Downfall Of A Legend

CHAPTER 13

"What did you just say?" N asked, surprised at what he had just heard. Leader grinned, chuckling to himself.

"I have plans for this world, but nobody but me and my partner know," Leader told them, crossing his arms.

"What?" Lexi asked, staring at Leader in surprise and confusion.

"So, this whole time...You've been lying to us...?" Krystal asked quietly, staring at Leader. He looked back at the group.

"...I'm sorry, guys," they exchanged confused glances, confused at his words. "What I'm saying...It's true."

"So the time we've served under you, Leader...The speeches we've made of releasing pokemon...That's not what you really wanted?" Mason asked.

"We've been serving for you...Under lies?" Webb added, the others looking on in confused agreement. Leader gave a quiet sigh, then nodded.

"Wait, so...He's not working towards pokemon liberation?" Iris asked, confused.

"It appears not, but that still leaves one question," Drayden replied, crossing his arms.

"You're right...What exactly is he planning?" Brock asked, looking at the powerful trainer across the field.

"You don't want pokemon liberation?" Lexi asked.

"Then, what is it that you want?" Trevor asked, also looking oddly at him.

"I'm afraid I can't tell anyone, not at this point," Leader responded, shaking his head slightly. "And I'm afraid the other one won't say a word either."

"Hold on, Leader!" he looked back at N, who was stepping forward towards him. "Who is the other one who knows?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that, either. They would lose faith in me for giving in," he stated, lowering his head and closing his eyes.

"But who are they? Who is the only one you told?" Gary asked, stepping forward. The group nodded, as well as Leader's minions, in agreement to the question. The yellow mouse on the ground hurried over to its trainer, climbing up his leg and positioning itself on his shoulder, looking at him with a nod. He chuckled to himself, everyone in the room confused at his actions.

"...I'm afraid that will never leave me," he looked up, grinning at the opposing group. "Ask all you want, the name of my partner will never leave my mouth."

"Partner..." Dawn pondered out loud, then her eyes drifted to the mouse on his shoulder. The mouse jumped to the ground, looking at its trainer in confusion, the blunette taking notice. "Wait...It wasn't Pikachu?"

"Of course not," the mouse tilted its head in confusion, looking intently at its trainer's face. "If I ever told Pi what I was really planning, he never would have agreed to helping me with this. If I told anyone my real plans, nobody would be standing by me today."

"But...Leader..." Krystal was at a loss of words. She couldn't believe Leader, the one who trained them to be strong and took care of them, had been lying the entire time! "How could you lie to us? You trained us, you took us in when we had nowhere else to go!"

"I'm truly sorry, but we all know reality isn't always fun and happiness," the girl frowned, hands on her hips as she looked at the trainer. "I am unclear how this will affect our relations, but I'm afraid I am still in need of my pokemon."

"Pokemon?" Misty asked, confused. Everyone followed Leader's eyes, following the line until it hit the Master Ball in N's hand.

"I will be needing Zekrom back, and I will not tolerate further stalling," Leader stated firmly, reaching to his belt. Pulling a pokeball, the sphere burst open in a bright flash, taking form. The figure was a large bird in a tan color with an orange crest on its head, stretching its large wings and giving a loud shrill call. "Give me back my pokemon, or face my power."

"What do we do?" Max asked, looking worried as he saw the bird's angry expression. "Should we try to battle him?"

"If N had troubles, I don't think we would stand a chance," Brock replied quietly, also intimidated by the bird.

"Pidgeot, Hurricane," the bird too flight, bringing back its wings.

"Everyone, get down and brace yourself!" N called, dropping to the ground and gripping the floor. The others quickly obeyed, also dropping just as the bird attacked. Swinging its wings forward and back at an unbelievable speed, the wind picked up incredibly fast into an extremely powerful gust of wind. Everyone grunted, struggling to hold the ground. N felt the Master Ball slipping from his hand, sliding from between his fingers and blowing away. He looked back in shock, jumping to his feet.

"Pidgeot, get it," Leader ordered, the bird quickly diving to the ground. Pulling up at the last second, the bird nearly flashed invisible, appearing across the room again. N gasped, stepping back from the Master Ball as the bird landed beside him, an angry look in its eyes. It took the sphere in its beak, flying back to its trainer and placing it in his hand. "Well done, Pidgeot," the bird nodded, perched on the ground beside Leader, holding his purple sphere with a grin. "As you can see, resistance is no longer a valid option for you. It's either give up, or be defeated."

"But we'll never lose to you! Not in the end!" Max shouted, the young boy pointing at him.

