement, and Nate was sure that many of them had begun to fight the Sky Soldiers that were stationed on the stairs. Indeed, there were more noises, including those of Pokémon attacks being fired. Enigma growled in anger and spoke into the walkie-talkie again.
"Initiate Phase Two-B!" he shouted. "NOW! NOW, NOW, NOW, NOW, NOW!"
"I DON'T THINK SO!" Nate cried, stepping onto the balcony. "PIGNITE, USE FLAMETHROWER!"
"DEWOTT, USE WATER PULSE!" added Hugh.
Pignite and Dewott fired their respective attacks, which were joined by Lucario's Aura Sphere and a Thunderbolt from Pikachu. All four of the attacks struck Enigma and the Sky Soldiers, causing a tremendous, deafening explosion that blew out the balcony railing. Nate and Hugh's Pokémon instantly engaged the Sky Soldiers in combat.
Taking cover under the billowing cloud of smoke, Nate and Hugh took this time to untie Harrington's bodyguards, allowing them to escape. However, before Nate could untie Harrington, a turquoise-colored sphere of energy pierced through the smoke and struck the ground that was a foot away from him, stopping him in his tracks.
Nate glanced at his attacker: the same dragon-like Pokémon owned by Stark.
"Whoa," he said. "Who's that Pokémon?..."
As if in response, the Pokémon growled at Nate menacingly, just as Stark emerged from the smoke, smirking.
"Well, well, well, the prodigal son returns," he sneered, a trickle of blood cascading past his lips. "NOIVERN, USE BOOMBURST!"
Noivern's ears emitted a light-blue glow before unleashing powerful sound waves, which struck Nate with full force. Nate screamed and covered his ears at the barrage of screeching, deafening noises that threatened to split apart his eardrums. He felt his brain throb from the sound waves. He felt as if his entire head would explode...
An Aura Sphere appeared, striking Noivern directly in the chest and sending it backward into Stark. Nate weakly looked up and saw Lucario standing in front of him, its hands wielding another Aura Sphere, its stance appearing defensive, almost protective. Lucario glanced at Nate and nodded quickly at him; the Trainer nodded back in understanding. Nate then stood up and ran over to the mayor, lifting the gag off of his mouth.
"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!" Harrington sputtered madly.
"With all due respect, Mr. Mayor," Nate said, "be quiet and let me help you!"
Harrington grumbled with disapproval, but allowed Nate to untie his bonds. As he did, the mayor spoke again.
"You're that same boy back at the bell tower."
"Yes, that's right," Nate replied uncomfortably.
"Trouble seems to follow you everywhere, eh?"
Nate shrugged, not wanting to talk right now. "You have no idea..."
Just then, Nate heard Lucario grunt out in pain, followed by a loud crashing sound. He glanced over his left shoulder and saw Lucario slumped against the wall, nearly unconscious. He then felt a shadow tower over him, and looked up. Noivern was standing directly above him. At this point, Stark seemed to be the only Sky Soldier left.
He heard Stark chuckle with triumph.
"You thought you would triumph?" he asked. "Think again."
"Really?" Nate replied calmly. "I should be saying the same to you. You've lost."
"Be careful of what you're saying, boy. Ho-Oh's now under our wing, thanks to your special lil' contribution."
"You had Ho-Oh once before, and you lost it. You'll lose it again."
It was silent for a moment. Then, Stark chuckled again, more maliciously this time.
"Enough of this nonsense. Noivern, use Bite on the meddling Trainer."
Before Nate could react, Noivern opened its mouth. Time suddenly stood still as the brown-haired Trainer stared into the literal jaws of death. The only thing he could feel was his heart pounding against his sternum, threatening to break through it. He noticed that the air was very hot...
Then, it instantly became cold the moment Noivern's jaws clamped down on his shoulder and neck, and squeezed as tightly as they could, its teeth piercing through his skin and digging into his flesh. A pain, one like none other before, sprang throughout Nate's body, feeling just like the stabbing pain in his head, only amplified by over a million times. He wanted to let out a scream, but he couldn't. He didn't know if Noivern's Bite was supposed to be poisonous, but he felt paralyzed, like a statue.
Finally, he heard a noise escape his mouth. It was just a weak, pained grunt, barely audible, even to his own ears.
"NATE!" a voice shouted from several miles away.
However, Nate ignored it and looked up at Noivern's eyes, which were alive with malice...and saw a smiling face, though he didn't know who it belonged to...
Then, his world went black...
"NATE!" Hugh screeched as loudly as he could.
He couldn't believe what he was seeing: Nate, his longtime friend, practically his brother...lying motionlessly, hanging in the blade-toothed jaws of Noivern, like a catch made by a carnivore, its trophy. The terror of that sight sliced his heart in half, and Hugh felt everything go cold all around him. Time seemed to slow down as Noivern effortlessly released Nate; his body collapsed to the marble floor with a curved grace, hitting it with a soft yet sickening thump. Hugh's jaw quivered, and he could hear the Pikachu, for whatever reason, crying out in denial upon spotting Nate. He also heard Nate's own Pokémon crying out in horror and shock.
"Nate..." he moaned quietly.
A growl caught his attention. He glanced at Noivern, whose jaws were dripping with scarlet blood, which were forming a small pool.
"NOIVERN, USE DRAGON PULSE AGAIN!" Stark shouted, pointing at Hugh. Noivern immediately fired another sphere of turquoise energy...which was countered several seconds later by an Aura Sphere and exploded in a flash of light-blue light. Shielding his eyes, Hugh could only see the blur of a shadow as Lucario attacked Noivern, wielding a bone-shaped staff. It relentlessly threw one swing after another at the Dragon-type Pokémon.
