Sahqoreyth
Pokefan1337
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- Seen Apr 27, 2024
Chapter 45: Taming Infinity
The Gates of Aluzon - Fire Nation, Koria
Alex lost track of how long the fighting in the harbor continued after he descended and unleashed his armored team, but by the time it finally stopped, the sun was setting, turning the sky around them blood red. It was a costly victory, and without Ash's Lugia, it would've very likely turned into a rout. The Earth Nation officially claimed the capital of the Fire Nation, and the Gates of Aluzon were given to the Water Tribes, to fortify and hold.
Of Jimen and Ozai, there was no sign, and while many were initially heartbroken at losing their Avatar so early, both Alex and Ash were able to confirm, by way of their teachers, that Avatar Jimen was not yet dead, nor had he lost to Ozai. The price of stopping Ozai simply meant he'd have to be away, for a time in the Spirit World guarding Vaatu's prison from any more would-be jailbreakers. At least until the convergence of planets ended. During the fighting, Alex had reunited with Akos, and the two had used the effectiveness of water and ground typing to put out many fires, and firebenders.
Now that things were calm again, Alex, Akos, and Ash looked out over the war-scarred harbor. "I'm glad you showed up when you did, Ash." Akos was saying. "We would've been completely defeated without you and your Lugia." The Lugia in question had since departed again to his home, this time simply by Teleporting.
Ash looked out over the harbor and frowned. His Pikachu, still on his shoulder, was as ash-covered and grimy as he was. "Yea…right, you're uh…you're welcome."
Akos suggested they go and celebrate, but seeing Ash wasn't in the mood, Alex bid him to go on ahead of them, and joined the World Champion by the edge of the building the Fire Nation had built to oversee things going on in the harbor, on both sides of the gates. "Is this the first time you've seen a war like this?"
Ash was quiet for a long moment, before he answered. "Well…I've seen battles…violent conflicts, but this is…"
"Slaughter." Alex answered, and both Ash and his electric mouse stared at him, eyes wide. "Call it what it is. This is Humanity, doing what Humanity does best. Killing each other. For all our lauded brainpower, our culture, our peaceful societies, this is what it always comes back to. The hate. The killing. The smell." Alex sighed, heavily. "If I could stop it, I would…but I know better. I'll see many more sights like this before my days are done." That grim admission of reality brought a fresh pang of sadness. Being what he was, keeping Astrum in a region like Koria, even after the fighting was over, was cruel to him. He was back at the ranch now meeting his brothers, but his Luxury Ball had a permanent place on his dragonskin cloak, and always would.
"You do what you can to end it, with the power you have." Came the comforting tones of the Pikachu who recognized a human in despair. He placed a tiny paw on Alex's face. "There's much more to being alive, than this."
Alex nodded, eyes closed, as he felt the tiny hand. "You're right, little friend. But…" He turned back to the carnage. "We can be better. We can be so much better." He looked back at the Pikachu then. "A large part of that is thanks to Pokémon. Sights like this would be a lot more common, if we still had to live without you guys." He gave the adorable electric type a head scratch then, until his tail started twitching.
The silence stretched on then, as the sun faded, and the night took over. Campfires lit the harbor below, and the sounds of drunk, merrymaking soldiers filled the air. "What will you do now?" Ash finally asked, breaking the silence.
Alex couldn't help but stifle a yawn as he imagined his near future. "Go home. Sleep for a month. This is the second conflict I've had to wrap up…I never got much of a rest after the Arceans invaded. Hopefully things can stay peaceful long enough for Festivus at least."
"And after Festivus ends?" Ash pressed, and Alex finally realized what he was asking.
"After that…I head to Albion. Galar first, of course. The Queen up there needs to be stopped, and my Gallade should be the one to stop her. I was intending to bring a few of my Scales of Balance along. And Cynthia. Would you care to join us, Ash? I know you had a few old friends to catch up with."
Ash nodded. "That I do…I may fly by at some point, just to make sure Cynthia is okay…but you're right. I have things to do, and then, a World Tournament to prepare for. I'll be leaving tonight."
Alex had a feeling by 'tonight' he meant imminently, so he turned to face the man, and offered a hand. "Then when next we meet…we'll have to have a Battle."
Ash took the hand, and smirked. His electric mouse mirrored his expression. "If you want to Battle me, Redwood, you'll need to make it through the Superior Sixteen. Good luck with that."
"Oh, I'll make it through…" Alex said, giving the hand a squeeze of affirmation before releasing it. "In the Finals, then. Until we meet again, World Champion."
Ash nodded, turned towards the Temple of the Mind Sage in the east, and then Teleported himself and his partner away with a bamf.
While Ash had managed to get away without much ceremony, Akos had no intention of letting Alex return so suddenly as well. He insisted the Dragon Emperor properly and officially visit the Northern Water Tribe, where Akos, as their Chief, intended to officially unite their people, and make a declaration of friendship with the Dragon Empire. After a brief Holocall with Haley, who was apparently now in charge of covering his whereabouts for Tao, she agreed to bookend his 'eastern tour' by sharing the ceremony Akos intended to have on the news.
The Earth Kingdom officially pledged Koria's loyalty back to the Eousian Empire, and later that same day, Chief Akos declared that the Water Tribes would aid the Earth Nation in rebuilding Koria, and renewing their fight against the Imperium of Man. For Alex's part, he publicly emphasized the Original Dragon's fondness for Koria, and pledged only to help them rebuild from the damage and terror the Imperium's oppressive rule had caused.
