Palkia and Giratina had clashed, and with them, many other gods joined the battle, bringing their own subordinates into the fray. It was a war among divine beings. Though no one perished, the conflict left many gravely injured. Giratina and Palkia fought with such vigor that both eventually collapsed, unconscious, and were carried away by their subordinates.
A Marshadow, having fought in the battle and now watching from afar, thought with a weary sigh. "All because of Palkia's attempt to gain more power," he muttered, his voice heavy with disappointment.
His gaze drifted toward Earth, a place untouched by divine interference for roughly four thousand years. The last intrusion had been by none other than the embodiment of death itself, Yveltal. It had sought to increase its strength by draining the vitality of Pokémon, perhaps hoping to break its long stalemate with Xerneas, the embodiment of life.
As the older Marshadow's thoughts lingered on those events, a younger Marshadow approached him. "I heard from someone," the younger one began, "that a human who had never even been in touch with a god once defeated a god. Is that true?"
The older Marshadow's eyes narrowed slightly. "It is true. But that human was no ordinary person. Compared to the humans you see today, he was in a league of his own."
He paused before continuing. "Whether it was his temperament, his intelligence, his strength, or the mastery he had over his abilities, he was nearly equal to us gods in every way that mattered, perhaps having even more potential than most of us. He was the one who created the government that still stands today, the Pokémon League."
The older Marshadow's expression darkened. "But after he and his closest companions passed away, the League began to rot from within. Corruption took root. And now, in this era, you can see the pitiful state it has fallen to."
The younger Marshadow's eyes lit up with curiosity. "I don't care about that! I want to hear about how he defeated Yveltal!"
The older Marshadow's tone grew serious. "He was simply stronger. When he fought with all his might, his strength was way higher than that of Yveltal, but it must be kept in mind that Yveltal was and is still, rather young compared to most gods. Most mortals cannot compete with gods because gods are far older, far stronger, and infinitely more experienced."
The older Marshadow's voice hardened. "When that man learned that Yveltal had slaughtered nearly ten thousand Pokémon and had no intention of stopping, he was consumed by fury. He hunted Yveltal down without hesitation. By the very next day, the news spread like wildfire that a small group of mortals had defeated a god, forcing it to flee."
He continued, his gaze distant. "Yveltal remains weaker than Xerneas even now. Much of the credit for that goes to the man. After their battle, Yveltal was left with injuries that took a long time to heal, while Xerneas grew even stronger during that time."
"That man," the older Marshadow said, his tone almost reverent, "possessed the power of aura, but on a scale never seen before in a human, and never to be seen again. Before he created his alliance, the world was in chaos. Wars were indeed fought among humans bust mostly between humans and Pokémon. In most cases, Pokémon crushed humanity with ease. These problems have never truly disappeared, but the number of such incidents was greatly reduced thanks to him uniting nearly the entire human race with his strength."
The younger Marshadow tilted his head, trying to process it all. Then as if he had a sudden realization, he exclaimed, "Oh, I get it! People normally do not possess the talent of even the worst Pokémon. But a few individuals are born with talent that far exceeds even some of the most powerful Pokémon. Without such people, humanity would not have survived. And this man improved their situation more than anyone else ever could."
The older Marshadow smirked. "I was starting to think you were slow."
The younger one puffed his cheeks in annoyance. "How much do you expect from a god who is only a thousand years old?" he huffed.
After a short pause, the younger Marshadow asked, "But if the man was so talented, he should have grown further and still should have been alive? Right?"
The older Marshadow's tone grew heavy. "Because of the kindness in his heart. He wanted to stop the constant fighting among gods. He believed that if others as strong as he was worked together, unnecessary conflicts among all living beings could be avoided. So he began to interfere with divine affairs. Giratina ordered me to kill him. And I did."
There was no pride in his voice and he even seemed a bit sad saying that.
"It was not difficult either," the older Marshadow added, "since I was at level one hundred and seven at the time."
The younger Marshadow frowned. "Why would Giratina want him dead?"
The older one answered without hesitation. "Yveltal had allied itself with Giratina long ago. For a mortal to defeat Yveltal was already humiliating enough for Giratina's reputation. If Giratina had openly sought revenge for Yveltal, it would have made him and Yveltal look even worse in the eyes of other gods. But when the man began to meddle in the affairs of the divine, Giratina saw the perfect excuse to remove him. And so, he gave the order."
The older Marshadow's gaze returned to Earth, silent once again, before the younger Marshadow asked again, "Do you think that such a man could ever emerge again?"
The older Marshadow replied "No, such a man will never emerge again, that man was far too dazzling to be compared to anyone else of his race, it would be simply unfair for anyone of his kin to be compared to him."