Things are getting very serious.
A few days ago, Starbuck battled Leo, who had been possessed by an agent of the Twisting who called itself Darkness. This incredibly evil and callous being was able to inflict Leo’s Pokémon with an advanced form of the Twisting called Stage Two, making them far more dangerous.
Starbuck won, but Darkness warned that he was only one of three. He told us that two more of the Twisting’s servants were lurking out there somewhere. And as we feared, now that we’ve come even closer to our goals, the second one has made its move.
Even worse, it seems to know secrets of the Pokémon world that most folks don’t know. I’m up against someone who not only has Pokémon that are in Stage Two of the Twisting, but who has planned a battlefield to adapt to its ace Pokémon…
I can only hope I can manage to adapt as well…
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Wave of Destruction
Long after the odd dream where Shadow won the Pokémon Dare, Starbuck slept into the night, sleeping soundly on the queen-sized bed in the comfortable, climate-controlled room.
At around four AM, however, he dreamed again…
* * * * * * * * * *
Starbuck was in darkness. Uncanny darkness. He couldn’t see an inch past his face. He held his hand in front of his face, but he couldn’t see it.
Where was he?
Then a realization came to him.
He wasn’t alone.
There was a presence right in front of him. A being of great power. He didn’t need to see it to know it was there.
A chill ran down his spine. Some huge creature was right in front of him, and he was defenseless. Did it know he was here?
The answer became a definite “yes” as two large, glowing eyes appeared in front of him, which seemed to stare right through him. Starbuck almost screamed.
The creature didn’t attack – at least not right away – so he gained a little more courage…
“Who… Who are you?” he asked.
The creature looked at him for a few seconds. Then it answered.
“I am Dialga,” said a voice coming from the eyes. “The Temporal Pokémon”
The voice was deep and commanding, and impossible to ignore.
“Temporal Pokémon?” asked Starbuck. “You… you control time?”
“Time began when I first drew breath,” replied the ancient Pokémon. “With my brother Palkia, who set the spatial boundaries, the universe was formed.
“Now, I come to you in a most dire hour, because a mutual enemy threatens us both.”
“Mutual enemy?” asked Starbuck. “You mean… Jessica?”
“Indeed,” replied Dialga. “Her hunger for power has caused her to capture my brother. Even now, he is her unwilling pawn. With Jessica controlling Palkia, you stand no chance.”
“What can I do?” asked Starbuck.
“The item that the Gallade gave you will lead you to the Guardian of the Stone Plate,” replied Dialga. “It is located in a far-off and desolate place.
“Once the Plate is yours, I will meet you there. Bring your Pokémon and prepare to battle like never before.”
“I’m leaving you something that will make it possible for you to find me. It is a relic that is the rightful property of Arceus, but evil forces stole it several years ago. One of Jessica’s henchmen won it from its guardian, and I had to steal it back.
“But be warned… Once Jessica knows you have this, she will try to take it back. Every minute my brother exists as her unwilling servant, she becomes more drunk with power, and her greed for more of it grows. Be on your guard…”
The eyes started to vanish.
“Wait!” shouted Starbuck.
The eyes reappeared.
“Uhm…” he continued. “If you control time… Can you see the future?”
The eyes narrowed.
“No,” said the voice. “I cannot, due a self-imposed limit on my power which I cannot remove. Nor would I want to. Only Celebi can violate the temporal flow in such a manner as to travel through its boundaries.
“I’ve met that annoying pest so many times over the eons… Each time, I have no way of knowing how many of our previous meetings have occurred to his point of view. I doubt even he remembers where his true point of origin is. Or should I say, when it is.
“He mocks my powers with his time travel abilities.”
“Uhm…” muttered Starbuck. “Well, he kinda… Saved my dad’s life…”
“So he did,” replied the voice. “But with my brother in your enemy’s hands, it will take a great deal more than a Heal Bell at the right time to save yourself…”
The eyes vanished…
Starbuck woke up with a start.
The sun was rising in his window.
He looked at his bedside table. On it was a new Plate, colored peach, clearly the Mind Plate, and a small piece of stone that looked like the second half of his amulet.
He reached for the first half of the amulet, and put it on. Then he held the other piece to the broken part, and the two pieces fused together in a small flash of sparks.
Suddenly, he saw a place in his mind. A cavern in a dark mountain range, full of volcanoes…
“The Spires…” he said.
There was something else on the bedside table. Clearly, this was what Dialga had put there. It was the Nexus Rod, although Starbuck didn’t know its name.