Akos was garbed much like how Alex had seen him in his Future Sight of the man, though he lacked age lines on his face, the Lycanroc tribal headdress was the same, as was the ornate blue and Liepard-fur lined garment he wore for the ceremony. "Now that our western friends have pledged their humanitarian aid, I suggest we end the Dragon Emperor's tour of Koria with one final Challenge!" He looked into the floating Rotom Drone then, and grinned, fully enjoying the fact more eyes than he could count were upon him. "Some of you may not be aware, but like the Trainer he is at heart, Alex Redwood has been challenging our region's Gym Leaders on his visit. Not surprisingly, he's managed to beat seven of them."
Akos's face fell, then. "Leader Pokku was, unfortunately, one of the many casualties in the recent conflict in the Fire Nation that saw Koria's freedom returned. Because of that…you will Battle with me! What do you say, Challenger?"
Alex, who had by that point been sitting in his armor, minus his helmet, and comfortably plopped on a cushion beside Yue's, rose at Akos's words, smirked, and let his aura shield flare to life. The deep blue outlined his form, and ten Pokéballs began floating behind him in a slowly rotating circle. "Chief Akos…I accept your Challenge and will gladly take your Tribe's Badge. Consider this your first examination for legitimacy by the Pokémon League. I won't speak for them, but…they'd be hard pressed to find a better bar with which to measure you, I think."
Akos chuckled and gestured to an open space nearby. The two men took their places on opposing sides of the snowfield that had hosted the ceremony uniting the tribes. Being just outside the ornate water palace of Agna Qel'a, the space usually hosted the guests who couldn't fit inside the palace. Akos had instead used it as a public space to unite the north and the south, while promising to keep them culturally diverse at the same time. The northern tribe would provide aid and benders, but the southerners would rebuild their half of the Water Nation on their own terms. They could finally expand, now that they didn't have to defend Wolf Cove. Together, Akos and Alex waterbended a Pokémon battlefield into shape, and Akos drew first. "I've been waiting for this. With a bit of training, and some of that weird 'Experience Candy' you westerners seem so fond of, we should be evenly matched with your team! Prove it, Tuhan!"
Alex's eyes widened as he sensed the Lucario, but seeing her form made him stare. Akos had told him of Ara's untimely demise, and while Alex had tried apologizing for not being there, the Chief of the waterbenders had stopped him. Alex had done what he'd come to Koria to do, and in doing so, helped free an entire region. Lucario normally evolved through friendship, in the sunlight, Tuhan had apparently evolved in the moonlight, after a tragic loss.
Alex gestured with one hand, and Canis's Pokéball went sailing forward. Akos grinned as he saw the low-key aura hound appear, and stare down his opponent. His eyes were wide, and Tuhan barked at him, challenging him with insults. Canis was calm though, and he used Calm Mind as he fell into his dragon style stance, giving her the first move.
Akos pointed at Canis and gave the order. "Aura Fist!" With speed that startled Canis, Tuhan was suddenly in his face. With his special defense newly raised, Canis simply smirked, dodging the angry fists of the Night Form Lucario as he bobbed and weaved. His physical defense had also been honed, and thanks to the boost, he could read her punches and dodge them with his own speed.
Then, came the counter. "Max Aura." Alex said calmly, his crossed arms visible under the long black cloak and looking far too confident. Canis's 'hair' flared out, and Tuhan had time only to watch as the somewhat more experienced Lucario's charged aura pulsed through his body, and then rapidly centered on his paws. As they erupted with a sudden and overpowering flood of aura, Tuhan had time to raise her paws, and try to block. To her credit, she held for a few seconds, before being blown back in front of Akos.
Being a dark and steel type, the quadruple effective fighting typed hit almost OHKOed her, but she hung on for her Trainer, and for her pride. "Aura Bone." Alex said, and in a mirror of Tuhan's opening attack, Canis moved too fast for the eye to follow, landed in front of her, and brought his bone-shaped aura weapon down across her shaggy chest. Canis backflipped into the air then, and landed before Alex, once more falling into his dragon stance. "Perfectly done, Canis. Now return." With a flourish and a nod, Canis dematerialized his weapon, and let the beam of his Pokéball floating behind his Trainer recall him to his comfortable extradimensional space. Alex turned his hat backwards then and smirked at Akos. "You're getting my best now, Akos. A Gym Leader needs to be ready to be swept, at any time. Show him, Terra!"
The titanic earth tortoise appeared with a green flash, snorted in the frigid air, and roared at Akos. The new Water Tribe chieftain had to hold onto his Lycanroc shaped helm as the force of the challenging roar washed over him and sent snow shuddering across the field. An aura shield of green flashed from his Meadow Plate as the noise faded. Akos stared, fully smiling as he realized he was finally seeing his friend's full strength. His starter.
"I think we might be outclassed…but that won't stop us! Go! Pado!" The Empoleon appeared with a roar of his own, though he did seem intimidated as he took in the look in Terra's eye. "Don't worry bud! We've got this!" Akos raised his Splash Plate shard, and Pado connected to it the way Alex and Arbor had shown them. "Mega Evolve!"
