Dee the Dedenne's Story

Crimson's eyes widened as the Commander made his big reveal...the huge hulking bomb that was somehow hidden underneath the armor already protecting him. In the back of his mind, it made him wonder exactly what would've happened had he done enough to drill through the armor in the first place. But his mind snapped back to reality as he took in the scope of the situation. The power plant was rigged to blow. And he was rigged to blow. And that kamikaze spaceship was flying towards the city at an incredibly fast rate...and probably rigged to blow.

What could he do?

The Ground-Type Chimchar's mind raced as he glanced around, getting ideas and formulating a plan. Luckily, the stupid Ork had given him enough time in his monologue to effectively do so. His glance shot to the Power Plant first, noticing the lack of Orks (since they either left or were slain). Luckily, there weren't many Pokemon there either, but he could think of a couple that would be in there. Team Vitality mainly.

To the left of them was a very exhausted Lugia, having defeated her opponent in impeccable fashion. Kind of anticlimactic for who was supposedly the biggest and baddest of the Orks in the first place. All he saw him do was rain useless bullets on them. In fact, it made him feel much better about the lack of strength this Commander had demonstrated so far. But as for the Lugia, she was out of commission for what would likely be the rest of this fight if Crimson played his cards right.

To the right was the main battle raging, a fight the Pokemon were clearly winning. The number of Orks were once again downgraded to double digits, so it was really a last ditch effort for them. But only now was Crimson noticing the approach the Orks were taking, surprisingly being sneaky at their approach to lace bombs in the debris around them. Not only would the power plant go out in fire, but likely many parts of this desert, causing craters abound. Nothing permanent in damage, but it still was a risk for the combatants on their side as they could have a number of fainting Pokemon resulting from this...a number that could shift the tide of the battle in the Ork's favor if it was large enough. What was worse, the reconnaissance they got from that mysterious Pokemon (who was clearly Mewtwo) hadn't taken much action other than the initial impact.

And behind his main opponent...the massive ship that seemed destined to collide with Lumiose City. That was the biggest problem to deal with. If they didn't redirect the course of that hulking hunk of metal...well, a lot of people were going to be killed, simple as that. He couldn't allow such devastation to occur. These people didn't deserve that.

And that was what he did know. He didn't know if all the bombs were going to trigger on the command of the numnutz gloating in front of him or on the individual command of the many Orks around him. He didn't know whether Tag, Pert, or Meryl were or if Sarik had arrived yet. He had to work with the pieces he knew about. But he did have an idea on how to reach the pieces he didn't. He sent a mental message to the only individual he knew would receive it and transmit it to the rest of the Guild. And finally...

He stared at Commander Nog with fiery confidence as the Ork spat it's premature celebration. His gaze rested to resolution as he took action.

"You're so stupid," Crimson said as he tossed the Ork's knife in the air and snapped his fingers.

Almost immediately, the ground beneath Nog exploded outward. Had this been a regular Pokemon with standard strength, the blast of Earth Power would probably be enough to propel the big, fat Ork a couple yards in the air. But Crimson was slightly more powerful than the standard. Slightly being that the Ork would be practically launched out of a cannon from the force of the strike. As Commander Nog was sent into the air a thousand feet or so, Crimson used his leveraged advantage to launch himself into the air and meet him halfway, catching the knife he'd let go so that he could use Earth Power on the way. Their gazes met a good fifty feet from one another in mid-air.

"Bye!"

There was charisma still in the slight twinkle in his eyes and the slight wave with his left hand, despite holding the Power Bat in it. The left hand had already launched it's projectile towards the Commander, the very knife he had wielded against the Chimchar previously, aimed straight and true towards the neck of the brute. If Crimson could recall from the previous bits of fighting, these Orks weren't exactly known for their reflexes, especially after being disoriented from having the ground blow up beneath it and sent spiraling in the air. Nor were they the most agile creatures, especially being in the air with their blubbery build. Crimson had thrown objects much cruder with as much accuracy as he had in this toss and there was nowhere for Commander Nog to maneuver in the air except for down towards his fate. It wasn't a matter of battling strengths to Crimson...it was a matter of exploiting weaknesses.

And all he would possibly have time to do before the knife sliced through his neck, separating atoms in the process, and ended his life, would be to push that button.

---

And even if Commander Nog had the mental willpower (which all Orks had) and the durability to maintain possession of that massive red button he needed to blow up the Power Plant and possibly all the scraps of metal set to make craters out of the desert, the Crimson Guild would be prepped for it.

It all began with a Dedenne named Dee, who had just revitalized her body with a couple Leppa Berries when her whiskers vibrated and she heard the voice of her leader in her head.

"Dee, I need your help. The Power Plant is gonna blow up, the Orks are about to see the other Members off with a bang, and there's a massive ship on course for colliding with the city. Think you can do a thing or two about that?"

Dee almost snorted at the calmness of tone Crimson had used to send her an update. She would have if it weren't for the gravity of the situation, literally in one case.

"On it!" she shot him a reply before upping her output range to that of everyone in the Crimson Guild, to include the Mewtwo, the Lugia, and even Terrance. "To anyone that can hear me, Crimson needs out help! We need to evacuate everybody from the Power Plant before the Orks blow it up. Team Vitality is already on the move out of there, but this is a warning for those still inside. Make your exit any way you can!"

"Anyone still fighting the Orks in the desert, brace yourselves for an explosion of your own! He said there were bombs scattered across the battlefield. Protect yourselves in any way you can, but don't give up the fighting! You guys can still take them down!"

"Sunrise Brigade, it'll be up to you guys to divert the course of the ship descending on the city. If you have another one of those massive hurricane attacks prepped, use it! We're counting on you!"

The commands were issued. Orders were being directed. Dee hopped on the back of Siena and a fully recovered Gambit zoomed out of the Power Plant and beelined for the crashing Ork vessel. Team Vitality fled the Power Plant with ease.

"Ooooooh, fuck," Skyball let a curse slip out as he took to the back of Rubira, accompanying Lumi, "RIDE, RUBIRA! RIDE!"

"I'm bucking you off of me the moment we're clear," Rubira snapped back as she galloped out one of the many gaping holes in the Power Plant. Team Volt were safe from many massive explosions.

The only ones that were left in the ticking time bomb were the Ground-Types, who made their escape in the only way they knew how...underground. They all knew Dig, so they were safe from the destruction that could potentially rain down on the ground above their heads. One by one, each Ground-Type submerged into the dirt they were more familiar with, spreading outward from the initial location of the Power Plant.

Meanwhile, the fighters in the main battle heeded the warning of the Dedenne and went on with it. Any that knew Protect or Reflect used them respectively and would be completely unscathed from the explosions that could happen around them. Those that flew went straight up to avoid any potential bombs. Fire/Flying-Types were at a supreme advantage here, since they could avoid the bombs and attack the Orks without a hitch. Those that couldn't escape by a defensive means went all out offensively, unleashing the strongest effective moves they had to take care of as many Orks as they could before the bombs struck. And fortunately, they also had healers and boosters scattered among their ranks, buffing up those that chose to continue attacking with health and defensive build to better cope with the destruction.

"I'm going in!" Sarik called out to Pert and Meryl, who were quickly right behind him.

"We got your back!" Pert informed from behind, taking his left flank while Meryl took his right.

It started with Sarik boosting his defenses with Iron Defense while Pert unleashed a Thunder Wave across the battlefield, placing every Ork in Paralysis. The already slow Orks would become much slower as Meryl began unleashing her Sparks across their ranks, the added electricity fueling to her own power as she charred Orks from the inside out. Sarik would follow up with a Hydro Pump to tear through the many ranks with highly pressurized water while Pert accompanied his own efforts with a Discharge that spanned across the other side. Common knowledge: Water and Electricity didn't mix. As such, their combo made a rather deadly spread effect that would decimate through the Orks like cardboard.

And as for the ship...the Sunrise Brigade were already on the scene, unleashing their directional torrent of wind that was the Hurricane Maneuver again. This time, they aimed on the left side of the hull of the ship, trying to force the ship to their immediate right. The force of the incredible gales were enough to shift the shift's direction slightly, but it wouldn't be enough. Peggy and Edal needed some extra power to have it miss the boundaries of the city. They realized this and watched with dismay as the ship began to plummet closer and closer.

"It's not enough!" Peggy was shouting, "Ready another Hurricane Maneuver!"

But a shape zoomed into view, a singular Pokemon ramming towards the falling ship at full speed. Peggy, Edal, and the rest of the Sunrise Brigade looked up as they saw the form of a Togetic approaching.

"I GOOOOOOT THIIIIIIIIS!" came the almost warlike cry from Gambit as his body flashed white at a measured pace...the familiar signs of Metronome. No Pokemon used Metronome as much as Gambit did, but that was because few Pokemon could get lucky as much as Gambit could. He called to the ether of knowledge and pulled a random strike from it's expansive library. And out of all the moves the Togetic could've used against the massive hull of the Ork ship...

He used Heavy Slam.

The trade-off wasn't great. A Togetic wasn't nearly as heavy as a massive ship a few kilometers wide...not even by a long shot. But the force behind a Heavy Slam was enough to do exactly what it needed to...shift the trajectory. The final push was enough to send the hunk of metal away from the capital of the Kalos Region and careening to it's right. It would crash into a grassy plain, completely uninhabited by humans and clear of Pokemon. Aftereffects could be calculated later as it would likely cause incredible damage to the area it landed in as well as some heavy earthquakes in the city. But those were much better than being completely decimated by the hunk of metal.

