Infernape and his group of four went the opposite direction, navigating the dark, dingy aqueduct with haste. As far as they knew, Ampharos was bleeding out, hiding from the cult. The four ran through the halls. Infernape looked at the other three and told them,
"If we find the cult, we grab Gardveoir's family and scram. We find the others and we team up. I'll take them somewhere safe and come back, got it?"
"Right!" They answered. Gardevoir began to fly past the fire type, her eyes filled with a measured rage. Her desire to save her family was powerful. Powerful enough to blind her.
She looked up just in time to see Druddigon above her, ready to stomp her into the ground. Gardevoir just barely threw herself out of the way as the dragon crushed the ground beneath his feet, rocks skyrocketing into the ceiling. Gardevoir smacked into the wall, falling onto the floor, before looking up to see Druddigon smiling giddily,
"Alright! Glad to see you all so soon!" he then groaned as he stretched, "Don't think I'm fully healed yet. I'll fight you anyway."
Infernape, Aggron and Garchomp took a battle stance against the dragon. However, they were acutely aware that the rest of the cult could show up at any moment. Druddigon burst towards the steel type, a wave of rock alongside him. He swiped his hand in front of him, sending the wave towards the group. Infernape activated melting point as Aggron and Garchomp tore through the wave.
Druddigon took the opportunity to slash at Garchomp, who blocked the attack. She then grabbed the dragon's fist and threw him over her shoulder. Aggron then slammed Druddigon into the floor. Pinning the dragon to the ground, Aggron yelled towards the others,
"Keep your eyes peeled! They could come from anywhere!"
Malamar emerged from behind the fire type. His tentacle arms outstretched to try and strangle the fire type. Infernape grabbed at the tentacles around his neck, pulling at them. Gardevoir flew towards him, charging a pulse of psychic energy, before firing it at him. Malamar saw this attack coming and moved Infernape to block the attack. Gardevoir gritted her teeth as the beam flew over above the two, blasting Malamar in the back.
Infernape was freed and turned around to face the squid. He burst towards the psychic type with fire nearly enveloping him. Malamar smirked as he dodged the attack and slashed at Infernape. The fire type quickly dodged the attack and kicked at the tentacle. He was then smacked in the face by another, forcing him onto his back. Infernape gritted his teeth as he shot flames from his feet, sending him flying away from Malamar and buffering him with fire.
The fire type gritted his teeth as he flipped and landed. Malmar then turned around to see Gardevoir soaring towards him. She charged up a psychic blast at the octopus, which he attempted to block. However, it was too strong for him and punched through his shield.
Bisharp fell from the darkness above, landing on top of Gardevoir. She fell face first into the concrete flooring. She yelled in pain but was soon silenced by the feeling of a metallic wrist covering her mouth.
Garchomp saw the dark type and growled at him,
"Let her go!" Malamar took the opportunity to rush towards her at an alarming speed. Garchomp saw a pink aura surrounding her and she was forced to her knees. Aggron and Infernape then dashed towards Malamar, the steel type's fist turned into iron. That was when Sableye came in. He sent forth his many gems and pelted the fire-type from behind, before pinning him to the wall with a particularly sharp gem through his shoulder. Just like that, the odds had shifted dramatically in favor of the cult. Aggron was ready to fight to his last breath, but Bisharp looked ready to kill Gardevoir at a moment's notice. With great hesitation, Aggron raised his hands in surrender.
Bisharp snapped at Malamar,
"Just hypnotize them and take out the rest! I don't want any threats for when I summon Darkrai." Sableye then emerged from the darkness with Umbreon behind him. Sableye saw the captured four,
"Oh thank goodness. They're out of our hair. Let's just summon Darkrai and get this over with."
"No." Bisharp said. Sableye went slack jawed,
"Are you kidding me?! We're just giving them an opportunity to stop us!"
"If these four are here then the rest are as well and we still can't find that electric rat. I want to make absolutely sure that there are no threats when I summon Darkrai." Bisharp insisted. Infernape saw the dark type gremlin seethe,
"I'm in charge here and I say, kill them and begin the summoning now!"
"No." Bisharp stated simply. Sableye gritted his teeth but backed down.
Infernape then yelled out,
"Shut up!" Bisharp turned around, enraged. He pushed the gem blade further into the fire type's hand. Infernape screamed in pain as Bisharp hissed,
"You don't get to talk to me like that, Monkey!" Infernape gritted his teeth and stared at Bisharp.
"I'll do it when you treat your boss with an ounce of respect!" he said. This response was met with Bisharp smacking him across the face. This show of force did little to stop the fire type, who locked eyes with Umbreon. The woman who had mind-controlled him so long ago. However, in those eyes was a real sense of fear. That spitefulness that fueled Infernape for the first parts of this journey washed away as he began to realize what was really going on. His anger was soon directed entirely with Bisharp, someone he couldn't help but feel a hint of empathy for for reasons he truthfully didn't know.
