Hey hey guys! Part 2 of the 3 part finale has arrived! Enjoy!
August 27 7:04 p.m.
Sinnoh - Dominion Temple
Misty's eyes reflected the bright green beam of light. The flickering intensity captured the stares of her sisters squad, enticing them in its terrifying wake. Thunder followed a crack of lightning, the flash illuminating the swirling clouds as they were sucked into the ever growing portal.
"What the Hell is that?!" Max asked suddenly.
"It can't be anything good," Brock replied, his face frowning from the deep resonating growl coming from the hole in the sky.
"Darkness..." Whispered Misty, her hands beginning to tremble. "It's coming."
"Darkness?" Lily asked, turning her head to her youngest sister. Misty didn't reply, her eyes traveled down the length of the light beam, watching it disappear behind tree tops. The rain seemed to be swirling around the green light, traveling upwards into the portal.
"Get up there," she suddenly turned to Daisy. "Take your men and get up there now!"
"W-what?!" Daisy stuttered at the red heads ferocity. "We have like, our orders. To guard anyone here at the choppers."
"To Hell with your orders," Misty snapped angrily. "If the Darkness makes it through everything will be destroyed! EVERYTHING! And if I'm unable to help-"
She shot Brock a quick glare that made him cower back a step, "-then you all get your asses up there right this second!"
"Misty we can't just disobey-" Violet started, but was cut of with an agonizing shout as a yellow streak of lightning slammed into her chest. She blasted off her feet, slamming into the side of the helicopter and fell to the mud.
"VIOLET!" Lily and Daisy shouted in unison, their voices being drowned out from the metal howls of Dominions swooping down.
"OPEN FIRE!" Max shouted, raising his rifle and pulling the trigger. Most troops did the same, but a few released Pokemon. Misty saw a Stantler, a Buizel, and a Magneton before she was yanked backwards inside the helicopter by Brock. He shoved her beside his two babies, who were now screaming from the loud noises, and pointed a finger in her face.
"Stay there!" And he jumped back outside, unclipping a PokeBall as he did so. The helicopter lurched to the side, causing Nurse Joy to wildly grab the nearest wall for support, and Misty to frantically grab ahold of Brent and Darcy. As the gunfire and Dominion shrieks raged outside, as the two infants screamed in her ear, Violet's face was burned into her vision. The sheer shock and pain of the lightning attack etched into her very retinas.
For a moment, a fleeting moment, her heart had filled with relief upon seeing her sisters again. Now...
"AGH!" She yelped as her abdomen twinged with a sharp pain. Then another, and another. Nurse Joy heard her, and raced to her side.
"You need to try and relax," she said, placing a hand against Misty's forehead and across her stomach. "Your body will reject the pregnancy if you over stress."
"Yea let me just relax!" The red head shot with a hiss as she heard a shout, rip, and blood splatter outside.
"Just breathe in, and out," Joy told her, maintaining a calm demeanor despite the urgency of their situation. Misty snorted once, but did as she was told. It didn't help...another pain, ten times worse than the last jerked through her and she shouted in response. Darcy and Brent continued wailing.
Joy removed her hand from Misty and said quickly, "Somethings wrong. Here, lie down."
Wrong?! Of course somethings wrong! People are dying outside right this second and she's in here worrying about Misty?! This whole damn situation is wrong!
Joy didn't leave Misty much choice, she forced the woman down and before the red head could protest, ripped her pants off.
Ash fought through his pain, his ears ringing sharply from the massive boom that had emitted from the Darkin. He shakily stood up, his feet slipping in the mud. High above him, the green eyed Dominion held the artifact above its head, grinning wildly. Its razor sharp teeth exposed.
The Darkin was lit up with a dark energy. Dark particles swirling around it and forming into a bright green light that pulsated directly overhead. The fighting had ceased for only a second as the troops, Pokemon, and Legendaries looked on in worry while the Dominions gave a screech of joy.
Then the growl, which vibrated the very vertebrate of Ash's spine. From his angle, he was directly below the ever growing portal, and deep within the crushing blackness of its depths...he saw it. At least, something moving closer to the opening. A pair of dark purple eyes glared down into the world below it, the hazy outline of its body seemed to whisp and flow like smoke, making its true size hard to determine.
The rain was cold, but that was nothing compared to the chill blowing out of the portal. An indefinite chill, a cold so fierce that every hair on Ash's body stood on end. Trails of faint black streaks began to leak from the portal, snaking their way slowly through the clouds. The creature inside growled once more, and Ash was pushed into action.
"WE NEED TO GET THE DARKIN," he bellowed. "NOW! THAT THING CANNOT MAKE IT THROUGH!"
"No need to tell me twice," Gary responded, whipping his Fire Treasure forward and barreling flames straight for the green eyed Dominion. It didn't move, didn't even flinch, as the intense heat soared its way. Another Dominion swooped forward, intercepting the flames with its body, shrieking from the pain but withstanding the blast.
Ash launched his electricity from the Lightning Treasure, and Dawn followed his example with her Ice. Both attacks were blocked in the same manner as Gary's fire. Two Dominion's flying into their paths and intercepting them, screeching through the agony it caused them.
"KEEP AT IT!" Ash shouted hysterically. One by one, together, even as randomly as they could, they attacked again and again. Each time they were blocked or stopped by other Dominion's. Allowing the portal to grow wider as the beam of green light pulsated uninterrupted from the Darkin.
