[Pokémon] My Guardian Angel (PG-13)

[Phantom Kat]

^ Made by my good friend, Natalia ^​

Okay, this is my second attempt at a chaptered, fan fiction story here on Pe2K. After going through the idea in my mind and chapter through chapter, I have the whole story laid out and ready to be typed. Many thanks go to my good friend Natalie for kicking my butt into gear after months of not doing anything with the idea. I am determined, hell-bent, on making this my first finished, chaptered story ever.

Also, this story was partly inspired by Darth Murkrow's *image removed* A very good, well-written fan fic that deals with the Legendary Pokémon. Sadly, Darth has gone inactive, but it's still a really good read!

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Sites Posted On:

- *image removed*
- Serebii
- FanFiction.Net (as PhantomKat7)
- PokeCommunity

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Notes:

PG-13: This story is rated PG-13 for violence, death, and some language here and there (nothing vulgar, though). There's nothing in here extremely graphic, but there will be descriptive scenes.

Legendaries: This fan fic revolves heavily around the Legendary Pokémon, and not just a few, but about a good 70% of them are involve in one way or another. If this isn't your cup of tea, or you're hoping for the Legendaries to take a back seat in the plot, I suggest you don't read.

Updates: I write slowly, very slowly, and then there are times where I don't have time to write. If I don't update in a while, it merely means I don't have the time to write, not that I forgot or abandoned this story. Starting November though, I expect to be writing a lot more, so stay tuned for that!

Comments: Comments are greatly appreciated. I'm having fun writing this, but it's more fun to write it and know that other people are enjoying the ride as well. Even if you only read a snippet of a chapter or just browsed through a few lines, please comment; it'll make my day. ^-^

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Character Profiles: Be warned; they contain spoilers!

Spoiler:

Legendary Pokémon

Arceus (Gender: Male) He is the Father of the Legends and the rest of the life on Earth. Arceus has great faith in the Council of Legends, so there are times where he will attend and immerse himself into other matters. This leads to him being unaware of situations and problems that arise in his absence. His heart is kind to all and, most of the time, masks the fact that he wields great power. This, for example, leads Mew to believe his father is soft and unable to make important decisions. Arceus is the only one who deals out Judgments to souls; he is unaware of Mew and Celebi's business in Purgatory.

Mew (Gender: Male) Mew is one of the oldest children of Arceus and an active member of the Council of Legends. In the blink of an eye, he can hide his cynical personality under the façade of righteousness and understanding that he uses to manipulate the current situation to his favor. Whenever things are going his way, his mood shifts into cruel playfulness. It has been revealed that he wants to eliminate sinned and unworthy souls in Purgatory in order to convince Arceus that he can lead Earth into more prosperous times. Mew is so dedicated to his duties as a Legend that he will go to great and dangerous measures to accomplish his goal.

Celebi (Gender: Female) Celebi is also one of Arceus' oldest and most trusted of children, and she is Mew's loyal partner. Although her steel resolve is unwavering, her temper is short; those who lit her anger face an onslaught of her power. The only one who keeps her in check is Mew, whom she will forever see as her big brother. Though she has discovered there are things in Mew's grand plan she does not fully agree with, her admiration and loyalty to him dispels the uncertainties.

Jirachi (Gender: Female) Jirachi, in comparison to most of her Legendary ilk, is young and a bit naïve when it comes to judging those around her. She tries her best to make the rest of the Council of Legends hear her out, and even when they don't, she'll go to great lengths to try and fulfill her duty as a Legend.; this causes her to overlook the consequences. Jirachi is the one who tries to stop Mew and Celebi from destroying souls in Purgatory, but she had no choice but to escape when her brother and sister almost killed her in their quest to see their plan through.

Deoxys (Gender: Male) An alien who had crash landed on Earth after being forced to escape his exploding, meteor home, he was trapped by Mew in a cave while the Council of Legends decided whether to let him stay on Earth or force him back into space. After fleeing his prison and colliding with the territorial Rayquaza, Arceus took him to Birth Island, where he will live unless ordered otherwise by the Council. After finding out that Jirachi had vouched for his stay on Earth, Deoxys promises to himself that he will one day repay the debt.

Other Beings

Death (Species: Dusknoir ; Gender: Male) Death is, besides the Dusclops guards he has under his command, the sole ruler of Purgatory, and on top of wielding the normal Dusknoir abilities, he also has the power to transport the souls of the dying to the realm of the waiting and build illusionary villages for them to settle in as they wait for Judgment. Death has some contempt to the Council of Legends for he believes they are just upholding their guardian duties to the living realm of Earth and forget Purgatory and its inhabitants. The only one who has gained his trust is Jirachi when she came into Purgatory for his help. Currently, he is waiting for the right soul to come along and help him with his Purgatory duties.

Mark Antony Colfax (Species: Human Soul ; Gender: Male ; Age: Eternally 25 ; Died on October 29th, 1725) Mark Antony was a prominent, young Sergeant of a Johtonian regiment during the Region War. After a disappointing battle, Mark Antony led a handful of soldiers towards where he believed a Kantonian regiment rested. However, things did not go as planned, and he ordered his men to retreat while he was warped near New Bark Town by a Pokémon that was supposed to be under his control. When he got his bearings, he found an injured Jirachi and trekked through a bombarded New Bark Town to get her to the Pokémon Center. He was forced to leave her to her devices when the Center was found destroyed, but shortly after doing so, Mark Antony was captured by the very Kantonians he first sought and executed.

Mark Antony is always confident about himself and is insanely loyal to his region of Johto. Most of the time, he comes off as cold, especially towards those who don't know him, and his trust is hard to gain. His attitude towards those he doesn't know is indifferent. Even after his death, he greets a Kantonian with a scowl and a glare.

Soundtrack:

- coming soon!

Fan Art:

- coming soon!

PM List:

- Kyuu-chan

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My Guardian Angel


Book One: Threads


Chapter 1: To Know Your Place​

Against the black backdrop of the sky, shards of fine, crystalline ice flew from the passing comet and showered the night. The Hoenn air thrummed and vibrated as the colossal boulder of heated stone fell from space and into a deserted field off the coast of Gulf Kaiorga. The garnet trail of fire that had streaked across the sky and made the luminescent stars hazy flickered and eventually went out as the comet sizzled and cooled off in the ten-foot crater of charred earth and grass it had created.

Curious Taillow flew from the canopies of the trees that dotted the vast meadow to inspect this oddity. Were Pokémon fighting, and this giant stone was the result of one of their attacks? Or were humans invading their home from above? They crowded around the massive rock, flat, yellow beaks to one side as they cocked their heads in interest. Their ruby chests and necks seemed to glisten with the strange, ethereal glow the copper comet emitted. Navy feathers began to puff out; forked tails twitched anxiously. This rock was strange, foreign… alien. The dozens of birds looked at each other with wide, jet-black eyes. Was investigating this weird object such a good idea?

CRACK!

The foot-tall Pokémon jumped into the air with ear-shattering shrieks. Even their high-pitched wails of fright, however, weren't shrill or loud enough to drown out the series of cracks that splintered the air. Now high in the air, they checked the comet with panicky glances. On the boulder, they saw spider-web cracks that widened and grew until, eventually, slabs of rock began to split and fall to the ground. The air around the comet morphed from uncomfortably warm into the blistering heat that had consumed it when it was in flight. More animalistic screeches were let out as most of the Tiny Swallow Pokémon high-tailed it back to their safe nests. Those who lingered behind finally took flight when a teal-colored tentacle wiggled free from the meteor's core.

Soon, a ruby one joined in on the dance for freedom. Next, a green hand popped out. Together, the tentacles and the hand grasped either side of the comet, desperate to destroy the prison that still trapped the body they were attached to. Pulling as one, they caused the rock to grunt until, with a Herculean effort, the comet was split into two. Steam immediately rose when the core of the meteor, brimming with heat, was exposed to the Pokémon World's cool air and breeze. The fog was blown away, though, when the creature inside rose into the air and greeted this new planet with pinprick pupils. His blue-green, oval head swiveled this way and that. The two trapezoid-shaped ears he bore were perked and alert. When it was clear that there was nothing around (other than the quivering foliage of trees), the alien landed outside the crater with thin and spindly legs. Deoxys, as he had always dubbed himself, looked down and quizzically felt the carpet of greenery. How strange, was his thought. Deoxys looked back at what had been his home for the past three years. The meteor looked just like how his asteroid home had after that nearby star collapsed: broken and empty. However, he was alive; he had survived, and maybe this strange, new rock could replace his home, even if its ground was soft and its stars weren't so bright and close.

The space dweller turned away from the cold pieces of stone at the bottom of the crater, the amethyst sphere in his chest reflecting the dying embers of his home, and began to rise into the air. With one last look at the field he had disturbed, Deoxys began to fly north, not knowing where he was going but positive that he could find somewhere to rest and recharge.

For a long while, all he passed were forests teeming with Pokémon and more vacant fields. Once or twice, he stopped to inspect the creatures until they were scared enough to run back to their homes. They fascinated him, made him want to explore more. He had always been the only living thing in his small asteroid. Interacting with others, even if it was merely a "greet and run," made him feel a bit less lonely.

It wasn't until he stumbled upon a village that his interest was truly piqued. Dozens of quaint wooden houses were spread along the area, most of them sporting fences that surrounded them and their acres of land. The dirt-paved roads were empty at this time of night, the windows of the houses dark. When he flitted around, he saw more of those Pokémon creatures huddled in the small, rectangular barns behind some of the houses. Although he saw some feathery creatures of orange asleep in wired coops outside the barns and chocolate-colored puffballs that sported two dozing heads near the rooftops, what really made him stop and stare were the pink creatures huddled in the middle of the fenced field. Plump and round, they were sleeping peacefully and unaware of the chilly gust that swept their home. Occasionally, the wind would make their long tails move, causing the bells at the ends to tremble a short tune before they went quiet again. Stray leaves would also pass and snag themselves on the two, small horns that protruded from each head; their four udders would wobble with each snore. Despite all of that, they slept on with no idea that a curious alien was creeping towards them.

Deoxys descended into the swaying, canary-yellow crops on the other side of the Miltank herd, hesitant about coming any closer. Unlike the other Pokémon he had encountered, these were asleep, and he could observe them for a while if he was careful. He didn't want to scare the bovine off by just popping in.

Twin tentacles began to move the stalks of grain aside…

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," echoed a voice.

Small pupils darted to the right and left until the foreign being figured out the words had come from behind him. Deoxys whirled around, tentacles and hand poised at his sides. Eyes narrowed as he saw the newcomer lazily float in the air. Yes, he was curious about what this foot-tall creature was, but anybody who managed to sneak up behind him was dangerous, as dangerous as those collapsing stars. The more he watched the bipedal, salmon-pink Pokémon hover in front of his face, the less curious and more alert he became. The crop stalks hardly moved when the creature's long tail brushed against them, and those celestial blue eyes would never leave him, even when the stranger's small and pointed ears twitched to some faraway sound. Not even he, Deoxys, could be so silent and stealthy.

Finally, after an eternity of black and blue eyes locked together, the furry creature spoke. "Now that I have gotten your attention, let me introduce myself; I am Mew, one of the great Arceus' oldest children."

Mew swept one of his short arms in a bow before straightening up again. Deoxys cocked his head, managing to understand the deity's words but still confused as to why he was here. Mew floated in closer, his cerulean gaze no longer so humble. The wind that had blessed the farm seemed to still until all Deoxys could feel was the psychic's presence; even the Miltank's chiming bells could no longer be heard.

"Since your landing on our planet, you have been watched by unseen eyes," the New Species Pokémon breathed, then grinned when he saw Deoxys' eyes widen in shock. Mew backed up but still kept his satisfied smirk; his tail curled around him, as though it was a snake slithering around its master. "We don't know how things work where you come from, but we have an order here, one that you now must follow if you plan to stay."

Deoxys, though able to understand Mew's speech after analyzing the language the Pokémon he met in the forest spoke, could not speak Pokémon tongue. Instead, he slipped out of his defensive position and inclined his head, showing he understood. Where else was he supposed to go if he was run out of this planet? He was not sure his body could endure another long trip through space. Luck had been on his side; no meteor showers or passing asteroids had hit him. What if his luck had been spent?

The pink pixie widely smiled a smile of superiority. "The Council of Legends will be glad to hear you've agreed to listen."

Then, Mew flew up, high above the now swaying crops. Deoxys followed the Psychic-type's movements with his eyes until Mew motioned with a flick of his tail for him to do the same. Cautiously, the alien floated up and joined the god at his side. Once again, Deoxys got the feeling of every living thing freezing to make Mew's powerful presence known.

"Do you see the mountain range in the horizon?" Mew asked, almost ethereally with the absense of a breeze.

The ruby and aquamarine creature craned his head to see the ridges of brown, but a steady glow of lights on the other side of the mountains caught his eye. They bathed part of the night sky a milky-white, seemingly unwavering. Deoxys started in mid-air. Was that a star? By the blinding light that surrounded it, it looked liked it was about to collapse.

Deoxys began to back up, only to be stopped by a force he couldn't see. Limbs paralyzed and the orb in his chest dimming, Mew faced him and disapprovingly shook his head. His eyes, brimming with the psychic energy he wielded so easily, never left his face as he circled the trapped creature.

"No, no, none of that," he scolded in a condescending manner, unaware of Deoxys' worries. Gazing back at the mountainous range before them, he continued to tell his captive, "There are a multitude of caves that you can hide in while the Council of Legends decides where to place you. You'll be safe from humans, and there are no Pokémon in the mountains who will be able to bypass the shields I will place."

A series of unintelligible squeaks and screeches broke the quiet: Deoxys was trying to verbally communicate his protests since his body could not. Doduo began to stir from where they roosted. Miltank softly mooed, questioning why their sleep was being disturbed. Now sporting a deeply-etched frown, Mew snapped his fingers; Deoxys's mouth was shut with an audible snap. In a deep crevice of his mind, Mew could imagine Arceus reprimanding him for being so harsh to this queer being. However, he didn't care at the moment. The fact that a less powerful creature was disobeying his orders made him grind his teeth in anger.

With his tail now whipping around his frame like a hissing Arbok, Mew narrowed his eyes and took hold of one of Deoxys' frozen tentacles.

"I guess you will have to be taken there," he sighed, as though forced to talk to a disobedient child. Mew shut his eyes in concentration, and right after he felt his power bubbling and coursing through both of them, their images flickered and disappeared with a twinkle of light.

