Heh heh...in fairness, I did warn you.
Next chapter will be the finale of the Invasion Arc. Shocking, right? It feels like this arc has been going on forever.
I'll try and get the next chapter out to you all in a week. No promises, but I feel good about this one.
Wind howled around Medicham, shrieking in her ears. She felt a strange weightlessness coming over her, as if she were standing on something that didn't exist. The last thing she remembered was being swallowed by darkness in the heart of Yggdrasil; she was almost afraid to open her eyes, fearing what she would see upon doing so.
But she knew she had to eventually, and so Medicham slowly raised her eyelids, watching as the world came into view around her.
Though perhaps 'world' may not have been an apt description.
She, Seeker-Of-Endings, and Dark Matter were all standing as they had been before, Dark Matter in the center, Medicham and Seeker-Of-Endings side by side. But instead of the inside of Yggdrasil, what surrounded them was a seemingly endless expanse of space, indigo and dotted with faint stars. Medicham wouldn't even have known where to stand had it not been for the floor spread out all around the three of them; an interwoven lattice of blue-and-purple strands of light. Timelines, Medicham realized; the floor was made entirely of timelines, and as Medicham looked down, she saw many of them were growing dimmer, pieces of the strands blackening and flaking off.
Clearly, Seeker-Of-Endings noticed it too, for his voice shook as he spoke up. "He's already started," said the Herald. "I don't know how much damage he's already done to the timelines, but if he finishes, no more Yggdrasil."
"And no more reality," Medicham finished, her own voice sounding hollow. Darkrai said we could fight this…but against a force that could devour reality itself, what chance do we have?
Dark Matter chuckled. "tHis feElS sTraNGelY faMiliAR," the creature snarled. "liKE soMetHiNg i HAve ExPeriEnceD bEFoRe. aNd yET caNnOt rECalL."
Medicham drew upon her Aura reserves. If we're operating on a time limit, there's no sense in talking. "Pure Power: Aura Blast Barrage!" she cried, throwing her hands out towards the spherical form of Dark Matter.
But as the flurry of Aura Spheres left her palms, Dark Matter's form erupted in a shroud of darkness. To Medicham's dismay, the blasts were snuffed out as soon as they touched the shroud, leaving no visible impact on Dark Matter's form. With a low, many-voiced growl, Dark Matter unleashed a blistering beam of darkness straight at Medicham in retaliation; Detect allowed her to barely avoid it as it whistled past her face, and as Medicham watched it disappeared into the empty space surrounding the multicolored arena, leaving no trace of its existence behind.
Seeker-Of-Endings had already lunged forwards, horn-blade ablaze with Dark energy. Another snarl escaped Dark Matter; an ink-black arm lashed out from its body, swatting at the incoming Seeker-Of-Endings; the Absol was quick to dodge, also tapping into Detect to do so, and with a snarl of his own he lunged horn-first, aiming to pierce Dark Matter's skin. Medicham leaped forwards as well, hoping that even if Seeker-Of-Endings' attack failed, Dark Matter would be distracted enough for Medicham to land a blow.
Then Dark Matter roared. A wave of force blasted out from the creature's form, arresting both Medicham and Seeker-Of-Endings' charges and sending them flying backwards. Both hit and bounced off a wall that didn't seem like it should have been there, and both landed on all fours, Medicham rising to her feet as Seeker-Of-Endings crouched downwards, snarling.
"fOolS," Dark Matter growled. "yOu hAVE noT evEN sEen ThE liMiTs tO MY pOweR. iN hERe, tHe cenTeR oF SPacE-tIMe itSElf, i cAN aCcESs aLl reALitIEs, AlL tiMELinEs. I cAn rEAcH in AnD gRAsP WhatEVeR i DeSiRE. ObSErVe."
Another inky tendril reached out from Dark Matter, jabbing downwards into one of the many darkening strands making up the floor of the room. The tendril recoiled, and Medicham saw it dragging a Pokemon, a savage-looking Granbull, teeth gnashing and eyes bloodshot as it struggled.
Dark Matter flung the Granbull to the ground; the bipedal Fairy-type, spotting two Pokemon standing before it, roared in challenge, a feral bellow that left no doubt as to its intentions. Medicham gulped; any hope of victory she'd had was disappearing rapidly. If he can just summon Pokemon from other timelines as much as he wants, how are we supposed to even fight him?
Seeker-Of-Endings looked nervous as well, but with a grunt he split into half a dozen copies, all of them shimmering in the light of the timeline-formed floor. Medicham, swallowing her fear, readied herself as well. No way am I just going to stand back and let this thing erase all reality. If we're going down, let's go down fighting.
The Granbull lunged, and Medicham and Seeker-Of-Endings rose to meet it, while all around them Dark Matter's laughter echoed off the nonexistent walls of the center of space-time.
"Spacial Rend!"
The Aberration slashed outwards with both hands, reaving twin cracks across the sky, both curving inwards towards Darkrai's form. Summoning one of the few still-intact clouds to him, Darkrai split it into a pair of white blades and slashed in a similar manner, intercepting the Spacial Rend before it could strike him. Swiftly, Darkrai brought the two cloud-blades together in front of him, formed them into a spear, and launched it at the Aberration, following in its wake with one arm drawn back. As expected, the Aberration cleaved it in two with another Spacial Rend, allowing both halves to fly past him on either side.
But the Aberration had been expecting Darkrai to, as he had for the entirety of the fight up until this point, stay at range and continue warping aspects the Dream World to do the fighting for him. The Aberration certainly wasn't expecting Darkrai to land a punch directly to his face.
The Aberration snarled in pain, staggering backwards from the unexpected blow. Reaching out, Darkrai grasped the Aberration around the throat. "Let's take this somewhere else, shall we?" Darkrai queried; twisting, he launched himself downwards, carrying the Aberration before him as he did so.
With a roar, the Aberration unleashed a point-blank Dark Pulse into Darkrai's body. Pain washed over Darkrai, but he grimaced and kept hold as he neared the ground. The Aberration growled in agony as Darkrai slammed him into the earth, and still continued on, shattering the ground underneath both of them as he carried the Aberration down further and further.
Earth gave way to, impossibly, sky, and the battling duo burst through a bank of clouds to see a large rocky valley laid out before them. With a shout, Darkrai flung the Aberration downwards; the Aberration plunged to the ground, landing with a large plume of smoke and dust.
Another grunt of exertion left Darkrai's throat as he spread his hands wide, taking control over the surrounding cliffs. At his will, a large section from both cliffs began to rise up, shedding stray rocks as they converged towards Darkrai. Twisting his hands, Darkrai willed the cliffs to dissolve into a thousand component boulders, then flung them at the spot where the Aberration had landed.
"Spacial Rend!"
Unfortunately, the Aberration had already recovered; the boulders were ripped from the sky as a wave of Eterna blasted out from the plume of dust, and as Darkrai glanced around he saw them reappear above him. Darkrai plunged downwards, allowing the displaced boulders and stray Eterna to strike one another, obliterating them both. As he dropped, he raised his hands, but the Aberration was quick on his feet; he launched himself upwards, trailing Oblivion behind him, as underneath him a flurry of earthen spears rose up from the ground.
The Aberration flung a Dark Pulse at Darkrai, a wave of Oblivion that cleaved through the still-standing cliffs as it flew. Darkrai raised a barrier of earth to defend itself, allowing it to take the Dark Pulse, then shattered the remnants and threw them at the Aberration. The Aberration once more used Spacial Rend, tearing the boulders out of the sky, but it brought Darkrai a few precious moments. Raising his hands once more, he willed the Dream World's locales to shift; what was once a valley sprouted a ceiling, and the stones and earth turned a translucent blue as ice covered the entirety of the area. In seconds, the glistening blue expanse of the Icy Cave had formed around them.