Alex took in the altered water and ice type, from his sharp dry-ice fins to the icy crown on his head, and the expanded 'tuxedo' on his body. Terra glanced at Alex, but he shook his head. "We'll battle as is. Have to keep it at least a little fair! Seed Bomb!"
"Slash through them with Liquidation!" Akos ordered. Alex just smirked. Pado's display of swordsmanship, such as it was, was flawless. The problem came from cutting the explosive grass energy in half. Normally Terra's attacks were too thick to be cut, but it seemed Mega Empoleon's dry ice wings were more than capable of slicing the dense grass energy. The water penguin's smirk faded however, as it realized their mistake, and the bisected Seed Bombs exploded.
"Terra! Another round of Seed Bombs!" More grassy spheres of super effective damage rained down on the Empoleon from the central Ash tree atop the earth tortoise's shell, and when the snow cleared, Pado was unconscious.
Recalling his starter, Akos was frowning. "Let's try someone more defense heavy. Alumin!" A Duraludon popped onto the field, and the two Pokémon shared a roar.
"Earthquake!" Alex ordered, while Akos called for Iron Defense. As the earth rose to swallow and pummel the steely dragon, its defensive buff was not enough to stop the OHKO. Akos stared in disbelief, and Alex chuckled. "I think that's enough, Terra. Very well done." He'd known his starter had also gotten stronger, mainly by absorbing the light of the sun for the better part of the summer, but Alex was starting to realize many of his A Team had reached a new level of some sort. It was something he needed to investigate when they were finally home.
Both Trainers recalled their partners, and Alex 'threw' first. "I wanted to keep my newer team members a secret, but…in the interest of fairness, I'll use the lowest level among them. Adamanteus!"
The Steelix appeared with a flash and turned his large head towards his Trainer. Alex chuckled. "It's true, my friend. If you want experience, you need to Battle more!" The smirk widened, then becoming a little sinister in aspect. "Let's show them what you're made of." Steel typed energy began resonating between them.
"Hawky! Go!" Akos said, thinking the flier would be able to dodge if he stayed in the air. As Alex and Adamanteus ascended to a power beyond evolution, Akos gave the first command. "Stay high, Hawky! They can't get you up there! Then use Flamethrower!"
Alex was still smirking far too confidently for Akos, as he gave a command to the Mega Steelix before him. "Dig." The titanic steel snake dove into the icy ground with ease then, as the flames baked the field and missed their target.
Akos laughed. "You'll never hit him with a ground Move!"
"Who said I was going to hit?" Alex said as he let his eyes fall to the hole in the ground. "Adamanteus! Once you're up there, use Rock Slide." Akos blinked, processing the words, before his train of thought was derailed by the shadow from the massive form of Adamanteus, soaring high into the sky with the force of his Dig. The Mega Steelix came all but eye-level with the Talonflame, and then pulsed with rock typed energy.
"Dodge with Flame Charge!" Akos ordered desperately from below.
The trained fire falcon, more of a messenger than a battler, did his best to dodge and make his attack land, but found himself pummeled by the quadruply effective hit. The fact it was critical didn't matter for it would've KOed the fire falcon either way, but Adamanteus glanced at his Trainer anyway for approval as he landed and absorbed the recoil harmlessly. Hawky hit the ground as well, a moment later, clearly unconscious.
Akos recalled him, and murmured at the ball, before putting it back on his belt. He'd been confident he could take down at least one of Alex's team, but that Torterra had him outclassed. The Steelix was also quite strong, and his Mega Form only enhanced that strength further. Akos threw another Pokéball, and what came out of it was a Marowak, very similar in appearance to those found in Alola. Its fire was, to Alex's senses, quite cold though. Aside from that, the only marked differences were on the skull, in the form of different patterns on the bony forehead and cheekbones, atop a generally stockier body, sporting the same telltale limb length typically attributed to the Alolan biome.
"Jeonsa! Cold Fire Bone!" The Marowak nodded, and Alex realized that, compared to the rest of Akos's team, aside from Pado really, this one was much better trained, which meant Akos had likely inherited his Pokéball. It masterfully threw the burning bonemerang at Adamanteus, who weaved out of the way of its first pass, and the second. He wasn't expecting the third pass as the possessed bone seemed unnaturally determined to hit, but Alex helped him dodge it. "Dig, now!"
The Mega Steelix again bore into the earth, but Akos smirked. "Follow it! The Cold Fire cannot be dodged!"
Alex just shook his head, chuckling. "Who said we were dodging."
As Akos felt the ground shudder, he realized the Steelix was going fast, fast enough to launch its bulk twenty feet in the air. Again. If it hit his Marowak, Alex would gain another W. Remembering how the earthbenders had fought, he took a page from them, and noticed Jeonsa staring at him, and slowly nodding. "Earthquake!"
With just his fist, the elder Marowak hammered the snow-covered field, just as Adamanteus reached the top layer of the area. On his own initiative, he used the energy from the Dig to shield himself and coil up among the quaking earth. It didn't stop the damage entirely, but the Mega Steelix rose from the rubble, grinning as darkly as his Trainer had. Then, came their answer to the attack. "Earthquake!"
