A.N. Just note I'm only updating this because I didn't get a chance to a few days ago. After this, it'll very likely go on hiatus until February. I will try and update it between now and then, but don't hold your breath. I'm back at school now and I've got the leaving cert coming up, (Big important exam we have in Ireland at the end of the final year of school. I have no idea what it's called anywhere else and can't be arsed to look it up) which is causing my mental health and will to do anything to plummet. But still, I hope you enjoy.

CHAPTER 7

Impulse and Strategy

It took almost a month for Victor to arrive in Alola with the Rotom bikes he promised. During the wait, he'd keep them updated on the progress of the construction of each one. During one of these updates, he let them know that the engineers were looking to get paid for this job. At first, he insisted upon paying himself, but when Lusamine found out about the operation, she wired the funds the engineers were looking for.

"Your boyfriend saved me from those toxins and that dreadful creature that took him," Lusamine explained when her children asked her about it, "And the whole region is getting involved in his rescue. I figured I may as well pitch in where I can." Lillie hugged her tightly for this.

Lusamine wasn't exaggerating when she said the whole region was going to help with rescuing Elio. Every single person with a pokémon team could be seen out on different routes, training their pokémon like mad. Some of those who didn't have any pokémon bought a bunch of pokéballs in order to catch themselves some. Everyone else was working overtime on a bunch of different things that'd be needed.

Any and all cooks were creating rejuvenating food so that the trainers and their pokémon that went into the Wormhole didn't need to return. Pokémarts temporarily made all of their max potions and revives free of charge so that the trainers could revive their pokémon quicker. Specialists started mass producing Elixirs as well. Even a few Nurse Joys could be seen either teaching trainers how to heal pokémon or training themselves a team. They weren't going to let a single flaw slip through in their preparation.

Lillie was amazed at the lengths everyone was going to in order to bring Elio back. As Acerola stated when Lillie spoke to her about it, "Elio saved this whole region twice! He's our saviour. The whole region sees this as a chance to return the favour." Lillie smiled at this comment. "Even my mother is pitching in. She's been funding everything. From the lessons on Nursing, to the mass production of healing items. Every worker on the Aether Paradise is currently working on rebuilding Faba's machine."

While all of this was going on, Selene scoured through every Wormhole she could to find the one Elio was trapped in. This turned out to be much easier said than done. Due to the amount of Wormhole he travelled through over the years with her and Hau, Selene found traces of him in many different Wormholes. It took her just over a week to find the one he was trapped in. After a few minutes of playing the flute, she managed to memorize the coordinates.

Once Selene gave a thorough description of the terrain of the Wormhole, Hau, Gladion and Lillie began devising their plan for getting Elio out of there. It took all of Hau's strength not to charge in their that very moment, but he knew that it would cost them dearly if he tried. It could alert Necrozma they were coming, or worse, leave them with two people to save instead of one. The four of them spent every waking hour devising a fool proof plan to save the Champion. But, even though they couldn't see any flaw in it, they devised a few backup plans as well, just to be safe.

Eventually, all they had to do was wait for Victor to come with the bikes. By then, almost three weeks had passed since Faba forced Elio through the Wormhole. Lillie was losing sleep over the thoughts of what could be happening to him in there. For all she knew, Necrozma could've done something horrible to him, or maybe even… that thought made her want to vomit.

It took another two weeks after those for him to arrive. The whole region was awoken by the sound of numerous Corviknight taxis flying overhead. Each one was filled with just over 30 bikes. Victor himself had arrived to personally deliver them, as well as wish them luck on their rescue. Due to a lack of Champion, Kukui was the one to greet the Galarian Champion. The two discussed matters briefly, before Victor ordered that the taxis land and the bikes be unloaded.

Once they were, all the Corviknights bar one departed back to Galar. "Sorry for how long that took," Victor apologised. "We had to keep making rest stops because the Corviknights kept tiring out." "Don't worry about it cousin!" Kukui reassured the teen. "The important thing is that you're here now. So now we can go and save our Champion, yeah!"

Once each and every Alolan had received a bike, Victor stayed around for a little bit to give a quick demonstration on how to use it, then made sure that everyone was able to ride them. While the majority of them could, there were a few that couldn't get the hang of it. Thankfully, the four leaders of the operation had thought of that. Once he was assured that everything was fine, Victor wished the region luck and departed.

Now that they had everything, Gladion messaged everyone to go to the beaches with the bikes and their Rotomdexes. Those who couldn't control them would be riding with other people. Once everyone had congregated on all the beaches of Alola, Gladion made a video of the four ringleaders and sent it on to everyone.

"Alright!" said Hau through everyone's phones. "Now that you're all on the beaches with the bikes, it's time to explain the plan. The Aether Paradise had redesigned a shiny tracker so that they will now track Elio. We shall be splitting off into three groups. Those of you who can control the bikes shall be riding into the Wormhole with me, Lillie and Selene. We shall then split into two groups. My group will the staying relatively close to the Wormhole to provide backup and make sure nothing escapes."

Lillie took over from there. "Meanwhile, me and Selene will use the tracker to find Elio and get him out of there. Necrozma will most likely be with him so be prepared for a fight. But don't go looking for one. Our main job is getting Elio out. Only engage with an Ultra Beast if you have support and it's crucial to our success. Once we have Elio, we'll make a hasty retreat. I'll need everyone at the back to try and fend off anything that might chase us. But only do that if you're able to battle and move at the same time."

From there, Gladion spoke about his part. "As for everyone who can't ride the Rotom Bikes," he told them, "You will all remain with me outside of the Wormhole. Our job will be to stop anything that gets through Hau's group. But also, there's a very strong possibility that Faba has caught on to what we're doing and will try to intervene. So, we must keep that Wormhole open at all costs! Is everyone clear on the plan?"

There was a resounding yes from every island. "Good!" said Selene. "One last thing. Everyone must have their Z moves at the ready! Only use them when we say so or if your life or the operation depends on it. We are uncertain how the Wormhole will react if they're used all over the place! Am I understood?" Once again, everyone confirmed that they understood. "Good" she said. Then, the four hopped on their bikes and said one last thing. "Now! Onto the Aether Paradise! Let's go get our Champion back!" With that declaration, everyone bellowed with anticipation and righteous fury, before riding the bikes through the water. Unfortunately for them, no one noticed the small submarine trailing slowly behind them.

Hopefully you enjoyed that chapter. Honestly, it felt way more thought through than any other chapter so far. Next chapter will be the start of the climax. Hopefully I'll have it out by next Friday, but chances are this won't be updated for another 5 weeks. But I'll see you all whenever I get the next chapter out.