Pernon Group office - Viridian City - 1126 hours local time - Day 112 of Ash Ketchum's Journey
Ash Ketchum looked at the expressions on the faces of Pernon and his… assistant? …as they processed his request.
"Pika." 'They look like you're asking them to help kill yourself.' Pikachu quipped.
"You are INSANE." the woman said. "It's bad enough you want to go to the least-habitable region on the planet, but Cipher is back!"
"That's the point. I want to deal with them." Ash said, eyes fixed on the owner of the Olympic. "They went after me. I'm not the type to take this sort of thing seriously most of the time, but if they aren't stopped… they're going to go after everyone I care about."
The woman groaned. "Look, kid, just wait for the League to do something about it." she retorted. "The news is pissing everyone off: no one wants a repeat of the Cipher War."
"I can understand you wanting to deal with them on your own," Kyril added. "But seriously, Ash, leave this to the pros."
"You're not stopping me," Ash stated. "I might not know how to exactly read a map, but my Pidgeot does. I am going to Orre and I am putting this organization down. No one is going to stop me."
"You're mad," the assistant said. "You want to willingly go to the worst region on the planet, including the Ranger Union?"
"Pika." 'We've dealt with worse,' Pikachu said, shrugging, even though they couldn't understand him.
"And I'm asking you for help getting there," Ash said. "You want them gone. I want them gone. And I'm the best person to deal with them."
Kyril looked at him, taking his best measure of Ash… and nodded. "Alright, Ash. I'll help you," he said. "But you're not going alone." He stood. "Let's take a walk, shall we?"
The assistant looked startled. "You're really going to-"
"He reminds me of myself after that happened," Kyril replied. "And if he's going, he needs all the backup he can get."
Kyril led the way into an elevator. "Several years ago, I was attacked by Team Rocket," he began. "They wanted me to build weapons for them. Obviously, that wasn't going to happen. I managed to get free of their clutches, but I knew they'd keep coming for me. Them and likely some of the other Teams. All of whom are blights on society." The elevator doors closed, and it began to descend.
"You don't know the half of it." Ash muttered.
"Pikapi." 'Ash, you don't want to tell him that.' Pikachu said.
"So I decided to take the fight to them." Windows in the sides of the elevator, which were originally just showing the walls of the shaft, suddenly revealed a massive underground complex, as the elevator kept descending.
"Do I have to worry that you're like Lysandre?" Ash asked.
"The Kalosian businessman? What's wrong with him?" Pernon asked.
"He's the leader of Team Flare." Ash deadpanned, much to Pikachu's horror. "Don't ask me how I know. I just do."
Kyril frowned. "OK, then, thanks for that. No one's been able to determine who Team Flare's boss is. Won't be easy to expose him, but now I know what to look into. But no, I'm not in this for world domination. Or for any other conceited goal like that. I just want to take the Teams down, and take them down hard. But, as I have never had any interest in being a Pokemon trainer, I had to turn to other methods."
Ash scoffed. There was no other method. Not unless you wanted to kill people and Ash disapproved of killing unless there was no literal choice. Hunter J, maybe, if she was thrown in a cell where no one would go. Cyrus REALLY needed to die. A universe or one man. He'd take the universe.
The elevator stopped, the doors opening to reveal a white sterile lab area, filled with people working on things Ash couldn't recognize. Except for the primitive electronic parts that were going into what looked like a missile on one table.
"You use your suits to kill people." Ash all but spat. "Tried using Pokemon? They actually let their victims survive so they can go to the courts."
"Never really had the knack for training Pokemon," Kyril replied. "What I have is a mind for technology. And while making the Teams face the courts is a noble goal, there are times when criminals just won't let themselves be caught. Or they'll find a way to get the courts to release them. And that's what Marauder is for - to destroy the infrastructure of the Teams, and to ensure that those who can't be caught at least aren't able to harm anyone else." He led Ash up to a display. It was a very crude suit of powered armor, but Ash could clearly see the hardpoints built into it. "This was my first practical model. The only way to really improve something like this is to build a new one learning lessons from the older models. I still keep this one around, though. As a reminder of how it began."
