"RUN LITTLE MAN, RUN!"
Jack hid back behind the slab of concrete and metal he was using for cover and looked at his belt of pokeballs. In the short time he was trying to fight the iron behemoth, his Mightyena and Fearow had both been taken out fairly quickly with a slam from the mech's iron tail and a blast from its cannons respectively. Both of his pokemon had only managed to cause minimal damage to the legs and shoulders of the machine.
Cynthia had managed to single-handedly push the Grunts out of the arena, albeit unintentionally leaving Jack to fend for himself. Diego had tried using his Charizard and Crobat to attack from the air, but ground attacks from Fenrirs and some Grunts that had gotten through had grabbed at his attention and Jack must have figured that if Diego couldn't make a dent in this robot, he'd at least go rough up ones that he could.
Jack turned to one of the doors leading out of the arena, thinking Diego might have had the right idea. No matter what he tried, none of his pokemon's attacks were really doing anything and the pokemon he hadn't sent out yet might not even be able to do anything either. But if they couldn't stop this monster, what would he do? He couldn't stop it with his bare hands!
As the pilot cackled again, Jack's thoughts went to his friends and allies. Were they in a position that seemed just as hopeless?
"Oh don't play so hard to get my little Styles!"
Styles and Pandora both shared a look of discomfort and, in the case of the former, disgust, as the larger figure of Tsar Agus slowly walked over to the boy.
"Can you please just leave Styles alone? He clearly doesn't like you." Pandora cringed as her Shiftry stood in front of her, ready to strike if needed.
"Ugh, what would you know, girl!" Agus hissed. "I wasn't talking to you, nor did I ask for your input!"
"Don't disrespect her like that!" Styles spat back. "You're already a major creep and I don't want to deal with you, but unfortunately you and your ilk just launched an attack on innocent people. You escaped from us last time, but this time we'll make sure you end up behind bars like you belong!"
"Hmph! Seems like you need some discipline!" Agus huffed before smirking. "Good thing I'm used to setting boys like you on the right path!"
"My gosh, you're disgusting!" Pandora shivered.
"Tell me about it..." Styles groaned.
"I am not disgusting! I'm simply after love! A true and pure love that girls like you could never understand! Hypno, Drifblim, let's show them what the power of love can do!"
"Why am I not surprised in your choice of pokemon..." Styles sighed as he and his Glaceon readied themselves.
"I don't think you thought this through." Pandora stated.
"Oh, haven't I, you dumb girl?" Agus chuckled. "Oh boys!"
A small platoon of grunts ran to Tsar Agus' side, some either ready with pokeballs at their side or with their pokemon, mostly consisting of Solrock, Lunatone, and the Galarian fossil pokemon, already sent out by their side. Interestingly, some of them glanced at the heftier grunt that called them.
"Look, I know we're on the same side here and all, but you shouldn't be acting so big. You're not one of the admins."
"Whatever, lets just get them!"
Snow's legs trembled a bit as she watched her Blastoise fight off the RM as much as it could. The Water pokemon's hard shell managed to provide a solid defense against the mechanical beast's chainsaw attacks in both a figurative and literal sense. Thankfully, Blastoise wasn't strictly acting on the defensive as Snow directed attacks that kept the beast away from her while threatening some serious damage.
"Blastoise, Hydro Pump!" The girl called Shellfish pokemon let out a roar before firing twin blasts of water from the cannons on its back. With a swift movement that Snow was barely able to see, the RM avoided the attack before betting hit with a third blast of water that Blastoise had launched from its mouth.
"Hehe, nice one, Blastoise!" Snow grinned before a sharp pain zipped through her leg.
The adrenaline coursing through her and the current battle made her forget all about the gash in her leg. Just as she was about to dig through her bag for a bandage of some kind, the sound of something zooming through the air stopped her.
The young trainer couldn't even see what it was before her Blastoise practically jumped in front of her and took the attack using the back of his shell. With a growl, Blastoise turned around to face its robot foe.
Snow gasped in shock as she saw three throwing knives embedded into Blastoise's shell, glowing red hot from an intense heat before cooling down a bit. The girl gulped before grabbing the knives and removing them from her partner's shell, thankful that they didn't seem to cause any serious harm.
Once the weapons were dislodged, Snow looked past Blastoise, and at the RM, some of its metallic body was dented from the attack, albeit barely.
"Hmph, nice trick, but my Blastoise is a lot tougher than you seem to give credit for! He would never let anything bad happen to me!" Snow exclaimed as her Blastoise nodded in affirmation. The RM simply remained silent with its gaze fixated on Snow and her Blastoise. The lull in the action made Snow relax just enough for the pain in her cut leg to catch up to her. As she flinched in pain to check on her wound, the RM suddenly appeared in front of her. The apparent teleportation caught both the young girl and her pokemon off guard.
