Author's Note: I have no excuse for how long this chapter took to get written and posted. I'm so sorry it took this long, guys, please forgive me! But trust me - this is a critical chapter. Pay attention to every detail, and please speculate! I want to know what you guys think is going on and what you guys think is going to happen. I want to know who you guys like, who you want to see more of, and what you want explained!

Please review, guys, I really want to hit 50 reviews by the time this story is over... which isn't going to be for awhile.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, but I do own my OCs. Want to borrow them? Please ask! This story is the property of me, CSF, as is the plot and the OC characters. Please review, and ENJOY!

Chapter 10 - The Approaching Storm

She smiled at him, bravely, and he found himself unable to breath for several moments. Though it only took a few critical moments to regain his cool, calm, and collected composure, he was sure that she had noticed the loss of it in the first place, and that she knew how he was feeling. She always had. They were closer than close, and had a bond that others could only dream about…

But that bond could very well be broken in the next several hours, or even the next several minutes.

Their third companion - a petite, blond-haired woman - was arguing with their fourth - a taller, brunette man with a scar trailing down his left cheek, somehow enhancing his already handsome appearance. The argument was nothing new. These two often argued with each other, and it often annoyed himself and her. This, however, was the only thing they could do. They had been hidden.

They were safe for now, but for how long? The Hunters wouldn't give up looking for them. They wouldn't rest until they were dead.

If they were to die by the Hunters' hands, they had a plan. If they could do something to prevent the Hunters from defeating the Legendaries once and for all, he would do it. They would all do it. They had already cast the single spell needed to do it, the single spell that would change the lives and destinies of four chosen humans one day…

Pity those poor humans. They had been chosen long before their births had come. She had chosen a young girl, much like herself. He himself had chosen a young, spirited girl to take on the legacy. Their third companion had chosen a determined young man that reminded her of herself, and their fourth companion had chosen a stubborn young man.

A loud explosion reached their ears. She gasped in horror, staring at the door, and he immediately went to her side, grabbing her hand and squeezing it protectively in his own. Their third and fourth companion immediately turned towards the door, a sharp dagger already in the hand of their male companion.

For a moment, all was silent.

And then hell broke loose. A scream - filled with pain - reached his ears, and then he knew no more.

Tied in a chair in Rayquaza and Latios's cabin, Kolton knew that he hadn't been in many worse situations. Add to the fact that Latios, in his intimidating human form, was now glaring at him from several feet away, and he knew that he was probably in the worst situation he had ever been. But then again, he was still young, and if the task before him didn't kill him, he knew he would face worse situations.

He could feel it in his bones.

"So."

Kolton looked up at the Eon Twin. "So," he replied, trying to reposition himself in the ropes. How did they get these ropes, anyway!?

Latios glared at him. "Look. I know who you are," he told Kolton harshly, his eyes harder than a diamond, and a fire colder than ice shining in those diamond-hard eyes. "You're Kelly's little brother. You're Liam's descendent as well."

Kolton cursed under his breath. "Well, there goes any chance I had at actually keeping my identity a somewhat secret," he noted, shaking his head. "Alright. Looks like I get to move on to Plan B." He frowned. "Ah, crud."

"What?" Latios, frowning darkly and suspiciously at Kolton, asked. He cocked his head to the side.

He was willing to listen to this guy and give him the benefit of the doubt, if he had to. But he was never going to forget what this trainer's ancestor had done to the fate of the world, years ago. He would never be able to forget what Liam had done to the four Guardians. He would never forget the faces of his sister or his friends when they had found out about the deaths of the Guardians.

He would never be able to forget. He was a Legendary.

Legendaries lived forever. They never forgot what they saw in their lifetime.

Kolton chuckled slightly. "I don't have a Plan B." He looked at Latios, desperation suddenly visible in his eyes. "Look, you've got to believe me, I don't to hurt the Guardians, I swear! Kelly might, but she's just-"

"She's your sister," Latios replied coldly, cutting into Kolton's words before he could finish them. "And from what I've seen, blood can influence humans in ways that you couldn't understand in a thousand years."

"She's also a fricking psycho!" Kolton protested desperately. He shook his head. "You saw her! She's a psycho, a complete psycho! She might be my sister, but she's only my half sister. We have different moms. My mom actually had a bit of sanity. Granted, a bit of an obsession with ghost Pokémon, but I'm not a fricking psycho-"

"Kid, you're rambling."

Kolton shrugged. "If it's keeping me alive, then I'll keep rambling. Tell me when I get to live, and I'll stop."