Lance, unable to help with the Darkin's retrieval, raced to Mew. Who was still lying unmoving in the mud. He carefully picked it up, giving it a quick once over and then his eyes darting left and right for a threat. So far most Dominion's were fighting against the League troops, or defending their leader.
"M-Mew," the tiny Pokemon croaked in his arms, its big blue eyes slowly cracking open. It attempted to leave Lance's hands, but he caught it as its flight shuddered and it fell.
Ash was now grunting and screaming with every toss of his arm. Putting in all the effort he had to break through. That portal had to be closed, and it it had to be now! Those purple eyes were almost to the opening.
"We need a new plan," Dawn yelled to him. "This isn't working!"
"A little more help would be nice," Gary commented as he thrust more flames.
"We got ya covered!" Came a voice from above him, and with a woosh, a Charizard blew by. Cameron and May on its back.
"Keep doing what you're doing!" May shouted down.
"We'll get that artifact!" Cameron added, and he tapped Charizard on its right horn indicating for his Pokemon to swerve.
"Turn up the heat!" Gary shouted, grunting as he made the flames hotter. "See what I did there?"
"Yea, we're all impressed," Dawn said back snarkily, but increased her ice output all the same. Ash watched carefully as Charizard tucked its wings in to keep the two trainers on its back, and dove through a gap between a couple of Dominion's. Opening its wings at the right moment and knocking the two creatures aside. The Fire type expertly dodged lightning blasts, and sharp claws. Bobbing and weaving through the swarm of evil creatures. From the ground, Ash squinted through the rain, aiming carefully and assisting his two friends by picking off the Dominion's that weren't too close to them.
The one advantage they seemed to have was the green eyed Dominion had yet to move. It must need to remain still to concentrate on keeping the portal open. Charizard moved closer, maneuvering around one last Dominion and then shooting down to their green eyed leader. May outstretched her hand, her fingertips hurtling for the Darkin.
"GAH!" She yanked her hand back as a Dominion appeared directly in front of her and swung its third arm. Cameron hurled himself from Charizard's back and crashed into the Dominion, knocking it off course and interrupting its razor sharp swing. The two fell entangled together, the creatures scaled leathery skin scratching his arms and face.
"Cameron!" May shouted as he vanished over the side of Charizard, plummeting to the ground. Ash heard the panicked scream and turned to see the sight. The Dominion broke free from Cameron and flew away quickly to let him fall to his death, and turned on the spot to fire lightning at the pursuing Charizard. May squeaked in shock as the fire type turned a straight ninety degree angle to avoid the sudden blast.
As Cameron continued to fall, he fumbled with the PokeBall's on his belt. Trying desperately to grip one, but they were slick from the heavy rain. One unclasped but shot right from his fingers, vanishing amongst the thousands of raindrops.
Ash grit his teeth and unleashed a storm of his own lightning, streaming bolt after bolt ahead of Charizard. Clearing the way for the Fire Pokemon to catch its trainer. It caught up to the falling man, May wrapped her arms around his torso, and Charizard barrel rolled to to avoid hitting the muddy ground.
Relieved that Cameron was safe for the moment, Ash swiftly returned his attention to the Darkin, but came face to face with a Dominion midway through skewering him like a stuck pig.
It was gone...he blinked. What the...? To his right the creature was sprawled in the mud, with a Braixen standing over it. Then a familiar voice called to him, "Ash!"
Turning, he spotted a honey blonde with a battle ready glare. "Serena!?"
"ALRIGHT MEN! CHAAARGE! SHOW THESE SONS OF BITCHES WHAT WE CAN DO!" A strong man's voice bellowed, and hundreds of fresh League troops exploded from the surrounding darkness, with Lieutenant Surge leading them. The League's reinforcements had arrived!
His mind clicking into gear, Ash yelled to Serena, "We need that!"
He pointed to the Darkin, and she nodded, turning to shout, "Focus fire around the green eyed Dominion! Clear a path for that Charizard!"
Ash blinked, when did she become a leader in battle? Something to figure out later. Surge reiterated her order, and soon the Dominion's attempting to protect their leader were overwhelmed. Unable to avoid the mass amounts of gunfire and Pokemon attacks, they broke ranks, swerving through the air like a burst open beehive. Charizard ducked and weaved through them, a blur of fiery orange with two humans on its back. Cameron kept his head low, feeling the Dominion's claws swiping at him. May clung close to his back, her face close enough to his wound to smell the iron in his blood.
Gary filled the sky with blazing fire, taking Dawn's trick and adding a spin to his Treasure, creating tiny fire tornadoes that propelled themselves into Dominion's. Charizard, under Cameron's command, made the flaming vortexes bigger with its Flamethrower. Clearing a bigger path for them to zoom through.
The growl of Darkness was nearing the portal entrance, its smoky outline coming into a more solid frame for Ash to see. A serpentine silhouette of pure evil. His eyes left the Darkness and went to Charizard...almost there! The fire type ducked under Dominion lightning and turned for the final stretch. May outstretched her hand for the second time, concentrating hard on the fast approaching artifact. The green eyed Dominion gave a shrill shriek to call for help, but it was too late, her fingers closed around the Darkin and it was snatched from the Dominion's hands.
A shockwave of light exploded from the artifact, causing May to scream and the blast to loosen it from her hand. Charizard was knocked off course and tumbled through the air, barely keeping the two trainers on its back. Gary jumped to catch the Darkin, stopping it from hitting the ground and sliding through the mud himself. The green beam of light shot straight upward, dissipating the closer it drew to the portal until only the dark hole was left...and it began to close!
