Infernape started walking through the streets that day, taking in the scenery. This town was so unique and with so much historical significance. He remembered the unit they did on Staligmiton. This town didn't pledge allegiance to any of the four island kingdoms that would eventually become Nihonera. Back then, they had ground types make pillars to make sure the cliff didn't collapse. It was fascinating stuff.
He then noticed Gardevoir, Sceptile, and a Roserade walking together from across the way. They seemed determined. Infernape watched from a distance. Once they passed a corner, his curiosity won out and he followed them.
Why was Sceptile with them? While most would think that they were going to spend some time together, Infernape's mind had a different conclusion. They were only supposed to be here for only two days. This was a simple supply run. Not to mention, the look on Gardevoir and Sceptile's faces was anxious, worried about something. There was more behind the scenes, but Infernape wasn't sure if he should be involved, hence why he was keeping his distance.
They then went into an alley and waited. Infernape didn't recognize the building. He trusted that a renowned Senshi like Sceptile wouldn't do something too dangerous. However, he opted to remain close, staying in a nearby cafe down the road.
Evidently, he was right to stay.
"Infernape! What are you doing?!" Gardevoir yelled in fear, "He'll kill you!" Infernape turned to face her,
"Excuse me, what are you doing here?"
"No time to explain, just run, let me deal with this!"
"You are bleeding out, you can't deal with this!" Infernape scolded before turning back towards Tyranitar. The city guard ran towards the scene, they stood in front of Infernape and Gardevoir,
"Sir, stand down, you've done enough damage, let the guard handle this!" Tyranitar didn't listen as he plowed through the guard with ease. Infernape grabbed Gardevoir and avoided Tryanitar's charge. As they landed, the captain of the guard ran toward them,
"He's completely out of control, we need to stop him before he destroys the city in a rage! I'm not supposed to do this but can you criminals help us?" Infernape nodded,
"You got it, but I'm not a criminal. Just take her to safety."
"No! I am staying!"
"Why are you-" they were interrupted by Tyranitar charging at them and grabbing Infernape.
Tyranitar tried to throw Infernape but Infernape used his tail to grab onto Tyranitar's arm and pulled himself towards his opponent like a slingshot. He kicked Tyranitar in the face as he shot past the ground type. While in the air, Infernape turned around and threw several fireballs at Tyranitar. Tyranitar ignored the flames and charged again at Infernape. Infernape, in a panic, shot the ground beneath him which launched him into the air. Tyranitar leaped up almost instantaneously, much to Infernape's surprise.
"He's so fast!" He thought to himself as he tried to punch the ground type. Tyranitar caught Infernape's fists with ease. Infernape's mouth then filled up with fire before he unleashed all of it onto the enraged Tyranitar. The attack was completely ignored and Infernape was thrown into the ground before being crushed under Tyranitar's foot.
He screamed in agony as his ribs snapped like twigs. Tyranitar roared like an animal and slammed Infernape into a light post by the arm. A sickening crack erupted as Infernape's right arm hit the light pole. It was bent the opposite way. Tyranitar threw Infernape back into the ground but a small pillar of stone appeared just before Infernape landed. Pain exploded throughout Infernape's body,
"I knew that Mega Evolution made Pokémon stronger, but I didn't think he would be this strong!" He thought in complete terror. In a last-ditch effort, he surrounded his feet in fire before using it to shoot himself away from Tyranitar. Tyranitar gave chase but was tripped by a vine.
"I'm not out of the fight just yet, partner," Sceptile remarked as he planted something into the ground. Tyranitar ran towards Sceptile but a large tree grew from the ground and launched Tyranitar into the air.