Latios narrowed his eyes. "Why did you come, exactly?" he asked. "And tell the truth. If your bloodline has taught you anything, it's that many a man has made the same fatal mistake. They underestimated a Legendary Pokémon, and paid the ultimate price."

"Such as…" Kolton asked, cocking his head and frowning.

"Cyrus. Team Galactic's Leader. He tried to control Dialga and Palkia, bend them to his own wishes and ideas. He made a mistake, thinking that they could be controlled." He gave a grin, one that seemed slightly darker than Latios's normal one. "He's still running around the Distortion World, trying to find a way to conquer Giratina. Gira enjoys poking at him and taunting him. I actually rather enjoy it at times, when I have nothing better to do."

Kolton swallowed hard. "Alright. I never had any plans to do so, but you convinced me not to double-cross you." Upon seeing the dangerous glare of Latios upon him, Kolton's face paled. "I'm kidding, alright! I'm kidding; don't smite me yet until you know what I came here to say!"

Latios glanced at the clock, trying to figure out what to do. Rayquaza had gone back to medical center after he had woken up. Latios had knocked out Kolton and had taken him down here, tying him to the chair before he woke up. Latias and Autumn were in the ship's medical bay, currently recovering from Autumn's near death by the flamethrower.

"Well, then tell me," Latios replied after a moment. He stared coldly at the dark-haired human.

Kolton bit his lip. "Look, Kelly knows who the Johto Guardian is. She knows who the Sinnoh and Kanto Guardians are-"

"What?" Latios demanded sharply.

"She figured out who they are. She's attacking them tomorrow." He shook his head, a bit annoyed. "I hope you realize that I have officially signed my own death sentence by telling you this. Kelly was already going to kill me for telling you."

Latios bit his lip, and then closed his eyes. He had to warn someone that the Sinnoh and Kanto Guardians were in some serious trouble, before it was too late. Everything had collapsed on in on them, and they had to fight if they wanted to protect the future of humans and Pokemon alike. They just had to keep them safe, cripple the enemy long enough to recollect themselves…

They had to do something.

"Hey, how are you feeling?"

At the sound of the familiar voice, Autumn and Latias looked up. Hesitating slightly in the doorway, Rayquaza leaning against the wooden frame. He glanced over at Latias, his eyes slightly hard. Latias flinched, unnoticed by Autumn, who managed to shoot a shaky smile towards the dragon-type Legendary. She sat up a little in bed, shifting the pillow into a more comfortable position. Her burn had been bandaged up.

"Hey, I'm fine," Autumn replied. She smiled warmly at Rayquaza. "Thanks for saving me back there. You do that a lot, did you know that?"

Rayquaza shrugged. "Someone's got to do it," he replied quietly. He glanced at Latias before sighing. "Do you mind if I borrow Lati for a second? I've got to talk to her…"

Autumn shook her head, and then glanced at Latias. She frowned as she saw the hard look on the face of the younger, red-headed girl. Latias nodded stiffly at Rayquaza before standing up and passing him as they entered the hallway. Rayquaza nodded once again at Autumn before exiting the room. Autumn frowned as the closed door before sighing and leaning against the pillow.

She didn't know what had happened, but something was wrong between Lati and Ray. She knew that it wasn't any of her business to ask, and she wouldn't until someone told her about it. But Autumn could tell that something was up.

What she couldn't tell was how truly serious it was.

The silence between the two was tense, to say the least.

By the time that Rayquaza had closed the door and walked into the hallway, Latias stood leaning against the wall, watching the taller Legendary Pokemon with a certain coolness in her gaze. However, Rayquaza was easily able to see regret in the girl's amber colored orbs. Rayquaza sighed, and then leaned on the wall next to her, looking at the floor in front of them. It was a spice-colored wood.

"What do the humans think?" Latias asked quietly.

"They think there was a rogue Charizard or something," replied Rayquaza, just as quietly. "They don't think anything was wrong." He hesitated. "That's not what I wanted to talk to you about."

Latias nodded softly. "Before you say anything, I just want to say that… I'm sorry."

Rayquaza looked sharply at her, raising a fine green eyebrow. He wasn't expecting this. He knew that he had completely exploded at Latias when she didn't deserve it at all. And here she was apologizing? Latias was truly one of the most kind Legendary Pokemon in the entire world, and it hit Rayquaza in that single moment.

Latias was a true friend.

Rayquaza, hesitating, put a hand on Latias's shoulder and squeezed. "It's not your fault," he replied quietly. "It was mine. I blew up at you when you didn't deserve it. It's just that… it was Thea. I won't let myself forget what happened to her because of my mistakes."

