Aggron shot awake to see himself in a dark void. He looked around frantically. His heart was still pounding from the fight. Raking his memory, he remembered his sacrifice and realized just what was happening.
He was dead.
Aggron laid back down, trying to process his own death. That was it. No meeting with Arceus. No judgment. Not even eternal damnation. Just this empty black pit of nothing for him to traverse for all eternity. A soul-crushing reality that would break any soul, but there was more to this than one might think. The steel type's resolve at the moment of his death was far stronger than even he realized. Little did Aggron know, he wasn't dead, not yet anyway.
A faint voice began to whisper through the air. Gentle and kind, like a warm embrace. Memories of the past that one looks at with a comforting nostalgia, making you wish to return to a much simpler time. A time that Aggron would rather be in than in this nowhere space. Following the source of the voice, he began to walk into a familiar location. It was that very house he grew up in.
His childhood room was pretty standard. Toybox, coloring books, small bed, everything that a child was used to having in their room. Aggron then turned his head to see a little Aron stumbling into his room. The child struggled into bed when he was followed by his mother. She entered the room after him, making Aggron well up slightly. It has been so long, yet he could tell that no matter what, she would never see him. He knew he was an outside observer.
Aron climbed into bed and wrapped himself up in the blankets, staring at his mom eagerly. Mom giggled a little and sat down next to him in the bed. Watching the whole scene play out before, Aggron wanted to hug his mother. So he reached out, only for his hand to phase through her shoulder. Thus proving his theory that he was just observing. It was like watching a king celebrate in his castle as a lowly peasant. Unable to do anything but watch as every desire you've ever dreamed of is so close yet so far.
"Sing the lullaby, mom!" Aron said. At that point, the observing Aggron silently gasped. He was beginning to realize why he was witnessing this. Perhaps, and he wasn't 100% sure this was actually the case, perhaps this was a reminder of why he was fighting. That song was what gave him purpose. Its lyrics, while simple, were something that he lived by, but did he deserve to hear them. He was weak before, and he was still weak now.
"Stand up, my child~ Be strong, my child~ Stand up, take a chance, protect what you love~"
That was when he heard it.
"GET UP! I KNOW YOU'RE STRONGER THAN THAT! I KNOW YOU CAN!" screamed Infernape. Aggron blinked back into consciousness. He looked over at Infernape and Lopunny as the fire type continued. "EVERY TIME YOU SEEK TO HELP, YOU ACCOMPLISH YOUR GOAL! I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU, BUT I CAN'T JUST LET YOU GOT OUT LIKE THIS! GET UP, AND SHOW ME WHAT YOUR MADE OF!" Hearing this, Aggron shed a single tear. To hear someone have so much faith in him. Who didn't see him as weak after falling. Someone who believed in him. His determination reached it's peak. His fist shakily raised up from the ground as the lyrics to his lullaby continued. It then slammed into the ground, deafening the entire volcano with the noise. Bisharp and Sableye were the first to look back at the rising Aggron. The former was stunned into immobility. This wasn't possible. That attack would kill anyone, he couldn't survive that. Alas, Aggron's efforts directly contradicted this notion. Sableye dropped his weapon and fell back, like he was watching Giratina rising from hell itself.
"Stand up, my child~ Don't give up, my child~" the song continued in Aggron's head as he lifted his leg. Stomping the ground, he began to rise. Gardevoir and Garchomp watched in complete disbelief. He was alive! However, Gardevoir noticed something sparkling around Aggron. A sparkling object that began to become a glowing burst of rainbow energy. An aura of said energy then surrounded Aggron, appearing more like floating blocks of rainbow. Aggron then stood up, planting both feet on the ground, before roaring out as he Mega Evolved.
Aggron was now way bulkier with shorter horns, his eyes went from a full red back to their normal color. He looked over at Sableye and simply stated,
"I'm here now, and you will not take them from me."
Sableye was stunned but he regained his composure. He noticed Aggron charging toward him and ran to his large gem. He grabbed it and held it up confident, there was no way Aggron could punch through this.
