10: A Battle of Wills

Munna

They realized far too late what she was doing. By the time it clicked in their heads Empoleon had finished her wish. Now the stars were swirling again. Converging together in a single mass.

“No! Munna!” Thunder yells. “I wish Munna would live!” He says to counter Empoleon’s wish. The mass of stars shrinks in volume, but slowly progresses towards Munna. Thunder focuses his will at the orb, trying to keep it from reaching her while Empoleon does the same to try and keep it moving.

“Thunder…” Empoleon says while still focusing on the orb. “Stop interfering! This is not your concern!”

“Munna saved my life! And Alex’s too! You think she’s a killer, but she is truly a kindhearted person! Why can’t you see that!?”

“And how is a hero of Pokèmar so naïve?! The things she’s done… They can’t be forgiven! She doesn’t deserve an ounce of compassion! What she deserves is pain. Agony. Suffering. And death. To be with her own demented kind in the dark world!”

“And who are you to make that judgement?! If you kill her, doesn’t that make you a killer as well?”

“A necessary evil to make the world safer. Now step aside!”

“I will not just stand by and let you murder someone! That’s not what New Hope does!” Throughout their debate, the orb continues to steadily inch it’s way towards Munna, who is backed into a corner with no where to go. “Munna! Focus your will! Concentrate on how much you want to survive!”

Munna puts forth all her willpower to halt the orbs movement. Soon, it slows to a crawl. Making barely any progress towards its target. But then the thought enters her mind once again. The thought of her guilt and how she may in fact deserve this. Suddenly the orb picks up speed again, inching ever closer towards Munna. Maybe it’s for the best. Maybe she should just let it happen. Feel the pain that she put so many others through. Just let herself die…

Alex

I can’t believe my eyes. Munna is just giving up! She’s just going to let herself be killed! And I’m forced to just sit and watch. While Thunder will probably still bring me back regardless, I can’t just watch! There has to be a way to get through to her. Wait… Maybe there is… She knows the signal that she used to hijack Hydreigon’s message. I think I recall it as well… I might be able to just…

Munna

The orb is closing fast. It won’t be long now… And it’ll all be over. No more guilt. No more remorse… She’s through with this world. It’s time to move on.

“Munna!” Wait… That voice… Alex?! He’s using the psychic channel she used to talk to him with!

“Alex?” She returns the call. “Why are you contacting me?”

“I’ve been watching this whole time! I know you’re hurting. I understand that you want to let it all just go. But this is not the way!”

“Why should I fight it? Empoleon’s right. I deserve to die…”

“Don’t say that! Empoleon is blinded by rage. She doesn’t see the good in you like Thunder and I can!”

“What good is there in someone who deceived and murdered defenseless people to prevent them from stopping the end of the world?”

“The good is that you have acknowledged what you did was wrong! Because you regret it, you want to change. Heck, you saved me and my friends life back in the palace. You probably sacrificed yours in the process. You were willing to die to make things right!” She did, didn’t she? The moment she saw the mistakes she made she was willing to do anything to make up for them. “Plus you only did what you did for the benefit of others. To end the pain and suffering of the less fortunate. The only problem was you went about it the wrong way. But that’s all behind you now. That’s not you any longer. Don’t just lie down and die. Show the world who you truly are!” And this was coming from someone she had tried to kill! Maybe there’s still a chance for forgiveness after all…

Munna’s will grows stronger, halting the orb mere inches from her face. She stares it down, willing it to retreat. And it does.

“What?!” Empoleon gasps in disbelief. “No! No that’s not possible! How are you doing this?!”

“Up until now, I’ve let myself wallow and sulk in my guilt. My anguish. But I will no longer tie myself down with my own mistakes. I may not be forgiven by everyone around me. And that fine. Because I’ve done the important part. I’ve forgiven myself.” The orb breaks apart into the stars that formed it, of which return to their rightful place watching over the hill.

“No!” Empoleon roars in anger. “I will not rest until your head is on a stake!” But before she can even think about attacking, Thunder fires off a thunder wave, paralyzing her. “No! Stop! I should have you executed, ‘hero!'”

“I’m sure law enforcement would love to hear your side of the story.” Thunder says. “A fair trial and all that.”

“Yeah? How about putting her on trial? She’s actually killed people.”

“Yeah… That’ll have to happen. Sorry Munna.”

“It’s fine.” Munna responds. “I’m willing to serve time. No reason to make more trouble.”

“Now…” Thunder starts. “Are you going to cooperate or am I going to have to knock you out?”

“I’m not satisfied until she is dead! And I’m not going to stop until she is!”

“Well, guess it’s light out, then.” Thunder fires a bolt of electricity at the captive target, immediately incapacitating her. “Dual type advantage. I’m surprised she wasn’t more cautious around me.”

“I guess she was too intent on seeing me die to be cautious.”

“Yeah. Rage can be powerful, but it also gets you careless. Now, we have a friend to bring back.”

“He’s watching us right now, actually. Let’s not keep him waiting.”