"This isn't just your burden to bear, Ray," Latias said back, her voice quietly. "We all made mistakes. But this time around, we won't make the same mistakes." She gave a shaky sigh. "We need to tell her."

Rayquaza shook his head. "I honestly don't think that telling her is the smartest thing that we can do. Honestly, Lati-"

"Jason knows."

"What!?" Rayquaza exclaimed, staring in shock at the shorter Legendary. He withdrew his arm. "How did he know? Are Rai and Cressey that stupid-"

"Jason overheard a conversation," Latias explained. She walked a bit in front Rayquaza, and then faced him, her amber eyes meeting his own eyes. "And they had to tell him. He'll be targeted… but he'll know to defend himself."

Rayquaza bit his lip. "Soon," he whispered. "We'll tell her soon. But if we're going to tell her… we can't wait long. You feel it, don't you?"

Latias nodded before closing her eyes. "The approaching storm is closer than ever." Her eyes suddenly opened, wide and fearful. "It's begun. Jason, Darkrai, Cresselia, and Suicune… they're in danger."

Rayquaza bit his lip. It had begun once again. The storm was not yet over their heads, waiting to come down upon their necks.

But its approach was faster than ever. And Rayquaza knew that whatever they did, they would not be able to stop its approach.

They could only defeat it.

Or die trying.

"Jason, Rai, duck!"

An hour ago, when Chrisdeole and Umbreon had left the group to meet up with Arceus and (for some odd reason) Giratina, none of the group had imagined that they would be getting into trouble so quickly. However, they had, and they were once again fighting for their lives. The group had teleported through the World of Darkness to get to the forest that surrounded Mt. Coronet.

That was where they had been attacked.

Suicune had been knocked out, and was now lying in some bushes that Darkrai and Cresselia had hidden her in. Jason had distracted their attackers for several moments, long enough for his two companions to hide his Guardian. Now the three were fighting for their lives. Cresselia and Darkrai were aware that they could be killed in their human forms, and they knew that it wasn't good if they would happen to die.

Jason had no clue that the immortality of the Legendaries' human forms didn't exist.

Darkrai and Jason both lunged to the side as a hyper beam tore towards them. The powerful beam of pure energy collided with a tree, causing the thick trunk to snap like a weak twig. The tree fell towards Jason, who covered the back of his head with his hands as soon as he realized what had just happened. Darkrai, eyes narrowed, thrust his hand out.

A second later, the tree exploded into millions of splinters as a black blast of power hit it. Jason yelped as thousands of splinters pelted down on him. As soon as he was in the clear, Jason got up and glared over at Darkrai. The dark-type member of the Lunar Duo had a small smirk on his face, and Jason could tell that he had done that on purpose.

"I thought you're supposed to be guarding me!" protested Jason. "Not trying to kill me with splinters!"

"I'm so sorry," Darkrai snapped back, rolling to the side to dodge a hyper beam. It was clear to anyone that Darkrai wasn't sorry. But then again, Darkrai didn't apologize for a lot of things.

Jason just shook his head and muttered, "He's just like Dalton. Like I don't get ragged on enough by him." He rolled off to the side again, hiding behind a rock, as another hyper beam shot towards him, narrowing missing the Johto native.

"Darkrai!" bellowed Cresselia, glaring at her counterpart. A dark, furious look had formed on the psychic-type's pretty face, and her eyes were narrowed as she thrust her hand out. A pearly blast shot through the air, colliding with the enemy's Tyranitar. "You're supposed to guard him, not let him die, you idiot!"

"I'm trying to help him!" Darkrai protested.

"How?! By assaulting him with splinters?!"

"I didn't assault him! Would you rather he was crushed by a tree?!"

"He could have gotten out of the way!"

"No I couldn't! It was a giant tree!"

"Shut up, Johto!"

Jason rolled his eyes, muttered something that sounded like 'just like Dalton', and then grabbed a Pokeball off of his belt. He tossed it into the air once, catching it in his palm, before he threw it forward. Darkrai glanced over towards the Johto Guardian, a bit curious. Jason then tossed the red and white Pokeball into the air, and caught it as a white silhouette appeared on the ground, turning into a tall and intimidating form.

"Feraligatr, c'mon out!"

A large, blue creature with features that proved that he was more suited for water, appeared from the white blast of light. It gave a loud, deep cry of battle, and his eyes narrowed as he glared at the Tyranitar in front of him, along with the trainer. The water-type's eyes flickered from Darkrai to Cresselia for a minute, who were heading over towards Jason.

