Team Shadow Strikes PT3
Years ago.
"Sucker Punch!" Scrapound swung a left hook into an Ambipom, sending it flying into a cage fence before slumping over. The crowd all cheered as Doom entered the cage, he and Scrapound basking in the glory of the underground Pokémon battle.
"YES!" Doom roared, "I am the strongest!"
"Are you?" Doom turned to the sound of the sudden voice, making him now see a well dressed man step up to the cage. "Do you know that for sure?"
"What's it to you, Mankey suit?" he barked back, only to start blinking. His eyes started to go wide as he stared at the person's face, now seeing it was Sombra, one of the richest men in Equestria.
Sombra pulled out a Pokeball, "If you're so sure you're the best, then prove it in battle." From out of the Pokeball came Sombra's Tyrandark, the creature lifting and standing itself above Doom and Scrapound. "Or do you only want to test yourself against no talent trainers a child could defeat?"
Doom growled at this, "Oh, I'll test myself alright." He pointed at Sombra's Pokémon, "Go Scrapound! Beat him to a pulp!"
Five minutes later...
"SCRAP!" Scrapound was slammed into a wall by Tyrandark's Shadow Claw, hitting the ground with swirls in its eyes.
"No...no way," Doom gasped, falling to his knees in shock.
"You are strong, but you still lack the raw power needed to be truly unbeatable." Sombra commented as he walked up and held out a hand, "But I can help you with that." Doom raised an eyebrow as Sombra continued, "I know you've been looking for a way to get stronger ever since you escaped prison. Join me and you'll find the strength you need to defeat anyone who messes with you." They remained still for a few seconds, only for Doom to take his hand and was pulled up to his feet.
"Show me."
"Welcome to Team Shadow."
The Present...
Having defeated the many grunts of Team Shadow, Flash, Shining and the rest were now running down a long set of stairs. As they did this, Doc spoke up, "Hey Shining," The champion looked back at the gym leader, "That Ankyload of yours, where'd you get it?"
Shining shined a big grin, "You should know where I got it from. You recognized it, didn't you?"
"So it's really the Ankyload Professor Luna caught?" Spike asked.
Twilight let out a gasp, "Wait...she said she was gonna find someone who could train it to control its brute strength. That was you?"
"Yup. It took a lot of work, but now Ankyload can switch between using one hundred percent of its power to just one percent of its power."
"Awesome!" Spike cheered, Flash wanting to do the same. However, all he could do was stare at Shining as he run in front of the group, now seeing the champion's back. He felt tiny compared to him, the sight making Flash just go wide-eyed.
But before he could say anything, the group got to the bottom of the stone stairwell. It was here they found themselves in front of a large set of doors, Spike asking, "Is this it?"
"Maybe," Shining moved up and began to push on them, the others following suit. A minute or so later, a small gap began to appear, allowing them inside. And as they walked in, a series of torches suddenly lit up inside, illuminating the place. They now found themselves in a round chamber that had three statues inside.
"This is...Suicune," Twilight whispered as she and Shine walked up to the statue.
"There's Entei and Raikou too," Doc commented as he went up to the others, "They're amazing. The attention to detail is like nothing I've ever seen. It's almost like they're the real Pokémon."
"That might be true, but Doom ain't here." Shining added as he turned to see a set of doors on the back wall. "He must have gone further in. Let's get going." The others nodded in agreement as they went up to the doors.
But as they tried to push or pull it open, the doors refused to budge. "Come on!" Flash groaned as he gave one last push. "Darn it! Did Doom barricade these things or something?!"
"Possibly. Everyone, step back." Shining ordered as he pulled out a Pokeball. "Hate to do this, but come out and use Sacred Sword." He tossed the ball into the air, unleashing the knight Pokémon.
"Din," Galladin landed before staring the doors. He raised a shining sword, only to come to a stop as the room started to glow as well. "Gall?"
The sound of cracking stones happened next, making them all turn to see cracks appearing on the statues. "What the-"
"Did we somehow damage priceless statues?" Spike asked as the cracks spread across their entire body.
Before anyone could answer, the rocks broke off to reveal the beast's true forms beneath. Everyone and their Pokémon staggered back in shock next, the three legendary beasts slowly moving around until their eyes met with the trainers.
"They're...alive?" Twilight whispered.
"And they don't look happy," Flash gulped as the trio growled at them, only for all three to leap off their pedestals.
"MOVE!" Shining yelled as everyone split up, the three slamming the ground before circling around the room.
"CUNE!" Suicune roared as a barrage of bubbles shot out of its mouth, the attack heading for Flash, Springer and Hopper.
"WHOA!" Flash yelped as he and his Pokémon leapt away.
"TAY!/KOO!" Entei and Raikou roared as they unleashed a Flamethrower and Discharge attacks, the others dodging the bolts and flames.
"Use Slash!" Shining ordered, Galladin charging at Raikou. In response, the beast turned and blocked the shining sword with its now glowing tail.
"Aqua Tail!" Flash told Riptide, the Spranitor nodding as it leapt with a tail engulfed in a spiral of water.
