Chapter Nineteen: The Pokéball Factory Part Two: The Master Ball
Previously on Pokémon Azure Light:
-Wait, Arceo did what with Aeona?!"
"You think that's bad. You should've seen what your parents did with you"
-"We need to stop relying on them"
"We don't rely on them."
-"Hi guys!"
"Hi Kiria!"
-"There's something different about her"
"I know. I've been saying that for a while."
-"It's time for payback, bitch!"
"What sort of payback?"
"Listen. I'm not going to take any more of this SH!T from you! Leave me and my friends alone."
-"What happened?"
"You were poisoned."
-"Maybe it was when he punched me."
"You let him punch you?"
"It was to intimidate him. I taught him a serious lesson"
-"I need you guys to check up on something at the Pokéball factory."
"That's where my mom works!"
-"I believe that someone has taken the workers hostage."
"My mom's a hostage?!"
"Well, let's go!"
Pokémon Azure Light Chapter 19: Pokéball Factory Part 2: The Master Ball
Outside the factory
The portal opened up to drop the five people off in front of a strange building that seemed to be in the middle of nowhere. They stepped out of the portal, the four newcomers looking around at the surrounding area and the factory that loomed in front of them.
"Where the f #$ are we?" Ace asked.
"Ace" Ho-Oh said, getting a firm tone. "You shouldn't use language like that. What would Arcey say if she heard you use that foul language?"
"Oh please." Ace said, laughing. "I learned every profane word I know from Arcey. In fact, she used profanity when she woke us up this morning."
"Then where did you learn the word f #$?" Ho-Oh asked.
"Remember the chandelier that hangs over the kitchen?" Ace asked.
"Yeah" Ho-Oh said, remembering the one he was referring to.
"Well, when Arcey put it in, I was helping her." Ace said. "And when the thing gave her a nasty shock, I learned about ten new words."
"I don't believe that" Ho-Oh said in disbelief.
"It's true" Shadow said, laughing at the memory. "I was there too. Arcey screamed profanities until Giratina came and calmed her down."
"I seem to remember being told that story" Ho-Oh said, trying to remember.
"Um, excuse me" Eon cut in, interrupting the conversation. "But shouldn't we be more concerned about getting in to the factory?"
"Oh, right" Ho-Oh said, embarrassed for having gotten off topic. "Well, let's try to enter, shall we?"
The Great Phoenix walked up to the door, expecting it to open for her.
"I think they locked the door." Ho-Oh said, looking back at her companions.
"No sh!t." Ace said. Him and Eon looked at each other, grinning. They knew how to get it open.
"No" Ho-Oh said, knowing exactly what was going through their minds. "We're not going to cause unnecessary destruction."
"Then you get it open" Eon challenged the Great Phoenix.
"Fine" Ho-Oh said, falling for the Taunt.
She walked up to the door and punched it as hard as she could (which was pretty hard). The door remained steadfast, not even budging an inch. There wasn't even a dent in it.
"Weak" Ace and Eon booed Ho-Oh, who got a little irritated.
"Fine then" she said, using a Taunt of her own. "You two get it open, if you're so good."
"All right" Ace and Eon said, standing in front of the door. They grinned, chuckling at the fact that they knew they could do this. They had already figured out how.
The two of them cupped their hands and put them by their sides (the left side to be specific). Suddenly, energy started to appear in their hands, orange Fire in Eon's hands, pure, black Darkness in Ace's hands. They started to grunt from the energy they were concentrating into their hands.
"Sometime today" Ho-Oh said impatiently. "Or is it too hard for you two?"
"Don't worry" Shadow said, trying to keep Ho-Oh from saying something she'd regret. "They're just doing this to be dramatic."
The energy in Ace's and Eon's hands was now the size of a basketball. Ace and Eon started yelling, both for effect, and also for the fact that they were focusing a lot of energy into their hands.
"KAAAA!" they both yelled, still gathering energy.
"Shadow, what are they doing?" Ho-Oh asked, confused.
"MEEEE!" Ace and Eon were causing the sand around them to levitate with their energy.
"Oh my Arceo" Shadow said, face palming. "They're not…."
"HAAAA!" the ground started to shake a little.
"Wait, is that…?" Kiria asked, realizing what the two battle junkies were using (or at least pretending to use).
