Masters of the Sky
"What a beautiful town," Winona commented, landing her Altaria on a floating pathway. She was there, in the famed Pacifidlog Town, the town that was made entirely of wood. The pathway bobbed up and down on each swell of the blue water, making Winona nearly lose her balance.
"Return, Altaria," she commanded. The blue pokémon returned obediently to its pokéball, and Winona looked around.
"Oh, hi, Winona!" came a familiar voice. Winona turned to see Flannery, her head peeking through a half-opened door. "The meeting's here!" Wasting no time, Winona went over the unsteady pathways to the wooden house that Flannery was in.
Once everyone, the gym leaders, Elite Four members and champions were gathered in the house at a huge table, the Pokémon Director stepped forward.
"Greetings, leaders of the three regions," he announced. "I have called for this meeting, as you know, to discuss the making of a new power generator for Hoenn. As you might know, the power generator has not been performing very well as of late, and in a recent check on the working quality of the generator, it has come to light that it will not be able to run properly in a few years' time."
"Whoa—I didn't get a word of that," Sidney exclaimed.
"Just to summarise that, we've gotta make a new power generator soon, or Hoenn will be in for a major blackout. And that won't be a small matter," Phoebe replied.
"Yes, so we have to plan how to get enough energy to run Hoenn," the Pokémon Director continued.
"We might be able to harness the energy of nature and turn it to electricity," Misty suggested.
"No! Nature is not to be tampered with," Erica replied heatedly. "We might cause natural disasters!"
"But if we can do it without affecting nature—" Flannery began.
Suddenly, the room made a sickening movement. No one spoke. The whole ground seemed to be moving.
Finally, Steven broke the silence by shouting, "What's going on? Is it a tidal wave?"
"I'll go check!" Winona immediately shouted. She rushed out of the room onto the floating pathway immediately outside, and saw the chaos that Pacifidlog had become. People were scrambling about on the pathways, releasing their boats from ropes and sailing away. Some simply let out flying pokémon and flew away on them.
"What's happening? Why's everyone running?" Winona asked a passer-by, who was running for his boat.
"We all knew this was going to happen soon," he replied. "The Ocean Stone's power was weakening, and Pacifidlog has been moving more and more. Now it's happened! The Ocean Stone has released Pacifidlog, and now it's being washed away from Hoenn!" He immediately ran off.
Winona looked around and saw that it was true—Pacifidlog was floating away on the tide. As fast as she could go on the wobbling wooden paths, she raced back to the house where the gym leaders, Champions and the Pokémon Director were.
"Quick, run! Pacifidlog is drifting away from the mainland!" She screamed. Immediately, the whole room came alive with talk and movement. Many of the people present rushed out the door. Without stopping, Winona sent out Altaria and commanded it to fly into the air, away from Pacifidlog Town, which was being washed away at an alarmingly fast rate. In all the confusion, someone fell into the water with a loud splash.
The gym leaders began to send out their Pokemon, but when the Pokémon tried to surf or fly away, they hit a barrier which had formed and fell back onto the pathway. Pacifidlog Town stopped moving.
"W-what's going on here? What's that barrier?" Winona whispered to herself, sweat dripping down her forehead. She held Altaria's neck tightly, as she watched the happenings below.
Then, suddenly, Winona heard the sound of roaring water. Looking down fearfully, she saw that Pacifidlog City was sinking within the barrier, together with the Gym Leaders, Elite Four members and Champions. Why was this happening? Winona thought with confused fear.
"No! You can't be taken away!" Winona yelled. In a flash, her Altaria dove down at the sinking city, but hit the barrier as well and was thrown back. Then, she watched in horror, stunned, as the whole city, the unsteady wooden pathways, the wooden houses and the shouting gym leaders, Champions and the Pokémon Director sank into the mysterious depths of the sea. Soon, it was as if there had been nothing there.
A fresh wave of panic swept over her, and she felt despair like she had never felt before. Winona would have jumped into the water after Pacifidlog had common sense told her not to. She knew she was powerless against a force great enough to sink a town, and what made her feel worst was that she could do nothing to help her fellow gym leaders.
"I think Lugia might help," Falkner said, thinking. "But the place where it is sleeping is quite far from here. You think you could handle such a long journey, lady?"
That set Winona off. "Who're you calling 'lady'?" she fumed madly. "I'm just as good as any of you guys, and I'll prove it!"
Falkner looked ready to reply with an insult, but he just kept quiet, and instead made Winona a challenge. "Prove it by getting there!" he replied. "And don't lose me. Let's have a race."
Winona was burning with anger and pride, and she accepted immediately.
"Of course, you'll have to follow me most of the way," Falkner added. "You don't know the way, do you?"
"Once I see the destination, I'll overtake you!" she shouted, her pride hurt.
"Don't count on it," he replied simply. "Ready…go!"
Both of them shot off.
Winona's Altaria could hardly keep up. Maybe Falkner had been right…
"No!" she told herself, gritting her teeth. "I'll show that I'm not a weakling like those silly girls who go for contests! Go, Skarmory!"
Skarmory was much faster than Altaria. It sped on like a bullet in the direction Falkner and his Pidgeot had gone. Soon, they had caught up, and were level.
"Not bad," Falkner shouted. " For a girl, that is. This was only a warm-up. Full speed, Pidgeot!"
Somehow, Pidgeot managed to increase its speed, and went far ahead of Skarmory. Winona felt deeply insulted. Not bad for a girl,was it? Even so, she found it impressive that Pidgeot could go so fast. "Well, no reason not to try the same," she said to herself. "Hurry on, Skarmory!"
Skarmory raised its speed until the wind whistled as Winona and Skarmory flew, but it was no match for Pidgeot, which was much lighter.
"Faster!" Winona shouted, caring for nothing except to show that females could be just as good as males. Yet, Skarmory could not go any faster, and Winona had to accept that fact, and she felt defeat descend onto her like a dark veil, even before the race had ended. She really was not as good.
Finally, after an hour or two, Winona saw the destination. It was an island, completely empty except for a few Palmtrye trees. From afar, it seemed tiny, but as she got nearer, she discovered two things—that the island really was quite large, and that Falkner had already reached it. As she neared, he looked up and remained expressionless.
