Flame~
After exchanging a long gaze with Kyogre, Yveltal let out a sharp cry toward it. The message was unmistakable: it was telling Kyogre to leave immediately.
However, was Kyogre the kind of Pokémon to listen to reason? Obviously not. Otherwise, through countless years, it would not have constantly fought Groudon to the death, requiring Rayquaza to intervene every single time.
Yveltal was not a hesitant Pokémon. Seeing Kyogre refuse to leave, it wasted no words and immediately initiated the fight.
Flame~ Accompanied by a sharp cry, Yveltal launched Dark Pulse toward Kyogre.
Simultaneously, its Ability, Dark Aura, activated, dyeing everything around them—the sky, the earth, and the rivers—in pitch darkness.
Naturally, this was imperceptible in the middle of the night.
Yveltal's Dark Pulse was operating on a completely different level from Absol's, and bolstered by the amplification of Dark Aura, Kyogre did not dare to take it head-on. It immediately flapped its fins and fired a blue beam using Ice Beam to meet the attack.
Boom!
With a deafening crash, Dark Pulse and Ice Beam collided, generating an explosion mid-air. The shockwave from the explosion instantly turned the surrounding area into a vacuum, vaporizing the falling rain into mist.
Because Absol was standing too close, the resulting shockwave immediately swept it away, slamming it fiercely into a massive boulder and shattering the stone to pieces while leaving it severely injured.
Neither Pokémon managed to gain the upper hand in the opening exchange, and they simultaneously launched another barrage of moves against each other.
Cyan-colored currents swirled around Yveltal's body. Following this, it beat its wings, controlling a massive tornado that swept toward Kyogre.
Yveltal was using the Flying-type move, Hurricane.
At the same time, Kyogre opened its mouth and spat out a thick pillar of water to collide with the Hurricane, utilizing Hydro Pump.
To everyone's surprise, Kyogre's Hydro Pump proved inferior to Yveltal's Hurricane. After locking in a brief stalemate with the hurricane, it shattered completely.
Subsequently, the Hurricane continued rushing toward Kyogre at breakneck speed.
Kyogre cry: Ooh~~
Struck by the attack, Kyogre let out a miserable cry as agonizing pain swept through its entire body.
The pain drove Kyogre into a towering rage. Suddenly, its entire body burst with a brilliant blue light that practically illuminated the night sky.
Enveloped in the blue radiance, Kyogre's form underwent a transformation. Its body grew even more gargantuan, the blue of its hide deepened significantly, and the red markings across its body turned completely gold, lending it an even more majestic appearance.
Following Primal Reversion, Kyogre's Ability changed from Drizzle to Primordial Sea, instantly causing the precipitation in the sky to become even more torrential.
Down in the Nebel Lake, Ange was anxiously busy and felt completely numb. What on earth was the weather playing at? Was it genuinely going to submerge the entire Nebel Plateau?
At this moment, he still had no idea that Kyogre was the ultimate culprit behind all of this.
Whipped by the violent gales, the lake water lashed viciously at Ange and Volcanion. Failing to keep his footing for a split second, Ange tumbled right off Volcanion's back.
Volcanion did not possess eyes on the back of its head and completely failed to notice Ange's predicament as Ange plunged straight toward the lake below.
At that critical juncture, an invisible force caught Ange. Immediately after, Metagross materialized in mid-air, using its psychic powers to guide Ange safely onto its back.
It turned out that Metagross had sensed that something was amiss outside while inside the laboratory and came out to investigate. Upon learning from Diancie that Ange had braved the rain to head to Nebel Lake, it had hurried over to help as fast as it could.
"Metagross!" Ange cried out happily. "Thank you for getting here just in time."
Metagross cry: Meta~ Meta~
Metagross grumbled about why Ange had not come to find it earlier, noting that he wouldn't have run into danger otherwise.
Ange explained, "I was just worried you were too busy."
Metagross cry: Meta~ Meta~
Metagross told Ange to come straight to it whenever something happened in the future. Although it was deeply absorbed in scientific research, Ange's safety mattered far more to it.
"Alright, I got it!" Ange agreed readily, a faint smile unconsciously blooming on his face. Metagross's concern provided a shred of comfort amidst his restless anxiety.
"Alright, let's get to work!" he shouted after wiping the rainwater from his face.
In such heavy rain, his raincoat had long since become entirely useless.
Meanwhile, inside the Secret Fortress, Xerneas noticed that after Honchkrow and the others returned, Yveltal still failed to show up, sensing that something was wrong. Consequently, it stepped outside to inspect the situation.
Braving the heavy rain, it leaped gracefully onto the perimeter wall, looking past the sheets of rain to catch sight of a distant flash of light flickering across the horizon.
That was...