"MEEEE!" the world around them seemed to be breaking apart as it shook.
"You guys know you're not actually using that move right?" Kiria asked.
"I think they know" Shadow said. "They love trying to pull it off though."
"HAAAA!" Ace and Eon released their energy, hurling it towards the door. The others had to quickly jump out of the way to avoid the blast. Their energy came out in a large beam that struck the door. For a moment the door actually withstood the massive energy beams the two powerful warriors had shot out. After about three seconds, however, the door started to actually disintegrate until the two beams struck the wall behind the door.
Ho-Oh and the others looked inside the massive hole Ace and Eon had created with their "Kamehamehas". Inside everything from the door to the back wall was blown onto the floor.
"Nice going guys" Ho-Oh said. "Now they know we're here."
"Who cares?" Eon said. "That means we'll get a better fight out of them."
"Whatever" Ho-Oh said, walking into the building. "Let's just go rescue the prisoners and get out of here."
The five of them entered the building, Kiria looking around nervously at her surroundings, as if she was searching for an unseen enemy (the others weren't looking around because they could sense presences around them, so if something was there, they would know).
Ace noticed something to his left in an alcove. He reached in and grabbed it, pulling it out of its hiding place.
"Hey guys" he said, signaling the rest of the group. "Look what I found."
The others crowded around Ace to see what he found: notes about the factory's products. Ace began reading them out loud.
"The Pokéball has been used as an effective prison system for centuries" Ace read clearly. "However, several enhancements and advancements have been made over the years to improve the performance of this marvel of science. Below is a list of this factory's current models of Pokeballs, their strengths, and their weaknesses, as well as information on our latest Pokéball and our new innovation: TMs and HMs."
"That sounds boring." Eon said.
"I think we should read it" Shadow said. "It could help us figure out just why these people took the factory hostage."
"Good suggestion" Ho-Oh said. "Keep reading Ace."
"TMs" Ace continued reading. "TMs are a new form of tutoring moves. A TM is able to teach a Pokémon to use a move after one viewing."
"One viewing?!" everyone said, shocked. It took them at least five demonstrations to even begin to learn to use a new move (standard moves, not created or custom moves). And then it took them practicing for weeks, even months at a time to fully utilize a move. The only one of them that had utilized a move faster was Ace, who had learned Dark Void in a single day (with Darkrai's help, unbeknownst to them).
"TMs have the capability to teach powerful moves to almost any Pokémon" Ace continued. "However, said Pokémon must be compatible with said move for the desired effect."
"What does that mean?" Kiria asked.
"I think it means that a Fire type can't learn a Water type move" Shadow explained. "Because of the physical properties of both elements, they can't exist within the same being."
"Ok" Kiria said, understanding.
"TMs currently in production" Ace read further. "Are Earthquake, Dig, Giga Impact and Hyper Beam."
"This thing can teach Hyper Beam?!" Ace, Eon, and Shadow exclaimed.
"You all know Hyper Beam" Ho-Oh said.
"But this thing can teach it in one session" Ace said. "That's pretty impressive, to be able to teach the twelfth strongest move in all of existence."
"Twelfth?" Ho-Oh asked, confused.
"There are others." Ace said. "But I'm not allowed to reveal them to you"
"Just continue reading" Ho-Oh said, not going to win that argument.
"HMs have a more environmental use" Ace read. "HMs can be used to teach moves that can aid in traversing in harsh conditions. Current HMs include: Cut, Fly, Strength, Dive, Surf, Rock Smash (is also TM), Waterfall, and Whirlpool."
"What's different about them?" Kiria asked.
"I guess their use" Ace reasoned. "TMs seem to be more battle only, while HMs seem to have a secondary use."
"Okay" Kiria said.
"Now on to the good stuff" Ace said, turning the page to find the Pokéball section.
"The Pokéball was invented in the year 19XD and was made of apricorns." Ace read. "The current model is far more advanced and is made of an unknown metal. The standard Pokéball has a catch rate of 1 (and is the comparison rate for all others). Effective and cheap, this is used by many law enforcement branches as a prison system. However, the standard ball has the problem of overloading if it encapsulates a being with a power level of one hundred thousand or higher."
"That's not much" Eon said.
