Ampharos smiled at Infernape and Garchomp as they took his side. Garchomp noticed that he seemed very, very relieved. She wanted to say something but was interrupted by Druddigon's excited screaming,
"Oh hell yeah, more opponents, this is gonna be awesome!" Sableye looked frustrated at the dragon type as various jewels and gems surrounded him.
"Come on Gliscor, show us what you've got." Infernape demanded. He turned to see Gliscor running away at full speed.
"I DON'T WANNA DIE!" He sobbed loudly, tears gushing out of his eyes like a hose.
"COME BACK, YOU COWARD!" Infernape yelled in fury.
"DON'T RUN, YOU BITCH!" Garchomp chastised as the flying type disappeared into the night. The two focused back onto their opponents as Infernape was pelted with gems. He was thrown back as Sableye smirked. Ampharos froze as Infernape ran towards Druddigon at full speed as more gems flew past him. Garchomp took a step towards Sableye before she froze in a cold sweat.
"Now, now dearie. Are you planning on misbehaving." Mawile's voice jeered in Garchomp's head.
"Shut up!" Garchomp yelled to the voice, trying to focus back on the battle at hand.
"Oh, do you remember what happens when you misbehave, right?" Garchomp gulped as memories began to return to her. Her body instinctively tensed up as she was struggling to breathe, "You do remember. Now be a good toy and give up." Mawile's voice demanded. She grabbed her head, trying to control her thoughts. She took a step backwards but stopped herself from going any further. "Oh, you are resisting. Pathetic," hissed Mawile. Sableye saw the frozen dragon type and took the opportunity to throw dozens of gems at Garchomp. She was thrown into the ground, and Sableye smirked.
Garchomp tried again to silence Mawile's voice,
"Get out of my head!" She said out loud. Sableye stared at her in confusion but shook it off and created a knife out of diamonds. A wall of fire separated Garchomp and Sableye as Infernape ran up to Garchomp.
"Hey, are you alright?" he asked cautiously as he sat by her side.
"M-Mawile!" Garchomp yelled, unable to fully articulate what was happening. Infernape grabbed her shoulders,
"Look at me." Garchomp obliged, "She's not here, she cannot hurt you." Infernape argued. Garchomp took several breaths before calming down just as the fire wall dissipated. Garchomp stood up as she prepared to fight Sableye. He was right. Mawile was gone, she couldn't hurt her anymore.
Druddigon ran to tackle Infernape, who dodged with relative ease. As Infernape ran and charged a fire attack, making it even hotter than normal to resist the rain. Druddigon grabbed some mud and threw it at the fire type's eyes, blinding him. His claws then began to glow blue and he ran toward Infernape. He slashed at the fire type and retreated as Infernape created a small explosion around himself. Infernape finally managed to regain his vision in time to see Druddigon dig underground. He looked around, trying to guess where the dragon type would appear from. Druddigon then emerged from behind and slashed at Infernapes' back. He yelled as his fur was stained with blood. Druddigon capitalized and punched Infernape across the field. Infernape bit through the pain and shot several fireballs at Druddigon which hit and staggered the dragon type.
Infernape towards Druddigon as his fist was enveloped in fire. Druddigon smiled as he caught the fire type's fist. Infernape then fired a burst of flame at Druddigon, sending him back. He stumbled back and Infernape charged at him with fire surrounding his hands. The dragon stomped the ground making a small spire to impede the fire type. Infernape jumped over the spire and swiped his tail at Druddigon. Druddigon caught the monkey's tail but Infernape turned to kick him again. Druddigon was struck but grabbed Infernape and threw him into the ground. He then stomped on Infernapes wound. He screamed in agony and he unleashed a large burst of flame and Druddigon was launched off of him.
Meanwhile, Garchomp lunged at Sableye, ready to slash at him. However, Sableye just waved his hand and Garchomp was pushed away by a bunch of gemstones. Other floating gems became sharp and slashed at Garchomp. She ran back but not before getting several cuts on her body. Sableye chuckled as Garchomp stared at his defense,
"You can try all you want but my shield is unbreakable." He was very proud of that reference. Garchomp smirked, this wasn't the first time someone made such a bold statement, there had to be a weakness. Garchomp shot a blue and yellow beam out of her mouth. A crystal then reflected that beam to another gem, then another, then another until the beam shot back to Garchomp. Garchomp was struck in her side by the beam. Garchomp was staggered but managed to get back up.