Winona landed Skarmory on the island, and it immediately fainted, falling to the sandy ground with a thud.
"Return," Winona sighed, holding out Skarmory's pokéball. She turned to see Falkner smiling with uncontained triumph.
"Fine, you win!" she shouted in bitter defeat. "You are better!" Why had she let an inexperienced gym leader beat her so easily?
"Don't worry, Winona," Falkner said calmly. "I don't believe you train your pokémon to reach high speeds everyday, as I do. Nothing wrong if you lose to me in a race. Besides, that was really good—"
"—For a girl!" Winona ended heatedly.
"No, that's not—" Falkner started but was cut off again by Winona.
"Always not as good, right?" she practically screamed, boiling with anger. "I'll show that girls can be as good at anything, including racing!" She stormed off into the shade of the nearest Palmtrye tree which swayed slowly in the late afternoon breeze, seeming not to care about Winona's feelings.
"Come on, we've got a job to do, and we can't waste any time!" Falkner pleaded. "Stop acting like that, please. It won't help the situation. And I'm sorry I said that earlier!"
"Alright," Winona relented. "Tell me what to do." She stood up and walked over.
Falkner began to explain. "Now, according to a legend, Lugia stays underwater just a little way east from here, in a glass cavern. It heals by sleeping, and will wake up when it heals completely. It recently fought a pokémon collector, so it's still resting..."
Winona nodded. "Alright, so how do we get it out?" Winona asked, slightly irritated that she was taking orders from Falkner.
"Erm…disturb Lugia?" he replied, quite uncertain.
"Ha! You don't know!" Winona exclaimed gloatingly. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's see if it works! Mewtwo might be ready with the resources for his transmitter any time now."
"Um…underwater? I don't think we can," Falkner said quickly. "You don't have any diving Water types, do you?"
At that, Winona sniffed with pride. "Of course I do!" she exclaimed, sending out her Pelipper. "Well?"
"Alright, that's great," Falkner replied, somewhat happier. "Make it take us underwater, if that's alright with you."
"Okay."
Pelipper waddled to the rolling waves of the sea, almost like a huge blue carpet. The two gym leaders followed it. With a few flaps of its wings, it jumped into the water and floated a few feet away. Winona waded after it, until she was knee-deep in the water. The waves rose and fell rhythmically, as if inviting them to step in further. The sky was beginning to turn slightly orange in the slowly descending sun, and the sea was awash with the warm chrome-yellow light.
Suddenly, Pelipper dove into the water. Both lunged for it, falling face down into the shimmering, glassy water, reaching for Pelipper's tail and feet. For a moment, neither breathed, trapped in the water. Then, suddenly, they were in a huge bubble of air, clinging to Pelipper's feet. Pelipper seemed ignorant of the weight, and began speeding through the golden water.
Soon Pelipper was in open waters. The blueness stretched on on all sides, and a beautiful coral reef carpeted the seabed in a riot of colours which shone brightly in the evening light. Pelipper slowed down.
"Which way, do you know?" Winona questioned impatiently.
"Do you expect me to know?" Falkner replied. The two began to look around, inside Pelipper's bubble.
Night was already nearing. As the sun cast its last pink-orange rays on the scene, some light got reflected straight into Winona's vision.
"Ow!" she shouted, shading her eyes from the blazing light. Suddenly, she realised what that had to mean. There was a shiny object there. Glass?
"Pelipper, that way!" she commanded excitedly, pointing to the source of the glare. Pelipper turned, and darted towards it, carrying the two gym leaders with it.
Lugia was dreaming. Images flashed through its vision behind its closed eyes—a dark storm boiling over the sea, waves rising high into the heavy rain, a battle, a dark shape darting over the stormy water…
Then a voice came into its mind, saying, "The Masters of the Sky will stop this. They will save the world."
Who were the Masters of the Sky? Ho-oh and itself? That didn't sound right. Lugia ruled the sea. Even so, how would it be able to stop the storm and the battle?
The images misted and Lugia's mind returned to its dreams of the sky.
Both of the gym leaders held on to Pelipper's tail as it swam away towards the glare.
"Why there?" Falkner asked. Then as he thought about it, he finally realised what Winona must have been thinking.
Finally, he was going to see the legendary which had meant so much to his family! It was a pokémon of which his father often spoke of, the pokémon which had inspired him to become such a great gym leader. His father had told him about it one night, but he just could not remember his words…
Now was not the time for a flashback, he told himself sharply. Here he was, stuck with an over competitive, fierce, stubborn person by the name of Winona, and it was going to be night time very soon, meaning they would be unable to see a thing.
As they drew closer in the dimming water, Falkner began to see a large glass wall, curved over like an ovoid bubble, the images within misty and unclear, distorted by the refraction of light by the glass. They would have to find an entrance fast.
"Quick, Winona, we've got to find an entrance. Before it gets dark!" Falkner urged her on.
"Why must I take orders from you?" she hissed.
"Because I know we have to," he replied angrily. Did Winona have any sense?
"Pelipper, take us around the glass cavern!" she finally shouted, after a moment's hesitation.
Pelipper began to circle the huge glass structure. The last dying rays of sunlight filtered through the surface, into the water, casting light upon the entrance, almost invisible behind tangles of seaweed. Pelipper brushed the seaweed aside and swam in through the little hole in the glass, and immediately, a powerful radiance overcame their vision. Holding out his hands to block the light, Falkner shouted, "What is that? Lugia?"
"Do not fear," The calm, omnipresent voice replied, freezing them to the spot with awe. "You have come for help, and help you'll get. I choose to pass control over myself to you, masters of Flying pokémon."
Suddenly, the whole cavern was drained of water. Falkner and Winona fell to the cold, hard ground, as well as Pelipper. The two got up.
"Return, Pelipper," Winona commanded, returning Pelipper to its pokéball. Then she went silent. For a few seconds all was silent.
"Lugia?" Falkner asked. His voice echoed around the cavern.
