Chapter 59: The Corrupted Empress!
"No! No, this can't be the end! Not here! Not like this!"
Helplessly, Epsilon picked up the pieces of her destroyed armor and tried to put them together somehow.
"Give it up! It's too late! You have lost!", Marshadow stated, determinedly.
Around the group, the black began to dissolve and the vastness of Crowning became visible again. But the outline of a now glassy dome was still visible. Epsilon ignored this, just like the words of her reincarnated son. Only a claw strike from Aurora broke her focus. But Epsilon still refused to show insight. She blocked the blow and stood up abruptly, her cape blowing in the wind.
"No! My armor is destroyed! But my will is not! I can't give up yet! I have a mission! A destiny to fulfill! Good cannot lose! Justice must prevail!"
No member of Team Polarna vatra still present had even a spark of fear or respect left. What they were facing now was no longer a supernatural warrior, but a mere megalomaniac Zoroark.
"Do you still want to keep going? Why can't you finally accept your defeat?", the Empress former teammate asked.
Panting, Epsilon took a step back, stepping on the remains of her armor.
"I don't care if I can still win or not! I will never give up! Do you hear me! NEVER!"
As if triggered by her scream, the armor began to shake beneath Zoroark's feet. Even Epsilon herself did not seem to understand what was going on.
"What... what is happening here? Are you doing this? What is this spook?"
The individual parts of the armor that had still been lying on the ground shattered completely. Small particles sprang out of it, their shape almost reminiscent of tiny insects. Thousands of them flew and crawled around on the floor until, after a few seconds, they began to attack the shocked Epsilon, who tried to defend herself somehow.
"Go away! Stay away! What are you doing? Wha..."
Her voice slowly faded in the masses of strange creatures, while Team Polarna vatra could only watch in dismay.
The dome between the auditorium and the battlefield began to blur again. Not in the same pitch-black appearance as before, but in a strange, gray-white pattern. The only comparable thing Aurora could think of was the appearance of the television screens in the arena when an interference signal interrupted their connection. The insects slowly began to disappear on Epsilon's body, her mane turned dark purple. Zoroark, who had just fought on, now stood there silently, arms and head hanging limply and eyes closed. The area around the group of four and the Plot Empress seemed to be making strange noises, almost as if this place itself was speaking.
"Ep-X-01, SoUl ViRuS P. DeAcTiVaTe EmOtiOn. DeAcTiVaTe MoRaLiTy. ReAcTiVaTe EnDuRaNcE. ScAnNiNg ThE sUrRoUniNDgS."
The strange robotic voice clearly showed what Aurora had already suspected: Whatever was going on here was no longer Epsilon's fault. Something must have been born within the armor over the years of use. Some kind of corrupt virus, probably created from the corrupt power of the Plotholes, which had now escaped the armor through its destruction and released itself. A strange red light filled the room.
"ReCoGnIzE pLoT. REcOgNiZe PlOt. ReCoGnIzE pLoT."
Epsilon's body slowly began to float, as if lifted by a secret power. While she was floating, everything about her figure seemed distorted. Sometimes it flashed briefly, for fractions of a second everything on the motionless Pokemon was distorted... it was like a kind of glitch. A glitch that had spilled over into real life. And after a few seconds, Epsilon's body opened its snow-white eyes. The robotic voice sounded again, but this time from all directions, only a fraction of a second apart. Epsilon's body also seemed to teleport.
"CoNsUmE! cOnSuMe! CoNsUmE!cOnSuMe! CoNsUmE!cOnSuMe! DeStRoY eSsEnCe! DeStRoY lIfE!"
As if drawn by a thread, Epsilon's limp arm rose and a schock wave was created, which pushed the entire team back.
"Good, that answers the most important question: Whatever that is, it doesn't want to hang out! Are we fighting?", Tyrantrum asked the question which Aurora considered obvious!
"What else?"
Epsilon had just been defeated, yet there was no time to celebrate. And the next big battle had already begun. A strange virus that took possession of Pokemon. A kind of counterforce to the Plot. The Soul Virus. How this creature could be defeated was anyone's guess. But as exhausted as Team Polarna vatra was, the adrenaline drove them forward. Nothing could stop them, not after the greatest triumph.
Aurora immediately went on the offensive, even though she already expected the virus to teleport Epsilon off course immediately. And she was right in her assumption. A faint, purple trail ran through the air to the place where Epsilon was now floating and releasing a new attack, which quickly gathered in Epsilon again. It was tiny insects, the Plot Warrior realized. And she immediately had an idea of how this fight might not be too complicated.
"Marshadow, Zeraora, Tyrantrum! I will continue to attack! As soon as Epsilon moves to another place, immediately direct attacks on the trail that follows her! If we can destroy the virus this way, then Epsilon will soon be free!"
Here, too, Team Polarna vatra's leader did not even have to wait for an answer. She knew full well that the team would not let her down. From where she was, she immediately shot a Moon Blast at the enemy to force it to move again. However, she had underestimated the virus's capabilities. A kind of glassy shield formed in front of Epsilon's body and the moment the fairy energy hit, it already hit its sender and struck Aurora into the dome wall. Not only had this something thrown the attack back without giving her a chance to dodge, it had also strengthened it. And the wounds from the previous battle hardly allowed such hits anymore.
"No long-range combat, I get it... Marshadow, attack it. Head-on, not from afar!"
The spirit immediately did what he was told. The enemy clearly couldn't simply reflect a direct attack, so escape by teleportation was the only form of defense. Zeraora and Tyrantrum both recognized this and immediately attacked the small particles with all their might. They disappeared immediately into a strange vortex. But most importantly: They disappeared! They did not return to Epsilon.