When opposition had presented itself in the form of a singular psionically charged Ork, Zee had not remained to engage. Getting bogged down in a fight like that, staying still or even in the one area would leave him vulnerable to bullets, explosions and knives. Not to mention the Ork ranks were on the receiving end of a growing amount of firepower from the perceived locals, and standing in the center of that was far from appealing.

His sudden acceleration would have left a gust of air trailing behind him from the force. The barrier of energy that wrapped around him from all sides would bash those he flew near aside, tumbling dozens in a zig-zagging path to cause as much disruption as possible, but then he noticed that something had changed. Metal was raining from the sky. His head craned upwards even on his flight path to see the hulking ship still moving.

They didn't. They wouldn't. They-

No, there was no time for that. It must have just been damaged in the battle and was now on a crash course. Something that large hitting the ground would be absolutely devastating, and Zee couldn't get a safe grounding to try and stop it. There was no time for thinking clearly now, just action. The sooner he intervened the more lives could be potentially saved, and maybe once he was up there he could risk standing still.

Around ground zero, that being the place Zee was at that very moment, would have the unpleasant experience of being turned to paste as a massive psionic force propelled the armoured Mewtwo skyward, cracking the sound barrier to boot. Zee would have plenty of seconds to think about what he was doing as he hurtled upwards into the atmosphere. His barrier switched from all-encompassing to purely frontal, and it charged from a sphere to a sharpened point.

He was a psionic blade, flat and wide to cause as massive a split and penetration as he could muster, only expanding with each second. He passed under the Flying types in the air in moments and continued higher into the air, cutting edge extending hundreds of meters to either side of him. And then, impact.

The battering on his mind was unbearable. Almost immediately the solid, sharp blade he had constructed psionically felt like a blunt knife cutting at wood. Zee could not comprehend all that he experienced in those seconds of him passing through the ship. All around him there was horrendous screeching of metal being ripped and torn. Explosions rocked around him leaving a burning trail in his wake. If not for the armour he wore, hooked into his helmet that helped control the extent of his powers, he probably would have killed himself. It went on for what felt like minutes, but couldn't have been more than a dozen seconds.

Then all resistance stopped and he was met with the wonder of the world beyond, an empty space devoid of anything but blackness and stars. Everything came to a standstill to appreciate the wonder of what lied around. It was peaceful up here. There was no sound, no violence, just nothing. A reluctant sigh came from within the pokemons helmet as he forced his back to it so he could face the destruction he wrought on the ship.

Now in the freedom of space, far from the gunfire and danger from below, he reached out with both hands to force psionic energy into the hole he had left in the ship, pushing outwards to try and split it in two. Technically he was just trying to minimize the total damage it was causing, but by some luck he was working towards the same goal as those on the ground; divert the ship. However he was operating on a slight different scale to them. Once the ship was sufficiently split he took hold, digits curling inwards to grasp one half of the ship, and started to pull. Blood trickled down from his nostrils as psionic powers wrestled against the sheer momentum of something so large, trying to force it to come to a complete halt in space. He had never tried such a blunt and direct action with his powers before and it was rapidly taking its toll. For a second time, it was only the restraints his armour put on him that stopped him from killing himself, but it also stopped him from totally succeeding. Even with the great extent of his power, with all the exertion he spent punching through the ship he was struggling to have a big impact.

But he didn't stop.

He wouldn't.

The Ork Kommando Gobfang, another of the many orks that would perish on the world of Ruula. As the knife drove in the Kommando's neck he would then be flown into the air roaring wildly in mostly anger and less pain. However his end was met by his own knife separating the orkz head from his own body. Not moments afterwards the massive bomb on the brutes chest was ticking. It was not a normal explosive, it was a timed explosive like the ones back in the power plant. The Kommando Nob exploded in a massive ball of fire leaving not even gibs behind, upon his own destruction the rest of the bombs followed suite by detonating all across the power plant as one last gift for anyone still stuck inside the plant. However the destruction was the least of everyone's worries...

The shoddy ork contraption...the ship was on a ramming course to the planet. Everyone knew what would happen if it impacted, it would be a world wide extermination. The air would be ash, the grounds would be lava, the seas would boil away, and life would be at its brink. Knowing this the many Pokémon did their best to slow it down no matter how meager it was. Ramming it, slicing it in half, the ship began to glow hot red as it began to arrive past the atmosphere where all could see the massive flaming wreck about to cause everyone's destruction...

The skeis grew crimson from the heat, the sound of the ship encroaching the planet ready to bring down destruction. Fear...panic...despair...One being could feel it all.

"How irritating...These greenskins surly know how to annoy...As much as this planets destruction would be a nice sight to see...There is an artifact that would allow me to gather much more souls than one single planets death can provide...It can't be helped, I have to save these so called...'pokemon'..." The man who was once inside the Catacombs suddenly appeared from a small chaotic sigil that branded itself on the land as he appeared.

He looked up at the marvelous sight of the crude ship prepared to wipe out nearly all life on the planet. The Pokémon of this world was adorably trying to stop it in such a futile manner. It was funny for him, to watch the weak struggle against destruction. However he was not going to let such a valued prize be destroyed needlessly before he could find it. So he had to regretabbly save this planet for his own goals.

Raising his hand into the air, the unholy powers of Chaos flowed through his body as he began to bend and tear at the fabric's of reality. In front of the ship something was going on, reality was torn asunder as a massive hole opened up as the sorcerer ripped a portal directly to the Warp and watched the fruits of his labor.

The massive and crude ork vessel was being swallowed by the massive tear as it no longer was on an impact course for the surface. It was being dragged into the maws of the Warp slowly but surely. All the beings on the planet who could see this spectacle watched as such unholy power was used to save them.

Soon enough the ship was swallowed hole, of course the thousands of orkz still swarming the planet began to hoof it on mechanical walkers or on foot and they ran as fast as they could go to safety. The Sorcerer darkly laughed to himself as he simply eliminated the threat. "That should do it...Let the rabble deal with the survivors...Rejoice you ignorant masses for your deaths have been averted for now...Now I have an artifact to find..." The man laughed to himself as he vanished in warpfire to return to the Catacombs to continue his search uninterrupted.

At hearing the biggest and strongest Ork shout these dire warnings, Terrance damn near crapped himself.

"FULL RETREAT! THIS PLACE IS GONNA BLOW HARDER THAN MY EX-GIRLFRIEND! GO GO GOOOOOOO!"

There was a gait called the "roadie run" for when soldiers were running to another point of cover. What Terrance was doing was more akin to a terror-fueled sprint, like a certain archaeologist and a rolling boulder he saw in a movie once. A series of terrific explosions started to go off. "I thought I fucking disarmed those things!" cursed the Terran as he continued to run for his life.

The plant was lost...there was no saving it now. But as he promised the random civilian back in the city, if he could save one life today, he was gonna do it. Even if it turned out to be his own. But even that wasn't enough. As he hit the stairs to light and freedom, the loss of horizontal velocity caused a blast of shrapnel to tear into his back. If he had his ANDEE suit, none of this would have been an issue, but such stuff was only allowed to him when he was on duty...which he most definitely wasn't.

With a loud cry of agony, the foreigner bit the dust, just three momentum-fueled steps outside of the smoking field of ruins, lying alongside Belana in pain and exhaustion. He then groaned and spat it out. "Fuck...all the lights in the city are out...everything hurts...I guess that means I'm still alive..."

Crimson felt an inner tension relax as he watched the knife plunge into the neck of Nog and through it before the Ork was literally coated in flames from the bomb strapped to him. He'd played that perfectly, not even allowing a crater in the ground on the Commander's part. In the air was the perfect place to detonate since it was away from just about everyone. And the Chimchar felt satisfied by the results.

As gravity took hold of his momentum and he began falling, he felt the winds of the explosion rushing past him, not even giblets accompanying it. The bomb's strength had been enough to literally obliterate the Commander after he'd been slain. The ground steadily approached, but Crimson was feeling too much relief in one moment to do anything but morph back into his Fire-Type form. He looked like any ordinary Chimchar hitting the ground beneath him at a heightened velocity. But he didn't even care about that. He didn't even care that he nearly blacked out from the impact.

He was just relieved.

---

The battle was basically over. Without the looming threat of the massive ship causing planetary extinction and thousands of Orks disappearing from sight due to a mysterious cause, it was a cake walk. The Orks would try to escape, but most would get cornered and slain by the numerous Pokemon swarming the area. Thousands turned to hundreds, and hundreds to tens. That being said, there were simply too many of them to take them all out. It was easy dealing with the majority that were paralyzed from Pert's Thunder Wave. The ones that ran for the forest were given chase by many of the faster Pokemon akin to rabbits being swarmed by wolves. And even the mechanical walkers were no match to those that had an advantage over it, like a Fighting-Type or a Rock-Type. But there were some that slipped through the cracks undetected. A couple were fortunate enough to be behind a tree at the right time and were skimmed over. A few more fled in a direction few would think to travel and got away without notice. One even had the gall to book it towards the city, where no one would dare think an Ork to go. Despite their heavy toll of life (even for Ork standards), there were still survivors.

But the invaders knew what they were dealing with now. They wouldn't understand the complexities behind it, but they knew the wildlife on this planet were strong...strong enough to take their forces head to head if it came to it. Sturdy enough to withstand many a spray and pray from a rapid fire gun. Capable enough to deal damage back tenfold. Their only advantage was numbers and they no longer had that. They would have to play defensive...or else they were doomed to be a once talked about species.

