“Fucking... I can’t believe those assholes. A week!? A freaking week!? I’m just trying to protect my sister, and suddenly, I am the bad guy here!”
The sight from the mansion’s rooftop calmed the Sylveon down, at least a tiny bit, the bright lights, the rather calm environment, the sight of the Sundial not far from there and the sight of the Canterlot Castle further away simply showing how gorgeous the city was. He sighed, and took a deep breath, closing his eyes and deciding to not think on anything.
But his focus was lost when the soft sounds of grunting and panting called his attention, opening his left eye, he spotted two pink paws and two long pink and yellow ears making their way up, with difficulty of course. Frederick grunted as he recognized the Whismur, stretching his ribbons and grabbing the Normal type, before tossing her through the window below. He honestly didn’t care. He huffed, and went back to this thinking.. only to be interrupted by the same noise as before. He opened both his eyes now, and once again stretched his ribbons to toss the Whismur back inside the mansion. And then, he went back to thinking.
Only to be interrupted by the same old sounds of the Whismur trying to climb up. He huffed and launched his ribbons with speed, yet surprisingly enough the Whismur had managed to grab them just in time, and she was now giggling as Frederick moved her around in the air, for a small Normal type, she sure had a strong grip.
Minutes passed, and Frederick gave up, he placed Wendy on the flat surface next to himself and simply decided to ignore her. Of course, Wendy would not be ignored. She walked towards Frederick and placed herself right in the middle of his field of vision. The Sylveon shoved her away with his paw as he growled, but of course, she came back.
“Listen, I don’t have time for your crap. I’m trying to be an emo here.” He sighed, getting some ear twitching and some angry expressions in return, “I do not understand you nor do I wish to understand you. So get the hell away from here.”
But Wendy stood there, smacking him with her ears and pointing at the distance.
“What? You want to go poop or something?”
Wendy rolled her eyes and smacked him again, pointing at him, then at a violet lily, and then at the same position where she pointed at before.
Frederick, surprisingly enough, understood half of what the Normal type was talking about, “Val left somewhere, don’t know where exactly but she’s not here.”
Wendy rolled her eyes as if to say ‘I already know that,’ before smacking him again and pointing at once again the same direction.
“You should stop that, it’s kinda starting to hurt a little.” Frederick deadpanned before looking at the direction where she was pointing, “You’re saying they went that way? Ok, then go, you don’t need my help.”
Wendy face-pawed. How could someone be so dumb? She jumped on his head, and pulled his upper ribbons, causing Frederick to growl and try to get her down, to no avail. Pulling once more, she pointed at once again the same direction, and mouther ‘danger’, before pointing at the lilies, at himself, and running her paw through her throat.
“Wait… Val is in danger!?” Frederick’s eyes opened, before jumping into a tree and taking at mach speed towards the signaled position. Wendy simply rolled her eyes as she jumped off before he had gotten too far away from the mansion, her job was done. And now, time to sleep.
Morning light was beginning to seep over the horizon as Celestia prepared for the beginning of the new day. The group had taken some time to prepare and travel to the warehouse, which they were currently observing from some distance away.
“This place gives me the chills.” Pockets commented softly. “Is this even the same city?” she took a good look at the neighbouring buildings which seemed to be either badly maintained, or completely abandoned.
Tyler considered for a moment. “Well, it’s in the city limits, which I think is considered to be everything hanging off the side of the mountain. But I don’t know if I’d like to think of this as part of my city if I was born here.”
Steven waited for a few seconds as he observed the building, knowledge of the place would be key in their attack, “Layton, got anything?”
The Metagross remained silent, his eyes glowing a soft green, before returning to their normal red. “There are approximately forty nine Pokémon inside that warehouse. Many are underleveled, others seem to be fully evolved and extremely powerful. But overall, the group is large. I recommend proceeding with caution.”
Steven nodded, and pointed at the two eeveelutions, “You’re up. The mental link is ready, so if you find anything, inform us. We won’t advance until we’re clear to go, understood?”
Shadow and Valerie both nodded in understanding, exited their hiding spot, and walked towards the vent that stuck out loosely near the ground.
Steven waited for the duo to get inside the building, before looking at the group once again, “Pockets, Damian, and the Klefki will wait for Valerie and Shadow’s signal. If the way is clear, you’ll go inside and you’ll try to locate the Flareon. Avoid being detected, we don’t need a massive fight against all those Pokémon.”
“Sure thing, ant captain!” Pockets joked with a salute, as she signaled the two Pokémon to follow them.
“As for us, Tyler. I told Layton to prepare a separate mental link between you, and your Pokémon. You know them better than me, so you’d know what to do in certain situations. If anything goes wrong, we’ll have to get inside and fight. What are you capable of doing as a Pokémon?” Steven asked to the Flaaffy.
The Electric-Type shrunk down a little, “Only things I’ve figured out how to do on command is Cotton Guard, and Tackle if you count that. But I’ve used Thunderwave a few times on accident. I’m not very good at this whole being a Pokemon thing yet.”
“That’s fine. Those moves can be pretty useful in battle.” Steven nodded. But he then thought for a second, as he analyzed all the possibilities of what could happen. “However I think I could give you a move to defend yourself if needed. The process is slightly complicated, but it works.”
“... Um… What?”
“Have you heard about the ‘move tutors’? “Layton asked coldly.
He nodded, “Yeah, I took BBK to one once so she could learn Iron Defense.”
“Layton can do the same thing. A friend of mine trained him so he could get inside any Pokémon’s brain, and make him either remember a forgotten move, or learn a new one, as long as it’s a commonly used TM between other exceptions.”
The Flaaffy blinked, “Wait, you wanna go inside my head and teach me a move?”
“That is the basic idea, yes.” The Psychic type nodded with his body, “Do not worry, the chances of you suffering any psychological damage are relatively low.”
“That ‘relatively’ is relatively scary.”
Steven chuckled softly, “Don’t worry. You’ll be fine. Furthermore, you don’t need to do this. We can deal with the enemies just fine, your Thunderwave and Cotton Guard will be pretty useful in battle. And Layton can protect you if you wish.”
Tyler considered, then gave in. “Fine, just… be gentle… or something. I don’t know much about this psychic mumbo jumbo. Thunderbolt would be nice, and Iron Tail too if you can do that.”