Feraligatr also glanced over towards the bushes where Suicune's body was hidden. The trainer noticed the glance that the water-type had given the bushes, and then gave a dark grin.

In the next split second, all hell broke lose.

Darkrai, eyes wide, raced over towards the bushes. Cresselia had seemed to realize what was about to happen, and then pulled down the Johto-born trainer. Feraligatr shot a powerful hyper beam of his own towards the Tyranitar and its trainer. The Tyranitar's trainer ordered one attack.

"Hyper Beam!" he bellowed.

The hyper beam shot towards Cresselia, Jason, and Feraligatr. Cresselia shot a pearly blast towards the oncoming attack, and Feraligatr sent an attack identifiable as a hydro pump towards the powerful bolt of pure energy. Realization of what was about to happen came to Cresselia a moment later as a glimpse of the future shot through her mind.

She had enough time to cry one thing. "Darkrai, no!"

The Tyranitar's trainer (Darkrai had realized a few minutes ago that it was the same trainer who had attacked Jason earlier) smirked as he produced a knife from the inside of his coat. He tossed it towards the dark-type, who had been taken aback by the fact that the hyper beam had been shot towards him.

With blinding speed (Cresselia would later realize that it was too fast for mortal reflexes, and that a psychic-Pokemon must have helped him), the knife shot towards Darkrai.

A second later, Darkrai gave a snarl of pain as he collapsed to the ground, the knife imbedded in his shoulder. Cresselia gave a cry of shock before standing up, pulling Jason up with her. Feraligatr stood in front of the psychic-type member of the Lunar Duo and his own trainer.

The trainer smirked darkly. "And the plan continues to go perfectly. Milord, bring me back."

A blast of black energy shot through the air, knocking Jason and Cresselia down. When the blast and the smoke cleared, the trainer and the Tyranitar had disappeared. Feraligatr had been knocked out, and was lying on the ground. Jason stood up shakily, and then brought his Feraligatr back to his Pokeball. He glanced at where Darkrai was lying on the ground.

Suicune groaned from behind Darkrai. Cresselia was kneeling next to Darkrai, looking at the knife room. Darkrai honestly looked as if he was in serious pain. He gritted his teeth, and Jason's keen eyes could see that he was sweating a bit. Both members of the Lunar Duo were looking at the knife wound.

Jason trotted over towards the slowly awakening water-type Johto Legendary. Suicune's eyes were cloudy as she began to sit up. Jason finally reached her side, kneeling next to her. He hesitated for a slight second before putting a hand on her arm and helping to pull her up slowly. Suicune was leaning heavily on him, and then glanced at him, a shaky smile on her face.

Jason blushed slightly, reminded heavily of a certain Sinnoh-born trainer that he cared about very deeply. These two were extremely like, but he didn't know how they were so alike. Suicune glanced at Darkrai and Cresselia, and froze.

"Oh, Arceus!" she breathed. "What happened?! Jason, what happened?! Cressey, Rai?!"

"He got stabbed by a dagger," Cresselia explained shakily. "I think a psychic Pokemon was guiding it, and it was going to hit you while you were unconscious… and he, playing the idiotic hero, got stabbed in the shoulder."

"I'm alright," Darkrai snapped. He was now visibly in pain, and that fact had shaken Jason heavily. "I'm alright, you guys, I'm alright…" He gritted his teeth, and then gave a grunt of absolute pain as Cresselia pulled the dagger out, tossing it into the grass. "Arceus dammit!"

"Oh, yeah, you're so alright!" Suicune snapped. She walked away from Jason, who was staring at the dark-type in shock. "We need to get you to someone who can heal you… who can heal again?"

"Latias?"

"No, she's guarding Autumn…"

"Latios?"

"The same…"

"Wait a minute!" Jason interrupted, his eyes wide. They couldn't be talking about the same Autumn he was thinking of… "You don't mean Autumn from Slateport City, do you? Brunette, pretty, kind of petite…"

"One in the same," replied Suicune, nodding in confirmation.

"You've got to be kidding me?! She's involved in all of this crap?" He shook his head. "Arceus, I thought that at least Autumn, Dalton, and Luna would be safe…" His face suddenly paled. "Oh, no…"

"What?" Darkrai asked. Suicune and Cresselia both helped him up, supporting him. He was sweating heavily now, and was gritting his teeth more and more often. "What's wrong?"

"The Guardians. One from each region, right?"

Darkrai nodded slowly in confirmation.

