Chapter 95: Possession

Deep beneath the ocean, Gyarados suddenly flinched, its gaze snapping upward toward the sky.

What was that? Had Celebi's consciousness… reawakened?

Just moments ago, its mind had been as still as a tranquil lake, yet now, without any command from Lucius, there had been a sudden ripple—an unmistakable flicker of awareness.

This shouldn't be possible. Celebi, severely wounded and on the verge of death, had shown no signs of cognitive activity before. Why now?

Lucius immediately reached out through his pheromone link, delving into Celebi's mind. To his astonishment, it was fully conscious. Its brain, once dormant, now pulsed with lively thought.

"Who's there?" A woman's voice echoed through the psychic link between Lucius and Celebi, resonating within his mind.

"…Anabel?" Lucius instantly recognized the voice. It was none other than the Battle Tower Overlord who had been hunting him down moments ago.

Her consciousness… was inside Celebi? And through the psychic link, she had sensed his presence?

"You… you're Archer?" Anabel's voice was laced with disbelief.

"Don't you dare reveal that I'm still alive. Order your Pokémon to leave and wait for you at home," Lucius commanded without hesitation.

"What…?" Anabel's mind reeled in shock. But before she could process the situation, she realized she had already given the command—her Metagross and the others had received orders to retreat.

"What's happening? Why…?" Anabel's mental voice betrayed her confusion.

The nature of thought left no room for deception. Unlike spoken words, where tone and facial expressions could mask one's true emotions, direct psychic communication made every reaction raw and unfiltered.

The moment she realized Lucius was alive, she had intended to command her Pokémon to dive into the ocean and eliminate him. But before she could issue the order, Lucius had taken the initiative, overriding her with a unique command technique.

She couldn't warn them. She couldn't expose Archer's presence at the ocean's depths.

"Well, well, I never thought you'd survive… let alone possess Celebi," Lucius laughed.

If she had taken over a different Pokémon, things might have been trickier. But since she had entered Celebi's body, she was now bound by the limitations of that virus-infected form. She had no choice but to obey Lucius.

"You're able to manipulate Celebi's neural responses… Is this how you control those powerful Pokémon?" Anabel's formidable psychic abilities allowed her to scan Celebi's mind almost instantly, comprehending the core function of the Veronica Virus.

"This virus… can be controlled?" Anabel's thoughts wavered, disturbed. "Does this mean you could mass-produce Psychic-type superhumans…?"

Above the ocean's surface, Metagross and Alakazam exchanged glances. They had seen the mortally wounded Celebi suddenly open its eyes. Its psychic aura now pulsed at a frequency that felt… familiar—one they had meditated alongside countless times before.

As Psychic Pokémon, they were no strangers to possession or body-swapping. It was an experience they accepted with little resistance. After using healing moves to stabilize Celebi, they followed its order and departed.

They trusted Anabel completely. If she had commanded them to leave, there had to be a reason.

One by one, Metagross, Alakazam, and the others withdrew. Only Raikou remained, its intense gaze fixed upon the Celebi now occupied by Anabel's mind.

As a Legendary Pokémon that had lived for centuries, Raikou had witnessed countless bizarre occurrences. Pokémon possessing humans, humans possessing Pokémon—it was nothing new.

What concerned it was the aura radiating from this Celebi. A sinister, pervasive energy seeped through its body.

Raikou hesitated. Should it strike now?

If it killed Celebi, would Anabel perish along with it?

The possessed Celebi met Raikou's gaze, as if understanding its dilemma. A telepathic message echoed in Raikou's mind.

"If you wish to kill me… then do it."

Anabel could not directly reveal Archer's presence. But if Raikou attacked, she had more than enough ways to make it uncover his location through battle.

Raikou stared at her for several long seconds. Then, at last, it turned away, dashing across the ocean's surface before vanishing into the distance.

"Haha… It seems Raikou has taken quite a liking to you," Lucius's voice chuckled in Anabel's consciousness.

As she watched Raikou disappear, Anabel felt an odd mix of disappointment and warmth.

After spending these past few days together, had Raikou finally begun to accept her…?

With Raikou gone, Lucius commanded Gyarados to surface.

Celebi's eyes no longer looked vacant and lifeless. Those large, luminous orbs now brimmed with spirit—just like Anabel's, filled with pride and sharp intelligence. Yet, beneath that brilliance, sorrow clouded its gaze.

The death of Espeon still weighed heavily on her.

Lucius sent out a signal, summoning Gardevoir from the ocean depths. With a shimmer of Teleportation, she appeared on the surface, Silver in tow.

During the chaos of Steelix's explosion, Gardevoir had shielded herself and Silver before retreating underwater. Now, she emerged once more.

As a fellow Psychic-type, Gardevoir immediately sensed something was different about Celebi.

But she said nothing.

The loss of Steelix still lingered in her mind, drowning her in grief. Seeing Lucius remain silent, she too chose not to speak.

"…Archer is dead," Silver muttered, staring at the water beneath his feet. The rocky islet that had once stood there had completely vanished.

Ever since the plane crash, he had been unable to make sense of the situation. That woman from the League had kept talking about some virus, some "Origin"—none of it made any sense to him.

A blue light flickered in Celebi's eyes as she used her psychic power to lift the shattered body of Espeon, sending it drifting into the distance.

When Weezing had self-destructed just moments ago, it was Espeon who had unleashed its final surge of energy, shielding her in its last moments. It hadn't been enough to change her fate, but the sight of her partner leaping forward without hesitation left Anabel in unbearable pain.

She would not allow her friend to become food for the creatures of the sea. She would bury Espeon in a place where the sunrise could be seen.

Watching the sunrise had been Espeon's favorite thing in life.

As she carried Espeon away, Lucius made no move to stop her.

Now that Anabel had been possessed, Celebi was no longer just a mere battle tool. He needed to consider his next steps carefully.

Silver watched as Celebi disappeared into the sky, then turned his gaze to the critically wounded Weezing. Looking at the Gardevoir and Gyarados standing by his side, he finally spoke.

"Since Archer is dead… would you two be willing to follow me?"

He knew these were Archer's Pokémon—both of them, high-ranking elites, one at the level of a leader, the other of a king. Incredibly powerful. Now that Archer was gone, perhaps…

"..."

Unaware of the full picture, Silver made his offer, but Gyarados was none other than Lucius himself, while Gardevoir, lost in sorrow, had no interest in entertaining the boy's whims.

And so—

A heavy silence settled over the scene before Lucius, in his true form as the Emperor Strain, withdrew from Gyarados and entered Silver's body.

While using Gyarados' form had its advantages—flight, swimming—he still preferred the familiarity of a human body.

Silver's eyes suddenly lost focus. Then, his entire demeanor shifted.

He looked down at his hands and let out a quiet sigh.

"It's been a while since I looked like a kid… gonna take some getting used to."

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