Fanfiction PMD Worldforged Exile

~Beginning of the End~​

As the booms and battle cries rang out above, Zaho turned to the Pokémon not currently locked in combat. "Is everyone alright?"

"I'm fine!" Chocola called out. Sure she was still too sore to move, but that didn't mean she'd been injured too.

"I think so?" Came Vanilla's reply.

"We're both good too." Reiga confirmed before gesturing up to the titans battling it out above. "What are we going to do about them?"

"Plan C." The zoroak declared. "Keep them from wailing on each other long enough to determine Dialga's intentions. If she's only fighting for self-defense, we can focus all of our attention on subduing Palkia."

"And if she wants to fight as much as he seems to want it?" Riega questioned.

"Then we better hope that, when we run into the giratina, it's in a good mood! Now, let's-"

"What about us, Daddy? What do you want us to do?" Chocola shakily stood up, ready to fight if ordered to.

"You'll do nothing!" Came her father's command.

"But-"

"Chocola, you can barely stand. You, boy!-Er Vanilla, Take my daughter and get her as far away from here as possible. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir!" Vanilla acknowledged with a sincere salute.

"Good, then it's settle." Zaho gathered up his concentration. The shadows all around them shifted. Suddenly the thundering booms of the attacks as they met each other head on stopped, only to be replaced by the booms in the distance as the attacks started to miss. The zoroark had managed to hit the embattled titans with some sort of mirage. "You're up, Mawe. Start with Dialga."

As mewtwo soared into the sky the other two adults moved to support, leaving Vanilla to take Chocola to safer grounds.

"Wait, Vanilla! We can't just leave the three of them!"

"What else can we do, Chocola? You can barely move, and I promised your dad, promised myself, that I'd make sure you were safe again."

"And so were just supposed to leave them?"

Vanilla looked back. Up above, while Mawe was attempting to communicate with Dialga, Palkia managed to hit her shield. It wasn't a direct hit, but it was enough to crack the bubble, and sent her tumbling away until she could recover.

He doubted any of them would survive a direct hit. "I know, Chocola. But what can we do? The plan was to get them both to see reason, but it doesn't look like they're willing to listen to anyone..."

Chocola stopped to think. The loud explosions overhead weren't helping. "We make them listen."

"What?"

"Yeah, you just evolve into that super-eevee form and stop them in their tracks."

"I-I don't think-"

"We might not be able to do much more than help the others, I know. But we have to at least try, Vanilla." Chocola said, completely serious. "Besides, I know you. Going up against strong Pokémon has never stopped you before, so why start now?"

Up above, while Mawe was attempting to communicate with Dialga once more, Palkia managed to hit her shield again, this time causing it to break altogether. It was obvious the mewtwo had her work cut out for her.

To be honest, he hadn't really thought about the special evolution since he told Reiga about it. He still didn't know if he even could reactivate it again. But Chocola was right, he had to at least try. "Alright." He said simply.

All he needed was a bit of concentration and focus, right? Sure the battle raging overhead was cacophonous, to say the least, but it wasn't much different than the last time he'd performed the evolution. With a grunt, he tightened his muscles and clenched his jaw. He needed the power to help the others. He needed to evolve and save the world.

~~~~~​

Mawe was panting now. It was taking all of her energy to not get hit by Palkia while she was concentrating on getting Dialga's attention without a direct assault. Even so, were it a one-on-one fight between either of the two legendaries and herself, she would be hard-pressed to win. They were just that strong, and she suspected that they haven't even started using their abilities yet.

She remembered being just like them, only a few years ago. The feeling of being more powerful than everything nearby was intoxicating. But as Zaho had taught her, power wasn't everything. Please, Dialga! Listen! You cannot keep fighting like this!

{Out of the way, construct!} Dialga stated as she threw a flash cannon a little too close to the mewtwo's new shields to be considered an accident. {Palkia will pay for his provocation!}

<She's not listening, Zaho. Not even a little.> Mawe stated as she turned to dodge the rocks summoned by an Ancient Power attack. She wasn't entirely sure who's. <And I think Palkia's way past talk->

Before she could finish a burst of light lit up the cavern, but it hadn't come from either of the two legendaries that were attacking each other.

Just as soon as it started, the cave darkened back into the dull blackness shortly before being pierced by someone's Hyber Beam.

<|Mawe? Forget negotiations. Concentrate on suppression and chipping away at their health. That's all we can do now.|> Came Zaho's response through the telepathic link. Looks like Plan D was in full effect now...

~~~~~​

"Vanilla!" was all the eevee in question heard as he regained consciousness.

"D-Did it work, am I-?"

The look on Chocola's face said it all. "Sorry, Vanilla..."

He looked at the stone around his neck. It was still glowing faintly, but other than that, it looked the same as it usually did.

Up above, the tactics had changed, even as inexperienced as he was, he could tell that it was now a battle of attrition. Looking back down at his paw, he just couldn't understand what went wrong...

He'd failed.

 

~No Time for Questions~​

​

"I don't understand? What happened?" The zorua asked over the din of fight going on above.

"Nothing happened!" Vanilla yelled in frustration. "Ugh, why didn't it work? How am I supposed to use the power responsibly if I can't use the power when we need it the most?"

Chocola, sore though she was, walked up to Vanilla and punched him in the shoulder. "Focus Vanilla. It's not the end of the world, we've got, like, until tomorrow, at least. So snap out of it, and help me figure out what went wrong. We'll try and try again if we have to, okay?"

Vanilla sighed. Now was definitely not the time to lose his composure.

"You said Reiga knew what the evolution was, right? Maybe she knows what's wrong?"

The lucario in questions was busy concentrating on another Aura Sphere. "I don't think she's up to answering questions at the moment..."

"Well then, try and remember everything she told you. What did Reiga say was the key to activating the evolution?" Chocola suggested before finding the lucario further afield. "Although, we probably shouldn't wait until after the world is destroyed before we try and ask the one Pokémon who might be able to answer our question..." She finished.

Vanilla sighed. "Fine. I'll ask, but wait here and try to stay out of sight. I'll be right back!"

Chocola didn't have to be told twice. For one, she really didn't feel up to going anywhere at the moment, apocalypse or no. That and the fact that hiding was her specialty, meant that it was probably wise to do little else.

