Chapter Text
Pain was the first thing Gekkouga noticed when he regained consciousness, followed by the sight of broken concrete, glass, steel, and twisted roots all around him. Shifting, the Shinobi Frog cringed as his entire left side throbbed, certain he was sporting several fractures along with bone-deep bruising. He just knew Satoshi and the team wou––
Eyes widened as his memory sparked at the thought of his family. All of them kidnapped and tortured at Fleur-de-lis’ whims. Alan finally coming to his senses to help them. Beating Mega Gyarados and Kaenjishi. Fleur-de-lis making an order to “activate the weapon”…and a massive explosion.
Panic overriding the pain, Gekkouga forced his way out of the rubble, desperate to find his family…and he gazed around in horror at what he could see.
Miare City had been utterly destroyed, no single building was whole, and there were blackened twisted roots…and bodies everywhere. The closest one he recognized was formidable Lizardon, broken and still, with an equally still Alan wrapped in his arms. Fear pulsed through the Water/Dark-type, as Satoshi had been right next to the pair when the explosion occurred, but he couldn’t see his young trainer. Gekkouga immediately focused inward, reaching for that bright warmth that was his connection to Satoshi, only for despair and denial to grip him when he discovered an icy void where the bond should have been. Wrenching himself back to reality, Gekkouga began calling out as he scoured the area for his family.
He found Numelgon first, and the Shinobi Frog shuddered as he took in the misshapen, smashed blob, the soft purple melting into a murky grey. There was no life in the gentle dragon, nothing Gekkouga could do for him but bow his head with a mournful prayer. Fiarrow was sprawled on some rubble just below Numelgon, the concave of his torso telling what had killed fiery bird, and Gekkouga cried at the loss of the first Pokemon he had assisted in bringing into the family.
Luchabull and Onvern were just a few feet over and under more rubble. It was clear Luchabull, despite the size difference, had attempted to shield the younger Pokemon from damage. A steel beam combined with gravity was their end. Again, Gekkouga bowed his head in prayer for the pair, tears sliding down his face as he whispered goodbye to his brother warrior and the baby of the family.
Pikachu was directly below the pair, but Gekkouga only saw his tail peeking out beneath a slab of thick concrete. The pool of red creeping out underneath was enough to tell Gekkouga his fate, and he was reluctant to reveal the carnage in full. But the only place Satoshi was likely to be at this point was beside his oldest friend, his first Pokemon, and Gekkouga needed to find his trainer.
It was bitterly ironic that the boy wasn’t there –just his hat, torn and smashed. The sight of Pikachu’s state was haunting, even more so because one tiny paw was holding tight to the hat.
The despair became overwhelming as the Shinobi Frog moved away from the Electric Mouse, still searching for Satoshi. There was no denial now, no doubt that his beloved trainer was dead, but he needed to find him, if only to say goodbye. Finally, nearly an hour of struggling with rubble later, Gekkouga fell into a pocket of space where sheets of glass from Prism Tower stood jagged. There, in a trail of red and glass shards was Satoshi, curled on his side in a way that showed he had not passed immediately, but very slowly as he tried to crawl out of the tomb-like pocket.
Heart shattering with every move, Gekkouga fell to his knees and crawled over to his trainer’s body, ignoring the glass now cutting him as he curled around Satoshi and cried.
Gone. Everything Satoshi had given him by welcoming him, everything he had come to love, it was all gone. His family, his friends, his rivals, even the city he had called home until Satoshi came along. All because of one human’s ambitions…
As if thinking about him was a cue, the cackling of Fleur-de-lis echoed down from the sky and into the space. “AhahahahaHAHAHA~! Finally! Finally, finally, finally the rot is being blasted away!!!”
Bitterness and hatred made Gekkouga sob harder. Of course. Of course that man was still alive while Gekkouga had lost everything. It wasn’t fair, wasn’t right that…that monster was still alive, probably perched on the back of his Mega Gyarados, while Satoshi, their team, and who knew how many others in Miare City alone lay dead or dying.
Gekkouga wished he could change it all, stop this madness from happening. Or at the very least, he wished he could take that ginger-haired monster down with him. Barely finishing the thought, Gekkouga found himself enveloped in a bright light, felt like he was falling for a brief moment as he reflexively shut his eyes.
