Relieved that the Helioptile was unharmed and had even benefited from the situation, Cole headed home with Daisy.
As they passed the orchard, his heart ached at the sight of berry trees toppling in the strong wind. The rain had struck so suddenly that he'd had no time to set up protective measures.
When they reached the courtyard, Cole spotted Chikorita, Larvitar, and Buneary — the three little ones — huddled in a row at the doorway, watching expectantly. He and Daisy hurried inside.
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Meanwhile, Zapdos and Moltres arrived at a remote mountain region rarely visited by humans. Though usually home to many wild Pokémon, the area was now deserted due to a fierce battle raging above.
In the sky, a green Pokémon and a blue Pokémon fought against a yellow Pokémon and a pink Pokémon.
The green and blue Pokémon unleashed powerful energy, generating intense storms and thunderstorms. These two were clearly the source of Coumarine's abnormal weather. The well-informed Zapdos and Moltres immediately recognized all four combatants.
The green one was Tornadus, the blue Thundurus, the yellow Landorus, and the pink one Enamorus. Zapdos and Moltres knew of these four from tales shared in their circles.
In ancient times, humans worshipped Kyogre as the sea god and built a Sea Temple in its honor. Kyogre, moved by their devotion, bestowed part of its power upon the temple.
Though both Kyogre and Lugia bore the title of sea god, Kyogre alone was the true deity of the seas. Lugia was actually the god of monsoons, earning its sea god title merely because humans first encountered it in the ocean.
Lugia made its home in the sea, wielding power over ocean currents and marine environments, which led to people designating it as a sea god.
Yet Kyogre remained the true master of the seas, its oceanic powers surpassing Lugia's. Having rarely appeared to humans since ancient times, its true identity gradually faded from memory.
When people's worship of Kyogre waned, it sank the Sea Temple to the ocean floor to protect its power from misuse by evil forces.
Two such temples existed: the Sea Temple Samiya, guarded by the mythical Pokémon Manaphy, and another protected by the mythical Pokémon Meloetta.
Manaphy's temple shifted with ocean currents, making it hard to locate, while Meloetta's temple — the Abundant Shrine — stood on Milos Island in the Unova region.
Meloetta wielded an ancient artifact called the Reveal Glass that could both control and unlock the hidden powers of Thundurus, Tornadus, Landorus, and Enamorus. These four Pokémon served as guardians of the Milos Island temple.
Due to their volatile nature and destructive tendencies, Thundurus and Tornadus were usually kept in magical slumber by Meloetta using the Reveal Glass. Only the gentler Landorus and Enamorus were allowed to roam freely.
Zapdos and Moltres were puzzled by these four Pokémon's unexpected appearance in Kalos and the conflict that had erupted.
Typically, Thundurus and Tornadus were outmatched by Landorus — the strongest of the four — and Enamorus. Indeed, the aggressive assault from Landorus and Enamorus initially pushed Thundurus and Tornadus back.
But then Tornadus revealed an ancient mirror. A silver-white beam burst forth, striking both Tornadus and Thundurus, triggering their transformation.
Thundurus's humanoid form morphed into a four-clawed blue beast, while Tornadus became a green, bird-like creature with twin wings. In these Therian forms, their power surged — their attacks grew fiercer, and suddenly Landorus and Meloetta found themselves at a disadvantage.
The mirror was unmistakably Meloetta's Reveal Glass, though its presence in Tornadus's possession remained a mystery.
As the two Pokémon completed their transformation, the storms and lightning intensified dramatically.
Zapdos and Moltres knew they must act — if these rampaging Pokémon continued unchecked, the land would face catastrophic destruction.
BOOM!!!
With a thunderous crash, Thundurus's Dark Pulse struck Landorus, slamming it into the ground and creating a massive crater in the hillside. Seeing Landorus injured, Enamorus faltered in panic — and Tornadus seized the moment to strike with Hurricane.
As Thundurus moved to press its advantage, a pillar of fire suddenly descended from the sky, engulfing it. Simultaneously, a pillar of lightning surrounded Tornadus as it battled Enamorus.
Both Pokémon cried out in pain.
Landorus and Enamorus's eyes lit up as they noticed Zapdos and Moltres had arrived as reinforcements.
Though the rain weakened Moltres's fire-type moves, its attack still damaged Thundurus. Tornadus fared worse — weak to Zapdos's type and further hindered by the rain boost, a single Thunder attack left it convulsing with electricity.
Tornadus and Thundurus glared at the newly arrived Zapdos and Moltres with hatred.
"ROAR~"
Thundurus roared a warning for Zapdos and Moltres not to interfere.
