Aaron
Royal Avenue, Akala
Affected RPers: N/A

It was unlike anything Aaron had ever dreamed.

Endkath.

While he hungered for this kind of power, he wasn’t at all disappointed in the results. Nicodemus had come through, likely because he felt he needed to fulfill what Agatha mistook as a promise for what Nicodemus had only intended to be a plausible benefit. Now, to be on good terms with Agatha, he needed the bodies of Latios and Latias, and trying to get them himself was going to be very difficult, especially considering the owner of Latios was Jon Drake, a name with prestigious reputation behind it.

But now, he had the dark energies and power surging through his veins and spiking through his nerves. On his skin were now a series of jet-black markings like tribal tattoos while his eyes were now a crimson red. All the while, a dark and sinister smile was on his face.

He felt unstoppable.

There was only just one minor concern.

He had been hoping for the element of surprise and he thought the power could be unleashed at his own discretion. But as time passed and as the power kept building within him, he realized he would not be able to retain his human form for much longer as it could not contain the raw, dark power that was filling his vitals to bursting.

He continued to walk further away from the Megamart, convinced he would return with the corpses of Latios and Latias as his trophies, intending to surprise everyone and win the admiration of what he would do and what he would become. He was convinced even Agatha would be impressed and the citizens of Heahea and all others on Akala Island… if they weren’t afraid now, they would definitely be afraid when they beheld the monstrosity he would soon become.

Within the hour… he was hoping to make his move…


Willow Scalera
Eon Villa, Akala
Affected RPers: @Desolate Divine (Jon/Latios)

Willow knew it would be a lot for Jon to think about. She wasn’t sure if he would be skeptical, confused, or frustrated by it all, but all she and Latias could do was just see how he took it and go from there.

“I was just going to offer you a coffee…” Jon replied to lighten the mood. “In all seriousness, I was told you were coming, and where you were coming from, before you arrived, but this isn't what I expected...”

“I know, it’s a lot…” Willow sighed. “Prior to coming here, I didn’t think Shadowcraft was even capable of some of the things we’ve all seen. As much as I wish Netherclysm was completely fake, I’ve seen what it looks like as it’s undergoing the casting process. And nothing about it looks promising or like it’s the work of prosperity and good fortune.”

“I believe you,” Jon replied. “Granted, at this point, I'm not entirely convinced you might not have been followed, or allowed to get this far for something neither of us are aware of, however, this information is vital, so it's worth that risk.”

“Latias and I did what we could to ensure we didn’t have anyone following us,” Willow told him. “There are Shadowcraft spells that work like tracking beacons, but I made sure neither of us had anything like that. Besides, if they knew about us being here, both Latias and I would probably be dead by now.”

As the meeting went on, Jon had told Willow he had questions, and she nodding, expecting he would have many given what she had put before him.

“First question, is how did you find this place? We don't exactly publicize we operate out of here,” Jon asked her.

“It was me who detected Latios was here,” Latias had explained, speaking instead of using telepathy. “They were preparing to take my blood and I tried to telepathically broadcast to see if there was anyone I could reach out to for help. And that was when I felt the connection with Latios, my brother. I hadn’t sensed it before while being in a Pokéball, but after being out of it and trying to contact anyone within range, I felt his presence. We were reluctantly willing to go with a reasonable blood donation at first, but when it became clear they were going to kill me, Willow killed the reagent quartermaster’s apprentice to save me. And we managed to escape shortly after.”

“And there was someone else…” Willow told Jon, only wishing she knew more about the mysterious woman she met for just a short moment. “I don’t know her name, but she knows you. She liked to slip in and out of the shadows, and she had distinctive silver hair. She mentioned she wasn’t with Agatha or the League, but I’m certain she’s a Shadowcraft witch like myself. She told me if we were to have any chance of surviving, we needed to find you, Jon Drake. After remembering your televised battles with Latios during the Pokémon High Seas Tournament and hearing news about the Eon Academy, when Latias told me you and Latios were here, she told me where to go, tracing Latios’s presence along the way. But without that guidance, I don’t think anyone would have found this place by accident.”

Willow wasn’t sure how Jon was going to take her response about the mysterious woman, but she had disappeared before Willow even knew her name. She wanted to know more about who she was, what her motives were, and why she was only an observer at this point, but she decided not to dwell too deeply on it.

“Next, what else does Agatha require to perform the Netherclysm?” Jon asked, “Is there any way we can delay it by making sure she can't get something she needs?”

