As the explosion of energy in the sky slowly faded, Deoxys' form once again began to change.
Compared to its Attack Form, its body now appeared bulkier and sturdier. The neck had vanished entirely, its thick arms directly connected to its head.
At this moment, Deoxys' body was surrounded by a glowing barrier of light—it seemed to be using this move to withstand Cramorant's Origin Pulse.
But it hadn't completely blocked it.
On the broad arms shielding its body, visible wounds had already appeared.
"Woooong…"
Deoxys let out a strange cry. From the wounds, a pale light shimmered, and when the glow faded, the injuries had vanished without a trace.
"I-It changed form again…"
On the ground, Yuko murmured in disbelief as she watched the scene unfold.
Dr. Lund had originally been thinking of running for his life, but after everything that just happened, he had completely forgotten his own safety. Instead, he was now captivated, filled with burning curiosity toward this mysterious Pokémon he had never seen before.
"This form… it looks much more suited for defense compared to the other two," he muttered.
Deoxys—Defense Form.
Hayato hadn't expected Deoxys' Defense Form to be this tanky.
Of course, part of it might have been because Cramorant had been holding back.
After all, Hayato's true intent was not to fight Deoxys, but to stop the battle and get both sides to sit down and talk.
Though admittedly, his method looked a bit too violent.
Beneath the aurora, the battle raged on.
After withstanding Origin Pulse, Deoxys once again shifted back into Attack Form, then lunged straight toward Cramorant.
Cramorant flapped its wings, trying to calm it down. The method it chose—was to cool its opponent's head with Roar of Time.
A deep-blue beam swept across the sky, piercing through the Arctic heavens—along with Deoxys' lower body.
The devastating energy turned everything into nothingness.
Deoxys' pupils widened, its body frozen midair. Then, in a flash of white light, its legs began to regenerate.
Yet even so, Deoxys did not falter.
It shifted into Speed Form, lowering its gaze toward a spot on the icy tundra before looking back up and continuing the fight.
That spot—was where its companion's core crystal lay dormant.
Seeing this, Hayato felt a headache coming on.
He had originally wanted to use Cramorant's overwhelming power to intimidate Deoxys, forcing it to give up the fight.
But instead of backing down, Deoxys' attacks were only growing fiercer.
At this rate, they'd never be able to sit down and talk…
Hayato frowned deeply.
Using force to break up the fight clearly wasn't going to work. Worse, he had now dragged Cramorant into it.
He didn't want a tragedy. He didn't want Deoxys to end up reduced to a core crystal, replaying the tragedy of LaRousse City four years early in this world.
So… he would have to try another way.
In Pokémon: Destiny Deoxys, there had been two Deoxys.
The purpose of this Deoxys' journey to Earth was to find its companion, which had become a core crystal after falling here.
But due to a misunderstanding with Rayquaza, this Deoxys had itself been struck down, becoming a core crystal that sank into the ice lake—while its companion's crystal was taken back to the lab by Dr. Lund.
Thinking of this, Hayato's eyes shifted toward the distant icefield.
There, quietly resting, was a pale-green core crystal.
A solution quickly formed in his mind. He turned to the Clefairy and Charmeleon beside him.
"You two stay here for a bit!"
The Clefairy looked worried. "Clef… clefairy?"
"Don't worry." Hayato gave a small smile before sprinting across the snow. Soon, he had the other Deoxys' core crystal in his hands.
His gaze swept across it, and in the next second, information appeared in his mind:
[Deoxys' Core Crystal: The energy core located in Deoxys' chest. When Deoxys is critically wounded, its body will vanish, leaving only this crystal behind.]
It didn't explain how to revive it, but as a transmigrator, Hayato already knew.
There were two known methods:
First—wait several years for the crystal to naturally repair itself.
Second—expose it to a special electromagnetic wave to accelerate the process.
Which meant… he now needed to head into the sky.
Without Zapdos, he had lost his usual ride.
But not completely.
Hayato's gaze turned toward the massive figure hovering in the distance—Rayquaza, watching the battle from the sidelines with its golden eyes.
…
Rayquaza watched the terrifying clash nearby, and inwardly felt immense relief at its decision not to get involved.
It thought so in its heart, though its expression remained dignified, like that of an ancient god surveying mortals from on high.
And then—it heard someone calling its name.
Hearing that familiar voice, Rayquaza's façade nearly cracked. It stiffly turned its massive head toward the source.
In that instant, its emotions grew tangled.
What was this?
To other humans, Rayquaza was nothing but legend.
They revered it, feared it, etched its story into paper and ancient caves.
But this human…
In all its countless years of existence, Rayquaza had never met anyone like him.
It couldn't understand how such a human existed—just as it couldn't understand how this boy had somehow taught it new moves.
Why?
The Sky High Pokémon, god of the heavens, looked down at the boy on the ground.
Hayato: "..."
A chill went through his chest. Was Rayquaza planning to strike him down while Cramorant was occupied?
To be fair… Rayquaza circling in the sky really did look terrifying.
Honestly, scarier than Kyurem.
But just as his thoughts spiraled, Rayquaza broke its solemn stare. It twisted its colossal body and descended before him. Its golden eyes locked onto his, silently asking what he wanted.
Seeing this, Hayato grinned and held up the crystal in his hand.
"Do me a favor, will you?"
…
"Hayato… was recognized by Rayquaza…"
Watching the boy mount the head of the ancient Pokémon and soar into the heavens, Dr. Lund and his assistants felt their worldview shatter completely.
Dear gods—that was Rayquaza!
"What are they trying to do?" Yuko whispered in awe.
"I don't know…" Another assistant, Xia An, murmured as he gazed at the battlefield of gods above. "But… it looks like he's trying to stop that Pokémon from fighting Cramorant…"
"Yes!!"
Brendan clenched his fists, eyes blazing with admiration.
As expected of Brother Hayato!
This was incredible!
At that very moment, a tiny seed was planted in Brendan's heart… one that would one day grow.