Amidst the roaring flames, Akari's cry of pain echoed across the entire platform.
Yet Arceus showed no mercy. Its body reared high, and radiant energy surging as countless shards of light of its devastating Judgment rained down, bombarding the spot where Akari had fallen.
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"
Explosion upon explosion thundered through the Hall of Origin, smoke and fire twining in a chaotic dance.
No human could possibly withstand such relentless divine wrath. Akari should have been obliterated.
Perhaps believing its challenger had already failed, or perhaps because its own energy reserves had been taxed—Arceus slowed its assault for the first time.
And in that fragile lull, a shadow burst through the smoke.
In Arceus' wide and incredulous eyes, Akari leapt high, Seal Relic in hand, landing squarely on the Creator's back.
In one motion she locked her arm around its throat, pinning it from behind, while with the other she hammered the relic against Arceus' head again and again.
"BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!"
Never in its eternal existence had Arceus endured such a brazen and dishonorable attack. It thrashed violently, golden light flaring, yet Akari clung tight, driving the relic down with merciless force.
Snarling, Arceus bent reality, preparing to warp space and cast her away with Teleport.
Its form blurred and twisted—but then faltered. The Creator reappeared, unsteady, as though intoxicated, swaying dizzily in place.
Akari's eyes widened. At that instant, the button on her Poké Ball shimmered faintly red. The divine seal suppressing it had temporarily lifted.
Without hesitation, she hurled it forward.
"Human strength is limited… it's time for my partners to fight!"
"ROOOOAR!"
From the burst of light emerged Palkia in its majestic Origin Forme, letting loose a furious bellow. Energy gathered—its signature Spacial Rend poised to strike.
"Wait! Hold your attack!" Akari shouted sharply.
She had noticed—the other Poké Balls were also freed of their divine locks.
In the ancient land of Hisui, long before rules and institutions, even the word "Trainer" was not yet fixed. Here, there was no law forbidding a full assault.
One-on-one duels were tradition, but a swarm? No one had ever said it was forbidden.
Victory was all that mattered.
"Hisui's strongest battle tactic—Gang Battle—commence!"
With no hesitation, Akari unleashed a flurry of Poké Balls.
"Come forth—my partners!"
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The hall lit with flashing lights as one after another, mighty Pokémon emerged:
Giratina, the Renegade Dragon,
Darkrai, the God of Nightmares,
Cresselia, the Lunar Guardian of Dreams.
Alongside them, Regigigas, the Colossal King of the Titans, and the Lake Guardians took their places—captured by Akari in preparation for this very trial.
But that was not all.
From Paul, she had borrowed even more allies.
The legendary clone Mewtwo, Dialga, and even Paul's fierce Electivire appeared, their combined presence shaking the temple.
"Mewtwo—you command them!" Akari called.
This had all been part of their strategy.
"No problem."
Mewtwo's body flared with psychic power, shifting into Mega Mewtwo X. A vast psychic web expanded, linking the minds of every Pokémon present except Arceus itself.
"Unleash your fury! Push every ability to its limit!"
At once, red light blazed in their eyes. Modes shifted, powers awakened, and battle auras flared to their fullest.
"Palkia, Dialga—seal time and space!"
"Giratina—shadows to bind!"
"Regigigas—restrain with Crush Grip!"
"Darkrai—cast Dark Void!"
"Uxie, Mesprit, Azelf—suppress Arceus' will, emotions, and wisdom!"
Even as the commands echoed, Arceus jolted awake, clarity surging back. Its gaze seared with wrath at the coalition arrayed before it.
But before it could move, space itself froze.
Red and blue light enveloped the hall as Palkia and Dialga's powers twisted reality. Arceus' divine body was shackled in their lattice of time and space.
From the shadows, Giratina added its hatred, overlaying the chains with corrosive void. The bindings tightened—unprecedented even for the Creator.
Then came Regigigas, its massive form thundering forward.
"Regi… GIGAS!"
In Arceus' stunned eyes, the Titan leapt, crashing down with a colossal Body Slam, pinning it beneath its mass. Its enormous hands seized Arceus' throat, tightening with Crush Grip.
Above, the Lake Guardians hovered. In tri-colored beams—red, blue, yellow—they pierced into Arceus' mind, damping its emotions, clouding its wisdom, eroding its will.
Arceus' blazing wrath dulled to a placid haze. Its thoughts slowed, and resistance faltering.
Darkrai extended one hand, weaving a miniature Dark Void, wrapping Arceus' head in a veil of drowsing shadow.
The god of creation staggered—on the brink of slumber.
"Now—everyone, attack!" Mewtwo commanded.
An Aura Sphere, a crackling Electro Ball, and a spiraling Shadow Ball streaked forth in tandem.
Even with its Plates allowing type immunity, Arceus could not shift colors fast enough to resist three elements at once—much less while restrained.
More blasts followed in a storm.
Akari herself seized the opening, pelting the god repeatedly with her Seal Relic, each strike leaving divine light flaring.
Minute by minute, the assault continued until finally—Arceus collapsed, unmoving, and sprawled like a fallen hound.
The Pokémon slowly ceased their onslaught. Only Giratina, snarling with old grudges, raked at the Creator with Dragon Claw again and again before reluctantly withdrawing.
"…That was easier than I thought."
Akari exhaled at last, her chest was heaving. Victory had been hers.
She knew the truth from Paul: Arceus was beyond compare, whether true self or mere avatar, whether empowered by the Source Plates, the ordinary elemental Plates, or even the rumored Legend Plates.
For this battle, she had trained tirelessly, forged strategies with Paul, even remade the Red Chain with the aid of the Lake Guardians and her partners, her final contingency should all else fail.
And yet… she had not even needed to use it.