He picked it up, and looked at it. He was amazed at the sheer size of the diamond that was on one end, and the peal that was on the other. Such perfect gems… They were clearly worth a fortune…
He got control of himself quickly. If Jessica didn’t sell this, it must have had far more value than the price of the stones…
* * * * * * * * * *
After a quick shower, he met his two companions for breakfast in the hotel’s dining room. Lisa’s Munchlax was under the table, eating the croissants that she gave to it.
“So let me get this straight…” started his mother. “Dialga spoke to you in a dream…”
“Yup,” said Starbuck.
“And it said that Jessica caught Palkia…” continued Lisa.
“Yup,” said Starbuck.
“AND, it wants to battle you after we find the Stone Plate?”
“That’s what it said,” replied Starbuck.
“Did it give a reason why?” asked Shadow.
“I’m guessing that it wants to save Palkia,” replied Starbuck, “but I’d have to defeat Jessica to do that, but it thinks that it would have to help me beat Jessica now that she has Palkia.
“It makes sense. If Jessica does have a Pokémon as strong as Palkia, she may be unbeatable… Unless her opponent had a Pokémon of comparable power.”
“So why does it want to battle you before it joins you?” asked Shadow.
“I have no idea,” replied Starbuck.
“Pride,” replied Lisa. “Dialga is a god, Shadow. The gods have pride. Far more than any mortals do. No matter what the consequences, a Legendary Pokémon will never call a mortal its master without a battle. Dialga is no exception.”
“And just how do you intend to capture Dialga?” asked Shadow. “Pardon me for saying, but isn’t Dialga super-tough?
“Even Ash Ketchum knew his limits. He met a lot of Legendary Pokémon in his day, but he was never crazy enough to challenge one of them…”
“I think that his Pikachu defeated Articuno once,” corrected Starbuck.
Shadow let out a nervous laugh.
“Of course!” she said. “Articuno is what? The spirit of the north wind? I’m not saying that beating him wasn’t an accomplishment for Ash. But this is Dialga! The Lord of Time! I’m pretty sure that he’s a little higher up the ladder on the rankings than Articuno!
“And being the Pokémon who controls time might make him more dangerous than any other Pokémon… Time can be a force of destruction, you know… After enough time passes, mortals die, buildings crumble, whole mountains erode into dust…”
“Actually,” said Lisa, “according to mythology, Dialga has never been regarded as a destructive deity…”
She opened her notebook.
“If Dialga represents anything, it’s change.”
“Change?” asked Shadow.
“Well, it’s kind of how things evolve over time,” explained Lisa. “Like how an infant grows into a child, and then into a man…
“In fact, some say that Dialga was the one who introduced Pokémon evolution. Pokémon evolving into new forms, like a Bulbasaur evolving into an Ivysaur and then into a Venusaur, is a process that occurs over a period of time, a concept that Dialga is said to watch over closely.
“Still… Dialga likely is very powerful…”
“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,” said Starbuck. “Until then, we have to ship the Dread Plate and the Mind Plate to Percival, and then find a way to get to the Spires.”
“Uh, Starbuck…” muttered Shadow. “Aren’t the Spires full of Rock, Steel, Fire, and Dragon Pokémon of the most ferocious types?”
“Yeah, and that reminds me…” replied Starbuck. “Everyone should choose their best Pokémon…
“It’s not gonna be easy…”
* * * * * * * * * *
“The Spires?!” shouted Percival.
“Keep your voice down, Percy,” said Starbuck, as he spoke to Percival over the video phone, “the Center is kind of crowded.”
“Conrad,” said Percival, “I realize this whole endeavor was my idea, but I hesitate to take risks on the basis of visions that you receive from some knick-knacks you get from talking Pokémon!
“Are you certain about this? Need I remind you of what your poor father found when he went there back when that awful Gestalt was making his vile plans…”
“More than certain,” replied Starbuck. “You want the rest of the Plates found, don’t you? And Gestalt is dead, by the way. He turned into a pile of sludge.
“And if I can find more info on my dad in the process, I’m willing to take any lead.”
“Fine, Conrad, fine,” replied Starbuck. “I’ll trust your intuition for now…
“But do be careful… The last thing I want is to tell the other investors that we need to spend money on a search and rescue mission, or God forbid, a search and recovery one.”
Starbuck hung up.
Then he was startled as the phone rang. His name was on the screen.
He turned it on.
“Mandy?” he said.
It was indeed Mandy, and she looked scared out of her mind. Tears were running down her cheeks.
“Starbuck…” she cried. “You gotta help me… Jessica is after me… She’s gonna kill me if she finds me this time…”
“Where?” shouted Starbuck. “Where are you?!”
“I gave her the slip…” said Mandy, through tears. “I’m hiding in the Blueberry Cove Department Store… But I don’t know how long I can stay here…
“You gotta come fast!”