As he pressed towards the conflict, Vanilla thought about what he already knew about the mega evolution, at least what he'd learned from Reiga the first time he'd brought it up. She'd said something about needing a human trainer to use it, but that their case was different. Wasn't their bond still strong? He's risked everything to save her so far. What then, was he still missing?

"Vanilla?!" Came a sound of alarm from behind him. It was Chocola.

Stopping immediately, he looked towards the area she was pointing at in concern. The space a few dozen paces to his right had started to warp. Even in the darkness, Vanilla could tell that it wasn't the result of a wayward mirage. The fabric of reality shifted and turned as if it were boiling away. Every ripple seemed to pull and tear at the area around it until, eventually, holes started to form. A gray, lifeless void appeared where one should expect substance, or at the very least, air.

But before Vanilla could investigate further, the ground itself heaved him into the air. Just as rapidly as it thrust him upwards, the rock below retreated in the opposite direction, effectively doubling the distance between himself and the ground in short order.

Tumbling back down towards the turning earth, which was currently moving sideways this time, Vanilla realized that the earth beneath him wasn't the only ground affected. All around the dimly lit cavern, rocks were shifting. The torches that were still standing had all but been cast aside.

Landing knocked all the air out of him, and Vanilla coughed up a fit as he fought to remain steady. The thought of standing up was an impossibility until the earthquake decided to subside.

Up above, the aerial battle continued, neither of the two legendaries giving a single thought about the world below, and even Mawe was nearing helplessness after using most of her power. It didn't matter to the titans what happened outside of their fight, so long as one of them could prove themselves victorious over the other.

Still holding tightly to the quivering ground beneath, Vanilla swore he felt the tumultuous earth nearly calm itself. If the trend continued, he might even be able to recover long enough to stand.

But before it could calm down completely, the earth erupted with one final, massive push. The sudden surge of geo-seismic power was enough to split the cavern in two, rending the hole overhead into a massive steep-cliffed gorge.

As the massive rocks that were once part of the cave roof rained down from above, Vanilla found himself desperately searching for Chocola. She too had been tossed about by the quake, but it didn't take to long for his eyes to locate her.

His smile was brief, for realized what she had focused on. Directly above her, sat one of the largest boulders that vanilla had ever seen. No longer having the support of the cavern around it, there was only one place it could go.

Down.

 

~The Final Tear~​

Time slowed to a crawl, and all Vanilla could do was watch the inevitable. Even as the boulder rushed downward, the eevee's mind raced. Was there nothing he could do? Was there no solution?

He realized that there was only one possible way through this, and in that moment, nothing else mattered. As tears began pouring down his face, he held onto the stone around his neck as tightly as he could.

"Chocola!" he shouted, loud enough to be heard over the din of the rockslides all around. His world went white as his vision filled with energy.

As he floated into the air, Vanilla realized that he'd achieved his mega-evolution once more. There was only one problem. Looking at the orbs he had at his disposal, the four he had were a feathery blue, a creamy pink, a sickly green, and a shadowy purple. Which meant he only had flying, fairy, bug, and ghost types, respectively, with which he could choose from. None of them were of a type that one would consider advantageous in helping his friend out of the current situation.

He needed a plan, and he was pretty sure that he wouldn't have time to form a proper one.

~~~~~​

Chocola was frozen in place. Despite all of the adrenaline now coursing through her system, her muscles failed to cooperate during the duration of the earthquake. She had ended up on her back when the shaking died down, and it was all she could manage just in an attempt to right herself.

When the ceiling started to cave in above her, she knew that it was over. The sheer size and amount of debris were simply too much, and the largest piece of it seemed to have her as its target.

She wanted to flee, she wanted to escape death, but it was almost as though her conscious and subconscious were in direct conflict with each other, and the subconscious was still in control of her body, locking her in place.

Just as she was starting to accept the inevitable, a bright, familiar light, lit up the cavern. Vanilla. He'd evolved to save her, just like last time. That was a weird habit to get into, wasn't it? She should be grateful but deep down, she knew that the boulder was frighteningly large. Chocola doubted that even her friend's rediscovered strength would be no match.

Even as she witnessed Vanilla unleash the power stored within the orbs that encircled him, one after another, Chocola found it difficult to accept her salvation. The rock continued to fall, and there was nothing she could hope to do about it.

~~~~~​

He needed more options than what he had, and so, even as he started accelerating towards the falling rock, the mega-evolved eevee cast the first orb, the pink one. The effect wasn't immediate, and its replacement would hopefully be of more use.

Taking the light blue orb, Vanilla summoned a Tailwind to his aid. He needed all of the speed he could get. Rushing to intercept the landmass, he drained a sticky spider-web-like substance from the green orb and hit the boulder with it. The first attempt at grasping the boulder nearly failed when the webbing proved to be not sticky enough to hold the rock. Vanilla was forced to use the dark orb and use the shadows themselves to fuse the webbing to the stone around it, stitching them to the rock itself.

With nothing left until his replacements arrived, Vanilla could do nothing but pull on the massive rock and hope his form would make a difference. Even as the effect of his first sphere kicked in, boosting his strength through something called Geomancy, he could tell that the stone was still slipping downwards at an ever-increasing rate.

As the fifth orb journeyed to where it was useful, Vanilla ordered the sparkling blue orb's power forth immediately. Geysers of water sprang forth all around his friend, their cumulative effect doing far more to alleviate the force of gravity than his own flight.

But still, the boulder fell. Straining with the sheer weight of it, Vanilla dared a glance back down to gauge his distance. In doing so, he caught a glimpse of something moving along the ground below, but found himself distracted with both a failing grip on the webbing and the next orb entering his vision.

His last option. With the rock so near to the ground there was nothing else he could do. As the webbing snapped below, he used the gleaming white ball on the columns of water down below, freezing them instantly. For a brief moment, it looked like the hastily-frozen pillars would hold. The boulder had stopped.

Then, with an ear-shattering crack, the ice exploded, and the boulder itself smashed into the ground with little resistance.

"Chocola!" He screamed in desperation as he darted through the dust. Circling around the stone, it quickly became apparent that there wouldn't be anything left if-. Vanilla stopped to listen. He could have sworn to hear something, even through the cumulative effect of the still-falling stones. A cough.

"Chocola!" he called again.