The glow dimmed , and there lay the figure of the legendary pokémon, wings folded, neck and tail curled gracefully round its body. The pokémon raised its head slowly, and opened its eyes. "Come here," it called, its voice still seeming to come from all around. Falkner could hardly believe his eyes. Here he was, before the great legendary of which his father had spoken so reverently of. It was true—Lugia was in a glass cavern under the sea. Without hesitation, he began to walk forward towards Lugia.
Soon he was there, before Lugia, staring into its silver-white fur—or was it feathers?
"Don't hesitate," Lugia's unworldly voice told them. "I am your equal now. Get onto me. I will help you."
Both gym leaders glanced at each other. Then wordlessly, soundlessly, they climbed onto Lugia's back.
"Hold on tightly," Lugia warned. Then with a powerful beating of its mighty wings, it rose into the air and broke through the glass ceiling, into the dark sea. They were safe in a bubble of air Lugia had made, and Lugia sped steeply up to the surface.
Everything rushed by in a blur. And in a moment, Lugia had broken through the surface into the clear night air. The water below rippled violently for a few seconds, before they vanished in the shining waves.
The full moon clothed everything in white, the milky light spilling over everything—the stars, the sea and the three of them.
Lugia sighed happily. "Ah…I miss the beautiful moonlight… the sound of waves and the caress of the wind. All this is even better than the grandest dream, beyond dreams at all." Lugia rose up into the air, towards the moon. "Just such a pity I have to help you do a job."
"The job won't be too hard for a legendary like you," Falkner said.
"Oh, really? Sometimes even non-legendary pokémon can defeat what a legendary cannot," it replied wisely.
"Well, Mewtwo made Pacifidlog City sink by somehow releasing the Ocean Stone's power over it. Now it is using the energy of the Ocean Stone to gain more energy for itself," Winona explained. Lugia flew back to the island and landed.
"So you want me to defeat Mewtwo in battle, get Pacifidlog back to the surface and let the Ocean Stone anchor it back? A hard task," it said.
"If you want to do it," Falkner said.
"Alright, I'll try," Lugia replied, flying back towards Hoenn.
"And you should hurry," Winona added. "Mewtwo is capable of a lot we do not know."
A few sleepless hours later, they arrived at the spot where Pacifidlog Town used to be, and saw that Mewtwo had already built something—a tall metal structure which rose out of the black water like a towering spire, and at its top a thin spike ending in a metal ball. Falkner could not help but be amazed at how fast Mewtwo had managed to construct it. Its very shape struck dread into his heart.
"The transmitter he was talking about…"Winona said silently, as if Mewtwo might hear her if she spoke too loudly.
"Is Mewtwo in there?" Falkner replied.
"Most probably. Lugia, attack it!" Winona shouted.
"No—" Falkner quickly shouted, but was cut short, as a powerful rush of air escaped Lugia's mouth towards the metal structure—
And was stopped by the black metal, hardly making a scratch. The metal rang loudly from the impact, completely giving them away.
"Winona!" Falkner shouted angrily. Why couldn't she just think sometimes?
Suddenly, a dark shadow emerged from the other side of the structure. Mewtwo! All three froze. What would it do now?
"Hello, gym leaders, if I should even call you that," Mewtwo sneered. Its voice came from all around, like Lugia's. "Maybe I should just finish you off now! Worthless humans."
Lugia raised its head protectively. It continued to circle the metal building. "Don't hurt them!" it cried angrily.
"You think you can stop me?" Mewtwo went on, laughing harshly. "Didn't you know, I've already activated my machine? Once it has enough energy from the Ocean Stone, it will send out rays that will put all you humans into my power!"
They could not waste any time. That could happen soon. Who knew?
"No, you won't do that!" Lugia cried even louder. Rising high into the air, its eyes began to glow, then a bright beam shot out at Mewtwo. It simply raised a three-fingered hand, and the attack stopped in midair. Then, the attack turned around completely and shot back at the three of them. Lugia was blown back, and for a few heartbeats, Falkner and Winona were falling through the air.
"The Ocean Stone did give me enough power, as it will to my transmitter!" it roared, laughing madly. Falkner felt cold despair fill his heart, and hopelessness that anything could save them now.
Suddenly, the two of them landed on a cold, slippery surface.
"What?" Winona gasped. Slowly, Falkner could see what they had landed on. Kyogre!
"No one steals energy from my Ocean Stone without permission!" it half roared, half screeched.
Mewtwo was not deterred at all. In fact, it was pleased. "Two legendaries? Now that's more like a real battle," it laughed. In one swift move, Mewtwo had blasted the water before Kyogre with Psybeam, washing Kyogre back. Falkner and Winona were drenched with splashing seawater, and they held on tightly to Kyogre's dorsal fins before they could fall into the sea. Kyogre, angered, began to brew up a storm. Clouds began to swirl ominously in the sky, before a showering of rain began. Then Kyogre retaliated with a Blizzard, but was once again stopped.
"Quick!" Winona suddenly shouted to Falkner, pulling him onto Altaria. They flew off Kyogre's back just before it was frozen by the backfired Blizzard.
Now, Kyogre was frozen, Lugia was greatly weakened, yet Mewtwo was completely unscathed. How would they win this? Any moment now, the transmitter might gain enough energy.
Yet, they had to try. The safety of the world was at stake.
Mewtwo smirked as it looked around, but when it caught sight of Altaria, its expression turned to one of utter rage.
"Well…two humans who think they can beat me?" it growled through clenched teeth. "I could just kill you!"
Then, a large, black ball formed at its hands, and shot forth at the two.
"Dodge!" Winona yelled. Altaria ascended just in time for the Shadowball to miss it. "Dragonbreath!" Altaria let loose a blast of green fire.
"Same old thing every time," Mewtwo said casually. It held out a hand, and the green flames froze in midair like a glowing ball. Then, Mewtwo threw it back.
"Dodge!" Winona commanded, not daunted. "Dragonbreath again!" Altaria wheeled out of the way of the Dragonbreath, and attacked once more. It was pointless, Falkner thought, watching from the back of Altaria. A pointless waste of time.
"Dodge! Attack again!"