Their destruction could not be denied, however. Lumiose City may not have fallen to pieces, but it was definitely in a state of disrepair. Fortunately, no major structures or buildings were sent toppling to the ground and it would be minimum a week to fix everything within the walls. On the other hand, the Power Plant that did provide light to the city was in shambles with nothing but a pile of metal remaining. It would be a long time before light would return to the infamous Kalos city once more, an issue that could prove to be disastrous if no back-up solution was found. As for the desert, it was left with a few holes from where bombs went off…nothing nature couldn’t solve.

In said desert, the Crimson Guild was reconvening, gathering fallen allies to revitalize and telling their tales and experiences. Not a single Crimson Guild member was killed in the Ork attack, they quickly discovered. A few had fainted and most were exhausted, but there wasn’t a single casualty on their side of the battle. And for them, that was a victory.

It would be Tag who would find Crimson lying in the sand, eyes closed. A wave of panic set into the Turtwig as he bolted over to the Chimchar.

“Crimson!” he cried, “C’mon, not like this!”

Crimson kept his eyes closed, but chuckled wholeheartedly, “Dude, I’m not hurt. I’m just…relaxing for a change.”

“Oh,” was all Tag said in response as he sat down next to his buddy, “I thought that Ork got to you somehow.”

“Eh…” Crimson recalled the fight he’d undergone, “I think I had it just about handled. Though really I think today was his day to die regardless of what I did. He blew himself up.” He peeked his eyes open, looking up at the late afternoon sun still kind of high in the sky, “They were seeking as much destruction as possible.”

“Well…” Tag surveyed the area around them, “I can’t say they didn’t do that. The Power Plant’s trashed.”

A small frown appeared on the Chimchar’s face as he went into thought about that, “Hmm…that’s not good. We should find a way to bring some temporary power to Lumiose City. Maybe the Electric-Types can do something.”

“Well, you can’t tell them to do anything when you’re napping like this.”

That caused Crimson to chortle, “You’re right. Help me up.”

Tag held out a paw, which Crimson took and pulled against to hoist himself to his feet. Together, they began walking towards the massive crowd of Pokemon that was gathering just outside the pile of metal that was once the Power Plant. Along the way, he took in the environment with his own eyes, noting the bunch of holes, the dozen or so Ork bodies that hadn’t found their way to being burnt to a crisp or electrocuted, but were slain by other means. A small plume of smoke was drifting up over Lumiose City, recalling the initial impact points made by the Orks. They probably had some destruction over there too, Crimson realized as he began planning out what he was going to do.

When the two of them arrived onto the scene, everyone was chattering rapidly and excitedly, talking about the battle they’d just fought.

“It was insane!” a Cubone was telling his Ground-Type buddies, “Friggin’ Butcher over there wanted to plunge headfirst into the Power Plant and he didn’t even notice all the bombs strewn about everywhere. I was like ‘Dude! Pay attention!’”

“I still cannot believe I cracked that ship in half!” Gambit said excitedly to Dee and Siena, “I Heavy Slammed that ship into two pieces…TWO…PIECES!”

“Right, but where did it go?” Dee crossed her arms and twitched her whiskers, skeptical as ever.

Gambit shrugged, “I dunno, but I broke it!”

Siena smirked, trying to hide her laughter.

“What?” Gambit glanced over to the Shaymin, “You know something I don’t?”

Siena said nothing.

A lot of the conversations Crimson was overhearing was about what had happened with the ship on collision course to Ruula. Whether they believed Gambit’s side of the story or whether they watched Mewtwo tear through the ship, it still didn’t explain why it had disappeared all of a sudden. No one could really provide a one hundred percent confident answer to the conundrum. One individual did suggest that maybe Palkia was watching them and stepped in, tearing a hole through space to intercept it. Most people agreed with that theory, but Crimson didn’t entirely buy into it. If that was the case, where was the Legendary now?

Questions could be answered later, he finally thought in resolution. Right now, they had to fix everything.

Crimson held his fist in the air, signifying that he wanted to say something. The ones who did see the small fist quickly shushed the others around them, the murmur that Crimson was about to speak ripping through the crowd of Pokemon before falling silent. He had long garnered the respect from this group he led and that was clear in this moment. He made a quick glance around for Mewtwo and Lugia, but didn’t find them. Tag was by his side. Sarik, Pert, and Meryl had all gathered behind him. He had everyone’s attention.

“Guys…I want to say thank you,” he began, looking around at the Pokemon in the crowd surrounding him, “Thank you for sticking by me and our quest to defend Ruula from those that wish to harm it. Thank you for signing to my cause over the year. And thank you for standing by me today. We all knew what could’ve been at stake and we were willing to risk everything, including our own lives, to preserve our way of life for as long as possible. So thank you.”

The roar of approval that followed those opening words made Crimson smile as he knew how much it meant to them. How much he meant to them. In many ways, he was an invader who brought his problems along for the world of Ruula to deal with. He was grateful for how accepted he truly was among them.

Despite this, he had to harden his words, “But we’re not done yet. Far from it, in fact. There’s still the aftermath to deal with. The Power Plant is in ruins. Lumiose City is in darkness. And even though we took care of as many of those brutes as we could, I get the feeling there might be more out there. So we need to prepare. And we need to prevent anything like this from happening again.”

“We must start with the humans of Lumiose City. They didn’t deserve what happened to them. They were victims to this crime. And we have to help them out in any way we can until they can help themselves. Help bring their city and its way of life to being as normal as possible. There’s a lot that needs power to work there and we have some of the power necessary to charge it.”

He turned to Lumi, Skyball, and Rubira, “Team Volt, you guys will have to lead this charge. You’re some of the best Electric-Type users I know. And speaking of…” he looked over his shoulder towards Pert and Meryl, “You two should also help out.”

“Piece of cake!” Pert flashed Crimson a smile and a voice of confidence, “We’ll do what we can.”

“Sure,” Meryl’s softer reply came after, “But only because of that pun you just made.”

Crimson’s brow raised, “What pun?”

“Having Team Volt lead the chaaarrrge?”

This brought slight bits of laughter from the rest of the Crimson Guild and much louder, squeakier laughs from Lumi and Skyball in particular. Crimson looked towards the ground, failing to keep a smile from crossing his face as he realized he missed that wordplay.

“Y’know…” he said, glancing back up at Meryl with a twinkle in his eye, “I think I know what festival will make you happiest.”

“And what’s that?” Meryl smirked as she shifted her legs to make herself more comfortable.

“A Pun Festival.”

“Oh Arceus no!” Meryl’s genuinely panicked reaction caused a greater stir of laughter from the crowd of Crimson Guild members.

And so the planning continued. The Crimson Guild would provide aid to the Kalos Capital by utilizing half of their able bodies to help clean up the area. Among that half were Pert, Meryl, Lumi, Skyball, and Dee leading the Electric Patrol, the troop of Electric-Types who would go around supplying as much power as they could to the population within the walls. They would be around until the humans could provide power and other support to the people. The others would help clean up the rubble and rebuild the buildings that were damaged in the fight, helping the UPL in those efforts until the city was shiny and new once again. A very small team of Fire-Types, led by Rubira, would take care of the fallen Ork bodies by burning them to ash and scattering their remains to the winds. The Sunrise Brigade would begin searching for any of the surviving Orks and swiftly taking them down so that they could no longer bother the planet or its inhabitants. Crimson, Tag, and Sarik would lend whatever help they would need towards their efforts.

As for the rest of them, it was business as usual. Try to find the Psychic Rebellion and thwart their plans by any means necessary. Help other Pokemon along the way. Find new places to explore and new adventures to go on. To Help, To Explore, To Protect…that was the Crimson Guild motto…that was the Crimson Guild way.

For now, they were fine. They had problems to contend with, but it could’ve been much worse.

"Gambit! GAAAAAAMMMBIIIIIT!"

The Shaymin was flying above the Crimson Guild Headquarters, looking for any signs of a Togetic meandering below. But among the numerous Pokemon below, Siena couldn't find any trace of the one it was looking for.

"Dangit Gambit," the Shaymin muttered to itself, "Where'd you run off to?"

Fly was probably the grammatically correct term in that sentence, but Siena wasn't worried about that as it swooped down next to one of the markets lining up the pathway and began to address the Keckleon behind the counter, "Hey, have either of you two seen Gambit stop in?"

They turned to look at each other and simultaneously shook their heads. Siena nodded it's head at them in understanding, "Good to know. Thanks anyway!"

"Siena!"

Right before it took to the skies again, the Shaymin heard the sound of her name being called by someone it recognized. Looking down, Siena's eyes lit up and it practically leaped in the air as it noticed one of it's team members bounding towards it.

"Dee! Hey!" it called out, a wide grin spreading across her face.

The Dedenne, usually a professional and systematic rationalist, couldn't hide her own pleasure in seeing her teammate as she embraced the Shaymin in a hug, "Siena. Always good to see your bright, smiling face."

Siena stepped back, an expression of elation and a bit of confusion on it's face, "Isn't it a little early for you weekly report?"

Dee gave Siena the thumbs up, "We're good now. The Power Plant is fixed."

The Shaymin's eyes widened, "It is? That's fantastic! Eight months ahead of schedule."

Dee nodded in agreement, "Yep. Their Gym Leader was evidently prepared for such a catastrophe and had a plan to rebuild the Power Plant from metal scraps. That or he's just able to work really well on the fly. I dunno. But, needless to say, the rest of the Electric-Types are on their way back now."

Siena snorted, "How did you get here so quickly?"

"I know the fastest route."

