Yeah, I can't believe I was gone for this long either. But I'm back to finish this thing! This is the last chapter. :*)
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Chap 7
I wish things had not panned out the way they had. For millennia, I have dreamt that I had not been so rash. I suppose feelings die down after so many years, though I could never blame myself for what I did. It’s not as if I figured I could do no wrong, but when anyone is put under that kind of pressure, something has to give.
The Great Meet and Greet was supposed to be a sort of ball or reception for all the representatives of the mortal Pokemon to personally meet every Legendary and learn their true purpose and essence. They were to learn what we did to make their lives the way they were so that they could properly worship us and call on us should any problems arise. I expected the party to go off without a hitch, actually. I expected my Father to talk with Ho-oh or Palkia and nothing would go wrong after all. Oh how horribly naïve I was!
As the great star’s yellow beams lay to rest on the Universe Castle, I stirred from my sleep. The bright light hit my eyes and I awoke as excitement filled my chest. Finally, we could get this thing over with, I thought as I shook sleep from my eyes. My room harbored no door, for I simply phased through the walls on a normal day. However, today was different. I approached the wall, thinned my very matter and attempted to cross over, only to hit my face on the brick and mortar. I became even more transparent and tried again, only to fail once more.
I was beyond enraged at this point, and returned to my normal density. I gritted my teeth. I knew exactly who was responsible for this, the only one in existence who could change the matter of walls to a density that not even a ghost could penetrate – Palkia, and most likely with the idea from Ho-oh. I had to get out somehow, though. I knew at this point the event had started and Dialga would be waiting for me, unbeknownst to my imprisonment. If I did not appear, Arceus would be cross with me as well. So, I did the next best thing.
Lifting my heavy, spiked tail I whipped it around and smacked the wall with a great deal of force. It cracked, but remained strong. Again and again I whacked the wall with my tail, my spikes leaving gaping holes in the bricks each time. Despite the fact its density was other-worldly, it was much more brittle than I expected. With one last thrust, I broke free, sending bits of brick crashing down onto a roof below. I watched as the incredibly dense chunk of rock penetrated through the castle as if it were made of clay. I could not be bothered with repairing it – Arceus would have to understand and make Palkia clean up the mess he made.
I slithered out of my room and towards the Great Hall where the Meet and Greet was taking place. I was thankful I had freed myself, but more irate with Palkia and Ho-oh than I had ever been in my life. I had always taken Ho-Oh’s taunting about the Great Meet and Greet as an empty threat. It always seemed to me that she did it simply to make me feel small, to no avail. So, it comes as no surprise that, along with my frustration, I was also hit off-guard.
As I made my way to Arceus’ Great Hall, I grit my teeth harder and harder thinking of all the different ways I could physically harm Ho-Oh or Palkia. My rage was out of control. I phased through the wall nearest the Great Hall, half-expecting to hit my face on the bricks as I did before. Fortunately, I got through without difficulty, and quickly zoomed towards the reception, my rage having ignited into an inferno. I was so angry I felt as though I could not get there fast enough.
Through my outrage, I could still hear the party beginning. The sound of rushing water, perhaps from a new fountain created just for the occasion, gushed over purified metal. The chatter of hundreds of alien voices echoed through the halls. My guess was that the Mortals were already there and had made themselves at home. I heard cheering and whistling as a great voice announced something about Regice and her brothers. I imagined the Pokemon that shared their elements felt a great kinship to them in some way; that they were represented in the council of “Legendaries”, as mortals call us. Thoughts like this sadden me now, for I am the only legendary of the ghost element, and I am known for such horrible things.
My pace had slowed as I listened to the voices. Somehow this far-off bliss quieted my anger and turned it into utter loneliness and an acceptance that maybe my perpetrators were right about me all along. It was not obvious to me that anyone even realized I was missing, let alone infuriated, upset, or worried I had not yet shown myself. Everyone was having a good time, and not even those I considered friends had asked anyone to hold the party on my behalf or send someone to see what was taking me so damn long. Nothing. Another eruption of cheers slowed my pace to a full stop. I listened intently, my gaze now at the floor. It was then that Ho-Oh had already won, as I coiled my tail into a base and thought about how she was right – no one wanted to meet me. I was the outcast, in every fiber of my being. The very matter that made me was different from everyone else in that room. I was defeated.
As I turned to head back to my room – no use feeling sorry for myself in a dark hallway – the sudden sound of flat, silver-tipped feet thudding against the tiles in a gallop stopped me.
