Chapter 39: Complications

I released Kamina from his pokeball. The poor Weavile must have a complex by now from all the times he's been taken down in one shot. This time, however, it seemed determined to win, snarling fiercely at Kamina. "Close Combat, we don't have time for this." I said coldly.

"Not so fast! Fake Out!" Cyrus called. Weavile charged forward, clapping right in front of Kaminas face. The small shockwave made him flinch, but I smiled nonetheless.

"So you did a bit of damage. You're going to wish you hadn't though." I said. "Kamina's ability is Steadfast. Sure, he might have flinched, but now he's stronger than before." Kamina flexed his muscles proudly, showing his increase in strength. "Close Combat." I said and the deed was done, knocking the small weasel pokemon out in a quick flurry of punches.

"Honchkrow." Cyrus called, moving on to the next pokemon without hesitation. He seemed to have regained a bit of his cool, but I could tell the constant losses were starting to aggravate him. Honchkrow flew up above the rock, flying circles around Kamina.

I should probably switch to Mufasa, but I don't want a repeat of the last time he fought this thing. I better stick with Kamina. "It doesn't matter how high he flies, we can still hit him! Aura Sphere!" I ordered. Kamina charged up the shot and launched it into the air. Honchkrow tried to evade the shot, but it was wasted energy. The Aura Sphere moved in time with the large crows every step, and eventually hit home. Kamina hopped in a little victory dance, something he had probably picked up from his mother.

"Don't think we're out of the fight yet." Cyrus reminded. "Honchkrow! Show them our power! Drill Peck!"

"Oh shit!" I shouted as the bird homed in on Kamina, caught mid-jump. Honchkrow spun around, reaching a high velocity right before it crashed, beak first into Kamina. I saw his eyes go wide, and blood spat out of his mouth before he was knocked off the rock and into the abyss below. "KAMINA!" I screamed, reaching for him as he fell.

"I've got him!" Cynthia called, appearing out of nowhere, riding Togekiss. She dove down, snatching up Kamina's body before it was lost forever. "Focus on your fight! You have to win Nick!" she reminded.

Grudgingly, I turned away from my fallen comrade. A thousand thoughts ran through my head, not the least of them being what I was going to say to Lola. I promised her. I promised that nothing was going to happen to him. I grabbed Mufasa's pokeball, not even considering holding back anymore. "Take it down." I said grimly as I released the lion, and he was all to willing to oblige.

Honchkrow tried to defend itself, releasing a Heat Wave attack, fire spewing from its mouth as the large cat leaped through the air. Electricity coated his fangs and he pushed through the fire and clamped down on a wing, shocking Honchkrow so bad, I almost felt pity for it. Almost.

Mufasa released the defeated bird and Cyrus recalled it, sending out Crobat to replace him. What the hell? He's sending out another flying-type? What's his problem? I thought as I healed Mufasa. The Heat Wave attack may have been a last-ditch effort to save himself, but it had still hit pretty hard.

"Cross Poison." Cyrus commanded. Oh, that's why I thought as Crobat nailed Mufasa with its wings, two deep cuts laying into his side. I could see his discomfort, the poison hurting him badly, but not enough to warrant an Antidote. As it flew away, Crobat spat a Toxic attack at him, hoping to poison him now after the previous attack had failed. Mufasa dodged it easily despite his wounds, and retaliated with a vicious Spark attack, almost knocking Crobat out of the air. Surprisingly, it survived the hit, flying back to Cyrus to be healed. No sooner had the medicine been administered, than Mufasa grabbed on to a wing with Thunder Fang, refusing to let go as he repeatedly shocked the bat. Crobat screeched in alarm, hitting him with a Cross Poison in an attempt to get him off. That just mad Mufasa attack even harder, and finally the Crobat just fainted from all the trauma.

"Houndoom." Cyrus said, still not letting his agitation show. I held Mufasa back, knowing he was itching to fight someone who looked like Cerberus. He was pretty wounded, however, and I didn't want to risk the fight.

"Moka, keep up in the air out of reach." I said, releasing my own Crobat. She listened, flying high in the sky to avoid any attack, like the Flamethrower sent her way. She charged in, taking advantage of the opening presented by the attack and buffeted the Houndoom with her wings. Growling, Houndoom opened its maw and unleashed another jet of fire. Only this time, the fire was different. It wasn't orange and red, but purple and pale, licking across Mokas fur lightly. She cried out in pain, backing off. There wasn't any real damage, but she was clearly burned badly from the attack.

"Will-o-wisp. A good move to have when facing pesky physical attackers." Cyrus explained.