Jeonsa had no such defense against the attack, and fell to it, but not before he clenched one of his fists. Adamanteus gave a victorious roar, and then flinched, as the fiery bonemerang made contact. Returning to his Trainer, Adamanteus received a Max Potion as the final hit had almost knocked him out and would have if he wasn't so sturdy. Akos readied to call out who he had left. The silence grew, as Akos stared at the rest of his team, and then shook his head. "You've beaten six of my Pokémon in a row, Alex. It's clear we're…not ready for you. Yet. But someday, we will be."
Alex nodded. "There's no shame in understanding when you have no chance, and not subjecting your friends to the pain of a losing Battle. I've had to do that a few times myself, and it's never fun. Meet us at the World Championships…if you can reach us." He'd walked across the field as he spoke, and his Steelix let his Mega Form fade, with the battle being over. Jeonsa joined them, holding an arm, but one that evidently still worked as it was clutching his bone weapon. He nodded at the Steelix, who nodded in return. It was rare for a fire type to try to match him in terms of ground attacks, but the Steelix respected the attempt.
The Chieftain and the Emperor clasped arms. "I hope you found Koria as endearing as your Dragon did, Emperor Redwood." Akos said, genuinely seeming happy, and yet sad, as he knew what was coming.
"I…" Alex glanced around again, and fixed his hat as he did. "I'll be honest…I enjoyed every minute. When next I visit, hopefully I won't be as tired. If you or the others need me, you know how to reach me. Train hard, Chieftain of the Water Tribes."
"I will." Akos said, reluctantly letting his friend's hand go.
"Until next time, then." Alex said, stepping back, bowing fist to palm towards the other Water Tribe nobles, and nodding a final time at Akos, before he vanished.
Somewhere in Mewsia - Fornia Region
Jessica Gladstone had finally wrapped up her own efforts for Tao, namely, keeping the subjugated populace of Fornia from rising up and murdering the Scale representatives in their midst. More than a few holdout cells of terrorists equipped with power staves and Pokémon had tested the Dragon Empire's reach, and they had been swiftly and brutally put down by Jess and her own Scales. Among such people, she reached a level of notoriety not unlike Alex's, and dealing with them was quite exhausting, as she hadn't rested after the conflict either. Many Scales hadn't, for there was much to do and integrating a region like Fornia and its satellites was not a small job. Courthouses needed to be built to legally try the Crusaders produced by each city for the crimes they'd committed. Infrastructure had to be upgraded. Nearby resources had to be managed. It was a time-consuming series of tasks, and even with Tao handling most of that, the Scales had more than enough to do.
Many of them were looking forward to the start of Festivus, but as Jess fought off tiredness and boring paperwork, she suddenly sat up straight, as she sensed a powerful psychic presence coming directly towards her, like a meteor. It took a second to recognize who it was, and she sighed, as she knew once again Alex had increased his power. With a bamf, he appeared in her office, armored up and covered mostly by the leathery dragonskin cloak. He offered her a hand up as he took in her face, and he kissed her once she took it and stood. Dreams were nice, but he would always prefer reality. "You're with me now, gorgeous." He smirked. "I have one loose end to tie up…and then I thought we might find somewhere in Kalos to kick off the Festivus season."
"Festivus is still a few days away, Alex…" She said, entwining their hands together. She could delegate the paperwork to someone else. "But I won't say no to a Kalos shopping spree. I could use some new clothes. Where are we heading first?"
"Indius." Alex said, holding her close. He breathed deep, enjoying her scent, as she and her psychic sight took in her lover. There was something different. In terms of power, he hadn't really expanded, but it did seem more…potent, somehow. As if his aura now had a permanent boost, a denseness, not unlike a Totem Pokémon's. Not able to resist her charms, Alex planted another one on her lips, enjoyed the smile, that brought to her tired face, and then Teleported them to Canalave City, in Sinnoh. From there, it was a relatively short flight to Indius.
Somewhere Above Naya Delhi - Indius Region, Eous
Shruikan had made the rather lengthy trip from Japan to Indius in only two hours, but within those two hours, Jess had managed to fall asleep, despite the pressure of the wind hitting them. The fact that she'd essentially curled in under Alex's cloak also helped, that and the fact that his natural body temperature had always run hot, but in recent years, had grown hotter. The rest of the armor was away, and he'd grabbed a shower in Canalave's Pokémon Center, as well as a few items. He had many valuable items he'd picked up from Koria, but he had a hunch the museums in Unova would pay more for them.
As they flew over the Indius region, Alex noted several biomes, and many large cities. Linked as his sight was with the Copperajah, he relied on things that seemed familiar to it, before bringing Shruikan in closer. Eventually, just south of what looked from the air like a verdant flood plain, the Copperajah's mind pinged with familiarity, particularly, as Alex took in the sight of what seemed to him like a large, red, fortified palatial complex.
Flying lower revealed aerial guards atop Noivern, who directed them to the front of the complex if they had any inquiries, and though they eyed Shruikan with what seemed like suspicion, neither of the bat wyverns attacked the black Mega Salamence, or his riders. Alex nudged Jess awake as they landed, and with a yawn she emerged from the leathery black cocoon of warmth and glanced around. Above them, atop the red walled edge of the complex, flapped the flag of Indius in orange, white, and green, and below that, the flag of those allied with the Empire of Eous, which was a fiery stylized phoenix and dragon circling around a gold and black Pokéball, on a white background.