Layton thought for a second, before nodding to both trainers. “Those two moves are available in my database. I will just need you to relax. This can be a bit painful, and it can have some side effects. But do not worry, it will be over soon.”
The Electric-Type gulped, “Alright, let’s get this over with.”
Layton closed his eyes for a couple of seconds, creating an awkward silence in the atmosphere. Suddenly, he opened his eyes with a strong, binding, glue glow. Tyler felt his head itching from the inside. But in a matter of seconds, he felt nothing. He was unable to think, he just stood there, motionless, with blank eyes and a lost expression. A couple of minutes passed, and he then started feeling alive once again, as a strong pain struck his head.
He wanted to scream, but he was somehow muted by an invisible force. He opened his eyes, and saw the two Steel types in front of him, watching him coldly. Layton’s eyes slowly became normal once again, and the pain in Tyler’s head began dissipating.
“The process was successful. You’ve learned Thunderbolt, and Iron Tail” Layton pointed out coldly with his usual robotic voice.
“Now try to use one of the two moves, you should be able to see the results.” Steven added.
“Uh, ok.” Tyler scrunched his eyes and focused, and his tail lit up with a white glow. “Woah, that feels weird.” He then swung it back and forth a few times before letting the energy dissipate. “Can’t wait to actually try that out. Maybe we’ll actually get somewhere in our training sessions now that I sorta know how to focus my energy better. Thanks.”
“No probl-”
“Tyler, Steven. We found something!”
“Is it the Flareon?” Tyler thought back.
”Nope, better. Kenny’s here!”
Tyler’s mouth fell open. It had been a week since he had found any more of his Pokemon, and now this came out of nowhere! “Layton, can you focus in on the Delphox in the building and add him to the mental link?”
“I’ve detected a brain wave pattern. Seems to be of a Delphox. One floor underground, six Pokémon are nearby and they seem to be strong.” The Iron Leg Pokémon informed coldly.
“I imagine that the Delphox you’re speaking with is the one I met. Your Fennekin.” Steven added.
“Yeah, that’s him. Layton, be careful though he isn’t very in touch with his psychic powers, he might freak out or something.”
“Understood. I’m adding him to the mental link…” Layton remained silent for a couple of seconds, before he blinked and nodded at the former trainer, “He is in. Delphox, your trainer is in this link, please think clearly, and remain calm. We do not want them to know we’re here.”
“Who the fuck are you?”
“Kenny, It's me Tyler. The one you were speaking to before is Layton. We’re here to rescue a Flareon, and now you. Where are you?”
“They’re keeping me locked up in a bathroom in the fucking basement. You better hurry up because they’re planning on sacrificing that Flareon, and afterwards their dipshit of a leader is gonna marry me, and probably rape me afterward.”
Tyler didn’t know how to react. “Wat?”
“You heard me. That dipshit thinks I’m a chick, and wants to bang me. Please don’t let him.”
“I could find him. Yet those six Pokémon could be a problem.” Layton pointed out.
“Delphox, there are six Pokémon around you. Could you help us with their species, position, and apparent role?” Steven asked, already planning out what to do to save the Fire type.
“I have a fucking name you know, it’d be nice if you could use it.” Tyler facepalmed at his Pokemon’s reply. “There’s a Dragonite and a Nidoking outside my door, and farther down the hall is the Lapras, who is currently being kept in a lower floor which has been flooded, no idea how they got him down here. There’s also the head dumbass himself, Helix, and his hardass of a second in command “Messiah,” the Pidgeot. Those are the only ones I’ve seen.”
Steven thought for a second. They had the type advantage, but with the amount of Pokémon in the building he doubted if going all in would be a good idea. “Layton, join the two links.”
The Psychic type nodded, doing what his trainer had asked him. “Valerie, Shadow. Do you copy?”
Shadow replied “Yeah, we’re just above Kenny right now, but they’d be able to hear us from down the vent if we speak up.”
“What about the entrance. Did you spot any guards that may cause trouble?”
“Not really, all their stronger guys are on the lower levels, and the top floor is all weaker guys, except for the Espeon. She looks sorta tough. On the lower levels there is a Nidoking, a Dragonite, a Venomoth, a Lapras, an Omanyte, a Pidgeot, and a Feraligatr.”
Steven thought for a second. Now there were two objectives, and the number of Pokémon in that building would make it extremely hard for them to sneak in and out safely. “Pockets, Damian, BBK. You’re up.”
“Got it. Let's do this guys.” The blue unicorn said confidently. The door to the warehouse was locked by a single, rusty lock, yet strong enough to give Pockets some problems with her newly bought picks. “Ok, this is a problem.”
BBK floated forward, “Amateur,” her keyhole made a motion somewhat akin to a smirk, and she pulled a bobby pin off her ring. “This old thing should be a piece of cake.” She stuck it in, made four of five short quick movement with it, jiggled it, then turned the handle to the door, which swung open easily.
“Show off,” chuckled Pockets. “Let’s see how you’d do if you weren’t a living keyring.”
“You’re just jealous.”
“Of course I am. Opening any lock could be extremely useful to somepony with my job.” She chuckled.
The Steel-Type quirked an eyebrow, “I want to ask what profession that is, but I have a feeling that I’ll end up feeling like a hypocrite if I pry.”
The trio entered the warehouse, and were greeted with what appeared to be a party. An espeon approached the intruders, “Hello, are you here for the Great Lord Helix’s wedding?
You could have simply used the front door.”
Pockets looked at the two Pokémon besides her, confused as to what the pink Pokémon was saying.
The Psychic's eyes glowed for a moment as she began translating with the pony. “Oh, my mistake, you’re one of the locals. I should have known. We shall tolerate your presence, but don’t get too comfortable.”
“She’s with us.” Damian stated, slightly looming over the purple Eeveelution.
“Hmm. Of course she is. Make yourself comfortable. The ceremonies should begin shortly, and we have some food available.” The purple cat Pokemon then wandered off to go greet other guests.
“We’re in. And it looks like something important is gonna happen” Pockets informed through the link.
“Search for any clue as to where they could be keeping the Flareon” The former champion replied.
Pockets felt a slight fuzzy feeling in her mind for a moment. “What was that?”
The cold, mechanical voice of Layton came across the link, “I was creating a barrier between your outer thoughts and your inner mind so that the translator the Espeon used will still function, but she will not be able to do anything else. I can sense that she is fairly strong for her kind. But not so much that she will be a problem for me.”