"She is fine!" Reiga called back through the settling dust.

"I'm okay!" The zorua confirmed through another cough.

Vanilla found himself hovering in front of them, tears in his eyes. "I-I thought I'd-"

Reiga interrupted him. "You did what you could. More than any of us, perhaps. Chocola will be fine, but her safety won't matter if we allow this to continue. Please, Vanilla. Use your power to help the others."

He found himself torn. His friend was still cradled in Reiga's arms, shaken but alive. Vanilla found that he didn't care about anything else, even if he knew that the lucario was right. "Choco-"

The zorua herself stopped him from embracing her. "No, Vanilla. Reiga's right, as always. Stop the fight." She said while gesturing to the growing number of spatial fissures. "Or we'll have more than falling rocks to worry about it..." As he started drifting away, Chocola could see that he was still hesitant. "Go!" She yelled as best she could. "Go..." she said weakly before slipping into unconsciousness, the waning adrenaline finally taking its toll. Her immediate demise circumvented, the ebb of energy was now sapping what little strength she still possessed.

With that order, Vanilla turned to the sky and took off. It appeared as though he still had a job to finish.

He would just have to leave Chocola in the Reiga's care until then.

 

~To Temper Two Titans~​

By the time Vanilla had reached the edge of the conflict proper, he found his immediate inventory had refilled. The dazzling yellow contained an electric attack of some sort. The one that looked like a polished slate-grey stone was a rock-type move. The last two embodied a pitch-black ebony, and a Red-brown leathery texture, standing for a dark and fighting type attacks respectively.

Vanilla's first thought had been to question why some of those couldn't have popped up only moments before. His second thought was interrupted by the sudden appearance of Mawe, who looked like she'd seen better days.

<Vanilla? Is that really you, Young One?> She asked.

As much as he didn't like the telepathy, not giving away a plan of attack to the two dueling deities was a higher priority. «That's correct. What's the plan so far? How can I help?»

<Which plan?> Mawe stated with a sarcastic tinge to her words. <I believe we're just trying to wear them down before they cause too much more damage, but...>

«We're way past that now, aren't we?» Vanilla surmised as he surveyed the damage.

<As it is, I don't know how much more I have left in me. And they're starting to wise up to Zaho's tricks. It's only a matter of time until they can safely ignore us completely.>

Even now, the mewtwo was only avoiding the attacks that strayed too close. None of them were being aimed directly at her, but that didn't make it any less dangerous. «So we just have to attack them before they do any more damage?» Vanilla confirmed «I believe I can assist with that...»

<Just don't focus on one alone. Zaho says that weakening one will only allow the other to turn on us the moment its rival is defeated.>

«I understand.» Was all that Vanilla said in acknowledgment as he moved to engage Dialga.

Mawe partially hated to see the eevee force himself to do something, she knew, he would otherwise avoid, but she was also thankful for the additional help. Based on how they were doing so far, she needed it. With Dialga taken care of for a moment, she could focus her attention on Palkia.

Now all Vanilla needed to do was get the Dialga's attention, make her focus on him instead of Palkia. He had four attacks, or, more accurately, types at his disposal, he only needed to choose one that was both powerful enough to distract the titan in front of him, and not be a type that would be useful to have if he completely misjudged his opponent's remaining strength.

Summoning the yellow orb forward, he just had to hope that he could make due with the others. As the sphere drained, the very air in front of Vanilla coursed with energy, he only needed to guide it towards his target.

As the region between him and Dialga crackled to life, she focused fully on the new combatant. She wasn't a fool, of course, she'd kept an eye on the newcomer ever since the flash of light earlier. Something had been off about the new Pokémon that she couldn't quite pin down. What was worse, she couldn't remember an encounter such as this in her memory. That meant that she was here for the first time.

That also meant that she could afford to take no chances. Instead of taking the hit directly, she shunted most of the energy away using Iron Tail. {You're a fool, siding with Palkia...} She stated. {I'll teach you to choose the side of that brute!}

He just had to keep her from fighting with her counterpart, right? "Better a brute than a bully! I know what you did to Palkia!" Vanilla yelled. "You destroyed his work every chance you got. All he wanted to do was remember a friend, the only way he knew how, and you kept it from him. If anyone's a brute here, it's You!"

{You could never understand my reasoning. Palkia cannot be allowed to continue!}

"And you won't let us understand. According to Palkia's memory, you've never once stated your reason. You simply destroyed his work."

{Only an achronognostic being could fully comprehend the matter. Your minds shall ever be only linear.}

"That's no excuse. You never even-!"

{ENOUGH!} Dialga yelled through the link. {I tire of this! Away with you!} She finished before unleashing a tumultuous shout.

Palkia recognized Dialga's Roar of Time even from this distance. Ignoring the Mewtwo completely, he started using his own ultimate attack, Spacial Rend.

«Um, Mawe, I've got a bad feeling about this...»

<Defense! Now!> was all the mewtwo managed before the two attacks collided, twisting the epicenter into an insane mixture of alternate timelines and dimensions, before the event horizon annihilated itself into normal space.

Even as Vanilla weathered the attack, he noticed that the dimensional tears below were beginning to merge. «This plan isn't working.»

<This plan is all we have. We just have to keep at it.>

«There's nothing we can do against those kinds of attacks. My attacks are too random and your energy levels are starting to dwindle. We need to alter out strategy.»

<What are you suggesting?>

«Uh, give me a moment. You lay low and conserve your energy while I cycle through my attacks. I need a sleep-inducing move.»

<You intend to use Hypnosis on them? I hate to disappoint, but it won't take them long to break out of it.>

«I only intend to hit one of them. You'll need to hit the other with a similar attack.»

<And then what? This approach will only delay the inevitable.>

«That's why I want you to conserve some energy. Once they're down, I'll need your power to pull off the rest of this plan...»

 

~No Rest for the Weary~​

The usage of the typed spheres hovering around Vanilla had always been, what he considered at least, a mixed blessing. On one paw, they gave him access to an insane amount of power that came without the usual restrictions imposed on most Pokémon. On the other paw, he felt as though their usefulness was offset by the randomness with which the orbs themselves were being made available.

Couple that with the fact that he was opting to keep at least one solid defensive move on standby, just in case one or both of the titans decided they wanted to destroy a little more of the universe again, and the task of cycling through his attacks to get to the one he wanted suddenly became a lot harder than it sounded.

