"Where are they…where are they…?" Dereece was frantic as he was running on air, literally. Using his Element Walk Magic, he scouted the snowy mountain in search of his teammates. "I could've sworn they were blown this way." He turned towards Yanmega. "Yanmega, anything?!"

Yanmega's enormous lenses scoped the white snowscape for any sign of movement. However, the outlook wasn't promising. "Nothing over here either."

Dereece bit his bottom lip. The situation was getting dire, more so than he had thought. "They've gotta be around here somewhere. Maybe they're buried under the snow?"

Yanmega continued her scouting with her Trainer. Her attention drew further down the slope to where a gorge opened…and it looked like slide marks paved a trail into it through the churned snow. "Dereece, look!"

He turned towards the ravine, his shock rising. He lowered himself towards the ground so he was only a few feet above to look over the edge. "Down there?" He worried. He and Yanmega exchanged looks, uncertain but not shying away. But time was of the essence. "C'mon!" He used his magic and hustled straight down, gravity helping him reach the bottom faster. Yanmega wasn't far behind his trail.

When Dereece descended, he noticed how the walls of the ravine were coated in ice, with sharp rocks coated in thick ice. It'd be a horrible upscale. Compared to that, the ground was surprisingly leveled, aside from the freshly fallen ton's worth of snow.

"Captain Joey! Duncan!" He cried out, his voice echoing off the walls. He looked left and right, but saw no sign of his companions. "This is bad, if we don't find them soon-!"

Suddenly, a Flamethrower shot out of the snow close by, startling both of them. Dereece jumped with a frantic yelp into the snow, his eyes wide as he watched the flames dissipate.

"Huh…?" He watched as more snow melted as something rose out of it.

Slowly, Magmortar got back to his feet, grunting loudly. Behind him, Gyarados slowly arose, looking worse for wear, but still able-bodied. More groans were heard as Joey and Duncan slowly emerged last.

"Errrgh…well…that could've been worse." Joey grimaced.

"Don't jinx it." Duncan scoffed.

"Captain! Duncan!" A happy cheer made them turn to see Dereece rushing over with Yanmega.

"Dreezy!" Joey reached out his hand. Dereece didn't hesitate to help him back to his feet. Though he offered to Duncan, the Trainer chose to support himself using his Elfen Forja instead.

"You guys okay?" Dereece asked.

"Yeah…we're fine." Duncan moodily responded. Though that was true, he realized what had happened when they were blown downhill from above. 'Though we would've been a lot worse. Captain was able to make a barrier in time to cushion our fall. Still…it was close.'

"Yeep!" Joey bent backwards, his back audibly cracking from the stretch. "Phew…that was a load off. Gyarados, you good?"

"Yeah…somehow-ergh!" The Atrocious Pokémon felt himself falter, his haggard state showing how low on health he was, which didn't go unnoticed by Joey.

'He's taken too much damage from that battle.' He reached into his coat, pulling out a Hyper Potion. 'Good thing we stocked up before we headed out.'

He held the medicine close to Gyarados. "Hold still, this'll heal you." He began spraying and applying the medicine. Gyarados lowly grunted from the stinging sensation, but as seconds passed, the pain had turned to a soothing remedy that jolted energy back into his system.

"You guys were blown away farther than we thought. We thought we'd never find you." Dereece admitted.

Duncan scoffed. "Yeah, well, we'd still be under heavy snow if not for Magmortar." He turned towards Magmortar, holding up his Ultra Ball. "Return."

With a huff, Magmortar acquiesced to his Ultra Ball.

Joey looked down, his usual carefree attitude replaced by a serious visage. "Still…what the heck happened back there?" He thought back to when his barrier coated his Gyarados and rushed the Gremlin Lord. He was still shaken knowing that his barriers were cleaved into so easily. 'Nothing's supposed to break my barriers. Not unless it's a Feint or a sound-based attack at least. It was strong enough to repel Gyarados and Magmortar together.'

It was staggering to understand at best, but then he remembered an important detail. He turned back towards Dereece. "Dereece, what happened to the others?"

Dereece's expression fell. Neither Joey nor Duncan took it as a good sign.

"Captain Joey, listen…there's no easy way for me to say this. But everyone…"

…

Strewn across the snow, multiple bodies were laying in the cold discomfort that the icy water provided. Amongst numerous Gremlin, the group of Fairy Tail mages were strewn in pain, either by shock or weakened state. Broken swords laid around Erza, while shattered Devil Slayer ice laid around Gray. Any heat Natsu's body emanated was swept away by the cold.

Their Pokémon were no better. They were either fainted or incapacitated. A bolus was wrapped around Cloyster's shell, preventing him from opening. Goodra was also in a haggard state, struggling to stand while what remained of Vanessa's shattered Aura Guardian was fading away.

Before them, the Gremlin Lord let out a cold breath, his green eyes flaring in the depths of the snow.

…

Joey's shock was evident, his eyes wide with disbelief. "Everyone…?"

Duncan looked surprised too, but he didn't say anything.

"It was bad. Not even Gray's Devil Slayer ice could hold up, and all of Erza's blades just broke on impact." Dereece explained. "We were only able to get away because I was carried by Yanmega while she used Detect. I know it wasn't right to run away…but there was nothing we could do…I'm sorry, Captain."

Joey still couldn't believe what he had heard. Erza and Vanessa, two of the most beautiful and prominent women he respected, were defeated? That was unreal by itself, but the harder he thought about it, the more he realized the repercussions. All their attacks were ineffective against that thing, especially related to magic. If that was the case, then the beast was prepared for them. In other words, it had staged its victory from the start.

After thinking about it further, Joey furrowed his brow. "…no, Dereece. You made the right call. Whoever, or whatever, that was, it wasn't like the others we've fought. It was that sword he had. It had to be."

"But…what kind of weapon could it be to hold off against someone as strong as Erza, or Natsu even?" Dereece questioned.

"Hmmm…" Duncan looked down at his Elfen Forja. He thought back to when he attacked. He recalled how his flames immediately lost power while the blade glowed and got thicker. 'What if…'

"I'm not sure myself…but now we have to change our plans." Joey straightened himself and turned towards his teammates. "If it's as that foundation guy said, then the others might've been captured too. We're going to have to have to save them."

"But how? You saw how guarded that fortress is. We'd be dead before we set foot within ten feet from there!" Dereece panicked.

"I have something in mind." Joey turned his attention towards the cliffs high above. "But first, let's get out of here."

Duncan scoffed, pulling out a Poké Ball and tossing it up. "Honchkrow, Fly!"

Honchkrow emerged in the air, letting out a caw. He descended and allowed Duncan to latch onto his ankles as he took off into the air. Joey turned towards Gyarados, recalling him back for a rest. Yanmega, by Dereece's insistence, carried the captain while her Trainer used his magic to scale back up.

'Focus on the mission, Joey. At this point…everything falls on you.' he told himself.

Along the isles of the infamous Rainbow Rocket HQ, three figures teleported into proximity. The three in question turned out to be none other than Staraptor, Butterfree, and Junior, courtesy by the latter's Teleport.

"(Ooooohhh…so colorful.)" Junior's first response was to the rainbow-colored R that could be seen even from a distance.

"Free, Free." Butterfree chirped in an equally awed tone.

'(This definitely spells a headquarters.)' Staraptor was less than impressed, but didn't allow her allocation choices mislead her reasoning. "So the signal came from here then?"

Junior nodded. "(Yeah, Mama. I followed the instructions like you said.)"

As the two Nic and Shiin went to carry out their plan, the three Pokémon in question were left back at the base. In the events that they were in trouble, they would get a notification through a tracker that AU-Nic would activate, with a map to verify.

In the midst of their nap, a bright orange beep came from the tracker.

'(The tracker should have gone off around here somewhere.)' Staraptor scanned the area, her red eyes looking for anything that could pertain clues to her Trainer and comrades. She then noticed the top of the castle-like headquarters was missing its roof. 'There?'

"(Junior, you think you can get us closer?)" she instructed her son.

Junior smiled. "(Okay, Mama!)" Using Teleport once more, the three flyers vanished yet again. They all appeared closer towards the tarnished roof. "(Is this close enough, Mama?)"

"(Yes, that's perfect, sweetie.)" Scouting below for any signs of life, Staraptor glided down towards the vacant domain. She landed and looked around, scanning the wreckage and the debris. Looking at the vicinity now, it was a lot bigger than she originally thought.

She noticed the craters left from the aftermath of a battle. Much of the tiling was barely intact, but everything, even the statues, were all broken or suffered cosmetic damage of sorts.

'(There was definitely a battle happening here. Whatever did this, it's still fresh.)' She noticed something at her feet. What looked like a shell of something mechanical was scattered like broken parts of a Poké Ball. '(Shell fragments…a bomb or something must have went off. And I don't see Nic around…)' She didn't like the feeling she had growing in her gut. Something felt very wrong here. "(Junior, you sure you teleported us to the right place?)"

Junior nodded. "(Yeah, Mama. I followed the directions just like you read to me.)"

Staraptor's grimace grew. '(If that's the case…!)' She then felt a presence close by. Immediately heightening her guard, it faded just as quickly. "(Kecleon?)"

Fading into view, both Kecleon made themselves known, startling Butterfree, and even Junior.

"(Double stealth commando, reporting for duty…)" Both Kecleon said at the same time, mock saluting as well.

"(Woah! Mama, look! Two of Aunt Kecleon!)" Junior happily pointed out.

'(The other must be Nic's alternate. Which means there's an alternate of me as well?)' She didn't dawdle as she focused on them. "(I'm glad you're alright, Kecleon…both of you.)" She meant it. "(But can either of you tell me what happened?)"

The two Kecleon turned to each other, their heads tilting at the same time with frowns. They returned the attention towards Staraptor with less than promising frowns.

"(We're not sure…kingdom was crashing before we set bombs.)" Kecleon admitted.

"(Green light for explosion hadn't gone off…and the navy is shy of our Captains…)" AU-Kecleon added.

Interpreting their phrasing, Staraptor looked down in concern. '(No Captain…then something must have happened to Nic?)' That bad feeling in her gut intensified again. And she wasn't the only one either, Kecleon's constant head turning indicating stress.

"(Mama…?)" Catching wind of the anxiety, Junior looked towards his mother.

Staraptor knew better than to let her own worries get the better of her. This wouldn't be the first time she was separated from Nic. Knowing him and how relentless and resourceful he was, he should hold his own no problem. But with such a threat, she knew the best course of action was to locate him – or rather them – regardless.

She turned towards Butterfree, retaining a calm disposition. "(You got the tracker with you?)"

"Free!" Butterfree chirped, holding a small tablet with a red blinking marker on it. "Free! Free-Free!"

"(So we're right on top of it. Okay then…)" She turned towards her son. "(Junior, listen carefully, okay?)"

"(Okay…?)" Subtly confused, Junior looked towards his mother with full attention.

"(It's best that we all stay together for the time being. I need you to Teleport to Nic's location. Can you do that?)"

"(Hmmm…okay, I can try!)" He beamed jovially. Clapping his puffy hands together, he lifted them up. "(Okay, we're off to find Nic! Teleport, away~!)"

The five vanished then, leaving the spot vacant once more.

Nic slowly opened his eyes, immediately feeling his sense of gravity upright. His eyes opened, immediately noticing his new surroundings.

It was a rather spacious chamber, very similar to the one that he remembered facing Lysandre below Geosenge Town. Though it seemed to have been a downsize, it had high ceilings with high-tech floor plating. As one would expect, the black and red color scheme was unchanged.

'The hell is going on?' He made an attempt to move, but he found himself unable to. When he looked down, he saw that he was suspended a few feet off the ground by gyro sphere-like drones that were enveloping his hand and feet. Now that his vision was clearing up, he also noticed a forcefield surrounding him by the same drones as before.

'Shit, these damn things.' He tried to muscle his way to reach for a Poké Ball, but a voice broke that.

"If you're looking for them, don't bother…they already took them."

Nic gasped, his shock adverting towards his right. There, suspended beside him outside the forcefield area was AU-Nic. His scowl was as deep as an abyss.

"What…?" Nic mulled his opaque response. He saw AU-Nic nudge off towards the distance. He turned his head, where he saw twelve Poké Balls grouped together on a small machine, a dome-like forcefield surrounding them.

As if the situation already wasn't strenuous enough.

"Looks like they took their insurance policy on prisoners seriously." AU-Nic spatted, his tone bridled with sarcasm. "And if I had to guess, they're locked inside their Poké Balls."

Nic was briefly reminded of his quarrel with Neuro, the same method in which forced Charizard to withdraw and lock him and the others inside their Poké Balls. 'Just like him.' An ironic statement, only this time there was a bigger obstacle for him. He thought about transforming into his Fist Form and pry himself free.

"Don't bother." As if reading his thoughts, AU-Nic immediately shut him down. "You can change your forms all you want, but you can't use any moves while you're in that forcefield."

Nic lowered his head, his own scowl visible. The situation reminded him of how pitiful he was feeling back when he and Vanessa were bound by the Blood Shackles and tortured by Vermilius. Of course, he wasn't expecting them to try and bleed him out of all his worth in rage and hysteria…or so he hoped. But being in the hands of the enemy was still never a good thing.

His fists clenched inside his shackles. How could he let this happen to him again? After all the training he did to make sure he didn't repeat history, to be more coordinated and choosing the right moves…and now he couldn't even use them.

Still, with a bitter tongue, he did his best to remain calm. There has to be a way out, there just has to.

