The GEOMANCY ripples across the region like a pebbles dropped into a still pond. It’s a great surge of energy that doesn’t belong. It is a disturbance in the balance much greater than the squabble of these simple humans.

The god cares little for the fight amongst them. It is the rifts, the surge of unnatural energies, and the looming threats they hold that disturbs them. When the dragon feels the pulse of INFINITY ENERGY, they know a new threat has emerged. One that needed to be swiftly corrected before it was given the opportunity to take root.

Their avatar feels it too. The discomfort makes her tense but focused. When encouraged she returns to them without question, recognizing the significance of this disruption over her fixation she harbors for the ones they call Rocket.

Above the ruins of Dewford, an emerald flash cuts across the pale sky. Like a missile honed into its target, the dragon races towards the fey energy without hesitation. A thunderous sonic boom rattles the air around Xerneas and their avatar as the dragon passes overhead. A wide arc turns the deity and avatar back towards the sands.

Rayquaza settles before them, suspended above, coiled like an Arbok ready to strike. A dominating and condescending presence bares down on the stag from the ancient being.

THIS IS NOT YOUR WORLD.

YOU DO NOT BELONG HERE.

RETREAT. OR PERISH.

Strong words from a dragon to a fairy, but Rayquaza is much older, wiser, and fear is not something they possess when it comes to keeping the balance in order. They speak to Xerneas without a care for the human bonded to the fellow legendary. This is a dispute amongst gods.

---

bryan delarosa

A critical golden gaze flicks between Xerneas and the man beside them. The stag’s words are more disturbing than they would like to admit. The god bound himself to not only a human, but an over-arching organization, one that threatened the balance of their world.

Rayquaza had bound themselves to a human, not an organization. She may be affiliated with one, but their loyalty does not extend to it. She will bring balance to the human world while they accomplish the same amongst the gods and the ethereal threats.

CAREFUL, GOD

The dragon warns with caution, eyes narrowing on their equal and bluntly ignoring the lesser mortal beside it, their booming voice drowning out the man’s trivial complaints and threats as he speaks them. His voice sounds like a whisper below the dragon’s.

YOUR PURPOSE IS NOT MEANT TO BE BOUND TO DEBT AND THEIR PETTY SQUABBLES AMONGST EACH OTHER

They refer to the humans they do not address or tie significance to. These beings would be only a blink in time in their eternal history. Survival of their world should surpass a debt to mortals.

It seems Xerneas would need more convincing. They have chosen their path, but a path could also lead to more roads, more options, the light of peace and equilibrium. They just needed to be willing to see the forks in the road.

Rayquaza disappears in a flash of EXTREME SPEED as the command leaves the man’s mouth. They launch forward towards Xerneas as the fey energy gathers between their horns and launches towards the empty space in the sky where the dragon once was.

A figure detaches from the god, momentum found in the inertia of the attack. Her emerald eyes crack with sparks of gold as she taps into the power granted by her deity. She drives a boot forward, a sole aimed for her rival’s cheek. She hears he is invincible. No one is invincible if you tear them into pieces and scatter them across the world.

---

bryan delarosa

Mistakes were made. She admits that to herself as she sails through the air towards Bryan who seems to dodge her surprise strike too easily. Fuck. She was banking on that.

Eva lands with a soft thump onto the sand, a bend in her knees absorbing the residual force of the impact. Her gaze snaps up to mee the Wolf’s. She’s no longer a lamb for slaughter, and he would learn that today, “There are no pacifists in times of war,” she sneers, standing to her full height. It’s then she’s reminded just how much larger than her he actually is . . . and with the additional strength of Xerneas? Maybe she’s in over her head.

Her doubt is smothered by the roar of the dragon and a renewed sense of purpose that floods through her veins alongside adrenaline. Gold tendrils flash across the emerald of her eyes like bolts of lightning as she stares down the Wolf, “Bring it,” there’s a sick sense of desire for revenge that fuels her forward.

He lunges, and she nimbly leaps into the air. A gust of wind lifting her to unnatural heights as she flips over Bryan and lands behind him, she turns while still crouched, both fists flying forward at the back of his knees. She creates a vortex of wind that blasts the joints along with her punch.

---

Xerneas holds fast against the powerful EXTREME SPEED. Their resilience is noted with a low growl as a cloud of sand explodes around them like a bomb was dropped right then and there.

IF IT MEANT CORRECTING THE BALANCE, YES

There’s no hesitation to their words. Now the balance was broken. Tying themselves to humans was a mistake, but now a necessity in the grand scheme of things as they foolishly took sides as if these insignificant creatures meant something to their continued existence. It had only made things worse, attracting the attention of other realms. They needed to come together to fight against the more potent threats like these rifts and not participate in the war between their own world’s residents.

Light bathed them both as the stag’s antlers sparkled with INFINITY ENERGY then the blast of ice. A deep, bellowing roar of anguish shook the whole beach as the ice raked against the dragon’s emerald scales. Not again.