Blastoise let out a sharp gasp as it turned to its trainer, eyes wide in horror at the sight of the RM raising its razor sharp claws at Snow, who looked too stunned to move. With a sharp cry of panic, the Shellfish pokemon lunged at the robot and tackled it as hard as it could. While Snow was spared from the swipe, the machine had managed to scrape a large portion of Blastoise's shell as the two skidded along the ground. Despite its body now dented and scratched, the RM jumped back to its feet and leaped away from the Water pokemon as it also rose back to its feet.
"You alright, Blastoise?" Snow asked. Her pokemon let out a pained growl while staring at their enemy, nodding its head. "Alright, well we can't afford to let this thing out of our sight for even a second!"
Both parties readied themselves to continue their fight...
"Man, they're everywhere!" Dwayne grimaced as he clung to the talons of his Staraptor, the bird pokemon carrying Gareth atop its back.
"It's crazy!" The coordinator shook his head. "Thanks again or getting me away from that army of robots."
"Of course! I couldn't just let a friend get torn to shreds like that!" The ranger smiled before he turned back to the chaos, worry returning to his eyes. "Jethro and every high ranking ranger in Kanto are trying their best to get things sorted out down there. Even the ones from Johto are on their way now, but I don't know how we're going to take down that giant robot they have in the arena."
"Yeah, that thing's going to be a nightmare to deal with..." Gareth sighed as he also looked down at the ground, his gaze sharpening as he appeared to notice something. "Hey... is that Sinead and Simon down there?!"
Without sparing a moment, the two dove down towards their friends with Gareth immediately sending out his Machamp and a Manectric to help them push back against the platoon of grunts while Dwayne fought back with his Staraptor.
"You two got here right on time!" Sinead exclaimed, quickly looking at the new arrivals before shifting her attention towards her Roserade. "We've been trying to hold out as long as we could but these guys just keep on coming! I don't know how much more of this we can take!"
"We're tough, but my pokemon weren't exactly raised for battling. It doesn't help that some of these guys haven't forgotten about my time within Dark Star..."
"I get you..." Gareth nodded before ordering his Machamp to batter an oncoming wave of Arctozolts and Minior with some Cross Chops and Bullet Punches. "We're Coordinators, not Trainers..."
"Even so, we're far from weak!" Dwayne assured. "We'll fight as long as we need to before backup arrives!"
The Ranger's capture styler began to beep as his Staraptor screeched, smacking a Solrock and Lunatone away from its partner and Sinead with a Steel Wing.
"This is Ranger Dwayne!" The young man answered.
"Dwayne, this is Betty from HQ, do you read me?"
"I read you!"
"We have Rangers coming to provide backup, but we've received word that one of Team Dark Star's admins is attacking one of the hotels close to your location! The Officer Jenny of Viridian City is currently protecting civilians that are hiding within the hotel basement, but a trainer is battling the admin by herself! We need you to provide backup to that trainer and make sure that Dark Star admin does not get to any of those civilians! You're already dealing with a terrorist attack, we can't afford to deal with a hostage situation on top of that!"
"What?!" Dwayne gasped before glancing over at his friends, who were all trying to fight off the enemy. Simon ordered Classy, his Victreebel, to slow down approaching Dracovish and Starmie with Stun Spore, allowing Sinead's Roserade to blow them away with Sludge Bombs. The Bouquet pokemon was able to gain some energy back by using Giga Drain to heal itself, but the continuous assault quickly wore the Grass pokemon down. Even Gareth's Machamp was easily becoming overwhelmed with the brutal Bolt Beaks from the charging Dracozolt.
"Dwayne, you have to go!" Betty called out.
"I can't just abandon my friends out here! They're fighting for their lives, too!" Dwayne grimaced, his Staraptor letting out another battle cry as it assisted the three graduates by clearing away a wave of Starmie and Clefable by charging into each one of them with a full-force Brave Bird attack before battering an Aggron with Close Combat.
"You're the only person close enough! Jethro and the others are either too far, have their hands tied getting innocent people to safety, or are dealing with those crazy robots!"
"Okay... okay, I'll do it..." Dwayne sighed.
"I know you want to help your friends..."
"But I have to help the people that aren't able to help themselves." Dwayne retorted, calling his Staraptor over to him and getting on its back.
"Guys!" He called out. "I'm sorry, but I have to hurry, one of those admins are getting too close to some civilians and we can't let this become a hostage situation!"
"Crap..." Gareth cursed. "I guess we'll have to hold out, but if innocent people are at risk, they need help more than we do."