"I'm sorry, you moonlight around as some vigilante?" Ash asked, Pikachu rolling his eyes. They both had… mild experience with that. And they didn't exactly approve of them dressing up in tights.
"How can you not KNOW about the Marauder?" Kyril demanded. "He's infamous!"
"Doesn't involve Pokemon or Pokemon training." Ash said with a shrug. He had a fixation, but he focused on what worked. "If it doesn't involve one of those or allowing me to keep going as a trainer, I'm usually not interested in it." It also kept him from learning the fine arts of romance as a bonus. The better to drive the girls into the friend-zone.
Kyril groaned. "Great, tunnel vision," he muttered. "Well, I can understand it, I guess. I can tunnel vision a bit working on designs for my armors." He shook his head, before looking at Ash. "Anyway, you want to take down Cipher? You're going to need backup - and I can provide backup with Marauder. You may not like lethal firepower, but Cipher's going to need it. They're not just going to sit down if you beat them and let you arrest them. Maybe a few will, but they'll be in the extreme minority."
Ash sighed. He knew that. But he'd like it that way.
"I want them to face the people they hurt," Ash said. "I want them to give Cipher their justice."
"Yeah, that I get." Pernon said. "But you might not get that chance. You want to get to Orre, that's the best you'll get."
"Pika." 'Take it. You want to knock Cipher out, that's our ticket.' Pikachu said.
Ash sighed. "Fine. I'll do it," he said.
Meanwhile, Viridian City Hospital
Sabrina walked towards Kyoji's room, knocking at the door. "Kyoji? You up?"
"It's… unlocked." He said, as Sabrina blinked at the tone of his voice. It sounded… depressed actually. She opened the door, finding Kyoji at the table, with some sort of portable computer set up. His face currently held in his hand.
"Is… everything alright?" Sabrina asked, she could sense emotions - but didn't want to dig into them right now. But she could tell something… wasn't right.
"No… not really," Kyoji shook his head. "I… got a message back from home, first one they sent in a while after all the reports I've been giving them… my last report detailed the whole… Cipher situation."
"…and?" Sabrina asked.
"…they're recalling me." Kyoji stated, "They… want me to come back for a full debriefing…"
Sabrina blinked at that "Isn't that… good?" She asked. "It… means that they might be ready to help or something?"
"I wasn't supposed to get a message back from the computer," Kyoji said, "It's a breach of protocol, since a message sent by them could risk Ransei being discovered by the natives… we had a system of dead drop locations to receive responses from… this line came directly from High Command… if they're messaging me, and other Recon teams to RTB… something is very, very wrong."
There was an uncomfortable silence between the two as that news settled. "So… when are you leaving?"
"…I need to secure my own transport, so soon…" Kyoji sighed.
Sabrina pursed her lips. "So… am I going to see you again?" she asked.
"Huh-Why would you ask that?" Kyoji asked, chuckling nervously.
"You're being recalled by your high command. That means one of two things." Sabrina said as she walked over. "Either they want you to report to them personally… or Ransei is preparing for war. I just want to be sure you're not marching off to your death." She then held his hand. "You're the only one that isn't terrified of me or I consider family. I don't want to lose you."
"…I don't wanna lose you either…" Kyoji sighed, holding her hand in turn. "…I promised Ash to stay here with the girls, I want to stay here with you, but… I can't say no to this… we need Ransei's help if we're going to take on Cipher… But I…" He paused, unable to say it… but he didn't need to say it outloud.
'I don't want to leave you behind…'
"You won't," Sabrina said, smiling gently. "I'm going with you."
"What?! You're a gym leader-"
"A Gym Leader whose gym is closed and whose region isn't going to be hosting any conferences any time soon." Sabrina cut off. "Besides, you're going to need all the help you can get and… I want to see your homeland."
Kyoji bit his lip a bit, before he sighed "Well… I know better than to argue with you on that…" He chuckled dryly.
"Well…" Sabrina said. "I'll pack my bags."