They almost died in ice once, it wouldn’t happen again. Their body twists and snakes away from the oppressive cold. Their open maw falls slack as fire ignites within the confines of their jaws. FIRE BLASTS from deep within the Dragon’s chest and tries to consume them both within the flames of hell.

---

bryan delarosa


+25 for using a legendary
+50 for participation in battle/mission
+10 per IC post (3)
+10 for using Avatar Powers

=115

There’s a strange sense of satisfaction feeling the strike hit as it was intended to. The violence is familiar, but foreign. The distant memories of war tickle the forefront of her mind, sparking little muscle memories that had long since been abandoned for more peaceful exercises in her lab. Trauma is never forgotten, it clings like a viscous poison. Its roots dig deep and hold fast. It only takes a subtle shift in the mindset to resurface the painful memories.

Eva slowly stands, fists still clenched in tight little balls. The subtle pain of the nails digging into her palms keeps her grounded for the moment. The emerald and gold glare doesn’t dare drift from her opponent. Her lips remain tight, unrelenting even when he asks a question. She remains stoic, apathetic, unreadable despite the storm of emotions raging inside her core. She’s only a faint breeze away from turning into a hurricane.

His goading doesn’t work, but his presence is distraction enough to maintain her concentration. A sense of dread creeps into her bones, bo9nes that couldn’t repair themselves at a whim. He could wear her down, keep healing until she was either too exhausted to go on . . . or dead.

How did he do it? How did MATIAS SILPH beat him?

---

The cold, unrelenting ice lingered, dancing across their scales and seeping between eh cracks. A dull numbness rose from the affected side like a burn, but worse. The intense heat of the flames helped numb the pain. The sand grew red hot, melting beneath the inferno that attempted to consume Xerneas.

IF THAT IS ONE’S PURPOSE, THE BALANCE HAS ALREADY BEEN BROKEN

Their deep voice echoes beyond the roar of the flames, a contemplative tone trickling from it.

. . . AND IT MUST BE CORRECTED

This statement held a somber yet threatening pitch. If Xerneas’ fate as to forever be fed upon by an unnatural serpent, then so be it. However, the serpent’s existence was unnatural to begin with. Best to simply destroy it. But that was not the question asked, so not the answer offered.

When the titan’s jaws snap shut, the figure of the stag slips into the trees. A low growl clicks through the dragon’s throat. Their gilded gaze traces the silhouette of the tree root – an awkward, ugly pillar amongst the sand. Caution ripples across the tether the binds them with their avatar.

Their head tilts to watch the confrontation between her and the other’s chosen. Their healing defies the rules of nature in and of itself. What a reckless gift to offer a human, they were not meant for immortality. This Xerneas is a careless and selfish god.

Rayquaza twitches when the man moves to lung towards the woman. A wave of her arm brushes the sand away as she steps back. It saves her accuracy, but it drives her right into the trap they had sprung. Her movements stop like she hits a wall. A flash of anger and pain threatens to tear the tether in two as the man’s fist strikes across her. Her consciousness fades for only a moment, dulled by shock but it slowly grows again.

Not even a whisper of wind that they had not summoned penetrated the dragon’s AIR LOCK. Now, the clouds roiled with anger, lightning flashing across darkened skies, THUNDER cracked menacingly above; a threat, like the barrel of a gun held to the human’s head.

RELEASE HER. OR HE DIES.

Leathery lips curl back beyond the points of sharpened teeth. Each is a shredding blade that could easily tear through the human’s delicate skin and bone. Rayquaza is fast enough, lethal enough, to tear him apart before his cells have the chance to correct themselves. A sharp crack of THUNDER snaps towards the ground, frying sand and creating a crater beside the stag in warning, demanding their attention and the respect of their threat.

---

bryan delarosa


+25 for using a legendary
+50 for participation in battle/mission
+10 per IC post (4)
+10 for using Avatar Powers

=125 MP

A loud, disinterested snort is forcefully expelled through the dragon’s nostrils when the human dared to challenge them. This particular avatar was far too cocky; a threat of giving a human immortality. The dragon doesn’t give in to the man’s goading. Instead, they very bluntly ignore him all together. Their golden gaze remains trainer on Xerneas and his own avatar.

I PROTECT THE BALANCE. THE EQUILIBRIUM. A MASTER THAT ENSURES EACH PIECE MOVES AS IT SHOULD. IF YOU DEVIATE, IT IS MY DUTY TO CORRECT.

Against their chosen’s will, the stag makes the right decision to release the woman. They make the mistake of tossing Eva aside. Rayquaza doesn’t move an inch, but it appears that their leathery lips curl into a toothy grin. Ridding themself of the burden of their chosen was a tactic they used once when facing Groudon. Now, Rayquaza had nothing to hold them back.

As Bryan bitches and moans, Rayquaza plots. Their serpentine body curls on itself, twisting in a maze below the beast’s steady cranium. It’s impossible to predict where the emerald ribbon ends. A flash of light releases an Alcremie, its target their avatar. The crimson flash hides the sparkle of their own metallic flash. Suddenly, their tail lashes out with swift precision, sweeping across the sand in an arc towards Bryan and Xerneas. The IRON TAIL is meant to smack them all back and away from their avatar and themself.

