Author's Notes: Hey everyone! This is NYSTLSportsFan here. I've been saying for months that I wanted to write something for this site, but that I didn't have the time. But here it is! This is my first story, so it's probably not very good, but I'm nonetheless really excited about it. It's also just a oneshot, so it's not even a very substantial first story, haha. But hopefully, now that this first, smaller story is out of the way, I'll be able to use the momentum from it to begin writing longer, more substantial stories. I have a lot of stories planned, and will hopefully be able to write some of them if I can find the time!

It would be really, really amazing if you reviewed this. I'm just starting out as a Fanfiction writer, so any advice at all would be extremely helpful! Anyway, hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon. I only own the plot of my stories.

Written: 12/25/14

Proofread: 12/26/14

Published: 12/28/14

"Alright sis, let's do this for Alto Mare!"

That was the last thing Latios remembered saying before he hit the wave. Now? All he knew was that he had one hell of a headache, and it just would not go away. Groggily, he tried to open his eyes to get a sense of where exactly he was, but quickly shut them when a blindingly bright blue light caused his headache to make its presence known again.

What the heck happened… Oh god, the city!

With a jolt, he got up, forgetting his headache as he frantically telepathed his dear sister Latias, "Sis! Is the city okay? Did we stop the wave?" Now normally, Latias would not hesitate to give him an immediate answer. But this time, he was met with eerie silence. He repeated his message, more urgently this time, but was again left without a reply.

Okay, now he was worried. Had something happened to his sister? To the city? What if they'd been too late? But then, if that were the case… how was he alive? Where was everyone else? And where exactly was he? All of these unanswered questions rushed around in his head, which did nothing except bring back the onslaught of his earlier headache. With a groan, Latios clenched his eyes shut and, in an attempt to ward off the pain, fell into a fitful slumber.

When he awoke next, his headache had thankfully subsided (for the most part) to the point where he could think clearly. Pushing himself up off the ground and reactivating his levitation, Latios was finally able to take a good look at his surroundings. He seemed to be in a rather plain, orb-shaped room. The walls of said orb were a somewhat translucent blue, similar to the color of his feathers. Upon closer inspection, the walls contained flecks of purple and green that shot through the glass-like surface. It was actually rather pretty, Latios thought to himself. He tried to see what was on the other side, but it was too blurry for him to pick out any details at the moment.

As Latios reached out to touch the surface, however, something seemed… off. He realized he couldn't feel his touch on the walls; in fact, he realized couldn't feel any sensation in his body! As he brought his paw up to his face in contemplation of this strange turn of events, his blood ran cold. He could see through his paw. Gasping in shock, Latios rapidly recoiled from the wall and, trembling, took a closer look at himself. It wasn't just his paw; his entire body appeared translucent!

O-okay, Latios, calm down. D-don't freak out. I'm sure it's completely normal that I'm freaking see-through right now. Nothing out of the ordinary, hahaha… I-I swear, Latias, if this is some practical joke, it's no longer f-funny!

Latios attempted to be strong, like he always appeared to be in front of Latias and Bianca and everyone else. But the façade no longer held; now, scared and alone, he was well and truly terrified. In truth, he was not the strong, confident Pokemon others thought he was; growing up without parents, he, unlike Latias, had no one to look up to for advice. Of course, he had to put up a confident front to give his sister someone to look up to, but in reality, he was the one who was looking for answers.

Suddenly panicking, Latios tried ramming the walls of the room in the hopes that they would break and he could escape into whatever lay outside. But the walls held firm, and the only thing his wild outburst had given him was another headache. Truly troubled, Latios resolved to sleep on the matter, telling himself he'd give the matter more thought in the morning. And so, he fell into another restless sleep.

When he next awoke, Latios was still somewhat panicked at waking up in an as-yet-unidentified location, jumping up and whizzing about the rather small, spherical room. But, as he came to his senses, he sat back down to contemplate his situation again. His thoughts eventually wandered to Latias' whereabouts. Was she okay? If she was, why hadn't she contacted him yet? Her telepathic silence was really starting to worry him. She'd always been there for him if he needed someone to help him puzzle something out or even if he just wanted someone to talk to. But here he was, on his own, trapped in an unfamiliar place, and scared out of his mind without anyone to answer his questions.

Sighing, Latios returned to contemplating his situation. He tried retracing his memories to the point where he woke up in the strange room. He remembered finally getting freed of that horrid machine by Ash, Bianca, and the others. He remembered Oakley triggering the tsunami with the DMA. And he remembered rocketing off with Latias to stop the wave from destroying Alto Mare. And then, after that… he'd just woken up in the room.

Huh, that's really weird. Latias and I rushed off to stop the wave, and then after we hit it, I just woke up here, all see-through and unable to feel things. It's strange, it's almost like I'm a-

And then it hit him. Translucent. Incorporeal. Unable to communicate with anyone. And unable to interact with the outside world.

...ghost.

It was just then that Latios realized the truth of the matter. He was dead. And here he was, floating in the ether, unable to ever return to the world. Well wait, that isn't right, Latios thought. If he was completely dead, then why hadn't he passed out of existence or gone to the afterlife? As a Legendary pokemon, he knew such a thing existed. So then… where was he? Suddenly, Latios heard muffled voices from behind him. Quickly, he turned around, only for his heart to sink in his chest.