"Of course you do..." the Shaymin glanced towards the woods to their right before continuing, "So you're going to report to Crimson now?"

"Affirmative," Dee said, "I'll let him know he's getting a lot of Guild Members back."

"Oh, am I?" the Chimchar casually sauntered up, a warm smile on his face as he stared at the Dedenne, "That'll be good to hear."

Dee stood up straighter, "Good afternoon, sir! I have come to let you know-"

"I know," Crimson replied, amused, "I've been listening in on your conversation. Not to mention you wouldn't be here right now unless they were in trouble or they were done."

Dee snorted, "A little rude to be eavesdropping, isn't it?"

"Tactical is a better description. But-"

"Crimson!"

The Chimchar turned with a frown as he heard the urgency behind Tag's tone, "What's up?" he called back.

The Turtwig closed the distance in a matter of a second, "There's been another Master Blaster sighting. Just outside Fuchsia City. Just reached word of it through the grape vine."

Crimson turned towards Dee and Siena, "Then we need to hurry before the trail grows cold. Dee, Siena, you both head to Fuchsia City to check it out. Use Unix if ya have to."

"Team Vitality's on it!" Siena nodded, a twinkle in it's eye, "We just need to find Gambit."

"Do what you have to," Crimson stated and started to walk away, "But the longer we wait, the less likely we're going to find anyone lingering around. So do your best to find him quick."

"Right!" Dee faced Siena, "I'll get Unix. You find Gambit and meet me in the clearing."

"Okay," the Shaymin took to the skies once more, continuing it's search for their Togetic.

Crimson and Tag continued to walk towards the entrance of the Crimson Guild HQ.

"It's good we're getting a good lot of our members back," the Chimchar was relaying, "That means we can spend more time focusing on the Psychic Rebellion."

"Yes," Tag agreed, "And finding Radegast."

"Still no word from Team Slowpoke? Or Team Skull?"

"Not yet. They're not in trouble or anything, but they're having a hard time understanding exactly who they're looking for. Like finding a needle in a haystack, only they don't know what needles look like."

"It's a bit hard to give descriptions when the source doesn't give me much to go off of," Crimson took to griping for once, "I mean, I knew what he looked like before, but telling Sarik that he changed? It doesn't make things any clearer. Especially when they don't say how or why."

"Hey," Tag reassured him, "We'll find a way. We always have. They only said Radegast changed. His team is probably the same."

Crimson thought for a second before nodding, "I suppose so."

"Crimson..."

The Chimchar sucked in his breath to avoid spilling his frustration over his name being called again before turning to the sound of the voice. Only instead of a practiced greeting coming out, a small flourish of his eyebrows revealed that he did, in fact, know this Greninja approaching. His smile was warmer after that, "Hey, Gova. Ya pop in for a visit?"

"We need to talk," her words were cool and straight to the point, "Now."

Elder immediately recognized the voice. The Operative jumped onto the Gengar's head to get a better view, but they must've been too far off because no one was in sight. The footsteps were no longer within earshot. After a moment of silence, Radegast turned to Chrome, who just finished briefing the Ursaring.

The bear stood up- now rested- and approached Radegast. "I appreciate your understanding, Lord-Regent. You are better than the rumors I had heard. Most importantly, you still have a capacity to do more."

"Hey," Radegast smirked sheepishly, "What's a little electrical torture between friends, eh?" He bumped a fist against the Ursaring's shoulder.

The Ursaring chuckled, and playfully slapped Radegast's shoulder- which knocked the Gallade into the grass. Elder burst out laughing.

Everyone else emerged from their pokeballs to exchange farewells. The Operative even managed to stutter less than three times when she "shook hands" with the bear.

"Take care of him," The Ursaring growled softly.

The Operative technically could not smile in response.

With everyone back in their respective pokeballs, and only Elder at his side, Radegast stepped out of the clearing. "We're lost, aren't we?" Radegast asked.

"If we make it back to the Lake of Not Our Rage, we'll be back in the clear," Elder replied.

"Which was... this way," Radegast pointed. Elder nodded, and the two of them strolled through the forest. They left the Ursaring and the unconscious Leopold behind.

They had barely gone a minute before they began to hear splashing...lots of splashing. Curiosity got the better of them, so Elder and Radegast picked up the pace while trying to silence themselves.

The shores where the goons had been stationed were heavily scarred from all the blasts of energy. Bits and pieces of crate and aquarium littered the place, making it dangerous for bare feet to step through. Radegast was about to call everyone out to help him clean up the glass shards when he saw the source of the splashing. A number of Gyarados had resurfaced in a much calmer state of mind than the last time, as was prevalent by the destruction around them. There were three or four of them facing the shore, talking to the three Pokemon that sat there. One was a Togetic, hovering aimlessly and seemingly carefree. One was a Dedenne, whiskers twitching attentively as she remained focused. The last one was a Shaymin in Land Form, staring calmly at them while the group of Gyarados continued to speak.

"We felt this rumbling over in this area and...well, you can clearly see the rest," the front most Gyarados was saying, "I dunno what they were doing with our young, but we blasted the shit out of them, that's for sure!"

The Dedenne was the first to respond, her voice rigid, yet energetic, "Yes, we can see that much...what caused the rumble? Earthquake?"

"There was so much movement, I couldn't make any of them out," the Gyarados replied, "We just tried to hit anything that moved. And obliterated the aquariums, of course."

"Hmm..." the Shaymin hummed, "Thank Arceus the Magikarp are okay, at least."

"We'll take a look around, see what we can gather," the Dedenne added, "We'll let you know what we find. Does your leader Apollyon know what happened?"

"W-We haven't told him yet," the Gyarados admitted, "He's gonna be furious when he finds out though."

"I would be," the Togetic spoke earnestly. He clearly sounded younger than his counterparts.

"When you do work up the nerve to tell him about this," the Dedenne twitched, "Try to keep him from going into rage mode, please? Or at least wait until we've left."

The Gyarados turned to look at each other nervously. The Shaymin let out a small giggle.

"She's only kidding," it said, "But like she said, we'll figure things out here and let you know what we find."

"Thank you all," the Gyarados said before submerging with his fellow kin. There was a small moment of silence.

"Dee, you really suck at jokes," Gambit said with a chuckle.

The Dedenne raised a brow, "Since when do I joke?"

"Alright, team," the Shaymin grabbed their attention before the conversation got carried away, "Let's try to piece together this puzzle. Gambit, you go check around the aquarium remains since you can fly. Dee, you analyze the forest, see if you can find something like a footprint or claw mark or anything that can tell us more identifying information other than humans and Pokemon."

Dee's jaw dropped as she glanced at the destroyed forest. Multiple trees were felled, bringing their obstacles of sticks and leaves and wood chips and broken bark to embark through. She turned back to the Shaymin, "In that?"

While he would have been happy to help out the trio in their investigation- especially since he was the cause of the mayhem- the words of the Gyarados implied that they wouldn't view him as separate from the poachers. As Radegast shifted his weight behind a destroyed tree to get a better look, he accidentally stepped on a set of twigs. Elder willed himself not to hiss.

The group froze, all turning towards the noise. Dee's whiskers twitched and Gambit immediately flew higher to obtain a better vantage point. The Shaymin kept a concentrated eye on the area where Radegast was hiding.

"Think they're the poachers in question?" it whispered.

"Don't know why they would come back, though," she responded, "Nothing's salvageable. Could be the wildlife returning to the area..."

The Shaymin nodded in agreement. "Hey!" she called out suddenly, "We won't hurt you. We're just trying to figure things out!"

"Heck with it," Radegast muttered as he rose both hands and slowly stepped out into the open. Decked out in armour, with a black gauntlet on his right hand, Radegast stepped out, and used his other hand to pull off his helmet. "Sup?" The face of a dreadlocked Gallade smirked nervously.

Elder poked his body/head out from behind the same tree, and hopped over to Radegast's side. "Yeah, hiding would've been awfully suspicious anyway. Let's just walk out of cover, in front of Gyarados who don't yet know we helped them."

"No time like the present," Radegast's nervousness seemed to ease at Elder's familiar critique. "Anyway, hi." He continued towards the trio, "You uh... wanna know what happened?"

The three Pokemon turned to look at each other, intrigue in their stare, before glancing back at the Gallade. "And who are you?" Dee was the first to speak up. Gambit's mind seemed to be racing as he stared at Elder.

"I'm..." Radegast paused for a moment. He didn't know if he should just drop his name. However, a spark filled Elder's eyes. "Hey, I remember you guys. Back in the desert against that Sandslash guy, right?"

Radegast stared at Elder, then he too remembered.

"Anyway, I'm Elder- if you remember- and this is-"

"Radegast..." Gambit cut in, unable to stop his staring, "What happened to you?"

Radegast shrugged, "Guess I had a makeover since last we met."

"Two, in fact!" Elder chimed in.

"It's a long story, though," Radegast rubbed the back of his head, "Let's get this cleaned up, eh?"

---

Elder tapped each Pokeball, and everyone emerged. "Lotta glass littering the place," The Gengar briefed the others.

As Radegast recalled what happened to the Shaymin, whom they recalled the name of as Siena, his friends- sans Reggie- cleaned up the shore. Suros mostly roosted, but her immensely hot flame was used to melt the glass into a safer-to-handle blob- which they added onto as they went. The Talonflame's fire was also used to burn bits of the processed wood into ash. Dee and Gambit helped as well, the Dedenne's rapid approach to picking up the debris and stockpiling it while the Togetic's approach was to view from overhead and clear out the hard-to-reach spots.

