Chapter Text
While a part of Blizz would have liked to build another snowboard and head back down Breach Mountain that way, traveling with the caravan of former humans who, up until an hour ago, had completely forgotten about each other's existence took priority. Even as they fought their way through the mystery dungeon, they were exchanging stories and laughing the whole time.
Something about what happened in the Hall lifted a weight off all their chests. For some of them, it was the knowledge that Varin was safe. Others, that they weren't going to be forced back to Earth. Mostly, it was just the overwhelming sense of relief that everything was finally done.
Once they made it to the base of the mountain, they went to work setting up camp. None of them had brought tents— apparently under Celebi's reality, they were told that there would be accommodations already laid out for them.
Still, it was a beautiful spring day— a night of camping out under the stars wasn't gonna kill any of them.
After Kibo came back with some firewood, the Duke set it ablaze and they had a campfire to gather around.
"Yeah, I don't believe it either. I thought I was a pirate!" Angel explained, complete with wild hand motions made slightly more awkward by how she had to essentially face the sky to make them. "I even boarded a cargo ship coming from Cascia."
"Ooh, being an outlaw, how utterly terrible," Fanita joked.
"Guess I would have had to arrest you then," Kibo responded with a goofy grin.
Mira was looking straight into the fire. She tried to laugh along with the others, but was still struggling to wrap her head around everything that had happened to them. "...Fanita, how come you remembered immediately? I get that Blizz was a weird case since Celebi was Blizz, and Zar had been working with Celebi for a while, but I don't see why you're any different."
Fanita let her grin of enjoyment fade off. "I still never figured it out-"
"Literally nothing about you changed," Blizz interrupted, biting into a baked apple. "Like, you being off on your own as an outlaw, that was pretty much exactly what you were like when you first ran into us. If his goal was to make sure you stayed an outlaw, there was literally nothing he could do to change it."
The Mismagius looked up to the moon in contemplation. "...I think you're right."
For a brief moment, all that could be heard was the crackling of the fire and the buzz of feral bug types.
"Hey wait, I have a question!" Leaf raised a flipper in the air, though his gaze was centered on the Prince and the Duke.
Despite having a bad feeling about what he would be asking about, the Prince nodded. "And what would that be?"
"Are you guys still dating?"
Blizz had to stop himself from spitting out his apple in laughter. The Flareon and Umbreon gave each other a momentary glance, before turning away.
"The circumstances that led to... that is not a valid reflection of our present reality," the Duke explained.
"We will discuss this at another point," the Prince admitted. "For now, may I ask we shift the topic to literally anything else?"
As funny as it would be to press it further, Blizz decided to give his friend some relief. "New question, what do all you guys wanna do going forward? Like, whole idea behind Team Apex was to see why we were here, and we kinda got that figured out."
Rune cleared her throat. "I... want to keep exploring, at least for now. It's kinda fun."
"Honestly, I thought we all knew that wasn't the real reason we're together," Kibo laughed.
"One would have to be idiotic to believe I would chain myself to a team such as this for a cause as trivial as that," the Prince seconded.
"I think it's the same for us," Mira agreed. She quickly turned around, focusing more on Team Terrae. "But if anyone does want to do something else, don't feel like you have to stay!" she quickly added.
"Hey guys! What'd I miss?"
All of the explorers turned around to see Zar, disguised as a shiny Grovyle, approaching the camp. Absol was behind her, though he seemed to be keeping his distance from the campsite.
"Just talking about all the shit that's happened," Blizz answered, scooting to the side to make room for the newcomers around the fire pit.
"Ooh, who had the weirdest story?" Zar sat down next to her brother, joining in with the others.
Angel jumped up. "Definitely me! I was a pirate, and…"
While the others debated about who had the weirdest life under Celebi, Blizz's focus was elsewhere. Absol's silhouette was visible against the moonlight, and he seemed to be intent on keeping the same awkward distance from the others as when he first arrived.
"Be right back," Blizz whispered, rising to his feet. Beyond their immediate campsite, the field they were in was damp from snowmelt trickling down the mountain. As a result, each step forward caused his feet to sink down a little in grass and mud. Still, he persevered, coming up to Absol's side.
He gave Blizz a nod, before turning back to look at the moon. The burden of starting the conversation laid squarely on the Grovyle.
"So uh... how was reviving all the legendaries?"
"...Faster than I anticipated. With both Zar and Mewtwo's aid, the process went by quickly."