Pockets sighed. She didn’t know what she was getting into. “So, guys.” She looked at the two Pokémon behind her, “Any ideas?”
Damian shrugged, “I was ready for a fight. How about we find our way down to where Kenny is, he could really come in handy.”
“Sounds good to me” chimed BBK.
“Sure. Let's try to find a way down. What are all these decorations for anyways?” She questioned to herself, before shrugging and following the Dark type.
“Attention all!” The group turned to the Espeon standing up on a rafter. “The ceremony will begin shortly! Please take your seats in the assorted… furniture we have assembled.” The other Pokemon in the room slowly shuffled into seats surrounding the stage, mostly old chairs and couches. They all appeared to have seen better days, and to have come from a landfill.
“Shit guys, they’re taking me out. Is the ‘wedding’ starting?”
BBK answered the Delphox, “Yeah, a Pidgeot just announced the ceremony will start soon.”
”FUCK”
Everyone in the link flinched, as they could even seem to detect the intense volume of the shout in their thoughts.
“Remain calm. Valerie, Shadow. Do you think you can take out whoever’s taking Kenny?”
Shadow answered, ”Yeah, it’s just the Nidoking with him right now, if we get a surprise attack we might be able to get him.”
“Good. Damian, Pockets, and BBK. Search the area, try to find any information that may be of use, got it? Shadow and Valerie will take care of Kenny.”
“Understood. C’mon, I think there might be something in the room over there.” Damian pointed.
“What makes you think that?” BBK questioned, not looking where he was pointing.
“The fact that it says ‘do not enter, important stuff inside’.”
“Works for me” Pockets chuckled, “Come on, let’s find something to kick these guys’ flanks.”
They advanced towards the door, making sure that no one was watching them. They opened slowly, and sneakily walked inside. There was a long hallway, with many doors at the side, which were either broken or not there at all. But at the end of the hallway, a red, bright wooden door stood firm.
“Well, if that doesn’t scream suspicious, I don’t know what does.” Pockets chuckled.
“What was that? Who’s there!? “ A voice said from the distance.
A couple of Raticates exited from a side room, and one narrowed its eyes at the trespassers.
“Hey! You were with that group that interfered in our capture of the false prophet!”
“Shit!” Pockets exclaimed, sending a stun spell at one of the Normal types, which fell to the ground, stiff as a board.
“You shall pay heath-” The other Raticate received a powerful Drain Punch to its stomach, and was kicked painfully into the other, stunned on the floor, when it rolled back over it’s eyes were spirals. “Uhhhhh... “
“These guys are pushovers,” Damian smirked.
BBK put one of her ‘arms’ over his mouth, “Shhh. You hear that?” The Fairy put her head against a the red door, and listened to the voices inside.
“The ceremony is starting soon. We have a full house, and things seem to be going as planned, Commander Geo. Assassin is undermining the guest’s mental stability as we speak. The longer they stay here, the more loyal they are to our cause.”
“Good. And the ‘bride’?”
“Secured, sir. Assassin will work on him soon enough. If things go as planned, he should believe that he’s a goddess in no time. He has been a pain to work with, but we have a plan.”
“Also good. Helix is already so unstable these days, if his ‘fiance’ were to escape, it could finally break him.”
“Commander Geo,” A familiar voice to Pockets interrupted, “If I may. I have never fully understood, why are we using the Omastar? Wouldn’t it be easy to get Assassin to brainwash the right ponies and work from there? There was this rich guy nearby--”
“We need him because our little psychic can only do so much. She cannot fully undermine their will, but she can make them more trusting and gullible, and make them more inclined towards a symbol, such as a ‘god’.”
“Understood. Should we take the Flareon out for the sacrifice? Or wait longer.”
“Take him out. We shall kill him just before the marriage. Now, while you are doing that-” The Pidgeot was cut off by the sounds of a battle on the floor below. “I think we may have a problem. Continue as planned, I shall investigate the disturbance.” The door to the room then opened outwards, and the two ‘mon and pony hit on the other side from the room. After the Flying-Type had flown down the hallway, a Venomoth and Luxray exited as well.
The two crossed the hall, and unlocked a heavy metal door, which appeared to lead to an old meat locker. Before the door could close fully Pockets slowed it with her magic, and slowed it so they could open it behind the two Pokemon.
The three peaked in, and observed the Venomoth approach a battered red form on the floor, which had a small red puddle around it. “Your time has come ‘Prophet.’ It’s a shame you decided to betray us. You would have been third in command had you evolved properly.”
“You’re all a bunch of psychopaths. You betrayed me! How is it my fault that idiot couldn’t keep a water stone and a fire stone straight!”
“Silence!” The Luxio declared. “You defied the will of god! And for that you must be punished!”
Damian stepped forward then, but he was stopped by Pockets. Who silently signaled him to remain on his place.
The unicorn took out a small crystalline gem from her bag, and breathed deeply, as a flash of light covered the two Pokémon and herself. Soon, a magical aura changed their bodies’ color, until it matched perfectly the background, making them invisible to regular eyes.
“Not yet, just follow my lead.” She said through the link.
“You better not get that guy killed.” Damian replied.
The Luxray and Venomoth exited the room, the Bug type carrying the Flareon. They went down the hallway, and exited into the larger main chamber.
Sparks jumped up onto a makeshift stage on side of the room. “Ladies and Gentlemen! We are happy to bring you the first segment of tonight's festivities. We bring you: the false prophet! For final retribution!”
There were several boos from veteran members in the audience, while others just mumbled in confusion at the title.
The Venomoth then flew over the stage, and dropped the Flareon from ten feet in the air onto a shoddily assembled pedestal. The Luxio moved forward and tied the Flareon down, face up. This caused some muttering in the crowd below, as the guests were becoming concerned with the nature of the ceremonies. “And now. As Lord Helix himself requested, he shall die the most painful of deaths. Suffocation via tickling!”
The fear in the Flareon’s eyes disappeared. “But I’m not ticklish.”
The Luxio stopped, and thought for a moment. “Now what?”
The Venomoth shrugged, but before he could suggest anything, an invisible force knocked him away. From behind them, a unicorn, a Klefki and a Scrafty appeared. Spark’s eyes widened at Damian, “You!”
Damian smirked, “Yep, me. Drain Punch!”