"It works! Keep going, guys, keep going!"
At first, Aurora feared that this would be the only opportunity for Team Polarna vatra to use such a technique. However, it quickly became clear that the virus behaved like a kind of program. When it is released, it takes possession of the next Pokemon, and when it senses Plot, it wants to absorb it. In battle, it analyzes attacks and reacts with one of two options. These were all the abilities. However, this creature lacked a basic characteristic of every normal Pokemon: Adaptation! Although Team Polarna vatra had discovered an easily avoidable weakness in the virus, the latter stuck to a completely identical fighting style, so that the team only had to attack directly and punish immediately, usually dodging one or two attacks after the body teleported.
Slowly but surely, the purple color faded from Epsilon's mane, and the old red and white mixture returned. However, when about half of the virus had disappeared, the enemy finally adapted.
"CaPaCiTy: DeCrEaSiNg. CoNtRoL: dEcReAsInG. dAnGeR! dAnGeR!"
Suddenly, Epsilon's entire body was enveloped in purple flames.
"DeAcTiVaTe PaSsIvE mOdE! aCtIvAtE oFfEnSe MoDe!"
Aurora jumped back in shock as burning claws struck the ground right in front of her before she even had time to react. However, she quickly recovered and saw her chance for a direct counterattack. Now that the possessed Epsilon was fighting offensively, it was no longer impossible to hit her directly. And as soon as a direct blow landed, virus was released from the Zoroark's mane, which Tyrantrum immediately intercepted and made disappear, as before.
"Okay, change of plans. Full offense, if this thing is always that fast, then we all have to keep it busy!"
Again, no words were needed as an answer, but actions followed as Marshadow immediately threw himself at the Zoroark, who disappeared on the spot. However, it reappeared behind Aurora. Epsilon obviously focused on Aurora even in this possessed form, probably because as a Plot Warrior she had the strongest aura of Plot. However, Tyrantrum was there and immediately blocked the blow, followed by Zeraora's direct attack, after which Aurora destroyed the virus. The virus's control seemed to wane more and more as the mane continued to change color and even Epsilon's eyes seemed to regain color.
"ReCoGnIzE eMeRgEnCy! InItIaTe EsCaPe!"
Immediately a strange glow enveloped Epsilon. The virus wanted to teleport again, but this time to a distant location. But Team Polarna vatra's leader had already launched another attack, an Icy Wind that immediately froze the possessed Epsilon. Escape was no longer possible! At least that's what the quartet thought. And... they were partly right. Countless tiny particles crawled out of the ice, all the remaining parts of virus. They could no longer hold on to this body, but they did not want to stay.
"HoSt LoSt! BoDy LoSt! EmErGeNcY! fInD nEw BoDy!"
In panic, all the particles flew through the dome, confused and hectic, as if they were fleeing, until they were all stopped by a Blizzard. Every last particle disappeared, just like the barrier. Thus, it finally cleared the way for Elementareon into the ring, while thousands looked speechless at the spectacle at her feet.
"Aurora! Marshadow! Zeraora! Tyrantrum! Are you all alright? What... was all that just now?"
Aurora looked briefly around the ranks of her friends, at the same time she also looked at Epsilon's rapidly melting prison.
"It's all good. No serious injuries as far as I can see. Elementareon, I can trust you, Zeraora and Tyrantrum to deal with Epsilon, right?"
In response, the hybrid creature nodded briefly.
"Of course. What should we do with her though?"
The ice had now completely melted, but Epsilon was still lying on the ground. She was awake, but no longer able to fight. A wave of hatred overcame Aurora. And yet... she had her ideals and principles that she would follow.
"No matter how much she has done, Epsilon is a Pokemon. First off all help her with her wounds. We'll talk about everything else when Marshadow and I return!"
"So you really want to set off after Kel?", Elementareon asked.
Marshadow answered in his sister's place.
"Of course. It is the only option."
A quiet voice sounded, weak and broken, from the side.
"Aurora... Polar..."
It was Epsilon.
"Be careful! The war is decided, but the author... it was you or I. The winner... has to face him. You have won. Aurora... he can make your dreams come true! Grant you the future you desire! If he wants to. But... I don't know his real intentions... he is powerful."
"What are you talking about, Zoroark?"
Epsilon flinched briefly at the mention of that fake name, but she did not complain.
"You have won. I must accept that too. All this war was a game for him. The author... he gave you your power and mine to me. He controlled Kel. You will meet him. The author... he created the Plot. He is the light. The rainbow in the darkness. He is God! The creator of all. His wish alone could destroy us all! Aurora... he will test you. You... when you meet him... you will decide our future. All of our futures! The cave he wants you to visit... the Mind of the World. The core of the Plot. The place I got my powers."
Aurora was unsure whether she should listen to a word this Pokemon said, but something told her that Epsilon was telling the truth.
"What else do you know about this author?"
"The author... he is... all-powerful. Everything. God. He created this world. The first Pokemon. But we..."
When Zoroark wanted to continue speaking, she seemed to lose her breath. Only a few words escaped her before she fell motionless to the ground.
"Creator... Kel... test..."
So Aurora stood in this stadium. Lost the champion duel, but defeated Epsilon and destroyed a foreign virus. But even with the victory against her greatest nemesis, the end of the journey had only just begun. One last journey, at the side of her long lost brother. On the way to an endless truth! To finally end this journey, once and for all!