Gone?

The sudden appearance of Rayquaza and Deoxys and their unexpected battle plunged the entire Rustboro City into chaos, with people everywhere trying to escape for their lives.

Especially in the vicinity of the battlefield, the collapse of the buildings resulted in a significant number of casualties. Realizing the seriousness of the situation, Roxanne immediately began rescuing the injured.

When Rayquaza struck the building, Roxanne had already ridden her Flying Pokémon to leave the battle area. Both Yuichii, Lila, and Principal Amuro were safe and were currently assisting Roxanne in rescuing the affected citizens.

Roxanne, as the Gym Leader of Rustboro City, had an undeniable responsibility to safeguard the lives of its citizens.

Thankfully, the Rustboro City police department responded swiftly, dispatching a large number of officers to evacuate and rescue the citizens. Additionally, it was fortunate that the building itself was part of the League, and many of the occupants were Trainers. When the accident occurred, they all had the ability to protect themselves. In the case of a regular building, the death toll would have been much higher.

To save their lives, most Trainers who had been watching the battle rode their Pokémon to a safe distance. However, Yuga, who was worried about Chimecho, remained behind.

"Gengar, go call Dusknoir!" Yuga, gazing at Rayquaza, which had once again knocked down Deoxys, spoke earnestly and summoned Gengar.

"Gengar!"

Gengar come out from the shadow space, its face devoid of its usual humor. It nodded seriously at Yuga before vanishing.

Knowing that Dusknoir was stationed on the ghost ship just outside Rustboro City, Yuga felt somewhat relieved. With Dusknoir's presence, at least safety could be guaranteed.

Though he didn't understand how Deoxys had provoked Rayquaza, Yuga couldn't just stand by due to Chimecho's involvement.

In the high skies, Rayquaza grew angrier with each strike, showing no mercy in its battle with Deoxys. Furthermore, Chimecho also joined the fight once again.

Deoxys was its teacher, and when the teacher was being bullied, Chimecho couldn't stand idly by.

Having been taught by Deoxys for a considerable amount of time, Chimecho had indeed become quite powerful. Otherwise, at the beginning, Rayquaza wouldn't have suffered such significant losses under the combined assault of Chimecho and Deoxys.

In its current state, Chimecho had the strength to participate in battles of this level. If it was before, it wasn't qualified at all, even as a support Pokémon.

...

Chimecho (Light Clay)

Type: Psychic

Gender: Female

Ability: Levitate

Aptitude: Purple

Level: 80

Moves: Confusion, Gravity, Heal Pulse, Heal Bell, Synchronize, Shadow Ball, Safeguard, Uproar, Psyshock, Clam Mind, Light Screen, Psychic, Reflect, Wish, Foresight, Teleport, Psycho Boost, Skill Swap, Double Team, Sleep, Charge Beam, Dream Eater, Trick Room, Recover

...

Yuga didn't know how Deoxys had trained Chimecho, but its level was a bit exaggerated. Among Yuga's current main Pokémon, besides his Champion level Lapras, Chimecho had the highest level.

Chimecho's level was only one part of its battle capabilities. Yuga had seen its support abilities significantly improve while assisting Deoxys in the battle. Chimecho had developed its healing, defensive, and control abilities to a remarkable extent.

Otherwise, Deoxys would have been defeated by now.

Yuga knew that this particular Deoxys was exceptionally strong. It wasn't weaker than the Celebi that had transported him through time. However, he could also see that Deoxys wasn't inclined to truly confront Rayquaza. It held back in several instances, which had put it in a disadvantageous position.

Otherwise, even if Deoxys couldn't defeat Rayquaza, it wouldn't be in such dire straits now.

The enraged Rayquaza presented a considerable challenge for Deoxys. If it were possible, Deoxys would want to teleport away immediately, but it couldn't do that.

It had to retrieve what Rayquaza had taken; otherwise, it would be too late!

Boom!