"Just try to hurry back! Please!" Sinead pleaded, her eyes beginning to water as her Roserade was knocked back by an enemy Toxicroak's Poison Jab. With a concerned grimace, Dwayne clung to his partner pokemon as it zipped back up into the air, swiftly dodging attacks from Dark Star before the two became obscured in the smoke and dust in the air.
Yuki watched carefully as Aiden and his Electivire battled the familiar Dark Star grunt and his Dusknoir and Haxorus. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but something in her gut was telling her not to fight him, even with everything his group was currently responsible for.
Aiden and his Electivire, meanwhile, were managing to put up a decent fight overall against his opponent's two pokemon, despite having a type disadvantage against one of them. Despite that, it was still a two-against-one scenario and, after his strongest pokemon took a heavy hit from Dusknoir's Shadow Punch, he wasn't sure how much longer he could last. In a panic, he turned to look at his Coordinator friend.
"Uh, hello?! Earth to Yuki! I could use some help here!"
Yuki kept her gaze on Dakota for a moment before looking over to Aiden.
"I'm sorry but I... I don't think we should be fighting him..."
"Huh?! Are you nuts?!" Aiden replied with a gobsmacked expression. "He's a terrorist!"
"I know, I know! But I've noticed something while you were battling him... He hasn't called out to his pokemon to use an attack at all! They've basically been acting on instinct!"
Aiden furrowed his brows before turning back to Dakota, who remained silent while his pokemon remained by their trainer's side. The Ghost and Dragon remained steadfast, yet appeared to be waiting for Aiden to attack again. Dakota himself had his shoulders slumped in defeat as he appeared to be looking past the two trainers and at the devastation going on around them.
"Then there's the pokemon he's using..." Yuki continued. "I remember them from when the Professor asked us to go to the castle with him! He used a Dragapult as well!"
Aiden's eyes widened a bit more as the memories returned to him. "Now that you mention it... he does seem kind of familiar..."
"Hey!" Yuki called out, getting Dakota's attention as the young grunt seemed to snap out of his daze and look over at her. "You're the same Dark Star member from the castle, aren't you?"
Dakota's eyes widened from beneath his mask as he truly looked at Yuki and Aiden. The failure at the castle did weigh heavily on his mind but he had mostly been focused on what the Boss would say about it rather than getting recognized by those that stopped him. Just as he tried to open his mouth to say something, however, Yuki beat him to the punch.
"Yeah... I remember asking you about your badges..."
"Badges?" Aiden asked before furrowing his brow. "You mean you were in the tournament?!"
"Yeah... I was..." Dakota finally spoke, nodding slightly.
"You said you earned your badges honestly, and without hurting anyone. That doesn't sound like someone who would associate themselves with a group of creeps like Team Dark Star, so why are you with them? There has to be a reason!"
Dakota turned to silence again, this time contemplating what to say next. Why had he joined Team Dark Star? Money? No, he didn't really care too much for that. Strength? There were other ways to gain strength, and he knew that. Power? That would have been nice, but he didn't need to be in charge of other people and he was aware of the effects power could have on people that abuse it.
So, why?
"I... I don't know..." Dakota answered. "I guess, maybe I was just trying to find myself. Find somewhere that I felt I belonged. For a little while I was actually happy being a part of Team Dark Star! There were a couple of people in the group that I got along with and talked to, but one day they just... disappeared. I overheard one of the admins, Typhoon, mentioning that 'they were a bunch of traitors and cowards'. After that started, some of the other members went AWOL, especially since that was when some of our missions became really shady."
Yuki and Aiden listened intently to Dakota's explanation. Once again the grunt turned his attention to the sight of the chaos around them; all of the trainers, officers, rangers and security trying to fight off the grunts. The battles kicking up dust and dirt while flames, sparks and spurts of water blasted all around. The second arena where Styles had won his last battle before the chaos began had a section of the stands set ablaze.
"For the longest time, I wasn't sure what was going top happen with Team Dark Star or what I wanted in being a part of this group but..." Dakota turned back to the two trainers, removing his mask and allowing them to see the crestfallen look on his face. "...It wasn't this... Anything but all of this!"
"How in the hell did things turn out this way?!"
Corey and Mauro, the two announcers from the second arena, were trying to fly to safety on the back of a Tropius. The former clasped one of his hands on his head in frustration and fear while the other clung to the neck of the pokemon. The latter of the two held on to the back of the Flying pokemon for dear life.
"I wish I knew, partner." Mauro replied shakily. "I'm just thankful that you got us both out of there!"
"Well I couldn't just leave you there! Now, what are we going to do? Tropius can't fly forever, especially with this much weight."
"Hey, I'll have you know I've been trying to slim down!" Mauro exclaimed.
"There!" Corey called out, pointing to the castle. "Hopefully the royal family won't mind us hiding out there for a while."
As soon as the two men landed on the castle grounds, they were immediately rushed down by both Dark Star grunts and castle guards.
