"Ohhh... Groudon took an absurd hit like that and can still fight. That's not a normal Pokémon anymore."
Even Archie, who worshiped the power of the sea, had to admit that the steam explosion the water dragon had just unleashed had surpassed the move Kyogre used back then.
In terms of visual impact, it certainly did not look as overwhelming as a tsunami or the power to summon storms. But if judged purely by the damage it caused, it was absolutely no weaker than the damage Kyogre had once dealt to Groudon.
And even then, it had not been enough to bring Groudon down in one shot.
As expected, the embodiment of the land was undefeated. Only Rayquaza could suppress it. Then, if Hoenn's current crisis was not something even a Groudon this powerful could necessarily solve...
Archie suddenly felt a chill of horror. It was the same kind of terrifying conclusion as the natural disaster he had triggered two years ago.
And even Groudon itself had now fallen into a difficult situation.
"Gurururura!"
[I must admit it! That move just now had power far beyond the ordinary! If not for the protection of natural energy, I would have been defeated! Unfortunately for you, I am no ordinary Ground-type Pokémon.]
[But with power that great... I am willing to call you the second strongest Water-type Pokémon after Kyogre!]
[If you already possess such strength...]
[Then what do you need me for? You defeat me, then make me do something, drive me, command me! But you can already accomplish such things yourselves, can't you?]
Doubt stirred in Groudon's mind. At first, it had assumed the ones before it had come in pursuit of power once more. Whatever crisis Hoenn faced had nothing to do with Groudon, who lived beneath the earth in magma, in an environment like hell itself.
Even if the land sank, that would simply mean returning to the "primordial age."
Yet now, Groudon was the one at a disadvantage.
If they already had this kind of power, why had they come looking for it?
"That's different. The monster has a way of fighting that lets it absorb the earth's energy and capture Pokémon, drawing them into its body. If there is no Pokémon capable of seizing the earth's energy from it, then once Jirachi and the Millennium Comet's power are taken, and that power cannot be released, the land will wither. Hoenn's rich natural world will disappear."
Hikaru shook his head.
"That is why we need a Pokémon that can control and reverse-absorb the power of the land. In other words, this is an ecological ability, not simply battle strength."
"Of course, even in battle, you're still a first-rate monster."
Groudon stared at Hikaru. This time, it finally began to consider what Hikaru was saying.
Of course, it still was not for the sake of Hoenn.
It was for the sake of taking back the power of nature.
But this fierce battle made Groudon think of Kyogre, and of Rayquaza.
The war from the ancient past had continued all the way into this era. It was not only a fight over natural energy. It was also a battle to settle the score!
"Gurururura!"
[If you want to drive me, then show me whether your strength can compare to the humans of the Embedded Tower!]
[How interesting! Aside from Kyogre and Rayquaza, there are actually Pokémon capable of wielding the power of nature to such an extent!]
[I am fired up! Now comes the main event!]
Groudon saw Walking Wake preparing to unleash Steam Eruption again. The great beast of the land was shaken and grew serious. It swept its claws out, then held them before its chest as though embracing empty air.
Its gaze flashed toward Lilligant.
Groudon gathered the static electricity in the air. Its next move was...
[Thunder!]
That bolt of lightning blasted out, once again shattering the rock and the tower's spatial barrier.
However, because of the harsh sunlight, Thunder's accuracy was only half of what it should have been. Groudon lowered its head in frustration, but its claws did not stop moving.
It had found a way to deal with this group.
Steven said, "It can actually gather the static electricity in the air and use such a powerful Thunder!"
Archie said, "Its eyes flashed again! It copied Growth!"
"If that move lands, it'll cause massive damage!"
Naturally, Groudon gave the three humans no time to breathe. It gathered static electricity again and reshaped the lightning.
This time, the thunderbolt would surely...
The fierce thunder was not aimed at the Pokémon. It was aimed at the Trainers! Or rather, from the very beginning, that was what Groudon had been doing.
These humans were in the way. If it got rid of the humans, the Pokémon would lose their commands and could be defeated with ease.
Brilliant golden lightning drowned the Embedded Tower, shining together with the sunlight. But that thick bolt of electricity gradually twisted into a vortex shape and was absorbed by one tiny Pokémon.
"Since the Static Ability wasn't very useful, I helped you change its Ability."
Hikaru looked at the tiny partner standing in front of him.