All the while, Siena listened thoughtfully to Radegast's story. "Interesting," she said after the Gallade had finished, "Your friends said you had changed, but they didn't explain how. This was a lot more literal than I imagined."

"Huh?" Radegast asked, "Did you... talk with the Seven Clans? How are they doing?"

"No, not them," Siena admitted, "Technically, I didn't meet with anyone. But some other members of the Guild met with your friends at the Treehouse and I was caught up. It's a safe haven now."

"That's what it was made to be," Radegast smiled, "I'm glad it's bigger than me."

The Shaymin smiled, "Indeed. But I'm also pretty happy you were able to help us fill in the blanks about what happened wih Demonbreath. We'll need to talk to Crimson about what to do from here."

"All I know, regarding the Regicide Crew, is I'm gonna take them down. Anyway," Radegast shifted his seating position, "What happened here, there's this human group called The Reservoir. They're mercenaries, and they were hired to poach Magikarp for another human group called Trebuchet. I'm not entirely sure why, but-"

"Probably money!" Elder dropped in as he passed by, with a pile of glass shards in his hands.

"True, they did mention profit margins," Radegast nodded with a chuckle, "Anyway, we sabotaged their operation, and the Gyarados helped us out- though I dunno if they knew we were the ones helping."

"Probably not. Most of them are the kind of creatures to destroy first and ask questions later. But we can clear that up, no problem!" At the mention of that, Siena let loose a loud, yet smooth angelic whistle. Not a moment later, the water broke and a massive Gyarados emerged from the depths of the lake. Unlike the others before it, though, this one was bright red in color.

"Ah, Apollyon!" Siena greeted the massive leader, "I assume they finally told you."

"That they did," Apollyon replied, then glanced at the Gallade with malice, "You found the perpretrator?"

"Nope," Siena very calmly stepped in between the two of them, "This here's Radegast. He was helping you guys out with taking care of the poachers and was caught in the crossfire."

Apollyon grunted, "Tell me, Gallade. What happened on the surface?"

"So it went down like this," Radegast began, "I met an Ursaring I knew a while ago, he told me there was something up here. We arrived and saw these guys in suits doing a lot of fishing, with Electabuzz standing guard. My friends and I snuck up to him and launched an attack to sabotage their operation. Rage- the Primeape over there- performed the Earthquake, then a bunch of you guys came up, and all hell broke loose. Everyone scattered. We came across the leader in the forest, and we took him down. I don't think you'll be hearing from those guys anytime soon."

"Hmm..." Apollyon glanced towards the site of the destruction, which was just about cleaned up, "Well, in any case, I appreciate you all cleaning up the lakeside instead of leaving it like this. And, of course, for saving our younglings."

"Ay, it's no problem at all," Radegast slauted. He felt a sudden sense of nostalgia. The King of Depths, Absolute, now this Gyarados, Apollyon. The Gallade wondered if he was establishing a pattern of getting on the good side of primarily water-type communities in general.

"Well, when all is said and all is done, your clan was only trying to protect the lake in any way they could," Siena reasoned, "So try not to be too harsh on them when you do address them."

Apollyon nodded, "I'll keep that in mind. Thank you, Crimson Guild. You responded surprisingly fast."

Siena shrugged with a smile, "We were in the area."

Apollyon submerged and the Shaymin turned to Radegast, "You should come with us. Crimson's gonna wanna talk to you after all this."

Radegast nodded slowly. While this seemed to be playing into the hands of some so-called "destiny", the Xatu can go to hell. "I wanted to ask him something anyway." Everyone was soon finished, and a large bead of glass lay on a patch of dirt. Suros named it "Reservoir Dogs" like some sort of art piece. Radegast did not understand the name at all. Once more, Radegast and Elder stood side-by-side.

"RIght then!" Dee approached the two of them, "Everything's just about done. Mission accomplished!'

"Nice. Can you call Unix then? Ask them to bring two Dragonites this time. Radegast is coming with us."

"Will do. Want me to forward a message to Crimson and tell him we found Radegast?"

"That's a good idea," Siena nodded, "He'll want to know."

Gambit fluttered down, "You guys think we should stop by Fuchsia City?"

Dee frowned, "We found everything we could at the blast site. Why do we need to go back?"

Suddenly, the Aegislash emerged. Even Radegast flinched, "No, please. We need to stop by there."

All eyes turned towards the imposing Aegislash. Dee glanced over to Radegast, "Friend of yours, I presume?"

"Family," Radegast nodded.

"I don't see why not," Siena shrugged, unbothered by the aura that oozed out of the Coat of Arms, "We're not in any big hurry."

"Woooooaaaaahhh..." Gambit hovered closer, examining Reggie's shield, "You're really cool looking!"

"But why do we need to go back?" Radegast asked.

"Police would have investigated, but they wouldn't know what exactly they'd need to investigate," Reggie replied, "What's the ETA on the ride?"

"Estimated Time of Arrival?" Radegast clarified in the form of a question. He wasn't entirely sure if a lot of Pokemon knew some human slang and code.

"Unix is pretty fast, soooo..." Siena thought for a moment, but Dee was the first to answer.

"Approximately three hours to get to Fuchsia City. Lucky for us, it'll only be a twenty minue detour to the Crimson Guild. Still, we'll arrive at the Crimson Guild HQ tomorrow morning if the weather's nice throughout." She concluded with a confident grin.

"Or I could try Metronome," Gambit chimed in, "See if I can bring about Palkia's power to travel through-"

"NO!" the crew shouted in unison.

Gambit began to laugh hard at the unified response, "Now THAT is how you tell a joke."

ONE WEEK AFTER THE BATTLE

The flight to Fuchsia City was uneventful. They were picked up by two Dragonites, Glycon and Agave as they introduced themselves, and immediately took to the skies. Radegast sat on the back of Glycon while Dee rode with Siena (who elected not to enter Sky Form so she could rest) on Agave. Gambit flew beside Radegast and Reggie, constantly asking the Coat of Arms questions about where he came from and what the past was like.

"Overall, it's rather nice nowadays," Reggie admitted as he was slung over Radegast's back so he could talk to Gambit, "Communication across continents is near-instantaneous, language translation is readily available, and fighting is confined within globally accepted honor rules. Several generations ago, half of the human cities you see nowadays didn't exist."

"So this is basically the Ride Pokemon system... except by Pokemon, for Pokemon?" Radegast rose a brow. As usual, he never felt that comfortable using a Pokemon as glorified transit.

"Um..." Glycon contemplated, trying to figure out what words to use, "Yes and no. Really, we work with the Crimson Guild to get their members from Point A to Point B as quick as possible. That's our main purpose. That way, we can respond to any threats that happen in the world in a timely manner. Now if some other wildings ask for a ride, then sure. Usually we don't mind. It depends on the flyer, though."

Radegast nodded, but he found himself wondering if he would be able to fly with psychic power someday.

The time flew by and the group was on the outskirts of Fuchsia City in no time. Glycon and Agave knew what they were doing and were careful to fly low and out of sight from the locals. The last thing they needed were reported sightings of two Dragonites landing nearby and a plethora of Pokemon Trainers running after them to try and claim one. They stayed just above the treeline and were soon at the mansion ruins, landing a hundred yards from the clearing.

After dismounting, Siena approached Radegast, "We'll keep an eye out for you guys and make sure no one comes walking up the path. You two take all the time you need."

Dee rapidly bounded to the entrance of the grounds, a keen and focused eye resting on the path preceding it. Gambit took to the skies, hiding above the ground and providing a top-down perspective. Siena blended in with the foliage around the estate, appearing as a bush as she positioned herself near the back and watched their six. Radegast and Reggie, meanwhile, approached the rubble that remained of the Reginald Estate.

To Radegast, the story told by the Coat of Arms did the destruction no justice. Where the great estate stood, only the splinters of the side walls remained. A great gaping hole bored into the ground at an angle, obliterating home, garden, and even the upper levels of the Catacombs. The only thing that stood- miraculously- was the ancient tree that stood over the Catacombs entrance. Its immense tangle of roots evidently were the only thing that held a slab of earth above the hole.

All evidence of Radegast's room was erased. His only possessions remained in his room at the Treehouse.

Where was everyone now? They were safe, but Reggie didn't know where. He didn't absorb any soul energy from anyone else. Even though she performed fusion, Margriet's energy never transferred. As far as either of them knew, the Family had disappeared.

"It's gone," The Aegislash spoke.

"There's still bits and pieces left," Radegast replied in an attempt to comfort Reggie, "Just need to get a whole lotta dirt in that hole to support the tree, and we can work from ther-"

"Not that," Reggie interrupted, "The first tombs are gone... Did they destroy it?"

"Destroy what?"

"No, Lucy would've known about it. She would've taken it out beforehand."

"Taken what?"

"The Vandal's casket," Reggie replied, "Where his body- filled with traces of abominable knowledge- remained."

"Abominable like me?" Radegast's eyes narrowed, albeit in jest.

"Yes, actually," Reggie replied, "Well, no.. Not like you. There was nothing like the Vandal. If all had gone his way, nothing ever would've been like the Vandal. I can't fathom what sort of discoveries Lucy would make if she opened that box."

"If?" Radegast asked.

"It is an incredibly tough stone. No human tools I know would be hard enough to scratch it. I know I couldn't- which was the point."

"Well, what do you know?" Radegast asked, "What could be possible with this Vandal?"

"For starters, she could render the machines she uses to unleash her abilities obsolete. I'm referring to a complete natural control over her power. In a way..." Reggie's eye pierced into Radegast, "That's exactly what you have."