Darkrai lunged backwards, willing the ice to conform to his body as he did so; even as he sank into the wall of the Icy Cave, he called upon the entire area to collapse in on the Aberration. Rock and ice ground against one another as the Icy Cave obeyed; the Aberration's snarl was drowned in the titanic noise. Darkrai phased out of the wall and into an endless expanse of blue, cloudless sky; all that remained of the Icy Cave was a sphere of mingled gray and blue that grew smaller and smaller with each passing moment.
"Spacial Rend!"
The entire stony sphere contracted abruptly as if it were being sucked into a black hole; the Aberration's inky black body was revealed in the center as the entirety of what had once been the Icy Cave disappeared into the swirling circle in the center of his form. Eterna blazed around his body as he rose, the pseudo-black hole in his body fading, his eyes narrowed to slits.
Now they were both floating in emptiness. Darkrai grimaced, realizing he'd deprived himself of weapons. Doesn't matter - in here, I can just call upon some new ones. He waved his hand, summoning the Spooky Manor to the area. This will have plenty of weaponry-
"Roar Of Time!"
Eterna exploded out of the Aberration's body, and in the blink of an eye the creature was floating right in front of Darkrai, hand held out, palm nearly touching Darkrai's face. Another point-blank Dark Pulse slammed into Darkrai, sending him flying backwards, the Spooky Manor fading from his mind as he was tossed through the empty blue sky.
"Spacial Rend!" the Aberration bellowed, and before he could react, Darkrai's body shattered into a million pieces, slowly drifting apart like shards of a broken mirror as, through his detached eyes, Darkrai watched the Aberration slowly float towards him.
"Did you truly think your Disable would last forever?" the Aberration gloated. "It wore off the instant you teleported me out to fight Cresselia. I was just waiting for the right moment so that you couldn't use it again. Now let's see-"
The Aberration was cut off by the facade of the Spooky Manor slamming into him from behind, sending him flying straight through the scattered pieces of Darkrai. At once, Darkrai pulled himself back together and flew through one of the oncoming Spooky Manor's glass windows. Glass shattered around him; Darkrai didn't bother to look behind him, simply flinging the shards downwards in the direction of where the Aberration had fallen.
A loud roar indicated the Aberration was nowhere near out of it. "Spacial Rend!" A blast of Eterna discorporated one of the manor's interior walls; the manor was still falling, turned sideways as it plunged; the floor and ceiling were the walls, the walls were the floor and ceiling, and as Darkrai rose upwards he slammed through several of the manor's doors, throwing them, as well as a couple chairs and a large table, downwards as well.
The wall exploded below him; Darkrai twisted in time to see the Aberration, eyes glowing bright red as he lunged upwards through the corridors of the plummeting manor, completely ignoring the furniture that collided with him. "PRETENDER!" the Aberration shrieked furiously. "DIE!"
Darkrai spread his hands and clapped them together, collapsing the corridor around the Aberration. A second later the Aberration exploded out of it, sending wood and stonework flying as he lunged upwards. His hand reached out and grasped Darkrai's throat; turning, the Aberration slammed Darkrai into the descending wall of the manor. A Quick Attack flared across the Aberration's body, and with a grunt he hurled himself further upwards, dragging Darkrai up the wall with him.
"Your cheap tricks can't save you now!" the Aberration roared, still holding Darkrai tightly as Darkrai's body carved a furrow in the descending wall of the manor. "No matter how hard you fight, no matter how many ploys you utilize, nothing will change the fact that I'm stronger than you!"
"Just like…" Darkrai grunted, "nothing will change…the fact that you talk too much!"
Reaching up, Darkrai grasped a large wooden grandfather clock and yanked it straight into the Aberration's face. Howling, the Aberration let go, and Darkrai at once lunged downwards and landed another punch to the Aberration. The Aberration bounced off the wall and fell downwards, bellowing in pain; raising his hands, Darkrai grasped the flickering flames emanating from the multiple candles dotting the walls of the room, willed the fire to expand, and sent a blazing torrent plunging down after the Aberration.
Not pausing to see the result, Darkrai twisted in time to see another glass window coming at him. Darkrai dove through, emerging back into the open empty sky. Panting, Darkrai turned to watch as the Spooky Manor fell further and further downwards, carrying the Aberration within its walls.
Darkrai cast out his senses, sending them across the Dream World, noticing with a sinking heart that Dark Matter still remained atop Yggdrasil. Darkrai sighed. I can't win this fight, he thought to himself. The Aberration is correct - at the end of the day, he's had me on the ropes twice in the past minute alone. His anger is overriding his judgment, but eventually, his greater power will carry the day no matter how many openings he gives me, especially with Roar of Time back in his toolkit.
But if I can hold him off long enough…
Below him, the Spooky House was ripped in half lengthwise by another Spacial Rend; the two halves separated as they fell, and through the newly created gap the Aberration flew, hurling himself up at Darkrai practically radiating fury.
Darkrai sighed and clenched his fists. A few more minutes, he thought. Just a few more minutes…
Aether Paradise was in ruins. Volcanion had long since left, leaving the unconscious form of Blacephalon on the ground behind him. Starmie had not seen what happened to Blacephalon - likely the Aether personnel had already secured him in a Pokeball. He hoped they'd used something better than a standard Pokeball - such things were in no way fit for containing Legendaries.
But that accounting would have to wait. Right now, Starmie was locked in combat against the female Team Rocket member's Alakazam, both of them exchanging exertions of Mind with enough speed and force to crack the stones around them. Nearby, Blastoise, his sturdiness the only reason he hadn't fallen, was battling the Team Rocket member's Exeggutor, who had proven itself surprisingly adept in physical combat, hand-to-hand.
The rest of their Pokemon had long since been recalled. The Team Rocket member's Houndoom had been strong, but against a Water-type Gym Leader like Misty, a Fire-type could only last so long no matter how well-trained it was. Her Lapras had fallen to a barrage of Aura Spheres from Blastoise, overwhelmed by the large Water-type's sheer firepower, her Sableye had been soaked by Politoed, and her Gardevoir had also been overcome by Politoed, the Water-type making use of Perish Song to defeat the strong opponent even on her last legs.
But the Exeggutor had felled Gyarados, using its Harvest Ability to sprout plants from the ground to entrap and harry the Water/Flying-type while it whittled away with Psychic moves. The Gardevoir had defeated Golduck, proving to be superior in Psychic capabilities, before Politoed had stepped in to bring her down. Politoed herself had collapsed after her Perish Song, finally overcome by the Sableye's Toxic that it had landed on her in the closing stages of their battle. And Seaking had gone down with the Houndoom, the two knocking each other out with a Megahorn and Solar Beam respectively.
Throughout it all, Starmie had faced the Alakazam; both were sagging, exhaustion threatening to bring them down, each successful hit seeming to hurt twice as much as it had at the beginning of the fight. Even now, Starmie was barely paying attention to the fight between Blastoise and Exeggutor as he parried a barrage of Shadow Balls with a swift shield of Torrent, one which was at once stove inwards by a blast of Mind from the Alakazam, and would have collapsed in on Starmie had he not reinforced it with his own reserves of Mind and tossed a Power Gem at the Alakazam to distract it.
