After having two whole chapters of glorious friendship and blossoming romance, I'm taking you readers back to the dark side. Time to see how all the other villains are faring!
A couple of you readers requested that I expand more upon Luke – indeed, his entire backstory is unknown so far. Right now, he just exists. We know nothing about him! But that'll be revealed eventually, don't worry.
-.-.-.-.-.
If it could have spoken, the Glacier of Absence's voice would be tinged with annoyance. It had been named as such due to the fact that it was too inhospitable for anyone to survive there for long, and thus was deserted.
Despite this, however, was this single fact that irked the glacier – for directly contradicting its given name was the surprising amount of activity that went on here nowadays.
Once more, the four criminal gangs were gathered around the Malamar and Magnemite, Nigel and Bolt. Indeed, the time for their scheduled meeting was upon them. It was this meeting that would determine who would rule the world in the future, and who would be crushed underfoot.
Mara was determined that she wouldn't be the one to be crushed. She and Iron Talon had barely gotten out of their fight with Clawface and Herra alive. The Fearow and his partner had been defeated at the cost of almost twenty Darkfeather soldiers, and possibly killed – but Mara had assumed Clawface to be dead once before, and she had turned out to be wrong.
The Honchkrow now sported a long scar along the leading edge of her wing, the work of Clawface's talons. Iron Talon's metallic claws were further scorched, thanks to a glancing blow from a Hyper Beam. It would take a while for their injuries to heal. For now, though, Mara was thankful that she was still alive.
The subsequent raid on Seaside Village had been pulled off without a hitch. Not a single building remained intact in that poor port town. The Darkfeathers now had enough supplies to take on the Guardians and hold out for a year.
Back in the present, the two Darkfeathers didn't take kindly to being stared at. They glared at Niwri and his two underlings, Rudy and Sylvester, when the Dark-types noticed and looked over their allies' new wounds. Even though the Life Stealers' intentions were only idly curious and nothing more, Mara did not want them getting any ideas.
The Frozen Marauders didn't appear to be interested – but then again, they were practically living incarnations of the phrase "appearances deceive". One never knew what was going on in their heads, and that was usually the opposite of what appeared to be.
And then there were the Abyssal Raiders. El Nino and General Fang hadn't given Mara or Iron Talon a second glance after they arrived, which was unusual. Mara thought that they'd be asking a lot of questions, pretending to be concerned when in reality they were trying to wheedle information out of them.
But that wasn't the case. Strange.
However, Mara had caught Lady Sapphire giving her the once-over on three occasions, and all of them were from the corner of her eye. The Frillish's stare was analytical and calculating, almost bordering on chilling. Mara forced herself to ignore it.
Am I going to regret siding with her and the other Raiders? she wondered. Will this alliance come back to bite me in the tail feathers?
"So, we are all here once again," Nigel said smoothly, bringing the Honchkrow out of her thoughts. "I trust we've been giving this proposition some thought, hmm?"
Glacy floated forward with nary a sound. "Indeed," the Froslass hissed. "Although I am comfortable in my current position, the promise of even more power is rather… intriguing."
The Vanilluxe twins, Helios and Selene, nodded in unison, agreeing with their mistress. "We hate to admit it, but we are very interested in this deal. We have given it much discussion amongst ourselves," they added, nodding their heads again as if to confirm this.
"That is encouraging," Nigel said with a smile. "I'm very glad to see that you're all genuinely considering my offer."
No one heard Lady Sapphire snort derisively.
"NOW THEN, A QUICK REVIEW AS REQUESTED BY THE MISTRESS," Bolt droned. "THE DEAL WORKS AS FOLLOWS – YOU FOUR HELP SEARCH FOR THE SHARDS, AND ONCE ALL FIVE ARE GATHERED, YOU GET EQUAL PIECES OF THE POKEMON WORLD TO RULE AS PART OF YOUR TERRITORY. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS?"
