Theme Song
From light to dark, it seems you've lost (Frank smirking in his office while looking down at Lumiose City)
Can you repair hope, or is this the cost? (The group stares off into the sunset, minus Ariel and Catherine)
Show them your strength, and don't you wait (Greninja throws a Water Shuriken while hopping off a tree, and Charizard collides with Dragonite)
The prize goes to the one who doesn't hesitate (Camera zooms in on Ariel, transitions to Catherine looking at Owen and Ariel's baby pictures)
Some may fall, (The people of Lumiose stare in horror while a body falls off the top of Prism Tower)
But that's what must happen to save them all (Children are running around the various cities playing with Pokemon)
Which power will rise? Is this the demise? (Split screen of Owen and Frank glaring at each other)
It's too late to go back, you must go on (Brooklyn and Daniel battling against Spike and Viviana)
Keep your head up and remain strong! (Freeze-frame of Owen standing with his Pokemon, which includes Gengar and Chesnaught)
It's all or nothing, let your life go... Pokemon!
So it begins. The (hopefully awesome) Grim Arc is finally here, and I've been waiting for this for quite some time. Last chapter, Owen promised he wouldn't let anything happen to Brooklyn, but he was incredibly conflicted over whether he would go through with killing Frank or not. Now, the group will start initiating their plan, despite Owen's absence, and it will basically be a lead into next chapter. Also, we've reached 400 reviews! Thank you, everyone!
Elodus: It could be nerves... oh who am I kidding? It's all nerves :P I'd like to say more, but I'd end up spoiling some things. All I can say is that I didn't mean for there to be a Star Trek reference :/
FlameStriker123: I love them! Both you and Elodus seem to be in sync with your predictions (funny, because I thought I did a good job of making the)
guest: Thank you! I really like writing those types of chapters, and if I can't find the appropriate time to have Ariel explain why, then I'll tell you in response to a review
Defender31415: That's the way I feel, though it won't turn out that way (at least, I don't think it will). Normally, I'd go into more details but I really don't want to spoil anything in this arc, so sorry
SomeGuy (guest): I really appreciate that, thank you! And I think you captured the situation (which Owen has, in a way, forced upon himself in regards to the whole killing thing) really well, though the circumstances will be slightly different. As for your prediction, I like it ;)
MCMXCV: Lol, you did a lot better with your last predictions XD And please, don't thank me, I should be thanking you guys for the awesome support! As corny as it sounds, I wouldn't be doing this if it wasn't for all of the reviewers and people that favorited/followed the story. In regards to the Daniel and Spike thing, I would do that if Spike weren't such a scumbag, and/or not affiliated with Team Grim
Owen's team
Greninja, (m), level 39, Water Shuriken, Smack Down, Round, Quick Attack, Water Pulse*, Smokescreen*
Charizard, (m), level 72, Flamethrower, Dragon Claw, Seismic Toss, Blast Burn, Aerial Ace*, ?*
Gengar, (f), level 41, Shadow Punch, Mean Look, Night Shade, Confuse Ray, Sucker Punch*, Payback*
Slurpuff, (f), level 43, Fairy Wind, Fake Tears, Cotton Spore, Draining Kiss, Energy Ball*
Butterfree, (f), level 37, Tackle, Silver Wind, Psybeam, Gust, Poison Powder*, Sleep Powder*
Tyrantrum, (m), level 42, Dragon Claw, Stomp, Stealth Rock, Crunch, Ancient Power*, Dragon Tail*
Chesnaught, (m), level 41, Mega Drain, Needle Arm, Rollout, Vine Whip, Spiky Shield*, Seed Bomb*
With Professor Sycamore
Hawlucha, (m), level 40, Wing Attack, Karate Chop, Flying Press, Aerial Ace, Bounce*
Pikachu, (m), level 39, Iron Tail, Quick Attack, Thunderbolt, Nuzzle, Electro Ball*, Double Team*
While Catherine, Cindy, and Daniel sat in a circle eating breakfast quietly, their Pokemon didn't seem to understand the ramifications of the chaos that would soon begin. Maybe they were just hiding it well, but all of the Pokemon were treating the day like they normally would.
"So what exactly are the formations going to be when we enter Lumiose?" Daniel quizzed as he looked at Catherine, who was cooking for Ariel, Brooklyn, Owen, and Eddy.