::Come, Gekkouga. There is little time.::
Peeking his eyes open at the voice, Gekkouga was shocked to find himself floating before a massive Pokemon that he recognized from that crisis with Hoopa all those months ago. “Arceus…you’re Arceus…”
::I am, and I have called you, as well as him, here to help set things right.:: Arceus replied, motioning behind the Shinobi Frog as he communicated via Telepathy.
Gekkouga turned to see a massive human with long white hair, dressed as a very worn traveller and his eyes hidden in the shadow of his bangs. “Who…who is he?”
::The original creator and user of the weapon. A human who once reigned as king in Kalos, three thousand years ago.::
Shock near instantly gave way to anger. This man was the reason the weapon existed, why Fleur-de-lis was even able to cause so much death. It didn’t matter to Gekkouga that the man wouldn’t understand what he was saying, he started yelling at the human as the tears built up again.
“Why?! Why would you create such a thing?! Do you have any idea what that monster has done, what he’s destroyed because he had access to that weapon?! What possible reason could you have to make that thing?!”
The man tilted his head before speaking lowly, his voice scratchy like he rarely used it. “I can guess what you’re asking. You want to know why I created the Ultimate Weapon. This is my story. A terribly long time ago…there was a man and a Pokémon. He loved that Pokémon very much…”
A dark note entered the man’s tone, scratchiness becoming a growling roughness that made Gekkouga tense. "A war began. The man's beloved Pokémon took part in the war. Several years passed…” Grief, so raw it made Gekkouga flinch came next, but it was mixed with bitterness. "He was given a tiny box. The man wanted to bring the Pokémon back. No matter what it took. The man built a machine to give it life. He brought his beloved Pokémon back. The man had suffered too much. His rage had not subsided."
"He could not forgive the world that had hurt the Pokémon he loved,” The man’s tone went nearly emotionless, cold. ”He turned the machine into the ultimate weapon. The man became a bringer of destruction that ended the war." Only now did regret enter his voice, a tired sorrow that seemed to drain Gekkouga’s energy just hearing it. "The Pokémon that was given life must have known…that the lives of many Pokémon were taken to restore its life. The resurrected eternal Pokémon left the man's side. The man was surprised and sad. He had revived it so they could be together… Day after day passed, but they were never to meet. Eventually, he became a mere shell of a man. A man condemned to wander forever by the light of the weapon…"
For a long moment the man paused, before tilting his head toward the Shinobi Frog’s chest. “It did not begin as a weapon, but love can be a catalyst for both life and death. Condemn me if you wish, but do you not think you are capable of the same, given your own loss?”
Gekkouga glanced down, startled to realize he had been holding on to Satoshi’s body the whole time. As he considered the question, the Pokemon tightened his grip before replying with a shake of his head.
“No. I know I couldn’t walk the path you did, because I know it isn’t what my team…my family would want or approve of. They would never be happy if I did what you did, and their happiness is as important to me as their lives.”
::And it is for that reason I chose to make this offer to you, rather than another.:: Arceus interjected solemnly. ::The weapon’s power is destabilizing the world and my connection to it, preventing me from fixing anything at this point in Time. Thus, I have come to the decision that the only way to prevent the current catastrophe is to send someone far enough back in Time that they can prepare and strengthen themselves to stop Fleur-de-lis:: There was a brief pause before Arceus made an admission. ::Normally, I would have selected young Satoshi for this, as he is familiar with taking on monumental tasks to save the world. However, he reacted faster than I anticipated, transferring nearly all of his Aura to you through your bond in order to save you.::
The Water/Dark-type drew a shuddering breath at that, looking down at his trainer with fond sorrow. “I did wonder how I survived that when…when he and the others didn’t… That’s just like him…”
::Will you accept this task, Gekkouga? You will be sent back as far as necessary, with all of your memories intact...even if it means having to go through your evolutions all over again. And you will be alone in your knowledge for a time, as until Satoshi assists me once more, I will be in dormancy.::
That knowledge was daunting, but with a physical reminder of his losses in his arms, Gekkouga couldn’t refuse. Short of the former king’s path, Gekkouga would do just about anything to save his family. “I will. How do I go back?”