"Stop right there!" One of the guards announced. "We cannot allow any more of you Dark Star intruders to get any closer to the King and Queen!"
"Look, buddy, we're not with these goons!" Corey replied as he and Mauro raised their hands defensively at the guard's Bisharp threatening to slash them. "We're one of the announce teams for the tournament!"
"Yeah!" The grunt agreed. "Like we'd ever let some fat anchorman and his washed up yogi friend be a part of our organization!"
"Hey! I'm trying to lose weight!" Mauro remarked.
"'Washed up'?!" Corey hissed. "'Yogi'?!... 'Fat anchorman'?!"
"Hey, relax, bub! Just stay out of our way and you won't have to worry about your career falling further down the drain." The grunt scoffed.
"Oh, you want me to relax?! Sure, friend, I'm calm and collected! Namaste!" Corey growled, his Tropius quickly becoming just as angry as its master. "Come on Mauro, let's beat the hell out of these guys!"
"If it means he'll stop commenting on my size, gladly!" Mauro huffed, sending out a Watchog. "But, I'm, uh, not a very good battler."
"Any assistance would be appreciated!" Christopher the butler exclaimed, arriving on scene and pulling the grunt's arm behind his back.
The Dark Star grunt grimaced before using his free arm to elbow Christopher in the ribs and grab him by his shirt collar.
"You will not lay another hand on that man!" A woman's voice called out.
All of the men turned to the source of the voice only to see Bella and her army of wild pokemon. With a surprising amount of grace, Bella leaped off of the Pidgeot she had been flying on and delivered a flying kick to the grunt manhandling Christopher, who was still struck dumb by the woman's appearance.
"P-Princess?! Princess Bella?!" He said before stammering.
"It's wonderful to see you again, Christopher!" Bella smiled, hugging the man. "But I'm afraid the pleasantries will have to wait until we save Mother and Father!"
From within the castle, King and Queen Larose had made their way to the safety of their bedroom and were surveying the damage currently being done to their home. The sudden appearance of their daughter had certainly surprised them, especially the sight of her instructing the guards and the two announcers on how they could lead Team Dark Star away from the castle.
"Bella... she actually returned." The Queen gasped.
"Even after choosing to abandon the throne and the life as a member of the royal family, she chose to return... And she appears so different..." The King added.
"Do you think perhaps her time away from the castle, away from us and with those... pokemon... Do you think it has perhaps changed her for the better?"
Renée quickly found herself overwhelmed by the sheer power of Sirius' pokemon. The man's Rhyperior and Claydol served as an almost perfect counter to all of the girl's pokemon, leaving only her Riolu, Ampharos and Volcarona left compared to most of the Dark Star admin's.
"You're outmatched." Sirius said flatly. "You don't have to keep fighting, you know. You can go find your friends and still get to safety."
"I'm not just going to let you do as you please! Even if it means I'm just stalling you for time, I'm willing to do what it takes! Volcarona, use Giga Drain!"
The Bug pokemon chittered as it fluttered its wings, in an instant, Sirius' Rhyperior suddenly let out a bellowing cry of pain. Green orbs of energy zipped out of the goliath and towards Volcarona, the Moth's wounds healing with each orb entering its body. The older man shook his head as he let out a disappointed sigh.
"You really don't know what you're getting into, kid. This stuff is bigger than you."
"I don't care!" Renée growled. "Use Bug Buzz!"
Without missing a beat, Volcarona began flapping its wings while letting out a loud hiss. The sheer power of the insect's wings forced flaming scales to brush off of the wings and through the air towards the Clay Doll pokemon. Renée raised an eyebrow when she noticed that Sirius didn't call for his pokemon to defend itself, allowing it to take the full force of the attack and faint from the power of the sound waves.
"Ugh, what is with you?!" Renée spat. "You're acting like you don't want to fight even though you and your team are in the middle of committing a terrorist attack!"
"You think I want any of this?!" Sirius replied, finally raising his voice. "Look, kid, you want to know why I'm doing this?! Why I don't want to see people get hurt?! It's because I've seen how messed up war is! I've seen people and pokemon lose the life in their eyes, I've seen innocent people lose their lives as a result of war! You've talked to those Interpol guys, so you probably know about how I ended up in Dark Star. I'm only in this to find my son. As long as I know where he is and he's safe, I'll do what it takes. Once I find him, I'll leave Dark Star and atone for my sins. If that means I'll rot in a jail cell for the rest of my miserable life, then so be it."
Renée stood in silence, her eyes wide in shock at the man's explanation.
"But... it doesn't have to be that way." The elder twin croaked out. From beneath his mask, Sirius raised an eyebrow in intrigue. "You could just leave Dark Star now! Take advantage of this chaos and leave! Go and find your son on your own!"