Then she hung up.
“Mom! Shadow!” shouted Starbuck.
Lisa and Shadow ran to the phone area.
“Change of plans,” said Starbuck. “We gotta drive to Blueberry Cove fast and get Mandy out of trouble.”
“She’s in trouble?” asked Shadow.
“I’ll explain on the way!” added Starbuck. “It’s a good hour’s drive there, and I don’t know if she has that long!”
* * * * * * * * * *
After driving above the speed limit and running several red lights, the trio managed to get to Blueberry Cove in forty-five minutes.
The Blueberry Cove Department Store stood in the center of town, a tall, ten-story edifice that held everything you needed, whether you were a Pokémon trainer or a homemaker.
Starbuck knew that something was amiss as soon as they entered. Two security guards were lying on the floor, unconscious.
He looked around. It was the same with everyone. Every customer, every worker… Everyone was unconscious.
“Whoa…” said Shadow. “If Jessica did this, she must have had one serious mad-on…”
Starbuck looked around.
“Something’s awfully familiar about this…” he said. “I can sense it…”
He started to walk forward.
Then a loud screech echoed through the whole building. The three of them covered their ears.
They recognized that sound, of course. It was kind of hard to forget.
“The voice of the Twisting!” shouted Lisa.
“Third floor…” said Starbuck.
He walked towards the escalator.
“Third floor?” said Shadow. “That’s where the home appliance department is…”
“And it’s where that sound came from,” replied Starbuck. “Jessica may not be behind this after all…”
* * * * * * * * * *
The third floor of the Department Store had one wing dedicated to appliances, and one to lawn care. Like the other floors, customers were sprawled on the floor, unconscious.
“Be on your guard,” said Starbuck.
“Behind you, Starbuck,” said a feminine voice.
The three turned around, and saw Kitsune standing there with a grin on her face.
“Who’s that?” asked Shadow.
“Doesn’t matter,” replied Starbuck. “Whoever it is, she’s possessed. Apparently, Darkness came back for a rematch.”
Kitsune smirked and shook her head.
“No, Darkness is gone,” she said. “But he was only the first…
“I’m the second of the three servants of the Twisting… You may call me Destruction…”
“Where’s Mandy?” demanded Starbuck.
Destruction shrugged.
“Beats me,” she chuckled. “But since Darkness was able to capture her before he fought you last time, I was able to form a phantom of her appearance and voice pretty well… I figured that you’d come rushing here if she called you begging for help, seeing as you were so intent on saving her last time.”
“All right, fine…” said Starbuck, with his eyes narrowing. “You want to fight? I’ll send you crying back to your master just like I did with Darkness…”
“Starbuck, wait!” said Shadow.
“Huh?” said Starbuck.
“She’s not stupid, Starbuck,” replied Shadow. “She knows everything Darkness knows. She wants you to fight her. She’s probably prepared to correct all the mistakes that he made.”
Destruction smirked slightly.
“I’ll battle her,” said Shadow.
Starbuck stepped back.
“Be careful, Shadow,” he warned. “You remember the Stage Two moves, right? If Darkness could teach them to Pokémon, I’ll wager that she can too.”
“And I have far more surprises than that,” replied Destruction. “But while I’m more than willing to have a Pokémon battle, I don’t care about it going on long. Why not only four Pokémon each total?”
“Whatever you say,” said Shadow.
“Then let’s get started!” laughed Destruction.
She lifted a pokeball.
“My host has had this Pokémon the longest… I call forth Ninetales!”
She hurled the pokeball, and it opened in an explosion of flame. Ninetales emerged.
“Ninetales?!” shouted Starbuck. “That was dad’s starter!”
“Calm down, Starbuck,” said Lisa. “This trainer and her Pokémon are just as much victims as Leo was.”
“Funny you should use that trainer’s starter,” said Shadow. “I brought along mine!
“Go! Empoleon!”
She threw her pokeball, and it opened, revealing a Pokémon that stood over five feet tall. The final evolutionary form of the Piplup family, this Pokémon was the emperor penguin of that group, combining Water and Steel in a lethal combination.
“All right!” shouted Shadow. “Wash that Ninetales away with a Hydro Pump!”
“Empoleon…” growled the Pokémon.
A high-pressure jet of water shot at the Fire type, and Ninetales sputtered.
Ninetales shook itself, shaking droplets of water from its fur.
“Flamethrower!” ordered Destruction.
Ninetales breathed a burst of flame from its mouth at the hard-to-miss target. Empoleon shielded itself with its flipper, but it sweat a little.
“Lovely,” said Starbuck.