A Flamethrower forced Deoxys to retreat. Yuga noticed that Rayquaza had begun its Dragon Dance.

Deoxys's Self-Recovery was becoming increasingly strained. Each instance of self-recovery consumed a significant amount of energy, and if used excessively, even a Legendary Pokémon like Deoxys couldn't bear it. Thus, any injuries that weren't life-threatening were handled by Chimecho's Heal Pulse.

Seeing Rayquaza perform Dragon Dance, Deoxys's immediate reaction was to stop it. It already couldn't defeat Rayquaza, and now it would get stronger with Dragon Dance?

But unfortunately, Deoxys failed to prevent Rayquaza from performing Dragon Dance because Rayquaza used Dragon Dance and Hurricane simultaneously. The dense wind wall blocked all of Deoxys's attacks from the outside.

Rayquaza's Dragon Dance was swift. In the blink of an eye, it completed six rounds of Dragon Dance, the maximum limit of enhancement. After Dragon Dance, Rayquaza's attack and speed were greatly boosted, and it immediately launched an attack on Deoxys.

Rayquaza used Extreme Speed while raising its two enormous dragon claws charged with dragon-type energy to strike Deoxys.

Deoxys, currently in Defense Form, couldn't dodge the dragon claws due to its slower speed. It quickly erected a Reflect barrier to aid its defense.

Fortunately, Chimecho's reaction was swift. When Rayquaza's dragon claws struck the Reflect barrier in front of Deoxys, Chimecho immediately raised another Reflect barrier behind the first one.

Two Reflect barriers shattered consecutively. Deoxys, in its Defense Form, was knocked back, but since it was in Defense Form, and thanks to the support of the two Reflect barriers, it wasn't severely injured.

The moment it was struck back, Deoxys switched from Defense Form to Attack Form and used its signature move, Psycho Boost, to rush towards Rayquaza.

Chimecho wasn't idle either. When Deoxys launched its attack, it immediately used Gravity. Rayquaza, remembering its previous experience, felt the helplessness it had experienced before.

This made Rayquaza furious!

Rayquaza resisted Chimecho's Gravity with much greater intensity this time, and it became agitated with anger. The Chimecho only restrained it for two or three seconds before breaking free.

Even though two to three seconds might seem short, it provided Deoxys with enough time to act. After the successful Psycho Boost hit on Rayquaza, Deoxys took the opportunity to deliver several Psychic power.

Rayquaza was now serious injured.

Unlike Deoxys and Chimecho, Rayquaza didn't have any recovery moves. Once it was injured, it stayed injured.

Initially, Rayquaza had underestimated a Pokémon like Chimecho. But after suffering two consecutive disadvantages under Chimecho's Gravity, its anger was evident when it turned to face Chimecho.

Yuga, observing from a distance, realized that the red mist rising from Rayquaza meant it was about to activate its Outrage move!

Yuga was just about to shout a warning to Chimecho, but Rayquaza was already dashing like lightning. If hit by this move Outrage, Chimecho wouldn't stand a chance.

Chimecho was so startled by Rayquaza's move that it momentarily forgot to evade. Of course, even if it remembered, it wouldn't have had time to dodge!

Seeing Chimecho in danger, Yuga felt a chill down his spine. His heart was gripped tightly, as if by a vice.

In the nick of time, Deoxys positioned itself in front of Chimecho.

Boom!

Rayquaza hit Deoxys precisely. Deoxys's body was shattered, and its lower half vanished.

However, this wasn't the end. Once Outrage activated, it wouldn't stop until it struck Deoxys two or three times in a row. Rayquaza didn't give Deoxys a chance to use Self-Recovery.

Boom! Boom!

Under Rayquaza's successive attacks, Deoxys disappeared, leaving only a purple crystal plummeting toward the ground.

Witnessing this, Yuga was dumbfounded.

Deoxys... was gone?

The ordeal wasn't over yet. After Outrage, Rayquaza fell into a state of confusion and began indiscriminate attacks. Its first target was the closest Pokémon, Chimecho.