Deoxys sensed that he was tumbling and turning. Head spinning, he felt himself being compressed from many different directions, making him struggle for each breath. With his vision dark and his body still immobile, he could do nothing but stumble and fall into a heap when his frozen feet touched ground. Being roughly pulled up, Deoxys suddenly regained his mobility and vision. Immediately, without even taking a glance at the cave they had materialized in, the asteroid dweller flew away from Mew. His whole body still quivered from the deity's psychic energy, a chilling reminder of how powerful Mew was, despite his childish appearance. The way Deoxys backed up to the rocky wall of the cave actually made his kidnapper chuckle.

"This is where you stay, for now," the furry psychic said nonchalantly, indicating the damp walls, the stalactite-infested ceiling, and the stalagmite-covered floor. Deoxys looked around but was unable to see more than the dripping points of the structures through the blanket of darkness. He had lived on an asteroid, where stars and moons always bathed his home in a veil of light; why was this creature putting him in such a polar-opposite place? As anxious as he was, though, Deoxys was no fool, so he chose to stay quiet, merely breathing in the stale, unmoving air that suffocated him.

"I'll come back to announce what our verdict is." Mew, invisible in the blackness, faced the direction the cave entrance was located at. Deoxys stared blankly at where he assumed his kidnapper was, then jumped back when a trail of glowing violet appeared a couple of feet away. The tendril of power avoided the rocky outcroppings with ease until it rounded a bend and disappeared a second later. A glimmer of light that stopped to steadily let out a sheen of fuchsia told Deoxys that the barrier Mew had mentioned was in place.

"Stay here," were the final words he heard before, just like that, he was left in his grim prison.

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Even when Mew Teleported into Arceus' Chamber, the biggest and most elaborate room in the Hall of Origin, and let out a disgruntled sigh, not a sound could be heard. The Species Pokémon gazed at the moon-white walls and the granite pillars that stretched thirty-feet high to connect with the sloped dome that was the ceiling. Already he felt the dampness and decay of the cave fade away to become a distant memory in his mind. With the light that shone from the curved windows of the ceiling warming his fur, the ancestor of all Pokémon floated beyond the six pillars in front of him (the ones that formed a circle in the middle of the room) and into the center of the chamber, where the golden outline of a star invaded a part of the smooth, limestone floor.

Immediately, he heard the clicking of talons and the flap of wings from up above. Ho-Oh and Lugia, perched on two of the six pillars that did not connect with the ceiling, let their conversation die to gaze at him, silver and rainbow-colored feathers glimmering as they craned their heads. Celebi jumped down from on top of a pillar and became a blur of emerald as she descended towards the floor in a lazy spiral. The small hedgehog that was Shaymin wrinkled her nose when the pixie of time fluttered too close for comfort and scurried towards Cresselia, who was floating beside her grim counterpart, Darkrai. Jirachi shook her head with a small smile and went over to comfort Manaphy, who had been frightened by Celebi's dizzying antics.

Of course, no matter how many Legendaries there were in the room, the pixie of ancestry could never ignore the great god in the center. With his flowing silver fur putting the polished walls to shame, their ten-foot-tall father was automatically the center of attention.

Then again, Mew thought, his spinning, golden wheel that encircles his waist and the four jades on each point always seem to magnify his majestic features.

"Arceus," Mew addressed the Alpha Pokémon when he halted in mid-air. He gave a bow and held it, allowing him a view of the god's pointed, topaz hooves. "I talked to the alien, as you requested."

Every member of the Council of Legends drew in closer, their breaths hushed.

Was this strange creature a danger to Johto if he was allowed to stay? Lugia and Ho-Oh thought as one.

Was this alien powerful enough to possibly become a Legend? Celebi thought with a deep scowl on her face. The prospect of ruling alongside one who wasn't even a Pokémon was a sour one.

Could this foreigner possibly take advantage of the weaker creatures in this world? Cresselia wanted to know.

"Please, do not jump to conclusions," their quadruped leader calmly told them. As their father, he could feel their agitated thoughts, their worries, and immediate mistrust as though they were his own. His children relaxed though still shared meaningful glances. When it was clear their minds were relatively silent, Arceus returned to Mew. "What have you observed?"

The Kanto pixie straightened and said with a hint of boredom, "This alien is like a human child: curious and lost. He doesn't seem too intelligent or resourceful." Mew inclined his head to the side, a frown now stretched taut over his face; he was clearly frustrated that he didn't have Deoxys completely figured out. "Power wise, it's hard to tell. Even when my Psychic immobilized him, I could not delve into his mind to see how powerful this creature is. If I was able to, I might have also been able to decipher his strange language. I did manage to catch the name "Deoxys" very briefly through telepathy, however." With a final sigh, Mew was done.

Not a minute had stretched of silence before Lugia spread his three-tipped wings and descended carefully to the ground. His long tail swished back and forth in his anxiousness, the two navy-colored spikes at the end threatening to send Shaymin and Jirachi flying. "We cannot allow this creature, this "Deoxys," to stay," he gruffly voiced. His coal-black eyes glittered with determination, and the two rows of blue spikes along his back were raised. Craning his long and elegant neck, he saw Ho-Oh, still on the pillar, nodding in agreement. "To underestimate his power is foolish. Who's to say he's not masking his abilities? Johto can lie in ruins if we're too proud and dismiss the possibility."

Cresselia came forward, the violet, celestial rings attached to her sloped back and arms shining while the twin crescents on either side of her head glowed like stars against the sky. Raising her yellow beak towards the Johto trio masters, she nodded to them before saying, "Lugia and Ho-Oh make a convincing argument. By disregarding this otherworldly being solely on Mew's account, Pokémon and humans alike will be endangered. If we force Deoxys to return to space, we can avoid any possible catastrophes."

Arceus acknowledged her words with a bow of his own head, then saw that the shadows next to him shivered and moved. He gracefully moved to let Darkrai have the floor. The Pitch-Black Pokémon let his forest-green orbs sweep over the Council of Legends, as though they all opposed his unspoken thoughts, then focused on Cresselia. The ruby spikes around his neck bristled ever so slightly; the billowing white shadows on his head lengthened. "Should we run out Deoxys, without evidence that he's the monster you're speculating, simply because he could endanger the humans?" Darkrai sent a sharp glare towards Lugia and Ho-Oh, the tattered edges of his body wildly flapping with unseen wind. "Wasn't it humans who destroyed the Tin Tower? Isn't it humans who pollute the lakes that Suicune purifies?"

Ho-Oh flapped her garnet wings so hard that the emerald tips threatened to fall. Like a flaming phoenix, the Rainbow Pokémon landed on the chamber's floor. With golden tail feathers fanned out behind her, Ho-Oh regarded the nightmare creator with a steely, amber gaze. "Do not drag your past into Council affairs, Darkrai! You know perfectly well you were banished from Alamos Town due to your own nightmare-spreading frenzy."

Fisting his hands, the Sinnoh Legendary growled, "You seem to forget that at the time there had been a hallucination-inducing sickness spreading. My nightmares were simply amplified, although it seems that humans and you neglect to take their epidemic into account."

Shaymin hopped closer to the center but was unable to ask her brethren to cease their feuding. As powerful as she was, to be looked down upon by the others, especially those already with heated tempers, made her lime-green fur and the lilac flower nestled among it shake. The Gratitude Pokémon turned her white snout towards Arceus, but the god merely stood back and watched his children settle it out. Manaphy beside her also stayed back and settled for twirling her antennae with her flippers and watching the ends glow. The blood-red gem on her cerulean abdomen flickered, meaning she was unsure about what to do about the quarrels as well.

 

[Phantom Kat]

"Shouldn't we consider the fact that Deoxys could be capable of intelligent conversation? That we may be able to understand him?"

Jirachi floated to the scene, much to Shaymin's relief. Long, butterscotch-yellow tassels fluttered behind her small gray body as she rose into the air and faced her quarreling brothers. "Is it really fair to choose Deoxys's faith for him if he is able to communicate?" The wish granter turned when someone slightly scoffed, making the two teal wish tags on her star-shaped head flutter.

Celebi, who had been silent behind Mew until now, came forward. The cerulean-tipped antennae in his swept, green hair bobbed with his scornful chuckles. Delicate filmy wings flittered as the time traveler joined the Council. "Jirachi, tell me if I have missed your point completely," hints of sarcasm were evident in his tone and in his china-blue eyes, "but exactly what would the Pokémon world gain if we let this creature stay? Even the weakest Pokémon have something to contribute. This Deoxys hasn't shown a speck of usefulness, yet you are offering to let him choose his position in the matter?"

The Hoenn Legendary frowned for only a second before composing herself. "What I'm merely saying, Celebi, is that we should not judge Deoxys's mental capacity without a second thought to the matter. Yes, he may not seem resourceful, powerful, or useful now, but by observing him longer, we may come to a sensible and thought-out conclusion-"

"Is that what you really want, Jirachi?" barked Ho-Oh, the golden feather crest on her head bouncing with each harsh word. "Do you really want to let Deoxys stay long enough for him to be able to show what's he capable of? At what cost would that be? Destroyed towns? Interference with weather patterns? Possible time rips? All for the sake of deciding whether he can stay or not?" Lugia brushed his wing against his counterpart's to sooth her sizzling temper.

"No, it is not," the Wish Pokémon responded curtly. Jirachi tiredly rubbed the top point of her head, the only point that did not harbor a wish tag, and looked over at Arceus. She respected his decision in keeping out of Council matters (other than giving the final verdict in decisions), but she wished that he would assert his authority over his children more often. Maybe that way, Council meetings would not turn into battles of self-interest and prejudice.

"We cannot endanger the Pokémon and human populace merely to welcome in a curious alien," the Time Travel Pokémon drawled. "It is, after all, our duty to protect this world."

Shaymin growled beneath her breath as Jirachi, taken aback at her sister's cynicism, formed an uncharacteristic scowl and began to say, "We are not welcoming anybody, yet we are not supposed to rightly refuse someone a chance to establish themselves on Earth."

"Our duties don't always allow us to be fair with everybody," Mew replied loudly so that his voice echoed against the pristine walls of the chamber for everybody to hear. Calm and cool, he hovered beside Celebi and continued, only the slightly narrowing of his eyes betraying his kind façade, "We must put Earth and its inhabitants first and foremost in all of our decisions, not outsiders. You cannot allow kindn…"

The Kanto Legendary trailed off. His whip-like tail stiffened when a horrendous chill ran down his spine. Small ears flew back at the same time Mew let an undignified snarl rise from his throat. Dismissing Jirachi with a mental flap of his hand, he faced Arceus, bowed, and said with a hint of a growl, "My barrier has been shattered. Deoxys has escaped."

Arceus nodded once, his jade eyes troubled.

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Panic made Deoxys' heart flutter in his chest. Though knowing he shouldn't, the alien looked back.

Amethyst glittered all over the cave mouth he had just left, remnants of the barrier that had kept him prisoner. Rocks had turned to pebbles and pebbles to dust before he had managed to exert all his power and escape. Was he tired? Deoxys wasn't sure. Adrenaline coursed through his veins and kept him flying farther away from the ocher mountain range. Yes, he was out, but did that mean he was in the clear? He bet his tentacles that he wasn't.

Water had stretched below him, calm and undisturbed, but now, a mass of land took its place, along with a flare of bright, and familiar, light. Deoxys halted and let out some frightened calls that pierced the air. He had been so hell-bent on escaping the cave before Mew could notice, so afraid he would be taken again, that he hadn't noticed he had been flying right into the heated star that was ready to implode. Frozen with fear and indecision, he looked back at the mountain range then towards the halo of light that seemed to touch the dark sky. The double-edged sword loomed in his mind's eye, spinning and spinning close. Would getting incinerated be better than whatever Mew had in store for him?

Deoxys chanced a look below him, automatically squinting to see through the blinding glare. Were those creatures moving down there? Moving in the core of a boiling star? Despite every nerve of his body telling him to fly the opposite way, Deoxys inched closer; he faintly noticed that he didn't feel the heat of the celestial light. Yes, there were creatures moving around the rectangular, silver protrusions of the star! The space dweller felt his mind flip in shock. How was it possible?

Suddenly, Deoxys was propelled backwards by an invisible gust. Flipping before stopping when the shock of the hit dwindled, he steadied himself and wildly looked around for his attacker. He caught sight of a green serpent, its blood-red fangs bared and the yellow rings adorning its spiked body glowing with rage, before another Air Slash nicked him in the abdomen and sent him spinning downward. Rayquaza, ruler of Hoenn's skies, clenched his three-clawed hands and followed his target. His spade tail swished as he stopped himself in mid-descend; an aurora had appeared in the night sky.

As the otherworldly lights of purple and pink danced alongside the stars, Deoxys began to change, the sphere in his chest going out. His tentacles and hands thickened into slabs as thick as his body but as flexible as his first limbs. Spindly legs bulged as his chest and head hardened and grew until the alien was encased in a suit of red and green armor. The violet orb flared to life and was ready to serve its Master's Defense Forme.

Rayquaza snorted in indignation, the emerald plates on his body spinning while the twin, flat-ended spikes on his head twitched. "You dare trespass in my domain, no doubt to attack the fair city of LaRousse, and then mock me by putting on disguises?" he roared, fire-yellow eyes on the verge of smoldering. All twenty-three-feet of him bristled as he reared and let loose a torrent of sapphire energy.

Deoxys shielded his body with his broad arms. Specks of burning blue and white showered his head. While he closed his eyes and felt the specks burning his face, his arms unpleasantly tingled. Ignoring the smell of charred skin, Deoxys endured the last of the Dragon Pulse before beginning to flee towards the city. The Sky High Pokémon snarled at the sight and flicked his tail. A gust picked up around him, its chilly breeze doing nothing to cool his out-of-control temper, and with another slap of his tail, it was sent cantering towards the scared foreigner.

Deoxys felt himself be picked up by the Twister, then tossed around as the currents grew faster and stronger, eventually merging into walls of spiraling white that never let him go. The captive, curled into a protective ball, saw from the center of the twenty-foot-high funnel a blur of green coming his way; those electric eyes, already envisioning him at the bottom of the ocean, left him with no doubt.

He was going to have to fight for his freedom.

Tendrils of fuchsia wove through the threads of night a second time. Deoxys' bulky arms thinned into two tentacles while his head lengthened back into an aerodynamic spike. Chest and legs were now thinner and raven-black. His jewel began to glow and power his Speed Forme.

Tentacles whipped about his head, too fast to be effected by the violent gusts that swirled all around him. Then his body began to spin in unison and against the Twister's current. The wind fluctuated and began to unweave itself from the tight cone it had shaped. Wobbling as though on a shaking spindle, the Twister collapsed and thinned out until only wisps of air caressed Deoxys' face. Seeing the trespasser close his eyes for a second of bliss made the dragon's blood boil. With a malicious grin, he slithered towards the morphing creature and clamped down his midnight-black jaws…

On nothing.