"And no one was like, pissed off that we did that to them?"
"Not exactly, but they all... eventually understood. Dialga's presence made justifying it far easier."
"So what happens next for you?" Blizz asked, looking up at the same moon Absol seemed so fixated on. "Like, guild work, back to being-"
"I have attempted to end the lives of all Pokémon on this continent," Absol cut in. "That action was not erased. I... doubt there are laws on record that can properly deal with my circumstances, however I anticipate I will remain in prison for a long time, if not the rest of my life."
In the rush of everything that had happened, Blizz sorta forgot that detail. "Even with how like, Celebi manipulated you to try and do this?"
That finally managed to pull Absol's attention away from the moon. "Celebi's influence certainly altered my perception, but it was by my own will that I enacted the plan to deploy the conduits."
"But like, can't you argue-"
"I have no intention of using any legal technicalities to avoid the punishment my actions deserve."
Blizz shrugged. "Then why didn't you turn yourself in before the big Celebi fight?"
"You stated yourself, I was the only Pokémon who physically could have aided you."
"Well, here's how I see it," Blizz started. "You're one of the strongest Pokémon, period. You stopped exploring because Celebi warping you around all the time fucked with your disaster sense, and now that's mostly cleared up. And what would be more helpful in making sure whatever the next disaster is doesn't kill us? You rotting in a jail cell, or on the front lines against whatever it is we have to fight?"
Absol stared at Blizz in silence. It wasn't often the Grovyle had his goggles lowered, which made it much easier to see the confident focus on his face.
"Though you'll probably have to talk to Lucario or someone about it, just-"
"You make a valid point," Absol agreed. "I will... see what I can do. I simply will not tolerate a mere slap on the wrist."
"Course. Now, you wanna mope out here or actually enjoy your last night of freedom?"
Absol looked back to the explorers gathered around the campfire, and the way they would randomly explode into bursts of laughter.
"...That would be appreciated."
It occurred to Blizz he never actually made the walk back from Breach Mountain to Nova Town before. He'd walked the other way twice, but the first time they had to carry his unconscious body back to town, and the second ended with him being sent back to the human world rather than Nova Town.
For the most part, it wasn't particularly different. The patches of snow faded away as the temperature slowly rose, each step bringing them closer to home.
The one thing that was different was climbing over the final hill. After a series of switchbacks that he very easily could have just cut across, he made it to the hilltop that overlooked all of Nova Town. Even from up here, he could see some of the larger Pokémon going about their day.
The final stretch went a lot faster, mostly because Blizz was running the whole way. The other humans scrambled to keep up, but it was hard not to feel the same enthusiasm.
Their shouting and running caused a few heads to turn over. Some were just wondering if these kids were crazy, others recognized them as guild members and assumed they just came back from a rough mission. A very select few, those who remembered what happened at the survivors' encampment, applauded as they passed by.
Ultimately, they didn't get the chance to finish the final scramble into the guild. Before they made it to the tent, two Pokémon climbed out.
"WELCOME BACK, FUCKERS!"
Lucario stormed down the road towards the group, though he came to an abrupt stop when he noticed Absol lingering behind the rest of them.
"I have come to turn myself in," Absol quickly explained, lowering his head.
Lucario turned back to Scizor, who nodded.
"Alright fine, go walk your ass to the police station. I'm not in the mood to deal with your shit right now."
"I... Right, I will depart now." Absol turned back around, but shot one look last at Blizz. He didn't say anything for fear of antagonizing Lucario further, but he did mouth the words thank you to the Grovyle.
With that, Absol rounded a corner and disappeared from sight.
"Okay– now I'm gonna act like I never saw him, WELCOME BACK MOTHERFUCKERS!"
By this point, a few other members of the guild had emerged— Hawlucha, Sneasel, Chimchar, and Shinx.
"As a whole, the town's memories of the incident are... hazy," Scizor explained. "Some do not recall anything since the conduit was first activated, others recall the encampment but have no explanation as to how the effects of the Resonance were reversed. A small group claims that they were living completely different lives until yesterday. I would assume that is related to whatever you were doing?"
Blizz nodded. "Yeah, really long story. Short version is we beat Absol, it turned out there was a guy worse than Absol, so we teamed up with Absol to take him down."
Scizor gave him an annoyed glare. "You are aware I will have to write up a more detailed report on the incident than-"
"Was it badass?" Lucario asked, his face only a few inches away from Blizz.