"We're legendaries" Ace said. "Most people don't even come close to being over one hundred thousand in human forme."
"The Great Ball" Ace continued. "has a catch rate of 1.5 and may overload if encapsulating a being over one hundred fifty thousand. The Ultra Ball has a catch rate of two, capping at two hundred thousand."
"Is that all of them?" Eon asked. "Because that's pretty weak in this present day."
"Those were the standard balls." Ace said. "The rest of them are special balls."
"Like?" Ho-Oh asked.
"The Quick Ball" Ace read on. "Is truly unique. It can raise its catch rate to eight if used at the start of a fight, when the energy is usually balanced. The Moon Ball has special chemicals that make Pokémon that evolve with a Moon Stone or their evolutions more susceptible to its ability, effectively raising its catch rate to four. Otherwise, its catch rate is one."
"That's dumb" Eon said.
"How so?" Kiria asked.
"Only five evolutionary lines evolve with Moon Stones." Eon explained. "Both Nidoran lines, Skitty, Jigglypuff, and Clefairy. So that leaves a total of fifteen Pokémon out of like seven hundred."
"Moving on" Ace said. "The Timer Ball can be charged over a period of time, causing its catch rate to increase up to four times. The Heal Ball can be used to restore power to an injured Pokémon, up to one million points."
"So what if they're over one million?" Kiria asked.
"I guess it raises them one million." Ace guessed.
"Finish up" Eon said impatiently, looking at the paper Ace was holding. "There's only two left."
"All right" Ace said, returning to the paper. "The Dusk Ball is a particularly peculiar ball. It works best at night or in a dark place. It seems to be very effective on Dark types, due to their natural Dark aura."
"Interesting" Ho-Oh mused.
"What's that last one?" Kiria asked.
"The Master Ball" Ace read. "is by far the most powerful ball ever created. It has yet to be escaped, and it seems that even legendaries cannot escape its grasp. Its catch rate originally was 255, but, with modern technology, its rate has reached at least one thousand."
"That must be what the thieves were after." Ho-Oh realized the danger they faced. If this "Master Ball" was as powerful as these documents described, then they would need to destroy it immediately before it fell into the wrong hands.
"Then let's go get it." Ace said, running down the hallway, Eon and Shadow on his heels.
Hall of Origins
"The Master Ball?" Arcey thought to herself angrily. "Those bastards built it after all! I thought I told them not to!"
"What's up with you?" Mewtwo asked as he entered the room, sensing Arcey's anger.
"I fear that we may have a problem on our hands." Arcey said gravely to the second most powerful psychic (Shadow is still a psychic type). "I believe that the Master Ball exists."
"The Maser Ball?!" Mewtwo gasped. He knew of the ultimate Pokéball. "They actually continued production? Even after you specifically told them not to?"
"It appears so." Arcey said. "Ace and the others just found their notes on it. Well, if Ace, Eon, or Darkrai destroys the factory, I'm not helping them fix it."
"Why wouldn't you just destroy it yourself?" Mewtwo asked.
"Because I don't want to seem so much like an unforgiving god." Arcey said.
"So you're just going to let Ace destroy it?" Mewtwo asked.
"Yes" Arcey said. "That kills two birds with one stone: Ace gets to blow sh!t up and I don't have to get my hands dirty."
"That's actually pretty smart." Mewtwo said.
"Actually" Arcey said. "I sent them down there to check up on the factory. I'd heard rumors from Ho-Oh about something going down at the factory, so I sent them to check up on this. Apparently, they found this out while they were there, so it's still their problem."
"So, how is Ho-Oh?" Mewtwo asked, running his fingers through his pinkish purple hair. "It's been a while since we've heard from her."
"She didn't say much." Arcey said. "But I'd assume she's doing fine."
"That's good." Mewtwo said. "So, how's their mission going?"
"I don't know for sure" Arcey said. "But I hope they're still safe. Whoever has that Master Ball just might be the most dangerous for they've faced yet."
"What about Zygarde?" Mewtwo asked.
"Zygarde's not so much of a threat without his two keys." Arcey said calmly, despite being terrified of the Balance Pokémon.
"Keys?" Mewtwo asked.
"Two parts of his soul that were taken from him when he was sealed." Arcey explained, pouring herself some coffee. "Without them he is severely weakened."