"I'm afraid not, as I have told you before I must take my leave," Leader raised his arm up, the sphere seemingly shaking in his hand.

"Leader, no!" N shouted, eyes widening as he knew what he was going to do.

"Zekrom, my partner," the sphere burst open, a bright flash appearing as it shot into the sky. The clouds began to circle in the sky above the roof, becoming dark in color as a low rumbling was heard. The light quickly took form into the legendary black dragon, giving a roar as it looked down. "Destroy them!"

"Destroy?" Lexi asked, looking surprised at the trainer. "...But...Leader would never want to destroy anyone..."

"Reshiram, please stop Zekrom!" N tossed his pokeball, the white dragon bursting from within. The dragon was still visibly injured as marks covered its body, the black dragon surprised as it saw its counterpart again. The white dragon slammed into the black dragon, stopping its attack and throwing it into the sky. The two dragons flew into the base of the clouds, facing each other at a distance, growling as they stared each other down with angry eyes.

"Zekrom, Fusion Bolt!" the dragon glowing in a sphere of blue electricity.

"Reshiram, you have to hold it off!" the white dragon nodded, forming a large glowing sphere of orange flames in its mouth. The attacks collided in the center, exploding in a large radius of smoke. The white dragon burst from the top, the black dragon chasing it into the clouds.

"You are really starting to get on my nerves, I don't understand why you continue to oppose me," Leader's angry look pierced the group across the room. "Why do you insist on being destroyed?"

"Because we only want an answer for that!" he looked oddly at the blunette. "We want to know you motives! First you want pokemon liberation, now you're talking about destroying and eliminating weak trainers! What is it that you want for this world?!" Dawn shouted at him.

"As I've said, it's useless to persist on that question. I will never answer to anyone, neither will my partner," he replied harshly, the younger trainers frightened at his tone.

"But you have to! We only want to help you out of this nightmare!" Gary shouted, Leader frowning.

"Please, Ash!" Max shouted, Leader's chest giving a twitch.

"Pidgeot, Hurricane," the bird took to the air, the group dropping to the ground as the powerful wind blew over them. They struggled to hold on, but was useless as they each felt themselves forced back in the air, rolling across the floor and hitting the wall. "You really haven't changed, any of you. You're all still just persistent, annoying children."

"How can you say that...?" Brock got one foot on the ground, giving a cough as he looked across the room.

"If you continue to act like children, you will not survive long enough to see the new world," Leader said promptly, holding his arm out. "Pidgeot, Air Slash," the bird brought its wings back, swinging forward and releasing a swirling sphere of powerful air. The Shadow Triad stepped forward, holding their arms out and forming a dark barrier, the attack exploding on contact. The dust settled, the trio lowering the barrier.

"Thank you," Max sighed, smiling at the trio, who nodded back.

"If you three are so confident in your abilities, I would be entertained to see you block this next move," Leader grinned, the bird diving to the ground.

"What?" Misty asked, looking oddly at the bird.

"Brave Bird," the normal-type picked itself up and glided along the ground, becoming ignited in a glowing blue flame-like aura.

"I regret to say our powers are not strong enough to defend this," one of the figures stated, the other giving a nod.

"It's too late to do anything!" Max shouted, the Shadow Triad disappearing in a flicker. Everyone stood frozen in fear, watching as the bird charged at them at an unavoidable speed.

"Leader! Stop this!" Webb shouted, the trainer ignoring him. Leader's minions and May watched in horror as the bird suddenly exploded near them, releasing a large cloud of dark smoke from the powerful attack.

"No, Max! Everyone!" May screamed, her eyes wide as she watched the defeat of her friends. With one simple attack. Leader smirked.

"Finally, this marks the end of those resistant pests," he nodded to himself, closing his eyes and turning away.

"May! We're okay somehow!"

"What?!" his eyes snapped open, turning back and eyes widening in shock. His bird burst backwards from the cloud, its wings held out at an awkward angle and barely holding itself in the air. "That's impossible! Nothing has the power to hurt my pokemon!" he squinted as he looked into the cloud, struggling to make out anything. Suddenly everyone's outlined figure appeared in the cloud, a pure black color as the cloud was too thick. As well as one more figure.

"But...Who helped them...?" Krystal asked quietly, looking confused at the cloud. Leader looked at his bird, who landed beside him with a quiet grunt. He looked curiously at the bird's feathers, noticing a faint yellow spark spark across its wing.

"It can't be...!" his eyes widened, looking back at the cloud as it was finally settling. Everyone's colored figure was seen again, smiling as they saw each other okay.

