The Eon Academy [S.S. Wishmaker Side-Story]

[[Desolate Divine]]

Season 5 Episode 4: Statement

Spoiler:

“Why do I have a feeling of déjà-vu?” Jon asked, as he looked at the large egg which sat on the floor of the stadium. It was nearly 3am, as Jon, Steven, Willow, and all eight interns stood around the large egg.

“We got the same feeling when it appeared,” Jarena explained. “Though I don’t know why you’d be getting it now…”

“Maybe because Jon and I have seen it before?” Cassandra offered, though Charlotte shook her head.

“He is getting déjà-vu because it was almost the exact same when we found Deoxys…” Charlotte muttered, as Jon nodded. Three years prior, Charlotte and Chris had found an orb that turned out to be the brain-like central organ of Deoxys. Just like now, they had brought it back to the Academy, where all the interns looked upon it with shock and amazement.

“That’s it…” Jon answered, sickened by the parallel.

“Are you sure that’s Dialga’s egg?” Steven asked. Cassandra nodded.

“When we were in those ruins and saw it there, Giratina seemed to know that it was Dialga,” Cassandra answered. “I don’t think it could be anything else…”

“But how did it get here?” Willow asked.

“Honestly, I have no idea…” Jon said, shock evident in his voice. “We believe that if it is in the presence of Palkia or Giratina, it will transport itself through time to keep itself safe, but it shouldn’t be able to teleport across space…”

“Maybe after we accidentally made it warp, someone found it?” Cassandra offered. “It got moved here, before it was exposed to Giratina or Palkia in another time, and it warped to here?”

“But why here?” Justin asked. “And why now? Think about it, it has all of time it can travel to, yet it travels to the point in time where two trainers who had seen it before and identified it were present. Mathematically, the odds are astronomical…”

There was silence as most present in the room agreed with Justin. It couldn’t be a coincidence that Dialga’s egg travelled to this exact point in time.

“I think that we need to stop thinking in terms of logic and reason,” Steven answered, as Jon nodded his head. “Think about it, there are so many facets of Pokemon that we have no scientific explanation for. Look at your Regieleki. You know that it can adjust the resistance of its own body to increase its voltage. But scientifically, you have no idea how it does that, or where it generates all of its electricity from…”

Justin nodded in understanding as Steven continued.

“I have a theory, but that theory requires us to suspend our disbelief, and stop looking for scientific answers,” Steven explained. “We are talking about a Pokemon immersed in mythology, and in said mythology, it is effectively the child of Arceus, who I cannot say is more Pokemon than god or vice-versa. And honestly, the only reasonable explanation is that this isn’t a coincidence, but divine action…”

“You think Arceus had it warp to this point in time?” Chris asked, as Steven shrugged.

“If I were Arceus, and wanted this egg kept safe until it hatched, I’d think this is a good option…” Steven answered. “The Eon Academy has never been safer. We have myself and Jon, plus the five of you, all of us ranking amongst some of the best battlers in the world, each with one or more Legendary Pokemon ourselves. In addition, we now have the Diamond Ladies, and Willow, all capable of handling Pokemon, but even more impressive, is their knowledge and skill in Shadowcraft. Had Dialga arrived last year, none of us would be here, because of the Spiritwater Crisis. Any year before that, and the five of you were nowhere near as strong as you are now. The Diamond Ladies were in hiding, we hadn’t even met Willow yet, and Jon couldn’t use Rayquaza without risk, and didn’t have Giratina, which can be our last resort to teleport it away. And had Dialga arrived next year, the five of you would be gone…”

“Crap…” Willow muttered, feeling the pressure on them. “When you put it like that…”

“And there is one thing Steven hasn’t mentioned…” Jon added. He looked to those around him. “I know for sure there isn’t a single person in this room who is considering trying to capture Dialga for their own benefit. And the only other group who could defend Dialga’s egg as well as we could, are Blackstone, who would likely want to exploit it for their own means.”

Steven nodded.

“I know it goes without saying, but we aren’t making the same mistake we made with Deoxys,” Steven explained. “This egg will remain here. Hopefully it will hatch here, and from there, Dialga will have enough control of its power to keep itself safe, teleporting outside of time. Or, if circumstances show it would be safer at another point in time, Jon will send out Giratina near the egg to trigger its warp mechanism.”

“There’s something that we aren’t talking about with all this…”

Dylan, who had remained quiet most of the time, much to both Abbee and Jon’s concern, as they knew he tended to isolate himself when he was struggling to cope, was the one to say it.

“What’s that?” Violet asked, worried by his tone. She knew that Dylan was the most down to earth and level headed person amongst those present, and if he was worried, the rest should likely be as well.

Dylan’s mouth flattened into a straight line.

“I think Steven and Jon are right. It is no coincidence that Dialga ended up here. And considering how many close calls we have had in the last few years, where we only just managed to succeed, I get the feeling either something beyond all of this was looking out for us, or we’re just the pawns of some sick storyteller,” Dylan answered cynically. “What worries me is that if Dialga has appeared here, because we are able to keep it safe, I’d be inclined to think that something is coming to warrant that need…”

A tense silence permeated through the room, as those present realised what Dylan was saying. Whilst it did seem a little pessimistic, he raised a good point. Why would Arceus, or whatever form of god that had the power to influence fate itself, have Dialga appear here on the basis of the Eon Academy’s ability to protect it, if the need wasn’t going to arise…

Knowing he needed to lead, Jon broke the silence.

