Downfall
You hear a voice that's calling;
It's telling you to make a change.
It's time to fly, and say 'Goodbye';
Move on to a better place.
I know you've gotta take the first step
To get to where you wanna be.
Just get on track, and don't look back;
'Cause it's the only way that you're gonna be free.
Hold On
B*Witched
The ground trembled ominously. Looking up from the book he had been reading, Sam arched an eyebrow at the shaking walls. He had been through earthquakes before, sure, but this was the fifth in a line of small shakes that wracked Southern Island over the past few days; ever since the strange meteor showed that had, in a weird twist, not had a meteor in sight, but strange, soft pieces of a substance nobody knew. Sam himself had found at least three, well, not so much 'found' as 'tripped over'. The meteor shower, while also spreading into Hoenn, had been mostly centralised within the Southern Island area. Additional showers had also happened in Metone, the great southern continent of the world, Kanto and Janera.
The quakes hadn't actually done anything yet. They were nowhere near strong enough to destroy housing, but they were powerful enough to take down paintings, knock things over and affect the TV reception.
Oh, and the family's pet Growlithe hadn't shut up for days.
The trembling abruptly stopped, and with an eye cocked on the walls, Sam returned to his book. With a buzzing noise, the TV, which had been on in the background, resumed its programs. Right now it was in the middle of 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Squirtles', something Sam had no interest in. Without taking his eyes off of his book, he flicked his fingers, changing the channel telekinetically. 'Psyduck Tales'? Nope. 'Humphrey U Ursuring'? Nope. 'The Mighty Morphin' Poke-Rangers'? Definitely not, even though Sam had loved the show growing up. Looking up at the TV, Sam quirked his mouth, wondering how here could be nothing on. When he passed by a channel playing the news, a picture popped up in the second he was on the channel, making Sam freeze and backtrack to it.
'-new Pokémon. These Pokémon, which are currently unnamed, have appeared worldwide, despite having not been seen before. Attempts to capture these Pokémon have proved futile, with Pokéballs only seeming to be absorbed into their bodies."
Giving the viewers a grin, the news announcer seemed to be amused by this, the small window that contained a picture of what Sam knew was a Heartless changed into an odd little piece of jewellery. 'In other news, Silph Co has developed a new kind of Pokémon Translator that can translate Pokémon smells! This item, in the form of a nose stud-'
Switching the channel off, Sam fought down the feelings of panic that were bubbling inside him. It hadn't been a dream then, or if it had, it had been a prophetic one, a kind Sam had never had before. He doubted it had been prophetic, however. The psychic abilities of psychometry and premonitions weren't passed down in the Sapphire family. Shuffling his sleeve up, Sam exposed the newest little device he had gotten for his birthday from his family, his Pokétch. He had gotten it to replace both of his broken PokéNavs, which had taken quite a beating during Sam's final days in Dictioy. But all the upgrades cards in his PokéNavs had survived. Right now it said the time was 12:16pm, which meant a majority of the Pokémon in the household would be asleep by now. Most of his family were out doing the grocery shopping, while Nick was currently at Rayquaza City, challenging the Gym there. Biting down on a nail, Sam worried.
Seers and Premonitions weren't exactly common among the human population of the world. Sam had no idea what his dream had meant when he first had it, but then again, he had always had random dreams filled with things that had no connection to each other, as dreams tended to do. Giving a sigh, Sam got up, heading for the kitchen. He was getting hungry, and biting his nails didn't accomplish anything to keep that sated.
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Within the tall grass of his home island, Mew looked into a pond that was tucked away in one of the corners of the landmass. Waving its small paw, it called up images of the Forger of Friendship. The Heartless had been quick to invade this world when the World Walls had been shattered, but then again, Mew had expected no less. The Pokémon World was one of the five primary worlds, one of the first five worlds to have been created after the start of the universe itself. That meant the Heart of the World was incredibly powerful, any Heartless taking it could easily be transformed into a Lv 100 Heartless, no, a Behemoth, at the very least, Mew corrected itself quickly.