"But...How did we survive that attack?" Dawn asked, looking confused. Everyone looked forward, nobody expected what had happened.

"Pika!" the mouse shouted angrily, down on all fours with its cheeks sparking. Leader stared intently at the mouse, who glared back with an angry fire in its eyes.

"Pikachu...Are you really choosing this as your fate?" the trainer asked, holding his fists at his sides. "After all of this...You're choosing to side with them, the ones who oppose us and continue to defend this incomplete world?"

"Pikapi! Chupi kapi chu!" the mouse shouted, the trainer's lips curling into a grin.

"Alright..." everyone looked shocked at the trainer, how could he agree to losing his starter pokemon? His best friend? "I respect your choice, being a pokemon...However, our past does not affect my battling."

"Ash, what are you doing?! Pikachu was your first pokemon, he's your best friend!" Gary shouted, the trainer ignoring him as he stared down the mouse.

"Pidgeot, Air Slash!" the bird launched the swirling form of air, the mouse dashing to the side to dodge. Sprinting at an incredible speed, it sprung into the air with a silver-gleaming tail. "Hurricane!" the mouse's eyes widened, feeling itself forced back with incredible power. Harshly hitting the ground, it managed to hold its feet in, baring its teeth as it felt itself pushed back slowly.

"Ash, stop this!" Max shouted, the boy feeling scared as he watched two best friends fight.

"Brave Bird!" the bird glided along the ground, glowing bright blue as the mouse charged at it. It jumped, swinging its glowing tail accurately into the bird's back. The bird grunted, drifting to the side as the power cut off, tis wing slightly hitting the ground. Its figure suddenly lurched forward, crashing into the ground in a rolling heap.

"Ash, Pidgeot is defeated! Give this up, before you end up hurting Pikachu!" Brock shouted.

"I will not allow him to betray me without consequences!" Leader's eyes burned with anger, stepping forward towards the mouse. He stared intently as he continued towards it. "Once best friend, now strongest opponent, I have no choice but to defeat you."

"Ash, no! You can't!" May called to him, the trainer snapping his neck around.

"Ash is dead! I am Leader, the trainer with the power to change this world!" May felt her heart be squeezed again at his angry eyes, the trainer looking back at the mouse.

"Please, don't hurt Pikachu! He's only agreeing and doing what's right!" Misty called.

"Too bad I know his one weakness," the trainer stared at the mouse with a grin, the roar of thunder heard in the sky as the clouds dropped bolts of lightning. The black dragon burst from the clouds, floating down to the trainer and hovering above him, looking down at the mouse. "Zekrom, overload it," the mouse's eyes widened, the legendary dragon's body sparking with powerful bolts. The electricity suddenly struck the mouse, baring its teeth as it struggled to hold its ground from the powerful attack. Its cheeks began sparking, its eyes looking surprised, as it felt the electricity be absorbed into its body. The mouse grunted, stumbling to the side as it looked angrily at the dragon.

"Pikachu!" the mouse looked back and nodded, glaring at the trainer with its teeth bared.

"You may be fine now, but soon you will know the pain you have felt in the past," the trainer turned and began walking back, the dragon roaring at the group. "I'm afraid you will not enjoy the feeling, but from the multiple times in the past, I'm sure you won't be bothered."

"What are you talking about?!" Brock shouted, the trainer ignoring him once more.

"What did he do...?" Lexi asked, looking oddly at the seemingly-fine mouse.

"I don't know, but for him to attack Pikachu with Zekrom...This must be his true state of anger..." Webb stated, crossing his arms.

"You don't understand as well as I do," the minions looked at May, who held a fist to her chest with a frown. "Ash and Pikachu have best friends since the very beginning...They could never be separated, no matter what. But now that Pikachu is facing Ash, and he's attacking him...Ash is overwhelmed with emotions."

"Leader is never overwhelmed," Krystal told her, looking oddly at the brunette. She looked at the girl.

"Maybe not when you've seen him, but we all know emotions aren't always stable. If Ash's best friend betrayed him, he's definitely feeling sad and angry." she replied, the icy-blue haired girl nodded in understanding.

"Sadness in losing his best friend's faith, and anger in having to face the power of his first pokemon..." Trevor explained, looking at the trainer walking towards them. "...This was a scenario no one could have predicted, so he was never planned for this."

"Everyone," everyone looked at Leader, who stood a few feet away. "I've said before that I'm sorry for not telling you the truth, and I am. I'm am not sure how this will affect your attitude towards me, so I will be leaving alone this time."

"You're going to head straight to Johto, aren't you?" Mason asked, the trainer giving a nod.

