The expedition members composing the coalition of guilds continued their march through the Worth Woodsea. Outside their initial ground attack, there hasn't been anything out of the ordinary throughout their venture. Still, the earlier surprise kept many of the members on high alert. That went without say for Hibiki whose Archive Magic was keeping an omnidirectional layout afoot.

Amongst the wary, Meredy didn't show any signs of her anxiety wearing down. Though she was an experienced mage and her Jigglypuff back to her size, the question of manpower wasn't what kept her on edge.

Lyon took notice and looked her way. "Are you feeling well?"

"Huh?" Spooked, Meredy almost jumped. "Oh! Uh, no, I'm fine." She frowned heavily as her gaze fell towards the undergrowth. "Well…it's just that, I'm still worried about Ultear is all."

Lyon fell silent as his gaze went towards the earth as well. Even though he wasn't as particularly close to Ultear like Meredy and Gray were, he wouldn't lie to himself if he said that it didn't upset him. It was his beloved Master Ur's daughter after all. And even though their interactions were scarce, he could still feel some semblance of her inside Ultear. To him, it felt more personal for him than he initially thought before.

Still, even though the mood was bleak, he consoled the girl beside him by putting on a face of pride. "If anything, I'd have a hard time believing that the Pokémon would be able to suppress her. She's not one to lose so easily without a fight. Even if she was taken, I doubt they'll be able to handle her."

Meredy glanced back at him. "You really think so?"

"I couldn't be anymore sure if I tried," he grinned. "So let's keep our heads high…wouldn't want to see her with a mood."

Meredy's mood picked up a little as a smile returned. "Right."

"Ma~n! how is our course, Hibiki?" Ichiya announced further ahead of the pact.

Hibiki looked at his Archive's holographic map, which had a compass to show their general direction through a large field of green. "According to this, we're heading well up northeast, just like that guy said."

At the notion of himself, Shiin closed his eyes and scoffed. "I will correct you only one more time. I am a representative of the Pergrande Kingdom." He eyed them all harshly. "I advise you to not speak of me so casually."

"Boy, someone's got himself on a high pedestal." Lector muttered low.

"Fro think so, too!" Frosch chimed.

"Keep it down, he might hear you." Rogue instilled on a quieter notion, actually retaining caution as he glared Shiin from behind. It could have been because of his Shadow Dragon Slayer properties, but he didn't like the air Shiin was giving off. 'I know Master Laxus told us to not interfere with him, but still…' His eyes narrowed. 'What business does he have with Fairy Tail?'

"You look like you wanna say something," Sting interjected. "I know what you're thinking, Rogue. Honestly, I'm just as curious as you. But we can worry about that later. Right now, we've gotta focus."

Rogue humbly nodded. "You're right." He eyed Sting with a silent awe. 'He's gotten a little more mature without Natsu around. Maybe it's better they didn't show after all.'

Minerva in particular kept her gaze forward on the trail the others ahead were paving. She glanced beside herself, noticing that Shou still carried his instruments with him. Some of them looked rather heavy, thought she didn't bother to pry in the issue with physicality. "Having trouble keeping up?"

Shou glanced over at her. "What? Oh, nah, I'm good. Thanks."

"Not to sound blunt pal, but don't you think that it would have been better if you stayed back on the ship?" Orga prodded. "We're here to fight, so unless your plan is to sing them a love song or whatever…"

Shou hummed in a manner that was almost a scoff. "Thanks for the consideration, but I've already made up my mind. Besides, I already told you. There's a high probability that my Pokémon could be around, and they're all strong. Shouldn't it make sense to have someone who knows how to handle them?"

Rufus pulled on his cap. "Suppose there's some kernel of truth to that logic. I don't recall seeing most of his Pokémon in battle, aside from the ones against Duncan. Even so, they put on quite a performance."

Orga scoffed. "Nothing we can't handle."

Minerva gazed at Shou. Not that she was confident in what logic he spoke about. If anyone knew about Pokémon the best, it was a Trainer. Her real insecurities about him lied in his effectiveness. Sting already warned him that he can't be on the frontlines, and even so, nobody would be accountable for his safety. Still, that didn't mean that Minerva didn't care.

"Look, believe it or not, I'm doing this for you guys as much as I'm doing it for myself. But also, for my Pokémon as well. Everyone is hurting in some way. Even if I'm not part of an official guild, I know I have my responsibilities as a trainer too. If I have to break a few strings to keep them from laying a hand on another innocent person, then so be it. A life is more important than a tune...at least that's how I see it."

The conversation that they had back on the Christina Advance was still fresh in her mind. There wasn't a speck of reluctance in his intuition. He meant what he said when he wanted to help him. At the very least, she shouldn't brandish him about his choices.

"I think that's enough belittling installed this time around, don't you think?" Minerva scoffed.

Orga looked taken back. "Milady?"

"At the moment, he's a resourceful ally. He came of his own accord. Would be disrespectful if we didn't doubt his potential, wouldn't it?"

"Minerva…" Shou muttered at her attempt at supporting him. Orga and Rufus fell silent as they exchanged glances.

Nearby, Bellona heard the exchange and couldn't help but smirk. 'Still the same supportive Minerva as before. Suppose some things don't change.'

Hearing this, Shiin shot a stalwart gaze towards Shou. He would definitely have to take note of this. 'So he's another one of these Pokémon Trainers from Nic Pularis's world. And he's deliberately associating himself with the Sabertooth guild.'

Sorano groaned loudly, putting her hands behind her head. "Geez~, how much further do we have to go? Are we even getting anywhere?"

"Sister, please. I'm sure we're nearly there." Yukino pleaded with the hopes of pacifying Sorano's constant complaints. "…right?"

Hibiki tapped on his keypad, zooming in on their targeted area. "Yes, the area just lies beyond the trees ahead. Everyone, get ready. We're right on top of it."

The party continued their trek through the undergrowth of the forest until they noticed the trees ending up ahead. They all walked carefully and stayed close until they breached the gap and made way towards the open clearing.

When they all filed out, they were met with the sight of a gaping, large fissure that had steep cliffs heading down to a dark, foggy fall that otherwise seemed endless. The gap looked like it wasn't only deep, but also ran across for miles on end.

"Woah, talk about a gap." Bicklslow half-joked.

"I know, you're telling me." Evergreen huffed. "I don't think I've seen a fissure like this before."

Bickslow turned towards her. "We got any news lately about an earthquake or something?"

"If we did, something this big wouldn't have gone unnoticed. No way this could have been recent…could it?"

Laxus remained silent as he glared at the landscape change. From a widespread forest to a trench in the middle of the forest? There were no bridges to walk across, nor any signs posted further back where they came from. 'Is this the work of the Pokémon?'

Meredy gasped. "This is…this is the spot where Ultear and I were at last time!"

"So then, the trail ends here?" Lyon gazed at the opening in the earth. This didn't click with him. Even for an experienced mage such as himself, he knew something about this was well off its mark.

Ichiya crossed his arms, his index and middle digits pointing. "Hibiki."

Hibiki looked at the topography map on his Archive Magic with a hand to his chin. "It's strange. According to the topography chart, there shouldn't be any signs of fissures opening around here. This place is well off that scale."

"Maybe that map's outdated," Ren noted.

Hibiki shook his head. "No, my Archive Magic is always accurate. For it to not register on the map means that it's entirely unnatural."

"Just look at this. How far down does it go?" Lector glanced over the cliff's edge, peering into the pitch-black that faded the farther down it went.

"It would be bad to fall in." Frosch chimed.

"But if this impedes our path, it would be difficult to advance with such a gap." Rogue voiced, turning to Sting. "Sting, should be find a way around?"

Sting rubbed the back of his head. "Guess so."

Bellona shot a side glance at her cohort. "Jellal, perhaps now would be the best time."

Jellal nodded. "You're right. If I may?" He proceeded ahead of the others over to the cliff's edge; Lucario accompanied him. The two stopped just before the edge to inspect the unnatural gap. "Lucario?"

"Right." The Aura Pokémon nodded in understanding. He closed his eyes and began focusing. His aura feelers defied gravity as an azure aura outlined his body.

"What's it doing?" Orga questioned. "It's got a strange glow around it."

"You probably weren't aware before, but Lucario are Pokémon well adept at using aura." Bellona explained. "It isn't useful just for combat purposes, but it also makes for a well-adept radar."

Meredy blinked at the realization. 'A Pokémon that can use aura?' She was glued to the scene ahead. Seeing Lucario's aura flourish made her think back to a certain Fairy Tail mage with familiar magic. 'So it's just like Vanessa when she uses her aura.'

Lucario remained silent and focused as he was sensing everything around him, from the wildlife flourishing, to the tiniest aspects such as animals and smaller creatures that flourished within his aura's range. Nothing went unnoticed. However, his focus lied on what lied ahead. His feelers depreciated as he finished his perimeter check and glanced back at his Trainer.

"There is aura ahead. Very close." He spoke sternly. "Master, if I may?"

"Go ahead, Lucario." Jellal nodded.

Lucario returned the gesture and fixed his eyes ahead. He straightened his body as he crossed his arms in front. His eyes started glowing light blue as his stare intensified.

"Foresight!"

He uncrossed his arms and swiped across, his swing dispersing the light blue wave of energy his stare gave off. The shockwave ventured across the trench and faded into the distance.

"Uh…is this part where something happens?" Bacchus dryly chimed.

Kagura squinted. "Wait for it. Something's bound to happen."

Rogue was skeptical as well, but he noticed something almost immediately. "Look, the gorge!"

Slowly, the immense gorge that impeded everyone's path began to fade away. All at once, the area began distorting and fading, revealing lush green grass and tree life that filled the gaps in between that looked endless seconds ago.

"The gorge is…fading?" Lector gasped. Frosch was equally as stunned.

"What is the meaning of this?" Minerva questioned aloud. She watched the illusions fade ahead of her – up to where something invisible came into view that towered right before their eyes.

In place of the gorge was a lush landscape with growth and stone, leading up to something that was as tall as a mountain that everyone couldn't help but gawk at. The coalition members, especially Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus, and Lamia Scale, all felt a wave of awe and disbelief wash over them at the sight before them.

"That…that can't possibly be, could it?" Eve gasped.

"You serious?" Ren gawked.

"Man~," Ichiya hummed.

Laxus and the rest of Fairy Tail stared with surprised looks like everyone else. Mirajane voiced her concerns clearly. "My goodness…"

"What…is that?"

"I never would have imagined we'd see this again…" Even Jura was profoundly stunned with what he saw.

"As I thought. It was nothing but an illusion this entire time." Jellal confirmed. "The reason why it never processed on the topography to begin with was because it didn't exist in the first place. In reality, it was made to keep outsiders out…"

In a towering mass before everyone was a collapsed leg of pure stone, with debris melded into the surrounding fauns from the years of gathering moss. The main helm of this mountainous structure was what stunned them. Because it was a city that was melded to the top of the ground with stone buildings in sight and an upright axis. Despite the vegetation that sprouted from seven years ago, the structure aged well.

It was a place that even Jellal remembered…and still sent a shiver down his spine.

"Nirvana."


The entire populace of Pokétopia was gaping with awe. Awe and fear.

For one thing, it was unlike anything anyone has ever seen in their lives. One moment, the city was whole and in peril. The next, a golden chapel arose from the center of the province, with a swaggy teenager and a literal garbage bag on top of an army of ethereal creatures that – literally – put on a show.

With music.

Aside from the whole peril part of their day in question, every single residence had dumbfounded shock that couldn't even begin to describe the flip-turn that happened. Were they supposed to be scared? Beg for mercy? The way the blonde Trainer presented himself left too many questions than answers that even his nearby guildmates couldn't fathom.

"…you've gotta be kidding me." Gray broke the silence as he blinked in utter confusion.

"What the heck!? Is that Joey!?" Lucy exasperated.

"W-where did he come from?!" Wendy nervously asked.

Arcelia glanced at her. "A friend of yours?"

"Yeah, he's part of our guild. That's Joey. He's a little…yeah." No description was needed as Arcelia could pick up what she meant just from observing alone.

