LAST EPISODE: The Definition of Hero

“I’ve packed you guys multiple Escape Orbs and a whole lunchbox full of Sitrus Berries, too. You’ll find the Oran Berries in your personal packs, and the Sitrus ones in the middle bag there. Use those to keep your strength up and don’t feel bad for not hoarding them, okay?” Marina said as she ran through a checklist. The group were awkwardly posed and lined up while a whole host of agents checked them over.

It looked like the entirety of Everend had come to see them off, or at least see what the crowd was all about. Lute tried to look away while Marina straightened and combed his fur, meanwhile the agents made the whole thing look like a military operation. Thankfully that kept the general public a good distance back, even though there was no police tape.

“Mum, this isn’t a field trip,” Lute groaned and brushed her paw away.

“That doesn’t mean you can’t look good during it. I wish you would take a page out of Esther’s book,” Marina said. That made him exchange glances with Infia, and the two of them set off giggling. “What’s so funny about that? I’m serious.”

“You don’t know her the way I do. It’s okay, don’t worry about it,” Lute shook his head. “What’s taking Sophitia so long? Kuri’s not here yet either.”

“I’m not surprised he’s keeping a lady waiting,” Esther said, paws on her hips. He happened to arrive just then, and palmed his face when he saw the agents.

“You guys are takin’ this seriously, aren’t you? Are you all prepared?” Kuri asked.

“Of course! Clothes clean, weapon sharpened, tummy stuffed, restroom used, and all stretches done,” Esther announced. “How about you? Applied enough makeup yet?”

“I was catching Gen up to speed with everything that’s happened. She can’t come with us, so she’s planning on helping out the other continents if Artemis’ Pokémon come off planet,” he stated. “I don’t want this to come to war, though. We’re both too exhausted from it.”

Esther opened her mouth to give a cheeky retort, but let it go instead. The last thing they needed right now was a little bickering. So she gave him a happy smile and held Infia’s paw instead.

“Guys, sorry for the holdup!” Sophitia cried as she dashed through the crowd. She was sweating a bit, but gave them a toothy smile. “I got caught up with a little something. Didn’t mean to make you wait.”

“Is everything okay? It is not like you to be late,” Phoenix said. She nodded at him and approached Lute.

“Close your eyes and hold out your paws,” she sang. He obeyed, although wary about it. “Hope you’re not allergic to feathers.”

“It’s,” he said, confused about it. It was a little red plastic collar with a shiny blue feather sticking out the side of it. He could easily clip it on underneath his mane where it wouldn’t obstruct his necklace. Only the feather stuck out. “Huh. It’s neat. But why?”

“I always thought you could do with a little more style. And well, I made it a bit of a parting gift. That’s why it’s blue,” Sophitia said with a smile. “Look after it, won’t you?”

“A parting gift? What for? Who’s parting?” Raiju said, making her shriek.

“Raiju! don’t sneak up on me like that!” she gasped.

“Oops, sorry. But really, who’s parting? What’s parting? Did you mean partying?” he said, bouncing up and down. “Shock that, what’s happening? You guys are altogether here and it looks super cool and I wanna be part of it!”

“Will you pipe down for one second and actually let others answer?” Cinder complained. “But seriously, even I’m curious. This is quite a scene.”

“You didn’t tell your school friends?” Marina said, drawing all attention to Lute. He grumbled a little.

“I didn’t tell them because there’s nothing all that important to tell them. It’s obvious we were going to stop Balunercc from crashing,” Lute replied.

Kuri groaned and pulled his hand down his face. “Didn’t we just tell Diancie off for this? And even then, they’re the public, Lute. They don’t have a clue what’s going on.”

“And they should not know. It is one our duties as Agents of King’s Shield to keep them safe and comfortable,” Phoenix said. He turned to Lute. “But they are your friends. You should tell them.”

“Guys. Urf. Look, Sophitia it’s a really thoughtful thing but, we’re going to make sure you don’t have to go away,” Lute said.

“Go away?” Raiju repeated and went quiet.

“No matter what it takes, I’m going to make sure you don’t have to use your power. By the end of this, you’ll be coming home with us,” he said.

“Wait wait wait, power? If I’m reading into this right, then…” Cinder glanced back and forth.

“Hee hee, that’s the spirit!” Sophitia smiled. The others seemed surprised. “What’s with those looks? Aren’t you guys gonna one-up him and try even harder?”

“Hmpf. If you want to go about it that way, I’m not going to complain,” Kuri said.

“So that’s the new strategy? I can dig that. Sophie sits back for once and we give ol’ Artemis an ass whoopin’. Easier done than said!” Esther cheered.

“I think you mean ‘easier said than done’, which is sort of a bad thing,” Infia said with a giggle.

“Nope. I meant what I said, too!”

“Esther, hee hee hee. I’m going to do my best too,” Sophitia said. “And as for you, you do like the collar, don’t you? It was pretty tough choosing between a new necklace and a collar, you know.”

“Hey I never said I hated it or anything. It’s pretty cool for something you just whipped together,” he said, and posed coolly.

“And it looks good on you,” she said, gleeful at her work. “Right then. I’m guessing you’ve all been ready for a good while, so shall we go and put an end to this?”

“Wait wait wait I’m so confused, where are you going, what’s happening?” Raiju cried.

“That planet that’s storming over there on the horizon? We’re going there, and we’re going to stop it,” Lute answered. “I know it looks super dangerous, but trust us. We’ve been through worse. We’ll be back by the end of the day. So until then, I’m still counting on you two to help look after Everend, you know.”

“But what was all that stuff about somebody leaving? Sophitia gave you a partying gift. Is Sophitia going away?” Raiju asked.

Lute’s face contorted, and he looked to his teammates for a sign. They all stood back though, besides Kuri, who was plain as ever with his arms folded and foot tapping. Seeing that, he sighed, faced forward, and blinked a few times to steady himself.

“The short of it is that the foe we’re facing is a mythical Pokémon who’s extremely powerful. Sophitia has the power to defeat them, but if she uses that power, she’ll fade away,” he said.

“So that’s what you meant by trying so hard she doesn’t have to,” Cinder muttered. Lute nodded, and silence fell.

