The mysterious and vaguely evil Father Winter spoke, and Oscar responded with a hoarse laugh. "I don't think even you can fix this gunk in my body. Thanks for the weird portal though." Oscar did not question how Father Winter was able to open such a path, for all he knew the fucker was the avatar or Arceus or some shit. It was not his business regardless, but whatever was on the other side of this portal very much was. Genesect stepped forward, Oscar's limp body dangling with every stomp. He assumed that his long time collection was about to be complete, little did he know of the incredible hardships that awaited him beyond this inexplicable portal.

Oscar and Genesect star in...

The Alternate Horror:

Another Time, Another Destiny

Part 1: Emergence

Oscar saw only a brief flash of light when Genesect entered the portal, and as they emerged on the other side he would fin a very familiar space. Which is to say, they would emerge into the exact same cavern in the exact same cave. Oscar tilted his head, "Well, I don't know what I was expecting but it wasn't to go absolutely nowhere." After a quick scan, he at the very least picked up on certain differences that would indicate that this was indeed a different cavern.

For one, Father Winter was nowhere to be found. Secondly the hue of the rocks that formed the cave itself were a different color. They should be a basic gray or brown, but here they were a light purple. Peculiar, but that was the least of Oscar's concerns right now. Where was his so-called 'prize'? This room was very clearly empty. Oscar had half a mind to head back through the portal right away and ask Father Winter what he was intended to do, but when Oscar looked behind him he would find the portal to be gone. In its place was just a swirling circle of black smoke.

"What the fuck!?" Oscar's exclamation scratched his throat, invoking a coughing fit. Genesect picked up on its master's distress and marched toward the nearby cave wall. It picked its master up off its back, turning to place him against the wall. Oscar maneuvered himself to lean in a sitting position, his coughing echoing across the cave. As his fit died down, Oscar groaned resentfully. "Fucker stranded us here. This is why I never trust holiday icons."

Genesect lifted its head, picking up sound from the nearby cavern entrance. Oscar's fit very likely caught the attention of--something. Noticing the approaching presence as well, Oscar cleared his throat and took out a folded up device from his coat pocket. Unfolding it revealed the device to be a headset with a slender microphone and a shaded visor. Oscar had this gadget made so that he could see through Genesect's eyes or communicate with it from anywhere rather than having to be at a computer. It had not been tested yet, but there was no time like the present.

Oscar donned the headset and turned it on. "Whatever, maybe we can still find what we came for. Go explore, I'll stay here and watch the portal. Maybe it will open again." Genesect clearly objected to just leaving Oscar here, it shook its head vigorously in protest. Whatever had heard Oscar's coughing was growing ever closer, its heavy footsteps becoming louder by the second. Oscar sighed, "Stop being a baby, I'll just slow you down. I'm better off hiding out in here, now go before whatever's approaching sees me." Genesect still objected internally, but it did not hesitate a second time. It darted toward the cavern entrance to face the encroaching threat.

It got only a few feet from the cavern when the approaching visitor was made clear. It was a Buzzwole, massive in size and clearly hostile. Seeing through Genesect's eyes, Oscar cracked a smile. "Lucky us! Knock this thing out, maybe there's a way to catch it further in." Genesect did not register its master's request. As soon as it saw the Ultra Beast, its programing kicked in. Words flashed on the inside of its visor.

Priority Target Acquired

Classification: Ultra Beast

Terminate Immediately

Genesect Downloaded the Buzzwole's defenses, adjusting its own power to counter its armor-like muscles. Genesect's mind held everything Team Rocket knew about Ultra Beast Exobiology, so the adjustment was both simple and instantaneous. The Buzzwole charged, letting loose a burst of pure strength as it flew like a missile toward Genesect. Genesect charged its cannon and--

Light erupted down the tunnel. Genesect's Techno Blast blew through the Buzzwole, blowing it into pieces. Oscar slapped his forehead in bewilderment, aghast as he watched the Buzzwole chunks splatter against the cave walls. "What the fuck dude!? ARUGH!" Oscar pinched the bridge of his nose, suddenly recalling that Genesect is programed to kill Ultra Beasts on sight. "God damn Cadis and his forethought. Yeah whatever, bring me a chunk of that---thing." Genesect did as he was told, gathering a large slab of muscle and flying back to Oscar's position. It placed the slab near Oscar's leg, oblivious to its master's rage. Oscar sighed as he pulled the slab closer, undeterred by its disgusting texture. Maybe Lulu Flint could do something with it in the Rocket lab. "You did...well, Genesect. Keep it up, go further into the cave and stay vigilant. There might be more nearby." Genesect nodded, charging off to explore more of this bizarre Mirror of Granite Cave.