"I am, and I will conquer their Pokemon League myself. Whether you decide to join me again or not, that is your decision," he told them, holding his arm up. The black dragon turned, touching down on the ground, the trainer stepping towards its foot. "You are free to do what you want, it is your choice."

"Ash..." May whispered, looking confused as she watched the trainer climb onto his dragon's back. He had won her in the battle, but was he letting her go? That easily?

"Leader, please tell us one thing," Krystal called out, the others nodding in agreement as he looked at her. "...As the ones you trust the most...Who was the other one you told?"

"...I'm sorry," the dragon took into the air, gaining elevation through the roof and into the dark sky. Suddenly, the white dragon burst from the clouds with a roar, tackling the black dragon to the ground. Leader caught himself in the air, landing safely on his feet.

"So you're still fighting..." the white dragon faced the black dragon again, an angry fire burning in its eyes from losing in the previous battle. "Very well, I will make this short." "Zekrom, Bolt Strike," the dragon glowed in dangerous blue sparks, crackling as it charged at the white dragon. It released a searing blue flame, exploding on the opposing dragon. It burst through the smoke, tackling Zekrom to the ground.

"Reshiram!" N called, the white dragon looked back at its trainer. The black dragon released a powerful outburst of electricity, the white beast growling in pain as it backed off, sparks coursing through its body.

"N, Reshiram's still hurt from the last battle!" Max exclaimed.

"I know, but there's no holding Reshiram back...Not in this state..." N muttered, clenching his fists at his sides as he looked at his dragon. The two dragons breathed a green flame-like attack, exploding on contact. "Reshiram wants revenge."

"Zekrom, paralyze it," the dragon released several sparks, entering the white dragon's body. It bared its teeth, giving a growl as it felt its body freeze up. "Now Bolt Strike!" the dragon sparked with dangerous electricity, ramming the white counterpart. The two slammed into the wall, the white beast giving a roar of pain. It immediately regained its footing, charging into the black beast's chest, lifting it into the darkened sky.

"Reshiram, calm down!" N shouted, but the dragon didn't respond. It threw the black dragon through the air, attacking it with a powerful blue flame exploding on it. The black dragon burst from the smoke, attacking with a green flame-like attack but the white dragon dodged, firing a large orange sphere of flames. The black dragon dodged, the two continuing a back-and-forth of attacks and dodges.

"Zekrom, do not battle with anger. Use fluent and strategic moves, I will trust this battle to you," the black dragon nodded, giving a loud roar as lightning tore through the sky around it. Leader looked back at the group opposing him, giving a frown.

"They could have had potential...But I was mistaken..." he told himself, giving a whistle. Across the room, the bird lifted its head and got to its claws, flying across the room and landing on the path. Leader moved beside the bird, putting his hand on its neck. "We're leaving, Pidgeot."

"Ash, you can't!" May told him, the trainer ignoring her. "Please, just listen to me!"

"I've already listened, and look where that got me," she stepped back, a tinge in her heart at his words. "Listening only gets me into these situations, and I'm forced to defeat and humiliate the trainers who face me but don't have the power to compare. It's pointless."

"But we do have power! Some of us may have lost, but some of us did beat the very ones you trained!" she looked at each of the minions, giving a smile. "Even if some of us lost, I could tell we all felt the same thing. All those battles, they brought us joy and happiness, whether we won or lost."

"You're wrong, we only battled to protect Leader," Trevor told her, crossing his arms again.

"But it turns out he's been lying this entire time..." Lexi held her hands behind her back, looking at her feet. "...I'm not sure if we were really serving Leader anymore, or just some on-the-spot lie."

"You were serving him, don't worry," she looked at the brunette, who was smiling back. "You battled to help him and what he believed. Even if it's a bad belief, that doesn't mean you were the bad ones, it only shows you were a true friend."

"In a way, she is right," they looked at Leader, sitting on the bird and looking at them. "Her words are true, you weren't being the bad people. You were only proving you wanted to help me and be my friend, and I thank you for all the time we've spent together."

"Leader, please wait!"

"If after all this, you still believe in our friendship...I'll see you again soon," the bird extended its wings, giving a screech as it flapped off the ground.

"He's getting away!" Max exclaimed, pointing at the man on the bird.

"Not from us," one of the three figures stated, the others nodding as they each held out their palms. Forming a dark sphere between the trio, they aimed and fired it at the bird. As the bird flapped off the ground, the sphere exploded on its wing.