The serpent started, and calculating eyes searched the sky for the red menace. Before Rayquaza could draw a breath, tentacles were wrapped and tightened around his windpipe. Deoxys straddled himself on the beast's neck and refused to let go. The deity roared in anger and haphazardly flew around to try and buck the alien. With the wind beating his face, Deoxys flipped forward, his grip on the Legendary still strong. Infuriated eyes narrowed into slits when Rayquaza found Deoxys now sitting on his snout.

"You cowardly little-!"

Then all the hot-blooded Flying-type could see was stars, his head ringing from the Zen Headbutt that had cut off his rant. Deoxys reared back in pain, cringing and mentally cursing himself for not realizing that a recoil was obvious when he was so close to Rayquaza. Magenta sparks still dancing around his head, the Psychic-type flew high into the air and looked down, then quickly regretted it.

The speedy alien looked away, but it did not clear the horrible image that had assaulted his eyes. With fangs alight with the aurora above, he saw them for all their ganet glory. Their points, sharpened into non-existent ends, had been dripping with saliva as thick as the fury in his horrible, golden eyes.

BAM!

With the Scary Face still etched into his mind, Deoxys felt himself falling. As gravity took him to the unforgivable ocean below, pain wove its way through his chest. The sticky, neon-green liquid that was his blood sluggishly dripped down from the slash on his neck and down towards the cracked gem in his chest. Deoxys raised a tentacle to the orb, feeling its energy dim, spreading weakness and exhaustion throughout his body. Not daring to touch the throbbing wound that wound around his throat, he struggled to stop his descent, forcing his eyes to stay open and scout for his enraged foe.

There he was, circling above him like a vulture at high noon. Fangs were split into a satisfied smirk as Rayquaza watched the outsider steady himself. That expression screamed that he wouldn't be let go, not until ten thousand leagues separated Deoxys from the sky. Green and garnet tentacles twitched with mixed emotions. On top of fearing for his life, he was outraged that everybody on this planet wanted to control him, subdue him. Was he being here such an enormous inconvenience? Or were they all simply trying to eliminate any outside competition they saw in order to keep whatever hierarchy of power they had in this planet intact?

It didn't matter. He had traveled for light years, through forming galaxies and asteroid belts, in order to find a place he could call home.

This place was it, and he wasn't going to be forced back into space, to be cold and alone, by this beast!

Extremespeed propelled him towards the snake that dared run him from his home. The wind that had whistled with his fall went silent until he no longer felt a breeze. His beating heart, Rayquaza's breathing, all had disappeared in the vacuum his attack created. Even the tremendous thump! that reverberated when the Dragon-type was sent flying had been totally muffled. When Deoxys did stop, the black that surrounded him returned to be the night sky. The gentle lap of waves returned, followed by his enemy's now labored breathing. So riled up he was that it took him a moment to realize that shimmering, broken dragon scales were raining down.

By that time, the silhouette of Arceus caught his eye. Hidden behind a haggard and fuming Rayquaza, he came towards Deoxys with the calm aura that made the asteroid dweller lower his writhing appendages. As effortlessly as though he had wings instead of hooves, the Alpha Pokémon hovered between the two beings.

"That outsider should be punished!" spat the sky ruler. Although hunched up to stop the aching on his bruised side, he still bared his fangs and narrowed his eyes with every word. "How dare he come upon LaRousse with his evil intentions. If not for me-!"

"You," his creator cut in, authority ringing in that single word, "should have been with the rest of the Council, as I had asked. Ruler of the heavens you may be, your duties as a Legendary are just as important. Besides, Groudon and Kyogre can guard Hoenn for the time you are gone."

Arceus flew towards Deoxys, glancing from the rivulets of green blood that ran down the side of his neck to the lithe body that had managed to stand against Rayquaza's own.

"If you choose to stay here, you must obey the laws of our world. Though it's still not certain whether you will be allowed to make your home on Earth, I will lead you to a place where you may rest and live away from the rest of the Pokémon. Foreigner you may be, you do not deserve this hostility."

"Home on Earth… rest of the Pokémon…"

Deoxys stared then nodded numbly. The aurora above LaRousse faded away when he morphed back to his Normal Forme. Maybe, just maybe, these "Pokémon" creatures weren't all so bad, if he managed to stay away from those that were.

"What about you, Arceus?" Rayquaza asked at length. "Haven't you abandoned your duties if you are here?"

"Do not worry. I assigned Mew and Celebi temporary charge. As my oldest and wisest children, they will make sure the meeting will continue as smoothly as it should."

_____​

A/N: Deoxys originally wasn't going to be a big part of the story (he was only going to have one apperance), but I revised my plot to include him in later chapters. With that aside, comments and criticism are greatly appreciated! ^-^

Next chapter? The Council meeting goes on, but Mew and Celebi decide to touch upon a different, more controversial topic that may very well endanger the human race.

 

[Buoysel]

Curses!
I clicked on the link and read a few lines. I must read more, but I can barely keep my eyes open now. t-t
I'll read and review in the morning, so far (two paragraphs in) looking really good.

EDIT: Well that was certainty inserting. Your description is top notch. I really like how each character has a well thought out personality. It was interesting to read. I am a little curious as to where you are going with this story. You said that Deoxys originally didn't have a bigger part. Which makes me wondering what exactly is this story about. Is it just about the day to day lives of the legendarily?

 

[Phantom Kat]

Curses!
I clicked on the link and read a few lines. I must read more, but I can barely keep my eyes open now. t-t
I'll read and review in the morning, so far (two paragraphs in) looking really good.

EDIT: Well that was certainty inserting. Your description is top notch. I really like how each character has a well thought out personality. It was interesting to read. I am a little curious as to where you are going with this story. You said that Deoxys originally didn't have a bigger part. Which makes me wondering what exactly is this story about. Is it just about the day to day lives of the legendarily?

Wow, I can't believe somebody actually commented, seeing as I'm new here. ^^;

I'm glad you think my description is good; I try to describe as best as I can but without blatantly listing everything or creating a jumble of sentences that don't make sense. Yeah, originally, Deoxys was only going to come out for like, two chapters, then left alone, but a reviewer on another site suggested that I could somehow incoporate Deoxys more since he already seemed a well thought-out character. The result turned out well, and it resulted in some later chapters being less filler-like. I'm glad I did it.

Well, I can't reveal too much (:p), but the Legendaries have a huge role in this story. This story is basically about the lust for more power among them, those who try to stop them, and those who seem to caught in the middle of it all. Later on, you'll be introduced to the human main characters.

Thank you so much for reading! I hope you stay tune for more! :3 Chapter two will probably be posted around Wednesday. I want to give people a chance to notice my story first before I start posting the chapters I've already written. ^^;

- Kat

 

[Phantom Kat]

Chapter 2: Proposition and Consequence​

For a while, silence reigned over Arceus' Chamber. The Legendaries looked at each other in mute shock before redirecting their gazes at the spot their father had disappeared from. None of them really thought that Deoxys was capable of such power, even when they considered the fact that he had survived a travel through space. To break through Mew's barrier (or obliterate it, as some of them saw it) was something only a select few could hope to manage. And then, they realized with a start, he had enough power still to hold his own against Rayquaza, the most ruthless of their brethren. It wasn't until the psychic remnants of Arceus' portal settled to the floor and disappeared that a deity finally spoke.

"That alien," Ho-Oh managed to say, his regal features stuck somewhere between fury and awe. "That alien…" She trailed off, not knowing how to put what just happened into words. Instead, Ho-Oh straightened and screeched to her kin, "See what this Deoxys is capable of?! He bypassed Mew's barrier, faced Rayquaza, and lived to tell about it!" Lugia quieted his sister and decided to continue the declaration in a calmer manner.

"Deoxys is powerful. Dare I say it, as powerful as some of us here. Now that we know what he's capable of, do we still want him on Earth?"

The trio master directed his last question towards Mew and Celebi, the only ones not gathered around the center. Now, though, both pixies rose into the air and hovered above their siblings. The creases in their brows and the firmness of their chins had not changed since Arceus named them the Council's temporary leaders.

"Do you not see?" Mew asked of his brothers and sisters with a slight shake of his head. "Did you not hear Arceus' words as he projected them to our minds? Deoxys' fate has already been sealed; Father decided upon having the alien join us as a Pokémon. Is there any use in foregoing this meaningless debate?"

None could deny Arceus' words just as no one could deny his fatherly nature. With what Deoxys had been through, Arceus was sure to treat him as his own child; even some of the Legends sympathized for Deoxys' wounds and shook their heads at their brother's horribly violent nature.

"Now," Celebi announced, stoic expression morphing into a satisfied smirk. "Mew and I have a more pressing matter to attend to, one that involves humans rather than Pokémon. I am, of course, talking about Purgatory."

With all eyes on her, the time manipulator ascended and seated herself on a pillar's top. Feeling very much like a queen upon her throne, she nonchalantly waved a hand in the air. "Purgatory, as we all know, is a world separate from our fair Heaven," Celebi motioned to the Hall of Origin, the center of the world above the clouds, "and from Earth."

As Mew joined Celebi at her side, Jirachi floated back towards the shadows and pursed her lips in disapproval. They were delivering their "proposal" as though reciting a script. Exactly for how long were they thinking about this?

"Purgatory," Mew continued, unaware of the wish granter's thoughts, "is used to hold human souls until their one-on-one Judgment with Arceus. Will they be reincarnated as humans, as Pokémon, forced to be the servants of Death's minions, allowed permanent residence in Heaven, or destroyed?"

Mew's becoming playful, Jirachi noted, the pillars' shadows hiding her scowl. Which means he's enjoying whatever they're planning.

"However, despite the efforts of Arceus, Death, and his Dusknoir guards," contempt rang when Mew mentioned the Grim Reaper then quickly disappeared, "too many souls are accumulated in the dimension, and with more and more humans dying in their Region War in Johto, souls are going to spend centuries in Purgatory. Those of sinful humans get worse, and those of the pure are stained by them."

"Our proposition," Celebi picked off before the Legendaries could speak, "is to destroy those sinful souls without Arceus' Judgment, thus sparing the pure and keeping Purgatory orderly."

Jirachi could feel her jaw dropping open in shock and outrage. Before she banish the surprise and react, Darkrai chuckled hollowly.

"I must say," he remarked, sounding as gleeful and snide as Celebi had moments ago. "That has to be the most remarkable idea either of you have ever proposed."

Cresselia frowned at the smile her counterpart wore. Their relationship had always been shaky, for their views conflicted since their creation, and now, she cocked her head with a cynical glare. "Enlighten me on exactly how this idea is so magnificent," she commanded dryly.

The Dark-type didn't miss the look. Instead of countering with his own, sarcastic remark, he spoke while motioning with his hands, "A sinful soul will always be a sinful human, even when their memories are wiped when reincarnated." It wasn't fact but merely his opinion. To his advantage, it was also Cresselia's, who always looked out for humanity to try and keep them all as pure as possible. "Do you want those sinful souls to be reincarnated again and again to plague towns and cities? If what Mew says is true, pure souls will turn sinful in Purgatory, which will just make this cycle deadlier."

The Lunar Pokémon, for the first time in a long while, could not find something in Darkrai's words to complain or correct. Cresselia tilted her head in thought until she finally found the words she was looking for. She agreed with everything he said, but that didn't mean she had to admit it so bluntly. "There might be truth to your words, Darkrai," she carefully said (Cresselia saw the Pitch-Black Pokémon give an all-knowing grin). "But how do we go about deciding which souls have sinned? Arceus has been the solve giver of Judgments since time began."

Again Jirachi opened her mouth to speak, and again her chance was snatched away.

"Isn't it obvious?" Ho-Oh asked loudly, slightly annoyed. "Mew and Celebi have already thought about that. They are the ones who are going to make those extra Judgments. Arceus is likely to say yes, seeing as how they are his first created."

"Do you have any other candidates in mind?" Mew offered, arms crossed.

The phoenix chuckled and shook her head. "No I don't, so you don't have to get off your pedestal. As long as you don't get rid of half of Purgatory's population at once, I have no qualms."

"Yes," Cresselia agreed. "As long as the sinning souls are disposed of with no mass wipeout, I suspect that this will be very beneficial."

"Sounds good, sounds good," Manaphy chorused, no longer quiet now that the majority of the Legendaries agreed. She admired her older brothers and sisters and trusted their judgment more than her own.

"Enough! Absolutely not!" Jirachi finally cried, her long, butterscotch tassels billowing behind her like flames when she soared to the center of the chamber. Jirachi locked her eyes with Mew and Celebi (both unaffected by the dragger-like glare) and then to the rest of the Council. "You are proposing to destroy souls, what Arceus reserves only for the truly horrible, to simply stop them from mingling with the ones you consider pure?! We cannot, will not, resort to a holocaust because of bias."

The dual-type looked over to Shaymin, who was staring up at her with wide, green eyes. Jirachi's confidence waned at the sight. Yes, her Grass-type friend was shy and timid when among the oldest Legendaries, but she still expected her to back her up. Still, Jirachi's determined voice rang when she demanded, "Do you, Shaymin, also see that this is not the way to fix Purgatory? That this is a crazy notion!"

Though her snow-white face hid it well, the Gratitude Pokémon blanched. Shell-shocked, her stare automatically went to the two Legends running the show. Mew and Celebi simultaneously raised brows, challenging the smallest of their siblings to defy them. Their cold, stony expressions made Shaymin shirk back. They were centuries older than her, and every wise and powerful year shone in their narrowed eyes. Young and inexperienced as she was, was it smart to speak against them?

"Shaymin…"

Turning, the hedgehog met Jirachi's amber eyes. It wasn't the betrayal in them that stung her heart but the plead that laid in their depths. To see Jirachi so vulnerable and knowing she was the cause was too much for Shaymin to bear. She guiltily lowered her eyes and said nothing.

"I will inform Arceus of our decision, then," Mew announced. "Sinned souls will be Judged and disposed off in an orderly manner to bring order to Purgatory." He paused and glanced at the chamber's occupants. "This meeting is over. Thank you all for your time."

Shaymin looked up, an apology forming on her lips, but Jirachi had already teleported away without a simple farewell.

_____​

Jirachi had never been one for violence, but the moment she got away from Heaven, she wanted to slam her fist against a wall again and again until it crumbled. Frustration, betrayal, and anger coursed through her veins like white fire, making the two wish tags on her headdress tremble. Fisting her hands, the Legend took a couple of deep breaths and calmed down. She was not Rayquaza or Ho-Oh, who resorted to violence when faced with blood-boiling situations. Jirachi was calm, level-headed, and dealt with problems in a rational manner.