At least Vanilla wasn't having a hard time aiming his attacks at Palkia and Dialga. Besides their reality-warping attacks, their other moves were still being aimed at him, so returning fire was the least he could do. Having a random set of attacks being thrown at them was keeping them on their toes, but only barely.

The real challenge was making sure that neither of them managed to break out of the hypnosis attacks before he could enact the plan. That reason alone meant that he was keeping more than just a single defense-capable orb in play while cycling through the rest of them.

Vanilla ended up tossing rocks, beams of energy, a not unsubstantial amount of water, and at least one flamethrower attack at either of the two before he found the orb he was looking for.

«Standby, Mawe. I'm almost ready.»

<Good luck, Vanilla.> she encouraged him.

Now that he wasn't actively attacking the two, they'd immediately turned their attentions towards one another. With a heavy sigh, Vanilla steeled himself for what was next. Time to get their attention.

Pulling on the recently acquired ebony orb, he drained its dark energy until it surrounded him in a coil-shaped cloud. Pooling one end of it in his paw, he pulled it back and whipped the entire shade forward in one, swift motion. The end of the trail snapped directly in Palkia's face, angering him and forcing him to focus on Vanilla once more.

Just as Dialga decided that the refocused Palkia was a tempting target, Vanilla pulled the energy from the marbled white orb, the first he'd ever managed to use while in this form. The white light that surrounded him acted as a beacon. Focusing the light in Dialga's direction caused her to change targets towards the evolved eevee as well.

"That's right, follow me..." Vanilla taunted as the two titans started converging on his position. Even now, he was pouring the energy from the orb filled with a swirling purple mist. He'd only get one chance at this.

<Now?> Mawe asked, taking cues from his setup that it was almost time for her own attack.

Vanilla, instead of answering, fired off his hypnosis first. He could combine his and Mawe's attacks into a single, stronger attack, but he thought it would be better to use the mewtwo's stronger psychic abilities to hit them when they were already down.

Even now, the two legendaries were fighting to stay awake, it was time. «Now!» Vanilla shouted through the telepathic link.

As the mewtwo unleashed her attack, Vanilla let himself get caught in the wave of psychic energy. The three Pokémon fell into slumber even as their unconscious bodies fell towards the floor.

Mawe found that she was glad to have had a moment's respite, as she now found herself both connecting the three sleeping Pokémon, and preventing them from hitting the ground.