Grovyle eyerolled with a groaned. "Oh great, another annoying yahoo you're affiliated with." He crossed his arms. "Well, still better than this crap basket of a utopia."

"Geez…and here I thought Nic knew how to make an entrance. I think he's got some competition." Cana chimed, a small smirk at the corner of her lips.

"Huh?" Hugo kept his hold on Sune as he looked back in the direction of the monumental scene. "What's the meaning of this!?"

"Captain Joey…" Dereece watched his friend with both awe and relief. Even though the questions of what situation Joey got himself into mounted on him, he was willing to disregard those since his best friend was alive and in one piece, especially after what just happened.

Duncan scoffed low. If he had any sense of worry, he was good at hiding it. "See? What did I tell you? His tendency to bounce back trumps over anything else."

Vanessa blinked rapidly. Normally relaxed in her facial expressions, it wasn't often that she looked so confused and surprised at the same time. 'Joey…just what have you been up to this whole time?'

Joey and Trubbish stood proudly in front of the army, an assimilation that they required only mere minutes ago…

Joey ran as fast as his legs could carry him, with Trubbish lugging right behind him. He was running to the point that his insides were starting to cramp on him. But he pulled through with his life on the line. He knew that if he slowed down, even a little, his pursuers would close the gap.

"QWWOOOOOOAAAH!"

Said pursuers were the Decrepits that tailed behind him. The undead, char-skinned humanoids howled like feral animals as they crawled or ran after the living flesh. Every time one howled, it made Joey's heart beat that much quicker, urging him to get as far away as possible.

'We can't keep running like this! We'll run out of stamina eventually!' Joey knew this well. The earlier waves of Decrepit taught him that it would be futile to fight when they feel no pain and could fix themselves. 'Trubbish's Toxic Spikes won't slow them down, and I don't have anyone that has a paralysis inducing move. C'mon, Joey! Think!'

Hic…hic…

Joey heard light hiccups and looked over his shoulder. He saw Trubbish gasping as she started to slow down, her physical limit nearing its limit. His eyes widened as he had to think fast! That's when he noticed an adjacent three-story building their way and hatched an idea.

"Come here, girl! I'll carry ya!" Joey held out his arms openly for Trubbish to reach for.

With every small hiccup and belch from her steps, she crouched and sprung for her Trainer's reaches. Joey snagged her and continued running towards the adjacent building coming up. Once close enough, he reached his arm out with crossed fingers.

"Barrier-Make: Stairs!"

A turquoise-colored barrier elongated from the base of the building towards the flat roof, molding into a staircase for Joey to climb up. The Trainer/Mage hastily turned and made way up the stairs knowing it'd be seconds before the swarm would reach it.

'Gotta bridge these gaps! This is the best that I can do for now!'

Behind Joey, the swarm of thousands of humanoids hollered as they leaped and tried to swipe at Joey, only to miss by a step and fall to the ground. Others followed directly behind and crawled over each other to get to the stairs that he took. The faster ones on two legs outmaneuvered the others and filed up the makeshift staircase.

Joey panted as he heard thuds vibrating along his barrier. He could feel the Decrepits falling along the steps, and other crawling over them as steppingstones. It was even more horrendous knowing they didn't feel anything. He ignored the churning in his stomach until he finally made it to the roof, where he took a leap off the last step just as a Decrepit was right behind him.

"Watch your step!" Joey deactivated his barrier in midair, causing the Decrepits layering atop to collapse onto the sea of themselves below. The closest Decrepit could only make a clutch for the roof's rim before it too fell below.

"QWWWOOOOOAAAAH!

The outcries of the thousands of undead beings below echoed throughout the entire city. Joey and Trubbish used this very short breather to collect themselves after all the running they did out of pure adrenaline. Joey collapsed on his knees and hands to gag profusely. He was thankful that he hadn't eaten in a while, or he would have committed completely.

Trubbish, however, was not as fortunate. She took liberties regurgitating acid that sizzled and melted into the roof's bedrock.

Finally able to breathe normally, Joey sighed heavily. "That…was way too close." He feared to check, but he and Trubbish slowly peered over the edge of the roof to look below.

The Decrepit were all crawling and layering atop one another to latch onto the walls of the makeshift getaway. The first story was almost completely drowned under bodies slowly piling up.

'That's not gonna last us forever. These things won't stop until we're dead. We've gotta find a way out, or some way to shut them all down.' Joey started cycling through everything they've learned. 'Let's see. These things targeted us the moment they saw us. We're underground with no means of escape. This place is remote, had ramparts to block these things off, and-!'

Something clicked inside his head. His eyes widened as he sharply turned towards the faint golden palace that stuck out in the center of the dead city.

'The palace! That's gotta be a key to this! No sense in running in circles anymore.' He balled his fists as his mind was made up. 'Alright, go for broke, Captain! Only one way to find out that hunch is right on the mark!'

The Decrepits gradually escalated the walls and slowly covered the stone in black bodies, both from the outside and inside. It wasn't taking long for the floor beneath them to start thudding with bodies crawling for him.

Joey steadied himself and picked up Trubbish. "Hang on tight, Trubbish! You've seen those action movies we watch on Fridays, right?"

She burped a response.

"Well, that's gonna be us! Time to make our getaway!"

He raced for the other end of the rooftop towards the adjacent building. As he made his getaway, the first of many Decrepit began to claw and holster onto the rooftop in their steadfast pursuit. Joey hurried and made another motion with his hand stretched out.

"Barrier-Make: Board!"

He summoned a barrier in the shape of a narrow board, which supplied enough length and width to connect with the adjacent roof. He traveled across it and hopped onto the next roof. With the Decrepits behind following, he deactivated the barrier, causing the few behind to plummet back to the ground.

Joey raced across the rooftops with barrier boards connecting them in between. Every time he did, he got that much closer to a solid rampart that bordered the outside of the golden palace. He knew the Decrepits wouldn't be able to keep up with him this way.

When he finally connected with the rampart's top, he hauled Trubbish in his arms as she continued to look between their destination and her Trainer. She only muttered a small hiccup as if trying to say his name.

Joey made it to the rampart and deactivated the barrier. He looked down at the gap between the rampart and the golden palace, which was approximately an entire two-hundred meters. 'Too big of a gap to breach. Gonna have to make a break for it.' He summoned a barrier in the form of an incline ramp that touched the street below. He slid down it on his shoes the first-half, but by the second-half, he fell forward and started rolling on his side down the ramp. He met the pavement in the smoothest glide possible and spun himself back to his feet in a mad dash for the palace.

Up ahead, he saw several dozen Decrepit, all turning and looking his way. Their burning red eye glowed as they snarled menacingly.

"There's some inside the palace perimeter, too?!" Joey exasperated. 'Must have crawled through open windows and alleys.'

Decrepits sauntered closer as Joey drew closer. Trubbish gurgled before she shot them all with Sludge in their faces, shoving them onto their backs to allow Joey through.

"Nice one, girl!" Joey hurried up the smooth, stone stairway that carried up two flights. He eventually made it to the front doors, which were boarded by a wooden blank and chains across the large double doors. "Oh come on! I don't have time for this!"

He looked back over his shoulder and saw numerous Decrepit catching up to him. Even from alleys in the province around the palace, more were showing themselves and crawled after him. He gnashed his teeth and faced the doors with a mighty swing of his arm.

"Barrier-Make: Dragon Ram!"

He launched a barrier in the shape of a dragon's head like a battering ram into the doors with full-force. The impact shattered both the chains and planks in one go. With the doors partially open, he slid through and quickly turned around to push them shut.

BOOM!

The echoes of it shutting went off throughout the building. Joey immediately felt resistance as the doors were urging to be opened by the Decrepit trying to get inside. Knowing the numbers would only escalate, he summoned a barrier directly behind the doors, sealing them completely shut. The cries from outside did not cease even after the only entrance was impeded shut. Joey and Trubbish – again – felt a wave of relief wash over them. Once again, they were able to catch their breath.

"Phew…we made it." Joey sighed exhaustedly. He looked over his shoulder around the aged palace that they found shelter in. "Where are we…?"

Joey and Trubbish took glances at their new surroundings. With the little light natural lighting they had, they noticed how much more prestige the interior of the palace halls were compared to what the outside appeared. Granted, the outside was nothing but literal gold, but the interior's decorative patterns had a familiarity to that of a king's chamber. On both sides were hollow halls where the walls had red paint that faded over time, with golden embroidery and accents lining the rims of the floor and ceiling. It was amazing how dust material hadn't reduced to rust or dust yet.

"Boy, for a shabby city, they wasted no expense on this baby back in the day." Joey looked above, seeing arches in the roof where chandeliers dangled. "Did a king live here back in the day, you think?"

Trubbish turned about, scanning their new dirty surroundings. She looked ahead at the large double doors and pointed a trashy mitten, belching.

"What's up?" Joey gasped when he looked ahead at what caught her eye. It was vague, but he could see a faint, red glow that shimmered between the cracks of the double doors in front of them. Immediately, the two looked back at each other with distinct stares. They knew something was happening. They looked back ahead and slowly started down the red, aged carpet that carried through to the next room ahead. The two stopped at the door and looked down at the red glow piercing through the underside.

'Whatever this glow is, I'm sensing a little Magic Power from it.' Joey figured, his eyes squinting. 'Something's about this definitely isn't natural…'

He looked down at Trubbish and exchanged nods. The two budged the doors and they creaked open. Immediately upon entering, they came to a different room.

Unlike the past room they were just in, this one bared a striking resemblance to a throne room. It had an immense ceiling and dome at the top, where an immense chandelier hung above the few steps on the other end leading up to a throne with red leather and golden embroidery. The entire room itself looked like it could fit hundreds of people, if not more.

'Boy, and here I heard the Radiant Chamber in the Kalos League was a sight to behold…' Dismissing the euphoria and awe, Joey's eyes darted to the most eye-catching thing inside that room.

Standing a foot off the ground in front of the throne was a golden staff. It looked to be made of some metal like gold, with beautiful accents flowing into one another. The top closest to the bottom was narrow and bare, but the top had an ethereal, burning red glow that was so bright that it was perhaps the only thing brightening the broad space.

Joey stared in awe at the magical artifact, his eyes fixed on the burning light's captivation. The longer he stared at it, the more drawn he felt towards it. A part of him felt extremely worried about this. "Is this what those zombies are reacting to?" He took a few paces forward. "How did something like this get down here? Or better question: Is this thing controlling those other…things?"

Trubbish burped out an unclear answer. Joey walked closer, the beacon seemingly becoming more inviting to him. As if it was beguiling him to come closer. He could feel his legs working on their own accord.

He stopped just at the base of the stairs and looked at the words inscribed on the arch surrounding the throne and read them aloud. "'Only he who has proven himself to be king shall shed light to the damned, and bless them with redemption'." The inscription certainly felt old. The phrase echoed in the air around him as his mind was still trying to fix its broken puzzle. Yet everything was falling apart inside.

He didn't know why. More like, he didn't want to know. But he really did. Switching back and forth between his conscience and the inviting light really strained his head. Slowly, any inquiries that he had were drifting farther and farther away in his mind. He looked so transfixed that he looked almost possessed.

"You have friends, family, and loved ones…to risk your life is to symbolize everything they've put onto you, just like my master has done for me."

A faint memory brought him back to his senses. 'Bro!' He thought he was delusional, but somewhere in his mind, he knew he heard it. He blinked several times and realized what was happening as he shot a gaze back at the staff's beguiling light.

'Don't tell me…all those zombies out there were tempted…because of this thing?' As he questioned it, he could feel his body getting lighter by the light's manipulation. He retained self-awareness and smacked himself across the face. "No! Bad Joey!"

Trubbish let out a small hiccup in shock of her Trainer's actions.

"I'm fine, Trubbish…" Joey assured with a hardened glare on the staff. "I think I understand everything now."

CRASH!

"QWWWWOOOOAAAH~!"

The sound of glass shattering came from behind, making Joey and Trubbish turn back at the howling that persisted. "Crap! They're getting closer!"