Once Shruikan had an Aspear Berry for the cold, Alex recalled him to rest, and then brought out the ball of the Copperajah. "Alright, my friend. We're here. Naya Delhi. Any of this look familiar?"
The steel typed elephant looked around rapidly, seeming confused, and Alex could feel his mind fighting to remember. Then, suddenly, he raised his trunk, and released a trumpeting roar that echoed loudly through his massive metallic body. Jess covered her ears, but Alex listened intently. Answering calls came from both within the fort, and behind them, in the city surrounding this crimson fort. Not that surprising, as Copperajah was fairly common in Indius. Then, from above, came an answer from someone who recognized that particular Copperajah's call, and dive bombed the two humans beside it in the street outside the fort. "Get away from him, thieves! Fafnir, Boomburst!"
Jess, who was still groggy, barely had time to look up, but Alex had been ready for shenanigans. He leapt away from the first Boomburst with Jess, and when another followed, the Copperajah blocked with his trunk, and stood defensively in front of those who'd helped free him of the Shadow, if not all of its effects.
As the Noivern, Fafnir, came down for a landing, his rider hopped off. Hearing her shout, and seeing the Copperajah, other Noivern riders descended swiftly, Pokéballs raised at Alex and Jess. Alex moved in front of his sleepy redhead, one arm outstretched before her, the other on the Copperajah's side, as he didn't want it going into a rampage here. "Easy, my friend." He said, before turning his intense eyes on the female rider. Her hair was as red as his lover's, but curlier. Her eyes were as blue and intense as his own, and her sense of fashion was clearly from Italia not to mention leagues more 'in style' than his own fashion sense. It seemed she had also adopted hints of Indius fashion, namely in the light, breathable clothes around her arms and legs that sat somewhere between scantily clad and dressed like nobility. He also spied some rather cool tattoos on the woman's body.
Then, Alex blinked. "It took me far longer than it should have to recognize you, Isabella Fondacaro…Champion of Italia. I am Alex Redwood, Champion of Unova's Victory League. Do you know this Copperajah? I found him corrupted by Shadow and have been trying to get him home ever since, but his memory has…gaps."
As he spoke, the redhead peered at him, and then glanced at her bat dragon. "Stand down, Fafnir." She ordered, and the rather large Noivern relaxed its stance. The Copperajah relaxed too, as the landed dragon spoke to it in Pokéspeech, asking the same thing his Trainer did. Italia's Champion cautiously approached the wary metal elephant. "Arjun…is that you?"
Alex blinked and looked at the metal elephant. "Arjun? Is that your name, my friend?"
Arjun, for his part, had widened his eyes on hearing the name both in Pokéspeech and the Common tongue. "Yes…I…"
"Arjun!" A new, male voice came, and Isabella let out a noise between a sigh and a chuckle. Upon hearing the mental message she'd sent, he had, of course, come flying onto the scene as well, as fast as Ajagar would carry him.
Alex only had an instant to take in the new arrival, for he was riding a Dragapult, who fired both his Trainer and a pair of yeet-seeking Dreepy missiles towards himself and Jess. At that same instant, a powerful psychic presence from the Indius native soaring at the Copperajah severed the brief psychic connection Alex had to his mind. He let it happen though, for as the metal elephant saw the man's face, his memories clicked, as he remembered his Trainer and finally broke through the last of the shadowy blocks on his memory with the power of friendship.
Alex swatted the Dreepy away as they screeched towards him, shouting a word that to his ears sounded like 'dakka' and bounced off his aura shield. He swatted not hard enough to hurt them, but enough that their momentum was stalled, and they had to return to their Dragapult at their much slower base speed. Still in attack mode, Ajagar readied another pair of yeet-seeking missiles, at which point Shruikan popped out, eager for a battle. He roared at the floating draconic missile platform, and it tried to roar back, until it met the ferocious Salamence's eyes, and lost its nerve. Seeing his Trainer was occupied, the Dragapult waited for another attack command. The redhead with the Noivern just stared, along with her partner, in awe at the black Salamence, and Shruikan nonchalantly stretched his wings higher and shifted his body, as he took a stance ready for battle. Like the Dragapult though, he waited on his Trainer.
The Indius man clinging to his metal elephant as the trunk lifted to hug him in return was clothed in what to Alex's eyes seemed almost like some sort of dress, but for men, and not completely enclosed around his waist. It was orange, and the man's green and white pants seemed very similar in style to his own, in that they were roomy and looked comfortable. He correctly assumed the garment was some sort of local style, and he wondered if incorporating the region's colors into one's outfit was a thing the people here did often.
After a solid three minutes of bro hug, the Copperajah twisted its trunk and sent his Trainer sliding down to the ground. Once there, Alex spied a knitted green cap with an orange band around its base atop his head. "Arjun told me what you did for him. I'm sorry we attacked you." He bowed, stiffly, formally, and low. "You saved one of my oldest friends from the Darkness. We will never forget this, Unova Champion."