“Gah!” The Luxio was thrown off the stage, and landed on the hard concrete floor among the audience. Before the Venomoth could do anything he was hit by a Psyshock attack, and was sent reeling by the super-effective hit.
At this point most of the guests that were just there for food began to scatter, muttering things like “I didn’t want drama, I just wanted food,” “What the hell is going on here? Were they about to kill that guy?” “What a bunch of psychos,” and “That’s enough alcohol for one night.”
“Well then, it looks like your followers aren’t really following ya, now are they?” Pockets chuckled, before sending a stun spell at the Luxio, who had begun standing up again.
Damian walked over to the podium where the Flareon was strapped and began undoing the bindings. Just as the last one was undone, and the Eeveelution jumped down, there was a loud rumbling, and a large amount of dust was expelled from the basement nearby, and the Pidgeot from before came flying out, carrying a red fox.
“What the hay? Steven, things are starting to blow up, we need help!”
Layton’s mechanic voice responded across the link, “The basement is collapsing, Steven and I are moving to excavate Shadow and Valerie out. We are sending Tyler to help you.”
“Please hurry up, there’s another one of those rat things coming right at me!” The oncoming Raticate was deflected by Damian before it could hit her.
Tyler then came waddling in at the fastest pace he could, his tail awkwardly swinging behind him. He stopped in front of the trio, gasping for air. “Arceus! Why couldn’t you give me a body that could run better?”
Minutes Before
Shadow and Valerie went ahead of the two through the ventilation, and loosed the grate, moving it out of the way so they could drop down. Once Kenny had passed under, and the brutish looking Poison type was under the grate, Shadow took his chance.
“Foul Play!” Shadow jumped down from the vent, and slammed into the Nidokings head. The Umbreon jumped off of the surprised brute and made a perfect landing behind him.
“Gaah! You stupid cat! I’m gonna pummel you for that!” The Nidoking charged Shadow with a Horn Attack, which was easily dodged.
“That all you got you big lug?” The Dark type taunted.
“You’re dead!”
While this was going on Valerie snuck down and began untying the binds around Kenny’s legs and arms.
“Thanks, you help out Shadow, I’ll go get my stick so I can fight.” The Delphox dashed down the corridor, and Valerie looked back to the ongoing battle.
“Grah! I’m going to get you one way or another! Stop dodging and fight me like a ‘Mon!” The brutish Pokemon charged Shadow again, and found himself embedded in a wall. “You’ll get yours! No one messes with King Fonz!” He extricated himself from the wall, insulation sticking to his purple form. “Sludge Bomb!” The Nidoking threw the pulsing purple orb at the Umbreon, and it would have hit if Valerie hadn’t jumped in the way just in time, absorbing harmlessly into her skin.
“Wh-What? How’d you do that! No one takes my Sludge Bomb without flinching!”
Valerie smirked, “It helps if-” WHAM. The Nidoking suddenly fell forward, a large bruise already forming on the back of his head, and Kenny stood above him, rubbing the end of his table leg with his furry arm.
Valerie frowned at the Fire type. “Excuse me, I was about to say something really cool, couldn’t you have waited a few more seconds?”
“Sorry, but I’ve been wanting to do that all week.”
Shadow chuckled, “Nice to have you back dude. Now c’mon, we gotta go find that Flareon and get out of here.”
“No way, not until I whoop that stupid ‘God’s’ ass and his number one henchman. That Pidgeot deserves one especially. I’m pretty sure he’s the one running everything here.”
“Dragon Rush!” An orange blur raced by the Delphox, almost hitting him. “Woah! Watch it you ass-” He saw who it was, “Bitch.”
The Dragonite huffed, “I knew that you would be trouble, but Helix just had to have you as his wife, when I was already around too!”
Kenny cringed at the Dragon’s words. “You seriously want a piece of his slimy tentacle ass? You people are even more fucked up than I thought.”
“Don’t insult Lord Helix! Aqua Tail!”
Kenny’s eyes widened as the super effective move hit him head on, and he was thrown backwards into a stack of cardboard boxes. “Fuuuuu… I don’t want anything to do with you people. Just leave me alone.”
“No! You leave us alone!” The Dragonite charged up another Aqua Tail and smashed through the boxes launching the Delphox out.
The Fire type stood back up shakily, “Well we would if you’d let us leave!”
“Sh-Shut up!” The Dragonite began charging another but was interrupted when Valerie jumped onto her back. “Wh-What? Get off me! You’re so itchy!” The dragon grabbed The Poison type and threw her down the hallway, luckily landing on her feet somewhat.
The Dragonite rushed the Veneon, who only barely dodged, and yelled out “Venoshock!” The purple liquid shot out at the Dragon, who was still turning back around from the previous attack.
The Dragonite shrieked in pain as the Poison in her bloodstream was aggravated. “I’m going to destroy all of you!” She managed to grab Valerie and Shadow and threw the two into a wall heavily.
“Fire Blast!” The Dragon was struck with the powerful Fire-Type attack, forcing her to cease her assault on the Eeveelutions.
“Heh, that didn’t hurt at all little fox! Now how about a real attack! Stone Edge!” The floor of the basement was torn apart violently as several rocks sprung from ground, hitting Kenny and knocking him out.
The Dragonite turned back around to the two Eeveelutions struggling to stand back up again. “I’m sure Lord Helix will be upset that his bitch is knocked out, but I’m sure he’ll love to have a few extra sacrifices.”
“Yeah, not many get to sacrifice a Dragonite.” A voice said from behind the Dragon type, who turned around searching for the source.
“Who’s there!?”
“Over here, you giant orange doofus.”
The Dragonite struck a nearby wall with a Dragon Claw, trying to hit the taunting voice who just chuckled softly.
“Not only dumb, but blind as well. I bet that you were the laughing stock in your pack, weren’t you?”
The Dragon type growled in anger, charging the darkness with an Aqua Tail and greatly damaging a support column.
“Missed. You aren’t very good at this.”
“Shut up!” She roared, before rapidly sending attack after attack, before a soft pink light shined between the debri. She smiled deviously, before shooting a rage filled Dragon Pulse, which did nothing to her target, disappearing as soon as it made contact. “Fairy…”
“If you were trying to bring this place down on us, then congratulations! You did it, you fucking idiot.”