Trubbish burped out a worried look.

Joey furrowed his brow as he knew there was nowhere left to run. He knew this was a dead-end. Still, he knew that this was where he had to put a stop to this. His worried expression turned a more serious one as he stood his ground against the Decrepit that were all filing into the throne room.

He turned back towards the staff's light, shooting it a glare. "So…you bring out a person's temptation to see if they're worthy, don't you?"

The staff's light glimmered brightly, as bright as all the Decrepits' eyes that seared at Joey and Trubbish. They drew closer slowly.

"Alright, listen up you stupid staff, because I have something to say! So pay attention!" At Joey's yell, the Decrepit snarled. "Okay, fine. I admit it. I can be selfish at times, maybe a little greedy and looking for ways to have a good time. But you know what?" He thought about Dereece and Duncan. "I'm glad that it's just me down here, because no way in heaven or hell would I live with myself if you tempted my teammates and friends. If it means that I might be one of your minions down here, so be it! I would rather it be me than all my friends!"

Trubbish hiccupped with slightly widened eyes.

"So go ahead, tempt me all you want! But I have people who trusted me this whole time!" He thought about Broly, and Camilla, as well as The Freaks and Fairy Tail. "My buddies topside need me, and they're worth more than all the riches you're worth! So c'mon! You want my friends?" He balled his fist tight. "You're gonna have to go through me first!"

"QWWOOOOAAAAH!" The Decrepit all howled as they crawled closer towards Joey and Trubbish.

With vindication in his eyes, Joey growled as he faced the staff's beguiling beacon. No matter how warm it felt, he knew what he had to do.

"I'll free you all…JUST WATCH ME! I! AM! CAPTAIN JOEY!"

He clutched the staff with a firm grip. The moment he did, the red light brightened to a blinding point. Joey never waivered, even as all the Decrepit lunged for his back. Everything was swallowed in the whitening rays that beamed through the palace's openings.

Every single Decrepit howled madly all throughout the abandoned city, seemingly crying out and reaching towards the beguiling light. Their red eyes burned so brightly that they burnt completely out. The radiance swallowed them all, making their bodies fade.

As the burning light faded away, Joey opened his eyes slowly, looking at the staff once more. He gasped when he realized something about it changed. Instead of a burning red glow, it gave off a radiant bright turquoise shine, similar to his magic's aura.

"The light. It just…changed?" He turned around and met all the Decrepit that were completely motionless. The burning gleam they once had was gone, replaced by back. "What…?"

Suddenly, the Decrepits' eyes all glowed bright turquoise. One that was close to Joey had a turquoise wave travel down its body, transforming it into a turquoise-colored humanoid with an upright posture. An armored guard covered the mouth as various parts gained armor like a soldier. Its eye turned to two once more, giving off a bright blue glow.

It wasn't just it. Joey watched as pitch-black slowly turned to turquoise amongst the humanoids. The dozens turned to hundreds, with not a trace of an old Decrepit left in their place. As far as the eye could see, Joey and Trubbish marveled at the phenomenon.

"They're all…transforming." Joey looked at his staff again. 'Is it because I didn't get consumed by the staff that it's reacting to me?'

Every single humanoid fell to a knee and bowed. They all looked submissive and in control, unlike their predecessors. Not a single one scowled or was going feral. They all glared at Joey like he was their beacon.

Joey blinked several times as he registered this. "'Shed light to the damned, and bless them with redemption'…is this what that inscription meant?" He lifted the staff higher, causing all the humanoids to rise to their feet. "Woah! Trubbish, you see that?"

Joey blinked rapidly. He raised a brow and lowered the staff again. The humanoids responded by dropping to their knees all at the same time. He lifted up, and down, and up, and down. He watched them mimic the gesture and tried something else. When he lifted his arm up in a wave, they all robotically waved back.

Joey looked down at his staff with a furrowed brow. 'Looks like they listen to me now…wait a minute…'

At that moment, his eyes widened with an epiphany. A bright smile crossed his face.

"Oh~, Trubbish!" he sang. "I just had an idea~!"

Trubbish hiccupped an inquiry.

"C'mon, girl! No time to waste! Let's make them all see the light!" Joey spread his legs and raised his staff high, causing the turquoise glow to radiate throughout the entire palace.

The ground around the palace began to violently shake in response to the enchanted magic. Slowly, the earth began to crack apart as the palace arose from its place in the depths below. A mountain began to rise from beneath, overturning and crumbling the desecrated remains of the province. As the prestige palace arose to Joey's will, the thousands of purified humanoids either latched on or crawled up the rising formation to their new master.

Joey twirled the staff around overhead, before clutching it with both hands and stabbed the end of it into the palace grounds. "How do you all like me now!?" He showed off to everyone by swinging his hips to and fro, and waltzed around the staff like it was a pole. The army around him mimicked his movements like it was a synchronized dance – all who were manipulated by Joey's will.

The numerous people around him were struck with a wave of disbelief and fear. However, there were some who looked on with skepticism in mind.

One of them, an old man, blinked as he saw the staff in Joey's hand. "It can't be…" His eyes widened. "No…it has to be!"

"Huh? What are you on about?" Another man beside him asked.

"That scepter…there were only legends about it passed down from my family about its powers. It's been told that it could turn a man's heart and greed onto itself. Only those who are worthy can possess such great power."

"I've heard about that, too." Another citizen gawked. "My great uncle told me about tales about this island and a special staff…and the one who can wield it…is destined to be king."

"To think, the legends are actually true…does this mean…that we're saved?"

"I don't know…"

Dereece, Duncan, Vanessa, and Sophie worked their way passed the awed citizens to meet up with Joey. He stood at the top of the stairs with a confident smile and turned to shake his butt to everyone. The army mimicked him of course in a show that left everyone stunned. "Captain Joey!"

Joey turned and looked down at the base of the steps, recognizing his friends. He smiled brightly. "Hey, Dereece. Ya miss me, buddy?"

Dereece sniffled, wiping any lingering tears with his forearm. "You had me scared to death. But…how?"

"Sorry that I worried you, buddy. It's a long story. I promise I'll tell you later. Also," Joey beamed with jovial pride. "It isn't 'Captain' anymore. It's 'King' Joey now, or KJ for short." He raised a brow. "Huh…I'm gonna need some new business cards ordered after this."

A draconic roar got everyone's attention. The gathered Fairy Tail members looked up to find Charizard descending down and flapping his wings, keeping himself several meters above as Nic and Erza looked down at their peers.

"Joey?" Nic sounded more surprised than genuinely concerned.

"Nic-senpai! Long time no see! Did ya miss me?!" Joey toothily smirked, gesturing to his army. "Check me out! I brought up the reinforcements!"

Erza blinked as she scanned the numbers around her guildmate. "Did he really get control of all these soldiers…?" She squinted as she looked at the closest one. It didn't look like it was breathing, nor was it dead. It had a glow in its eyes as it stood there in attention. 'Where did Joey find something like this?'

"You think you can give us a hand?" Nic asked.

Joey smirked. "Right, but first thing's first…" He twirled the scepter once more until the top was high for everyone to see. It glowed brightly to his will as he made a command. "My subjects! Provide aid to my allies! Let's route out these Pokémon and turn things around here!"

The purified army ceased their nimble dance cycles to abide to Joey's command. They all stood tall with their bare chests and toned body baring empowered physicality. "GROOOOOOOH!" All their eyes glimmered a bright turquoise as they let out grunt cries. Joey pointed his staff forward, and the army stampeded down the steps past his friends into the city. With their enhanced bulk and immense numbers, they charged into the Pokémon commanding human mages and bodied them. They ran up and pinned many down, slugged many across their faces with their gauntlets, or completely ran over them without mercy. Even the heavier Pokémon like Onix found themselves weighed down and mowed over by the army. The only ones who were safe were any Pokémon that took to the skies, only to look down with horror as the streets were littered in turquoise men beating down their kin.

"What is this!? GAH!" A Breloom that had a citizen at its mercy was tackled by a couple of Joey's soldiers.

A Donphan made an attempt to roll into the waves of soldiers head-on. He was successful in mowing down a few at first, but his momentum fell apart when the waves of soldiers stopped him and locked him in place. The ones he ran over gradually returned to their feet with a glow in their eyes and proceeded ahead to take down any masses fighting back.

"Gnnngh…huh?" Barely conscious from all the fighting, Harrison lifted his head and saw hundreds of turquoise men running barefoot into the surrounding Pokémon. "Hey, hold up. Where the hell did all these guys come from?"

"It's okay…look!" Mable gasped, seeing the Maractus that beat her down before was getting manhandled and pushed back by the super soldiers. She was suddenly swept off her stomach when a soldier picked her up and carried her off. "Kyaaaah!"

"The hell?!" Harrison was stunned, only to be picked up by a soldier bridal style and darted off in the same direction as his ally. "Hey! The hell you taking me!?"

The Galvantula initiating the vanguard against Gray and Juvia shot webs with crackling static that covered many soldiers heading his way. However, they quickly seized the energy thread and tore it apart and advanced, albeit at a partially slower rate. They all tackled the Pokémon and mages while leaving Gray and Juvia speechless.

"W-woah~! Oh my!" Juvia quipped as she was carried by a soldier bridal style down the open street.

"Hey! Wait!" Gray reached out, but he was suddenly carried by a soldier in the same fashion. "Uh…thanks…?"

"Grooooooh!" The ethereal soldier ran with glowing eyes, carrying its passengers as many other soldiers carried Gray and Juvia's Pokémon not too far behind.

"You guys are helping us?" Elfman asked, being lifted by two soldiers due to his bulk. The same was with Machoke and Rhyhorn as they were carried to safety as the forces around them were stalled and manhandled by Joey's army.

"You guys all take a breather and leave the small fry to my soldiers. We'll make sure nothing stands in your way so you can do what you gotta do with no distractions." Joey instructed his guildmates. "From here on, it's King Joey's turn to have a little fun. Alright Freaks…" Joey jutted his scepter forward. "Let's dethrone this society!"

A wave of soldiers picked up Joey and Trubbish and held them overhead. "ONWARDS TO FREEDOM~! ALALALALALAAAAH~!" They carried them through the streets as the others were left behind to watch everything unfold before their eyes. Both Dereece and Duncan exchanged deadpanned looks before they looked back at Nic.

"We'll be right beside him, don't worry." Dereece assured.

"Guess this'll save a lot of work in the long run," Duncan scoffed. "Hurry up."

"Right!" Dereece followed Duncan as they chased after Joey's one-man army brigade. The others left behind were left speechless as they took the initiative.

Sophie blinked rapidly. "Is this the part where we should be worried?"

"I'll admit…I never would have expected such a huge turnaround by Joey." Vanessa admitted. If she didn't find Joey's unconventional methods intriguing before, she was convinced otherwise. 'I can see why Dereece is always worried about him…is he going to take those everywhere with him?'

With their focal point whisking himself away to clean up the mess left my everyone else, Nic, Erza, Sophie, and Vanessa were able to find a moment's peace to catch up with the other's situation.

"Vanessa, did you guys find that factory?" Nic asked his sister.

The younger Pularis shook her head. "No."

"We've searched high and low, but either the factory is blended well into the buildings or it's not in the city at all." Sophie added. "Did you by chance find it in the castle?"

"We did find something important." Erza confirmed, recalling the bizarre machine in the castle. "But…it isn't related to the Human Cubes…at least we're hoping it isn't. Are you sure you looked everywhere?"

"I've been using my aura to sense a congregated populace. Normally, factories provide such places for numbers because they need manpower. However, with all the numbers around, it's like finding a needle in a haystack." Vanessa reasoned. "At this rate, we won't get anywhere."

Nic frowned as he was thinking of what his sister referred to. "A facility that can't be seen…" He trailed off as he was considering all the possibilities that lied around him. It would be necessary to try and scope the castle again. Perhaps the factory wasn't a factory at all. It could be a massive machine like that generator Mest and Kirlia found? It was a possibility. Then again, they needed to go back to the castle anyways after the mishap Junior caused. Though, getting another look at that machine would be an even bigger hassle with the added measures they could have taken.