BOOM! The Darkness rocketed through the fast closing portal, slamming into the Earth like a meteor. Sending mud, rain, person and Pokemon alike, flying through the air. Ash was thrown among them, his body flipping like a rag doll until he smacked back down to the ground. Rolling uncontrollably a dozen feet before coming to a stop.
Legendary Pokemon were toppled, and thrown from the sky. Groudon fell backwards, nearly crushing the Dominion Temple under its backside. Ho-Oh slammed into the cliff face, cracking a few large boulders free that fell to the ground with quaking booms. Palkia was thrown headfirst into the mud, tumbling into the patch of trees near the Temple. Cameron's Charizard was knocked from the sky as well, wrapping its wings over the two trainers on its back to shield them from much of the impact.
Lance had remarkably remained on his feet, albeit being slid backwards nearly as far as Ash was thrown. Perhaps Mew in his arms had something to do with it as the Pokemon's eyes were lit up, it gaze transfixed on the shadowy shape unfolding itself in the freshly made crater. As was every breathing being at the moment. All pairs of eyes watching with either victory or fear.
Ash's shoulders popped as he pushed his weight up with his arms, his fingers carving tiny trenches through the mud. The Lightning Treasure sat between his hands, the little yellow light flickering wildly deep inside. Painstakingly, he craned his neck to see the Darkness, watching as the whisps of black smoke solidified together. Deep purple eyes in the center, seeming to stare into his soul.
Up above the portal closed, replaced by storm clouds that flashed lightning and boomed thunder. In the burst of light, the Darkness had been fully visible for that split second, and Ash's breath froze in his lungs. It definitely had been serpentine in shape, built like a dragon from ancient lore, without the wings. Its skin matched that of the Dominion's, a scaled leathery substance, but unlike the yellow eyed creatures, its skin appeared to absorb light. Casting no glow or reflection of the lightning. It had long sharp claws, and a jaw as big as Gyarados. That craziest part that Ash's brain could not wrap itself around? In the illuminating flash of the lightning the Darkness had not cast a shadow.
Its growl emitted from deep within its throat, vibrating the mud between Ash's fingers and paralyzing all around it with terror. Those dark purple eyes scanned over the crowd beneath it as it rose to its fullest height, surveying the lesser creatures. It must have been nearly fifty foot tall! Its eyes landed on Mew in Lance's arms, and it sneered.
"Light," it spoke, sending a ripple of a sound wave across the battlefield. "It's been too long. Where is your creator?"
"Mew!" The Pink Legendary squeaked defiantly, wiggling in Lance's grasp.
Then the Darkness' eyes went to Ash, "I see you've found the pure hearts. It will help you not. This universe is mine."
Then its maw opened exceedingly fast and a black energy ball exploded from it, rocketing straight for Lance.
"NO!" Dawn shouted from somewhere behind Ash, and he heard a commotion and steps in the mud. BOOM! The black sphere exploded into a barrier of pure white energy, warping around Mew and Lance, missing them entirely.
"This universe is not yours, not anymore Darkness." The empowering voice rained down, sending a warm breeze that penetrated through the piercing cold of Darkness.
"Arceus!" It roared, snapping its head to the clouds. The God descended through the storm, its mane flowing elegantly as it hovered in place. Humans and Pokemon awed at the sight, their jaws opening as the two powerful beings stared each other down. "You abomination. You dare challenge me again? You will not be so lucky this time."
"We do not need luck," Arceus said confidently. "We have the pure hearts."
"So you say," Darkness hissed. "DOMINION'S DESTROY THE PURE HEARTS!"
Everything exploded, chaos erupted, literally all Hell broke loose. If the fighting had been fierce before this moment, then this was carnage at its ultimate. Death and destruction at its peak. People were screaming, Pokemon were roaring, Dominion's shrieking, and the two God like beings commenced a battle the likes in which hadn't been seen since the birth of creation.
All focus was now on Ash, Dawn, and Gary. The Dominion's, every single one of them, took their shots at destroying the trio. They would have succeeded had it not been for every other living creature present. A streak of lightning blew straight for Ash's face, but Celebi appeared, creating a time warp and sucking the strike inside it. Gary and Dawn, who he had stopped from running to Lance, were plucked out of harms way by Zapdos as four blasts of yellow energy exploded into the ground.
Serena and Surge shouted simultaneously, "OPEN FIRE!"
Somewhere in the distance, Ash heard Iris' voice, "DON'T LET THEM REACH THOSE THREE!"
All around him, attack after attack, Dominion after Dominion swooped down, but every other living soul was working in unison to protect the three pure hearts. Dawn and Gary were dropped beside him, and Gary landed on his rump. "Gee thanks Zapdos!"
"What are we going to do?" Dawn asked hysterically, spinning in place at the chaos around her. Above them there was an explosion so violent that it blew the clouds apart for them to see the night sky above. Arceus recovered from the blast wave and dodged another black sphere that barreled past it. Darkness rose from the ground with an earth shattering leap, flying high to match Arceus' height.
"We stop it," Gary said, scrambling to his feet, and clutching both his Fire Treasure and the Darkin. "Isn't that what we're supposed to do? All the 'keys' are here, it's time to wrap this up!"
Ash stoop up with him, plucking the Lightning Treasure from the mud as he did. Gary was right! They had them, the Treasure's, Mew, and the Darkin! They could end this!
"You remember what that altar looked like?" He quickly asked Dawn, but she shook her head.
"That wasn't the clearest thing the Darkin's shown me..."
"Alright then I'll guess we'll just know it when we see it," he turned to face the ragin battle. "SERENA!"