"So if he gains these two 'keys'" Mewtwo guessed. "Then he becomes "Perfect", right?"
"In a sense" Arcey said, catching Mewtwo's drift. "But unlike Cell, however, Zygarde will not be so capable of coughing them back up. The only thing that could even hope to beat him is a fully powered Ace fighting with a fully powered Shadow."
"What would they have to do?" Mewtwo asked, half joking. "Fuse together?"
"What would we call that?" Arcey said, pondering the thought. "Shadowrai? Or Garderai?"
"How about Darkevoir?" Mewtwo suggested.
"Damn" Arcey said. "That's pretty good. But how did we get to this point?"
"We got pretty off topic, didn't we?" Mewtwo asked.
"Yep" Arcey said. "Where were we?"
"The Master Ball" Mewtwo remembered.
"Ah yes" Arcey remembered as well. "As I was saying, the Master Ball is a very dangerous weapon in anyone's hands. I just hope that they'll be careful."
Pokéball Factory- Main Hallway
The five beings (Kiria doesn't classify as a warrior) walked down the hallway, noting their surroundings. They walked by a picture of a man in a business suit. He had black hair and glasses.
"Satoru Iwata" Ace read the plaque under the picture. "Founder: Pokéball factory id 7XJ9. 19LIX-20XV"
"What's his pokéforme?" Eon asked.
"I can't tell." Ace said.
"Who is that?" Kiria asked, looking at the painting.
"It looks like the founder of this building." Ace said.
"Let's keep going" Ho-Oh said, ushering the group along. "We need to find the workers so we can free them."
"Right" the group said, following the Great Phoenix.
Pokéball Factory-Main Area
The five of them walked into a large open area with a lot of Pokéballs in compartments in the walls.
"Hey, look over there" Shadow pointed to a large cage, which held at least thirty people inside. They all wore lab coats, leading the legendaries to reason that they were the workers (as if there was any other conclusion to come to).
"Mom" Kiria shouted to her mother.
"Kiria!?" her mother said, surprised that her daughter had come to such a dangerous place. "What are you doing here? Did your powers lead you here?"
"What?" Kiria ( and the rest of the group) asked, confused.
"Oops" Kiria's mother said, realizing she had said something she shouldn't have.
Kiria ran up to the cage, only to be pulled back by Ace.
"Let me go!" she shouted, struggling to break from the obviously stronger grip of Ace Hunter.
"It's obviously a trap" Ace said, holding onto Kiria's shoulder. He shot a blast of Dark energy at a specific location, causing a man who was disguised there to appear.
"So" he said in a sinister voice. "The lapdogs of Arceus have arrived."
The man wore black loose pants with thin, black stripes running around them. His shoes were grey with grey stripes on them. His shirt was long sleeved and had a similar striping to his pants. He wore a grey, sleeveless jacket with two black stripes on the bottom. His jacket had a yellow G on it, which was pointed oddly. His face was one of calculation and emotionlessness. His hair was a shade somewhere in between the color of water and the color of ice. His eyes were about the same shade as his hair, but seemed to lack emotion in place of calculations and planning. This man caused the legendaries to tense up, as well as the people in the large cage. This man was one who had aided in such carnal acts that were known almost the world over. A man who had worked with someone as cruel and as evil as Giovanni. This man was…
Hall of Origins
"Cyrus?!" Mewtwo exclaimed.
"Shut up!" Arcey shushed the psychic clone, clamping her hand over his mouth. "I don't want anyone else to know he's here. It could cause Hall-wide panic."
"Right" Mewtwo said, catching himself. "Wouldn't want that to happen."
"Agreed" Arcey said. "The next question I have is whether or not he has the twins with him."
"If the twins are with him" Mewtwo mused. "Then his chances of succeeding would be higher"
"But" Arcey said. "Ace could probably take on the twins. And Eon and Shadow are with him."
"But what if they do that thing?" Mewtwo shuddered at the thought.
"I'm sure Ace and the rest can handle it." Arcey said, suppressing the shudder she was having.
"Arcey" Cela ran in, panic on her face.
"What is it, Cela?" Arcey asked, worried and wondering what could have frightened the Time Traveler so much.
"It's Xerneas" Cela said. "She's gone"
"What?" Arcey asked. "What happened?"