With that mindset, the Steel-type looked around her, slightly comforted by the cave she called home sweet home. But again, she didn't want to wallow in her emotions. There was a half-formed plan weaving in between her thoughts, one that she would have called desperate at any other time, and going through with it might help solve this mess. Jirachi flew past the glowing, green crystals embedded in the rocky walls, past the trickle of water that filled the small pond at the center of her home, and to the forest outside. Flying through the tree canopies that hid the cave entrance, she hovered at the edge of the thick forest.

Morning was breaking on the horizon, but the cluster of trees and their leafy foliage blocked out the thin rays of growing sunlight. The giant, deathly-still grass was covered in shadows as dark as the nearly-black trunks of the trees. Somewhere among all of the plants, there were Bug Pokémon; she could hear their morning chatter all around, like a never-ending symphony that did not want to be found. If the overgrown canopies didn't cast enough of a shadow, the mountain in which her home was carved into blanketed the area in velvet-black.

"I'll be back," she told the forest and its unseen singers. A small part of her didn't even want to go. It would be so easy to just go along with the rest of the Legends' decision.

Then Jirachi remembered the conniving glint in Mew and Celebi's eyes and dismissed the ridiculous idea.

She breathed in the smell of oak and rot before holding her short hands before her. Jirachi called upon every star, every moon, and every galaxy hidden behind the sun's glare into the tips of her fingers. Power she had only wielded a handful of times flooded into her palms, lighting them up like miniature suns. Closing her eyes, the psychic envisioned the invisible veil that separated Earth from her destination. With the celestial energy in her hands, she brushed her fingers against the air and could feel the barrier. She felt death, sin, and the purity of all the souls that had passed from this world to the next. Goosebumps rose all along her arms; her wish tags stood on end.

Jirachi moved her hands counterclockwise, tracing a circle to carefully undo the seams of the barrier. Although her ability to manipulate space allowed her to do so, the barrier still fought her, screaming, You are not Death! You are not his servants! Why do you wish to enter, stranger? But she kept on until she had completed the portal and left her home to enter Purgatory.

"I will not be long," she told the portal. Through the beads of sweat that trickled down her forehead and into her eyes, she saw the tattered edges of the veil flapping, revealing and obscuring the forest scenery on the other side. With some flicks of her wrist, the edges slithered to the center of the opening and wound around themselves until only the light of Earth could be seen through the cracks. Though it was safer, she dared not completely close it; what if she was too tired to create a new portal after her business was taken cared of?

It wasn't until she was sure that the gap between Purgatory and Earth was strong enough to keep souls and Pokémon out yet weak enough for someone of her power to re-open it without too much trouble that she noticed the odd sheen of red on her hands. Startled, she turned them but found it wasn't blood. When the glow was seen on her abdomen and legs, Jirachi was quick enough to figure out that the source of color was coming from up above.

A scarlet and orange sky greeted her to this strange and new dimension. The wisps of gray that never seemed to move did nothing to remind her of the sky on Earth. Shaking her head to clear the cobwebs of gloom from her thoughts, Jirachi looked at either side of her. To her right, she saw a mountain range that she could not help but compare to Rayquaza's fangs: sharp and a blood-stained garnet. Beneath the landmarks, there was nothing but barren fields of hard, cracked earth.

While the scene on the left wasn't much better, there was some kind of spiral that reached for the sky. The hesitant Pokémon took off in that direction, knowing from talks with Arceus that Death lived in a tower of some sort. The flight was dreary and tedious, as there was nothing to see except mile after mile of desolate land. Once or twice, she could have sworn that she saw a human walking below her, but upon a second glance, the wandering soul was gone like the nonexistent wind in Purgatory. As though to reassure her that she wasn't going crazy, she spotted Dusclops guards every couple of minutes. Their gray, stocky bodies stuck out like sore thumbs over the yellow plains.

At least they're always there in case I need directions, she couldn't help but think tartly. She had spent less than an hour in Purgatory and already the scenery (or lack thereof) annoyed her to no end. She loved lush, secluded forests and the freeness of outer space, not this dimension that made her feel as though she was trapped in some twisted, frozen hourglass.

With no warning, the flat desert beneath her dipped to form a large and deep valley. Here, she saw souls, all of them in the guises of the humans they once were, walking around the village hidden in the deep bowl of earth. Jirachi, startled by the sight of the wooden houses, complete with fences, gardens, and mailboxes, stopped dead in her tracks. If it wasn't for the gruesome sky, the parched terrain, and the Dusclops guards and their servants around every corner, she would have thought she had accidentally taken a wrong turn and ended up back on Earth. Things like leisure conversations going on in the streets and kids playing in their yards could be seen everywhere. They had work buildings, churches, and schools (all of them worn and weather-beaten as though they had been taken straight from their places on Earth) to allow them to live life as they would have before their deaths. The souls didn't even seem to see the guards or the world they lived in as they went about their "lives."

All of it boggled the Legendary's mind until she focused on the tower at the far end of the valley. Flying above houses and buildings, she reached the odd structure. With stones a decaying gray, it started normally enough with a thick, wooden door built into the cylindrical base. When she slowly flew up, the tower veered off to the right, then to the left, then back again like a drunken serpent. In the process, the tower walls ranged from missing some bricks to having nothing but the twisting, stone stairwell inside. Jirachi shot towards the room on the tower's tip, which was curiously enough intact (even the pointed roof had most of its dusty-red shingles). Dodging the bricks that had decided to separate from the walls and stairwell to float around, she perched on the sole window of the room. Unsure of how to announce her presence, she tried knocking on the stone, but when she heard the knock was quieter than a pin drop, Jirachi decided to call out into the dark room.

"Hello?" she tried. "I'm sorry to disturb you, Death, but I need to urgently talk to you. It's of grave importance."

There was no answer. Jirachi leaned in, squinting against the overwhelming gloom that covered every inch of the place. Other than a faint, metallic glint in one of the walls, there was nothing but black, black, and more black.

"Hello?" the Legendary repeated, more hesitant than ever.

Again, only silence answered. Putting a hand against the window's edge and the other on her forehead, Jirachi mentally slapped herself for her stupidity. It hadn't even crossed her mind that Death might be out collecting souls or attending pressing matters in other parts of Purgatory. She might be waiting for weeks, even months, for him to return; she could already imagine countless souls destroyed by that time.

 

[Phantom Kat]

"Yes?"

With a yelp, Jirachi jumped back from the Pokémon that suddenly materialized in her face. Almost tripping on her tassels, she gripped the side of the window and straightened herself with as much dignity as someone who had just been scared senseless could muster.

"Good day," she greeted the phantom inside the room. The red eye centered in his cylindrical head narrowed as the three silver spikes on either side of his neck flared out; he was not happy. He rose higher into the air, exposing his rotund, dark gray stomach and the golden zigzag on it that stretched into a frown. Getting a glare from both his ruby eye and the two yellow ones on his abdomen, Jirachi decided to square her shoulders and respond with her own, firm look.

"Death," Jirachi addressed the Dusknoir. "I have something urgent to discuss with you. It has to do with something the Council of Legends agreed upon no more than a few hours ago. I-"

"I have no interest in talking with you, Jirachi," Death told her. He turned and flapped a thick, gray hand to her as parting. "Good day to you, too," he added sarcastically.

Jirachi grinded her teeth at the slap to the face. She was not going to tolerate another dismissal. Soaring into the room after him, she pointed a finger at the ghost's back and barked, "Death, this is a serious matter that cannot be ignored!" When he did not turn, the space wielder ordered in a booming yell, "Halt and face me, Death! Do not walk away from a Legend!"

The Ghost-type obeyed, though his grinning eye and the short laugh that echoed from deep within his stomach still taunted her. "Jirachi, you have no right to call yourself a Legend while Purgatory is in this state. Do you see forests and meadows from where Shaymin has blessed the land with her power? Are there any stars that you and Cresselia have put or any oceans that Lugia has brought forth with his rains? You and your ilk are just hatchlings with power."

"This is not Earth," the dual-type hotly responded.

"The souls that reside here think it is," was the reply. Dusknoir approached her, only to pass by and peer out the window. Jirachi turned and looked on from behind, watching the wandering dots below. "There are houses and buildings to try and simulate their past lives on Earth. We have even created illusions of a soul's family and loved ones to fool them further. Throughout their stay, they believe they have never left Earth. In this manner, when their time to be Judged finally comes, they will be as though they barely moved on. Or so, that was the plan."

Here, he glanced at her, sadness softening his glare. "Eventually, some notice the lack of weather, of changing seasons, and life beyond them. Eventually, they come to realize that this is not Earth and that they have died. They call it 'Hell' and make their way out of their settlements and into the open land. Most of the time, my guards manage to return them and enchant them anew. Other times, souls are lost in the harsh vastness of Purgatory. Of course, when their Judgment comes, Arceus always manages to find them. By that time, they have wallowed in their ill discoveries for many long years, however."

Entranced by the oblivious souls, Jirachi shook her head and sighed. "I never knew that. I always thought… Never imagined…" She trailed off, shook her head at her own folly, and turned to the melancholy reaper. Death began to wander back into the room, which Jirachi now saw was bare for anything but a scythe hanging on a wall; it's curved blade had been the shine she had seen earlier.

"I came here to help, Death," she began again, drifting a few steps behind him. "The Council of Legends, or rather, Mew and Celebi, intend to steadily wipe out those souls they think of as sinned; they believe Purgatory is too crowded and unorganized. I am afraid that Arceus will agree to this because they are his oldest children and thus, the wisest. Is there anything you can say or do to prevent this?" Her voice had dropped an octave when she began her plead. "It seems that I'm the only one who objects, and my voice goes ignored without anybody else's to aid me. I have no doubt in mind that this will end badly for the human race."

Death's eye narrowed. "It's true that Purgatory becomes crowded, even with other settlements besides this one spread throughout the dimension. Dusknoir guards are only used to make sure no rips in the barrier occur and to keep the souls in their proper areas. They do not have the power that I do, the power to lay enchantments needed to raise the land for a new settlement. I would create many more if my job of collecting souls did not drain my power and time. Even now, though I'm here, I can do nothing more than teleport."

Jirachi raised a hopeful brow. "So if a Legendary was able to have your powers, this crisis could be solved? With more homes and room for the souls, could we avoid this looming catastrophe?"

With a sigh that was half sad, half frustrated, the ghost laid a hand on the hanging scythe and said, "I'm sorry, but I do not trust a Legendary to wield this power. Purgatory is my domain, and I will rule it only beside a being who will follow my orders and nobody else's. They need to be loyal, trustworthy, and most of all, understand the true value of power and responsibility." Death traced the two, v-shaped cuts engraved on the edge of the scythe's blade then ran his fingers down the four-foot-long ebony handle. "I have this made and waiting for the soul that I deem worthy to be all of that, but no one of that nature has come."

Deflated, the space Legendary asked, "Is that the only way you would be able to prevent this mess?"

"There's nothing else I can do. The Council has made up its mind." When Death saw Jirachi lean against the wall, drained from everything she had to endure that day, he floated up to her. "Is there anybody else who disagrees with this?"

The Psychic-type looked up, surprised to see Death sympathetically staring down at her. She only answered with a mumbled, "I'm sure that Shaymin shares my opinion; I could see it in her eyes, but she's much too timid to talk against Mew and Celebi." The harsh thorn of betrayal dug into her heart.

"Well, I'm glad to hear that there are truly Legendaries out there who are not wrapped up in their own issues, even if they do not speak out," the Grim Reaper admitted. At the smile she heard weaving through his words, Jirachi faced him again and realized he wasn't as cold as she previously thought. The face on Death's stomach didn't seem as angry, and that harsh shine to his eye was gone. "I apologize for assuming you were one."

As much as the words chased away the ill feeling of betrayal, Jirachi dismissed them with a weak wave of her hand. "You were right to assume. Like you said, look at this place! No stars, no moon, no atmosphere, all of the things I could have created centuries ago are absent. It's my responsibility to take care of Pokémon and humans alike, even when Earth is no longer their home, and I did not uphold to my duties."

"It's never too late to start," Death advised. "You can still give Purgatory and its residents all of that."

"But first I have to sort Mew and Celebi's mess out!" she cut in, again anxious. Jirachi now hovered above him and glanced out the tower's window. "No matter what it takes."

"What do you plan to do?" Death probed. He unhooked the scythe from the wall and began to skillfully swing it about. It was a habit he had formed over the past century. The paranoia that the perfect assistant would come yet the scythe would be dull and powerless, unable to be used, haunted him like a nightmare. As he inspected the ivory skull nestled at the top, Jirachi looked away from the hollowed, pitch-black eye sockets.

"Talk to Arceus about alternate ways to improve Purgatory's state," she answered. "Either he wasn't aware of what we Legends can do for this dimension or he neglected to mention it, he will listen. He might also be willing to help with finding you an assistant." Jirachi bowed and said, "Thank you for your help."

The reaper met her eyes. "Go fulfill your duty, Legend." He closed his eye and nodded towards her. "Though I am powerless, I feel not all is lost for the souls in Purgatory."

His version of a compliment, Jirachi realized with a small smirk.

With a wave, the psychic flew out the window. When her tassels fluttered out of sight, Death took one last look at his scythe and placed it back on its hook on the wall. He was sure that one day, it would be in hands other than his own. Until then, he would rule over Purgatory with nobody but his shadow at his side.

_____​

Sitting on the ledge of a mountain so much more different than the one back home, Jirachi could see the Purgatory village in the distance. Looking over her shoulder, she saw the faint glow of power that kept the barrier rip from opening. It was so close, but in a way, it was so far from her grasp.

With a short flight, she could be back on Earth, in her cave, or soaring through the skies to find Arceus.

Yet something compelled her to stay.

Jirachi glanced at the ruby and orange sky and couldn't help but compare it to a melancholy sunset. With the clouds never moving and the harsh glare forever beating down on the hardened plains, she truly wondered whether this dimension was frozen in time. Leaning back, she immediately straightened when she felt the sharp rocks protruding from the mountain's rocky, garnet surface.

"This is so different from Heaven and Earth," she thought aloud.

What must it feel like to look up and see no moon or sun? That, more than anything, made Jirachi shiver. Didn't these souls deserve the same world as the souls in Heaven? Didn't they have the right to live under a cluster of stars and a joyous sun just as those deemed worthy enough to live in an internal paradise did?

Yes, she answered her question. Yes they do.

"Where have you been hidden?" Jirachi asked the forsaken world. "I could have helped sooner."

"You! Up there!"

The wish granter grasped the edge of the ledge and looked down. Ten-feet below was the madly waving figure of a male soul. When the Pokémon just continued to stare, he jumped up and down and resumed his shouting.