“Gira!” his voice beckoned. The gallop slowed, and Dialga approached me out of breath. “Is this where you’ve been the whole time? Why not join us in the Great Hall?”
My snake-like body arched around so that I could face him, but still with every intention of slinking back to my room like a good little victim. I squinted at him, my mouth slightly open in a confused manner, my feelings of betrayal still haunting me. How dare he ask why I had not joined them…after all I have been through just this morning!
His face softened, somehow reading all of my pain off my stare. “I was worried when everything started and you still hadn’t shown up. Mew and I couldn’t get anyone to postpone it, but, then again, I also didn’t think you were too far away…”
His voice trailed off. He probably felt as though there was more he could have done, even in all the confusion. I had already forgiven him. After all, not even I had expected Palkia or Ho-Oh to go to such extremes to keep me from the reception. As I explained to him what had happened, how I had been imprisoned in my own room, with only Palkia to blame, his eyes widened in disbelief.
He shook his head and concluded, “Well, I’m glad you were able to get out – you’re not down yet. Don’t let them have their way with you. Come to the Meet and Greet, it will do you good.”
“And risk them mortifying me in front of all the mortals?” I cried, my voice and my resolve buckling under all the stress I had ever endured in this ongoing conflict. I was finally breaking, finally snapping.
But Dialga, ever stern and ever my rock, said calmly, “If they are going to say terrible things about you, they will do it whether you are there to witness them of not. You might as well be there to defend yourself.”
I lowered my gaze at this logic, for I had lost all of mine. It was more suitable to me to let the rumors spread, as horrible and inaccurate as they were, than simply be there to hear them from their familiar sources. I was unbearably selfish unto myself. I deserved my own defense, and I would not give it for fear of emotional sting. I was pitiful, pathetic, and full of flaws. Maybe Ho-Oh had reason to hate me? Perhaps the bird saw me as full of myself as I had always perceived her. Everyone in between just had to choose who was more tolerable. Perhaps Cresselia was the only one with a head on her shoulders. I hated myself so much at that instant.
“I love you,” Dialga murmured as he wrapped his front leg around me. My face contorted in confusion. I wanted to ask him why, but my voice had abandoned me. He did not read it that way, though.
He became bashful, “Mew said you’d know what that meant.”
Through my self-pity, a chuckle broke through. That was Dialga – an awkward genius.
“I’m guessing I’m doing something right?” he asked, a smile eradicating his wistful demeanor from before.
I pressed my forehead against his.
“I love you, too,” I said, “but I can’t promise you we’ll be together for long after this. I don’t know what I’ll do…how I, or Arceus, will react…”
“No,” he cut me off, “I will make sure that nothing bad happens. This is supposed to be fun.”
Looking into his ruby eyes with a meek smile, I shook my head and said, “I know you will try.”
…
Dialga led me to the Great Hall, not too far from where we had been standing. We squeezed into the hall, attempting to be as inconspicuous as two dragons can be. My brow was furrowed with worry and I swallowed nervously as we tried to find Mew. The hall was brimming with life. Everywhere I turned, there was a Pokemon I had never seen or heard of before. Refreshments had been made, and laid out perfectly as a sort of buffet. Every type of berry was present, and snacks made from them adorned the tables lining the walls of the Great Hall. It all looked so delicious.
The other Legendaries were scattered amongst the crowd, speaking with representatives of various species. Across the room, next to a refreshment table, I caught a glance of Regice as she spoke with a Sneasel and Snover. Turning my head again, I noticed Rayquaza laughing whole-heartedly with Lugia and a group of bird Pokemon. Even Kyogre and Groudon had been awoken for the party, even if they stood at opposite sides of the wide room. It was then my old self came back. If two sworn enemies like those two could get along for this shin-dig, Ho-Oh and I could, too.
I could tell Dialga noticed me. He probably could tell that the tension and agitation from before was slowly leaving me and I could relax. Unfortunately, my mind was still plagued with thoughts of getting even with my enemies. Nothing had ever worked in the past; neither peace nor a lack of attention seemed to stop them on their quest to get under my scales. Even as I tried to feel like just another Pokemon in a sea of my own kind, the ever looming realization that I was fundamentally different than everyone else was still haunting me.