Starmie watched as the Alakazam raised one spoon. "Grass Missile." A blast of Overgrow shot out, cleaving through the Power Gem and flying off into the air; with his other spoon, the Alakazam tossed another wave of Mind at Starmie. "Mind Gem," Starmie intoned; the two opposing bursts of Mind met in the center of their arena, colliding with such force that the floor of the room cracked beneath the point of impact.
Starmie had known from the beginning that this would not be an easy battle. But he had not imagined Misty's team would lose. This Rocket has to be Executive-level…or worse, maybe even their leader from another universe. One thing was for certain: this Alakazam's power level was equal to Starmie's own, something that did not sit well with the Water/Psychic-type.
"Alakazam, Teleport!" the Rocket member cried; in a display Starmie had seen several times in this fight, the Alakazam disappeared from view in a flash of Mind, allowing Starmie to triumph in their Psychic duel; Starmie's blast of Mind flew uselessly through the space Alakazam had been occupying as the opposing Psychic-type reappeared right next to him, spoons outstretched. "Ghost Missile."
"Starmie, Rapid Spin!" Misty called; her throat was hoarse from shouting orders, and she sounded just as tired as her Pokemon. Starmie dove backwards, spinning as he did so; a Shadow Ball flew overhead as Starmie did so, and he swiftly fired off a Signal Beam in response. In the beginning of the fight, such an attack would easily have been avoided; now, the tired Alakazam wasn't fast enough to fully avoid it, and it grunted in pain as the Bug-type attack clipped its side.
Starmie rose, breathing heavily, as Alakazam reflexively teleported, reappearing back by the female Rocket member's side. A cry of pain arose from Starmie's right, and he turned in time to see Blastoise drive an Ice Punch into the Exeggutor's gut. The Exeggutor staggered, and Blastoise, with a snarl of "Murk Cannon!" unleashed a Dark Pulse straight into the Exeggutor's reeling body. The Exeggutor's scream of pain trailed off as it fell; the Rocket member recalled it before it struck the ground, and Blastoise fell to all fours, panting as tiredness struck him like a hammer.
"Just one more and we're done," Misty encouraged.
Groaning, Blastoise rose, glaring alongside Starmie at Alakazam. The female Team Rocket member chuckled. "Oh, how naive you are," she said. "You think just because I have one Pokemon remaining and you have two, that you've already won? Please."
"And what makes you think otherwise?" Misty asked.
The Rocket member grinned. "Because you don't have this," she said, raising a hand to one of the golden bracelets adorning her wrists. She tapped it, and a small encasing opened up, revealing a glittering stone within. "Alakazam, show them your Mega Evolution."
Starmie's heart dropped in an instant. Mega Evolution? Misty had always desired access to Mega Stones - Gyarados and Blastoise both were capable of the phenomenon - but Hoenn and Kalos had always kept them close, not wanting such capabilities to leave their borders, mainly for the sake of preventing criminals from getting their hands on the notoriously powerful items. Apparently, this had not been the case in whatever world this Rocket member hailed from.
"Stop her!" Misty cried. Starmie and Blastoise reacted instantly; a Signal Beam and a Dark Pulse blasted out towards Alakazam as it raised its spoons to the sky.
But it was too late. Alakazam's voice burst forth, echoing in everyone's minds. "I call upon the power of Mega Evolution."
Energy erupted from Alakazam's form, ripping apart the Dark Pulse and Signal Beam in midair, and from the eruption emerged the floating form of a Mega Alakazam, its five spoons spinning around itself as its new white beard flowed in every direction and the red stone on its head shone with light.
"End it," the Rocket member ordered.
"Mind Landmine." Mega Alakazam's voice radiated outwards with enough force that Starmie felt his mind shake.
"Together!" Blastoise roared. "Torrent: Dual Hydro Cannon!"
Starmie's gem glowed with power as twin massive blasts of Torrent erupted from Blastoise's two shoulder-cannons. "Gem Empowerment," he intoned. "Meteor Beam."
A blistering beam of mingled Mind and Ancient shot out from the center of Starmie's gem, joining Blastoise's twin blasts as all three soared towards Mega Alakazam. Mega Alakazam's spoons surged forwards in response, each glowing with Mind; lines shot out from each of them, forming a five-pointed star of Mind that blossomed into a purple glowing star-shaped barrier.
The trio of powerful beams slammed into the barrier. Initially, the barrier held, but not even such a powerful defense could hold against two attacks of such strength. Cracks began to form, hairline at first, then more visible, a spiderweb of fractures rupturing the barrier. A few more seconds, Starmie thought, just a few more seconds and we're-
And then the world exploded in an all-consuming blast of Mind, and Starmie knew no more.
Betrayer-Of-Kin stepped out of the shadows of Oblivion and into the shadows of Aether Paradise. It had been a fairly long walk, though not as tedious as the last one; by now, the majority of the fighting had died down, meaning fewer beings to avoid the gaze of.
As Betrayer-Of-Kin reappeared, she instantly heard the sounds of battle. Quickly flattening herself against the wall, the Absol crept forwards until she reached a corner she could peer around.
What she beheld was one of the Pokemon sanctuaries of Aether Paradise. The place looked like a wildfire and a tornado had torn through it at the same time; vegetation was uprooted, walkways were collapsed, pieces of the roof had fallen to the floor, and everything was badly burnt. Off to the side of the room, though, Betrayer-Of-Kin could see a Mega Alakazam - Sierra's Mega Alakazam - holding off a barrage of beams from a Starmie and Blastoise. A figure instantly recognizable as Kanto's Water-type Gym Leader, Misty, was standing behind the Blastoise and Starmie, looking quite nervous even if she was trying to hide it. It seemed as if Blastoise and Starmie were winning the clash; even from this distance, Betrayer-Of-Kin could see Mega Alakazam's barrier fracturing, the two enemy Pokemon's combined power too much even for it.
And then the floor around Starmie and Blastoise exploded in a titanic blast of Mind.
Future Sight…not bad, Betrayer-Of-Kin mused to herself. So Sierra has enough power to overcome a Gym Leader fighting at full strength, but considering Mega Alakazam's the only one out, just barely. That is good to know.
Indeed, as the energy dissipated, Betrayer-Of-Kin saw Starmie and Blastoise sprawled out on the ground, unconscious. Misty could no longer hide her fear; even as she recalled Blastoise and Starmie, she took a step backwards, clearly well aware she was now defenseless.
"I won't let you take my Pokemon," she said. Her voice trembled slightly, but defiance filled her tone, and despite her obvious fear she clenched her fists, ready to go down fighting if that was necessary.
Sierra smiled and shook her head. "I'm not here for your Pokemon," she said. "I just need you out of my way."
In a flash, Mega Alakazam unleashed a swift pulse of Mind. Misty's eyes rolled back in her head and she fell to the ground, knocked unconscious. Sierra raised her arm, upon which sat her Mega Stone embedded in her golden bracelet. "Good work, Alakazam," she said. "Let us reap the spoils."
Her stone glowed, and Mega Alakazam devolved back down to his base form; a second later, he was recalled, and Sierra stood alone. Confident that the battle was over, Betrayer-Of-Kin broke cover, stepping out from behind the half-destroyed wall she now realized she'd been standing behind.
Sierra looked over. "Ah, perfect timing," she said. "I trust your mission went well?"
"Not especially," Betrayer-Of-Kin responded.
Sierra grunted sympathetically. "I suppose, then, it is time for us to leave," she said. "Just as soon as-"
"Executive Sierra!"
Sierra chuckled. "Again, such perfect timing." She turned towards the pair of Rocket Grunts that were rushing up behind her. "What is it?"