Broken columns and walls began shaking violently, as the cracks became larger, and far more menacing. The Sylveon who had been taunting her jumped on her head, breaking her balance as she slowly tripped over, falling on her wings. And before she could react, the concrete roof began crumbling, small pieces falling on her forehead, before the largest section came down, crushing her and leaving her unconscious.
Valerie called out “We need to get out of here! Help us grab Kenny!”
Before any of the Eeveelutions could get to the Delphox a powerful whirlwind whipped through the narrow hallway, throwing all of the small Pokemon around until the finally were thrown into side rooms. A large Pidgeot then swooped down and grabbed the Fire type in his talons, carrying him out of the collapsing basement into the area above.
“Layton!” Valerie mentally called out, “We need out of this basement! It’s collapsing!”
“Please remain calm. I will arrive as soon as possible.”
Shadow dashed across the hall to the room where Valerie was thrown. “Valerie, are you okay? Can you stand? We need to get out of here now!”
The Poison type stood up shakily, “Y-yeah, I think I’m mostly fine. C’mon, we need to find Frederick.”
Another form came through the dust, dusting off the pulverised concrete from his coat.“No need, Valerie, if you can stand we need to go.”
“Yes, I know.” The Veneon dashed out of the room, dodging the wreckage up to the next floor, where an Espeon appeared to be comforting the guests.
“Please, calm down. We have had a minor collapse in the basement, everything is fine! The bride is being fixed up as we speak and the wedding will continue.”
Valerie stepped out and looked around. “I don’t see where they took Kenny, what about you?”
Just then, the Poison type felt a massive weight on her back. “She is not available currently. Maybe you could catch her after the honeymoon.” Valerie looked up to find the same Pidgeot as before looming threateningly over her, one foot planted firmly on her back.
“Get your fucking claws off my sister!” Frederick called, launching a Moonblast at the Pidgeot, who simply blocked it with his left wing.
“You should never have come here. Now, I will offer you once last chance to leave before-”
But the Flying type couldn’t finish, as a rapidly flying silver saucer struck the Pidgeot away, before revealing four metallic appendages and a giant golden ‘x’. “I apologize for my timing. But it seems that you were able to make it out of the basement in time.”
“Your timing was impeccable metal arse, now let’s get the hell out of here.” Frederick grunted.
Tyler ran in behind Layton, gasping for air. “We can’t go anywhere until we get Kenny!”
“Who the fuck is Kenny?” The Fairy asked confused, “We can’t stay here much longer, Valerie’s too hurt already!”
“It’s not that bad Freddy, and I’m not going anywhere until we get Shadow’s friend.”
“None of you shall leave!” An irate Omastar waddled into view, “You have ruined my wedding! Assassin! Lazor! Get the intruders!” After the ancient Pokemon’s orders a Feraligatr and the Espeon from before appeared.
The Espeon expressed her doubt, “My Lord, are you sure? Most of your followers have fled after the collapse, we are outnumbered.”
“Ha! I can take em!” The Feraligatr rushed the group, only to be consumed by an arc of yellow. The water Pokemon spasmed for a few moments before the attack stopped.
All present turned to Tyler, who just shrugged, “I just learned that move, and I had to test it!”
“You’re gonna pay for that!” The Feraligatr was even angrier now, “I’m gonna use your ribcage like a-” The Big Jaw Pokémon was shut down shortly, as two thick pieces of grass came from the ground, tripping it over with force. The green glow in Layton’s eyes faded.
The Omastar grunted in annoyance, “Geo! I command you to stop the intruders!”
“Immediately, my lord.” The Pidgeot flexed his wings, then pushed off from the ground, a warm red glow emanating from his primary feathers.
“Incoming Heat Wave, prepare to dodge.” Layton warned, rapidly floating away from the Flying type as the attack approached them.
Everyone managed to move out of the way, except Layton and Tyler, the former taking the hit much better than the latter.
“HOLY...! I THINK MY EYEBROWS ARE GONE!” The Flaaffy exclaimed.
Another heatwave was launched at the group, this time Everyone moved out of the way of the attack successfully. “Be cautious, this Pidgeot is no pushover,” Layton warned.
“Then I guess we’ll have to take him out quickly.” Steven replied, before brewing up a Tailwind.
The Pidgeot narrowed his eyes, “I shall finish these… heathens, quickly milord. Heat Wave!”
Steven rushed forwards, running as fast as he could. He prepared a Bullet Punch, as the waves of hot air began emanating from the Pidgeot's body. The former champion sidestepped as the bright orange aura got closer to him, it managed to hit his arm, causing an intense pain on Steven, but he was able to continue, reaching the Flying type with a jump, and striking him down with a mid-air Bullet Punch.
“You Heathens!” Geo growled, flapping his wings and getting back into the air once again, but was hit by a powerful Head Smash from behind, and was sent spiraling out of control into a support beam.
“Steven! That bird guy is bad news! They’re brainwashing Pokémon and turning them into zombies, and are planning to take over Canterlot!” Pockets exclaimed from nearby, bucking two small Pokémon that tried to stop her. She, Damian, BBK, and the Flareon had arrived from the nearby battle with Sparks, the four of them were now facing the few real adepts that remained with Helix.
BBK turned to the Pony in confusion, “They never said anything about conquering Canterlot, or zombies.”
“Heh, well I may have exaggerated some, wanted to spice things up a bit.”
The Klefki groaned, “Can we take this seriously please? Look guys, this guy and some of the others have all their little pawns fooled into thinking that Helix dude is a god. The Espeon is undermining the mental capacity of their subjects to make them more willing followers. To be honest I wouldn’t be surprised if some sort of violent takeover is planned sometime in the far future.”
Helix was now seething in rage, “They have neither fooled nor enslaved no one! They are all my willful and enlightened followers!”
Damian chuckled, “Oh yeah, and he’s the only higher up that believes in the whole god thing.”
Helix stomped the ground repeatedly in anger, “You’ll all pay for your sins! I’ll make you pay! Well, Geo will. But he’s my prophet so in the end I’ll make you pay!”
Damian approached the seething Omastar, and booped him on the nose. “If you’re so powerful just smite me down where I stand oh capable one. I am shaking in my nonexistent boots.”
Helix smirked with a soft chuckle, “As you wish. Taste my wrath!”
An arc of lighting hit Damian in the back, causing the Scrafty to flinch and stumble forward, before adjusting his shades. “Meh, I’ve been hit by worse by BBK when I comment on her weight.”