“Honestly, I think you’re right…” Jon answered, as he sighed. “Violet and I were just talking about it earlier this evening; our success in Alola hinged on so many consequent things that were unlikely to happen individually, let alone in succession, that I can’t not think something is out there, twisting things to line up and give us a shot. And if we are right, and Dialga’s appearance here isn’t random, something will be coming for it…”

Jon looked at Chris, Charlotte, Dylan, Abbee and Justin.

“I know that I ask a lot of you, but I need a big favour,” Jon explained. “Weeknights there will be two four hour shifts. 11-3am, and 3-7am. Then weekends there will be three three hour shifts. I’ll need each of you to take two weekdays and one weekend shift to keep watch. Willow’s security system will make it clear if someone trespasses, and whilst we could go for the traditional alarm approach, Shadowcraft would have ways around that, and it may risk tipping off any invader that we are aware of them, and give up our element of surprise.”

“Jon, what about us?” Cassandra asked. “Surely they would be better off doing less shifts if the four of us took some?”

Jon shook his head.

“Even if Shadowcraft users attack, without Agatha or Nicodeus, they honestly don’t scare me. My biggest worry when it comes to an attack is Blackstone, and as much as you have improved with Pokemon, I don’t think you could handle one of their guys alone if they got the jump on you as well as these guys could,” Jon answered, as Cassandra sighed irritably. She knew Jon was right. Whilst an experienced Pokemon trainer with a solid team could generally hold off an attacker using Shadowcraft, the reverse wasn’t true. Blackstone was the biggest threat, and if Blackstone got the jump on the four less experienced trainers, even with their Shadowcraft, their chances weren’t as good.

“Well I can only speak for myself, but I’ll stay up when I can as well and keep whoever is on watch company,” Cassandra stated, her tone making it clear that she was not going to let Jon talk her out of that. Jarena, Violet and Willow chimed in their agreement. Jon nodded.

“I’ll be doing the same,” Jon answered. “If I weren’t at risk of being incapacitated by a seizure, I’d be putting myself in the roster, but sadly, I can’t be as depended on as you five…”

Jon looked to his five original students. He was surprised when Chris was the first to answer.

“We’ll do it,” Chris said firmly.

“If we plan the schedule well, it won’t be anything too uncomfortable,” Charlotte added. “Whoever has the 11pm-3am shift can be on night duty as well. And if it’s someone with no classes first period, they can sleep for a few hours before their shift, and sleep in a little later. And the person starting at 3 should be able to get at least six hours sleep before then if they can sleep early enough…”

“What Charlotte is saying, is that we will make it work,” Abbee stated.

Dylan nodded in silence, knowing on any given night, he wouldn’t get four hours sleep anyway, so he may as well make good use of the time.

“I’m in,” Justin added. “But I won’t turn down any company on my shifts…”

Despite his worry, Jon grinned.

“What happens after the summer?” Steven asked. “I mean, honestly, this will be a good way of keeping the egg safe, but once these five leave…”

“If Dylan is right, and the fact it showed up here is a sign that something is coming, and you’re right, in that it showed up here because we could protect it,” Cassandra said, “then I think that whatever is coming, will come during the summer. Otherwise, why send it here if when the rubber meets the road, half of the people protecting it will be gone by the time it needs protection?”

“I’ll keep digging in my notes and books,” Willow added. “Try and come up with some more security measures. Though we may need another diamond to power them if we go down that Raboot hole.”

Jon nodded.

“We have the funds,” Jon said. “No half measures…”

He couldn’t help but find it amusing when Cassandra nodded determinedly at Jon’s last words, knowing the last time he spoke them, they were about their plan to cover up the existence of Shadowcraft from the world.

“Charlotte, do you mind taking tonight's watch until 7am?” Jon asked. “I’ll write up an actual roster tomorrow. Or more accurately, today…”

Charlotte nodded. It was Sunday, and she had the day off from any official duties outside of just generally keeping an eye on things. A night shift could be made up with a solid sleep in.

Despite the conversation being thriving, everyone had slowly gone quiet, taking in the sight of the egg.

“So this thing will hatch, to become the ruler of time itself…” Justin muttered, not asking the question of anyone in particular. There was a murmur of agreement. “I’m not even twenty-one, and I’ve seen it all…”

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

“So Steven told me you beat Charlotte…”

Chris, struggling to stay awake, looked up as he heard Jon’s voice approaching from the darkness. It was Chris’ shift to stay up that night, until he was relieved by Charlotte, who was scheduled to take over at 3am.

The day after the egg had been brought back, Jon wrote a proper roster, trying to make sure people doing night shifts weren’t required to run classes the following morning, or if they were, them being later classes, in order to allow them a little longer to sleep in. This was the fourth night that the practice of one of the interns staying up was in effect.

“I wouldn’t put too much stock in it,” Chris answered casually. “Tournament standard doesn’t allow items, and I’ve been practising with them at the College for the last six months, since the Elite Four allows them.”

Jon couldn’t help but grin.

“Steven says you also forced her to concede by using her own tactic against her,” Jon noted. Chris found himself grinning as well. He looked at his watch, noting it was shortly after 1am. The worst of the campers had just quietened down in the last half hour, though they weren’t Chris’ reason for staying awake anymore.

“What brings you out?” Chris asked. “Surely you’d much rather be asleep?”

“I would,” Jon admitted. “But I struggle sleeping these days. Especially after a seizure.”