As a torrent of red flames spewed from Rayquaza's mouth, its target was Chimecho.

Yuga was filled with panic; he was too far to help Chimecho.

But then, at that moment, numerous Shadow Balls appeared, canceling out Rayquaza's Flamethrower.

Seeing this, Yuga felt a sense of relief; Dusknoir had arrived.

Sure enough, not far away, the Ghost Ship floated in the sky, and Dusknoir, along with Ghost-type Pokémon floating around the ship.

"Dragonite, let's go!" Yuga exclaimed with joy to his Dragonite, who carried him.

The initial attack missed, and in its state of confusion, Rayquaza began self-inflicting harm, worsening its already severe injuries.

No one tried to stop Rayquaza from self-harming because this was a good thing for the chaotic Rustboro City and, particularly, for Chimecho at the center of the event.

Due to the collateral damage from the battle between Rayquaza and Deoxys, this section of Rustboro City had already turned into a wasteland.

However, Yuga hadn't expected that after a bout of self-inflicted injuries, Rayquaza would remain disoriented and seem determined to destroy Rustboro City beneath it.

Yuga had just landed from his Dragonite onto the deck of the Ghost Ship, observing Rayquaza's intent to unleash Dragon Pulse upon the city below. He immediately directed his words to Dusknoir and the Ghost-type Pokémon, "Stop it!"

As his words echoed, the Ghost Ship released numerous green chains. These chains, like agile green serpents, tightly entwined around Rayquaza's neck, claws, abdomen, and tail.

This was the work of Dhelmise!

With a resounding clatter, the chains tightened, forcing Rayquaza's head upward into the sky. It unleashed Dragon Pulse, and Rustboro City was spared.

Dhelmise's chains continued to constrict, even squeezing Rayquaza's wounds, eliciting painful roars.

However, Dhelmise was ultimately just an Elite level Pokémon, and its Anchor Shoot was barely holding Rayquaza. The enraged Rayquaza snapped the chains apart like brittle iron.

Yuga even heard Dhelmise's muffled groan. The Pokémon was definitely hurt this time.

But Chimecho provided support with its Gravity move, immobilizing Rayquaza again.

Perhaps due to its severe injuries, Yuga could clearly see Rayquaza becoming somewhat feeble in its struggles. Nevertheless, Chimecho continued to maintain the Gravity.

At this moment, Dusknoir entered the scene with some of its more powerful subordinates. Yuga sent out his Lapras, Charizard, Dragonite, and Florges.

Dusknoir, Dragonite, Charizard, Lapras, and Florges were tasked with dealing with Rayquaza. Meanwhile, Dusknoir's subordinates dispersed to deal with the aftermath of the battle on the ground, preventing further damage to the already chaotic Rustboro City.

At this moment, Yuga only hoped that they could wear down the heavily injured Rayquaza. Under normal circumstances, he would have stayed far away from it.

With a worried expression on his face, Yuga watched the impending catastrophe from above, completely unaware that Gengar had already returned to his side.

"Gengar, Gengar!" Gengar cried out.

Gengar's call brought Yuga's attention back, and he saw the purple crystal in Gengar's arms.

"Did you... rescue Deoxys?" Yuga asked in surprise.

"Gengar!" Gengar nodded proudly.

"Long time no see!"

At this moment, a consciousness suddenly reached Yuga's mind. He instantly understood that Deoxys was alive.

"Deoxys, are you alright?" Yuga shouted with joy, genuinely relieved that Deoxys hadn't perished at the hands of Rayquaza.

A faint purple energy orb floated out of the purple crystal. Yuga received another stream of consciousness.

"I'm fine, just didn't expect to run into you."

With confirmation that Deoxys was indeed unharmed, Yuga breathed a sigh of relief. He learned from Deoxys that although its physical body was gone, its energy core was intact. With some time and effort, it could be revived.

However, this kind of revival would come at the cost of a significant reduction in Deoxys's power.