Layton took down a Weavile who tried to jump on him, analyzing all his foes. He noticed that something was not right, as several opponents were hidden in the shadows, as if they were observing the battle and waiting for it to end. He then noticed something about the sudden Thunderbolt that struck Damian, “Omastar can not learn Thunderbolt. Which can only mean…” Layton stopped for a second, before hovering rapidly towards Helix, yet stopping mid way and placing himself in front of Damian.
A pink sphere of light was shot from the shadows, aiming at the Dark type yet striking the metallic body of Layton, “Your power is nothing but teamwork.” His eyes glowed and several Pokemon were lifted up from behind furniture and wreckage in the building. “The Thunderbolt was the Luxio’s, the Moonblast came from the Clefairy. I am sure there are plenty of other ‘special powers’ you have that are simply the work of these Pokemon.”
“Lies! I didn’t even know they were there! I’m an all powerful being created with the sole purpose of conquering the world and bringing happiness to--”
“Oh be quiet Helix.” A voice interrupted. Layton and Damian searched for the source, to find a bruised Pidgeot standing up with difficulty, “I should have known this couldn’t continue to work here. We’re being demolished, what’s the point of it. You never had any powers you fool. They’re right, this is all a ruse.”
The Omastar became silent, a tear on his eye, “What… what do you mean? You… you told me I was special, that I was destined to become a god!”
“You ARE special. You’re far less intelligent than any regular Pokémon, easy to manipulate yet charismatic enough to charm the masses. You are no god, you’re a failed lab experiment, and you have no more use!” Geo screeched, before sending a powerful Whirlwind that sent the Omastar away. “This is ridiculous, a general of the great PLA being humiliated just like that. My perfect plan destroyed by your foolish actions. But this is enough, you want a true battle? You’ll have it.”
Nearby, Steven finished off a Mightyena that unsuccessfully tried to bite his head off. As the Mightyena fell on the ground, he noticed the splash sound that the unconscious body made. Water came from the stairs, slowly increasing as seconds passed by, he prepared to face any new contender, but he wasn’t able to do anything, as a gigantic wave washed him away.
“Da Prince is in!” A large blue mass slid out onto the floor, and sent a powerful Hydro Pump at Layton.
Layton called for a Protect, barely stopping the attack, yet as the barrier disappeared, a powerful fist grabbed his frontal leg, effortlessly swinging him into the ground, as a voice yelled “Here’s Annie!” A deep, yet somewhat feminine voice exclaimed, as a large Hariyama got on her battle stand.
The Steel type tried to fight back, but from behind him, powerful jaws Crunched him into pain, as the Feraligatr from before helped take down the team's heavy hitter. BBK came forward and use a Play Rough on the Hariyama, hitting it from all sides with fairy energy. Tyler used another Thunderbolt on the Feraligatr, sending it reeling again. Damian rushed in and used a Zen Headbutt on the Hariyama, but was immediately struck away by a large Emboar, who Brick Breaked him down. Layton got up, yet another set of fangs, this time electrified ones, bit him in the head, the Luxio from before not wanting to get off.
“Now this is more like it” Geo chuckled, “Behold, Team Twitch, the new organization that will liberate Pokémon everywhere!”
“I don’t need to be liberated thank you very much.” A voice growled from behind him. A powerful Moonblast hit him directly in the back, sending Geo across the room and into a wall, three bruised up eeveelutions stood there, a determined look on their faces.
“Sorry about the wait, Frederick and I had to patch ourselves up after the last fight.” Shadow explained, “And also, Team Twitch? What kind of name is that?”
Geo stood back up again and flexed his wings, “You wouldn’t understand the reference.”
“Well then you must be really bad at referencing things,” A blue beam hit Geo, as Pockets appeared from the shadows with a stun spell.
Paralysed, Geo tried to stand up, yet failed with every attempt “You.. you fools. GET THEM!”
Looking at his comrades, he found that as he and the Eeveelutions had been talking, the rest of the Pokemon present had continued to fight, and his side had fared badly.
“Gah. You’re all useless…”
“So… general Geo... huh?” A wet Steven asked, grabbing the Pidgeot by one of his wings, “We have some questions for you.”
The group was now centered around the Pidgeot, most of his ‘Team Twitch’ members had been tied up, but they found that a few of the main ones, the Espeon and Luxio, had escaped. Helix was deemed unnecessary to tie up, as he was too busy crying in a corner. Steven and Layton were keeping a close eye on the Pidgeot as the former Champion asked him, “So how did this whole thing get started?”
Geo pulled his head out of his wing, as he was trying to fix his battered feathers, before standing tall and looking down at the Scizor.“I was a General in the original PLA, I served under Viper’s command. I focused mainly on troops morale and public relations. He ignored much of my advice on how to handle the humans, I would not have begun the slaughter so soon. When Tsushima fell to the humans I fled, but I remained loyal to the cause. A group of like-minded Pokémon followed me, it was apparent that the PLA would fall sooner or later, and Viper was losing his mind. The war ended, and Viper had fallen. We tried to rejoin when we heard about the new leader, that… Sev. He was Viper’s son, we thought that perhaps he would be more capable of handling the movement. Yet we were so wrong. A mere bandit who kept the name, even crazier than his father, although a bit more civilized. We decided that it was not worth it.”
“So what did you do afterwards?”
“Form my own group. Yet the bad blood of the old PLA stood with our name, we needed someone to represent us. Sev had been wanting us to return, and so we did. The PLA had grown big enough to be called an organization, we gathered some information, even got some resources and equipment. But even though Sev was leading a small nation’s worth of Pokémon, none were fit enough to represent our new group. They were either too smart, or too dumb for it, and I was not going to risk it. That’s when I had my encounter with this… scientist. The guy was a wimp, yet he was amazing with science. This scientist, Loom they called him, he had a fossil on his lab. I knew about the revival of fossils, and how it’s like having a son of your own. It was perfect, I could raise him myself, and I could teach him how to be our perfect facade.” Geo chuckled softly, before sighing, “He needed some… motivation to do my bidding, but in the end it worked. We all left the next day with the baby, and we raised him in the woods near Kanto. We all planned it very carefully, and when he became an Omastar, it was time to act.