"…so, where do you think we are?" he finally spoke up.

"I'm sure not much time passed before we were knocked out by that gas bomb. We're likely on the lower levels of the headquarters since the top levels are barely holding after our little tiff."

"What do you think they're up to?"

AU-Nic scoffed. "You have brain cells, put two and two together. They'll probably gonna kill me off and make use of you. That's what I would do. Turn your enemy's greatest strengths into your own. That's warfare 101 for you." He shot Nic a crude glare. "What, you've never learned to do that?"

Nic kept his glare at the ground, his brow furrowing. That was all the confirmation he needed.

"Guess I can't blame you, not with those 'powers bestowed by Arceus' and what not…well, not very useful now, are they?"

Nic budged again, but to no avail. "They would be if it wasn't for these damn restraints." He shot a glare at his counterpart. "Did you know they had these?"

"What am I, a fucking Psychic-type? Yeah, like I have all the answers to every problem you have! Well, in case you've forgotten, I have my own problems that I had to figure out. And unlike you, I didn't have the easy way, now did I!?"

Nic's eyes widened, taken aback by his retort. He could see the constraint contempt in his eyes. Those dilating pupils that were full of defiance; the eyes of someone who had seen hell break lose and was on the verge of losing his sanity. And yet, there was no room for sadness, only grief and resentment.

AU-Nic lowered his head, his glare fixed on the black steel floor. "You have no idea just how much I had to endure to get this far. I already lost everything to Lysandre…everything!" His teeth began gritting from his rage. "My foster parents…the joys of wandering Kalos…and worse…the only family I had. I never got to see her, not once! Had I known things would turn out this way, I would have gone to save her…I…I never even got to say goodbye…"

The sour spite Nic had for their situation sank to abysmal levels. Hearing him speak with so much regret that he was visibly starting to tear up; he didn't know what to say to that. He knew this reality was bad enough to make him rely on ulterior methods…but to see the depths that it reached was a whole other matter.

He focused his gaze on the ground, feeling sympathy. "…sorry."

AU-Nic scoffed defiantly. "Yeah, well, being sorry isn't gonna undo what happened…and it certainly isn't going to fix our predicament either. So shut up and let me think…while we're still alive at least."

Nic offered nothing to retort. He could only perplex on the situation he was being exposed to. His earlier testaments about this being some sort of illusionary world were far from the front of his mind. It was all too real at this point for him to think it was otherwise.

"Well, in case you've forgotten, I have my own problems that I had to figure out. And unlike you, I didn't have the easy way, now did I!?"

Those words, it was like he was stricken with paralysis from them alone. It didn't hit him until now how radically different their situations were, and the biggest factor lied with the powers he cultivated for years.

Powers that solved all his problems.

'This me…is this how much I would struggle if I didn't accept Arceus's request in the first place?' He frowned as his thoughts deepened. This man was scrounging on his own for who knows how long, and he was all that was left of allies and friends that he made that gave their lives to the cause.

Friends he willingly depended on, unlike himself.

"And besides, with how much power you have, I fail to see how working with your guildmates would make any difference when the end result falls on you. That last attack was evidence enough of my point. If anything, you could solve this whole quest by yourself…or rather, I should say that you and your Pokémon that you rely on to solve all of our problems."

Shiin's argument from earlier clicked again. He was finally starting to see what he meant by that, and thinking back to all that's happened up to this point, saying that he was the trump card to most if not all of Fairy Tail's problems made everyone else seem…inadequate.

He was trying to be fair and make sure they gained experience. He should have been working with the pack rather than lead.

A deep sigh escaped Nic as he was left to lament, his thoughts drifting to something he still had that his counterpart didn't. 'I hope Erza, Vanessa, and the others are doing better than me right now…'

When Erza came to, she realized how cold and hard her pillow was. It took her a second to realize she was lying on the ground. 'Where…?'

"She's awake!"

"Erza, you okay?!"

Familiar voices called out to her. "Vanessa…? Lucy?" She tried to get up, but she found herself unable to. She felt her hands tied in front of her and saw rope binding her wrists together. 'Binds?'

"Erza, are you alright?" Vanessa asked.

"Yes…I think so. Where are we?" She took a moment to look at her surroundings. It was plain as day that it was another cell, with traditional iron bars barricading them from freedom. She wasn't alone as she, Lucy, Wendy, Sophie, and Vanessa shared the cell with her. Like her, all of them were tied with thick rope around their wrists.

"I'm not sure…but I think we're inside the fortress." Lucy hypothesized.

'Inside, huh…?' Erza's mind did some backtracking. Her eyes widened and she gasped when she recalled what happened last. 'That's right, that thing's blade stopped everything we through at him. And we…' She cursed herself for getting into this mess. How could they have been taken down so easily like that? It was embarrassing as a Fairy Tail mage!

She made an attempt to requip a sword, but to no avail. 'My magic is…'

"It's this rope." Vanessa chimed in as she held up the ropes binding her wrists. "They must have magic sealing properties to them. My Aura Magic won't activate, so I can't sense anything."

"How did this happen?" Sophie questioned vaguely.

"Um…what do you think they're gonna do with us now?" Wendy worried.

Erza looked down, keeping calm under the weight of their situation. "Hard to say, but we need to find a way out." She realized something else. "Wait…where are the others?"

THUD!

"Gah!" A loud thud rang the iron bars from what sounded like the next cell over, followed by a grunt.

"Forget it man, it won't budge." Another voice added.

"Damnit! These bastards are gonna get it when I'm out of this damn cage!"

"It's a cell, Natsu."

"Not that he cares. We're stuck either way you look at it."

"These voices…" Lucy didn't mistake them. She knew who they belonged to. "Natsu? Gray?"

Natsu, stirring from the ground, perked up. "These voices…" He turned towards the wall. "Lucy, you there?!"

"Yeah, it's us! What about you guys?" she called back.

"Are Carla and Happy over there, too?" Wendy followed up.

"I'm right here, Wendy. I'm just fine." Carla assured.

"Aye, still in one piece here, too!" Happy chimed.

Wendy sighed in relief. "Thank goodness."

"Where the heck are we?" Gray asked.

"We think we're inside the fortress." Sophie prodded. She nudged her ropes, but to no avail. "I take it that you're all tied up over there as well?"

"Yeah…what a pain. Guess they're not taking chances with us. They even took our Pokémon and everything."

Conforming this, Erza looked down and reached for her Poké Balls…only to find they weren't there. Her shock mounted further with their predicament, realizing they had no backdoor out of this situation to see.

"They even took Klefki, so I don't have my keys with me." Lucy grimaced, her eyes narrowing in frustration. "These things sure play dirty."

Footsteps were heard, getting Vanessa's attention. "Speaking of playing dirty…"

Everyone turned towards the front and saw two small, yellow Gremlin walk by, both carrying small spears with sharp stones tied to the ends of them. They were doing a routine patrol and stopped when they saw their fresh meat had regained consciousness. Despite the momentary confusion, one Gremlin turned to the other, grunting some incohesive language while pointing at them. The second Gremlin grunted back, sneering.

"What are they saying…?" Wendy muttered.

"They must be communicating through their own tongue." Erza figured, watching the two Gremlins grunt.

Natsu, ever the feisty one, barged against the iron bars once more, getting up to their faces. "Hey, you ugly yellow goblins or whatever you are!" he seethed. "You better let us out if you know what's good for ya!"

The Gremlin, unfazed by Natsu's threat, turned to each other and paused. An overlap of their laughter bellowed out, only further antagonizing the Dragon Slayer.

One of the Gremlin held up his spear, snarking as he prodded at Natsu without provocation. The tip stabbed his shoulder, causing him to wince and pull away. "Gah!"

"Natsu!" Happy panicked.

"Is he okay over there?!" Sophie called out.

The Gremlin laughed mockingly again as they tapped the spears against the stone floor, as if celebrating their triumph. Natsu gritted his teeth as he turned back with anger in his eyes. "You bastards…!"

"Don't provoke them. You're gonna make it worse." Gray insisted.

The Gremlin finished laughing and jabbed between the iron barbs, getting their points across. Once satisfied, they turned towards the women in the other cell. Unlike how they treated them, they only stared at the women, their red eyes fixed heavily on them.

"Um…why are they looking at us like that?" Lucy worried. She knew that stare all too well.

One Gremlin licked his lips, chuckling to himself in a heated breath. He made an attempt to get closer, but the other Gremlin stopped him with a harsh grunt. The Gremlin snarked in retort, but the two only argued for a short while before the more sensible Gremlin let out a louder snark, making the former grumble in defeat. They returned their attention towards the women, giving them their lecherous leers for a moment before snickering.

With a verbally distinct message across, they headed back down the dark corridor. Everyone watched them off and waited until they were gone.

"Can somebody tell me what that was about?" Wendy frowned.

"Not sure…" Vanessa furrowed her brow. "But I have a bad feeling about this."

"Damnit! The hell is happening?!" Natsu shouted. "And where the hell is Nic?!"

"Now that you mention it, that Shiin guy's not here either." Happy added. "Maybe they're still out searching?"

"They should've known something must have happened to us by now. Something must be keeping Nic up." Carla figured.

"There's the matter with Joey and The Freaks, too." Gray noted. "They must've gotten separated from us in the middle of the fight."

"Let's just hope they get some help soon." Lucy insisted.

Erza and Vanessa looked towards each other. The mention of Nic made them both frown. They knew his recent behavior had made him more distant, but even so, they worried incredulously for his safety. They were family after all.

"Pretty sure I have a read on Joey by now." Sophie thoughtfully added. "And knowing him, he's probably got some way or another to get us out."

"Great, relying on them to bail us out of a sticky situation again." Gray groaned. "Wonder what they're working with now?"

Vanessa hummed. "Knowing Joey…something remarkably stupid."

"I don't have a good feeling about this."

"You say that every time, Dereece. Now pipe up, we're moving."

Duncan grumbled, irritated for a good reason.

The Freaks were trudging through the snow, all three of them clad in a mishmash of armor. It was a last-minute call, but what can you do when all you had to work with was leftovers from defeated enemies. Despite the shabby shape, the three managed to pull it off reasonably well.

To add to the appearance, The Freaks had to rid of their upper wardrobe to expose the orange paint coating their bodies, along with yellow contact lenses. It was a good thing Joey brought his makeup kit with him.

For the finishing touch, The Freaks needed a convincing story to go with their disguises. That story turned out to be they've found Pokémon and were bringing them in. Each one had their own Pokémon bound by rope around their wrists or neck. The Pokémon were Heracross, Quilladin, and Medicham.

"You sure about this?" Dereece quipped.

"You got any better ideas?" Joey's retort was met with an uneasy silence. "That's what I thought. Besides, you took theater before, didn't you? This is nothing to you."

"Can't believe we have to go along with this…" Medicham muttered crudely.

"Quit complaining. Believe me, I feel the same way, but this is what we have to work with." Duncan retorted. "Now put up with it."

"So we're gonna play bait again?" Heracross chimed, following Dereece by the rope around his wrists. He could break free anytime, but he didn't so as to keep up the appearance of being submissive.

"Looks like it. Hopefully they buy it." Quilladin responded.

"Well, they better quickly, the body paint spray doesn't do well out of room temperature." Joey noted. He saw they were coming up to the fortress's massive doors and brought his voice down to a harsh whisper. "Here we go, just like we rehearsed guys."

In front of the fortress's double doors, the two small Gremlin guards with spears were yawning, clearly lacking entertainment because of their outpost duties. One of them noticed some outsiders heading their way and straightened up. His associate, however, had the misfortune of being bonked on the head by his spear's staff, giving him a rude awakening.

The Freaks stepped up, making sure to be hunched slightly. They needed to make this convincing, otherwise it'll backfire heavily.

"Kreh?" One Gremlin squinted, looking at them up and down.

Joey cleared his throat loudly before making a response. "Ruh, rere, rah! Rah!" He grunted, trying to impersonate their tongue. "Rah! Rah! Regh…?" He turned towards Dereece and Duncan, who seemed to be getting the message.

"Oooorg! Raghehehe!" Dereece grunted,

"Grrrrr…" Duncan grumbled.

Joey turned back towards the Gremlins. "Raga rehe! Rah! Rah!" He tugged on the rope, hinting Quilladin to step forward. He, Heracross, and Medicham all complied and presented themselves.

The Gremlin guards inspected the Pokémon captives, then looked towards the fellow 'Gremlins' that had found them. They exchanged looks once more before one of them stepped closer to Joey. "Hrrrrr…?" He hummed loudly, going around to inspect anything on him. He scanned his rugged, blood-stained armor and figure; all while keeping his spear pointed at him.

Joey did his best not to flinch. 'Crap, they onto us already?'

'Knew this was a bad idea.' Duncan grimaced, readying to reach for his Elfen Forja.

Quilladin, Heracross, and Medicham exchanged worried looks.

The Gremlin finished circling around Joey, tilting his head as he tried to get a better look at his face. He stared at him uncomfortably for several seconds, the other Gremlin looking wary and ready to sound an alarm.

Joey inwardly bit his lip, praying for a miracle. 'Please Arceus, just a little more…'

Seeing the situation seemingly compromised, Dereece suddenly puffed out his chest. "RAGH! RAAAAAGH!" He roared lowly, startling everyone. He stepped forward, glaring down the Gremlin guard with a dense sneer. "Grrrrrr!"

He clutched the wooden spear he found lying around tightly, the smaller, more frail Gremlins picking up on his impatience. Immediately, the two backed off and grunted low in response.