"Alright, so I can't punch it or shoot it, what do we do?" Garchomp asked, struggling to figure out how to beat the ghost. A task made even more difficult but by the rapid attacks from the gems.
Her eyes widened as she thought of something. Garchomp shot a blue and yellow sphere into the sky and charged at Sableye again. She then stomped on the ground as the ground shifted around Sableye. The sphere of energy split into dozens of meteor-like spheres at the dark type as spikes made of rock and dirt tried to stab at Sableye. As smoke enveloped Sableye, Garchomp slashed blindly with her claws, trying to find the dark type. Garchomp continued the onslaught of attacks for a while. She finally stopped as silence fell upon the field. Garchomp was now trying to catch her breath.
"I'll give you one thing: that was clever." Garchomp froze as the smoke cleared and Sableye was almost unscathed.
"You tried to split my attention but all you did was scratch my cheek." he gloated, pointing to a small cut on his left cheek. Garchomp was stunned, Sableye wasn't lying. Garchomp was completely stumped, she had no clue how to break through the dark types crystal defense. Garchomp, in desperation, ran full speed at Sableye. The dark type just rolled his eyes and sent dozens of gems to pelt Garchomp. Before the gems reached her, she shot out blue and yellow flames at Sableye. The flames were stopped dead in their tracks by more crystals and Garchomp was thrown back, the gems slashing at her. She stood back up, still ready to fight.
Ampharos remained frozen on the spot, he'd never thought he'd be in this situation. Infernape ran towards him,
"Hey, Amp, I could use some help over here!" he ordered. However, upon noticing Ampharos' expression, Infernape made a wall of fire to separate Druddigon from the two.
"Hey buddy, what's wrong?" he asked with concern. Any semblance of bravery slipped out of Ampharos's grasp like a snowflake in a fiery grip. He froze in place, falling into a severe panic attack. His breathing intensified as though he were suffocating. Pain began to pulse from his chest, furthering his panic. Infernape recognized what was happening and immediately began to try and comfort him.
"Okay, do you want me to help?" Infernape asked calmly, or at least attempted to be. Ampharos' response was swift and to the point,
"Please!" he pleaded between gasps for air.
"Okay, J-Just keep breathing. Just keep breathing and it'll all be okay. Hey, uh," Infernape tried to distract the electric type from his fear with small talk, "After this, we can head to a restaurant. Pizza, sushi, burgers, whatever you want."
Slowly, Ampharos began to calm down. His breathing slowed down and that chest pain vanished as well. Infernape smiled at his friend's recovery. He knew that panic attacks were hell. Like an alien in a horror So he was glad to see that Amphaos was back to reality, but now he had to keep it that way.
"Buddy, what's wrong?" Trusting Infernape and shelving his fear for a moment, Ampharos told him the truth,
"I-I-I'm not a hero! I'm a coward!" he wailed before tightly embracing his friend. Infernape gasped in surprise but returned the hug.
"No you're not!"
"Yes, I am. I-I didn't want you guys to realize. You all are so brave and I…I'm just me." Ampharos said, lowering his head in shame.
Infernape shook his head in firm denial. Not Ampharos. He was not a coward. The sheep had saved his life, so no way in hell would Infernape let the electric type beat himself up over something that every li being feels. The fire type told Ampharos,
"I'm scared too. Hell, we all are. But we stand up to our fear, and so do you, whether you realize or not. Remember Dragalge." Ampharos thought back to that fight. But he had just done what anyone would've done. He voiced this aloud to Infernape, who smiled and told him,
"You were scared but you did what needed to be done. No matter what you say, you saved life. That sounds like bravery to me."
