After hearing from his subordinates that Axel had gone to Mt. Coronet, Cyrus couldn't rest easy and rushed over immediately.
"Professor Rowan really loves using young people as the backbone of his organization."
"No matter how strong they are, their temperament can't compare to Saturn and the others..."
"And Mt. Coronet isn't some place that can be conquered so easily, is it?"
Cyrus shook his head as he led Sneasel toward the Spear Pillar.
The Galactic Bomb was a crucial part of the plan to capture the three lake gods. Any delay would ruin all the subsequent plans, it absolutely couldn't be allowed to fail.
Yet Axel had snatched away the controller of the Galactic Bomb, so Cyrus could only follow him here to make sure nothing went wrong.
Just as they stepped out of the cave, they saw the chaotic distortions of space-time in the sky and felt an overwhelming aura of destruction thick enough to almost take physical form.
Cyrus frowned, growing more alert.
"Be careful, Weavile. The destructive aura here is heavy, it might be the power of that so-called third god."
Weavile gave a small nod, cautiously scanning their surroundings.
Suddenly, he saw a creature, its entire body pitch-black with streaks of crimson, darting down from the direction of the Spear Pillar, rushing straight toward them.
The monster looked terrifying, emanating a dense aura of annihilation from head to toe.
And with its hairless, bird-like appearance, it looked exactly like some nameless demon that had crawled straight out of hell.
Almost on instinct, Weavile's fur bristled. He flung several shards of ice toward the direction of that "meatball."
Whoosh!
A sharp whistle tore through the air, Lysandre, who had been fleeing for his life, felt his heart seize up.
"Damn, there are people blocking the way ahead!"
Just a moment ago, when he saw that Axel hadn't caught up, he had secretly rejoiced, thinking Axel had finally given up.
But he never imagined that there'd be people waiting up here on the mountain peak.
"Yveltal, how much strength do you have left?"
Yveltal dodged Weavile's icy projectiles, glanced over his own condition, and spoke helplessly.
["I... my soul was just forcibly separated. I can't control my power at all. Most of the energy clinging to my feathers was seized by Axel and Rayquaza. Right now, I think my level has dropped to around seventy or so."]
["I can feel it, the Weavile ahead is strong. This won't be easy to win..."]
Lysandre couldn't help but sigh deeply.
This trip had been a complete disaster.
Not only did he fail to obtain the Fairy Plate, but he also lost the slumbering Xerneas.
Even Yveltal, whose temperament had always been most like his own, had lost the majority of his power in this battle, so much so that even facing a Weavile now felt difficult.
The more he thought about it, the more suffocated he felt. A nameless anger rose up inside him.
"Hard or not, we're still fighting!"
"Ever since the failure of the Empire Reconstruction Plan, I've turned into a coward."
"Even after joining Team Rainbow Rocket, I've never been able to recover that old feeling."
"I feel like the two of us right now... we're just pathetic."
"That guy up ahead wants to stop us?"
"Then let's kill the bastard and drain the power of his Pokémon!"
"This time, I'm going to show the world that I, Lysandre, and you, Yveltal, are not cowards!"
As he spoke, his tone grew more impassioned, like he had gone back to the days before his plan had failed.
Even Yveltal couldn't help feeling his blood boil, eager for battle once again.
'If that's the case, then fight!'
"ROOAAAR!"
Yveltal let out a furious roar, stamped the ground, and lunged straight toward Weavile and Cyrus.
Thick black energy gathered between his wings, forming sharp, blade-like feathers.
Yveltal revealed his fangs once more.
"Use Oblivion Wing!"
At Lysandre's command, Yveltal spread his wings wide, and an intense Flying-type energy built up under his ribs.
Two crescent-shaped slashes tore through the wind and snow of Mt. Coronet, hurtling straight at Weavile.
Seeing the almost world-ending power of the attack, Cyrus's heart tightened.
Now he was certain, the Pokémon before him, though not high-level, was indeed a true legendary beast.
Cyrus stopped holding back. Without hesitation, he pulled out several Poké Balls and released them all at once.
Houndoom, Honchkrow, Crobat, Gyarados, and Magneton appeared instantly, forming a barrier between Oblivion Wing and Cyrus.
"All Pokémon, use Protect together."
"Weavile, use Icy Wind to slow it down!"
At Cyrus's command, a chain of protective light spread out, neutralizing Oblivion Wing before it reached them.
Then, a howling blizzard erupted from Weavile's position, merging with the surrounding storm to form a massive snow tornado that enveloped Yveltal completely.
Feeling the bone-piercing cold, Yveltal's eyes turned blood-red.
'Damn it. Damn it all!'
If this had been twenty minutes earlier, he could've ignored such an attack entirely.
All the humiliation he'd suffered from Axel now ignited into rage. Yveltal went berserk, charging forward through the storm with another Oblivion Wing aimed straight at Cyrus's Pokémon.
A crimson beam shot from his mouth, petrifying all the ice and snow in its path.
This wasn't a move, it was the manifestation of his divine power.
Every living being turned to stone by it had their energy drained away, feeding Yveltal's growing strength.
As the frost cleared, Lysandre finally got a good look at Cyrus.
"Yveltal, I see it clearly now!", he snarled, his teeth grinding, eyes bloodshot as he glared ahead.
Just moments ago, he had still been puzzled about Axel's true nature.
Was he resurrected? Or, like him, had he crossed time itself?
But after seeing Cyrus, everything suddenly made sense.
In Team Rainbow Rocket, both of them were subordinates of Giovanni, each wielding divine power.
And Cyrus's divine partner, was none other than the legendary ruler of time, Dialga.
With Cyrus's appearance, everything clicked in Lysandre's mind.
Axel and Cyrus were working together.
This former leader of Team Galactic was likely just like him, unwilling to keep living under someone else's command.
That was why he'd sought to gather the Fairy Plates.
He shared his thoughts with Yveltal, whose body immediately radiated a brutal, violent aura.
The killing intent within him was almost solid enough to touch.
———
Sensing that terrifying energy, Cyrus narrowed his eyes in the distance.
"So it's true... aside from the masked man's group, there are others coveting the power of Dialga and Palkia as well."
"What a shame... though your power looks frightening, it's actually weaker than that Glastrier's."
"Everyone, let's kill this bastard together!"
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