"TORE!" He slammed his tail into Entei's head, the Legendary Pokémon flinching from the blow.
"Dragonbreath!"
"Psybeam!"
"Drill Peck!" Peewee and Shine unleashed their long range attacks, both striking Entei while Steeledge flew up and swooped down at Volcano Pokémon as it spun its beak like a drill, piercing Entei's side.
"Drain Punch and Quick Attack!" Springer and Hopper charged at Suicune, Hopper leaping around to distract the beast as Springer zipped up to Suicune's side before slamming his glowing green fist into it.
"Sui!" It cried out as it staggered back.
It was here that Raikou's entire body began to be surrounded in lightning, Twilight gasping, "That's Wild Charge!" The Legendary Beast then charged at Galladin, Shining ordering him to use Iron Defense.
"DIN!" His shields started glowing as Raikou slammed into them, pushing him back a few inches before he pushed back, making Raikou loose his footing.
"Now use Night Slash!" Galladin's blade began to glow purple, the knight spinning around before dealing a powerful slashing blow to the Thunder Pokémon.
As this blow happened, the Raikou roared out as it, Suicune and Entei all leapt back. They all group up next, their eyes glowing yellow before a rainbow colored beam of light shot out of their headsets.
"They're using Extrasensory!" Twilight yelled out, Galladin quickly jumping up in front of everyone before using Iron Defense to block the triple attack.
"DIN!" It cried, the Psychic-type attack pushing him back.
"He needs help!" Flash added, Twilight, Doc and Spike nodding in agreement as Steeledge grabbed Shine and lifted her into the air with Peewee.
"Air Slash/Psybeam/Dragonbreath!" The three launched their long range attacks, the Air Slash hitting Suicune while the Psybeam hit Entei and the Dragonbreath hit Raikou. The blows stopped the Extrasensory, only for Springer, Hopper and Riptide to charge up to them.
"Aura Sphere, Quick Attack and Aqua Tail!" The three launched their attacks into the trio, Springer thrusting Aura Sphere right into Suicune's face while Hopper body slammed Raikou in the chest and Riptide smashed is water covered tail up into Entei's chin.
The three staggered back in pain, Galladin charging up with a shining blade. "Sacred Sword!" Before the three could react, Galladin slashed them with a single strike, smacking all three into the back wall before falling over with a single thud.
And as they slumped over, everyone sighed in relief as Flash said, "That...was crazy."
"Yeah." Spike added with a nod, "But they kinda went down a lot easier then you'd think Legendary Pokémon would go down."
"Those weren't the real Entei, Raikou and Suicune," Shining replied as he pointed at the downed opponents. Before they could reply, all of them began to dematerialise into thin air, only to reappear on their podiums as stones statues. And once they stopped glowing, the back room doors opened up on their own.
"What just happened?" Twilight asked.
"It must be some kind of defense mechanism," Doc commented as he stared back at the statues, "In order to get through the doors, you need to beat these. Fascinating. How did someone create this?"
"Wait...does that mean Doom manged to beat them like we did?" Spike asked next.
"It's the only logical explanation," Shining responded as he ran over to the doors, "Come on. For all we know, there's a time limit on how long the doors remain open." The others nodded and followed, all soon leaving the room.
And as the last one disappeared, a certain figure leapt down from the roof of the stairwell, laughing as he did this, "Too easy. I'll just let you guys do all the hard work while I reap the benefits." Doom then ran up to the doors, slowly tiptoeing to the top of the stairs to see the group was now already running down the staircase.
The group had now hit the bottom, seeing an new set of doors. Shining then turned back to the group, "Get ready. I got a feeling there's another fight coming."
"You think there might be some more defense statues?" Twilight asked, which Shining nodded in response.
"There's no might about it." Shining turned back to the door. "Remember back at the entrance? The carvings on the doors?"
Twilight's eye went wide at this, "Suicune, Raikou and Entei were carved into the doors."
"Exactly. But they were only three of nine, which means..." Shining added before pushing the doors, the others helping him. But as they got in, the darkened chamber was suddenly lit up again. And as they did this, they saw three new statues, these depicting Regirock, Registeel and Regice with another set of doors stationed behind the statues.
"So now we gotta beat these things?" Spike yelped, his question instantly being answered when the three statues began to glow. "Why'd I even asked?"
Everyone got into a battle stance in response, the trio of Pokémon now fulling revealed as they lumbered off their podiums before clumsily charging at them.
Flash pointed at Registeel, "Drain Punch!"
"RI!" Springer leapt with a glowing green fist at the fake Pokémon, the Steel-type staggering back from the blow while the other two Regis turned to the Riolu.
"Sacred Sword!"
"Steel Wing!" Galladin and Steeledge sprinted at two of the golems, Galladin slashing at Regice while Steeledge did the same with Regirock.
Registeel picked itself up as it began to glow, light flying off and spiralling into an orb between its fingers. "That's Ancient Power!" Twilight announced while pointing at the Pokémon, "Mystical Fire!"
"Incinerate!" Shine and Peewee shot their flame attacks at the orb, making it explode.
