Chapter 1068: Persuading Floette

The moment Yuga saw Darkrai, he thought to himself: As expected, it's Darkrai. However, he hadn't anticipated Darkrai's heightened vigilance; as soon as he and Floette approached, they were immediately noticed.

Recognizing that this was indeed the Darkrai from the Mirage Tower, Yuga expected Darkrai to attack him instantly upon seeing him, especially considering their unpleasant encounter last time. Previously, they had only managed to escape safely thanks to Absol's Unknown Seed suddenly erupting. But such an eruption was a rare occurrence, and they couldn't count on such luck this time, making Yuga extremely wary of Darkrai.

Contrary to his expectations, things didn't unfold as he had imagined. When Darkrai saw him, its expression was somewhat unreadable, leaving Yuga puzzled.

What Yuga didn't realize was that while he was wary of Darkrai, Darkrai was equally wary of him.

Previously, Absol had absorbed a significant amount of Darkrai's origin energy using the power of the Unknown Seed, leaving Darkrai incapacitated for several days. That experience was incredibly painful, and Darkrai never wanted to endure it again. Unaware that the eruption of the Unknown Seed was a coincidence, Darkrai believed that Absol could control that power at will.

Recalling the helplessness of being pinned down by Absol, Darkrai's first reaction upon seeing Yuga was not to attack but to retreat.

Yuga: ...

Darkrai: ...

This subtle misunderstanding left both man and Pokémon speechless for a moment.

The awkward atmosphere was soon broken by Floette. Seeing Floette beside Yuga, Darkrai, momentarily forgetting its apprehension toward Absol, immediately launched an attack on Floette.

"Dark!" *You dare to come back!*

As soon as Yuga heard Darkrai shout, waves of Dark Pulse were unleashed relentlessly. Even though Yuga wasn't the primary target, he couldn't avoid being affected by the shockwaves. Fortunately, Chimecho was by his side, ensuring his safety.

What kind of deep-seated grudge does Darkrai have against Floette to attack on sight? Yuga couldn't help but wonder as he dodged to the side.

Could it be that Darkrai had unrequited feelings for AZ, and upon seeing AZ's beloved Floette, became consumed with jealousy and sought to eliminate it? In Yuga's mind, a melodramatic scene played out involuntarily.

Also, why did Darkrai leave the Mirage Tower? Didn't Cresselia say they had promised to guard AZ until he awoke? Could it be that AZ has already awakened?

Yuga watched from a distance as Darkrai battled fiercely against the Eternal Flower Floette, his mind filled with questions.

It was evident that this place had once been beautiful—a hidden garden in the heart of Petalburg Woods. Now, it was in complete ruin, with remnants of flowers and trees scattered everywhere. Numerous craters from explosions left the rare garden looking like a defiled beauty.

As Yuga had suspected, Floette was exceptionally powerful. He had witnessed Darkrai's strength firsthand, knowing that even his strongest Pokémon combined couldn't defeat it. Yet, Floette was effortlessly suppressing Darkrai.

After observing for a while, Yuga finally understood that Floette had no desire to fight Darkrai and was only defending itself, which explained why it kept getting injured.

"Fula, fula!" *Come help me! Didn't you say you'd help me reclaim my home?*

Seeing Yuga watching from the sidelines, Floette called out loudly while fending off Darkrai's attacks.

Help you reclaim your home? Did I ever say that? Reluctant to engage Darkrai, Yuga instinctively refused.

Why bother reclaiming a home that's already riddled with holes? Can't you just find a new place and rebuild? Yuga really wanted to say this to Floette.

Noticing Floette seeking Yuga's assistance, Darkrai hesitated momentarily. Seeing that Yuga had no intention of intervening, it continued hurling Shadow Balls at Floette, one after another...

Boom!

Floette was knocked to the ground by a Shadow Ball but quickly got up and hid behind Yuga. Startled by this move, Yuga was left dumbfounded. Weren't you supposed to be kind and gentle? Is this some kind of hidden dark side?

There's no denying that a Pokémon's fighting spirit greatly influences its combat ability. Despite being no weaker than Darkrai, Floette's lack of will to fight resulted in it being chased around miserably.

