"A dark flame filled the man's eyes." The woman who stood in front of me began. She turned from her desk, a pen stuck between her fingers, and I noticed that her dark purple eyes, hidden behind a large, round pair of glasses, were deep in thought. I stood on top of the gigantic pillar, still a bit woozy after the two blue willowisps levitated me to the area where I now was. It was pretty high - not as high as the Dragonspiral Tower, but still pretty high. The girl suddenly snapped her fingers and turned again, her hair waving behind her, and she scribbled something down on a sheet of paper. She turned towards me again, slightly flustered.

"...A passage from a book I'm writing." I tilted my head, a bit interested. An author? "It's about one of my previous challengers, but it's a rather... sorrowful story." She drew herself up to her full height, her dark black bow rustling slightly as she cricked her neck.

"Aha..." She laughed slightly, a bite in her tone. "I meant on the challenger's part." I nodded impatiently, wanting to get through this quickly.

"Now, let me, Shauntal the ghost-writer, test your abilities as a League Contender!" She tossed a Pokeball high in the air, and out came a Cofagrigus, glinting evily in the dim light.

I drew a Pokeball out of my bag and snapped it forward. "Let's go, Refia!"

A black-haired man, dressed smartly in a tuxedo, greeted me in the next tower of the castle. He sighed, lounging on a couch, and looked away, his voice full of unhappiness and boredom. He was obviously unimpressed by me, not that I cared.

"Hmph... what will today be like?" He stood up, looking out a window of the tower. "Challengers always come, one by one, to my tower..." He snapped his finger, and the lights went out, letting in only the light of the full moon, and as he turned to look at me, I noticed a single fang poking out of his mouth.

"And they accomplish nothing. I am Grimsley of the Elite Four. May you fulfill your purpose as my opponent!" He dropped a Pokeball on the ground behind him with a dull 'thud', and out came a Scrafty, already excited to battle.

I drew a Pokeball out of my bag and snapped it forward. "It's time, Vivi!"

I wheezed unhappily as my feet touched solid ground again, the completely black room lit up by bright stars of energy, one of which deposited me on the ground in front of a large bed. I heard a loud yawn, and the curtain in front of the bed swished open, revealing a familiar face - an older face, a wiser face, but a familiar face. I waved to the girl slightly.

"Caitlin? That you?" The girl rubbed her eyes, stayed still for a moment, then strode forward and warmly shook my hand.

"Bill? The same Bill whose best friend earned a Silver Print at the Castle?" I nodded, smiling at the mention of Rose and Cara's great success at the Frontier building. "It is good to see you again. How is Rose?" I didn't want to spend too much time talking about our past meetings, so I stepped back and drew a Pokeball out of my bag. She looked at it blankly, then seemed to understand as she too stepped back and grabbed a Pokeball from out of her dresser drawer.

"Ahh... yes, let's leave the catching up to after the battle. I am Caitlin, of the Unova Elite Four. I hope you will not give me a boring battle!" She tossed the ball, releasing an adorable Reuniclus, that clapped its jellified hands together.

I snapped the ball forward. "You next, Eiko!"

As the moving platform rose higher and higher, taking me to the top of the final League tower, I could hear a furious sound of punching and kicking, grunting and yelling. As I reached the top, I saw a man, his orange hair, pants, and hand-wraps contrasting his martial arts outfit, which was a pastel blue. He turned to me and thrust outward, his fist an inch from my face.

"My name is Marshal. I studied under Alder to master the art of fighting, and even now continue to train." As sweat poured down his forehead, he grabbed a bottle of water from the side of the arena, swigged it deeply, and then breathed, refreshed. We were both silent for a little while as I let Marshal catch his breath, then he spoke quickly.

"You too have earned my master's recognition. And as such... I want to see what he sees in you. Show me your power!" He roared as he tossed out a Pokeball, the Throh inside rolling out and getting into position.

I drew a Pokeball from my bag and snapped it forward. "Your turn, Setzer!"

My feet clacked against the floor, the dark marble tile not even getting scuffed from my shoes as the golden pillars and smooth granite statues passed me by, each hallway looking the same as the last one. Following behind me were Cyan and Erin, then Refia and Vivi, and finally Eiko riding on top of Setzer. I could feel the blood pumping in my ears as I ran through every corridor, bounded up every flight of stairs, crashed through every unsuspecting Grunt that got in my way, and I found myself standing in front of a set of double-doors, already open wide, leading into darkness. I was about to enter when a green-haired, oddly-robed man crashed into me, knocking me over. He cackled meanly at my position.

"Welcome, possessor of the Light Stone." He said, his tone mocking, and all six of my Pokemon growled at him. "This castle, hidden under the League's castle, is a sign that Unova shall change. N has defeated the Champion... N has become the ultimate trainer!" His mad laughter dissolved to a quiet snicker, and he stepped to the side of me.

