Sinnoh Adventures
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon.
PLEASE READ!
In chapter eight, Lucas states that Fantina was the third Gym Leader, followed by Crasher Wake. This is WRONG! It should be, followed by Maylene of Veilstone City. Also, in chapter nine, Zoey was going to go to Veilstone while Nando, Lucas, and Dawn where going to Pastoria. This is a mix up. Zoey is going to Pastoria and Nando, Lucas, and Dawn are going to Veilstone. In addition, in chapter nine again, Dawn and Lucas state that the fourth gym leader is Crasher Wake; this should be Maylene. Sorry for the trouble, but I was looking at a Diamond and Pearl Gym Leader chart, not Platinum, which this story is based off of. These errors have been corrected.
Chapter Ten
"Aha, excellent move!" shouted a clapping Fantina as she excitedly twirled around when Piplup used Whirlpool and Brine, followed with Peck on Drifblim. This time around, it was a two-on-two battle between Dawn and Fantina, both still on their first Pokémon. Drifblim was making full use of the Counter Shield to block all of Piplup's attacks, and then it would counterattack at the slightest opening. Piplup was having quite a hard time battling.
"Piplup, use Whirlpool, but put it underneath Drifblim!" Dawn called. Piplup summoned the Whirlpool and then threw it below Drifblim, before proceeding to jump into it. The result was that Piplup was swirled around and around by his own attack. "Now use Brine upwards at Drifblim!"
By then, Drifblim had turned itself so that it was facing downwards, the Counter Shield revolving around it. The Brine attack shot up in a spiral that was made by Piplup swirling in the Whirlpool. Drifblim used Psychic to manipulate Will-O-Wisp for the Counter Shield, creating a resolute wall that blocked the Brine.
"Now Piplup, jump and use Bubblebeam!" said Dawn. Piplup did so, shooting the bubbles at a close range. However, Drifblim continued to block every attack.
"Now, Drifblim, use 'ypnosis!"
Although Piplup was at close range against Drifblim, Drifblim was at a close enough range to counterattack easily with Hypnosis, putting Piplup to sleep.
"Follow with ze Counter Shield!" said Fantina, spinning dizzily.
Drifblim launched its Counter Shield at Piplup, who had landed in the still spinning Whirlpool. Surprisingly, the Counter Shield was blocked by the Whirlpool, and the sleeping Piplup was unharmed.
"Use Ominous Wind to blow the Whirlpool away!"
This time around, Piplup wasn't as lucky. The purple wind ripped through the Whirlpool and Piplup, battering the water and the Pokémon to the ground in a single, clean swipe.
"Come on, Piplup! Wake up!" Dawn called frantically as Piplup dozed.
"Let us finish zis, Drifblim! Use Will-O-Wisp and Ominous Wind!" said Fantina.
"Piplup, come on! You have to use Whirlpool and Brine again!" said Dawn.
The Ominous Wind streamed through the Will-O-Wisp and absorbed the blue flames, so that a flaming whirlwind was streaking towards Piplup. Piplup snapped his eyes open and shrieked at the oncoming attack, before using Brine and Whirlpool. Luckily for Dawn and Piplup, Piplup managed to create his shield in time, the Brine strengthening the Whirlpool so that Drifblim's attacks didn't tear it apart.
"Good strategy, Dawn! Zis battle is not going to go anywhere soon!" said Fantina.
"You're right about that one," muttered Dawn. "Piplup, use Bubblebeam again!"
However, instead of unleashing a Bubblebeam, Piplup took a deep breath and steadily exhaled a thick, white fog.
"Dawn," said Lucas from the side, "that's Mist!"
The thick Mist made it impossible for anyone to see what was going on. Dawn took this to her advantage, ordering Piplup to use Whirlpool and Bubblebeam. Fantina quickly retaliated by telling Drifblim to use Ominous Wind. The Ominous Wind quickly cleared the Mist, but Piplup was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, Drifblim was bashed to the ground from behind with Whirlpool and Bubblebeam.
"Let's finish it, Piplup! Use Whirlpool and Brine!" yelled Dawn. Piplup smashed the huge attack onto Drifblim, immediately knocking it out.
"Drifblim is unable to battle," said the referee. "Piplup is the victor!"
"Return, Drifblim. Fantastique! Very vell zen, Mismagius, allons-y!" said Fantina.
"Piplup, you return as well. Pachirisu, you can do it!" said Dawn.
"Battle begin!"
"Mismagius, use Psywave!"
"Pachirisu, use Discharge!"
The two blue attacks, one from midair and the other from the ground, blasted each other with full force, but Mismagius had the upper hand by firing down on Pachirisu. Soon enough, the blue rings of Psywave overcame the sparking Discharge and beat Pachirisu into the ground.
"Follow up vith Magical Leaf!" said Fantina in a singsong voice.
Mismagius swooped down upon Pachirisu and hurled the colorful leaves at her, using Pachirisu to batter an even larger hole into the ground.
"Finally, use Psybeam!"