Taking advantage of the distraction, Hugh ran over to Nate, who was now lying on the ground beside the struggling Harrington.
"Nate? Nate?!" cried Hugh. "Come on, dude, wake up! Wake up, Nate, we've got bad guys to beat together!"
"Pika pika-pi!" Pikachu exclaimed, and the blue-haired Trainer had just realized that the Mouse Pokémon was beside him. Tears were glittering in its beady eyes. Hugh felt Nate's six Pokémon, led by Pignite, surround the fallen body of their Trainer, and he didn't need to look at them to know how they were feeling.
Hugh nudged Nate's shoulder, but he did not respond. Pikachu similarly nudged his shoulder, but Hugh knew that it was useless. He spotted the wound that was left behind by Noivern's Bite: a pair of deep gashes and about a dozen smaller gashes, all of which were oozing out thick dark-red blood that pooled on the marble floor. The blood was pooling around his red shoes and Pikachu's feet, but no one care about it at all.
"PIKA!" Pikachu screamed, its cry of denial and agony echoing across the stadium, over the sounds of the audience battling the Sky Soldiers in whatever way they can.
Running down a hallway with the rest of the group, Rosa suddenly felt the same stabbing pain in her head again, but only for a split-second. Nevertheless, she gasped and stopped abruptly. Lyra and Dawn immediately noticed, both stopping as well and running back up to the brown-haired girl.
"Rosa, what's going on?" Lyra asked worriedly.
Rosa's eyes were wide, and tears were starting to stream down her cheeks. "It's...It's Nate... Something happened to him..."
Lyra and Dawn looked at each other in horror. They knew what that meant. Then, they heard Kelly's voice.
"Why'd you three stop?" Lyra and Dawn glanced at Kelly and saw that Hilda was standing beside her.
"Did something happen?" asked Hilda.
Ash stopped upon reaching the Ketchum Month Stadium. He had managed to sneak past all of the Sky Soldiers, all with a little thanks to the civilians the moment they began to rise up against the criminal syndicate. It looked like the civilians were taking back control of their city, something that sparked a little satisfaction within him.
However, that satisfaction was drowned out the moment he felt some sort of spiritual disconnection somewhere, located within the stadium...
He closed his eyes, meditating for a few seconds. Then, he opened his eyes and resumed running.
He had found Lucario and Pikachu...and they were with two Trainers, one of whom was gravely injured and on the brink of death...
The Hall of Origin
Arceus's Dimension
Arceus, Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, Uxie, Azelf, and Mesprit all watched as the image shifted to Ash, who was running inside the stadium.
"There he is..." Arceus said quietly. "He has grown. ...Yet only physically and not emotionally. He is still as brash as ever..."
"Should we alert Zekrom and Kyurem now, Father?" asked Giratina. "I believe Ho-Oh has endured enough suffering."
Arceus's head moved for just a fraction of an inch, signifying a nod of approval. "You have my approval to do so, Giratina." The Alpha Pokémon hovered 180 degrees so he could face his Children. "I believe it is time we commenced with the next phase of the objective. You all know your duties, my Children. Go."
"Yes, Father," the dragons and the spirits replied simultaneously. They then flew off and opened up portals to their respective dimensions.
The seclusion in the Hall allowed Arceus to face the transparent image and shift its focus to a bank of clouds. He stared closely at the clouds, and if one were to look as closely as Arceus was, that person could make out a moving mass of white-and-silver, with a trail of red flame blazing behind its tail-like end as it glided across the sky with grace. Arceus, being the almighty, all-seeing Alpha Pokémon, knew that this event was inevitable. It had been almost ten years since any human last saw it. And now, that streak was about to be broken, in about two hours, according to Arceus's insight of the probability.
The loud, bird-like cry that belonged to the Vast White Pokémon, Reshiram, pierced the sky, even through the image, as if it were flying through the Hall right now.
"Perfect..." Arceus thought.
Mt. Silver
Near Ketchum City
The walls of the cave, one of many carved in the mountain, were coated with an unusually high amount of snow and ice, which gave the interior an extreme chill. From within the confines of the pitch-black darkness, a pair of yellow eyes opened, their glowing light piercing through the black.
"He's here," Kyurem said.
The Rocket Blimp
Near Ketchum City
Jessie, James, and Meowth were watching the TV screen, which was currently tuned into a news station that was reporting the incident at the Ketchum Month Stadium live, when they heard a mighty roar outside. The trio ran over to the nearest window, just in time to see Zekrom fly off into the sky, ready for battle.
"Wonder where Zekrom's going?" asked Jessie.
"No doubt to the Ketchum Month Stadium," James replied.
"It don't matta!" Meowth exclaimed. "Let's go after it! We should probably be helping out!"
"Yeah, like ol' times!" Jessie added.
"Launching the Rocket Blimp now!" cried James as he ran off to the steering wheel.
"WOBBUFFET!"
A/N: Quite an action-packed chapter, wasn't it? And yes, the sneak peek is indeed the story I plan to publish, based on the upcoming XY anime. I swear, it will be BIG.
I'd like to thank those who reviewed (cannot answer reviews right now):
IronPikachu
Anon (guest reviewer)
woodland59 (guest reviewer)
Alpha B. A. 7
Galaxina-the-Seedrian
Well, hope you enjoyed this chapter and the sneak peek! TheCartoonFanatic01 is out. PEACE!