<It's all up to you now, Young One...> She finished as the three Pokémon drifted onto the ground.

~~~~~​

Vanilla found himself within the now-familiar confines of his own mind. Trapped with him, however, were two very angry legendaries.

{You will regret your actions, Eevee...} Dialga threatened. {Especially now that your transformation seems to have failed you.} She finished, noting that Vanilla wasn't mega-evolved here.

Sure enough, Vanilla's paw was quite solid, despite the slight glow of his aura. "No, I think you're mistaken, Dialga. It's no surprise that you don't recognize this place, but I think that Palkia does."

Dialga turned to her opposite, as if to question him.

[We're inside the eevee's mind now.]

"Correct, and as such, I must warn you. I hold all of the power here."

{Why, you...} Dialga decided it was time to show the pup a lesson, but her attack died with her next breath. {What!?}

"Even if you had some experience here, Dialga, I think you're a bit out of practice. I am not." Vanilla declared as he wrapped both of the titans within their own bubbles. "Anything else?"

[What are these?] Palkia asked when he found that his abilities were being suppressed somehow.

"A precaution. Dialga's surrounded with a void that even her time-manipulation can't affect, while your prison is made of space that doesn't exist yet.

{You can't hold us here forever...}

"Honestly, I don't know how long I can hold you, but in the end, it won't really matter."

[How so?] Palkia decided to entertain his captor, if only for a while.

An image from Vanilla's recent memory appeared behind him. "As you can see, your battle is tearing through the fabric of our world. Again. It's only a matter of time before Giratina comes to investigate. I trust you both remember what happened last time?"

{[Yes...]} The two stated in unison. {Are we just supposed to wait here for the inevitable yet again? What do you intend to do with us?}

"My intention is to get to the bottom of this whole mess. Any suggestions?" The two legendaries remained silent. "Well, I'm listening? Tell me why you two are at each other's throats!"

[You know why! She keeps destroying my work!]

{Your work cannot be allowed to exist!} Dialga shot back.

"Why?" Vanilla asked, happy to finally be getting somewhere. Who knew that a little time-out was all that they needed?

{It would be difficult to explain to non-achronognostic beings such as yourselves...}

[How would you know? You only started destroying my work! You've never once told me why!]

Dialga was silent for a while. {From your perspective, that's true. However, from my experience, it is a much differnet story. I've tried explaining it countless times but the result is always the same...}

"What about me? Have you tried explaining it to me yet?" Vanilla inquired, suddenly curious about how it was possible to have both no conversation, yet many.

{...no...}

"Well then, let's get on with it."

 

~Mind Over Matters~​

{If I am to begin, I will ask you what you know of the humans who inhabit this world?}

"Not much, really. I know that there aren't any on Exile, but they have been known to train Pokémon how to fight in other places."

{Then there is still much you do not know.} Dialga grumbled. {Let it be known that their race existed long before the lives of Pokémon. Even I cannot reach a point where they did not already exist. I do know, however, that their civilization has risen and fallen multiple times.}

"Their civilization just failed? I didn't know that that was possible."

{It is. They inevitably end up in the throws of their own greed, and after that, it is only a matter of time until they've reduced themselves to little more than scavengers.}

"Okay... But what does that have to do with Palkia's memorial?" Vanilla asked as he turned to the pearl-colored Pokémon. "You didn't hurt any humans or anything, did you?"

[Absolutely not! My work was pulled only from realms that contained no living creatures.]

{And yet you haven't the forethought to ask why so many different dimensions, so many different timelines, exist? Why so many of them are empty?} Dialga scoffed. {I'll tell you. Some of their failures are far more successful than others. Devistatingly so. Sometimes, nothing survives the crash. And you want to pay homage to one of these creatures?! Hah!}

[Not all humans are the same! The Observer was different!]

{Believe what you will...}

"No, I have to agree with Palkia. Not all humans are the same, at least that's what Reiga believes. She's only spoken fondly of her trainer, so they can't be all bad, can they?"

{Good or not, it doesn't matter what you believe. They can do terrible things. They've done them before, and they'll do it again.}

"Like what, exactly? All you've given us are vague hints so far."

{For good reason! Normally, the humans are content to continue their cycle of death and rebirth, but the moment they discover Palkia's monument, the moment they start asking why something like that exists, that is when they start looking closer. And when they do, they invariably discover one of the results of their true past. And what's buried there, must never be allowed to reawaken.}

"What happens then? Can their past really be as bad as you say?"

{It can be worse. In all of my travels, there are few that don't end in disaster. The majority of the timestreams can all trace their end to the moment the humans find your monument. Sometimes it's the very atmosphere choking the life out of everything on the planet, other times, it's an endless storm that tears at everything until there is naught more than sand. And then there are the times where everything has been reduced to nothing at all.} Palkia visibly shivered, even through her bonds. {That's why I've gone out of my way to stop you, Palkia. Your monument cannot be allowed to exist!}

[I-I had no idea...]

{You still don't. The first few times, I tried being reasonable. You've told me your reasons, and I respected them. I even tried working with the humans, to get them to see things before it was too late. But in all of my attempts, it has never once worked...}

"Maybe you just talked to the wrong human?" Vanilla suggested, trying to be helpful.

{I'VE TALKED TO THOUSANDS!} Dialga shouted with all of her strength. {I-I've been at it so long... I almost don't remember when I started... So then, after I wrote them off, I decided to end the problem at its source. Originally, that meant convincing you to bury the device on some other world, but that was when we learned the true nature of the other dimensions. The device exists on all of them, and as such, Palkia had found that it was something he was incapable of manipulating away. Even as he searched desperately for an answer as to why I had already realized the result. After that, I'd resigned myself to a new timeline. I'd just wait until you'd finished the alternate monument and I'd just erode it away. But, of course, you'd always notice. Always. And then we're right back to square one...} Dialga finished. Vanilla could hardly believe it, but the legendary Pokémon in front of him was actually crying.

He found that he didn't want to leave her like that, but, honestly, what choice did he have? There was still work to be done in sorting this whole mess out, but there was no guarantee that anyone else would be able to get into this position again. Taking a deep breath, he asked his next question.

"And that's supposed to justify the death and destruction you are responsible for?" Vanilla's face was impossible to read.

{W-what are you talking about, I've never-}

"The zoroak named Zeri. Mother to Chocola, the zorua whom you also almost killed when you forced her to be the vessel with which to carry your soul."

{That wasn't me, that was-}

"Don't forget that I've seen your memories. Both of your memories, I might add. So when you say that it was Palkia's soul that ultimately destroyed Zeri," Vanilla said while glancing over to the Pokémon who was currently flinching under the accusation. "I know that it is true. But, I also know that, had you not used your influence to speed things up, Dialga, the agreement you had with their clan would have continued on as normal and both of you would have been free to do what you pleased."

Dialga didn't look up at her accuser. Not once.

Vanilla continued. "And, while I have to take you at your word that your story was genuine, it doesn't pardon your actions in the slightest. It doesn't excuse the destruction you both have caused in the slightest either, Palkia." He stated as he glared at the pearl titan who had, until then, been gloating a little over his counterpart's predicament. "It's obvious to me that, while I might not understand all the intricacies of your pasts, I am the only one, besides the two of you, who now knows the whole story. On top of that, I'm also the only one in a position to punish both of you."

[What could you possibly do to punish us?] Palkia asked, a little insulted that he'd just been threatened by something a fraction of his own size.

"If you must know, the easiest thing I could do is simply wait until Giratina shows up and pass you off to him. But, since I control everything here, I can do all manner of things to you until he arrives. So, you can agree to accept my punishment, or you can enjoy my pleasant company until the rest of your punishment arrives. You're choice, really." Vanilla lied. He wasn't about to torture either of them. That wasn't how a civilized Pokémon was supposed to operate, regardless of Mawe's forced teaching methods.

{We submit...} Was all Dialga said before Palkia could speak up once more.

[I- But-!]

"Well, Palkia? Dialga, at least, agrees that you both deserve some form of punishment. What about you?"

The opalescent Pokémon thought for a moment before giving his answer. He had to admit, despite the eevee's size, he had managed to seal away the both of them with nothing more than a thought. And there was no telling how long it would be until Giratina showed up again. [What would you have us do?]

"I'm glad you asked!" Vanilla admitted with a smile on his face.

Palkia suddenly found that the feeling wasn't so mutual...

 

~Negotiations~​

[Wait... Is that really all you request of us?] Palkia asked, slightly confused.

"What? Did you expect me to torture you, or ask you to revive the dead?" Vanilla said shaking his head. "No. That damage has already been done. Neither of you were thinking clearly while your spirits were still split, so I don't think it's right to punish you for actions you only had partial control over. If you want forgiveness for that, you'll have to take it up with those you've hurt."

{But, to only have us repair the superficial damage? After all we've done?}

"Look, you've submitted to my punishment. To me, that shows sincerity. After I've released you, your actions will show that sincerity to the others. Besides, you can either fix things, ask for forgiveness, and hope that you can repair the rifts before you further anger Giratina, or, you can ignore everything and expect to recieve his punishment anyway."

[-And all without knowing if the punishment will even be the same as before...]

"Correct." Vanilla agreed. "So, are you ready to make amends?"

{Please. If you truly believe that to be our punishment, then it would be discourteous of us to be flippant towards it.}

[For once, we agree. If that is all that is required of us, then so be it.] Palkia noted before turning towards Dialga. [Truce?]

{For now, at least...}

"Great! Now that that's settled," Vanilla said as he released the constraints he'd created, "I don't think my normal method of awakening will work on you two, since you can levitate and all. So, um, Mawe? A little help here?"

With that, the three were pulled out of Vanilla's dreamscape and back into the real world.

~~~~~​

When Vanilla awoke, he found Zaho bracing himself against Mawe, who was now very nearly out of energy. He also discovered that his form seemed to have reverted back to his usual appearance while he had slept.

"Speak, child. Is it over?" Zaho shouted in question as the two titans pulled themselves off of the ground. Of the three adults left, he might be the only one left still capable of combat, but it would be a very short fight.