'All these important places…' He thought about the 'PC' he and Erza were in, and the huge generator. 'Places not meant for society to see…they're all hidden behind closed doors…not everything's on the surface…'

His pupils sharpened. He just remembered something important!

He thought back to his experience when he was still 16, how he had only recently got his 7th badge from Olympia thanks to Greninja. It was the time Lysandre then declared Team Flare's isolated victory over the end of world's corrupt humanity. Finding his lab in Lumiose City was perhaps the biggest hassle that not even Kalos' best detectives could have figured it out. It was only thanks to the clues that led to Lysandre Café and the secrets that it contained right underneath. It was hard to believe that was so very long ago.

'Back then, the lab was right underneath everyone's feet. So what if…' Nic jumped off his Charizard and landed on the ground. He spread his feet as he glowed for a moment, fading to a cross of his Meadow and Earth Forms.

"Nic? What're you doing?" Sophie asked.

"Looks like he's figuring something out," Vanessa informed.

Erza studies her husband, inspecting his forms' natures. 'His Meadow Form makes him manipulate all plant life, but also sense others' essence and natural energy. And his Earth Form controls earth and is an ideal radar. Is he planning to find the Human Cube source that way?'

'If not everything is as superficial as they may seem, then let's see how deep it goes…' Nic closed his eyes and focused briefly. He picked up a foot and pressed it firmly on the ground.

An invisible shockwave shot in all directions right underneath his feet at covered the island's domain within seconds. The wave mapped out everything, from the spacious underground that he could only assume The Freaks scoped before, to the interiors of every building and crevice in the jail cells. He could see it all. And with his Meadow Form, he could sense the essence and nature energy that every individual had across the island.

'So that's it…' After a short period of silence, Nic suddenly opened his eyes, looking calmly at his sister. "Vanessa."

"What is it?"

"Heading three blocks west from here. Take a right and there's a building right on the corner…the factory's right underneath there."

Vanessa blinked in surprise. Underneath? Even for an experienced Trainer such as herself, even she wouldn't consider such a location to put underground. Though in hindsight, it makes sense if it wasn't meant to be seen so publicly. She chose to not question any further and trust Nic's intuition. "Alright then, let's go Sophie."

Sophie nodded. "Okay." The two turned their attention towards the direction Nic gestured them to. They veered westward. They ran through the turquoise army pummeling and keeping the enemy mages and Pokémon commanding them at bay. The path was clear for them to venture through no problem.

"Looks like we're at least on the right track." Erza noted, turning towards Nic. "So tell me…did you sense anything else?"

Nic glanced back at her. "Yeah, but no sense flying circles around it at this point. Let's go find-!" His sixth sense picked up something heading his way and leaned back. A long, extendable cloth barely missed his neck as it traveled towards Erza and Charizard. She jumped off and landed on the ground and drew a sword.

When everyone watched the appendage retreat, they glazed over and saw a familiar set of glowing eyes piercing right at Erza.

"Cof! Cof! Cof! There you are…"

Erza's glare hardened as she recognized the coughing laughter. She saw Dahab leering directly at her, with his two human mages standing in front of him. They came to find her.

"So, you decided to crawl out of that prison you enjoyed taking charge of."

Dahab scoffed. "Cof! Cof! I'll be sure to make you into a mummy before anyone else for the humiliation you brought to me."

Erza gave a glare that told everyone that she wasn't backing down from this challenge. "Nic, get going. I'll catch up with you soon. I have a score to settle with this laughing coffin."

Nic nodded in full understanding. "Alright, be careful. Charizard!"

"Right!" The Flame Pokémon glided over head and Nic reached up. He grabbed his neck and flipped onto his partner's back as they circled into the sky and soared off.

Once Nic and Charizard were gone, Erza faced Dahab and his mages with vindication. "Talonflame!"

At the call of her Trainer, Talonflame soared out of the sky above and flapped beside her Trainer. She let out a battle-hardened caw as embers sprinkled off her wings and dissipated into the stone ground. Erza requipped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor and had identical swords drawn. "I was hoping that we'd get to settle matters from before."

"Ooooh, trust me, sweetheart, I couldn't be more enthusiastic about this even if I tried." Dahab darkly sneered, his eyes glowing. "I'll have my humans turn you to gold and wrap you up like a nice present!"

At this, Raelf and Phelicia stood at attention for battle.

Erza and Talonflame braced themselves as they shot fiery glares back at the Ghost-type. One way or another, this was going to end.


The coalition members couldn't believe what they were seeing. Even when Evergreen was adjusting her glasses, she thought she was seeing something surreal.

"Nirvana…" Jellal's words hung in the air like they were on the edge of a rope. Lingering, just waiting to fall on top of everyone and hit like a bomb.

Jura was the first amongst many to surmount any initial impression. "I see…I was wondering what happened to the ruins of Nirvana after our past endeavors to thwart its uses."

"So this was the thing Erza described way back when?" Mirajane chimed, looking at the scale of the once mobile city of ruins. "Talk about a fixer-upper."

"That's saying something. I remember this thing still walking way back when we bombed it." Ren informed.

"Even though it was stopped completely and collapsed, it's still here." Eve noted. "I wonder why it's hiding all the way out here when it's completely useless as a weapon now?"

"Good question." Hibiki added in as he was running through his Archive Magic's data on Nirvana. "From what I gathered, the weapon was designed with six special lacrima that repaired each other, which was something our Master Ichiya and the others were able to stop. That said, the magic effects it once had shouldn't be lingering either. In other words, it should be dead and ineffective completely."

"Which begs the question, the hell is it doing hiding behind an illusion?" Sting raised a brow, crossing his arms.

Rogue squinted at the inquiry. "This wouldn't by chance happen to be affiliated with the ongoing incident, would it?"

Sting rubbed the back of his head. "Well, with all the red flags we've got along the way, it's hard for it not to be."

Shiin remained silent as he scrutinized the ruins of Nirvana with his own eyes. If he recalled correctly from the information of Fiore's history he looked into before his departure for his 'mission', he remembered there being a Baram Alliance, and amongst the three were the Oracion Seis. 'So, this was the power that they sought back then…' His glare was as sharp as knives on the ruins. Had it not been for protocols or so many witnesses, he'd be getting out his camera. 'It's as Hibiki of Blue Pegasus stated, I am not sensing any Magic Power resonating in the area. It's officially dead.'

Even so, this was not something that was to be overlooked. This incident of course involved Fairy Tail since they were amongst the coalition members to thwart this weapon's upbringing. And from the sounds of it, many of the members present were past coalition members as well.

'So these mages from the other guilds have past experience with this.' He glanced at the other guild members around him, all looking with astonishment. 'If what was said was true, then what could their Pokémon be doing here?' His eyes narrowed in skepticism. 'Unless it has to do with Nirvana's extinct power they're after. If that really is the case, we can be looking at an international-level threat.'

Kinana put a hand to her chest. "Erik…"

"If Sawyer and the others are here, then let's go save them! No sense in twiddling our thumbs!" Sorano harrumphed.

"Hold on, sister. I mean, you're right about that, but…is there even a way up there we know of?" Yukino worried.

"If this thing was a mobile home, I don't think a flight of stairs would be hanging around." Shou chimed in. "If Fiore Trainers' Pokémon are up there, they've gotta use some kind of method to climb."

"Hey guys, look!"

The coalition members turned to the direction Lisanna pointed them in. She used an index finger that showed the nearest collapsed leg that arched up to Nirvana. Even though it was broken and on the ground, it looked to have been welded and eroded to create a staircase carved out of stone. The path was shaky, but it looked in tact and carried far beyond all their vision.

Ichiya struck a pose, his body twinkling brightly. "Man~, excellent eyes, young lady! Good show!"

"That's strange. I don't recall Nirvana ever having stairs to climb on the legs." Hibiki noted, putting a hand to his chin.

"Perhaps it was the work of a third party," Lyon theorized, his brow furrowing. "And from the looks of the carvings engraved on the stone, it was only recent."

Jura nodded. "An ideal theory, Leon. Nevertheless, this carved path may indefinitely take us to where we want to go. We'll have to proceed with caution, everyone!"

"Guess that simplifies things." Laxus nonchalantly shrugged as he darted his gaze up the stairs towards the top of the city that was barely within sight. He couldn't help but feel like something was off, though it was hard to tell because it was his S-Class Mage instinct, or the facts everyone laid out in front of him. Either way, he knew better than anyone not to take this lightly.

When he looked back at Evergreen and Bickslow, their gazes spoke volumes. They knew it too. The trio turned towards the stone stairwell and started for the first of many steps.

"Tally-ho, everyone!" Nichiya declared, activating his Aera Magic to ascend above the stairs, as well as garnering the jealousy of many who would kill to have that magic right now.

"Great…I'm gonna need some new heels when we're through with this." Jenny exasperated.

"Forget heels, my legs are gonna be cramped for a week." Eve grimaced.

"I knew I should have brought an extra change of clothes…" Hibiki sighed. He was really regretting not wearing anything less extravagant to help him manage this trek.

"Come. Let us not waste anymore time!" Jura started past them with a smirk.

"Exactly what I was going to say. Feel free to sit back if you'd like, but don't expect to get any of the credit." Lyon teased them.

Ren scoffed. "Hmph! Whoever said we were going to sit back while you guys handle the heavy lifting?"

"That's right! We go in and out in style, nothing less!" Eve sniped.

Lyon smirked to himself in satisfaction. 'They make this way too easy.'

Meredy glared up the stairs. 'Ultear…you better be up there!' She started next, followed by Kagura, Millianna, Sabertooth, and Shou. Shiin fell behind to keep an observant eye on the whole party as they initiated their ascension.

The sounds of a soft flapping made the hairs on his neck trickle. He glanced back in the sky, recognizing a large butterfly that was ascending from the forest. He narrowed his eyes and scoffed before continuing his trek.

Not too far behind, Butterfree followed of his own accord. "Free!"


As the coalition was initializing their climb, their ascent was being caught on the screen of a lacrima that was being held by a yellow, clothed hand. The owner of said hand chuckled and spatted at the intruders to their humble abode.

"Pfft, well, well…ain't this interesting." The gruff tone belonged to Rai, his antennae crackling with anticipation. "Just when I thought things were getting boring around here."

The Jumpluff that floated close by looked worried. "S-Sir Rai, what do we do? If the humans were able to get past the illusion security our Zoroark guard set up, they'll find us for sure!"

Rai glared at her, his dark eyes shooting daggers. "Heh, you worry too much. Has anybody told you that?" He turned away from her, static crackling in his antennae. "Heh, though I do suppose that it would be a huge hassle if word about this got out. Pass along this message to our good folk: Give those Fiore humans a…warm welcome."

"Yes, sir!" Jumpluff turned and floated away.

"Oh, and by the way…" Rai added. With his back turned, the Jumpluff couldn't see his vicious smirk. "Make sure they're all…comfortable here with us."

"Of course, sir." With that, Jumpluff went through a metal door to relay the message to everyone. "We have new orders! Everyone prepare a Level Red emergency! Intruders incoming, classified as human! Pokémon are to proceed with caution!"

Rai scoffed as she finally took off. "Noisy puffball." He turned his attention back on the video lacrima, which had a visual of Laxus' intense gaze on it. It made him smirk wider. "You're free to come in through the front door…just know that it will be locked when you decide to leave. Gyahahahaha!"

As he was laughing, static flourished off his antennae, illuminating the massive machinery's core that glimmered faintly in the darkness. The ore static he gave off, the brighter the core shined, like an iris full of life.


Their trek up the passage was a long and upscaling climb to say the least. The very least.

The coalition made sure to not fall behind the other's tail as they made it one step at a time towards the top of the former Nirvana. The climb itself wasn't what bothered them…it was what they had found at the top that worried them.

When everyone sat foot on the leveled grounds of Nirvana's surface, it was hard for anyone to hold back their surprise. Even Laxus looked uncertainly at his surroundings. "Okay, what's this?"