The honey blonde heard his shout and faced him as he continued, pointing up to Darkness, "Keep that thing distracted!"
She gave a curt nod and shouted, "You heard him Alpha squad! Help out Arceus!"
"Lance!" Ash yelled to the Dragon Master who was being shielded by a pink barrier from Mew. "Follow us!"
As he led the way to the Temple, ducking under pointed lightning blasts, Dawn and Gary kept close on his heels. Lance sprinted after them, holding Mew tight as the Pokemon concentrated on maintaining their protection.
"Load the Gustav!" Surge barked. "Hurry it up Alpha! We don't got all day!"
Serena commanded Braixen to spin a flame wheel around the troops loading the launcher. Deflecting any incoming attacks.
"Loaded!" One league troop shouted as he raised the RPG.
"FIRE!" Sure bellowed. With an extremely loud pop, and a puff of smoke the rocket exploded out of the front end. Heading straight for Darkness as it soared after Arceus. Its purple eyes turned to see it a foot away and then the rocket impacted against its face. Covering its massive head in a fiery ball of smoke. A harsh, angry roar shook the very sky, and a black energy blast shot from the smoke. Heading straight down for Serena and her troops.
"MOVE!" She roared, sprinting away as fast as the mud would allow. The blast wave of the black energy's impact sent her and Braixen flying, obliterating the few troops who had not moved in time.
Ash stumbled from the shockwave, but maintained his composure. Not daring to look back for fear of what he would see. He kept his gaze transfixed on the Temple doorway, putting all he had into running. From the corners of his eyes he could see Dominion's attempting to reach him, but they were always cut off by a bullet or a Pokemon. SLAM! Something struck him across his back, tearing through his shirt and ripping into his flesh. He stumbled forward, hitting the mud and rolling a few feet.
Gary shouted, Dawn cried his name, and Ash pushed himself up to face his friends. The green eyed Dominion swung at him, narrowly missing as Ash ducked back down and dove forward. Tackling his body weight into its chest. It screeched loudly in his ear, and he felt sharp claws cut into him as the Dominion gripped him to hurl his body away.
Once again he braced himself for the impact of hitting the ground, but instead he landed on some thing much softer, but firm. His eyes shot open to find himself on the back of a large, yellow, doglike Pokemon. Raikou!
"Hit it with everything you've got!"
Ash turned to the new voice, and couldn't help his mouth falling open at the sight of Professor Oak riding Suicine. Leading a charge of the three Legendary Dogs as they blasted their most powerful attacks at the green eyed Dominion. It hissed and shot high into the air, dodging the attacks. Professor Oak quickly turned to face Ash, "Go!"
Right! He scrambled to dismount Raikou and nearly slipped in the mud, resuming his sprint to the Temple. The others followed, with Gary yelling, "Kick some ass Gramps!"
"Likewise!" The older man shot back and then bellowed, "Keep that thing away from them!"
The three dogs roared up at the Dominion leader and it howled in response. Sending a blast of green lightning that the dogs evaded.
The pure hearts and Lance raced on, only a dozen feet away from the Temple entrance now! Boom! Boom! A massive shape crashed down between them and the Temple, growling menacingly at them. Darkness seethed as it opened its giant maw, preparing to blow them all to bits. Arceus crashed directly into Darkness, knocking the serpentine dragon on its side. It roared loud enough to cause the cliff face to crack, and heaps of rock to sprinkle down into the trees.
"HIT IT!" Gary shouted, launching flames at Darkness' face. Ash and Dawn did the same, and Mew shot three pink spheres alongside them. Their attacks exploded upon impact, making Darkness roar once more and flail a massive claw their direction. Something flashed directly in Ash's eyes, and he felt the surge of wind as Darkness' claw swiped ten feet in front of them. Celebi swirled around him, glaring at Darkness and shaking its finger.
"TAKE THIS!" Another Pokemon blew by Ash, ruffling his hair from its closeness. A Dragonite! With Iris and Cilan on its back. Cilan shouted as he threw his empty rifle at the evil creature. Striking it in the eye, and causing Darkness to snap it monstrous jaws at them. Dragonite swerved straight up and narrowly avoided being eaten as the rows of sharp teeth slammed shut with a snap. Bursts of gunfire erupted beside Dawn, and she jumped at the sound. Korrina and Ritchie raced past them, rifles blazing and covered in Dominion blood. Under normal circumstances, Ash would've greeted them properly, but spotted what all of them were doing! There was an opening!
"Let's go!" Ash shouted, and he sprinted straight for Darkness. Heading underneath it and running right for the Temple door. Something orange rocketed in front of his vision, and he caught a quick glimpse of Cameron shooting rifle rounds into Darkness' gut.
He didn't stop, he didn't slow. He simply ran, pumping his muscles as hard as he possibly could. They had to get inside! Riiiiight-NOW! He raced aross the threshold of the Temple and was suddenly surrounded by dank, murky walls. The fighting outside seemed to quieten immensely and he could hear the panting of Gary, Dawn, and Lance right behind him.
"So-Where-to-now?" Lance got out, readjusting his grip on Mew to be a little looser.
"We'll have to figure that out," Ash replied.
"Brock look out!" Max bellowed, saving the older trainers life. Brock turned and ducked under the sharp swipe of the Dominion's third arm.
"Sonic boom Crobat!" The bat obliged and sent the Dominion sailing with a few flaps of its wings. From inside the helicopter, they heard Misty scream in pain. A long, chilling, nightmare of a scream.