---

Eva squirms, struggling against the PSYCHIC hold. She vowed to herself this would be the time she beat him - it had to be. Instead, she is already trapped. And then she isn’t, “Waaahhh,” she screams as she careens through the air towards the water. A quick blast of wind evens her out, and she dives into the cold.

She erupts from the water with a sudden gasp. A sharp, surprising pain shoots up her side and she winces, touching the tender location. Likely a broken rib from the punch Bryan landed. Really, it should have gone right through her with his strength.

“Tempest,” she spat as salty water invaded her mouth. The pokeball released beneath the waves. A monstrous Gyarados snaked across the surface. Eva clung to her sapphire scales, “Watch out!” she gasped, pointing towards the MYSTICAL FIRE. Tempest curled, protecting her trainer. The flames died against her wet scales. The monster’s jaw hung open, hissing dangerously at the Alcremie. A HYPER BEAM shot out of the pokemon’s open maw towards the beach and the fairy-type that attacked them.

---

bryan delarosa



+25 for using a legendary
+50 for participation in battle/mission
+10 per IC post (5)
+10 for using Avatar Powers

=135 MP

Their shadow shifts with them, like the rolling clouds through the endless sky. They are a calm, but raging storm all at once. The eye of a hurricane.

CHANGE IS INEVITABLE.

They agree, coiling their tail back to them with a low growl.

BUT EVEN IN CHANGE, PEACE SHOULD REIGN.

Their serpentine body tenses, a bright golden gaze flashing towards bryan delarosa and everything the Rocket Beast stood for.

CHAOS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE.

It is the opposite of peace, and it seemed to be what plagued Hoenn in their absence and now currently in the infancy of their return. It extended past the unruly reach of Rocket and the chaos it sowed. The anomalies: the rifts, Cyberchase, Kyurem, Sea!Hoenn - they are infections that force the equilibrium to bend and break. In the face of desperation, the dragon moves to snuff out all anomalies. Including the unholy bestowal of immortality on a human. Reckless.

The notion that Rayquaza obeys the will of a being other than their own self-inflicted duty is so preposterous the dragon laughs for the first time. It’s a low, deep guttural sound not too far off from a growl. That’s all they need to say on the subject. Rayquaza is an ancient being, perhaps even older than Xerneas. Their dominion of the skies forced them to look down at the carnage of their siblings as they fought for dominance. Rayquaza’s duty to guard the equilibrium was their decision.

---

With a painful pull, Eva heaves herself onto the back of the Gyarados to escape the chill of the water. Her gaze narrows on the beach scene. Her green eyes flash gold, and she drives the Gyarados forward. Another pokeball unclips from her waist, and a crimson light spills out to release an Aerodactyl. The ancient pokemon roars, shimmering with the power of primal energy as it is consumed with mega evolution.

A new pokemon emerges, beating its rocky wings to rise and disappear into the stars above as the Alcremie surged with its own primal energy. The Gyarados is returned when Eva can find purchase on the sand. The Alcremie grows to immense size and fae frosting is splattered across the field. The avatars psalm press forward. A surge of her DELTA STEAM rises like a wall between the Alcremie and Rayquaza. The protective winds disperse the gobs of frosting heading for the dragon as if they were nothing more than powdered sugar.

The act takes a lot out of her and she falls to her knees, gasping for breath. Weakness clings to her and Rayquaza can feel the strength of her powers dwindling. She had exerted herself too much.

The dragon rises to make room of their companion falling from the heavens. The mega Aerodactyl let gravity grip them. Their skull shimmered with IRON HEAD as they kamikazed down towards Xerneas.

---

bryan delarosa


+25 for using a legendary
+50 for participation in battle/mission
+10 per IC post (6)
+10 for using Avatar Powers
+10 for mega-evolution

=155 MP

They don’t know? Or do they, and they simply refuse to recognize the authority of another above themself? The stag’s cryptic message falls on deaf ears. They have grown tired of listening to this legendary croon on and on about things they clearly do not understand. Rayquaza would send a clear message etched in the blood and sweat of another.

The Aerodactyl dives, shimmering with a similar metallic sheen as Rayquaza’s tail. Bryan leaps, and a sickening crack echoes out of the silence as the Beast strokes the pokemon’s head and neck. Rayquaza may have had a chance to save the fossil pokemon, but they chose to take the advantage instead. They don’t hold the same reverence for life their chosen does. Amidst the scream of agony they hear from Eva at the death of her pokemon, they lash out once again with IRON TAIL meant to strike Xerneas like a golf swing and send them reeling down the beach.

---

bryan delarosa


+25 for using a legendary
+50 for participation in battle/mission
+10 per IC post (7)
+10 for using Avatar Powers
+10 for mega-evolution
+200 for Pokemon death

=365 MP