"Quick Attack!" Hopper zipped through the explosion, slamming himself into Registeel. But as it struck, the Pokémon yelped as he bounced off the Steel-Type.
"Rush," Hopper cried while holding his head in pain.
"Not good," Flash growled before pointing at Regirock, "Aqua Tail!"
"Tore!" Riptide spun around as his tail was engulfed by water, smacking the Rock Pokémon with a single strike.
At the same time, Galladin continued to slash at Regice using Sacred Sword, the Ice-type unable to put up any kind of defense. As for Springer, he was using his high speed to run rings around Registeel before leaping onto it's round metal head. Registeel tried to reach up and grab him, but Springer just slammed an extra large Aura Sphere into the Steel-type's head, making fall back.
And as it fell over, Peewee and Shine unleashed a Mystical Fire Incinerate combo, the flames consuming the metal titan in a fiery blaze. The creature was now sent flying, hitting the wall before slumping over with its eyes now no longer glowing.
"One down!" Flash cheered as Steeledge dodged Regirock's large stone fists. "Riptide, help him with Water Gun!"
Riptide fired the water stream into Regirock's face, making it stagger back. Seeing this, Doc yelled, "One last time!" Steeledge launched its final Steel Wing at Regirock, knocking it down as its eyes began to stop glowing.
"Finish this!" Shining ordered as Galladin stopped its quick low damaging slashes before focusing all its power into one final slash.
"Galla..." He charged while holding both its blades together, "DIN!" With one mighty swipe, Regice was knocked back as well, joining the rest of the golems on the floor as its eyes stopped glowing.
Everyone sighed in relief as the guardians returned to being statues on their podiums. The doors opened next, the group running to the stone frames as Shining took the lead.
"Great work team. We're one step closer to Doom."
They began to descend the stairway as Doc commented, "I'm surprised he was able to get this far on his own. His Scrapummel must be tough."
"It is, but he might have a harder time getting past the final guardians. They're Fighting-types, which will make it difficult for his Scrapummel."
And as he said this, Flash saw Hopper staring down as they continued to run, "You okay bud?" He looked up at him, a big frown on his face. "What's wrong? Is it about your battle with Registeel?"
"Rush..." Hopper whined as he looked away.
Twilight grimaced at this sight as she commented, "Its no surprise, it was going against a highly defensive Pokémon. Though I guess most of Hopper's moves don't really have...what's the word I'm looking for?"
"Umpth?" Spike replied, Twilight nodding.
"The moves he has are good, just not great against something like a Steel-Type."
Hopper let out a low whimper at that, Flash reacting by reaching down and patting his head. "Don't worry. When this is over, we'll work on teaching you something that'll have more 'umpth'." Hopper looked back up, his frown shaking in response. And as this happened, Shine and Springer spoke up as well, trying to give him some reassurance.
"Here we are," Shining announced as they reached the bottom of the stairs. Another pair of double doors awaited them, everyone taking a deep breath before pushing the doors. And as they opened, Shining took the lead as he said, "Alright...let's do this."
As if on que, the torches around the room lit up to reveal the statues of Cobalion, Virizion and Terrakion. The sight made Spike yell, "Bring it on! We're not afraid of you!" The statues immediately started to crack, all of them being engulfed in light as their true forms began to appear.
"Don't let them have the chance to attack!" Shining yelled as he pointed at Terrakion. "Sacred Sword!"
Terrakion turned to charging Galladin, its body glowing with a brown aura before a curved horn made of golden energy extended out of its forehead. "It's using Sacred Sword too!" Twilight commented as Galladin and Terrakion's attacks clashed, the two now pushing in unison.
"TORE!" Riptide roared as he ran in next.
"Aqua Tail!" He leapt at Terrakion, tried to slam his water soaked tail at it. However, the bull horse creature just leapt back, evading the attack while Galladin staggered from the sudden change.
"Air Slash!" Doc ordered while pointing at Virizion. Steeledge flew up and unleashed a barrage of air blades.
"RAI!" Virizion glowed as it used Protect, blocking the attack with a giant forcefield. And as the barrier vanished, the pink leaves on her neck began to glow as she swung her head around. Doing so sent a bunch of rainbow colored leaves flying at Steeledge like shurikens.
"Steel Wing!" Steeledge's wings glowed as it began to cut the Magical Leaf attack out of the air, the armored bird then circling around. "Drill Peck!" He began to spin, morphing into the drill as it charged at Virizion. But as it did this, a green version of Terrakion's horn appeared on her head.
"ZION!" She swung it and met the Drill Peck head-on, the two pushing just like the other battle. However, as this happened, Peewee flew above them and took a deep breath.
"Incinerate!"
"WAGON!" Peewee fired his flaming missile at Virizion, burning up the grass deer's back.
"ZION!" She screamed, letting Steeledge push through her attack, smacking her to the ground with another mighty blow.
As this happened, Springer, Hopper and Shine were facing off against Cobalion. "Psybeam!" Twilight ordered as Shine fired a psychic blast from her horn, the beam hitting Cobalion's head, making it stagger back. Seeing this, Springer and Hopper charged in full sprint.