"What?!" Leader looked angrily to the bird's wing, smoke streaming from it as the bird began to tilt. It fell to the ground again, the man landing on his feet as the bird crashed down. "Pidgeot, are you okay?" the bird lifted its head, giving a slight nod as it winced, looking at its wing. "You're injured, don't worry about it," the bird looked disappointed as it disappeared into the red beam, clipped back onto his belt.

"Good job!" the blunette exclaimed happily, clasping her hands together as she smiled at the trio, who nodded back.

"The two legendary dragons are battling on their own...If this continues, their anger might ravage Unova and repeat history..." Drayden stated, looking into the sky as another explosion occurred.

"The legend of Zekrom and Reshiram..." Iris said to herself, watching in amazement as she watched the dragons in the dark sky. "Wait, that reminds me!"

"What is it?" Misty asked, looking at the girl. She reached her arm into her hair, searching for something. Her eyes widening with a smile, she pulled out a sheet of old, faded paper.

"This is something we found a little while ago, in our research! We were looking into the ruins of Zekrom and Reshiram, and we found this!" Iris beamed, holding the paper up with a smile. Leader looked across the room in anger, then his eyes fixed on the paper.

"What do they have now...?" he asked himself, looking intently at the paper. A crash of thunder broke his concentration, looking into the sky. The black and white dragon were wrestling each other, charging to the ground at a high speed. "Zekrom, pull up now! That impact will be too much for anyone here!" the black dragon nodded, grabbing the white dragon's shoulders. It threw the dragon upwards back into the sky, managing to stop itself and hovering above the ground. The electric-type charged upward again, facing the fire-type in the air.

"Those two continue to fight, despite what happens to us..." Mason thought out loud, looking in the sky as the two dragons caused another explosion. "...Something tells me we should leave."

"And quickly, too," Webb added, the other men giving a nod while the girls nodded frantically.

"Look out!" Krystal exclaimed, pointing up. The group looked up to see a chunk of the upper wall falling, broken off from the explosion. The black dragon looked down, diving and moving under the chunk, shattering it with a flame-like breath.

"Alright, we gotta go!" Lexi exclaimed, jumping off the platform and running down the path. The others followed quickly, running past Leader. He blinked, snapping from his trance as he noticed them run past.

"What?" he asked, looking oddly at the running group. He looked into the sky again, noticing a stream of flames explode on the top of the wall, a few chunks falling. "Oh, that makes sense," he told himself, hurrying away from where he stood. The chunks crashed onto the ground, shattering behind them as more began to fall, exploding into many pieces on the ground and burying it in rubble.

"Wait, what's going on?" Max asked, looking oddly at the opposing group running towards them.

"Roof's falling!"

"Not safe!"

"We're going!"

"Bye!"

"What?" Max blinked in confusion, looking back at the dragons battling. he looked around, noticing the chunks falling in every direction, the dragons' attacks destroying the building. "...Oh."

"Run for it!" Dawn shouted, waving her arms in the air as she began running after the other group. Everyone but two followed her, the Shadow Triad disappearing in a flicker, but N stopped. He turned around, looking back and seeing Leader standing on the field.

"Leader!" he called, but the trainer only stared into the sky. He stepped back towards the trainer, looking into the sky with him as the walls collapsed around them from explosions.

"Two dragons battled, their attacks destroying the entire Unova region in storms of lightning and flames...And here they are again, captured by trainers but not commanded..." Leader looked at the man, his piercing eyes feeling different. "I've wanted to talk to you, N. Not in rivalry, but as human beings."

"What are you planning?" he asked carefully, the trainer shaking his head.

"Nothing planned, I only wanted to talk on a mutual level," the man continued to stare at him carefully, the pair then looking back at the dragons causing another explosion. "...I have a question for you."

"What is it?" he asked, the black dragon's lightning striking the wall again and shattering more rubble to the ground.

"Humanity and pokemon have lived together for centuries, but we haven't always gotten along. If powerful pokemon fought, this very scene, happened repeatedly in the past...How has humanity not been eliminated?" Leader asked, the pair crossing their arms.

"...In our view, it does seem like a miracle. With this much power in the world, humanity could have been wiped out easily centuries ago," N replied, the trainer giving a nod. "But...Even though we haven't gotten along, we've always respected each other. Humans, the ability to evolve economically and build more efficient homes, and pokemon, a variety of elemental abilities and able to change appearance on strength level...Although we're different, we're very much alike."

"We're alike, huh...?" Leader chuckled to himself, another explosion occurring in the air.

"And it's what makes us alike that gives that sense of respect. We respect pokemon for their helping in society and battling to become closer to their hearts, and they respect us for giving them love, care and a home," N explained, his lips curling into a smile. "...In a way, a simple respect can turn a pokemon and human into family."