"Gengar, you've been a great help. I promise to reward you handsomely when we get back," Yuga praised Gengar.

If Gengar hadn't swiftly brought Deoxys's energy core back, someone else could have taken it, making it nearly impossible to recover. Without a physical body, Deoxys would be helpless.

Gengar scratched his head, feeling somewhat embarrassed at the praise.

"By the way, how did you end up fighting Rayquaza with Chimecho?" Yuga inquired, puzzled by Deoxys's situation. Deoxys should have been more cautious with Yuga's warning.

"This is a long story," Deoxys began.

After Deoxys explained the situation, Yuga quickly understood what had happend.

During their travels across the Hoenn region, Deoxys had been nurturing Chimecho, treating it as a young protegé. Most of Deoxys's treasured items had been shared with Chimecho, which explained Chimecho's rapid growth in strength.

Recently, they had reached the polar region of Hoenn, where they discovered another Deoxys's energy core at the bottom of an ice lake. It was slightly damaged but still functional and could recover with time.

Deoxys wanted to care for this fellow member of its species and keep it safe since it couldn't do anything by itself, given its physical body had been lost. It was risky to leave it outside.

However, after retrieving the energy core, a Rayquaza suddenly descended from the sky. Deoxys couldn't match Rayquaza's strength and was forced into a battle. During the struggle, they flew unknowingly close to Rustboro City.

Deoxys genuinely didn't want to antagonize Rayquaza, but it couldn't abandon its fellow species. Rayquaza's diet consisted of celestial debris from space, and if Deoxys didn't rescue its kin in time, the kin would be consumed by Rayquaza.

Hearing Deoxys's explanation, Yuga felt a bit overwhelmed. Could it be that the energy core Deoxys had retrieved was the same one featured in the original movie? Otherwise it wouldn't be such a coincidence.

Under normal circumstances, without Deoxys's intervention, the energy core would have been taken back to LaRousse City by a research team. When Ash and his friends passed through LaRousse City, they would have eventually rescued and revived it.

After defeating the energy core turned into Deoxys, Rayquaza should have been searching for it in the vicinity, and if it couldn't find it, it would have left on its own. Who could have anticipated that Deoxys would fish it out?

Was this a case of "good intentions gone awry"?

It's true that this situation might have prevented the chaos in LaRousse City later on. After all, in the original movie, Rayquaza battled two Deoxys, creating quite a spectacle!

Unfortunately, Rustboro City has now suffered as a result.

One thing that can be certain is that the Deoxys Yuga knows is not the same as the one that saved the energy core in the movie. Their arrival times in the Pokémon world differ.

According to the movie's storyline, that Deoxys is most likely still in space. The Deoxys Yuga knows has been in the Pokémon world for many years, having assimilated into the Pokémon world over time and lost its alien presence, making it almost undetectable to Rayquaza under normal circumstances.

Rayquaza serves as the guardian of the atmosphere in the Pokémon world, and it views all outsiders as potential threats. This explains why it relentlessly pursued Deoxys, despite Deoxys having no ill intent towards the Pokémon world.

It's simply Rayquaza's duty to protect the Pokémon world, and this rigid adherence to its duty has helped keep the Pokémon world safe from external threats for a long time.

"The top priority now is to calm down Rayquaza's anger, otherwise if this continues, Rustboro City will be unable to hold on." Yuga said worriedly.

The city lacked strong trainers, and during such an emergency, only the police station and the local gym leaders were assisting in evacuating people. Even those looking to take advantage of the chaos had retreated after looking how intense previous battles was.

Yuga realized that even if not for Chimecho, he wouldn't wanted to face Rayquaza.

"Please help me rescue my kin, and I will definitely repay you in the future!" Deoxys' consciousness came to him again.

"I'll try my best." Yuga sighed.

Not to mention that Chimecho has offended Rayquaza, but he cannot just sit idly after knowing Deoxys's unswerving care and training for Chimecho during this period.