A thought stirred within Xerneas, and it sprang forward into the downpour, vanishing from sight.
Over on the side of Kyogre and Yveltal:
Before its Primal Reversion, Kyogre had been utterly suppressed and beaten by Yveltal. However, following its Primal Reversion, Yveltal was clearly no longer a match for it.
Kyogre leaped out of the water surface. Cyan-and-white energy spheres flickered beneath its fins, and countless beams of light shot out under its control toward Yveltal.
Kyogre was utilizing its signature move, Origin Pulse.
Flame~ Yveltal let out a cry, unleashing a Dark Pulse to retaliate.
Boom!
Dark Pulse and Origin Pulse smashed into one another. Although both were pulse-category moves, the offensive power of Dark Pulse simply could not compare to Origin Pulse.
Even though Dark Pulse was amplified by Yveltal's Dark Aura, Origin Pulse was likewise enhanced by Kyogre's Primordial Sea.
Furthermore, because Kyogre's power had skyrocketed following its Primal Reversion, Origin Pulse crushed Dark Pulse on contact and continued roaring toward Yveltal with lightning speed.
Seeing this, Yveltal hurriedly flapped its wings to dodge.
Fortunately, its reflexes were fast; Origin Pulse grazed right past it.
Enraged to the extreme, Kyogre had no intention of letting the matter rest if it failed to hit Yveltal. Thus, it maintained control over Origin Pulse, sweeping it all the way across in Yveltal's direction.
Beating its wings, Yveltal darted swiftly through the rain, desperately evading Kyogre's onslaught.
The cyan-glowing Origin Pulse flashed across the sky like thunder in a rainy night, echoing across the heavens; neither the howling wind nor the roaring rain could mask its sound.
Sitting on Metagross's back, the moment Ange raised his head, he caught sight of the flashing light on the horizon followed by the ensuing thunderous noise.
Volcanion, Politoed, Goodra, Poliwrath, and Azurill all instinctively turned their gazes toward the source of the lights and roars.
"What is that?" Ange asked.
The Pokémon all shook their heads in unison.
Yveltal had been suppressed by Kyogre the entire time, but finally, it made a misstep and left an opening. Kyogre's Origin Pulse struck directly toward it.
Just as it seemed bound to take a direct hit, a streak of silver-white light suddenly materialized, intercepting Kyogre's attack.
Yveltal and Kyogre simultaneously shifted their gaze to the source of the beam, only to find a deer-like Pokémon radiating prismatic light standing not far away.
Who else could it be but Xerneas?
Xerneas had not only arrived, but it had also rescued the severely injured Absol, treating it with a quick application of Heal Pulse.
Absol's injuries stabilized.
Xerneas and Yveltal exchanged a glance, instantly sharing a mutual understanding.
Flame~ Yveltal let out a cry, controlling a fired-off Dark Pulse to shoot forward.
At the same time, prismatic radiance erupted from Xerneas's horns, and a silver-gleaming crescent moon illuminated the night sky, hovering behind Xerneas's head.
Following this, a silver-white beam of light was directed by Xerneas toward Kyogre.
The silver beam and the dark energy wave intertwined, erupting with incomparable destructive power.
Kyogre cry: Ooh~~~
Kyogre let out a whimper as countless cyan-and-white energy spheres flickered beneath its fins, launching Origin Pulse.
Boom!!!
A fierce explosion rang out, and terrifying billows of smoke bloomed in mid-air.
Primal Kyogre was undeniably powerful, but facing two divine Pokémon of the exact same tier simultaneously, no matter how strong it was, there was nothing it could do.
Yveltal's Dark Pulse and Xerneas's Moonblast stalemated with Kyogre's Origin Pulse for a brief moment before shattering it entirely, the remaining energy striking squarely against Kyogre's body.
Kyogre had originally been floating above the water's surface, but under this combined strike from Yveltal and Xerneas, it plunged into the water with a heavy splash, emitting a painful wail.
Kyogre cry: Ooh~~~
Kyogre thrashed about in the water, churning up massive waves as currents of water wrapped around its body.
Kyogre had used the recovery move, Aqua Ring.
Seizing the advantage, Yveltal and Xerneas pressed the attack, once again unleashing Dark Pulse and Moonblast toward it simultaneously.
Kyogre cry: Ooh~~ Kyogre whimpered. It whipped its fins, kicking up surging torrents that rose like a tidal wave crashing toward Yveltal and Xerneas.
It had used the powerful Water-type move, Waterspout—a formidable attack with a base power reaching 150, with the sole drawback that the lower its remaining stamina fell, the weaker the move's power became.
Flame~ Spotting this, Yveltal violently snapped its wings forward, steering a colossal tornado to collide directly with the towering wall of water.
It used Hurricane!