"You! Legend! There's something you need to know!"

"What is it?" Jirachi questioned, coming down. "And how did you kn-?"

"Never mind that!" the man shouted. He adjusted his collapsing top hat over his sandy-brown hair. Everything from his suit, dark dress pants, and polished shoes were covered in a fine layer of yellow dust (Jirachi even had to wonder if brown was his natural hair color). If he had been alive, he would have been huffing and puffing. His semi-translucent form and the fact that that he was in Purgatory told the Legendary he was a soul, and because of that, the stranger kept on talking in the same anxious tone without a hitch to his breath. "My friend is in trouble! I don't know where he is!"

"Be calm, be calm," the Steel-type told him. "Where was your friend sighted last?"

"Celebi and Mew took him!" the being cried, ignoring her words. Jirachi stiffened at the names and began to demand where this had happened, but the silver-eyed man (for all souls lost their eye color when they passed on) was too caught up to stop. "They just took him! I knew they were coming back for me, so I high-tailed it!"

"Where did-?" the Legend started to say but was cut off. Déjà vu settled into her; hadn't she been interrupted enough today?

"I'm lucky to have made it this far! I saw no Dusclops guards anywhere…"

"But where did this take pl-!"

"… They might be behind me as we speak! I swear that-!"

Uneasy and nervous to the point of trembling, Jirachi snapped and took hold of the soul by his shirt collar, screaming in his face, "For the love of Arceus, from where was your friend taken?!"

The soul clamped his mouth shut and obediently pointed to another small range of mountains behind him. He was then unceremoniously dropped to the dirt when Jirachi took off towards the bloodied needles, her psychic aura brimming with ferocity.

_____​

A/N: Okay, I couldn't wait. xD

And meet another very important character of the story: Death. Jirachi and Death's discussion turned out very different than I had expected, as well the revelation of the scythe and Purgatory itself. I'm very happy how it came out. I just hope I don't stray too much from the outline I already have. xD

There's a pun in there, if somebody can spot it. :p

Oh yes; I'll be making profiles of the three worlds (Purgatory, Earth, and Heaven) soon and will add more as the story progresses.

What it's in store for next chapter? A very dangerous fight that will include the basis of our plot.

 

[Buoysel]

I certainly enjoyed this chapter just as much as the last, if not even more. I found it annoying that it was in two posts. I finished the first and though to my self "hell of a cliffhanger, just left off mid conversion" Then I scrolled down a little and noticed that a second post. lol

I am pretty sure that you have more then enough space in one post to fit it in as it is not a supper long chapter.

 

[Phantom Kat]

I certainly enjoyed this chapter just as much as the last, if not even more. I found it annoying that it was in two posts. I finished the first and though to my self "hell of a cliffhanger, just left off mid conversion" Then I scrolled down a little and noticed that a second post. lol

I am pretty sure that you have more then enough space in one post to fit it in as it is not a supper long chapter.

I'm really glad you liked it. :3 This is also one of my favorite chapters, and it's probably because of Jirachi and Death's conversation.

Sorry about the two posts for one chapter thing. PokemonElite2000 has a 20K limit for each post, which made me split this chapter (and others) into two posts. I don't know if this forum has the same limit, but I'll see when I post the next chapter. The last thing I want is a confused reader. ^^;

- Kat

 

[Buoysel]

I'm really glad you liked it. :3 This is also one of my favorite chapters, and it's probably because of Jirachi and Death's conversation.

Sorry about the two posts for one chapter thing. PokemonElite2000 has a 20K limit for each post, which made me split this chapter (and others) into two posts. I don't know if this forum has the same limit, but I'll see when I post the next chapter. The last thing I want is a confused reader. ^^;

- Kat

I think the limit here is 50,000.

 

[Phantom Kat]

Chapter 3: Where their Loyalties Lie​

More than ever, Jirachi felt she was trapped in a cursed hourglass. The sands of time were pouring down much too fast, disrupting the flow and threatening to shatter the delicate glass. Celebi and Mew had started destroying souls; she felt it deep in her heart. Curling her fingers, she stole a glance at the dreary, ruby sky above her, knowing that Arceus was still beyond the frozen clouds, helping Deoxys find a home.

While sand billowed around her speeding frame, obscuring her view, her emotions were unmoving. The anger and horror had been frozen in place the moment the male soul had weaved his tale. There was no time to think things through or wonder how her brother and sister were bold and conniving enough to do this. Even if she did, Jirachi didn't think she would ever come to a conclusion. Both of them had always been a mystery, preferring company with each other and Arceus rather than with the rest of their brethren. Were they snobbish? No, she didn't think that was the case. Arrogant? Possibly, but the way they held themselves and manipulated the conversations around them made it seem as though they had a right to be as controlling as they were.

Manipulative. Controlling. Maybe Celebi and Mew didn't portray themselves as arrogant siblings but rather manipulative and controlling parents that wanted to morph their children into the mold they saw fit, even if it meant going behind Arceus' back.

Jirachi snapped back to the present, a slight shiver traveling down her spine; she felt a source of great power near, though she couldn't be sure whether it was one of her siblings. More alert than ever, she looked around.

Before her eyes, looming closer and closer, was the mountain range. The light brown, almost orange, fangs of stained earth ran towards the right and left, each fiercer looking than the others. Their sides, from afar, seemed to be worn smooth until only a faded rust reflected the glaring sky above. It wasn't until she got closer that she realized that the mountain sides were actually slabs of rock overlaid over one another, much like cracked roof shingles. There were points in the strange pattern that splintered pieces of stone rose up from the mountain, and when they overlapped, piles of the needle-like structures laid precariously in the shadows the rock slabs caused.

"Wait… those aren't shadows," she realized, before clamping her mouth shut; if Mew and Celebi were around, she didn't want to reveal her location just yet.

They're caves, the Legend continued mentally. She then corrected herself upon a closer look. Or more like alcoves or caves in the mountain.

With nothing but the wind the flight created whistling through her tassels, Jirachi dared to swoop closer to the mountain side. Sure enough, what she had thought were shadows turned out to be pitch-black openings hidden by the shingle-like rock slabs and the protruding stone needles that crisscrossed the entrances. The Legend paused and looked around. The soul's friend was nowhere in sight and neither were her headstrong siblings. Mentally, she cursed herself for not drilling him for more information. Yes it was urgent to stop Mew and Celebi, but going in with nothing but blind rage was a mistake on her part.

And here she thought she was levelheaded and rational.

With a sigh mounting on her lips, Jirachi weaved through upturned rock slabs, grasped the stone needles, and peered inside the overwhelming darkness. She wished she possessed night vision or that it was safe enough to call forth a psychic orb of energy to light her way. Unfortunately, neither was an option, so she had to settle for squinting her eyes and rubbing noses with the needles. Her ears strained for a sound, any sound that told her that this mountain was the one the soul had come from. If she had to search every mountain in this chain until she found her brother and sister…

A gust of wind hit her face before it was gone. Jirachi blinked, then looked inside the cave with shining eyes. There was no wind in Purgatory, so somebody inside had caused the gust, not a passing gale. Her breathing slowing until it only rattled in her throat, Jirachi carefully wheedled herself through the gaps the needles made. Grunting softly, she reached into the cave and pulled herself in using the protruding stalagmites for support. One broke midway though her squirming, however, and losing her balance, she fell into the cave with a sharp cry of pain.

In a crumpled heap, the Legend picker herself up, bumping against the point of a needle that had chipped off and slashed her side. If it was stained red, she couldn't see it in the shafts of light that filtered in; everything under the Purgatory daylight had a crimson tint to it. Throwing it aside, she tried to hover, only to have her head collide with the roof.

"These are Arceus-forsaken tunnels, not caves," she whispered bitterly, faintly realizing she sounded like Ho-Oh or Darkrai.

With one hand on the tunnel wall, she walked in deeper, the other in front of her and feeling for those stalagmites that were scattered around. More than once, some of the cave wall chipped off in her grip, and she would wrinkle her nose as plumes of dust surrounded her. When it happened for the fifth time, a seed of fear bloomed in her chest. The possibility that the tunnel could cave in at any given moment was now mocking her. With steely determination, though, she pushed the thought to the back of her mind and kept on stumbling through the dark. Just like every other misgiving she had since her arrival in Purgatory, it had to wait and could not be pondered on at a time like this.

After what seemed like an eternity of hearing nothing but her own breathing, the hint of a chuckle came to her ears. It grew louder when she quickly shuffled through the tunnel, not even pausing to avoid the rocky outcroppings in her way. The edge's sudden appearance was more than enough to stop her. Jirachi gripped a stalagmite, hid behind it, and tried to see what was going on among the shadows.

She managed to conclude that what laid in front of her was one huge, empty chamber dotted with tunnel entrances. Then, a bright, emerald light chased away the darkness. Behind the luminous Celebi came Mew wrapped in light of bright magenta. The two Legendaries shared a look that spoke of the responsibility they had decided to take on and of the satisfaction they were going to get out of it. Both effortlessly meandered towards the human figure suspended in the middle of the gargantuan, hollow room of stone. Glimmering tendrils of pink and green held him up by his arms like a rag doll. Locks of ebony hair were limp over his extremely pale face, but the light his chains shed illuminated the terrified look he was trying to hide. With his white dress shirt torn in numerous places, his leather vest held on by a single button, and dust-coated black pants and shoes, he looked as tired and haggard as his friend.

"I think you should be honored," Mew started, putting a finger under the soul's chin and tipping it so that they were face-to-face, "that you should be the first one to be Judged by us."

Frantic, gray eyes looked away from the deity's piercing blue. Celebi scowled and forcibly took the man's face in her hands, forcing him to lock gazes with her. "Don't turn away from Judgment, coward!"

The word 'coward', more than anything, made the soul react. Faded eyes hardening, he dared to retort, "I'm no coward!"

"Yes, you are by far the bravest soul who has graced the planet," Mew mocked him, disgust spreading over his facial features like a plague. "You, who left your family for dead when your house was consumed by flames."

Just like that, the man's face was wiped of its indignation. A feeling of guilt and remorse now assaulted his eyes. "I went for help," he tried to explain. When silence met his ears, he burst out, "I went for help!"

Mew and Celebi shared an unconvinced glance then returned their gazes to the soul. "You ran when there was a chance to lead your family out," Celebi spat. "You heard their cries from the smoke-filled rooms. You are a coward unfit for a second chance of life, Willard McGrady."

"I WENT FOR HELP!" Willard bellowed, willing the Legendaries to understand. Ghostly tears leaked from his shut eyes and trailed down his cheeks, before falling down into the black abyss below. Despite the fact that his tears turned to rivers, Willard could not feel them. He had discovered long ago that each tear was merely a phantom of a real one he had shed back on Earth; he had cried so much when he lost everything that even two hundred years later, Willard could still cry.

"Unfortunately for you," Mew dryly quipped, coming closer, "help never came." The god floated over to Willard's right, where bindings of rose-pink constricted his wrist.

"So there's no afterlife for you, and there never will be," the Grass-type said on a fading breath. She floated towards the soul's left, the bright, jade chains that wrapped around his left wrist beginning to tighten until a tendril of power slithered down his arm and towards the man's neck. Willard had settled for letting his tears cascade down his face in silence, but upon feeling the chain extend and wrap around his windpipe, he let out a gasp. Not only was the energy snake beginning to cover his eyes as it wound itself around his neck and then up his face, but he was suddenly freezing cold. Willard shivered when he felt Mew's bindings wound around his right, paralyzed fingers. They were mocking him, treating his soul like a toy that could be cast away when bored with, but he was too horrified to care.

"Uggh!" Celebi grunted, pushed away by an unseen force. She flipped backwards, the green chains on their captive ceasing their movement, and touched her chest. Spots of blood appeared on her emerald and lime-green torso, and her hand hovered over a cut before she grasped the air and pulled. The invisible star materialized in between her fingers, and the rest of the Swift attack on her chest vanished in a sudden flare of aura, leaving nothing but crimson cuts. Mew stopped the manipulation of his own chains and instead locked glares with the figure that had appeared in the chamber.

"Jirachi," Celebi growled when her sister rocketed out of her hiding spot. "How dare you interfere?!"

"How dare I?!" Jirachi screeched. She closed in on them, her body alight with a crystalline shade of azure. "You have no right to do this!"

"Delaying the inevitable is foolish!" Celebi barked back.

But the space dweller dove straight towards Willard and grabbed his left wrist, sending a surf of her aura into him. Cerulean destroyed pulsating green with multiple flashes of white.

The dead man yelled when he felt himself falling. Fear coursed through his still heart, and he looked up to the pink bindings that held him up, his free arm dangling uselessly at his side.

Without warning, Mew zipped by his face and clobbered his sister with a Mega Punch. A teeth-chattering crack! reverberated in the room, making Willard clamp his mouth from crying out in shock. His very hairs stood on end, and even the fear running through his body stopped dead in its tracks. Jirachi stopped her fall and soared back up, a hand gently cradling her stinging jaw. Tasting the blood that stained her lips, she stared at the Kanto legend with mixed emotions. However, when Mew stared back with a cold but otherwise emotionless expression, her anger rose a notch. She had hit Celebi with a Swift attack, but the pain the Johto legendary felt was laughable; if anything, the Swift was just a way to announce her presence.

But Mew… Jirachi had felt the power behind the punch and knew that if she hadn't tilted her head at the last second, her jaw wouldn't just be broken but lodged somewhere in the wall behind her. Mew hadn't even batted an eyelash when the sound of shattered bone split the air.

"You will not harm him!" she declared, trying her best to bypass the lisp her broken jaw now created. The blood on her mouth dribbled and flew when she faced Celebi, then Mew, in her rage. "I still sense Arceus with Deoxys; you have not told him of this matter, and therefore, you have no right to perform your 'Judgment.'" Jirachi almost spat the last word. She paused, the ache in her jaw bringing a forlorn look in her eyes. "Truthfully, I do not see why you think you must resort to this matter. I have found out by Death that by merely beautifying the landscape and bringing life to the atmosphere, the pure souls will not grow hostile."

"Little sister," Celebi addressed her, "do you truly think that a simple change of scenery is going to change them? Why do you think there are wars? Dictators? Murders? Second chances are useless."

"I'm not saying it will vanquish human evils. I'm saying that placing the human race in peril solely because of an opinion is dangerous and ill-though out." Jirachi gritted her teeth. "And to go behind not only your fellow Legendaries but Arceus himself! You're no harbingers of salvation but manipulators who have tasted power and want more!"