Part 2: Reflection

This cave was incredibly peculiar. It had the exact same layout as Granite Cave, but everything was reversed. It made navigation simple at least, having just finished exploring the cave only an hour prior. Both Oscar and Genesect could not shake off the feeling of uncanniness; this environment was both very familiar yet incredibly alien. Perhaps it was the strange color of the rock walls, or odd reflected way the cave was laid out, but it left a dire foreboding in both of their minds.

Oscar said nothing as Genesect explored, not wishing to distract it in case danger appeared. Genesect was more or less looking for the exit, as otherwise it had no real purpose in its exploration. There was nothing else to do until the portal reopened--if it reopened. Perhaps its aimless quest would bear fruit, though whether that fruit could be actually beneficial remained to be seen.

Genesect heard the sounds of a struggle near what it believed to be the entrance to Granite Cave. It pushed itself against the wall, cautiously moving forward as the tunnel it was traversing opened up into a large entry-cavern. Peering out, it would witness what seemed to be armored blue men fighting off a familiar Ultra Beast. It was very tall and lanky, with a spiked head and tendril appendages. Oscar immediately recognized it as a Xurkitree. The cavern had the scattered remains of various pokemon, and it would seem these humanoids were left with no other choice but to fend off the electric menace barehanded.

One seemed to have the bright idea of pulling out a Beast Ball, perhaps intending to end the fight by catching their opponent. He did not get the chance to through it, as the Xurkitree picked up the man and split him in half with its razor sharp claws. Blue blood went everywhere, confirming that these men were indeed Megalopolans. Oscar clicked his tongue as he pondered their appearance, wherever this was the Megalopolans and Ultra Beasts were clearly still walking free. It was curious though that this Xurkitree was not subservient to the Megalopolans--now why would that be?

The remaining Megalopolan turned to run, a grave mistake in his strategy to survive. The Xurkitree easily smashed him into the ground, a short spark from its arm frying him within seconds. Moments later, the Xurkitree's head would explode in a mixture of light and electricity. Genesect had fired a well aimed Techno Blast, which made quick work of the tentacled menace while it was distracted by the Megalopolans. Genesect began to make its way toward the exit, but Oscar stopped it.

"Wait a second, see if that Megalopolan that was split in half still has the Beast Ball." Genesect quickly located the bisected Megalopolan and marched to his position. Sure enough, clasped within his dead hands was the unused Beast Ball. Oscar chuckled, "Store that in your back, we might need it later." Genesect did so and proceeded to leave the cave.

As Genesect stepped outside, what it saw forced it to stop and take it in. What was supposed to be Dewford was gone, the entire town had been leveled with only the foundations of buildings remaining. In the distance, where the Dewford gym was sat, was an absolutely enormous structure that towered high into the clouds. It glowed with an unnatural blue light that ran down its structure into tubes that dove into massive pits that surrounded the tower's base. That alone was shocking, but it paled in comparison to what sat directly before Genesect.

Spanning hundreds upon hundreds of feet forward were countless pods of various sizes. The clear glass containers made their contents easily known: they were pokemon strapped to wires and tubes that ran through the pods and into the ground. While Genesect found this curious at best, Oscar considered the sight immensely unsettling. That tower clearly had Megalopolan architecture, and those pods--they looked just like the Infinity Energy device Walsh had demonstrated during a Rocket meeting not so long ago. Oscar twitched as the horror of what he was witnessing settled in. Was this some sort of alternate world where the Megalopolans rule? What were they using this tower for? To store infinity energy? To harness it? To pull it from the very earth? The technology was both awe inspiring and absolutely disturbing--though speaking of inspiring...

An idea popped into Oscar's head, a dark one that could prove very useful to Rocket should he be able to return. "Genesect take a slow pan around, I want to take some pictures." Starting from the left, Genesect slowly began to pan across the scene, and Oscar would slick a button on the side of his headset to start taking snapshots of what Genesect was seeing. Occasionally he would give a few directions like "Hold right there..." or "Zoom in on that pod..." with his final instruction being "Get a zoom in shot of the tower." It was his final instruction because he would not be given the chance to give any more as Genesect saw something flying toward it in the distance.

It had emerged from the tower, launching into the sky as a spec before flying at incredible speeds toward Genesect's position. As it drew near, Genesect struggled to comprehend what was approaching. When he noticed it himself, Oscar took several snapshots before resigning to simply watching what would unfold. The mysterious creature was massive in size, probably as big as a Tyranitar. Yet Genesect still could not identify it--not until it was right in front of it.

The figure landed with immense force, cracking the ground beneath it and kicking dust into the air. As the dust faded, red eyes peered toward Genesect--and soon a familiar figure would take shape. As Oscar realized what the creature was, he nearly choked with shock. He began to shiver, babbling as his mind attempted to comprehend what he was seeing. "Thi-thi-this is impossible! There's no way they could--how!?"