"You are really predictable, you know that right?" said Sceptile as the branches of the tree moved on their own. They repeatedly struck Tyranitar and slammed him into the ground. Sceptile slashed the base of the tree trunk and the tree collapsed onto Tyranitar. Sceptile ran towards Infernape, picked him up, and started to run. The tree exploded into hundreds of thousands of splinters and Tyranitar shot a hyper beam at the two. Sceptile threw Infernape out of the way before jumping just in time to avoid the beam. The leaves left behind by the tree began to swirl into a tornado of green, making small slashes all over Tyranitar. Tyranitar then stomped onto the ground, and suddenly, the town began to shake. The street that everyone stood on collapsed in on itself. Infernape, the guard, Gardevoir, Tyranitar, Sceptile, and some civilians all fell into the chasm.
Thinking on his feet, Sceptile threw hundreds of small seeds onto the ground, which rapidly grew into large bushes, cushioning the fall for the others. Sceptile landed and stared down his opponent,
"He should be unconscious right now! I'm running on fumes at this point, I give it about five or so minutes before I pass out from exhaustion. I can't quit though, hundreds of lives are at risk." He looked up and saw the sun shining down into the pit.
"Perfect." He thought to himself as Tyranitar landed. Sceptile closed his eyes and a faint, yellow glow surrounded him. Tyranitar charged forward, slowed down by the rubble of his creation. The glow around Sceptile became brighter and brighter, just as Tyranitar was getting closer and closer. Sceptile opened his eyes with unflinching confidence and was met with eyes filled with uncontrollable rage. Tyranitar was now mere inches from Sceptile.
"Solar Quick-Draw."
In a blink of an eye, Sceptile fired a massive yellow beam from his fingertip, shot from the hip like a revolver. Tyranitar was caught in the beam and thrown back into the wall of the pit. The beam pushed him deeper and deeper into the wall. Tyranitar roared in the effort, trying in vain to push back the blast. As the beam disappeared, all that was visible was a hole in the chasm's wall. Smoke sizzled from Sceptile's index finger. He brought it from his hip to his mouth and blew the smoke away. Sceptile stumbled. His legs then buckled and he fell onto the ground.
"Damn! That took more out of me than I thought." The guard captain ran over and helped Sceptile to his feet. Silence fell upon the chasm.
A cloud of dust erupted as someone landed in the pit. Garchomp emerged from the cloud, guilt written all over her face. The guard captain grabbed his spear and pointed it at Garchomp's chest. However, one guard was trigger-happy and fired a lightning-fast energy blast. Gardevoir screamed in fright, however, something strange happened.
Garchomp saw the world slow down for a few precious moments as her head, on its own, slowly tilted to avoid the bullet. The world then returned to normal as the guard captain grabbed that guard's hand. Garchomp panted in shock, slowly looking back. What just happened? It's like something within her just saved her. No one could dodge something that fast, so why could she? Her thoughts were interrupted by the guard captain.
"Stay back, criminal scum!" He warned ferociously.
"No," Sceptile ordered, "She's fine." The guard captain looked at Sceptile and very reluctantly put his spear away.
"Where is Tyranitar?" Garchomp asked as she looked around for the armor Pokémon. Sceptile smiled,
"He's gone." Garchomp frowned. She was glad to be out of prison, but all of this destruction was all because of Mawile. Her death led to this mayhem around them. His crimes would be punished, but he was a grieving man. Garchomp then shook her head. He had broken the law and had abused his powers to give her the death penalty. The law was absolute.
"GARCHOMP!" A voice exploded from the chasm. Tyranitar stumbled out of the hole in the wall. He was no longer in his mega form and it was evident that he was struggling to stand. Garchomp looked toward Tyranitar and walked toward him,
"Garchomp, what are you doing?!" Sceptile was stunned, he tried to stop her but fell onto the ground. Garchomp ignored him,
"Enough of this. Tyranitar, I am the one you want," she outstretched her arms, "None of this needed to happen. Dozens, maybe even hundreds of people are seriously wounded. Your anger should be at me! Leave them out of this. Go ahead and kill me."
Infernape crawled to Gardevoir,
"Come on, let's get out of here!" He beseeched before he noticed her expression. Her eyes lacked any sort of life in them. Concerned, Infernape asked what was wrong. Gardevoir didn't say a word as she stared into the sky.
