Author's Note/Replies:
King Of Games420: Originally I set up the 4 move limit so I didn't get confused on which Pokemon knew what move, but with more options it's better for writing I agree.
Janson Wu: I haven't played Pokemon in a while so I never knew about this.
MasterDarkElf: It'll be explained, all apart of the story.
Santiagosiquina762: The later chapters will explain more. N being scared of Death will be addressed in this chapter.
3697014: N has a lot of questions, but he'll also think twice before being this rash with Minato again. He is a King so I imagine he didn't think he would crumple this easily against someone, although Minato is a special case. I see N as someone who easily bites off more than he could chew, he was lucky in the games where no one could really oppose him except the hero, thus he had a savior complex that fed into his grand ego. If it were Alder or even Cythina, he would have rambled on cryptically like he always does without seeing them as a threat. In this fic, Minato's group is 16. The story can get darker in some parts. Minato still holds feelings for someone else from the past, it'll be touched on next chapter. I never played EX, only saw some stuff from it.
lazy lord: Intersting idea.
Shaking off the last bits of dread, N brushed past several staff that guarded the castle entrance, barely acknowledging their existence. Passing through one painfully long hallway, after another, he made it to his safe haven and swung the door open. He couldn't wait to get away from that awful sensation clinging to him, threatening to drag him down into the abyss. The shaking Zorua in his arms barely holding on. With ever present jaws of death slowly driving him to madness, he retreated back to the safest place he knew: his home.
When he arrived, he was greeted by his Pokemon friends. Each of them warmly welcomed him into this special sanctuary set up by Ghetsis. A private paradise only he could access, a place that artificially simulated nature where a vast green expanse mimicked the many habitats these Pokemon came from. Together, they all gathered around him, from juveniles to those that volunteered to fight alongside him.
"How are you holding up today, sport?" Darmanitan called, his ever cheerful demeanor was always a welcome sight, like a father greeting their young son. As the creature approached, his jolly grin began to drop seeing his human friend so distraught. "What's wrong, N? Did something happen out there?"
N took a deep breath, shutting down those horrible thoughts conjured by Death. He could feel himself breaking "I…" He opened his mouth to say something, anything when Zorua leaped from his arms into the embrace of its mother, Zoroark.
"Mommmmy! That blue haired human was terrifying! He looked like he wanted to hunt us down!" He cried, snuggling into the warmth of his mother. She hugged him tightly, already baring her fangs at N.
"Is this true? Did someone threaten my child?! She sneered, fur raised, ready to strike down whatever foe came between her and her family. Their lives had been turned upside down ever since someone hunted down her partner. Team Plasma had rescued them from an insufferable hell under human rule. The disdain she had for humanity was immense, with N being the only person she didn't try to maul on sight.
Following Zoroark, similar chatter began to break out from the crowd.
"Where is he?!"
"I'll teach him a lesson or two!"
"Who would hurt such a sweet child?"
The choir protested, their voices rose until they crescendoed into a loud cacophony, young and old. All his friends were here for him, yet for this time N didn't know what to say. Shocked as he was, it was still true this individual performed an incredible miracle. To heal a disabled Pokemon back to full health, it didn't feel right to condemn Minato for what he did.
"Everyone please…" He saw the broken and the injured, never to regain their natural splendor again. A Dwebble blinded by fire, a Duosion missing half its membrane, and a Swanna having had its wings clipped as punishment so it could never soar across the skies again. Such cruel fates were bestowed upon such simple souls that have done nothing wrong. They were with him through thick and thin and he promised them an eternal paradise. N heard his friends chant to know where this person was, the person that hurt both him and Zorua but he shook his head, because he knew this wouldn't be good for anyone and so he shouted to drown out the noise.
"Everyone stop!" His voice boomed loud across the shocked sanctuary, bringing a depthing silence. The Pokemon all gazed at him stunned.
"Please listen to me." He felt his throat clump up, but he kept going. "This person we went to see? Isn't a bad human…" He could now feel Zoroark's ire directed towards him, one wrong move and he could be mice meat. One wrong move could shatter their bond.
"Then what is he then, N? Are you telling us he's good when he makes my baby cry this hard?" She countered, venom in her words.
