Chapter 38: Madness and Vision! Plot Duo Duel!
Aurora immediately began the fight from her side with a powerful blizzard. She knew as well as her teammates, but also her enemies, that it would be more effective to first take one of the opponents out of the fight completely and then focus on the remaining one or two. On the relatively narrow battlefield, there was no way for anyone to avoid the blizzard. This made the attack very risky compared to what it truly brought, because not only Aurora's enemies, but also her friends were affected. Aurorus and Kel both barely felt the attack, Marshadow did flinch, but Eternatus was the only one who truly suffered from the ice storm.

Aurorus' strange potion was still a mystery to the team at this point. Apart from the outward appearance, it didn't seem to have had much of an effect. However, when rocks rose from the ground, they realized what the red potion had changed, even if it was probably obvious beforehand. Glowing meteors rose up, which the traitor at the top of the league now wanted to use to attack. His current potion had given him a third type, the fire type. And if this meant that his attacks had two types, rock and fire, then Aurora knew: she wouldn't even be allowed to go near such a thing. How this would work against Kel, however, was another mystery. Eternatus used the time to start an attack with his well-known orbs. But before they hit the ground, his own team partner destroyed them.

"What the hell, Aurorus? We're a damn team!"
"Well, duh. But these three assholes shouldn't get your little gimmick! They will just use it against you! Again! So stop using that shit"
"You know yourself that I'd like to, asshole! I can't help how I was created!"
"Don't play the racism card on me now, Tern!"

During this last sentence he hurled his rocks, but was surprised by Marshadow, who had hidden in the shadows and now saw his chance. Even with three types on Aurorus, his blows were still extremely effective. And the Mastermind obviously seemed to feel this too. Small stones splintered off him and a wound opened up. The pain seemed to be deep.

The moment Eternatus was also distracted by the surprise attack on his team partner, Aurora took her chance. Her Ice Beam hit the target critically and Eternatus seemed to be suffering a lot already.

"Aurorus, as much as I hate it, I'll need some of your mixtures! Do you have anything to heal wounds?"
"You serious, Tern? Why aren't your ready to use Recover? Haven't you prepared for the fight?"

The anger in the plot dragon seemed to grow.

"Why the hell should I have? There was no battle planned today, your stupid plan failing brought me here!"

The scientist looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Well, I even have a healing potion with me. How lucky, isn't it?"

He immediately pulled a bottle out of his bag. But instead of handing it to his team partner… he swallowed the entire contents himself, all at once.

"What the fuck? Aurorus, you damn idiot! Don't you know we're supposed a team?"

There was no trace of remorse in the traitor's eyes.

"Even if we're fighting for the same goal, I don't need anyone to hinder my genius, Tern. Everyone is for themselves! Especially someone like me. Ordinary beings only hold back my superior spirit!"

So that's how far Aurorus was going… he turned away the one Pokemon that even wanted to help him. Well... wanted was maybe a little too much, but... the one Pokemon that was helping. Hadn't he called for help himself too? Obviously, the fossil had changed his mind very quickly… and the Pokemon affected himself seemed to see that too.

"You know what? As much as I want to take revenge for the recent embarrassment... which you are partly to blame for anyway for not telling me that anyone would be guarding the tower... if you are so sure of yourself, then I'm leaving. You can do your own shit! Just don't expect me to bail you out of jail!"

Without further words, he disappeared the same way he had come. The duel had become much easier, thanks to Aurorus' own ego. However, it didn't seem as if his self-confidence was suffering in any way. Instead, he immediately dug out a new bottle. How many of these things fit in that small bag?

"Let's try this thingy here."

He immediately took another sip from the container, but left half of it behind. A silvery, shiny metal layer slowly seemed to form around the traitor's rocky skin. Aurora immediately sprinted forward, trying to somehow take advantage of the situation. However, her opponent had been completely ready for such an attempt. And so quickly revealed why he had not used the entire bottle this time.

Instead of drinking the rest, he immediately threw it to the ground, inches in front of Aurora, and it burst into metallic fumes. For a moment, Kel lost sight of his team partner, but he soon heard a wheezing cough. The fumes slowly dispersed in the wind, but Aurora had clearly inhaled some of the harmful substances. Traces of the mixture were also visible on her fur. Small, metallic splinters now ran through it, from head to legs.
Aurorus, who was now completely surrounded by an iron shell, saw his enemy in her defenseless state. His face was barely readable, the silver layer was too thick for that. Marshadow, however, was not particularly interested in the facial expression, but rather in going on the offensive. However, he had to realize that this transformation of Aurorus was something different than a simple third type. While a combination of ice, rock and steel would have made Amagarga incredibly weak against Marshadow's fighting-type attacks, it seemed as if the shell just let the blow roll off.

But Kel didn't notice this. Just as he didn't notice Aurorus' facial expression. He hadn't even really processed the enemy's current form. All that was in his mind were two things: Aurora and the voice. The voice screamed again, loudly, as if all of Kira Town could hear it. The metallic splinters in Aurora's fur were exactly what Kel had to endure when he finally found what he was looking for in his dream, his vision, the other timeline, whatever it was. Visions of the lifeless Ninetales returned, flashing in his mind. But one thing was different than in the bad ending.