Turning back towards the two legendaries, Vanilla only asked his own question. "Well? How do you answer?"

Palkia looked towards Dialga, noting her expression. [We submit. We will put our differences aside for now...]

"Is that so?" Mawe said weakly. "Then we were successful?"

Vanilla could barely make out what the mewtwo was saying at this distance. He still needed to check and make sure everyone was alright, but before that, he had one more thing left to do. "Alright, Palkia, Dialga, now is the time to make good on your promise..."

[Shall we?] Palkia growled a question to his opposite.

{We are short on time, it would be best to make the most of it...} Dialga observed as she lifted off into the air. Palkia followed closely behind as Vanilla turned towards the others nearby.

"Where are they going?" Zaho asked of the eevee.

"Hopefully, they start trying to fix up the place."

"And you've managed to halt their fighting, excellent work, Vanilla..." Zaho stated. He wasn't known to give praise often.

The eevees ears drooped a bit. "Thanks, I suppose, but why do I get the feeling that you're not telling me something?" Vanilla asked even as his pace quickened. The mere thought that something had happened to Chocola during his absence was enough to send shivers down his spine.

Thankfully, Zaho was quick to point towards the Reiga, who was still holding his daughter safely in her arms. "Calm yourself, pup." Zaho advised. "While your truce may be a success, I fear it may have come too late."

"You mean that Giratina is already here?!" Vanilla asked in alarm.

"No, not yet. But we've seen evidence of him near the rifts." The zoroark explained even as the voids in question were being cleared away by Palkia and Dialga.

Vanilla watched on as massive boulders rose into the air from where they had recently fallen. It was a little disorienting to see them reverse course in a way that only a time-manipulator could manage. Even as the rocks were set back into their original places, he found himself making a mental not to step on the same regions where they had landed. For safety.

Shaking his head from the sidetracking thought. Vanilla turned his observations towards the rifts. Slowly, but surely, they were being filled in with real space, like water flowing out of a hole in a bucket, but in reverse. "But if they manage to seal the rifts, won't Gira-" Vanilla stopped himself when he spotted it.

Unlike the other, smaller holes, there was one at the center of it all. One that was different. Unlike the ones being cleared away, this one wasn't really a hole at all, as it seemed content to merely warp the area around it, forming a crack. Upon further inspection, neither of the two legendary Pokémon's efforts seemed to diminish the crack's size.

Just as Vanilla was about to ask if the anomaly was what he thought it was, a terrible screech emanated from the tear in question, causing the crack to spread, cracking reality as though it were mere ice. Even as the screech faded, the chasms spread further, and soon, the pieces began to fall away into the rapidly spreading void.

Palkia and Dialga had noticed it too. Halting their work, the two took positions between the rift and the gathered Pokémon still recovering from their previous battle.

Facing the rift, they waited for their jailer to emerge from his realm once more. As if on cue, once the cracked space had stopped its spread, a monstrous form pressed itself into the fabric of their world.

Giratina had arrived.

 

~διαστάσεις~​

As Giratina swooped through the newly created hole in the universe, the first thing Vanilla realized was that the ruler of the Mirror Dimension was massive. He was far larger than any Pokémon had a right to be. For a moment, the eevee worried that the cave roof was in danger of colliding with the gigantic Pokémon's head.

With the flashing of a sphere that didn't quite seem to exist, the worm-shaped Giratina suddenly acquired as 3 sets of legs and its tendrils solidified into wings. It then proceeded to perform a heavy landing just in from of those gathered.

Once the localized tremor subsided, the only thing that pierced the sudden silence was a low, rumbling growl that was emanating from Giratina.

As everyone looked at each other in uncertainty, Palkia and Dialga turned towards their would-be captor in submission.

{We apologize for out actions, Giratina. Because of our quarrel, we've damaged not only your world, but this one as well.} Dialga paused for a moment. {W-we accept whatever punishment you deem-}

Giratina's roar cut her off, the very air around him blinding the area with an immense, powerful light. Vanilla didn't understand, why would the massive Pokémon be angered at the display of conciliation?

When it became evident that Giratina meant to attack the lot of them, Vanilla felt as though time had slowed down. Dialga had turned towards him as if to say that she was sorry, one last time. As he turned towards his other acquaintances and friends, he noticed Mawe had started to throw up a desperate barrier. In doing so, he suspected she would end up using the last of her reserves. There would be no surviving a second attack. Lastly, there was Chocola, still fairly immobile, tucked within Reiga's arms, her sky-blue eyes focused on his own. In that very moment, Vanilla realized what it was he had to do.

Even as he recognized his friend's voice calling his name, he'd already made his decision. Running forwards as fast as he could manage, Vanilla escaped the confines of Mawe's shield before it could finish coalescing.

Vanilla passed between the two legendaries who were willing to give themselves up in retribution for their own actions. Putting himself between the ones he loved, and those he'd only just met, Vanilla screamed at the top of his lungs, putting every fiber of his being into his words. "GIRATINA! HEAR ME NOW!"

Even as the rumbling stopped, and the charging atmosphere dissipated to its normal, cavernous darkness, Vanilla could almost believe that his final charge had worked. Taking a cautious peek, Vanilla opened his eyes, only to find that he was now nearly nose to nose with Giratina himself.

The master of the Mirror Dimension stared down at the eevee for what seemed like an eternity. At this distance, Vanilla got a literal eye-full as he realized just how small he was compared to Giratina. He was starting to wonder if the larger Pokémon could even see him, when the massive head pulled back and laughed.

The laughter was more of a deep, guttural howl than laughter, but even Vanilla could recognize it for what it was. Even so, he wasn't quite sure if he should be concerned for his safety, or thankful that he wasn't already being turned into some sort of inter-dimensional pastry.

Almost as soon as it had started, the laughter abruptly stopped, and Giratina was back at eye level with Vanilla. The silence that followed was nearly deafening to those who could do not but stand aside. The larger creature's gaze dwarfed the smaller eevee's frame. It was almost enough to cause a lesser Pokémon to faint in dismay, yet Vanilla stood.

Even at this distance, Chocola shuddered. "Reiga, What's going on? What's Vanilla doing?"

She never received an answer. Not Reiga, nor any of the others present understood what was happening. But what everyone was able to understand what happened next.