Alex glanced at Jess, who he had since given context about their little side trip, and then he fixed his eyes back on the man, and again, he realized he should've recognized him much sooner. After what both he and Isabella had done in Leon's Champion-only Galar Challenge, the Tournament of Champions, that he'd held not long after Alex had become Champion himself, and then gone off to train in the Swamp. Apparently, Alex had gotten an invite, but had missed it, due to a lack of Pokénet access. The Champions of Polska, a region south of Germania also under Imperium rule, and of Romani, a region with ties that went back to Italia, with whom they shared a sea border and a dark history, had been Sikandar and Isabella's opponents. He'd heard some Mukery had gone on in the final stages of the Champion's run through the Galar region, but that wasn't unheard of for Leon's tournaments. In the end, or so he'd read, the fan's favorites had triumphed over whatever scheme the Polska and Romani Champions had been up to.
What that scheme had been, had not been disclosed and it seemed Leon himself had buried that story from even the intrepid Gabby and Ty, who'd written the summary of the tournament themselves. The only hint they'd dropped was that there was strong evidence the Imperium of Man had been up to their old tricks of interference and subtle coercion.
"Please, there's no need, Champion Sikandar. I merely did what I hope other Trainers would do for my partners if such a fate befell them." Alex said, and as his words registered, Sikandar rose. The longer he was this close to Alex, the more he sensed the Indius Champion was, in many respects, a powerful psychic. Maybe even one strong enough to beat him were they to test said powers against each other. In terms of aura, Alex would've ranked him above Meelo, albeit not by much.
"There is every need, my new western friend!" Sikandar said, beaming. "You…don't know the significance of what you've done. Arjun was and is a symbol of Indius. Every Champion of our region has tamed and Battled alongside a pachyderm of our region. Copperajah, Rhyperior, and Hippowdon, are just a few examples. There's more, though. Arjun is…special." Sikandar patted his friend then, and Alex blinked, as his perception shifted. Not much changed in the metallic elephant, except now, the veins of copper in his skin were a brilliant gold. "We put a Fairy glamor on him, most of the time, otherwise criminals would constantly try to steal him. Humans do truly depraved things to Copperajah with gold instead of copper."
Alex shook his head. "That's only common in the parts of Old Africa that the Imperium controls. Like Lorule. The people of Indius are very protective of their metal friends, at least from what my Granduncle told me."
Sikandar's face fell. "You would think we would be…but we're not. Whether it's Indius, Cape Imperium, Lorule, or even modern Galar, there will always be Humans with enough greed to blind them to the torture they subject Copperajah to, just to get their gold. Copperajah like Arjun are typically kept captive, as the gold will eventually return with enough food and care, but…they don't live very long lives. Some, have even chosen suicide, over such an existence." Arjun made a sad noise, and Sikandar nodded, stroking the large trunk as he too remembered. "I found him as a Cufant, when my Master disbanded such an operation…his mother…didn't make it. But we did learn that he's part of a line of gold-bearing Copperajah that extends into Indius's history during the Dark Times. Unlike most uniquely colored Pokémon, his offspring are more likely to be gold than copper."
Alex glanced around then, namely back towards the city, and noted some people were approaching the area that had been targeted by the Noivern riders with moves. Bracing himself, Alex drew his Pixie Plate shard, and reapplied the copper coloring to Arjun. His hand visibly smoked, as the fairy energy burned his palm, but he ignored it, and applied the perception shifting aura anyway. He hadn't even sensed it before, and he made the same effort to make it undetectable now. Sikandar started to say something about them being able to do that themselves, but Alex cut him off, flexing his hand as Jess healed it. "I will keep his secret…and we're about to have company. So, Indius Champion…what say you to a Battle? Would your people like that?"
At the word 'battle', the sadness in Sikandar's eyes vanished, replaced with a fire Alex was familiar with. One that stoked his own fiery gaze to life as well. "Yes…but we should make it a Double Battle." His arm went around Isabella's waist, and though she looked less than enthused about the public display of affection, Gabby and Ty had also confirmed that they were, in fact, an item. Honestly, that had been the main focus of their post-tournament synopsis, and Alex had skipped over most of it due to a lack of interest. The only noteworthy part had been the pair's admittedly impressive teamwork throughout the challenge. From the word 'go' they'd been a strong example of how well two Trainers could work together. "I want to see which couple Battles better together." Sikandar finished confidently. Isabella sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.
At that point, Jess spoke up, taking Alex's oversized and now unburnt hand in hers. "We Battle pretty well. I hope you two can give us a challenge." At her words, Isabella looked at her, and both Alex and Sikandar smirked, as they saw the fire burning in the eyes of the ladies as well.
"Fine." Isabella said, after looking Jess over and re-evaluating a few of her initial misconceptions. She'd heard of Redwood, but his lover and partner had significantly less written about her. Isabella had paid about as much attention to Jess's love life as Alex had to hers, and for similar reasons, but seeing them in the flesh made her realize they were both strong, even if Jessica Gladstone hadn't focused on traveling through and beating multiple Leagues in multiple regions. "But not tonight." Isabella added, as she deflated the men's excitement with her tone. Jess nodded in agreement as the Italia Champion continued. "It's late, I'm tired, and these two seem like they've had a long journey. Tomorrow, at…dusk. The Red Fort has a stadium we can open to the public." Sikandar was about to protest, as such a famed battle arena hadn't been used in a number of decades, but Isabella cut him off. "It's just going to waste as it is, and it will help with our own problems. People will pay for the experience, if not the chance to see four Champion level Trainers duke it out."
"At dusk, then." Alex said, nodding.