Compared to the stone walls that composed of Nirvana's city of literal ruin, much of the buildings seemed to have undergone some moderate renovations. Much of the architecture was still primarily stone, however, there were some buildings with a whiter layer of stone that made them look newer than the old, gray stone. Almost all the houses and huts had some sort of door and a frame on windows. There were a number of floral arrangements sitting on pots and small gardens on porches; some of these pots were also sprouting berries. Everything in general looked a lot smoother, including the ground itself for a steady walkway without worrying about tripping over a protruding rock.

In short, whatever perception they had of Nirvana's ancient civilization seemed to be of the norm.

"Meow! What's this?" Millianna chimed, glancing at the surroundings.

"It's a city on top of the plateau itself." Kagura deduced matter-of-factly, her brow furrowing. "But how? And when?"

"Hmmm…" Jura stared at the city around him, a dense frown on his face. "I definitely recall the architecture from our last venture here. I am most certain that none of this was here before."

"It's been nearly a decade. It's understandable that foundations would change given the right amount of time." Hibiki noted. "But this…" He stared at a woven doormat that looked like it was made out of some shed fur. "I never would have imagined a civilization that literally collapsed would actually move forward."

"Maybe somebody decided to clean it up a little?" Lector shrugged.

"That sounds rather unconventional, given the state it all is in." Rogue turned his head to the side. "Look, you can tell that some of these buildings weren't touched at all, but they still have some décor around."

"This wasn't how I remembered it from back when." Jellal looked at his surroundings, seeing the numerous changes of textures on walls and freshly implanted windows. It wasn't anything like the aged stone city that he and Erza worked together on climbing all those years ago.

"So much for déjà vu for you." Bellona chimed. "Still, it's peculiar. Everything around looks more modern than you'd think."

Jellal frowned. "That's true. Although, it's not like our own towns and cities, but you can definitely see how modern and rural it all feels. This was most certainly recent."

Yukiko looked left and right, scouting any spaced between the buildings, doors, and open windows. "But…if that's the case, where are the people?"

"Yeah, she's got a point. Just look around. I'd find it hard to believe that it was just one person." Orga sniped.

"Fresh flowers, well-watered for a and berries…everything is too fresh to be considered all but abandoned." Rufus added.

Frosch started shivering nervously. "D-do you think it's…ghosts?"

"What? Ghosts? Get real, Frosch. Ghosts aren't even real…" Lector chimed his friend, only to feel his spine shrivel. He recalled Rogue's Duskull being a literal ghost, and while that wasn't a problem for him personally, Frosch's earlier inquiry made him think otherwise. "Uh…y-you're just talking like actual ghosts…right?

"I smell something. There's scents everywhere…" Sting sniffed the air, looking at his surroundings like everyone else. "If they're here, they're definitely hiding."

'Something about this definitely feels off…' Laxus inspected everything as he glared around. His experience told him everything he needed to know about their situation. 'It feels like we're being watched.'

"Lucario, can you sense anything?" Jellal asked his partner.

Lucario closed his eyes, his aura feelers lifting as he was sensing his surroundings. "Yes, Master. There's no mistaking it. There are other bodies amongst us."

"If that's the case, then why haven't we seen any yet?" Evergreen prodded, taking a glance at a passing building with a mat on the front, freshly carved door. "It's like they're ghosting us completely…"

Jenny looked around until she noticed something moving. "Look! There!" She pointed ahead of the pack towards the open streets.

Further up ahead, everyone paused as they heard a humming. It was notably loud despite the distance. Coming into view was a Loudred that had a broom in his hands, hopping around to a small tune it was humming to while sweeping dirt off the streets.

Sting blinked numerous times before muttering, "A Loudred?"

"What's it doing?" Rogue wondered.

"Looks to me that it's swept up in its own world, that's what." Bickslow prodded.

Evergreen shot him a look. "Honestly, your jokes are almost as bad as Dereece's Stunfisk."

Shiin's glare hardened. 'Another species of Pokémon?'

The Loudred kept humming as he was seeping his broom left and right, dusting off the roads. "Hah, you know, at first, I thought this civil service chore was going to be a huge waste of time. Strangely though, it's oddly gratifying." He smiled. "Plus I get community bonuses in rations for the work, so it works out! HAHAHAHA! Hahaha…ha…eh?"

His laughter toned down as he noticed that he wasn't the only one out on the streets. He saw an entire collage of humans just meters away looking at him in an estrange manner, almost like he had committed a crime. The silence was so palpable that it was just screaming to get fixed.

"Eh…" The Loudred blinked as he froze in place out of sheer surprise.

"Is it a wild one? Or one that was brainwashed like the rest?" Shou inquired.

"Let's ask and then we'll know ourselves." Sting took the initiative to step in front of his peers, glaring down the Loudred that made sure not to make any sudden movements. The bright blonde put his hands to his sides. "Hey pal, listen, you got a sec? There're some things we gotta know, so I was wondering if you-"

As Sting was making his appeal, Loudred gripped his broomstick tighter. Slowly, he started inhaling through his mouth. Shou immediately took notice.

"Sting! Cover your ears! It's about to shout!" Shou yelled.

Everyone's eyes widened at the sudden warning right before it happened.

"UPROOOOOAAAAAARRRRR~!" Loudred's speaker-like ears vibrated with an intense pulse, sending soundwaves so strong that they distorted the air. The ground vibrated vividly as the soundwaves passed everyone. They all covered their ears at the harsh vibrations the sudden attack was emitting. It was especially effective on the present Dragon Slayers due to their sensitive hearing.

"Gnnnngh…so…loud…!" Sorano grunted incoherently.

"I can't hear a thing! Are these Pokémon supposed to be that loud?!" Kinana shouted.

Shiin kept his ears covered, observing from a safer distance to avoid a powerful impact to his eardrums like the others in front were. 'Its ears are amplifying its soundwave attacks. Is this Pokémon reliant on using sound as part of its self-defense and biology?'

"INTRUDER ALERT! INTRUDER ALERT!" The Loudred's voice echoed throughout the reaches of the city. "HUMAN INTRUDERS! LEVEL RED! DETAIN AND SUPPRESS THEM! DETAIN AND SUPPRESS THEM!"

Minerva's face contorted as she reached an arm out. Numerous pockets of space twisted around the roaring Loudred until they all exploded at the same time. The collective eruption ceased his shouts as he went sailing backwards through the air. He fell on his back with a thud while his broomstick fell right beside him.

He didn't get up after that.

With the sudden alarm silenced, everyone uncovered their ears as they looked at the unconscious Loudred. Suffice to say that everyone seemed more alarm than they were a minute ago.

"A rather noisy creature," Minerva chimed. "A little advice, if you're going to shout, do so to a good tune."

Shou couldn't help but glance at Minerva. He wasn't sure if he was indirectly jabbed or not, but he chose to let it go.

"Well, that didn't go as planned." Sting frowned. "Was that absolutely necessary, Milady?"

Minerva closed an eye. "Pardon me, Master."

Bickslow turned towards the side, noticing movement from inside a nearby window. "Hm? Uh, guys…? I think that was a wake-up call…"

Evergreen turned towards another direction. She noticed the few doors lined up slowly creaking open, silhouettes shifting.

"Master…" Lucario grunted.

Jellal's gaze hardened. "I see…so this is where they all went. That explains a lot now."

Slowly, doors and windows opened to reveal various forms of hands or claws belonging to Pokémon. At first it was dozens, then as the streets filled up, it became hundreds, to possibly thousands. Pokémon as far as the eye could see ventured from the corners of alleys out to the open to surround the coalition members.

And from the glares they all gave, none of them were too happy to meet them.

Meredy gasped. "Pokémon?!"

"I see, so this is where all the freed ones took refuge." Bellona sneered, her right arm brought up to ready a dark nebula.

"They don't look too happy to see us…" Lector backpedaled as he saw a Mankey's red eyes beaming directly at him. It made him cringe.

Sting squinted. "Looks like they saw us coming."

"What do they want from us?" Millianna fretted.

Kagura narrowed her eyes as she slowly reached for her Archenemy's hilt. Even though her ears were still partially ringing, she could clearly make out the voices the numerous creatures around them were making. And not a single one was inviting.

"Look, fresh meat came right towards us!"

"Humans? In our city? I thought we were safe from those mongrels!"

"Don't let them get away! You heard the order!"

"First come, first served! Time to catch us some humans!"

"Crap! Not good!" Ren exclaimed.

"Get 'em~!" Numerous Pokémon lunged at the outcry. The ones closest took the forefront of the initiative and closed in on the coalition.

Everyone braced themselves as they barely had time to react to the assault from all sides.

"Talus!"

At the sound of Jura's voice, stone pillars shot up all around everyone, crossing and blocking off the onslaught's party. All the Pokémon struck the rock walls and buffered back in a harsh recoil.

"Don't think that we didn't come expecting this! Remember, we are proud mages of Fiore banning together to fight this cause!" Jura shouted. "If these truly are the masses of brainwashed Pokémon that have taken refuge, then we must defend and desist them!"

"A fair point." Minerva nonchalantly flicked her wrists up, making Spatial Magic orbs. Multiple duplicates of dark space appeared around the surrounding Pokémon before they imploded. Many cried out as they were pushed back, while others were knocked out on the spot due to their poor experience. "I hope that you provide us all with a challenge. I assure you, I'll be favorable to you if you do. 'Cause if not…"

A Bibarel soared overhead cloaked in water, darting in a steep dive towards Minerva. She paid no heed as she snapped her fingers. The water exploded with her Territory, swallowing the Golduck. She didn't bother flinching as it dropped to the ground in an unconscious daze. "…I guarantee you that this will be over with quickly."

'Yikes, talk about scary.' Shou cringed. 'Guess she's taking this seriously.'

"HRAH!" Sting landed a kick covered in light on a charging Doduo's center, sending it backwards. "Sorry to have to do this to you guys, but this is the only way!"

"Hehe, now we're talking~!" Bacchus pivoted as he swung his arm towards the ground, using his Palm Magic with enough force that it made a shockwave that swept four Pokémon off their feet at once. "Time to get wild!"

Numerous Pokémon of shapes and sizes rushed for Kagura, however, the swordswomen kept her stance and raised her sheathed Archenemy into the air.

"Archenemy: Strong Form!"

She landed a dense cut into the ground. A palpable force equal to that of a hammer's impact ran through the ground, causing earth to shatter and cause uneven footing for the onslaught before her.

"Iron Rock Fist!"

Jura pointed his index and middle finger forward. Nearby, dozens of rock-iron gauntlets shot up from below, landing uppercuts with the force of a boulder into the undersides of Pokémon and sent them flying.

Ichiya spun in place, uncorking a vial with a purplish liquid concoction. "MEN~! Do pardon me, but I assure you, this won't kill you! Have a whiff of my…Poison Parfume!" He waved his arm, extending the reach of the intoxicating musk. The effects were immediate amongst many Pokémon as they coughed and felt the poison get into their systems. However, the surrounding Steel and Poison-types remained unaffected by the smell.

The Trimens took the initiative, with Eve and Ren blasting snow and air blasts. Hibiki provided support with small bursts of his Archive Magic, but it wasn't very effective, even on Geodude. Though, Jenny and Mirajane got physical with the onslaught, so did Yukino and Lisanna as they provided support.

"Looks like we're going in full swing. What do you say, Master?" Bickslow turned towards Laxus to see how he would respond.

The Guild Master frowned heavily as he held up a Poke Ball. "What do you think?" He tossed it into the air, summoning his Manectric out before him. "Electric Terrain!"

Manectric scoffed, his red eyes glaring ahead. His quadruped body discharged voltage everywhere. The bolts flourished and disappeared into the surroundings. The hue around everyone turned to a glowing yellow, with some static lingering in the atmosphere.

Laxus turned towards the sky, where he saw dozens of Flying-type Pokémon heading for him. With a snap of his fingers, thin thunderbolts rained down and struck every last one with deathly accuracy. They all cried out as they fell to the ground in sizzling heaps.