"I walked by her room earlier" Cela told her story. "I saw her door open. I walked in to see signs of a struggle. I found this in her room."
When she said that, Cela held up what appeared to be part of a uniform. It had an 'F' on it that appeared to be made out of flames.
"That looks like it's from Lysandre's uniform." Arcey said, jolting up. "But why would he take Xerneas?"
"You know why." Mewtwo said plainly.
"You don't think…" Arcey said, realizing exactly what the clone was thinking.
"It's not too farfetched." Mewtwo said. "Those two have been known to be allies in the past."
"We can worry about her later" Arcey said, surprisingly calm. "We would need the Unholy Trinity present to conduct a full search. They'd be our most valuable asset in that endeavor."
"True" Mewtwo said. "But shouldn't we at least prepare?"
"I don't want to panic everybody" Arcey said. "Until Ace gets here. He can usually calm everyone down."
"Understood" Mewtwo said. "Let's just hope he can finish his mission quickly."
Pokéball factory Main Area
"Cyrus" Ace growled, clenching his fists and powering them up with Dark energy. Every other legendary with him did the same.
"Pfft." Cyrus scoffed. "You think that the five of you can defeat me? Only three of you even have the slightest chance; the other two would get slaughtered."
"Bring it on!" Kiria shouted at the blue haired man before Ace pushed her behind him.
"You're one of the two" Ace said. "Stay out of danger."
"I want to fight" Kiria protested.
"Do you actually have any fighting experience?" Ho-Oh asked.
"N-no" Kiria said, realizing just how outmatched she was.
"Then stay back" Shadow kindly urged her. Kiria nodded in agreement.
"All of you are going to fall before me" Cyrus gloated.
"We'll see" Ace said, leaping up for a Supermon punch. Cyrus chuckled as the Dark type neared him, his fist poised to strike.
Just before Ace hit him, however, Cyrus pulled something out of his pocket. Before Ace could even see what it was, Cyrus pushed a button on the strange object, making it enlarge. Ho-Oh saw the object and gasped.
It was a Pokéball, but it looked different. The bottom was still white, but the top was purple. There were also two large, red bumps on the top of it. It also had a large, but thin M on the front. Ho-Oh realized all too late that this was the horrifying Master Ball.
"Ace!" she shouted at the Dark type, hoping to get his attention. But it was too late; Cyrus touched Ace with the button of the Master Ball, causing a red light to envelop him. Ace's eyes widened in surprise as his body was converted to energy as the Master Ball opened to absorb it, closing immediately afterwards. It shook in Cyrus' hand for a few seconds before the red light that had absorbed Ace blinked off.
Hall of Origins
"No!" Arcey shouted, startling Mewtwo, who had fallen asleep while Arcey kept an eye on the group entering the factory.
"What is it?" Mewtwo asked, alarmed. He had never known Arcey to sound so scared and terrified. Well, there was that one time…
"Ace has been captured." Arcey stated.
"How?" Mewtwo asked, a little skeptical as to how Ace could be captured without dying first.
"Cyrus used the Master Ball on him." Arcey said, her voice unsteady. "Ace never saw it coming."
"Can we break him out?" Mewtwo asked, hopeful.
"Giratina might could try" Arcey said. "But I don't think even he could break him out. The plans for that monstrosity stated that it could even hold legendaries and had a fail-safe that caused it to kill the Pokémon inside if broken. It's supposed to be completely unhackable as well. I warned those bastards when they first proposed the idea that I would bring my wrath down on them if they went through with it. Now their abomination has most likely caused the death of one of my children and possibly the deaths of two more, including Ho-Oh and Kiria."
"So what are you going to do?" Mewtwo asked.
"What am I going to do?" Arcey asked, her voice seeming a bit insane. "I'm going to Judgement all up in their asses. They will all die by my hand! I will have vengeance."
"Maybe you should let this play out and see what happens." Mewtwo tried to calm the God Pokémon. "They might just pull out of this one."
"For the sake of every being in that factory" Arcey said, her voice grave. "Let's hope you're right."
Pokéball Factory
The other legendaries' eyes widened in horror as their most powerful fighter was captured in the Ultimate Pokéball. Cyrus looked at the Ball in his hands, chuckling to himself.