N nodded, trembling. For the first he was at odds with his friends. For the first time, he had gazed into the abyss yet also heard the tales of an amazing miracle. "I want all of you to please calm down. As I was going to say, this Minato Arisato is not someone who is cruel towards Pokemon."
Wearily, they listened with Darmanitan gently nodding in a frown, "Go on.."
"I'm sure you all have heard the story by now. The one Snivy relayed."
Zoroark shook her head, "But that could have just been a tale spun by that human girl he's with to throw us off. He's always been very naive!"
N Looked to Zorua then to his mother, "But Zoroark, I believe children are the ones that tell the most truth."
"Mommy…" The small fox said, staring into his mother's eyes. She hesitated.
"And you seem to know Snivy more than most of the Pokemon here." N crossed his arms, gesturing to the two small nests by Zoroark's resting spot. "You adopted him, didn't you?"
The large fox softened, eyes dropping, "Yes."
"A year ago Serperior was in ill health so to lighten her load, you decided to help Snivy." N recounted, "however by mid spring you adopted him as your own. You appear to know that child more than anyone. So, can you tell me in full confidence that he would lie to his own mother's face?"
N spoke from an unfamiliar place, even though his adopted father had been distant. Feeling the dread of Death had stirred chaos within him, destroying his sense of peace. Fear, anxiety, but most importantly: finality. An emotion he had never had to confront due to his privileged upbringing, where he was raised to believe he would live alongside Pokemon and the Black dragon for eternity. But as he gazed into the dark abyss that was Minato's soul, he broke. He realized his rule wouldn't last forever and eventually when he would decay, leaving the Black dragon behind, alone once more. And thus, the utopia he truly desired would be forever out of reach. Someone would take over but by who or what he did not know and that freighted him.
And that was when he realized he would at least give Minato the benefit of the doubt, because he not only represented the possibility of miracles, but also a force more disturbing, a force he did not want to provoke.
"Then what do you purpose we do?" Zoroark said.
"I can't say we can trust him yet nor know what his intentions are yet." N carefully chose his words, "However, I can say he's not a bad person either." Because if he was, the greenette thought, the entire world would be in shambles by now. That was how powerful Minato's abyss was. That heavy, otherworldly pressure alone would break all the region's champions, forcing them to their knees and challenge the gods above. That was the true fear the mortal King acknowledged.
For he acknowledged Death.
"So, we will watch him for now." N look to the disabled and injured once more, "And I'll try to convince him to help us. At least to give back what humanity took from you."
He clenched his fists, a swell of determination filling his heart.
Exiting his sanctuary, N felt a huge weight off his chest, closing the door he felt like he had aged at least a decade. He was sure he'd start finding white hairs on his head the next morning. Being exposed to that eldritch horror was too much for his shattered soul. Slouching against the entrance, he tried to relax, taking a minute to gather himself before he saw several people pass by.
"Lord N?" He craned his head upwards to see Rosa and Snivy along with a few others. Plasma members in uniforms all except for one person.
"Anything to report?" He hid his tiredness behind a practiced facade, barely able to stand. N wanted to go back to his room and black out for the next few days. He wanted to go and wipe his memories clean but he knew even that wouldn't work on this despair that clung to him like the ugly truth it was.
"No my lord. We're just showing this new member around our headquarters. Do you wish to join us?" Rosa offered, giving him a warm smile. One she gave generously to both people and Pokemon alike.
At first, N shook his head, "Thank you for the offer, Rosa. Yet I mus-." he stopped in his tracks when he laid his eyes upon the newbie. Same facial features, same eyes, but with brushed back raven hair. On his neck, he wore a striking yellow scarf that went down all the way along his back. Other than the darker hair, he was almost a splitting image of Minato Arisato.
"Greetings Lord N. My name is Ryoji and I'm enrolling here to follow in the footsteps of my parents to help Pokemon all around Unova." The youth greeted N with a polite bow, beside him were his mother and father both in Plasma attire.
"Y-yes, I'm happy to acknowledge your spirit. Thank you for joining our cause." N shook the boy's hand. He appeared about the same age as that bluenette too, yet he had a completely different air to him. On the inside he was breaking again.