It had been days since Jon’s seizure, so Chris gave him a confused look.

“The easiest way to feel better after is to sleep. Not nap, or doze, but sleep, and I’m talking a minimum of four hours,” Jon answered, his tone matter-of-fact. “Problem with that is that it tends to screw up my sleeping pattern. It helped when Justin and Jarena found the egg. Meant that I was as awake as I’d be in the early evening. But I still haven’t fully gotten back into a routine…”

“And the thought of an attack probably doesn’t help either…” Chris muttered. Jon nodded gravely.

“Honestly, this egg has got me between a rock and a hard place,” Jon said. “Fact is, I would feel safer sending the students home…”

Chris shot Jon a concerned look, but Jon shook his head.

“I can’t. Because to do that would be to raise questions. Which means I have to fake another emergency, like we did last year, and I get the feeling we can’t keep faking summer-cancelling catastrophes. If we are being watched, then that would just make us stand out more,” Jon explained. “Or I have to tell the truth, which might just bring trouble to our doorstep. Blackstone, the government, or something worse…”

“Do you think Dylan’s right?” Chris asked. “That if we are going to believe that the egg appearing here is some act of divine intervention, that it also means that something will come for it?”

“I think it’d be foolish to not act like he is,” Jon answered. “It seems like every disaster we find ourselves in, be it Deoxys, the Whirl Islands or Spiritwater, we have absolutely nothing to tip us off. Hell, with everything that was going on, I didn’t consider that Agatha would send people after you…”

Chris sighed.

“We do have a history of getting caught with our pants around our ankles…” Chris muttered, as Jon scoffed at the choice of idiom.

“Please never repeat that when this is a kid’s campsite,” Jon joked, as Chris stifled a laugh.

“And here I thought my last summer here would be normal,” Chris said quietly.

“I’d have paid good money for a normal summer,” Jon agreed. “But honestly, do you want a normal life?”

Chris knew that Jon asked that knowing full well the answer.

“Not particularly,” Chris admitted. “I just hoped I could have a short stint of normal before the next year…”

“If I’m being real with you, I think next year’s only the beginning…”

Chris looked at Jon, knowing his mentor was hinting towards something, though unsure of what.

“Come on,” Chris joked. “I’m too tired for riddles…”

“Well, you haven’t heard it from me…” Jon said, looking around to make sure nobody was out and about, listening in. “Steven has made a few subtle comments to me since your announcement of Second To None…”

“He doesn’t think I can pull it off?”

Jon shook his head in the negative.

“Not that. Nothing to do with whether you can do it or not,” Jon explained, before considering his wording. “He has never said it explicitly, but he has mentioned a fair few times since then, that the Indigo League is still without a Champion…”

“What’s that got to do with Second To None?”

Jon grinned.

“The reason that the position hasn’t been properly filled in the five years since Lance’s arrest, is because Lance, despite his crimes, left a massive legacy, and the League don’t want his successor to fall short of that,” Jon explained. “Lance was accepting challengers from two region’s Leagues and remained undefeated for twelve years. Not a single other League Champion in history has ever achieved something like that.”

As Jon spoke those words, he remembered his own conversation with Lance in the S.S. Wishmaker’s infirmary, where he had antagonised Lance by claiming to be able to take his title in a fair match, should Lance ever get his position back. Jon knew now that at that point in time, he stood little chance against Lance, though now, things may be different.

“Effectively, the League’s worst nightmare is that the best Champion they ever had, is someone who went to prison for attempted murder, and has since broken out. And very few people who may be able to rise above Lance’s renown in that position, are willing to take the risk of being the successor to such a legendary achievement,” Jon explained as Chris nodded in understanding. “So what if another Dragon-type specialist were to achieve something greater? Like beating every other League Champion in the space of a year…”

Chris was confused by Jon’s question for a moment, before he understood.

“Does Steven think I’d be asked to become Indigo Champion?” Chris asked in a whisper. Jon grinned.

“He thinks that if you pull this off, you would fit the criteria of being able to outshine Lance, which is what the Indigo League needs from their next Champion,” Jon answered. “And given the fact you’ve handled yourself in many difficult situations, and have a lot more real world experience than even Elite Four members, you’d be a good fit…”

Chris was excited about the idea for a second, but then had a thought.

“The fact I’m related to Lance wouldn’t make things worse, would it?” Chris asked, before imitating a nameless spectator. ”They finally replaced Lance, and gave us his kid cousin…”

“Maybe at first,” Jon agreed. “But honestly, if you complete Second To None, then I think that will change quickly. Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if Lance was remembered as your cousin instead…”

Before Chris could answer, he noticed something in his peripheral vision. A flicker of light. He looked past Jon towards the western edge of the property, where he spotted it. A beam of light, shining into the sky.

Jon turned around, seeing it, as his eyes widened when he recognised what it was.

“Go wake the others,” Jon said quietly. “I’m going to cut them off before they reach the student lodges…”

“Let me help you-”

“You are helping me,” Jon said. “I can’t maintain a defensive line by myself, and I don’t know how many there are. I am only buying time for you to get the others and surround them…”

Understanding, Chris nodded, quietly darting for the staff lodge. Jon considered sending out Latios, who was currently in his Pokeball, however decided against it. For all the benefits Pokeballs provided there was one drawback that had not changed. The light and noise. There was no subtle way to let a Pokemon out, especially in the dead of night.

Placing each step carefully, Jon crept towards the two student lodges that were closest to the western edge of the property. His advantage was that he would always know the attacker’s location, preventing them from sneaking up on him, whoever they may be.