"Krah." One of them knocked the door twice, making the huge doors open. They stepped off to the side to allow passage. "Kragh!"

The Freaks looked surprised at first, but didn't dawdle. They trudged into the compound with their Pokémon captives dragged behind.

"Wow, Dereece. Those theater classes really showed. You saw their faces?" Joey whispered.

"Glad I got something out of that experience." Dereece grimaced.

Once they were all inside, the massive doors closed shut, their infiltration a success.

"Alright, we're in!" Joey muttered. "Woo!" He broke into a stress-induced dance, with Quilladin immediately following his rhythm. They both clapped and shimmied with enthusiasm…and it helped warmed up their bodies from being in the cold without proper bodywear.

"Work it! Work it!" Quilladin teased.

As they were dancing with enthusiasm, the rest of The Freaks, though relieved, didn't follow along. However, their moods went abysmal upon noticing another mature, orange Gremlin blankly staring off to the side, his yellow eyes fixed on Joey.

Joey kept dancing, lost to the eyes on him.

"Um…Joey?" Dereece whispered. "You might wanna…"

"Not now, Dereece! Feeling my groove peak! Time for a little-heh?!"

A metaphorical record screeched to a halt as Joey met eyes with the Gremlin. He felt his heart stop when he saw its gaze fixated on him heavily, either out of wonder or scrutiny. An awkward silence fell between the two parties that wasn't going anywhere.

Deciding to move along, Joey skipped and danced his way around the Gremlin, never taking his eyes off him. Once around him, he moonwalked away awkwardly with Quilladin.

The Gremlin then turned towards the others, with Dereece silently following behind with Heracross.

Duncan was last to follow. "Hmph!" Grunting unamused, he passed the Gremlin, his supposed façade being a little too into character.

Once they were all out of sight, the Gremlin remained stationed, looking confused at what he just saw. "Hrrr…" Curiosity getting the better of him, he sat his club down and held his arms overhead, moving his shoulders up and down to mimic Joey's moves. A smile crossed his face. "Graaaahaha!"

The Freaks worked their way down the corridor, the dark confines without any sort of torches or light lacrima to light the way; though it was still enough for them to see. Once they were certain they were alone this time, they finally got down to business.

"Okay, I think we're good now." Joey said low.

The Freaks then proceeded to undo the binds to their Pokémon, recalling them back to their balls.

"Alright, you both know the plan. Split up and find the others. Once you do, you radio us with your Communication Lacrima." Joey instructed. "If by chance you get caught, make sure you use your Escape Rope."

Dereece nor Duncan objected. Their assignment set, the three parted in separate directions to different corridors.

…

Joey worked his way down a corridor. The stone floor was cold even through the worn down soles of shabby boots he pillaged, but it was better than getting frostbite. He worked his way through the narrow hallway until he noticed some light up ahead.

'Light?' Curious, he stayed low and got up against the wall. Staying as quiet as possible, he skidded his way up towards the chamber's opening and peered inside. As he got closer, he noticed something more profound. 'Smells like Garbodor's breath after eating expired cheese, but worse…'

Under the luminescent flames providing the light, it looked like a sweatshop. Hammers clanged against bricks of dense stone, causing them to chip off. Said ore was then picked up by other Gremlin and taken to rugged slabs with sheets beneath. The chunks were grinded against the stone as the dust from them was compiling on the sheet.

'They're grating rock? What for? They're not Graveler.' Joey questioned what he saw, but kept observing in silence.

He watched two Gremlin carry the hefty sheet of grated stone dust onto a table, where there, the reason for the putrid odor of the room was known. Slabs of animal meat sat beside the carcasses of wild animals, some already gutted, and some still intact.

The sight made Joey gag, but he managed to hold down his breakfast.

The Gremlin began sprinkling the dust into the butchered carcass meat. Once coated, the Gremlin that did the honors gleefully opened wide and bit the meat right off the bone. Others didn't bother waiting as they piled on for their share of the stock.

As they were eating away, the captain of The Freaks had a frown on his face. 'They're seasoning the meat with stone dust before eating it? And that meat isn't even cooked.' He furrowed his brow in uneasiness. 'They sure got a lot of that stone though…what is it?'

…

Where Duncan ended up, he found himself snooping into a rather large chamber with an open balcony. When he looked down, he noticed there was a lower floor with half a dozen white wyverns all bound by chains around their necks and ankles.

'This must be where they store the wyverns.' He surmised as he made sure to not make a sound.

Down below, Gremlin were hauling green herbs that resembled dark green cabbages. They hauled them using massive sacs and dumped them in the center, where the wyverns immediately started fighting and snapping at each other for their take of the meal. Had it not been for the chains around their necks restricting them, they'd be tearing the other apart.

Duncan watched this, making mental notes on what he was seeing. While not what he found necessary, it was still something he figured would come in handy should it be the case.

…

Two Gremlin were walking down a corridor, neither armed nor aware. As they made way down the cold, dark chamber, they didn't realize Dereece using his Element Walk Magic to walk just a hair short of the tall ceiling. When he saw the Gremlin walked into a narrow doorway, he knew he had to follow.

'That has to lead somewhere. No sense wandering aimlessly if these guys can map out the place for us.' He slowly lowered to the ground and followed in.

When he entered the chamber, his eyes widened with shock.

In the center of the chamber, there was a whole horde of Gremlin enclosing the area, most of them hollering and chanting as one Gremlin had a Delibird by a chained leash. The Gremlin whipped the chain, forcing the exhausted Delibird to open its sack and release multicolored balls at the opposing Gogoat.

"Krah!" The opposing Gremlin was riding her back, griping her horns tightly and kicking her side.

Gogoat grunted, but she had long stopped disobeying, knowing where it would get her. Her pelt released a green funnel of shredding leaves that met the orbs in the middle, making an explosion. Many of Gremlin cheered.

Dereece saw this, shocked. 'Is this a Pokémon Battle?'

BOOM!

An explosion erupted, startling Dereece. He covered up as multicolored smoke blew Gremlin from nearby overhead, along with several others.

"LET ME OUT OF HERE!" A voice shouted from an adjacent room.

Dereece gasped, recognizing the voice. "That voice, it can't be…" He took a second to look back at the Gremlin that were expelled. Once he saw they were concussed, he slowly crept in. What he saw made his eyes widen.

"GRRRR! AAAAHHH!" Vanessa's Goodra craned her neck around, fighting the chain that connected to the hold of several Gremlin. Despite their numbers, they were obviously struggling to get the dragon to settle down.

"Krah! Krah!" A Gremlin used a whip, snapping at her slimy back.

Though it didn't do more than flick at her gelatinous coating, Goodra didn't take kindly to that. She used her arm-like horns and grabbed the chain, yanking it and tossed the horde of Gremlin overhead into her oppressor, resulting in a painful crash landing for many. Some had it worse as they were knocked out, only adding to the body count littered around the chamber.

Dereece couldn't help but cringe. 'That has to be her, there's no doubt!' He looked at the littered bodies and various training tools sprawled all over. 'They must be trying to train her to take orders like they saw us doing. Does this mean they're capable of commanding Pokémon? But we didn't see them use any against us. Maybe they're still learning…'

Goodra swung her thick tail, knocking two more Gremlin in succession. She used her horns and pried the iron collar on her neck, slowly getting it to break.

"Krah! Kraaah!" A Gremlin signaled another, which held a Poké Ball. He extended his arm out, shooting a red laser to Goodra's back. With her back turned, she was forced back inside as the broken chain met the ground with a loud clang.

'Looks like they can't handle the stronger ones just yet. But what do they need them for?'

…

Joey continued scouting around for anything that could point him to his comrades, but so far, he was met with less than amicable results. 'That meat powder thing aside, I haven't found anything else yet. Hope Dereece and Duncan got better results than me.' He pondered. 'The paint's gonna start flaking soon. Gotta reign them in to get another coat on.'

Just as he was about to reach for his Communication Lacrima, he noticed something in the corner of his eye. Down the corridor, he saw two orange Gremlin that were walking down the same route, along with other Gremlin. Curious, he got closer and saw that it was a whole colony!

'That's a lot of those guys. They were all so spread out until now.' He glanced down the corridor they were marching in. 'They heading to somewhere?'

He thought about it for a moment. He knew it was risky, but this was an opportunity he couldn't miss. With his Escape Rope in case matters got dicey, he shirked his shoulders and grunted, emerging from the corridor to join the ranks on their march.

Joey knew better than to give himself away. He had to stay sharp and aware. He knew the guards were suspicious before, the odds could very well be against him. 'Get what you can and get out.'

The group marched their way to a hollow opening that gave off a cold air. Colder than what it was already. Upon passing through, Joey found himself in a massive courtyard. Despite the lack of a stone roof, thick, glacier ice made up a dome. Some ice spikes stuck up from the ground, as well as some slips spots. He made sure to avoid those.

"Now this is what I call an upgrade." He mouthed quietly.

His attention drew towards the shouting and snarling Gremlin ahead, the vast numbers startling him. If the numbers weren't big enough already, it looked like hundreds! And he was standing in the middle of them!

He felt a chill run down his spine. 'I never expected this many!'

At the courtyard entrance, Dereece and Duncan eventually found themselves catching up, witnessing the gathering with shock.

"Oh man…look at all these numbers." Dereece gasped, scanning the numerous yellow creatures with several orange towering in the mix. "This is even more than before."

Duncan was able to hold in his statements, but he showed surprise of his own when he saw the reason for the gathering. "Look."

Dereece looked ahead, his eyes widening in horror. "That's…!"

Joey's shock was masked by his yellow contact lenses, but even he looked stunned.

In front of all the Gremlin, there was a massive stone throne, decorated with pelts of various animals. Sitting on this throne, however, was the reason for their shock. The Gremlin Lord's green eyes beamed intensely as they did before.

"It's that one! The one that took down our friends!" Dereece quipped in a hushed tone.

Duncan narrowed his eyes, his grip on his Elfen Forja tightening. "Looks like we've found the big boss's chamber."

The Gremlin Lord stood up from his makeshift throne, swiping his arm. "Grokuah!"

Almost immediately, the cheering Gremlins began to settle down. Joey noticed the gesture and how fast the audience simmered. Dereece and Duncan leaned in with curiosity.

The Gremlin Lord started grunting in a deep voice, incoherent to the imposters but cohesive to the Gremlin populace. They listened as he started trudging back and forth, clenching his fist and flailing his Vulcan fur cape.

'He's giving a speech, but I can't make out what he's saying.' Joey thought. 'Are my hearing aids acting up again?'

The Gremlin Lord suddenly stomped, letting out a louder grunt that echoed. He brought his right arm around and slammed a large map on the wall beside him. As he grunted and snarled, his green eyes sneered angrily.

"Krararahasha!" he bellowed.

The Gremlin smiled greedily as they all exchanged looks, sneering in delight with what he said.

"What's he saying?" Dereece worried.

"Not sure…but look." Duncan pointed out the map on the wall. "That's a map of Fiore, no doubt about it."

"But why do they have that?"

Duncan's expression darkened, a bad feeling swelling up inside. The tamed wyverns. The Pokémon being forced into mock battles. He was starting to get a mold on what was going on, and from the looks of it, it was very bad.

Joey was still keeping his profile blended with the crowd, but even he was aware of what was happening. 'That's a map of Fiore, it has to be…' As he saw the Gremlin Lord gesture to the map, he noticed several marks all around the small point of Mount Hakobe…with a red circle on Magnolia. 'It looks like he's gesturing to Magnolia. But why would…' His eyes slowly widened, the realization hitting him like a Giga Impact. 'Oh! Ohhh…' His heart fell with fear. 'Ohhhhhh…'

"The captured Pokémon, the wyverns, the weapons…don't tell me they're planning on invading Magnolia!" Dereece gasped.

"That's the closest city here…it makes sense." Duncan grunted.

"HROOOOAAAHH~!" The Gremlin Lord raised his gilded blade, which didn't go unnoticed by The Freaks. He pointed it straight up as the accents were glowing a dense crimson with power coursing through. "Kruah, horah!"

All the Gremlin began lifting their weapons, cheering at the plan. The courtyard echoed with their vile tongues as the Gremlin Lord finished his big spiel.

'This is bad. If this is what I think it is…we need to go.' Joey looked over his shoulder for any sign of his colleagues. When he saw his teammates close by, he silently gestured to them. He slowly moved his way through the bustling horde, making sure to be mindful not to trip over any of the smaller ones. Once he made it towards the back, he slowly moved away and reconvened with his group.

"Captain Joey!" Dereece gasped.

"Figures you'd be tied in with the wrong crowd." Duncan snarked.

"There you two are." Joey panted. "Listen, we need to go now. The situation is as far as safe as we thought befo-!"

"Ker-hem!"

The three froze up from the cough, Joey especially. Very slowly, Joey swiveled around to meet eyes with who grabbed their attention.

A mature Gremlin that matched their height held a club in hand. His yellow eyes were fixed on the trio like an Arbok glaring down its prey.

"Uh-oh…" Joey instantly recognized it was the same one from the entrance. Was he going to expose them here?

The Gremlin's grip tightened with resolve on his club, his sneer intensifying.

The Freaks started to panic, Joey and Dereece's eyes widening while Duncan waited for the moment to pull out his Elfen Forja.

The Gremlin took a fighting stance with his club, seemingly ready to swing it…but instead he sat it on the cold stone ground, becoming bare-handed. Was he going to fight them head-on?