This time, Kel knew, deep down, that Aurora was alive. The voice could not yet take complete control. The plot armor could still maintain its protection. Kel was still himself, even though hatred now filled his whole being.

Aurora's throat itched and she was still having trouble breathing, but slowly she managed to calm down. Her surroundings now came back into her field of vision and she saw Marshadow dueling with Aurorus, although he seemed to deal no damage whatsoever. But as if out of nowhere, the Mon of Steel was pushed away by another opponent, dangerously close to the edge of the cliff. Kel had thrown himself into the battle, with all his strength and apparently even more than that. For a second, even Aurorus seemed unsettled as he fought against Kel's pressure.

"Are you crazy? Do you want us to fall?"

The answer was not to come in words, but in action. The earth began to shake, Aurora and Marshadow fell to the ground, both not expecting what was about to happen. Aurorus stood much firmer, but for a tiny moment he seemed to lose his footing. And in that moment Kel rammed him, with all his might.

For a moment, time seemed to stop before a loud bang rang out. At first Aurora found it difficult to understand what had just happened. In his rage, Kel had managed to push Aurorus off the cliff, about twenty-five meters downwards. But her friend had also fallen. She immediately ran to the edge and looked down at the beach, where the crater of the explosion was already.

"Kel! Kel!"

Two Pokemon were lying in the sand below, one surrounded by a silver layer. Small shards of the same color were scattered across the sandy beach, the armor seemed to be badly cracked. But it did not appear as if Aurorus himself had suffered any significant injuries. Kel, on the other hand, lay there motionless, the sand around him colored a red tone.

"Fucking idiot! What do you expect from such a move? Who do you think you're dealing with?"

Again, there was no answer... not in words. But in actions. Slowly, yet firmly, Kel stood up, wounds covering his body. But Aurorus sensed something strange in his enemy's gaze.

"Aurorus... I don't care how much I have to endure. I know everything you planned. I had to experience an end in which you were successful. You yourself are not ready for what you are dealing with! It would not only be Aurora who would die if you were to get your way. No, EVERYONE would die! Epsilon... you... Marshadow... Tyrantrum... Elementareon... Zoroark... every single Pokemon."
"What the hell are you talking about?"

It was almost as if Kel hadn't heard a word.

"I don't care what I have to do for it. The only thing that matters... is that you have to suffer endless purgatory!"

The battle cry of a true lion rang out before Kel attacked. Up on the cliff, Aurora looked panicked.

"We have to get down there, Marshadow! Can you get us down somehow? With your shadow travel? Quickly!"

Contrary to her expectations, she met resistance.

"As stupid as that may sound now... I'd be more worried about Aurorus. When I see what's happening there right now, we'd better stay out of it."

The Ninetales looked down again to see what exactly Marshadow meant. And down there she saw Aurorus trying to resist a true inferno. Not an inferno storm as in Kel's vision, but massive flames. And the few attacks that Aurorus managed to perform during this storm seemed to be completely ineffective. The metallic layer had melted by now and all control of the fossil with it. Whatever was happening now, it was not part of the Masterplan and Kel should not be behaving like that either. It was simply not normal. That burning, hateful look, that ignorance of any pain... what had happened?

"Kel... Kel... Kel..."

With every time Aurorus said the name, his madness seemed to fade a little, his voice became more normal again, back to the fossil that Aurora had once known.

"Whatever is wrong with you, Kel, it shouldn't exist! You think I'm a psychopath and I may be. But have you ever seen yourself in the mirror? Can you even hear me or has your madness taken over?"

This time Kel actually gave him an answer, but clearly not what Aurorus wanted to hear.

"It doesn't matter! Who cares what's going on inside me? Am I crazy? No. Yes. Maybe. Who cares? The only important thing is that you die! Because even if I'm more crazy than you: I could never torment, torture, KILL anyone else for it!"

Another blow followed, which didn't seem to stop at the traitor's rocky skin. As if in shock, he immediately pulled a new bottle out of his bag.

"Whatever you are, stay away from me! I don't want to deal with this shit!"

When the glass hit the bottom and shattered, it released smoke that filled the entire beach. When it cleared, Aurorus had disappeared without a trace.

"Kel? Are you... alright?"

Only now did the lion Pokemon notice his two friends, who were now standing next to him on the beach. With the fossil's disappearance and her presence, the voice slowly began to fade again. The burning in Kel's eyes disappeared as he slowly began to feel how much the fight had truly affected him.

"Yes... it's... okay. I've been better."

Silence fell for a moment. Aurora tried to break it.

"Tell me, Kel. How exactly did you know..."

But her second team partner stopped her.

"We should take care of Tyrantrum first, then we can talk. Besides, we all, especially Kel, probably need a moment of peace first. So let's just go to the tower and discuss the serious topics later, okay?"

Although not entirely satisfied, Aurora agreed. As much as she wanted to know more, as much as she was worried. Because it was clear to her. There was something really wrong with Kel.