Winona showed no signs of stopping. Somehow, Falkner found this impressive, but he quickly shook off the thought. She's just being stubborn, he thought to himself, sending Pidgeot out and getting onto it quickly.
"Enough of this game!" Mewtwo snarled. Altaria looked exhausted, and so did Winona. Mewtwo saw this.
"I don't know why I haven't finished you off yet! I underestimated you," it shouted. Suddenly, it extended both hands and shot another Shadowball at Winona and Altaria. "I'll kill you now!"
Falkner had not a moment to think. "Whirlwind!" he commanded. Pidgeot began to flap its wings hard, and the powerful wind blew the Shadowball back. Suddenly, it vanished, and Winona was safe.
"Ah, I see," Mewtwo sneered triumphantly. "You want to protect the girl, don't you?"
"Girl?! When will you learn not to call me that?" Winona screamed, looking deeply insulted. "Altaria, get it! Sky Attack!"
Before Mewtwo could turn its attention back to Winona, Altaria had struck it hard from the air. Mewtwo doubled back in pain.
Winona had finally managed to inflict damage on Mewtwo! Impossible! Falkner silently congratulated her.
Then, he saw Mewtwo aiming an attack at him. "Dodge!" he shouted. Pidgeot shot away, and the attack missed completely. That was close, he thought with relief. Angry, Mewtwo began to chase Pidgeot, aiming attack after attack at him, Pidgeot barely dodging each one.
Suddenly, he became aware that Mewtwo had stopped attacking. And from behind, he heard a scream. Fearing the worst, he turned to see Winona, trapped in Mewtwo's psychic grip, her body floating lifelessly. Every second, Mewtwo's grip became tighter. He stared on, helpless. "No, don't kill her!" he yelled.
Mewtwo brought Winona closer. It grinned in sheer triumph. "One move and she's finished," he said, laughing madly, his voice raw with evil. "Give up your battle, and she's free to go."
Falkner was trapped. What could he do but let Mewtwo go in exchange for Winona's safety? Perhaps he would have to allow Mewtwo to control the world. At least Winona would be alive and safe…
Then suddenly, Mewtwo was blown sideways by a powerful gust of wind.
It yelled loudly, clutching its side. Winona and Altaria were suddenly released from its control, and she began to gasp with effort. All three turned to see who had saved them.
And they saw Lugia's majestic shape, shining in the moonlight. It had healed itself completely, and it looked completely determined to defeat Mewtwo.
"I told you not to hurt them!" it shouted loudly, eyes burning with light and power.
"Lugia," it hissed. "You're back. Not for long, though!" It threw a huge Shadowball at Lugia, who dodged it quickly and returned with a Hyper Beam.
While the battle ensued, Winona flew on Altaria back to Falkner.
"I…nearly…died," she panted. "Mewtwo's going to be hard to beat. Really…hard." Then, as if the effort to speak had cost her too much, she fell back on Altaria. In the background, a large Shadowball from Mewtwo smashed into the stormy water, and the black clouds suddenly broke with heavy rain which pelted down on the scene.
Lugia fired another Aeroblast at Mewtwo, dodged it, turning to a side.
Suddenly it remembered its dream. The images were hard to find, like forgotten pages within the leaves of a thick book, but this scene brought it back into its mind like a bolt of lightning. The storm, the battle, the dark shape… It was all coming true! Who could save them now?
Then a real bolt of electricity flew at Lugia. For a few horrifying seconds, it could not move, its body uncontrollable, filled with torturous pain. And it began to spiral unsteadily into a deep abyss of darkness. The last sound it heard was Mewtwo's cold, grating laughter.
"We can't waste any time," Winona suddenly exclaimed suddenly, seeing Lugia plummet into the churning sea, though she still looked exhausted. She panted heavily before going on. "The machine's got to be deactivated before it can send out Mewtwo's rays."
"How do we deactivate it?" Falkner asked unsurely.
"We've got to destroy it. With the best attack any of your pokémon knows."
"Go, Skarmory!" both shouted at the same time. They glanced at each other, mildly surprised.
"Two pokémon of the same species," she said, returning Altaria to its pokéball. "Let's see how that does." All trace of tiredness seemed to have left Winona. She can be really determined when she wants to, Falkner thought.
Falkner turned quickly to see how the battle was going. The rain stung his eyes as he strained to focus, and he saw that Kyogre was now fighting Mewtwo alone. They definitely had to act fast.
"Quick, Falkner!" Winona shouted.
"Alright," he replied, hopping onto Skarmory. Both flew to the front of the metal tower, and stared up at its massive height.
"Hyperbeam at the top, on the count of three," Winona said, her voice edged with determination. "One…"
The rain got harder. It obstructed Falkner's view of the tower, and his focus wavered. Sheets of falling rain shone in the dull moonlight.
"Two…"
Winona's shout brought his focus back. They had to do this, they had to…
"Three! Hyperbeam!"
Two bright beams of pure energy burst from the two Skarmory's mouths and met the top of the structure, completely engulfing it in light. For a few seconds, they feared that it might not work, and all would be lost, for Mewtwo would have seen them attack, and it would immediately come to kill them. They would be defenceless.
But suddenly, Falkner saw that, despite the heavy rain, the top of the tower was beginning to melt away. He gave a shout of joy as the metal turned red-hot, burning away, shrinking, dying…
In a few seconds, only a smouldering stub was left of the tower, smoking away in the rain.
"No! My transmitter…" Mewtwo yelled. "You will pay!" Angrily, it fired a Psybeam at Kyogre, who was already greatly weakened. It fainted and joined Lugia at the bottom of the sea, unknowing of the ferocious, decisive battle that stormed above.
They were all alone. Mewtwo stood opposite the two gym leaders, ignorant of the pounding rain. Its whole body shook with uncontained rage. This was how the battle would end, one way or another. The two of them against Mewtwo. How would they win? The odds were stacked against them. Mewtwo had already defeated the two legendaries. Why wouldn't it be able to kill them in one blow? Mewtwo had all the power of the Ocean Stone, they only had their pokémon. In addition, Mewtwo was a clone of Mew, only stronger. We'll never win this battle, Falkner thought. He could almost hear Winona reply, "Don't think like that! There's no way we're going to let Mewtwo get away with it, right? Right?!"