The Pichu line's Static Ability really was not very useful. Its Hidden Ability, however, was extremely useful.
"That means Electric-type attacks won't work either!"
Looking at the stunned Groudon, Hikaru wagged a finger.
"Not happening."
"Ability: Lightning Rod! It draws Electric-type moves to itself. Instead of taking damage, it raises Special Attack!"
"My Pichu has fused with the Zap Plate, so her electricity storage capacity is extremely high!"
"Now, next move... Ogerpon! Now!"
"Grassy Terrain. Then Grassy Glide!"
Ogerpon came sliding under Groudon's belly with a sweeping tackle.
As one of the Pokémon capable of learning Grassy Glide, Ogerpon, in battle, was known alongside Rillaboom as one half of the Grassy Glide siblings.
On Grassy Terrain, grounded Pokémon recovered every turn, and the power of Grass-type moves increased. Grassy Glide also became a priority move.
With the Dragon and Grass-type Dragon God Mask, plus the Multiscale Ability, Ogerpon would not be knocked out in one hit. That meant she could get close and attack Groudon directly.
Ogerpon swung her cudgel.
"Wood Hammer!"
She leapt up and smashed the blow into Groudon's knee.
And that was not all.
"Grass Knot!"
The most lethal move had arrived.
It used grass to ensnare and trip the opponent. The heavier the opponent, the stronger the move became.
The field was covered in flames, lava, and shattered stone. Even if grass grew, it would be burned away. But it only needed to grow for an instant.
Groudon's leg was caught. Without question, it crashed forward with a thunderous boom.
The mere collapse of its body once again triggered a massive earthquake. But thanks to Armarouge's Wide Guard, the shockwave was completely blocked.
Groudon panted amid the dust. Then, as it turned its head, it took a Comet Punch from Metagross.
"Gu!"
Groudon glared at the attacking Metagross. It abruptly swung its claw, gathering the surrounding flames around its fist.
Fire Punch!
Metagross, which was doubly weak to Fire, was at an elemental disadvantage. But Groudon did not have same-type attack bonus for Fire at the moment, and Metagross's Defense was nothing to scoff at, so the punch did not cause especially severe damage.
It was merely a doubly super effective 150-power Fire Punch.
Just a minor fatal wound.
Cold air gathered around Metagross's steel fist.
It answered with a backhanded Ice Punch!
Groudon took the heavy strike. That seemingly bottomless HP of its had finally reached the point of flickering like a candle in the wind. At that moment, it also saw why Metagross had been able to withstand its powerful Fire Punch.
A transparent wall shimmered with light.
So that was it. Reflect!
Steven said, "Zen Headbutt!"
Metagross's continuous attacks, empowered by same-type attack bonus from Psychic, dealt heavy damage to Groudon. And then...
"Good! It triggered flinch! We're going too. Bite!"
Archie commanded Mightyena. As it approached Groudon, it used Dark-type energy to condense a huge set of sharp fangs in front of itself.
Mightyena's physical Attack was not especially high, but with same-type attack bonus, Bite still had respectable power. Archie's true goal was also to trigger flinch.
If he did not have Serene Grace, he would make his own Serene Grace. After enough continuous attacks, it would eventually trigger again and again. Even Legendary Pokémon could not resist this special status effect.
"Gurururura!"
Groudon suddenly swung its fist, and high-temperature rays burst from its body. It attacked every Pokémon around it with raging flames.
Lava Plume!
Mightyena was engulfed in fire and became burned. But in that instant, the Pokémon's speed suddenly increased.
Bite landed, tore through the flames, and triggered its additional effect.
Groudon flinched again!
Archie said, "Heh! My Mightyena's Ability is Quick Feet! When it has a status condition, its Speed rises!"
"We'll stop Groudon from moving. But after taking that previous hit, this thing is almost at its limit! Champion, keep it pinned down!"
Metagross used Zen Headbutt. Mightyena used Crunch. Groudon was locked in place by repeated control effects. Then it noticed the surrounding ice beginning to tremble.
Water vapor.
Water vapor evaporated by the high heat was gathering inside the Embedded Tower's alternate space. Something was about to happen.
"The ice was evaporated by the high heat and lava, turning into water vapor. However, the ice created by Eternal Ice Wall isn't so easily erased, so chunks of ice now fill the entire space inside the tower."
Hikaru patted the leopard's head.