"Quick Attack and Drain Punch!" Hopper slammed into Cobalion first, only to bounce off him like Registeel.
However, it was here that Springer leapt over him and thrusted his fist into the Fighting Steel-type. "CO!" It cried as it fell back, its body glowing blue before a white energy horn shot out of its forehead. "LEON!" It swung the blade around and struck Springer, knocking him back.
"Ri!" Springer yelped as he hit the ground before spinning around and landing back on his face.
"Mystical Fire!" Twilight commanded next.
"Nee..." Shine carved the circle of fire before shooting a fireball through it, "TAA!" The fire rocket shot at Cobalion, the Sword of Justice just charging through the exploding flames before jumping on top of Shine.
"LEON!" It slashed its hooves down in an X formation, the attack smacking Shine into the dirt.
"Rush!" Hopper roared as Flash ordered him to use Bite, the Velocirush biting down on Cobalion's leg. However, the deer just flinched before shaking him off.
As this happened, Flash's eyes were shifting between Cobalion and Terrakion, now watching Hopper dodge a strike from Cobalion while Riptide leapt into the air above Terrakion. "Rock Smash!" Riptide spun around before delivering a glowing axe kick to Terrakion's head as Galladin got behind it.
"Sacred Sword!" He tried to slash at Terrakion, only for a bunch of sharp rocks to suddenly appear around it. "Iron Defense!" He raised his shield to block the rocks, Riptide using his Water Gun to blast them away.
It was then that the Terrakion's horns glowed green before it charged, Megahorn ready to do some serious damage. But as this happened, Galladin summoned his blades as one glowed white while the other glowed purple. It started slashing at Terrakion with intense force, the powerhouse Sword of Justice roaring as it tired to push back.
"Tore!" Riptide fired another Water Gun, hitting Terrakion right in the face next.
"Drill Peck/Wing Attack!" Steeledge and Peewee charged in unison, Peewee's wings glowing while Steeledge spun into an air drill.
"ZION!" Virizion roared as it fired a barrage of Magical Leaves, Peewee dodging the wind while the attack just bounced off the spinning Steeledge. Virizion then used it Protect, the barrier appearing as Peewee pulled up before hitting it while Steeledge slammed into shield.
"Ledge!" He grunted as he tried to cut through, but the barrier held as his drill began to vanish. And as the shield began to go away, Peewee dive-bombed Virizion, slashing her neck with his wing.
"Way to go Peewee!" Spike cheered, only to hear a loud cry of pain.
"RUSH!" They all turned to see Hopper get slashed by Cobalion's Sacred Sword.
"Hopper!" Flash yelped before turning to Springer, "Extreme Speed!"
Springer's body began to spark with blue lightning as he roared, "RIOLU!" He then disappeared into a blue light that began to circle Cobalion, making its eyes shift around as Hopper tried to get up.
"Psybeam!" Shine fired her attack as it Cobalion's chest, allowing Springer to slam the side of its head with a kick.
Hopper growled at the sight, "RUSH!" He then raced forward, wanting to use Quick Attack again.
"Hopper, wait!" He heard his trainer cry, but picked up speed anyways.
"RUSH!" He leapt at Cobalion, hitting him with everything he had...only to bounce off again. "Loss..." he groaned as he landed, only for Cobalion to spin around and raise its back hooves.
"LEON!" He thrust them down, slamming into the Velocirush with tremendous force.
The attack hit its mark, knocking Hopper flying across the room. "RUSH!" he screamed as he hit the back wall, only to fall over into a heap.
"Hopper!" Flash yelled, only to hear a cry of pain from Riptide, making him look back to see Terrakion trying to crush the Spranitor under its hoof.
"Tore!" He grunted while trying to lift the hoof off his stomach.
"Water Gun!" Riptide unleashed the stream of water on command, smacking Terrakion's face. The attack made it grunt and backpedal, Riptide jumping away as Flash turned back to Cobalion, now seeing Springer dodge a Sacred Sword attack from him.
While this happened, Hopper let out a groan as it got up, now seeing Springer and Shine continuing to fight against Cobalion. It used Double Kick to knock Springer away before he could use Drain Punch, then dodged a Mystical Fire before using X-Scissor on Shine.
"Nee!" She cried as she fell back, her body now rolling on the ground.
"Shine!" Twilight screamed as she saw Cobalion now gallop forward while creating his Sacred Sword. "NO!"
She then felt a powerful gust of wind shoot past her, Hopper jumping in front of Shine. "RUSH!" he roared, instincts kicking in as it swung its tail upward to meet Cobalion's Sacred Sword.
"Hopper!" Flash yelled as he saw his Pokémon about to take on the attack, only to see the tail suddenly knock the horn back. "What?!" he yelped, everyone mirroring their surprise as they saw a new sight. Hopper's tail...was glowing.
"That's Iron Tail!" Twilight gasped.
"Iron Tail?" Flash's shock turned to awe as he cheered, "Alright Hopper! You learned Iron Tail!"
"Rush!" Hopper added as he turned to Shine, seeing her pick herself up with a small smile.