"You coward," hissed Infernape as the pain from the gem in his hand began to subside. The entire room went dead quiet as everyone realized what Infernape had done. Sableye and Umbreon in particular were stunned. Here was someone so fearless despite being in such a horrible position in front of Bisharp, someone so willing to kill. Even Malamar was left speechless. Gardevoir, Garchomp and Aggron watched fearfully, worried about the safety of their friend. However, Gardevoir took her chance to start reading Infernape's mind, which he was hoping for.
"I don't think you want to plunge this world into darkness, do you?" asked Infernape, "If you did, you would've summoned Darkrai the second you got your hands on that gem. But no, both times the Eclipse Gem fell into your hands, you waited, giving us a chance to beat you," said Infernape.
"Shut up," said Bisharp, his words barely above a whisper. Infernape smirked at him,
"I think you know more than you're letting on, but you need to keep these guys on a leash, don't you? How many lies have you spewed in their face."
"Shut up!"
"I think you just want to hurt people. I think this whole cult shit was just an excuse for you to kill more and more people, because that's all you are. An empty-hearted killer trying to justi-"
Bisharp grabbed the fire type by the throat and yelled,
"SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH! I AM THE HEIR TO THE KETSUKI BLOODLINE, AND YOU WORMS WILL BLEED OUT BEFORE ME! YOU DON'T KNOW ME! I'LL KILL YOU JUST LIKE I WILL THOSE WESKRIN BASTARDS!"
You could hear a pin drop from the silence that followed his outburst. Bisharp's eyes went wide as he realized what he had just said. He had never once mentioned Weskrin to anyone else in the cult. It wasn't much, but what mattered was the implications. Implications that Sableye was already catching on to.
"W-What did-Why…Why Weskrin?" Bisharp turned around and sent a dark slash towards Sableye. He was barely able to dodge the slash, which left behind a deep gash in the wall. Bisharp violently growled,
"Keep quiet and obey like the dog you are!"
That was when Infernape took his chance. He grabbed Bisharp by the neck with his free hand and wrapped his tail around Bisharp's hips. With a powerful burst of flames from his feet, Infernape sent his knees directly into Bisharp's spine. Bisharp screamed in pain as Malamar rushed to mind-control Infernape. However, this gave Gardevoir her chance to initiate her part of the plan. She shot into the air and soared further into the tunnel, but not before looking eyes with Garchomp. SIlently, the two exchanged thoughts before Gardevoir disappeared into the darkness. Umbreon ran after her. As Infernape watched on, he smiled. His last thoughts before the hypnosis kicked in were,
"Stick to the plan, Chrona."
Back in the present…
Lopunny stared down her hypnotized friends and then into the source. Malamar smirked at her, his confidence fueled by her anger. If looks could kill, no one would recognize the body. She shot from her spot and gunned straight for Malamar. The squid was caught off guard by the woman's speed but Garchomp quickly caught the rabbit and threw her onto the floor. She roared as she pushed off of Garchomp's chest, using it as a springboard, jumped onto the wall and again, barreled towards Malamar.
Infernape punched her into the wall. Lopunny flipped around before kicking the wall, sending her propelling back again towards Malamar. This time, Malamar used his tentacles to grabbed her arms and legs. He stretched them out as he activated his hypnotic abilities. The rainbow light began to shine into Lopunny's face.
Ampharos and Tryantrum made their move. Kakei was told by Tyrantrum,
"Run. We'll find you once they're gone!" She nodded and ran into the darkness, from her opponents. Ampharos' fur crackled with electricity as he ran towards the squid. He yelled as a burst of lightning shot from him. Garchomp moved in front of the bolt, absorbing the impact with no damage to herself. Ampharos stared up at his friend. Her stare was cold and empty, like a drawing. Ampharos stood up quickly and passionately yelled,
"You guys can fight it! You're stronger than him."
"Ha!" Malamar mocked, "They aren't. No one is immune from my powers and I'll prove it with this-"
Lopunny had freed her leg and violently kicked the squid in the stomach. Malamar sounded more like a tea kettle than a person. Lopunny's foot had sunken into his stomach. The psychic type dropped her as he stumbled away before collapsing onto his knees. Lopunny prepared another attack but was consumed by flames. However, she had done enough. Malamar looked back at Lopunny, then back to himself.
"Wha…What the fu-I-you…WHAT IS THIS?!" he screamed. Lopunny wiped a bit of blood of her lip,
"The day I become a slave is the day I die," she said before lunging towards him.
Lopunny was pinned against the wall by Infernape. His emotionless eyes locked onto hers and, for a moment, she felt like she would get sucked into them. It was surreal, as though she were in a dream. If this weren't a life or death situation, she would've found this pretty hot.
She shook her head, and pushed away the fire type with her feet. She wanted so desperately badly to kick Malamar into hell and back but she had to focus on one target at a time. She looked at the hypnotized Infernape as he was enveloped by fire. The floor around Lopunny began to freeze over. She looked over the fire type's shoulder to see the river of water and smirked. A humid environment was where she thrived.
Infernape was pinned to the floor by ice as Lopunny tackled him. She rolled with him before kicking up into the ceiling. Upon impact, the ceiling froze over, trapping him. Infernape's body then burst into flames, melting the ice. Lopunny gritted her teeth as saw the fire type free himself. Her body wanted to fight, to go all out and get Infernape out of the picture. But this was her boyfriend. Her momentary struggle gave the fire type all the time he needed to free himself.