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

As Chris approached the front door to the staff lodge, in which all lights were turned off, he considered his next move carefully. The benefit of this silent alarm that Willow had set up was the element of surprise it gave them over any potential intruder. However, he needed to be careful not to give that up too easily.

As he looked in the door, he saw that the light in the sky was still a reasonable distance away. Not close enough he needed to worry about noise. Lights however…

He climbed the stairs to the second floor, which housed himself and the four younger interns.

“We’ve got company!” Chris called out as he pounded on the nearby doors. “Don’t turn on your lights, or they’ll know we’re onto them.”

He ran upstairs to the new third floor, which housed the Diamond Ladies and Willow, giving the same message, and warning of their lights. When he made his way back downstairs to the second floor, led by dim phone light, he found Charlotte, Dylan and Justin waiting in the hall, all in their pyjamas, or in Dylan’s case, a pair of shorts. Abbee was emerging from her room, looking puzzled at all of them.

“What’s going on?” Dylan asked, this being one of the very few times Dylan had addressed Chris directly this summer.

“Jon and I were talking, and saw a light in the sky,” Chris explained, as the Diamond Ladies and Willow joined them, having just descended the stairs. “Willow’s alarm. We don’t know who it is. Jon sent me to get all of you, while he is going to try to cut them off before they reach the student lodges…”

“Alone?” Willow asked. “Surely he doesn’t think we’d sleep through a fight if you helped him?”

“They think they’ve caught us unaware,” Chris answered, deciding not to reuse the idiom he had used earlier with Jon. “They don’t know we can see their location whilst they’re here, and are moving slowly. If Jon gets the jump on them, and can keep them busy, we can flank them…”

“No time for questions,” Dylan said quickly, tying his belt across his torso to allow access to his Pokeballs. “We can lecture Jon about this later…”

There was a nod of agreement from those present, as they quietly made their way downstairs. As the door opened, Willow inhaled sharply as she saw the light now halfway between the western edge of the Eon Academy property line, and the student lodge.

“Dylan, your call,” Charlotte said quietly. Even though in terms of sheer battling ability, the other four interns had Dylan beat, they remembered how he had handled the situation when Deoxys attacked, as well as taking charge when Jon was taken captive at the Whirl Islands. “How do we approach this?”

Dylan thought for a moment.

“Latias is in her Pokeball, isn’t she?” Dylan asked Willow, who nodded. He figured if Jon had sent Chris, it was likely because Latios was either not present, or in his Pokeball. And without Latios, they had no way of communicating with Jon or eachother.

“Nobody send out a Pokemon until you hear the first Pokeball activating,” Dylan said, as he looked between where he knew each of the interns had been located during their watch periods, and the beam of light. He looked at Chris directly. “Do they seem to be going in a direct path?”

Chris looked at the light, trying to remember where they had crossed the boundary into the Academy grounds.

“I think so,” Chris answered quietly. “They think they’ve got the element of surprise, so are slowly moving straight for the lodges…”

“Probably to take hostages…” Cassandra muttered, as Charlotte shuddered in agreement.

“Jon wouldn’t waste time trying to flank them if they’re moving towards the lodges, especially if he is on foot…” Dylan muttered, more so to himself. “So he’d have gone to meet them directly, hoping to stop their movement before they got close to the lodge…”

Dylan looked up to see the light still moving at the same slow pace.

“We’re going to spread out,” Dylan explained. “Jon is likely over there…”

Dylan pointed to the place where he anticipated Jon would be waiting for their unwanted visitors.

“Cass and Charlotte, you two head south of Jon, while Justin and Jarena head north. Chris and Willow, go further south than Cass and Charlotte, and try and get beside or around them, and Abbee and Violet, you two do the same with Justin and Jarena,” Dylan explained. “I’ll join Jon…”

“What’s the plan?” Justin asked.

“Remain unseen, and don’t send out a Pokemon until you hear myself or Jon send one out. Try and use Pokemon that emanate light,” Dylan answered. “Jon and I will break their formation, and the rest of you will try to contain them, so we don’t have any going missing when the s**t hits the fan…”

There was a nod of agreement, as the teams paired off, moving into their positions, as Dylan crept towards where he thought Jon might be. His eyes kept darting between the path he walked, and the sky ahead of him, making sure he wasn’t going to risk bumping into the intruders. He crept into the shadows between two of the student lodges, where he saw a figure standing at the other end of the small space between the two buildings.

“Blackstone?” Dylan asked quietly, as he joined Jon.

“I can’t say for sure, but I don’t think so,” Jon answered quietly. “They’re too disorganised…”

Jon looked back towards Dylan, noticing he was alone.

“Where are the others?”

“They’re making their way north and south, under orders to remain hidden until they hear us send out Pokemon,” Dylan explained. “We’ll break their formation, and they’ll flank them to stop them spilling past us…”

“Do any of you already have Pokemon out?” Jon asked.

“Only me,” Dylan said. “Darkrai is around…”

The Mythical Pokemon had a preference to not remain in its Pokeball, and given the nearly two years since capturing it without incident, Dylan obliged, letting it remain hidden in his shadow practically all of the time. However, given the darkness, Darkrai had much more freedom to move around unseen.

“So if it’s not Blackstone…” Dylan began. However, before Jon could answer, the distant voices were now near enough to understand.