With Floette hiding behind Yuga, Darkrai, wary of him, subconsciously halted its attack. Seizing the opportunity, Yuga called out, "How about we stop and talk?"

Regaining its composure, Darkrai dispersed the half-formed Shadow Ball, gave Yuga a deep look, and ultimately chose not to continue attacking.

Darkrai's cooperation surprised Yuga, but he was relieved that it was willing to listen.

After some conversation, Yuga finally understood the "love-hate relationship" between Darkrai and Floette.

As expected, the reason Darkrai attacked Floette was related to AZ, but it wasn't due to some unrequited love as Yuga had imagined.

Despite its rebellious nature, Darkrai was fundamentally kind-hearted, just as Cresselia had described.

During the long years spent with AZ, Darkrai inevitably developed feelings for him. To Darkrai, AZ was a deeply emotional person; otherwise, he wouldn't have spent over three thousand years searching tirelessly for Floette.

Darkrai had always sympathized with the lonely AZ. Through AZ, it saw a reflection of itself—enduring endless years without any companions.

Therefore, even though it had never met Floette before, Darkrai's first impression was extremely negative.

Two months ago, a group entered the Mirage Tower and awakened AZ. Who knows what they said to him, but ultimately, AZ agreed to leave the tower with them on the condition that they help him find Floette.

Before departing, AZ fulfilled his promise by freeing Darkrai and Cresselia. Cresselia immediately decided to return to the Sinnoh region, while Darkrai wandered around Hoenn and eventually arrived at Petalburg Woods.

It never expected to encounter Floette in the heart of Petalburg Woods.

Although it had never met Floette before, after spending hundreds of years with AZ and hearing him talk about Floette daily, Darkrai instantly recognized that the Floette before it was the very one AZ had been searching for.

Seeing Floette singing happily in the garden, Darkrai was furious, feeling that AZ's millennia-long search had been utterly futile. Unable to contain its anger, it attacked Floette on the spot.

In Darkrai's perspective, if it weren't for Floette, AZ wouldn't have been threatened by those people. (In Darkrai's eyes, AZ was coerced.)

Initially, Floette didn't understand why Darkrai suddenly attacked her, but after hearing Darkrai's accusations, she fell silent.

If you asked Floette whether she wanted to see AZ, the answer would definitely be yes. The bond between her and AZ was genuine, and even after a thousand years, AZ remained the most important person to her.

However, every time she thought of AZ, she would also remember the countless innocent lives lost to the Ultimate Weapon. The thought that her own life was bought at the cost of so many others suffocated her with guilt.

Floette's heart was filled with both resentment and hatred. She resented AZ for creating the Ultimate Weapon and hated him for selfishly taking so many lives, both human and Pokémon.

At the same time, Floette felt a deep sense of self-blame and guilt. She blamed herself for AZ's loss of reason and descent into madness, and felt guilty for leaving AZ silently, plunging him into endless suffering.

In short, the complexity in Floette's heart was far beyond what an outsider like Darkrai could understand.

After listening to Floette's complex inner confession, Darkrai fell silent. It hadn't realized that things between Floette and AZ were so complicated. The AZ it knew was just one side of him, the AZ of more than two thousand years later; it had no understanding of what AZ had been like over three thousand years ago.

Yuga, however, was focused on something different from the two Pokémon. After hearing about Darkrai's experience, he suddenly asked, "You said AZ was taken away? By whom?"

Darkrai shook its head, indicating that it didn't know. It had stayed in the Mirage Tower for so long, so how could it recognize the other party?

"What did they look like? What were they wearing?" Yuga continued to question.

After Darkrai's description, Yuga thought to himself: As expected!

The distinct red lion mane of Lysandre was unmistakable.

As for why Lysandre would take AZ away, Yuga could only think of one reason: the Ultimate Weapon. AZ was the creator of the Ultimate Weapon, and finding him would mean finding a shortcut to obtaining the weapon.

The consequences of Lysandre obtaining the Ultimate Weapon were unimaginable, but Yuga was certain they wouldn't be good. The Ultimate Weapon was a mass destruction device that should never have existed.

This must be reported to the League as soon as possible! Yuga thought to himself.