"Capturing does bond us like family...As well as living with them for so long, we grow to know and understand each other," Leader responded, the two looking at each other. "Without pokemon, we really could have never made it this far."

"And without us, pokemon could have never made it this far either," N told him, the trainer closing his eyes.

"...But they could have," N looked at him oddly. "We only give them love, but what can that really do? A will to fight? If they find something else to fight for, a pokemon family, they could very well live without us."

"But without humans to care for and travel with pokemon, they would be stuck in the same environment their entire lives," N told him, the trainer looking at him with a nod.

"But if humans weren't here to build construction, destroying forests and natural landscapes...Wouldn't the environment evolve into a naturally-perfect paradise?" Leader asked, the man keeping quiet. "...Humans destroy natural areas for our evolution, and without realizing it, we destroy their evolution. Sacrificing their growth for ours, that is what humans have been doing for centuries. We have been unfair to pokemon."

"But they forgive us, the pokemon that travel with trainers don't hate them for other humans destroying their home. They forgive the trainer, they keep a hate for the construction workers who did the work themselves," N replied, Leader reaching his hand in behind his vest.

"But do they hate the construction workers, or mutual humanity?" N secretly bit his lip, unable to respond. "If what you're saying is true, what if the pokemon come across the very workers who destroyed their home? If they attack in fury, will the trainer forgive the pokemon or give up on them for their emotional limits?"

"Of course they would forgive them, they're friends. Their friendship would keep them together, through the emotions and anguish, and into a bright future of happiness of pokemon and humans," N explained, the trainer smirking.

"That's what I thought as well, until the second I saw Pikachu facing me," Leader closed his eyes, opening them and looking into the sky again. "...I want to tell you something, N. Only you."

"What is it?" he asked, looking as another explosion sent rubble crashing to the ground again.

"...I admit my respect to you, but we can both admit I am too powerful for you," the two stood in silence, the man giving a hesitant nod. "Opposing me will be useless at this point, so you have two choices. You can either walk away and we both forget this ever happened, or you can join me."

"What did you just say?" he asked, looking surprised at the trainer.

"Our powers separate are beyond the champions, but together we can take this world with ease. Nobody could oppose us," Leader's lips curled into a grin. "To rule this world, and take your rightful place as top trainer...What do you say?"

"...I'm sorry, Leader, but I have to decline," the trainer frowned, looking at the man. "I can't battle under beliefs I don't believe in."

"Without a second thought?" the man nodded, the trainer giving a nod back. "It's fine, everyone has a right for their own decisions. I will allow you to go freely, so long as you don't get in my way again."

"I understand and agree to your term," the man gave a nod, walking away from the trainer.

"N," the man stopped, looking back. The trainer extended his arm, something sent towards him. He caught the object from Leader's hand, revealed to be an old and tattered paper. "Your friend dropped this in the hurry to escape, I felt if anyone this should be returned to you. I have looked it over briefly, but that language is unfamiliar to me. In your hands, I hope it can be deciphered and read again."

"But...Why?" the man asked, the trainer crossing his arms again.

"I felt that group needed a better chance. And with you deciphering the text, they will get it soon," he smirked, giving a nod. The man nodded, the two turning away from each other and walking in separate directions.

"Reshiram, we are leaving."

"Zekrom, cease the battle. Our destination is Johto now."

"...Is...Everyone...Okay...?" Brock panted, looking around.

"Yeah..." Gary coughed, the redhead and blunette nodding near him. The Shadow Triad stood by them, perfectly fine.

"We're fine...Too..." May breathed heavily, holding her chest beside her nodding younger brother.

"Dragon masters...here..." Iris panted, giving a weak smile as the older man beside her gave a simple nod.

"How are...You guys...?" Mason asked, panting.

"Girls...Good..." Krystal replied, the three girls panting with an agreeing nod.

"We're good...On this end..." Webb told him, Jack and Trevor giving a nod on either side of him.

"So...We've got everyone..." Mason sighed, chuckling in relief.

"Not quite. According to our count, two figures are missing," one of the white-haired figures stated, the other two giving a nod.

"Pi?" the yellow mouse asked, tilting its head on the confusion.

"Pikachu!" May exclaimed happily, beaming as she noticed the mouse on the ground. The mouse hurried towards her, climbing up her back and smiling on her shoulder. "It's great to see you again, I'm glad you're safe."

"Hey, where's Leader?" Krystal asked, looking around confused. Everyone looked in different directions, but no one caught sight of the trainer.

"Hey, N's missing too," Max stated, no one catching a glimpse of the man either. "Don't tell me...They're not still in there, are they?"

