Beast Forest (Noon)
In her time as a hero, Pixie-Bob had seen many strange Quirks. Most of these could easily overpower her own Earth Manipulation, but she never imagined a teenager to be able to sear through them so quickly. She could see as Dominic, Charizard, and Zygarde all worked in near-perfect sync to demolish her creations. The kid wasn't kidding when he boasted about his skill. It was almost like he'd done this before.
Eventually, he made it to the end with his Pokemon at his side. "Still the Time Trial Champ!" he shouted. Charizard celebrated as well by shooting a stream of fire into the air. Zygarde seemed proud of itself as well, roaring into the sky as its Cells and Cores separated from it. Mandalay and Pixie-Bob were both shocked and amazed to see the hundreds of green lights that flew off in every direction.
"What is this?" Mandalay asked, astounded.
"Zygarde is a very special Pokemon composed of several Cells and Cores." Dominic explained as a single Zygarde Core was left behind in the separation. He picked up the green Pokemon and let it rest on his shoulder. "When faced with danger, Zygarde can assemble its various Cells and Cores to form a much stronger version of itself. The one you just saw was Zygarde's 10% Forme."
"So, where did the other Cells go?" the cat-themed heroine asked.
"Dunno. All I know is that they're watching over the ecosystem, ready in case anyone or anything tries to threaten the balance of nature." the trainer said, able to sense a few Cells in the immediate area. "And trust me, it has more than enough power to protect this world. I've seen firsthand what it's Complete Forme is capable of."
"Wait, so it wasn't complete earlier?" Pixie-Bob asked.
"Don't be ridiculous!" Dominic laughed. "That was Zygarde's 10% Forme."
"So, that was just a tenth of its power?" Pixie-Bob asked, both curious and scared to see what would happen if all of Zygarde's Cells and Cores came together.
"Well, it isn't a Kalosian Legend for nothing." Dominic said off-handedly. "Now, where's my lunch?" he asked, walking into the camp building with Charizard following him. Despite being in the middle of a forest, the place was actually pretty clean. He and Charizard entered the kitchen in search of food, only to find a young boy wearing a red hat sitting at a counter, eating oatmeal. Dominic recognized the boy from the cliffside, having seen him standing behind Mandalay and Pixie-Bob.
"How did you get through the test so fast?" the child asked.
"Because I'm 31 flavors of awesomesauce, kid. Now where's the burger meat?" Dominic asked, looking through the pantry.
"Xiao-Long." Aizawa said, getting the blonde's attention. "I see you've made it through the Beast Forest. Congratulations."
"Was that a compliment? From you? I'm touched." Dominic said, grinning. "Oh, found the burger meat."
'But, we didn't even have that stocked.' Kota thought to himself, confused.
The blonde trainer held the meat in his hands, using his magic to cook it. After a few moments, he bit into the patty. "Oh, that's good." He cooked another patty and gave it to Charizard, allowing the Flame Pokemon to feast on his creation. "So, what's a kid like you doing in a place like this?"
"My parents are off on a business trip. Mandalay's my cousin, so I'm staying with her." Kota explained. Dominic could feel his anger, but he couldn't pinpoint what exactly he was angry about. "How do you control your... Pokemon?"
Dominic turned to face Charizard, then turned back to the boy. "It's not that I control them, it's more of a mutual partnership. In our current state, we can't do anything alone." Dominic clenched his hand into a fist when he said this, still bitter about his string of losses. "But when we combine our strengths, there's nothing we can't accomplish."
It was actually similar to the way Zygarde operated, in a way. Multiple lifeforms working in unison to accomplish a single goal. Even when that goal was to suppress the powers of a Pokemon strong enough to absorb all the light in the universe. That battle still sent chills down Dominic's spine, which was impressive since he didn't have any bones.
The blonde picked the Zygarde Core up from his shoulder and set it down on a nearby windowsill, letting it rest and photosynthesize. Looking into the horizon, the trainer silently wondered what the other Cells and Cores were doing right now.
Norwegian Ruins (Night)
Bright green light filled the area as several thousand Cells assembled together. Zygarde 50% Forme emerged from the light, staring into the night sky. Hurtling towards the planet was a gigantic meteor powerful enough to wipe Norway off the map. The Pokemon's body started to glow as energy gathered inside of it. With a loud roar, it shot a beam of emerald energy into the air, blasting its way toward the meteor.
The beam struck the giant rock, carving a glowing Z into it. After a few moments, the meteor detonated and lit up the night sky with a massive green explosion. Its job done, the Legendary Pokemon disassembled and spread its Cells across the world once again.
The humans that saw the explosion thought it might have been a new hero debuting. But the lucky few who actually saw Zygarde fire Core Enforcer into the sky referred to this moment as the arrival of Nidhogg, heralding the beginning of Ragnarok.
AN: Since Dominic and Chesnaught took care of Muscular, he didn't have the chance to murder Kota's parents. Doesn't change the fact that they're still terrible people, though.