But yet again, Mewtwo had the upper hand. He held a grudge against humans.
But they had to try.
"I will not let you go!" Mewtwo practically screamed, launching a Psybeam at Winona's Skarmory, which countered with Hidden Power.
"Swift!" Falkner commanded. Glowing stars spun out of Skarmory's beak, at Mewtwo's face. Mewtwo redirected Psybeam at Falkner's Skarmory. Swift was overpowered quickly, and a rush of burning light hit Falkner. He shouted in pain, bending down, to no avail.
"Skarmory, Steel Wing!" Falkner heard Winona shout. The Psybeam stopped as Mewtwo got hit. He sat up, waiting for the pain to lessen.
Then it occurred to Falkner that the only way they could stand a chance at beating Mewtwo at all was to use their strengths. Winona's pokémon possessed extremely high attacking power. If anyone was to cause Mewtwo damage first, it would be Winona. He could only keep Mewtwo distracted and allow her a chance to attack.
Suddenly, a Shadowball was hurtling towards Falkner. "Dodge!" he shouted loudly. Skarmory rose out of the way just in time. And as he had hoped, Mewtwo continued to throw attacks at his Skarmory, which dodged continuously. The training in speed paid off, he thought silently. Let's see if it's enough to keep me alive.
It was. Not one attack hit. Mewtwo continued to throw out beams and bolts of electricity at him, but Skarmory dodged each one.
Then as if she had known what to do all along, Winona told her Skarmory to attack with Aerial Ace. Skarmory rammed headfirst into Mewtwo, catching it completely by surprise. Mewtwo was hurt badly by its spear-like beak. Mewtwo fell in altitude.
"But…how? No one catches me by surprise!" it roared angrily, launching a dark bolt of lightning at Winona's Skarmory, which returned with a Hyperbeam, causing a large explosion. Perfect, Falkner thought to himself. Then, silently, he told Skarmory to use Aerial Ace as well.
Skarmory plummeted through the smoke, and hit Mewtwo powerfully. It fell further, clutching its head in agony.
Then, Falkner saw that, Mewtwo's defences were slowly breaking down. Mewtwo was weakening, somehow. The storm was slowly clearing, and the soft moonlight streamed into the scene. There was a glimmer of hope, elusive, but there. Encouraged by this notion, he mad Skarmory fly back to Winona's side.
Mewtwo flew upwards and stared at the two, eyes narrowed in anger. It readied a large Shadowball, larger than the two of them.
"Double Hyperbeam again," he whispered to Winona, who nodded.
"Hyperbeam!" they both shouted in unison. Together, the two attacks flew forth, and grew into one powerful beam of energy, hitting Mewtwo and its Shadowball with such force that it could not stop the attack with its dwindling powers. It groaned loudly in pain.
Both Skarmory stopped their attacks, Winona's a little later. Mewtwo floated upwards with effort, singed from head to toe. It winced in pain as it tried to raise its right arm forward, then suddenly, it stopped struggling, and Mewtwo finally fainted, falling into the water. At that moment, Falkner's heart nearly stopped. It was just such a shock.
They had won. Won an almost impossible battle.
Winona gazed on disbelievingly from Skarmory's back at the spot in the dark, shimmering water where, moments ago, Mewtwo's body had disturbed the surface. But now, it was just rippling with waves, as if nothing had happened at all.
"We…won?" Winona could hardly get those words out. She was sweating, her legs were aching, and her voice was hoarse from shouting. Yet, she had never felt such relief and happiness in her life.
Suddenly, her euphoria vanished. Lugia and Kyogre were gone, she suddenly remembered. And so were the leaders of the three regions.
"Lugia," Winona hissed. "We must find Lugia, and Kyogre."
Winona sent Pelipper out. It circled down to the water and sat, waiting.
"Return, Skarmory!" Winona shouted. Skarmory vanished into its pokéball, and Winona fell through the air, landing on top of Pelipper, who formed a bubble. Falkner followed. Then, Pelipper began to search the inky darkness.
"How will we ever find Lugia like this?" Falkner asked impatiently. His old, disapproving self had returned.
"Why don't you think about that?" Winona replied angrily. "Do you think I know?"
"Really, no one can talk to you without getting scolded!" he shouted back.
"Sorry." Winona suddenly quietened down. She sighed. If she wanted to get on with life, she had to stop acting so hostile.
Suddenly, Winona spotted a white shape far ahead, lying on the dark seabed, barely visible. Could it be? Lugia? It might just be her wild imagination…
Falkner looked intently ahead as well. He had seen it too!
"Pelipper, straight ahead!" Winona commanded, feeling fresh hope. It had to be Lugia.
As the two went ahead towards the faint shape, it became clearer and clearer. It was glowing—definitely Lugia.
Finally, they reached Lugia, and saw its massive body curled up like it was about to sleep.
About to sleep?
"Lugia!" Falkner shouted. He quickly began to explain why this was bad. "When Lugia sleeps to heal, it takes at least a day. And during that time, Lugia will be unable to defend itself, since it isn't in the glass cavern! Who knows, Mewtwo might have healed by then!"
"Alright, so…there's got to be a way to wake it up!" Winona replied determinedly.
However, Falkner had noticed something else. A darker shape, lying on the seabed. Kyogre, he thought. Maybe there was a higher chance of reviving Kyogre first.
Suddenly, the massive shape before Falkner gave a deep groan.
"Won…the…battle?" it asked weakly. The huge pokémon tried to rise, but fell back to the seabed again, defeated.
"Yes, we won," Winona replied, turning to where Kyogre was.
"Good then," it replied. "Can…you…heal me?"
"I might be able to, with Altaria…" she suggested. "With a new move I invented. Kind of like the opposite of Perish Song. It revives with a song, but it's not perfected yet. One wrong note and…"
"So it," Falkner encouraged. "You must try everything." Winona nodded.