Giratina stood back up to his full height, and with a flick of his orb, returned to his serpent-like form. With a roar, the mysterious legendary drifted through his dimensional rift once more. The shards of normal space filled in the gap shortly thereafter, piece by piece falling into place as the gateway sealed itself away behind him.

Only after Giratina returned to his home, did Vanilla turn back towards the group, all of whom eagerly awaited news of the recent exchange. But, before Vanilla could answer their silent question, he was surprised to learn that it was the ground that he would be answering to instead, as the exchange seemed to have taken every last bit of energy he had left.

As Mawe dropped the shield, Zaho sat her down to rest before he approached the unconscious eevee, wary of the two Legendary Pokémon he had been fighting only moments earlier.

"I-Is he...?" Chocola asked, hesitant to finish her own question.

Zaho breathed a sigh of relief as he picked Vanilla up. "Relax, Chocola. I imagine he only requires rest." He finished as he passed between the two titans once more while carrying the pup.

{...} Was all Dialga could manage as the zoraork passed by once more. No words were spoken, telepathically or otherwise, but the telepathic link had been established nonetheless.

Stopping between them, Zaho spoke. "I have no doubt that there is much we need to discuss, whether you would like that or not. But for now, I suspect that we all owe this boy our lives. I don't know what he did to make you change your minds, but, if you have any respect for this eevee, for Vanilla, you will stay and see things through." Without even waiting for an answer, he returned to the others.

Though the danger was no longer imminent, it was likely that there was still a substantial amount of work to be done. Only once Vanilla had recovered, would they would learn what their next move was. Though the same could be said for all parties involved.

 

~A Brand New Day~​

Chocola eyed every last item in front of her. She'd spent the better part of the week setting this little outing up, and she wasn't about to leave something out of place if she could help it. And yet, there was still something, or rather, someone still missing.

"Aha!" Vanilla shouted triumphantly as he jumped out of the nearby bushes. "How was that for a surprise!" he asked.

The rustling of the underbrush gave his approach away, but Chocola didn't care. She was just glad he was there. "Pretty surprising, I'd say. Especially considering how late you are!" She giggled.

"Sorry about that." Vanilla apologized as he sat down next to the vixen. "I was having trouble losing my entourage."

"Oh? So the other Council Members are keeping an eye on you?"

"After all that's happened, I'm lucky if Lady Cordon lets me out of her sight for even a moment. I was forced to use Clementine as a distraction, not that I think he would mind... At least they let me go with the first of the council processions, that was the only way I could be in the area for this." Vanilla finished explaining as he pointed towards the field of flowers that sat before them.

"I'm glad you could come too." Chocola admitted readily. "Ugh, so much has changed so fast... That night we spent on the top of the Forum Building feels like it only happened yesterday, and pulling you out of the garden over there was only the day before that." She sighed. "Where does all the time go?"

Vanilla tactfully left out the fact that for her, it basically was a short amount of time between events. "Well, I suppose time flies when you are trying to save the world..."

"But we already saved it? Didn't we? So why can't you stay for a while?" Chocola asked. Though painful to admit, she had been starting to miss him.

He'd been roped into helping the Council ever since he'd volunteered to report the Legendary Pokémon Awakening Incident to them. The sheer amount of decrees that went out during the next few days had kept everyone busy. Following one of his own proposals, that the council members themselves travel in small groups in order to meet with their constituents, was the only reason he'd been able to escape the Forum Chamber's confines at all.

"Well, Exile may be safe from the threat of collapse for now, but new problems are springing up all over. We're no longer cut off from the rest of the world."

"...I know, it's just, well. It's been a lot quieter in the house lately..."

"Oh, right, I guess you still haven't fully recovered yet." Vanilla observed. Upon his friend rising to greet him, he realized that she laid back down rather quickly.

"Nope. I've still got a few days until I'm back up to a hundred percent. At least that's what the audino have been saying." Chocola said as she slowly flexed one of her paws for emphasis. "Gotta love daddy and his secrecy. If he'd had some healer Pokémon tag along for that last fight, I'd be good to go already."

Silence filled the next two moments as the two gazed upon the meadow in front of them. The sun was still rather low, and its warmth was just starting to reach things on the ground.

"I'm sure Zeri was just doing what he thought was best for you." Vanilla assured her. He wasn't quite sure if his actions were helping. "Oh, you said something about being quiet at home? How's everyone doing lately?"

"Well, I'm pretty much left to my own devices lately..."

"What? Did Reiga leave already?"

"Not quite. She left to secure some transport from a lapras or whomever will attempt a trip to the mainland. She says that most of the locals are too afraid to make long trips or something. Anyway, she's pretty much packed up and ready to go at a moment's notice."

Thinking about it, that made a little sense. None of the Exile-born water types have ever been able to travel farther than the barrier until recently. Reiga would likely have to converse with some of the newcomers showing up if she wanted a ride. "Aw, I see. She's got a lot of work ahead of her. Still, I hope Reiga's able to find what she's looking for."

"Yeah..." Chocola admitted. If she were being honest with herself she'd also have to acknowledge that she was going to miss the antagonizing lucario, if only for a moment. "Oh, right! I guess that Mawe's been pretty busy too!"

"I've heard. Something about a way to keep Exile hidden?"

"Yep, She's been zipping all over the place making sure that humans can't find us. She's been working with Palkia trying to find a way so that other Pokémon can help. For now, though, I think she's just happy to have something to do that helps others."

"That's good to hear. I know from experience that she can be, well, difficult to approach." Vanilla was still trying to wrap his head around the fact that the mewtwo was actually younger than he was. Something he had only discovered after asking her why Dialga had called her a construct during their fight. The humans sure had some scary stuff, alright.

Silence sprang up again, but not a moment too soon. Before them, the flower petals had finally reached their morning fill of sunlight, and most of them had begun to open up to the sun's warmth for the day. As they did so, their guardians took to the sky to get their dose of sunshine as well. The sight of so many little floette and flabebe filling the air was breathtaking, yet cute.

As the aroma, that only multitudes of fresh flowers could provide, filled their lungs, the flower Pokémon started drifting lazily to the ground, each in the middle of their own little arbitrary, fluttering dances.

