Darkness Has Descended Upon Reborn

[Therrester]

Darkness Has Descended Upon Reborn

Reborn is a land that has reached its tipping point. Its fate balancing on a knife’s edge, the people of Reborn live within a collapsing city, bordering an increasingly poisonous lake, at the heart of a region consumed by chaos and decay. Little do they know that forces operating in the shadows have secretly brought the land to its knees, and they are poised to take the final blow. The battle between the citizens of Reborn and the dark forces assembled against them is reaching its pinnacle stages. And the citizens are losing.

The land calls for a savior; a hero who can turn the tides against the coming evil and bring back the land’s lost prosperity, peace, and tranquility. Fate has answered the land’s plight and has summoned a uniquely gifted individual from a distant land to the heart of the realm. Rising from the slums of the city and reaching up to the city’s rich, they are destined to go beyond Reborn’s desolate walls, reopen the gate, and vanquish the travesties that blanket this world. The land called for a hero, fate has chosen to give it one.

If only they had lived to save it.

On the day of the fated one’s arrival, an explosion goes off in Paridot’s train station, collapsing both building and train, all while killing those on board. The body of the one destined to be savior of the land is never even found. As city officials gather around to start their investigation, shadows within the station start to form. A single entity, born from darkness into destruction, swells into being and immediately accesses the blanket of shadow the plagues the land.

It sees the future the land is being manipulated towards, it sees the hidden hope that hides below the surface, and its sees a destroyed and mangled body lying lost beneath the rubble. Knowing how its existence came to be, it decides to take matters into its own dark hands. A laugh resonates in the station as shadows descend upon it, and the crime scene becomes eerily void of life once more as the force of nature born here dissipates to exact its will. Reborn shall be plunged in darkness, and once the shadows settle and the land breaths no more, a single word shall remain: Erebus.

The land has called for a savior. And in a cruel twist of fate, it has received one.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Greetings everyone and welcome to my Pokemon Reborn dark/ghost dual type run as Erebus, the force of nature who's goal is to cover Reborn with eternal darkness.

This run came to be roughly 35 hours into my first, original run of the game, as I was browsing the forum and saw other people's accounts of their mono/dual runs of the game. While the game is plenty challenging enough with my normal team, I thought it would be a fun added challenge to restart the game (which has HUGE replayability) with my own rules and restrictions. And, after briefly reading other player's accounts of their runs, I slowly came up with a tale I could add on top of Reborn's incredible plot to make this run more fun.

As such, I bring you the tale of Erebus, a being quite like Shade who's born following the death of the "player", who perishes in the explosion as they arrive at Peridot station. Born from darkness and filled with anger, Erebus will gather up an army of dark and ghost pokemon to plunge those who killed him (Team Meteor) and those who failed to save him (The citizen of Reborn) into darkness. As I progress through the game (at a hopefully decent pace), I'll post exactly how Erebus goes about to achieve his goal, hopefully making it fun enough so you all tag along for the ride.

Each post containing the next leg of Erebus' journey will feature a story log similar to the one above, and will most likely end with an account of my current team and what's happening in the tale. Truth be told, I'm still not 100% how I want to handle this, so this will pretty much be a spontaneous thing. It could be great, or it could fail in a raging fire of shame.

But enough babbling, here are the rules I plan on following during this run:

• I can only catch pokemon who are either Dark and/or Ghost typed, or will eventually evolve into a Dark/Ghost type (Unless I need another pokemon in order to obtain one that I need)
• As per Erebus' goals, I will try and catch every single Dark/Ghost pokemon possible (which I believe is 37? I've weeded out those that can't be obtained like Gastly and Deino, but I'm unsure if some events prevent me from catching others, like Frillish who can only be obtained from the Mystery Egg, which is determined by which starter I pick).
• For added fun, after each gym leader I will remove a pokemon from rotation, permanently. This will make it so that my team is always changing and allow me to use all the members of Erebus' army.

I feel like I'm forgetting a rule but that should be it. Hope you all enjoy the ride, and I'll do my best to make this as fun as I can! Expect the first leg of the journey up soon!

Just need to beat Julia first.

Edited July 6, 2015 by Therrester

[Fumble]

Ooh, good luck~ BTW, the starter you choose doesn't determine what your Egg is. It's random, but it is chosen once you pick any starter. I got a Frillish, lucky me!

Mightyena is probably your best bet for Julia, because Bite will take out a huge part of her team. If it has Moxie, even better! Take it from a former Dark Monotype player!

[Lord Regal]

Looks like this is going to be an interesting run. I'll be keeping an eye on it, partially out of interest, partially to see how you handle things differently than Autumneverlast (who's going to be starting a Dark/Ghost run himself), and partially because I'm beginning to formulate the beginnings of my own dual type run and am looking into how things're done. Best of luck!