"And will you become a hero like him?"

"I have to try."

And I moved past him, entering the room beyond.

I was greeted by a dazzling light, reflecting off of every surface of the room - the walls, the floor, the water below... and there, sitting on a giant, golden throne, was N.

He was still in his casual clothes, his white shirt and khaki pants unmarred as he spoke quietly to himself. I walked forward tentatively, unsure of whether he realized I was there or not. As I made my way across the blue carpet leading to the giant chair, he spoke, his uneasy tone freezing me and my Pokemon on the spot.

"What I want... is a world of only Pokemon... By separating people and Pokemon, both will regain the power that they alone can have. This is the last battle." He casually stepped off of the throne and ambled towards me, and I strode into the middle platform, where we met, my blue eyes locking into his passionate emerald ones.

"You came to fight me... but you lack Reshiram. Does he not recognize you as a hero?" He gave me a disappointed look and pointed at me. "I'm crushed. Really. I like you, Bill. You care for your Pokemon, or at least I thought you did. But if Reshiram doesn't see that, then obviously I was wrong about you!" My Pokemon stepped out from behind me, chattering out in reply, but N silenced them with a wave of his hand.

"You have two choices. Either fight a hopeless battle, or let Pokemon and people be separated. Zekrom!" He raised his palms to the sky, calling out for the mighty dragon.

The room began to shake, and Erin screamed out in terror, while I immediately shifted my weight to keep my balance. She dashed into Cyan's arms, too spooked by the earthquake-esqe shaking to think rationally, and Cyan hugged her tightly. Before anything else could happen, Zekrom crashed through the wall and throne and came to rest behind N. His scaly, armored body leaned forward as it roared at me, and its tail began to spin and shake with electricity. Letting out an incredible wave of power, it screamed out as the immense power struck all the sides of the room, evaporating all the water below. As it let out a huff at the sight of me and my Pokemon, I felt something vibrate inside my bag.

"My Pokegear...?" I drew it out of my bag and checked it. There were no new messages, no new calls, nothing out of the ordinary... so why did it... as I felt the vibration again, N's eyes widened. I saw the Light Stone float its way out of my bag, and everything suddenly fell into place.

"Could it be...!" N muttered to himself. Before I could stop it, the Light Stone began to spin at an incredible pace, absorbing energy from its surroundings. Zekrom eyed it warily, but N placed a hand on its chest to calm it. The stone began to radiate energy, and it suddenly burst into pieces with a blinding light, engulfing N, engulfing Zekrom, engulfing everything. I shielded my eyes with my sleeve, and for what seemed like ages, all was quiet.

Then I heard something.

What was that noise?

A heartbeat?

I uncovered my vision to be greeted by the sight of a beautiful white dragon, curled up into the fetal position. Its eyes were closed, and all around it was a bright blue forcefield - almost like an egg. I walked towards it, the sound of my movement the only other noise in... wherever I was, and the heartbeat grew louder and louder until it was the only thing that could be heard. As I looked at it, I felt myself grow at ease, and I gathered up enough courage to place a hand on its head. Its eyes snapped open, a bright, confident blue... cyan eyes that pierced me to my soul. The dragon seemed to move slightly and I heard a voice in my head.

"Awaken." Suddenly, I was back in the throne room, and the dragon flipped open and onto its feet, showing everyone its true majesty.

Two feet protruded from its bright, teardrop-shaped body, the neck elongating into its muzzle. A pair of streaming tails of fur drifted from its head as its wings beat up and down. Its fur gracefully streamed upward in smooth tufts, and its tail began to blaze with an incredibly hot fire. As it let out a beautiful cry of joy at being given life again, it stood and looked at me with what might have been the tiniest hint of a smile. I stepped in front of it and reached up to it with my hand.

"Reshiram...? Will you be my partner?" The dragon let out another cry, and moved its head downward to nuzzle my hair. I laughed at the sudden contact, the dragon's body warm and pleasing to the touch, and the dragon's smile grew wider. As soon as it finished nuzzling me, I stepped past it to look at N, who was now clapping as he gave me a look of extreme satisfaction.

"Originally a single Pokemon... let me tell you what Reshiram is saying. He says, 'I trust you as my ally.' Do you hear that? He recognizes you as a hero!" N seemed to laugh merrily at the very sound of his words, and I couldn't help but grin a little bit. I had met a few legendary Pokemon before, but never did I attempt to befriend one... to me, it seemed almost absurd, an impossible dream, yet here was Reshiram, telling me that he trusted me as his trainer. My giddiness gave into determination as N stepped behind his dragon.

"Now... I will fight you! And I WILL win!" He yelled as he pumped his fist in the air. As the room crackled with both strong electricity and heated flares, I called out a challenge of my own.