"And the worst-case scenario?" Radegast remembered Reggie usually reserved the bad news for later.

"Worst-case scenario... she figures out how to complete what the Vandal started." Reggie spoke slowly and sombrely, "To become the Apex- a being higher than even Arceus. Unfathomable power, and guaranteed dominion of Ruula if in the wrong hands."

"Jeez, Kinda makes my family sound like supervillains, huh?" Radegast tilted his head.

"That's all a matter of perspective..."

Radegast grit his teeth. His family was coming across as worse and worse as he learned more about them. "What does that make me, then?"

Reggie was about to respond, but paused for a moment. "I'm not certain yet."

"I'd be happy to hear theories," Radegast replied, "I can handle it."

Reggie thought for a good long moment. Just as Radegast thought to ask again, the blade spoke. "You... might be in a position to achieve that Apex status. Maybe closer than Lucy currently is. I can't say it with any certainty, not when I only have theory and no proof."

"Like you said, no certainty," Radegast agreed with a smile, "I won't let that happen."

Suddenly, a voice began speaking inside their heads...Dee's voice, "Someone's coming up the path!"

Radegast was about to move to get a look, when Reggie's shield held him back. "Reggie?"

"Hide," Reggie spoke quickly, "Now!"

Radegast didn't stop to ask. He merely rushed at the Aegislash's direction, and they were soon over the right-side wall. Elder, thinking quickly, reverted to his mist form and enveloped Radegast. For a good long while, a silence filled the air. However, a rippling cold seemed to slowly run down the spines of everything around. Radegast had never felt it before, but from the stories he heard, he knew who it was.

Speak of the devil. Her legs moved with impeccable grace, like a ballet dancer held aloft by the wind. With footsteps that emitted no sound- leaving only the rippling rustle of the light cloth dress. Besides the cybernetics crawling down her spine, one might think she was the definition of beauty. Her one visible blue eye glimmered in the daylight as she beheld the ruins once more.

Why is she here? Radegast thought.

Shh. Don't think. Reggie warned. I need to concentrate...

"Hmm..." Her soft voice chimed a melodic hum. "I sense a ghost." Her hair flickered with the tiniest spark of purple energy. Her blue eye glowed an eerie, yet soft purple. Miracle Eye. "Curious one, aren't you?" She giggled, "Don't you worry, love. I just need to pick up one last thing, and then this grave is yours to haunt."

With Miracle Eye, she can sense Elder, but she can't see through him.

Shh!

Lucy strolled into the ruins, an oddly childlike spring in her step. "Home is where the heart is," She chuckled as she stepped through what was left of the dining hall and the kitchens. "It's been so long, I haven't thought about..." Her purple eye seemed to glow brighter as she spotted a half-destroyed set of drawers. Without her making a move, the drawers flung open.

They were entirely empty, for many had been confiscated as evidence. "Hmm..." Lucy Reginald crossed her arms, and the entire counter peeled apart. "Mother said..." Lucy's glowing eye twitched with minor annoyance. "Thorough as always," She muttered. She leaned her head onto one hand as she became lost in thought. "Unless it was in the way... That would be inconvenient... I'd have to find a new one..."

An odd notification jingle emitted from her person. With a flick of her wrist, a custom-looking cellular phone was in her left hand- which was clad in a cybernetic glove of some sort. She held the phone out a little as she read what appeared to be a news headline. "Lake of Rage... Oh my..." Lucy Reginald slipped the phone away. "All the more reason to finish this..." With a sigh, she rose her right hand and twisted a knob on the glove. A circuit was closed, and the gauntlet crackled with an eerie purple energy. With nary another word, Lucy rose into the air, and shot out into the sky. She was heading to Fuchsia City proper.

Reggie dropped to the ground. If he was exhausted from masking his presence, he had no way to express it beyond that simple action- or lack of action. Immediately afterward, Elder reformed. "By Arceus, I couldn't stop shaking, dude!"

Radegast became suddenly aware of his own heart rate, racing like it had never raced before. His sweat was ice-cold. "Where's she going?" He panted, shivering as he spoke.

"She's going to the police station," Reggie replied as he shakily rose over the wall, "They probably confiscated most of the Trainer supplies that had survived the blast."

"The Po... Oh shit," Horror washed over the Gallade.

"We can't help them," Reggie interjected, "We can't."

"What was in that drawer?" Radegast asked.

"Utensils, mostly-" Reggie responded matter-of-factly, "But the one she searched held evolution stones," Reggie's eye looked down at Radegast, "Some of them more powerful variants- held by the Family for training their combatants."

"We kept evolution stones in the kitchen?"

"Storage is storage."

"We're rich, though."

"And the Estate was built back when modern architecture was a spark in an unborn human's eye. What's your point?"

Radegast pursed his lips. "Evolution stones, huh..."

"Come to think of it," Reggie hummed, "We could use them too."

"How so?"

"Gallades evolve from Male Kirilia when exposed to a Dawn Stone," Reggie explained.

"Oh yeah, so you're thinking I could get a boost from Dawn Stones?" Radegast recalled his old classes.

"Neither time, nor our enemies will wait for us to get stronger."

The three Crimson Guild members reconvened beside them, the looks on their faces were mostly awe and confusion.

'Dang, that was a weird lady!" Gambit was the first to speak, "Did you guys see her spine?"

"It looked like she had a number of robotic attachments, from what I could see," Dee relayed, "I'm not sure what they do though."

"I sensed malice," Siena's words were hauntingly chilly. Both Dee and Gambit turned to her in surprise as she continued, "She feigns beauty and politeness to hide her cruel heart and sinister existence. She's evil."

Dee wasn't sure how to respond. He was expecting Siena to be the most balanced of the three, the one that could see things from the opposing perspective and figure out why they felt justified in their battle. But hearing this...it felt like there was no hope of redemption.

Gambit could feel the heavy feeling in the air left by her words and attempted to change the subject, "So, uh...what happens now?"

Siena turned to Reggie, "You knew her. I could sense that, too. What...why is she...like that?"

"She is like that through her own efforts, and only her own efforts," Reggie replied, "She inherited her mother's spirit, as well as her hatred for stagnation. She holds a grudge against her own family- our family." The Aegislash watched as Radegast stepped into the ruins to continue soaking up the sights. "I'm not certain why she chose the Psychic Rebellion for an alliance, but she would never make a decision that did not guarantee her benefit. While the Reginalds have declared the Rebellion an enemy... I fear for them."

Siena stared down in thought, "Zane can be crafty, too. I haven't known him or even really met him, but I've seen much of how he strategizes. It's dirty. And if Zane wished to recruit help, he'd have a good reason for doing so. But that's not terribly important." She glanced up at the Aegislash, determination in her eyes, "Right now we should be getting to Crimson as fast as we can and figure out what we want to do with this information."

"Young master," Reggie called, "Are you ready?"

Radegast reached down to the floor, and picked up something he just spotted. His eyes softened as he beheld the remains of his old guitar. Only the head and a few frets, with frayed strings melted at the ends. It was the guitar pick- located next to it- that Radegast had picked up, and slipped it into his leg satchel.

"I'm done here," Radegast called, "Shall we?"

It was a cloudy day when they finally entered the Kalos Region, restricting the view from above over the continent by encompassing the land features underneath. There were still a few landmarks that stuck through the white swirling mass, like the top of the tower in the center of Lumiose City and the tall mountain in the northeastern portion of the region. The wind whipped past them and, with the combination of the higher altitude, made for a rather cold experience in the skies. At least the early morning sun was shining on them, but that would change when they dipped below the clouds.

"We're almost there!" called Glycon back to Radegast and Elder, waking them up from their slumber. Radegast, groggy, noticed that he had fallen asleep while playing his guitar. After slipping his first pick back into the leg satchel, he folded the guitar into the convenient cylindrical form once more.

Indeed, they were starting to swoop lower and lower. Gambit was now in front, guiding the two Dragonites in towards a specific spot in the clouds. Dee and Siena were up as well, riding on the back of Agave as they watched, their minds in further places. The temperature grew warmer as they slowly flew in and eventually through the cloud barrier, revealing everything underneath. The forest was the first thing they would see, a deep and dark shade of green that seemed to stretch for miles. The sea of canopy seemed to roll on forever in every direction, occasionally rising and falling with the natural lay of the land. But they couldn't see anything identifying that could signify a massive base or headquarters.

Radegast was reminded of the many forests he and his friends had trekked through during their travels, but nothing compared in terms of scale. To get a clearer look at the environment, Radegast removed his helmet and maintained a firm grip.

The treetops grew closer and closer with each passing second as they slowly descended. The Dragonites seemed to have a destination in mind as prevalent by Gambit swooping back with the crowd. Soon enough, a small clearing was visible to them and was determined to be their landing point. At the same time, there was still no sign of a big building or even any kind of building. All they could see before they finally landed in the clearing was a small plateau with a lot of foliage growing on it.

Glycon and Agave, their feet finally touching the ground, came to a halt. Dee deboarded quickly, immediately darting off into the woods. Siena stopped in front of the two Dragonites.

"Thank you both for helping us get here quickly," Siena said with a warm smile, "I hope you both get to rest after this flight."

"Oh, for sure," Agave nodded, "We'll have the rest of the day off since the flight was so long."

"Good," Siena commented, "You both deserve it."

"Thanks for the ride, guys," Radegast smiled as he waved with his free hand.

"Not a problem," Glycon waved back, "Nice meeting you!"