It was at that precise moment, of course, that Palkia took the stage. He tapped a claw on his armor, making a klinking sound loud enough for everyone in the room to turn around and look up at him. Thousands of eyes would be watching what came next; an infinite number of minds would forever remember it as well.
“It has just come to my attention that my wonderful brother and sister have finally arrived to our special Meet and Greet,” he said, extending a clawed paw in our general direction.
I was wary. Dialga was hopeful.
“Of course, that loud crashing before was my lovely sister Giratina destroying parts of the castle, as she sometimes does,” Palkia jabbed at me, giggling in between words. On stage. For every mortal to hear.
I stood frozen. So, it was not just a ruse to make me late to the ball – it was a plot to make a direct attack on my character. However, I was not one to give up. Dialga was right – I was here to defend myself. I deserved that much.
“I do no such thing on a normal basis! You take that lie back this instant!” I was losing my cool, and becoming frantic, though. I was no longer the composed, level-headed girl I had strained to be all these years. I was not prepared, already caught off-guard, and I had no wit at that moment to battle with him. All I could do was bark at him to quit his torment. Palkia would not let up, though. It was as if he had received training from a certain bird I had only known as an enemy.
“Oh, please, sister, that makes no sense when it’s precisely your room that’s been destroyed this fine evening,” Palkia went on.
Before I could whine further, Dialga stepped in. “Brother, knock off this nonsense this instant. Giratina is of the ghost element – she can phase through walls very easily, as I’m sure the other ghost Pokemon can attest to.”
He arched his neck around so as to search the crowd for supporters of his claim. A Haunter and a Sableye visibly nodded in agreement.
“If Giratina could not phase through her walls then she had no choice but to break them, and it is only you that -”
Palkia cut him off swiftly, “Ah yes, but her violence is evident, as she is the harbinger of death, after all. The representative, if you will.”
With this blunt statement, my fate was sealed. A frightened gasp escaped from every mortal throat in the room, and it felt as if the entire castle tilted under the weight of every one of them as they moved away from me. They stared, their eyes full of fear, as if at any moment, I may swallow their Mew-bestowed soul and take it to some other-worldly realm. As if a maniacal laugh were to erupt from my bosom, and admit that yes, I was evil incarnate, how do you do?
“Yes, the grim reaper, the -” Palkia began to reap in the fear, but Dialga put his silver-studded foot down, cracking the elegant tiles underneath.
Dialga roared, “Brother, I had asked you to stop these lies! And you have gone against my wishes!”
“Okay, then tell us, Giratina, what is your sovereign duties to the Pokemon before us today?” Palkia was challenging me, and I could feel Ho-oh somewhere in the crowd just waiting to take advantage of what I had to say next.
I was finally given the floor, and Palkia waited patiently for me to dig my own grave. But I was naïve. I floated closer to the crowd as they cowered in fear. I was livid, but I gathered my strength and began to speak as softly as I could muster, feeling hopeful that I could right my sullied public image. “I am the guardian of the Reverse World.”
But Palkia would not even let me finish. “Yes, yes, the sole operator and resident of the Reverse World, a universe very unlike this world, the one I had forged. It is a world that if any of you mortals were to visit it, you would be vaporized immediately.”
The mortals gasped again, and jumped back. I was officially a monster in their eyes. I could see then that there was no changing their minds about me. Trying to explain my duties was hard enough to describe to other deities, and I was sure my voice would be tuned out in favor of shivering in terror. This was all Palkia’s fault, and his alone. I honestly do not believe that if it had been Ho-oh up there, the mortals would have believed her so easily. No, it was Palkia’s relation to me, the fact that we were celestial siblings, and somewhat like two sides to the same coin, that his take on me was so powerful. So powerful, in fact, that it could override my own take. I suppose if I were evil, I’d never admit it to a crowd of prey, and so, that day, Palkia put himself on a pedestal close to our Father, and put me in Hell.
I grit my teeth, seething in rage; my actions that followed are ones I’m only regretful of in retrospect. I had always been independent, and despite my sorrow and self-doubt I had exhibited in front of Dialga just minutes before, I had always been there for myself. So, it was no surprise, after being put over the edge, I attacked Palkia. Summoning all of the dark energy my anger had conjured up, I focused it within my mouth as a tight, glowing ball that I spit at my brother. Even though I was angry, this show of aggression was merely a slap on the back of the head for my brother. It was simply to show him I had had it with him. Dialga stood perfectly still, mouth agape as he turned his head towards Palkia.