"LEON!" They turned back to see Cobalion pick itself up, Springer hopping to the other two's side as the opponent charged at him.
"Psybeam!" Shine unleashed her rainbow blast as Flash's Pokémon leapt over her attack, the beam hitting Cobalion as he summoned is Sacred Sword.
"Iron Tail!" Hopper spun down his glowing tail in midair onto Cobalion's head while Springer landed and created a certain orb of spirit energy. "Aura Sphere!"
"RI!" Springer roared, smacking it into Cobalion's chest.
"LEON!" It staggered back right when Virizion tried to use its Sacred Sword on Steeledge.
"Steel Wing!" The armored bird's wings glowed as it countered the green energy horn, the two fencing as Peewee flew up above them.
"Incinerate!" Peewee spat the fireball, only for Virizion to use Protect to block the flames.
Spike and Peewee growled at the sight, only for Doc to put a hand on his shoulder. "Together!" Spike nodded before they looked back to the battle, "Air Slash/Incinerate!"
"WAGON/LEDGE!" The two fired their attacks at the same time, the Air Slash fusing with the fire, turning into a supercharged flaming arrow. It struck the forcefield, shattering it with a mighty blow before hitting Virizion, an explosion following the attack.
"VIRIZION!" It staggered back, joining Cobalion as Terrakion yelled out at Galladin.
"TEAR-RACK!" It roared as it launched a barrage of rocks at Galladin, the Pokémon countering Iron Defence while Riptide hid behind him. The rocks bounced off the shields, only for the rock attack to come to a stop.
"GALLADIN!" Shining's Pokémon roared as his armor began to slid off, everyone watching as his Armor Drop ability activated and left him with nothing but his thinnest armor. Terrakion went wide-eyed at this, only for Galladin to suddenly warp across the room, slashing him with a violent strike.
"RACK!" It screamed, falling back into its companions, the three now seeing Galladin charging while summoning its Sacred Sword. "RACK/ZION!" Terrakion and Virizion launched their Stone Edge and Magical Leaf attacks, but Galladin zigzagged past each attack with ease. Cobalion then summoned its Sacred Sword and tried to block the incoming attacker, only for Galladin to knock away the blade before slashing him with his second sword. "LEON!" It cried as it fell over, Galldin zipping right past the deer.
"RACK/ZION!" The others cried as they fell over from the next attacks, all falling beside Cobalion with swirls in their eyes.
Everyone sighed in relief, most falling to their butts in exhaustion. "Great work everyone," Shining commented with a chuckle, "That was tough, but we did it. We should be proud."
"Yeah..." Flash patted Hopper on the head, "Especially you. It's great you learned Iron Tail."
"Rush!" Hopper rubbed his head up to Flash as everyone smiled at the sight. But as they did this, the final doors opened as the guards returned to their original positions.
"Come on," Shining added as he went to the doors, now seeing yet another set of stairs.
"Seriously?!" Spike moaned, "How far down does this temple go?!"
"Its just a little more Spike." Twilight finished while patting his head, the teen letting out one last sigh before following them down the stairs.
Outside the temple, the Pokémon that had remained outside were all carefully keeping an eye out their captives. None of the enemy Pokémon had woken up yet along with the grunts that were still tied up. Skyler and Owlicious were circling the area, keeping an eye out while Tockwork and Higear guarded the grunts and dealt with anyone who started acting up. Ankyload was standing at the front of the temple, ready to stop anyone who came out if they weren't its trainer.
And as this was happening, Viper and Prongs were sitting in the sand playing noughts and crosses. "Woohoo!" The Chitaleaf cheered after drawing an O, "I win again!"
Viper growled, "That's thirty five games in a row...best of seventy one?"
Ankyload let out a low sigh as it kept Skulerror pinned under foot. Owlicious was nearby, ready to use Mind Force again, that or any of the Skullimor tried to use Confuse Ray. But as they did this, a sudden sound rang out above them.
The rhythmic sound of whirling blades caught everyone's ears now, making them look up. Skyler and Owlicious were the first to see it, now seeing a large helicopter heading over to the camp. A large S could be seen on its side it, making everyone tense up as it came to a stop over the crater.
And as it began to descend, the bottom of the vehicle suddenly opened before what looked like a satellite dish dropped out. But before anything could be done, the machine lit up.
"Here it is," Shining commented as their group got to the bottom of the staircase.
Once again, there was a large set of double doors, making Spike gulp, "Are we sure we've passed the last set of obstacles?"
"Unless the door had a bit we didn't see, yes." Shining replied as he began pushing the stone frames, the others helping him as they soon made a squeezing gap to get inside. And as they went in, they found themselves in yet another dark chamber.
The darkness was then dispelled by torches lighting the room, everyone jumping into a battle ready formation...only to find no statues. Instead, a stone table sat in the center of the room with a large stone box on it. A heart shape was carved into the stone, the sight making them blink in confusion.
"That's it?!" Flash asked. "That's what we fought so hard to get?!"
"The artifact must be inside," Twilight responded as she began to walk up to the table, only for Shining to grab her shoulder, making her look back, "Shining?"