The island he resided on, Faraway Island, had been removed from the normal world, by the power of Mew several eons ago, for tow purposes. For one, it was Mew's home, and he did love it dearly. The second being that the island held one of the most important things on the Pokémon World; its Keyhole, the portal that led to the Heart of the World.
Giving a sigh, Mew floated upwards, above the island. If he wanted to save the Universe, the Pokémon World had to be destroyed. It was the only way the Forger would be able to enter Spira, unless he somehow discovered the power of the World Highways. Even then, he did not know about the other Worlds, and would be unable to create the Highways.
Raising its arms up, Mew felt the protections around his island as a physical presence. Inching his powers under the rim of the shield, he lifted, and as one, all the Heartless in the world, from Johto to Hoenn, from Southern Island to Oore, turned to face Faraway Island.
With the knowledge that he had just doomed his world to the never-ending darkness of the Kingdom Hearts, Mew fled the world, entering the Chamber of the Gods. His powers told him that the other Gods of the Pokémon World; Lugia, Ho oh, Groudon, Kyogre, the many powerful legendaries around the world, called up their own power, leaving the Pokémon World to head for other worlds. In response, the Pokémon World, its protective deities gone, was left defenceless to both the Heartless and the ravages and furies of the natural world.
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Eyes widened, Sam looked skywards. For some reason, it felt like something was intensely wrong with the world. It felt like something; he didn't know what, but something was missing. The world seemed less potent, less powerful, and judging by the keening wail from inside the house, his Pokémon had noticed the same thing.
Sam had given up on trying reading inside. The tremors had continued, and were steadily getting worse. 'Groudon must be tossing and turning in his sleep.' Sam thought grimly. It was commonly acknowledged that Groudon lived within Hoenn, and as such, was close enough to affect Southern Island as well. The rustling of grass caught Sam's attention, making him turn his head. Abrupt reflexes made him teleport away as dark claws flashed; gouging narrow strips of wood out of the Oak tree he had been leaning against. Now that he was further away, he could easily study the creature who had tried attacking him.
His mind told him that it was a Heartless, but this one was very different from the ones he had had to fight in his dream. The dream ones had had small, squat bodies, with dark streams coming from their heads. This one looked like the older brother of the ones Sam had fought. They looked the same, except this one was more stretched out, much taller, and seemed a bit muscular.
Putting his fingers in his mouth, Sam let out a piercing whistle, this one a different tune from the one that had called Zeus to him. This was just an abrupt whistle that would call all of his Pokemon to him.
And they came quickly. Hearing the shatter of breaking glass, Sam knew they had broken his window to get to him. Leto the Eevee was the first around the corner, dashing past Sam to ram into the Heartless. Recovering quickly, Leto backed away slowly, letting the stronger Pokémon let loose. A torrent of icy water shot over the head of Leto, blasting the Heartless into the fence around the Sapphire's property. Several volts of lightning swarmed around the water, add electricity into the mix as both Zeus and Helious, the Flaaffy, used their own special attacks. Hera swooped up above the Heartless, flapping her wings, and then swung them as if cutting the air above the Heartless. A visible wave of energy followed her wings, wavering through the air to collide with the Heartless. A tiny ball of yellow and green fur yipped, sending out a tiny stream of lightning to join Zeus's and Helios’s. Hermes, the brother of Leto, was still a little too young to do much damage, but he played his part as well. Angel the Holipus began glowing with an intense light, and within a few seconds, turned into a yellow streak as she used 'Divine Judgement', a Holy type attack. A similar, red streak paired up with Angel as Indy performed 'Extreme Speed', and the two Pokémon tackled the Heartless simultaneously. This seemed to have been enough for the Heartless as it gave a silent scream and vanished in a collection of purple orbs.
Giving a grateful sigh, Sam sat down, his knees trembling beneath him. The collection of Pokémon instantly reacted, coming over to see if their Trainer or Master was fine. Indy, while not Sam's, was Sam's Pokémon to take care of while he was at home. Even now, he had a lot of love and affection for his old master.