"SCREECH~"
"SCREECH~"
Zapdos and Moltres refused without hesitation.
Their refusal brought relief to Landorus and Enamorus. The transformed Tornadus and Thundurus had proven too powerful — without also transforming into their Therian Formes, the pair couldn't subdue them.
But such a transformation required the Reveal Glass, which Tornadus now possessed.
Enraged by the rejection, Thundurus commanded Tornadus to attack. Still smarting from Zapdos's strike, Tornadus unleashed a Hurricane toward the bird, aiming to tear it apart.
Meanwhile, Thundurus launched Thunder at Moltres.
"SCREECH~"
"SCREECH~"
The legendary birds stood their ground, deftly dodging the cloud spirits' attacks while countering — Zapdos with Thunder against Tornadus, and Moltres with Ancient Power against Thundurus.
Due to the rain hampering fire-type moves, Moltres switched from its signature fire attacks to Ancient Power, which proved super effective against Thundurus.
Landorus and Enamorus seized their chance while Thundurus and Tornadus were occupied with Moltres and Zapdos, unleashing Stone Edge and Uproar at their opponents.
Though Zapdos and Moltres faced intense pressure against the Therian Forme opponents, the arrival of their allies significantly eased their struggle.
Zapdos paired with Landorus to confront Tornadus, while Moltres joined forces with Enamorus against Thundurus. Despite their formidable Therian Forme powers, Tornadus and Thundurus couldn't defend against coordinated attacks from two powerful opponents.
"ROAR!!!"
Finally, a combined strike from Zapdos and Landorus sent Tornadus plummeting from the sky with a cry of pain.
The battle's intensity drove the weather to new extremes. The torrential rain persisted, thunderclaps growing more frequent. At this rate, Coumarine City faced the threat of flooding.
Cole stood in his doorway, brow furrowed as he watched the strengthening downpour, wondering if his orchard could survive.
The battle approached its climax as the combined might of Zapdos, Moltres, Landorus, and Enamorus forced both Tornadus and Thundurus to the ground.
Just before the others could land their finishing blow, Tornadus raised the Reveal Glass. A black beam shot forth, striking Thundurus directly.
That's when everything changed.
The black light left Thundurus's eyes dull and lifeless. Like a puppet on strings, it ignored its grave injuries and launched itself at the nearest target — Zapdos.
Zapdos attempted to dodge but couldn't move fast enough, only managing to shield itself with its wings.
BOOM!
The thunderous impact sent Zapdos flying.
Fury overtook Moltres at the sight. Its body erupted in intense flames, creating a vacuum zone where raindrops evaporated before they could touch it. Even Landorus and Enamorus instinctively retreated.
A ring of fire burst from Moltres's body, engulfing Thundurus instantly. Already grievously wounded, Thundurus collapsed to the ground, beyond even the Reveal Glass's control.
As Thundurus fell, Landorus and Enamorus launched their final strike at Tornadus, preventing further chaos with the Reveal Glass.
Moltres rushed to Zapdos's side, "Are you alright?"
Fighting through the pain, Zapdos stood and shook its head, "I'm fine. We need to disperse this thunderstorm first, or flooding will begin."
Moltres nodded and soared high into the sky. It launched a crimson orb into the cloud layer, instantly dissipating the dark clouds and halting the torrential rain.
Golden sunlight broke through, dispelling the gloom.
Standing at his doorway, Cole stared in amazement as the rain stopped abruptly — so the storm truly had been unnatural. Coming to his senses, he rushed to his orchard to assess the damage.
After the battle, Landorus and Enamorus explained the conflict to Zapdos and Moltres.
Tornadus and Thundurus, frustrated by Meloetta's long-term containment using the Reveal Glass, had stolen it during a brief awakening and fled from Milos Island.
Landorus and Enamorus had pursued them across the ocean, finally catching up in the Kalos region.
Without Zapdos and Moltres's timely intervention, Tornadus and Thundurus might have escaped with the Reveal Glass, leaving destruction in their wake.
Yet the true gratitude of Landorus and Enamorus belonged to Cole — without him, their fate would have been far more tragic.
Had Cole never appeared, Lugia would have succumbed to Yveltal's corruption, becoming a puppet and turning against its guardian birds.
Without Zapdos and Moltres's aid, Landorus and Enamorus would have fallen to Thundurus and Tornadus.
Though Landorus would have eventually captured the rogue pair, victory would have come at the cost of Enamorus's life and the loss of the Reveal Glass.
The Glass's disappearance would have sparked countless future calamities.
Now, Cole's mere presence had altered this fate through the smallest of butterfly effects.
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