Mew cocked his head, and his eyes would have been coated in that innocent gleam he mastered if a congratulatory smirk wasn't present on his face. "Manipulators? Spot on, Jirachi, spot on." His faux smile was gone and replaced by a scowl. "But do not mention power as though it's an object; power is a title. Celebi and I truly know that we can help the Pokémon World. We have so much to offer, so much to correct! But with Legends such as hot-headed Ho-Oh and grudge-ridden Darkrai, Earth will never prosper as how we want it."

"And when Arceus is ultimately left to decide, he doesn't have the heart to sacrifice," Celebi put in, her hand aloft. Tendrils of green lifted Willard again, and much to his horror, the binds tightened with every word the angry pixie hissed. "But with this eradication, it'll become easier to convince the rest of the Legends to bigger things. Arceus will see our potential!"

"If he doesn't, the rest of the Legends will back us up." Mew said it with such certainty that Jirachi felt her wish tags stand on end. Hovering in the middle of the chamber, with her jaw sending agonizing bolts of pain throughout her face, she could finally start to imagine what lengths Mew would go to get what he wanted.

Despite her older brother's unwavering determination, she stood her ground. "I'll never allow you to do such a thing. Arceus and the rest of the Council will know about your doings before the day is done."

The Psychic-type, unsurprised by her words and tone, closed his eyes and shook his head. "You and Arceus are much alike. You think with your hearts and are unwilling to sacrifice for the greater good." He opened his eyes, Mew's ears flicking back. With an unbecoming snarl set loose from his throat, he shouted, "But you will not stop us!"

Without another word, Mew thrust his glowing hand into Willard's intangible chest. Ignoring the cold that swirled inside the depths of the soul, he spread his fingers and let snakes of power slither freely. Willard yelled in agony and arched his back as the sensation of being ripped apart flooded him from every direction. The chill that came with being dead began to intensify, began to smother him and make him gasp in desperation.

"No!" Jirachi dove towards them both but was thrown out of the way by a flurry of pulsating leaves. The Hoenn legendary pushed herself forward, one arm protecting her face, as the leaves danced around her to leave stinging cuts that tore her tassels and dotted her body with blood. Amber eyes squinted through the storm of jade then widened when Celebi rammed into her. With her breath punched from her lungs, she couldn't stop her sister from trapping her against the cave wall. Before she knew it, the rocks were digging into her spine, and the blood dripped down from the cuts on her face to blind her. Still, Jirachi met Celebi's stony blue eyes.

"We must rid ourselves of our nuisance of a sister, Celebi!" their brother yelled above Willard's pained bellows. "Jirachi will never agree with what we're doing! She'll ruin our plans!"

The Grass-type turned around, mouth dropping open in shock. "Kill, Mew? You want us to kill our sister?"

Mew shoved his other hand inside Willard, and it slid in easily. The soul was growing weaker and translucent; already the man's screams began to fade into the forgotten crevices of the mountain. The tendrils of pink were like magma, fire-hot and writhing, looking for a way to escape but knowing they were not allowed to. Now, the deity grasped two of his power vines and told them, Break free!

Jirachi tried to lurch into action; she sensed Mew's sudden spike of energy and saw Willard's eyes widen into saucers. Celebi put a hand on the Legend's chest and called upon a Leech Seed to entangle Jirachi's limbs and secure theme against the wall. The Steel-type struggled against the twine-like plants, grimacing as they slithered and steadily took her energy. As helpless as she was, Jirachi couldn't help but witness Mew's snakes do as they were told.

Willard burst into fragments of twinkling light, his screams masked by the sound of the energy vines bursting forth and fiercely whipping each other in their dance of freedom. As the disappearing shards rained down and his yells were lost among the shattered remnants of his soul, Mew fisted his hands and called his power back with a wiggle of his fingers.

"Yes, kill, if that is what it takes to keep the Pokémon World in one piece," he finally said. He whirled around and locked eyes with the frozen and horrified Jirachi. "You brought this on yourself, Jirachi. Your duty is to help your brethren keep order, make decisions and sacrifices, but you have not. What use are you, then? They'll be more Legendaries, but there's only one Earth."

Celebi, absorbed by Mew's words, doubled over when Jirachi elbowed her in the stomach. The slip of concentration loosened the Leech Seed vines enough for her sister to escape, the plants left torn and limp by the Confusion she had sent running through them in her burst of adrenaline.

"Arceus will know about this!" she yelled, whipping around towards her brother.

Only to get a Psychic in the face.

Rivulets upon rivulets of amethyst light assaulted her, manifesting a ringing in her ears that made her briefly black out. Gasping like a fish out of water when she could force her eyes open, the Steel Legend felt bolts of paralysis grip her limbs. As she fell like a stone, Celebi and Mew popped into her view, their hands aglow with unleashed power. Jirachi fisted her hands, which made her entire torso shutter in protest, and sharply flew up in a twirl of yellow and pulsating blue. The cerulean grew brighter and climbed up the trembling, rocky walls, dislodging boulders that soon cascaded down upon Mew and Celebi. When she saw that they dodged the debris with ease, she reached out and swept her arms down. Immediately, the rocks fell with the intensity of meteors.

Jirachi flew towards the tunnel she came from, flinching when she heard Celebi's yelp of pain. When the walls of the tunnel surrounded her, she shook off the guilt blooming in her chest and instead intensified her aura so it was powerful enough to destroy the obstructing stalagmites in her path. Dust sprinkled her face, making her determined eyes water, but she plowed through. Her second plan of the day was tumbling in her head. If she could get out of Purgatory and back to Earth, Arceus would not be hard to lo… She stopped the thought. She had no idea where their father was, only that his presence was accompanied with that of Deoxys'. Could she afford to wait until he came back to Heaven?

A growing light behind her answered her question.

"Don't think you've best me!" Mew's ringing voice hollered in rage.

Jirachi did not let her eyes stray until she felt intense heat on her back. Whipping her head around, she saw Mew flying towards her, his palms harboring an unstable Shadow Ball. Like his anger, the maroon tendrils were out of control and whipping the air. When their eyes met, the sphere grew brighter, tighter, and it was thrust into Jirachi's stomach. Mew held the Shadow Ball against her abdomen, watching with an anger-contorted face the way her third eye fluttered madly behind its eye lid. Jirachi grasped her brother's wrists with twitching fingers and let her long-winding tassels touch the tunnel's walls. The ceiling started to gain thin, splintering cracks, and the stalagmites not destroyed by her began to collapse into piles of rubble.

"Release me, or rubble will soon rain down!" she gritted through her teeth. The growing Giga Impact made dust shower them both.

"You wouldn't dare," Mew outright laughed at her, the tension in his face gone and replaced by his sly smile.

"You'll never do anything like that," came Celebi's voice. The time traveler popped out from behind Mew with a scornful chuckle, although the grin on her face after she grew silent was less enthusiastic than her brother's.

"Neither will you!" their sister retorted, her voice beginning to break as she strained to endure the slowly burning Shadow Ball while maintaining her Giga Impact under control.

Celebi's face darkened, and she punched Jirachi in the abdomen with her own glowing fist. The volatile Shadow Ball flashed white before propelling Jirachi backwards in an explosion that made the roof above their heads collapse in chunks of stone. She crashed through the tunnel's entrance, through the stone needles she had carefully squeezed through before, and rolled down the mountain side with her torn tassels wrapped around her body. Stopped by one of the mountain's upturned slabs, Jirachi wiggled her hands out of the tassel-cocoon she was in and pulled herself up using the rock's edge. A sharp pain split her body in half, but she did not dare look down at her scorched stomach.

Celebi and Mew materialized above her. Ruby cuts and dust peppered their bodies, but the U-Turn had allowed them to escape relatively unscathed. Jirachi hunkered down, hiding her small form in the shadows, and turned towards where she thought her half-sealed portal laid in the sky. With no time and space to bend in Purgatory, she could not Teleport away from this mess. A frantic flight was her only option.

It's not the only one, a thought broke in. I could fight just enough to slow them down and escape.

Her heart clenched in indecision. Mew and Celebi were a part of her, and she was a part of them. To fight them would be like fighting herself.

"The shadows do not suit you, Jirachi."

The wish granter gasped and looked up to see Celebi's mocking, azure eyes. She tensed, waiting for Mew's arrival, but when it didn't come, she questioningly searched the skies.

"I wanted a word with you, in private," her sister hissed, jovial eyes now slits, "which is why I sent Mew to the other side of the mountain to look for you." Celebi descended until she was standing on the raised slab of stone Jirachi was hiding beneath. "Understand this, Jirachi: I am not like you. What separates you and I is that I see Mew's plan in all its glory, and I will do what it takes to help him see it through."

"You are not ready to do such a thing," Jirachi fiercely whispered back, discreetly wounding one of her tassels around her injured third eye. Celebi, too consumed by her anger, did not notice.

"Why do you say that?" she barked.

"I can see the indecision in your eyes, the slight hesitancy in your actions. I do not know what has come over Mew, but you are not him…" Her true eye began to painfully open beneath her tassel. Jirachi hid her wincing by plastering a mocking smirk that rivaled Mew's. "You are just like me, Celebi, and Mew will realize it. Maybe Ho-Oh will take your place."

"How dare you!" Celebi screeched. She lunged at Jirachi like a wild Persian. Jirachi jumped into the air and waved her tassel aside to let loose her Flash Cannon. The Grass-type had a second to squeak in surprise before she was slammed against the rock slab by the silver crescent of power. Jirachi dodged one of the many stones that took flight in the explosion and ignored how the pile of rubble below her shifted and groaned. Instead of guilt swelling up inside her, it was fear. Mew and Celebi had proven by now that they did not share her morals.

The word kill echoed back into her mind, and it wasn't until now that it made her blood run cold.

Jirachi's wish tags fluttered in warning. Feeling the spike of power behind her, the Steel-type sharply leaned to the right and dodged the Water Pulse the incoming Mew launched at her. Without even taking aim, she pointed her pale fingers and snapped a Thunderbolt into existence. Crackling and hissing like a firecracker, the bolt of topaz disappeared then materialized above Mew's head. The cat-like Legendary managed to twist his body out of the attack's path, but his tail got zapped and allowed the electricity to race up his spine. Though he grounded his teeth and his right eye threatened to twitch, Mew continued to chase Jirachi; the burnt tip of his tail left a trail of smoke in his wake.

Jirachi wrinkled her nose at the increasing smell of scorched fur; Mew was catching up. From the corner of her eye, she saw Celebi flying to their brother's side. With the aura that surrounded her now emerald tongues of flames that fluctuated with her anger, the forest guardian was a chilling sight. When Jirachi looked ahead, a glimmer of silver was visible against the red backdrop of the sky.

The portal! The pure elation and utter relief was like wind beneath her wings.

Until she felt the wind caressing her face and whipping her tassels and wish tags about. Jirachi softly gasped as a crisp, bright green leaf danced around her head. In the blink of an eye, the wind had picked up to trap her in a twister made up of the most beautiful forest leaves she had ever set eyes on. Once she turned and saw the time traveler's eyes alight with revenge, however, Jirachi was reminded of the Leaf Storm's approaching wrath.

She had to get out.

Fast.

Up and up she decided to go. The dew on the spinning foliage glistened like sharpened knives the closer and close they got. With the twister beginning to close in on itself, it began to get dark. A deep roaring filled her ears and made her breath rattle in her chest. Just when it seemed that Jirachi would reach Purgatory's hellish sky after all, the Leaf Storm spun faster and began to fall apart like a house of cards. The tip of the cyclone was now a tumbling mass of leaves that smashed her through a collapsing wall.

The Hoenn Legendary took a deep breath and briefly relished the shadows' absence, only to be overwhelmed by the swarm of leaves that struck her body. Pain flared up whenever a leave touched her skin and refused to let go. Like parasites, she felt them drain her of energy and leaving behind the most awful burning sensation. By the time Mew came up to her, Jirachi was clothed in the acidic leaves from head to foot. Celebi had her eyes shut and was quivering with the effort to maintain the powerful attack (although Jirachi guessed it was her anger that made her shudder like the leaves she was controlling).

Now only able to hover just feet off the ground, Jirachi reared her fist back for a Thunderpunch. Mew was much faster, though, and hit her squarely on the stomach with his own Sucker Punch. She spun in the air then stopped herself long enough to hit her brother with an Iron Head. The metallic cling that rang when she hit his head and made him fly back in a daze set her teeth on edge. Above them, Celebi slumped in exhaustion, causing her aura to recede into a thin veil of light around her body. Immediately, the leaves on Jirachi's body shriveled up and fell in a shower of dead copper leaves. The space dweller hissed as the inflamed welts they left behind throbbed, but she was now able to reach the portal.

"A weakened portal," Mew remarked as he snaked after her. His tail came slamming down on her in a powerful Pound attack, only for his target to spin away at the last second. The New Species Pokémon snorted at her small feat. "That was a good idea; you're going to need it."

Jirachi waved a hand over the shimmering platinum vines and watched as they unwound themselves to reveal a washed-out image of Earth. The blurry trees and faded mountains in the background were like a breath of fresh air. She began to fly through, then was shoved forward from behind. Both her and Celebi tumbled over the long stalks of grass. Just as her sister twisted her arms behind her back, Jirachi felt the presence of space and time all around her. The infinite and powerful feeling flowed through her veins at her telepathic command, rekindling her ability to Teleport.

But another power, one she knew as well as her own, blocked hers right in its tracks. Celebi swallowed her with her aura as Jirachi lay face down on the earth. The Steel-type began using Cosmic Power, and her growing aura pushed out Celebi's green. The fairy of time was flung back, and Jirachi propelled herself into the air.

She smashed face first into the ground when Mew landed an Ice Punch on her exposed back. For the first time throughout the whole battle, her scream of pain was loud and shrill. That single punch sent a shockwave of agony towards every bone in her body, followed by an icy sensation that bit into nerves. It reminded her how exhausted she was, how the slashes that adorned her body bled and throbbed. If any other Pokémon had injured her so, the cuts would be superficial, the pain laughable! Jirachi, ruler of the Regis, manipulator of space, could not be taken down so easily.

Yet that was the difference between normal Pokémon and them, the Legendaries, the gods. Pokémon would attack, but it was only their elemental powers or their bodies that would inflict the pain. Mew, Celebi, and the rest of her ilk, on the other hand, infused their attacks with their aura, even when it didn't seem like it. They knew where to concentrate it, where it would hurt the most.

Jirachi cringed. The Mega Punch felt like it had snapped her spine in half. The cold had now transformed into sheets of ice that spread and cascaded down her arms, reawakening her infected injuries so they could burn anew. She lay still on the ground, trying to concentrate and gather enough power to Teleport. She doubted that she could pinpoint Arceus' location in her state. In her mind, she saw her power sputter like a flame, threatening to die out and leave her alone. Anywhere that allowed her to hide and recuperate would be good enough.