“Water and Steel is a powerful combination,” said Lisa, “but it does have weaknesses, one of them being that the Steel cancels out the Water’s resistance to Fire attacks.”
“But I’ll bet that Water attacks will still hit Ninetales pretty hard!” replied Shadow. “Attack with Aqua Jet!”
Empoleon’s eyes glowed like orbs of watery liquid. It made a rush at its foe, ramming Ninetales in a blast of water. Ninetales hollered and tumbled over.
“Flamethrower again,” ordered Destruction.
Ninetales leapt up, and shot a spiral of fire from its mouth. Empoleon grunted and shielded itself with its flipper again.
“This is weird,” said Starbuck. “Destruction is barely even trying very hard.”
“We’d best not take it for granted,” said Lisa. “She’s probably getting set to use one of those Stage Two attacks.”
“Empoleon…” said Shadow. “Bubblebeam!”
Empoleon blasted a wave of bubbles from its beak with the speed of a machine gun. Ninetales tumbled over, and then collapsed on its back.
“Or… maybe not…” said Lisa.
Destruction held up the pokeball, and recalled Ninetales.
“Easy come, easy go,” she said.
She chose another pokeball.
“I choose… Miltank!”
The pokeball burst open, and Kitsune’s Miltank leapt out, quickly forming a fighting stance to face the much bigger Pokémon.
“Okay, I’ll admit that that’s… original,” said Starbuck. “But not exactly what you should use against an Empoleon.”
“Miltank, use Body Slam,” ordered Destruction.
Miltank let out a loud grunt, and threw itself against the huge penguin, ramming against its thick torso. Empoleon flinched a little, but it retained its footing easily. Then it simply pushed Miltank away with its flipper, and Miltank fell on its behind.
“Tell me something,” said Shadow. “Do you know anything about how Pokémon work at all? Let me spell something out for you… Normal attacks like Body Slam aren’t very good against Steel Pokémon, because Steel Pokémon are made of, well, steel!”
Destruction just glared at her, in a way that made her blood run cold.
“Empoleon…” muttered Empoleon.
“If that’s Pokémonese for ‘she’s creeping me out’,” said Shadow, “I agree with you…
“Get that Miltank! Metal Claw!”
Empoleon lifted its right flipper, and it shimmered with a metallic gleam. Miltank screamed as it made a slash like a knife across the smaller Pokémon’s torso.
“Stop your whining!” said Destruction. “It’s just a scratch!”
“Miltank…” whimpered Miltank, getting up.
“This is not good,” said Lisa.
“I know,” said Starbuck. “These Pokémon realize that this isn’t their real trainer… But something is compelling them to obey anyway. I have no idea what…”
“What do you think?” asked Destruction. “I serve the Twisting, and any Pokémon who has succumbed to the Twisting is easy for me to control.
“Every Twisted Pokémon is linked back to the source by an invisible cord…”
“So the Twisting is aware of everything that happens to every Twisted Pokémon?” gasped Lisa.
“Well, no,” said Destruction. “Not all the time, at least. If it wanted to become aware of every single action being taken by every one of its victims, it could do so for a short time, at the cost of a great deal of energy.
“But as far as I’m concerned, I can use that link to force any Twisted Pokémon to obey, no matter what its preference.
“Ultimately, all Pokémon who fall under my master’s sway will owe allegiance only to him…”
Shadow stared at her.
“You’re serious, aren’t you?” she asked.
“Focus Blast,” replied Destruction.
“Huh?” said Shadow.
Then Miltank put its hoofs together, and a blast of pure energy shot at Empoleon, striking when it was completely off-guard and knocking it over.
“You dirty…” shouted Shadow. “Your Pokémon sucker-punched mine when it was distracted!”
“That’s what it gets for letting its guard down,” said Destruction.
Empoleon got up, its eyes burning with anger, and brushed itself off.
“Empoleon…” it growled.
“No more kid gloves…” said Shadow. “Empoleon… Hydro Cannon!”
Starbuck and Lisa were just as shocked as Destruction likely was, as a blast of water twice the intensity of Hydro Pump shot at Miltank, throwing it fifteen feet backwards and sending it crashing into a display of mesquite grills behind its trainer.
Miltank was soaked, and so was Destruction. The cow Pokémon was seeing stars, and the possessed trainer was looking at Shadow with a look of hate.
“Shadow…” said Starbuck. “Where… Where did you find someone to teach it Hydro Cannon?! That’s the strongest Water move known!”
“It’s a long story,” muttered Shadow.
Destruction held up the pokeball, and recalled Miltank.
“At least Shadow is winning,” said Lisa. “She’s taken down two of Destruction’s Pokémon, and she still has all of hers!”