"You and Brooklyn will go in together, Ariel and Owen will be at the back, and I'll take the front. Cindy, you and Eddy will be warning us if any of the gates are closed, so you'll have to do a lot of running," the woman said with a smile, which was met with a confident nod from Cindy. "Daniel, I want you and Brooklyn to stay close to Owen and Ariel at all times unless you hear me say otherwise. Got it?"
"Yes, ma'am. Whatever you say goes," Daniel replied as Ariel and Eddy woke up and walked towards the table, sitting down and eating the eggs Catherine made.
"When are we going? I'm ready to crush some skulls!" Ariel shouted seriously, though everyone laughed while Catherine put her hands on her hips.
"We're not going to kill anyone, Ariel... unless we're threatened," the mother muttered, making Ariel smirk victoriously while Eddy looked around in confusion, drawing the attention of the others.
"Is Owen still asleep? It's not like him to be the last one up," the eight year old said while Brooklyn walked out of her tent and yawned. It looked like the blonde hadn't gotten any sleep, whatsoever, and she groggily sat down at the table where everyone stared at her.
"Rough night?" Daniel quizzed. Brooklyn nodded slowly, pushing the hair out of her eyes and finishing her eggs at a rapid pace. Braixen, Samurott, Gogoat, Smeargle, Amaura, and surpassingly, Beartic sat next to their trainer with anxious looks, but they were calmed by the collective attitude of the others.
"So am I the last one up?" Brooklyn questioned. She looked around at everyone sitting at the table and noticed Owen was missing, but she figured he was sleeping due to his sleep deprivation the night before. "Never mind. I'm going to go get ready."
000
After everyone was freshened up, they met and were shocked to find that Owen still wasn't up, worrying his traveling companions slightly.
"Screw this, I'm waking him up," Ariel declared after seeing that it was about four in the afternoon. The group had been ready for about three hours, but they decided to wait on Owen, which Ariel was opposed to from the start. Following the teen, everyone else watched as Ariel opened the tent and gasped in shock.
"What's wrong?" Catherine asked worriedly, trying to get into the tent.
"He's gone." Nearly everyone gasped, and Eddy nearly fainted. All of the Pokemon that were outside looked at the sight and an immense pressure suddenly fell on their shoulders now that they knew Owen wasn't going to take part in the invasion.
"This isn't good. This isn't good," Cindy iterated as she began walking in a circle while putting her hands on her head. Catherine quickly grabbed the twelve year old by the shoulders and stared her in the eyes while Brooklyn and Daniel looked around in fear. Ariel, meanwhile, remained calm and motioned for everyone to circle around her.
"Look, this isn't what we expected to happen, but we can still do this! I'll take Owen's role, and I'm going to need one of you two to back me up. Got it?" the fifteen year old instructed while looking at Daniel and Brooklyn. "Brooklyn, you're going to come with me. Daniel, you stay with my mom." The two other teens slowly nodded, and Ariel cracked her knuckles while withdrawing Blaziken, prompting everyone else to withdraw their Pokemon. "Now let's go. We're taking Kalos back, with or without Owen."
The six trainers all cleaned up the campsite, and Catherine took the lead while Ariel and Brooklyn trailed behind Eddy, Daniel, and Cindy. Brooklyn suddenly slowed down as the others started to pull ahead while they navigated their way through the forest, and she looked up at the sky fearfully.
"Please, Owen, we need you to come back."
"Brooklyn, what are you doing? Come on!" Cindy shouted, snapping the blonde out of her thoughts. With that, she ran after the others and eventually caught up, walking alongside Ariel once again. "Eddy, we need to go ahead of everyone," Cindy continued, to which the eight year old nodded. In the blink of an eye, the two youngest trainers ran ahead of Daniel, Catherine, Brooklyn, and Ariel, all of whom took a deep breath to calm their nerves.
Another hour or so passed and they finally arrived at the wall of Lumiose City. Despite her stoic look, Catherine's heart began racing as she started walking towards the nearest gate, and the teenagers with her were just as nervous.
"Are y'all ready?" Ariel asked confidently, trying to raise everyone's confidence. Catherine smiled at the leadership her daughter was displaying, nodding along with Daniel and Brooklyn. "Good, now let's do this thing!" she shouted as they stood in front of one of the gates that was wide open. With that, the four charged in, but were shocked to see the massive amounts of Team Grim members walking around, and there were wanted posters with Owen and Ariel's faces plastered everywhere. "I can't believe it. He knew we were coming!"