Sirius let out a quiet sigh as he sent out his Steelix, a Mega Stone tied around its neck.
"I'm afraid it's not that simple." He began, activating his Key Stone. "I'm in far too deep to just leave now. I'm sure you're well aware of that."
As Renée watched the Steelix undergo Mega Evolution, she couldn't help but scowl again.
"You're right, maybe there are some things I just don't understand. But what I do understand is that I can't let you cause any more damage!"
"You're a bold kid, you know that?" Sirius couldn't help but smirk. "It's honestly a shame I'll have to put you down."
Much like Renée, Shade and Celeste were struggling against Andromeda, even with the numbers advantage against the 2nd-in-command of Team Dark Star. Still, despite their struggles, the two managed to knock out her Dragapult and Flygon, as well as a Granbull she had sent out afterwards. But the two were quickly met with a brick wall in the orm of a Mega Evolved Mawile.
"Now, children, kindly tell me where that bravado you appeared to have went?" Andromeda snickered. The two trainers kept their eyes locked on the Dark Star underboss, not daring to look away and give her an opportunity to attack.
"Oh man, this is insane!" Shade said, keeping his voice low to prevent Andromeda from hearing him.
"I know." Celeste agreed, her voice also low. "I knew Mega Mawile was strong, but this level of power is just insane!"
"Got any ideas on how we can bring this thing down?"
"Mega Mawile can hit as hard as a freight train, but even for a Steel pokemon, it's defenses aren't the best. As cliche and simple as this may sound, the best we can do is just hit it as hard as we can." Celeste gulped.
"What are you two whispering about over there?" Andromeda huffed. "Trying to think of a strategy to defeat me, are you? Well, you two can forget about that! For as strong as my Mawile is, I am well aware of its weaknesses and limitations, but my husband has entrusted to me something you aren't prepared for in the slightest!"
The eyes of the two trainers widened when Andromeda suddenly recalled her Mega Mawile back into its pokeball with a sinister smirk on her face.
"I know you've been in touch with those meddlesome International Police, so you're well aware of some of the experiments that Team Dark Star has undertaken. But you've never actually seen what we've been working on firsthand, have you? Let me show you just how hopeless it is for you to fight back!"
The older woman reached towards her belt and pulled out a pokeball that was painted grey instead of the normal red. With her smirk growing into a wicked smile, Andromeda threw the pokeball, sending out the Missingno. that Team Dark Star had created, which was currently in its ghost-shaped form. The two trainers felt a chill go down their spines at the sight of the creature, as its physical form still had signs of glitching throughout its body. The abomination's ghostly faced occasionally shorting out, revealing what looked to be the skull of some sort of bird underneath it.
Celeste wanted to scream, but found that nothing would come from her, she wasn't sure if it was from sheer terror at the sight of the artificial being in front of her, or from the fact that she had to fight it with half of her team already unconscious.
Shade was no worse for wear. His Luxray tried to remain firm in front of their foes, but it's shallow breaths were a bad sign for them. His team was already getting worn down as well, and with both Andromeda's Mega Mawile and now her Missingno., he wasn't sure what awaited him in this fight, but he definitely did not like it...
BOOM!
The front door to the hotel was blasted apart from the inside as Typhoon's Scizor lay unconscious in the rubble. The admin himself cackled wildly as he exited the building and towards his pokemon before recalling it to its pokeball.
"Hahahaha, you really did get better!" He laughed as he turned back to the destroyed interior of the building, looking over at Julia and her Gardevoir. The Psychic pokemon appeared to be barely holding it together as she was gasping for breath while holding an arm out from the attack that caused the destruction of the building's entrance. Julia herself tried to remain as firm as she could as she glared at the man.
"But you're nowhere near my level. I've already beaten half of your team while you've only taken down one of my pokemon, no wonder you lost in the tournament!"
That comment managed to get a rise out of the younger twin as she grimaced at the man, her eye twitching ever so slightly. Typhoon continued to laugh to himself as he sent out a Magnezone.
"Even if I lost my last match, that doesn't mean I'm weak! I've been training hard ever since then and I can finally show off a move I never got to use in that match! Gardevoir, use Psygatling!"
With a forceful shout, Julia's Gardevoir outstretched both of her arms and formed a pink sphere in between them. With an edge forming in the eyes of the girl and her pokemon, the two let out a simultaneous shout before the sphere began sending out a barrage of energy at Typhoon's Magnezone in a form that almost resembled bullets of a Gatling Gun. The energy bullets tore into the Magnet Area pokemon while Typhoon simply watched on, his smile unwavering as he watched Gardevoir's arms and core begin to turn a bright red.
Once Gardevoir finished her attack, the Psychic pokemon began to gasp to try and catch her breath. Without warning, the pokemon's body burst into flame, garnering a surprised yelp from Julia while the Dark Star admin began to laugh.