"I'm fine guys. I'm ok." Sam whispered, stroking Leto gently. The small brown and white fox, her fur sharply angled as a result of her father; a Manetric, leapt into Sam's lap, giving him a lick up the face.
"That wasn't a Pokémon." Artemis commented lightly. "That wasn't anything of this world."
"That was a Heartless." Sam replied. His mind seemed distant while his mouth rambled on. "I dunno where they come from, but that's what it's called; a Heartless."
"Old friend?" Hera asked, swooping down to land on top of Artemis's head. Once then, she began preening herself. Below, Artemis went cross-eyed as his eyes attempted to focus on Hera's tail, which was currently on his nose.
"Not exactly." Sam responded. Opening his mouth, he attempted to continue, but was thrown up in the air and backwards as the promised earthquake finally hit. Pain surged through his body as he flew through the air, but instinct lashed out, his mind spread out, engulfing all of his Pokémon and lifted them into the air. Slamming into the wall of his house, he let out a gasp of pain as the brick scraped his back. With his mind off of his focus, the Pokémon, and Sam, slipped. Catching them less than an inch of the ground, he hovered them up higher, taking stock of their situation when he blinked the tears of pain from his eyes.
Artemis seemed to be fine. In fact, he had been cackling with laughter since the earthquake hit, apparently immune to its power due to being a ground type. Zeus was fine, he floated normally anyway, as did Hera and Angel. If anything, it was Helios, Indy, Leto and Hermes who benefited the most from Sam's help. Releasing Hera, Zeus and Artemis from his mental grip, he sighed with relief. Drifting over, Zeus arranged himself until he was below Sam and Leto, the Eevee having been thrown along with Sam. Dropping himself into the solidified cloud, he froze as he heard a violent cracking and groan behind him. Turning slightly, he watched as his childhood home collapsed under the stress of the earth tremors. He was calmer than he expected he would be, it seemed the series of unfortunate events had left him little room to be shocked. Instead, he gave a sigh of annoyance, outstretching his hands and snapping his fingers, summoning his, Nick's and Ani's Trainer Packs to his side. He thanked Mew that he had gone shopping and restocked his pack a few weeks ago. Nick and Ani on the other hand, he had no idea about.
"Ok Zeus, we need to get downtown. Let's go." Sam yelled above the noise of the earth. Looking behind him, Sam blanched as he realised he had almost left his Pokémon behind. His hand reached down, touching five of the seven Pokéballs on his belt, returning the majority of his team to their Pokéballs.
At the same time, he reached out, bringing Indy the Growlithe onto his lap. "Good to go."
Giving a shudder, Zeus set off, trusting Sam to find a way to hold on. Being a cloud, he could summon speed when he needed by riding the winds, which were in excess now with all the crumbling buildings. Grabbing a hold of one of the thunderhead type's fluffy curls, his other keeping a hold on the wriggling Growlithe.
Rolling and pitching as the wind buffeted him around, Zeus gave the equivalent of a frown when he saw the destruction of the localised earthquake. Dodging around a church spire, hearing a ripping sound as something on his back caught on it and tore, Zeus kept going ahead. He had heard Fiona, Sam's mother, saying they were heading for the mall, which Zeus knew the location of. It was a good place for food, having a fountain in the middle of it. He had been chased out a few times, the first with a broom, the second with a vacuum cleaner, Zeus was more afraid of the latter than the first; Zeus collected his cloudy mass into a narrow strip, lowering his wind resistance.
Sam had long since closed his eyes, simply trying to maintain his hold on Zeus. The speed they were going at made Sam felt like his organs had been left about five miles back, but he knew it was a necessity. It was the stop he wasn't prepared for. The first sign Sam got that they had stopped was the sudden absence of Zeus beneath him. Flying through the air, Sam let out a yell when he was caught barely an inch from the rippling ground. Within seconds, a combination of pink and purple energy had Sam protected from the power of the Earthquake as Ani and Manessah used their powers to summon Sam to them.