"Pachirisu, get out of there with Quick Attack!"
Luckily for Pachirisu, her Quick Attack got her out of the hole just before the Psybeam blasted it.
"Now use Spark!" said Dawn.
Mismagius used Dark Pulse to retaliate. It turned out to be a draw; both of their attacks blew up, but Mismagius' Dark Pulse shot out multiple dark rings that were possible projectiles.
"Mismagius, use Psywave on ze Dark Pulse to launch ze rings at Pachirisu!" said Fantina.
"Pachirisu!" called Dawn anxiously.
"Pachirisu is unable to battle!" said the referee as Pachirisu slumped onto the ground, tongue sticking out of her mouth. "The victor is Mismagius!"
"Per-fect, Mismagius!" cheered Fantina.
"Way to go, Pachirisu, good job. No need to worry, Piplup, you're next!" said Dawn.
Piplup flashed out with his fins crossed and a superior look on his face as he stared up at Mismagius.
"Piplup, use Mist!"
"Mismagius, use Magical Leaf!"
To Dawn's surprise, the Magical Leaf struck Piplup even through the sight-blocking dense fog.
"But how?" she said as Piplup was flattened.
"Dawn, Magical Leaf is a move that never misses its target," said Lucas. "Unless it's blocked, it will definitely hit."
"Alright, then, Piplup, use Bubblebeam!"
"Mismagius, use Psybeam!"
The two attacks collided and released a rush of air that temporarily blew apart the fog. Fantina immediately ordered Mismagius to use Dark Pulse, while Piplup used Brine to retaliate. Once again, both attacks were equal in power. They both exploded.
"Mismagius, 'urry and use Psywave upon ze rings of Dark Pulse!" said Fantina. The rings formed from the Dark Pulse were thrown at Piplup, just like Pachirisu's battle with Mismagius.
"Piplup, use Whirlpool!" said Dawn. The rings all flew straight into the torrential waters and stuck fast, spinning around and around until Piplup had a whirlpool of dark rings floating above him.
"Now that's what I'm talking about!" said Dawn. "Throw it at Mismagius and follow up with Brine!"
The combination attack soared ahead of Piplup as he shot a jet of water at it, increasing its volume and strength.
"Ah! Mismagius!" cried Fantina, eyes watery, as her Pokémon was knocked to the ground.
"Mis…Mismagius," groaned Mismagius.
"Mismagius is unable to battle! Piplup is the victor, and the winner is Dawn!" said the referee.
"Congratulations, Dawn," said Lucas.
Meanwhile, Fantina was on her knees besides Mismagius crying heavily. "Oh, Mismagius, you did your best but we were defeated! And now you 'ave fainted! Oh, ze pain!"
"Mis?"
Mismagius floated upright and rolled its eyes at Fantina's behavior. It used Psywave to draw the Relic Badge from Fantina's hand and place it into Dawn's.
"Why, thank you, Mismagius," said Dawn. "We'll be leaving now. Bye!"
"Mismagius!" said Mismagius cheerfully as it used Psywave to force Fantina to wave at the two.
"So this is Solaceon Town," said Lucas as he glanced around at the quaint houses. "It's pretty small."
"Yeah," said Dawn, hugging her egg case. "But there's something here that's pretty cool… I forget what it was."
"You mean the Solaceon Ruins?" asked Lucas excitedly. "I've heard about them too! Apparently, there are strange Pokémon inside of them."
Dawn stared at him incredulously. "Why are you so excited? They're just caves."
"They're not just caves, Dawn," said Lucas exasperatedly. "They house the Unown!"
"Well, of course caves house the unknown. They're pitch-black without light!"
"No, Dawn," said Lucas. "Not the word unknown, I mean that they house the Pokémon, Unown!"
"Excuse me?" said Dawn. "There's a Pokémon called Unown?"
Lucas nodded. "It's very strange, and has 28 forms, most of them based on letters, and two more based on punctuation. I've read about them, but they're very mysterious. Apparently, they can make new dimensions, or something like that."
Dawn rolled her eyes. "Sure they can. And I'm a Legendary Pokémon."
Lucas looked at her seriously and was about to say something when Dawn interrupted him.
"Alright, alright. Let's just check it out, then," said Dawn. "I'd like to see these Unown."
By the time Lucas and Dawn had reached the entrance to the ruins, Lucas had already explained everything that he knew about the Unown in a fast babble that Dawn could barely keep up with. Finally, Dawn forced him to stop by disappearing into the ruins.
"Hey, wait up!" said Lucas, running after her. Muttering, he pulled out a flashlight and turned it on, only to see Dawn standing right in front of him gaping at the wall. "What?" asked Lucas, turning to face the wall.
"Ho, boy…" he breathed. The Unown were on the wall. They seemed to be stuck in place, and once Lucas stared at the entire thing, he realized that they spelled a message.
"Friendship. All lives touch other lives to create something anew and alive," he whispered. Carefully, he extended a hand and touched one of the Unown.
"What are you doing?" asked Dawn incredulously. "They might attack!"