“And we still haven’t seen even one Stage Two attack!” replied Starbuck.
He paused.
“And that worries me…”
Destruction held up a third pokeball, and it opened. Kitsune’s Medicham leapt out, and formed a fighting stance.
“Okay, now you’re getting somewhere,” said Shadow. “But I think it may be too little, too late.”
“We’ll soon see,” said Destruction. “Medicham, take it down with Hi Jump Kick.”
“Medicham!” cried the Fighter. It leapt up into the air, aiming a kick at Empoleon’s face. The penguin tried to dodge, but Medicham pulled off a difficult trick, changing direction in mid-air, and landing a kick directly at its torso.
It was finally too much for Empoleon. It collapsed on its back.
“It’s okay, Shadow!” shouted Starbuck. “You’ve still got three Pokémon left!”
Shadow closed her eyes, and recalled Empoleon.
She took another pokeball.
“Go get ‘em, Kabutops!” she shouted.
She threw the ball, and it burst open, disgorging the tall, armored Fossil with a triangular head and scythes for hands.
“You never told me you had a Fossil Pokémon!” exclaimed Starbuck.
“There are a lot of things you don’t know about me,” replied Shadow.
“Now who’s being foolish?” asked Destruction. “In case you didn’t know, Fighting attacks can smash through Rock Types with ease.”
“But Dark Attacks rip through Psychic Types just as well,” replied Shadow. “Kabutops, use Night Slash!”
Kabutops growled, and raised its blade, which glowed with Dark energy. Medicham grunted in pain as the Fossil slashed across its chest with the weapon.
Medicham held the wound, with sweat pouring down its face.
“Medicham, use Force Palm,” said Destruction.
Medicham grunted, and got up close, directly in Kabutops’s face. It started slamming its palms into the Fossil, and Kabutops staggered backwards.
“Kabutops…” it said.
“You okay?” asked Shadow.
“Kabutops…” said the Pokémon, nodding.
“Then give Medicham all you’ve got!” ordered Shadow. “Clobber it with Ancientpower!”
“Kabutops…” mumbled Kabutops.
It started to concentrate, and its eyes glowed red. Then, stones started to rip out of the floor.
“Medicham…” said Medicham, with a hint of fear.
“Kabutops!” shouted Kabutops. An avalanche of stones cascaded down on Medicham, and the Fighter screamed as it was buffeted by the torrent of rocks.
When the dust cleared, Medicham was lying unconscious under a pile of stones, covered with bruises.
“Destruction is down to her last Pokémon!” shouted Starbuck. “And Shadow hasn’t even given her a chance to use any Stage Two moves!”
Destruction made an evil grin as she recalled Medicham.
“Fools,” she said. “Those first three Pokémon didn’t even know any Stage Two moves. I saved them all for my fourth Pokémon.
“I’ve saved the best for last, and it’s a special Pokémon that I guarantee you’ll never forget. All this preparation, my whole goal in luring you to this specific floor in this specific building, was to prepare for its onslaught of powers.”
Well, Shadow, thought Shadow. This is another fine mess you’ve gotten yourself into…
Destruction threw her last pokeball.
“I choose Rotom!” she shouted.
In a burst of electricity, the Ghost Pokémon made entirely out of plasma appeared from out of the pokeball. It grinned at Shadow.
“Oh no…” said Lisa. “Kabutops is part Water…”
“Not to worry,” said Destruction. “This Rotom knows no Electric attacks.”
“Then I win,” said Shadow. “Kabutops still knows Night Slash, and Dark attacks cripple Ghosts.”
“You’re too simple minded!” laughed Destruction. “Rotom, go! The lawn mower, now!”
At first, Shadow and her two allies thought that Rotom was abandoning the fight. But then, they saw it fly to the lawn care area, where it dove into a standard power lawn mower. The appliance started to glow with eldritch energy.
“What’s it doing?” asked Starbuck.
“Rotom have the ability to possess and control machines,” replied Destruction. “And by possessing certain ones, they can obtain new powers.
“New powers that I’ve augmented with Stage Two powers!”
Then, in a flash of light, the lawn mower completely changed, turning into what looked like a Rotom shaped like a lawn mower. It grinned widely, and then flew back to Destruction’s side.
“This might be bad…” said Shadow.
“Kabutops, try Night Slash!” shouted Shadow. “That thing’s still a Ghost… At least I think it is…”
“It’s not going to give it a chance this time,” said Destruction. “Rotom, use Leaf Storm!”
Rotom emitted a noise that sounded like a lawn mower starting its engine, and then a blizzard of grass and foliage shot out of its mouth at Kabutops. Kabutops screamed.