Ampharos' eyes went wide in realization, recognizing Infernape's logic. He had perfectly articulated what needed to be said. It was simple but his tone spoke louder than words, like a musician at a concert. Each word was granted incredible power that only a truly talented performer can muster, a voice that could make a crowd of thousands scream "Ay-yo" upon his command, with the infectious energy that you couldn't help but be caught up in. Ampharos could only smile.
Infernape knew that his words had an impact. He asked him,
"You ready?"
"I guess. But I overcharged myself. I'm out of electricity." Infernape smiled and grabbed the electric type's arm.
"What are you doing?" Ampharos asked worriedly. Infernape smirked,
"Helping you face your fears." Fire shot out from his arms and he spun Ampharos around and around. "I'll catch you, I'll have your back, no matter what!" Infernape declared before throwing Ampharos into the sky. Ampharos screamed in terror as he flew upwards towards the storm clouds. He realized quickly what Infernape had planned and calmed himself down, at least, he tried to. As Infernape dodged Druddigon's attacks, he yelled out to Ampharos,
"AMP, ATTRACT A BOLT OF LIGHTNING, NOW!" Tears gushed from Ampharos' eyes like a fountain,
"I CAN'T! I JUST CAN'T!" Ampharos screamed back.
"YES YOU CAN! DON'T LET FEAR HOLD YOU BACK!" Infernape yelled just before Druddigon struck him in the stomach and threw him across the field.
Ampharos starred as he watched his friend begin to lose the fight, the rain started to get to Infernape. Infernape's fire attacks grew weaker and weaker by the second. Druddigon landed a powerful hit to Infernape's stomach, forcing him onto his knees.
"Come on! Just do it already!" Ampharos told himself as his body hesitated to do what it was told, "Damn it, Ampharos! You have to save your friend!" Ampharos crackled, trying time summon as much electricity as he could. Despite all of his efforts, he couldn't get another bolt electricity to strike and he began to fall back to earth. "Come on. COME ON!" Ampharos yelled to himself as he fell. He then heard Infernape yell in pain and looked down. Infernape had been blasted by a dragonsbreath and was thrown onto the ground. Druddigon's claws then glowed that dreaded royal blue energy. Ampharos's eyes widened in horror as Infernape struggled to stand up.
"He's going to die if I don't step in! I'm coming!" Ampharos dived towards Druddigon as fear gave way to determination. More thunder began to erupt in the storm, crackling and spiraling around him as though it were a tornado. Infernape had just helped him, Ampharos owed him, and he was gonna make sure to pay that back. Rainbow energy began to surround Ampharos and a catseye pattern appeared briefly in his eyes. The moment he landed in between Infernape and Druddigon, a massive thunderbolt struck him with a loud crack.
As the thunderbolt disappeared, the most glaring difference on Ampharos was white wool growing from the back of his head and from his tail. Ampharos took a moment to look upon himself, then faced Druddigon, who was squealing in delight.
"Oh yes! I've always wanted to fight a Mega Evolved Pokemon! Let's-" he was interrupted by a large bolt of electricity sent by Ampharos. Ampharos turned around to help Infernape to his feet. Infernape smiled,
"You Mega Evolved." Ampharos grinned and turned back to his opponent.
"Druddigon, I'll warn you only once! I'm not afraid of you anymore and I will beat you up, but not too badly, it's more to demoralize you but... never mind." Ampharos threatened pathetically. Ampharos then turned for approval, to which Infernape shook his head. The electric type frowned.
"HEY!" Druddigon yelled, making Ampharos jump, "Pay attention to your opponent."
Ampharos sent several thunderbolts at Druddigon, who couldn't dodge and was shocked again. This time he was paralyzed. Druddigon then backed away and shot several dragon attacks at Ampharos, trying to keep his distance. Then, he bumped into someone, and he turned around to be met with a tail orb slamming into his face. The crack was audible throughout the field and Druddigon flew back. Ampharos' speed had dramatically increased. Druddigon landed and turned around, anticipating Ampharos to go behind him. Druddigon was then blasted by a thunderbolt. Ampharos then rushed in front of the dragon almost instantly.