"Pfft, hahaha! Ah, I was hoping that would happen!" He cackled. "I know Psygatling is a rare and strong move, but you it would have been smarter to not take the risk of burning your own pokemon! At least your Gardevoir's ability seems like it's Trace or Telepathy rather than Synchronize, and even if it was my Magnezone wouldn't have been too bothered by it."
Julia simply let out a defeated breath as she watched her pokemon try to fight off the burning pain.
"But if you really want to see what a rare move without any ill effects can do, then eat this! Magnezone, use Magnet Force!"
With a battle cry that almost sounded like a laugh, the magnets on Typhoon's Magnezone began to glow silver for just a moment before the pokemon unleashed a beam of energy that almost looked like a silver lightning bolt at the Embrace pokemon. The attack struck Gardevoir in the heart, putting out the flames tormenting her, but easily knocking her out and leaving the pokemon as a crumpled husk on the floor, barely able to breathe and covered in burns along her arms and torso. The younger twin just stared at her pokemon, unsure of what to do next. All she had left at this point was her Froslass and Wigglytuff, neither of which stood a chance against a Steel pokemon like Magnezone.
As she recalled her pokemon, the weight of the situation began to sink in for Julia. There was no way for her to win. Once she was beaten, Typhoon would no doubt do something to hurt all of the people hiding in the hotel, including her baby cousin. She had no idea where her sister, her friends, or her aunt were. The only people she knew the exact location of were Jack and Diego, and even then she thought she spotted the latter trying to take down airborne enemies away from the arena, where that gigantic robot was still causing havoc with Jack trying to stop it.
All of this left Julia asking herself what to do next. What could she do next? It all seemed so... hopeless...
Diego continued to ride his Charizard through the air above the arena he and Jack were battling in, launching Flamethrowers at any enemy pokemon that flew in too close to them and giving Jack aerial support whenever he could, but even he wasn't expecting the sheer number of pokemon Team Dark Star had that were capable of flight. He saw a lot of the grunts using pokemon like Lunatone, Solrock, and Minior, but there were also other airborne pokemon he had to deal with like Skarmory, Noivern, Bronzong, Yanmega and others.
Using Mega Evolution helped him handle the Rock types for a while, as the Drought that his Mega Charizard created helped him send out Solar Beams without delay. But that could not and did not last forever. The night sky had been lit up by his pokemon's ability, drawing attention to him. While he was able to fend off attackers for a while, now that they were aware of his presence it was much harder to deal with all of the fire heading his way.
After blasting away another Skarmory trying to swipe at him, Diego and his Charizard were left alone in the air for just a moment. The young man looked down at Jack in the arena, his best friend was just barely able to stop the mecha's physical strikes using his Gallade to block them, though at the cost of his pokemon appeared to already be exhausted. Thankfully, the two were able to run from any stray energy blasts that were sent their way, but it was clear that the two would not be able to hold out for much longer.
Without warning, Diego felt something hit his Charizard hard enough to knock the boy off of his pokemon and fall into the nosebleed section of the stands of the arena. While his Charizard was able to save himself from falling, the same could not be said for Diego, who hit the floor hard. The tan trainer tried to get back up onto his feet, but as soon as he tried to put pressure on his right leg, he immediately collapsed as a surge of pain rushed through him enough for him to squeeze his eyes shut and let out a shout.
"Hah! I got him!"
Diego opened one eye to see a squad of Dark Star grunts fly up to where he lay, one of which had a gleeful smile underneath her mask as a Lunatone floated by her side.
"Thought you could fly around and get the aerial advantage, did you? Well tough luck, because you just got swatted down like the bug you are!" She went on. Before anyone else could get a word in, Diego's Charizard let out a furious roar as it zipped down to the boy's side and unleashed an unrelenting Raging Flame at the grunts that forced them to back off. The Flame pokemon continued the attack before fatigue set in, leaving Charizard in a confused daze.
"Man that was close!" A Dark Star grunt sighed.
"What, does he feed that thing an all Tamato Berry diet?!" Another yelped.
"Hmph, doesn't matter, his Charizard is weakened and he can't run anymore!" The first grunt that shot Diego down huffed. Diego's eyes widened in fear as he watched the squadron of enemies get closer to him...
BANG!
Meridia's Mr. Rime blocked the incoming bullet with a well timed Reflect. The older woman's Nidoqueen had managed to badly wound Margaret's Magnezone and Skarmory while simultaneously keeping them away from Meridia herself with Flamethrower attacks that had an astonishing amount of power behind them while her Mawile was able to easily knock out Luna's Alolan Ninetales and Ribombee without even having to Mega Evolve. Even her Hatterene was easily fending off Roxie's Scolipede, despite being at a massive disadvantage in terms of speed and type, all while the Silent pokemon kept an eerie smile on her face. The mother of the three shook her head and remained stoic in her expression.