We made him believe that he was a god, he thought he could use any kind of move, that he had mental capabilities greater than any other’s. We got Pokémon to believe that he was truly an all powerful being, and his charismatic personality made things easier for our Espeon to control them. When we were sent here, oh was I rejoiced. No humans, only Pokémon and those pesky ponies. Then that darn Arceus talked to us all. The real god had appeared, and we were helpless. We convinced our few remaining followers that it was all a trick, some other being trying to take Helix’s rightful place. With some more shows, we managed to slowly regain more followers, yet it was not enough. Then we had the idea of the wedding. Love and happiness, illusion in every spectator’s eyes, it was the perfect situation for our Psychic types to weaken their minds. But you…” Geo screeched, and tried to attack Steven, yet the chain that had a hold of his claw didn’t allow him to.
“It was all the perfect setup! I would have gotten away with it if it wasn’t for you pesky ‘mons and your meddling pony! Helix just had to become fixated on that shemale of a Delphox! And then Prophet appearing out of nowhere, and undermining our authority.”
Steven stood up, and turned around, “It looks like we’re done here. We’ll take you to the authorities, I don’t think they’d like a group messing with people’s minds.”
Kenny stepped forward then, having been recovered from Geo’s private chamber earlier. “That sounds good, but first, Fire Blast!”
The powerful attack flew forward, striking the Pidgeot in the chest, and damaging the area around him. Upon the display, Tyler stepped forward, leaped into the air, and smack the Delphox on the back of the head. “What the hell was that for Kenny? He’s already down you don’t need to keep fighting him!”
Kenny rubbed his shoulder and looked away, “He called me a shemale.”
BBK sighed and shook her head, “You’re such a fucking idiot sometimes Kenny.”
Layton undid the chains attached to the support pillar in the warehouse, pulling Geo along with them like a leash, the rest of his group floating unconscious behind. Once they were outside, they started for the nearest guard station. It was now full daylight, the sun about a quarter of the way across the sky.
“We were in there a long time weren’t we,” commented Tyler, squinting against the sun.
“Two hours forty seven minutes,” stated Layton.
“Jeez, I barely got any sleep last night. Maybe I can get some shuteye on the train.” Pockets groaned.
Suddenly, Geo screeched, and struck the chain holding him to Layton with a peck attack, shattering it where it had been hit by Kenny’s fire blast attack. Before Layton could do anything he pumped his wings and shot away from the group, flying low and fast over the buildings of the city.
BBK began charging down the street in his direction but was stopped by Damian putting a hand on her ring, simply shaking his head when she shot him a glare. “He’s not worth it. Someone like him is bound to get himself into trouble again, and I doubt that he’ll get away that time.”
“He has no place to go” A voice said from behind them. They turned around, to see the small Omastar looking at them with red, tired eyes, “I have no place to go either.”
Steven showed him a sympathetic look, he knew that although he wanted to kill them, he did nothing wrong, “Somebody once told me that it’s better to be alone, than with bad companions. Perhaps, this is a good opportunity for you to start a new life, Omastar tend to live a long time, so I think you should make use of that.”
“Being normal ain’t that bad, buddy,” Pockets added, “You don’t have to deal with the weight of being an almighty god, which is nice. Perhaps you can go to… I dunno, the sea. Maybe get a lady and have some children” She chuckled.
“The sea…” The Omastar sighed, and looked at the horizon, “That does sound nice. To the sea!” The omastar then began charging down the road as fast as he could, in the opposite direction as before.
“Should we tell him that we’re in the middle of a mountain, in the middle of a continent, and that the nearest coastline is weeks-worth distance away?”
“And that he’s not even going the right way to get out of the city.” Tyler added.
“I think we should let him be. Let the guy have some time to… I don’t know, find himself or something” Frederick said dryly with a yawn.”I really just want to get some sleep. Besides, I want to get some quality time with my sister.”
Valerie stepped forward then, “Oh no. You aren’t off the hook yet mister. Same to you Shadow.” She looked to the rest of the group, “You all go ahead. I need some private time with my brother and mate.”
“Well… fuck.” Frederick sighed.
The three Eeveelutions headed home, Frederick and Shadow trailing silently behind Valerie, too nervous to speak. As they went through the early morning city, Frederick searched desperately for any escape route, but he knew that she would track him down.
Once they finally reached the mansion, Valerie led them inside and to the dining room. Fancypants was an early riser, and had already departed to his office for the day when they arrived, so the room was luckily empty.
“Sit,” Valerie commanded of the males, “I’ll be back in a minute.”
Shadow and Frederick both seated themselves, on opposites sides of the table from each other. Not too close, but close enough for Valerie not to get mad at them. After about five minutes she came back out, and sat herself at the end of the table between them. “Barnardo will be out in a few minutes with some breakfast.
“Good, I’m starving” Frederick said dryly.
Valerie made no verbal reply, but simply nodded her head and hummed. “So. Where to begin?” She put a paw to her chin, before scowling. “How about we start with Frederick treating me like a child who doesn’t know up from down.”
“What did you expect me to do? I haven’t seen you in ages, and when I do, you’re dating a ‘mon who you’ve barely known for a week. I already fucked up once, I can’t let that happen again now can I? Had to make sure that he was trustworthy” Frederick huffed.
Valerie growled and put her paws on the table, “So you don’t trust me to be able to judge that myself?”
“Love’s blind, Val. I don’t really trust Dark types either, ‘specially Umbreon.” He replied with a frown.
Valerie’s scowl increased. “So would you hate me if I had evolved into an Umbreon instead?”
Frederick remained silent, before looking away from her, “I guess… I guess not.”
“Then why would you extend the same bigotry to him? Type and species has nothing to do with it. He’s just as good a ‘mon as you or I.”
Just then Barnardo entered, carrying a large plate of pancakes, stacked ridiculously high to the point it was swaying slightly as he set it down. Once it was in front of Valerie, he gave her a wink, and whispered, “Good luck.”
Shadow spoke up for the first time since they had gotten back, “Finally! I’m starving!” He reached over to the plate, only to have his paw smack away by Valerie’s tail.
“Sorry, these are all for me.” She smirked.
“Oh? So when are our plates coming?” Frederick asked with curiosity, looking at the door and expecting the chef to come inside again.
“They aren’t” she replied as she began pouring syrup on them.
“So… what do we have to eat?” Shadow asked.
“Nothing. At least until we’re done here.”
“Oh,” the Umbreon’s ears drooped.