“At this point, what it mostly needs is time,” Willow replied. “Agatha made sure she had all the reagents she needed before anything had even begun, and most of them were used to initiate the spell. The remaining reagents were placed besides the developing Netherclysm vortex to be added at specific time intervals. Agatha wanted me to prepare them, like a nurse prepares surgical equipment for a surgeon. But she lied to me and told me the spell was to communicate with the dead and cross over into some made-up nether dimension. No, it’s something far more than that. If I had known the truth, I would have-!!”

“They would have killed you, Willow,” Latias interrupted her, having seen how things transpired there while connecting with Willow’s emotions. “And it wouldn’t have stopped it, only delayed it.”

“You’re right…” Willow sighed, looking away for a moment before looking back to Jon. “Yes, there are three more reagents that need to be added. The crushed skulls of a Hydreigon are to come next, to be added roughly when there are exactly 24 hours remaining. The last two get added at the very end when the Netherclysm vortex has fully matured into its prime state. And those last two reagents are… the eyes of Necrozma… and heart of Eternatus. The Hydreigon skulls would be difficult but not impossible to replace. Those last two, however… there’s no replacing those, and I can’t even imagine what must have been done to obtain them. Destroy those and there’s no hope for Netherclysm at all. The spell will collapse upon itself if those last two reagents aren’t added soon after it reaches full maturity.”

“Do you suspect there are others like you?” Jon asked. “Those who didn't realize what they were getting in to, and if given an opportunity to defect, would? I'm all for levelling the place, and leaving it as a smoking crater, however if there are people who are victims in and of themselves, I'd rather avoid harming them if I can get away with it...”

Willow nodded, understanding Jon’s concerns. She tried to think hard, wondering if there were any others like herself that might be having second thoughts about coming to Akala.

“I don’t know, honestly…” Willow admitted, trying to think about the situation. “I’m sure they’re aware of the attack on Heahea City and I hope if there is anyone like that, they are preparing to abandon the situation, but… it’s difficult. Agatha is obscenely powerful and so are many of her followers. Igor does a lot of her dirty, nasty work and enjoys it, Aaron and his team are her scouts and surveillance, while Nicodemus is serving as her reagent quartermaster. Gail handles a lot of the additional tasks that Agatha herself just doesn’t have the time for. I know all of them and all of the witches that participated in the Heahea city attack wouldn’t dream of betraying Agatha, especially given what she’d do to them and their Pokémon if she found out about it and caught them. But I just don’t know if there are others that would act against her if they felt there was a chance they could stop her and survive…”

“Does Agatha have any Pokémon other than Giratina that could potentially take Latios and Latias down?” Jon asked, “In a real fight, Latios can handle himself against nearly anything. Giratina could be a pest, but on its own, I may be able to deal with it. But if there is anything else as strong as it, or even stronger, then we need to account for that.”

“Agatha owns Marshadow…” Willow nodded with a bit of a grimace, knowing Agatha would despise her even further for disclosing that she possessed that mythical Pokémon. “Beyond that, she exclusively focuses on ghost Pokémon, which also serve her as her sentries and hidden agents, giving her and the other witches information about what the League is doing and what the civilians and tourists have been up to. They already know most of the people have hunkered down and they’re hoping to keep the League and everyone else on the defensive, long enough to complete Netherclysm without interruption.”

Willow knew it was going to be difficult to have the League muster up the courage to take the fight directly to Agatha after what happened in Heahea, but she knew they had to, someway, somehow, regardless of the cost. She could understand why they were afraid, but something had to be done before it was too late.

“Do you know if Giratina is kept in some sort of Pokeball, or whether it remains in another plane until it is needed?" Jon asked. “This could make or break any plans we have.”

“Agatha keeps both Giratina and Marshadow in Pokéballs,” Willow confirmed. “I don’t know the exact types, however. All I know is she’s used them to deploy Giratina and Marshadow. At first I didn’t know why until later when I found out what happened at Heahea City…”

“Lastly, does Agatha have any means of locating Latios and Latias via some sort of telepathy, even in short range?” Jon asked. “And if she can, do you know of any way you can use shadowcraft to hide them from this ability of hers?”