"We've secured Blacephalon," said one of the Grunts as both of them skidded to a halt. "Only took a single Beast Ball - Volcanion did all the work." He grinned, showing snaggly teeth. "Ready to depart on your mark."
"Hey, is that Misty?" the other Grunt queried, himself grinning. "You took out a Gym Leader? Damn!"
"Ooh, I call dibs on her Blastoise!" the first Grunt cried. "I've always wanted a Blastoise!"
"Enough!" Sierra ordered. "We will not be stealing any of her Pokemon."
"Why not?" the second Grunt asked. "They're ours for the taking! Easiest theft ever!"
"And have you thought about what happens next?" Sierra asked. "If she wakes up to find her Pokemon gone, she will not rest until she gets them back. And as a Gym Leader, she will have all the resources of Kanto-Johto to draw upon. I have convinced her that I am merely a Team Rocket member from another reality, drawn here by Necrozma. Once she wakes up to find me gone, she will think nothing more of it - at worst, she will alert others of my appearance and team composition, but since Giovanni wishes to lay low anyway, that will be of little consequence."
"Why should I not just kill her?"
All three humans' eyes turned towards Betrayer-Of-Kin. "I'm sorry, what?" one of the Grunts asked.
"Why should I not just kill her?" Betrayer-Of-Kin repeated. "No one saw you two fighting except Aether personnel and your own Grunts, correct?"
Sierra nodded.
"So as far as anyone knows, she and all her Pokemon were caught in the crossfire of the battle between Blacephalon and Volcanion," said Betrayer-Of-Kin. "We set her body on fire to make it more convincing, then dump her in some hole in this room. Leave the Pokemon behind, dead as well, to reinforce that idea. When she's found, no one will suspect foul play - I'm certain the Aether personnel won't ask too many questions, and I doubt we have anything to fear on that front from your Grunts either. So I ask again: why should I not just kill her?"
Both Rocket Grunts were staring at Betrayer-Of-Kin in clear shock, and even Sierra looked slightly unnerved. "I suppose," said Sierra, "there is no reason to leave her alive. If you can set the scene up as you say, I have no reservations."
One of the Grunts looked as if he was going to say something, but Betrayer-Of-Kin turned her head towards him and he stepped back, fear halting his voice. Satisfied, Betrayer-Of-Kin began to walk towards the fallen form of Misty. Normally I would not go after such a high-ranked Trainer, but just like with Marcus, the surrounding chaos should ensure that her death is chalked up to another casualty of the war. And letting her live represents a possible security risk, a risk I would prefer not to take. This shouldn't take long - a few minutes at most.
But even as Betrayer-Of-Kin loomed over Misty, readying to strike the killing blow, an explosion of Mind ripped through the sky above, and Betrayer-Of-Kin's gaze flicked upwards in time to see two battling forms falling towards the ground nearby. One she recognized as the Ultra Beast Nihilego - that thing had been all over the news after its one-creature assault on Aether Paradise - but the other was a mystery to her. It looked almost like a steely Pyroar, its entire body encased in a thick coat of Iron, and it was on top of Nihilego as the two of them fell to the earth.
Nihilego screeched in agony as they hit the ground, its form pinned beneath the earth and the body of its adversary. The definite Steel-type rose, one massive Iron-wreathed paw pressing the writhing Nihilego into the earth.
"I won't bother wasting any more energy on you," the Steel-type growled. "I must save it for the real fight, not exhaust it obliterating one of Necrozma's pawns."
Nihilego chuckled beneath the Steel-type's foot. "YOU CANNOT OVERCOME NECROZMA, SOLGALEO," it snarled. "EVEN WITH YOU AND LUNALA COMBINED, YOU BARELY WON. YOU STAND NO CHANCE ALONE. YOU WILL BE ABSORBED, AND HE WILL BE WHOLE ONCE AGAIN, AND THE FIRST THING HE WILL DO WILL BE TO SMITE ALL YOUR PATHETIC LITTLE FRIENDS FROM THIS WORLD."
"Sunsteel Strike." Solgaleo's voice was a low growl as he raised one paw, flared Iron across it, and slammed it down into Nihilego's form. Nihilego screamed, tentacles waving everywhere, grasping vainly at Solgaleo's body. Solgaleo raised his paw - "Sunsteel Strike." - and slammed it down again. "Sunsteel Strike." SLAM. "Sunsteel Strike!" SLAM. "SUNSTEEL STRIKE!"
The last hit shattered Nihilego's body; the Ultra Beast slumped, broken, its laughter trailing off as it descended into unconsciousness. Solgaleo rose, looking up towards the sky. "Now for you, Necrozma," he growled; with that, he teleported away in a burst of Mind, leaving the fallen Nihilego behind.
As he did so, Betrayer-Of-Kin's ears picked up the sound of running footsteps and shouts. Aether personnel, she realized, coming to check what happened.
She stepped back. "We cannot kill her now," Betrayer-Of-Kin said reluctantly. "Too many unreliable witnesses."
She could have sworn she saw both Grunts look relieved. Sierra nodded. "Very well."
"Should we leave now, Executive Sierra?" one of the Grunts asked.
Sierra's eyes slowly traveled to the fallen Nihilego. "No," she said, "I don't think so. One Ultra Beast would satisfy Giovanni well enough, but two?" Her smile widened. "I think two will please him very much indeed."
"Psychic Strike!"
The Granbull roared as Medicham headbutted him in the teeth, clamping his hands over his mouth as he staggered backwards. "Pure Power: Aura Blast!" Medicham cried, throwing both hands forwards and unleashing a massive Aura Sphere straight into the Granbull's chest. The bipedal Fairy-type collapsed to the ground, no longer moving.
Medicham had no time for relief; another Granbull was already lunging for her side. Medicham dove backwards, aided by Detect, and rolled to her feet as the Granbull twisted towards her. "Pure Power: Aura Wave!" Medicham shouted as she saw yet another Granbull rushing up; both Granbulls were caught by the wave of Aura and sent flying backwards, one almost colliding with the still-present form of Dark Matter.
From this position, Medicham could see Seeker-Of-Endings, his horn-blade slicing across the chest of one of the two Granbulls attacking him. The other one tried to jump at him from behind, but a swift Detect allowed him to evade it, and a flurry of Pursuit rays sent that Granbull staggering backwards.
"mORe," Dark Matter snarled; two more tendrils reached out, plunging into two different timelines, and two more Granbulls were dragged out, snarling hatefully. Dark Matter dropped them both, and they at once began advancing towards Medicham and Seeker-Of-Endings even as the Granbulls the two had knocked down began to rise once more.
Seeker-Of-Endings split into another group of Double Team clones again, all of whom moved in front of Medicham. "Medicham, we can't keep going like this!" he growled. "Every time we bring down one Granbull, that thing just summons two more from alternate timelines!"
"Well, then, we'd better make another plan quick!" Medicham responded, summoning yet more Aura.
"Back!" Seeker-Of-Endings, along with all his doubles, slashed his horn in an arc, trying to keep the advancing line of Granbulls away. Medicham looked down; the light in the room had spent the past few minutes growing steadily dimmer as Dark Matter's influence ate away more and more at the timelines that formed the floor.
One of the braver Granbulls lunged forwards, swiping at one of Seeker-Of-Endings' Double Team clones; the clone dispersed, and the Granbull roared in victory as it rushed Medicham. The others, emboldened by the first one's example, charged as well; Seeker-Of-Endings fired a stinging Pursuit ray from his mouth and the mouth of each of his clones, temporarily halting the charge, but that still left the Granbull lunging at Medicham.