The ruby shattered into hundreds of tiny pieces. He gaped at Aggron in shock and horror as the steel type struck him with his newfound strength. Screaming, he flew across the volcano, into the wall, creating a crater in the process. The dark type was unable to move, his bones had been shattered. Bisharp watched that onslaught in horror and ran from the volcano as fast as he could. Druddigon emerged from the lava and faced off against the women. Gengar was quickly able to incapacitate Umbreon. Aggron didn't care, he looked over at Groudon and jumped toward him. The ground shattered underneath the pressure.
He struck Groudon with as much force as he could. The god of land stumbled back, freeing Infernape and Lopunny. Aggron looked over at the massive crevasse made in the wall made by the god's hyper beam and came up with a plan. Groudon looked at Aggron in disgust,
"YOU DAMN MORTAL!" and tried to punch him. Aggron, with his newfound strength, actually managed to hold back Groudon's power.
"Oh my god." Aggron thought out loud as he pushed back Groudon's fist. He then jumped towards Aggron and punched the beast in the face. Unleashing his fiery breath, Groudon used it to chase the steel type around the volcano. Aggron ran as fast as he could, however, he wasn't fast enough and was consumed by the flames.
He yelled in pain but quickly regained his composure and he jumped up towards the top of the volcano, smashing into the ceiling and sending rocks into Groudon. The land god was pummeled by rocks and Aggron began to strike Groudon. Groudon was now being pushed back against the damaged wall and Aggron landed across from him.
"For years, I blamed myself for my parents' deaths! For years, I constantly trained out of fear that I would stay that weak little kid! But I'm not weak! I never was!" he declared to everyone there. He jumped upwards and shot himself from the wall. He spun around rapidly, creating a hurricane of rock and debris. He stopped and roared,
"PLATINUM POWERDRILL!" before striking Groudon with every ounce of strength he had.
The sheer force of the attack pushed Groudon through the volcano as he fell back. It was important to note that the attack hadn't actually done much damage to the god. However, the force of the attack was great. Infernape and Lopunny saw an opportunity. They blasted the ground beneath the earth god. Because of this, the rocks crumbled beneath Groudon's weight. Groudon sank slowly into the bottom of the ocean. The volcano began to collapse, rocks falling down upon the group. Gardevoir, now free from her crystalline restraints due to Sableye's sudden onset unconsciousness, flew up and caught Aggron with her psychokinesis. Aggron was still bleeding and Gardevoir decided to take a gamble. Infernape climbed up from the bottom of the volcano, carrying Lopunny on his back. He was confused when he saw that Aggron had stopped bleeding.
"What are you doing?" he asked Gardevoir, thinking that she had something to do with this phenomenon. Gardevoir then picked him and Lopunny up with her psychokinesis, followed by Garchomp. Gengar then grabbed onto Aggron as they flew up out of the volcano. Gardevoir didn't answer and flew as fast as she could to the city. She was focused on finding either Sceptile or a hospital, just something to try to save Aggron.
Suddenly, a mercenary shot a burst of water that blasted Gardevoir out of the sky. The group began to fall rapidly into the ocean. Infernape tried his damnedest to fly again but he couldn't produce the flames needed. Any that he could produce quickly burnt out. Gardevoir grabbed onto the rest of the group but she physically couldn't grab onto Gengar with her psychic powers. He fell rapidly, screaming in panic and Gardevoir followed as fast as she could. Gengar reached out his hand and Gardevoir reached out hers. She grabbed onto his hand and focused back on the city, dodging the other attacks as she traveled. Gengar, albeit reluctantly, gave the ok sign with his hand,
"Thanks."
Gardevoir was now meters from the ground, looking around desperately for a hospital. She was now barely able to keep herself flying, not helped by the fact she had to physically carry Gengar. Worse still, it seemed no matter where she looked, she couldn't find the building nor Sceptile. Finally, her powers gave out and they tumbled onto the street. Infernape protected Lopunny from the impact, his back getting shredded as he drifted down the road. Gengar landed on his feet but due to the momentum, he stumbled and rolled, scraping every part of his body. Aggron was mostly safe because of his armor but Gardevoir didn't have that luxury. She tumbled and rolled into a restaurant, crashing through a window and into a table.