“Don’t worry, if you guys are. I mean it, we’ll try our hardest, two-hundred percent. Sophitia is coming home with us,” he said with a smile.

There was still a lengthy silence where even Raiju was a twister of emotional reactions. Cinder eventually came closer and patted Lute’s side. “Nothing I say now isn’t going to sound condescending. So this is me just accepting that you’re the grownup now, okay?”

“Cinder…”

“That means you and everyone else has to come back okay, right? You just made a promise, Lute. I’m looking forward to that,” Cinder said. He walked out of the crowd after that, leaving Raiju totally confused.

“He’s going to need cheering up,” Lute said. Raiju nodded unsurely and took off after him, leaving Lute and his team at last. He turned to them and nodded.

“Right. Let’s do this. Marina, if you would, please,” Sophitia nodded to her.

Marina started giving orders to the agents and the crowd of Pokémon, and the crowd stood back. Once they had a lot of space, Sophitia unveiled a small blue flower and began to blow on it, using its petals as a flute to play the tune Florrie and Floette had played. Moments later, Angel’s symphonic cry echoed across the sky, and the giant Togekiss appeared from somewhere. The group jumped onto her back in style. They gathered by her front to cling on.

Within minutes, they were miles in the air and headed directly towards Balunercc. The group held on in silence and focused on their surroundings. As they got closer to the planet, the blue of the sky seemed to change colour and the uncomfortable chill of their height faded. It felt as if a wicked wind full of moisture had begun to whip them like a hurricane, but it wasn’t strong enough to unbalance Angel or throw them off her back.

“You are heading towards Balunercc now, yes?” Diancie’s voice echoed, sounding like it was in Lute’s mind. It took everyone off-guard and they looked around for its source, though nothing was there. “Do not fret. It is only my telepathy.”

“Oh. Then yeah, we’re going for Balunercc now,” Sophitia said.

“Hold on tight. The gravitation pull of that world will turn you upside-down. But I will ensure that you can land safely,” Diancie informed.

Right on cue, the wind around them began to intensify and the group had to hold on with both paws. Angel gave a displeased cry as she started flapping her wings to try and fight it, but it was no use. The next thing they knew, she was plummeting headfirst even though she was trying hard to right herself. A horrible wave of heat and pressure struck the group like a weight, which pinned them to the spot.

Lute wanted to cry out, but he couldn’t open his eyes or his mouth. He was suffocated by the speed they fell and spun through the air. It was almost like if he opened his mouth, his lips might tear right off. Yet it wasn’t particularly painful, just a very uncomfortable pressure.

Just as suddenly as it had come, all the pressure vanished. He was able to gasp and take in much needed air, so the first thing he did was stretch and relax himself. Angel let out a curious noise, and everyone sat up.

It was like they had entered an entirely new world. Angel slowly descended toward the surface, which was a crusty, pure grey stone littered with crater after crater. A forest of dead trees surrounded their landing spot, though each tree had large and long enough branches to barricade the cloudy sky beyond. There was at least a natural humidity that was comfy to be in after their horrible entry experience.

“Look!” Infia cried and pointed straight upward.

Lute had to squint to see it, but behind the garnet hue of the sky was a foggy, faded view of Aseria. Their home was a massive sphere of blue, white, and green. He couldn’t take his eyes off it, or his intense glare.

It was so quiet, too. No wind blew, no wildlife chirped, not a single natural noise. They could hear every scrape and crumble as they dismounted Angel and spread out across the area. A fog as black as night sat in all directions besides a main path as marked out by the trees.

“We’re really here. And it’s so alien,” Sophitia said. “Wasn’t this supposed to be Artemis’ country? I know it’s a country for Carbink, but it’s not what I was expecting.”

“Diancie did say he was preparing to destroy Aseria. He must have turned it into a fortress or something,” Kuri suggested. “We’re not here to sightsee though, and I don’t think I’d want to do that even if I could. Let’s get this over with.”

“Good call. Angel, thank you so much. Go take a load off somewhere. We’ll call when we need you,” Sophitia said, laying a feeler on the Togekiss. A chirpy cry was a response, and then the giant Pokémon took off, but not without a great gust shaking the woodland around them.

Silence fell again. The group followed Sophitia and Lute’s lead without instruction, who followed the main path away from the fog. They were unnerved by the light crumbling of rocks they could hear with each step, but the ground felt as stable as ground could be. Their breaths were unsettled, even as their poses were prepared. Sophitia tried not to look back at everyone or give away that their insecurities made her uncomfortable, but it couldn’t be helped.

After a few minutes, Phoenix suddenly dashed to the front and growled into the darkness of the forest. A large red gleam was shaking a bit, and got bigger and bigger as time went by. No one needed to say anything to prepare for battle.

“Wait what?” Sophitia said as the gleam came into view. A Starmie emerged from the black fog. Only its gem glowed. “You’re a Pokémon.”

“There’s loads of them,” Esther squeaked.

“When did they get behind us?” Kuri whispered, uncertain of it.

Within a couple of minutes, a whole army of Pokémon had appeared around them, their only visibility in the fog being the glow of their eyes. Clefairy, Clefable, Staryu, Starmie, Solrock, and Lunatone were the species recognised, but there was one more. A small species that looked like a fairy with humanoid features that silently fluttered on crystalline wings. Their bodies shone with a rich, seemingly transparent blue, which nearly camouflaged their eyes. They had thin arms with mitten-like hands on the ends, and hard lower halves that resembled growing crystal instead of legs. They were small and numerous though, no taller than Lute.

“What are those? I’ve never seen a Pokémon like that before,” Lute said. He calmed down when the Pokémon stopped by the edge of the trees.

“They don’t look like they want to fight,” Infia calmed down as well. She let go of Esther’s paw and slowly approached, to which a Starmie came out to greet her.

“Careful,” Esther said.

Her warning was unfounded, though. The Starmie stared at her, and she stared right back in silence. And then it floated off the ground and began to glide down the path, spinning its body around its gem.

“They want us to follow them.” She pointed at it.

“How odd. After everything, they’re inviting me home,” Sophitia said with an eager smile. “C’mon you guys.”