"Well, girls, I can certainly see that you're skilled enough to be where you all are today. Natural talent does seem to be in our blood, after all. Unfortunately for you three, I'm well above the level you're all at right now."
Roxie scowled at her mother, both out of frustration at how all of her attacks seemed to be ineffective and at just how smug she appeared to be about all of this. The worst part about all of this was that she was the eldest of the three sisters. She thought that she would be able top help and protect her sisters whenever they needed it, but right now she was just as powerless as they were. Roxie looked over at Luna, the youngest of the three, and the look of defeat on her face made her feel as if a piece of her heart broke. Luna still had pokemon that could battle, but throughout the slow and drawn out minutes they had all just spent battling, Luna was the only one trying to talk some sense into their mother.
It must have just hit her that there was no getting through to that woman, Roxie thought, but that just made her more angry. Angry at the fact that Meridia was so adamant about staying on this course, as if she didn't care that people were in danger. She didn't even know what her mother was after, her own motivation in doing what she was doing.
"I'm going to assume by your silence that you two have finally realized how pointless this battle is?" Meridia asked, the unconscious forms of Margaret and Luna's pokemon lay on the pavement in front of the four of hers. Roxie's Scolipede looked to be not too far behind, quivering in place and hissing in pain, but still having enough energy to turn back to the Poison type master and look at her in the eyes with complete trust.
'What a trooper...' Roxie thought to herself.
BANG!
Another bullet from Margaret's rifle destroyed the tile of the sidewalk Meridia was standing near. The woman's stoic expression finally broke as she looked up at her daughter's sniping point with an annoyed expression.
"You're starting to irk me. Hatterene, Misty Terrain."
The Galarian pokemon giggled a bit before exhaling a soft pink cloud around the makeshift field. The cloud continued to expand until it enveloped Meridia and her two daughters. While Roxie and Luna were still able to see their mother clearly, Margaret was left unable to see any of them through her scope and with a scowl, the woman sucked her teeth lowered her rifle, waiting to see what would happen next...
"Is this truly all that you two are capable of?" Singularity scoffed as he had both a Tyranitar and a Metagross in front of him going up against Goff's Dragonite and Anabel's Snorlax. The Dark Star boss wore the same gauntlet he wore when he had battled Jack, though he appeared to not need it yet as he was taking on the two Officers' pokemon fairly easily.
"Is this truly the best that the International Police are capable of? I was hoping to test your strength and see how well my Chimera can match up, especially with how well it has been growing, but I see now that this was simply a waste. You would be better off simply handing us the Plates and allow us to be on our way."
"We can not and will not allow for that to happen!" Goff huffed.
"Then you would allow for more innocent people to get hurt, or worse, just to apprehend me. Despite the fact that you are getting eviscerated by my pokemon. If that is how things are going to be, understand that I will not show you any mercy." Singularity said before pointing towards Indigo Plateau. "Anyone who loses their life there will do so because you failed to comply with my demands, this will include your precious students. Their blood will be on your hands, and yet you two will not live long enough to feel the consequences of your own actions."
"If you so much as touch a single hair on their heads-!" Goff shouted.
"Ah, temper, dear teacher!" Singularity interjected, a hint of a smirk on his face. "Perhaps that's where young Jack is learning his aggression."
Goff looked as though he was going to forego the pokemon battle and charge at Singularity himself. But before he could take more than two steps, he was pulled back by Anabel. As the man turned around to face his boss, he looked into her eyes and saw the sense of fear and concern in her eyes. Yet, there was something more, a stern coldness to her gaze that seemed to silently warn the instructor that he shouldn't let his anger get the best of him. As the two turned back to the criminal, they were met with the sight of his Metagross speeding towards them with one of its four legs primed to strike them with a Meteor Mash.
The two Officers felt the breath escape their lungs before they could even brace for impact...
...
...
...
"Heh, rule number one, kids; Never take your eyes off your opponent!"
"Oh?" Singularity commented, raising an eyebrow in intrigue. "And you are?"
Goff and Anabel were barely able to register what was going on in front of them for a moment before they were snapped back to their senses. Metagross' attack was blocked by a Hariyama, owned by the man that now stood beside the two. He stood taller than both men and had the physique of a Machamp, but he also wore a very fancy looking white shirt and black dress pants with black dress shoes, coupled with a neat looking yellow tie.
"This man is my uncle." A girl's voice called out from behind the man. "Steven Armstrong, owner of the Rocket Cafe and high ranking officer of the International Police." The sight of the young girl gave Anabel and Professor Goff a bit of relief.