"We're not here to play games. We're waking you all up!" Laxus balled a fist tightly, which crackled with electricity. With an uproarious battle cry, he brought the fist down with the force of a thunderbolt into the earth. The ground thundered for a split second before a monstrous beam of pure lightning shot up from underground. Hundreds of Pokémon that were unfortunate to have gotten caught in the wake of the large-scale impact were electrocuted to their cores.

The chamber had the echoes from the onslaught happening from far up on the surface. The force from Laxus' attack alone was enough to cause a very small vibration to run through the metal underneath Rai's feet. It made his antennae crackle with static.

Rai continued observing through the lacrima, smugly sneering. "Now here's a front-row seat to the action." He scoffed. "Still, this show could use some twists. I believe humans use a this terms, 'always have an ace in the hole'. Let's see just how far you can all go before the curtain closes."

An Octillery and Skiploom grouped together and exhaled harshly, spatting Bullet Seed barrages that darted at Lisanna. She stood her ground as her body glowed in reaction to her Animal Soul. She took her Drapion Form and crossed her armored arms in front, deflecting much of the pellets of seeds that were ineffective against the poisonous foe.

"How'd she do that?!" the Octillery panicked.

With her arms crossed, Lisanna's pincers glowed and elongated to larger proportions. She extended her reaches and snapped harshly on her opponents. Both Octillery and Skiploom were at her mercy before Lisanna reached up and dragged them with her lift. She cried out as she slammed them into the ground, picking up dust.

When she retracted her powerful arms, the glowing pincers returned to normal. The dust faded to reveal both Pokémon unconscious by their swirling eyes. "Down goes two!"

Mirajane was watching her sister take action and turned away with a smile. "Guess I should cut a little loose myself. Satan Soul…" She glowed brightly, her body taking a different shape. When it finished, she had the appearance of Seilah. "Mirajane Seilah."

A horde of Pokémon closed in on her from directly in front. She didn't bother dodging, instead choosing to swipe her arm across.

"I command you! Slumber!"

The charging Pokémon suddenly stopped in their tracks and looked at Mirajane like they had a sudden epiphany. Of course, said epiphany was really her Macro Curse that quickly took away their awareness. They all fell to the ground and quickly went to sleep.

"Wow, talk about dirty. I'm impressed, Mirajane." Jenny teased.

Mirajane humbly smiled. "Thank you…move!"

"Wha-?!" Jenny didn't have any momentum on her when she suddenly felt a force make her backpedal a step. That step alone saved her from a spherical blast of water that rushed past her into a stone wall. It exploded, creating a gaping hole in the side.

The owner of the attack hummed lowly. "Hmph…so ugly."

Jenny turned towards the voice, her eyes gradually widening when she recognized who it was. Suffice to say she was not pleased. "Milotic!"

"She's here, too?" Mirajane frowned.

Milotic's elegant form glistened underneath the sunlight, her vibrant scales having an array of colors as she swayed her tail back and forth. She eyed Jenny with her neck craned upwards. "Hmph, so you've decided to come crawling your way towards me? I thought I made it clear from last time I saw you, I have nothing to share with the likes of some ugly humans."

Jenny balled her fists. "Milotic, listen to me! Someone's brainwashing you! You're not in the right state of mind!"

Milotic scoffed. "Hmph! You really think that I would waste my time and valuable hearing to appeal to anything you have to say? Perhaps if you spent less time on your hair and skin care and focus on moisturizing my scales more, I'd just might humor you for your compensation." She frowned heavily. "But alas, I see just how ugly humans truly are. Why bother sharing any space with you?"

That dealt a blow to the model's pride. She looked visibly ticked as her left eye twitched. "You don't say. Well then…" She glowed as her body took on her Machia Soul Form. "Guess I'm just gonna beat the beauty right out of you…sorry in advance."

"Hmph! I'd sooner dry up under the sun before I ever let your filthy hands touch me again…but I dare you to try."

"Come, men! We must assist our comrade!" Ichiya declared.

"Right, hoh!" The Trimens shouted. However, the three, Ichiya, and Nichiya all found themselves attacked by dense, sticky thread that shot at their backs, pulling them all away with a harsh yank. They all fell onto their backs with thuds, dense blue auras reducing their speed.

Ichiya twitched as he struggled to stand. "Ooohhh, good heavens…what on Earthland just-!"

"Oh, now this just won't do."

Ichiya and the other Blue Pegasus members looked up and found themselves in the company of none other than Kevin's Pokémon, composed of his Raticate, Beedrill, Krabby, and finally his Swadloon.

"You all are so naughty just busting into our little shack…somebody better be teaching you some manners." Swadloon sassily swooned.

"I STING YO FACE!" Beedrill harshly jabbed at them.

"GAHAHAHA! Look, guys! It's humans! HA!" Raticate laughed, jittering in place. "It's so cwazy dat they found us! Who wants to chew up the bad intruders first!?"

"I was enjoying a nice game of checkers…!" Krabby scolded, holding up his checkers board with red and black pieces scattered across the top. "And my game was ruined because of you! It's our turn!"

Ichiya and the Trimens wanted to say something, but they were cut off by the entrances of other Pokémon – their Pokémon. Ichiya's Spritzee floated into view, followed by Pansage, Pansear, and Panpour all looking at them with discontent glares.

"Pansage…so this is where you've been." Hibiki awed.

Pansage harrumphed. His bushy head had bright green glints before he shot green vines at his former Trainer. Hibiki got his forearms to guard the Vine Whip and hold on as the pain was like an actual whiplash.

Panpour and Pansear turned towards Eve and Ren respectively. They lunged for them and bared their fangs, using Bite and gnawing on their shoulders. The two recoiled harshly as the attacks caused them to flinch.

"I see…" Ichiya frowned in disappointment at his Spritzee. "Well in that case, I supposed I have no choice…and introduce you to the parfum of revelation! Let it be known, your farce of a liberation ends here!"

Spritzee calmly glared at him, floating in the air. "You'll try."

"Nya! Kitten Blast!" Millianna fired bright pink beams of energy at the Pokémon in front of her. A beam struck a Pidgeotto, causing it to deter and fly away. More blasts aimed for the Pokémon, but a Gurdurr impeded them by rotating his girder like a windmill, deflecting them and taking no damage.

"You're kidding!" Millianna panicked.

"Millianna, focus!" Kagura scolded.

Millianna cringed and glanced over her shoulder. "Right, sorry."

Kagura turned towards the Pokémon fighting against their fellow members. Though their initial assault had a toll on their numbers, even she was stunned by how many were gathered. Even with Pawniard by her side, she knew it was going to be a hassle. 'There's even more than I anticipated. I know the majority of Trainer's Pokémon fled their masters. If that's the case, we're practically facing an entire nation's worth of experienced Pokémon in an enclosed space.'

Amongst the hordes surrounding them, two sets of footsteps signaled the next opponents who dared to advance.

"Back off, you…!" Kagura turned with her sheath ready, only to hesitate. Her eyes beamed with shock as she was deadpan stunned. "Millianna…"

"Huh? Yes, Kagura?"

"Look…"

Millianna turned at her insistence. The moment she did, she felt like everything sunny inside of her soul had been blackened. It was like a led weight fell into her stomach's pits as she felt a sense of weakness come over her with who stepped forward. She tried to speak, but she was just frozen with disbelief.

"I-i…it can't be…it just can't…"

Kagura's brow furrowed. "Millianna, aren't those…?"

Standing before them were two familiar faces, two extremely depressed and horrified faces. They were the faces of dear old friends whom Millianna hadn't seen in a while, but she was happy to see…or she would be if they didn't had collars around their necks that restrained any sense of freedom.

Millianna almost choked as her eyes shook with disbelief. "Sho…Wally…"

A Poliwrath closed in with his fist endowed in a bright light. Its Brick Break closed in on Rogue as the Shadow Dragon Slayer simply watched as the attack drew closer. The fist went straight for his stomach, only for Poliwrath's blow to faze clean through. In its shock, Rogue took full advantage and slashed a wave of shadows, repulsing the Tadpole Pokémon into the horde.

"I have enough experience with Pokémon to know that Normal and Fighting-types will have no effect on me." Rogue noted.

Rufus raised his hand high, his body giving off a glow as he unleashed waves of bright yellow comets that shot down on targets around him. Numerous Pokémon fell at once, though more were able to hold their ground. "Seems like quite the majority have some stamina in them."

"First mages, now Pokémon…what next?" Sting grunted. He barely caught the glimpse of the ground beneath him. He noticed his shadow getting larger by the second…really fast. His eyes widened when he noticed the shadow's shape changing and covering him.

'Crap!'

Sting shifted his body weight and rolled to the side in time before something heavy fell to the ground in a colossal thud. Dust filled the air where Sting was a moment ago as the mentioned Dragon Slayer rolled upright and pivoted back at the sight. "Alright, the hell just tried to get the drop on me?"

The gathered Sabertooth members glanced over to see the dust dissipate gradually. A draconic silhouette lifted its neck, showing its beaming set of eyes on its…heads?

Sabertooth found themselves surprised by their attacker. More so, nearby, Shou turned and looked deathly worried. His eyes shrank as he saw the familiar silhouette. 'No…it's her!'

Emerging from the dust was a draconic Pokémon that bared a striking resemblance to a hydra. Though, rather than have two claws, her actual hands were heads with lesser features than the main head, which was bigger and more protruding out the collar. The six wings synergistically beat to leverage her bulk into the air and open her mouth skywards.

"HYYYYYYYY~!" The Pokémon bellowed a competitive roar that echoed through the vicinity.

"The heck is that?" Orga spatted, partially startled.

Rufus frowned, tilting his fancy hat. "I have no memory of seeing such a treacherous-looking creature, let alone a Pokémon."

"Hydreigon…" Shou muttered.

Minerva glanced over, hearing what he just said. "You're familiar with this Pokémon?"

Shou furrowed his brow. "You can say that. I would know…because that's my Hydreigon." If he was making an attempt to get his allies' attention, he certainly did with those few words.

"Hold on, you're saying that you actually have something like that as your Pokémon?" Orga pointed at Hydreigon, who snarled at him. It seemed like she didn't appreciate the sentiment.

Shou meekly nodded. "Sure do. She's shy and a klutz most of the time, but she's definitely not someone you wanna get riled up in a battle." He explained. "If she's here, then that can mean…!"

Minerva glanced over and reached her arm out. A spatial bubble appeared that swallowed the wake of a spiraling green whirlwind with thick, glowing leaves that would have struck Shou's back. The entire cyclone was drawn into the bubble and condensed into a smaller space that Minerva made disappear with a snap of her fingers.

"I thought we told you before," Her eyes narrowed as she frowned. "You shouldn't be on the frontlines like this."

Slithering into view was the sender of the prior Leaf Storm. It was none other than Shou's Serperior, the Regal Pokémon lifting his stature high and glaring down his Trainer and acquaintances' statures.

"I recognize that one! That's his green leafy snake he used against Duncan!" Lector pointed out.

"Uh-oh…" Frosch fretted.

Sabertooth looked around, realizing that more distinguished Pokémon were coming into the picture. It wasn't just Shou's Hydreigon and Serperior, but four other Pokémon started gathering with a familiar – more personal vibe. The enclosed group found themselves against an Excadrill, Zoroark, Musharna, and Jolteon.

The way they glared in a fashion like Serperior and Hydreigon made Minerva frown and glare daggers. "I believe that we may have just found your entourage for you."

Serperior scoffed down at Shou. "Hmph, you've got a lot of nerve to tail us. How desperate and petty can you be, after we made it clear that we didn't need you."

Shou balled his fists, glaring back at him. "Like I'll believe that."

"Heh, guess he's deaf from all the strumming he does!" Jolteon barked, his prickly fur crackling static. "Let you off easy before, but this time don't expect to walk away half-baked!"

"That's right!" Excadrill shouted, closing his claws and pinching the iron tips together to make sparks.

"ZZZZzzz…ZZZZZZZZZZzzzzz…mmm…bad dreams…" Musharna dozed in place, her eyes not even open.

"Oh wake the hell up you daydreaming airhead!" Excadrill snapped brashly.