"This was the greatest threat to my existence?" he questioned, referring to Ace. "This child was what Giovanni told me would destroy me if I didn't take every precaution necessary? If he was beaten so easily, then how quickly will the rest of you fall?"
"Ace" Shadow said quietly, her voice shaking in horror and sadness. "No. You can't be gone."
"Funny thing about this Ball" Cyrus mused, making sure the legendaries and Kiria could hear him. "If it's broken, then your friend will never be free, and instead will die. But in actuality, it can't be opened from the outside either. So I guess he's trapped in there."
"No!" Shadow said, tears in her eyes.
"Eon" Ho-Oh whispered quietly to the Eon Goddess. "I have a plan."
"What is it?" Eon whispered back.
"I'll rush him and you grab the Master Ball" Ho-Oh whispered. "Throw it to Shadow so she and Kiria can escape. Giratina might know how to fix this. You and I should be able to handle Cyrus long enough for them to escape. We can come back for the workers later with Arcey on our side."
"On three." Eon said, summoning Fire. Ho-Oh also summoned Fire to her hands.
"One" Ho-Oh and Eon put one foot behind them.
"Two" They leaned back on their rearmost foot.
"Three!" The two Fire types lunged at the Galactic Pokémon, preparing powerful Fire Punches. Ho-Oh lunged farther, however, while Eon hung a little ways back. Ho-Oh punched Cyrus in the gut, causing him to release his grip on the Master Ball.
Ho-Oh grabbed the Master Ball, hurling it toward Eon, who turned quickly around and threw it.
"Shadow, catch!" She shouted at the Dark Empath, who caught the Master Ball in both hands (is was bigger than a softball). She looked at it, starting to tear up again.
"Run!" Eon shouted, resuming her attack on Cyrus. Shadow got the hint and took off running, Kiria following right behind her.
"I'll be back for you mother" Kiria said quietly as she followed Shadow down the main hallway.
Inside Ace's mind
"Tell me" Ace said to the Dark being that shared his mind with him.
"Tell you what?" Said Dark being asked, not knowing what his living companion meant by his question.
"About my parents." Ace said, his irritation rising.
"What about them?" Darkrai asked, dodging the question.
"What you said this morning" Ace growled slightly. "About what they did to me."
"Ah, that." Darkrai said, chuckling. "You don't have time for that."
"We're trapped in this damn ball." Ace said. "You tell me what I want to hear while I figure a way out."
"Whatever" the Dark Nightmare said. "But don't complain if I ruin your image of you parents."
"My parents died when I was six." Ace said. "I don't really have much of an image of them. And what do you care? You're just a Dark monster that wants my body."
"I had friends once." Darkrai said. "I only became Dark when I was betrayed by the one that I served."
"Yes, I've heard the story" Ace said, truly beginning to understand the Demon better.
"Well, let's f #$ up your childhood, shall we?" Darkrai said, a chilling laugh being produced.
Flashback- twenty years ago
"Hurry Darkora, we must begin quickly." The man shouted to his wife. His wife, Darkora, brought their infant child into the room he had prepared.
Darkor was dressed in a black robe with a red collar that made him seem like a cult member. His face was cold. His hair was white, his eyes blue and cold.
His wife was dressed fairer, wearing a black robe, but it had the look of a nun more so than a cult member. She had a gentle face, radiating beauty. Her hair was black and flowing. Her eyes were black and were piercing.
Their child, however, had a face of nobility and trust. His hair was black like the night and his eyes were flashing between black and red, his hair slightly flashing white.
"I'm coming Darkor" she said, clutching her child close. "I don't think this is a good idea. He looks unhealthy."
"It will be fine." Darkor said. "Shador is having his child accompany ours since they were born at the same time."
"Will it work?" Darkora asked.
"He seems to believe so" Darkor replied. "Now hurry and place the child on the altar. The new moon is at its peak. The child seemed to have promise with his abilities."
Darkora obeyed, placing her infant son on a pile of stones that had ancient symbols inscribed on each rock. A man dressed in a white robe with a red collar walked into the room, carrying his child, a girl.
The man, Shador had green hair and red eyes that seemed full of malice. His face seemed the same way.