Many houses lined the street as a young Kirlia strolled down the street. She had a smile that stretched from ear to ear. She turned left, using her WristOn as a guide.
"Apparently, this is a shortcut." She told herself as she went down the unfamiliar street. She felt nervous but continued onwards. As he walked, she heard indistinguishable noises coming from one of the houses. The noises piqued her interest and she walked faster to find the source of the noises. The noises were becoming louder and more distinguishable, the sound like voices, one furious, and one scared and defensive. Kirlia couldn't help but listen in, an outside observer.
"I DIDN'T DO IT! THEY PROVED IT!"
"I DON'T CARE! I CAN'T LEAVE THE HOUSE WITH PEOPLE YELLING AT ME BECAUSE OF YOU!" yelled the angry voice. Kirlia cringed, wanting to walk away, but her feet refused to move. She triangulated that the screaming was coming from the fifth house down the road.
"OH, NOW YOU CARE! ONLY TOOK ME BEING FRAMED FOR MURDER!"
"I SWEAR TO ARCEUS, YOU ARE JUST LIKE YOUR FATHER!"
"JUST SHUT UP!" yelled that scared voice.
An orange figure then ran out of one of the houses in front of her and ran into an alleyway. Kirlia quickly recognized it as a Monferno and gave chase. This was none of her business, but someone needed her help. Eventually, she turned the corner and saw a dead end. All that was there was a dumpster and the sound of someone sobbing. Kirlia stepped forward like an anxious bird, slowly and carefully approaching the unknown, even though she knew that Monferno would be on the other side. She turned the corner and saw an emotionally devastated Monferno.
He hadn't noticed her. He was curled up against the wall, crying into his arms, shaking with every breath. Each compulsive gasp tore through Kirlia like an arrow, filling her with an immeasurable amount of pity and sadness. Poor thing has been through hell. She didn't even need to know anything about him to understand that, and now his own mother seemed to abandon him, or at least she thought it was his mother.
"What's wrong?" she asked worriedly, wanting answers. Monferno wiped his eyes and tried in vain to stop his sobbing. Kirla then sat down next to him and simply patted his shoulder. For minutes, the two sat there behind the dumpster, like a sister was helping her little brother. Eventually, Monferno calmed down enough to speak,
"You…You don't know who I am?" he questioned, his voice broken and quivering. Kirlia shook her head with blunt honesty,
"No. What's your name?"
"Lee."
"My name is Chrona. What's wrong?" At that moment, Monferno snapped. All of his held in anger was finally unleashed,
"EVERYTHING!" he screamed. Kirlia flinched in fright, horrified. Monferno quickly regained his composure and apologized. She accepted it and listened to his story. To say that Kirlia was horrified would be an understatement. All of that, on top of the Crimson Sky Incident tearing apart the east coast, she could almost understand a mere fraction of his pain. Furthermore, he divulged about his mother, which angered Kirlia. Some people thought parenthood would be a blessing. For Lee's mother, it was a science fair project, to be left in the dust, neglected until it mattered most.
Kirlia was disgusted by her behavior but did not let her anger distract her from her goal. He needed a hero and a hero she shall be. No one deserved to be ostracized, especially for something they didn't do. Monferno finished his story before curling back up again. He had calmed down but sadness still plagued his voice. It was like music drifting through the air, invisible but everywhere. Kirlia then stood up and outstretched her hand,
"Maybe you need a friend to help you through this?"
Monferno stared up in awe. She knew about him. She knew about his fate and how he was destined to fail for the rest of his life, so why was she offering him this? His heart rose with a brief moment of hope as he took her hand, clasping onto tightly as a child would with a teddy in the dark. Kirlia pulled him up and promised him,
"You don't need to worry anymore. I'll help you."