Winona took in a deep breath. "Altaria! Life Song!" she shouted, sending Altaria out. Altaria began to sing a sequence of notes, each note ringing wonderfully, and combining to form a spell-like tine. All this while, Kyogre listened. Winona was concentrating hard to keep Altaria singing the right notes, Falkner could tell from the expression on her face.
Finally, the song ended. Kyogre, completely healed, rose up into the water. Falkner heaved a sigh of complete relief.
"That seems to have worked," Kyogre said thankfully. "It seems I now owe you a favour."
"Alright, we've got to wake Lugia up now, somehow," Winona said, her face in a worried frown.
Suddenly, something surfaced in the back of Falkner's mind, something he had heard from his father long ago…
All of a sudden, the memory came flooding back.
"Falkner, you know, you've got to succeed me as the Violet City gym leader someday?" his father had said to him.
"But I'm not going to be as good!" He had replied.
"Well, son, you've got to try and believe in yourself," his father had said in encouragement. "Our first gym leader, one of my forefathers, was chosen by Lugia, and all his descendants were meant to be good gym leaders."
"But I thought Lugia was the guardian of the sea. Why aren't we a water type gym?" Falkner had replied in disbelief.
"Lugia might rule the sea, but it's actually a flying type," His father had answered. "Its energy comes from the sky. And it will awaken if any of us goes into its glass cavern."
Suddenly, Falkner's thoughts flew back to the present. And now, he knew why Lugia had woken up so easily. But now, Lugia would not wake up, even though he was there. It was resting.
Falkner knew how it would be awoken. "I know what to do!" he shouted. "Its energy comes from the skies, and that will be what will give it energy! We need to get some air to it!"
"I think I can do that," Kyogre suddenly said, swimming upwards gracefully. The surface of the water, lit by the milky moonlight, began to ripple and swirl, slowly at first, but getting more and more violent, until a whirlpool had formed. Then with a final effort, the whirlpool suddenly reached down like a straight arm, and hit Lugia's figure. And it became a column of air, spinning through the seawater, the moonlight shining within it.
Slowly, the light within the path of air and moonlight grew. That was when Falkner realised that Lugia was glowing as well. Its feathers shone like the moon, casting light upwards through the tunnel of water.
The three watched in wonder as Lugia's glow grew even brighter, throwing white light on the seabed all around. Everything was visible underwater.
"I'm sorry I fell asleep," Lugia's magical voice echoed from all around in the blinding light. "You've helped me heal. The moonlight gives me energy." None of them moved. The glow was still increasing, and slowly, everything disappeared in the light, overwhelming and pure.
A/N: It's been quite a while since I had an author's note! I would like to thank Silver Lugia, Natsume Yungerer and Leone the Infernal for their faithful reviewing! It's been really helpful. I guess it's time I thank you all... so thank you!
This story's ending quite soon. Thank you for all those who have been reading.
Errr...the disclaimer! Finally I'm remembering it! I do not own Pokemon.
"Thank goodness you won the battle," It said. "We've got a town to find, haven't we? Get onto me, masters."
"Masters?" Winona asked questioningly. Lugia formed a large bubble of air, and Winona made Pelipper swim into it from the top, so they fell onto Lugia's back. Then, after she had returned Pelipper to its pokéball, Lugia raised its wings and took off through the black water, up and out into the sky speckled with brilliantly shining stars, and the ever-radiant moon.
A shooting star streaked briefly through the sky, its flaring white tail showing up stark against the velvety black.
"A shooting star," Winona whispered. "That's supposed to be good luck, isn't it? I'll make a wish. And I hope it means we'll find Pacifidlog."
I hope so too, Falkner thought to himself.
"Alright, into the sea again, now I've felt the wind," Lugia called back. Without stopping, it plunged into the glimmering water, breaking through the surface in a rush of bubbles.
Lugia continued its steep downward path towards the seabed.
Suddenly, there was a loud roar of water from below, and all three looked down, to see Kyogre swimming towards them, palely lit by Lugia's faint glow.
"I know where Pacifidlog is," Kyogre called in its low, yet shrieking voice. "Can't lift it. The barrier's still round it, thankfully. They still have air to breathe."
Lugia seemed to straighten at that. "Air? Then I think I know how to get it up to the surface. But the barrier? I don't know about that."
"We'll do what we can first," Falkner said decisively.
"You're right. We'd better get Pacifidlog out first," Winona agreed.
"I might need your help if I run out of energy. Pacifidlog Town is very big," Lugia said, before following Kyogre. Only Lugia's soft glow gave any light in the deep, unrevealing water.
Soon, Kyogre stopped. Somehow, it could see in the dark. "Here, this is where it is," it said.
Falkner tried to listen for sounds from inside the submerged barrier, wherever it was, but only heard the deep, watery sound of the sea and its currents.
"I think I can sense something…" Lugia murmured. "Yes, air trapped down here!"
Suddenly, Lugia's glow flared up fiercely into a steady radiance. Then, everything became clear, as the light revealed all. There Pacifidlog Town stood, looking out of place at the bottom of the sea, all the houses and pathways intact. It looked just as it had on the surface, except it was…completely deserted.
A sudden brightness behind his eyelids woke the Pokémon Director. Blinking at it, he looked around at the tiny room in which all the leaders were sleeping. There was a bright light outside the window. Had someone come to save them?
Just a few hours ago, the whole town on which they stood had started to sink, and a barrier had prevented anyone from leaving. Only Winona and Falkner had escaped, somehow. Now, they were all underwater in the dead of night, and there was a bright light shining into the room.
Some of the others were rousing.
"What's that light?" someone mumbled sleepily.
"I think there's someone outside, here to save us," the Pokémon Director replied. He stood and walked to the window and looked around. The bright light was still there.
More were waking up. Many asked what the light was. The Pokémon Director was just as puzzled.
And suddenly, the ground began to rise.
Lugia cried out loudly as Pacifidlog Town began to rise. The whole town stayed suspended in midwater.
"Help me!" Lugia shouted. Then, Winona felt her mind and vision somehow sink into Lugia's bright glow, and connect to its soul…
All of a sudden, Winona could feel every particle of air in the town before her, screaming to return to the sky, and yet, entrapped by something, kept bound below the sea.