"Something's not right. Where's Doom?"
The others went wide-eyed at his question, Doc speaking up next, "You're right. There doesn't seem to be able other way out of here, so we should have met him."
"But we couldn't have gone past him," Spike pointed out. "Unless he has a Psychic-type to teleport away."
"But the artifact is still here," Flash added. "You think he couldn't get passed the guards and had to give up?"
Shining shook his head, "No, Doom's no quitter. Even if he couldn't beat the guards, he wouldn't just give up. He'd find someway...to...oh no." The others turned to see a look of horror on Shining's face, the champion looking back at the door, "We have to get out of here! Doom is-"
But as these words left his mouth, something flew into the room. They only got a second to see what looked like some kind of thin metal canister before it exploded, unleashing a mighty flash of light along with an ear shattering bang.
"AAAAAHHHHH!" Everyone screamed as they were blinded and deafened, each falling to the floor in disorientation. The ringing in their ears prevented them from hearing the laughter of Doom Raizer as he causally walked into the chamber.
"I must thank you," he chuckled as they stepped up to the table. "I was worried I was gonna have to beat all those guardians by myself, but then you decided to lend me a hand! HA!"
As he got to the box, Shining tried to pick himself up, but his legs gave out. His body and vision kept losing focus, the sight of Doom making it look like there were five Doom Raizers in front of him. Everyone watched as he fiddled the box open, a blue light now escaping the container, "Amazing." they heard him whisper as he stared at whatever was inside, only to put it into his cape. But as he did this, the entire room began shaking. "What the-"
"What's happening?" Spike yelped as he felt his balance shaking even more thanks to the shaking floor as everyone's senses began to come back.
"it must be one last defense mechanism," Twilight screamed as she pointed at the roof, the ceiling now breaking apart. "The whole temple's gonna come down!"
"Welp, that's my cue!" Doom laughed as he ran past them, looking back on last time with a huge grin, "Thanks again. You've helped Team Shadow tremendously! AHAHAHA!"
With that, he kept laughing as he ran up the stairs, the others just now getting up. "Come on," Shining grumbled as he returned Galladin while helping Twilight to her feet. The others did the same, returning everyone except Springer and Peewee as more of the roof began to fall apart.
They quickly ran through the door, the entire chamber falling to pieces seconds after they got out. A long sprint up stairs came next, rocks falling everywhere as they dodged the dropping debris. Everything was a blur as they arrived in the Swords of Justice's room, the stone statues having already been smashed by falling rubble. "Hurry!" Flash yelled, fearing the door might get buried before they reach it.
"Let's just hope Ankyload can handle Doom when he gets out." Shining added as he helped Twilight dodge another falling rock, "Come on, we gotta get out of here!"
Doom was beginning to breath a sigh of relief as he ascended the final staircase, seeing this part of temple was just starting to fall apart. But as he got closer to the exit, he knew he had to ready himself for the Pokémon probably waiting outside for him.
"Alright...let's get over-what the?" He muttered out as he went past the doors, only to see all the enemy Pokémon laid out on the ground, all crying in pain as they clutched their heads.
He also saw his grunts free along with some new ones, only to hear a loud whirling noise. Doom quickly looked up, now seeing a very familiar face with a huge smirk on her face.
"Need a lift?" Chrysalis asked before throwing a rope ladder over the edge of the vehicle.
Doom chuckled as he then saw the other grunts beginning to board the land based vehicles as they drove off, the commander moving to the ladder.
"DOOM!" yelled a voice, making him turn to see Shining and the others escape the temple.
"Guys!" Flash yelled as he ran over to his Pokémon, Springer and Peewee suddenly following their lead by clutching their ears. They then saw the satellite dish attached to the helicopter, making them all grimace. "Not again."
Doom chuckled as he watched them return their Pokémon before grabbing the ladder. "Well, this has been fun." The helicopter began to lift him as he laughed, "Later! I hope to never see you again!"
"NO!" Shining yelled as he ran up and leapt up at Doom, only to missed by just an arm's reach. At the same time, the vehicles began to drive away as well, Team Shadow escaping completely as Doom began to climb up the ladder. The group could only watch as the team of evil trainers escaped, all slumping over as they got away.
Doom then let out a long sigh as he sat down in a seat by Chrysalis, "Don't expect a thank you."
"Don't need one," she replied with crossed arms and a leg over one knee. "You just better have gotten your hands on the target." Doom shined a big grin as he reached into his cape, showing his prize as Chrysalis's eyes went wide.
Hours had passed since Team Shadow's escape, and the teens were still at the now destroyed temple. The entire entrance had collapsed in on itself, making it impossible to ever enter it again. Their Pokémon were all exhausted, most resting as the humans talked about what had happened.
"We're sorry we couldn't help you stop Team Shadow," Twilight said first as she slumped over with a huge frown.
Shining shook his head, placing a hand on her shoulder, "It's alright. Honestly, we did far better than I would have done if I'd tried to stop them alone."
"But I'm the reason they got into the temple."