Lucas shook his head nervously. "I don't even know if they're real. They might be fake…"
Dawn looked at him accusingly. "You said that these ruins house the Unown, and now you say that they're fake?" Lucas shrugged, but still wore an expression of nervousness. Finally, both of them turned away from the wall to go deeper into the ruins.
"Wow," breathed Dawn as they roamed deeper. "This place is filled with these Unown!" On the walls, after the message, there were many Unown of all sorts of forms simply scattered everywhere.
"I told you so," said Lucas. "And –"
Dawn screamed.
"What?" asked Lucas. Dawn was staring behind him as though a ghost had appeared. "Dawn, what's wrong?"
"The… THE UNOWN!" she shrieked, pointing wildly. Lucas spun around and shined his flashlight on the space behind him, but nothing was there.
Breathing rapidly, he turned back around. "Okay, nice one, Dawn. You got me." But Dawn still looked terrified. "It was probably a trick of the light," said Lucas. "Don't worry about it."
Dawn shook her head. Lucas reached out again and felt the walls, brushing an Unown every now and then.
"You should not have done that…"
Lucas and Dawn both whipped around and stared into the darkness near the end of the tunnel that they were in. A blue-haired man stepped out of the shadows. Lucas glanced at his clothing and started. It couldn't be…
"Who are you?" asked Dawn.
"You should not have touched the Unown on the wall," said the man calmly without answering Dawn. "Now they are agitated."
Lucas slowly turned around to face the entrance again, and was greeted by several Unown, all staring inquisitively (if that was possible) at the three humans.
Suddenly, all of them threw themselves into a circle and stared to spin around in the circle wildly. Faster and faster they span, until a bright white light was coming from all of them. Small, shining spheres grew around every Unown.
"They're using Hidden Power!" said Lucas.
The shining Hidden Power was thrown down the tunnel. Dawn and Lucas threw their arms over their heads while the man simply stood still. The Hidden Power flew right around all three of them, barely causing a breeze, until it smashed into the end of the tunnel. The bright Hidden Power exploded – and then was absorbed into the walls. Quickly, the bright light spread throughout all of the walls in the ruins. Every cave, nook, and cranny was sheathed in light. And then –
"Oh, this is not good," breathed Dawn.
Every single Unown in the ruins was slowly peeling off of the walls, and then floating to join the Unown that had used Hidden Power. When all of the Unown were congregated, they formed a thick wall with their bodies. Unnerved, Dawn and Lucas stared at their wide white eyes.
"Oh, get out of the way," said the man roughly to the Unown, Dawn, and Lucas. Dawn and Lucas stepped to the walls while the man advanced on the Unown, pulling out a Poké Ball as he went.
"You won't move? Very well. Honchkrow, go."
The man tossed his Poké Ball to reveal the huge crow-like Pokémon. Lucas quickly took out his Pokédex to scan Honchkrow and the Unown.
Honchkrow, the Big Boss Pokémon:
If one utters a deep cry, many Murkrow gather quickly. For this, it is called "Summoner of Night."
Unown, the Symbol Pokémon:
When alone, nothing happens. However, if there are two or more, an odd power is said to emerge.
"Honchkrow, use Night Shade!" commanded the man. His Honchkrow flew straight at the Unown barrier and blasted them with dark, red-black beams from its eyes. It quickly scattered the Unown, who fled to avoid the attack, but they soon regrouped.
"Use Faint Attack," said the man. His Honchkrow flew at the Unown again, but suddenly disappeared and re-appeared behind the Unown, beyond their barrier. Honchkrow flew towards the Unown quickly and launched into an Astonish attack.
"Cover your ears!" Lucas yelled to Dawn. Dawn gently, but quickly, set her egg case on the ground, slapped her hands over her ears, and closed her eyes as Honchkrow started to emit red waves of sound from its beak. The attack dazed the Unown, and Honchkrow took the opportunity to blast them all with Night Shade again.
"Hurry up and leave," said the man to Lucas and Dawn. "They're clear for now."
"Thank you," said Dawn, picking up her egg case carefully, before Lucas grabbed her hand and charged out of the ruins with her. The man smiled. No, the man almost smiled. But then, he reminded himself of his cause and resumed his expressionless face, before getting out of the ruins himself. He walked almost leisurely as the Unown were blasted over and over again by his Honchkrow. Finally, when he left the ruins themselves, he called the Big Boss Pokémon back.
"Good-bye. Stand aside," he said coldly. Dawn and Lucas did as they were told, but not before Lucas blurted out a question.
"Why were you in the ruins?"
The man turned around. "I was investigating the Unown and their power to make new dimensions. Or, enter other dimensions." He started to leave, but then stopped.
"As for who I am," he said, referring to Dawn's question earlier, "I will tell you that my name is Cyrus." And with that, he disappeared as soon as he drew near the edge of town.
"He was weird," commented Dawn as they walked back to the main town. "But he helped us, and that's nice enough."
Lucas scowled. "I don't think he'll be helping us in the future."
"What do you mean?"