"You go check on her!" Max told his friend. "I'll cover you!"
He made good on his word as he shot his rifle, splitting open an advancing Dominion's skull. Brock didn't need to be told twice and bolted in the choppers direction, hoping to God that his babies were alright. He skidded in the mud as he tried to stop, but had to catch himself on the side of the chopper.
"Don't let anything near this helicopter," he told Crobat and it bobbed in the air determinedly. Then he climbed inside, swiftly sliding the door shut behind him to block out the rain. His babies were screaming, but that wasn't what caught his eye. Blood, everywhere. Covering Misty's naked lower half, and flowing across the hard bench seat she layed on. She had a death grip on the sides of it, and let out another painful howl. Nurse Joy, who was positioned between Misty's legs, was frantically checking everything she deemed she could, spouting off the question, "How far along are you?!"
"Cl-AGH! Close-to s-HYAGH! Six months," Misty forced out through her gritted teeth.
Brock raced to their sides as Nurse Joy said, "Somethings wrong! But I can't figure out what!"
The Nurses hands were coated in Misty's blood, and Brock's brain made the connection of its source for the first time. "What can I do?!"
"She won't stop bleeding," Joy shouted, shifting herself to be at a better angle. "I don't know what to do!"
Misty gave another God awful howl of pain, and Brock's heartbeat raced faster than it had ever before.
"Iris, swerve!" May shouted to her Unovan friend. The purple haired woman pulled on Dragonite, and the Pokemon maneuvered out of the way as Dominion lightning blew by.
"Good eye!" Cilan yelled in appreciation as he clung to Iris. Dragonite swooped over to fly alongside May and Cameron on Charizard.
"We could use a little more help," Cameron said, unclipping a PokeBall and opening it. His Dragonite emerged, slightly bigger than Iris'. "Deflect any incoming attacks we don't see buddy!"
His Dragonite acknowledged him and flew a few feet below. Darkness was still positioned in front of the Temple, tearing through the forces on the ground. It smashed a giant foot on top of a squad of Rockets, who's shouts were heard for the briefest of moments before being silenced by the boom of the impact. Dominion's buzzed all around, pairs of yellow eyes darting this way and that. The forces below were quickly being overwhelmed with Darkness involved.
Serena and Surge shouted commands, desperately trying to keep Darkness distracted and their troops safe. Clemont, alongside Bonnie, were operating one of his gadgets. A portable shield generator built into his backpack that was absorbing the Dominion lightning, and firing it right back. They moved swiftly around the battlefield, saving troop after troop from an untimely demise.
A Staraptor exploded into a burst of blood and feathers that Charizard swerved over, avoiding the static hanging in the air. Lugia nailed Darkness in the face with a well aimed attack, and the evil creature retaliated with a stream of black flames. Arceus shielded Lugia, throwing up a white barrier that absorbed the flames.
"We need a new plan," Cameron shouted. "None of us are going to survive much longer."
"I don't know what else we could do," Iris yelled back. "We didn't anticipate that thing!"
She pointed down to Darkness as it took back to the sky, slamming its giant head into Arceus.
"What about Clemont?" Cilan called. "He's a genius. Maybe he's got a gadget that can give us an advantage."
"It's a long shot," Iris told him.
"We'll we gotta try something," May said. "You three stay up here and help Arceus if you can. I'll go find him."
"Do you even know him?"
"Um, what's he look like?"
Iris face palmed, "Blonde, and I mean really blonde. Round glasses, should have a techno device of some kind on him."
"You mean like that?" Cameron pointed to the ground at the portable shield that was maneuvering through the battle.
"Just like that," Cilan nodded.
"Alright then," May smirked, nudging the man in front of her. "Can I take Dragonite?"
He looked back at her worriedly, "Are you sure about this? We can both go."
She leaned forward, cupping his face in her hands and giving him a comforting kiss. "I'll be fine."
"You better be. Dragonite! Catch May!"
She took a quick breath and let herself slide off Charizard. For a fleeting moment her heart raced as the wind and rain whipped around her in free fall, but she quickly thumped onto Dragonite's back and was speeding for the ground.
"I don't know how much longer this thing can hold," Bonnie gripped her rifle tight as she surveyed the surrounding light blue shield.
"It's electromagnetic," Clemont informed her as he bent down to check the pulse of a Rocket. "It will last as long as those Dominion's keep attacking us."
"That supposed to make me feel better?-incoming!"
Clemont bolted upright, flipping out a handgun at their new arrival that landed in the mud hard. It was a Dragonite! With a pretty, but battle worn brunette on its back.
"Are you Clemont?" She asked quickly.
"Um, yes," he said uncertainly. "You are?"
"May Maple, we nee-"
"Max's missing sister!" Bonnie squealed loudly. "He'll be so happy to know you're alive!"
Reeling from the sudden outburst, May took a quick breath. It was comforting to know Max was alive, and odd to know he knew this girl, but talking about all that had to wait. Continuing on, she said, "We need your help. I was told you might have a device that could help give us a better advantage."
Clemont's shoulders slumped, "Nothing like that."
May's disappointment was evident, so Clemont added, "I might be able to tweak something if I had more information on that thing."
He pointed and May followed his line of sight as it led to Darkness. Well, she had some information. Quickly she relayed what she knew, that it was older than the universe itself, and what it was called. Hearing the name sparked an idea in Clemont's head, "Darkness?...hm, I'd be willing to bet that it doesn't like light. That would explain the sheer pitch blackness inside the portal, and why it didn't cast a shadow."