“We take hostages. Curse a few of them to get the point across,” said the bitter voice of a woman who sounded to be a little older than Jon. “If he doesn’t hand it over, we start torturing them…”

A sense of alarm flashed through Jon at those words, causing him to glance back to the house, where Alyssa and Amelia were sleeping. Thankfully he saw no light in the sky, meaning no danger was present. However he still worried.

"Do you think they're talking about the egg?" Dylan asked quietly. Jon however didn't answer. The intruders, who they knew without a shadow of a doubt were Shadowcraft wielders, were planning on taking hostages, all of whom were in the lodges either side of Jon and Dylan, and with each passing moment, the intruders moved closer.

Jon stepped forward, withdrawing Latios and Nidoking's Pokeballs, as Dylan followed, removing Metagross', knowing the powerful Psychic type would be able to protect them by way of telekinetic barriers as it did in Alola.

Anxious as Dylan was, he followed Jon, who walked ever closer to the oncoming force.

"Delilah," said another voice, in a poor attempt at a whisper. "Someone is coming…"

"You can hold it right there!" Jon called out, as he stopped walking, intentionally leaving enough distance that he'd have time to respond if the witches facing him tried to launch a surprise attack on him. "Let me make myself abundantly clear that not a single one of you will be able to take hostages, and whilst I'd rather not have an investigation as to why a trespasser was killed on my property, I guarantee that if I have to choose between one of my students being harmed, and you ending up like Nicodemus or worse, you aren't going to like my choice…"

Dylan heard murmurs from the cabins behind him, and chose to step back, allowing Jon to take the lead. Whilst he'd support Jon in the fight, he also knew someone needed to make sure curious, or potentially overzealous students didn't attempt to get close to the danger.

"Brave words considering you're outnumbered…" said the leader of the small group, who he figured was Delilah. She looked to be in her late thirties, with short, auburn hair, and a long, sneering face. "You may have a reputation for battling, but that won't protect you from a curse. Don't you remember?"

Delilah raised her left arm, as Jon, knowing exactly what she was talking about, narrowed his gaze on her.

"There's someone outside," Dylan heard a voice from a cabin say to their roommates.

"Stay inside!" Dylan called out, his tone leaving no room for argument. Delilah grinned, as she withdrew a Pokeball. "And call the police!"

"Good," Delilah called out, ignoring Dylan's mention of the police. "They will already be rounded up for us."

There were triplicate flashes of light, and the familiar sounds of Pokebalks activating as Latios and Metagross emerged in front of Jon and Dylan. Jon however couldn't identify the Pokemon in front of Delilah, and given its bulk, he had a hunch as to why the witch had seemed so confident.

The Pokemon from head to tail stood over four metres tall, with no arms or legs, but instead two large wings that spanned double its height. Its head was shaped like an upward facing crescent moon, and its wings seemed to be made up of the night sky itself.

There were more flashes of light, as those with Delilah sent out their own Pokemon, thankfully none of those being Legendary like Jon suspected Delilah's Pokemon was. They were an assortment of powerful Ghost Type Pokemon, and in the flashes of Pokeball light, Jon counted nine other figures behind Delilah.

In one final chorus of flashes and noise, Jon grinned as various Pokemon emerged from Pokeballs surrounding the attacking force, many of whom had a natural illumination. To Jon's left, Cassandra's Ampharos, Ace was visible, its tail providing illumination, and to her left, Chris' Charizard roared, its tail providing a flickering source of light. To Jon's right, there was a moving source of light he could only assume was Regieleki, and further along, Abbee's Typhlosion was visible by the flames erupting from its shoulders.

"Jon…" said Latios' voice in Jon's mind.

"Act as our watchtower," Jon thought to Latios. "Keep an eye on things and let us know if any are going to get past us. And ask Willow if she knows of Agatha or her followers having any other Legendary Pokemon that we weren't aware of. Especially Delilah…"

More and more voices could be heard from the cabins as Dylan saw faces in the windows watching, some in excitement and awe, others in terror.

"Hand it over, and we walk away…" Delilah said, looking around at the eight other trainers who had only made themselves known in the seconds prior. "You don't want to fight us. It will only be worse for everyone…"

Removing another Pokeball, Jon laughed with derision at Delilah.

"You're walking away with nothing," Jon answered. "If you're lucky enough to walk away at all…"

Jon tossed the Pokeball into the air, where it exploded in a flash of light, revealing a Pokemon larger than the one Delilah had sent out. Rayquaza roared in indignation at the Pokemon that was intruding upon its territory.

"No Netherlink to help you this time," Jon called out. "Even with Shadowcraft and whatever that is, you could not be any more outclassed…"

Willow had sent out her Camerupt, knowing that Marshadow, despite being able to hit hard, would take heavy hits from all the Ghost Type Pokemon, as would Latias. And given the fact that she was with Chris, she knew that he was likely going to be doing the heavy lifting.

"Willow!" called Latios' voice in her mind. "Did Agatha have any Legendary Pokemon other than Giratina or Marshadow?"

Confused by the question, Willow had inadvertently given Latios the answer she would have.

"What about her followers? Delilah?"

At first Willow didn't know who Latios was talking about, being amongst Agatha's inner circle and knowing there was no Delilah amongst them. However after a second she remembered where she knew the name from, and realised exactly what had happened.