"You didn't see? It was almost blaring on his vest!"
"Lucas, what are you talking about?" asked Dawn. Lucas sighed.
"His vest. It had Team Galactic's symbol on it. You know, the weird G."
As he expected, Dawn let off a gasp so loud that it drew the attention of multiple farmers that they passed.
"I didn't even notice!"
"And he's not a grunt," said Lucas. "We saw the grunts' uniforms. He's probably a Commander, like the other three. Mars, Saturn, and Jupiter were all Commanders. They had different uniforms from the grunts too, remember? He's probably another one of them, which would be why he had such a strong Pokémon."
"You mean his Honchkrow?" asked Dawn. Lucas nodded.
"Well, I'm going to talk with Professor Rowan. Wanna come with me?"
"Sure," said Dawn. "I haven't spoken with him since I left his lab."
Once inside the Solaceon Pokémon Center, Lucas and Dawn sat down at a video phone and quickly dialed Professor Rowan. However, Lucas's father picked up.
"Hello? Professor Rowan is busy right now, sorry, he can't be bothered, but thank you for calling, may I take a message?" said the man, not even bothering to look at the screen.
It was all said in one breath, and Lucas shook his head exasperatedly before almost yelling into the machine,
"DAD! It's me!"
Lucas's father turned, surprised, and said, "Lucas! How nice! And you must be Dawn! I saw you here the other day. My, my, you two really have grown!"
"Dad… we've only been away from home for about two months…"
"Hello, sir!" said Dawn. She was gently polishing her Pokémon Egg that she received from Cynthia with a damp towel. "It's nice to meet you!"
"Yes, it's nice to meet you too. Well, I'm sorry, Lucas, but if you were looking for the Professor, he's very busy right now and he can't take any calls. Now," said Lucas's father, taking on a more serious tone and expression, "have you caught any special Pokémon?"
Lucas shifted uneasily in his seat. Dawn stared between the screen and Lucas, confused.
"Well…" said Lucas.
"Lucas, show me your Pokémon!"
The almost harsh command made Lucas sigh in resignation. He released all of his Pokémon.
Lucas's father stared at the Pokémon that Lucas had caught critically. "I see that Turtwig has evolved to Torterra already. That's good. But… for your other Pokémon." He stared with an almost disgusted look on his face at Beautifly, Roselia, and Shellos. "A Beautifly? A Roselia? A Shellos? Lucas, you must certainly be able to do better than that. I see that your Shellos is Shiny. Quite rare, but just because it is a different color doesn't make it special. Now, I thought that you had gotten your mind clear! You told me that you try your best to catch and train the rarest Pokémon in Sinnoh, and now you show me these three Pokémon? A Beautifly evolves from a Wurmple, one of the most common Pokémon in Sinnoh. Roselia can almost be found everywhere in Sinnoh, and if not Roselia, then their pre-evolution, Budew. And Shellos are also extremely common. What have you got to say for yourself?" thundered Lucas's father.
Dawn was still watching in amazement. She had scooted back slightly and was now off-screen, but she was still shocked slightly at Lucas's father's outburst. She wasn't polishing her Egg anymore, and her grip on it was slackened so much that she was barely holding on to it.
"I know, Dad," muttered Lucas.
"You need to do more than just know it. You said that you would – Professor!" Lucas's dad hastily cut off his reprimanding and quickly stood up in respect for Professor Rowan.
"Goodness, are you still hounding Lucas about catching rare Pokémon? All in all, catching rare Pokémon is quite incredible, but enough is enough! Your son does not absolutely need to catch every rare Pokémon in Sinnoh! In fact, I need to study more about common Pokémon, so it's a good thing that he doesn't simply catch the rarest Pokémon alive! Really, you must stop berating the child."
Lucas's father stood apart from the Professor rather shamefacedly and left after saying good-bye to Lucas and Dawn, leaving Professor Rowan to talk with the two.
"Ah, yes. I haven't talked with you two in a while. How has your traveling been?"
Dawn scooted closer to the screen so that she was included in the frame.
"Great! Look Professor, I got a Pokémon Egg from the Champion, Cynthia!" said Dawn as Lucas recalled his Pokémon.
"Yes, yes, I know about that. Cynthia stopped by the other day to tell me everything that happened. So, has anything new occurred?"
"Yes," said Lucas. "We just met another one of Team Galactic's people. His name was Cyrus, and he wasn't a grunt, though. We guessed that he was possibly a Commander."
"Wait!" said Dawn. "Remember in Eterna City? One of the weirdo Commanders said that Master Cyrus would come for them! Doesn't that mean that this Cyrus is the leader of Team Galactic?"
Lucas mentally berated himself. "Of course! That means that we just met the leader of Team Galactic, but he saved our lives!"
"What?" said Professor Rowan. "This is troubling… Tell me how you met him."
Lucas and Dawn explained together of how they were in the Solaceon Ruins, and then of how the Unown trapped them, and finally of how the man came out and blasted the Unown away.