"Well Moka's got more tricks up her sleeves than just Fly." I replied. "Air Cutter!" Moka swept her wings forward, ignoring the pain searing in her burns. The air around her sharpened, blowing forward in many sharp blasts. Houndoom took the attack head on, barely even fazed by it. It shot out an actual Flamethrower attack, hitting Moka and burning her even more. "Hold on!" I called, fishing out another Hyper Potion. I snarled as Cyrus calmly used a Full Restore on his own pokemon. Must be nice to be a rich criminal asshole I thought as I sprayed Moka with the medicine. "Hang in there girl, it's almost over." I whispered encouragingly.

She flew up again, repeating the strategy from earlier. She avoided the Flamethrower attacks Houndoom sent at her, and picked the right moment to strike. She found it when Houndoom was in-between attacks, letting loose another Air Cutter. The move cost her, however, and the next Flamethrower hit her dead center, knocking her down to the rocks. "Moka!" I cried out as the Houndoom grinned, preparing one last Flamethrower. He shot the attack before she could get up, but a flash of black jumped in the way. "Yes!" I cheered. "I made it!"

The flames cleared, absorbed by the black and orange fur of Cerberus. He growled at the Houndoom opposing him. "The only person who's allowed to beat on these chumps is me!" he spat. He ran forward, ramming Houndoom with his shoulder, using Strength to add to the power. After absorbing the flames with Flash Fire, the attack was devastating, causing Houndoom to crash to the ground. It snapped at Cerberus' feet, electricity telling me it was a Thunder Fang attack. Cerberus neatly dodged the blow before fading into the background. Houndoom climbed to his feet, looking around wildly for the missing opponent. Then he was smacked back down, Cerberus reappearing now that the Faint Attack was over. He howled in victory, his opponent defeated.

Cyrus had only one pokemon left, as he returned the battered Houndoom. "Gyarados. Kill this retched puppy." he growled. The large snake pokemon emerged, roaring ferociously at both Cerberus and Moka. The two backed away, Moka being injured and Cerberus knowing he was no match for the beast. Mufasa, however, stepped forward, roaring back his own challenge. To my astonishment, Cyrus was grinning. "I had hoped the big cat would fight. We've learned how to deal with the likes of you. Earthquake!" he ordered.

It all happened pretty fast. Moka pulled herself up, grabbing Cerberus by the horns and flying up into the air. This prevented him from being hit by the powerful attack, but Mufasa was still on the ground. Gyarados slammed its tail down, causing the entire floating island to shake and rumble. I was thrown off my feet, landing hard on my side. Even Cyrus was having trouble staying up. But Mufasa just stood there, taking the hit without even flinching. Once the quake was over, he stared up at Gyarados. "Is that all?" he asked proudly. "Then it's time to end this farce." He jumped, high into the air, his whole body coated with electricity. Gyarados tried to move out of the way, but there was nowhere to go. Mufasas claws lashed out, raking the side of the great serpent and knocking it down with one hit.

Mufasa walked back to me, and Moka flew back down with Cerberus, who was bitching about being grabbed so suddenly like that. I just watched Cyrus as he stared, as if uncomprehending his failure, at Gyarados. I returned Moka, to keep her stabilized, and walked over to Cyrus, Cerberus and Mufasa at my side. He returned his own pokemon and glared at me.

"Why? Why couldn't I win? Is my ambition to small? Is it to little to wish for a better world? Where did it go wrong?" he asked in a whisper.

I punched him in the face. He fell, loosing his footing on the red rock, and glared up at me, clutching the bruise starting to well up. I glared right back.

"It's not your call to make!" I roared. "Yeah, the world sucks! There's homelessness and hunger and small kids have to eat their vegetables, but that doesn't make it right for some asshole like you to come along and hit the reset button! There are plenty of good things in the world, like love and family and desert! Maybe you haven't experienced enough of those things, but there are enough people out there who have, and want to keep experiencing them! So don't come crying to me about how the world isn't perfect! We know it isn't! And we're just fine with it that way." I turned and walked away. "Now if you don't mind, I've got a friend to go bury."

I quickly moved over to the other end of the island, where Cynthia was already waiting with Kamina. She held the fallen Lucario in her arms, but the look on her face wasn't what I had expected. I expected sadness, tears, maybe even anger at me for risking his life. What I got was...curiosity? Confusion? The hell's going on here? "Thank you for catching him." I said, kneeling down. "I need to take him back so I can bury him."

Cynthia looked up at me. "That's just the thing." she said, astonishment clear in her voice. "He's not dead."