[nsbwinner2]

BTW you can obtain Gastly, go to the wasteland and you should find a tunnel that lets you fight Spectral Kiki. Once you defeat her, you get Gastly.

[Lord Regal]

BTW you can obtain Gastly, go to the wasteland and you should find a tunnel that lets you fight Spectral Kiki. Once you defeat her, you get Gastly.

I believe that got changed to a Misdreavus in episode 15. Still a strong Ghost pickup though.

[Omega_Ra1der]

*cough* narcissa can attest to that statement. It not like it can destroy the opposition with the proper moves. Right?

[Another Felix]

Good luck with your run.

Fennekin best starter

[Therrester]

Darkness Has Descended - Part One: Peridot Ward

Erebus knew his first order of business was to find a partner; one suitable to help in his dark tasks. He followed the city officials back to their central hub and, questing out through the building, he came across a room full of pokeballs. He gathered his essence and peered into each individual one, looking for one who wold stand at his sides. It wasn't until he reached the last one that he found his partner. Knowing fate has brought these two together, he claimed the pokeball as his own, and called out Nightingale, the warrior of shadows who was destined to lead his army.

Nightingale: Level 5 / Quirky / Ability: Torrent (Note: I don't particularly care for a pokemon's IVs or nature, so I won't go into much detail when listing them. I'll go over any major changes in my team, regarding abilities, moves, or anything else, outside of the story in order to not break immersion.)

Knowing Nightingale harbored a darkness deep within him, Erebus sent him out against a couple local trainers in the building: a young girl called Victoria and an oddly dressed young male called Cain. Nightingale made quick work of both, demonstrating admirable speed and remarkable skills.

Overhearing a commotion in the basement, Erebus slipped his way down, hiding in the shadows on the wall. It was there that he overheard the so-called perpetrator who unleashed him upon Reborn: a young man baring the logo of one Team Meteor. Immediately, he know this was the force poised to bring Reborn to ruin. And Erebus vowed to destroy them, since even though their goals are aligned, they were the ones responsible for his premature death. Plus, Erebus had his own agenda.

He took to the poor streets of the Peridot ward and, together with Nightingale, called for other creatures of the night to join his cause. Climbing his way to the rooftops, Nightingale called out into the dark skies and, slowly, pokemon emerged from the hidden alleyways. Erebus wasted little time in recruiting them.

Twilight / Level 6 / Bashful / Ability: Rattled

Aromort / Level 4 / Jolly / Ability: Keen Eye

His army having grown, Erebus took to the streets and starting attacking everything in sight. They came across a young boy calling himself Fern, who's pokemon fell before Erebus' ever sweeping tide of darkness. Twilight even ran off on his own after a while, returning shortly afterwards with a Purrloin behind him. A runaway with a collar, Erebus mused at how Twilight had found itself a mate and decided to keep the name its previous owner had given it.

Sabrina / Level 10 / Rash / Ability: Unburden

It was then that Erebus noticed city officials gathering at an old powerplant within the city. Sensing Team Meteor within, he led his army behind the citizens, starting an all out brawl with the grunt inside the factory. Not wanting his presence to be immediately known, he hid in the shadows while Nightingale, Aromort, and Twilight made quick work of the Meteor grunt. Fern, the brat he had previously battled earlier, saw his invading army and decided to add his pokemon to the battle, much to Erebus' distaste. He did have his usefulness however, since it was due to the combined team work of Erebus' Army and Fern's Bidew that Nightingale gained enough experience to evolve into a greater warrior. Together, they effortlessly defeated the Aster and Eclipse and chased off the remaining grunts.

When his army turned to destroy the building however, the locals, especially an annoyingly young girl calling herself Julia, took offense and started fighting back. It was then that Erebus made his presence known, and with a resonating laugh shut off all the lights within the factory and scared off the citizens of the city.

Erebus wasn't done however, he wanted to cast the entirety of Peridot into shadow, and he followed Julia back to her gym, which also served as the powerplant for the area. He stormed the building's walls, having Aromort and Sabrina take out the employees and turned the plant's Voltorbs against them, blowing up generators and power cables. An enraged Julia exploded with anger and sent out her team of electric pokemon against Erebus.

However, their progress came to a screeching halt as Nightingale stood in their way. Using his blinding speed and water arts, he singlehandedly took down her Helioptile, Blitzle, and Emolga without taking a single blow. When her Voltorbs and Electrode rolled in, surrounding Nightingale and getting ready to explode, Twilight and Aromort arrived and joined the battle. The former, having evolved during the assault, made quick work of the two Voltorbs, before teaming up with Aromort, who had poisoned the last remaining pokemon. Together, they waited out until Electrode succumed to its wounds, and although they fell during the battle, Electrode fainted before even facing Nightingale.