"Thank you, everyone..." Akari turned, ready to praise her partners.
But then—
The body of Arceus blurred.
Before her eyes, the Creator dissolved into motes of golden light and vanished.
The sight froze Akari and her Pokémon alike.
Had they… truly slain the Original One?
The thought sent a shiver through even the mightiest of them.
In the next instant, every Pokémon within the temple froze. Their expressions shifted and then, in unison, they dissolved into beams of red light, retreating into their Poké Balls.
From the heavens above, golden radiance filled the Hall of Origin. Slowly, the Creator itself descended.
Arceus appeared, its crimson eyes locking upon Akari. A chorus of voices resonated directly within her mind.
"You have beautifully accomplished what so few mortals ever can: meeting with all Pokémon."
"As long as one never gives up, any wish may come true."
"Your performance has proven this truth."
"Like the heroes of old… I am glad you have crossed time and space to embody this once more."
"It was good that I summoned you into this world."
"To you, and to the universe you call home—I grant my blessing."
"I will entrust one of my avatars to you. If you are willing, let it stay by your side… and together, witness the world."
With those words, a shining object materialized from the air. A Legend Plate flew straight into Akari's waist pouch.
Her face blanched. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, dizziness overtook her. The temple, the sky, the light—all dissolved and reshaped into something new.
...
Spear Pillar...
At the summit, Paul leaned against a weathered stone column, arms crossed, and eyes fixed upon the stairway of light as he waited.
Suddenly, the luminous stairway shattered. Akari appeared before him, battered and unsteady.
"Your injuries aren't light." Paul frowned, releasing his Torterra to tend to her wounds.
"What happened? The result?"
Still dazed, Akari glanced around, then at Paul. Wordlessly, she pulled from her pouch the new Poké Ball and the mysterious Legend Plate. The sight alone said everything.
"Beep-beep!"
From Akari's bag, her Arc Phone—the device that had once been the Seal Relic, suddenly vibrated.
Snatching it up, Akari eagerly searched the screen for the message she longed to see. But as her eyes scanned the words, her smile fell, and lips twisting in despair.
Paul: "...?"
Akari stomped her foot, and her face flushed with outrage:
"Who said I want to challenge you again?! Who said I want to drag your avatar around on some journey?!"
"I want to go home! I want to go home!!"
As it turned out, even the laws of the universe couldn't escape the truth of the 'Smells So Good Law'—the age-old irony that what we claim to reject, we often embrace.
With Paul's guidance, Akari released the Arceus Avatar directly for questioning. At last, she received the answer she had been desperate for:
"The world I will allow you to witness is not limited to this one. When your strength rises high enough, I can indeed return you to your home. Crossing between worlds will then be but a simple act."
"Until that day comes, I can also upgrade your Arc Phone. With its power, you will be able to traverse dimensions."
Arceus cast a sidelong glance at Paul, who was already studying the Legend Plate with a calculating eye.
"That's more like it."
Akari exhaled, relief softening her expression. Though she had few attachments in her original world, it was still the place where she grew up. The chance to return, even briefly—was enough.
Paul's voice cut in:
"If we cross into other worlds, can Giratina, Dialga, and Palkia come with us?"
He returned the Legend Plate to Akari as he asked. After all, Dialga was his own Pokémon. To bring such a deity beyond this realm would be the ultimate edge.
"Not for now." Arceus shook its head.
"This world remains unstable. The emergence of new Guardians requires time. Until then, its balance must not be disturbed."
"…I see."
Paul's eyes dimmed. He hadn't asked out of idle curiosity, he had already imagined unleashing a Legendary at the next World Champion League, stunning the globe.
Arceus, sensing his disappointment, added:
"My other Avatars have awakened. Even without new Guardians, this world can endure my absence for a time."
"…Good."
Paul nodded, and satisfied for now. His next question came sharp and clinical:
"With a Legend Plate or even a standard Plate, how far can you go? Could you truly nullify every type of attack?"
Arceus shook its head.
"No. With ordinary Plates I can only gain or resist their individual types. With the Legend Plate, I may shift freely, and Judgment always assumes the type most effective against the foe. But to completely nullify all types requires the primal Source Plate—the essence of a world itself. And each world bears but one."
For an Avatar like itself, wielding a Legend Plate was already the height of favor.
Legend Plate: A mystical Plate that embodies all forces of creation. When Arceus holds it, it can assume any type at will, and its Judgment shifts to the type that strikes with maximum effectiveness.
Even without a full Plate Set, an Arceus with the Legend Plate was virtually unmatched.
Paul pressed on:
"If multiple powerful attacks of different types struck you at once, which would you become to resist them?"
Arceus' eyes gleamed faintly.
"I would shift into the optimal composite type and form a shield to withstand the assault. Do you think I am foolish? Why stand and take the blow when I can simply evade with Teleport? And if avoidance is impossible, why not condense power into a protective barrier—or simply use Protect?"
Clearly, Arceus was no naive brute; it understood adaptation all too well.
Akari tilted her head, and wide-eyed.
"Why study it so carefully, Paul? Could it be… you want to defeat the Arceus of your own world?"
Paul's gaze hardened.
"To become the strongest Trainer in existence… to surpass even gods… that is both the path and the destination. The end and the beginning."
Akari pursed her lips, hesitating.
"…That's a goal with just a bit of difficulty."
For her, defeating Arceus had required an extravagant team of Legendaries, the 'gang battle' strategy of Hisui, and even a specially reforged Red Chain as insurance.
For Paul? At best, he might inherit that single Red Chain of uncertain use at best.
"Yes… it is difficult." Paul admitted quietly, clenching his fist.
"But it is not impossible."
And in his heart, he swore the oath. One day, he would challenge and overcome a god.
(End of Chapter)
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