“Are you sure this is safe?” Lute said, running to keep beside her.

“If it isn’t, we’ll deal with it.” She strutted smugly.

The foggy forest continued like this for a good ten or so minutes, and never changed height or direction even once. The rigidness in its road was unnatural even compared to something one would find in a city – the trees were all perfectly aligned right the way up until they spread out into another clearing. This clearing was actually a crater the size of a canyon, with a slope so large that the group had to climb it. It wasn’t difficult, but the peak looked to be exactly where they wanted to be.

In the centre of this crater was a staircase wider than could fit into their sight. It went straight up out of view as well, like a literal mountain of stairs that led up beyond the clouds. At patterned intervals were coloured markings on the steps, as well as magical rings that slowly rotated around the stairs.

“Er, you don’t seriously want us to climb that, do you?” Kuri said, and glanced at the Starmie. It bowed its body as if offering itself, and he smiled. “You’re a lifesaver. I’ll buy you a drink sometime.”

“Kuri, we still don’t know if this is safe or no- ah!” Lute cried. He was cut off as a Starmie scooped him up on its own. Some of the unidentified fairy types carried Esther and Infia on their backs, and soon the group were ascending the giant staircase.

Once higher up, Lute couldn’t help but look around to admire the better view of the planet. Everywhere was as strange as his first experience, minus the gigantic dead trees. The regions beyond here were either giant stone plains with more craters, or forests of dead trees in remarkably unnatural layouts. Everywhere was totally square in layout, right down to perfect, ninety-degree angles at their corners. He didn’t offer a comment and focused forward.

The air around them grew colder as the reddish horizon turned into the glittery darkness of stars in space. The higher they went, the more he could see his breath come out as smoke. He didn’t feel cold despite, oddly. He was too concentrated. He didn’t even think about looking down.

The Pokémon took them right to the top of the stairs, where a perfectly flat, perfectly tiled platform awaited them. It was like an arena was laid out for them, where although it had no barricades, its corners were marked out by mystical towers made of glowing diamond. An energy flowed through the diamond towers in a visible current, which was expelled from the top of the towers via a magical ring just like the ones surrounding the staircase. Here, the scenery was the garnet of reds that filled the sky, half tainted by the black fog that filled the forests. The upper half was outer space, which glistened on occasion.

“Well this wasn’t my idea of a welcome home party. I guess they’re making it a surprise party?” Sophitia said as she warily stepped forward. Nothing. All was as quiet as before.

Lute turned to speak to the Pokémon, but they had already left. He could still see a lot of them gathering around this area however, almost as if they were an audience. “This… this really is a trap, isn’t it?”

“Just stay on your guard,” Phoenix warned, watching his back. The group had spread out into a circular formation.

“Like I said. Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it,” Sophitia frowned. She hopped forward into the middle of the arena and glared straight up. “Hey, Artemis! Naivie! Whichever of you. We made it here. Show yourselves!”

There was no response.

“Heh. Really guys? We save you the trouble by coming to you on your home turf, and you can’t even greet us? How rude!”

Silence for a another moment. Just as she opened her mouth to ramble more, a loud bleep came from the middle of the arena, followed by the floor lighting up. Sophitia warily stepped back while the others took place beside her, but it turned out to just be the light of a Teleportal. It came from below rather than above, a white glow that flowed between the tiles of the floor before flying up in a huge pillar of light.

Naivie came out of the light, alongside a huge throne made entirely of blue crystals. Just like the one Diancie was sealed in, a Pokémon was frozen within, a royal figure that looked to be as tall as she was.

“I don’t know how you weaklings survived for so long, or how you managed to make it all the way here. I don’t even get why Lord Artemis invited you so, but that’s not the way to respond to him,” Naivie began. She was back in her tiny form, so her voice was loud and squeaky again.

“Hey to be fair, parties aren’t my thing. So if your man’s giving me the invite, he needs to make it worth my time,” Sophitia replied.

“Don’t bother with that attitude. I imagine you’ve come here believing you’re all ‘legendary heroes’ and that you’re going to ‘save the world’ or some trite. But you don’t really understand anything!” Naivie shouted and shook with fury. “You just pranced along doing your own thing like you were the only ones in the whole world who mattered. But the reality is, none of you matter, only Sophitia does! And since she likes to play the dumb little amnesiac, she fell right into your pathetic little games.”

Dumb little amnesiac? Naivie doesn’t know that we’ve met Diancie, Lute realised. This means Sophitia’s powers are a trump card.

“Let me tell you. You’re here because you’re special to us. And you’re the only one who was ever invited. Nobody else matters! If you’re ready to accept your place here where you belong, then we can take back what’s ours. The world that was stolen from us,” Naivie stated. “And if you refuse, then it’ll be a public execution right in front of his highness. That’s the highest honour you could ever be given.”

“You’re the one delivering trite. You’re still going on about that rubbish as if our response is ever going to change,” Kuri said.

“Hmpf. Whatever. It was Lord Artemis’ orders to invite you here anyway, so I’ll let him decide whether he wants to hear your dribble or not,” Naivie grumbled. She prayed briefly and then bashed the throne, making it begin to glow and fade away. “I should warn you, though. We are on the precipice of a new generation. And you Pokémon are the ones who decided it.”

The moment the crystal faded away, a tremendous force blew across the area. The group growls and slumped as if a weight had been pushed down on them, even though there was nothing there. It took a moment to adjust, but even then, they were left short of breath and on shaky legs.

The figure of Artemis had light peel off it, unveiling his royal details. He resembled Diancie in many ways, from his humanoid figure clothed in a white dress, to the gemstone and circlet of diamonds on his head. His gems were all a bright blue in colour, and the gemstone on his head was shaped like a five-pointed star. He slowly opened his eyes, revealing purple pupils in a blue eyes.

“Is that his aura? It is so powerful,” Phoenix growled and strained. The force stopped before long, enabling them to stand normally again.

Naivie twirled around him a few times and laughed happily. “You’re back. I can’t believe you’re finally back. I’m so happy, Lord Artemis! You’re finally back, and you never have to go away ever again!”