It was another Genesect. Except it was huge, and looked as if it had several upgrades. It had two cannons on each arm, and its back capsule was now a huge armored shield. Its metal plating seemed thicker than rudimentary steel, most likely outfitted with Megalopolan metals. The bizarro-Genesect's eyes flashed--and after a moment it would speak in a deep robotic voice.

Dimensional Anomaly Located
Prepare for Termination

Part 3: Fate

Sweat rolled down Oscar's brow as those horrific words rang through his headset. "Genesect, get back here now. That's an order." Oscar's voice was shaky, he had no idea what this thing was but by its appearance alone he could tell that it would annihilate Genesect. Genesect Analyzed its opponent, and was rather shocked that it could not scan its vitals. This fact convinced it that Oscar was right, this was no time to fight. Genesect turned, and to its and Oscar's horror the Alternate Genesect was right behind it.

"WHAT!?"

The Alternate smashed Genesect with its arm-cannon, sending it flying back with incredible force. Genesect shaved its claws into the ground, attempting to bring itself to a stop before it was thrown too far. Its velocity was so great that Genesect still slid several feet before coming to a stop. Warning lights blinked across Genesect's visor, but it did not have the time to read them before the Alternate came in for another attack. Its speed was unreal, Oscar had always thought that it was impossible to out-speed Genesect but this thing did so with ease. How were they going to get out of this?

Genesect had to make a choice within the fraction of a second. This creature was not going to let it escape, so it could either lay down and die or fight for its life. It chose the latter. Genesect Downloaded the Alternate's speed and power, allowing it to jump out of the way of its next blow. Genesect was fast, but its exoskeleton creaked trying to match the speed of the Alternate. Doing so for too long would cause long term damage to its innerworkings.

Genesect ran through several scenarios as the Alternate turned to face it. Most either ended with Genesect getting decked or the Alternate dodging whatever Genesect threw at it. Except...

The Alternate charged, and Genesect waited until the last moment to make its move. An Electric Web burst from Genesect's cannon, wrapping itself across its hurtling foe like a net. Genesect sidestepped as the Alternate tumbled forward, getting nicked in the leg by its opponent's strike. Even a glancing blow left its mark, sending arching scorch marks up Genesect's leg. Nevertheless, the Alternate would be temporarily subdued within the net.

By temporarily I mean for about two seconds. Genesect was aware that its hulking foe would easily break out of its trap, so it got to work immediately. Genesect's cannon charged for a Techno Blast, and it was one hundred percent positive that it would hit its mark. As the Alternate broke free however, it would counter Genesect within a fraction of a second. The shield-like plating on its back would suddenly swing forward, absorbing Genesect's immense beam entirely.

Oscar gasped, it had never seen anything tank a Techno Blast before. This thing was unreal, he could not fathom any way for Genesect to survive this encounter. Genesect was not nearly as worried as its master. It did not have the capacity to worry; in battle it was kill or be killed, and Genesect fully intended to fight until one of them was scrap. The Alternate's shield returned to its back, and it lifted its arm cannons for a Techno Blast of its own.

Genesect sprang to the side, overheating its body in order to properly reach the speed required to dodge the Alternate's beams (Flame Charge). Said beams arched past Genesect, sending ripples across its armor even from a distance. As the beams impacted against a set of pods, they would detonate in an explosion so massive that it would wipe out hundreds of other pods around them. If Genesect had been hit, it would have been done for.

Genesect's body was glowing a bright orange as it skid to a stop, its body nearly molten as it overclocked to maintain the speed of the Alternate. It used this to its advantaged, unleashing a barrage of red-hot Magnet Bombs as its foe recoiled from its attack. The homing bombs hit straight on, and their resulting explosions seemed to actually stagger the steel goliath. Its recovery was quick though, and it turned to immediately attack Genesect once more. Genesect did not intend to give it the space to make another ranged attack, it dove in to deliver a flurry of Fell Stingers.

The Alternate was not surprised, and the two began exchanging blows at a speed too fast for Oscar to follow. Most of their strikes did not hit, but the ones that did left quite an impact. Scorch marks seared their way across Genesect's armor, a mere taste of what a true impact would bring. Genesect's own strikes seemed to leave minor scratches upon the Alternate's armor, but given that this same armor was designed to be impenetrable this was quite a feat. On the surface, it seemed that Genesect was doomed to falter beneath the overwhelming power of its evil clone. Yet Genesect had one major advantage that the Alternate lacked, and that was its size.