Her statement hit me like a truck. It literally floored me, as I collapsed back onto my behind. "Wh-what!?" I asked. "What do you mean he's not dead! Drill Peck is a one-hit-KO move! There's no way he survived!" I would have kept going if she hadn't grabbed my hand and placed it on Kamina's chest. My eyes widened. "He's...he's breathing!" I exclaimed. Quickly I removed my hand and looked at his chest. If my eyes could get any wider, they would have. Quickly I looked over Cerberus and Mufasa, to make sure. Then I ripped off the glove on my right hand. "The mark! The mark's gone!" I cried. "How is that even possible?"

"I don't know, but it's something we can figure out later." Cynthia said, staring over my shoulder. I noticed a shadow moving over us and looked around. Behind me, stretching out to an incredible height, was Giratina.

"Cynthia. Can you spare a Max Revive for Kamina?" I asked. I heard her fumbling around behind me and I got to my feet. "Giratina! We're sorry for what Cyrus tried to do! But it's over now! You need to close the portal! Otherwise, you'll end up destroying everything!" I heard a groan and looked down, before helping Kamina get to his feet. "That was a close one man." I said, hugging him.

"Human." a deep voice called. I realized it was Giratina, talking telepathically just like the lake trio. "You say that it is over. This is not your decision to make. I will say when it is over. And I will ensure that enough is destroyed that no one will ever attempt to take the power of the Guardians again!" The Distortion World quaked with his words.

Cynthia grabbed my shoulder. "You need to stop him." she said. "Only defeating Giratina will prevent the portal from consuming all of Sinnoh."

"Why don't you fight him, you're the champion!" I protested.

"Yes, but not the one we need right now." she said. "I need to find Cyrus. Go, take him down." she started to move away, but paused. "I taught Kamina something that can help. I hope it works." And with that, she was gone.

I stared after her, exasperated. "She seriously wants me to take on...are you...oh come one!" I groaned.

Kamina smiled. "Look at it this way." he said. "It's not like any of us are going to die." With that he charged up an Aura Sphere and let it fly. The move soared towards Giratina, who simply vanished into the floor. "What the-?" Kamina asked before Giratina reappeared behind him. He only had time to gasp before the great dragon slammed him across the rock, almost over the edge.

"Kamina!" I yelled, running over to him. He propped himself up on his elbows, wincing. "We may not be able to die, but that still hurts." he groaned. "Cynthia said she taught you a new move. Can you use it?" I asked. "I'll try, but you guys need to keep him distracted." he replied.

"On it." I said, standing back up. "Mufasa, Cerberus, take him down! Crunch, Faint Attack, go!" I shouted. I had to hand it to those two. Maybe it was their mutual bloodlust, or maybe it was an urge to prove themselves better than the other, but they both didn't hesitate at all in attacking what could very well be considered a god. Mufasa jumped up, taking a bite out of the hide of Giratina, holding on as hard as he could. Emulating the move the dragon himself had done, Cerberus turned invisible, small puff of dirt the only tell he was there before he too, grabbed onto the dragon, biting and clawing.

Giratina roared in pain before fighting back. Rocks rose into the air, hurling themselves at Cerberus and knocking him down. One down, Giratina twisted around, opening its mouth and blasting Mufasa with what I could only describe as black wind. Mufasa held on with all his might, but the attack was to much, knocking him off. Getting back up, they both tried once again to bite onto the dragon. This time, however, Giratina saw it coming. Right before they latched onto him, he vanished. The two pokemon sailed through the air right where he had been, proving that he hadn't turned invisible like Cerberus does when he uses Faint Attack. Suddenly, the shadows under Cerberus grew larger, and Giratina charged out of them, knocking the canine flying. He collapsed on the ground a short distance away, whimpering slightly.

Mufasa wasn't impressed with the display of power, and tried to bite into the dragon again. Just like the last time, Giratina vanished and hit Mufasa from the shadows, avoiding the attack neatly. He turned his head towards me, red eyes boring into my blue ones. "Do not continue this pitiful game. There is nothing you can do to stop me." he announced.

"Oh yeah? What about this?" Kamina asked. Giratina whipped around, just in time to catch a whirling beam of purple and red energy as it slammed into his face. Giratina howled in pain, thrashing around. Kamina landed in front of him. "It's called Dragon Pulse. Harsh stuff, huh? How about another taste!" He clapped his arms together, energy swirling around him. Giratina realized the threat and rushed forward, abandoning all strategy in a desperate attempt to stop him. Right before he connected, Kamina unleashed the attack. A wave of energy washed over Giratina, causing the dragon to writhe in pain. Finally, he fell, knocked out by the force of the attack.