"Agatha sent Delilah and a small group of witches off the island to investigate a myth about a Legendary Ghost Type Pokemon. Lunala…" Willow explained, kicking herself for forgetting. [I]"Before the attack on the opening ceremony. We all thought she was wasting her time..."[i]

Willow took the question to mean that whilst the battle on Akala Island was happening, Delilah had indeed found the Pokemon she was tasked with finding, and captured it…

There was another flash of light in the darkness, with Rayquaza visible for a second, before it roared. Suddenly it lunged forward, aiming for a target she struggled to make out in the darkness, though she had a sick feeling in her stomach she showed what Rayquaza was attacking.

"Charizard, Inferno!" Chris ordered as Charizard roared, unleashed a whirlwind of intense flame upon a Gengar that had gotten too close. "Then Dragon Rush!"

Whilst Gengar was attempting to shield itself from the flames, Charizard lunged forward, spinning through the air as it crashed through the flames and into Gengar, pinning it to the ground, and unleashing a torrent of flames on the Pokemon before it could become intangible and slip away.

As much as she knew Deoxys was her most powerful Pokemon, Charlotte had two reasons not to send out the Legendary Pokemon. The first being that given its history here during battles late in the evening, she figured it may not be the wisest choice. The second being she knew that her opponents were not worth sending Deoxys out for, instead, choosing to use Luxray instead, alongside Ace, Cassandra's Ampharos.

"Luxray will get in close," Charlotte said to Cassandra. "Focus on keeping his six clear, and I'll make sure they leave Ace alone!"

Cassandra nodded, as Charlotte ordered Luxray to engage the Chandelure that was approaching them.

"Crunch!" Charlotte commanded, as Cassandra saw a fast moving Pokemon fly through the air towards Luxray.

"Shock Wave Ace!" Cassandra ordered, opting for a weaker, but highly accurate attack. A small orb of electricity launched from the Ampharos, before seeming to home in on the fast Pokemon, striking it and slowing it down for a second, where Charlotte was able to identify it as a Dragapult.

"Ice Fangs on Dragapult!" Charlotte ordered, knowing the attack would hit hard.

"Charge Beam on Chandelure!" Cassandra ordered. "Then Dragon Pulse on Dragapult!"

The encounter had lasted less than thirty seconds before both Pokemon were unconscious.

"Scale Shot!" Jon ordered as Rayquaza roared, unleashing a barrage of scales towards Lunala, who blocked the move with a Protect barrier, before retaliating with a spectral beam that Jon had never seen the likes of before. Despite this, he grinned. It had been mere minutes, yet he could see the others closing in, as each of the intruders Pokemon were picked off one by one.

"Delilah, you're outmatched!" Jon called out. "Surrender! Even if Lunala beats Rayquaza, we have enough Pokemon here to hold you back until they arrive!"

The other witches present looked anxiously at the group of trainers and Pokemon surrounding them, however Delilah, looking more deranged with every passing second refused.

"I'm not leaving without what you took from our mistress! With her not here, it belongs to us!" Delilah shouted. Understanding dawned on Jon. He had intentionally remained silent whenever Delilah had mentioned taking something, as he didn't want to risk giving away the fact Dialga's egg was on the property. However, he hadn't considered the fact that there was something Delilah would want here that she almost certainly knew about.

Focusing his thoughts on Latios, and wanting to see what his Legendary partner saw, Latios detected the change, and in an instant, Jon's vision changed to an aerial view of the battle. He saw the witches huddling together, as the defenders closed in, and in the cabin windows, faces of students watching, as well as phones, recording the scene unfold.

"You want Giratina?" Jon asked. “Rayquaza, give us some space, and be ready for a Draco Meteor should they do anything stupid…”

Rayquaza roared menacingly as Delilah glared at Jon. Normally, Jon would have had Rayquaza handle this, however, he figured that Delilah may not be the only one still loyal to Agatha and her cause. Between them and Blackstone, a statement needed to be made.

Jon withdrew Giratina’s Pokeball, and tossed it forward. It erupted into a flash of light, and Jon heard screams from the cabins behind him. From where she stood with Violet, having forced back the nearest witches, Abbee shuddered seeing Giratina emerge, remembering the attack on Section B, though Giratina was now in a vastly different shape, its glowing red eyes piercing the darkness.

“I hope you know what you’re doing…” Abbee said quietly, despite having vouched for Jon a few days earlier, that he had never let them down. Violet heard Abbee’s words, and couldn’t help but feel a slight pang of worry. She knew that Abbee knew Jon far better than she did, and had a better idea of his capability.

“Giratina!” Jon called out, far louder than he needed to. “These intruders are loyal to your former mistress, and claim you belong to them. They even brought another Legendary Pokemon to try and take you by force!”

Giratina’s narrow red eyes focused on Delilah, who could have sworn her entire body felt slightly heavier. Despite this, she spoke.

“This thief took you from us by force!” Delilah called back. “Surely you would rather be with us, servants of Agatha, than this interloper?!”

Hearing these words, Giratina roared angrily, and Delilah felt her entire body struggle to remain upright.

“Giratina was never truly loyal to Agatha,” Jon called out to Delilah, who shot him a puzzled look. “Though it makes sense that the stuck up old hag never told you this! She’d want you to think she had absolute control over it!”

“Liar!” Delilah shouted, as Jon laughed.

“Call me a liar all you want, but the proof is in front of you! Agatha cursed Giratina to force it to be loyal, at risk of pain!” Jon shouted back. “But I broke that curse, like the one Nicodemus placed on me, and now, Giratina is loyal to me!”

“Lunala!” Delilah roared angrily. “Moongeist Beam! Kill him!”