It became very clear that Genesect was making more and more direct hits. Despite its speed, the Alternate was simply too large to dodge every one of Genesect's attacks. It seemed to sense this, and pushed back to disengage from their close combat. This was exactly what Genesect wanted. It let loose another Flame Charge, this time impacting against its retreating opponent. Genesect wrapped itself around its opponent's massive body and shoved its cannon directly into its face. The Alternate brought down its shield, intending to smash through Genesect's cannon before it could fire. No dice, Genesect had already Downloaded its defense. As Genesect's cannon charged, the Alternate made a surprising statement.

Well played

Genesect's Techno Blast surged against the Alternate's face, melting through and frying its circuits. By the time the attack was through, the Alternate had gone completely inactive. Its massive body slumped to its knees, and Genesect fell upon its back. In the glow of a battle well fought, Genesect felt the toll on its body. Its innards were cooked pretty badly, and all of its limbs were twitching as they struggled to stay connected to their joints. It needed to get back to the sub for repairs asap.

Oscar slumped against the wall, his breath heavy as if he were fighting right next to Genesect. That was incredibly close, if Genesect had not been as quick on its feet as it was--well Oscar would be probably be dead shortly after his companion. He eventually mustered the energy to speak to Genesect--just as the closed portal spontaneously popped back open.

Oscar gasped, completely taken by surprise as his ticket back home sprang to life. He frantically called out to Genesect, "The portal is back, get over here!" Genesect slowly rose to its feet, intending to take its time regardless of its master's urgency. It took one final look at its upgraded counterpart, feeling something resembling pride as it took in its victory. Right as it was about to depart however, it would spot something glowing in the steaming husk of the Alternate. Oscar spotted it as well, and put aside his desire to go home to satisfy his curiosity. "Take a closer look at that won't you?"

Genesect leaned in, and saw the unmistakeable gleam of a Mega Stone. Oscar's eyes grew wide, "Holy shit get it get it get it get it get it!" His excitement sent a lurch through his lungs, invoking a coughing fit. Genesect indeed reached in to lift the Mega Stone, but as it looked up it would witness the cost of this delay. Megalopolan soldiers were running toward the scene, no doubt drawn by the spectacle of the fight between Genesect and its alternate self. Panic gripped Oscar for but a moment, but then he remembered his Genesect just picked up a fucking Mega Stone.

Oscar activated his keystone, the ring on his right hand gleaming with an unnatural light. The stone surged within Genesect's claw, sending Infinity Energy throughout its body. The power it was taking in was akin to a thousand energy boosts, Genesect felt as if it were being recharged by the sun itself. Yet it could not contain the energy, its exoskeleton cracked beneath the weight of the Mega Stone's limitless power. This stone was of this world, and Genesect was not compatible. Genesect was likely to explode did not act, but luckily it had a way to disperse an influx of internal energy.

It redirected all of the power to a singular point: its back cannon. As the energy reached its apex, Genesect would unleash one last Techno Blast toward the incoming Megalopolans. The beam unleashed from Genesect's cannon was unlike any other. Its myriad of colors blinded the approaching soldiers, their final moments being of surprise as the blast hit their position. The explosion sent Genesect flying back through the cave, rock and fire tumbling after it. It had no idea how huge the explosion actually was, because it caved in the entrance to Granite Cave and cut off Genesect's view. Its body smoldered as Genesect painstakingly got back on its feet. Its cannon had been blasted open, it would need to be replaced entirely. The Mega Stone was fine though, deactivated after Genesect dispersed its energy.

Oscar was both shocked and amazed. Could he recreate what he just witnessed back in his world? The utility would be unimaginable, such a power could easily end the war between Rocket and the League for good. He would have to think about that later though, as the rest of Granite Cave did not appreciate the explosion. The walls and ceiling began to shake, and if Genesect did not move quickly they would both be crushed. Oscar could easily limp into the portal, but there was no way it was leaving Genesect behind after all of this.

Genesect used Magnet Rise determined to put forth as little effort as possible to reach its master. The magnetism threw off Oscar's headset, but that was hardly a priority right now. Genesect effortlessly bobbed and weaved back to Oscar's position, paying no attention to the various bits of it that fell off alone the way. When it reached the portal, Oscar had already put away his headset and held aloft his chunk of Buzzwole. "You're fucking amazing let's get the fuck OUT!" Genesect floated forward, picking up its master by his armpits before flying through the portal.

They emerged into a much quieter location, the Granite Cave they were both familiar with. The portal closed behind them, but Genesect did not stop to reminisce. Its body was in terrible shape, so it continued floating onward intending to return to the sub with Oscar in tow. Oscar managed to crane his head, attempting to take one last look behind him. Father Winter was nowhere to be found, and Oscar scoffed as the cave chamber faded from view. "As soon as we get home, I am writing a very strong letter to Mister Winter. Lousy fucker."

Oscar would later forget to write the letter, he would be too busy napping off this adventure.

shiv