"Ah, my apologies, our child does not have his uniform yet, my Lord. We requested days ago, but haven't heard back from Human resources." Ryoji's father said. From what N knew of the staff list, he was a part of the same department as Rosa, humanitarian work for Pokemon. Meanwhile, his mother draped a Plasma uniform over her white lab coat, suggesting she was a researcher.
"No, no. It's completely fine everyone. At Team Plasma, we welcome all who have the kindness in their hearts to help Pokemon." N then spoke to Ryoji directly, "Although I am curious about which sector you chose, may I ask what type of work interested you most?"
Ryoji chuckled, standing next to Rosa, "Providing aid to Pokemon of course. I can't just stand by when I know I can do much more."
"That's right. You'll be helping run one of our aid stations to patch up wild Pokemon tomorrow. And next week we'll be holding another festival to help recruit more members to our cause." Rosa said proudly, hi-fiving her apprentice.
"I have to say, it's pretty embarrassing to enroll at this age. I had to choose between this or academia." Ryoji said sheepishly. Him and Rosa were both sixteen, but most children from Plasma families were brought in very young.
"It's alright honey, we're glad you're here." His mother patted him on the back.
After a few more moments of pleasant banter, N waved them off to tour the rest of the castle. By evening, he found Ryoji alone in the shared library studying a manual.
"Hello again Lord N. Do you perhaps require something?" Ryoji said, noticing his King approaching.
N nodded, fighting his internal instincts to walk away, sucking air into his lung and breathing out. "Ryoji, may I ask you one question?"
"If I can answer it to my best ability, yes."
"Are you perhaps acquainted with someone by the name of Minato Arisato?"
Minato patched up the last Munna, touching it with a small healing spell to make it all better. The pink ball opened up its eyes, thanking him before returning to its friends.
"And that was the last one." White said, discarding a used up max potion. "But who would do such a thing…?" She gently patted one of the wild Munna who was severely beaten. When Professor Juniper's friend had asked the group for a favor to collect dream mist, they found a string of unconscious Pokemon in the grass. All of them showing signs of bruising.
"Bianca and Cheren took the ones that needed severe medical attention to the Pokemon center. We should be fine for now." Minato said, bitter. He couldn't help but wonder who did this to all these innocent creatures. Upon reviewing all the injuries, most appeared to be around the body and back area with only a few bruises to the front. From what Professor Fennel told them, Munna consumed and emitted dream mist from their nose. This made the Messiah come to only one conclusion.
"Munna! Munna!" One of the wild dream eaters tugged at White's jacket, as if trying to lead the way. Its friends signal for the two to go deeper into the dream factory down a dark path. Before them lay a massive concrete jungle of ancient machinery.
"What is it? You want us to come with you? Are there more injured?" White was led by the Munnas, Minato trailing behind. Slowly, they passed through a pitch black tunnel with overgrown weeds and wet moss. The smell of aging rust mixed with mildew perforated the air. The Dream Factory was once a place filled with hope, but now it lay decayed, forgotten by those who once built it. It made the veteran wonder who ran this place.
"Ek! It's pretty creepy here." White shone a flashlight at the inside of the abandoned building, seeing the deterioration. Torn up floors, overgrown walls, and unknown equipment scattered about in random intervals. She ventured in, encountering multiple other empty rooms with similar levels of decay when they landed upon something strange.
"Shhhhh, turn off that light." Minato immediately hid everyone behind a few large crates. Crouching in position, they listened in on a distant conversation in a nearby room.
"Give us that dream mist already you damn meatbag!" A sound of a kick rang out.
"Muuuuu!"
A slap sound rang out, "I said release some mist now or we're gonna make sure this Munna of yours gets it!"
"Munnnahhhhh!"
"Musharna, mushaaa!"
Unbridled rage surged from the Messiah. His eyes scanned the environment, noting they were vastly outnumbered. People clad in Team Plasma member uniforms gathered around the Munna and Musharna pair crying for help. Three were taking turns beating it while two more stood aside to guard a cage full of drained Pokemon. Assuming they were armed, this meant he was dealing with one Pokemon per grunt at best or thirty at worst if they all had full teams.
Just as he was about to act, White disappeared from her hiding spot.