"Guess that means that Spring is officially here!" Chocola exclaimed as quietly as she could. They were still under direct orders from Feiss not to disturb the waking Pokémon just yet.

"Yep, no denying that!" Vanilla said flashing an even brighter smile than normal.

"Oh! Right, time for snacks!" Chocola declared once the main event had passed, wasting no time to dive into the nearby basket. It seemed no amount of soreness would keep her away from some sandwiches.

Snagging the one that the vixen had offered, Vanilla bit into his own treat. It wasn't quite one of Reiga's concoctions, but it was still pretty good.

After they had both eaten their fill, and Vanilla thanked Chocola for her hard work. There was only one question he had left to ask, though, and he didn't quite feel like leaving his friend alone on this particular subject just yet. "What about your dad? What's Zaho been up to lately."

Chocola sighed. "You know him, already off chasing some weird rumor..."

"Like what?" Vanilla asked. He'd hoped that his actions with the council would free up at least some of the zoroark's workload.

"I don't know, something about a human that looks like a Pokémon, or a Pokémon that thinks it's a human. His message wasn't very clear."

Neither option sounded very pleasant, at least if one was talking to Dialga on the matter. Still, though, Vanilla would love the chance to talk to someone who might know more about humans than even Reiga.

"Ah, don't start that up just yet!"

"Huh, start what up?" Vanilla asked, tilting his head in confusion.

"You've got that look in your eye that I normally have when I'm thinking about getting into trouble..." Chocola accused.

"Oh, am I really that easy to read?"

"Maybe. All I know is, if you want to get in trouble, you're going to have to wait until I can come with you."

"I wouldn't have it any other way!" Vanilla agreed. Honestly, the thought of going alone hadn't even crossed his mind. "I only recommend that we avoid secret, hidden caverns for the time being."

"Yeah, I suppose our record hasn't been great with those lately..."

As the spontaneous laghter died down a bit, much to the confusion of the nearest floette, Vanilla continued. "Great! But I still have just one, slight problem..."

"You mean like trying to convince an angry, relentless sylveon that you'll have to delay taking her aging master's place again?"

"Um, yeah, actually. How did you-?" Vanilla felt panic rising up his spine. "She's right behind me, isn't she?"

"Yep..." Was all Chocola could confirm before her friend found himself wrapped up in some pink, fleshy ribbons. "Good morning, Lady Cordon!"

"Why good morning to you too, Miss Chocola. It's been a while!" the sylveon said with a smile that seemed to completely disregard the eevee's struggling. "I hope this one wasn't causing too much trouble. You know how boys are..."

"Not as much as I'd like..." Chocola said under her breath.

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that?"

"Oh, um, I was just wondering if you would be so kind as to help carry everything back to the house. I'm still recovering from the, uh, yeah..."

"Certainly. It's the least I could do for a little hero such as yourself." Lady Cordon agreed, while continuing to disregard the fact that her captive was just as, if not more, deserving of the title.

~~~~~​

The trip to Chocola's house had been quiet and slow. The vixen returned safely, Lady Cordon turned to leave just as Vanilla managed to free himself from her grasp, if only his muzzle. "Lady Cordon, please wait. I haven't really had a chance to talk with her since the battle, can't I at least say goodbye?"

"Very well. I'll allow it" The sylveon acknowledged before setting the eevee down on the ground, yet remaining only a single pace away.

Chocola cleared her throat in a way that suggested she wanted a little more privacy than that.

"Fine. I shall leave you two be. For now. But mark my words, if you try to flee again, I will find you, and I will return you to your duties..." Lady Cordon finished with a tone that made it so no-one could mistake her threat for anything else.

"No worries, Ma'am. I won't let him get away!" Chocola said as she waved the sylveon off. "Wow, she is pretty intense isn't she?"

"She's just doing what she thinks is best."

Chocola just raised her and eyebrow in protest.

"Okay, fine. But things are pretty hectic right now. I promise she'll calm down once everything starts finding a sort of order again. I think..." Vanilla added.

"It won't matter if you're not able to visit once and a while."

"You could always come and visit me. Once you're better, I mean. I know my parents would love to have you over again!"

"I'll consider it..." Chocola teased, knowing full well that she was relishing the thought of saving him for a change.

"Well then, I'd best be off. It looks like she's getting impatient."

Chocola had to suppress the urge to stick out her tongue at the fairy-type. "Well, I guess you shouldn't keep her waiting..."

After a quick, gentle hug, Vanilla turned to submit himself to his captor.

"Wait! I almost forgot!" Chocola announced, stopping the eevee in his tracks.

"Oh?"

"I've been meaning to ask you, since you haven't really told anyone else about it, what did Giratina say to you?"

Vanilla tilted his head in confusion.

"I-I won't tell anyone, if that's what you're worried about. I swear."

Vanilla sighed. "No, it's not that..."

"Well then? Why won't you tell me?"

"Truthfully? Giratina never said a word to me." The eevee admitted.

Chocola scoffed. "Fine, don't tell me. But you don't have to be mean about it!"

"No," Vanilla protested, "I'm being serious. There wasn't a telepathic link or anything. That's why I haven't told anyone. I didn't have anything to say."

"Then why'd he leave? Why did he come all this way and not imprison Dialga and Palkia again?"

"Honestly, when he was staring at me, or rather, staring through me, I felt that, well, he understood. That this whole thing was a big mistake, and that those two were deeply sorry for their actions and were willing to do anything to right their wrongs, even if there was nothing they could do to fix them. In that moment, we shared an understanding that couldn't be conveyed through language alone."

Chocola breathed in and exhaled slowly. That was a lot to take in, and she wasn't quite sure how she felt about the revelation. But there was one thing she was sure of. "I believe you, Vanilla. I always will."

Vanilla only hugged her again. "Thanks, Chocola. I couldn't ask for anything else."

"Alright, you two have had enough time to say goodbye." Lady Cordon interrupted. "We have things to do. Vanilla, and Pokémon to see." She declared as she encircled him with her ribbons once more, not because she feared that he would get away, but more because she knew he didn't like it. "Come on now."

"We'll meet again soon, Chocola! I promise!" Vanilla shouted as he attempted to wave his final goodbye with his one free paw.

Chocola returned it with a smile on her face. As soon as she was better, she'd see to it that nothing kept them apart. She would only have to wait a few more days...

~~The End~~​