A Detect enabled Medicham to evade as the Granbull, surrounded by Fairy energy, slammed into the wall where she'd just been standing. "Pure Power: Aura Sweep!" Medicham cried, twisting and lashing out with one leg to knock the Granbull off its feet.
But now the other five Granbulls were advancing on Seeker-Of-Endings again; two more Double Team clones were ripped apart, and Seeker-Of-Endings was backing up alongside the last two. "Medicham!" he cried, looking back.
"Down!" Medicham shouted; turning, she crouched and leaped, her muscular legs carrying her up into the air and over Seeker-Of-Endings' head. "Pure Power: Aura Wave!" she cried as she landed; the wave of Aura that blasted out from her sent all five Granbulls facing Seeker-Of-Endings stumbling backwards, two of them falling over and the other three just barely keeping their footing.
Seeker-Of-Endings twisted, keeping his back to Medicham. Medicham looked over her shoulder to see the Granbull she'd knocked down getting back to its feet. Dark Matter chuckled again. "gO aHEaD. rEsiST. AlL yoU aRe dOiNg Is maKinG it MOrE fUn fOR Me. doN'T yOu uNDerSTAnD? i cAn aCCeSs aLl tIMElinEs iN hERe! i coULd pULl A thOUSanD gRAnbULlS fRoM aCrosS aLL of ReAliTY! YoU cAnNot WIn!"
Seeker-Of-Endings murmured something Medicham didn't catch. "What?" she asked.
"I have an idea, Medicham," the Absol said. "Keep them off me."
"Wait, what?" Medicham asked just as all six Granbull charged.
In an instant Medicham cast aside all but thoughts of battle. Seeker-Of-Endings had told her to keep these Granbull off him? She'd do that. "Pure Power: Aura Wave!" she cried again; once more, the five Granbull in front of her stumbled backwards as the wave struck them, though this time they were more prepared, and none of them fell. But the wave had only been to buy a little time. Twisting, Medicham launched herself over Seeker-Of-Endings once more. "Pure Power: Aura Finisher!" she cried; the Granbull coming at Seeker-Of-Endings had no time to react before Medicham's foot slammed into its face, sending it flying backwards into the opposite wall. It slumped to the ground, either stunned or unconscious.
Twisting, Medicham broke into a sprint towards the five remaining Granbull. They charged her in response, loud barks emanating from their jaws. Fairy energy blazed around all their bodies. Medicham cocked her fists as she neared her opponents, watching them closely as they neared.
Closer…closer…
"Bullet Strike!" Two Steel energy-wreathed fists shot forwards, and two of the Granbull reeled backwards. The other three came on; Medicham tapped into Detect, dodging one's teeth as they clamped down inches from her right cheek, then spinning away from the swinging punch of another and maneuvering it into a spinning Aura Sweep to the Granbull's gut. "Bullet Strike!" she cried again; the last Granbull was sent staggering from an uppercut, blood trickling from between his teeth.
The Granbull whose teeth Medicham had dodged grabbed her around the chest from behind, trying to lift her up in a bear-hug. Medicham lashed out with an elbow and caught the Granbull in the side of the face. Its grip loosened, and Medicham twisted in it so that she was facing the Granbull. She raised her arms up and brought them both down on the Granbull's shoulders once, then twice; on the second time the Granbull let go, and Medicham dropped to the ground, hauled back, and landed a Bullet Strike to the Granbull that sent it staggering into the wall behind it.
Medicham crouched, looking around as the five Granbulls glared at her warily. "This would be tougher one-on-one," she growled. "Numbers mean a lot, but only when those numbers have worked together before. Pulled from disparate timelines like this, all they're doing is fouling each other up."
"mAybE," Dark Matter growled; darkness erupted from the floor around Medicham, wrapping around her body like a bubble. Medicham tried to move and found she couldn't, Dark Matter's power holding her in place. "bUT yOu foRGeT…i Am sTilL HerE."
The Granbulls howled as one, seeing their prey immobilized. And immobilized Medicham was, locked in stasis by whatever Dark Matter had done to her. Psychic Blast, she thought, but even drawing on the technique proved impossible, her energies immobilized just as well as her physical body. The Granbulls charged, closing in on Medicham fast enough that she only had time for a silent prayer to Arceus before they hit.
She was borne to the ground; Dark Matter's paralysis had worn off at the exact moment they'd struck, and so she was able to struggle, lashing out with more Bullet Strikes that forced two of the Granbull to let go of her temporarily, but there were too many, and their combined weight kept Medicham prone as they bit and clawed at her. The two Granbull dove back onto Medicham, weighing her down even further; one's teeth were gnashing inches from Medicham's face, and all she could do was try and twist it away, unable to move her arms to shield herself as two more of the Granbull held them down.
Seeker-Of-Endings…now would be a good time for your idea…
And then the Granbull biting at Medicham's face was wrenched upwards in one smooth motion; it had scarcely turned to face its new adversary when a green-colored blade of energy sent it spinning to the ground. Another Granbull was sent to the ground as well by a kick, and then Seeker-Of-Endings appeared in Medicham's view, horn-blade wreathed in Dark energy as he sliced through the shoulder of the Granbull pinning down Medicham's left arm. The Granbull stumbled, releasing Medicham's left arm, and Medicham promptly twisted, sending a Bullet Strike into the side of the Granbull holding down her right arm. That Granbull rose up straight into another flashing green blade, and this time its attacker could be plainly seen as it fell to the ground; a Grovyle, crouched in a battle stance, eyes searching for more adversaries.
The three Granbulls still standing backed up; without their numerical advantage, they seemed a lot less confident. Seeker-Of-Endings and the Grovyle each reached down; Medicham took their respective hands and rose, glaring at the Granbulls.
"wHAt iS tHiS?" Dark Matter snarled.
"I should thank you," Seeker-Of-Endings growled. "I would never have had this idea if it weren't for your constant gloating. See, you kept talking about how, since you were here, you could pluck anyone from any timeline. And that got me thinking…since I was here as well, why couldn't I do the same?"
On Medicham's other side, the Grovyle gave a quiet chuckle. "Yeah, though for us, it was less 'plucking' and more 'asking nicely'."
"uS?" Dark Matter snarled; in that moment, Medicham heard a succession of pulses behind her, and turned to see four other beings emerging from the floor. All were first-stage, unevolved Pokemon; Medicham's first, instinctive reaction was surprise that this was the caliber of the reinforcements Seeker-Of-Endings obtained, and then she remembered that this Grovyle had just brought down three Granbulls in about five seconds and shut her mouth.
"You see," said Seeker-Of-Endings, "in your timeline, your original timeline, the one Necrozma plucked you from, you and the Aberration were both defeated, right? So I figured it might be a good idea to bring in the ones who did that."
"So this is what happened to Dark Matter." The voice belonged to a Froakie walking alongside a Riolu, both of whom were wearing strange black-and-green scarves around their necks. "All I saw was a Darkrai, and then they both were gone…"
"Makes sense that thing would team up with Darkrai," a Totodile growled; Medicham noticed the Grovyle had a half-smile on his face as he eyed the Totodile and the Chimchar standing alongside him. "Fits his vibe pretty well."
"Guess he managed to get to another time and place after all," the Chimchar murmured. "Seeker-Of-...um…whatever, where's Darkrai?"
"Darkrai - our Darkrai - is handling that thing," Seeker-Of-Endings growled. "We will come to his aid once we are done here."
"Fair enough," said the Totodile.