He grabbed Druddigon by the chin,
"Please stand down." Druddigon was ecstatic at Ampharos's new power. He tried to slash at Ampharos but was his fist was caught and he was thrown upwards towards the sky. Ampharos charged up as much electricity as he could and shot it at Druddigon. At the same time, static rapidly began to build up in his wool, attracting a lightning bolt from the sky towards Druddigon. Druddigon was struck by both bolts and he screamed in pain. The clouds glowed a golden yellow as the explosion of sound erupted through the clearing.
Druddigon fell onto the ground with a thud. Ampharos panicked for a second, thinking he killed the dragon type. His fears were unfounded as Druddigon coughed. Sableye ran over to his comrade and raised his gem shield,
"Damn it, Druddigon! It doesn't matter, I'll take you all on!" Druddigon then managed to lift his head up and smiled at Ampharos,
"T-That was a g-great fight. I c-can't wait to battle again." before falling back down into the ground. Sableye then closed his eyes before opening them again in panic. He had his gems pick up Druddigon and they ran as fast as they could. Ampharos fell onto his knees to catch his breath, reverting back to his normal form. Infernape picked up his friend,
"You did good, really good."
Garchomp ran in pursuit of the cultists,
"Get back here, criminal scum!" she yelled ferociously. Sableye looked back and sent several gems at the ground type. Garchomp's rolled out of the way and shot a dragonsbreath at the two. It was immediately blocked and Sableye sent one lone gem into Garchomp's leg. Garchomp tumbled to the ground as Sableye and Druddigon made their getaway.
The rest of the group arrived at the field to figure out what happened. Gliscor hadn't done a particularly good job explaining what happened. They were incredibly proud of Ampharos, even more so after finding out about his Mega Evolution. Ampharos still felt a hint of guilt and opened up to the group.
"Guys, I'm sorry, I joined because I was... I was afraid that you'd see me as a coward, especially after what happened with Pangoro." he confessed, ashamed of himself. Sceptile was the first to respond,
"You should've quit if you were scared, that being said, takes a big man to overcome those barriers." Gardevoir was second,
"You can leave if you want." she told Ampharos softly. Ampharos shook his head,
"No, I don't want to run from my problems anymore. I'll still fight but, I'm only going to fight the cult. After that, I'm done." He explained. The group nodded in agreement, those were completely reasonable demands.
Garchomp came running back, her head hanging low.
"They got away." she grumbled, each word filled with poison. Gardevoir ran over to Garchomp,
"It's okay."
"No it's not, I was absolutely useless in that fight." Garchomp scolded disappointedly to herself. Gardevoir gently caressed Garchomp's cheek,
"Look at me, I know that you want to prove yourself, don't be too hard on yourself. Your time will come eventually. I didn't perform well in the beginning either." she comforted, not counting Dusknoir since anyone could beat him. Garchomp stared back at Gardevoir red eyes,
"I just don't want to be useless." Gardevoir smiled,
"You're not going to be useless." Garchomp then smiled. The interaction warmed the group's hearts.
"Did you see where they ran off to?" Sceptile asked. Garchomp pointed north. They were heading to Hydroton, as predicted. Naturally, there were some questions regarding their destination. Chief among them being,
"Why would they head to a major, metropolitan area when they're wanted criminals?" said Aggron as he scratched his head. Infernape placed a thumb to his chin and thought out loud,
"I've been wondering that myself. They have the gem but they haven't used it. Why? Unless there is some outside factor we haven't considered, why would they take that risk?"
"WELL!" yelled Gliscor boisterously, "TO TEST OUT THEIR EVIL PLAN OBVIOUSLY!"
"...what?" said everyone aloud. Gliscor rolled his eyes in mild annoyance,
"God, it's like you don't even know how to be a villain. No one's gonna take you seriously when you say you're gonna melt the polar ice caps. You have to blow up the hospital to show them who's boss," he explained.
Gengar was quick to scoff at that idea,
"Hah, yeah sure, buddy. They would waltz in a massive city and use a…very…powerful…Oh no." At that point, everyone came to the same conclusion.
Whatever their plan was, Hydroton was their target.