Professor Rowan shook his head. "Team Galactic… what are they up too? Speaking of Team Galactic," added the Professor, "have you heard the news?"
"What news?" asked Lucas.
"Well, evidently, those three Commanders, as you called them, have escaped jail."
"What?" said Dawn. "When did that happen?"
"Only a few days ago. Evidently, they not only escaped jail, but they also stole something extremely important from Eterna City. The Adamant Orb was taken."
"What's the Adamant Orb?" said Dawn.
"Well, for one thing, it's an orb with special powers," said Lucas. "It has a sister orb, the Lustrous Orb. Apparently, a third orb is rumored to exist, but no one has ever found evidence of it. The Adamant Orb and Lustrous Orb must be given to Dialga and Palkia respectively in order to work. No other Pokémon can access their powers."
"That's quite right, Lucas," said Professor Rowan. "But there's another thing; I believe that Team Galactic is somehow planning on using the Orbs to contact Palkia and Dialga."
"Hang on," said Dawn. "Palkia and Dialga… who are they?"
"Palkia is a legendary Pokémon that controls space. Dialga is a legendary Pokémon that controls time. But, we can't really study them since no one has ever seen them," said Lucas. "Professor, how could Team Galactic use the Orbs to find Dialga and Palkia?"
"Well, my theory is that the orbs hold a part of Dialga and Palkia themselves, and that is why they only work for them. I believe that the power in the Orbs was originally Dialga and Palkia's, but this is just a theory. It could be that the two had some sort of contact with the Orbs, and that alone made them special. However, the Orbs are certainly connected with Dialga and Palkia. If Team Galactic could find the two of them, who knows what destruction the could cause," said Professor Rowan.
"But Professor," said Lucas, "wouldn't they need the Lustrous Orb as well?"
"That's what I'm afraid of," sighed Professor Rowan. "The Lustrous Orb is currently under the study and care of Professor Carolina, who lives in Celestic Town. Actually, Professor Carolina is Cynthia's grandmother."
"What?"
"Yes, it's startling, but I fear that Team Galactic will try to take the Lustrous Orb by force. Therefore, I want you two to go to Celestic Town. I know that you were planning on going to Veilstone City for the Contest and Gym there, but this is urgent. Please leave today. You should be able to get there by tomorrow evening."
"Yes, sir," said Lucas. "We'll leave right away."
"Bye, Professor," said Dawn as Lucas closed the video phone. "Well," she sighed, "back on the good ol' bikes."
By the evening of the next day, the duo had indeed managed to get to Celestic Town on time, barely stopping to take breaks seeing as their task was so urgent. They stopped by the Pokémon Center and checked in for a room before deciding to explore the small town for the rest of the evening.
The two soon found themselves at the entrance to the Celestic Ruins.
"Look," said Lucas, pointing at the two paintings on either side of the cave's entrance. "Dialga," he pointed at the blue Pokémon, "and Palkia," he pointed at the pink Pokémon.
Dawn entered the cave, followed closely by Lucas. Together, they stared at a painting on the wall of the cave, a painting that depicted four lights, one large one in the center and three others circling around it.
"That was thought to be a painting depicting Dialga and Palkia, with Uxie, Mesprit, and Azelf circling around them."
Lucas and Dawn turned at the voice. An old woman was walking towards them. She appeared to be extremely strict, with dark blond hair.
"Who are Uxie, Mesprit, and Azelf?" asked Dawn.
"Three legendary Pokémon of Sinnoh," answered Lucas. "They are known as the Lake Guardians, because they each sleep in one of Sinnoh's three lakes: Acuity, Valor, and Verity."
"Quite right, young man," said the old woman. "I can only assume that you two were the Trainers that Professor Rowan told me were coming to help defend against Team Galactic. My name is Carolina. You may have heard of me from Professor Rowan."
"Yes, we did," said Dawn. "You're Cynthia's grandmother, right?"
"Yes, I am," said Carolina proudly. "She's quite the Trainer. In fact, I believe that she is on her way as well to help. However, please come with me for the time being. The Lustrous Orb is at my house."
Professor Carolina led the two out of the ruins and to a small house, filled with only the basic furniture and sparsely decorated. The most stunning thing in it was, of course, the Lustrous Orb. It sat in a glass case, glistening in a perfectly spherical shape with multiple colors.
Carolina said, "Now, I have been studying the Orb, and I have found that Professor Rowan's theories are true somewhat. I assume that he has told you what he thinks?" Without stopping to let the duo answer, she barged on. "Well, the two Orbs are seemingly linked to Dialga and Palkia through energy, which can be traced. That is how Team Galactic may be able to access Dialga and Palkia, for they do not live in our world. They live in separate dimensions, two dimensions that are never meant to meet. If they do meet, however, or if Dialga and Palkia meet, who knows what sort of catastrophic event would happen to the earth."
Lucas was studying the glistening Orb. "May I see the Orb?" he asked. Carolina nodded and punched as series of buttons on a keyboard next to the glass compartment holding the Orb. The lid of the container slowly opened, and Carolina reached into pick the Orb up. She gave it to Lucas. He lifted the Orb up to peer into its depths, trying to decipher the swirling colors.