"If they are, that's crazy," Dawn said plainly, holding her arm as she looked at the large building. From the top, the smoke was barely visible as fires had started around the sides and back, rubble raising dust into the air.

"They would have been crushed by now," Misty added, crossing her arms.

"We have to go in and get them! We can't leave them there!" Max exclaimed, looking around as no one moved. "Are you...Are you just going to leave them? You're leaving N and Ash, the strongest trainers who have caught legendary pokemon, to die in a burning building?"

"The building isn't burning, not yet," a familiar voice stated, everyone looking at the doorway. N stepped out, giving a cough as he brushed off his shirt.

"N! You're okay!" May smiled, relieved the man was okay.

"Yes, and Leader has left safely as well," he told them, the minions giving a relieved sigh.

"Thank goodness..." Lexi smiled, holding her chest.

"What are you, crazy? Ash can't just go like that! We have to get him!" Misty told them.

"We can't, we're at a clear disadvantage," Brock told her, crossing his arms.

"Despite their battle, Zekrom still has plenty of fighting energy. Ash also has Krookodile and one more pokemon who hasn't been used," Gary explained, giving a frown.

"But we have Pikachu now!" Max told them, smiling as he looked at the mouse. The mouse scratched the back of its head, sparks suddenly streaming from its cheeks. It rubbed its cheeks, a confused expression on its face.

"Even Pikachu isn't enough power to bring down Zekrom," the mouse nodded, frowning. "We just simply can't take on that legendary without carefully planning how to take it on."

"You'll never defeat it," Webb told them, crossing his arms.

"He's right, it's far too powerful to be defeated now," Mason added.

"Are you stating facts, or defending him?" Dawn asked, looking confused at them.

"That is a good point, this has been pretty crazy for you as well. He was lying to you guys as well this whole time, are you still going to back him up after that?" May asked, the group exchanged wondering looks.

"You should go home and live a normal life, none of this is going to help you get anywhere," Brock told them.

"If you want to help us take down Ash, we'll let you help as long as you swear to taking him down with full power," Max added, the boy giving them a serious look.

"Bwah! It's gone!" everyone looked oddly at Iris, who was digging oddly through her hair. "It was here a second ago! It's gone!"

"What is, Iris?" Dawn asked.

"The paper from the ruins! I showed it inside, but I must have dropped it while hurrying outside!" she panicked, looking around her feet and behind her.

"Oh, by any chance," N reached in behind his top shirt, carefully bringing out the old paper. "It wouldn't happen to be this, would it?"

"Oh, yes! That's it!" she exclaimed, beaming as she noticed the paper in his hand.

"What exactly is that, Iris? You said something about a ruin?" Brock asked, looking curiously at the paper.

"As I said, we were researching old ruins on the legend of Reshiram and Zekrom. Turns out some people in Unova from the past were just as curious as we are, and they found some valuable information on it," the girl explained, looking at the paper. "Drayden and I haven't had this very long, so all we understand so far is it has an ancient language on it. We can't exactly read it yet, but we're going to translate it soon."

"That would be really helpful, if it's about the Reshiram and Zekrom legend," Max stated, crossing his arms. "If Reshiram can't defeat Zekrom at this point, we'll need to hope there's something else that can defeat it."

"Drayden, Iris, how soon do you think you can get that translated?" Gary asked, looking curiously at the paper.

"There are a lot of researchers in Unova with knowledge on Unova's past, so it could be a week, a day, depends when we get it started," the purple-haired girl responded, giving a smile. "If this does relate to the legend of the two dragons, we're going to get this translation started right away."

"Good, that will be very helpful," the young researcher replied, giving a nod.

"Reshiram, my friend," N held his hand into the air, looking into the sky. Everyone looked at him oddly, then heard a roar and noticed the white dragon flying over the roof. It hovered above them, looking down at its trainer. "I must be going now."

"What? You're leaving?" May gasped.

"I'm afraid so, we all know that I am no longer a match for Leader," the man stated, walking away from them. "I wish you luck in bringing down Leader and his plots."

"But, N! You can't leave now! We're so close to getting him!" the blunette told him, the man stopping.

"He has conquered Unova and Kanto, and is now headed towards Johto. If I were you, I would be chasing after him instead of standing here trying to persuade me of staying," he told them, starting walking again. They watched in shock as the man disappeared through the trees, the white dragon landing. it took off again, the man sitting on its back as it flew through the sky.

"I can't believe it..." the redhead whispered, watching the white dragon grow smaller in the distant sky. On the dragon, the man was in thought as he closed his eyes.