Stepping forward, Shou's Zoroark mischievously smirked, her blue eyes beaming at his party. "So, you came with friends? That's quite cute of you. Hope you don't mind if we play around a bit with them."

Sting spread his legs. "Heads up guys, we've got some veteran company."

Orga smirked, his cracking knuckles discharging black static. "About time we get a challenge. Time to see what facing experienced Pokémon are like."

Sorano huffed, tossing her long hair over her shoulder with a smug smirk. "Fine with me. First we'll trounce these guys, then we'll save Erik and the rest of my pals!"

Yukino picked up a Zodiac Key, ready for battle. "Sorry Shou, but we'll try to be quick about it."

Shou didn't have any place to say in this scuffle. He knew that he wasn't a full-fledged mage like his cohorts, but he couldn't sit by either. He eyed Serperior, who glared back at him in a domineering fashion. 'It's not them who I'm worried about…'

Lyon created a large wall of ice spikes that deterred numerous Pokémon from advancing in their direction. While he covered the one side, Meredy swiped her arm, sending ethereal swords that stabbed Pokémon that were too close.

"Are you alright, Meredy?" Lyon asked, glancing at her back.

"Yeah, don't worry. We can handle these numbers." Meredy assured.

The two heard a small sneering laughter from the side. When they both turned to meet this laughter, they were met with a Misdreavus who looked at them with a crude smile on her face. "Oh, why hello there…Meredy~!" She sang darkly.

Meredy gasped. "Misdreavus!"

"Do you by chance know this one?" Lyon asked his comrade.

Meredy nodded. "Yes. She's actually Ultear's Pokémon. She took off the same time as Jigglypuff." She stepped closer towards the Ghost-type. "What happened to Ultear!?"

"Hm? Oh, her?" Misdreavus' playful tone was taunting, and Meredy knew that all too well. "Hehehe. Well…let's just say that she's making herself quite comfortable under such generous care."

"What do you…?"

Misdreavus held up a Human Cube in a lock of her long hair. "Here, how's about I show you?" She tossed the cube towards the ground and snapped open. Magic Power flourished and materialized into a solid, curvy shape that solidified before Lyon and Meredy.

The two had shrunken eyes as they felt their hearts stop at what they saw.

Standing before them was Ultear herself, who only needed a minute to realize that she was out of her confinement. Although she looked fine physically, she had a collar like everyone else. She immediately locked eyes with Meredy and Lyon and realized what was happening.

"U-Ultear…?"

"Meredy…"

Lyon looked just as horrified. He looked over at Misdreavus and gnashed his teeth. "Why you…"

Misdreavus chuckled. "Well now, isn't this such a touching reunion. Don't worry though, we'll make sure you don't go anywhere anytime soon."

"There's so many!" Kinana quipped. She was so preoccupied with the numerous liberated Pokémon that she almost lost her sense of awareness. She heard a familiar hiss from behind and perked up. Turning around, she was met with the arrival of an Arbok – and from the lack of a scar on its stomach, she knew right away it wasn't Nic's.

The intruding Arbok flicked her tongue at Kinana, smelling her. "It'sss been sssome time, hasssn't it?"

Kinana blinked, her words confusing her. "Been some time…?" After a moment of pondering, she came to a realization. "Wait, aren't you…?"

Before she could finish, her Poké Ball flung open on its own, causing Seviper to appear in front of her with a glare.

"Seviper?" Kinana gasped.

Seviper hissed as she flicked her forked tongue at the air as well. Even though the appearance was different, she recognized the familiar smell of the Ekans she battled besides. Arbok hissed back. Looks like they both knew.

"So, it looks like you've evolved." Seviper sneered matter-of-factly. "I didn't think we'd meet again…not like this, anyways. So you turned on your Trainer I take it?"

Kinana frowned in heavy anxiety. Her gut was screaming at her that something about this was definitely wrong. If that Arbok belonged to whom she thought, then that was more reason to get worried.

Arbok lifted her head, sneering. "If I did?" She used her tail and reached for her satchel on her side. She pulled out a Human Cube and held it up. "See for yourself."

She lobbed the cube into the air, causing magic to beamed out and materialize in front of them. Kinana felt her feet get cold the moment she recognized Erik and vice versa. Their eyes were wide with pupils shrinking at the same time.

An audible gasp escaped from them.

"Cubellios!"

"Erik!"

Hearing the commotion not far from them, Jellal and Bellona turned towards the scene, their eyes widening upon recognizing their former guildmate.

Jellal blinked. "It's Erik…but then that would mean-!"

Lucario's aura radar picked up on something above, keeping his attention towards the sky. "Master! In front of us!"

Jellal and Bellona were swift to react to Lucario's warning. They both jumped backwards a safe distance as distorted air spiraled in front of them. Had it not been for Lucario's warning, they would have been torn by the distorted air currents.

As the visible air faded back to a thin state, multiple figures stood on the opposite side. There were three silhouettes, with three others in front of them with glowing collars. Neither Jellal nor Bellona flinched when they pieced it together.

"As we feared…"

"Yes. So this happened to them as well."

Macbeth, Sawyer, and Richard stood in front of their Pokémon. The three former guildmates were raptured a sense of awe and disbelief at who they were facing now.

"Jellal? Bellona?" Macbeth blinked.

"My friends…been some time." Jellal bluntly greeted, no sense of pleasure under their circumstances.

Macbeth got over his initial shock, frowning heavily. "Yes, it most certainly has. You seem well."

"Heh, well ain't this just ironic. Going full circle, are we?" Sawyer scoffed.

"My friends…I wish to bid you good day." Richard morbidly grimaced.

Neither Jellal nor Bellona felt any sense of comfort in their situation. While it was by sheer coincidence that they were in the company of their companions again, it did very little to their hearts knowing that they were once again imprisoned. Just when they were freed from their shackles, they were snatched away. Jellal especially could feel his rage boil. Thankfully, he was doing a good job at keeping his composure.

The Zoroark that commanded Macbeth sneered angrily. "So, I take it that you're the ones who saw right through my illusion. After all that effort and energy." He sneered especially angrily towards Lucario. "Don't expect any sense of mercy just because you're insightful."

Lucario straightened his back. "It wasn't my intention. You are the ones who are disillusioned."

Zoroark squinted. He didn't appreciate the challenge coming from the Fighting/Steel-type who chose his lot with humans. "Tch! Fine, if that's how it is, we'll beat you down and rob that human from you. Macbeth!" He clutched his cube in his claws, pressing with a little more force.

The collar around Macbeth lit up, causing a mild pain to ignite inside of him. Red static trickled across his body as he almost lost his footing. Still, he had enough will in his pained expression to look Jellal in the eye.

"Jellal…please…free us of our shackles once more…"

Jellal didn't show any hesitation. He knew well what had to be done. "I know. You'll all be free again…I promise. Bellona?"

"As if you needed to ask." Bellona held up a Poké Ball of her own and lobbed it upwards. It popped open, summoning her Servine in front of her. The Nightmare Mage put a hand to her hip as she looked confident. "Rest assured…we'll be sure to make this nightmare end quickly for you."

Sawyer gnashed his teeth. "Not quick enough…"

Jellal and Bellona stood ready, both their Pokémon by their side to help save their friends.


The streets and plazas of Pokétopia were flooded with the shade of turquoise running through their reaches. Pokémon that were acting on self-defense found themselves heavily overwhelmed and knocked around or blacked out from the stampede of soldiers that were unbound to any sense of wear. Just when it looked like any dominant Pokémon was about to take down a citizen, their hopes were dashed when their bodies crash to the ground by the force of soldiers.

"There's too many! We need help over here!"

"Chief Hugo! What do we go?! GAH!"

"Officer down! OH NO!"

The sounds of Communication Lacrimas going to radio static ran in Chief Hugo's lacrima. He could hear all his remaining officers going silent by the overflowing numbers around him. Looking around, he found himself at a loss for words by the soldiers swarming the area. "Where in bleeding heavens did these things come from!?" He exasperated. "Officer Flora?! Flora!"

Not too far from the chief in distress, Flora was knocked away by a powerful swing, sending her flying into a barrel. The barrel shattered, and she laid in the wooden shrapnel with a severely pained expression.

"C-Chief…mon down. I repeat…mon down…" Flora muttered with the last of her strength, falling limply back into the debris.

Chief Hugo clenched his fists tightly as he growled angrily. Soldiers were heading his way, but he refused to allow his pride to fall just like his officers. As they were swarming him, he started swinging his arms around, violently thrashing for space. "GET! OFF!"

With the distraction, Sune was able to get to her feet again and see her superior being slowly overwhelmed. She blinked twice as she couldn't tell whether to be relieved or irritated that she wasn't getting her say in the matter.

"Hey, you just gonna stand there like a Sudowoodo?"

Sune's ears flicked. She looked over to her side, seeing Liepard standing beside her. "What're doing?"

Liepard shrugged. "Nothing. Don't mind me. Figured it out just from watching." She looked at the Pangoro fighting for his life a short distance from them. "What do you say, mind if the cat gets out of the bag?"

Sune stared at her for a moment, but she humbly grinned and allowed the sentiment to pass. "Heh…to think the me yesterday would have scoffed for trusting a Dark-type. Guess today is just full of surprises."

They both faced Hugo as he swung his arms violently left and right, battering down soldiers that prevented him from getting anywhere. He turned left and right, but then felt his left leg get anchored, and then his right arm. He gnashed his teeth as his face contorted with rage.

"Go get'em, girls!" Cana encouraged.

"Right!" Both Liepard and Sune shouted at the same time in synch. Sune jumped into the air first, disappearing in a blur while Liepard spread her paws and darted right for an opening. With Hugo completely distracted, he was completely taken by surprise when Sune suddenly appeared in front of him.

"What the-?!"

With a harsh yelp, Sune smacked her tail across Hugo's snout for a Feint Attack. Even though the Pangoro was hardly affected, he was taken by another surprise when Liepard's glowing purple paw smacked in the same spot, via Assurance. The two pulled away and saw Hugo shaking his head to get over the shock.

"Officer Sune! This is insubordination on numerous offenses! When I get my hands on you, I'm gonna…!"

"Wow, I can see why he gets under your fur. Pretty crummy boss if you ask me." Liepard sassily mocked. "Hey, big chief, you should worry less about your misplaced punching bags and worry about your own safety!"

Sune scoffed, a small smirk forming on her lips.

Hugo's dark eyes widened. I he had any visible pupils, they'd be the size of salt grains. "You throw your lot with the ruffians of the law? Then so be it! Officer Sune…YOU'RE FIRED!"

"You can't fire me!" Sune raised her tails, each one having a ghastly, purplish fireball on the ends. She jumped into the air, spinning her body around to fire the Will-O-Wisp. "BECAUSE I QUIT!"

The multitude of flames surged through the air into Hugo. Each one met his body and dispersed upon impact. The Pangoro seemed unaffected for a moment before his body ignited in flames, causing him to cry out in pain from the burn.

"GRRAAAAH~!" Hugo roared in pain as the burn effects kicked in immediately. He could feel his physical strength weaken, allowing the soldiers to wash over him and pile on while pinning him down. Both Sune and Liepard watched expectantly as they came to a compromise.

"Mind if I help in his 'obstruction of justice', officer?"

"Can do!"

Hugo struggled with all his remaining might to fight. The weight was becoming too much, but he absolutely refused to believe that this could be the end of his own career. His scrunched brow twitched violently to the point that he looked like he was snapping as hard as the leaf in his mouth. He got a knee underneath and started pushing up. He clawed his way out the pile of soldiers suppressing him and trudged towards Sune and Liepard like a Tauros blinded by adrenaline.

Liepard placed her paw in the air, which glowed brightly for her Assist. The glow faded as Liepard's maw opened to show it glowing bright blue. Sune opened her maw and generated a fireball that slowly charged up.

"GRAAAAAAH~!" Hugo's audacious shout rung like a bell as he drew closer.

Together, Liepard and Sune jumped into the air and lurched forward. Liepard unleashed a jet of bubbles form her Assist of Prinplup's Bubble Beam. Sune fired a Flame Burst that rocketed right behind it.