“A Ghost using a Grass attack?” gasped Starbuck, in disbelief. “That’s crazy!”
“And Kabutops is in trouble,” muttered Lisa. “Leaf Storm is incredibly powerful, and Kabutops is part Rock, and part Water…”
Kabutops was gasping for breath, but miraculously, it managed to stay on its feet.
“You made a mistake,” said Shadow, grinning. “Kabutops survived, and Leaf Storm has a dire price – your Pokémon’s ability to use Special Attacks is lowered, dramatically.”
“I didn’t make a mistake,” replied Destruction.
“So you say,” said Shadow. “Kabutops, use Night Slash!”
Kabutops growled, and charged at the demented lawn mower.
“Rotom, mow it down with Evil Seed!” ordered Destruction.
“Evil Seed??” shouted Starbuck.
“It must be one of those Stage Two attacks!” exclaimed Lisa.
It sure appeared that way. Rotom’s eyes glowed with green light, and it blasted a cloud of black, serrated leaves from its mouth. Kabutops screamed again as they left gashes on its armored shell.
Finally, Kabutops collapsed, not having reached Rotom at all. Rotom started to glow with a sickly green aura.
“Evil Seed can only be used after a successful use of Leaf Storm,” explained Destruction, “and if it itself is successful, the Pokémon using it gains back the loss in its Special Attack power that it sacrificed to use the earlier attack, along with a little extra.”
“No fair!” shouted Starbuck.
“I doubt that any of the Stage Two moves can be defined as ‘fair’, Starbuck,” muttered Lisa.
Shadow frowned, and recalled Kabutops.
“Maybe so,” she said, “but I still have two more Pokémon…”
She threw another pokeball, and Magmortar appeared. It let out a roar.
“In case you didn’t know,” she said, “your Rotom’s Leaf Storm will barely scratch a Fire Pokémon.”
“Well then,” said Destruction. “I guess then it’s switcheroo time.
“Rotom, washing machine! Go!”
Then Rotom glowed, and it rose off the ground. The lawn mower fell to the floor, with Rotom flying out of it. Rotom flew towards the home appliance section.
“Now what?!” shouted Starbuck.
“Lawn mowers are far from the only machines that Rotom can possess and draw powers from,” replied Destruction. “Team Galactic’s resident scientist, Pluto, discovered a total of five. There may be more… Who knows?
“Heh… He had made friends with a Rotom when he was a child. But poor Pluto… He could never hug his friend. If he tried, he’d get the shock of his life. But he did do lots of research on Rotom, and found the secrets of how they possessed machines. And it was easy for my master to learn how exploit those secrets.”
Rotom dove into a washing machine, and it started to glow just like the lawn mower had. Then it turned into a large cross between a Rotom and a washing machine. It would have almost looked funny if its trainer wasn’t so serious.
The Wash Rotom landed in front of its trainer. Shadow guessed what this meant – it knew Water attacks now. She only hoped that it also didn’t mean that Rotom was now a Water Type.
“Magmortar, you have to try to strike first!” she shouted. “Use Lava Plume!”
Whether a Ghost was fast enough to outdraw its opponent depended on how heavy it was most of the time. Members of the Gastly family, who were made entirely of a gaseous substance, were incredibly fast, while a Dusknoir was made of very thick ectoplasm, and was rather slow due its excess weight. Rotom was made almost entirely out of energy in its normal form, so it was nearly weightless, making it pretty fast. Now, however, it was carrying around an appliance that weighed almost a ton. So, given that it also presented a pretty big target, it was no surprise that Magmortar’s Lava Plume struck it squarely.
The Ghost groaned in pain.
“You’ll pay for that…” muttered destruction. “Rotom… Hydro Pump.”
The door on the front of Rotom opened, and a blast of sudsy water shot out, soaking Magmortar. The fiery Pokémon hollered as the onslaught of water and soap stung it.
Magmortar fell on one knee, and struggled to catch its breath.
“Get up!” shouted Shadow. “Try to use Flamethrower!”
Magmortar pulled itself up, and pointed its hand. It shot a fiery stream at the mad washer, scorching its hull.
“Rotom, Vengeful Rain,” said Destruction.
Rotom’s eyes glowed with evil light, and the water inside it switched to spin cycle. Clouds started to form on the ceiling…
“This isn’t good…” said Lisa.
Then a downpour of vile rain fell from the clouds. Magmortar screamed in agony, and the three humans screamed too, trying to shield themselves from the rain. It burned like some sort of acid!
Shadow looked up. Magmortar was lying on the ground, groaning, with smoke pouring from several wounds.