Another round of gasps filled the room as I bared my sharp fangs at him, growling. Palkia took this as an opportunity to release his own frustrations with me, collecting energy between his palms and launching it towards me. Without thinking, I became transparent, and the Aura Sphere went right through me, crashing into the tiles and sending sharp shards in every direction. It was then pandemonium broke out in the Great Hall, as mortals ran for their lives and attempted to escape the premises. The other deities assisted in shielding them, as I disappeared completely, reappearing behind Palkia and tackling him off the stage. My Shadow Force had hit him with so much power he had tumbled across the floor until hitting the far wall. The wall cracked, and bits of rock fell to the floor. Now Palkia was angry.
In the eyes of the crowd, I was the bad guy, the evil one that needed to be contained. Palkia was their hero, doing just that. From the corner of my eye, I could see Ho-oh as she helped to shield the mortals from Palkia’s and my onslaught. She smirked at me before turning her head and giving her full attention to the Mortals. Just like Palkia, she had used me to bolster her own image. Forever more, Palkia and Ho-oh would be known on Earth as saviors – it was all part of the plan.
Palkia got up and shook off the rock from his back. His mouth contorted into a snarl, and his voice had transformed into a deep growl. He summoned another Aura Sphere, this time holding it in his paws as he came at me with incredible speed. I hissed, and prepared to become transparent again. Having had enough of watching, Dialga roared, and placed himself between us.
It happened so quickly that Palkia could not stop himself, and forced his Aura Sphere directly into Dialga’s shoulder. Like a mountain, Dialga took the hit and remained standing, even with Palkia’s claws dug into his flesh. Dialga growled heavily as he bared his fangs, the sound originating deep in his chest and vibrating in his throat. Palkia bared his fangs as well, becoming more furious as he realized he was on the wrong side of this confrontation. The brother he had tried so hard to impress and become best friends with was on my side and he now finally grasped the concept. I hissed from behind Dialga, gearing up for an all out war.
It’s really too bad we were interrupted. I think a lot of good and understanding could have come out of it. It is the Dragon way, after all, when all else fails. From his private chamber, Arceus made his grand appearance. Glowing as his white fur reflected the Great Star’s rays, he dazzled everyone in the room. Every mortal and deity bowed down immediately, their faces almost touching the porcelain tiles. Everyone but Palkia, Dialga, and me, that is. We were still too riled up and angry to move anything but our heads to acknowledge his almighty presence.
“What is all this racket?” Arceus demanded. “First I hear the sounds of castle walls crumbling and then I hear this all out brawl. What do you three think you’re doing?”
Our Father was beside himself, pacing and shaking his head violently, his voice getting louder with each question.
“I can explain, Father,” Palkia piped up. My eyes widened; my doom was near.
“Yes, Palkia, explain how my three children ruined the first ever gathering of deity and mortal,” Arceus gibed.
Palkia put his hands together, Dialga’s blood still staining his claws. “Well, as far as the first sound goes, that’s all Giratina. She destroyed her tower.”
Dialga growled, “Palkia, that’s not the whole story and you know it!”
Arceus turned his attention to me. I was surprisingly calm. So jaded from the battle and the endless torment I had endured for centuries, I simply stared back at God. Dialga, on the other hand, was still fighting for me.
“Tell him the truth!”
“Oh, and Giratina also hit me first. I was just defending myself.”
“Liar!”
Dialga and Palkia butted heads and would have begun their fight once more if Arceus had not spoken to me in such a sweet tone of voice.
“Giratina, is that all true?” he asked, his voice almost inaudible.
I sighed, “Yes.” There was no use lying here. I figured honesty was my best defense here.
“But I can explain-” I started, but Arceus fired up again and cut me off.
“There is no excuse for this insolence!”
“But if you would just listen to me…”
“No! You are the one who should have listened! You have been nothing but trouble, nothing but anti-social, and unwilling to be a part of our greater collective!” Arceus raged.
Each insult came like a nail dug into me. My own Father did not even believe in my worth. Merciless and in a fit, he simply wanted nothing else than to scold someone, and who better than me?
“Father, none of that is true. If you’d just listen,” Dialga tried, but Arceus was too far enraged.
Arceus snapped, “Don’t say a word; you’re in just as much trouble as your sister.”
“But, Father, this could all be avoided if you would hear what she has to say,” Dialga argued, but Arceus would not have it.