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Looking down on the planet they had abandoned, Mew, Celebi and Jirachi watched with a muted silence as the planet tore itself apart. Without its elemental protectors, the legendary Pokemon, there were no forces to keep the fury of Mother Nature in check. Waving its paw across the seeing pool in the Chamber of the Gods, Mew called up a vision of Faraway Island, located near Metone, the great Southern Continent that played home to Alara, the meeting place of the legendary Pokemon of the world.
Even now Heartless were approaching at impossible speeds to be the first to take the world's heart. The resulting Heartless would be incredibly powerful, but Mew and the other Gods had banked on the Forger of Friendship being powerful enough to destroy it. Watching the Heartless race across the sands of the Metonian Central Desert towards Metone’s East Coast, Mew turned its head to catch the eyes of Celebi and Jirachi. Giving a silent call, it pointed its paw at the distant island, joined quickly by Celebi's leafy hand and Jirachi's silver one. Beams of power shot from their finger tips to collide above Faraway Island, and in its wake, a keyhole shape appeared above the rock. This seemed to infuriate the Heartless even more, as the moved even faster than before.
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Looking around, a nervous, fluttery feeling collected in Sam's stomach. Nick was meant to have been here a few minutes ago. The earthquake hadn't disappeared, if anything, it had gotten worse, and that made Sam worry.
A shrill whistle made Sam almost snap his neck as he turned. A grin of relief spread over his face as he spied Nick, levitating in the air with his psychic Butterfree hovering behind him. A violent cracking split the air, and a particularly bad shudder racked the earth. Gulping, Sam turned back to Nick, beckoning him into the protective bubble that Ani and Manessah were holding above the ground. Nick's Butterfree seemed to comply, and once its owner was in the bubble, it returned itself to its Pokéball.
"Hi Sam, interesting weather we're having." Nick said, a strained note of cheerfulness coming through his voice. Rolling his eyes, Sam nudged over Nick's Trainer Pack. Picking it up with a sigh of relief, Nick winked at Sam. "Nice sunset."
Looking in the direction of the sun, Sam frowned. Sunset wasn't for hours yet, but the sun was approaching the horizon already. It looked strange as well; a curious red that looked like it was dying.
As if on a signal, the earth stopped as the sun dipped below the horizon. Looking down at the suddenly dark land, Sam's sense of fright increased. "Guys, what's going on?"
The ground had transformed into a strange mass of purple, flowing energy. Around them, houses sunk into the goo, turning into energy themselves. A strand of the stuff shot out of the ground to curl around the bubble. Beside him, Ani and Manessah let out screams as their power as attacked. More and more tentacles came to the aid of the first one, pulling the bubble to where the ground was.
"Oh, we're screwed. We are definitely screwed." Nick muttered fervently.
Grip the ties of friendship.
Looking around, Sam tried to pinpoint where the voice was coming from. It was the same voice from his dream.
Call on your friends!
Giving a shrug, Sam held out his hands. It had worked once, and it had gotten rid of the Heartless. Maybe his dream could help him again.
Pictures flashed through his mind. Images of Nick and Katrina laughing, Artemis playing tricks on Brendan, Zeus and Electra arguing. The visions surged through Sam's mind at his command, a familiar tugging on his heart becoming the result. The tug grew, leaving Sam breathless. Just as he thought he couldn't hold the feeling any longer, the sensation of polished wood filled his hand. Opening his eyes, he looked with wonder at the staff that he held.
Nirvana...
The name whispered through the air. With the staff in his hand, Sam smiled, suddenly not afraid of the shadows.
The bubble they were in was now half-submerged. The darkness pounded as it tried to make its way into the bubble to the people inside of it. Raising his staff, and nearly knocking Nick out with it, Sam willed something to happen.
And sensing its master's need, something did happen. A brilliant light shone from the staff, loosing itself as a wave that spread past the bubble, striking at the darkness. Successive waves shot out, and before long, the bubble was gently resting on a patch of ground. The intermingled colours of pink and purple faded as Ani and Manasseh let the shield go. Looking around this small sanctuary, Sam quirked his mouth.
"Ok, Sam, it's a very pretty thing, but where did you get it?" Nick said simply, pointing at Nirvana. Positioning it so that the butt-end of the pole was on the ground, Sam looked it up and down.