And then he fainted.
"Lucas! Come over here!" The young boy toddled over to the young girl a few feet away from him.
"Yeah, Dawn?" he said.
"Look!" she squealed joyfully, pointing at a variety of flowers growing near the forest. "They're so pretty!"
"I don't know," said Lucas. "I think that Lake Verity looks prettier."
The young girl known as Dawn pouted slightly. "Am I pretty?"
Lucas blushed slightly. "…Yes…"
Dawn squealed again, jumping up and down happily while her blue hair whipped everywhere. And then –
Splash.
The barely noticeable sound created a ripple in the very middle of Lake Verity. The circular ripple spread outwards quickly, yet evenly. Finally, when the ripple disappeared against the shoreline, a shimmering light appeared in the middle of the lake. Dawn was staring at the light. Lucas was poking her gently and asking her what she was staring at.
"The pretty light!" she said. "Don't you see it? It's in the middle of the lake!"
Lucas squinted. The lake was shimmering as usual, with no shining light coming from anywhere.
And then he felt it. The air stirred slightly – no, something stirred inside of him. And Dawn was crying out in shock.
"What's wrong?" asked Lucas worriedly.
"Look!" giggled Dawn, pointing at a flying pink Pokémon. Lucas squinted again, following her pointing finger, yet saw nothing.
"It's so cute!" said Dawn, running up to this strange Pokémon that was invisible to Lucas. The Pokémon stared into Dawn's eyes with a pair of bright yellow eyes. Then, the red jewel on its forehead began to glow. And then it was gone. Another ripple spread throughout Lake Verity.
Lucas shuddered slightly. When the "Pokémon" seemingly vanished (which was what he could judge from Dawn's confused and disappointed expression), whatever was causing him to feel strange disappeared as well.
"It's gone, Lucas. What was it?"
"I don't know," said Lucas. "I didn't see it."
"I felt weird. It looked at my eyes. And then, I felt all shivery and strange. Is that normal?"
Lucas sighed. "I don't think so." Just to be safe, he felt Dawn's forehead with the back of his hand. Nope. No fever, which meant no hallucinations (most likely).
"To be honest," he said, "I felt like that too, when you said that a Pokémon appeared. Then, when it went away, I didn't feel like that anymore."
"Me too," said Dawn.
Lucas sighed. "We should go home."
Dawn nodded. "I hope that he didn't get hurt too badly."
Lucas looked at her in confusion. "What did you just say?"
"Hopefully," said Dawn, "he's just unconscious. But what made him lose consciousness, I don't know."
"Neither do I," said an old voice. "But he fainted right after he touched the Lustrous Orb."
Lucas groaned and rubbed his head. Lake Verity was vanishing, to be replaced by a dim light and the faces of Professor Carolina and Dawn.
"Are you okay? Thank goodness you're awake," said Dawn anxiously. "Here, drink some water."
Lucas gratefully accepted the glass of water and drank it in one gulp. Professor Carolina was staring at him curiously.
"Do you know why you fainted?" she asked. Lucas shook his head. He couldn't remember ever fainting. All that he could remember was the dream. So vivid… as though it was a memory. He smiled slightly, realizing that it was a memory. A very faint memory, but a memory nonetheless. He had been five years old at the time that he went to Lake Verity. He was playing with his friend when a strange pink Pokémon appeared, according to his friend, Dawn. According to Dawn…
"Did you ever go to Lake Verity when you were younger?" asked Lucas urgently. Dawn frowned.
"I… think so. I was five, I think. I went to Lake Verity… and I saw a pink Pokémon. So what?"
"Was there anything weird about the Pokémon?" asked Lucas.
"Well… besides the fact that it came from a light in the water, no."
Lucas shook his head. "I think that you saw Mesprit."
Dawn gasped. "Mesprit? What does it look like?"
"Well," said Professor Carolina, "it has a pink head with a gray body and two tails. On its forehead, there is a red gem, as well as on its two tails."
Dawn thought carefully for a moment before nodding. "Definitely. That Pokemon that I saw fit the description perfectly. But," she said, turning to Lucas with an inquisitive expression, "how did you know that I went to Lake Verity when I was younger?"
Lucas didn't respond. Instead, he looked out the window – and, to his surprise, saw the sun's rays streaming forth. "It's morning already?" he said in surprise. Professor Carolina nodded, while Dawn was still worried at Lucas's silence to her question.
"You slept here while Dawn and I slept in the chairs," she said, pointing at the two wooden chairs near the table. "We were beginning to wonder if you were in a coma when you woke up. Anyways, what happened when you looked into the Lustrous Orb?"
Lucas looked worried. "I felt a vague connection…"
Professor Carolina was puzzled. "Dawn, why don't you take the Orb," she said, pointing at the precariously rolling Orb on the table. Before it could fall, Dawn snatched it up.
And found herself in a world of pink.