"I'm glad you two were able to make it, Champion Ginny." Anabel said, a smile forming on her face as she looked at the girl who appeared to be younger than her, though still in her mid-teens. Her hair was a brilliant silver color as it draped down her back. She wore a navy blue dress adorned with red flowers and red boots.
"Haha, Anabel, you should know that when we're on the job, you are to refer to me as 'Agent Gin Roh'. Even if Gin Roh is just an alias."
"Oh, but you'll always be my little Genevieve to me! Right, Gina!" Armstrong chuckled.
"Oh hush, Uncle Armstrong!"
"Ah, yes, I've heard of you." Singularity called out, getting the attention of the four. "Genevieve Armstrong, better known by your shortened nickname of Gina and your alias 'Agent Gin Roh'. Some even refer to you as 'The Woman with Many Names' and Cynthia, the Champion of Sinnoh and your rival, even refers to you as 'The Silver-Haired Witch'."
"So you've done your homework, I see." Gina remarked, her expression becoming serious as she stared down the Dark Star Boss. "Well, Malakai Paraeah, I've looked at all the information we've gathered on you as well. It certainly wasn't easy to get a hold of, but we have more than enough information about you and your crimes to ensure you'll stay in prison for a long, long time!"
"You say this as though you've already won. But I have hardly begun to fight! You're also forgetting that even if by some miracle, you happen to defeat me, my whole organization is down there and I can easily call them here for backup!"
"Oh I wouldn't worry about that!" Armstrong huffed, giving off a confident smirk. "You're not the only one with backup!"
Jack felt as though his legs were on fire as he collapsed to his knees on the ground of the arena. There was no way he could run and dodge attacks any more even if he tried. Most of his pokemon had long since been blasted into unconsciousness, leaving him with only his Gallade and Venusaur again, and they were far too tired to continue, the latter was recalled into his pokeball but Gallade telepathically told Jack that he would rather go down fighting than retreat to the safety of his pokeball. For as much as Jack wanted to argue, he was too tired to even think of anything to say.
"AWW WHAT'S THE MATTER?!" The mech pilot taunted. "GIVING UP ALREADY?! WELL THEN IT'S TIME TO SAY GOODBYE!"
The Mecha Dragonite's arm began to rise into the air, changing it's shape to resemble that of a sword. Jack simply closed his eyes, knowing that there was no way he could dodge this incoming strike. His Gallade tried to run to protect his trainer, but he was just as exhausted.
Jack simply knelt in silence as he awaited the impact... but nothing was happening...
"Sorry to keep you waiting, kid! But I thought you weren't the type to just give up with the odds stacked against you!"
Jack recognized that voice. He hadn't heard it in quite some time but he certainly wasn't expecting to hear it again here and now. His eyes shot open to the sight of Samuel Jetstream, still adorning his long, brown hair tied in a ponytail, though now wearing a blue Alolan shirt with red flowers, tan slacks and brown loafers. On the man's hip was the saya for what looked to be a traditional Johtonian katana, which he held in his hands. The sword glistened in the light of the flames, appearing to be sharpened and kept in excellent quality. Alongside the man was his Gallade, still sporting its array of scars from its many battles. Somehow, the two alone were keeping the giant mech's gigantic blade at bay.
"Can you move?" Sam asked.
"N-not really..." Jack answered.
"I see... Well, here, at least give these to your pokemon." The samurai replied, tossing Jack another medkit that contained Revives, Potions and Ethers. "As strong as my Gallade and I are, we won't be able to do this alone. My associates and other strong trainers just made it here to settle this!"
As Jack took a moment to heal up all of his pokemon, the sight of his mentor ignited a sense of confidence within him. His Venusaur helped him back up to his feet while his Gallade stood alongside Sam and his scarred Gallade.
"GGRRRR, IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW MANY ANTS THERE ARE, YOU'LL ALL GET CRUSHED!" The pilot screeched.
"Ready when you are, Jack!" The swordsman smirked.
"Okay..." The young trainer replied. "Let's dance!"
I'm sorry this chapter ended up getting posted a lot later than I was hoping. I've begun working full time in the morning and I've decided to go back to school in the evenings so there's really not that much time I have for these stories. Still I WILL NOT quit writing them and I intend to see them through to the end! But for now, backup has arrived!
Will this be enough for our heroes to turn the tide of battle? Stay tuned!
New Moves:
Psygatling
Psychic Type (Special)
Power: 120
Accuracy: 95
The user unleashes a torrent of psychic energy in the form of a bullets to devastate the target, though this move runs the risk of potentially burning the user. (30% chance)
Magnet Force
Steel Type (Special)
Power: 100
Accuracy: 90
The user uses the force of magnetic polarity to strike the foe, potentially lowering their Attack or Special Attack.