The battle won, Erebus called for a retreat while the factory exploded behind them. Power across Peridot vanished and the ward was cast into permanent darkness, the first section of Reborn having succumbed to Erebus' incoming tide.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

And there you have it! Part one of my Dark/Ghost dual type. Hope you all enjoyed reading it.

A couple quick administrative bits: when I play casually for a run like this, I never take into account a pokemon's IVs or nature when catching them, although I do try and get a specific ability if I want it. I'll most likely have Nightingale get Protean and maybe give Aftermath to Aromort (Fun fact: His name comes from combining the French words Arome (aroma) and Mort (death)). But all this to say that I'll probably glance over these small bits when I catch new pokemon.

Another thing is that I've decided to change up my initial rules for the run. Originally, I stated that after each gym, I'd permanently leave a pokemon out of rotation, but I fear that that would often leave me with a team of four or five, especially during the early bits of the game. As such, I've changed it so that after each gym, I still have to rotate a member out, it just wont be permanent and I must use someone new. I'll leave myself open to rotating whenever I want during the course of the run, but after any gym, the team needs to see a new face.

Lastly, please let me know where and how I can improve! Do you want me to go into more detail with the gym battles, regarding what strategies I used? Do you want to know what my move sets look like (maybe more towards mid-game, when my team's in the 30s/40s and have a more solid moveset)? Do you want more/less story? A detailed "Here's my current team" section at the end of each post? Let me know and I'll do my best to cater to it!

Edited July 6, 2015 by Therrester

[Lord Regal]

Nice start! I like where you're taking it thus far, and I'm curious to see how you twist later events into you making things worse instead of better. My one suggestion is to offer more on what Erebus' thoughts are. As it is it's very 'Erebus did this' or 'he commanded his army to do this'…giving us an insight into what his motivations and thoughts are behind a particular event would provide a lot of depth of character, and make for a more enjoyable read. A good example here is when he started attacking everything in sight. What motivated him to do that? I know the general concept is he's trying to ruin the Reborn region, but why the random violence when otherwise he seems systematic about it?

Definitely liked the start though, and looking forward to seeing what comes next!

[Therrester]

Nice start! I like where you're taking it thus far, and I'm curious to see how you twist later events into you making things worse instead of better. My one suggestion is to offer more on what Erebus' thoughts are. As it is it's very 'Erebus did this' or 'he commanded his army to do this'…giving us an insight into what his motivations and thoughts are behind a particular event would provide a lot of depth of character, and make for a more enjoyable read. A good example here is when he started attacking everything in sight. What motivated him to do that? I know the general concept is he's trying to ruin the Reborn region, but why the random violence when otherwise he seems systematic about it?

Definitely liked the start though, and looking forward to seeing what comes next!

Thanks for the feedback! You make an excellent point on Erebus' and his current lack of personification. Funnily enough, my first draft had a lot more of his thought process, but I rushed the copy I posted and ended up rewriting it without all of his thoughts. I'll definitely change that within the coming posts though! As for plot, I have a good idea as to how I'll handle everything up to Aya. I'll really looking forward to writing them down so hopefully people will continue to be interested in reading it.

Would double/multiple posting be allowed if there's no comments in between my administrative and/or story posts? I know the forums has a no double posting rule, but I've seen other do it in their runs so I'm unsure. As for the story, I plan on playing some more today. So except the next post reasonable shortly!

[Redo.]

Thanks for the feedback! You make an excellent point on Erebus' and his current lack of personification. Funnily enough, my first draft had a lot more of his thought process, but I rushed the copy I posted and ended up rewriting it without all of his thoughts. I'll definitely change that within the coming posts though! As for plot, I have a good idea as to how I'll handle everything up to Aya. I'll really looking forward to writing them down so hopefully people will continue to be interested in reading it.

Would double/multiple posting be allowed if there's no comments in between my administrative and/or story posts? I know the forums has a no double posting rule, but I've seen other do it in their runs so I'm unsure. As for the story, I plan on playing some more today. So except the next post reasonable shortly!

Had the same problem with my monotype, which I will shamelessly promote here, COME TO READ MY GROUND MONOTYPE GUYS, IT'S AWESOME!

Ejem, yeah, in my case I waited for a comment until I read another one (The Fairy/Fighting one?) and saw that multiple posting was okay, so I did that.

I love your story mate, it's like, so much darker than Reborn (And Reborn IS a dark game on it's own), also, it's obvious than my engrish is not up to par to an actually english written run and my log system just lift a burden out of me, in exchange of quality story-telling.