"Light? Like, sunlight?" May asked.
"Sure," the blonde said, already flipping off his backpack and pulling out the shield generators control box. "Any light really, the brighter, and the longer the exposure, the better. If I had to make a guess."
"What are you doing?" Bonnie asked, watching him turn the control box around and flip open a panel to reveal thousands of tiny, multicolored wires.
"Turning this shield generator, into a spotlight ray!"
"A spotlight ray?" May quizzed.
"I can change the output of the panels, and have them emit light, that I can then adjust into a beam that expands the farther it goes," Clemont explained as he moved wires around and tinkered with circuits. "With a bit more tinkering, I can increase the intensity of the ray, and make it close to the Suns brightness, if not brighter."
"Won't you be taking down our shield?" Bonnie alarmingly asked.
To which Clemont nodded, "Let's hope this works."
"This way!" Dawn pointed, turning down an even darker corridor. She was leading the way, since she had spent many months here with Lance and Kyle...
"I don't think you know where you're going!" Gary snapped, since this was now the fifth random murky entombed hallway they had ran down.
"I don't," she admitted. "But that's the point! All that time I spent in here, I never once saw anything like that alter in the Darkin's vision. So, I'm taking us places I didn't get to see."
"Sounds like a solid plan," Gary drawled unconvinced.
Ash looked behind him for the hundredth time as he ran, his heart skipping a beat each time he had done so. Something was following them, he just knew it. His instincts were on high alert, the hairs on the back of his neck standing tall. Or maybe this place just didn't feel right...it certainly felt tainted.
On they ran, not slowing down, not stopping to catch their breath. Their already soaked through clothes were becoming worse as the sweat poured down their bodies. They ran past another corridor that branched off, and Mew began to squeak rapidly. Wiggling in Lance's arms and pointing down the hall.
The group stopped, and Ash was the one to ask, "That way?"
"Mew! Mewmew!"
"Works for me," Dawn shrugged, and she took off down the dark corridor. The others quickly followed, and soon they found the air growing colder. A breeze pushing back against them as they ran.
Suddenly they stopped, entering a massive sized room, a room that looked familiar to Ash and Dawn. In the very center stood a pyramid like structure of steps, leading up to a platform at the top. Positioned in the center of the flat surface was the altar they were searching for. Overall shaped to resemble Darkness, and solid black like obsidian. Darkness' maw was opened wide, like it was about to blast an attack down to them. Beneath the statue, engraved into Darkness' legs, was a stand with four separate, and uniquely shaped stands. The three lined in a row were carved to resemble a flame, a bolt of lightning, and a shard of ice. The fourth stand connected to the other three, but higher placed on the altar, looked more to be missing a piece of itself. A thin chunk that would slide into a crevice in the top.
The Darkin, which had already been glowing slightly in their presence, twinkled more light in Gary's hand. The Elemental Treasures mimicked the artifact, emitting a small wave of warmth as the light flickered deep inside them. Gary whistled, "Looks like we're going to win after all."
CRASH! Something bowled through them from behind, tumbling the group like pins and rolling them across the floor. Ash's head struck the rocky surface a few times before he came to a stop. There was a shout from Dawn, a flash of her Treasure, and an angry metallic screech. He quickly shot to his feet, spotting her struggling to maintain an ice barrier as the green eyed Dominion rapidly clawed its way through it with all three arms. Gary summoned a whirling vortex of fire and blasted it from the ground. The flames lit up the dank room as they traveled, but their light was extinguished as the Dominion jumped out of the way and let the flames melt the majority of Dawn's barrier.
Lance shook his head to rid the vertigo, having been holding Mew and unable to block any of the impact his body did to the floor. The Legendary squeaked defiantly and worked its way free from Lance, struggling to remain floating in the air.
Ash hurled himself into the fight, striking the Dominion across the chest with two bolts of electricity. It howled at him angrily, and swiped at him, nicking hairs off his head as he ducked under the claws.
Mew shakily hovered up the steps towards the altar, forcing itself to fight through the pain in its tiny self. Lance noticed Mew was no longer beside him, and frantically scanned the room for the Pokemon, spotting it fall to the steps once and continue on its way. He quivered as he stood, his legs feeling like jelly. Dawn screamed in pain, and her body landed in front of him with a crash. She struggled to rise, a deep gash apparent on her side. The Dominion roared with its terrifying metallic voice and lunged at the Bluenette, intent on finishing her off. Lance shouted and threw himself between it and her, his arms outstretched in a protective manner. Ash hurled himself into the Dominion, entangling their bodies as they toppled away from Dawn and Lance. They rolled across the floor, the creature hissing and shrieking in his ear, tearing at his flesh with its sharp claws. Gary ran up and decked the Dominion as hard as he could in the face, taking its stunned moment to pull it away from Ash and free his friend.
The creature righted itself upright, seething with anger. Gary sent a jet of fire its direction, but it flew up and out of the way. Dawn however, landed a hit. Leaning around Lance and sending a sharp shard of ice, it impaled itself into the Dominion's thigh, causing it to screech with pain. In a roar of rage, it outstretched all three arms and unleashed a storm of green lightning throughout the room. Too many bolts for them to dodge or deflect, and they took multiple hits, sending them into the walls. Ash slammed next to Lance, his back popping from the impact, and his body burning from the electricity surging through his muscles. He slid to the ground, grunting from the pain.
"We have had enough!" The Dominion screamed at them. "This universe belongs to Darkness and you will be annihilated. Fighting us is futile, why do you continue?"