Niwri crossed his arms. "None at all!" he snapped. "We all know this – we've been thinkin' about nothin' else fer the past week!"
The Magnemite tilted himself towards the ground in an apologetic bow. "NOW THEN, ARE WE READY TO PROCEED WITH THE NEGOTIATIONS?" he intoned.
"Ciertamente," replied El Nino with a flourish of his tail. "Us Raiders Abisales have not discussed anything else since we last met. We have received many differing opiniones amongst our gang, and thus have all the possible informacion we will need. You can consider I and the Raiders Abisales as your aliados."
Nigel's beaky mouth broke into a wide grin. "Why, that's smashing news!" he exclaimed, absolutely delighted. "I promise you will not regret this one bit! You will be happy as our allies, Abyssal Raiders."
Lady Sapphire gave her high-pitched titter of a laugh. "I'm sure we will!" she agreed cheerfully. "Over half of the Pokemon world is made up of water, and when we succeed, the Abyssal Raiders will rule all of it!" Her giggle changed to a maniacal cackle that made Mara privately uncomfortable on the sidelines.
"'When we succeed', huh?" asked Niwri with a sneer, emphasizing the word 'when'. "Someone's feelin' confident. Anyhow, I personally don't trust ya, Nigel, but I think that the rewards that come with this alliance far outweigh the risks. The Life Stealers're with ya."
Before the Malamar could give one of his extravagant thank-yous, Glacy silenced them all with her winter breeze of a voice. "Me and my Marauders are willing to join as well. We think the reward is great enough for us to come out of hiding at last. Do not make us regret this, you two," she whispered threateningly.
"The Darkfeathers need" – Mara stopped herself before she could say anything about their current, difficult situation. She didn't want anyone – And Sapphire in particular, she thought quietly – to know that they were weak and then try to eliminate them as contenders, thus getting a bigger reward as a result.
Mara began again, "The Darkfeathers are willing to join this alliance. More power is always a good thing, and I think that a fifth of the world of Pokemon is worth any risk." Behind her, Iron Talon nodded his approval.
"Then from this moment forth, we are allies," Nigel said, smiling.
El Nino grinned.
Mara nodded.
Glacy just stared.
Niwri shrugged.
And behind it all, Lady Sapphire allowed a dark, evil smirk to cross her face. "Perfect," she murmured. "One big group of idiots to slaughter instead of four small ones."
-.-.-.-.-.
The four criminal gangs dispersed from the Glacier of Absence, all ready to begin their search for the Shards anew. Using their Abra, they were all able to teleport back to their lairs – or at least, the Frozen Marauders and Darkfeathers were.
On an abandoned, stormy cliff-side that overlooked the eastern ocean, a portal sprang into existence. Eight Pokemon fell out and into the driving rain. Three were Dark-types, three were Water-types, and the last two were just the Abra the six criminals had used to get to this spot.
"Now what is it ya wanted ta talk to us about?" Niwri asked grumpily. "Next time yer plannin' a meetin', why not give me a little heads up, huh?"
Sapphire floated forward a few feet. "I'm sorry, my friend," she said, smiling. "I couldn't find any means of contacting you beforehand, so I decided to wait until after we met with Nigel and Bolt."
Her expression darkened slightly, and her normally cheerful voice became deadly serious. "Speaking of those two… what do you actually think of them?" she asked quietly, barely audible over the rain. "You don't trust them any more than I do, don't you?"
Before Niwri could silence him, Rudy spoke up. "Yeah, that's the truth," he said, a mite cautiously. "We're only doing this because we don't want everyone else against us."
The Krookodile swatted him on the arm, prompting his son to keep quiet. Then he inquired suspiciously, "Why is it ya want ta know? What's the real reason ya brought us here?"
Lady Sapphire flashed him a grin that chilled him slightly. "You see, I have my suspicions about Nigel and Bolt as well. Personally, I think that they're only having us do their dirty work for them, and once they have the Shards, they will crush us all. Don't you think so, Niwri?"