“One Pokémon left, Shadow,” chuckled Destruction. “Then my master will finish what I started…”
Shadow nervously recalled Magmortar.
She had three Pokémon left… But which one to use?
She looked around. This floor was full of machines… Dryers, stoves, grills, air conditioners, bug zappers, refrigerators, microwaves, and countless others. Which ones did Destruction intend to use to house Rotom’s three other forms? This creature had planned well… Clearly, Rotom’s ability to possess machines and gain powerful attacks from doing so enabled it to gain Type advantage over almost anything.
Which of her three Pokémon to use?
Then she remembered how Starbuck had triumphed using little Skorupi against that Shiftry’s Sharpedo. And how a similar situation had recently done it for her.
She held up a pokeball.
Maybe it’s time for a little more beginner’s luck, she thought. After all, what have I got to lose?
She threw the pokeball. It opened.
The small Pokémon emerged. It was Shroomish.
“HA, HA, HA, HA, HA!” laughed Destruction. “If you wanted to surrender, you could have just told me!”
“Shroomish!” said Shroomish, angrily.
Then Destruction stopped laughing. Her eyes narrowed.
“I think you’d better take that back, you little runt…” she said with a scowl.
“Shroomish!” said the Shroomish.
“She can understand it?” asked Starbuck.
“Maybe Darkness and Destruction are Pokémon,” replied Lisa. “Or they once were, at one time…”
“You are asking for it, you slimy salad garnish,” growled Destruction. “Rotom, oven! Now!”
Rotom rose into the air, and the washing machine fell to the ground with a crash. The Rotom flew to a small oven, and dove into it.
“No…” moaned Starbuck. “That will clearly teach it Fire attacks… Shroomish will be burned to a crisp…”
Rotom rose again, this time resembling a cross between a Rotom and a stove.
But then, Shroomish started to glow with golden light.
“What’s happening?” shouted Shadow.
“Good lord…” said Starbuck. “It’s happening, Shadow! Shroomish is evolving!”
The glow completely engulfed the small mushroom, and it started to grow, turning from the size of a cat to four feet tall. It took shape, becoming humanoid, with a beaked face, a mushroom cap, taloned hands and feet, and a long, knobbed tail.
Shadow wept tears of joy.
“Shroomish…” she cried. “You’re a Breloom!”
Breloom turned to her.
“Uh huh,” said the Pokémon. “I’ve been able to evolve for a long time now…”
“You can TALK?” screamed Shadow.
Breloom nodded.
“Shaymin’s gift…” muttered Starbuck.
“I’ve been able to evolve since before we met,” continued the Pokémon. “But I wanted to find the right trainer first. I hoped you would fit the bill.”
“Have I?” asked Shadow.
Breloom nodded again.
“All this is so cute, it’s disgusting!” growled Destruction, crossing her arms. “I’m killing this before it has a chance to spread!
“Rotom, sauté that mushroom with Overheat!”
Rotom started to burn with super-intense flames. Its eyes glowed like the fires of Hell itself.
“Breloom…” said Shadow, nervously.
“Don’t worry,” said Breloom.
It concentrated, and an aura of pure energy surrounded it, just as a blast of flame shot at it from the Rotom. The blast was halted by the Protect that Breloom emitted.
“No, NO!” shouted Destruction. “That wasn’t supposed to happen!
“Try Overheat again!”
Rotom whined a little bit, but it started to power up again.
“Breloom, try to Protect again!” shouted Starbuck.
“You got it,” said Breloom.
“This is risky,” said Starbuck. “Protect fails if you use it over and over again.”
“Yeah, but I see Shadow and Breloom’s strategy,” said Lisa.
“Overheat is very powerful, but like Leaf Storm, it drains the user’s ability to damage its opponent using Special Attacks. I’m guessing that Destruction made up for this with a Stage Two Fire attack that will boost it. But, if Destruction wants Rotom to use its Stage Two attack, it will have to successfully use Overheat first, just like the requirements for Evil Seed and Vengeful Rain.
“But if Breloom keeps avoiding it, Rotom won’t succeed, and will get weaker and weaker, until its flame finally goes out, and even if it succeeds, the Stage Two attack will be pathetic when it finally manages to use it.”
Once again, Rotom blasted a wave of flame, but it was much weaker than the first. And once again, it was absorbed by the Protect.
“Breloom, attack with Seed Bomb!” ordered Shadow.
Breloom pointed its fingers, and a barrage of seeds shot at the Ghost, exploding on impact. Rotom groaned in pain.
“It’s still standing,” said Breloom. “We got time to fix that?”
For the first time, Destruction looked scared.