A familiar voice screamed in terror once the group landed. Aggron looked over and smiled,
"Sorry, Ampharos." Sceptile quickly ran over and started to patch up Aggron to the best of his ability but demanded the crowd that formed to call an ambulance. Ampharos went to help Gardevoir and Gengar whilst Blastoise went to Infernape and his daughter. Infernape shivered as he and Lopunny sat up.
"Infernape! Lopunny!" Blastoise yelled as he went onto his knees. "Infernape, can you cauterize your wounds?" Blastoise asked urgently. Infernape shook his head,
"I don't know how and even if I did, I'm spent. I can't make a spark, much less superheat my hands." Blastoise nodded, he made Infernape lay down again after making Lopunny create a bed of ice to prevent infection.
Infernape grinned although he shivered from the cold. Lopunny frowned,
"Wow, I think that's the first time I've seen a fire-type cold." Infernape laughed,
"Well, I'm glad to be the one." Blastoise patted Infernape on his shoulder,
"You did a really good job out there. I'm proud of you." For some reason, Blastoise's words struck a cord with the fire type. It was like something that was missing for most of his life.
Gengar, Lopunny, Ampharos, Infernape, and Blastoise waited patiently for hours in the hospital. Infernape had bandages wrapped around his body and waist. Gengar's wounds were mostly healed, except for his stab wound. Lopunny has a couple of bandages on her but was overall okay, although her ears were hurting. A door burst open and a familiar purple blur rushed to the group.
"ARE MY MINIONS OKAY?! THAT EXPLOSION WAS INTENSE!" Gliscor yelled, much to Lopunny's chagrin.
"Can you quiet down?!" She groaned as she covered her ears. Gliscor nodded,
"I'm sorry." Roserade stumbled into the waiting room, sweating and out of breath,
"You know, you could've told me that you were heading to the other side of town, you muppet." Infernape chuckled at the grass type. "What are we waiting for?" Roserade asked. Blastoise explained,
"Sceptile is in there with the doctors trying to help Aggron. As for Gardevoir and Garchomp, those chains created some major lacerations on their arms and body." The door to the operating rooms opened and a doctor walked out.
"Gardevoir and Garchomp are in stable condition. As for Aggron..." he trailed off, leaving Gengar concerned,
"What?! What's wrong with him?!" challenged Gengar furiously. The doctor nodded,
"We are working as best as we can but we are overwhelmed by the number of patients, our best surgeons are occupied." Gengar shook his head,
"What about Sceptile, he can help!"
"He's a medic, not a surgeon." Infernape stood up and walked over to Gengar, patting him on the back. Gengar stared back at the operating doors. Those damned doors. His eyes went wide as he looked at his quivering hand. Shaking his head clear, Gengar then looked over at Infernape in disgust and swatted Infernape's hand away,
"I don't need your fucking pity." he seethed. Lopunny stood up, snapping at Gengar with vicious anger,
"What's with the attitude?" Gengar hesitated before saying,
"He's just a co-worker, nothing more. He knew what he agreed to." Lopunny was astonished,
"Is that all he was to you?! Just some tool for you?!" Gengar couldn't look Lopunny in the eye. Wordlessly, he then walked away. The entire time Gengar had begun to stifle his laughter. His fist shoved into his mouth.
Lopunny silently fummed over that but Infernape just stared at the leaving Gengar. Anger began to build within him. He was abandoning him, just like Torterra and Empoleon did. However, this anger felt…unnatural, but it fit in so well. The other two left but Gengar had done nothing worth getting this upset about. It angered Lopunny greatly but to him, calling someone a co-worker was a fair statement, even if it was cruel in this circumstance. So why was he so angry? He was getting ready to put away Gengar for life, yet Gengar had only jaywalked, once. It was so out of proportion and Infernape recognized that. His mind left so conflicted on how he was supposed to feel.
The group, sans Gengar, had now entered Gardevoir and Garchomp's room. Gardevoir was still unconscious with an oxygen mask but Garchomp was awake. She smiled as she saw the group enter, although she did notice that Gengar was missing.
"Where's Gengar?" she asked.
"He left. I don't know why, but he was a dick about it." Lopunny explained. Garchomp nodded but couldn't help but speculate,
"I think he's just tired. We've all been through a lot."
"Wait," said Infernape, "how are you awake and Gardevoir's still unconscious?"