"Hell yeah it was, ended with this big Z-Move that managed to smack reality back to normal."
"That's all I wanna hear. Scizor, can we deal with the bureaucratic bullshit later? This is a celebration night."
Scizor sighed. "...I don't suppose my answer will have any impact on your decision?"
"Not at all."
"Very well. Just make sure they are still capable of answering my questions tomorrow morning."
Lucario shot a finger gun at his assistant guildmaster, before turning back to the humans. "Fuck yeah! Celebration is always the best part of dealing with a disaster. Come to the guild, drop off your stuff and everything, but stay out of town until tonight."
The explorers looked between themselves before giving out murmurs of acceptance. They filed past the guildmasters, making small talk with the other guild members who came out to see what the commotion was as they climbed back to their rooms.
Blizz's hay bed had never felt more comfortable. Four days of hiding away from civilization and camping without tents or sleeping bags made the bundle of straw feel like heaven.
That was completely ignoring the comfort of having everyone else around him too. It had been ages since all five of them were in this room.
It was a tad different than he remembered— he guessed that had to do with the hole Lucario punched through the wall when he was under the influence of the Resonance, now that it was repaired.
Still, this sorta crowded room built inside of a cliff face was home, and nothing was changing that.
Blizz let himself drift off to sleep for a short nap. He had no doubts Lucario or someone would wake them up when it was time for whatever the celebration they were planning was.
"ALRIGHT ASSHOLES, GET OUT HERE!"
Lucario's shout roused Blizz from his rest. He wiped the crust out of his eyes, and placed his goggles around his neck. Just because he doesn't want to wear them over his eyes as much anymore doesn't mean he's just gonna let them waste away in his room.
Him and the rest of Team Apex stepped into the main hall, where Terrae and Vindicate were waiting, alongside Lucario.
"Eight, nine, ten, eleven... That's all of you! Now get to town, celebration's gonna start." Lucario chose to not elaborate before taking off, climbing up the ladder.
The rest of the humans followed suit, walking down the path towards the center of town. It was fairly late, the sun had been down for a while, but the streetlights seemed to be shining brighter than normal.
As the group made their way through the streets, they found it to be a lot... emptier than normal. Even at this hour, there would usually be a few Pokémon running about. Right now, they couldn't see a soul as they approached downtown.
By the time they made it to the central market square, the reason became apparent. What had to be half the town's population were all gathered around. Long tables of food and drink lined the perimeter, while hundreds of Pokémon were talking to each other or digging into their food. At the center of the scene was a wooden platform, only a couple feet up off the ground.
Unsurprisingly, Lucario stood atop it. He waved all the former humans over, forcing them to awkwardly push through the crowd until they made it to the stage. He made one last signal for them to cover their ears, and all eleven of them knew what that meant.
"LISTEN UP!" Lucario's shout, accompanied by a Metal Sound, caused the crowd to go quiet. Hundreds of eager eyes descended onto the guildmaster.
"One week ago, half of this continent was dead. Empty husks not capable of doing anything. It was yet another Arceus-damned crisis."
Blizz looked over the crowd. Despite the subject of Lucario's shouting, they seemed to be in good spirits.
"BUT WE DIDN'T FALL APART! We took down the crisis, just like we've taken down every other crisis!"
Cheers and applause slowly rippled through the crowd.
"It doesn't matter what they throw at us!" Lucario continued. "We'll survive, and we'll live!"
There was another round of cheers as Lucario yanked Blizz onto the stage. The rest of the humans followed behind, all eleven of them standing in the center of the stage. Even in the chaos, they could make out some of the Pokémon they've come to meet— Raichu, Leavanny, and more than a few of their fellow guildmates.
"Team Apex, Terrae, and Vindicate!" Lucario yelled. "This time, they solved it! Next time, it could be any of you! Remember that, we have to fight to live! So make those lives worth it!"
If the previous cheers were loud, this round was deafening. Lucario knew how to get a crowd excited, and even with the weight of all the Pokémon watching him, Blizz found himself getting pumped too.
As the cheering slowly died down, the former humans climbed off the stage to go eat. The crowd seemed to regard them slightly differently now, but that didn't affect their unspoken agreement to gather around the same table.
"Can't believe they put all of this together for us!" Kibo said, tearing into his plate of fried Archen.
"That is not entirely correct," the Prince stated, slowly picking away at his salad.