"I can't allow you to get away, not while you still have the idea of telling Father of what you saw," came Mew's eloquent, calm voice.

"But kill, Brother?" she cried, struggling to get up. When had she gotten so weak? Now that she was still and no longer flying and fighting for her life, the adrenaline in her had waned until she could only feel pain and her tired limbs. "Do you truly think that the solution is to kill me?"

Jirachi turned her head to try and see the furry Legend but only managed to glimpse his tail among the skyscraping grass; it was slowly curling and uncurling, a sign that Mew was deeply contemplating something. Celebi was seen in the shadows of a tree, mentally restraining herself from doing anything until Mew reached whatever decision he was juggling.

"You're not going to quit, are you?" When the Wish Pokémon realized it was an actual question and not one of his usual trailing statements, Jirachi firmly shook her head.

"I promised you, Celebi, and our great father that I would stop this ridiculous scheme."

Mew landed on the forest ground without a sound. When Jirachi could no longer hold her head up, he knelt and lifted it so that their eyes met. She expected everything and anything except for his soft, melancholy pools of blue. Did he truly care for her? Was he pitying his confused sister? Or was it all just another façade he had perfected over the centuries? She never found out because his next words dashed all thought.

"My dear sister, you are a slave of Father's morals and philosophies. I love you, but you will always be loyal to him and his ideas, not to this Earth and its inhabitants." He lowered her head and backed up until he jumped and hovered in the air, all the while keeping eye contact. "Your loyalty burns strong within you, so it's only fitting that you burn along with it."

He waved a hand, and the grass directly below him started to smoke and burn. The greenery around the fire lit up and began to spread their tongues of fury before the first ringlets of smoke could reach for the sky. Among the hungry trails of garnet, Jirachi could make out slivers of Mew's rose-colored aura. The smoke and flames thickened as they advanced and made the air hazy and hot, blocking her view entirely. In the blink of an eye, the Heat Wave was upon her.

Mercilessly, the inferno washed over her body, heedless of her yells and screams. It melted the ice that half incased her, but the small relief of cool water evaporated away soon after. Crackles and dull roars filled her ears and muted her cries, dropping her into a silent world that only allowed her to smell her burning skin and feel the intense heat that crept up every inch of her body. She couldn't move without feeling as though her muscles were going to stretch and melt away. A careless breath would lead into an endless fit of coughing, which would then leave her gasping for air.

In her desperation, she managed to convert her remnants of power into one small orb of light that enveloped her. The sphere's lilac walls blocked the wave of heat and masked her pain with a veil of numbness. Blissfully shutting her eyes, Jirachi was Teleported from within the hell on earth.

______​

Throughout his space travels, Deoxys had seen beautiful, icy comets and extraordinary galaxies that spanned for light years, but when Arceus showed him Birth Island, he blinked and automatically determined it rivaled many of space's wonders. Quirking a smile, he left the floating Arceus and descended onto the small island. When the tree's emerald canopies came within his reach, he caressed their huge, broad leaves then their tall, lanky trunks. The palm trees, unaware of this strange creature, kept on swaying on the light, salty breeze that came from the east, the rising sun bathing them in the growing rays of orange. Deoxys touched the ground and looked down in surprise.

Arceus' red eyes softened and immediately thought back to his Legendary children; it was on this island that he had seen their first smiles, their first bouts of curiosity. Already, as the alien ran through the light-beige sand with his tentacles, he thought of Deoxys as one of his own.

"You'll learn that Earth has many things to offer," the great deity told him as he came down beside him. Arceus nudged him so that Deoxys focused his attention on what laid a couple of hundred feet away. Red and green tentacles obediently went to his sides, and his eyes began to analyze the cave that was nestled between numerous palm trees. He floated towards it, following Arceus and the hoof prints that trailed behind him. After a while, Deoxys, too, began to walk, if only to watch his own footprints appear in the glistening sand.

"This place, Birth Island, is a very special place to me," Arceus spoke, his voice as smooth as the deep-blue ocean that surrounded the untouched haven. "It is here where I created my Legendary children. These sands were Groudon's means of getting used to the earth. The ocean around us was the home of Manaphy's first waves."

Wistfully, the Alpha Pokémon looked around him then at his newest charge. Deoxys had been watching the fistfuls of grass that dotted the area shudder in the breeze until Arceus had stopped speaking. He now looked up, understanding deep within him that Birth Island was more important than its peaceful surroundings let on.

They now left the warm sunlight to be wrapped in the cave's comforting chill. Unlike the mountain's cave, this one, Deoxys pleasantly found, was not dank and cramped; the tunnel was spacious enough for both him and Arceus to go through without bumping into the stalactites above. Though his visibility decreased the deeper (and lower, for he felt a change of altitude) they went, cracks in the rocks above them allowed in shafts of light to light their way. The DNA Pokémon felt the rays and compared them to suns that were just the right distance away.

"This is going to be your home for now, and your permanent one if the Council comes to the consensus that you are allowed to stay," the god said, the echo in his voice magnified by the cave. The authority that was always in it sprang up to be heard. "No one will disturb you, for only myself and my Legendary children can find this place, and they do not come here. They did, when they were young, but all but the youngest have put Birth Island into the deep recesses of their minds."

A spacious chamber of stone, as large as Arceus' own, opened up before them. Deoxys' eyes widened when he saw crystals of all sizes embedded into the walls of his new home. Their pulsating, turquoise light provided the room with a slightly ominous atmosphere that reminded him of his asteroid home and the many stars he would see from all directions. He flew to the center of the chamber and looked up to where a constant trickle of water seeped in to form the pond he hovered above. The water shimmered with the light that the cave crystals gave off, yet the tranquility was somewhat broken by a low sound. Deoxys could hear the constant pounding of the ocean's waves on the north wall of the cave. His heart leaped in excitement at the realization. No longer would he live in constant silence.

Arceus announced his coming by the clap of hooves against the stone floor. "Though this is your home, you are welcomed to explore the rest of Birth Island." The Normal-type chuckled as he looked at the chamber. "If I remember correctly, this is where Jirachi spent most of her time during her first century. According to her, her home in the mountains looks much like this."

At the mention of the wish granter, Deoxys cocked his head in confusion. Arceus noticed this and smiled down at him. "You have much to owe her for. If it hadn't been for my daughter's words, I fear the Council of Legends would have decided right then and there to banish you from our planet. Even if they do not admit it, most of them were affected by her stand. Jirachi spoke of giving you a chance to live among us, and if you could, speak for yourself instead of letting us do it for you. "

"Jirachi…" the outsider tried to say, but all that came out was screeches only he could understand. Deoxys frowned. Here was someone he had never met defending him, and he couldn't even communicate the gratitude that now weighed his heart?

With that thought forefront in his mind, he extended one of his tentacles and wrapped it around Arceus' neck. The god did not attempt to get away but merely watched as the foreigner scrunched his face in concentration. Arceus did, however, breathed a small gasp when images of galaxies, stars, and everything in between flashed before his eyes, and his ears were bombarded by screeches identical to those Deoxys vocalized.

He could understand them now.

"A copy of my DNA is now within you," were the suddenly intelligible words when the tentacle was retracted from around his neck. Deoxys' smile was giddy; he had never conversed with anybody before. "My language is now yours." After getting his excitement under control, he solemnly said, "Tell Jirachi I'm grateful for her defense. Being among all these amazing sights and creatures truly vanishes my lonely times in space. As beautiful as they are, galaxies will not respond back."

Arceus mirrored the chuckle attached to his last words before nodding. "I'll tell her that." With a farewell that told him he would return once he had word of what the Council decided, the Creator teleported away in a column of cerulean brilliance.

"Jirachi…" Deoxys now said aloud. He gazed at a particularly large crystal on the wall, its luminous depths entrancing him and making him wonder what kind of Pokémon this Legendary "Jirachi" was. "Rest assured that I'll repay you for your kindness."

With the words left lingering in the air, Deoxys wandered out to explore Birth Island, unafraid of the risen sun.

_____​

A/N: The battle scene was like pulling teeth: a slow and painful process that's worth it at the end. This chapter is very important, so I was taking extra care that it was written how I wanted it to be. Mew and Celebi certainly turned out better than I thought, so that's a plus. :)

What about Chapter Four, you may ask? Well, though Jirachi, Mew, or Celebi are not in this one, you're going to be introduced to our second main character of this fan fic, and let's just say he's not the nicest guy around. And remember that war the Legends mentioned that the humans were currently in? You're going to be dragged right in the middle of it.

 

[Giratina ♀]

but a reviewer on another site suggested that I could somehow incoporate Deoxys more since he already seemed a well thought-out character.

[raises hand]

That was me! :3 Anyway, yeah. I read this again, and it was still just as good (if not better) than on the other forum. Admittedly, I sort of stopped following it there, but now I've read the PokéCom chapters again and I wanna see more. |D

 

[Phantom Kat]

[raises hand]

That was me! :3 Anyway, yeah. I read this again, and it was still just as good (if not better) than on the other forum. Admittedly, I sort of stopped following it there, but now I've read the PokéCom chapters again and I wanna see more. |D

Hehe, true that. xD Once again, adding Deoxys more into the story seriously replaced a chapter that was more random than helpful with some chapters I can't waiting to write. :p

:D I'm glad to hear that you're reading again. And yesh, you shall have more! If nobody but you and 157 comment, I'll post the fourth chapter on Saturday. After all, what's the point of waiting to post a chapter if nobody else chooses to read?

*goes back to working on Chapter Six*

- Kat

 

[Phantom Kat]

Chapter Four

The Dividing War​

Present Day: October 29th, 1725

"You Kanto scum!" cried a voice hoarse with exhaustion and thirst.

"Scum?!" came an equally harsh, cracked retort. "You Johtonians are as blind as ever!"

Only the two soldiers heard the exchange above the thrumming of bullets and the clang of metal that ravaged the once peaceful settlement of Cherrygrove, Johto. Most, if not all, of the abandoned, wooden cabins were either burning or beginning to give off foul-smelling, silver smoke, and it was clear they were going to end up like the charred and trampled remains of the settlement's flora. Whatever official or government buildings that were still standing were used as temporary headquarters or watch posts, though that didn't mean they didn't sport crumbling walls or collapsed halls.

Mark Antony Colfax heavily sighed from on top of his Rapidash mount, the grip on his reins tightening. The sergeant hated to admit it, but things were not going well for the Johto side. Where were the hearty soldiers he had trained? Where were those eager and loyal Johtonians from his trusty Regiment 66 that were willing to do anything and everything for their region? It seemed that his soldiers had grown tired and lazy during the two years of constant fighting. Mark Antony closed his amber eyes and jumped off the white, one-horned stallion. The flared bottom of his high-collared, silver uniform fluttered like a proud flag, and by the glint of his unsheathed sword, the dirty row of buttons that led from his collar to his yellow waist sash glittered like gold. Beneath the fringe of his spiky, chestnut hair, Mark Antony scanned what lay in front of him. If the constant haze of smoke that had settled over the battlefield bothered him, he didn't show it. Instead, a wry grin made its way across his handsome features.

"Hawkeye," he addressed his horse Pokémon, "charge in there with a Fire Spin."

With her brimming, orange and red mane and tail of fire now seething with a low hiss, Hawkeye galloped forward. Before the Kantonians behind the targeted, wooden shack could reload their rifles, the Rapidash's fire shackles around her hooves flared to join the rest of the writhing storm of scorching ruby. Mark Antony watched the collapsing pile of wood burst into flames and heard the horrified yells for only a second before he raised his sword high in the air.

"Regiment, fallback!" The twenty-five-year-old's voice rang and penetrated the whizzing gunfire like a knife. With a turn of the heel, he ran towards the direction of their headquarters, the kicked up dirt furthered dirtying his leather boots and gray pants; the golden stripe down each pants leg was hardly visible beneath the grime. In a flash of white and dimming scarlet, Hawkeye rode up towards her master. Mark Antony swiftly regained his seat on the saddle and turned the Fire Horse Pokémon around to make sure his troops were retreating.

They were, but their runs were slow. Those who had riding Pokémon were at the rear of the retreat, making sure no Kantonians decided to follow them to take down a few more soldiers. Much to their relief, the opposing side was also retreating to their headquarters: the abandoned hospital on the other side of the small town. Their red and blue uniforms, as bloodied and torn as the Johtonians', were soon out of sight. An angry Mark Antony watched them go and had the irresistible urge to rip his faded green headband and throw it on the floor. Here they were, already counting all the soldiers in need of medical attention and worrying about their diminishing first aid supplies, and the Kantonians had a hospital to go back to! It made his blood boil as hot as his Pokémon's mane.

"Come on, Regiment!" he cried while turning Hawkeye to the front. "Back to the base!"

Two years ago, Mark Antony would have been answered by tired groans, but the regiment had learned by now that any complaints would only further fuel their sergeant's ire. Mark Antony got only half-hearted nods in response instead, not that he noticed. His hardened eyes were set on the two-story building in the distance, its spiral that grew from the dome ceiling amazingly intact. On it, bronze miniatures of Ho-Oh and Lugia intertwined and looked down at the faded white building and the dug watch posts that surrounded it. To his relief, the soldiers on watch were alert and uninjured, and they raised their heads when the Pokémon beside them perked their ears at the approaching army. Leaving the base in the hands of a few watchmen and their Pokémon was risky, but it had turned out fine in the end. Still, he was going to leave more men behind. Cassius Bradley, the Kanto Regiment 12's lieutenant, was crafty. If he left the base so vulnerable a second time…

"Sergeant Colfax?" came a voice to his right.

Corporal Edward Cox pulled up beside him on his own Rapidash, green-gray eyes troubled beneath his locks of messy, dirty-blonde hair. His uniform of a silver jacket and pants were in better shop that Mark Antony's, although the sash that had been around his waist was gone; Edward had resorted to carrying the sheath of his sword in one hand. Mark Antony turned towards the thirty-year-old man.

"Yes, Corporal?"

"Do you intend on continuing to the settlement of New Bark?"

Mark Antony considered the carefully-voiced words for a moment before replying, "I don't know yet. We need to talk it over."

Edward let a small frown overtake his features. "Do you think we can take it?"

The young sergeant looked over the walking troops. "I used to think we could defeat Cassius' regiment in a night," he answered, the hint of a growl rising in his throat. "But I don't know what to expect from them anymore."

"They're human, Mark Antony," Edward told him, looking at the same troops but with empathy in his gaze. None of the privates could hear their conversation over the chats among themselves. Relieved chuckling and thankful prayers that they still lived to fight another day hummed in unison with muffled footsteps of boot against mud. The corporal's stare drifted towards the slate-gray clouds above them, idly wondering if the incoming rain would douse the fires they left behind. "And so are you."