IMO, I'm following this, best of luck! Like, with few usable Ghost until Aya this will be more of a MonoDark than anything else.

PD: For the Mystery Egg, do the same that I did, check which pokémon is it, if it's Dark/Ghost, keep it a record it, if it's not, well, permabox and it never happened (In my case I got a Frillish, I would give it to you if I could).

Edited July 8, 2015 by Redo.

[Therrester]

Darkness Has Descended - Part Two: Obsidia Slums

The streets of Lapis ward were eerily quiet the rainy night that Peridot succumbed to darkness. The night came with a commanding presence, having forced the two gangs plaguing the ward to retreat into the depths of their hideouts, and making the few citizens to who preferred to be out in the dark stay indoors out of fright. Even the wild pokemon sought shelter, avoiding directly moving around the ward, for it seemed as though nothing could survive, even the slight fall of the rain having gone silent.

A lone light flickered in the darkness of the ward, coming from the highest window of the ward’s tallest building. When it flashed, it blinded even the night, and if anyone was outside to pay attention they could hear the distant, chilling echo of a scream piercing the rainfall.

The citizens of Reborn were too caught up in the chaos engulfing the city to notice that Peridot had fallen. The power shut completely off, sending the ward into pure blackness, the only light coming from the blaze produced by the exploded gym. Hidden by the blinding rays from the window in Lapis, a dark silhouette watched as a small army of Dark pokemon retreated from the flames, the rain already dowsing the damage behind them. It observed as the man leading the army seemingly disappeared into nothingness, becoming one with the darkness.

And in the dark, eerie silence of the night, the doctor smiled.

Erebus felt more than watched the rain put out the fire caused by the explosion. A creature of darkness, he could tell when the light was overcome and felt himself becoming slightly more powerful with every dying coal. As the night consumed all, he thought back to the broken mingled body beneath the train station; the being that had once been him, and the destiny that had been his to claim but had now been robbed and stolen. Those from the city had failed him, having failed to stop the menace that had grown among them, the menace that had claimed his life. He had vowed to get his revenge and he would do so by creating a new destiny, one build upon shadows and darkness.

His army in tow, he ventured out back towards the building where he had partnered with Nightingale, the place where everything had begun, and he sought out his next target. As his pokemon grew stronger from fighting the trainers on the bridge, he used the shadows to cast his presence north, learning the layout of the city and seeking a place where his wrath could be brought upon next

.

Immediately he recoiled, having felt a presence much like his own hidden deep within the shadows of the night. Instinctively he knew where it came from: a lone building at the very top of the city; a desolate place consumed by death, one he would have gladly called home. And during this questing, between him and the lone shade high next to the mountain, he felt the presence of another; not another shade for this one was most certainly alive, but someone with a heart so cold it could chill the fires of hell themselves. And what made him paused was that they both know that Erebus is in the city.

Knowing he isn’t strong enough to face either of them, Erebus instead quested east, venturing in the night. What he found there was much more pleasing. It was a ward much smaller than Peridot, but build at a much higher elevation. Almost half of it was comprised of only bridges, most of which had already collapsed, while the rest seemed on the verge of joining any second. Before sending Peridot into ruin, he had heard rumors of events unfolding in this Obsidia Ward, most likely brought forth by Team Meteor, and he decided to check if they had any truth to them. He knew he’d have to be discrete in the ward's destruction however, for he had found an audience.

Upon entering the ward, he immediately saw the root of the problem plaguing the ward. A bunch of plants had sprouted from cracks beneath the city and were destroying everything that came close around them. Most of the citizens had sought shelter, but the street were littered with the bodies of those who had failed to join them. Citizens and city officials alike moved quickly through the streets, trying to get the invasion under control and Erebus watched with glee as the plants fought back, preventing them from doing their jobs.

Questing out in the dark, Erebus felt a great power surge coming from the central park of the ward, however damage done to the streets prevented his army from reaching it. He instead sought a different route, heading south towards the ward’s hidden slums. He encountered the girl, Victoria, that Nightingale had battled back at the Hall and upon seeing his small forces, she took it upon herself to block his way into the slums.

She didn’t stand a chance. The combined effort of Sabrina, Aromort, and Nightingale, all three of which had grown far stronger than her team due to the events in the electric powerplant, made short work of her pokemon and the small band successfully entered the slums.

Reminding them of home within the streets of Peridot, Twilight and Sabrina happily took charge, leading the army deeper into the hidden alleyways. As their quest took them above and below the ward, Erebus took note of the infrastructure around him. He discovered that the reason the plants were sprouting across the ward’s entirety was because a vast system of roots had taken over the foundation of the streets. Dark, brown greenery clung to the walls, creating a vast web of roots that pulsed with life.