[i]”Latios…”[‘i] Jon thought.

Twin white lights appeared at Lunala’s wings, which darted forward, converging together in front of the Pokemon, before launching directly at Jon. With all the determination he could muster, and seriously hoping one of the students was filming this, he didn’t flinch, as Latios materialised in front of Jon, and raised a telekinetic barrier, which the beam struck, before dispersing around Latios and Jon.

“Giratina!” Jon roared. “Shadow Force!”

Giratina roared, before vanishing into thin air, reappearing a moment later behind Lunala, and striking ferociously with the tentacle-like appendages that sprouted from its back. Lunala roared in pain, as Jon gave his final order.

“Shadow Claw!”

Staggered by the heavy hit, Lunala was unable to dodge as all of the spiked appendages slashed at it, knocking it back, where it collapsed unconscious.

Delilah swore as she returned Lunala to its Pokeball, before beginning to mutter an incantation.

“Giratina, pin them to the ground…”

Without a sound, Delilah, and all the witches with her, collapsed, as the gravity underneath them intensified. There were screams of pain, as ankles shattered under the weight, and one by one, all found themselves lying flat, unable to move.

“S**t…” Chris muttered as he watched from where he stood.

“I imagine it’s quite difficult to breathe, all that weight pressing down on your lungs…” Jon said coldly, as he stood forward. “And your heart is probably working a lot harder to pump blood through your body…”

“I’ll kill you…” Delilah said, gasping, as the breath she just released with those words, struggled to return to her under the new weight.

“Delilah, you’ll have passed out by the time I finish talking if you keep interrupting me,” Jon said, sounding like a teacher, scolding a student for holding back a class with their talking. “So listen, so there is no misunderstanding…”

Really hoping that this was being recorded, Jon raised his voice.

“Giratina is loyal to me, and this is only a fraction of its power,” Jon explained. “All it would take is one word, and Giratina could kill you all instantly, before you even take your next breath. And given the fact that you trespassed here, planning on harming, and potentially killing my students, I would have been quite justified in killing you if I thought that was the only safe option…”

Hearing this, Giratina increased the intensity of the gravity holding the trespassers to the ground for a moment, as cries of pain pierced the air for a moment.

“So let this be a message to anyone who think they have what it takes to come here, and have their way with myself, my family, or my students…” Jon continued. “Your chance of making it out of here alive, is far lower than your chance of succeeding at whatever it is you try to do here, and those chances aren’t high to begin with. I am the last person on earth you want to make an enemy of…”

Jon watched as each of the attacking force went still, passing out from the difficulty breathing and the strain of their heart working overtime.

“Giratina, let them go…” Jon said, before looking around. “Cass, Violet, Jarena and Willow, silencing curses on them, ASAP. The rest of you, remove their Pokeballs…”

From all four flanking points, a witch emerged from each, quickly placing the curses on the witches, so if they did wake up, they’d be unable to perform Shadowcraft, as the rest of the interns quickly removed belts containing Pokeballs.

“You don’t think it was a bit much?” Dylan asked, as he approached Jon. “Some of the students might be terrified of you…”

Jon sighed.

“If any are, I will talk to them myself,” Jon answered. “But this needed to happen. Rayquaza could have handled things. But Giratina was the better option for making a statement…”

Dylan nodded, having figured Jon was putting on the theatrics for that reason.

“Blackstone had better think twice if they’re planning on coming here…”

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

The police arrived in the next fifteen minutes, by which point all of the witches were sitting upright, having awoken, however, being silenced and relieved of their Pokemon, and surrounded by Chris and Charlotte, they made no attempt to flee. The rest of the workers were tasked with attempting to calm down the students in cabins, particularly, those who had witnessed first hand what had happened, as well as doing a check to make sure nobody was missing from their cabin. Whilst the police were getting statements from Jon, Chris, and Dylan, Steven arrived, and noticing Jon was occupied speaking to the police, made his way to where Alyssa stood, having woken during the chaos, and emerged from the cottage when Abbee had gone past during her task and told her it was safe.

“Are you alright?” Steven asked Alyssa, who nodded. “What about Lili?”

“Serena, my Gardevoir, is keeping an eye on her at home. I managed to get her back to sleep,” Alyssa explained. “I’m fine. I was asleep until the fighting began. I didn’t even see any of it…”

“You will,” Steven said, his tone sounding as if he wasn’t sure himself how he felt about what he was going to say. “I have no clue who shared it, but the media have a hold of the footage one of the students got from their cabin already. Silver Wing News is already publishing…”

“Do these people never sleep?” Alyssa asked, aware of the irony, and the fact that she, in the past, had been awoken at 3am to a breaking story, and began frantically writing to be the first to cover it.

By the time the police had apprehended the trespassers, taken statements, and left, and the students had quietened down enough that the workers could consider going back to sleep, it was 3am, whilst Jon stayed awake, beginning the task of making phone calls to parents of the students present, informing them of what had transpired before they saw it on the news.

Chris awoke at 7am the next morning, and as he made his way downstairs, he was shocked to see everyone but Alyssa in the staff lodge living room.

“If we’re all here…” Chris began.

“Alyssa is keeping an eye on things,” Jon answered. “We won’t be long…”

Chris noticed the TV was on, and the 7am news was starting, as a dull logo faded from the screen, revealing a pair of news anchors, who began their usual introduction. Once that was over, nobody was surprised at the first piece of news that was shared.