Viridian City - City Hall - 1327 hours local time
In lieu of the secure Indigo Coliseum, Viridian City Hall was the next best place for the leaders of the former URN Leagues to meet.
The discussion, of course, was trying to find a way to deal with the Cipher problem without either collapsing what was left of their governments or leaving them open to attack.
Lance was having a headache just keeping everything straight.
"Transporting the armored vehicles would require cargo ships, military escorts-" Cynthia started before Steven cut her off.
"Hoenn is already stretched thin preventing Team Aqua from gaining anything but a token foothold; we can't spare anything from our patrols." he said. "Unless you want them to find some way of waking up and empowering Kyogre? Or Team Magma doing the same for Groudon?"
"They were at New Island." Lance reminded them.
"So was Rayquaza! That dragon keeps them in line when they're awake!" Steven snapped. "And the last thing we need is them doing something stupid!"
They all had their problems. Only Kanto was in any state to do anything and they lacked the materiel to do so and they had to make up for Johto, which, according to reports, still had a branch of Team Rocket there.
In short, while public opinion was for dealing with Orre's death cult, their rag-tag military was anything but. It would take something drastic to make them actually deal with Orre while leaving their regions virtually unprotected.
Then they heard a loud screech from outside. A bird Pokemon call. Specifically, Pidgeot.
Lorelei looked outside, seeing the bird in question. "Oh, fuck." she cursed.
"What is it?" asked Glacia of the Hoenn Elite Four, having flown over to discuss the situation before she would head back and continue keeping Team Magma's operations as ineffective as possible.
"It's Illine." Lorelei said as the bird, a Shiny Pidgeot no less, landed, fit with a saddle of sorts to allow the rider to sit comfortably and not impede movement of the wings, with Duchess Illine, Stewardess of Rota and Regent Viceroy in lieu of the King, climbing off, retrieving a ceremonial copy of Sir Arron's staff - the real one wasn't supposed to leave the country unless in the hands of the crowned royal and referring to him as 'king' was considered a faux-paux unless it was in a history lesson, given the man's legendary humility - as she stepped off the shiny and onto the balcony.
Lorelei opened the door to the balcony, allowing Illine to simply walk in. "Duchess. We weren't expecting you." she said.
"Spare me the formality, Kanna," Illine retorted. "I came here for a reason."
"And how did you even know we were here?" Lance asked, knowing the answer already.
"Please. You shared the fact that this is your backup meeting location with my father." the Duchess replied hotly. "And I want to know what your response is to this… incident."
Cynthia barked out a laugh. "What response?" she demanded. "There's nothing we can do without risking our local teams from getting anything more than a tentative hold in our regions. My Gym Leaders and Elite Four are having a hard enough time making sure Team Galactic is kept away from any museums or storehouses that I know they have an interest in! And all of our regions are in the same boat!"
Illine was unimpressed. "The Crown Prince of my country was nearly killed during that attack. You may remember that while you might not be Rota's subjects anymore, you still have an obligation to defend a member of the royal family." the regent said. "There is a reason we were excited and relieved to know the line still existed."
Yes, they did. While the Empire of Nihon collapsed thousands of years ago, with Rota taking its place before declining after three thousand years, the URN had an obligation to defend Rota for one reason: the Tree of Beginning.
The royal family had a symbiotic bond with it, each royal having to go there to 'feed' the tree some of their Aura. It was theorized (and later confirmed) that if this was not done at least once a century, the tree would slowly begin to die. And the roots of the massive thing stretched from the most northern point of Sinnoh to the Decolour Islands between Johto and Unova. And that was just the ones they could confirm: it was likely the damn thing's roots went all over the world and was responsible for maintaining the balance in nature, despite everything humans had done.
And if the tree died… they doubted Arceus would fix everything. The Creator was incredibly hands-off.
"We KNOW." Lance said. "But we can't do anything without risking the safety of everyone in the former URN."
"I was hoping I wouldn't have to do this," she replied, sighing as she paced around the table. "The Parliament has met and came to a decision for you. I have sadly been elected as messenger."