Erebus was brought out of his reverie by a distant sound. Looking around, he saw a wild Pancham following a box that was seemingly moving on its own. Intrigued, he followed the duo around the slums, noting how the Pancham observed the box with incredible patience. However, this left it open to attack, and he smirked when something jumped out of the box, landing a swift hit, and ran off in the distance.

The Pancham’s reaction was expected, but equally intriguing; she bellowed with rage and attacked the box with a mighty punch. And in that moment, Erebus knew this Pancham harboured a darkness within her. So he caught it and named her Korlat.

Korlat / Level 12 / Rash / Ability: Iron Fist

Eventually, Sabrina and Twilight led them out of the slums, although not before having encountered a pokemon gang of its own. Recognizing the pokemon that had hit her, Korlat found herself consumed with anger and attacked, Aromort following closely behind her. Battled exploded in the slums and, due to Aromort’s poison and swift hits from both Nightingale and Sabrina, the battle finished in Erebus’ victory. He was more than pleased to see that Sabrina’s experience had paid off, making her evolve in the aftermath of the battle.

.

Knowing Obsidia Park was before them, Erebus was about to make his way north when his attention was once again caught by another powerful presence. Feeling no malicious intent coming from this one, he instead turned south, and exited Obsidia.

Erebus had just arrived at Reborn's Coral Ward.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

So this one is much longer than the first. I was in a creative mood and decided to add a much larger story element to the part. Especially given how little actually happens this time around, I wanted to try and make it interesting. I'll most likely stick with this style of writing for a while, since the first post was extremely rushed and I didn't like it as much I would have had I taken my time with it. Plus, I love writing like this, so hopefully you all enjoy the read! Again, let me know what you think and I'll try and incorporate your feedback!

Had the same problem with my monotype, which I will shamelessly promote here, COME TO READ MY GROUND MONOTYPE GUYS, IT'S AWESOME!

Ejem, yeah, in my case I waited for a comment until I read another one (The Fairy/Fighting one?) and saw that multiple posting was okay, so I did that.

I love your story mate, it's like, so much darker than Reborn (And Reborn IS a dark game on it's own), also, it's obvious than my engrish is not up to par to an actually english written run and my log system just lift a burden out of me, in exchange of quality story-telling.

IMO, I'm following this, best of luck! Like, with few usable Ghost until Aya this will be more of a MonoDark than anything else.

PD: For the Mystery Egg, do the same that I did, check which pokémon is it, if it's Dark/Ghost, keep it a record it, if it's not, well, permabox and it never happened (In my case I got a Frillish, I would give it to you if I could).

I'm glad you're enjoying the story thus far! I promise to check yours out as soon as I have another couple of hours to myself again.

Edited July 8, 2015 by Therrester

[Lord Regal]

Somehow I missed that this had been put up yesterday. Another entertaining read, and I do appreciate you using my suggestion to put more of Erebus' feelings in there. Directing yourself east to avoid Corey and Shade was a nice touch, I very much appreciated that. I don't want to influence your writing, but there's something I hope you cover in your next post (which you will reach, I can guarantee that), but regardless, I feel this'll still be a fun run to read. Your writing style fits the tone well…keep it up!

[Therrester]

I don't want to influence your writing, but there's something I hope you cover in your next post (which you will reach, I can guarantee that)

Oof, now you're making me nervous! I plan on writing the next little bit tomorrow evening, so hopefully I end up touching upon what you hinted at. I'm honestly at a lost as to what it could be, so no pressure! Thank you kindly for the generous words, as always!

[Lord Regal]

Oof, now you're making me nervous! I plan on writing the next little bit tomorrow evening, so hopefully I end up touching upon what you hinted at. I'm honestly at a lost as to what it could be, so no pressure! Thank you kindly for the generous words, as always!

It wasn't my intent to cause pressure or anything haha…it's just something I think would make for a nice touch is all. Story won't be hurt if you skip over it, so please don't feel as though anything major will be detracted from your work either way. Looking forward to the next bit though!

[Therrester]

Darkness Has Descended - Part 3:

Coral Ward was a quiet, empty, and desolate place. Most of the buildings seemed abandoned, with cracks running through their walls and most windows laying battered and broken. Debris was scattered across the floor and a thick layer of dust lingered in the air, giving the ward a misty haze and making it impossible to see further than a dozen feet in front of you. The air dulled out the sound, making the ward seem empty and void of life. Erebus felt at home.

His troops noticed the emptiness as well and relaxed, happy to be have a small break after constant fighting. Erebus allowed himself to mix with the shadows, disappearing from mortal eyes. One with the ward, he was able to confirm that very little life lived here, and that the state of the ward itself was somehow even worse than his initial impression. One of the buildings was already fully collapsed and covered in shadow, a sign of the ward’s abandonment.