"The key to Eternal Ice Wall is freely controlling water vapor. Have Palafin continuously use Waterfall from the sea, bring that water vapor in here, then have Walking Wake combine it with Protosynthesis to unleash the strongest possible Steam Eruption and suppress the harsh sunlight."
"Afterward, this water vapor keeps accumulating inside the tower. Although it will gradually melt under your intense sunlight, when the time comes to use it, it can attack from every direction at once!"
"That's right. That move is..."
"Chien-Pao, use Sheer Cold!"
Sheer Cold was a move that could instantly knock out anything it hit. However, against Groudon, it might very well fail.
This was not because the giant monster had a massive HP pool or anything like that. It was simply because Kyogre also had the same move.
If Kyogre had failed to defeat Groudon with Sheer Cold over several thousand years of war, then other Pokémon definitely could not do it either.
Although, when the move's user was not an Ice-type Pokémon, its accuracy would drop.
But Groudon's body was this huge, and it was not fast either. No matter what, Sheer Cold could hit it.
Before Primal Reversion, Groudon's type was suppressed by Kyogre. Even so, it still managed to fight Old Kyogre back and forth. After Primal Reversion, it utterly humiliated Old Kyogre with its Desolate Land Ability and once dominated the battle environment.
In an environment where water vapor vanished, a move like Sheer Cold could not even be used.
An overflowing great chill spread out, as though the world had returned to an ancient age of ice and snow.
Groudon was struck head-on by Sheer Cold. Its body, which burned with blazing heat, rapidly began to cool. This shell of the earth feared cold ice and snow most of all. After gaining natural energy, it no longer needed to fear the power of ice, but now...
It could not.
Even so, Groudon was not defeated in one hit.
It looked at Chien-Pao, who was releasing the freezing air, and stamped one massive foot.
The Embedded Tower suddenly shook as though heaven and earth were splitting apart. This great tower, made of three layers of alternate spaces left behind by ancient people, now seemed ready to collapse.
After enduring so many of Groudon's moves, the huge tower had finally reached its limit.
The move was Fissure!
Groudon's Fissure was completely different in power from an ordinary Pokémon's. This was power great enough to reshape terrain and split the ocean apart.
"The embodiment of the land. Its tail stands straight like a cedar tree, its muscles are solid as stone, and its bones are hard as bronze and iron."
"It is the largest creature on land, capable of devouring a thousand mountains every day. When the end comes, the great beast and the sea demon will wage war, and both will perish together in the end."
Groudon's prototype was Behemoth, the giant beast. In the cosmology of certain Gnostic sects, Behemoth was like a cosmic monster that bore the entire material world upon its back.
Steven said, "Hurry! Everyone, get out of the Embedded Tower! The space connected to the land is about to collapse!"
"In the end, even a move like Sheer Cold couldn't bring this thing down!"
Steven watched the trembling around them and realized that the tower's space truly was about to be destroyed. The space belonging to Groudon was completely finished.
Hikaru said, "When facing a Pokémon far stronger than yourself, even a one-hit KO move can fail. Groudon is an extremely special Legendary Pokémon. If it could be defeated so easily by a one-hit KO move, then that tragedy would never have happened."
"It's not as though Hoenn couldn't find a master capable of using Sheer Cold. Glacia of the Elite Four is an Ice-type expert, isn't she?"
The collapsing tower mixed dust, water vapor, cold air, and scorching heat into one chaotic storm.
Archie was the first to withdraw from the tower. Seeing that Steven and Hikaru still had not moved, he immediately shouted, "Hey! What are you still doing? Run!"
Hikaru shook his head. "No. This is Groudon's final test."
"Survive the destruction of the land. If we can survive, it will be willing to lend us its power."
"So it is only at the brink of life and death that trust with Pokémon can be built."
"Since ancient times, Groudon has never cared about humans. But there was a period when it was treated as a savior. This tower is the witness to that history."
"Therefore... we have to hold this tower up!"
Archie said, "Hold up the tower?! Don't joke around! The collapse of this tower, the collapse of this space, can't be stopped anymore!"
Groudon did not roar. Amid the mist, broken walls, and collapsing world, it simply stared at them in silence.
[In this scene of a world collapsing, you are powerless. I will not be defeated easily. Even if the world is destroyed, that remains true!]
[Now then, what other tricks do you have?]