The furthest end was capped in a golden metal, a small, tiny bubble on top of a much larger bubble that had the pole coming out of it. The wooden staff seemed to be made out of oak, a smooth, polished surface that held no chances for splinters. At the top, an elaborate working of metal, with tiny tassels of blue string hanging off of the edges completed the staff.
"Um... eBay?" Sam retorted. A stunned silence followed, after which Nick chuckled.
"Ok, I'm giving you that on- eh?"
The ground started to churn again. But this was different from the waves of an earthquake. This was more of a rumble. Before Sam, his shadow stretched out, apparently from nowhere since there wasn't a light source. As it stretched further and wider, Sam's eyes widened themselves as his shadow moved above the ground, becoming a giant Heartless.
The primary power of the Forger is that of a Summoner. Using your Crest, you can call friends and allies to your side at any moment.
The voice seemed to speak again, but Sam knew it was his memory filling in the blanks. His Trials had prepared him as a Summoner, and it had been there that he had summoned his first ally. Raising Nirvana up again, Sam stepped forward, angling to stave towards the creature.
"ARTICUNO!"
Nirvana began to glow again, this time a sapphire blue. The wood shifted and changed under Sam's hands, warping and contorting until it became the legendary Titan of Ice, Articuno. Giving a screech, Articuno stood high, its wings outstretched. It looked to the Heartless with a cool and emotionless eye, as if sizing up its target. Furling its wings, it stood at attention, facing its opponent.
"Holy cr-"
"Articuno! Ice beam!" Sam quickly said, cutting Nick off before the impressionable younger siblings could hear the rest of that sentence. Hearing Sam, Articuno nodded, and then took off into the air, gaining altitude until it wheeled around, shooting a beam of pure cold at the Heartless. It hit square on, trapping some of the creature within a thick block of ice.
The elemental alignment of the Crest of Friendship is Water. To use this element, hold out your hand and think of the element, and will it to come out of you.
Holding up his left hand, Sam narrowed his eyes. This had required more concentration than summoning, but he had achieved it. Thinking of the tides that regularly beat against Southern Island's shores, of the Great Dictian River, in Dictioy, and the Lake of Tears, he willed water to come to his aid.
Before, in the Trials, it had come out as a physical sphere of water. This time it changed form. Above them, rain clouds formed, and at once, shed their load of rain, drenching the group with icy water. Taking advantage of its foe being wet, Articuno let loose another blast of ice, again freezing it.
At that point, a strange vibration filled Sam. Looking down at his suddenly shaking hand, he blinked, and then flew backwards as the Heartless exploded in a way of power, shattering the ice and sending Sam back towards the Heartless energy that had engulfed the rest of the planet. A pink bubble blocked Sam's passage, making Sam bounce harmlessly off of it and onto the dirt. Looking up again, Sam winced. Articuno had continued its assault, but the Heartless had begun fighting back. Balls of black came out of its hands, some hitting the wheeling and dodging ice bird, while the others flew past to land harmlessly in the warped landscape.
The vibrations came back again, but these ones seemed to be coming from a different direction. Looking skywards, Sam saw a ball of red, purple and black energy hovering above the curve of the earth, sucking and pulling everything towards it. Getting to his feet, Sam dove into the crowd that was his family, pulling them close with his powers. Articuno, noticing the same thing Sam had, shot downwards, turning back into Nirvana as it did. Stretching out his hand, Sam caught the falling staff, and as he did, a field of blue energy spread out, surrounding the group of people. Spinning, twisting and turning, though Sam didn't know how he knew, the bubble around them warped, steadily glowing more brightly. Pulsing and throbbing, the bubble suddenly flashed out of existence.
Looking outside of the bubble, Sam frowned. The desecrated landscape had been replaced by a field of darkness, this one a natural kind. Stars peppered the skies, and with a lurch, Sam realised they were moving at a very high speed.
"Well, this is interesting." Nick said quietly, looking around them. "Not sure if I prefer this or our place."