"Rota doesn't decide anything for us, Duchess," Steven replied.
"It does when it comes to the Shadow Pokemon containment." Illine said, much to the Stone Corporation CEO/Hoenn Champion's confusion. "We have close ties to the Lucario Kingdom in Sinnoh. You know this. You also know that they are literally the only reason the plague isn't as bad as it could be."
Bruno was the first to realize what she was saying. "You would not dare. You can't!" he said.
"I don't have a choice," Illine said. "If you don't deal with Cipher once and for all… I will be forced to request that the Lucario Kingdom bring ALL of their kind back to their homeland and Rota. You will be forced to deal with the Shadow Pokemon on your own."
"If we do what you propose, we leave our own leagues vulnerable to groups like Magma, Aqua, Rocket and who knows what else!" Exclaimed Cynthia. "And now you threaten to take away the one Pokemon that can fight Shadow's one-on-one with ease?! Do you WANT the world to burn?!"
"I'm not the one making the threat. I'm just the messenger." Illine snapped. "The question is, are you willing to let one of the few people that can keep the planet from turning into an uninhabitable cesspool? The clock is ticking and you all know it. If Ash doesn't share Aura with the tree within five years, we're all dead anyways and his sister can't even channel Aura."
"And how would you-"
"Two weeks ago, Delia and Belladonna visited Rota," she said. "The staff barely reacted to her. If Ash dies, we're all dead."
She had them over a barrel and they knew it.
Then the old phone at the center of the table began beeping, showing someone was calling.
That got everyone's attention. Lance reached over, and out of intuition, stuck it on speaker. "Lance."
The voice replying was a league official from Vermillion. "Um, sir, the Hulbury just departed from the docks at Vermillion. Ash Ketchum was aboard. …Guess where they're heading, sir."
Lance just groaned. As if things weren't complicated enough… "Orre?" he asked, weakly.
"Yes, sir," the official replied. "There's more. Lieutenant Surge and his entire complement of Gym Trainers and Pokemon boarded the ship before it set sail, too."
Lance's head hit the table. Now everything was going to go to hell.
"You don't have much of a choice now, do you?" Illine asked.
They were going to regret this. "No… I suppose we don't," said Steven. They had a war to plan.
Cargo container ship Hulbury, en route to Gateon Port, Orre - 1400 hours local time
The Hulbury was a simple bulk ore cargo freighter: no real luxuries. But it was perfect because Orre's only real exports were… well… ore and death.
Who would suspect a small invasion force in such an unassuming package?
"Magneton." 'Statement: I so look forward to the death of all the Cipher Peons.' said the freaky ass Magneton as it hovered past Gligar, whom Ash brought along for three reasons: training the 'loner' nonsense out of him, getting him ready for Johto and getting ready to evolve back to Glisor.
"Gar." '…that thing freaks me out. It's RED,' the bat said as the triple Magnemite flew past.
"I know. But we didn't exactly stop him," Ash said as Surge lead his trainers in conditioning exercises. Their Pokemon were on one of the cargo hatches, Riolu training against a group of steel-types, Charizard and Goodra were boxing of all things, Totodile and Oshawott were having a water fight in a cargo net in the waters below, the net serving as a ring and a way to keep things like Sharpedo from… well, eating them…
Kyril and Rin were below-decks with a team of Pernon Group technicians, making sure that the Marauder and Defender armors were in peak condition. Ash didn't know what to think about Kyril's assistant having her own armor, but at least the suits weren't the spandex he was originally thinking, and were distinct compared to the Cipher uniforms. Though Kyril's 'Shadow-Buster' add-on made him think of the TRio's many various mecha, only much more competently built.
He still thought Charizard or Pikachu could destroy them though, as he looked at the sun setting off the starboard bow.
"Pika." 'What's up?' Pikachu asked, looking where Ash was looking.
"Just an old song." Ash said. "Colors weaving into a spire of flame. That's what the sun's reminding me of."
The sun was setting on an era. The Age of Shadow was over.
The time of rebirth had come.