Suddenly, he began pumping his arms, moving his feet disorderly in a crisscross manner, followed by a spin. Albeit clumsily, he managed to swing around and pose with arms crossed.

"…hmph!" The Gremlin snorted out a nostril, as if challenging them.

A silence fell as The Freaks stood in confusion at what they saw.

"What the hell's it doing…?" Duncan murmured.

Dereece raised a brow. "I think he's challenging us to a…breakdance battle?"

Joey glanced back, surprised by this. "Really?" He looked back at his challenger in question. From the way it looked, it made sense. Though it was crude, Joey knew dancing when he saw it. And as a dance and fashion connoisseur, he knew the gesture all too well.

His pride as a top-party dancer challenged, The Freaks' leader grinned. "He wants a breakdance battle…I'll give him one."

He fell backwards, using his arm to prop himself. He began kicking and breakdancing by tapping and crossing his ankles and sticking one leg out in front of the other. He propped himself up and crossed his bent knees and hands, finishing with a pose and a confident sneer. "Hm!"

"HRAH!" The Gremlin roared. It was on, or so Joey translated. He did a similar move to Joey by getting to a push-up position and attempted to flip over and back. Once that was done, he flipped back up and weaved his shoulder with fluent circle motions.

"Reh?" The Gremlin Lord and the other Gremlin stopped their celebration and turned back towards the unfolding scene in the back. The two competitors were the center of attention now as the rest gathered around to watch this bizarre matter unfold.

Joey began breakdancing back, with a moonwalk and wavy arm motions added. The Gremlin traded the metaphorical blow with his own, tapping away with his feet and raising his arms up, shaking his hand.

Several Gremlin scratched their heads, confused and shrugging. Some of them got curious and began copying what they were seeing. It gradually turned to a major breakdance-athon with dozens joining the display to show off, and others for dominance.

As the entire audience was captivated by the dance battle, the Gremlin Lord looked left and right, seeing all of their ridiculous footwork and teetering motions. To say he was flabbergasted and confused would be putting it mildly. "…groshah?"

"Is he for real?" Dereece deadpanned.

Duncan harrumphed, not wanting to add fuel to the fire.

Joey and the Gremlin were showing off still, neither side willing to conceded. However, as Joey did a windmill, he was for sure keeping an eye on everything around him. 'These guys pick up fast. They're actually able to keep a rhythm when it's shown to them.' The observation was evident when he saw the mature Gremlin using more excessive foot stomping, which many smaller Gremlin matched his beat. 'Well, one thing's for certain. They're not stupid.'

Joey shot his hip forward, which the Gremlin matched. "KRAH~!" They snarled in each other's face, resuming their breakdance in circles.

The crowd was eating up the dance-off. In the midst of it, one Gremlin's tiny foot met a patch of ice on the cold floor, causing him to fall over and trip his neighbor. This quickly agitated him and he kicked him into several others, flooring them immediately. A mocking laughter was met with a tackle that shoved him into more Gremlin, knocking them down like bowling pins.

Slowly, the dancing crowd turned into a riot. Many began tripping and being thrown into bedlam gradually taking over like an epidemic. In a matter of seconds, grunts of joy and laughter became cries of pain as many met icy stone.

"KRA-HA!" A tiny Gremlin slid across the ground, barreling for the mature Gremlin 's legs. Having lost balance, the Gremlin was brought out of his funk when he found himself falling backwards with a harsh thud, crushing the interloper beneath his bulk.

"Uh…" Dereece mumbled.

Joey, who was in the midst of his breakdancing, froze in place as watched the scene unfold.

The Gremlin, now agitated, vehemently snarled. He got up and reached for his club, picking it up with a vicious snarl as he trudged towards the infighting. No question that heads were gonna get crushed.

With the commotion drawing up a distraction, The Freaks once again exchanged looks. While Joey was mildly disappointed that the breakdance battle was interrupted, he knew duty came first. He and the others slowly backpedaled their way towards the corridor away from the ensuing chaos.

The Gremlin Lord had a fixed scowl the entire time. "Krrrrr..." He grunted, as though sighing. However, in spite of the possible lack of underlings, he took notice of the fleeting three subjects beyond the punches and clubbing. His green eyes narrowed vehemently with a low snarl.

The vacant halls of Team Rainbow Rocket's HQ would make it seem like the place was forsaken, yet it was anything but. With all the grunts dealt with earlier, Shiin maneuvered through the vicinity free of obstruction. Of course, he kept up his camouflage cloak for precautions. Better safe than sorry.

He was taking pictures of the vicinity, getting evidence of the foreign technology around him. As expected, the readings showed no levels of Magic Power. 'If nothing runs on Magic Power here, what alternate sources do they use? Electricity?' It was possible, but that didn't make it any less disturbing in the long run. 'The level of engineering has to be at least an eon's length away from what we're able to accomplish at this point.'

Despite the hundreds of hypothesis running marathons in his head, he resumed his scouting and took caution when he was about to step on a warp tile. 'The fundamentals for having only these tiles to get anywhere is extremely illogical. But still…I have a duty to uphold.'

Without hesitation, his cloaked feet landed on the tile, quickly transporting him to a new location. When he rematerialized, he found himself in a rather narrow, bare room.

'I don't see anything. Perhaps a storage space? Hm?' He noticed something in the corner that stood out. It looked like a small sphere that sat all by itself. 'What's that contraption?'

He snuck his way over, making sure to stay quiet. As he got closer, he noticed that the sphere had two colors. White on top, and red on the bottom.

'If this is a weapon, I need to gather evidence before disposing it.' He used his camera again, making a small click sound.

"(…hrgh?)" The ball shuddered, startling Shiin inside his cloak.

'Did it move just now?' His eyes slowly widened, realizing something wrong. 'Wait, hold on-!'

Suddenly, the huge sphere turned around, revealing a face! It had a crude smirk and small dark eyes, but with heavy, twitching brows.

'The sphere is alive? Is this one of those Pokémon? That other Pularis mentioned Pokémon being around. I believed he called them…Electrode? Is this one of them?'

"(Krrrrrr!)" The Electrode clenched his teeth, static crackling around his body.

Shiin's eyes widened underneath his veil. 'Is it going to attack?!' He braced himself, readying one of his magic rings for a spell.

The Elctrode's body was cackling and flashing bright yellow. The seconds going by led Shiin to realize the tragic flaw that was about to unfold. The shuddering sphere was about to explode!

'No! I won't be able to escape its blast radius!'

Green pollen suddenly filled the room, quickly flowing through the area.

"(KRRRRRRR…krr…?)" Slowly, the green spores began to overtake the Electrode. Its electricity gradually diffused around its body until only a few sparks remained. The heated glow slowly dissipated the heavier its eyes got until eventually it all went away once full sleep took over.

Shiin was flabbergasted, for a number of reasons at that. When he opened his eyes, he saw his cloak was shielding him from the green pollen. He waited until it all dissipated before he found his bearings to get back to his feet.

He took his cloak off, looking befuddled at the now sleeping Electrode. "It didn't explode?"

"Free!"

"(Looks like we've found someone.)"

Shiin heard the familiar chirp and caw from behind. He looked up and saw Butterfree, along with Junior and Staraptor.

Shiin gasped. "You guys…!" Suddenly, both Kecleon appeared beside him, startling him further.

"(Aw~, I don't see Uncle Nic anywhere, Mama.)" Junior moped.

"(Yes dear, I know.)" Staraptor looked down at Shiin, taking notice of his body language. Defensive, ready to act at a moment. Clearly on guard. Not to mention, it was a peculiar place for him to be in, even if coincidental.

She glanced down at Kecleon. Seemed like she knew something too. They silently agreed to keep it under wraps for now.

Shiin let out a short breath. "Well…that was rather close." He turned towards Butterfree. "I see now. That was your Sleep Powder."

"Free! Free!" Butterfree flew closer to him, looking happy to see him.

He pulled away, looking discomforted. "I figured…wait, hold on." He turned towards them. "If you're all here…then does that mean the operation was compromised?"

Staraptor furrowed her brow. "(Not sure. We got here because the tracker activated.)"

"Free." Butterfree scooted closer, showing the small device he was carrying.

Shiin looked at the device, seeing the map on it and the blinking. "That's on this island…so that means that Nic must have signaled. And yet, he's not with you…" He put a hand to his chin, furrowing his brow. 'Could this mean something happened? To Nic of all personnel?'

With her conscience growing evermore worried, Staraptor frowned. '(We're not getting anywhere like this. We need to find a way to reach Nic faster. The tracker can't pinpoint his precise location. Think, Staraptor.)'

The two Nics were brought out of their half-dozed states when they heard a set of doors open from the far end. They lifted their heads, their gazes catching a familiar silhouette walking towards them.

"I must say, you've been a very valiant adversary. Do you know how much of our resources you've purged over the years?" A deep voice echoed with high-value heels along the flooring. "Numerous bases wiped out, supply chains cut off…and now a shortage of manpower thanks to you."

It was the one person that neither Nic could ever forget, no matter how much they tried. "Lysandre." Nic muttered.

AU-Nic's glare seethed, his teeth clenched at the thought of the one man that ruined his life.

Lysandre emerged into full view, standing several meters away from his prisoners. "Mankind has been anything but its namesake. What we create, we only end up destroying in the end. All life we help start we can easily end up ending. At the end of the day, we are our own worse enemy…that is the cycle that I broke ages ago. Or so I thought,"

Nic narrowed his eyes, dissecting the irony behind it. "And yet you work with a force filled with nothing but that aspect."

"To rid of one's enemy, you must become them. I believe that is a saying." Lysandre shook his head. "Regardless of my ideals, we have created a necessary balance that this world needs. The less people that take life, the more that shall be preserved."

"Necessary balance my ass!" AU-Nic bellowed. "And all that you've preserved you took directly to your damn pockets!"

Lysandre turned to AU-Nic, unfazed by his outbursts. "That may be, but tell me this, Nic. You took lives from us as much as we did you. Is that to say that we are not the same? And yet between us, it is you who is at our mercy. The difference is because…without control of yourself, you are bound to be a puppet to your own greed." He held his palm, clenching it tightly. "This world's Pokémon, its resources; there are limits to what humans can intervene with, and yet we continued to breach those lines, day after day! Wars, struggling, strife, despair; it all existed because we as a species could not come to terms with our own greed…and yet seeing you now, you are the last living reminder of what I aimed to resolve." He narrowed his eyes. "Looking at you makes me realize the world is still yet beautiful."

AU-Nic sneered angrily. He knew it was pointless against the drones suspending him, but hearing every word coming out of this man's mouth made his blood boil.

Nic himself was more calm. He could understand where Lysandre came from, but he kept that to himself knowing there would be no point reasoning with him. He remembered how ambitious he was, even after becoming a proxy murderer for the Dark Legendaries.

"But, no matter…I will wipe that ugliness away yet. As for you…" He turned towards Nic. "I may not know why you share the same face as Nic here, but we believe that you will be a valued asset to our organization. Do you wish to join and pertain this world's beauty?"

"I think I'll pass." Nic bluntly rebuffed, though Lysandre showed no shock.

"Really? Well, no matter. We intend to make use of you whether you agree or not. Unlike the others, I'm more lenient in the aspect of choice. Now then…" He pulled out two Master Balls, throwing them up into the air. When they popped open, a malignant pressure exploded as Xerneas and Yveltal emerged.

Both Nics tensed, knowing what was going to happen.

…

Kecleon turned her head, looking around. "(No X marking the spot!)"

AU-Kecleon shook her head. "(No apple of the eye.)"

"(Sorry, Mama. I keep trying.)" Junior pouted, looking upset.

Staraptor grimaced at the situation. '(We're not getting anywhere like this. We won't get anywhere teleporting at random. We need a new approach.)' She closed her eyes, thinking of a solution. '(Wait…it could work. It's worth a shot at least!)'

She turned towards Junior. "(Junior, listen to Mama.)"

He tilted his head. "(Huh? Uh, okay?)"

"(In your head, I want you to picture Nic.)"

"(Picture in my head?)"

"(Yes. Think only of him, and tell yourself you want to teleport to that. So clear everything in your head and think about him.)"

Junior was more than a little stumped, but even though he didn't quite get what his mother was saying, he knew she was smart. And that was enough for him to try. "(Okay, Mama! I will try!)"

Shiin observed the incoherent exchange. Now he really wished he knew what they were saying. "What are they talking about?"

Junior took a short breath in and out and closed his eyes to start thinking. The more he focused, the more twisted his face got. He looked like he was about to pop a blood vessel, or the equivalent of one in his cosmic cloud body.

Staraptor watched her son trying to concentrate. '(Hope this works.)'

As Junior grunted, his mind was filled with all sorts of thoughts that his mind was processing through, right from the moment he ascertained self-awareness in the battle against Neuro. All sorts of memories and images jumbled through his head, but he focused on the ones that had Nic in him. Slowly, the tenseness in his face softened as he thought about Nic solemnly. The way he'd look cool fighting, or how he smiled, or even how he and everyone ate dinner together.

"Junior, we're counting on you." Nic's voice was sincere, but certain in his head. His resolution multiplied tenfold.

Junior's eyes shot open. "(I got it!)"

Staraptor gasped. "(You do?!)"

"(Yup, everyone hold on tightly!)" Junior floated in the center of the room, lifting his arms up.

'Wait, is he going to-!' Shiin caught onto what was going to happen and tried to intervene. "Wait, don't just-!"