"So because we're human we need to have our expectations lowered?" The chestnut-haired man fixed Edward, the only person of a lower ranking that could get away with speaking to him in such a manner, with a leveled gaze. "You're expecting us to lose against Cassius' regiment?"

"Oh no," the man said with a chuckle, which startled the mare he was riding. "I fully expect us to win. Cassius is much too arrogant for his own good, and his soldiers are no better."

Mark Antony smiled a bit and laughed. "Haven't you always said that I'm the arrogant one?"

Edward returned the grin. "Yes, I have." He then became sober. "Which is why I fear you'll push these soldiers too far too soon."

Amber eyes narrowed in irritation. "We'll decide on a plan of action once we get to base."

Edward sighed as he watched Mark Antony pass; he knew his superior had already made his decision.

______​

The regiment was now gathered in the once grand foyer of the town hall, their mounts tied up outside and receiving some well-deserved rest. Inside, those who weren't huddled against the walls to be tended for their injuries or outside on their watch posts were waiting for their sergeant and corporal to speak. They leaned over the railings on the second story, their body weights threatening to send the rusted bars to the floor, while others decided to lean against the granite pillars that supported the second story and the dome roof. All of their faces were as serious as the visages of the mayors painted in the faded and ruined portraits on the walls and floor. By now, they didn't expect any words of praise, and the encouraging remarks Mark Antony would shout were always a bit intimidating, especially with the wild look he would gain in his eyes.

"Regiment," Mark Antony started from where he was in the middle of the foyer, a desk set in front of him and Edward stationed at his right. The twenty-five-year-old paused and looked down at the map he had spread over the wobbling desk. Worn until the edges fluttered at the slightest touch and the drawings and notes on the parchment were recognizable only to the writer, Mark Antony analyzed it once more, eyebrows creased, before he continued. "Tonight did not go as planned." He briefly glared at the dirt-washed carpet on the floor, its once glorious ruby now a pathetic shade of gray. It was not like him to state the obvious, but the bitter taste of defeat was still fresh in his mouth. Edward was watching him from the corner of a worried green eye.

Although it isn't the sergeant I'm worried about, he dryly thought with a glance at the soldiers. Even those who were being bandaged shared a look of dread.

"The Kanto regiment was better prepared, better organized, while we were scrambling like ants. In Johto! Cassius' regiment was supposed to fall tonight, but we fell short." Mark Antony's cold glare swept the room. "Are you all really loyal to Johto?"

"Of course we are!" a voice shouted. A private from the second floor leaned even closer to the center, half of his body precariously dangling over the rail. The man regained his composure after his companions muttered to him to behave. Though his face was in shadow, his rigid stance and balled fists showed his anger. When he spoke, his voice was as strained as his whitening knuckles. "We fight for Johto! We fight for our people!"

When Mark Antony said nothing to his disrespectful private, more and more similar shouts rang out. All made the walls of the building shake with the men's pride. Even those who could not get up from where they laid injured on the floor banged their fists or clapped their hands in support. Edward narrowed his eyes in annoyance, something that went unnoticed by the now excited regiment, and was about to shout for them all to get at attention until he caught sight of his sergeant's steadily reddening face.

"Idiots," the amber-eyed man muttered under his breath. He then faced his regiment again and shouted as he slammed his fist against the desk, "YOU IDIOTS!"

The yells stopped only for Mark Antony's booming voice to overthrow the silence.

"Patriotism?" he scoffed at them. "Over the past year, the Kanto forces have taken over our border and majors towns like Blackthorn and New Bark. We have been behind their tails and doing nothing to hinder them for all this time, and yet you all stand here, shouting about loyalty and pride? Instead of spreading your cockiness about, learn to focus in the battlefield! Learn to steel your nerves in the heat of the fight! If not, leave this regiment and face those citizens left homeless after Kanto's ruthless takeovers!" He gritted his teeth, his face receding to its normal peach color as he regained his cool temperament. Was he cold when he spoke to his privates? Yes; he knew it from day one, but he never thought the day would come when he would lose his professional poise.

"Our goal had been to take down the Kanto regiment tonight. We failed, which is why in a few hours, we will attack again while they are recuperating at their hospital base. First, a handful of you will go with me and Corporal Cox to scope out the area, and then all those who are able-bodied will go and carry out the attack once the signal for an all clear is sent." Mark Antony raised a hand to silence the already rising protests and finished with, "Those who will go scouting will be informed in an hour after I and the corporal discuss the matter. You are all dismissed."

Without another word, Mark Antony snatched the map from the desk, turned his heel, and walked down the hall to the right and entered his office, Edward trailing behind him.

_____​

"They're right, you know," the corporal told the sergeant, taking a seat on the beaten sofa that took up the right wall of the small office. Behind a scarred nose, Edward looked at the younger man taking a seat behind a desk. To his trained gaze, Mark Antony looked as worn as the peeling cream wallpaper and the scuffed hardwood floor of the room.

"Right about what?" the distracted man dryly asked, spreading his map again but this time studying it so deeply his brows became one fine line of concentration.

"They're right that this is a suicide mission," Edward elaborated, although he suspected he didn't need to. As distant as Mark Antony acted, he knew the sergeant was well aware of what his men thought.

"In what way is this a suicide mission?" Mark Antony asked, still not looking up from the map and his tracing fingers. "Our men are capable enough to carry this out. They just need to be pushed and reminded that this could very well decide whether Kanto will gain control of Johto." Now, he did look up, his mouth set as fine as his eyebrows. "And if I'm not mistaken, weren't we supposed to discuss our candidates for the scouting mission?"

Edward took no notice of the question, though he did mentally smile; it seemed that Mark Antony realized that this was a continuation of their previous conversation. Instead, he fished out a cigarette from one pocket, a lighter from another, and began to smoke. With the freshly lit joint now dangling from one side of his mouth, he said, "You know fully well that there are not many men left without injuries. With lack of medical supplies and food, by tomorrow, they won't be able to lift their weapons without shaking. They're capable of carrying out this mission but for how long? Long enough to defeat Cassius' regiment before their surprise wears off?"

Mark Antony intertwined his fingers and met Edward's eyes. Those sounded more like facts than questions to him. "We trained our regiment hard, all for tonight. Even if they're not in top condition, we can't just wait and fight another day. With Cassius, if we let him go, I don't think they'll be another day."

"But it's not just Cassius, is it, Mark Antony?" Again, his question was more of a statement. Edward tapped off some of the cigarette's ashes as he watched the officer's eyes narrow into dangerous slits, his fingers tensing into claws that dug into his skin.

"Of course it's not just Cassius," he replied tartly. "It's all of those Kantonian forces, all of Kanto itself, that needs to be stopped. They invaded our land, believing that Johto hid Sinnoh refugees from their last petty scuffle with them. They started driving out citizens from their homes to search despite us insisting we had no refugees on our lands. They were the ones that forced us to attack them, and then they have the audacity to blame the destruction of our towns on our refusal to cooperate?" He scoffed at the acid-filled retelling of the past two years of war, then spat, "May Arceus curse them."

With a sigh that expelled a cloud of smoke, the corporal straightened, his cigarette now held between two of his fingers. This time, he chose not to say anything. Mark Antony must have cruelly laughed at the privates' pride in their region because his own was so strong that it put theirs to shame. Edward had not doubt that it was this overpowering feeling of regionality that had propelled Mark Antony to the top and made him this intelligent, if intimidating, man. His decisions had always carried some risk.

But nothing like this.

Then again, what did he expect in this crucial period in the war?

"I know what you're thinking, Edward," came the voice that startled the older man from his reverie. "I can see it in that distant gaze of yours."

Mark Antony, for the first time in a long while, wore a smile free of arrogance and cockiness. The grin was sad in the way the young officer softened his eyes as he recalled a memory that already seemed like decades ago.

"You're wondering how one of the army's drummer boys became this cold-hearted sergeant at such a young age. What could cause a man to become so emotionally detached in such a short amount of time?" Edward averted his friend's gaze. To be frank, the sudden change in Mark Antony's usual steel eyes unnerved him. Still, he heard the man's words as clear as day.

"I saw, even at that young age, how Kanto was waiting for us to slip up and give them the opportunity to snoop in our business and meddle for a chance to gain control. That scuffle they helped us with against Hoenn in 1607? After it was over, their embassy here grew larger, both in government officials and in stationed military. What happened when some of our plans for military weapons were stolen by the pirates of the Orange Islands in 1700? Kanto helped us get them back but kept a copy of them as payment for their help. They were manipulators then, and they will continue to threaten our land of Johto if they are not stopped."

With that said, Mark Antony stood up and made for the door. "Now come, we made our decision as to who will accompany us on our scouting mission."

It wasn't until his superior opened the door that Edward blinked and spoke up. "We? I didn't decide anything."

All the slightly frazzled blonde received was a smug grin.

"Then maybe you shouldn't have talked so much, huh?"

_____​

A/N: ("regionality" is a made-up word from "nationality". Just thought it would seem silly to put nationality when the land masses are considered regions.)

I know, a pretty short chapter, but I accomplished what I wanted to in this chapter. Really, it's more of an introduction to a new character than anything. I was going to add a bit of Chapter Five, but I wanted the focus of this chapter to be Mark Antony, not what happens later. And yes! Finally, Mark Antony arrives! Been waiting to write his chapter since I finished outlining the story back in September.

What is in store for the next chapter? Why Jirachi comes back, but she's not in the best of shape. With Mark Antony's help, she makes a history-altering decision.

 

[Giratina ♀]

Most, if not all, of the abandoned, wooden cabins were either burning or beginning to give off foul-smelling, silver smoke, and it was clear they were going to end up like the charred and trampled remains of the settlement's flora.

For some reason, I really like this sentence. I think it's the part about the silver smoke. : D

Where were the hearty soldiers he had trained?

No space between word and question mark.

"I don't know yet. OR "I don't, yet.

Didn't know what you were trying to do there.

Normally, I get very iffy about the whole 'war in the Pokémon world' plotline, but here I think you handled it well enough that other than the region names (which couldn't be avoided) I didn't have to stop and think about how alien and out-of-place this region war was, which I did have to do on multiple occasions for different (and much more popular) stories on other forums. Props for that. However, isn't it expected for men in such high military status as Mark Antony to have a certain amount of coldness, just to be able to keep his soldiers in line? I didn't see any especially chilly behavior coming from Mark Antony (geez, that's a long name) and since the private discussion between he and Edward involved that concept so much, it just seemed a little strange to have them bring up a major problem that I couldn't identify but was expected to. OF course, that may just be my lack of knowledge concerning militaries, but meh.

 

[Phantom Kat]

For some reason, I really like this sentence. I think it's the part about the silver smoke. : D



No space between word and question mark.



Didn't know what you were trying to do there.

Normally, I get very iffy about the whole 'war in the Pokémon world' plotline, but here I think you handled it well enough that other than the region names (which couldn't be avoided) I didn't have to stop and think about how alien and out-of-place this region war was, which I did have to do on multiple occasions for different (and much more popular) stories on other forums. Props for that. However, isn't it expected for men in such high military status as Mark Antony to have a certain amount of coldness, just to be able to keep his soldiers in line? I didn't see any especially chilly behavior coming from Mark Antony (geez, that's a long name) and since the private discussion between he and Edward involved that concept so much, it just seemed a little strange to have them bring up a major problem that I couldn't identify but was expected to. OF course, that may just be my lack of knowledge concerning militaries, but meh.

Don't worry, the war will only be part of the story for two more chapters. After that, there will only be some refrences here and there. I like war stories but not enough to dedicate a whole fic to it. Plus, too much research. :p

Mark Antony is a long name. xD Blame the fact that when I started brainstorming this fic, we were reading "Julius Caesar". I didn't want to make him THAT cold, just harsh. I guess I've been watching too much Full Metal Alchemist, where the military leaders aren't so cold to their subordinates. Then again, I'm not knowledgable when it comes to militaries. ^^;

*goes to fix mistakes*

- Kat

 

[Legendarian Mistress]

My review for your fic is as follows...

It is an excellently written piece of fan-fiction, but I do have just one thing I want to bring up with you, Phantom Kat. I believe there were at least two, possibly three, times where you said Celebi was a male Legendary... which contradicted the character profiles and your earlier mentions of Celebi being a female. I can't tell you where the mistakes were, because on the night I read the fic, I was very tired and only just made it to the end before I started to struggle with my eyes.

Other than that, well done.

 

[Buoysel]

[FONT=&quot]

Mark Antony scanned what laid in front of him

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]lay I do believe[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]

The regiment was now gathered in the once grand foyer of the town hall, their mounts tied up outside and receiving some well-deserved rest.

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]This is at least the third or fourth time that you have referred to their Pokémon as "mounts." [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Otherwise interesting chapter, you portray the war as brutal, yet you mange to keep the actually fighting out of it (for now).[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I may not always post, but I'll keep reading.[/FONT]

 

[Phantom Kat]

My review for your fic is as follows...

It is an excellently written piece of fan-fiction, but I do have just one thing I want to bring up with you, Phantom Kat. I believe there were at least two, possibly three, times where you said Celebi was a male Legendary... which contradicted the character profiles and your earlier mentions of Celebi being a female. I can't tell you where the mistakes were, because on the night I read the fic, I was very tired and only just made it to the end before I started to struggle with my eyes.

Other than that, well done.

When I was beginning to write the chapter, I wrote Celebi as male but then switched to female and went back to change that. I guess I didn't get all of them. ^^; I'll go back and look for them. Thank you for the review. :3

[FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]lay I do believe[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]This is at least the third or fourth time that you have referred to their Pokémon as "mounts." [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Otherwise interesting chapter, you portray the war as brutal, yet you mange to keep the actually fighting out of it (for now).[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I may not always post, but I'll keep reading.[/FONT]

Ooh, thanks for pointing that out. I'll go change that right away.

And as for mounts, this is one of the definitions from dictionary.com:

22. a horse, other animal, or sometimes a vehicle, as a bicycle, used, provided, or available for riding.

And yeah, not so brutal, but it will get more detailed in the next chapter and the chapter after that. ^^; Thanks for reviewing, and it's okay if you don't always review. I'm just happy that you're enjoying the story. :3

- Kat

 

[Buoysel]

And as for mounts, this is one of the definitions from dictionary.com:
- Kat

It was just getting redundant that's all.

 

[Phantom Kat]

It was just getting redundant that's all.

Oh, my bad. ^^; I'll go and fix that up.

- Kat

EDIT: Done. :D Redundancy begone!