"IdIOtS!" Dark Matter bellowed. "aLl I haVE tO do IS stALl yOU! iN miNUTeS aLl reALiTY wiLl bE DEStRoYEd! yOU aRe BuT cHilDReN, sQuABbLinG fOr a SupREmACy yOU wilL neVeR oBTaIn!"
"Says the embodiment of negativity who's been reduced to someone else's lackey," the Riolu retorted. "All right, let's finish this! Harmony Scarves…"
"…activate!" the Froakie finished; the scarves around the two's necks erupted in light, and when that light had faded a Lucario and a Greninja stood tall, both crouched in readiness.
Grovyle smirked. "Neat trick."
"Let's end this!" Seeker-Of-Endings snarled.
"nEVeR!" Dark Matter roared again; the entire group was thrown backwards by the force emanating from Dark Matter's body, and as they landed, all on their feet, countless tendrils burst out from Dark Matter's form, sank into the ground, and pulled out countless forms of struggling Pokemon, all of whom Dark Matter threw on the ground.
"He's corrupted them," the Lucario growled as the enemy Pokemon rose, hate-filled eyes fixated on the group. "Their only thoughts are hate…hate for us."
"So we've got to get through all of them?" the Chimchar asked. "And we've only got a few minutes to do it before all of reality falls apart?"
"Pretty much," Medicham said, her voice sounding physically and mentally exhausted even to herself.
"Then let's stop talking," Grovyle growled, "and start clearing a path."
"Agreed," Seeker-Of-Endings snarled. "Forwards!"
Medicham, her head still spinning a little from the turn this battle had taken, rushed forwards alongside the rest of them. Seeker-Of-Endings on one side, their five new allies on the other, Medicham leaped straight into the oncoming horde of enemies.
The next minute or two was a blur of fighting. Some of the enemies were regular Pokemon, while others were creatures that didn't look like any Pokemon Medicham had ever seen, or looked like Pokemon but colored differently and wielding different types of energy, or even appeared to be two different Pokemon mashed together to create an entirely new one. Medicham fought them all the same, not stopping to think about who or what these Pokemon were, just concentrating on imbuing each of her blows with as much power as possible. Every once in a while she spotted her allies in the midst of the enemy swarm - Seeker-Of-Endings cutting down two enemies in the blink of an eye, Grovyle tearing apart an entire group of enemies with rapid swings of his bladed arms, Greninja sending a trio of enemies to the ground with swiftly-thrown shurikens while Lucario kept his back clear with swiftly-thrown punches at any enemies that attempted to rush Greninja from behind, and even Chimchar and Totodile driving several enemies back against the wall with twinned blasts of Fire and Water energy, an impressive expenditure of power that did not match their unevolved state - but Medicham's focus was mainly on clearing a path. The swarm was not the true enemy. The true enemy lay beyond - the swarm were merely obstacles.
Eventually, Medicham finally managed to get an opening, throwing the pair of enemies attacking her away. Quickly, she crouched and raised both her arms in front of her. "Pure Power: Aura Beam!" she cried; a blistering beam of Aura blasted outwards, cleaving through the enemy swarm in an instant. Seeker-Of-Endings, Grovyle, Totodile, and Chimchar at once flung themselves into the gap; the non-fully-evolved trio of Starters seemed to be fully in sync as they dove into the leftward group of enemies, sending Pokemon after Pokemon reeling backwards. Medicham rushed to Seeker-Of-Endings' side, and together they pushed the rightward group of enemies backwards as well.
The way to Dark Matter was open, and Greninja and Lucario flung themselves into it. An Aura Sphere and a Hydro Pump flew from the two fully-evolved Pokemon; Dark Matter attempted to raise a tendril in defense, but the twin attacks ripped through it and slammed into Dark Matter's body. Dark Matter staggered, and as Medicham sent some kind of Miltank/Machamp-hybrid stumbling with a punch, she turned to see a newly formed crack in Dark Matter's body, glowing with purple light.
"ENOUGH!" Dark Matter roared; for once, all of the voices that formed his voice spoke in perfect synchronization, all united in sheer hatred. The now-dim room lit up with red light, and Greninja gulped. "Oh, crap…everybody get down!"
Medicham and Seeker-Of-Endings dropped, as did Grovyle, Totodile, and Chimchar; the room around them erupted in a barrage of explosions of darkness, explosions that came so close Medicham could feel the force of them battering her prone body. Screams arose as Dark Matter's own summoned army was obliterated, knocked unconscious or worse in moments. But the massive attack, wildly fired in a fit of rage, had missed its true targets, and Medicham, along with all six of her allies, rose to face Dark Matter once more.
Dark Matter's strangled scream of rage indicated that it had lost any tactical prowess it had once had. Rather than even attempting to summon another wave of corrupted Pokemon, Dark Matter lunged forwards, tendrils flailing wildly as it lashed out at its seven adversaries. Medicham and Seeker-Of-Endings dove backwards, evading one of Dark Matter's tendrils; Lucario stepped in front of Greninja and crossed his arms, taking a blow from another tendril that sent him skidding backwards only a little ways. Two more tendrils came at Totodile, Chimchar, and Grovyle; the two first-stage starters ducked, their small size enabling them to avoid one of the tendrils, while Grovyle lashed out with his twin Leaf Blades, tearing the tendril that came at him clean in half. He didn't see the tendril that had missed Totodile and Chimchar, though; Dark Matter twisted and swung it again, striking Grovyle in the back and sending the Grass-type starter straight into the wall.
A snarl of rage escaped Chimchar as he threw out his hands and unleashed a barrage of flames into Dark Matter's side. Totodile joined him with a similarly large blast of Water energy. Dark Matter growled furiously; darkness burst up from the floor around Chimchar and Totodile, wrapping around them and immobilizing them in the same way Medicham had been.
But in the moment Dark Matter was distracted, Lucario leaped forwards and threw a punch into Dark Matter's side. As Dark Matter staggered, a flurry of Water Shurikens from Greninja embedded themselves into the creature's side. Dark Matter twisted again, releasing another pair of inky tendrils and raising them overhead to slam them down upon Lucario and Greninja, but Medicham, seeing an opportunity, leaped at Dark Matter's exposed right side, where a small purple-glowing crack had been formed courtesy of Chimchar and Totodile's combined attack. "Pure Power: Aura Strike!" she cried, driving an Aura-imbued fist straight into the crack; her fist sank in at least two inches, and Dark Matter howled in agony, its tendrils slamming down to the side of Lucario and Greninja. Seeker-Of-Endings darted in and, with a quick slash of his horn-blade, sliced one of the tentacles in two as Grovyle had done.
"i'Ll riP OuT yOUR sOulS!" Dark Matter screeched; more tendrils shot out of the creature's body at the entire group. Grovyle leaped in from out of nowhere, tackling the still-immobilized Chimchar and Totodile away from the tendrils that shot at them. Medicham and Seeker-Of-Endings both managed to dodge the attack once more, and this time so did Greninja and Lucario; it seemed this attack had been weaker, wilder, more desperate.
In most battles, that would have been heartening. A desperate opponent would cease to attack strategically, and thus be easier to overcome. But throughout the entire battle, even as Dark Matter's shell cracked more and more and its movements became wilder and wilder, Medicham could not ignore the fact that the timelines making up the floor of the room were growing ever darker, to the point where the once-bright room was now only dimly lit, and Medicham could only see the forms of Lucario and Greninja by the light shining from Lucario's Aura.