"Rise…" she heard herself shouting. She took in a deep breath, and began to reach out to the air inside, becoming part of it herself, using all her energy to rise…and go upwards!
Nothing was happening. At least from where she was, she could not feel any change. Harder! She strained with effort as she pushed upwards on the barrier.
"Winona, are you there?" came Falkner's voice from nearby, strained with effort.
"Yes…" she called back. Suddenly, she felt a little stronger. She was not there alone. Falkner was there too.
"Keep going!" Lugia cried out, as if in deep pain. "Pacifidlog's huge!"
Lugia was trying as well! Filled with new energy, she gave all she had to push the town upwards.
"You need help," a fourth voice joined them, both high and low at the same time. Winona looked down through the eyes of her spirit, and saw Kyogre's dark figure looming below the pathways. More help.
Then, shouting, screaming in effort, she began to push upwards harder, together with the others.
And Pacifidlog Town began to rise. Winona kept her vision on the water above.
As they got higher, the pressure of the water lessened, and Winona began to feel more confident, more hopeful.
"Keep going!" Lugia commanded, its voice stronger, all around. "You're doing a good job!" With a final effort, Winona's spirit flew up against the barrier, and suddenly, Pacifidlog rose up with a whoosh, and it was back.
But the air around her continued to buzz around within the barrier, pushing on all sides.
There was a moment of tension.
Then the barrier was shattered, and the air roared out into the night, free…free at last!
The air particles danced around Winona as if in joy. She felled happiness swell in her heart.
Sorry I took so long to update. Well, I'm back, and I hope that all my readers are still reading! Thank you for your support!
Winona gasped with sudden pain. It seemed as if her whole body was being electrocuted. She could not move, for every movement made her ache beyond compare. Lying down on Lugia's warm back, she looked around, not moving her head. Just to her left, Falkner lay on his side, his eyes glazed over in pain. The energy they had used to raise Pacifidlog Town to the surface had completely worn them out.
Below them, Lugia's body was still as well. "Thank you," it managed feebly. "You helped a lot. I guess you would be naturals at it, being descendants of the gym leaders Ho-oh and I chose…" Lugia gave a soft moan of pain.
This puzzled Winona. "Chosen? You chose one of my ancestors? To be Fortree's gym leader?" Talking had taken a lot of effort.
"Not me," Lugia replied, its voice almost a sigh. "Ho-oh did. And you have proven…that you indeed are worthy of your position."
There was a moment of silence. Then Kyogre's voice rang out in the water.
"I think I should heal you. The Ocean Stone gives me energy, but I can make it send energy to you as well."
Then, a blue glow began from below, growing brighter as Kyogre neared. Then, it rose over them, a small blue glowing sphere in its huge hands.
"Isn't that the…the Blue Orb?" Winona asked.
"Yes, it is, but I've changed its function," Kyogre explained, before letting the light fall upon the three. Winona immediately felt herself gain new strength, and she could suddenly move. She sat up.
"Thank you so much, Kyogre," Lugia thanked Kyogre.
Then, Lugia rose out of the water. The moonlight fell upon its silver feathers and it seemed to take energy from that. It beat its wings, and then ascended into the sky, flying up to be among the stars in the tapestry of the night sky.
Winona looked down. And now, as she stared down at the town upon the moonlit waters, she saw that it was still being washed slowly away. It wasn't over yet.
Ah, took a while, didn't I? I was banned from the computer for using it without permission. But I'm back now, and since I've been gone so long, I'm putting up my last 2 chapters! And Leone the Infernal, I put in a special at the back for you and all you Team Rocket fans!
The Pokémon Director went out of the room, shaken but happy. All of a sudden, the whole of Pacifidlog Town had surfaced.
The wind was cooling outside. Walking along the path to the south of the town, he suddenly realised that it was still moving. Not a good sign.
All of a sudden, he kicked a metal object in the darkness.
"Ouch!" He exclaimed, hopping on one foot.
What is that thing? It will suffer my wrath! He thought angrily, bending to look closer. Suddenly, he saw what it was. An anchor!
Had the citizens of Pacifidlog Town made it specially to keep Pacifidlog Town in place, in case this disaster happened? Then it would do! Bending down, he pushed with all his strength, but it did not budge at all. It only managed to give him sore hands.
Then, he heard a pair of footsteps from behind him. He turned to see Tate and Liza running to where he was.
"Help me get this into the water!" He exclaimed, pointing to the anchor. "And call for more help!"
Soon, all the leaders were at the anchor, trying to push it into the water. For its size, it was very heavy. But they wouldn't give up so easily, would they? Determined, they kept going.
All three watched as the leaders went forth and began to push at the first anchor. It refused to move.
"Don't stop!" Winona yelled to the people below. They kept pushing, and suddenly, it was at the edge, and it tipped off into the water with a loud plop.
"Move onto the next one!" Falkner shouted, pointing to the anchor in the east. There were gasps of surprise as they looked up and saw him, but they went on to the next anchor anyway. It, too, went into the water. Pacifidlog was slowing down.
They wasted no time and went to the next one.
Finally, after a lot of pushing and hard work, Pacifidlog had stopped moving. The water continued to ripple under the moon, and now, Falkner knew everything was really over. Pacifidlog Town was safe, as well as the world. Below them, Lugia sighed deeply. It landed on a narrow pathway in Pacifidlog, and lowered its body carefully.
"There," Lugia breathed. "Thank you for your help. Now you must return, and so must I. I'm glad to have met you, but now, it's time to leave."
Both gym leaders got off, and Lugia stood up. Then gazing up into the starlit sky, it took off and flew away. Falkner watched as its glowing figure shrank into a whit speck on the lightening sky.
Falkner finally tore his gaze from the sky and looked around at the almost empty town. A breeze blew from the west, where Lugia had had flown, and with it, a sense of calm and peace.
"Well, I guess all that's over," Winona whispered. "It was all worthwhile."
Falkner turned. Winona was studying the sky. He still remembered his immense hatred for her at the beginning of the journey. All that had dissolved into nothing throughout the journey.