"Let's just see about that, N!"

It was a difficult battle. Many of my Pokemon nearly fainted, kept awake only by our mutual determination to stop N's plans, and one by one, his team fell. In the end, he was left with just his Zoroark, and it eyed me and Erin with a glint in its eye, despite its numerous wounds.

"Erin, you've got this... one more Drain Punch!" The Mienfoo leapt into action, ducking and weaving around the area before landing a solid 'thwack!' onto the monster fox's chest, absorbing the last of its will to fight into her body. With a gurgle, the Zoroark fell to the ground, unconscious, and N withdrew it into its Pokeball before stepping forward. But before anything could be said, an angry stomping could be heard, and both of us looked in its direction. Behind me was Ghetsis, an incredulous look on his face.

"You..." He thrust out an arm and pointed accusingly at N. "You're supposed to be the one who will carry on my family name?" In his rage, Ghetsis dashed forward with a punch, knocking N to the ground. I took a step forward and yelled out, "Hey!", but Ghetsis's face was filled with pure, unadulterated disgust and disappointment.

"What a worthless... utterly worthless son you are!" I stopped in my tracks. Son? N was Ghetsis's... kid? I doubted that Ghetsis could even get a woman, much less have a kid, but I guess even crazy ideas had some degree of chance.

"All that Team Plasma has worked for... it's been for me and my interests alone! I would take control of the world! N did perfectly fine up to the point of befriending Zekrom, but then he got arrogant and wanted to fight you!" He bellowed out, and I felt my teeth clench in anger. He planned this all along! He went behind everybody's back!

"And then, instead of winning like you believed you would, you let a commoner, not even a native Unova citizen, beat you! You're nothing but an imperfect person, raised by Pokemon - you deserve to be exiled from this castle so you can live in the wild with Pokemon, where you belong!" N stayed silent throughout the tirade, but I couldn't help but get a great feeling of hate... the same feeling I had felt in Electric Rock Cave. Nobody deserved what Ghetsis was saying except Ghetsis himself.

"Ghetsis... who... who says that to their kid?" I yelled. "You're no better than... than..." My face screwed up, and he laughed at me.

"No better than who? A common criminal? No, I'm far better than that. After all, my plan's worked so far, hasn't it?" I growled, and I heard Alder and Cheren run up behind me. Alder stopped at my right, gasping at the sight of Ghetsis, and his eyes blazed angrier and angrier as I filled him in.

"I would manipulate Unova's people with the power and fear that Zekrom commanded! The world would have been my Clamperl! A complete, totalitarian, worldwide empire, starting with the land of Unova!" He suddenly walked over to N and kicked him, knocking him back onto the ground, only to lift him back up by the scruff of his shirt.

"You, lying, cheating-" He, unlike me, cut his curse off again, and his nails dug into his palms. Cheren only watched, silent as the tension increased further and further. Ghetsis grabbed a Pokeball out from under his robes, and threw it out at me, releasing a Cofagrigus. N attempted to reach past his father, but Ghetsis smashed his head into N's, knocking him to the ground again, his hat fluttering to his side.

"Bill, the 'hero'! I'll see you die here, by my hands! All of you! You all must be erased, because you know too much! And then... I'll rule the world!" He screamed out, laughing maniacally, and after a few minutes it died down to silence. I looked at Ghetsis, straight into his single, emotionless eye, and spoke.

"I don't remember ever calling myself a 'hero', so I guess today's not the day to meet my maker." I tossed out Refia's Pokeball, and the battle began.

Ghetsis was no slouch in the Pokemon department either, I'd give him that. Both he and his son had excellently trained, balanced teams. However, it didn't matter, as I did too, and one by one, just like N's team, Ghetsis's team fell as well. However, it was far, far closer of a battle than I had ever expected it to be - by the time Ghetsis was down to his last Pokemon, his Bisharp, I too was down to only one Pokemon, and who else was it than Cyan.

"Cyan..." I started, and he turned to look at me. The Bisharp dashed forward to strike, and my eyes flashed - thankfully, Cyan noticed and dodged, the Bisharp narrowly crashing into a throne room pillar.

"Cyan, this is it. This is the final battle, so let's end it! REVENGE!" I called out, the move rather fitting for the moment.

Revenge. Revenge for what Ghetsis had put me through. For what he had put N through. For what he put everyone through just to fulfill his god complex.

Cyan dashed forward to the pillar that the Bisharp was now attempting to get unstuck from. It did finally free itself, but by the time it turned to protect itself, it was too late, as Cyan jabbed into its chest with both his swordshells, glowing dark with neither water nor ice, but the aura of the fighting-type move. The blades embedded in the Bisharp's chest broke in half from the contact, and it let out a mechanical cry of defeat as it flew through the pillar from the momentum, crashing through the wall and hanging onto the edge with all its might. I gasped, and Ghetsis's eyes bulged out of his sockets.