"Oh, should probably explain that. Us dragon types have a healing factor. It's not very strong and I can't regrow a limb but it's helpful. Think of it as a turtle racing a snail. It's only comparatively fast. Plus it gives me hope that Gardevoir will wake up soon."
On que, A soft, meek voice groaned. The group focused their attention on the second bed, Gardevoir had awakened. Infernape ran over to Gardevoir,
"Are you okay?" He asked. Gardevoir tried to remove the oxygen mask but found that her hands were bound by bandages.
"I don't know, everything below my neck is numb." she tiredly responded, her voice somewhat muffled by the mask. Garchomp also went to Gardevoir,
"I'll go get the doctor, swee-I mean friend." she flustered before leaving. Infernape still had one thing on his mind.
"Hey, Gardevoir. What did you do to Aggron while we were flying?" he asked. Gardevoir looked over at him and explained,
"I knew that he'd probably bleed out, so I use my psychokinesis to stop his bleeding." The group, despite the previous events, were in the mood to celebrate. Especially after Lopunny revealed something.
"Oh! Before I forget. Da-da-da-Daaaaa!" she exclaimed before she revealed the Eclipse Gem. "Sableye dropped it when Aggron punched him. It looked important so I grabbed it." she explained. Silence fell upon the room for a brief moment. A loud cheer then erupted as Infernape tightly embraced Lopunny.
"I LOVE YOU!" he yelled excitedly.
"That's the Eclipse Gem!" said Blastoise in surprise. Lopunny giggled to herself. At that moment, Gardevoir reached out and took the gem, much to everyone's surprise. However, she had some rationale behind it.
"I'm a deputized Senshi. If they somehow come back, they won't know where to look," Infernape blinked in surprised,
"That's…actually a decent plan."
Inside the crumbled ruins of the volcano, the Darkrai cult lay buried in the rocks. Sableye emerged from the rock, as did, Druddigon and Umbreon,
"Where's Bisharp?" Umbreon looked around, hoping to find him but he was nowhere to be found. She frowned,
"He's gone. Abandoned us." Druddigon punches a nearby bolder, destroying it. He roared with fury,
"THAT CHICKENSHIT COWARD!" Druddigon then looked over at Sableye and was shocked by what he saw. Sableye was crying.
"It happened again. I trusted him…and he betrayed me." he sobbed, despite his best efforts. Umbreon watched as she began to well up herself. Druddigon walked over to the two and embraced them. A voice called out,
"THERE THEY ARE!" A Magneton yelled as he flew towards the three. He charged up an electric-type attack, ready to take them down. He still viewed them as a threat, unknowing if this was a trick.
Outside the crumbling ruins of the volcano, Bisharp climbed out from under the rubble to a strange air of calmness. He looked around to see the Senshi were occupied arresting the mercs he had hired. Everyone had failed him. All he asked was that they hold their own and they failed him. In particular, his anger towards his lackeys was violently rising. Bisharp yelled into the rubble,
"WORTHLESS! EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU! I SHOULD'VE KILLED YOU ALL!" hoping that they'd hear him. But they wouldn't, and he knew that. There were thousands of pounds of rocks in the way. Collecting himself, Bisharp was about to make his leave when an idea popped into his head. He grinned as he turned back around to the remains of the volcano.
All he had to do was come to their rescue and lead them on until they got back the Eclipse Gem. Then, throw them into the sharks so that he could get what he wanted. After all, they all had such narrow-minded ideas of wealth, opportunity, and redemption. He had a noble goal.
Of revenge.
So Bisharp jumped back in. This would be a great practice run for the terror he'd inflict on Weskrin.
(A/N) With that, the Groudon Arc as I've called it has come to an end. Boy, am I happy with what I've made so far. Nearly thirty chapters have passed and I've received so much support and kindness from both AO3 and . For all of that, All I have to say is thank you. Thank you for sticking with this story for so long. It may have had it's rough patches, it is my first major project after all, but you guys stayed with it and it warms my heart. In celebration of reaching this chapter, I've created a simple character poll. Vote for your favorite character using the link below. It is totally anonymous and will only take a few seconds of your time.
Unfortunately, the poll isn't working on this website. You'll have to go to Archive Of Our Own to do so. It is on chapter 29