Sikandar glanced meaningfully at Isabella then, and Alex sensed the psychic undercurrent of telepathic speech, though he didn't pry into it. She shook her head, and then the Indius Champion spoke again, offering what looked like a gold card to Alex, stamped with an engraved version of the Pokémon League's symbol. "This will let you get into the sights around Indius, as well as free hotel service. I recommend Mount Anant, near the city of Beharma to the south. It's where the Sacred Stone of Indius is kept. I have a feeling you'll want to see it." The pair hopped on their respective dragons then, and Sikandar gave him a two fingered wave. "Later, Redwood."
Seeing Sikandar fly off on his Dragapult made the crowd murmur, as they realized who was riding it. Before they could realize who the Champions of Indius and Italia had been speaking with, Alex and Jess hopped on their Charizard. They decided to have dinner in Beharma, and a quick map check confirmed it was south, almost at the southern tip of Indius, but a relatively short trip for their fire lizards.
From the moment they came within sight of Mount Anant, Alex sensed something within the mountain, near or at its peak. All through dinner he found himself staring at it, despite the fact that Jess was looking fine in the local clothing options. She'd gone with fiery colors, and bangles on each arm with the colors of the rainbow. Like every outfit he'd seen her in, it made his pulse race, and his thoughts turn lewd, but even those desires were nulled, as the mountain drew him back to stare at it.
Finally, Jess said something. "You seem distracted. And your mind keeps turning blank."
Alex looked back to her and nodded. "I…am exhausted. There's…something about that mountain that's…hmm. I can't even explain it." He already knew he needed to do more research. His granduncle had given him a very vague rundown of his own time in Indius, and now that he thought about it, the old man had avoided the topic like an expert politician, changing the topic to something else with verbal trickery, or the quirks of old age. His free time would only come after he left her in her subtly desired but much anticipated pleasure coma. He fully intended to sleep in when he finally went to sleep.
"We can go there tomorrow." Jess said, eyeing the mountain. The last time features of the landscape had called to her lover, he'd disappeared with an old man for two weeks, and came back wielding a new power she still didn't completely grok. A voice that could split the sky, and a crown that still mystified her. She looked back at him then, and noticed that under the hair, which was reaching Roman Emperor length with its curly volume, he was thinner again. When their food arrived, he all but lost his table manners, though he didn't quite go full anime protagonist. Once he'd eaten several meaty chunks of what he'd ordered, Jess spoke again. "Did you…ever find out about solving our Mega Evolution problem? The cases Eric mentioned…he mentioned them to me, as well. They're becoming more common."
Alex gave her a tired smirk. "Oh, I figured that out…more or less…the trick will be making it accessible to everyone…or, rather, everyone who can handle that level of power. Lux." His Rotom, possessing his Holodex currently, floated out of his bag, which was by his feet, with Jess's. "Do they have Mega Stones in Indius? Specifically Key Stones."
Lux scanned, and scanned, and then scanned some more, his eyes furrowing as he searched and learned. "They do…or rather…just the Key Stones. They're considered sacred, and using them in Battle is typically frowned upon, in Indius. That Sikandar guy is making them more popular though, apparently. I'll keep these articles up; you'll want to read them yourself I think." He thanked the ghost, who floated back into his bag, and unbothered by the eyes the display drew, he kept eating, too tired to care right then what strangers thought of him.
"I don't get it." Jess said, also ignoring the looks. "How will Key Stones help without a Mega Stone as well?"
"So far I've managed to make Plates and Plate shards react to each other and cause Mega Evolution as a result, and while it's better than our first method…it still feels…incomplete. Like there's one more step we need to take before that will work for people who, y'know, Don't have psychic powers. Whatever we replace the current method with needs to be just as accessible, or it won't catch on. Hopefully even the criminal element won't chance ruining their Pokémon with repeated incorrect Mega Evolutions."
The rest of the dinner passed quickly, and several hours later, when a waxing orange crescent hung over Indius, Alex Redwood was still awake, along with Nox since Lux was sleeping, reading up on the general lore of Eous, and then Indius in particular. Apparently, a Pokémon known to the locals of Eous as Kilin (kee-lin) once defended their great lands from invasion by the first Legion of the Imperator's Thunder Warriors, and their Prime Archon. Nineteen other Legions had followed in those Dark Times, as chaos and confusion broke empires in the wake of the passing of modern history's most influential figure, Arceus's Holder. The Imperium of Man conquered most of the inhabited world, namely the Mediterra Mountains, parts of Europa, and then Old Africa, all the way to its 'horn'. Where Kilin appeared, the Legion's advances were halted. In Indius, as well as Gekorn, Sekunga, and Heilong (the three regions closest to the Imperium/Varangian border from east to west) the Prime Archons were halted, and one of the genetically modified giants, Roboute Guilliman (Row-boot Gill-e-man), had outright refused to attack such a kind, and in his recorded words, 'holy' creature.
Though the Imperator hadn't been thrilled that his sons refused to simply kill the creature, he had established hard borders with the then fractured and shifting kingdoms of Eous, and through his Legions had kept the chaos of the Dark Times from further affecting the parts of the world under his sway. Apparently, all of Eous, even Indius, had been unable to escape the tumult of the Dark Times, and the Shadow wielding sorcerers they'd created in the image of the madman who had been chosen to succeed Arceus's Holder, and failed spectacularly. From what Alex read, the majority of the peoples from across Eous had gathered at the mountain where the Legendary Pokémon made its home, Mount Ho, which sat directly in the center of Eous. After much praying, apparently, the Kilin had again appeared to the people, and offered them a path to righteous and peaceful rule, if they stayed true to it.