As he looked upon her face again, he suddenly felt a piercing pain in his heart. Was it possible? Did he really…? How was that possible?
"Hey, why do you look so…shocked?" Winona asked suddenly.
"Oh, nothing," he replied, looking down.
Suddenly, the gym leaders, Elite Four members and Champions came running towards them.
"I'm glad we're finally safe!" the Pokémon Director shouted. "And it's thanks to you two. How did it all happen? Did you find out?"
"Er…" Falkner began. He glanced at Winona, who smiled trustingly. Somehow, this made him feel more confident. He began to tell them about Mewtwo's plan and about how they defeated him, with Lugia and Kyogre. The others listened intently, amazed at the battle, at how they had raised Pacifidlog Town.
"Now, let us continue the discussion on how to get the energy for Hoenn's electricity generator," The Pokémon Director said, once they had finished explaining.
All of a sudden, Falkner had an idea. "Energy source?" He asked. "We could use the energy…of the Ocean Stone…I mean the Blue Orb!"
"Why, yes, of course!" Winona exclaimed. She turned to the sea and shouted, "Kyogre!"
In moments, Kyogre had risen out of the sea, its shiny blue back out of the water.
"Yes, Winona?" It replied. The others watched in awe.
"Could you do us a small favour?" She asked. "Could we…use the energy of the Ocean Stone to power Hoenn's new electrical plant?"
Kyogre seemed to consider, then it sank back down into the water.
"Oh well," Falkner sighed. "We'll have to find some other source. Sorry we couldn't help…"
All of a sudden, Kyogre rose out of the sea again, which glittered blue from the early dawn light. It jumped up, out of the water, and arched over their heads. And in its hands, it held the Blue Orb, or the Ocean Stone. It let go in midair, and Winona caught the glowing stone quickly. Kyogre landed in the water with a huge splash, wetting the people there.
"Thank you, Kyogre!" Winona shouted, her voice full of relief. Kyogre murmured with acknowledgement, before submerging itself again.
Winona held the shiny, glowing Orb in her hands. It glistened with magic, with an aura of energy.
"Oh, yes, and the energy can be turned into electricity simply by connecting wires to it!" came Kyogre's bubbling voice from underwater, just an echo.
And so, here it is, the grand finale! Thank you, all you readers who have followed through the story to the end - DarkBlaziken, Natsume Yungerer, Silver Lugia and Leone the Infernal (hope you all are still reading)! Enjoy, and hope you keep reading my fanfics!
The people present began departing on flying or surfing pokémon. Falkner stayed behind, and he watched the sky as it began to dawn. Pink light reached over the ocean from the east, lighting up the clouds and the morning mist with warm rays. Slowly the sun peeked over the edge of the sea.
Winona came forward and watched as well.
"Feels nice for all this to have ended, doesn't it?" She asked.
"Yeah," He replied, his voice unsteady. What was wrong with him? Why couldn't he make a proper conversation with Winona?
There was no doubt—he really was beginning to like Winona, somehow. Looking down at the shimmering pink water, he felt his face grow hot.
"Hey, what're you looking at?" Winona asked. "Well, I'm here to catch the sunrise, so I'd better!" She looked up at the rising sun over the pink-tipped waves. It continued to rise, and for a precious few minutes, the sky was alight with all the colours of the full spectrum.
"Erm…Falkner?" Winona asked, sounding a trace nervous.
"Yes?" He replied.
She took in a deep breath before going on. "Do you…I know I sound very stupid when I say this, but…Do you like me?"
Falkner nearly fell into the water in shock. How'd she know?
"I…Was it that obvious?" he gasped, not daring to look up. How will she respond? Is she unhappy that I do? Will she—
All of a sudden, he felt Winona's hand on his shoulder.
"I realised," She sighed, "That you really weren't that bad. I started to like you without even knowing it. And I just didn't dare to say so…I mean, only girls would like guys." She looked up into his eyes, her gaze full of happiness. "Well…I am a girl, after all."
Falkner blinked and smiled. "I didn't ever think…"
Suddenly, Winona had wrapped her arms round him. He returned the embrace, too amazed and breathless to speak.
"I wished for this…on a shooting star," she cried. "And it came true! I admit it, I like you! I think you're really amazing, with such great pokémon…"
"Same here," Falkner replied finally. Nothing could compare to the wonderful rising feeling he felt in his heart now.
When the two finally turned back to the east horizon, not daring to look at each other, they saw that the colours were painted over the sky, brighter than before. Good luck? Probably so…
As the brilliant colours turned to pure blue again, a warm zephyr rippled from the west, creating erratic circles in the calm sea water.And with it came a voice which both heard.
"Thank you for doing so much, Masters of the Sky. May the winds bless you forever."
Winona looked at Falkner, who looked back. His hair had gone all messy from being blown at by the wind. He looks quite good with his hair all messed up, Winona thought, smiling.
Falkner, however, was thinking of something else. Looking up at the great stretch of free, endless sky blue above, he thought of the voice on the breeze. Lugia.
Masters of the Sky, he reflected. That's what Lugia called us. And that's who I am. Taking a deep breath of the sea breeze which washed from over the dyed blue waters, he felt as if nothing could go wrong for him again.
After the main story…
(Do NOT read, Team Rocket haters and Mewtwo fans!)
Somewhere nearby, Jessie, James and Meowth cycled along in their submarine, now a sleek torpedo shape.
A disturbance in the water to their right made them all glance out of the window.
It was Mewtwo.
"That no good traitor!" Jessie growled through clenched teeth. "It's time you go back to the boss!"
Jumping out onto the top of the submarine, Jessie sent out her Wobbuffet. She was followed by James, who sent out Cacnea.
Mewtwo was still weak from the earlier battle. It made a small Shadowball and threw it with all its energy, which was not much at all.
"Ha!" Jessie laughed. "Wobbuffet, Counter!"
The tiny Shadowball hit Wobbuffet's protected body and grew twice in size, before blasting back at Mewtwo, who groaned in pain.
"Cacnea, Solarbeam!" James shouted. A powerful beam of white light hit an injured Mewtwo, completely knocking him out.
And Team Rocket cycled away with a huge catch in tow.