History (Part 2)

King Arus used a method unknown to anyone, managing to imprison the guardian deity's power and rendering it powerless against him.

The news of the empire's guardian deity being imprisoned by the King spread like wildfire. The citizens, whether nobles or commoners, united in condemning the King's actions. However, the King suppressed their voices with his army.

From this point on, the last King of Arus began his tyrannical rule, executing anyone who opposed him.

Ultimately, King Arus sacrificed the guardian deity's divine power, using it to merge the four elemental energies together, creating an Orb.

The fused Orb possessed a remarkable ability; those in contact with it would significantly slow their aging process, leading to greater longevity.

King Arus also discovered that the Orb accelerated the growth of Pokémon, enhancing the natural talents of newly born Pokémon.

At that time, there wasn't the concept of a Pokémon's potential or instruments to measure it. So, the improvement in the potential of newly hatched Pokémon due to the Orb's influence was attributed to enhanced natural talents. While not incorrect, this notion lacked the systematic understanding of today.

With this Orb in hand, King Arus's ambitions swelled. He constructed an underground labyrinth specifically for training troops and nurturing Pokémon, placing the Orb within it.

Consequently, this underground labyrinth became a forbidden area of the empire.

The Orb's effects weren't immediate; its influence needed time to manifest.

Over the course of twenty years, King Arus built a massive army and, with the Orb's power, cultivated numerous Gliscors, Aggrons, and Flygons to complement his soldiers.

The Orb's power staved off the King's aging; two decades passed, and he appeared as if he had just entered middle age. This perpetuated his insatiable desires.

He led his army to wage wars across the land, bringing devastation to countless small nations.

Unbeknownst to him, his once prosperous country began to deteriorate.

Forests withered, fertile lands turned barren, and the once-peaceful civilians became displaced.

The country's prosperity had relied on the guardian deity's divine power, which began to dissipate after the deity's imprisonment, causing the land's vitality to wane.

Finally, on the brink of clashing with another great empire, the King's actions caught the attention of the creator of this land.

The land's creator was infuriated by King Arus's campaigns that ignited wars across the continent. Moreover, the creator discovered the essence of their departed friend within King Arus.

Unknown to many, the creator of the land was a deity like the guardian, their friendship forged through the creation of the land and the guardian's infusion of boundless vitality into it.

The authority of a deity was not to be trifled with, and King Arus had murdered one.

Enraged, the land's creator obliterated Arus Empire's armies and executed the King.

Furthermore, numerous volcanoes and magma outbreaks ravaged within Arus Empire's borders. The once-glorious empire fell, with only the buried underground labyrinth surviving.

At that time, King Arus, for his final battle, took away all the military strength from the labyrinth. Except for a few elderly, weak, sick, and some immature Pokémon, the labyrinth was left barren.

The once fertile country transformed into a desolate desert, the underground labyrinth buried deep beneath the earth.

These remaining elderly, weak, sick, and disabled beings crafted this stone tablet and recorded everything before ultimately meeting their end within the labyrinth.

Listening to this history, Yuga couldn't help but sigh. The last King of Arus Empire was quite the mastermind; he managed to completely ruin an empire.

Yuga retrieved the Orb once more, his heart brimming with excitement. This was truly a remarkable treasure, and even more so, a treasure perfectly suited for him.

Caressing the Orb lovingly, Yuga now understood why there were so many high-quality Gliscors and Flygons among the Pokémon. Over the past thousand years, generation after generation of their ancestors had been influenced by the Orb, enhancing the potential of these Pokémon. It would be unjust if their potential didn't improve.

Yuga believed that the emergence of the underground world was also due to the Orb's influence. After all, the one who sacrificed the Orb was a deity capable of bringing vitality to the land.

However, the stone tablet didn't reveal the identity of this guardian deity. Yuga speculated that it was most likely the Forest deity, Celebi, but this was uncertain. Who knew if there were other undiscovered and unrecorded Mythical Pokémon?

As for the creator of the land, there was no need to guess; it was probably Groudon.

According to the stone tablet, this Orb was merely a replica of another treasure. If a replica possessed such tremendous power, one could only imagine the might of the original treasure. It was truly beyond imagination.

Yuga felt that the Pokémon world was a realm where conventional logic couldn't apply—anything was possible.

Gazing at the emerald Orb before him, Yuga's fondness for it deepened. He thought, "It's fortunate that this labyrinth was forbidden in Arus Empire. Had disaster struck and someone found it, this Orb would have likely been taken away long ago. How could I have ever obtained it?"

In reality, Yuga's concerns were excessive. Even if someone had found it, they wouldn't have been able to take it. Such a crucial item wouldn't be left unguarded by King Arus.

The guardians of the Orb were Flygons, Gliscors, and the deceased Aggrons. These Pokémon were steadfastly loyal to the King at that time.

Many guardians who remained in the labyrinth had noticed the Orb, but without exception, they were killed by the guardian Pokémon.

This was why the labyrinth's location remained undisclosed; all the guardians and soldiers within had perished, leaving none to survive.

Yuga, of course, had no way of knowing these details. Nevertheless, they weren't of great importance.

What truly mattered was that Yuga had incredibly lucked out in inheriting the assets of an ancient empire, especially the precious Orb.

Yuga pondered for a moment and decided to give the Orb a name. It wouldn't do to simply refer to such a valuable treasure as "Orb" all the time; that would be quite disrespectful to such a magnificent artifact.

He wondered why King Arus hadn't given the Orb a name. Or perhaps he had, but the soldier tasked with recording this event wasn't aware?

After some contemplation, Yuga settled on naming it the "Guardian Orb." It was a tribute to the guardian deity that had been sacrificed for it.