"Hey! Stop hurting those Pokemon you pieces of shits!" She yelled at the top of lungs, furious. Grabbing her two mons, she threw out both Stacy and Gigi taking out the two people guarding the cages, one an ember and a thundershock.
"What the hell? Who's there?" A man came out of the room, followed by two others with their Pokemon. Two Liepards, one Drilbur, and three Pidove were released, charging at White's team as they clashed head on.
"Two trainers! We've been discovered!" A female grunt yelled, calling out for her Pidoves to launch a string of attacks toward White's Pokemon. A light breeze swirled, transforming into strong guests threatening to cut down Gigi and Stacy as they both dodged Drilbur emerging from the ground and a sucker punch from Liepard.
"Quick, we have to get rid of them. Our Lord is already inpatient." The third and final grunt shouted, directing his Liepards to go in for another round of punches. Upon dodging the onslaught, Gigi and Stacy had no time to react to the oncoming winds sailing their way. They both gritted their teeth, bracing for the oncoming hit when suddenly the trajectory of the air reversed, smashing into the three Pidoves instead, downing them immediately.
"Nice dodges you guys!" White yelled, unbeknownst to what actually happened, directing her mons to attack the remaining group when Minato's Deino and Woobat joined them, launching twin dragon breaths and gusts towards the Liepard and remaining Drilbur.
The big cats sunk into the shadows to avoid the attack while the small mole dug underground once more. However, Minato unleashed a wave of energy of his own, buffing all the Pokemon on his side with a fast heat riser and cursing his enemies with a mean debilitate. He saw the grunts rally their forces as much as they could, still with hope in their eyes.
"Drilbur, emerge and shard the enemies of our lord!" Its owner shouted, when the ground suddenly broke under Deino's feet, Drilbur spun, aiming its gleaming sharp claws at the dragon's face. Checkmate, the grunt grinned, but the claws of the mole did no damage as it barely grazed Deino. That's when the dragon caught it by the neck, sinking its teeth into its fragile flesh before launching at its owner, taking them both out.
"Are you kidding me?! Why aren't our attacks working?" The owner of the Liepard panicked, when another suckerpunch failed to land, reflecting right back at the cat, knocking it unconscious. It was like some invisible force was aiding the two trainers, a force that he could not perceive. Minato held his poker face, applying another tetrakarn.
"Maybe it's because you slack during training all the time!" The grunt's colleague chidded, now they were infighting with each other.
"Shut up! You're the one always skipping basics!"
"Let's finish them off while they're arguing, everyone!" White pointed at the last Liepard who was wide eyed at being dog piled by multiple opponents. Sparks of flames akin to a raging torrent set its fur ablaze, electricity shocked its nerves and finally a gust of wind cut into its flesh, forcing it to retreat, tackling its master full force out of panic.
"Deino de!" Deino bit onto the last grunt trying to make a break for it, abandoning her crew.
"Ahhhhh! Monster! Get away off of me!" she tried to shake when the dragon roared, causing her to faint on sight.
Once they had knocked out all the Plasma members and their mons, White and Minato freed the remaining trapped Munna and Musharna. Using the last of their potions, the pair along with their wild brethren were now out of critical condition.
"Munna, munnn!" The smallest Munna swayed up and down in a thankful motion.
"Mushaaaa." Musharna mimicked the younger, also showing gratitude. White gently patted the two.
"I hope you two are ok now. Those bad humans are gone." She spoke, assuring the two along with their small gathering of other Munna. She was like a mother consoling a group of hurt children.
Munna snuggled up to the brunette, rubbing its face against her hair. "Munnaaaa." It chirped, emitting a bit of pink smoke, reminding the girl the reason they came to the dream yard.
"That reminds me," She pulled out a small test tube. "You see little ones, me and Mina came at the request of one of our good friends. Will it be ok if we just take a tiny bit of dream mist from you all?" She said sheepish, carefully choosing her words after remembering what the Plasma grunts did to the Munna here. To her relief, they all nodded, gently exhaling a tiny bit of mist into the tube.