Concurrently, Xerneas's horns burst with prismatic light, and a transparent wall of light materialized out of thin air.
The light wall was gargantuan, glowing with a faint white radiance and acting like a city fortress that blocked the wave's advance, continuously pushing the raging waters back.
Kyogre cry: Ooh~~ Kyogre rolled endlessly in the water, kicking up even more waves in an attempt to submerge Yveltal and Xerneas in one fell swoop.
Regrettably, with Yveltal and Xerneas fighting in tandem, its efforts met with immense difficulty.
Because of its frenzy, the rainfall only grew heavier, resembling the arrival of an apocalyptic disaster or a torn sky pouring down unceasing deluges of floodwaters.
Time ticked by second by second, and the waves ultimately failed to break through the barrier of the light wall. They were finally crushed by Yveltal's Hurricane, leaving Kyogre to take another direct hit.
Kyogre cry: Ooh~~~ Kyogre let out a mournful cry.
Even Ange and his group heard this sorrowful cry.
Staring into the distance through the curtain of rain, Ange furrowed his brow deeply.
What on earth was happening?
That cry sounded somehow vaguely familiar!
Although Ange had seen Kyogre before, the battle in Dahara City had been far too chaotic; he hardly had the leisure to memorize what Kyogre sounded like when it cried out.
He couldn't possibly connect the sound to Kyogre right away, since he never expected Kyogre to still be hanging around the Kalos region.
By now, Ange had deduced that the torrential rain and the distant anomaly were linked. He desperately wanted to investigate, but the downpour was simply too intense for him to do anything.
At that moment, Volcanion spoke up to Ange: "I'll go check out what's going on!"
Before Ange could respond, Volcanion harnessed its steam propulsion and soared into the sky, vanishing into the night in the blink of an eye.
Since it was a Water-type Mythical Pokémon, the heavy rain posed no obstacle to it whatsoever.
Watching the direction where Volcanion had disappeared, Ange could only offer a silent prayer for its safety.
It was a pity Darkrai was currently undergoing punishment in the Royal Capital; otherwise, Darkrai could have accompanied Volcanion, as the night was entirely its domain.
Back on Yveltal's side:
Following the hit from Hurricane, Yveltal let out a cry and beat its wings, materializing above Kyogre's head in an instant to rake its claws viciously across Kyogre's body using Shadow Claw.
Kyogre cry: Ooh~~ Kyogre wailed continuously.
Yveltal carried Kyogre upward, dragging it straight out of the water and into mid-air.
As Kyogre thrashed violently, attempting to break free from Yveltal's grasp, golden sparks of electricity suddenly began crackling all over Xerneas's body.
The next second, golden lightning erupted from Xerneas, and a bolt of thunder surged under its control straight down onto Kyogre.
Xerneas had used the Electric-type move Thunderbolt, which held a type advantage over Water-type Pokémon.
Kyogre cry: Ooh~~~ Kyogre shrieked in agony.
Yet it didn't end there. Once Xerneas's attack concluded, Yveltal slammed Kyogre ruthlessly down onto the ground and unleashed its signature move, Oblivion Wing.
A pillar of black light poured down onto the earth, swallowing Kyogre whole and blasting a massive crater into the ground.
Yveltal's Oblivion Wing possessed the ability to drain the life force of other Pokémon and subsequently petrify them.
However, against an entity like Kyogre, petrification was far too difficult for Yveltal to achieve; thus, Kyogre simply lapsed into unconsciousness without turning to stone.
Once Kyogre fainted, the dark storm clouds in the sky gradually dissipated, and the pelting rain slowly came to a halt.
When Volcanion arrived on the scene, the sight that greeted it was none other than an unconscious Kyogre lying flat inside the crater.
Having experienced the grand battle of Dahara City, it naturally recognized Kyogre.
Why in the world was Kyogre here, though?
Stepping up to Xerneas, Volcanion intended to ask what had happened, only to hear Xerneas say:
"Let's talk about the details when we get home."
Volcanion could only nod in agreement.
Flame~ Yveltal let out a cry, descending slowly from the air while gripping the unconscious Kyogre. It took flight once more, heading back toward home.
This Pokémon that had brought such massive trouble to the Nebel Plateau deserved to face judgment from Ange!
Seeing this, Xerneas followed close behind.
As for Volcanion, it hoisted the injured Absol onto its back.
Over with Ange, he watched the rainfall taper off gradually in the sky, thinking to himself: Is it finally over?
A little while later, the precipitation ceased completely, and a gentle ray of light broke across the distant horizon.
Unawares, dawn had already arrived.
With the rain stopped, Ange's line of sight cleared once more. Standing atop Metagross, he looked down over the Nebel Plateau from a commanding vantage point.
After a night of torrential downpours, the Nebel Plateau was now left in absolute ruins.