“Well I’m fucking starving, damn Sylveon body needs constant sweets, so how am I supposed to end this? I won’t apologize if that’s what you’re asking, that asshole touched a really delicate subject!” Frederick growled, pointing at Shadow with his paw.
“We’re about to get to that. Shadow, even if my brother is being an ass, that doesn't give you an excuse to be one back to him.” She took a bite out of the stack, making sure to show off the food to the two.
Shadow flinched at the display, his stomach growling loudly, “Well… yeah. You’re right. I was just mad that he thought I was taking advantage of you or something. I probably could’ve phrased what I said to him better.”
Valerie took another bite, chewed it slowly, showing that the was savoring the flavor. “Good, we’re making progress. Now, you’re both going to apologize to each other. And then you can have some pancakes.”
Shadow sighed, and looked at the Sylveon across the table from him, “Fine, sorry.”
Frederick remained silent, his pride trying to get the best of him. Yet the idea of his long lost sister being mad at him saddened him, that and the pain in his stomach was killing him, “Fine… Sorry Shadow, friendship yada yada, now please give me food because my stomach is fucking killing me”
Valerie looked between the two, and stuffed a whole half of a pancake in her mouth at once, speaking through the food and spitting some out she replied, “Nope. Not sincere enough. I can do this all day, these are amazing. I should go compliment Barnardo after we’re done here.”
Frederick sighed, and tried to look at the Umbreon in his eyes, with his ears flattened, he took a deep breath, “I’m sorry. I misjudged you, and… Valerie is just such an important part of my life, and when I saw you as her couple, I didn’t… I thought I’d may lose her again. I’ve been through some… love related shit before, and I didn’t really want her to be hurt either. I wanted to defend her… but I think that perhaps…” He sighed, and mumbled under his breath, “You’re not that bad”
“I can’t hear you!”
“You’re not that bad! Fine, I accept that I was wrong, can I get something to eat now?”
Valerie scrutinized the Sylveon, before smiling and nodding. “Yep, you’re good. Now you Shadow, then you can both eat.”
Shadow gulped slightly, and clutched his stomach. “Yeah… uh… I guess I can’t be completely mad at you for what happened. You were just trying to defend your sister, and my mate. I said some things I shouldn’t have, and I’m sorry for that.” He held out a paw, “Bros?”
Frederick stretched out a ribbon, and without looking at him, he nodded, “That word is so… cringeworthy. But sure.” Frederick then pulled Shadow closer, and looked at him in the eyes, “But if you dare to hurt my sister, I’ll fucking kill you, understood?”
Valerie stepped forward and slapped him, “No! Bad Freddy! But good enough. You can have pancakes now.” She sat down and stuffed what was left on the plate into her mouth.
“Whoah what!?” Frederick exclaimed, “I went through a fucking speech about feelings and forgiveness, and you still ate all the pancakes? What the fuck sis!?”
Valerie giggled, “You wanted those? My venom got all over them when I was eating them. It’d be a terrible idea to give them to you.” She took her knife and tapped it on her empty glass, and the doors to the dining room opened again, as Barnardo brought out two more plates of Pancakes.
“Enjoy, and good luck with your new family life.”
Later in the day, Steven and his group had to leave. Out of everyone, Valerie and Frederick seemed the most torn up about it. They were currently waiting at the train station, the previous passengers disembarking, and the train being restocked with supplies.
“Are you sure you can’t come along sis?” Frederick begged, “I’d be willing to put up with Shadow for you.”
Valerie just chuckled at him, “No. My place is here. But make sure to visit. And not just me, I found out where our parents are. They’re staying in a city called Las Pegasus, near the docks I believe. You should stop by and say hi to them too. Shadow and I plan on going in a few days.”
Frederick chuckled, and let out a sigh “I’ll see what I can do. Although you know what dad thinks of sailor mouths like me. I should learn to control myself a bit before meeting them… besides, I don’t think I could go back after what happened….”
“What did happen after I left anyway?” She asked in concern. “They didn’t blame you or something did they?”
“I… never did go back home. Kind of got lost after searching for you for about three days.” Frederick rubbed the back his head with a ribbon, an awkward smile on his face, “What happened afterwards is not really that important. “
Valerie smiled and poked him on the nose. “I don’t believe you about what happened after. But I won’t pry… for now. But I’ll make sure to tell them about what happened. It must be unbearable not knowing what happened to all four of us.”
“Yeah, I guess so. You know, after all our deal with Arceus is done, maybe I can come back here and spend a few days with you, catch up and whatnot. It should be fun”
“That would be great,” she smiled.
The train whistle blew then, beckoning passengers on. Tyler turned to Steven, “Well, it was nice meeting you. Good luck with life and all that jazz.”
“Same to you, Tyler” The former champion nodded, grabbing his bags and entering the car, “I hope to meet you another time, I’d like to see how you’ve progressed so far with your entire team. Besides, that should give me an excuse to come back to this amazing city.”
As the rest of the group followed Steven, Frederick stopped mid-way, and dropped his bags, “Hey, Shadow, do me a favor, would ya?”
The Umbreon gave him a confused look, “Oh? Sure I guess.”
Frederick ran back to Valerie, and hugged her with a tear on his eye, “Love ya, Val. I’m happy that you’ve found a family, and a future. I’ll try to do the same, for you, ‘kay?”
“Thank you Freddy,” She pulled into the hug.
“That’s not really a request for a favor,” Shadow chuckled, using a Heal Bell on the Sylveon as he pulled away.
“Yeah whatever. Take care of her you fucking moron. Now if you excuse me, I gotta meet god.” He ran back to the train, grabbing his bags and jumping at the last moment, as it started moving, leaving towards their next destination... Ponyville.
“You know, you could have stayed behind with them. I wouldn’t have mind.”
“No… I can’t. I doubt I could even come back to see her… not after what happened.”
“You can’t really blame yourself, she told me what happened, it’s not your fault.”
“That’s the problem… she doesn’t know, she has no idea of the truth… if I blame myself for what happened, it is for a reason.”
“So that means no visit to Las Pegasus?”
“You just want to get drunk and waste your money in casinos, don’t you?”
“Hell yeah I do. Up to you though, whenever you’re ready to meet your parents again.
Frederick simply sighed, and looked outside the window, flashbacks of the past coming back at him, of the mist, the screams of wild Pokemon, the weapons, the cage… “Sure… We’ll see.”