"(Teleport!)" In a second, everyone vanished from the room…everyone.

…

Lysandre stepped up between the two legendary behemoths with a resolute glare. "I believe that it's most fitting that you are extermination with the very beings of life and death personally. The very source of the Ultimate Weapon that began to world's return to its beautiful state." He reached his arm out. "Xerneas! Yveltal!"

Xerneas let out a cry as he lifted his head. A lunar spotlight radiated over his head and manifested a bright pink sphere between his horns. Yveltal, however, snarled as crimson and violet energy amassed when his wings and tail converged to concentrate the generated death mass.

Nic and AU-Nic's eyes burned from the bright pink and red energy masses amassing beside each other. In mere moments, they would fire directly on the latter, annihilating him on the spot. Despite his dire flaw, Nic tried budging his arms and legs, but to no avail. 'Damnit, c'mon-!'

Lysandre slowly squinted. He'd be lying is he said he didn't look forward to this moment all these years.

Suddenly, Junior teleported in front with his party.

Nic's eyes widened. "You guys?"

"(Nic!)" Staraptor gasped.

"(X marks the buried treasure!)" Both Kecleon chanted.

"(Look! It worked! Mama, I did it!)" Junior chimed.

Shiin uncovered himself, looking agitated. "You shouldn't teleport someone without warning! I wasn't…" He trailed off, his eyes fixated on both Nics and their situation. His eyes shrank as he saw their current state. 'They were both captured? How?' He felt the chill run down his spine and noticed the perilous energy blasts charging behind them. His shock mounted further as he saw two Legendary Pokémon about to fire on them. "Look out!"

"Xerneas, Moonblast! Yveltal, Oblivion Wing!"

Both let out dense bellows as they projected their attacks forward, regardless of the obstructions ahead of them. The sphere fired alongside the dark laser that barreled through the air towards AU-Nic at daunting speeds.

Nic, however, knew what to do. "Kecleon, Protect!"

Kecleon leaped at blistering speeds in front of everyone. She twirled her body around and reached out, summoning a large turquoise forcefield. The Moonblast and Oblivion Wing met the barricade, creating a pulse wave upon impact , with the rest of the impact being absorbed by the shield.

"Staraptor, Steel Wing!" Nic called out.

"Kecleon, Shadow Claw!" AU-Nic followed.

Both Pokémon didn't hesitate for a second. Staraptor's wings glowed as she spun at breakneck speeds, destroying the drones creating Nic's forcefield. Similarly, AU-Kecleon's arms cloaked in black shadows with a purple aura and slashed at the drone cuffs suspending her Trainer.

Lysandre's eyes widened in shock. "What's this?!"

With the forcefield finally dissipating, Nic was free to use moves again. 'Now!' His body gave off a white aura, his muscles tensing as he used Strength and pried his limbs out, tearing the drones to scrap metal that fell to the floor.

They all dropped to the ground at long last, free from their restraints. The attacks finally let up, leaving Kecleon to land in front unscathed, tilting her head. "(Your card has been declined…)"

Nic smirked. "Cutting it rather close guys."

"(Sorry, had a few technological errors.)" Staraptor smirked back.

"You won't escape easily from me!" Lysandre exclaimed. He reached out again, signaling for Xerneas and Yveltal to ready their attacks again.

As the two Legendaries started charging up, both Nics glared heavily. "Kecleon!" AU-Nic yelled.

AU-Kecleon opened her mouth, holding up something at the end of her long, sticky tongue. It was a purple sphere with black fog billowing inside. She quickly brought it down, causing it to explode into smoke that filled the room.

Lysandre brought his arm to avoid inhaling the smoke. He grunted at the sudden blindside.

Yveltal let out a screech and flapped his wings, exerting a strong gust that dissipated the smoke quickly. When it faded, it revealed the other party was nowhere in sight.

"Where did they…?" He turned towards the machine containing their Poké Balls, only to find it in half and empty. "…tch! Nic Pularis, you're as slippery as a Barboach, even when past your judgement day."

He turned to make way back towards the chamber doors he entered, only to bump into something. "What the? An Electrode?"

The Electrode stirred awake, the sleep affliction finally worn off. Its eyes widened as Lysandre's sudden bump made its body static and lit up heavily.

Lysandre pulled away, a look of horror on his face. Before he could usher a scream, the chamber was caught in an electrified explosion.

The chamber's lighting flickered, making the red accents turn off briefly for a few seconds. After the explosion fully discharged, all that was left was smoke. However, said smoke was quick to dissipate from a sudden telekinetic expulsion by Yveltal erased all of it.

Despite being saved, that didn't make it any less troubling for Lysandre. As he got back to his feet, his face had a dark fixation. He was thoroughly peeved. Nic Pularis, that man and his little friends made a tremendous fool of him.

One way or another, they were going to get what was coming to them. For the sake of the world's blossoming beauty.

"Find them…AT ONCE!"

On Rainbow Rocket's isle, the entire place was on a lockdown. With all of their grunts disposed of earlier, that only left the drones and any loyal Pokémon to scout around for the targets in question.

With the sky being painted a dark gray, that indicated nighttime. Perfect for snooping around or otherwise avoiding detection from enemies. At this time, Nic and his group managed to find a reasonable hiding spot in the form of a small cave that sat on the island's foundation. With much of the island being artificial, the bedrock sat at sea level.

Having teleported away with Junior, they were able to use this time wisely in the enclosed space to catch their breath.

Nic looked out at the cave's opening, seeing no threats. He even had his Meadow Form active for good measure to detect any energies. "It's a little damp…but at least this'll hold us for the time being."

"(Junior, are you okay?)" Staraptor asked.

Junior nodded. "(Yeah, did I do good, Mama?)"

Staraptor smiled warmly, brushing her son's head with a wing. "(Yes, you did amazing, Junior. I'm so proud of you.)"

Junior giggled as he waved his arms happily. The sight of him being praised was too wholesome.

"Yeah. It was close, but you were able to get us out of there. Nice work, Junior." Nic grinned.

AU-Nic huffed, sitting against the cave wall. "It was a good thing I activated that tracker's signal in the end as a fail-safe."

Nic turned towards him. "That's right, I almost forgot you had that."

AU-Nic shrugged. "Well, one of us has to keep tabs. Speaking of which, you got our Pokémon?"

"I was able to get our Pokémon back before we escaped." Nic said, holding his Poké Balls in his pockets. He passed AU-Nic his six, getting a nod of appreciation. "Say, what was that your Kecleon used?"

"That Smoke Ball? I figured they'd tie my hands up one way or another, so I gave Kecleon a Smoke Ball to hold for a quick escape. I used that the first time we've met."

"I see…never thought about that." Nic admitted bitterly. In his case he would've used Smokescreen, but in hindsight it gave him the opening to smash the machine and seize their Pokémon.

AU-Nic scoffed. "Like I said before: What's in my pocket?"

Nic hummed to himself. Now that he had time to reflect on everything, it made sense to have a quick getaway since his counterpart didn't have the powers he had to accommodate. It made him wonder if he would do the same if he was in his shoes.

As Butterfree was taking a moment to catch some shuteye, Shiin was several feet away, keeping to himself. He was still wrapping his head around everything that has happened in the pass ten minutes. That included the Electrode, the Legendary Pokémon, and how he saw Nic incapacitated.

'Back there…I know I wasn't seeing things.' He shot a crude leer at Nic. 'Knowing Nic, he would've escaped those binds by the time we've arrived. Was it because of that barrier he was in? Could it be possible that…this world's engineering is capable of suppressing even the likes of Pokémon?' He needed to look into this matter right away. It could be proven essential to his mission.

AU-Nic let out a brief sigh. "Well…so much for that."

"Right." Nic lowered his head, folding his arms as an awkward silence fell amongst them.

Even though their plan fundamentally worked for the most part, it still had loopholes that were exploited. Now they were stuck within enemy territory, completely surrounded by drones ready to spot them the moment they stepped out and for Rainbow Rocket to swoop in…or whatever was left of them.

AU-Nic lifted his head. "At least their manpower is out of the question." He turned towards both Kecleon. "And you girls were able to set those charges, right?"

AU-Kecleon tilted her head. "(Planted and ready to be picked…)"

"(And no weeds to get in the way, either…)" Kecleon added.

"(Right…that is to say it would matter.)" Staraptor reasoned. "(With all the damage that's been done, I wouldn't put it pass them they would try to relocate.)"

Nic frowned. "It's possible. If it's as big of an organization as they claim, they'll probably have places elsewhere to rebuild." He turned towards Shiin. "Hey Shiin. You sat those charges, right?"

Shiin turned away, looking offended. "Don't be foolish, of course I did. I am a Magic Captain. I always make it a point to follow directives to the very letter." He stated. 'I also created an Enchantment so they can't access that compound to begin with.'

"Alright…so as long as we can set them off, they won't have anywhere to go." Nic stated. "The question now is what to do from there?"

The sounds of the shore's waves crashing against the cavern's entrance. Despite the few splashes, nobody but Junior was fazed by nature's press. They were all in deep prospects of where to go given their stopping point.

A sound caught his and everyone else's attention. They looked up, seeing AU-Nic having his head down listening to heavy metal on his phone with his earbuds plugged in.

Shiin looked visibly irritated. "What's he doing? This isn't the time for-!"

"Wait." Nic held up an arm. "…give him a minute."

"What?!"

"You heard me. We need to think…and I know better than anyone that listening to heavy metal always helped me cope with stress."

Kecleon tilted her head, blinking. "(Oh, I remember this song!)"

"(Um…it's a little scary.)" Junior admitted.

Staraptor smiled, bringing him closer. "(It's fine, Junior. It's just Nic's favorite music. It helps cool the adrenaline after some time.)"

AU-Nic was bobbing his head to the harsh, tense harmonic metal running through his earbuds while everyone remained patient. The whole time, Nic's eyes never left his alternate, the tribulations that they went through up until now resurfacing.

"You never show your best hand first, that's a given…but even your best isn't infallible. No matter how good your move is, it's pointless if anyone knows what you play with. I learned that than just what you know, you can do so much more with outsourcing. No matter how small, an asset is still an asset. You'll win bigger games with more cards than just your own. And right now…I'm working with the hands others left around for me to use."

His words from earlier stuck to his heart, especially after the failed ploy. His tricks had a counter…so now it was time to learn from himself.

After another minute, the music was cut off and AU-Nic looked at his phone. "Wasn't even fifteen minutes…tch." He clenched his phone tight, the only sentiment he had to remind him of where he came from.

"That thing's pretty old now, huh." Nic morosely muttered.

"…yeah. It is. Been through a lot with this thing." AU-Nic looked down at the blank screen somberly.

"Lemme guess, it was what your grandma and grandpa gave you for your birthday before they were killed in a car accident."

A shadow darkened over his eyes, remembering that painful memory. He then looked up to inspect Nic to find he was without such item. "And? Where's yours?"

"Didn't need them anymore. I…found ways to move on." He thought about his own adventures with Fairy Tail, especially with a certain beautiful redhead. A small smile crept onto his face. He never thought he'd miss the guild or his wife this much. His heart sank realizing the earlier neglect.

A crude smirk crossed AU-Nic's face. "Heh…good for you. At least one of us grew up. Ironic I'm 29 and you seem younger."

Nic hummed. "That's another story…but that's besides the point." His expression turned dead serious. "Listen…I can't guarantee that you'll have salvation after this is all over, but if it means helping you out of the darkness like I was…we'll finish this together. All of us."

He turned his attention towards Staraptor, who nodded in agreement. Junior, invigorated by the sentiment, hopped happily. He then turned towards the last one. "That means you too, Shiin."

Shiin shot a glare back, snorting at Nic's remark. "I figured you'd say that…and besides, it's not like I have a choice in the matter anyways. But make no mistake, I'm merely cooperating because if not, the severity of the situation could impact Earthland."

"Free!" Butterfree fluttered up, chirping his two cents.

"Then I guess we're all in agreement. Alright then." Nic turned towards his brooding counterpart, awaiting his response.

After what felt like an eternity of absorbing the situation, AU-Nic finally managed a small grin. It was still sour and bridle, but his atmosphere seemed to have lightened some. "Alright then. Let's make this next shot count then."

Nic cocked a brow. "Lemme guess, you've got something in mind, don't you?"

AU-Nic returned the expression. "Caught on already? Heh…guess we're not as different as I thought we were. Wanna take a crack at it?"

Nic obliged. "They're interested in me and my powers, hence why they set up that ambush…let's say we give them what they want."

In the depths of the fortress, the corridor was still without any light to guide The Freaks as they made their way through the maze that was the fortress. "I don't even wanna start with how lucky we got back there." Dereece grimaced.

"Yeah, for sure. For a second, I thought we were busted." Joey chimed in.

Duncan scoffed. "Guess your little dance habits paid off this time." Whether he meant it as a compliment or a n observation, he didn't allow Joey room to respond before following, "But I doubt we'll get a second chance. The paint's flaking. I can see my skin."

"Yeah, me too." Dereece looked at his arm, seeing through the faded, dry orange flaking on his skin. "Captain, we have anymore spray paint?"

Joey shook his head. "Sorry buddy, that took up the rest of what I had."

"Then we better hope we don't run into those things." Duncan sneered. Knowing how many there were before, he knew the inevitable odds.

"Still…was that what I thought it was back there?" Joey voiced his concerns.