Minato did the same, collecting more samples from the nearby Munna. He wasn't sure if these creatures would have allowed him to do it if White didn't ask so politely. He had to admit, she was a good negotiator. Collecting one, two, three and opening up his final test tube he bent down to let the last Munna to unleash its mist. Waiting patiently, when he noticed it having some trouble. Bobbing up and down in an uncomfortable motion like it was about to sneeze, the bluenette wondered if he should step back when the surprise happened.
"Muuchooooooooooooooooo!"
A blast of pink mist engulfed the Messiah, forcing him to cover up but it was too late because the chemicals already started to take effect. Being caught off guard, he reeled back trying to clear up whatever had gotten into his system as his body panicked feeling a tingling sensation. Soon, he was having double vision with the world distorting around him until he froze, peering into the abyss.
"Mina?" Hearing a loud thud from behind, White reacted seeing her friend collapse to the ground. Her eyes widened, trying to shake him awake in a field enveloped by dream mist.
"Hello? Mina? Are you ok?" She shook him gently at first, hoping he would wake. "Umm…this isn't funny you know."
A few seconds later, still no reaction.
"Deino de?" Deino nudged its trainer, but nothing happened.
"Woobat?" Woobat tried to awaken the Messiah by landing on his head, yet nothing would come if it.
"Hey! Mina please wake up!"
"Will he be alright, Professor Fennel?" Cheren asked.
"Should we call a doctor?" Bianca inquired.
Fennel shook her head, looking at the unconscious Minato. It's already been a few hours since the incident and he still hasn't shown signs of waking. She had her concerns but usually accidental dream mist intoxication should clear up within a day of rest.
"After checking his vitals, everything appears normal, at the latest I estimate he should be up and ready by tomorrow." She assured the teenagers, each of them showing a mixture of confusion and concern. "I know this may look serious, but please trust in my research everyone." Fennel once again tried to counsel the group. She was world famous for her thesis on dream mist. When Minato collapsed, she was able to lend them a helping hand by monitoring him in her lab. Although out of all the cases she's seen, Minato's was one of the longest on record when it came to being knocked out.
"Once again I do have to apologize for what happened. Especially to you White, I never knew there would be so many bad people harassing the Munna in the Dream Yard." Fennel saw how upset the girl was when they brought him in. He behaved like an older brother to her from what she's seen.
White nodded, "It's fine Professor…. I hope he'll be ok." Her eyes drooped. She wished she could have been more careful. It wasn't really serious by Fennel's words, yet she couldn't shake the feeling there was more to Minato's motionless state than met the eye. Like his face held a certain contemptment she'd never seen. Like he was finally at peace.
Opening his eyes to a blinding light, Minato found himself on the first floor of the Iwatodai dorm. Lowering his hand, he felt someone gently whack him over the head and a familiar voice speak loud and clear, sending him into frozen shock.
"Geez, did you doze off again?"
His eyes widened, gazing at the people before him.
"Yoo, up for another arcade session, with da man?"
"Junpei, he agreed to train with me today."
Minato sat dumbfounded.
"Perhaps you are mistaken, Akihiko? Arisato is to perform his student council duties immediately."
"Woof! Woof!"
"Calm down Koro, we can go for a walk today too."
"Minato, we must record the growth of the tomates today."
"I tried a new recipe today, Minato."
He couldn't believe it, feeling hot tears roll down his face.
"Hey, hey you ok man? Something happen?"
"You're overwhelming him. Give him some space stupei."
Yukari, Junpei, Akihiko, Mitsuru, Koromaru, Ken, Aigis and Fuuka all gathered around him all eagerly waiting for the Messiah's answer.
For he was back in his sanctuary, his home.
Author's Notes: This chapter released quicker than I thought, mostly because I had a sudden urge to write nonstop.
Ryoji will be joinning Rosa in her quest to help Pokemon. The reason he's here while Thanatos still exists will be discussed later. You guys will laugh seeing what Pokemon he has as his main. His backstory will be explained later. He resembles Minato and N is dying to know why. Poor guy will never unsee that "ugly" truth he witnessed. Makes you wonder if the hero of ideals is still all there in the head. Aside from that, I tried ending the story mirroring how it started by contrasting a scene between friends/sanctuary theme for both Minato and N to show they both have support on their. N, after witnessing Death now realizes he isn't invincible and thus sets in motion some different things.