Strange words began to echo through the minds of the group, causing them all to tense up and shift backwards. The royal, masculine tone implied that it was Artemis speaking through telepathy like Diancie did, but his words made no sense. It brought Naivie to a stop tough, but she still fluttered beside him.

“Forgive me, I just cannot express how happy and relieved I am that you’re here. I’ve missed you so much, my lord. And I had to suffer for such a long time with these Pokémon from the lower world,” Naivie rambled. She stuck her tongue out at Lute and the others. “Many times I almost gave up! If it wasn’t for your words, I would have given myself away.”

“What’s going on, is he speaking? I’ve never heard these words before,” Lute cried over Artemis’ dialogue. Sophitia beamed up.

“You guys can’t understand what he’s saying?” she cried.

“Don’t tell me you can?” Esther gasped.

“He’s speaking another language,” she said, and slowly faced. Artemis kept talking the whole time, and disregarded their confusion.

“Um, translation then?” Kuri swished an arm around.

“Hold on,” Sophitia said. “For much time I have awaited your return, Sophitia. Your amnesia came as a surprise to me. It made me curious as to what might happen on Aseria, especially with my influence taking such a hold of society.”

“Your influence? Weren’t you sealed all this time?” Lute asked. There was a pause, and then the voice started up again. Sophitia had to wait until a few words had been said before she slowly repeated.

“Since my departure from Aseria, I have been playing my hand in the game of Aseria’s evolution. I gifted the secret of evolution to a Pokémon you know as Lassic, and advised him in methods with which to rule the world. Like the sinful mortal he is, he took that knowledge for himself and attempted to go further. Rather than becoming Aseria’s trusted leader, he used that power to seek the creation of a new world, and considered himself above the level of a god,” she said. She recited his words in monotone. “But I was surprised by the outcome of that story. I did not expect Pokémon who valued the past to rise against him and try to revive those old ways. Without my guidance, you Pokémon revived the ancient flowers.”

“But that wasn’t without your guidance. Naivie guided us. Isn’t she your champion?” Lute asked. Artemis hesitated again. His face didn’t change as he spoke psychically.

“Sophitia was sent to this world to prevent Pokémon from ever discovering the ancient flowers. But when I learnt of Lassic’s true nature, my intentions changed. I wanted Naivie to awaken the flowers, that way I could use their power to maximise my strength and wipe out all life. I wish to start life anew with superior races who would not seek conquest and destruction,” Sophitia said. “You Pokémon became interesting to me. This is technically the path you have chosen by choosing to defeat Lassic and rely on the ancient flowers like so. I will give you a proposal.”

“Oh whoa, you’re giving them a chance? You’re so benevolent, my lord,” Naivie praised.

“You Pokémon fought to change the future of Pokémon and the actions of your generation. If you Pokémon would pledge your alliance to me, then I will not wipe you out. We can rebuild Aseria together,” Sophitia said. Her face snapped to something serious. “Wait I get where this is going. Because we value the flowers, you’re gonna ask us to stay here with you while you wipe out the rest of Aseria, aren’t you?”

“That’s horrible! That’s not what we’re fighting for. We wanted to help everyone,” Infia said. Artemis thought about his response, and then said something brief.

“He says this is non-negotiable,” Sophitia stated.

“Well that’s all kindsa messed up. That’s not why we did all this, I swear?” Esther cried. “If Lassic’s stuff wasn’t like, destroying nature and all that, we’d have kept his tech you know. It’s kinda good for Pokémon, even those with disabilities. We just had to compromise to keep the planet safe. But we’re gonna find a better way to help those Pokémon.”

“Destroying the world as we know it will not solve our problems. We are going to shape it into something right for everyone,” Phoenix said. Artemis spoke again.

“That is not the way the world of Aseria functions. My Pokémon, the Carbink, were forced into a world of suffering by the constant conflict of Aseria. Even generations later when your supposed peace reigns, Pokémon such as Lassic would be born, who would go on to make the same mistakes as the past,” Sophitia repeated, looking down. Artemis paused, and then continued when he got no response. “I am a creator. A mythical Pokémon that stands as the next ruler after Diancie. It is as I will it. I decree the complete erasure of all Pokémon on Aseria, so that I may rebuild this world from scratch. I am giving you, an intelligent party of Pokémon who understand a world of equality, a chance to join me. If you refuse, then I will erase you as well.”

“Artemis, wait!” Lute cried.

“That’s Lord Artemis to you! Have some respect,” Naivie spat.

“Er, Lord Artemis, please wait. I think you need to see the world for yourself. It isn’t the same as it was before. The time of kings and conquest is over, Pokémon aren’t like that anymore,” Lute begged. “Everyone was living in worry and terror when Lassic nearly destroyed the world. No one knew what was going to happen with the seasons either, but they were all working together to try and stop it.”

“You do not understand the world the way I do, mortal,” Artemis spoke physically, taking everyone by surprise. His voice was extremely old and dry, but his tone echoed with a searing frustration. Despite that, he returned to speaking through telepathy. Sophitia forced herself to shake off her brief fear and translate.

“I-if I was to adhere to your beliefs and leave Aseria be, then it would only be a matter of time before another evil sp-spawns, a Pokémon that would seek to control the world through their own means,” Sophitia said, and shuddered.

“Sophitia, take it easy. We’re here.” Kuri put a hand on her. She nodded, rose her head, took a deep breath, and then continued.

“It may take generations. Centuries. Millennia. Time you may never get to see. But to us mythical Pokémon, that is but the blink of an eye. We have to deal with mortals stepping far out of line when we gift you life and a world,” she said. She looked up at him. “You know, by that logic, there will always be Pokémon like us, too. Pokémon who’ll stand up to it.”

“We will never see this eye to eye,” Artemis replied. His voice was loud enough to echo throughout the area.

“Please Artemis, just look at the world. You’ve been sealed for such a long time. I promise you with my life, things are completely different to what they were back then. Your Carbink may have been sealed away before, but they would be allowed to come back and live with us now, and nobody would shun you. We all need to try to work together to live together,” Lute cried.

“You had your choice, mortal. My Pokémon faced near irreversible evolution into the Carbink you see before you today.” Artemis raised his arms.

“Carbink evolve? You mean… those blue Pokémon, they’re the original Carbink?” Lute gasped. Then it hit him like a truck.