Erebus liked it here. This was one ward he would not destroy.

A powerful presence still loomed in the distance, near the water’s edge, and he was there in an instant, his pokemon tracking and following him in the darkness. There, he found someone who looked vaguely familiar, a boy of purple who was busy rescuing a small pokemon stranded on the offshore lighthouse. However, it was the one behind him who had his attention.

She was a girl of blue, with clothes of varying blue shades and aquamarine hair that fell down her back. While she appeared as just another part of the colorful spectrum of individuals living in Reborn, there was a powerful presence about her, one that troubled Erebus. Immediately he knew he wouldn’t be able to defeat her.

The sound of his approaching army made the boy turn in their direction. He simply stared at the army of five, glancing from one pokemon to the next until his eyes fell on Nightingale. Immediately he smirked, pokeball in hand, and yelled something about a rematch.

The battle was over quickly. Korlat made for the perfect distraction while the main powerhouses of the army, Twilight and Aromort, took advantage of their opponent’s openings. Nightingale directed the battle; Erebus wanted him to gain leading experience, in case of the off chance the two were ever separated in the future, and he wanted to keep a watchful eye on the girl, in case she tried to pull anything.

His team defeated, the boy in purple left the ward in a haste, vowing that he would one day defeat the small army. Erebus made a quick note of the boy’s oddity, before drawing his attention back to the person still standing on the peer.

The way she looked at him made him uneasy. Although he was mixed in with the ward’s shadow, thereby surrounding her and being everywhere at once, he felt like she was able to see him in his entirety. He was so caught up in that odd sensation that he wasn’t prepared when she spoke.

“I know what you did to Peridot Ward.”

This was the first time that, since his birth, anyone had spoken directly to him. It did nothing but added to the uneasiness Erebus was currently feeling. Twilight growled. She ignore him.

“Do you have a name? I’d like to know who it is I’m addressing.”

Now she was asking him to speak, something he hadn’t done since before the accident. At first, he felt as though he wasn’t strong enough to reply, he was still figuring out his newly found powers, but he soon discovered that it came easily to him. The reply came out fluidly and without effort.

“Erebus”

To her, it seemed like his voice came from the shadows itself, projected from every direction at once. His voice was nothing more than a whisper, but, had they been talking in a large room, it would have carried enough power to blow out all of the room’s candles. With enough force, it would have shattered glass.

“Erebus” she repeated, “Darkness. That is what I sense from you, endless darkness.” She paused. “But I also feel something more...”

Erebus didn’t reply, and she made no attempt to continue. She simply turned and stared out into the water. And yet, he still felt like she was looking straight at him.

“Despite everything I have, status, a good education, the love of my life, everything still feels so grey. The world itself is grey. Even you, Erebus, are grey. There’s a lot of darkness in

you, but there’s also a bit of light.”

She stayed quiet for a time, simply staring out towards the rolling waves, before looking back at Nightingale and every other pokemon before him. And then she locked eyes with Erebus, who had unknowingly taken his humanoid form beside Nightingale.

“I won’t try and stop you. I should, for what you’ve done in Peridot; for what you plan on doing to the city. But I won’t. Because despite your dark nature, there’s still a bit of light in you.”

Erebus didn’t know how to reply, so he simply stared back at her, a blank stare that remained fixed with her gaze. After a moment, she started walking, avoiding his pokemon while heading towards the exit back into Obsidia.

“I’m heading back to Obsidia; I’m going to try and save it.” She said, her figure a haze in the fog. “You’re welcome to help.”

And with no further comment, she faded into the night.

Erebus stood there, puzzled, and unsure about both himself and the girl who had just departed. Before he had been so sure of everything, of his need to cause destruction and bring darkness to Reborn. Before it had felt… justified.

He didn’t know how long it was before he made his way back to Obsidia, the minutes had felt like hours. But despite his return to chaos, with the rampaging roots causing damage to the ward around him, he was glad to leave the quiet Coral Ward behind him. It wasn’t long before he made his way to Obsidia Park, where the cause of Obsidia’s trouble was found.

Before him stood a giant machine, within which a Tangrowth had mutated and grown into a monstrosity of a pokemon. The creature’s tentacles descended into the ground where, as Erebus now understood it, they had created a web of roots that solidly gripped the city and had sprouted onto the ward’s streets, causing nothing but mayhem. On both sides of the machine were two giant pair of roots that were slowly crushing two individuals that were trapped within them. One of them was a city official, one of the three that had invaded the factory in Peridot. The other was the girl he had just talked too.