Niwri frowned. Despite himself, he found himself admitting that there was indeed truth in the Frillish's words. Were Nigel and Bolt only using them?
He shook off the disturbing question. "Get ta the point, girl," he snarled.
"Yes, yes, of course," Sapphire twittered. "Let's not waste any more time beating around the coral, hmm? You don't like this alliance any more than I do. It stinks like rotting fish. To put it bluntly, I'm offering you the chance to join us and help take down the Darkfeathers, Marauders, and the duo that's started all this."
Sylvester, with a nervous glance at Niwri, asked hesitantly, "When you say 'us', you mean the Abyssal Raiders, right?"
The pink Frillish smiled, an expression that would give nightmares to a Galvantula. She gestured to the Gyarados and Sharpedo behind her and sneered, "Oh, you were fooled too?"
On that cue – and to the eternal shock of the three Life Stealers – El Nino and General Fang's bodies suddenly glowed and distorted, shifting into entirely new forms. The process only took a second, and when it was done, a Zoroark and a Ditto were standing in their places.
"Let me tell you a secret, Niwri," Lady Sapphire said, coming close enough to whisper in his ear. "The Abyssal Raiders are long gone. With the help of my family, I destroyed them from the inside. If you choose to work with us, you're choosing to work with the most powerful force in the four oceans – the Jellicent Kingdom."
Niwri, Rudy, and Sylvester were completely flabbergasted at this unexpected turn of events. Their silence gave Lady Sapphire the opportunity to continue talking.
"I could tell you everything the Abyssal Raiders have been doing to hurt you," she hissed, circling the trio. "El Nino has been sending his soldiers out into the Dunedust Desert in order to kill your own and to steal the goods you've been collecting from the trade routes. He's been sending them to the Bughaven Kingdom, where an ally of his has taken over. As of right now, she still doesn't know her leader is dead. We can keep her in the dark for as long as we want if we work together, and eventually we can weaken the Bughaven Kingdom enough for you to conquer it."
She fell silent, allowing Niwri to add some of his own words to the discussion. He did so after pausing for a second to gather his thoughts. "So what yer suggestin' is that you help me expand my realm by dupin' the Raider in charge of the Bughaven Kingdom?" he asked, scratching his chin with a claw. "That's devious of ya. I like smart Pokemon."
Lady Sapphire smirked. She wasn't finished yet. "With my help, you can not only do that, but get revenge on the last remaining member of the Abyssal Raiders, the very one that's been trying to weaken you and the Life Stealers. Then we can stop Nigel's plan and take the Shards for ourselves."
Now Niwri was really interested. "Is there anythin' else?" he asked.
"As a matter of fact, yes," replied Sapphire. "The only things I ask for in return are some of those goods you're pirating from the Desert Faction, and a promise that you won't try to double-cross me."
Rudy and Sylvester's faces were a mix of interest and mistrust. Any Pokemon that could destroy a criminal gang as large and organized as the Abyssal Raiders in such a manner shouldn't be trusted. But on the other hand, that same Pokemon could be a formidable ally. And right now, she was offering them the means to help conquer more territory, get rid of Mara and Glacy, and obtain the artifacts that would give them control over the entire Pokemon world.
It was a deal too good to pass up. After much thought, Niwri slowly nodded.
"Alright," he conceded. "We'll work with ya. Whaddaya want us ta do first?"
The Frillish clapped her tentacles together. "Splendid!" she enthused, back to her usual ditzy self. "Just keep taking those supplies, and send them off to the Bughaven Kingdom. I'll contact the Raider in charge and get her to cooperate. That way, no one will suspect a thing until we move onto our next step."
Niwri nodded. "Gotcha," he said, then winced a hailstone hit him between the eyes. "Are we done here?" he grunted, as more hail began to fall.
"Yep!" chirped Sapphire. "I'll keep in touch, don't worry. See you later!"