He glanced at Floette, realizing that to prevent AZ from helping Lysandre create the Ultimate Weapon, the most effective ally would be Floette.

It looks like I'll have to convince Floette to go back!

"Floette, after all these years, haven't you ever thought about seeing AZ again?" Yuga asked, trying to persuade her.

Floette nodded. She had thought about it, but she was too afraid.

"I think there's no need to cling to the past. What's done is done; no matter how guilty or sad you feel, you can't change it. Since that's the case, why not try to live a little easier? Maybe forgiving AZ isn't as difficult as you think."

Floette shook her head with her lips pursed, tears welling up in her eyes. She wanted to believe that, but she couldn't. The guilt of countless innocent lives weighed so heavily on her that she could hardly breathe.

Yuga sighed. He couldn't truly understand the pain in Floette's heart. Forcing her to see AZ wasn't his intention, but it seemed like the only way to have the best chance of stopping AZ from aiding in a catastrophic act.

"Don't you care if AZ creates the Ultimate Weapon again?" Yuga asked, his tone serious.

Floette's head snapped up at Yuga's words.

Yuga continued, "Those who took AZ want to create the Ultimate Weapon. To find you, AZ will definitely help them."

Yuga's words finally shook Floette, and Darkrai gave an assisting nudge.

"I think I overheard them mention the Ultimate Weapon to AZ," Darkrai added.

"So, Floette," Yuga urged, "come with me. Let's find AZ together, okay? Do you really want to see the Ultimate Weapon brought back to life, taking countless lives once more? One tragedy is enough!"

After a long moment of thought, Floette finally nodded and agreed to leave with Yuga.

Seeing Floette nod, Yuga breathed a sigh of relief. Floette was indeed as kind-hearted as the legends said. By appealing to this weakness, she had no choice but to comply.

I feel a bit like a scoundrel! Yuga rarely reflected on his true nature.

But how can this be called being a scoundrel? I'm saving the world! Yuga quickly justified his actions.

After convincing Floette, Yuga turned to Darkrai and asked, "Floette is coming with me. What about you?"

Darkrai thought for a moment before saying, "I'll stay here. I don't want to go anywhere else." It didn't consider itself to have a master-servant relationship with AZ, and now that Floette had decided to see AZ, Darkrai didn't want to involve itself any further.

Yuga responded, "You can stay here, but you must not cause any more trouble for the Pokémon in the forest. Many Pokémon fell into a deep sleep because of you, which caused a great deal of panic."

Darkrai nodded, agreeing not to use its powerful Hypnosis on a large scale again. Actually, if it weren't for Floette, Darkrai wouldn't have used such a strong Hypnosis in the first place.

After saying goodbye to Darkrai, Yuga also bid farewell to Nakamichi and Reisuke before leaving Petalburg Woods with Floette.

When Yuga returned to Venderturf, the expedition team members were visibly relieved to see him return safely.

Yuga then reported the situation regarding AZ to the League.

Given Yuga's unique status and the presence of the special Pokémon Floette as a witness, the League had no choice but to take Yuga's words seriously.

The history of Kalos records AZ and Floette more in folklore, with the Ultimate Weapon and the Eternal Flower being too fantastical, and lacking sufficient evidence in official history, they were often considered fabrications.

But now that Floette had appeared, the League had no choice but to believe. If the fabled Ultimate Weapon were truly recreated, it would be an outcome the League could not accept.

Lysandre was a well-known entrepreneur in Kalos, highly regarded for his charitable work over the years, having helped many people.

But now, this man was attempting to lay his hands on the Ultimate Weapon!

Since Lysandre was from Kalos, the Hoenn League had no authority to directly investigate him. They needed to coordinate with the Kalos League for a final decision.

Because the investigation needed to be conducted in secrecy, Yuga and Floette were notified to be on standby at all times.

However, given that Lysandre had hidden his intentions for so long and his public image was so well established, it would be extremely difficult for the League to find any evidence against him.

Two days after returning to Venderturf, Yuga had just finished watching May's performance in the Contest when he received a notification from the League. He and Floette were to travel to Kalos on a special mission.

Receiving this notification, Yuga had no choice but to move up his Gym battle with Ash.

(End of Chapter)