"Must be a well-hidden base," Elder commented as he scanned their innocent-looking surroundings, "I approve."

"Follow me," Siena called to them and started walking the direction Dee had gone, "It's this way."

Siena led the way for Radegast and Elder to follow, Gambit taking up the rear to help guide them through. There was no clear labeled path on the forest floor or carved through the trees, most likely by design. So Radegast followed closely behind the Shaymin, not wanting to lose his way. As they walked, Radegast felt unnerved. He had no proof, but he had the surreal feeling that he treaded on ground that no human had ever seen. He slipped the helmet back on so he could free up both hands.

In front of them, the sound of activity was growing louder as many voices were heard. It was already warm and damp outside, but somehow it managed to feel warmer. Gambit looked towards Siena and visibly concentrated. Siena nodded.

"Good thinking, actually," the Shaymin said aloud and stopped to face the Gallade once more, "Hey Radegast, we should probably have your friends outside the PokeBalls when we enter. Some of the Pokemon here don't really like the sight of them and it puts them on edge."

"Good idea," Radegast agreed as he tapped every ball.

However, as he reached for the wood-finish ball, Reggie's voice echoed from the ball to everyone around. "It would be best if I remain in my scabbard, where my aura isn't so commanding."

Siena glanced over Reggie's PokeBall, "Are you sure? I don't think something like that will be a problem here. Legendaries stop by sometimes. It's not like the Pokemon Village hasn't experienced that before."

"I have also been the Reginald Coat of Arms for generations. While some may not notice, those with especially keen senses for this sort of thing would smell the things I've done."

"Trying to weigh the pros against the cons, huh?" Radegast asked, "I guess it should be fine. We're in a safe location, so we wouldn't be fighting."

The Shaymin shrugged, "As you wish, then. Just be careful if you do elect to come out. Try to find a secluded spot if you change your mind."

And with that, the group pushed beyond the forest and into another clearing, this one being much bigger. Almost acting as a small town itself, the area was shaped into a semi-circle with winding paths carved around the structures to guide travelers to specific destinations. The one they were walking on led to a small circular area with a detailed pattern made out of stone and buried to stay level with the surrounding ground. The grass was neatly trimmed and evidently cared for and the streams that swirled around the place were crystal clear, despite the murky clouds above them. There were natural plateaus jutting out across their landscape, but there were many sets of wooden stairs that led to many different levels, adding to the complexity and intricate design of the area. They had carved a home base out of the environment.

Surrounding the circular area were a few shops that sold items like seeds and orbs to those that approached. Some even had Training Machines (TMs) in stock. The Pokemon in the stands, the lines, just walking around...they were the most diverse conglomeration of Pokemon in one location, all converging from every region. All for one cause. Radegast took quick notice of the bandannas most of the Pokemon wore, all of varying colors and designs, but those wearing similar designs were usually walking and talking with each other. Glancing back towards Siena, he noticed that even she was now wearing one around her neck, a sage green one with a heart shape woven in the cloth. Gambit was wearing one too; his was tied around his right foot.

Radegast followed close behind, with Suros roosting on his shoulder. The Operative rode on Elder's head while the Gengar clung to Radegast's side. Rage, Crystal, and Chrome covered the other flanks. While they kept close to the team that brought them here, everyone tried to look at everything.

"RESCUE TEAMS!" Rage shouted, "I HAD HEARD ABOUT THESE! SOME OFTEN BUTTED HEADS WITH MY OLD CLAN WHEN WHELPS TRESPASSED ON OUR TURF!"

"Is that something you should be admitting aloud?" Crystal asked.

"REMEMBER THAT I BEAT STEELFIST AND GOT BANISHED, YOU CUR!"

"Sir!" The Operative chimed to Radegast, "What are the Rescue Teams?"

Radegast honestly had no idea, even though he had met Crimson and others before. "You're better off asking them, buddy."

"Yes sir!" The Operative saluted to the Shaymin. "Sir! What are the Rescue Teams?"

Siena chuckled at the formal actions Operative was taking, "You and Dee will get along great. The Rescue Teams...well, we call them Guild Members...they are the ones that go out in the world and help any of the wild Pokemon in need. Basically, we have a messaging service that's spread out across Ruula that allows Pokemon to reach us any time they're in distress. From there, we assign and send a team out to help them." Siena did turn to the Primeape in confusion, "I'm not sure which rescue teams you remember, but it probably wasn't ours. We haven't been here but for a year or so." She then dipped her head, staring down in thought, "Although it's interesting that you say that. It means there's more than us out there trying to help the world."

"That kinda sounds like what we did," Elder chimed as he looked to Radegast, "Helping Pokemon in need."

Radegast smirked, but it was a bittersweet smirk. The King of Depths was one of those Pokemon in need. He wondered what the Seven Clans were doing. He remembered hearing about something called the Trials.

The Shaymin sensed the tone of sadness in the look and gave Radegast a warm smile, "Hey. I do know of Depths and the Seven Clans. He wouldn't have made that sacrifice if he didn't see you as important. And also a good friend."

"A good friend," Radegast repeated, ignoring the untrue idea that he was in any way important. "Kinda wish I got to hang out with him more."

"He always did have someone in the waters nearby. Kinda like keeping an eye on us."

"Who knows," Siena grinned optimistically, "Maybe you still can."

"Impossible," Reggie's voice echoed, but only enough for them to hear. "Given what has happened, Depths is no more, only DNA and raw energy remain. Even I don't have the memories of the Reginalds- but that doesn't matter as much because I was always with them to experience the same things. After all, you can't remember the bottom of the ocean, can you, Young Master?"

Radegast admitted, he had no memory of ever swimming to the bottom of the ocean. For that matter, he had no memory befitting a Gallade, or a Kirilia, or even a Raltz.

Siena let him finish, before turning back to them, "If there's anything this line of work has taught me, it's this: If there's a will, there's a way. Nothing's impossible if you want it bad enough, strive for it hard enough. Fate, destiny, anything that seems final...it can all be bypassed by the force of free will."

"Amen to that," Radegast returned.

She smiled encouragingly towards the group, "Now c'mon. There's someone you gotta meet."

Their walk was reaching it's end, it's destination being one of the plateaus as Radegast saw earlier. Now that they were closer, Radegast could see that the actual headquarters had been built into one of the cliff faces. The smooth stone walls looked natural apart from the foliage awnings jutting out of it or the windows carved into it. He glanced up and noticed the crimson-colored flag at the top, billowing slightly in what little breeze caught it. It was a bit hard to tell, but judging from how the windows were stacked, he could count three stories. It was the largest building in the area, by far.

"Now this is just too obvious," Elder criticized.

"And yet, did you see it coming in?" Siena countered.

"I bet I could've..." Elder's voice trailed off.

Gambit laughed, "It's actually a really cool trick a few Psychic-Types know how to do to change what other creatures see when looking this way. Up close, it's non-existent, but from far away, it's actually pretty effective. Remind me to show you how it works later."

"Oh! So I just need to apply some of my ghost vision to look past a prism effect," Elder grinned, "Clever girl."

They walked through the main entrance and into the main hub of the Crimson Guild HQ. Despite the dreary day, the interior was bright and very lively. Gray light from the outdoors cast through the many windows, illuminating the room with a surprisingly warm, yellow glow thanks to the wooden floor. Billboards were plastered on both sides of the wall, papers covering each and every one. As Radegast gandered closer, he realized that they were assignments, all of many different requests and tasks, scattered all across many locations in Ruula. In the center of one of these boards, Gambit was staring very intently. His expression was one of disappointment.

"Aw, what?!" he cried, "We're in third?"

Radegast peeked over his shoulder to examine what looked like a list of names ranked in some way. He was too far away to read the names written in smaller print, but he culd clearly see the top five with the heading of "Elite Teams" etched above them.



"No worries man, you just gotta work harder, is all." Radegast encouraged, "You'll get it."

"Took the words right out of my mouth," Siena chuckled.

"Well we've been back and forth with Team Madness for a while, but why is Team Volt ahead of us?" the Togetic continued to gripe, "All they do is joke around and ride around on Rubira all the time!"

"They do more than that," Siena raised an amused brow, "You do realize they coordinated the Electric-Types and brought power to all of Lumiose City while they were without power for a year, right? I'm surprised they're not first right now."

"I wonder what Team Madness is doing that's keeping themselves at the top of the list?" Gambit said curiously, having calmed down some.

"I can check with them later if you'd like."

All eyes turned right at the sight of a Minun staring at them. Gambit stared at the ground and shuffled his feet as he hovered in the air. Siena approached with all smiles, as Radegast was starting to notice that's what she did with everyone.

"Hey, Meryl," the Shaymin greeted, "Where's Pert?"

"He's in the office, talking with Crimson," she replied, turning towards the Gallade, "Hey Radegast. How was the trip over?"

"It was alright," Radegast responded, "I don't think I'll ever get used to riding Pokemon."

"He kinda prefers to get places with his own two feet," Elder elaborated.

"Plus getting from Kanto to Kalos on a bike isn't exactly... well... possible." Radegast shrugged.

"I see..." Meryl nodded understandingly, "Well, just know that riding Pokemon here isn't like when other humans using their Pokemon to fly around. The Pokemon here do it because they want to. Does that make it better?"

"If I had a Pokke for every time I heard that reasoning," Radegast smiled under the mask, "I'd have... three Pokke."

"Five, actually," Elder corrected.

"No, three. Those first two didn't count because we overheard it said to other people."