::Dialga, Palkia, and I will handle that. Take a moment to prepare yourself…and perhaps say your goodbyes.:: The suggestion was made gently as the Pokemon God turned away, allowing Gekkouga a modicum of privacy. The former king also drifted away, as silent as a phantom but with the palpable weight of his own memories of grief around him.
Gekkouga was silent for a moment as he held Satoshi’s body tightly, replaying every memory he’d had with the boy and their team in his mind. “I’ve loved being part of this family, am grateful for every moment we all shared. I don’t think I ever said that, and I regret it… In a way, I’m scared to do this, because I don’t know if we’ll have those moments again. I don’t know how much will change once I get started…what else I’ll lose… But I have to try if it means a chance to have you all back. In the end, that’s what I want most: our family whole and safe at the end of this crisis. I’ll give it everything I have to save us all, I swear it.”
::We’re ready, Gekkouga.::
Looking over to see Arceus flanked by Dialga and Palkia, Gekkouga took a deep breath as he finished softly. “Goodbye, Satoshi. I’ll see you again soon, I promise.”
“I’ll take him, Gekkouga.”
The Shinobi Frog didn’t bother to be surprised as Giratina floated close and lowered its head to take Satoshi. Gently, Gekkouga laid the boy’s body down atop Giratina’s head, taking a moment to brush back Satoshi’s fringe. He then let go, drifting backward so the colossal dragon could raise its head again. Gekkouga then turned back to Arceus and bowed his head.
“I’m ready.”
::Very well. Close your eyes and brace yourself. And good luck.::
Even with his eyes closed, Gekkouga found himself getting dizzy as power enveloped him –so different from the veil that signaled the shift into his Satoshi-Gekkouga form– and it began pulling him in multiple directions. In the next moment –or was it minutes? Hours?–, it was like he was in a whirlpool, then it felt like he was being squeezed and compressed as his strength rapidly left him. All the while there was a cacophony of sound around him, voices and fragments of conversations he remembered carrying on a wind he couldn’t feel. Finally it all came to a halt as he fell heavily to solid ground and soft grass, his breath leaving him as his eyes automatically opened.
Stretched in front of him were white, three-fingered hands attached to light blue arms, and the once familiar feeling of puffy keromousse was cushioning his chin. It was enough to tell him that he had indeed been de-evolved all the way back to his base stage. His surroundings told him he was once more at the breeding facility, and the way his fellow Keromatsu were stretching and looking around made it clear it was the day he had hatched.
He hadn’t expected to be sent this far back, but he tried to look on the bright side: more time to prepare for the crisis to come. But the sight of those who would reject him made the longing for his family unbearably sharp. And then a thought occurred to him: he could leave this place and seek out his family early. Even if they couldn’t remember him, he could rebuild his relationships with them and subtly help prepare them.
The Water-type quickly thought back to some of the conversations he’d had with Pikachu, Luchabull, and Fiarrow back when he was a Yayakoma. Luchabull was actually the oldest in the group, but he wouldn’t arrive at the forest he would become guardian of until about eight months before Satoshi offered for him to join the team. And unfortunately he didn’t talk much about where he had been before. Yayakoma was younger than Keromatsu by two seasons, thus hadn’t hatched yet and wasn’t an option. And through Pikachu, Keromatsu knew his hatching day was nearly two whole years before Satoshi began his Pokemon journey and before the Electric Mouse was taken in by Okido-hakase.
That meant the one he knew he could find was Satoshi, who would be in Masara Town dreaming of becoming a Pokemon Trainer.
Eager to leave, to see his trainer alive again, Keromatsu got up and turned intending to make his way out of the facility…only to trip over himself trying instinctively to move as quickly as he mentally was used to moving. Clearly he wasn’t physically capable of achieving that speed yet. Annoyed, Keromatsu took a deep breath and hauled himself back up with a grumble while mentally rearranging his plans. First he needed to train a little so he could make the journey to Kanto and Masara Town.
And then…then I’ll be able to start making things right. I’ll be with Satoshi right from the start and we’ll be stronger for it.
Moving through the foliage, Keromatsu sought out a training spot with determination in his heart, set on getting to his trainer as soon as possible. He could have never guessed just how much this single decision would change everything.
...TBC…