"We have to finish this now!" Lucario cried. Summoning a pair of Aura Spheres, he threw them at Dark Matter alongside a Hydro Pump from Greninja. Grovyle and Seeker-Of-Endings dashed in on either side, both carving gashes into Dark Matter's writhing form. Totodile and Chimchar launched another combination attack at Dark Matter's body. Medicham hauled back with both fists and unleashed an Aura Strike Barrage, driving a flurry of fists into Dark Matter with all the force she could muster.
"tOo LiTtlE, toO lATe!" Dark Matter let out yet another bellowing roar, and once more all of the creature's attackers were thrown away. Scarcely had they landed when darkness rose up around all of them, entrapping them all at the same time.
What? Was he capable of that all this time?
Medicham strained to move forwards; to her surprise, her body responded, this new imprisonment more like wading through gelatin than actual immobilization. Dark Matter couldn't truly immobilize all of them at the same time, but the creature could slow them down, and with the rapidly draining time limit they were under it was looking increasingly like that would be enough.
Dark Matter was cackling, a thousand voices upraised in hideous laughter. Its body was so riddled with cracks that the purple glow emanating from them was actually lighting up the room far more than the nearly fully-darkened web of timelines. Around the room, all of the Pokemon were straining to move forwards, but just like Medicham, their movement was slowed to a crawl, and even summoning ranged attacks was insanely slow and difficult.
"Medicham! Absol!" Greninja's voice was slow and strained; Medicham slowly swiveled one eye over in time to see Greninja and Lucario holding the two green-and-black scarves they'd been wearing over their heads. "Take…these!" With a strenuous effort, the duo threw the scarves at Medicham and Seeker-Of-Endings; even as they did so, their bodies erupted in light once more as they devolved down to their base forms. Medicham reached out, even that act of movement painfully slow, and grasped the scarf aimed at her out of the air, while Seeker-Of-Endings caught the scarf aimed at him in his teeth.
The instant Medicham touched the scarf, pure unmitigated power rushed into her body like a river bursting its banks; light blasted out from her body as she felt herself changing, her form altering. The last time she'd felt like this was when she'd evolved from Meditite into Medicham, but further evolution was impossible, right?
The realization came to her as she looked over at Seeker-Of-Endings. His fur was far longer and shaggier, covering his body even further, and two great white wings sprouted from his back. Medicham glanced around, realizing that she now had four additional arms floating around her, not even anchored to her body, and yet she knew instinctively that she had full control over them. This isn't evolution, Medicham realized as her eyes met Seeker-Of-Endings. This is Mega Evolution.
And Mega Medicham, with Seeker-Of-Endings by her side, burst forwards, ripping through their dark bindings with a minimal exertion of power.
"wHaT?" Dark Matter actually sounded befuddled a second before Medicham leaped into the air and slammed a Pure Power-boosted Aura Finisher straight into his body. A thwoom echoed throughout the chamber as Dark Matter stumbled backwards; Seeker-Of-Endings reared up and slashed his much bigger horn-blade down Seeker-Of-Endings's side, and from their combined power two more cracks opened in Dark Matter's body.
Medicham landed on the ground. "Pure Power: Aura Strike Barrage!" Medicham cried; all six of her arms, her two regular and her four spiritual, unleashed a rain of Aura-enhanced blows on Dark Matter's body. Dark Matter shrieked as an entire section of its body shattered under Medicham's flying fists, revealing a smaller glowing purple sphere held within. "Seeker!" Medicham cried, not bothering with his full name. "His core!"
"nO!" Dark Matter screeched. Shadows gathered around Dark Matter's body, only visible due to the light emanating from his core, and slammed into Medicham with enough force to send her flying backwards. "i wON't LeT yOU!" Dark Matter sprouted a trio of tendrils and sent them all coiling towards Seeker-Of-Endings.
"Magic Bounce!" Seeker-Of-Endings cried, flaring his wings; to Medicham's shock, some kind of Psychic field blasted out from his body, and Dark Matter's tendrils were sent flying away like they'd been electrically shocked. Two more sprouted from Dark Matter's body, coming at him from the front. "Medicham, hit it now!" Seeker-Of-Endings bellowed, standing strong against the storm of tendrils.
And only now did Medicham realize that in its desperation to destroy Seeker-Of-Endings, Dark Matter had left its core completely unguarded from Medicham.
Swiftly, Medicham raised all six arms in front of her. "Pure Power!" she cried. "Aura Beam!"
The titanic beam that was unleashed from Medicham's six hands blasted through the hastily summoned tendrils that Dark Matter attempted to sprout in defense and slammed into Dark Matter's core. Dark Matter's scream was louder than anything Medicham had ever heard; instinctively, she clapped her hands to her ears, but the sound came through even so. Dark Matter writhed in agony, tentacles and black skin flying every which way as its body was literally flung apart by its death throes, scattering all over the room, only its glowing purple core remaining where its full form once had been.
"yOU caNnOT kiLl Me!" Dark Matter howled. "i aM nEgATiviTY iNcaRnATe! iF yOu KilL me HeRE, i WiLl siMpLy REtuRN aGAin! YoU cANnoT kILl NEgAtIVity!"
"Maybe we can't kill you," Seeker-Of-Endings growled. "But we can stop you. And at this point, I'm willing to take that."
Rearing up, Seeker-Of-Endings slashed downwards, and Dark Matter's core was cleaved in two. The two halves dimmed, then darkened fully as they fell to the ground; a whisper sounded, a whisper that Medicham heard and yet could not make out from where she stood.
But even as Dark Matter's light was extinguished, a new light sprang forth as beneath the occupants of the room, the timelines blazed back to life, their blue-purple light filling the room once more. The space-like walls and ceiling retreated as well, revealing the inside of Yggdrasil, its wooden walls rising high above and the exit in plain sight.
Despite the sheer amount of fighting she'd done, Medicham didn't collapse. In fact, she felt more energized then she had for a while; she could feel Aura flowing through her body, strengthening her and increasing her stamina. Seeker-Of-Endings, too, looked somewhat surprised; Medicham could tell he was feeling the same way.
So this is the power of these 'Harmony Scarves'.
"Um…" Medicham turned to see Riolu and Froakie standing uncomfortably nearby. "You all right?" Riolu asked; it was pretty clear what the two of them wanted to ask, and yet it was also clear neither of them actually wanted to ask that question.
"You can have them back," said Medicham.
"Thanks." Froakie obviously looked relieved. Medicham unclenched one of her fists; she'd forgotten in the heat of the battle she'd been holding the Harmony Scarf in that fist. Seeker-Of-Endings, too, let go of his Harmony Scarf; the instant they did so, both Medicham and Seeker-Of-Endings fell to the ground as a crushing wave of exhaustion washed over the both of them, devolving back into their base forms as they did so.
"Hey," said Grovyle from the side. "Nice work, but we're not done. There's still Darkrai to deal with."
Froakie shook his head as he and Riolu took hold of their Harmony Scarves once more. "These two have done enough. Let them rest."
"Yeah," said Chimchar. "Darkrai's our problem. It's our job to bring him down for good."
"No," Seeker-Of-Endings growled; impossibly, despite the clear tiredness wracking his body, the Absol rose back to his feet. "I brought you into this," he said. "This is my reality. I'm just as responsible for this as any of you."
Summoning every last scrap of energy she could, Medicham managed to push herself to her feet as well. "So am I," she managed.
Grovyle especially looked doubtful, but Totodile stepped forwards before he could say anything. "Then take two of these," said Totodile, reaching behind his back and pulling two of what Medicham instantly recognized as Max Elixirs from…somewhere. "I've only got the two, but they should give you enough stamina to keep fighting."