The image beyond the wall had finally clarified. Through it, Latios saw everyone he knew gathered around the walls of the room: Ash, Misty, Brock, Pikachu, Lorenzo, Bianca… and, most heartbreaking of all, Latias. And they were all crying. Ash had pulled his cap low over his eyes, trying not to let the others see he was crying. Brock was wiping his eyes on his sleeve. Lorenzo was trying to comfort a sobbing Bianca while he himself unsuccessfully fought back tears. But nothing compared to the anguish Latios felt when he saw Latias's face. She seemed to be staring right at him, not wanting to believe that her brother was gone. Not crying or anything, just in shock and disbelief. And that broke Latios's heart to see. Finally, a single tear fell from her large, amber eye onto the wall that separated Latios from the rest of the world.

While all of this was happening, Latios himself was tearing up, frantically yelling from the other side of the wall, "Guys, it's me, Latios! I-I'm not dead, I'm right here! Latias, please stop crying! C-can't you see me? I'm right in front of you! Perfectly fine! Really, I'm completely okay! Right here! Not dead at all, haha! Guys? Can you hear me?! Guys?!" In a last gasp attempt to tell them he was okay, he tried to Sight-Share with Latias, frantically trying to establish the connection that he had opened countless times before. But he was met only with inky blackness. That was the final straw, as Latios, the proud Guardian of Alto Mare, finally broke down sobbing on the floor of his prison, feebly trying to communicate with those he loved, who were so close at hand, yet so, so far away. Finally, he fell asleep, still sobbing pitifully on the floor of the room.

When he woke up again, Latios frantically rushed to the wall of the room, about to cry out for his sister once more. But the words died in his throat as he remembered what had happened earlier. It was now evening, and the stars above him were as beautiful as ever. They gave Latios no solace, however, only serving to taunt him as a reminder that he could not escape his horrible prison. As he began sobbing again, Latios heard a faint sound from beyond the wall. It sounded like Latias was crying softly. Sure enough, she appeared in front of him with a bouquet of flowers, which she laid in front of the room Latios was trapped in. And then she began to speak, softly:

"Latios, I know you're probably gone forever, but I can't bring myself to believe that you're really gone. I know that you're in there, somewhere, in this Soul Dew."

So that's where he was! That explained why he couldn't communicate with his friends! But now… he was trapped here. Forever. Before that grim reality set in, however, Latias resumed talking.

"It's gonna be so… different without you here. You were always the steady one. You were always the one who knew what to do when things got tough. And you were always the one I could come to for advice on… well, anything really. It's just that… without you, I don't know who to look up to. I guess I'll have to figure out things on my own now, haha." At this, she began to cry. "I miss you already, b-bro. All of the fun we had, the things we did, the times we shared… they're all gone. And now here I am, talking to a damned rock to try and comfort myself."

Latios was shocked at these words; Latias never cursed. But the sentiment touched him to his very core. He so desperately wanted to reach out and comfort his sister, to tell her that everything was okay, and that she could handle herself perfectly fine without him. But the cruel, unforgiving walls of the Soul Dew once again blocked his touch. And then Latias continued.

"But who am I kidding? I know you're out there somewhere, Latios, even if you probably can't hear me right now. I just know that someway, somehow, we will meet each other again. Until then… I guess this is it." Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Latias looked at the Soul Dew with determination. "I will be strong for you, Latios. We all will be. So goodbye for now, brother. I'm sure I'll see you again soon." And, with a sense of finality, Latias floated away.

Latios, who had been trembling the whole time, finally broke down again as he watched his little sister retreat from the Soul Dew's pedestal. Right then, he wanted nothing more than to tell her that he had indeed heard her and to reassure her that she would do fine without him. But he was powerless to do anything but watch as Latias faded away into the darkness of the night.

I swear, I'll always protect you, Latias. Even if I have to bust outta this prison to do it. I'll find a way to telepath through this damned barrier, and I'll find a way to break out of this damn sphere, and…

Latios sat there in the Soul Dew, choking back the last of his tears and trying repeatedly to think of ways to interact with the outside world. But as he sat there, he thought to himself: did Latias really still need protecting? She'd become a much more responsible and mature Pokemon after the events of the past few days. No longer was she the careless, naïve Latias he knew; only now did he realize his big brother mentality had obscured the truth. Latias could hold her own. She really didn't need his protection anymore. But that didn't mean he wouldn't keep trying to tell her that! He resolved to always watch over her from his place in the Soul Dew, to always keep her safe to the best of his abilities. And through it all, he would still try to communicate with her despite the barrier of the Soul Dew.

Just know, Latias, that I'm not gone. Be strong for me, be strong for our friends, and be strong for Alto Mare.

Endnotes:

Man, that got really sad there for a bit. Not gonna lie, I myself almost cried writing that. But wowwwwww, I can't believe that I just wrote this! It came out twice as long as I'd planned it to be. I'm so pumped! I spent a solid three and a half hours straight writing this story. And now it's done! All the times I said 'hopefully, if I have time, I'll write something,...' Well, I finally wrote it! It feels so good to finally do it, y'know? I was considering continuing this and following Latios's attempts to escape/communicate, but it kinda just doesn't seem right after that ending.

If you've read this far, I really, really thank you from the bottom of my heart. Again, this is my first story (and my first foray into fanfic writing), so I can't thank you enough for reading this! Again, all I ask is for a review; as this is my first story, any tips or feedback at all would be appreciated. Now, that doesn't mean you can't be honest: if you detested this story, by all means tell me. I'm always looking to improve, and there's really nowhere to go but up from here in terms of quality. Thanks!

Sincerely,

NYSTLSportsFan