“In the early hours of this morning, a small contingent of witches, part of the group who alongside disgraced former Elite Four member, and witch, Agatha, brought about the Spiritwater Crisis, attempted an assault on the Eon Academy in Mossdeep City. Sources claim that despite the late hour, Eon Academy employee and former student, Christopher Kingswood as well as High Seas Champion, and Academy founder, Jon Drake, were awake, and detected the assailants before they were spotted themselves. In a display of strength, the attacking force was quickly neutralised, with Jon Drake giving a word of warning to any who may consider attempting something similar at the Eon Academy. Please be advised, some viewers may find the following footage distressing…”

On screen, grainy footage appeared, showing all of the witches from the night before lying flat on the ground. Over the excited chatter of the students in the cabin where the scene was being filmed from, Jon’s voice could be heard.

“Giratina is loyal to me, and this is only a fraction of its power,” Jon on-screen explained. “All it would take is one word, and Giratina could kill you all instantly, before you even take your next breath. And given the fact that you trespassed here, planning on harming, and potentially killing my students, I would have been quite justified in killing you if I thought that was the safer option…”

Cries of pain came from the screen, as Giratina had momentarily increased the gravitational pull on them, before Jon continued.

“So let this be a message to anyone who thinks they have what it takes to come here, and have their way with myself, my family, or my students…” Jon continued. “Your chance of making it out of here alive, is far lower than your chance of succeeding at whatever it is you try to do here, and those chances aren’t high to begin with. I am the last person on earth you want to make an enemy of…”

The footage disappeared from screens as the anchors appeared.

“As is standard for Jon Drake, responses to his handling of the events shown are varied. Many question Jon Drake’s attitude towards taking the law into his own hands, and whilst self defence can be legally used as a reason to overlook use of lethal force, something to which Jon Drake is no stranger-”

“Did they have to mention that…” Jon muttered, remembering the incident at the Whirl Islands.

“You kind of asked for it,” Steven retorted.

”There are concerns that Jon Drake may view himself as judge, jury and executioner, both in terms of League Operations that he has been a part of, and with regards to the Eon Academy. Critics also question the sensibility of battling with Giratina, given the Legendary Pokemon’s involvement in the Spiritwater Crisis, whilst, according to sources present, Latios and Rayquaza were both out of their Pokeballs, taking a back seat to Giratina,” the anchor continued. ”There are also concerns being raised about the safety of students at the Eon Academy, especially given the enemies that Jon Drake has made due to his now public involvement in the Spiritwater Crisis, as well as the allure of multiple Legendary Pokemon, which has already put targets on the back of himself, and his students. We reached out to Jon for comment, and he had this to say…”

All present looked at Jon in shock, knowing his usual policy was to avoid making statements unless he absolutely had to. Text appeared on screen, read out by the newsreader.

”As a parent myself, I understand the concerns they have in light of this morning’s events. Had my daughter been at a summer camp where this happened, I would be having Latios fly me there right now. But let me assure you, that the staff on site are some of the best battlers I have ever met, and have all proven time and time again, their ability to think rationally in a situation such as this, and act accordingly. I understand my presence invites risk, however, we are taking many measures, some of which I can’t share, to ensure that all who call the Eon Academy home this summer, will be kept safe. Last night, whilst an example of the fact that the Spiritwater Crisis has placed a target on my back, was a better example of just how protected my students are from anybody who means them harm,” the newscaster read. ”Let me make one thing abundantly clear. Every student who attends the Eon Academy, has the right to come here, learn more about battling, Pokemon and themselves, and grow stronger than they ever thought possible, without fear for their safety. The Eon Academy is not an easy target. It’s not even a difficult target, or an impossible target. It’s a suicidal target. And should somebody make it a target, and it be the last thing they do, that is their mistake…”

“Goddamn,” Justin said, looking at Jon with great concern. “You know that self defence only goes so far if somebody is killed, right?”

“I’m aware,” Jon said quietly. “But a statement needed to be made. So that any other groups like this one, or even Blackstone, reconsider doing anything like this…”

”On the other side of the spectrum, those who support Jon Drake claim that his extreme stance on trespassers such as these are justified, and that it shouldn’t fall onto Jon Drake to have to go to these lengths to defend himself and his property, and that the League should not have let this contingent evade capture to begin with-”

“Typical,” Steven muttered irritably.

”They also cite the involvement of Jon Drake’s original five students, as well as that of the Diamond Ladies, who have since taken residence and employment at the Eon Academy, in the events of this morning, stating that the Eon Academy has produced battlers of such high calibre, that the risk of being student to Jon Drake is worth the results shown by his employees…”

“We barely did anything last night,” Charlotte said, almost irritably, before looking to the four witches in the room. “Honestly, it seems like you four are the only witches who don’t think Shadowcraft makes up for being a s**t trainer…”

“Well, we used to think that,” Cassandra replied jokingly, earning a sigh from Violet and a laugh from Jarena.

The news continued, however there was little worth listening to after this, and the TV was soon flicked off, all present having responsibilities to attend to soon.

“Do you think it worked?” Willow asked. “You think they’ve got the message?”

They didn’t refer to anybody in particular, but at the same time, Jon knew that Willow was referring to Blackstone, or any other witches who wanted retribution.

“I can’t say,” Jon answered. “Even after you guys go, they’ll be thinking twice though…”

Steven nodded, seeing as the footage only showed Jon’s involvement.

“Let’s just hope this damn egg hatches soon…”