"Thanks." Medicham allowed Totodile to spray one of the Max Elixirs on her, and Seeker-Of-Endings did the same. At once, Medicham felt the exhaustion surrounding her creep away, and whereas she'd been struggling to avoid falling back down, now she was at least able to stand without staggering.
"Let's finish this," said Grovyle.
"Agreed," Froakie replied, and together the seven Pokemon turned and walked into the tunnel leading to the exit of Yggdrasil side by side.
Medicham found herself in back; as she walked, Seeker-Of-Endings dropped back through the group to walk by her side. "What was that?" he whispered.
"I don't really know what those Harmony Scarves were," Medicham whispered back. "But they let us beat Dark Matter, and that's all that matters."
"Not the Harmony Scarves," said Seeker-Of-Endings. "I mean…what was that form I turned into?"
Medicham stared at Seeker-Of-Endings. "Your Mega form, right?"
"No," said Seeker-Of-Endings. "You turned into your Mega form. But…I couldn't have."
"Why not?" Medicham asked.
"Not all species have Mega forms, Medicham," said Seeker-Of-Endings. "And Absols are one of the many species who don't have them. So that couldn't have been my Mega form, because I don't have one."
"Well, then…" Medicham shrugged. "Maybe it was hypothetical, I don't know. Again, I don't care - all that I care about is we just saved all of reality."
Seeker-Of-Endings chuckled quietly. "Yeah, I guess we did. Now let's hope we can repeat it."
"After this," said Medicham, "I can't help but feel like we can beat anything."
Seeker-Of-Endings nodded, and together the two of them walked after their five allies towards the light at the end of the tunnel.
The light on the other side of which lay one final battle.
Bringer-Of-Visions felt torn.
On one hand, it had become apparent that during her absence from the field in the real world, Marcus had been teleported to Akala Island, and had been targeted once more by Betrayer-Of-Kin. Upon learning this, Bringer-Of-Visions' first instinct had been to teleport there instantly with all available Heralds. But Marcus had survived, a series of miracles enabling his team to force Betrayer-Of-Kin into retreat, and so now Bringer-Of-Visions was torn.
On one hand, it would make sense to teleport to Marcus's location anyway in case Betrayer-Of-Kin came back. On the other, the war in the Dream World was still raging, even if it was dying down. Necrozma's forces had finally ceased to trickle out of the still-opened portals, and their remnants had largely surrendered; only the Void Shadows fought on, but they were proving quite a handful. And the Aberration was nowhere to be seen; that thing had been plunged through the earth by Darkrai minutes ago, and neither of them had been able to be located since.
So Bringer-Of-Visions felt as if she needed to remain here, both to aid with the final defeat of the Void Shadows and to protect her Master if need be. She'd telepathically contacted a few Heralds and told them to head to Akala Island to protect Marcus, but that had been all. Yet even as she stood over the fallen body of a Void Shadow she'd felled, she still felt conflicted. Should I return to the real world? After all, Marcus's protection is the top priority.
No, my top priority is protecting the Master. Damn it, why am I feeling conflicted? I am Bringer-Of-Visions! Conflict should be beyond me!
In that moment, the earth cracked about fifty feet away from Bringer-Of-Visions, and Darkrai's body was flung through, trailing Oblivion as it arced beautifully through the air and came down with a thunderous crash on the ground.
"Master!" Bringer-Of-Visions cried; Darkrai was still stirring, but it was clearly taking effort for him to even rise from where he lay.
"Bringer…" Darkrai's voice echoed in Bringer-Of-Visions' mind. "Do…not…interfere…"
Dark laughter emanated from the newly created hole in the ground as the Aberration floated up through it. The creature's body was marked as well - Darkrai had clearly done some real damage - but unlike Darkrai, the Aberration was standing tall, leaving no doubt as to who the winner of their exchange was. "I will confess," the Aberration growled, "that your resistance has been extremely irritating. But it's over, Pretender. And the best part? None of this has even mattered. Look over there!"
The Aberration pointed; Bringer-Of-Visions turned her gaze upwards to see the dark cloud indicating Dark Matter's presence still hanging over Yggdrasil.
"In moments," said the Aberration, "Dark Matter will consume Yggdrasil, and with it all of reality. Even if you had somehow been able to defeat me, I still would have won. Don't you get it, Pretender? Your resistance was worth nothing. Nothing! And now, you will spend your last moments watching as everything you fought for disappears forever!"
The Aberration launched into another bout of echoing laughter. Bringer-Of-Visions crouched, readying her strongest attack. No matter what her Master said, she would protect him. She would not stand back and let the Aberration win. Even if the creature's victory truly was assured, she would fight to the end.
But even as she prepared to launch herself at the Aberration, Bringer-Of-Visions realized that the creature's laughter was trailing off.
Its eyes were focused on the base of Yggdrasil; once more Bringer-Of-Visions turned, and this time it was all she could do to keep shock off her face. Standing in front of the entrance to Yggdrasil were seven Pokemon. On one side stood a Grovyle, a Totodile, and a Chimchar; on the other, a Riolu, a Froakie, and Seeker-Of-Endings. And in the center stood none other than Spirit. All seven looked wounded, but angry, their eyes fixed on the Aberration, and a challenge in each of their gazes.
The Grovyle, Totodile, and Chimchar looked especially furious, and it was them that the Aberration's eyes were fixed on. "Y…you?" For the first time Bringer-Of-Visions had heard, the Aberration sounded genuinely fearful. "Impossible! This is not your time! This is not your world! You can't be here!"
"'Can't' and 'shouldn't' are two very different things, Darkrai," said the Grovyle.
"We've come to finish what we started," the Chimchar growled.
"And your friend up there's not going to be destroying reality any time soon, either," the Froakie stated.
Bringer-Of-Visions looked up to see the dark cloud beginning to fade, retreating into nothingness, revealing the lush green crown of Yggdrasil, resplendent in the sunny sky. The Aberration shifted backwards a bit, eyes darting around and fists clenched.
"You've lost, Aberration," Seeker-Of-Endings snarled.
"So," said Spirit from the center, "how about you get away from my Darkrai, and accept that."
The Aberration's eyes veritably burned with fury as they fixed upon Spirit. "Medicham," he snarled. "You…I have had enough of you! You have cost me everything! I may not be able to create my dark world…but I won't stop until I've taken everything from you!" Oblivion began to bubble around the Aberration's hands.
"NO!" Darkrai shouted; reaching out, he unleashed a massive wave of rolling earth towards the Aberration's form, but it was too late. Oblivion erupted from the Aberration's hands, wrapping around its own body, and the creature blinked out of existence a split second before the wave hit.
"Master, what-" Bringer-Of-Visions asked.
"Bringer, take Medicham and Seeker-Of-Endings and get back to the real world right now!" Darkrai snarled. "We'll handle things back here - there's no time to lose!
"The Aberration's going after Marcus!"
Side note: you might remember that last time I showed the Pokemon players and partners from Mystery Dungeon, I represented them as constantly-shifting entities, because there are a lot of choices for what Pokemon you and the partner can be in those games, and I didn't think there were any 'canonical' choices.
Enter the Mystery Dungeon Manga. And thank goodness for that, because one of the main reasons this chapter took so long is that it turns out it's really hard to write a lengthy battle sequence featuring four entities constantly shifting between twenty different types of Pokemon. I spent at least as long writing and rewriting that fight as I did the entire rest of the chapter, and that was with cutting yet another scene from this chapter that I'm now going to have to throw into the next one.
I'll let you all guess which scene that is when the next chapter comes out.