"Your friend dropped this in the hurry to escape, I felt if anyone this should be returned to you. I have looked it over briefly, but that language is unfamiliar to me. In your hands, I hope it can be deciphered and read again."

"But...Why?"

"I felt that group needed a better chance. And with you deciphering the text, they will get it soon."

"So he knows about it...And it does refer to the legend..." the man said to himself, looking into the vast sky ahead. "...Good luck, everyone..."

"So he's gone...just like that...Not helping anymore..." Max said quietly, blinking in confusion.

"How can he do this? Of anyone, he had the best chance of training to beat Ash," Dawn said sadly, frowning. She looked around, noticing something. "Hey...The Shadow Triad are gone."

"Really?" Misty asked, looking around and noticing the blunette's words were true. The trio had disappeared. "Figures, with N leaving they're probably following close behind."

"Yeah..." May nodded, looking behind her at the crumbling building. Her eyes drawn further over, they widened. "They're gone!"

"Yeah, the Shadow Triad really are gone..." Max muttered, frowning as he crossed his arm. The brunette pinched his shoulder. "Ow! What was that for!"

"Look!" the boy followed her point, looking oddly at her wide eyes. His eyes settling in where her finger pointed, his eyes widened.

"What is it?" Brock asked, looking back at the siblings. They continued to point back, everyone following their point and gasped as their eyes widened.

Leader's minions had disappeared.

"Are you okay, guys?" Leader asked, the crocodile, bird and ghost giving a nod. "Good, I'm glad you're okay. We'll stay here for a little rest, so you can relax." the three figures nodded, moving away and getting comfortable in the natural area. The trainer looked at the purple sphere in one hand, then the red and white sphere in the other, then gave a smirk as he placed them back on his belt.

"Krook!" the man looked intently at the trees where the croc had disappeared, then heard something familiar.

"Hey, Krookodile. Where's Leader?"

"Krookodile, stand down," the trainer called, moving through the trees. As he had thought, the crocodile was there as well as a familiar boy in a red vest. "Jack?"

"Hey, Leader, what's up?" he chuckled, arms behind his head.

"What are you doing here? And what happened to the others?" he asked, crossing his arms.

"Don't worry, we all got away without any trouble. The others split up and said they needed to think alone for a bit. I knew you would give your pokemon a rest before heading to Johto, so I was searching a little bit of everywhere," the boy explained, smiling.

"So, does that mean you're staying with me?" Leader asked, arching an eyebrow.

"We're family, so we stay together. Besides, where else would I go?" he asked, the trainer giving a chuckle.

"I suppose that's true," he replied.

"So let's finish what we started," Jack told him, grinning as he held out his hand. The trainer nodded, shaking it.

"At this point, you're the only one I can really trust," Leader told him, the pair taking their hands back.

"That's right, we're the only two who know," Jack told him. "And that's why I have to help you through this."

"Are you sure you want to continue helping in this plan?" Leader asked, wearing a grin.

"Of course, you could never do this without me," Jack replied, grinning.

"Bringing peace to the pokemon world...It must be done."

"The elimination of humanity."

"So, what do we have?" Iris asked, looking at the older man. Everyone looked impatiently at him as he looked at the machine's digital screen.

"It is an old script on Unova's legends, specifically the legend of the dragons," he replied, the girl smiling.

"Yes! I was right!" she cheered, waving her hands in the air.

"It explains the history of the dragons' involvement with Unova, each paired with a hero but losing control and ravaging the entire region," the man explained, looking more intently at the screen's writing. "Hm, what is this...?"

"What is it?" Gary asked, moving beside the man and reading the screen alongside him. Everyone waited patiently as the pair read the screen, then the pair looked at each other in surprise.

"Did you just read what I did?"

"I certainly did, no mistaking it."

"What did you read? Tell us!" Iris complained impatiently, waving her hands in the air in frustration.

"This script tells that the legend focuses on the two dragons, Reshiram and Zekrom," the group nodded, understanding. "But...It also depicts of something else."

"What do you mean, 'else'?" May asked, looking confused.

"Zekrom and Reshiram are the focuses of the legend, but this says there was something else...Involving a meteor."

"The meteor crashed into Unova as the dragons destroyed the land, and that's about the time when the two dragons stopped and disappeared."

"It crashed into Unova, but this meteor wasn't any ordinary meteor."

"Inside the meteor's core...Rested another dragon."

END

And that's how this story ends. I'm sure you know what the ending means, and I will alter and explain the true legend further into this series. Be sure to check out "Gain Of Trust" next in the Liberated Champions series!