Cistern Citadel and all of its features. The messed up paths of the Inner Earth. The open fields of the Diamond Domain. All of it was perfect for the small flying creatures he saw back there. But for the Carbink species he knew, the heavy, rocky creature that lived underground, it would be impossible. The Carbink had to have regressed.

“Exactly how long have you been here? For Carbink to have gone from that to what we have now – h-how old is Sophitia?” Lute whispered, and his eyes widened.

“It matters not. I gave you a choice. Now your fate is decided!” Artemis said as he began to glow. Naivie let out a sound of surprised strain as she started glowing as well, and soon they were surrounded by pink spheres of energy which completely hid their appearance. The spheres rose off the ground and grew in size. A heavy breeze came from both, which quickly became strong enough to make the group cover their faces.

“What’s happening?” Esther called out.

“It’s like some kind of cocoon. They’re changing form!” Sophitia said. She gasped when Artemis’ voice projected into their heads, once again needing to be translated. “This is a power long lost to your world. The Ancient Flowers once had champions guarding each, and they were Pokémon hand-picked by myself and Diancie. They were gifted our power, granted the capability of Mega Evolution.”

“Mega Evolution? That must be Artemis’ full strength,” Lute warned.

By now, the spheres had grown to over twice their original size. Energy leaked from them in the form of pink light, while streams of sparkling energy orbited both. The spheres soon burst, unveiling the evolved Pokémon within.

Naivie had changed appearance almost completely. Her head was round and retained its ears for wings, but her eyes had been given life. A royal muffler hid her neck and a small blue diamond on her chest, while a dress similar to Artemis’ now adorned her form. Her rocky underside was just about visible, but it had far more diamond than it did rock.

Artemis on the other hand, had grown massive. The star shaped diamond on his head had become a gleaming blue heart, supported by a tiara of diamonds all around the back of his head. His upper body and arms had become thinner, while his lower half lost all of its rocky parts in place of a long, freely flowing dress tipped with enormous strands of diamond. Ribbons and disconnected shards of diamond flowed around him constantly as his energy influenced the wind around him.

That strange pressure that pinned the group to the spot had come back, once again forcing them onto one knee. With everyone at his mercy, he spun and performed a few arm movements that ended with both hands held together. He pulled one apart from the other to form a very long, razor-thin rapier between them. When fully formed, the rapier was adorned with darker blue diamonds by its hilt.

“This is… Lord Artemis, you brought me back to my original self. I’m so happy, I could just burst!” Naivie cheered. Lute leaned back in disbelief. The last thing he was expecting to hear from her was the voice of an adult woman. “I can’t remember the last time I felt this free and looked this good. There’s so much power welling up through my body. I feel like I could fly around the world!”

“That’s Naivie’s original form?” Infia said, still on one paw. “What’s happening? I can’t move!”

“This must be what Diancie warned us about. It’s like there’s so much power coming from them it’s pinning my body. It’s just like Lassic’s rapture,” Kuri growled. “There’s so much V-Waves coming from them that my body is being crushed.”

“So that is it. His mere presence exudes that much power. After coming all this way!” Phoenix snarled.

“You’re supposed to be the tough guy who can do anything. Stand up and do something, Kuri!” Esther cried. By now, Artemis floated before them with his sword raised high, and energy built up its blade and surrounded it in aqua coloured flames.

“Me? You do something instead of complaining about it!” Kuri argued.

“Guys,” Lute growled.

It took all his strength to not topple over, but he couldn’t do much more than squint and look up at his attacker. His hearing was the only thing that seemed to function correctly, and all that did was fill him with fury. Naivie was laughing and prancing around like a little girl in a funfair.

He wanted to get out of the way. He needed to get out of the way. Yet no matter how hard he cried, growled, and forced his body to, all he could feel was the pain of strain as it refused to move an inch. Artemis almost seemed to be taunting him, and held that sword up so high for so long when he could have just stabbed him ages ago. Even his mouth wouldn’t move, besides losing its breath to those growls.

This can’t really be it. This is impossible, Lute cried in his head, and gasped. His head hung and his strength sapped fast. He couldn’t even look up anymore. This really is what Diancie warned us about. Artemis’ godly power. But if it’s so much that we can’t even move, then Sophitia is going to… I can’t. I can’t let her!

He tensed and braced as much as he could. He still couldn’t move, but he kept going anyway. He just kept growling louder and louder, welling up every last ounce of effort he could muster. His necklace glowed brightly with all the energy he was demanding, yet it was still so little that he could only bring his head to look up.

Artemis’ attack was fully charged, and his sword was encased in raging blue flames. The mythical Pokémon paid him no heed besides an emotionless glare. Their eyes met directly, and Lute could feel Artemis’ shallow pity frustrate him. When the blade was gripped with both hands, he hung his head again. He couldn’t move. It was all over.

“Don’t!” Sophitia cried and stood over him. She crossed all four of her feelers together and stood firm, forming a giant shield around the two of them, a half sphere made of solid light. Artemis’ blade crashed against it with tremendous force, sending an explosive shockwave across the sky that wiped the area clean. The pillars in the four corners were each cracked by the blast, while Naivie let out a squeak as she was knocked away. The flames dispersed from the sword, scattering around the arena in a wild dance of embers and streaks.

That wasn’t the end of her action, either. With a triumphant cry of her own, Sophitia unfurled her feelers to dismiss her shield and push Artemis back with her own shockwave. “I won’t let you destroy this world!”

Artemis’ eyes widened as her energy spiked and reversed his aura completely. Sophitia glowed brilliantly, and with another cry, her aura expanded into a field of swirling blues and pinks. Her aura enveloped the arena, relieving Lute and the others of the pressure that had them pinned down. Artemis guarded his face from it, though he remained shocked the whole time.

“Sophitia, no!” Lute cried.

Sophitia was surrounded by an energy flow that looked like a clear fire, though it had a constant hue of blues and pinks. However, those flames seemed to be eating away at her form, as strands of fur burnt off her body as the seconds went by. It was only slight, but it clearly had her pushed to her limit as she wouldn’t stop gritting her teeth.