She gasped, seeing hundreds of pink pearls simply floating every which way within the strange pink dimension. And then, something roared out a strange cry.
She turned and saw a huge creature looming above her. It was floating in the strange dimension. And then…she heard something.
Help…A strange…is trying…my dimension…I…it is…harm…hope…not dangerous. Can…give…Orb?
Dawn looked at the strange creature in amazement, and then raised the Lustrous Orb in her hands tentatively. And then, the world vanished. Blinking, she glanced around her. The pink pearls were gone, as well as the dimension. Professor Carolina was holding the Lustrous Orb, looking worried.
"Where was I?" asked Dawn.
"You were here," said Lucas, slightly nervous. "You weren't talking at all, so Professor Carolina took the Orb away from you. Are you alright?"
Dawn shook her head. "Something's wrong. I just saw Palkia! In a pink dimension with floating pearls!"
Professor Carolina pondered over her words for a moment. "It may be that you were connected to Palkia through the Lustrous Orb. But why you were connected and none of us, I don't know. I can only assume that you were –"
CRASH!
All three of them jumped and ran outside. A house had just been blasted by what seemed to be a Hyper Beam attack.
"Oh no," said Dawn, staring at who had just arrived. Mars, Saturn, and Jupiter were all standing at the entrance to the Celestic Ruins, each of them with their strongest Pokémon out and ready for battle.
"Dawn, Lucas, please hold them off!" yelled Professor Carolina. "I must secure the Orb!"
"I don't think so," sneered Mars. "Last time, you got lucky that you defeated me. Not this time! Purugly, use Shadow Ball!"
"Toxicroak, use Dark Pulse!" commanded Saturn.
Jupiter threw a hand forward. "Skuntank, use Flamethrower!"
The three attacks soared straight at Dawn, Lucas, and Professor Carolina's house. Thinking quickly, Lucas released Roselia and had her use Protect. Luckily, Roselia managed to ward off the attacks.
"Piplup, Pachirisu, let's go!" said Dawn, tossing the two Poké Balls.
"Torterra, Shellos, help out as well!" said Lucas as he called back Roselia and replaced her with the other two Pokémon.
"Hah," laughed Saturn. "Toxicroak, use Sludge Bomb!"
"Purugly, use Iron Tail!" said Mars.
"Skuntank, you use Iron Tail as well!" said Jupiter.
"Shellos, block that Sludge Bomb with Mud Bomb, and Torterra, use Energy Ball!" said Lucas.
"Piplup, use Whirlpool, and Pachirisu, use Discharge!" said Dawn.
Luckily, Shellos managed to ward off Sludge Bomb with Mud Bomb, but Purugly's Iron Tail whipped Torterra's Energy Ball at Piplup while Skuntank destroyed the Whirlpool-Discharge combination.
"Piplup!" cried Dawn as the Penguin Pokémon was sent flying. "Return!"
Quickly, while Dawn was rescuing Piplup, Torterra used Razor Leaf with Mega Drain, and Shellos used Hidden Power and Ice Beam. The combined attacks temporarily subdued Team Galactic, but they retaliated with even greater force.
"Poison Jab!" said Saturn.
"Use Body Slam!" said Mars.
"Finish them off with Slash," cried Jupiter.
The three physical attacks soared towards Dawn, Lucas and their Pokémon. Pachirisu managed to block Poison Jab with Discharge and Swift, while Torterra and Shellos tried their best to deal with Slash and Body Slam. Torterra used Bite on Skuntank to negate Slash, while Shellos was flattened during an attempt to stop Body Slam with Ice Beam. Unfortunately for Shellos, even though Purugly was frozen by Ice Beam, it still crashed into Shellos.
"Return, Shellos! Roselia, let's go!" said Lucas, switching his Pokémon.
"Hah, already on a new Pokémon?" said Jupiter, before ordering Skuntank to use Hyper Beam.
"Roselia, use Protect!" cried Lucas.
"Use X-Scissor on that Roselia when it's finished with Protect," said Saturn, while Mars ordered a Shadow Ball on Pachirisu.
"Pachirisu, use Spark on that Shadow Ball and send it at Toxicroak!" said Dawn.
"Torterra, help out Roselia with Mega Drain!" said Lucas.
Pachirisu electrified the Shadow Ball and hurled it at Toxicroak, while Torterra attacked the Shadow Ball with Mega Drain. The triple attack soared straight into Toxicroak, knocking him out. At the loud crash of Toxicroak smashing into a house's wall, the villagers of Celestic Town began to evacuate in a hurry.
Saturn growled and called back Toxicroak, leaving Jupiter and Mars to deal with Dawn and Lucas.
"Make a diversion," Jupiter muttered to Mars. "I'll blast apart that old lady's house."
Mars nodded. "Purugly, use Shadow Ball!"
Purugly began to launch endless Shadow Balls at Torterra, Roselia, and Pachirisu, who were only just managing to block them all. By the time Lucas realized what they were doing, it was too late.
"Hyper Beam!" screeched Jupiter. Her Skuntank let loose an orange stream of energy that tore Professor Carolina's house apart.