"I don't wanna believe it either…but it's hard to think otherwise." Dereece responded. "They've got Pokémon chained up and trying to train, and they have weapons and armor. And do I wanna backtrack on those numbers back there?"

"He's got a point. Seemed clear as day they're targeting Magnolia." Duncan noted. "And from what we've seen, that might be sooner than we think."

That only made Dereece's anxiety peak. "Then we don't have much time! Captain, I know we have to find the others, but the longer we're here, the more danger we're in. Maybe we should use our Escape Ropes and make a new plan, and alert the Cambire Foundation base camp while we're at it."

Joey fell silent as he weighed his options. He knew on one hand Dereece was right. If they ran into any Gremlins now, their mission could be compromised. On the other hand, if they left without their guildmates or the other captives, it'd defeat the purpose of their own infiltration. He was getting reminders of the situation they were in on the island with the Parasia again.

'Maybe I should send Tranquill with a message to the base camp, just in case.' When he was considering that option, he noticed something odd about the hallway. "Have either of you been down this direction before?"

"Nu-uh." Dereece shook his head.

"Don't think so." Duncan stated.

Joey frowned, a serious visage plastered on his face. Looking down the corridor, it seemed rather dark. They was likely danger. He turned towards his teammates and gave a look that told them 'Brace for anything', which they understood. Slowly and quietly, they ventured down the corridor. They made sure to look at their feet, being mindful of any rocks or possible traps that could give them away.

Even though Duncan could light a torch with his Elfen Forja, he knew it'd be risky since the flame could potentially alert their enemies.

As soon as they covered a hundred meters into the slow moving, Joey's feet felt the lack of ground and instantly backed off. He immediately held his arm out to signal his team.

"What's wrong?" Dereece whispered.

"Look."

They looked down, noticing the descent to a lower level.

"Stairs?"

"Looks like it." Duncan shrugged.

"Guess we've got no other way." Slowly, Joey made way down the stone stairs. As he descended, he kept his hand on the wall beside him as a means to hold himself up in case he fell. Duncan was the same, though Dereece simply used his magic to descend over the stairs towards the base where a chamber door was.

The Freaks reconvened, looking up with curiosity.

"You think this is where the others are?" Dereece figured.

"There aren't many other places left to look." Duncan stated matter-of-factly.

Joey took a sharp inhale through his nose and mustered the resolve. He pushed against the door and slowly began to open it. It was surprisingly heavy.

The metal hinges echoed as the door swung open, allowing them to enter. They all stepped in, revealing a dungeon-like corridor with jars lined up like a jail was.

"A dungeon…?" Joey muttered.

The first thing they noticed was the crude smell that wafted the air.

"Man, it's so rank in here!" Dereece waved at the air, plugging his nose.

"That's saying something, considering you have a Garbodor." Duncan chided. Though even he couldn't resist the urge to plug his nose either.

Joey held his nose as the smell immediately reminded him of earlier. 'Smells worse than that room earlier. What's in here?'

"…h…"

Joey's breath hitched. "You guys hear that?"

The Freaks fell silent as they listened.

"…h…h…"

It was hoarse and low, but it was undoubtedly a sound of something weak and exhausted. Joey's instincts immediately made him pick up the pace and scan the cells as they went along. The further down they got, the louder the breathing was.

As soon as they got to the fifth cell on their left, the voice was near coherent. "H-hel…"

"In there?" Joey turned to the cell, looking into its confines. "Anyone there? Hey!"

The only response he got was rasped breathing.

"It's too dark to see." Joey grimaced. He turned towards Duncan. "Duncan, gimme some light."

Huffing, Duncan nudged his Elfen Forja, activating the Fire Lacrima. One end of the staff was lit ablaze like a torch, which he held out for everyone to see clearly.

Immediately, all three Freaks had shock plaster their faces with what they saw.

It was a single woman, most likely a young adult. Her arms were cuffed to shackles that were mounted to the wall so she wouldn't move. But what stuck out to them was how she lacked any clothing, her naked body in full display. Her hair was a mess, and her skin was pale and sickly, signs of malnutrition or disease.

Her head was down, so it was hard to tell what she looked like. But it was clear as day who she was.

"That's one of the prisoners!" Dereece gasped.

"They did say a woman was kidnapped…guess we know who now." Duncan stated.

Joey grabbed the cage bars and leaned closer. "Hey, you with us? It's okay, we're part of the Fairy Tail guild. We've come to rescue you!"

"…" The woman's lips moved, but no words came out.

"What'd she say?" Joey adjusted his hearing aid to make sure he heard right. "What?"

"Y…our…ight…"

"What?"

"Your…right…"

Joey raised a brow, confused. "I'm right…?"

"Captain!" Dereece called out.

Joey gasped, realizing what she meant at the last second. He quickly backpedaled, avoiding a Gremlin that spurred at him with a dagger. It landed and turned around, snarling at them.

"There's one of them!" Dereece panicked.

Duncan heard something shift behind him and pivoted. The flames of his staff pointed out the second Gremlin with a spear dangerously close. It jumped away from the flame, deterred by its brightness.

"Two!" Joey counted.

The two Gremlin snarled and went to attack the intruders. Joey erected a barrier, stopping one of them cold and bounced off. Duncan, however, managed to parry the spear, knocking it out of the Gremlin's grip. He jammed the inactive end of Elfen Forja into the Gremlin's forehead, flooring him instantly.

"They're sure not sturdy." Duncan sneered.

"Yeah…but we're not taking chances, not this time." Joey reached back and pulled out a Nest Ball. "Larvesta, String Shot!"

The Nest Ball flung into the air and emerged Larvesta. "My turn!" She twirled in midair, her unseen maw expelling silk threads in a funnel motion that snared both Gremlin in two simultaneous silk twisters. They quickly found themselves wrapped up and bound by the silk, which Larvesta performed a small overhead leap and twirl.

The two silked Gremlin slammed into each other overhead, their silk sticking to each other like glue. Larvesta landed on the ground while the two Gremlin faceplanted behind her.

"That's the way to roll, Larvesta. Nice work!" Joey praised.

Larvesta beamed with pride. "Thanks, Mama Joey!"

"Boy, those dance lessons are paying off." Dereece sidenoted.

With the Gremlin unable to move and clumped together, Duncan took the perfect opportunity to swing his staff with all his might, sending them into the nearest wall. The sound of cartilage and bones snapping didn't go unheard as the bodies fell limply to the ground. It made Joey and Dereece cringe slightly…though they knew it had to be done.

"Huh? Mama Joey, look!" Larvesta pointed a stubby limb to something that shimmered in the torchlight close by.

Joey went over to inspect their findings. When he picked it up, he saw that it was a rusted key ring with a single key on it. "Looks like they dropped something." He quickly figured out what it was for and turned towards the cell. In haste, he inserted the key to the cell's lock, making it click loudly. Joey instantly rushed in, with the others not far behind.

"Barrier-Make: Pistol!" His fist formed a spherical barrier around it and slugged the chains, undoing them from the wall.

The girl limply fell over. Joey quickly got down and held her up. "It's okay. You're safe now." He assured with a serious disposition. 'She looks like she's been through hell. Doubt these things kept her fed or had enough water. She needs attention, fast!' He reached back, looking for something in his stash. "I know we packed some Oran Berries somewhere…"

As Joey was scrambling for supplies, Duncan and Dereece looked towards each other. The latter then noticed something on the ground. "Hey…what's that?"

"What's what?" Joey saw Duncan lower the staff's flame to the ground. It was faded, but it looked like puddles of…liquid?

"What is that stuff?" Dereece questioned.

Duncan dropped to his knee, inspecting the liquid. It was clear, so it wasn't blood. Though he noticed that there was a large sum of it on the bedrock where the woman was chained. He used his torch to look for anymore, and it turned out a trail of it led to a corner of the cell.

Once again, shock overwhelmed them with what they saw. Their eyes shrank at what they saw.

In the corner, barely missed by the light, there were five tiny Gremlin, all of them the size of Happy, if not smaller. Unlike the yellow pigment, they had a more bleached shade, with bright red eyes and small noses. They didn't have rags on their lower-parts, hence why they were huddling together.

"K-kyyy…" They all stared at The Freaks, looking fearful at the intruders that killed two of their kind earlier.

Dereece blinked. "Are those…?"

"They're…babies?" Joey blinked. He couldn't help but gush slightly. "Oh, look at the cute wittle ears and noses on them."

"Guess that explains why this area's away from the others. Looks like they were hiding something after all." Duncan grimaced.

"But…where did they come from? Do they have a nursery or something down here?"

Duncan turned towards Joey. "Hate to admit it…but I think you're holding the nursery itself."

Joey blinked in confusion. He looked at the woman in his arms and thought what he meant by that. He looked towards the fluid puddles and saw how they ended at the babies in the corner. He looked back at the woman, his brow furrowing as he was still piecing it all together.

And it soon dawned upon him.

The realization was like being hit with a Giga Impact. Joey was so shocked he almost lost hold of the woman, only to reaffirm his grip. He was baffled, disgusted even. He looked towards the others to find they had equally stunned expressions. Their worst fears had come to light.

"You serious…?" Dereece's voice was barely over a whisper. "Then…the reason they kidnapped the girls…"

Duncan grunted low.

'You gotta be…' Joey was speechless. Horror painted Joey's face at the revelation. 'It hasn't even been a week since she was kidnapped, right? They seriously multiply this quickly?' His grip tightened slightly out of his anger.

"…l…ease…" The girl's rasped voice shook them to the core. "You…have to…"

"Save your strength. We'll get you out of here!" Joey assured, reaching for his emergency Escape Rope.

"Captain Joey, I don't think…" Dereece wanted to say it, but Duncan shook his head.

"Please…you have to…kill them…" The woman muttered, barely enough for Joey to hear. Her barely open eyes were devoid of any light, looking like whatever life was left was about to give in. "Kill all…these monsters…"

Joey gasped. He watched the woman's eyes shut…and they didn't open again.

He put his head to her naked chest, despite the grime and deposits that saturated her cold skin. The shock on his face increased tenfold when he didn't hear a heartbeat. He slowly sat her back down, her now lifeless body laid bare for The Freaks to mourn.

Duncan frowned heavily. "…sorry."

Joey looked down at the lifeless body, his eyes shuddering from how distraught he felt. He's seen people die before, his mentor and lover especially…but not in a way so pitiful. He closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, cursing in silence for allowing this to happen.

"Captain…"

Joey and Duncan turned towards Dereece, who was pointing at an adjacent cell with sickly grimace. They both looked and felt a pit open in their stomachs.

Several bodies were laying on the ground, uncovered and stripped of clothing. They were all women, and from the lifeless color and partial decay on all of them, they were all expired. Several cells confirmed that the numbers had to be at least a dozen.

"You mean all these women were…" Joey covered his mouth to hold back his vomit.

Dereece fell to his knees, unable to hold his vomit in. Though he didn't feel like puking like his cohorts, Duncan was without a doubt disturbed by what he was seeing.

"Mama Joey…" Larvesta worried.

Duncan suddenly turned and walked past his comrades. Dereece managed to spit out the rest of his contents and saw Duncan. "H-hold on, what're you doing?"

"What else?" He stopped in front of the Gremlin babies, all of them looking up frightened and quipping low. "They can already stand on their two feet. And it looks like they were born a short while ago. We leave these things be, they'll multiply faster than rabbits. You want that to happen?"

"Wait…" His eyes shrank, realizing what he meant. "You're really gonna just…!?"

Duncan gripped his staff tighter. He seemed resolved to do this.

Dereece turned to the last verdict. "Captain Joey, what do we…?"

Joey was dangerously silent, a shadow cast over his eyes. He looked at the dark, lifeless cells around them, then back at the woman laying close by. All of these women suffered the same fate to these…monsters. His personal beliefs aside, he knew that a threat like this cannot go unanswered, not when circumstances end up like this.

His gaze turned to the Gremlin children. One of them held up a rock flimsily, ready to fight for his fragile little life. Despite the fear, the bright red eyes were desperate, evil…and reminded him of numerous sociopaths that had no remorse.

It was a dirty job…but somebody had to do it.

Knowing what had to be done, Joey stood up and turned away. "Duncan…" He paused. "…make it quick."

Duncan glanced at Joey for a moment, knowing the guilt that he was going to feel as well. He wasn't going to sleep well tonight. "…I intended to from the start."

Dereece and Larvesta turned away, unable to watch. Joey remained still, his fists clenching.

With no further delays, Duncan raised one end of Elfen Forja over the infant Gremlins. They all looked up, their huge eyes reflecting the huge staff and the dark visage of Duncan harrowing over them before bringing his weapon down.

SPLAT!

As blood splattered the walls, anguish cries and squeals echoed through the empty cell hallway, fading in the darkness for no one to hear.

Team Rainbow Rocket's bosses gathered in the same meeting room as before…or what remained of it after the earlier skirmish. Despite some cosmetic cracks and some deformities in the surroundings, it was still standing. Compared to the rest of the building, it was better than having their emergency forum out in the open.

Lysandre, having the one to call this gathering, begrudgingly relayed the situation to his peers. As expected, the reception was not a warm one.

"Heh, so even in your grasps, they manage to slip away?" Ghetsis snarked with a crude smile. "That surely won't cost you."

Cyrus offered no input, his emotionless scowl making it hard to tell how he felt.

Archie folded his arms, scoffing. "I can understand Ghetsis from the first time…but Lysandre? That's a pretty rare mistake given your background."