I’m going to lose… she thought. Well, maybe I can do something to hinder these do-gooders after all…
She reached down on her belt, and hit a button on a beeper that was stored there. She had turned it off after she had stolen Kitsune’s body and left the Spires, but now that it was on again, it was emitting the signal again.
She pointed her pokeball, and recalled Rotom. The oven fell to the ground with a crash.
“You’re giving up?” asked Starbuck.
“Uh huh,” replied Destruction. “I won’t face the indignity of defeat. And you won’t see me again.
“But beware… If you should dare challenge my master, you will have to get past the third of his servants first, and you’ll find him deadlier than myself and Darkness combined.”
Then she threw her head up, and let out a silent scream. A dark shadow fled out of Kitsune’s mouth…
Destruction had fled, and had released Kitsune, but not before telling its host a great deal. It knew Kitsune would be in big trouble soon.
“Ooh, spooky,” said Breloom.
Shadow rushed to her Pokémon and hugged it.
“Can’t believe I forgot my camera,” said Starbuck.
Shadow blushed.
* * * * * * * * * *
Only five minutes had passed, and everyone who had been unconscious was starting to recover. Officer Jenny had been called in, and she and a group of medics were helping everyone. Kitsune had not yet regained consciousness. Jenny had handcuffed her, however.
“Gee,” said Jenny, looking at Kitsune. “If what you say happened to her is true, I’m kinda gonna hate having to arrest her…”
“Arrest her?” asked Starbuck. “What happened here wasn’t her fault…”
“She’s a Kunoichi, Conrad,” replied Jenny. “An assassin. And I recognize this one. She’s listed as a suspect in at least five cases, and the prime suspect in one of them.”
“She’s so young…” said Lisa.
“Youth helps a Kunoichi a great deal,” replied Jenny. “Deception is a big part of their methods.”
At that point, Kitsune’s eyes opened, but they didn’t notice it.
“Anyway,” said Jenny, “this is really gonna look weird on the police report. Three pieces of merchandise were destroyed, the owner of the store will likely want someone to pay for them, and I really don’t know who they’re gonna send the bill to. I mean, if it weren’t for the security cameras…”
“Uh, Jenny?” said Shadow. “Where did she go?”
Jenny spun around.
Kitsune had gone. The handcuffs were lying on the floor.
* * * * * * * * * *
To any Ninja, male or female, there was no greater shame than capture by the constabulary. Thus, any trained Ninja could escape in the hardest of circumstances. Kitsune had worked her way out of the handcuffs, slipped past Jenny and the rest of the police, grabbed her Pokémon and equipment, made it out of the department store, and was now running as fast as she could. Not five minutes had past since she woke up, and she was now ten blocks away; only now they had just realized that she was gone.
She stopped for a minute to catch her breath. She was now in a construction site. Fortunately, no one was there.
I’ll lay low here for a while, she thought. They won’t find me if…
Then she heard a loud roar.
She looked up, and saw a huge Rhyperior looming above her.
She tried to turn and run, but found her path blocked by a Nidoqueen.
She tried to run in another direction, but a Hariyama and a Feraligatr blocked her path.
She saw their trainers in the shadows around her. Her eyes slowly moved from side to side, and she drew her katana from its sheath.
The sword wouldn’t do much good against Pokémon this powerful, but hopefully, taking out their masters would scare them away.
Then Jessica walked out of the shadows, smiling.
“Hello, Kitsune,” she said, with a hint of bile.
Kitsune frowned, and lifted the sword. She didn’t feel like explaining herself, and knew that Jessica likely wouldn’t listen.
Then, with a mighty roar, Palkia rose behind Jessica.
A look of incredible terror crossed Kitsune’s face, and the hand that held the hilt of the katana started to tremble.
Then she dropped the weapon.
“A wise choice,” said Jessica. “You have a lot to answer for, Kitsune…”
Coming up next:
It looks like it’s all over for Kitsune. Or is it? Next chapter, Jessica starts to prepare for an eventual confrontation with Starbuck, as the journey into the Spires begins in earnest. But it won’t be easy. The chapter is called “Amazing Race”, and it’s coming soon.
Before I sign off, here are game statistics for the two Stage Two attacks that were used in this chapter.
EVIL SEED: Type: Grass; Cat.: Special; Att.: 140; Acc.: 80; PP: 5
Can only be used the round after the user successfully uses Leaf Storm. If successful, user’s Special Attack rises three stages.
VENGEFUL RAIN: Type: Water; Cat.: Special; Att.: 120; Acc.: 80; PP: 5
Can only be used the round after the user successfully uses Hydro Pump. Severely Poisons target.
Re: Pokémon: Storming Heaven's Gates
Originally Posted by Dark Sage
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