“I doubt she does, or she would have found out about us escaping and I’d probably be worse than dead right now,” Willow replied with a bit of a grim look on her face before looking a bit more optimistic. “It’s not to say they’re not on the lookout for both Eon Pokémon, but I don’t think they have the means to track them that way…”

Willow knew Agatha didn’t have any psychic Pokémon, but that didn’t rule out the possibility that other witches among Agatha’s followers had them. Trying to pinpoint where Latios and Latias were wouldn’t be easy, but she wouldn’t rule it out as being impossible. Part of her was thinking it would be wise to keep them away from the Megamart, even if she and Jon fought on the frontlines.

Still, she wanted to know what Jon’s thoughts were, just in case he had some clever ideas of his own that they could implement…


Triad (The Diamond Ladies)
Dimensional Research Center (Underground Base)
Affected RPers: @Chakramaster @Shruikan

After Jimmy had discovered his coffee, he had greeted Cassandra, Jarena, and Violet as they sat down to have breakfast.

“I see you’re all early risers here, too,” he said. “Better to get an early start. Especially in cases like these. You know Jirachi can get you some new clothes if you like too.”

“We were thinking that…” Violet muttered, rolling her eyes.

“Well, if we’re becoming Pokémon soon anyway, no sense getting a whole outfit for a few minutes before wearing fur a few minutes later,” Jarena giggled.

“I think it might be best if we wait on Luneth as well, but anyone else have thoughts?” Jimmy asked. “I'm glad there's a few I could help give these star pieces to. I just hope we can show others we're here to help.”

“I think they just need time to warm up to the idea of having Jirachi’s support,” Cassandra told him with an optimistic, reassuring smile. “Too many people are wary about and think too hard on the ‘be careful what you wish for’ thing, but the longer people spend time getting to know the little guy, the cozier they’ll be.”

Cassandra knew Jimmy was likely thinking about how Jon acted, but she decided to leave his name out of it. She was confident Jon could change his mind about how he perceived Jirachi, but she knew he was the kind of person that would need proof first. Especially since they had gotten off to a bad start, but she felt if she showed Jirachi’s power was effective and trustworthy, it would help to bury some of the bad blood between them.

“Main thing,” Jimmy explained. “Don't worry too much about wearing out Jirachi. He will let everyone know if he starts getting worn out. He's not like he was 4 years ago on the Wishmaker. He can do a lot more and last a lot longer. These star pieces? They help bolster that even more. What took a good hour of him using his powers then would take nearly a full day. With the star pieces it'd probably be close to maybe 3 days at a minimum. Just don't go too overbearing to start. Once everyone is here. I'll tell you all something more. What we are trying to help to do to maximize Jirachi's power and help end this madness happening here. It may even be enough to help restore everything here and everyone.”

“Really?” Jarena asked, looking very curious. “I mean, like… what’s to stop us from wishing to become legendary Pokémon ourselves?”

“Sensibility,” Violet told her with a bit of a frown. “Remember, we’re trying to go incognito here, at least until we’re in the clear. Eevee, Buneary, and Furret work because they’re not Pokémon Agatha and her followers would drop everything to try and catch. Show up as legendary Pokémon and you’d better hope you can break out of a Pokéball after being ruthlessly attacked by every Pokémon they’ve got on hand.”

“For now I think we need to stick in groups,” Jimmy recommended. “Better than splitting up. Jirachi should still be in the main room. If he noticed anything special he will know. Seeing as it's been quiet it's probably been the usual. The town slowly turning more and more to chaos and people and Pokémon alike falling to these witches.”

Cassandra nodded, knowing right now, it was eerie and vacant back in Heahea. She imagined the streets with all its victims still left in their bizarre and traumatized states would still be out there. Meanwhile, those that were still conscious and able to escape regardless of whatever had befallen them had taken refuge by now. The only ones now remaining out in the open were all those that were either killed by the Shadowcraft or still left alive but unable to help themselves. Cassandra couldn’t help but think of Sami, who was still a stone statue likely half-buried in the rubble of the urgent care…

“If you all plan on turning into Pokémon,” Jimmy continued, “feel free to ask Jirachi. He can turn you into almost anything you could want without the need of reagents to turn into and then turn back from. Once you do turn the star piece will automatically be on you somewhere. More hidden the better.”

“Can’t see why we shouldn’t go with our usual trio!” Jarena beamed with a smile.

“Unless…” Violet replied, suddenly looking away. “One of them might recall what that particular trio might suggest.”

“You’d think they’d link the sight of an Eevee, Buneary, and Furret with us still being alive?” Cassandra asked Violet, beginning to ponder about it. “Despite it being four years?”