Ash grit his teeth, his gaze slowly rising to the creature hovering a few feet in the air, glaring him down with glowing green eyes. To his right sat Lance and Gary, both crumpled in a heap and not moving, Dawn in the same position to his left. They all looked beaten, torn up and covered in blood; theirs, others, and Dominion.
"You fight for them?" His attention was drawn back to the Dominion as it looked at him. "You fight for other abominations?"
"Yes," Ash croaked, tasting blood in his mouth. "Something you wouldn't understand I suppose."
It hissed at him, but he continued, "I fight for life. For friendhsip. For love. For the world I know. You wouldn't know these things because you have only ever known Darkness-"
Something glistened behind the Dominion, and as he spoke he saw Mew beside the altar, using its Psychic to lift the Darkin up towards it.
"Darkness is everything!" The Dominion bellowed at him, its green eyes flashing angrily. "Darkness is eternity. What would an abomination that is no more than a hiccup in time know about it?"
Ash's eye caught something else at his feet, the three Treasures, their lights flickering within. "I know about life and the wonders it can hold. Which-"
He pulled his back away from the wall, enciting a small pop in his spine. "-is why I can't let you win."
He lurched forward, snatching up all three spheres into his hands. The Dominion screeched and pointed all three arms at him, blasting its green lightning from each one. Ash held forward the three Treasures, sending jets of their element colliding with the Dominion's lightning. They connected with a loud boom, sending sparks, fire, and ice in all directions. Ash maintained the stream of elements, growling deep within his chest as his body ached and screamed at him in retaliation. The Dominion hissed angrily, focusing its arcs of lightning, attempting to overpower him.
Ash was now growling aloud, his teeth clenched tightly together as his lips parted. His arms vibrated violently from the connected streams, but he didn't let up. Giving a heavy grunt as he forced more of the elements to work in his favor.
Dawn groaned and slowly sat up, Lance's cape sliding off her face and revealing the scene. Her mouth fell open at the sight of Ash, his hair and clothes billowing back from the force of the blasts. The determined, and confident look in his eye. The way he held his stance with one foot forward, clearly in pain but fighting through it. Both Gary and Lance sat up now, gaining the same stupefied expressions as the Bluenette.
Ash shifted his growling into a long shout as his muscles felt like they were on fire. The Dominion's once arrogant sneer was now morphing into one of terror. The impact zone of its lightning and Ash's elements were inching closer to the creature.
Dawn was mesmerized at the show, only snapping from her trance as a finger tapped on her shoulder. Gary had crawled over to her, and without a word, motioned up the steps to Mew at the altar. The Legendary was frantically waving down at them, pointing to the Treasures and then to the Darkin it had placed on the altar in the fourth slot above the other three.
The Dominion howled in rage, and its eyes flashed, actually physically emitting a green burst of light. The connected streams began to move back towards Ash. He grunted from the energy now pulsating his direction, his knees beginning to tremble and he began sinking to the ground. The confidence he felt was rapidly fading, he was going to lose...
Then two pairs of hands gripped his arms, helping him stand back upright. Dawn and Gary held firm until he had regained his composure, and then each of them relieved Ash of their respective Treasures. Maintaining the stream of fire and ice they were emitting. Feeling the heavy burden lift immensely off his arms, Ash felt new vigor course through him. His friends were by his side! All of them! The ones outside fighting against the hordes of Dominion's and Darkness, the few he had to leave behind at the helicopters, and the ones who had fallen. Each and every one of them were behind him from the start, and would be until the end. If he had them...he could never fail!
Ash tightend his grip on the Lightning Orb, a smirk crossing his expression. The three pure hearts stood side by side, glaring down the now terrified Dominion leader. Fire, Ice, and both kinds of lightning slowed their course, and began to work their way back towards the green eyed bastard. It hissed and tried to send more energy into its attack, but it was no use...the fight was over.
Feeling its strength vanish, the green lightning dissipated and the three elements barreled into the green eyed Dominion. It screamed and shrieked, twisting and jerking in the air as its skin peeled off from the fire, its flesh baked from the lightning, and then froze in place from the ice.
The echoes of its agonizing cries pierced their ears painfully, but they did not let up, intent on wiping the evil thing from the universe. Only when the metallic voice stopped, and the glow of green eyes faded, did they lower the orbs. Fire, Ice, and Lightning ceased, leaving behind not a single trace of what was once the Dominion leader. Breathing hard, and realizing he was now covered in even more sweat, Ash muttered, "That was for my mom."
"Ho-ly...shit," Lance remarked behind them.
"Mew! Mewmewmew!" The Legendary squeaked rapidly from the altar above, pointing at them and then at the slots.
"We're not quite done," Gary stated, starting in a sprint for the steps. "Come on!"
Forcing his tired muscles to move, Ash raced after Dawn as the two of them followed Gary. Lance paced behind them, ready to catch one should they topple down the stairs. Their exhaustion was evident.
Thankfully his assistance was not needed, and they made it to the top, albeit panting and aching even more. Mew was still rapidly motioning to them and to the altar, causing itself to stumble in the air. The Legendary was no better off than they were.
"I think it wants us to put the Treasures in there," Ash noted, eyeing the Lightning bolt shaped stand.
"What's the worse that could happen," Gary playfully mocked, walking up to the fire shaped one. "Here goes."
Slowly he extended his hand and set the Fire Orb atop the flame stand. It lit up even brighter, and a beam of red light shot from the orb and connected with the bottom of the Darkin. Dawn swallowed and imitated his actions, setting the blue sphere on its stand. A blue light similar to the red one did the exact same thing, merging into the red light at the bottom of the artifact.