"They do this after the end of every crisis," Mira explained. "Based on what Lucario said."
"I think I get-" Rune was cut off by the sound of yelling and crashing, as a Toxicroak and Croconaw who both had a little too much to drink started taking swings at each other. Rune quietly sent an Icy Wind in their direction, causing both combatants to fall to the floor.
"Like I was saying, I think I get it," she resumed. "If this type of thing happens as often as Absol says, it... has to be kinda scary."
"A reminder of why the perpetual battle is worth it," the Duke summarized. "So as to reduce the number of those who think as Absol does."
Blizz nodded. "Everyone's here together and having the time of their life. Everything could go to hell in a minute, just gotta drive home why the time you spent is worth it."
"Cheers to that!" Zar yelled, raising her mug up. All of them who were physically capable of raising a drink did so, while the others made their best attempt.
Their time here was just getting started.
As Kibo tried to outrun the rising tide of boiling water while hoisting a spherical dragon type over his head, it occurred to him that dating was a lot harder than he first thought.
Sure, working up the courage to ask Angel if she wanted to go do a dungeon run together was nerve-wracking in its own way, but his friends were constantly assuring him that was the hardest part, and once he was over that hill it would be smooth sailing. This was quickly proven wrong, as they soon realized they decided to take on Burning Rapids while the tides were shifting.
But despite their fears of the rising water level and general difficulty of the dungeon, the thrill of the exploration was kinda fun. Angel definitely seemed to think so, as she fired off a Dragon Breath at an approaching Quagsire.
"Let's go! This is awesome!"
So while the date was difficult and ended in a trip to Chansey's clinic, Kibo would say it was a success.
"...Blizz, I cannot say I have the best feeling about what is to come."
The five members of Team Apex were gathered in their room around a sheet of paper. It was the type of poster they usually used for mission listings, though this one had far less text than normal.
Lucario's Guild Graduation Exam
Client: Lucario
Info: Good luck
"Come on, we got this." Blizz rested a hand on the Umbreon's neck. "We've been kicking ass for the past year. Literally we've done some of the hardest dungeons in Varin and fought all four of the toughest Pokémon that live here. Plus, now that we finally managed to find an ice stone for Rune, she's way stronger."
The Ninetales shook her head. "I will not disagree with you on that, but we should recall that when Hawlucha's team attempted the graduation exam, they came back traumatized. We should make sure we're prepared."
"I think we can do it!" Kibo cheered. "Nothing that all five of us can't beat."
"I'm with Kibo," Zar agreed, transforming from a shiny Grovyle back into a Mew to prove her point. "What else can he throw at us?"
The Prince looked between his teammates, before sighing. "Very well, let us get it over with."
They climbed out of their room to find the guild almost completely empty. The only other Pokémon around were Team Terrae and Team Vindicate, all of whom seemed to be just as confused as Apex.
Mira looked over to Blizz and Fanita. "Did... are you guys taking the graduation exam too?"
The Prince let out a sigh. "I have a suspicion about what the examination will be."
The Duke nodded, drawing closer to his boyfriend. "A battle of us against the entire guild at once would make sense."
Blizz shrugged. "Honestly, that seems kinda tame. Not like we're gonna find the exam here though." Without waiting for anyone else's approval, he started climbing up the ladder.
The outside was slightly more what he was expecting of a major exam. All of the guild's apprentices were lined up along the sides of the giant Lucario tent.
"So uh, are we fighting you guys?" Blizz asked Shinx, who was the closest to him.
The electric type slowly shook her head, instead pointing a paw down the hill. Blizz followed along, and noticed four familiar figures at the base: Lucario, Hydreigon, Scizor, and Absol.
Immediately, the eleven humans understood what was to come.
"Are you fuckers ready?" Lucario shouted. "You don't know what bullshit strings I had to pull to make this possible."
"YOUR STUPID FUCKING GUILDMASTER TOLD ME I'D GET THE CHANCE TO THROTTLE HIS APPRENTICES, LIKE HELL I'M PASSING THAT UP!"
"Under normal circumstances, the graduation exam would involve a battle with the guildmaster, assistant guildmaster, and two highest ranked teams," Scizor explained as he crushed an Empowerment Seed in his claws. "But given that all of your teams were due a graduation exam at approximately the same time, we felt that this was more fitting than having you take turns fighting each other."