“Sorry guys. I know this wasn’t part of your plan, but… well, I don’t really need to explain it, do I?” She glanced back at them.

“That power!” Artemis gasped, and shook in awe. He quickly collected himself and slowly floated back down toward them. “It appears that I have underestimated you. I did not think that you would come back here to do exactly as Diancie prophesied you would. But it is of little concern. If you would side with these Pokémon, do you truly have what it takes to defeat me and protect your world?”

Naivie flew back to his side, still surprised by what had just happened. “You gotta be kidding me! You meant to say you guys already met Diancie?”

“Sophitia. You are the only one with the power to bring harm to me, but that power will not last forever. The rest of you are but pawns in her little game,” Artemis bragged.

“You’re wrong, Artemis. They’re my champions. And they’re gonna put an end to your petty tantrum,” Sophitia announced, posing proudly. “We’ve done it once before and we’ll do it again, against all odds, no matter what it takes. We protect our planet. We are the heroes of Aseria!”

“Again with the hero nonsense. I made all that rubbish up! You’re just ordinary Pokémon, you can’t touch us!” Naivie mocked. She was struck by a sudden Energy Ball, and to her surprise, it knocked her down to the ground. “What the- how dare you!”

“It looks like you oughta shut up, ‘cos that looked like it dealt damage to me,” Kuri said, holding onto another one. The whole team was ready to fight beside him, weapons out and attacks ready. Naivie let out a shrill squeak and grabbed her head.

“Lord Artemis! Permission to crush these insolent Pokémon once and for all?” she cried. He answered her by pointing his rapier at the group, and she smiled evilly. “I’m going to enjoy this more than I should.”

“The feeling’s mutual,” Kuri replied as he stomped his feet to summon his Overgrow boost.

“Guys, keep Naivie off my back. I’ll handle Artemis,” Sophitia instructed as she formed her sword and shield. Naivie had spun fast to create a cluster of jagged rocks that circled her.

“But Sophitia—”

“There’s no time to argue about this, Lute. Go!” she shouted.

He tried to argue but was thrown into the battle anyway. Naivie’s attack, a rain of jagged rocks, came down at them before he could say anything, while everyone else jumped away. He grunted and braced the hits, but it still felt like several of the rocks had torn bits of his skin off. A moment later, he was half buried in a mess of diamond shards.

“Diamond Storm. I’m going to have to get used to using that one again.” Naivie teased and tapped her chin. Esther’s ribbon wrapped around her waist and yanked her, earning a yelp and a squeak. She tried to fight against it, but with both Esther and Infia pulling down together, she was soon slammed down into the floor.

She got up cursing, but was immediately beset by Phoenix and Kuri together. The duo slammed into her with fists and claws, forcing her to bounce up to try to evade them. They chased her across the arena and just about nicked her with the lightest of hits until she was pressed up against a corner. After a second of hesitation, they charged Energy Ball and Flamethrower, forcing her to fly up high. The instant she did, Esther’s ribbon tangled around her again.

“Sorry buddy, strategy’s not gonna change,” Esther said as she pulled her down again.

“You little- cut it out!” Naivie growled, raising both arms while pulling back. She struggled not to get slammed down, but managed to bring up a Moonblast attack between her palms. She threw it down at the two girls, taking them by surprise.

Before she could celebrate her hit, Energy Ball knocked her back down instead, where Phoenix caught her arm and locked his jaw in place. She let out a shriek as his fangs pierced her skin right down to the bone. She let out a feral roar and used Moonblast with one hand to knock Phoenix off her. He scraped across the ground, but flipped back over once he was back at Kuri’s side.

Naivie was livid, now. She glared at the four of them, one arm clutching her wound. “It’s that Sylveon. That’s the only way you have the power to hurt me like this.”

“What’s the matter, done already? I thought we were going to be so easy you’d enjoy it?” Kuri mocked her.

“And we haven’t even fused yet,” Esther said, twirling her baton around. Naivie growled even louder, but turned her attention to the battle above.

Lute had climbed one of the towers in the corner to get closer to Sophitia, ignoring Naivie’s battle entirely. He was in complete awe and struggled follow Sophitia and Artemis. Far up high from the arena, Sophitia gave chase to Artemis’ fluid mid-air flight by galloping through the sky. She created magical platforms of light below her and leapt from platform to platform, though many of them didn’t appear flat so that she could kick off them and follow at high speed.

He recognised this move. The day he met her, she used it to walk over the river in Everend. He didn’t know she had remembered it, but the way she used it now, it filled him with just as much dread and excitement as it did back then.

The two fairies clashed blades with stunning force every time they came close. They would curve through the air and cross paths, striking one another so hard that a gush of wind and sparks flew off from each strike. Moonblast attacks collided in sparkling explosions of light, while Dazzling Gleam rained lasers through the dark space. All of this happened within the space of a few seconds, so from Lute’s distance, the sky was being lit up like a firework show, complete with ear-popping bangs and a chilly shiver after the big ones.

“Lord Artemis… he’s struggling?” Naivie whispered. Kuri suddenly pinned her down with his foot, to which she growled and fired a Moonblast directly at the floor. “Will you just give it a rest already!”

“It’s funny, you’re the one running your mouth too much. You haven’t stopped complaining since we started!” Kuri retorted. Every combatant in their battle was covered in dirt and cuts, yet they all stood strong and surrounded Naivie on all sides. “After complaining at us all journey!”

“I- you- blast, this can’t be happening,” Naivie growled as she slowly spun to glare at them all. “There’s too many of them!”

Just then, Lute recognised what Artemis was doing, the same Diamond Storm move Naivie had used earlier. Sophitia had stopped moving to prepare her own move, and held her sword high and proud. He couldn’t tell from his distance, but it almost looked as though her weapon had powered up into a new attack, a blade made of flames that matched the colour of her aura.

Both of their attacks were launched at once. Artemis thrust both arms to send a swirling hurricane of diamonds straight at Sophitia, while she retaliated with a slash that unleashed a crescent shaped blast of energy. It flew straight through Artemis’ attack and struck him directly, but it didn’t stop his attack at all. The rain of solid diamonds quickly overwhelmed her, sending her sailing back towards the ground. She thrust her shield forward to fend them off, but the sheer number and force of them had her descending fast.

