"You… have wounded me!"
Arceus's voice rang out in fury, its body flickering with faint golden light.A torrent of divine energy surged outward like a shockwave, forcing Kyurem, Black Rayquaza, and the other legends back—they couldn't even approach.
"Tsk~ so the Creator God can bleed after all."Blue clicked her tongue, watching the enraged Arceus.
Until now, Arceus had seemed utterly untouchable, almost casual in its power.But now that it was hurt, Blue no longer felt afraid.
Everyone knows: if a god can bleed, it can die.
If Arceus could be wounded, then it wasn't truly invincible—it could be defeated.
It made sense. Long ago, Arceus had been caught off guard and injured, forced into a deep slumber for centuries to recover.
"It seems its defenses aren't as absolute as we thought,"Dylan said quietly, eyes narrowing as he studied the ascending Arceus.
Arceus was the ultimate being—a flawless hexagon of power—but even it had relative weaknesses. Compared to its overwhelming offense, its defense was slightly inferior. Perhaps because the Plates amplified its attacks far more than its durability, its unshielded body wasn't indestructible.
Of course, that was only relative to itself.
Now, in midair, Arceus's chest rose and fell heavily. It was truly hurt—and that pain only deepened its rage.
The mighty legends—Kyurem, the twin Rayquaza, and the others—stood ready. Thanks to the healing from the "Xerneas" that Peppa had transformed into, they were once again in fighting condition.
"All of you… must die!"
Arceus's blood-red eyes blazed with killing intent.
In the next instant, its body flashed white—Extreme Speed!
Boom!A burst of air exploded as Rayquaza barely saw a streak of platinum-white light before agony struck once again, sending it crashing to the ground like a meteor.
The "Xerneas" hurried over to heal it immediately.
Black Rayquaza charged in with a wide-range Draco Breaker, its tail glowing as it lashed out.
But Arceus merely turned its gaze and unleashed another Hyper Beam.The beam not only nullified the attack—it overpowered it, exploding against Rayquaza's body and sending the massive dragon plummeting.
"Dragon Pulse—double!"Both Ultra Necrozma fired shimmering waves of draconic energy.
Arceus's body glowed gold again—but this time, time and space themselves warped unnaturally.Its cold eyes flicked toward Origin Dialga and Origin Palkia.
With a surge of power, Arceus shattered the temporal-spatial restraint, its golden barrier shimmering into existence.The twin Dragon Pulses struck—but failed to pierce the light.
As the shield faded, two massive white beams roared toward it—Solar Beams from Spectrier's fused form and Terapagos.
Arceus vanished in an instant, dodging the blasts—only to reappear before Kyurem.
Kyurem roared, slashing forward with claws wreathed in draconic energy.
But Arceus's eyes flashed blue. Kyurem froze mid-motion—Psychic, amplified by the Plates. Even the Dragon God Kyurem was immobilized.
Then, Hyper Beam detonated in its face.
A blinding explosion followed. Kyurem screamed and crashed to the ground.
At that moment, four golden portals appeared around Arceus.
"Again, this trick…"Arceus's voice was cold as its aura flared, ready for anything.
From the portals erupted Roar of Time, Spacial Rend, Flamethrower, and Solar Beam—four mighty attacks converging at once.
The golden barrier appeared again.
BOOOOOOM!A cataclysmic explosion tore the sky apart, divine energy surging violently—but within it, the golden light still held firm, indestructible.
"It's useless,"Arceus said coldly, looking down on the legends."Your power is meaningless before me. To defy a god… is to choose death—"
But before it could finish, a crimson flash appeared above.
Arceus's pupils contracted—it looked up.Another golden ring—and another red beam!
Not just from above—one below as well! A dragon's light burst from it.
"HOOPA!!!"
Arceus's furious roar echoed for miles.
That cursed Hoopa—again!
Before it could raise its barrier, the Double Dragon Pulses from the Necrozma twins and Eternatus's Eternabeam struck simultaneously, one from above and one from below.
BOOM!!!The impact shook the heavens.
"Such arrogance,"Dylan muttered, watching the explosion from afar, almost amused.
Even after being caught off guard once before, Arceus had made the same mistake—arrogance.To it, the first failure had been "an accident."And now, this too was "an accident."
But how many "accidents" can there be? It wasn't misfortune—it was pride.That pride would now be its downfall.
Eternatus's Eternabeam and the twin Dragon Pulses had struck true—the damage would be immense.
But this still wasn't enough.
"Pursue!"Dylan ordered sharply. They had to finish this now.
"Hoopa!""I know!"
Hoopa immediately opened golden rings before Origin Dialga and the others.
Roar of Time, Spacial Rend, Draco Meteor, Eternabeam, Flamethrower—An overwhelming barrage poured through the portals toward the still-burning explosion.No pause, no mercy.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The heavens turned to chaos. The shockwaves swept across the land like hurricanes, the ground quaking and splitting apart under the pressure.
Even from afar, Dylan and his team could feel the impact—if not for Hoopa's barrier, they might have been blown away.
"Did we hit it?""I think so. I don't see the golden glow," Lillie said nervously.
No barrier—no light—Arceus hadn't had time to defend.
As seconds passed, they saw it—Arceus, gravely wounded, falling helplessly from the sky, crashing into the ruined earth below.
Its once divine body was scarred and broken—it could barely stand.
Hoopa opened a portal, bringing Dylan and the others closer.Seeing the fallen god, Dylan smiled faintly.
The art of the group battle.
Individually, none of their legends could match Arceus.But together, united—they'd forced open a flaw.And once that flaw appeared, even a god could fall.
"Arceus," Dylan said calmly, standing at a careful distance."You've lost."
"CURSED MORTAL!!"Arceus's blood-red eyes flared, hatred burning.
A mere human—and those traitorous legends!They had turned against their creator—for a human!
Why?!It only wanted revenge on humanity—was that so wrong?!
The god's fury shook the ground.But Dylan's voice cut through the storm.
"No need for rage. I understand your pain.But as I've told you—the truth you saw… is not the real truth."
"Impossible!!"Arceus's telepathic voice roared back, full of wrath.
"I saw it myself! Human, do you think to deceive—"
"Yes. You saw it yourself," Dylan interrupted softly."But even eyes can lie."
"Absurd! I—"
"Or is it that the Creator God doesn't even have the courage to face the truth?"Dylan's words struck like thunder.
"You've already lost. What reason would I have to deceive you now? Even you should understand that much."
Arceus froze, trembling, its red eyes flickering.Even through its hatred, reason still lingered.
Indeed—it had lost.As much as it despised admitting it, its body was broken. It could barely move.
Why would this human lie now? Could there really be another truth?But it had seen Damos betray it with its own eyes…
"Seeing is not always believing," Dylan said gently."If words won't convince you, then let's confirm it with our own eyes. Let's return to that day."
"Dialga has the power to cross time. Let it send us back—to that moment. You can watch what truly happened."
Arceus's expression wavered. That moonless day had haunted its dreams for a thousand years.
Could it really have been mistaken? Could that human—Damos—have been innocent?
If there truly was another truth, then… it had to see it for itself.
"If Damos really did betray you," Dylan continued, "then I swear, I will not stop you.Let's go and see, shall we?"
Arceus was silent for a long moment.
Finally, it said:"Very well."Its blood-red gaze locked onto Dylan.
"But if the truth is as you say… I will stop my past self."
Because back then—in its fury—it had killed Damos with its own power.
If Damos had truly been innocent…then Arceus would never forgive itself.
After all—Damos was the one human it had once called friend.
(End of Chapter)