His child, however, seemed almost the opposite. Her face seemed to be full of kindness and grace. Her hair was black (from her mother), almost the same shade as the boy's. Her eyes were red like her father's, but they seemed much softer and gentler.
Shador placed his child on the altar next to Darkor and Darkora's. The two looked at each other, recognition entering their eyes.
"Begin the ceremony" Shador said.
"But what if they die?" Darkora asked, fearful for the fates of the two children.
"If she dies" Shador said plainly. "Then her mother shall be avenged, for the child killed her mother in birth."
"Very well, then" Darkor said, placing his hands over the children's heads. "I shall begin. Prepare yourselves. It will take all three of us to successfully preform this ceremony."
"Begin" Shador said. "Shadora will be pleased to know that the child she loved, the child that killed her, will have an important role in destiny."
"The forces of Darkness and Light are at battle" Darkor began reciting an incantation that he had learned from his father, who had learned it from his father, and so on. "In the Dark of the Night we call on our master, the great leader of our race, the Kyuryoon, the Demon, Darkrai, to empower this offering and use it for your will. We grant you our permission to use these vessels for your bidding."
At first nothing seemed to happen. Darkora almost looked relieved, but just as she was about to take her child, black lightning struck her hand, shocking her. It threw her back into the wall, sending her into unconsciousness. The two men stared as a dark cloud materialized over the bodies of their two children. It hovered over the body of the girl for a few seconds before moving over to the boy.
The cloud began to enter the nostrils of the boy, causing him to twitch violently. The girl, whether by genuine compassion or by childish instinct, put her hand over his. All of a sudden, Dark power began to travel back and forth between the two of them, something that seemed to surprise the two men. This had never been known to happen before, never had another reported of this.
The Dark power surged through the children's bodies, causing them to twitch and convulse. Their power levels skyrocketed, causing the two men to feel faint from the pressure. If one could read auras, they might have been able to notice that both children's auras had become exactly the same.
Then, as quickly as it began, it stopped. The two men recovered after about thirty seconds, standing up and looking at their children. They seemed normal, nothing wrong or even any evidence that a demon had just tried to enter their bodies.
"Did it work?" Darkor asked his neighbor.
Shador looked just as confused as him.
"I don't know" he said. "The manuscripts never spoke of what it would look like or what would happen if two sacrifices were made at the same time."
"They said the signs wouldn't be evident in the first few years." Darkor said. "We'll have to wait a few years to find out if the sacrifice was a success."
"This better work" Shador said. "Or else the wretch dies."
Darkora stirred, waking up. She looked over the two children, not noticing any differences.
"Did it work?" she asked her husband.
"It is unclear at this point." Darkor said. "But we must now proceed with the naming."
"For our child." Darkora said. "I choose the name Ace Dakurai Hunter, to signify his devotion to Darkrai."
"For my wretch I choose the name Shadow Sanaito Darkstar" Shador said. "To signify her living in your child's shadow."
"May they ever serve our master Darkrai to the best of their abilities." Darkora said, waving her hand over her child and Shador's. "And may they prosper in their own lives."
The three beings took their respective children and departed to their homes, closing the door to the alter room behind them. When the door was shut, a man stepped out of the shadows, his head cloaked. He removed his cloak to reveal his true identity: the God of Death, Giratina.
"Hmm" he thought to himself. "I should tell Arcey to keep an eye on those two. They could be trouble in the future if not raised properly."
With that said, Giratina disappeared into the shadows to his home, the Distortion World.
Inside Ace's head- flashback end
"So that's how you got in my body?" Ace asked, horrified. "That's dark."
"Looking back" Darkrai mused. "I never knew who came up with that ritual. But I guess what happened with the two of you back there is what caused her Synchronize ability to work the way it does"
"I guess it would." Ace thought out loud.
"Figured out a way to escape yet?" Darkrai asked, changing the subject.
"Working on it." Ace said.
With Eon and Ho-Oh
Eon and Ho-Oh threw punch after punch at Cyrus, who dodged every single one.
"I grow bored of this." He said, snapping his fingers. "That's why I brought a couple of playmates for you two."
After he snapped his fingers, two beings dropped down into the "arena" that had been established, a boy and a girl.