"Aah!"
Lucas and Dawn both turned at Professor Carolina's scream.
"Professor!" they both called in worry. Mars took the opportunity to finish off Pachirisu, Torterra, and Roselia at once with Iron Tail, Body Slam, and Shadow Ball.
"Oh no!" cried Lucas as he and Dawn recalled their Pokémon. "They're too strong! Dawn, we've got to get the Orb!"
"I'm on it," shouted Dawn as she and Lucas raced against Team Galactic to grab the shining Lustrous Orb, whose glass case had been destroyed by the Hyper Beam.
Dawn reached the Orb first. Just as she picked it up and was about to throw it to Lucas, she jolted – and found herself in the pink dimension again. It seemed that the huge pink Pokémon, Palkia, had been waiting for her.
Can…give…me…Orb?
Dawn wasted no time in throwing the puny Orb to the huge creature, who reached out with a claw to grab it. The Orb vanished in a flash of pink light. And then, Dawn disappeared from the pink realm once again.
"Where's the Orb?" shrieked Mars. She just saw the girl pick it up. And then it vanished.
"I don't know!" said Saturn. "Master Cyrus will punish us if we do not retrieve it!"
"Shut up and look for it!" hissed Jupiter.
The three Commanders made an undignified scurry and roughly pushed Dawn aside as they combed the area.
Unwittingly, they pushed Dawn straight into Lucas. He stumbled, caught her in his arms, and fell against the dirt floor.
"Ow!" he complained, before realizing the awkward position that he was in. Dawn too, eyes wide, realized that she was on top of Lucas, and he was hugging her to his body.
Quickly, they untangled themselves (blushing all the way) and stood up to face Team Galactic. Dawn was trying to think of what to do, when a voice suddenly appeared in her head. It was just like the one in the pink dimension.
You have given me the Lustrous Orb. You have given me back a part of myself. I am in your debt, and I seem to be connected to you. I will help you if you ever need it. Simply call for me, and I will come.
Dawn shook her head. I hope that that voice was real, she thought, Team Galactic turned on the two.
"Where did you hide it?" shrieked Jupiter. "Tell us, or we will –"
"Palkia, help me!" cried Dawn.
A tear in space appeared just above Dawn's head, revealing a stunningly pink dimension with floating pearls. From its depths came a huge blue creature.
From its depths, Dialga arose.
"What?" cried Dawn. "You're Dialga, not Palkia!"
The three Commanders of Team Galactic were stunned.
"Does this mean that Charon has succeeded?" said Saturn.
"Impossible! I have the Adamant Orb right now!" cried Mars. "He couldn't be doing anything with it!"
Lucas stared at the huge creature and felt a tug at his soul and heart. "Dialga," he breathed. And then Mars shrieked.
For the first time in their lives (obviously), Dawn and Lucas saw the shimmering Adamant Orb. It was not like the Lustrous Orb at all, other than the fact that it was filled with the same swirling lights and colors. It was faceted, and had many smooth surfaces. Dialga roared, and when the Orb touched it, the Orb vanished in a flash of blue light.
"That's what happened when I gave the Lustrous Orb to Palkia," said Dawn. Lucas looked at her incredulously.
"You gave the Lustrous Orb to Palkia?" he said. "Palkia lives in a different dimension!"
"I know, but the Orb took me there. Remember? The pink dimension with floating pearls?"
"Well, if that's true, then why did Dialga come from Palkia's dimension?" said Lucas. "Professor Carolina said that they and their dimensions were never meant to meet!"
"Look!" cried Jupiter, pointing into the pink rift still in the sky. A large pink Pokémon was surfacing from the rip. When it was out of the portal, the portal closed.
This time, it really was Palkia.
"Palkia!" cried Dawn. "Help use get rid of these three goons!"
Palkia looked at Dialga, then at Dawn, and roared.
The gem on Palkia's shoulder glowed and collected pink energy.
The gray structure on Dialga's back grew and Dialga opened its mouth to collect blue energy.
Finally, Palkia slashed a pink crescent of energy in the air that flew at Dialga with huge force; Dialga responded by firing off an indigo beam from an orb of energy at its mouth.
The two attacks blasted each other with huge force, neither stronger than the other. Team Galactic stared in horror and awe, as did Professor Carolina, Dawn, and Lucas.
And then two more rips in space appeared, one behind Dialga, and one behind Palkia. The one behind Dialga was blue and was filled with diamonds. The rift behind Palkia was pink and filled with pearls.
Suddenly, both Dialga and Palkia directed their attacks at the three Commander's feet, blowing them sky high into the air with their unconscious Pokémon.
And then they vanished into their respective portals, with two last glances at Dawn and Lucas.
Dialga glanced at Lucas, before turning away.
Palkia glanced at Dawn, before turning away.
They vanished deep into the depths of their own dimensions, the rips in space disappearing with them.
Dawn glanced at Lucas nervously.
"So… do you think we should tell Professor Rowan what happened?"