Lysandre closed his eyes. He didn't like being reprimanded by his peers, especially to this degree, but he knew he had no room to argue back. "I'll admit, letting them slip between my fingers was unfathomable. However, there were unexpected variables that intervened at the last moment. That part was out of my control."

Maxie hummed, unamused by the lack of respect in the air. "Suppose it can't be helped now." He turned towards Giovanni. "I don't suppose we'll have to alter our plans, yes?"

Everyone turned towards Giovanni, who was present for once. The Rainbow Rocket's tyrannical leader had a smug smirk despite the relayed shortcomings. "No. Whether he managed to escape or not doesn't matter. But…it was truly entertaining to see him get this far." He turned his back, hands behind his back. "We'll relocate to the Alola Region, where our sanctum in the Aether Paradise is stable. We shall reinforce there and build up that as our primary base."

"So we're just ditching this dump?" Archie questioned.

"It makes sense I suppose. Our operations were compromised, and we are short of manpower now." Maxie reasoned.

Giovanni turned and started walking past them. "We leave now. We'll have enough fuel to get us to our designation."

The six only scoffed and watched Giovanni's back. If they were all honest, they wanted to get rid of this man, especially Ghetsis. But that last attempt made a solid reminder to whom was in charge. Even though they had free reign to do as they saw fit, they also knew their limits in the hierarchy…even though they hated it.

They warp themselves to the lower levels of the base, where they made way towards the landing platform's base. Just when they were about to enter, however, Giovanni was struck by an unknown force.

"Gah!" He recoiled. It felt like he hit a wall!

"What was that?" Cyrus questioned.

Giovanni rubbed his forehead, looking at the doorway with a scowl. He walked forward, reaching his hand out and saw his palm was pressing into pixilated energy. "What is…?" He looked up, noticing a strange incantation written atop the invisible wall. "What kind of trickery is this?"

"Was there a glitch in our security system?" Maxie wondered.

"Move out of the way." Archie pressed forward, getting out his customized ID. He pressed it against the code reader and flashed green. However, nothing happened. He touched the barrier again, but nothing happened. "What? Seriously?"

Ghetsis stepped forward, inspecting the makeshift wall himself. "This isn't our technology's doing."

"That so?" Cyrus inquired.

"He's right. Our security is the most advanced in the world as of date. We have an override to everything here." Lysandre reasoned. "And this…this doesn't feel natural. Not in the slightest."

Elsewhere, a thumb clicked on a trigger.

The blinking charges spread all over all suddenly changed to green.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Explosions went off throughout the compound. The place began shaking from the magnitude and shockwaves pushed throughout the building.

The Rainbow Rocket bosses found their footing off balance, forced to spread their footing or lean against the wall.

"What's happening now?!" Archie exasperated, but was unheard through the rumbling.

All across the base, the charges that both Kecleon stashed in various corners were going off wildly. Explosions erupted in every room; the locker rooms, rest quarters down the hall, the security room; it all was blown up.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Giovanni and the bosses were blown off their feet when explosions from the landing compound created shockwaves that reached them through the enchanted entrance. All the helicopters Shiin tagged, the landing platform itself, all of it went up in flames and smoke right before their eyes.

"NO!" Giovanni shouted.

"What is going on!?" Ghetsis screamed.

They were so caught up in the hysteria that if it wasn't for the fractured plates falling between them, they never would have looked up in time to see the ceiling crack. Realizing what happened, just mere seconds later, the entire base's lost support resulted in it crumbling.

…

The isle that housed the supreme base went up in dust and smoke. What once stood as a proud base has now been reduced to rubble. The once polished black tiles with red outlines was now diffused. The massive rainbow R that accented the base was amongst the rubble. Warp tiles malfunctioned and shut off so there was nowhere to go to.

In the depth of this now decimated heap, amongst the wreckage, rubble shifted slightly before it erupted. Emerging from the depths, Groudon let out a blistering roar as he raised his arms up, creating a massive land mass beneath that pushed him to the surface.

In his arms were the bosses, whom he sat down once the land mass was cool enough.

"Who the-huh?!" Archie looked around, startled with how they were still alive. Looking up at Groudon, he found his shock diverted towards Maxie. "You…!"

Maxie scoffed. "I believe you owe me for this?"

Archie sneered back. "Yeah right. Just got lucky this time."

"What is the meaning of all this?!" Lysandre boomed.

Giovanni, having gotten over the shock, scanned his base. He saw the area where the platform to take off was nearby and saw it was caved in. Smoke was rising from any dents in the metal as the helicopter and all the fuel they had was gone. He looked around for anything else that may have survived, but only saw collapsed walls and debris.

Everything about his precious base was destroyed. It was all wiped away in just a few minutes.

"The HQ is…destroyed." Cyrus deadpanned.

"How did that happen? Where did all those explosions go off?!" Archie went off on a tangent. "Did the remaining Electrode go off all at once?! I knew that was a bad call!"

"No." Lysandre grimaced, his eyes burning with intensity. "They couldn't have. And even if they did, their explosions wouldn't have caused this much damage. It's all too precise."

Ghetsis narrowed his eyes, his anger showing. "Don't tell me it's who I think it is."

"It would seem so." Cyrus added.

Giovanni grimaced, his once composed demeanor finally breaking character. He heard rubble shifting close by and turned sharply. In the dust, two silhouettes were seen walking through the field of desolation.

"We were hoping the explosions would put you down…pity." A voice scowled through the air. "At least your home field advantage is now up in flames."

The bosses all staggered to their feet as Groudon snarled. They all watched the dust breeze by, revealing two sets of blue eyes that burned with an equal, distinct passion. They recognized those eyes all too well. The eyes of defiance every single one of them loathed to their core.

Ghetsis's face contorted to an enraged scowl. "You…!"

The bosses all showed genuine shock, or as close to it as possible. Giovanni was the only one who managed to regain his composure and wasn't afraid to show his ire. "I see…so this was your plan all along."

"You've had home field advantage, but without your assets, it won't mean anything." Nic retorted.

"Your base crumbled, your personnel gone…that just leaves you." AU-Nic stated coldly.

Surprisingly enough, Giovanni seemed amused by their declarations, his smug smirk returning. "I see…suppose this is what's called the last stand? How poetic." His raised his chin, his callous sneer clear as day, even though it was night. "This shall be the last time that Rainbow Rocket suffers anymore obstructions! You shall mark the beginning of a true era that is for us to dominate!"

Nic stepped forward towards Giovanni. "You wanted me, right? Well…here I am."

Giovanni chuckled. "So kind of you to offer yourself. I have been waiting to see what mettle you have…against the strongest Trainer in the world! You may just be a worthy opponent after all." He turned towards the other bosses. "The rest of you, you can deal with the other Nic. This one is only reserved for me."

Both Nic's eyes narrowed.

"Careful what you wish for." AU-Nic stated. He and Nic briefly exchanged looks. The time had come. "Now!"

In a flash, Junior teleported between the two parties. "(Tadaa!)"

"What is that thing?" Archie scowled.

Lysandre, recognizing the small cloud, widened his eyes, 'That one! That's…!'

"Right…let's go! Teleport!" AU-Nic commanded.

"(Aye-aye! Time for you meanies to go away!)" Junior raised his arms high.

In a flash, the bosses, Groudon, and AU-Nic teleported with him out of sight.

Now completely alone, Nic and Giovanni stood their ground apart from each other. A strong wind breezed by them that shifted the former's coat. After everything that has happened, neither was willing to let the other out of their grasp. Not after everything they did to sabotage the other.

"So tell me, where did you get your powers? Who experimented on you?"

"If I told you, you'd probably try to replicate the process and make others like me, or yourself stronger." Nic surmised. "You only see value in taking strength from those who oppose you and make it your own to fill your empty goal."

Giovanni raised a brow. "Empty goal, you say…?" He seemed offended, breaking into a snicker. "Why, 'empty' is but a trivial term. I am fulfilling the ultimate ambition of all Pokémon Trainers."

"And what might that be?"

His smirk widened. "Simple. To be the strongest. We all want the same thing, and yet many struggle for that dream only to fall short." He turned his head away, looking distantly at what was his HQ. "If you start with nothing, you'll end with nothing." He turned towards Nic. "So to be unchallenged, you must take everything into your own grasp. What you hold is what you control…that is the essence of a Poké Ball. To control that power, and make it an unobtainable force to all…that is the essence of Rainbow Rocket itself!"

Nic offered nothing to say, listening intently to Giovanni's viewpoint.

"And my goal is far from over…and I have you to thank for that. Once your power is in my possession, there will be no other force to oppose the strongest Trainer this world truly deserves."

"I see…should've figured it'd be like that." Nic's response was terse and bland, lacking any sympathy.

"Now then…" Giovanni pulled out a Master Ball and tossed it, bringing out his Dugtrio. "Why don't you sample some of that strength for me?"

Nic's scowl retained even as he pulled out a Pokémon Ball. With a flick of his wrist, the capsule popped open, revealing Staraptor.

"You want to see them that bad? Then make me."

He and Staraptor glared at their opponents, the latter's red eyes piercing daggers into Dugtrio. Her Intimidate Ability activated, lowering Dugtrio's Attack.

Giovanni's smirk darkened. This was going to be fun.

When the bosses found their footing, they noticed the ground was much softer than a second ago. Looking down, they noticed that the dirt and scrap metal yard that was the base was now grassland. A small valley surrounded them, with nothing for miles but open land.

Ghetsis was the first to voice his concerns. "Where are we?"

"It would appear that we've been warped outside the base confines." Lysandre concluded.

"Great, as if we haven't enough problems." Archie grimaced.

"Yes…but there is but one still before us." Cyrus prompted.

The bosses turned forward, seeing AU-Nic a short distance away. The wind shifted his ragged clothing as he folded his arms, his defiant blue eyes beaming daggers into their cold, heartless souls.

"Heh, you serious? You really dragged us all the way out here to get killed?" Archie scoffed, clearly unamused. "Well, I would've preferred the sea for a decent resting place."

"And I prefer a proper burial within the earth." Maxie added.

"And yet this one won't be getting such an honor." Ghetsis sneered. "Because for all the trouble he was worth, he deserves to be reduced to ash where he stands!"

"Indeed…a world devoid of emotion or senses won't come to fruition so long as he pertains." Cyrus studiously noted.

Lysandre stepped forward, glaring AU-Nic in the eyes. "You may have slipped through my grasps last time…but that shall be for the last time. There will be no more chances for you."

The bosses began pulling out their Master Balls. Each one threw them in their own styles. Archie being the most vigor, Maxie and Ghetsis were more subdued. Cyrus's lobs lacked any energy, and Lysandre sideswiped with force.

All at once, the Master Balls expelled their energy. AU-Nic stood firmly as several shadows rose up before him.

Alongside Groudon, Kyogre let out a blistering roar. In the air above, Dialga and Palkia let out primal cries of their own, sharing the skies with Reshiram and Zekrom. And finally, Xerneas and Yveltal, standing at the forefront letting out wild cries into the sky.

Immediately, the effects of the Legendary Pokémon went underway. With Kyogre being brought out, his Drizzle Ability activated. The dark clouds in the sky began a dense rainfall. Similarly, Yveltal's eyes glowed purple as his body gave off a faint, black aura, via his Dark Aura.

AU-Nic stood against them, completely unfazed by their presence.

Giovanni began with a snap of his fingers. "Dugtrio…Sandstorm."

The Mole Pokémon let out an obedient grunt before the three individual heads began spinning and accelerating, quickly gathering up the nearby dirt and dust into a typhoon around him. The typhoon quickly gained mass and expanded outwards, causing Nic and Staraptor to cover their faces from the roaring dirt storm.

Nic managed to regain his composure, reaching his own arm out. "Staraptor, Close Combat!"

Giovanni snapped his fingers. "Sucker Punch."

Staraptor's red eyes sharpened as she flapped her wings, shooting herself like a bullet through the sandstorm. She closed in on Dugtrio and pulled a talon back, ready to kick him.

However, instead of hitting solid matter, she ended up striking a thick sand mass that dispersed in the wind. "(What…? Gah!)" She felt a force from behind striking her back, slamming her to the ground.

Nic's eyes widened, shocked at what he saw.

"Did you really think it would be that simple?" Giovanni's voice cut through the raging sandstorm with triumph. "My Dugtrio has the Ability, Sand Veil. In a sandstorm, his evasion multiplies. And when equipped with the Smooth Rock…"

Nic's eyes narrowed with distaste, fists clenching tight. He watched as Staraptor got back to her feet, only to be buffered by the sandstorm, adding more to the damage she's sustained.

Staraptor grunted. She saw Dugtrio's silhouette beside herself and didn't hesitate to kick, only to get the same result as last time. She saw another silhouette pop up on her side, and another, and then more. She knew this was another mind game…something she detested.

Nic studied the battle, trying his best to keep his composure through it all. 'It's a stalling game. We keep missing and we'll keep sustaining damage. We need to get a precise shot. His Sucker Punch won't do much after that initial Intimidate. Won't let that accumulate and have Sandstorm stack on top. We're ending this with one. Clear. Shot.'

Staraptor glanced back at her Trainer, seeing the resolution on his face and getting the message. She remained calm, closing her eyes while the ground vibrated beneath her. Every time Dugtrio popped up, there was an extra kick at the end. She felt the distance slowly shorten...and shorten…

Finally, her intuition paid off. She could feel something quick heading to her from behind! '(There!)'

"Now! Brave Bird!"

Giovanni snapped his fingers. "Fool. Sucker Punch!"