"Autumn is the Guardian of Hoenn, right?"

"Yes," whispered Suicune, her face as pale as Jason's.

"And I'm the Guardian of Sinnoh."

Cresselia nodded briefly.

"Dalton is from Kanto, Luna is from Sinnoh." He looked frantically from Suicune to Darkrai to Cresselia. "Don't you get it?! Don't you get it?! Dalton is Kanto's Guardian! Luna is Sinnoh's Guardian!" He shook his head, his face suddenly grim. "Those creeps are going to go after them! Autumn is safe, she knows about this… but Luna and Dalton are going to be in some serious trouble!"

"Jason, you need to calm down, now!" Suicune snapped, glaring at her charge as he became more and more panicked. "Calm down, now, Jason!"

"No way! Dalton and Luna are my best friends! They could die! Autumn can protect herself, she knows what's going on, but Dalton and Luna don't!"

"Autumn doesn't know anything about this!"

Jason stopped in his tracks. He stared in absolute shock at the dark-type, and his eyes narrowed. Cresselia could actually sense the rage building in the Johto-born trainer, and she could see his body shaking with the contained rage within him. His eyes had turned quickly into dark slits, and alarm shot through Cresselia's mind as Jason's eyes darkened even farther.

"She doesn't know!?" Jason whispered harshly. "Her life is at risk and she doesn't know anything about this?! She doesn't know why people are trying to kill her?! What idiot had the bright idea not to tell her!?"

"Arceus."

Jason gritted his teeth. "You can't ask me to keep this a secret from them. Autumn, Dalton, and Luna are my absolute best friends. If someone are going to try and kill them, I am going to do absolutely anything and everything I can do to protect them." He glared at them. "And if you think that you can stop me, you're dead wrong."

Suicune stared at him before saying. "You are definitely Jaina's heir. I can tell you that."

"Jaina?" replied Jason, his rage still growing with every second that passed.

The name was strange to his tongue, but it was almost… familiar. It was a pretty name, to be sure. But it had a sense of familiarity to it that Jason was not used to. It brought a feeling with it whenever the name was said, and Jason couldn't identify what it was. And then it hit him.

The name Jaina brought about a feeling of… hope.

"The former Johto Guardian," Cresselia replied softly. She closed her eyes as she picked up the knife, careful not to touch the sharp blade. "Rest her soul."

Jason breathed out heavily before looking at Darkrai. "Are you alright?" he asked softly, clearing trying to calm himself down until they all knew that Darkrai was alright.

Darkrai gritted his teeth. "It was poisoned. We need to get someone who can heal me, or else I'm going to die." Jason frowned. Weren't Legendary Pokemon immortal?

"And we're not going to let that happy for several reasons," Cresselia replied steadily. She closed her eyes. "I'm sending us up to the Hall of Origin. Screw the rules that say that mortals can't enter it. We need to get help."

Jason nodded slowly. Suicune held a hand out to the Johto Guardian. Jason took it after a moment of hesitation. The group disappeared in a flash of bright white light. A second later, the clearing was empty.

"Where the hell are they!?"

Chrisdeole and Giratina raced through the streets of Jubilife City. Umbreon raced ahead of them, his eyes glowing red as he concentrated, trying to find where the Sinnoh and Kanto Guardians were. They were in the city, and they had been attacked. Latios had told him everything that he had learned from his interrogation with Kolton yesterday, and they had gone to protect the two.

Arceus had gone off alone to find them. Groudon and Palkia had also arrived in the city along with Kyogre and Dialga… after Dialga had completely exploded at Arceus and Giratina. They were now in groups, running around the city, trying to find the Johto and Sinnoh Guardians before it was too late.

Dialga and Chrisdeole had not seen each other - Chrisdeole had already gone to find the Guardians by the time that the four Legendaries arrived.

"They're somewhere, we just have to find them!" Giratina snapped. They both stopped as Umbreon halted in front of an alley. The dark-type Pokemon glanced at the alley before looking at his trainer and the Lord of the Distortion World.

[They are this way!] Umbreon exclaimed.

The two started down the alley, but froze as they heard a scream of terror. Giratina and Chrisdeole glanced at each other in horror before they raced down the alley, towards the source of the scream, hoping that they would not be too late.

Author's Note: Please don't hate me! I've been crazy busy since this year began, and I lost this chapter several times. However, I got a new jump-drive that I carry around everywhere now. I named it Sparky! :) Seriously, though, I hope you guys liked this chapter. Please review, and if you like Pokemon Ranger, go vote in my latest poll!