Before him, looking directly at his army, was a third girl, this one dressed entirely in black. Her presence mystified Erebus. It seemed, to him, like it was three distinct individuals trying to clash into a single entity; almost as though they had all attempted a rebirth, much like the one that had created him, and that it had gone horribly wrong.

The entity was speaking to him but Erebus simply ignored her. Instead, his gaze was focused on the girl who had talked to him in Coral Ward, who was now being crushed by the roots and slowly losing her life. The girl in black, not liking that she was being ignored, directed the Tangrowth towards Erebus’ army, who sprang into battle.

Their tactic was simple, but effective. Korlat went first, avoiding the first set of attacks, while Sabrina started kicking up sand into the air, hindering the Tangrowth’s visibility. Meanwhile, Aromort made large screeching noises, creating openings in the mutate pokemon’s defenses while Twilight launched his powerful attacks.

Although strong, the Tangrowth couldn’t keep up with the onslaught of attacks and, after succumbing to all of its wounds, it perished in the middle of the park. As it fell, the roots plaguing the immediate surroundings, as well as those that had sprouted across the ward, slowly dried up and turned a sluggish brown as they died.

The girl who was one but also three disappeared shortly after the Tangrowth’s defeat.

The two city officials who had been trapped broke free from their prison, the roots crushing them having withered and died, and the one with whom Erebus wasn’t familiar started making her way northwards, calmly reassuring the citizens who had gathered nearby. But the girl in blue stood there, staring at the shadow that was Erebus, with a ghost of a smile on her lips.

Erebus’ mind was in shambles as he looked back at her. She had been unable to save Obsidia, and instead Erebus had saved her. Despite all the power she possessed, she had been powerless when it came to saving the ward.

…Just like how she had been unable to stop the train carrying Erebus from exploding.

Rage consumed him. Rage for the battered body that had once been, and for the destiny that had been lost. And his rage was nothing compared to his desire to seek revenge on her, the city, and all of Reborn. The girl immediately felt it, her hidden smile gone as she directed the citizens northwards, trying to save them from what was about to happen.

Seeing nothing but black, Erebus directed Nightingale, who jumped from the shadows and sent a ball of pressurized water towards the PULSE machine. It condensed under the force of the attack, before contracting and exploding, lighting all the lifeless roots around it on fire. The shock was felt across the entire ward as the complex system of roots that had grown and flourished underneath Obsidia, grown by the mutated Tangrowth, also exploded into a blazing flame.

The resulting force cracked and destroyed what remained of the ward’s foundation, collapsing Obsidia onto itself. Streets cracked open as large crevices were formed where they used to travel, buildings fell as the floor beneath them gave away, and people rushed northwards, towards Onyx Ward, for safety.

And as Obsidia succumbed to a different form of darkness, consumed by a loud cacophony of collapsing rubble, Erebus’ laugh was heard above everything else as he followed them, wanting nothing more than to cause more destruction.

* * * * * * * * * *

And here we have part 3 of Erebus' tale. Longer still than the other two, this one brought out the inner novelist in me. Hopefully that didn't change the tone of the tale too much. I really enjoyed writing this one, the idea had been forming on my commute all day and I'm glad with how it turned out. Thus far, Amaria's my favorite gym leader so far (from the little that I've seen of her - remember, I've only just arrived at the circus in my normal playthrough), and I'm glad to got to flesh her out a bit in my story. I might do the same with other characters, I already plan on doing so with the doctor, so I trust it'll be well received.

Hopefully you all enjoyed reading it! And if you have any comments, criticism that's constructive or otherwise, I'd love to hear it!

EDIT: To those who keep track of my progress through my signature, I've decided to move the run ahead of the written part of the tale while I work out the specifics of the story. I'm keeping track of the strategies I use for each major boss battle as well as any big happenings so I can incorporate them in the story at the appropriate moment. Writing a story chunk takes a good amount of time, as well as some degree of concentration, and sometimes I like sitting back and playing the game instead. Sorry for any delays! But don't worry, I'll do my best to not let the gap get too big! I'll get Onyx and Flobot out tomorrow!

Edited July 12, 2015 by Therrester

[Therrester]

Darkness has Descended: Part 4 - Onyx Ward:

Chaos had erupted throughout the entirety of Onyx Ward. Normally populated with the city’s middle class and the region’s students who attended the prestigious school, it suddenly found itself afflux with the citizens who were escaping the collapsing Obsidia Ward. People clogged the streets as they tried to find shelter, breaking windows and tearing down doors in order to hide under a solid roof and find a semblance of safety. Children cried while their parents screamed, and the ward’s beggars were huddled together in the hidden alleyways, whispering that the end of the world was upon them.