Staraptor pressed her talon on the ground, springing off the ground just as Dugtrio's three heads shot up and angled their heads to strike. She somersaulted and stomped on the backs of their heads, using them as a springboard.

"What's this?" Giovanni looked shocked.

Staraptor steadied in the air high above. Even with the sandstorm obscuring her vision slightly, she felt it just then. That was the real Dugtrio. And he was directly below. Her eyes narrowed sharply, her prey in sight. "(You can run…but you can't hide!)"

"NOW!" Nic roared.

Staraptor spread her wings as a light blue aura coated her entire body, almost like a flame. The intense aura covering her brushed aside the wind and dust as she divebombed straight down towards the distraught Dugtrio, who was trying to lift his heads.

Despite the dire situation, Giovanni remained composed. "Dugtrio, do it."

Dugtrio's six eyes grew serious. A white aura surrounded the body.

"(HRAAAAAAAH!)" Staraptor shot down full-force, her body colliding with Dugtrio in an explosion that plumed rock and debris into the atmosphere. Shockwaves from the attack's force pushed against Giovanni, but he remained vigilant despite the brunt blow taken.

The huge dust cloud kicked up was immediately stirred within the sandstorm. Staraptor ascended back into the air, letting out a triumphant caw. Just then, red recoil static ran through her entire body, causing her to falter.

But the result was worth it when below, Dugtrio was laying on the surface, all his pupils swirling from unconsciousness.

"That makes one." Nic recited.

"Perhaps…but you should take a look around." Giovanni advised.

Nic scanned his surroundings, taking notice of the jagged stones that peppered across the ground. Surprisingly enough, they blended well with the dirt had it not been for their size or how upright they were. He recognized the move and didn't seem too thrilled. "Stealth Rock…I see."

Giovanni withdrew his Dugtrio. "A little parting gift. Now…" He pulled out another Master Ball, tossing it into the air. The energy popped out, dropping his second choice in midair. A Nidoking landed on his feet, raising his head with a vicious roar.

Nic and Staraptor looked towards each other, the former nodding.

"Are you intending to conserve your powers? You know, it would make things easier for you." Giovanni insisted.

"Like I said, you're gonna have to try harder to make me use them." Nic challenged.

"The spite treatment…very well then." He snapped his fingers, and Nidoking went charging.

Staraptor cawed, blitzing head-on and collided her talons with his claws, creating an airwave.

"Kyogre, Hydro Pump!"

"Groudon, Ancient Power!"

"Dialga, Palkia! Thunderbolt!"

"Reshiram, Zekrom! Hyper Voice!"

"Xerneas, Psyshock! Yveltal, Shadow Ball!"

The eight Legendary Pokémon cried out as they readied their respective attacks. Kyogre hauled his body upright and opened his mouth towards his target, expelled a massive, pressurized volume of water that tore through the air. Groudon's body outlined in white energy that he congregated between his hands and launched. Both Dialga and Palkia's bodies discharged electricity, while Reshiram and Zekrom opened their mouths, unleashing monstrous roars. Lastly, Xerneas careened his head around as all his antlers had a violet orb at their ends that turned into beams. Yveltal generated a shadowy orb at his maw that he fired with all his might.

The attacks shot in a tremendous wake, tearing up the land as they headed for AU-Nic. He watched the attacks close in, seemingly accepting his fate.

BOOOOOOOOOOM!

A conglomerate of numerous elements flashed skywards. A tsunami mixed with lightning and shadows swallowed up the land, with the soundwaves rattling the earth for miles on end. Everything that was in contact with the force was destroyed. In mere seconds, field grass and hills leveled to a wasteland.

The bosses all watched the wake eventually subside, not a one smiling. They were all serious with anticipation of what's to come.

As the last of the dust was diffused by the rain, AU-Nic was nowhere in sight.

Ghetsis victoriously smirked. "Heh…about time. Witless fool."

"He wanted his death wish. Suppose it was inevitable." Maxie chimed in.

Archie scoffed. "You ask me, that was anticlimactic."

While Cyrus offered no input, Lysandre couldn't help but feel something was off about all this. 'Something's not right…he would have at least put up a fight. I know him to that degree…'

Groudon looked down at the ground, sensing something.

"Hm?" Maxie hummed. "What's wrong? Huh…?" Below his feet, he saw the ground glowing. The area was massive, quickly spreading beneath the feet of the bosses and Legendary Pokémon close to the ground.

Realizing what was about to happen, Lysandre's eyes widened. 'I knew it!'

The light gradually broadened, swallowing up everything that was touching the ground until it faded to white. A second later, an explosion of rainbow light and sediment erupted into the air, overturning the ground over a massive range. Much of the Legendary Pokémon that could fly managed to pull up into the air to avoid the wake of the attack, but those like Groudon, Kyogre, and Xerneas were not as fortunate as radiant light and earth struck them, throwing them off balance.

The bosses, having escaped on their Legendary Pokémon, used their arms to cover from the intense glow beneath.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Cyrus sneered low on Dialga's back.

Archie and Maxie latched onto Zekrom's heels, witnessing their Legendaries getting swallowed by the attack.

Lysandre uncovered, sneering angrily.

Suddenly, multicolored comets beamed in all directions, each one glazed in rainbows. Dozens of them spurred skywards like spears with wings that dazzled everyone.

Just then, two long, pink tongues shot out of nowhere and wrapped themselves around Dialga and Palkia's necks. The two dragons were caught off guard when the tongues dragged their heads through the air, hitting each other and causing them to gawk from shock.

A purple tail coiled around Yveltal's talon, followed by a force that threw him towards the ground with Lysandre hanging on for dear life.

Two draconic tails swung behind Reshiram and Zekrom with so much force that they lost altitude.

"GAH!" Archie and the bosses managed to get off at the last second. They all jumped mere seconds before the Legendaries bodied on the ground with loud thuds that shuddered the earth. They all staggered to their feet, albeit shakily.

Six figures landed on the ground in perfect sync, all in a straight line. In the skies above, the rainbow spears faded like shadows, with only one returning to earth. The avian flapped her wings above her peers, the winds kicked up blown into the bosses' faces.

A grief glow went through the area, which they were unable to see. When the dust finally settled, their eyes laid on a shocking sight.

"…what…?" Ghetsis exasperated.

Standing a short distance away was AU-Nic. And beside him was Greninja, Charizard, Kecleon, Garchomp, and Arbok, with Staraptor right over them. All seven had dead-serious expressions. And not a one looked fazed.

"Inconceivable!" Cyrus declared. "How did he survive that?!"

"He shouldn't even have a body. Did he somehow dodge that?" Maxie inquired.

"What kind of trickery is this?! Tell me!" Ghetsis demanded.

Lysandre frowned heavily, furrowing his brow as he deeply pondered their situation. 'That attack a moment ago…it was underground. And that light…could that have been Dazzling Gleam? But last I checked, none of the Pokémon before us can use that move…wait…' Looking at AU-Nic's silent expression, it instantly clicked. 'That's it!'

Immediately, he reached up to the earpiece in his ear. "This is Lysandre. Giovanni, are you there?"

Nidoking swung his tail around, a massive spiraling wave following in the wake.

"Double Team!"

At Nic's command, Staraptor's body glowed and made illusionary copies of herself. The Aqua Tail swept through, striking each clone out of existence. However, the real Staraptor was above, unscathed by the attack. Though that was changed when the sandstorm buffered her, draining her stamina more.

Nic clenched his fists. "There's no choice…Roost!"

Staraptor descended towards the ground and folded in her wings. A green light enveloped her body that gradually restored her waning energy.

Despite this, however, the sandstorm continued siphoning Staraptor's health by a miniscule amount. Nic's eyes narrowed. "It all comes down to this…"

"Nidoking…" Giovanni snapped his fingers. "Poison Jab!"

His Nidoking snarled, bringing back his right arm as his claws glowed with poison.

'If I switch Staraptor, she'll regain her Flying-type, which'll work against us because of Stealth Rock. And if it uses a strong Ground-type move, we're now open.' Nic contemplated his options, but settled for one. "So be it…Brave Bird!"

Staraptor let out a caw as she spread her wings, kicking off the ground and did a massive somersault in the swirling air. She angled towards Nidoking and folded in her wings, allowing inertia to do its part. She then spread her wings as a flaming, dense blue aura coated her body and barreled towards Nidoking.

With a venomous cry, Nidoking jabbed forward, his claws and Staraptor's whole body colliding centerfield. A volatile explosion shuddered the land as dust blew in all directions. Both Nic and Giovanni were forced to cover up, the latter still looking confident.

Nidoking skidded back from the dust cloud, his claws dug into the earth to keep traction. However, Staraptor was not so lucky. She skidded back on her talons, red static stunning her nerves and piercing her stamina.

Just when it seemed over, toxic bubbles erupted from her body. She was poisoned.

Giovanni sneered triumphantly. "You should know better than to attack a Pokémon with Poison Point for an Ability."

Staraptor grimaced from the pain overwhelming her. The recoil, the sandstorm, and now the poison was becoming too much. Her vision began fading.

"(It's up to…you guys now.)" With those words, she collapsed to her stomach, fainting.

Nic recalled Staraptor with a straight face, but inside he was boiling. Still, she did her job, that was the important part.

"Your attacks had considerable power to them…I'm actually impressed." Giovanni intervened.

"You're not the only one who knows how to use items." Nic prompted.

Giovanni thought for a moment, realizing what happened. "I see now. You were holding a Life Orb. Clever gambit. But now it's no use, so how shall you face me now?"

Just then, his earpiece clicked. "This is Lysandre. Giovanni, are you there?"

Giovanni paused to reach up to his earpiece. "Where are you all?"

"We've misjudged the situation! The Nic you're facing…he's an imposter!"

Giovanni's eyes widened. "What did you say?"

'Nic' scoffed, smirking. "Looks like the jig is up."

Giovanni looked back at his opponent, observing him. "I see now…you're actually the real Nic Pularis."

AU-Nic remained unfazed, his counterpart's clothes shifting in the wind. 'Been awhile since I wore anything loose like this…not bad.'

Giovanni stared blankly, processing everything that was happening. The two Nics wearing clothes, being teleported, the bosses on their own with the other Nic. It all added up. They were played.

He darkly snickered. "Well now…this is an interesting turn of events indeed. But I ask you, do you really think that you can beat me?"

"We'll see. No matter how you look at it, only one of us is going to be left breathing after this…" AU-Nic held up another Poké Ball. "And it won't be you."

Giovanni accepted the challenge with amusement. "Then by all means…give me your best shot."

…

As the battle raged on, Shiin traced his magic staff along the isle's rim. Using his Air Walk spell, he was above the shifting waves as runes were drawn and followed his staff's lead. 'This inscription will cost considerable amounts of Magic Power, but it is necessary.' He looked up, seeing the dome of swirling sand and dust in the distance. 'Keep buying me more time.'

…

"The ole' switcheroo, and we fell for it." Archie clicked his teeth in annoyance.

"They had us played even when they were cornered. We were running around in circles without realizing it." Maxie added.

Ghetsis sneered. "Ha! Well that cycle ends now! It won't matter to me whether it is the original or not. No matter what, they're all fools thinking they stand a chance."

"(Bah! Who do they take usss for? They're all insssulting!)" Arbok spatted back.

Garchomp stepped beside him. "(Thinking what I'm thinking?)"

"(Yesss…I sssay we sssquash them all like the little Bug-typesss they are.)"

"(That was the aim from the start. It'd be prudent if they remain as they are.)" Staraptor chided.

Kecleon tilted her head. "(Those are really big trees to cut down…)"

"(Yeah…this'll be a challenge alright.)" Greninja noted, folding his arms.

Charizard spat some flames. "(Just the way we like it.)"

Greninja smirked underneath his tongue. "(You're right about that.)" He glanced at the person beside him. "(Nic?)"

Nic nodded. "Yeah, I hear you guys." He stepped forward, with the others doing the same. The seven outliers stood in the pouring rain as they watched the Legendary Pokémon get back up. All eight were back upright, the initial attack having rattled them. They looked almost as pissed as their Trainers.

Back on the HQ island, AU-Nic tossed another Poké Ball, bringing out his Arbok. The long cobra towered with several scars on his face and back, especially one across his hood's face. The Stealth Rocks activated as soon as his body met the ground, dealing damage towards the serpent. AU-Nic clenched his fist as he looked as vengeful as his partner. One too many hits were dealt, and now it was time to pay it all back…in full.

In the face of their challenges, both Nics yelled the same thing: "Time to put them in the ground!"

Hopefully the wait was worth it! Sorry for the lack of updates in a while, been having a tough time managing myself and my schedule. I've been going to the gym almost every day for about an hour, and on top of that, I have a full-time job, so I barely have 2 hours of leisure time in my day before I have to go to bed early to repeat the cycle. So you can imagine the struggle it is to try and find time to write these days. But regardless, I managed to make a sizeable and entertaining chapter. Not too much action, but left a cliffhanger that'll keep you in the edge of your seats for next chapter's massive throwdown with the two Nics against the bosses of Rainbow Rocket.

Guest: I understand where you're coming from, but Nic is not Ash. He's not going jumping from region to region for long sagas. He only goes for necessity, not for adventure. Besides, I have other plans in mind.

I'm hoping to not delay the next chapter by too long like I did this one. Though as mentioned, I have a tight schedule these days, but I'll make the most of it.

As always, reviews and feedback are appreciated! Thanks for reading another chapter! :)