With a final wink, the Frillish and her two minions collected their Abra and were gone in a flash.
-.-.-.-.-.
Far, far away from the Glacier of Absence and the cliff on which Niwri and Sapphire conversed, the deserted seas around an area once occupied by land became a lot less deserted.
A small group of Water-types had swum far to reach this spot, but now at last they could stop. In the distance, they could all see the ruins of a once-great civilization rising up from the deep, dark abyss. The darkness surrounding the ocean Pokemon was as gloomy as the mood they were in.
"Is this as far as we have to go?" asked a Huntail nervously.
His Gorebyss companion nodded her elegant head. "I believe so. We are in the southern ocean now. I doubt the Jellicent Kingdom will follow us this far."
The Sharpedo leader of the group turned his head slightly behind him in order to give the pair a better look. The Gorebyss made a good point. They were outside of the western ocean, so they could undoubtedly afford to rest for now. But they'd have to keep a sharp eye out, just in case.
Besides, there was this… unnerving chill in the water around them. It was something that should not have existed, and yet did. It defied the laws of nature, and every member of the group could instinctively feel it.
"What's going on here?" muttered the Huntail. "This place feels unnatural. It's giving me the creeps, and that's saying something." Indeed, living in a place like the deep ocean made him hard to scare.
"We should keep moving," a Mantyke recommended. "It doesn't seem safe here."
A Staryu snorted, the sound echoing through everyone's minds. "Please," it said skeptically through telepathy. "What do you think this place is, a mystery dungeon?"
Almost everyone laughed at his sarcastic remark, momentarily relieving the tension in the water. But the Sharpedo didn't laugh. In fact, now that he thought about it, mystery dungeons were said to form in places where nature was imbalanced. And because this area was where Diamond Island had sunk…
"Halt," the Sharpedo commanded. His order was heard by everyone, and thus everyone stopped.
"You are feeling the unnatural vibe radiating from this place," he told them. "I am as well. That is why we must stay here and hide here until we are sure of what to do. We are safe here because no other Pokemon will want to visit this place. They will feel the unnerving vibe these waters give off and swim away. We will be safe for the time being."
The Water-and-Dark-type observed the grim faces surrounding him. No one looked very relieved.
"The Jellicent Kingdom will not find us here," he continued. "We can use this place as a base of sorts, a safe spot to plan for the future. And right now, the future looks uncertain. That is why we must carefully observe the Pokemon in the surrounding areas, and decide who to ally with."
There were murmurs from the other Water-types. "We do not need to ally with anyone!" a Skrelp rasped. "The Abyssal Raiders never needed allies before! Why should we join with anyone now?"
The Sharpedo glared at the offender until he became silent. "Why should we ally ourselves with others?" the shark-like Pokemon repeated. "Because we are weak right now. We are the only survivors of a once-proud gang that ruled the western ocean. In order for us to survive any further, we need allies. Are there any objections?"
There was only silence.
"From now on, we will watch the world around us," said General Fang. "And from this moment on, we will be called the Abyssal Resistance! No matter what, even if we have to ally ourselves with Guardians or the plankton that drifts through this water, the western ocean will be ours once more!"
The negative atmosphere of the dark ocean evaporated as the rest of the newly-christened Abyssal Resistance cheered.
-.-.-.-.-.
So, Lady Sapphire starts to make her move. But what could she possibly gain out of convincing Niwri and the Life Stealers to double-cross their allies?
One thing is for sure… she is such an awesome villain XD
And General Fang – the real one – is planning something as well! His true intentions are also in question, but in this case, I think those intentions are a little more benevolent than Lady Sapphire's. Will the Abyssal Resistance ever rise to claim the ocean again?
And are the ruins of Diamond Island truly turning into a mystery dungeon?
General Fang: "Review. Or else."
Chapter Question #28: As opposed to heroes, which villains do you want to see more of in the sequel? Are there any that should fade further into the background and let others take over?