Hikaru said, "Your category... is the Continent Pokémon."
"But you are not the only Continent Pokémon."
"There are three kinds of Pokémon connected to continents."
"The first is you, who expanded the land: Groudon."
"The second is the legendary king of giants who moved the continents after the land expanded."
"The third is... long ago, people imagined that beneath the earth existed a gigantic Torterra!"
A green world turtle crashed down and used Frenzy Plant, supporting the already collapsing space.
It resisted Ground twice over and resisted Rock twice over. So even a disaster of mountains crumbling and the earth splitting apart meant nothing to Torterra. Those were among the few types Torterra resisted.
And in terms of category, both were Continent Pokémon!
Hikaru said, "When the land is destroyed, people turn toward the stars in search of power. In ancient times, towers existed as things that connected worlds. But in the current era, there is something that serves much the same function as a tower."
"The rockets launched by the Mossdeep Space Center!"
"People ride rockets into space. In ancient times, some people witnessed such things, and so they called them Star Arks!"
A green Celesteela appeared. Its enormous thrusters braced against the collapsing spatial ceiling.
[Waaah! What a scary monster! But thankfully, I'm Steel and Flying, so Ground attacks can't hurt me...]
Celesteela was the same as ever. Her first appearance came with immediate commentary and wild imagination. Groudon's pure Ground typing, to Celesteela, meant...
"All damage is zero!"
The collapse of the Embedded Tower stopped. Groudon stared blankly at the space it had already destroyed more than half of, then looked at the Pokémon before it that it had never seen before.
Groudon fell into brief thought. Then...
The harsh sunlight gradually faded. The balance of nature appeared once more. As Groudon watched the lush vegetation stabilize this millennium-old tower on the verge of collapse, ancient memories gradually surfaced in its mind.
Those were matters it had not cared about. They were merely things those insect-like humans had done on their own.
But without question, whether it was the humans who sincerely worshiped it, or the humans who later prayed and made wishes to Rayquaza, they had all received responses.
And Groudon, too, had once been summoned in the Embedded Tower and agreed to help those humans, if only a little.
There had been such a time.
Groudon said, [How could these beings, no more than grains of sand, compare to me?]
[And yet, without realizing it, I have remembered that time. Now that I think of it, in battles of such intensity, after several thousand years of conflict, humans and ordinary Pokémon alike are insignificant.]
[Let this be a warning to the ritual caster here: do not use the orbs lightly without complete preparation!]
[However, this cramped world has far too few battlefields where I may run free. It is only large enough for one Pokémon like me to stretch its limbs.]
[So, take me to the place you desire.]
[I will not allow a second thing like myself to exist in this world!]
[Do not misunderstand. This is not for Hoenn or for humanity. It is only so that the energy of the land will not be stolen by some outside thing!]
Groudon's roar echoed across the sky. But this time, it did not trigger a second tremor in the Embedded Tower.
At that exact instant, Hikaru's Arc Phone reacted, and a sensation rose in his heart.
[A mysterious pattern has been perceived. Draw it!]
[Obtained Groudon's Light Trail: Hoenn Region!]
Groudon. Eleven-star. Earth attribute. Reptile-Type.
ATK 5000, DEF 4000.
When it enters the field, it reduces the ATK and DEF of all Water-attribute monsters by 2000 and negates their effects!
"Ahem! Success!"
Hikaru looked at the now-calm Groudon and gave Steven and Archie, who were staring in shock, a thumbs-up.
"The god of the land will fight for us this time!"
Steven instantly reacted. "Finally... We succeeded! Groudon understands everything now!"
"Good. Time is short. I'll contact May right now..."
The Hoenn Champion immediately dialed a number on his PokéNav. Then his expression suddenly became extremely complicated.
"Hey, hey. What happened? Why does your face look so weird?" Archie asked, deeply confused.
Steven's expression was a little dazed.
"Something different happened."
"May and the others did find the Wishing Star... but the star was... The person fleeing was..."
[We must set out at once.]
An ethereal woman's voice rang out, making all three of them look in one direction.
Beside Steven, the soul of a woman in ancient clothing appeared.
[Rayquaza is also calling for someone who can travel into space with Rayquaza.]
[It is our first meeting... people of Sinjoh.]
[Offer up the Jade Orb.]
Hikaru said, "...Rayquaza's former partner, the true successor of the Draconids... Aster."