Lifting his golden-polished hoof, he lashed out at Dialga, hitting him in his damaged shoulder and pushing him down onto the tile. Seeing this seemed to shut my brain off. In that instance, my want to save Dialga from his pain overrode every single check-point in my mind that should have told me what I did next was a bad idea.
Summoning dark energy into a ball between my jaws, I shot a weak Shadow Ball at Arceus. Having no plates engaged, Arceus was normal and the Shadow Ball went right through him. It didn’t hurt him. It didn’t even touch him. However, the simple fact that I had even dared to challenge him was enough for the volcano he had become to erupt.
Leaving Dialga to suffer on the floor, he turned to me, eyes wide with disbelief and outrage. As he approached, his hooves clicked ominously on the tiles, like a clock ticking down to something terrible.
“You dare attack me?” he said in a hauntingly calm voice.
I lowered my head, but only to glare at him more intensely. I had nothing left to say. Having been through so much, my only bit of apprehension was in wondering what he was thinking about doing to me.
His voice now boomed, “You dare attack me? How dare you!”
Engaging a pink-colored plate, he quickly shot a bright beam of light at me. The power from the attack left me breathless, and rocketed me against the wall behind the stage. I gasped for breath as I collapsed. Arceus walked nonchalantly onto the stage, those golden heels clicking, towards me. Engaging all of his plates, he began the process that defines my legendary tale. I still remember feeling my body run ice cold and numb as Arceus used his combined powers to completely change me.
From my elegant serpentine body, Arceus molded me into the monster every mortal has nightmares about. My spikes were turned into six clunky, gold-studded legs and my ghostly tentacles transformed into two devilish wings. I didn’t scream, though. I wouldn’t give my enemies that satisfaction. However the worst part about the entire ordeal was that Arceus took a piece of me. From somewhere within, he pulled out a bit of my essence. Upon completion, he dropped me and I landed heavily on my new feet. I was so heavy I could barely stand.
With his psychic force, Arceus held up a golden orb, and began to explain what it was. “This is the Griseous Orb. It is the only thing that will turn you back into your Origin Form. Otherwise, when in the Real World, you will be in this form, your Altered Form.”
Arceus then turned towards the Earth, visible like a giant blue marble through the open ceiling. He then tossed it down to the planet below, landing in a random place I could not trace.
He then turned back to me and said, “Under any other circumstances, your Origin Form can only be viewed in the Reverse World.”
And with that, Arceus summoned all his strength as he torn at the fabric of reality to open up a portal into the new Reverse World. Through sheer godly will, Arceus had expanded my small domain, once scrunched into a tall tower, into another dimension where he inevitably imprisoned me. Using his powers again, he forced me through the portal. All at once, my body changed back into my original self. However, before I could escape, Arceus blocked my path.
“You are banished from the Real World for your violence. Forever more you will gaze upon this world in silence,” and the portal snapped shut.
...
I remember wincing. I remember feeling alone, trapped, defeated. However, it did not take long for my realm to become tolerable. Not long after Arceus closed the portal did platforms adorned with remnants of scrapped ideas appear. Far off stars illuminated my dwelling. And not long after that did the windows to the Real World appear to forever tease me. I could always see the Real World. I watched how it changed and evolved over time, and I passed many years doing just that.
I’ve overheard banter from mortals through my invisible windows many times, and it’s the only reason I know anything about the Real World, or about what happened after the portal closed. I’ve heard that Palkia and Dialga were also punished. They too were given their own realms to reside separately. I heard the Universe castle was dismantled and the deities now live among the mortals. I heard that Ho-oh created her own band of deities by giving life to three Pokemon that perished in a tower. Funny, I never knew she could do that. I suppose she finally got what she wanted. I’ve heard of new deities I never met and seen them from time to time through my looking glasses.
It’s been a couple million years and in that time I’ve gotten used to my predicament. I’ve gotten used to overhearing mortals falsely tell their youngsters that if they misbehave that I might come from within the shadows and gobble them up. Or that I appear at an ancient graveyard in some undisclosed location. Silly mortals.
But the one thing I can’t get used to is how I never got the chance to say goodbye to Dialga or apologize or thank him. Time exists here, though, and many days it’s the only comfort I have. Arceus was never known to be set in his ways. He changes his mind a lot, from what I’ve seen over the years. Some days, my windows to the real world are so thin I can smell flowers that don’t exist in my realm. This gives me hope.
Perhaps one day…we’ll be together again.
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THE END