"You still heard that reasoning," Elder insisted, "And you said specifically 'every time I heard that reasoning'. Don't you try to-" The two of them broke down laughing. The rest of the team found it contagious, even Gambit and Siena.

Only Meryl was left unamused, more confused even, "I...guess I'll show you all to Crimson's office. He's waiting for you."

The group walked past the small groups of people collected every which way around. Some gave the group a weird look as they passed, making Radegast aware of how odd they all must've looked. He was wearing armor. He had a Talonflame perched on his shoulder, despite all laws of logic. Rage was staring down everyone he walked by, sizing them up to determine which among them was worthy of combat. And, of course, the shiny Metang was always a glorious sight to see. But all they received were weird looks and curious glances, most of them mild, actually. The group reached a spiral staircase, ascended it, and made an immediate right at the crossroads in front of them. The first door on the right was the one they stopped at and Meryl opened the door for them.

Unlike most of the Crimson Guild HQ, Crimson's office was quite plain. A wooden desk sat in the center with a chair on each side, both furnished the exact same way. Bookshelves were lined up against each wall, filled with books of many different genres and varieties gathered across Ruula. In the far right corner were personal notes the office owner had written down, maps rolled up and placed neatly in a row, and a few odd drawings scribbled onto papers and stuck to the back wall. The circular window overlooked the entire room, both providing light and giving a fantastic view to the forest below. On the right wall was the only wall decoration, a mount of what looked like a metal bat.

In the room were quite a few Pokemon. In front of the desk and to it's right stood a Plusle, a very energetic and overall positive personality easily prevalent on his face. He was talking with Dee excitedly about something. Glancing over the books was a face they were very familiar with, the green blur with a large green head, beady eyes, and a twig growing out of his head. And standing behind the desk was the blue eys, orange furred Chimp Pokemon...the one Radegast knew was Crimson.

The Chimchar's eyes were the first one to lay eyes on Radegast, everyone else's gaze following his own to see the group fill into the room. Everyone else froze, unsure of how to respond to this new presence. But Crimson's gaze was relaxed, friendly, and inviting as he waved him over.

"Radegast," he called, "How's it going?"

As he approached, Radegast pulled off his helmet. "Crimson," He spoke, "Long time no see, eh?"

A lot of audible gasps tore through the room as they realized they were looking at a Gallade. Siena, Dee, and Gambit already knew he was a Pokemon due to their interaction with Radegast earlier, so their response was muted. Everyone else was frozen, like a deer in headlights. They weren't sure if what they were looking at was real.

Pert walked over to the Turtwig, "Didn't you say he was human?"

"He was," Tag whispered back, "But how-"

"It's just like..." Meryl's voice trailed off.

Crimson, however, was unaffected by the reveal. In fact, his grin grew wider, "Yeah...it has been a while. Glad to see you were allowed to keep your dreads. They kind of define you."

Dee turned to look at Crimson, shocked, "You knew what happened? But I didn't tell you he changed."

The Chimchar shrugged before turning back to Radegast, "I just kind of felt it. I had a small hunch for a while, but I wasn't sure until you landed nearby and I felt it.

"The aura," Reggie noted, "I felt it as well. We are a rare occurance."

"I don't think I know how to feel that sorta thing yet," Radegast scratched his head with his Limiter-clad hand, as he carried the helmet under his other arm.

Crimson nodded, "You'll learn. It's like...reading the atmosphere, if you will. Getting a feel for the one in front of you, but instead you...well, we can come back to that." His gaze rested on the crew accompanying him, "Sup guys? Been a bit."

"Indeed," Elder nodded, "Lot of improvement since that thing with the big laser and all. We're looking for Dawn Stones now."

"Dawn Stones?" Crimson flared his brow, "What for?" He glanced at Radegast curiously, rubbing his chin, his mind clearing racing.

"In theory, it's to help him get stronger," Elder replied as he pointed to Radegast, "We're all trying to get stronger, so we can accomplish our new goals."

"I'm not sure if you guys get involved in human affairs, but the Regicide Crew has taken Lukas," Radegast elaborated, "And also Demonbreath, and a Necrozma. We mean to free them."

Crimson paused, glancing around the room, contemplating something. After a moment, he faced Radegast again, a crisp, blue stare boring into him, "Do you mind if we take a walk? Just you and I?"

"Not leaving him this time," Reggie insisted. Radegast, however, looked to Elder and the others.

"We'll get a bite to eat," Elder told Radegast.

The Gallade nodded, "Get me something, eh?"

"No promises, Lord-Regent!" Elder joked as Radegast left with Crimson.

---

The sky couldn't hold back the rain any longer and when Crimson and Radegast stepped outside, a light drizzle had already began to fall. The Chimchar took this like a grain of salt, however, and casually sauntered out into the misty downpour. There was a small sizzle as his engulfed rear reacted to the water, but remained ignited. Radegast walked beside him, and the two began their walk.

"Are you okay?" Crimson asked when they were far enough.

"It helps to focus," Radegast replied simply.

"I get that," he agreed, "But it can also be what you focus on that can affect you...who you are and what you want to be. You're different...more driven than before."

"It's not right, what's happening to them," Radegast replied, "When we last met, I've never met people like the Marine, or Zane, or..." He sighed. Lucy was still family- disowned, and a complete stranger, but she did have that look.

"You were also human when we last met."

"I take it you were too?"

Crimson nodded, "I'm a bit different, though, cause I don't remember anything of my past life...my life before this one. But it's more or less an awakening of perspective. I've been in your shoes."

He scratched his head as he continued, "Your Marine and Zane was my Neeko and Dr. Benson. They were the ones who started the Psychic Rebellion, back before they were on Ruula. And coming into that world...having to learn how to fight that fight...it's tough. You say you'll be the same, that you won't let things change you, but they find a way to anyway. Everyone we meet changes out outlook on the world and opens up so many new perspectives that it's easy to be changed. They changed me. You changed me, too. I'm not sure we would be here without your help early on."

"I guess the thing we can control is how we let the change affect us...either for better or for worse. I'm not saying this is you, but I reckon you want vengeance...revenge...some kind of counter, right?"

"Vengeance... maybe..." Radegast sighed. The idea didn't sit well in his stomach, "More than that, I wanna help them. It's my fault they're in trouble, and Demonbreath shouldn't be alive anymore." He stopped and faced Crimson. "Dawn stones, are they easy to acquire?"

"Where I come from...no," Crimson admitted, "But on Ruula...I'm not sure. I've only found one evolution stone since I've been here and it was an Ice Stone. I'll help you look, of course. But we're gonna have to start from scratch."

"And one more thing," Radegast continued, "Galladite."

"Welp...I know you're in the right region for it. Mega Evolution Stones are a Kalos staple from what I hear. I can help you out there, too." He paused to think about it, "That might be easier to find, actually. We don't have to walk as far."

"I appreciate it," Radegast smiled.

"Not a problem," Crimson flashed him a thumbs up as they started walking once more, "Now how much training have you had?"

"Between six years of conditioning and hiking, I've already got a tough body. Recently, I did a month of ninja training back home. Reggie and I have been practicing our fusion for a while, and I can feel a change in output. I think Dawn Stones will help us bring out my potential."

"What about controlling your abilities? All that power is going to be wild and uncontrollable."

"My buddy taught me how to get a handle on psychic power, but I still need to practice. I can control my hands perfectly now, and I can talk again. I can also project Psycho Cuts, but that takes a lot out of me.

"That's to be expected," the Chimchar nodded understandingly, "Using your abilities and controlling them are two very different things. You can lash out again an opponent or you can lash out accurately against an opponent...throw 'em exactly where you want them.

"Thing is, it's like I'm covering the developing years of an infant psychic-type over the course of a few weeks," Radegast replied, "If I wanna catch up in that sense, I think- again- Dawn Stones would help."

"Dawn Stones will help you add to the power, but it doesn't help you control it automatically. Believe me, I've been there before. If anything, it's harder."

Crimson's eyes brightened, an idea forming in his mind, "Show me what you can do tomorrow, and we can make a judgement from there. I don't doubt your abilities or your quick learning ability. Don't get me wrong. But I know what ambition can do and what happens when you move too fast.

"I agree on that, but neither time nor my enemies will wait for me to get stronger," Radegast replied, "But I'll be here tomorrow. Count on it."

"We'll get you there as fast as we can...without hurting you in the process," he glanced up, staring at the droplets that collected in the leaves and fell in bigger drops around them. "I'm sure your family doesn't want anything bad to happen to you."

"I dunno where they are now," Radegast replied. He remembered, Crimson probably didn't know. "The Estate was destroyed."

"I heard," Crimson looked down, "But they're still out there, right?"

"Yeah. Palkia got them out with a portal, but Uncle didn't make it..." Radegast paused as he remembered Tarma. His life force was with Reggie now, but not memory, nor consciousness. "Do you know what happened?"

"I know one side of the story...I don't know things from your perspective...or his perpsective," he pointed at the wooden PokeBall.

"The Rebellion could not possibly defeat the Reginalds," Reggie spoke up, "They had an unexpected ally join in...Lucy Reginald."

"My cousin," Radegast added.

"Disowned," Reggie corrected.

"I almost came across her on the way here... I haven't felt a pressure like that... ever." Not even in the face of Marcus' Palkia, or Margriet's Raikou.

"Hmm...I imagine she's powerful..." Crimson lamented.

"Too powerful," Reggie interjected, "And she's trying to get more. If she could stop a full-powered fusion..."

"We'll stop her as well," Radegast vowed.

"It's what we do," Crimson agreed.