"They would have found a way in eventually. Heck, Doom would have likely blown the doors in and be lucky enough not to make the place collapse." He turned back to the temple, a small frown on his face as he saddened that such a historic place had been lost. "Either way, Team Shadow can't be allowed to get away with this. They'll keep causing trouble until they're finally stopped."
Flash let out a long huff, "I just wish we knew what it was they took."
"We'll find out when Team Shadow is eventually brought down." Shining replied as he turned back to the group, "I'll be staying here for a few days until Hard Case and the authorities arrive. You guys should continue heading...where are you kids heading anyway?"
"Appaloosa City," Flash responded, "That's where I'll be getting my fifth Gym Badge."
Shining shined a big grin, "Got it. Welp, I won't hold you guys up any longer. Stay focused on your goals."
"But what about you?" Spike asked next, "You can't take down Team Shadow alone."
"I'm not gonna be alone. I'm not the only one working on stopping these criminals. The entire Pokémon League is doing what they can, including all the Gym Leaders."
The others then turned to Doc, a sheepish smile on his face, "Uh...sorry I didn't tell you guys. I didn't want to stop you from enjoying your journey because of those guys."
Twilight shook her head, "It's alright...but we can't just sit back and let Team Shadow get away with this."
Flash nodded in agreement, "And don't worry Shining, I don't plan on looking for those guys. But if we run into them again, I'm not gonna let them go so easily."
"That's the spirit!" Shining cheered, pointing at the young trainer next, "Always remember this Flash, strength alone is not enough. You need a reason to be strong in order to truly grow as a trainer."
They all nodded in agreement, knowing that this wouldn't be the last time they would run into Team Shadow. And the next time they did, things would turn out differently.
Doom and Chrysalis's helicopter was flying through some mountains now, their destination being a large skyscraper inside a valley of mountains. The range of massive hills made it impossible to see the building regularly, which had a large S emblazoned on its side.
The helicopter then landed onto the building's helipad, the two jumping out as soon as it touched down. Doom was in front, a large metal case in his hand as they got into a nearby elevator. Riding it down to the next floor, they stepped into a well decorated office with red carpets and black walls. The entire back wall was a giant window, a large desk and chair sitting in front of it.
However, no one was in the chair.
"Master?" Chrysalis asked with a raised eyebrow, only for both to hear the door behind them open up.
Spinning around, they gasped as they saw Sombra walk into the room. He was dressed in metal armor that covered all but his head, a red cape with white trim hanging from his shoulders. The man shined a huge grin as he walked passed them and asked, "What do you think?"
"Very impressive," Chrysalis replied.
Doom nodded in agreement, "Is that the finished product?"
"Just another prototype," Sombra responded as he moved around the desk and sat down, "The test run our special friend has been conducting has yielded some excellent data. I'm honestly surprised he lasted this long. Now..." he eyed the case, "Were you successful?"
Doom chuckled as he put the case on the table, Sombra pulling it over and undoing the locks, "Yes and no. I managed to get what was in the temple, but it looks like the parts of the legend talking about the divide weren't just rumors."
Sombra opened the case, a light escaping the container as he stared at his prize. "Beautiful."
Inside the case was a light blue gem about the size of Sombra's head. The shape showed it had been cut in half, but the sight still made him smile, "The Heart Fragment..."
The object was half a heart shape, a zigzag pattern running down one edge that would have another half to it. The sight made Chrysalis cross her arms in slight anger, "It's useless to us like this. We need the other half if we want our plan to succeed."
"No worries," Sombra shut the case before moving it over to a nearby trophy case. Once placed inside, he turned back to them while removing his cape and the top parts of the armor. "I have several teams working to uncover its whereabouts. One area in particular appears to be showing great promise."
"Do you want us to go lead the team in this area?" Doom asked, only to get a shake of a head in response.
"No. I want you to lay low for a while. The champion and the rest of the league will be on your case for a while, and if anyone spots you and spreads the rumor of your location, they'll be on you faster then you can say Muk. Besides..." he sat down and leaned back with a giant grin, "I have one of the best minds in Equestria working to help me uncover the location." He then switched on his computer and typed on the keyboard until it let off a ringing noise. A ringing sound followed this, making his grin grow as someone appeared on the screen, "Hello Professor Cadenza."
The woman on the screen smiled back, "Please, call me Cadance." She was a woman in her mid twenties with pink skin and hair that was a mix of pink, yellow and purple. "Now what can I do for our generous benefactor?"
"Just wondering how the dig is going."
"It's going amazingly. We think we might be close to uncovering the city's whereabouts."
"Is that so? Well, I hope you'll keep me well informed of the process."
"Of course," Cadance replied with a nod, "And I hope you'll come and visit us as soon as we find it. It's not every day you get to see a city that's been lost for over a thousand years."
"No, it isn't." Sombra chuckled, "Well, I won't keep you from your work any longer. Good luck with the rest of the dig."
"Thank you," Cadance replied as the screen turned off. Sombra then shook his head as he looked back up at his minions.
"What city is she talking about?" Doom asked.