"Next question; how are we still breathing?" Ani asked, looking at the back of Sam's head.
Without turning around, Sam knew they were all looking at him. Giving a shrug, he looked at his new little staff. "Don't ask me. Ask this thing."
"I would, but I bet its responses may be a little wooden." Nick returned, rather dryly.
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The Pokémon World has been destroyed, and the World Saver Project has been initiated. The Forger, as well as those close to him, is headed towards Spira, wrapped in the power of the Crest Weapon. They should arrive within minutes.
Looking down at the seeing pool, Mew fought back a feeling of sadness, agony and happiness. The Pokémon World, the centre of his power, was gone. All the powers of creation, and it had disappeared within the course of a few hours.
At that moment, the pool slowly dried up. Recognising the arrival of the owner of the voice who had spoken to each of the Crest Holders in turn, and who had reported the circumstances of the Universe to the Gods, Mew floated gently to the ground, landing lightly upon the tips of his long feet.
Sparks of purple energy floated out of the nothingness that surrounded the Chamber of the Gods coming together over the space where the Pool of Seeing had once been. A tall being stood there, its eyes calming surveying the three Gods that stood before it.
Mewtwo, once, he was simply a clone of Mew. He had inherited all of Mew's God-like abilities, and had even more power than his predecessor. If it had only been Mew in his way, he could have easily taken over the Universe.
However, what Mewtwo hadn't taken account for were the other Gods.
Knowing he had been out powered, Mewtwo had instead volunteered to help the Gods out. In exchange, he was granted omnipotence and the full spectrum of human emotions; something his creators had been unable to do.
Meeting his clone's eyes, Mew conveyed a silent message of sympathy. Mewtwo would have been far more upset about the destruction of the Pokémon world than he would have; a result of his having greater powers than Mew.
At that moment, Bahamut entered the Chamber. His draconian bulk filled his pedestal, but quickly changed as he reverted to his child-like form.
Hyrule has been destroyed. He said simply, leaving the implications to the rest of his brethren. They did it as the Pokémon World was destroyed, to hide their tracks.
And the Crest Holders?
Safe. Farore returned to the world as the last phases of its destruction took place.
Celebi stepped forward this time. Hyrule held great interest to Celebi; it held one of his greatest works there.
And the Seal?
Bahamut shifted, troubled. Dissolved. The Six Sages died during the destruction of the world, unable to use their powers to journey off world and keep the Seal intact. The Juror of Power has escaped back into our Realm.
Jirachi waved its silver paw impatiently. That is of no consequence. He has no powers, other than those he naturally has. With Hyrule's destruction, the Triforce is gone, meaning Ganondorf no longer has unlimited power. We can worry about him after this mess is done. The Protector of Power should be able to deal with him easily.
Giving a sigh, Celebi nodded, floating back into place above its pedestal. Very well. The Crest Holders are converging on Spira. What is the status of the other Crest Holders? Celebi abruptly turned back to Mewtwo.
The Protector of Power and the Lighter of Love are being directed to Spira. Using the power of the Queen of Hearts, Kairi has entered Gummi-Space and is being drawn to Spira. Yensid is currently dealing with the Protector of Power and he will be sending him to Spira as well. The Crests of Friendship, Courage, Knowledge, Determination and Kindness are either heading to, or are on, Spira already. Our only problems have been summoning the Sentinel of Sincerity and the Holder of Hope. As their world has long been using magical powers, the Heartless have been beaten back easily.
Nodding, Mew began floating once more. With the Protector of Power present, they should have enough magic to activate the World Savers.
And if not? Mewtwo asked.
Mew hovered silently. We can only hope that none of the other Primary Worlds have been destroyed.
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"What's that?" Nick asked suddenly, pointing out into the darkness of space. Narrowing his eyes, Sam focused on the point Nick was indicating.
"I think it's a planet."
"No way." Nick murmured. As they shot closer to it, Sam's eyes began to tell the difference between the last masses and the oceans. It was when they went by what had to be a moon that Sam looked around nervously.
"Uh, how do we stop this thing?"