“G-guys, look out!” Lute cried as he realised what was about to happen.

All eyes glanced at him and then the attack from above, unable to move aside in time. Sophitia crashed right into a screaming Naivie with tremendous force, while Artemis’ Diamond Storm rained around the field and quickly buried it. The ground shook while screams and cries took over. Everyone scattered and threw themselves to the floor in a helpless attempt to escape.

With all the blasts going off, Lute had fallen off the tower and to the edge of the arena, escaping most of the damage besides a harsh fall. By the time he could climb back up, a stalemate had formed. Kuri and the others were battered and bruised toward the edges of what was left of the area, while mountainous piles of diamond lay here and there, mostly in the centre. Ditches had formed, leaving the once pristine platform as an unstable mess of cracks jagged ground.

“Sophitia, Naivie!” Lute cried at the top of his voice as he ran over. Artemis had descended to continue to fight, but halted completely when he heard those words.

Once he reached the pile of diamonds in the centre, he began to frantically throw them aside to dig into it, screaming their names the whole time. Minutes passed as the others stood up and watched with gawks. Soon enough, Naivie emerged, but she was breathing hard and miserable.

“Naivie,” Lute held out a paw. She looked up at him, but slapped his paw aside and fluttered up to Artemis’ height. She barely made it, and collapsed into his arms. He hardly reacted, but he did look surprised to see her faint. Lute stared at the two of them until he noticed Artemis’ attention diverted elsewhere, prompting him to turn as well.

The Pokémon that had escorted them here surrounded the arena. A country’s worth of those species had shown up, and all of them were stoic and silent in their poses. They gathered around in whatever way they could, surrounding the arena by flying, gathering on the stairs, and all so numerous that they could be seen as far as the eye could see.

Lute grit his teeth and went back to digging. He put his all into it, and practically dove into the diamond pile to throw them aside. “Please be alive. Please for the love of almighty, be alive. I’m begging you.”

His heart skipped a beat when he caught sight of Sophitia’s fur. He clawed his way around it to unveil her totally battered body. She looked fainted, but spat and coughed the moment he cradled her head. She still had her aura around her, and it still peeled away at her.

“Sophitia! Sophitia stop already, please,” he begged. She shivered for a moment, and then to his surprise, started giggling. Those giggles turned into total laughter, right down to her clutching her stomach. “S-Sophitia?”

Everyone was completely silent until she stopped, but she didn’t appear to care at all. She looked up at Lute and cradled him with eyes that glistened with tears. “Geez Lute, you really are a fool in love, aren’t you? I told you to keep Naivie off my back, but instead, you sit and watch me the whole time. What a way to go!”

He didn’t know what to say. He could only utter a sound as she used him to struggle to her feet, where she could just about manage to sit without his aid. Once she was sure she was alright, she looked up at Artemis with a warm smile on her face. “You’re starting to get it now, aren’t ya?”

There was a long pause, broken by Artemis slowly descending. He came out of his mega evolved form, which woke Naivie up. “Wa-wait, Lord Artemis. What is…?”

“Why do you care?” Artemis asked. It took Lute a moment to realise that the question was directed at him.

“It’s… I-it’s just what I told you before,” Lute replied, and looked down. He gulped and thought hard about his response. “I had no idea how long all of you suffered. But when I saw Naivie’s real form, I knew I didn’t really want to fight. I just want everyone to be able to live together. I desperately didn’t want Sophitia to use all her power and disappear as well.”

“Each of our lives is but a symbol of this world’s wrongdoings. And Naivie would serve to make your experience the worst. And yet, you show pity on her and refrain from taking her life,” Artemis stated.

“H-huh? Wait, no way, they weren’t anywhere near killing me. I didn’t—” Naivie cried, trying not to look at everyone. “Lord Artemis, just finish them off! You won the battle. You got what you wanted.”

He let out a grumble and shut his eyes. “I was born in a time of conflict and suffering. My solution was to lament all life and flee, harbouring those feelings that I might return one day to enact revenge on it. But it seems that reality is far deeper than I ever learnt. Perhaps this is what Diancie wished for me to see.”

“But all they’re doing is fighting. They’re doing what they were doing all that time ago! We can’t live on a planet like that!” Naivie cried.

“Pokémon are fighting. But I never once asked what they were fighting for. I believed it was for selfish desires of conquest and domination,” Artemis clarified. Kuri and the others gathered behind Lute and Sophitia. “Sympathy, compassion, love. These are feelings I have never once experienced. I do not understand them. And yet, here and now, I can see that they are just as much a part of us as are feelings of hatred and anger.”

“If it’s not for fun, then it’s to stop some bad guy. Without bad guys to fight, we don’t have a reason to fight. I’d say you already get it,” Esther winked at him.

“That so many Pokémon have gathered here, unbeknownst to who you are or what kind of person you are, having no concerns other than the potential loss of life. The Pokémon you see around you, Naivie ruled and lived amongst them, guided them when I did not,” Artemis explained.

“But I was just following your orders, Lord Artemis! It’s you they look up to,” Naivie cried. He gave her a look, and she flinched and rubbed her face. “I guess they did see me around a lot. They would be worried if I’d gotten hurt.”

Artemis turned back to the group. “You are not free from judgement, mortals. But perhaps, if I live amongst you, my heart could learn what yours all know so well.”

“Artemis,” Lute said, a light smile on his face. Just then, a horrible rumbling noise took over the area and the world around them began to shake hard. It quickly worsened. “E-er, what’s that? Is this an earthquake?”

“No. They are shockwaves,” Artemis informed. “Balunercc is on a crash course for Aseria. The planets are now so close together that their forces are colliding. The end is close!”

“Well shit, certainly took the best time to start. How do we stop it?” Kuri shouted. Nobody answered. “Aw c’mon? Really guys?”

“It can be stopped with a crystal tower. Me and Diancie can create one together,” Artemis stated. “But we cannot do it! The ability to create something that powerful was lent to Sophitia.”

“Sophitia?” Lute cried. The duo exchanged glances. “Can she stop it?”