Ash stepped up, turning the Lightning treasure over in his hand. His eyes traveled from it to the Lightning stand, and he placed the orb down. As expected, a yellow beam made its way to the Darkin and connected with the other two. Upon contact, the diamond shaped artifact began to light up; red, blue, and yellow making its way to the top.
Mew swooped down and hovered behind it, its eyes glowing as it stretched out its tiny paws. The group watched as the Legendary touched the Darkin, pushing another light into the artifact. A deep purple that flowed through the streams of red, blue, and yellow. Then the beams of light below the altar stopped, and Mew lifted the Darkin out of its stand. An ominous hum could be heard now, growing steadily in their ears.
"MEW!" The Legendary raised the Darkin above its head and a wave of purple energy, with faded shades of red, blue, and yellow, burst out in all directions. It flew by over their heads, disappearing through the walls and vanishing from their sight.
"AGH!" Serena was launched into the air as a Dominion body slammed into her, giving her a scratch across her chest. She smacked into the mud, her soaked and dirty hair slapping her in the face.
Above her Darkness roared and snapped its maw closed on Arceus' hind leg, drawing golden blood from the God. Lugia crashed its body weight into Darkness, freeing Arceus from its jaws. A blast from Groudon soared into the sky, exploded against Darkness and causing an angry roar.
A pair of yellow eyes blocked her vision, glaring at her with deadly hate. The Dominion plunged its third arm down, but a streak of brown removed the Dominion with a thump. Serena blinked. She was sure her end was coming, but suddenly there was a blue eyed brunette staring down at her with a Dragonite hovering above them.
"You ok?!" The brunette asked, taking Serena's hand and hauling her to her feet.
"As good as I can be," she replied with an ache in her voice. "Thank you."
"Thank Bonnie, she saw you flying through the air."
Serena blinked, "You know Bonnie?" Then the brunette face suddenly seemed familiar and she instantly realized who her savior was. "May?!"
It had only been nearly seven years...
May couldn't help the light smile, "We need to get back to Clemont. Come on."
Serena followed May as she mounted the Dragonite, her chest burning from the fresh wound. She made sure she was clinging to the brunette tightly just before Dragonite zipped forward. The battle whizzed by in blurs and streaks, and quickly they were approaching an electromagnetic shield that was flickering as it fought to stay alive. Dragonite flew through the field with ease and landed by Clemont, who was still tinkering madly with the control box. Serena went to slide off the dragon, but her weakened state caused her to slip. Bonnie lunged forward and caught her, helping her down to the ground. "Are you ok?!"
"I'll be fine Bonnie," Serena said. "So long as we win."
"Just a few more moments," Clemont spoke up, not turning his head as he frantically worked on the electronics that none of the girls could understand.
May remained on Dragonite, quickly scanning the arial fighting for Cameron's Charizard or Iris' Dragonite. So far no luck...
"In a few more moments we're going to be dead," Bonnie told her brother heatedly as she watched the battle through the shield. Serena swallowed and looked up...Bonnie was right. There were way too many dead people and Pokemon littered across the battlefield, only seeming to make the Dominion's numbers more unbearable. May grit her teeth as she saw a Rocket be ripped in half above a Dominion's head, the woman's blood showering across the creatures body.
Thunder boomed as lightning flashed, illuminating the sheets of rain cascading down from the sky. Illuminating the mountaintop above them and the Temple among the patch of trees.
Another boom resounded in their ears, but it was not thunder. The sound was so odd, so out of place that even Clemont looked up to discover the source. No one had to wait long.
A purple wave, mixed with red's, blue's, and yellow's expanded from the Temple. Swiftly flowing across the battlefield and weaving its way through the life forms there. Swaying around them like mist, but morphing to their bodies and coating them in the fog like substance. At first the people and Pokemon screamed and tried to run, only to be outraced by the purplish wave. The mist formed around them, and then moved on, doing nothing to them. The Dominion's were a different story. They immediately began to retreat upon the sight of the fog, screeching in panic and crashing into each other. As the mist touched their skin, they exploded in screams of pain and agony. Writhing and twisting, flailing their claws in one last desperate attempt to slay any living being beside them. Then...poof, they dissipated where they stood, leaving behind only echoes of their God awful metallic shrieks.
May blinked curiously as the mist moved around her, flowing across her skin like water and then moving on. Dominion's who had been on the edge of the battle flew away as fast as they could, speeding from the mountain and the mist. No matter how far they flew however, May had a sense they would never escape their now sealed fate.
An unusual silence fell across the mountainside. No screams of pain. No cries of death. No metal screeches. Only the sound of wind and rain of the thunderstorm raging overhead...
"AAGGGHHHH!" The roar was so loud, so threateningly enraged that the very core of the mountain shook beneath their feet. Vibrating Serena's entire body and causing her gash to flare up in pain. May's head snapped to the sky, following the source of the terrifying roar...her gut went empty...Darkness was still there, screaming in rage.
"YOU MAY HAVE DESTROYED MY DOMINION'S! BUT DARKNESS IS INEVITABLE!"
Gasp! Well the Dominion's are gone, but no one is out of the woods just yet. Darkness is a little pissed off. This chapter was so fun, but so hard to write. Trying to tease what little is left, and finish up with the Dominion's, while having the action flow in a way that made sense? I'm exhausted lol.
Anyways, hope everyone enjoyed it and your anxiety is off the charts for the conclusion! See you all then!