In Pokémon Adventures, Aster's spirit had once appeared briefly. When Ruby was fighting Zinnia, Zinnia had once said, "There are two of us on our side too."
Afterward, Ruby vaguely saw Aster's outline.
The elder of Meteor Village had also said that Aster and Zinnia were different. Aster was the rightful successor, and she possessed some kind of special ability.
The space of the Embedded Tower began to shift.
Rayquaza's voice came through the Jade Orb.
[Feed the Jade Orb to me!]
[There is no time. We cannot wait any longer! I will send you all to Hoenn!]
————————
Hoenn Region, near Forina.
The fifth night.
The great magician Butler was hiding near the forest and caves. He looked utterly miserable, clenching his fists in bitter resentment.
"Good. Good thing I caught the Wishing Star back!"
"The plan was clearly going smoothly. I had a child with a clear singing voice and a pure heart befriend Jirachi. Then, when the device activated... why did Team Magma show up to steal it?"
"But this suits me just fine! Let me take revenge on Team Magma... right here in Forina!"
That girl had truly been formidable. He had originally intended to battle her, but the fight had been evenly matched. Then Team Magma had suddenly appeared to capture him, forcing him to seize a vehicle and flee in the emergency.
That girl was probably chasing him with the two boys now. They desperately wanted to bring Jirachi back.
But Butler was faster.
Or rather, the original plan had been to wait here in advance for them to flee here, because Jirachi would inevitably return to this place. Only now...
It had happened a little earlier.
"I never expected the one being hunted would become me! Talking about the Millennium Comet and some giant meteorite or whatever. Complete nonsense!"
"But precisely because the deadline has not arrived, there are still two days left."
"Grant my wish. Return to Forina's mountains and waters. Outside the first star cave, the Eye of Truth will open. Come. Revive Groudon!"
Butler prepared the revival device and forcibly controlled the suffering Jirachi. Through the device, he fired an even stronger beam of light toward the Millennium Comet.
In response, the Millennium Comet's energy descended once more.
"Oh! What powerful energy! With this power, I can fulfill my wish and take revenge on those ignorant fools from Team Magma! I once swore that I would make everyone who looked down on me pay the price!"
"However, this energy fluctuation seems many times stronger than before... I don't quite understand it, but it should be fine!"
"The stronger the energy, the better! Gather the comet's power! Though there is no audience, please enjoy this grand performance!"
Jirachi drew a super-ancient pattern across the land of Forina.
That eerie image gradually rose from the ground, and Jirachi continued to receive a steady stream of power from the comet.
"Gugururura!"
As that enormous dinosaur-like shell swelled larger and larger, absorbing the surrounding natural energy, even Butler himself was stunned.
"This... Is this Groudon...?!"
"What exactly is this thing? Is this what I pursued so obsessively?"
The earth demon looked toward the terrified Pokémon among the surrounding mountains and waters.
The spikes on its body turned into green, slimy tendrils, whipping out in every direction. At the same time, they seized Butler, who was riding Salamence, in one motion.
"What... No. No, it shouldn't be like this. No, what are you...?"
Butler's magician's cane fell from midair into the withered forest. Only the device on the rocky platform continued operating, while the earth demon indulged in the pleasure of devouring energy.
On the fifth night beneath the shining comet...
Until, at the far end of the land, a sun rose.
The earth demon abruptly turned back and looked toward the direction of that fierce sunlight. A familiar power. A familiar figure. A familiar existence, as though another version of itself had appeared in the world.
Although it had no real consciousness, it possessed the instinct to devour. Therefore, an individual with powerful natural energy was its target.
And that intense energy source was slowly moving this way.
Devour. Devour!
The earth demon let out an earth-shaking roar. In answer, from the direction illuminated by sunlight that pierced the night, a red great beast was also advancing toward it.
Groudon's size was far from enough to compete with the earth demon. Therefore, it had to borrow an external power: Herba Mystica.
That would cause Groudon's body to swell dramatically. Although the gigantification would last only a short time, the dazzling aura surrounding its body would massively increase all of its abilities.
"Gurururura!"
Groudon roared back at the earth demon.
Hoenn's great monster had entered the stage.
This battle had nothing to do with the grudges of ancient times, but it was still a deadly struggle that began over the energy of nature.
This land was not large enough for two great beasts.
So they would settle the score right here!
(End of Chapter)
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