The Qilin had then divided itself into seven different and yet similar beings, also called Kilin, and each took the first letter of the name of the region they would guard as a part of their individual names, which were Kilini, Kiling, Kilins, Kilinh, Kilind, and Kilinho. The leader, and presumed original, still going by the bestowed name of Kilin, remained on Mount Ho, and named itself the lord of the centermost province. There was much arguing in the following days over which borders would end where, but with the Kilin's help, humanity managed to create eight kingdoms on the supercontinent, within which many regions were contained. Indius was unique, in that their claimed lands all quite quickly came to simply be regarded as 'Indius'. Koria was also one such kingdom that became generalized as a single region, but Eous recognized it as having four primary and separate cultures. While the Avatar of Raava had been around not long before Qilin first appeared, it was at this meeting that Kilin, the Kilin's 'offspring', and the Avatar of Raava had all agreed to keep and include Koria as part of Eous.
With peace reigning and the Imperium held at a hard border, each aspect of Qilin bestowed a powerful stone upon the human they chose to be king or queen of their new kingdom. As promised, guided by the wisdom of Qilin and blessed by the power within the stones, Eous entered a golden age, and began to prosper. Unfortunately, like every other period of peace humanity had ever experienced, it came to an end in blood, fire, and tears. Though the chosen rulers were granted 'immortality' by their Qilin aspect, they could still be slain by potent disease, weapons, or a Pokémon move like Hyper Beam. This immortality was soon found, within fifty or so years, to also be conditional. For the rulers who abused their power, their people soon found that their Kilin became sick and weak, and their lands became plagued by famine, rot, and drought for as long as the incompetent rule continued.
The people of Eous then learned, when the first of these so-called immortals died soon after their Kilin, that the aspect of Kilin would be reborn on Mount Ho under the prime Kilin's watchful eye, and in time, it would grow and choose the next ruler who, hopefully, would do better than their predecessor. Feeling exhausted, Alex skipped over the various descriptions of Eous's Sacred Stones and learned that all but Koria possessed one. Apparently the first High King of Eous had united the disparate regions, wore each of their stones on a belt he'd forged with his own hands, and used their combined power to repel the Imperator himself when he'd decided to resume trying to conquer Eous. After that failure, though the site called it a stalemate, the Imperator had turned his focus on conquering the violent people of Varangia, which had taken a rather long time, as they'd only recently subjugated that area in the modern era. Indius's stone in particular caught his eye then.
In Indius, the legends recorded on the Pokénet indicated that Kilini had bestowed upon the region a brilliantly shining stone, compared to the other six, that shone with every color of the rainbow, and naturally radiated a great power. Pilgrims with true hearts that visited the stone were said to be given a portion of its Infinite power. Evidently each of the stones had powers associated with them. Some healed the sick, some detected poison by shifting color. Others inspired wisdom or courage, or could calm one's mind in the midst of turmoil. Many, when paired together, amplified the other's effects on the person holding them. Indius in particular had, under the rule of its king of the age, wielded great power. A power that only Kalos had ever truly weaponized, but in Eous, the idea of a fourth, and stronger evolutionary stage for Pokémon was unique to Indius for many years, and it wasn't until the human's kingdoms were technologically connected again that the other Eousian kingdoms began to allow Pokémon Trainers to freely use battle boost gimmicks in regulated competitions. Some Eousian regions still forbade things like Mega Evolution and Dynamaxing.
In those days Indius tried their hand at playing conqueror, first in Ryugu, the island of pirates off Old Africa's eastern coast, and then later in the Hoenn region, where they had apparently hoped to take the entire island of Japan. However, according to the lore, they were soundly beaten, and the Infinity Stone was taken and hidden away by the locals of the era. By that point, several other stones had also been taken from their home regions, but Indius's was, according to the Pokénet, never returned.
Looking at the clock and seeing the night was aging, he heard Jess mumble in her sleep, as his spot was likely cold by now. Lux had one last tab set aside for him, but this one was more juicy, and more importantly, more recent. Apparently, several decades ago, researchers in Indius sensed the Infinity Stone's resurgence in Hoenn. However, thanks to local broadcasting networks outside of Rustboro City, they soon realized it was caught in a clash between three titans of the ancient world, Rayquaza, Groudon and Kyogre. Though they looked different, Indius's scientists attributed that to the stone's power, which had elevated Legendary Pokémon before.
When the cleverly titled 'giant rock' was suddenly snatched right in front of Mega Rayquaza, they knew someone, somewhere had absconded with it. By the time Indius discovered where it had been taken and attempted to infiltrate Kalos and reclaim the stone, it was apparently used in a plot by Lysandre Labs, in Lysandre's first attempt to destroy the world to keep it beautiful. After that incident, settled by the local Gym Leaders and a newly crowned Champion Alain, the stone was reported destroyed, at least in the western world, but in Indius, it reappeared for the first time in centuries, back in its home of Mount Anant. Naturally, the Pokémon League of Indius made efforts to contain its radiation so that if Kyogre swam by the tip of Indius, it wouldn't try breaking the mountain to acquire the stone.
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