The girl wore a red uniform with black pants. Her red boots were combat ready as they seemed to be bulky. She wore a red short trench coat that went down to her knees. There was a symbol that seemed to be a mixture of an M and the Greek Omega symbol, the symbol red-orange and flaming. Her face was one of intimidation and fear. Her hair was red and spread out behind her head. Her eyes were reddish orange and flashed with bloodlust. She wore glasses, but took them off when she landed on the floor.
The boy, in contrast wore a blue uniform. He wore a similar trench coat to the girl, but it was blue. The symbol on his looked like it was liquid and seemed to be a mix of the letter A and the Greek Alpha symbol. His face was similar to the girl's. He had a small goatee that was black in color. His hair was blue, but most of it was covered by a bandana with the same symbol. His eyes were blue and were cold as ice.
Ho-Oh sucked in a breath as Eon tensed up. They knew these two very well from past experiences. The boy and girl in front of them were Archie and Maxine (she preferred to go by Maxie) of Team Universal respectively. The two Hoennese twins had gained a reputation even among their team. Word travelled fast of the twins' brutality, so much so that even someone saying "the twins" would cause everyone that heard it to tense up or, in some cases, tremble.
"So, these are our playmates?" Ho-Oh asked Eon. "Do you think we could take them?"
"If I was with Ace" Eon said. "Then I might have a chance. No offense Ho-Oh, but you're nowhere near Ace's level of battle skill."
"I've been fighting for longer than he's been alive" Ho-Oh said.
"And yet he's still much better than you" Eon said "even without factoring in his physical strength. Plus I can team fight better with him than you."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Ho-Oh said, clenching her fists. "Now let's at least try to fight them and win."
"Right" Eon said. "Let's go!"
The two Fire types charged at the Hoenn Twins, charging Fire Punches. Ho-Oh landed her punch on Archie while Eon nailed Maxie in the face. The twins stepped back from the force of the blows, but were pretty much unharmed otherwise.
"That was weak" Maxie said, summoning her energy, Ground energy, to her fist.
"Very" Archie said, summoning Water energy into his fist. They threw their punches, Eon dodging Maxie's, but Ho-Oh taking Archie's. The Great Phoenix flew back into the wall, her ribs hurting.
"You two are weak" Maxie and Archie said simultaneously. "But, just to be gracious and merciful, we'll show you our pokéformes, just to give you a taste of our true power."
Eon's and Ho-Oh's eyes widened in horror as they saw the power that the Hoennese twins were suppressing, even though it still wasn't all they could put out.
With Shadow and Kiria
The Dark Empath ran down the hallway, Kiria following behind her. They ran as fast as they could in hopes of getting Arcey to help them save their friends and the captive workers.
Suddenly, without warning, Shadow tripped, the Master Ball flying from her hands. She picked herself up, cursing herself for having decided to wear heels, even though she was adept at wearing them.
She ran over to the Master Ball, praying to Arcey that it was still okay. She looked it over, hoping it was still intact.
Suddenly she saw it: a small crack appeared on the side of the Ball. Shadow looked at it with horror.
"No" she said softly, tears in her eyes. "Please hold on. Please don't die in there."
The crack enlarged itself. Shadow held the Master Ball to her chest, crying into it and saying her closest friend's name over and over again.
"Shadow" Kiria said, putting her hand on the Dark Empath's shoulder. "He's gonna be okay. Giratina's going to get him out of there. He's not going to die. I promise you."
"How can you promise that!?" Shadow shouted, getting angry. "My best friend has no hope of escaping from this and I could have done something to stop it."
"No" Kiria said. "You couldn't have. Ace leapt toward Cyrus. He had no idea and neither did you. Don't beat yourself up over this."
"But" Shadow said, sobbing as the crack became long enough to completely encircle the Ball. "He's my best friend. I've known him since we were born. He's protected me from danger, as I have protected him. He's the one I truly love. And he feels the same way about me. He sees me as more than just another individual; he sees me as someone special. And now I'm going to lose him forever."
"No you're not" Kiria said. "If you hope and believe, he might pull out of it."
"I-I-I" Shadow started to say before she heard a sound that made her sick to her stomach: a crack coming from the Master Ball.
She stared at it as the cracks expanded. Then, without warning, in front of her very eyes and to her utmost horror, the Master Ball exploded.
holy sh!t! That...happened. Well, then. That's...um...woah. I have no words for that.