"I believe that regardless of the outcome of this battle, you will all come out stronger for it," Absol stated. "Please, hold nothing back, we certainly will not. Zygarde!"
"Let's go Xerneas!"
"GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE YVELTAL!"
The former humans watched as legendary Pokémon began to manifest behind Team Breaker. Despite how absurdly difficult this fight was looking to be, there seemed to be a contagious enthusiasm running through them.
"Aww, this might almost be a fair fight," Fanita taunted. "Leaf, shall we?"
"We will not back down," Mira stated, standing up a bit straighter. "Terrae, advance!"
"Let's fucking get it!" Blizz called. "Come on Apex, let's fuck them up!"
"Idon'tknow whatifIdosomethingwrong whatif-"
Kibo's rambling was cut off by a light Shadow Ball, courtesy of the Prince. "Worrying about this right now will not help you. You and Angel have known each other for nearly five years by this point— the wedding could be an unmitigated disaster and the two of you would still be content."
A couple of the patrons of Spinda's turned their heads at the scene, but seeing that nothing was coming of it, they went back to their meals.
"Yeah, this is your bachelor party dude!" Blizz agreed, lifting the Hakamo-o back up to his feet. "Worry about the wedding later, we're here to have the time of our FUCKING LIVES!"
"Yeah! Once you get married you can't do anything fun!" Leaf agreed. "...But Angel is still really cool..."
"See? Even Leaf knows. Now I'll tell you what the plan is- we're gonna stay here for a bit longer, make sure everyone minus Leaf has had just enough so they're-"
Blizz's explanation was cut off by the door slamming open. Lucario worked his way through the restaurant until he was standing with the other explorers. "Sorry I'm late, had to deal with all sorts of federation bullshit today."
Leaf's eyes seemed to sparkle. "You're coming with us too?"
"Course I would, you fuckers are some of the best apprentices I ever had. Now let's go! Gonna show you guys this badass dungeon that the Federation doesn't want teams to know about."
As the five of them followed behind Lucario, Kibo leaned in and whispered to Blizz. "Why did you invite him?"
"I didn't."
When the actual day of the wedding arrived, the atmosphere was much calmer than it was a few days ago. Blizz still barely understood how they made it out of that dungeon with no injuries, but he also knew better than to doubt Lucario.
Now, he could relax slightly. He was in the front row, with Zar on his left and Rune on his right. There wasn't exactly a clear distinction between who came for Kibo and who came for Angel, but just to keep things balanced Team Terrae stayed on the bride's side.
Admittedly, it was a little awkward with Fanita sitting next to Blizz rather than the Prince. Instead, the Umbreon was up on stage, standing between the Hakamo-o and the Shelgon.
"Kibo, do you take Angel as your lawful wife?"
The Prince had explained to all of them several times that as the current living British monarch in Varin, he was the head of the Church of England, and therefore the most qualified to officiate a wedding ceremony between former humans. That did not make the experience any less surreal.
"Absolutely."
"Angel, do you take Kibo as your lawful husband?"
"Yep!"
"Then by the power invested in me through my royal lineage, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Please, get the rest of this over with."
Kibo and Angel immediately threw themselves towards each other, but didn't get quite as far as either would have liked. A golden glow enveloped the two of them, spurring a round of "ooh"s from the audience.
When the lights subsided, a Kommo-o and Salamance stood on the stage. The two smiled at each other for a moment, before embracing each other in their first real hug.
As soon as he could retire from his duties as best man, Blizz snuck away from the wedding. While he would have liked to talk more with Kibo about the evolution, it seemed like the entire population of Nova Town had the same idea, so he decided to wait. He walked east for 20 minutes, ending up at a familiar patch of grass right outside of Overgrowth Woods.
Almost five years ago, this was the spot where he first woke up as a Treecko. It wasn't really a location he ever paid much mind to in the past. There was nothing special about it, and for all he knows his memory could have slipped and it was actually a different patch of grass 15 feet away.
The details didn't really matter. He lied down to catch his breath, staring at the stars above him.
His mind slowly began to wander, back to everything he dealt with right after waking up. Meeting Prince for the first time, joining the guild, the Resonance slowly becoming more and more of an issue until it almost ended the world, even encountering the Celebi version of him.
In spite of everything, Blizz hoped he was doing alright.
Eventually, he rose back to his feet, slowly walking back towards the city.
Sure, it was a beautiful night outside of Nova Town, but he really didn't feel like spending it here alone.