“Furret is a species that isn’t native to Alola on top of it,” Violet remarked. “We’re used to those forms, yes, but it’s risky if someone recognizes it and makes the connection to what happened on the Wishmaker four years ago. They already know they’ve got Shadowcraft practitioners working against them. It’s a low chance, but I don’t think it’s worth the risk when it’s something we can circumvent by going as other Pokémon.”

To Cassandra, it was a matter of just choosing other Pokémon to go as, ones that were more likely to be found on Alola and wouldn’t be up to anything suspicious.

“You’re sure this star piece would be hidden?” Cassandra asked Jimmy, wondering if the sight of it might be a factor to consider as well.

“My pendant here is what turns me into a Pikachu,” Jimmy explained. “As well it's been infused with a star piece thanks to Jirachi's power. So it looks normally like a thunderstone, but doesn't have the power of one. When I turn into a Pikachu, it looks more similar to a megastone bracelet tied around my left arm next to my paw. This was Pikachu's idea. Lately, Pikachu has been more quiet. I think I put too much attention into Jirachi for this mission and he's...not been too happy with me. So I plan on taking him wherever we go today and tag team with him. I also need to be sure to get one of these star pieces to Steven with an extra for Cynthia just in case. He wanted to report and I gave it to him. If anything I could use Jirachi to get one to him, but unless we use direct contact it could be slightly risky. Unless he meets with us. Steven is the only one I talked with on this as he knows more about Jirachi being from Hoenn.”

“Hmm…” Cassandra muttered, thinking it over.

“Sorry, didn't mean to keep going on like that,” Jimmy apologized. “Until we're ready. Feel free to help yourselves to any food or gear we may need to prepare for the day.”

Jimmy then proceeded to make some eggs and bacon, and while it was cooking, he had grabbed a few fruit cups from the cooler.

While Cassandra, Jarena, and Violet had breakfast and coffee, they tried to work out the details regarding how they were going to go about doing this plan.

“I still say let’s stick with what we know,” Jarena smiled after swallowing a bite of her pancakes. “We know how to act natural as our usual trio! Besides, Agatha and her peeps probably don’t know and don’t care what Pokémon are natives and which ones aren’t! And yeah, having that ghost immunity… seems nice, you know. Especially when ghosts are all over the place now.”

“For a lack of being able to come up with alternatives, fine…” Violet shrugged, hoping not to regret this decision later on. “I just hope this doesn’t backfire on us.”

“Better to be unseen by any of them anyway,” Cassandra figured, letting both of them know between bites. “Their Pokémon have no clue who the ‘Diamond Ladies’ are and if all goes according to plan, their Pokémon and whatever other ghosts they’ve got around the place have no chance of recognizing us. And Shadowcraft witches of their like doesn’t seem like the type that pay too much attention to video steams. Especially ones over four years old.”

Once they had finished their breakfast and cleaned the dishes, they had decided it was time. The three of them had been wearing their butterfly Pokémon costumes for over twelve hours by now, and even Jarena was looking forward to getting out of hers.

“Let’s rock and roll,” Jarena smiled.

“Say Lucky,” Cassandra smiled as she lightly held onto her star piece. “We’d like a ticket to the surface and could we get one order of Eevee, Buneary, and Furret to go?”

<You betcha! I’ll even include fries with that!>

And before Cassandra even had the chance to say thanks, suddenly she felt like she was whisked out of her body, flung a million miles a second, and then was suddenly lying in the grass, wondering if she was even on the same planet. It was a bit disorienting to her like waking up from a very long slumber, but when she looked around, she tried standing up and she was back in her familiar Eevee form. After looking behind her, she had seen Jarena now as a Buneary and Violet now as a Furret, just waking up from being rapidly transformed and teleported to the Akala Island surface.

And as promised, there even was a fresh brown paper bag with fries.

“Daaang, Jirachi, you really know how to make roller-coasters feel like yesterday’s news…” Jarena remarked, trying to knock the slight dizzy feeling she had as she looked over her brown and puffy beige fur. “But hey, great to be back, beautiful, and Buneary!”

“Can barely see the star piece,” Violet remarked with a smirk of confidence, finding it very easy to tuck the pendant into her Furret coat to the point where it was buried and almost impossible to make out even up close. “Think we’ve got everything we need now.”

“And hey!” Jarena grinned as she chewed, “these fries are delicious!”