Champion's Sword, Galar's Shield (Leon x OC)

12 - Plans

Prepare for some old friends and good ol' fluff :D

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I sense trouble.

That was an understatement.

Smoke brewed from the castle of Hammerlocke, and in other parts of the city. It reminded Cassandra of a war zone, though far less severe, and yet just as serious. Her taxi trainer didn't hesitate to take off as soon as she shut the door, not wanting to get caught in whatever was going on. He had gotten her here, though, and that was the most important thing. She could see people moving about in a panic, those in uniform working with their Pokémon to either put out fires or deal with other problems. She knew her business lay within the heart of the castle, and so she brought out her Arcanine, mounted up, and rushed off. She ignored any officers who shouted at her, not that they could do much. She needed to find Leon and Raihan, and the energy plant was past the draw bridge.

Of course, that's where the worst of it was, too. The smell of smoke reached her quick, and she had to bring the collar of her hoodie up to block it out some. It thankfully zipped up high enough, but the smoke stung her eyes, too, and she didn't have her goggles. Arcanine thankfully was mostly unfazed, his fire affinity giving him resilience against it. The blare of alarms coming from the doors, which had been blasted open did hurt his ears she noticed, the appendages lying flat against his head. As such, she stopped him there at the entrance and put him back into his ball. She kept her head a bit lower as she slipped inside and followed the ramp down to the first floor. To her right, a room filled with a circular platform in the center and an array of glowing, wire towers-generators behind it. On the platform was a setup of laboratory equipment and a spot for what looked like a stand for a pokéball or something. Was this where Eternatus had been kept?

Well, it wasn't now, and she could see bodies lying on the ground, some charred, some bloody. Some broken apart, too. She grimaced but moved on to the lift. She wasn't exactly fond of using it considering the situation, but it looked to be in working order and the best way up. The smoke hadn't gotten into there, at least, apparently only coming from the containment area. The lift did work, much to her relief, and deposited her out on one of the towers.

At once, the sounds of battle reached her; explosions and cries of Pokémon echoing from on high. There was also a pressure of power. She raced to the top, just as Zacian's voice filled her mind.

Release me!

She whipped her pokéball from her belt and was glad for the advice. A small platoon of six men and women stood before two faces she never hoped to see, all with full teams of Pokémon out, facing down Leon and Raihan, who's own teams were becoming overwhelmed despite being stronger. It was just too many; numbers were overcoming strength. Even Zamazenta was having difficulty shielding from so many attacks, and something was off--the Pokémon looked uneasy; strained. Was it the strange aura coming from the two bastards behind it all?

There was no more time to think as she threw her pokéball, and Zacian burst forth. The legendary leaped up with a mighty howl, glowing with light as she activated the rusty sword to unveil her true form. With a snarl, she landed down before their group, and the moment of shock was all she needed to unleash a furious blast from the sword. It threw countless enemy Pokémon back, with only the strongest remaining standing. Many of the platoon cowered back, but not the ones who stood behind them. Not Shieldbert, and not Swordward. No, on their faces was excitement.

"Yes--Yes! It's all in place! Finally, we can begin our true plan!" the one bearing a shield on his back bellowed. His brother next to him, sneered at her. She noted Swordward's face was different from before--once smooth, pale skin now had reddish scars from nose to ear and brow, and discoloration that resembled the aftermath of bad frost bite.