Hugo's eyes widened as he was charging head-on into both attacks. The bubbles met him forst, causing him to cover up with his forearms and handle the pummeling suds. The repeated impact gradually slowed him down to where he was unale to advance. This allowed the fireball to sear through the field of bubbles directly into Hugo. The Pangoro only caught a burning gleam before he was swallowed in a broiling flame.

BOOOOM!

A mist flourished in place of the roaring Pangoro, spouting embers everywhere. Sune especially watched as the field dispersed, awaiting to see Hugo emerge from it. The Pangoro was upright and looked dazed. He had a stained expression of pure disgust before he ultimately fell backwards with a thud so loud it shook the ground.

He laid on the pavement, his eyes brimming swirls with his leaf falling out of his mouth.

"Hell yeah! That's what I'm talking about!" Cana cheered, balling her fist.

"Nice going, girls!" Prinplup smirked.

Sune panted as she tried catching her breath. That last attack she used had all her adrenaline in it. As she was calming down, she felt unbalanced and almost fell over. Before she did, a scythe-like tail anchored her side for her to lean on. She looked up to see her aid. "…Liepard?"

Liepard passively grinned. "Got that out of your system?"

Sune sheepishly smiled. "Heh…sure did." She sighed. "I'm gonna feel a lot of things come tomorrow."

"That's so awesome." Lucy awed at the scene before realizing there was still one other problem to be fixed. "Natsu!"

"I'm fine, don't worry about it!" Natsu assured, glaring down the Vivillon that opposed him. "I know how to handle this now."

The Vivillon was floating above the soldiers, completely unaffected by the dangers they imposed below. She spread her wings and expelled more Powder that sprinkled over Natsu. However, unlike before, the Dragon Slayer didn't make any moves to ignite even a single spark.

"Sorry pal, not this time." He taunted. "I've got other tricks than just fire, you know."

The Vivillon didn't understand what he meant by that until a red blur swung into her stomach. She was taken by complete surprise when Charmeleon's Aerial Ace struck in the form of a tail swing that sent her to towards the ground.

Right below, Tyrunt and Darumaka looked at each other and nodded simultaneously. They jumped up to meet the Scale Pokémon in midair with a Bite and Headbutt respectively. Their attacks snapped and struck her harshly, causing her to gag before being blown back skywards in a loud shriek.

The three Pokémon watched as the Vivillon plummeted and crashed in front of them on her back with a thud, her eyes filled with swirls to indicate that she was knocked out.

"…like three Pokémon who have other means than fire!" Natsu beamed.

Charmeleon, Darumaka, and Tyrunt turned to each other and held up their arms to do a group high-fived. "Yeah!"

"Wow, that's so amazing!" Wendy awed brightly.

"Looks like all that experience finally gotten into his head for once." Carla chimed.

"Yeah, sure looks like it, doesn't it?" Wendy's cheerful note was cut off when she was suddenly picked up by an ethereal soldier bridal style. "Woooaah! Hey! What are you doing?!" she cried out.

"Wendy?!" Carla was taken back, but she was suddenly scooped up by a solider as well. "The nerve!"

As the two were carried off, Amaura, Swablu, and Dratini looked stunned before they were all taken in by the soldiers and ran in a direction. Many other soldiers trudged along in tow, including ones that picked up Natsu, Lucy, and Cana's teams as well.

"Hey you jerk! Put me down!" Natsu thrashed in the grip of the soldier.

"Hey, wait! Where are you taking us?!" Lucy quipped.

"Looks like they're carrying us off somewhere out of here." Cana figured, feeling more relaxed since they were no threat. "Guess we used up too much of our own magic to keep going."

"I guess so, but…" Unlike the others who were carried bridal style, Lucy was hauled over the shoulder, allowing her skirt to be flowing in the breeze. "This is absolutely uncomfortable! Why do I have to be carried like this?!"

Grovyle scoffed as he watched them all being taken away. "Heh, guess might as well follow." He turned and leaped into the air. He landed on a soldier's shoulder, using it as a perch. "Is it cool if I tag along?"

"Grroooooh…" The ethereal being groaned as it trudged behind Lucy and the others' entourage through the crowded streets.


Quinlan's eyes were wide as his pupils were smaller than what they normally were. Any sense of his usual composure was swept away along with the citizens that tried to fight the invasion of turquoise, only to be flattened and beaten down.

He couldn't believe it, even if he was seeing it with his own eyes. He was only witnessing the brink of victory over the humans and Pokémon that invaded their safe haven, their society that they perfected. One moment, it was expected, then the next a golden palace shot up from the earth and spatted out another army that completely took over the province in a matter of minutes. The streets were flooded in turquoise-colored soldiers in numbers that could exceed thousands. The fact that even the likes of the resident Fighting-types and even Chief Hugo himself were unable to suppress such numbers proved how untimely this disaster was for them.

Even he did not see this coming. And that made it all the more horrifying.

It was painfully obvious by now. Quinlan, the underlying head of this faltering revolution – was genuinely surprised.

Even though he was at a loss for words, he knew that he couldn't deny the obvious facts laid out before him. "…I expected some form of turnaround, but even so…I never anticipated one like this."

With his hands behind his back, he tensed them tightly. He could feel his genuine worries starting to show. Thankfully, he was the only one in the room so no one to bear witness to such a sight. The expectations he had previously were no more. The advantage that he and his Apostles had over the human populace had been turned against them.

If he didn't do something, he knew that it would only be a matter of time before his palace would be overrun.

'It's not the end.' He thought to himself. 'This is nothing more than a minor setback. As long as Aphrodite is able to fortify the Human Cube Factory, it will remain untouched. As for my own means of fortification, the province is directly below, and the cliffs are heavily steep. That will at least keep the palace out of harm for now. But for this army…'

He glazed over the entire province, noticing the turquoise beacon in the form of a staff held by a certain blonde-haired teenager with large golden earrings. He was carried by an entourage of soldiers as he shot a barrier forward, crashing into numerous Pokémon and manipulated mages. Even after the barrier passed by, the swarm of soldiers rendered them unable to fight back.

"Go, my people! Let's mow this society down!" Joey ordered, pointing his scepter forward. "Onwards!"

The multitude of eyes flashed turquoise and let out synchronized groans. They picked up the pace and stampeded into the fray.

Quinlan observed from the safety of his palace balcony, the door remaining shut. He knew what he had to do to sustain any means of control over the situation again. He walked over to the Communication Lacrima that sat on the pedestal and waited for it to glow.

"Dahab, are you there?"

"Cof! What is it?! I'm kinda busy here!" He heard Dahab yell on the other side of the connection.

"I see…then relay this to the remaining Apostles currently out in the field. The soldiers invading appear to be following a human boy wielding a special scepter. Make sure that under any circumstances, he is detained…be it dead or alive."

"Understood."

"Good hunting." Quinlan cut off the communication and turned back towards the streets, his eyes specifically on Joey. "I shall admit, I was expecting Nic to try and pull something. Never would I have guessed that someone like you would take that privilege. Consider it an honor." He praised Joey from afar. "But rest assured…your reign in this new society shall end quickly."


The army was taking on the remaining Pokémon all around. The few groups that were trying to ban together to hold them off were gradually being snuffed out. The waves of numbers and their own stamina being finite made it clear who was at the disadvantage in this fight.

Joey stood atop soldiers that were stacked atop each other, similar to a ladder. He used the heightened position to get a better ventage point of the layout and seeing his soldiers cover more ground.

Dereece used his magic to run through the air, quickly catching up to Joey's side. He panted as he was catching his breath. "CJ-er, sorry, KJ. Looks like all the corners are being routed just like you intended. I just saw Natsu and a couple others being taken away off to somewhere by your soldiers."

Joey nodded. "Yeah, just what I wanted. If everything's going the way it should, the entire province's brainwashed occupants should be out of the picture in minutes."

"That may be, but we still got that king up in his tower." Dereece reminded.

Duncan closed his eyes, scoffing. "Relax, I think I saw him riding his Charizard in that direction. That covers about every angle as far as I see it."

Trubbish let out a loud belch, smiling jovially with hands up.

"That's right girl. Won't be long now! And hey, there still might be time for a victory dance party after this-!" Before he could finish, however, he was quick to pick up on a beam of bubbles at him from the distance. With a gasp, he jumped off his standpost of a soldier and evaded the attack.

"Captain!" Dereece panicked, before a silhouette appeared behind him in midair. Before he could react, a pair of claws snagged his shirt and threw him through the air across the buildings. "Aaaaaaaaah!"

Duncan, saw him teammates get swept up in the two attacks. He brandished his Elfen Forja and braced himself. He heard an uncomfortable buzzing from above that sounded relatively close. His eyes darted up into the sky, and he saw the shadow of a large Vikavolt passing beneath the sun.

Taking a sharp turn to glare down at the lone human, Zeus met eyes with the Fairy Tail Mage, a low hum vibrating as he bared his huge pincers at him.

"Hmph, I was looking forward to a challenge to help me level up." Duncan scoffed, baring his weapon. "Suppose you'll suffice."

Joey descended back to the streets below, making a barrier into the shape of a ramp to slide down. Once he made it to the bottom, he dispersed the barrier as Trubbish waddled her way to meet up with him.

"I'm okay, girl." He assured, his glare turning forward. "But looks like we've got company."

A pair of green mittens clapped in rhythm as a body pivoted atop of an adjacent roof. Under the sun's radiance, a silhouette moved about with rhythm and a quick shake before adjusting what looked like a sombrero shade. The figure took a leap and flipped through the air over Joey and Trubbish. The two turned and watched the attacker land on a hand and perform a spiraling leg dance using his hands as a base.

"Hooooooooo-YEAH!" Doing a quick jump, the attacker adjusted upright and stood on his two feet. It was none other than Groove the Ludicolo who offered a broad smile. "Aye now, that's what I call an entrance with style!"

Any sense of amusement Joey had before had been suppressed with a serious look of offense. "I remember you."

"Aye, gotta say man, you've definitely know how to make a funky entrance. I'm liking your rhythm." Groove praised nonchalantly. "But you know, humans keeping the pace around here…" His own eyes looked serious beneath his reservoir top. "Just ain't our style."

Joey clutched his scepter tightly. Trubbish belched as she glared readily at the Ludicolo opposing them.

In another part of the province, there was a small stretch of field on the western outskirts. The view was nothing but hillsides covered in bright green grass that smoothly flowed with the oceanic breeze brought in from the cliffs that sat a farther westward.

Here, Dereece's audible cries got louder as he came closer to this vicinity. He saw that he was about to hit the grass and pressed his hands and heels forward. His magic caught him a coupe feet off the ground at an angle and gave him a moment to recuperate.

"Oooiiii…that knocked the wind out of me." He felt his vision return to normal as his sense of balance realigned. He deactivated his magic and looked around, seeing that he was nowhere near his teammates. He found himself isolated along the hills and frowned heavily. "Joey? King Joey~? Duncan?"

No response.

He felt an uneasiness arise inside his stomach. He was glad it was empty, otherwise he would have felt vertigo ages ago. "I'm getting a bad feeling about this…"

THUD!

A large and heavy figment slammed its hooved foot into the ground behind Dereece. He immediately cringed and felt the urge to choke. Slowly, he turned around and felt his eyes gradually going up to meet a set of gray cross-patterned eyes that beamed intense daggers at him.

His shoulders slumped. "Oh no…"

Adamantine growled lowly at his opponent. And if Dereece's experience has taught him anything, it was this: He was not getting out of this.

With everyone who was fighting before regrouping thanks to Joey's efforts, the battlefield that was the province was quickly swept clean. However, that didn't mean the battle was over. No, far from it.

For The Freaks at least, their fight has only just begun.


Hope you all enjoyed this update! With the holidays finally over, I was able to drill through this in less than 10 days. And as a bonus, I managed to suppress the content under 20K, so the read shouldn't be that extensive. But in turn, I made a bunch of cliffhangers and twists to leave you on the edge of your seats!

Please feel free to favorite and review to let me know how you thought the chapter went. Really appreciate the feedback. Thank you for reading!