"Holy shit!" I exclaimed, running up and hugging Kamina. "That was the coolest thing ever!" Mufasa and Cerberus hobbled over, both of them injured but alive. "You guys did a great job too!" I said, grabbing each of them in a light hug.

"Congratulations!" Cynthia said, walking back over. "Come on, we have to find a way back home." I was about to follow, when a voice rang out.

"Wait." Giratina said. Oh crap I thought as the great dragon rose from the floor. It seemed like I didn't even hit him that hard, as he healed himself instantly. I looked at Kamina who nodded, getting ready to fight. "Peace. I do not wish to fight with you again." Giratina said. "Forgive me. I was acting rashly, and did not think of how my actions would affect the human world. My mind is clear now. I know that I should not judge the world on the actions of one man. Here. Allow me to open a portal back the human world. After you go through, I will close it, preventing any further disaster."

I stared, unsure about his offer until Mesprit flew over. In all the chaos, I had completely forgotten about the lake trio. "It's okay. He is truly back to his old self." she said.

"Well, if it's good enough for her, it's good enough for me." I said. Looking back at Cynthia, I saw Cyrus standing behind her. "Look out!" I yelled, running forward to protect her.

Cynthia looked confused, then turned around, spotting Cyrus. "Oh, I forgot." she said. "I found Cyrus sulking back there. We had a long talk about what it means to be a champion." she grinned.

I slid to a stop, staring. "Wait, isn't there a third champion? If you both are one, then who's the last?"

Cynthia laughed. "I thought we'd been through this!" she said. "It's you!"

I shook my head. "And I told you it can't be me! I'm not...I'm not champion material." I lied. I knew I couldn't tell them where I was really from, but I didn't know how else to explain to them that I couldn't be the one in the prophecy.

Mesprit seemed to be reading my mind. "Just because you aren't from this world, doesn't mean you can't save it." she said.

Cynthia didn't seem to have heard Mesprit, but smiled anyway. "It's simple really. The champions are represented by their biggest trait, and the absence of another. Cyrus is the champion of knowledge, with the absence of emotions. I must be the champion of emotion with the absence of willpower."

"Wait, absence of willpower? No wonder you want me to do everything!" I groaned. Then it clicked. "So wait, I'm the champion of willpower? Why's that? I don't feel like I'm any more willful than anyone else."

"It's because of the challenge." Cynthia explained. "Only someone with an incredible amount of willpower can find the courage to move on after losing one pokemon, let alone the loses you've faced. You're definitely champion material."

I grinned, slightly embarrassed from the praise before turning to Cyrus. "I guess you're all done with the taking over the world crap?" I asked.

He was silent for a while. "I need to think about what you've said." he finally answered. "As it is, I don't think I belong in the imperfect world you love so much." He paused before taking off the belt that held his pokeballs and handing them to Cynthia. "I'm staying here." he announced.

The statement took all of us by surprise. "What!?" Cynthia cried. "Why?"

Cyrus sighed. "The only thing waiting for me back there is a jail cell. If I want to find the meaning behind Nicks words, I need to do it on my own terms. So I'll stay here, in exile. It's better this way."

Cynthia was about to protest, before I grabbed her arm. "Come on." I said. "It's what he wants." She hesitated, but eventually relented, following me towards the portal Giratina opened. She gave one last look back at Cyrus before the portal closed.

I don't personally know what happened to Cyrus after that. I do know, however, that Uxie apparently stayed behind with him. Mesprit sent me a telepathic vision of Cyrus shortly after we had left. He sat, staring out into the depths of the Distortion World. "Alone." he breathed. "Perhaps it's better this way, for someone like me." Uxie moved in closer, flying around him. He watched her for a moment, then smiled, a genuine smile. "Or perhaps not." he said, patting her on the head.

Okay, now I know what you're all thinking. "Why is Kamina still alive, that's bullshit, you're breaking the rules, yadda yadda." Well, here's the thing. When Kamina died, I was devastated to be sure, but like every other death in this run, I got over it. But then, after I beat Cyrus, Cynthia healed my pokemon and I rushed into the fight with Giratina without checking my pokemon to see who was going in first. Guess who was first on the list. Now, I had a few options. 1) I could switch out and let Giratina get a free hit in. Not ideal, since he might one-shot someone. 2) I could restart. But I had been playing for a few hours, and I would have to rewrite all my notes for the last four or so battles. Not fun. 3) I could ignore the death.

I decided to take option three, but tie it in with the story. There will be repercussions for Kamina's escape from deaths clutches, trust me. Just wait till the next chapter.