“We must take that power back. It is now time for Sophitia to return to her own world,” Artemis said. The group went quiet.

“That’s what Diancie meant again, you know. About how it was inevitable that’d I’d have to go home. They need their powers back,” Sophitia said with a smile.

“But that’s… no, I can’t accept that!” Lute cried. “We made a promise. We said we were gonna try. We, we, we… you didn’t get to live.”

“Oh Lute, I did get to live,” she said, caressing his face with a feeler. He started crying.

“No, you know what I mean! That’s not fair. We-we were supposed to all go home together. We’d tell Raiju and Cinder our stories… and then go to that island we saw out to sea. Together. Just us two,” he wailed.

“Can’t you just like, team up with Diancie and Artemis instead? Why do you have to stop being a Pokémon, too?” Infia said.

“Even if I could, I think it’s a bit late for that.” She held up a paw. It was surrounded by light that looked like it was eating away at her body. Her paw had vanished and the light was gradually going up her body. Lute’s breath was stolen. “That aura really tore this body up.”

“Then that means,” Phoenix said.

“C’mon now though. Is this really how you’re gonna let me see you all off? A bunch of crying man babies upset ‘cos they won’t get to see their favourite little fairy anymore? It’s really nice knowing I’m so important to you guys, but that’s not what I signed up for,” Sophitia commented. “You as well, Kuri. Ain’t no room or time for edgy stuff now.”

“So what do you want? I don’t think offering you a drink’s gonna be worth anything now,” he said, bumping her with a fist.

“Kuri!” Lute cried.

“You promise you will not forget us?” Phoenix said.

“Of course I won’t! And that’s the spirit, you two. But Kuri, I’m not actually old enough to drink yet… so I’ll just hold you to that until I am. And you better take care of me when I do. Take me to the best place in Angard,” Sophitia proposed.

He was a little surprised, and then snickered and tucked his arms behind his head. “Alright. What’d I sign up for this time?”

“Do not go getting into too many fights, now,” Phoenix said.

“And you two. When you’ve got your big Esthia stage debut, I better be getting front row seats,” she said, turning to Esther and Infia.

“Fudge that! We’ll bring the show to you!” Esther said. “I dunno how, but we’re gonna do it. You just let us know where the best place to perform is, and we’ll make sure we’re the main act!”

“This isn’t a wild idea, either. We’ll find a way, I promise! We can make Esthia, we can make this happen, too,” Infia said loudly, blinking away tears. She couldn’t stop, and sniffled. “I’m sorry. I am gonna miss you. I’m gonna miss you so much.”

“Aww, thanks girls! I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Sophitia said, giving them a slap with a feeler. She turned to Lute, who was still crying quietly. He wasn’t smiling. She crouched down and began to whisper to him. “When you get back, I want you to make sure you tell your friends everything. Tell Raiju, Cinder, Azu, even Anbi and Athens. Tell them everything we’ve been through. Can you do that for me?”

“O-of course! Sophitia, don’t go!” he wailed. She waited until he quietened a bit before continuing.

“And then, it’s up to you to finish what you started, okay? Go and see Artemis and the others, and give them the best welcome ever. If you don’t, I’m gonna keep calling you a kid. Got it?” she said. They stared at each other for a moment, and then Lute jumped into her and hugged her as tightly as he could. “I love you so much.”

He didn’t reply. He couldn’t reply, still unable to stop the tears from flowing. That one phrase brought a smile to his face though, even after the lights took over her and she vanished in his arms. One moment her soft embrace was there, the next, he was stumbling forward as he was no longer holding anything. He grabbed at the air a little bit in hopes of feeling even a trace of her, but there was nothing left. Not a fur, not a tear. Nothing.

“The rest of you need to depart from the planet. Naivie, please guide the Pokémon back into the craters,” Artemis instructed. He looked at her. “I… I am counting on you.”

Her face flushed a deep red, and she flew up with an enthusiastic cheer. She flew up high to address the crowd of Pokémon. It didn’t take long before they were obeyed and gathered together to follow her lead.

As for the others, Angel soon showed up with her peppy cry and scooped them all up. Artemis waited until they were far away before returning to his Mega Evolved form, where he took off into the sky at high speed.

Leaving Balunercc was as uncomfortable as it was going in, but the gravitational shift didn’t seem to last as long this time. Angel took them well away from the planet to somewhere out in the middle of Aseria’s oceans, and then turned around to view the scene from afar.

To them, Balunercc was alarmingly close to Pokétopia, practically metres from touching. As a result, the shockwaves could be heard constantly, and powerful pulses of wind pushed the sea away from the point of impact.

Infia stood tall and pointed at two gleaming lights that swirled in between the two planets. One was pink and came from below, while the other was blue and came from above. The two lights danced around one another for a short while before combining, where they began to grow bigger and brighter.

It was Diancie and Artemis. They were both Mega Evolved and had linked hands, Diancie’s right with Artemis’ left. Together, crystals formed from their other palms, millions and millions of diamonds and crystals that clustered together to form around them. It distorted the storm Balunercc had created around Pokétopia, and soon began to destroy the city itself.

Streams of gemstones sprouted up from the ground like the roots of a thick-vined plant, which twirled and tangled with the diamonds around them. The streams followed the mythical Pokémon and their orchestrated movements perfectly, soon taking form as a tree made entirely of rock. Its roots pierced and destroyed the city below, but its branches grew abundant and bright. They opened out like a pair of delicate hands. Those branches wrapped around Balunercc and caught the planet to stop it in place. That was not without a colossal boom that shook the whole world, a single soundwave that ended the shockwaves entirely. Clouds parted with the impact, but soon, all was completely silent.

Lute and the group had seen it all perfectly. Now, where there was once a city, there was a towering tree in the centre of Aseria. Adorned with craters and surrounded by an orbiting stream of glistening crystal shards, the tree proudly held and connected the two planets together. Minutes later, all had gone still besides the nature around them. Natural wind blew, the sea below had calm waves, and Angel’s wings had dull wooshing sound coming from them.

Lute stared at the tree with a sorrowful frown. He had no more tears to shed, only promises he wanted to keep. He gulped, sighed peacefully, and held the feather on his collar to his chest.

“Thank you.”