"Molten, go!" Catherine cried while throwing out one of her Pokeballs, trying to keep Ariel from freaking out. A Camerupt slammed on the ground after the device opened, and it glared at the waves of people dressed in all black. "Use Earthquake to clear a path to Prism Tower!" Camerupt rose to her two hind legs and slammed her front two feet on the ground, causing pillars of rocks to shoot up, sending people flying left and right.
"Come on! Let's go!" Ariel screamed as she ran towards an alleyway, waving for the others to follow her. They did, and Catherine withdrew Molten back to her Pokeball. As the group neared the end of the alleyway, three more grunts appeared and blocked their way out. Brooklyn quickly tossed a Pokeball in the air and Gogoat materialized from the light.
"Gogoat, charge through them!" Brooklyn commanded while hopping onto Gogoat's back. Before the grass type could charge, Brooklyn grabbed Ariel and helped her on the Pokemon, who sprinted forward and barreled through several members of Team Grim, knocking them unconscious instantly. Once he stopped running, Gogoat turned around and smiled as Catherine and Daniel made their way to his side while Brooklyn and Ariel hopped off his back. "Thanks for the support, Gogoat," Brooklyn said while zapping the grass type back into his Pokeball.
"Alright, all we have to do is get up there, and we'll face Frank. Daniel, lead the way," Ariel commanded. The sixteen year old nodded and began sprinting into the massive tower while Brooklyn followed, but Ariel stayed back and turned to Catherine. "Mom, aren't you coming?"
"No. If I do, there won't be anyone here to hold off those scum," Catherine replied, releasing all six of her Pokemon while her Mega Bracelet began to glow brightly. Suddenly, Amber, Flint, and Molten transformed into their Mega Evolutions, and they started attacking the waves of grunts charging towards the single entrance to Prism Tower. "Go! I'll be fine, don't worry about me," the mother ordered. Ariel nodded and began to turn away, but she surprised Catherine when she turned around and embraced her.
"Please, be careful." Catherine nodded as Ariel began to run into Prism Tower while Catherine turned and looked at the hundreds of grunts who had released their Pokemon. Tons of flying types zipped towards her and the six fire types, and they unleashed several Flamethrower attacks in an attempt to hold off the growing horde.
"I won't let any of you get in this tower! Amber, use Flamethrower to create a wall of fire around us!" Amber briefly diverted her attention from the flying pests attacking her to create a massive wall of fire that protected her trainer and teammates before resuming her aerial combat. While the grunts with water types struggled to put out the intense flames, Catherine took a deep breath and stared straight ahead.
"I hope Ariel and the others can stop Frank. I don't know how long I can hold these people off!"
While Catherine continued to hold off the members of Team Grim, Ariel, Daniel, and Catherine sprinted down several hallways, searching for a staircase. There weren't any grunts in the building, and the only sounds were the three teens running and panting, which gave off a more ominous tone than a wave of enemies would have.
"Why haven't we seen anyone in here?" Brooklyn asked between breaths as she turned around the end of yet another hallway.
"They're all outside. Frank didn't think we could get past them," Ariel replied, anger building with each word. "I'm going to make sure he regrets ever thinking that."
Well, that's about all I've got :/ So, the invasion has begun, and Catherine has separated from the group in order to fend off the waves and waves of grunts. Brooklyn, Daniel, and Ariel, meanwhile, will have their hands full with some pretty imposing opponents. As for Owen, who knows where the hell he is? I don't even know! I actually have the next chapter finished, but I'd like to hold off on posting it until Chapter 63 is posted, though I could decide to update later tonight. Till next time, peace out.
Next Chapter: "Double Trouble": As they close the distance between themselves and Frank, Ariel, Brooklyn, and Daniel run into a monstrous roadblock in Spike and Viviana. Deciding their best bet at stopping the leader of Team Grim is engaging in a double battle, Brooklyn and Daniel try to stall the admins. Will their strategy work?
Grim Arc
Chapter 63: A Heavy Conscience
Chapter 64: Ariel vs Frank: When Tempers Collide
Chapter 65: Into the Darkness
Chapter 66: Grim Reversion vs Mega Fusion!
Chapter 67: Betrayal for the Better