That night, a jubilant Kirlia ran home and told her mom and dad, Kakei and Jean-Phillipe, everything about Monferno. They were so proud of her. Jean-Phillipe, the Gallade, embraced his daughter tightly,
"You should be so proud, mademoiselle. Seeing someone at their lowest and bringing them up from there, sacre bleu, I think we've got a Senshi in the making." he complimented brightly. Kakei, a Gardevoir, wasn't as energetic but still proud of her daughter,
"You're gonna have to be there for him whenever he needs you. Are you up for the task?" Kirlia adamantly nodded,
"Of course. I'll be a hero and I'll be there when he needs saving." However, she didn't have a plan of action. Besides, the Senshi solved their problems quickly.
Three days passed. Three days after the incident, something terrible happened. Monferno was currently in the hospital. He needed a blood transfusion, badly. Kirlia heard about the event and rushed to the hospital. Horror rushed through her. Why? Why did this happen? She became his friend, so why? She was busy spending time at the humanitarian club in school. He had sent a few calls her way but she was selling confections for a bake sale to help children with cancer. When she walked past the hospital and saw Monferno being pulled out of an ambulance, she was mortified.
Kirlia entered the room to see Monferno lying in a hospital bed, eyes glazed over, staring blankly at the ceiling. By his side were a crying Grotle and a very worried Prinplup. The two looked up at her in surprise. Grotle sniffed,
"Who…Who are you?"
"I'm Chrona Jigamasa. Are you two his friends?" she asked. Prinplup solemnly nodded in confirmation,
"Yes. Yes, we are." Kirlia took a moment to look at what had happened to Monferno. His entire chest was covered in bandages, as was the top of his head. Blood stained his fur in splatters. Several purple marks were visible even through the orange. He was in a horrible state.
"What happened?" Kirlia asked. Grotle wiped his eyes, fighting a pained gasp, and answered,
"Something happened during the free period. We should've been there!" Prinplup patted his friend on the back softly.
"It's not your fault. You had no idea that this would happen." He looked up at Kirlia and explained,
"There was an opportunity to travel to the local Senshi office for the day. I convinced him to take the day off to visit. I thought that the teachers would protect Lee." His last sentence was filled with despair. The implication became clear. Someone, maybe more, had attacked Monferno.
At that precise moment, life returned to Monferno's eyes. He blinked and turned towards Grotle and Prinplup.
"G-Guys?" Grotle immediately hugged Monferno with vines, being careful not to worsen his wounds. He wept into Monferno,
"I'm sorry! I'm so fucking sorry, dude!" Prinplup soon joined him,
"Lee, you have my word, we are never going to abandon you again." Monferno's eyes went wide before he turned his head away from them. He still felt like they had betrayed him during the trial, but he couldn't bring himself to yell or scream at them. He couldn't even hiss. The bond between the three brothers was too much for him.
Instead, his anger targeted someone else in that room. Someone who had broken a promise.
"GARCHOMP!" The scream pulled Gardevoir out of her gaze as she saw Tyranitar slowly limping toward Garchomp. Gardevoir's eyes widened in terror and she tried to move but she failed. Infernape immediately grabbed her by the arm,
"NO! You're in no condition to do anything!" Gardevoir ignored him and continued to claw her way to Garchomp. All of her past failures came back to her as she continued to crawl to Garchomp. She wouldn't make a false promise. She wouldn't ignore cries for help from a friend nearby to save a stranger miles away.
Tyranitar managed to reach Garchomp. He stared down at the dragon type in disgust. Sceptile was unable to move, the guard stood no chance and was knocked away once again.
"Finally, Mawile you will be AVENGED!" Tyranitar raised his claws and slashed at Garchomp. Finally, his thirst for vengeance would be satisfied.
Two stone hands, surrounded by psychic energy, grabbed onto his hands.
Tyranitar tried to free his hands but their strength, along with his fatigue, made it impossible to escape.
"Hey!" A voice shouted from behind Garchomp. Garchomp turned to see Gardevoir, using her psychokinesis to stand, controlling the rock hands. Tyranitar was pushed away from Garchomp as Gardevoir walked in front of the ground type. The rocks around the chasm were surrounded by a pink light. They united into a muscular, angelic form behind Gardevoir. Tyranitar charged at the psychic type. Gardevoir sent the stone warrior to fight. The two collided and rapidly threw a flurry of punches at each other, each impact creating a massive gust of wind from the force alone. The sounds of fists meeting echoed throughout the entire town. Tyranitar was quickly getting overwhelmed and was repeatedly struck over and over again by the construct.