Yet all this noise was buried underneath the endless sound of collapsing rubble as Obsidia feel onto itself. Streets were torn in half and rooftops exploded upon colliding with their building’s foundation. Shadows and dust filled the air, and, if one were to stop and attempt to ignore the sound of mayhem that was orchestrated around them, they could vaguely hear a sinister laugh, echoing in the distance.

Florinia, despite the injuries she had obtained mere moments ago in Obsidia Park, had rushed to Onyx at Amaria’s request. When she turned to see if her fellow Gym leader had followed her, all she saw was a giant fissure in place of where the road had been. She pressed on, knowing the girl would be safe, and contacted her brother, ordering him to open the doors to the school and let everyone in.

She soon found herself swallowed by the sea of panicked citizens and struggled to make her way ever northwards. She had to form a perimeter and raise the school’s defenses, for she had seen the army of darkness that had gathered and she knew with absolute certainty that it was heading their way. Nothing else mattered than stopping that incoming wave and preventing Onyx from becoming like Obsidia.

She eventually reached the school’s front gates, and rushed in. She was glad to see that her brother had listened, having awoken the students from their sleep and rushed them to form a perimeter in an attempt to thwart the incoming tide. She took over the task of handling the citizens, ensuring that they made it safely into the school.

In the distance, she saw the approaching pokemon battle through her defences, defeating student after student. Along the way, she watched in horror as their numbers grew, her enemy having hatched a Cacnea egg and adding its strength to their team.

Sahaar / Level 1 / Lax / Ability: Water Absorb

She turned away, making sure that the citizens that were huddled within the school were safe and secure. As an added security measure, she opened the hidden back doors, allowing them to flush back out into the city, at the very back of the ward, on the off chance something happened to the school in the upcoming battle. When she glanced back, she saw the dark pokemon had reached her brother Fern, and the two were locked in a vicious battle. She knew with certainty that her brother would also fall, his forces being outnumbered two to one, and readied herself upon her desert field.

Fern soon found himself defeated, and the army pressed forward, finally reaching Florinia. She threw all her pokeballs at once summoning forth her team in an instant. They stood together, six wide, Onyx Ward’s last line of defence.

“Your team is surely weakened after all that battling. My hypothesis is certain, this will result in your defeat.”

Her team exploded against the army of dark pokemon, the resulting clash bringing her opponent’s pace to a grinding halt. Each individual member of her team took on a single member of the shade’s troops with Florinia confident her pokemon would prevail. Her team started off strong, each launching powerful attacks, most of which landed. Victory seemed certain, and her hypothesis was coming true: the school would not fall.

To her great dismay however, things started taking a change for the worst. The opposing Mightyena howled, a sound that echoed through the walls, and redoubled its efforts against her Maractus, its strong jaw suddenly doing more damage on her pokemon. Her Breloom was took busy covering its ears due to the opposing Stunky’s screeches, who then used the opening to land powerful slashes. Ferroseed proved the worst; despite its strong spike-riddled armor, the Pancham it was fighting against continued attacking it with strong attacks, despite the gashes that kept forming on its hands. Her Cacnea, clashing with an opposing Cacnea of its own, came out victorious after sustaining little damage, her first victory of the evening. But it too fell as the enemy’s Liepard took to the battle, having defeated her Cottonee after blinding it numerous sand attacks.

All eyes fell on her Cradily, who was too busy battling with a Frogadier. She nearly cried out when she saw it wasn’t managing to land many attacks, since the blue frog kept disappearing in puffs of smoke, effectively blinding her ace. Soon enough, the army regrouped and, following another mighty yell from the large black dog, the team of six pounced on her remaining pokemon, effectively defeating it and bringing it down.

Florinia fell to her knees, stunned and unable to comprehend that all her calculations had gone wrong. She had failed; the school had fallen. She remained there, transfixed, as a dark form took shape in the middle of the room, a ghostly smile stuck to its lips, and a deep booming laugh resonated through the battleground.

Erebus quickly made his way from the burning building behind him; it casted too much light, and he preferred being at home in the dark. He briefly thought back to the girl in blue from before, the one from Coral Ward, and the words she had said that had caused him doubt. He scoffed at them. He had utterly destroyed one ward. He had crippled another. It was empowering. He knew the girl was still alive, he could still feel her presence buried as strongly as even, there beneath the fallen ward. He knew she’d eventually make her way out. Maybe one day he’d run into her again. He allowed himself to briefly wonder what she’d see in him then.

But memories of the recent attack came rushing back, and he smiled. Rage had consumed him entirely and he felt addicted. Nothing felt better than feeling all that power coursing through him and knowing that it was his own will that judged whether it was used or not. The destruction made him feel alive and made him grow stronger.

He gathered his team and slowly made his way back to the center of the city. Biding his time; waiting for the next moment to strike.