She was quickly kicked to the floor by the falling fire type. She caught herself and swiped him off of his feet like a breakdancer. Lopunny flipped herself back into her feet and tried to freeze him again. The fire type was ready, grabbing her by the hand and slamming her down into the ground. His knees ground into her legs as they heated up. She yelled in pain as the searing pain dug into her thighs. The burning, however, only seemed to increase her hate. She thought about just how hard she could hit that squid that wouldn't kill him.
She used her ears to punch the fire type. He was forced off of her from the impact. Lopunny practically jumped back onto her feet. She knew that there was no point trying to freeze him for a third time. Either she needed to take out Malamar now or try and knock Infernape unconscious. Malamar would be an easy fix but he most likely knew that and it would be a bitch to land a hit. She could fight Infernape, that wasn't the issue. She didn't want to send him to a hospital, even if he wasn't himself.
Ampharos and Tyrantrum were faced with Garchomp. The dragon roared before blasting a burst of blue and yellow energy at the two. Tyrantrum tanked the attack while Ampharos dodged the energy. Tyrantrum signed frantically at Ampharos,
"You should play distraction. Lure her into my attacks." Ampharos, however, was frozen in place. The electric type shook his head,
"I-I can't. She's my friend." he whimpered.
Tyrantrum looked at him sympathetically. He knew that Ampharos was struggling with the fight. He could imagine the dread coursing through the electric type's body. Anyone would be hesitant in this situation. However, they didn't have the time to be hesitant. Tyrantrum stomped on the ground as spikes of rock shot at Garchomp. They missed, much to Tyrantrum's pleasure. Tyrantrum then stomped on the spikes, splitting a few in two, and smacked them with the side of his head.
Garchomp plowed through the rocks like a truck, running towards the t-Rex at frightening speeds. She sounded like a rabid animal, panting and growling savagely. Her footsteps leaving cracks and craters with every step.
Vines wrapped around her feet, forcing her to fall onto the ground. Ampharos and Tyrantrum looked back to see Liligant was the person who tripped Garchomp. She looked surprised at the attention and meekly remarked,
"I helped."
Garchomp quickly stood back up, pulling against the vines, bringing Liligant along for the ride. She was dragged towards the dragon, scraping against the concrete floor. Tyrantrum leaped forward and stomped on the vines. He created several dirt spikes that cut through, freeing the grass type.
Malamar, once he had recovered from the attack, ordered Aggron to defend him. The big brute would be a great body guard. Still, he needed to be careful, especially with that rabbit looking like she'd murder him the moment she laid her fluffy little hands on her. He didn't need help here. He could handle this on his own.
Elsewhere...
A large group of men were performing their final preparations. They were on a massive boat, a battleship that had been hidden inside a spacious cave. Even in a world where anyone can destroy a city block, a battle ship could to a lot more damage with a lot less energy. Some men were pulling on ropes, some were mopping the deck and some were managing the navigational system.
Inside the command room, a decently sized room with dozens of devices, all serving different purposes from radar detection to controlling the anti air missiles. Dozens of people sat inside as one man entered the room and yelled out,
"At attention. Captain Dreadnaught of the Apocalypse Blue.."
The entire room stood up and saluted as Dreadnaught entered the room. He wore an open captain's jacket as he stepped onto the deck.
"Report!" Dreadnought yelled. The Feraligatr's voice was deep, booming and commanded respect. Several voices came one after the other,
"Weapons are operational."
"Range finders calibrated!"
"Radar at the ready! Not even a fly can't escape our sight!"
Dreadnought nodded as he walked towards the front of the command center, each footstep subtly shook the room. After the announcements, everyone in the room fell silent. The captain eyed every system, methodically checking for the slightest error. Everyone in the room shook silently, hoping that they would pass inspection.
Dreadnought backed off and asked out,
"How are the cannons?" With a collective sigh of relief, the tension that had crushed the crew was lifted. One of the men yelled out,
"Every gun is locked and loaded. HE rounds at the admiral's request." Dreadnought nodded as he grabbed a radio and spoke into it, his voice was projected throughout the ship.
"Attention!" Every soul on the ship stopped and finished their current task and stood at attention. They stood so chillingly still, they were like statues. Dreadnought waited a moment before beginning his speech.
"Listen up, ladies. Our mission is critical. Our victory will change the course of history and while this ship is not our own, we should treat it with the same respect as the Apocalypse Blue! Do I make myself clear?" He said. The boat erupted into a simultaneous,
"Yes sir!" before returning to their duties. Dreadnought made his way back until he got to a large, flat table at about waist height, knee height for him.
A seat was rolled up for him just in time. He sat down and looked down at the table. A holographic screen showcasing the local geography. He was interrupted by the distinct sound of his WristOn ringing. He answered the call with audio only mode on. Listening in to the admirals word, he nodded,
"Yes Sir….Got it." He started to write down latitude and longitude numbers. The crew listened in to the call. Arong just glared at them, sending a silent message. The crew then sat down in their seats and got ready to set sail.