Garchomp looked in confusion at the attack in front of her. She yelled at Gardevoir,
"WHY?! Why are you trying to save me? I've made an entire city suffer!" A confident smile appeared on Gardevoir's face and she turned her head to face the dragon type.
"I've done this before, but this time, I'm keeping my promise!" She declared triumphantly as she turned back towards her opponent. Garchomp stared at the psychic type in admiration. For once since the incident, she felt happy. The feeling was almost foreign to Garchomp.
"Now, Blessed Guardian," Gardevoir told the stone construct, "finish the job!" The construct then used an uppercut to send Tyranitar into the air before disassembling and enveloping Tyranitar with rocks, restraining him.
Using the rocks as a metaphorical glove, Gardevoir held Tyranitar in front of her.
"Calm down, can't you see what you have done to your city? This has gone on long enough." Tyranitar struggled but stopped once he finally calmed down. His eyes returned to their normal color from that furious red. He looked around, he saw the chasm he created, he saw the frightened citizens, he saw Infernape, broken and battered and Sceptile who was barely conscious. He stared down at the ground in shame. In his quest for justice, he destroyed the town that he swore to protect. Gardevoir gestured for Garchomp to get close, to which Garchomp obliged. Gardevoir placed one hand on Garchomp's head, and the other on Tyranitar's.
"Close your eyes Tyranitar," Gardevoir instructed before taking Tyranitar to the mindscape.
Tyranitar opened his eyes to see Gardevoir's back as she used the construct to attack him.
"This is what Garchomp is currently thinking about." A voice next to Tyraniyar explained. Tyranitar turned to see the real Gardevoir next to him. She then called out,
"Show us the last memory Garchomp has of Mawile." The space around them changed into a bedroom from Garchomp's perspective as Mawile and Tyranitar entered the room. Gardevoir turned back to Tyranitar,
"You deserve to know the truth." She said understandingly as the memory played out in front of them. Tyranitar watched as Mawile snapped her fingers which caused Garchomp to convulse in agony.
"What's happening?" Tyranitar asked in horrified confusion.
"She's forcing Garchomp to inhale Fairy Wind."
As the flashback continued, it became harder and harder for Tyranitar to watch. Gardevoir ended the memory just before Mawile's death. She paused right before Garchomp laid a hand on Mawile. The image was blurry, but Gardevoir noticed a sharp brown shape stretching around behind Mawile, ready to stab her. The shape then led to where the money tree was. Gardevoir pointed it out and looked back at Tyranitar,
"I'm sorry." Tyranitar shook his head,
"No, no, this is an illusion, SHOW ME MAWILE'S REAL DEATH!" He shouted to the mindscape. Nothing happened.
"I know that this is hard to hear but-"
"YOU'RE LYING! SHE'S INNOCENT, THIS IS JUST SOME ELABORATE SCHEME!" Tyranitar denied it desperately. Gardevoir didn't know what to say, she'd never been in a situation like this before. Tyranitar kept trying to make justifications for what he saw but each one only made him feel worse. He then stopped, and reality finally set in. The woman that he loved was a monster. She had played him for a fool, and intended to keep doing it. Tyranitar then demanded that Gardevoir bring him back into the real world. He had something to say to his people.
Tyranitar awoke and faced his people,
"Citizens of Stalagmiton, I was blinded by my lust for vengeance and you all suffered for it. ...I need to know, is it true? Is it true that Mawile was a monster?" The crowd looked terrified to answer. After all, no one wanted to tell a man that his wife a murderer, not that they would know. One voice finally spoke up,
"YES!" The crowd turned to Roserade who jumped down into the chasm and ran towards Tyranitar. She showed him the picture she had taken of Mawile's drawer. She pointed out the knife, which Tyranitar explained as something that Mawile had bought the day before her death. The cloth was from a torn dress, but the bleach surprised him.