"One of the most famous lost cities in all the world: The Crystal Empire. Home of the Equestria Region's first ruler and protector of the Crystal Heart, tasked with the duty of summoning the legendary Pokémon in times of great need."
"And that's where you think the other half will be?"
"Only one way to find out." Sombra turned to Chrysalis, "I'll want you ready to acquire it once we confirm its location." He then glanced back at Doom, "As for you, I want you working on locating the altar. I prefer to act fast as soon as we get both pieces."
"Yes master," the two nodded before turning to leave. Once they were gone, Sombra sat back and spun around to look out the window.
Our heroes encounter with Team Shadow has ended with the villains successful in their objectives. One can only wonder what dastardly schemes they have planned, and whether the Equestria Region will be able to put a stop to it.
As the journey continues.
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Well that was certainly interesting. This chapter was fun with all the fake Legendary battles, and Hopper learning Iron Tail. Bit of a bittersweet ending but I guess that just raises the stakes against Team Shadow.
I admit, Doom tricking Flash and the others into beating the guardians for him was clever. I hate it when villains trick the heroes into doing the dirty work for them. Plus we finally get to see Chrysalis again. The ending scene with the villains was pretty interesting, since it seems like the artifact they are after is the Crystal Heart and the Crystal Empire gets a brief tease. I have to wonder though, is Cadance really working for Team Shadow or does she not know they are the bad guys?
Overall though, this was a good three-parter. I think the second part was my favorite, though this one was close second.
Team Shadow: 1, Flash and Co:1 (the battle at Thorax's gym)
Those were some pretty intense fights our heroes fought, only for Doom to steal the prize from under their nose. That being said, extremely clever on Doom's part, a stronger mind then the brute that our heroes seemed to write him off as.
So we have met two of Team Shadow's administrators, I wonder if there are any more and who they are? I kind of expect The Storm King as one, or at least as the leader of a rival team with Tempest as an admin of that team, or as a major level 'goon' of Team Shadow. I don't expect Tirek to appear unless as Pokemon that Sombra plans to capture, the same for true is the Pony of Shadows, maybe Flim and Flam, possibly the other unreformed minor antagonists as part of Sombra's shell-company. However, I am kind of expecting that Sombra is a man that knows he'll be a, as the Greeks call, tryanos or usper and he has a plan for a dynasty, thus he needs an heir and I am half tempted to suppose that his heir that he's preparing to be that successor is Cozy Glow, whom he intents to give the Pokemon that is the equivalent to Tirek to.
But I am reading too much into it.
But damn, Sombra's tendrils seem to be everywhere. I am a little scared of Flash's final clash with him.
On a different note, I know I should envision Sombra's in show armor, but I can't help but picture it as something Ironman like.
10187405
I would have to side that as far as Cadance knows, Sombra is just the wealthiest man in Equestria and is all he wants to do is back her expedition into finding the Crystal Empire, she might know of Team Shadow from Shining Armor, but has not connected that the team and Sombra are connected
10187423
Considering how important that artifact was compared to Thorax's gym, I'm going to have to give Team Shadow an extra point.
10187446
I completely agree. Besides, I doubt a lot of people know that Sombra is a supervillain on top of being a businessman, and as long as things stay that way, he can get anyone to do anything he wants.
Aww, don't worry, sweet boy. You'll get there eventually. I believe in you.
10187624
I liked that moment, since it shows Flash knows that he still has a long way to go. I have my fingers crossed that by the end of the league he’ll be the new champion.
Okay. This whole three-parter was great! You gotta love when the bad guy DOES succeed at something because that will mean their defeat will be even sweeter. I'd say my favorite chapter was Part 2 where we got focus on Twilight and Owlicious. This chapter was great with the battles and Hopper learning Iron Tail, though. I'd love to see what he gets for a ranged attack.
I also like how Cadance is introduced at the end as somebody that only knows Sombra's public persona. I'd love to see when the heroes meet her, especially since we'd meet up with Shining Armor again at that point. But right now, the heroes still need to get through the desert. Let's see how long it takes them to reach the next gym after this intense trilogy of chapters.
10187446
Yeah. She's likely only aware of Sombra as a rich guy funding her research and projects. Depending on how she and Shining Armor are in this fic, she might know of Team Shadow existing only. Nothing about Sombra as the leader. Besides, that guy is pretty secretive anyway. I can tell that after this whole Team Shadow thing is dealt with, Cadance and Shining Armor will start their family. It would be fitting to have Flurry Heart named after the Crystal Heart itself.
10187647
It'll be a tough climb, but it's going to happen just like one of the games.
I know that the bad guys win sometimes, which is understandable, but what frustrates me is when they manipulate the heroes into doing their dirty work for them. Still thought this was a big moment for the upcoming plot with Team Shadow, as was the ending scene with Cadance declaring she and her team discovering The Crystal Empire.
If one good thing came out of this, it was at least the group's Pokémon got stronger thanks to the battles in this three-part adventure, including Hopper learning Iron Tail here.
I actually forgot about this scene. It is a nice funny moment in an otherwise serious chapter, and was a fun reference to an early MLP episode.