"Why would she have bleach in her…" he stopped. In the memory, Mawile said that she was manipulating her way into power. Was…she going to murder him and take his position?
"I see." He muttered in frightened disappointment. He turned to his people and began, "Even with this knowledge, I need to hold myself accountable. I will resign as mayor, effective immediately. However, I have one final decree. Garchomp and everyone who helped her escape are now exonerated from their crimes." The crowd cheered for Gardevoir, Sceptile, and Infernape.
"Hey! What crimes? I was helping my friend." Infernape argued jokingly from the ground. Tyranitar rolled his eyes with a smile on his face,
"You're exonerated, why does it matter?" Roserade ran to help Infernape to his feet. He stared at her as she picked him up. He opened his mouth to say something but he stopped himself. Roserade noticed and was confused. Garchomp stared at Gardevoir, a warm feeling bubbling up inside of her. She then, however, frowned as a realization set in.
"What in the hell did we miss!" Aggron yelled in disbelief as he entered Gardevoir's hospital room. Gengar and Ampharos were close behind.
"I served justice," Gardevoir said, staring at the ceiling with a smile on her face. That answer was not satisfactory for Gengar,
"Yeah, no shit. Tell me more." He demanded. Gardevoir summarized the events in as much detail as possible. Gardevoir herself was getting excited as she retold the story. As she finished her story, Aggron and Ampharos applauded her and Gengar just smiled at her.
They heard a knock on the door and Ampharos opened the door. Garchomp and Roserade entered the room, Garchomp was definitely much happier than she once was.
"I hope you're okay, Tyranitar left you in shambles." Roserade grinned as they entered the room.
"What about you Garchomp, are you alright?" Gardevoir asked in concern for her friend.
"I didn't fight, remember?"
"I know, I mean mentally." Gardevoir elaborated. Garchomp nodded,
"I-I'm fine." She insisted as she stared into her own hands. Gardevoir couldn't help but smile at the dragon type. A sense of accomplishment built up inside of her. She had proved to herself that she had changed.
The group got ready to leave, Gardevoir was waiting outside the hotel for the others when she heard something stomping towards her. She turned to see Garchomp walking towards her. Gardevoir, naturally, was confused,
"What are you doing here?"
"I wanted to talk to you in private," Garchomp said. Gardevoir tilted her head curiously but nodded and the two went behind the hotel. Garchomp began,
"Thank you. I mean it, thank you. You, Sceptile, and Roserade saved me. But… there are probably people out there just like me. People who have been accused of first-degree murder, or grand larceny, or assault and battery," She began. Gardevoir took note of Garchomp's specific language regarding criminal law. Garchomp continued,
"I am going to join you. To pay back my debt to you."
Gardevoir's jaw dropped. She had impacted someone so much that they wanted to help her. She then grinned to herself. This is what should've happened between her and Infernape. Gardevoir happily accepted Garchomp's offer. Garchomp's eyes lit up as she bowed, much to the psychic type's surprise,
"Thank you. I promise I won't let you down." Garchomp then tenderly grabbed onto Gardevoir's hands and held them close, "Besides, you'll need someone strong to help pick you up when you fall," she said softly. Gardevoir, with an innocent smile, responded,
"Well, Aggron's pretty strong, but we could use all the help we could get," before walking away to tell the others. Garchomp wondered aloud,
"Was I too subtle?"
Gardevoir told everyone that Garchomp would be joining. The group decided to trust Gardevoir's decision, she was smart, and she had to know what she was doing. Infernape pulled Gardevoir aside to talk to her. Gardevoir was concerned about what he'd say, there was no way he was mad at her, so why did he want to talk? Infernape took a breath and told her,
"You really impressed me today. I, uh, I'm glad to see you've learned from the past." Gardevoir grinned sweetly, but Infernape had more to say,
"That being said, I'm done."