"Cyan, no! Save him!" I cried out in horror, and the Dewott leapt over to the wall, grabbing the Pokemon's hand and pulling him up. I ran forward with all my strength and caught the pair as they jumped from the wall to the pillar, to the arena. The Bisharp had fainted from fright, and I lay it down in front of Ghetsis so he could return it to its ball, which he did. And then, other than the wind running through the holes in the walls from the two battles I had fought, there was silence.

"What?... That's it!" Ghetsis whispered. "I... the creator of Team Plasma, the ultimate evidence of mankind's power... am not an emperor! The world will not change to place me in charge!" He spoke a bit louder now.

"Hah, I still have evidence of my power anyway, since I was able to get the legendary Pokemon without being a hero!" He cackled to himself, his excuse perfectly good in his mind. I had half a thought to remind him that he used everyone to do so, thus he would never be recognized by Zekrom or Reshiram, but it would only have drawn on the conversation further.

"Cheren, take this madman away. Bill and I need to talk to N." Cheren nodded and roughly grabbed Ghetsis by his wrists, pulling them backwards in his strong grasp. Ghetsis continued to laugh until he was well out of sight. N was standing now, but his head was down, the black cap covering his hair blocking sight of his face. Alder was the first to speak.

"N, you're probably on overload right now... but you ought to know that Ghetsis never controlled you, at least from what I could tell. After all, you never realized his plan - you fought for what you believed in, and that's what counts. That's why Zekrom chose to be friends with you, right?" N didn't raise his head when he responded, and I could hear a strangling sob in his voice.

"But... I'm not a hero! There's no way I could be considered one!" Alder shook his head, letting out a 'tsk-tsk-tsk'.

"Kiddo, listen. Whether you think you're a hero or not, you've got Zekrom as your partner now. From now on, whatever you two do... it's up to you, and that's what counts." N snapped his head upward, and I could see the tears, shimmering in the moonlight, streaming down his face.

"But... but... we've been fighting for our beliefs up to this point! Why are you suddenly so forgiving of me?" I smiled, and so did Alder.

"Humans don't fight about what they think is right just to prove that one is right and one is wrong. If we did, then we would probably have gone extinct long ago. We have to accept the fact that people are different, that some people might want change and some people might not want change." He suddenly switch on his XTransceiver and looked at it, then spoke urgently to N.

"I'm sorry, Cheren just called, I need to go now!" Alder dashed out of the room, and I had no doubt in my mind that Ghetsis had just tried to escape. Whether he would be successful or not, it wouldn't matter now that his plans were revealed. I turned back to N, who looked at me with an innocent look.

"...Bill, can we talk about something? It's about... what your Pokemon told me back when we first met." I nodded, and sat down, placing Cyan in my lap. N was silent, then knelt down as well, petting Cyan with a hesitant hand. Cyan let out a happy 'Ta!' and pawed at N, eliciting a chuckle from the both of us.

"Hah, Cyan... when I first met you, I couldn't understand at all what you were saying..." I cocked my head in confusion. "He said he thought you were cool, and he wanted to keep traveling with you. I had never met a Pokemon that thought that way until I met you." He scritched Cyan's head, and then let out his now-conscious Zoroark, who eyed Cyan and I defensively.

"Don't worry, Zoroark, they're friends." Zoroark tentatively poked Cyan with its nose, and the pair then began to chase each other around in a game of tag, Zoroark using its speed to avoid Cyan, who I guess had been chosen as 'it'. I laughed at the sight, while N smiled wide as he watched the pair of Pokemon play together.

"And during my journey, I kept meeting Pokemon and people that gave up the time to do whatever they wished to help each other, joining their hearts together selflessly to aid one another... that's why I wanted to fight you. I wanted to make sure I was right in my beliefs." As we talked, Cyan managed to tag Zoroark, and he was now scampering around the area, narrowly avoiding Zoroark's tags.

"Surrounded by Pokemon that love and trust each other... surrounded by Pokemon that love and trust you... there was no way I ever could have won." He stood up and dusted his pants off, and Zoroark leapt into his arms, nuzzling playfully into his chest. N laughed and returned it to its Pokeball, before turning to me.

"Well, the Champion has forgiven me, but now I have to decide what to do with my life on my own. So..." He opened up another Pokeball, releasing Zekrom. It looked down at me, and I stared back up at it, noticing that the anger and distrust it had when it faced me before was now gone entirely, and I smiled. N patted the dragon's flank, then looked at me.

"Bill... back in the Electric Rock Cave... you told me you had a dream. Whatever it was, will you do something for me?" I nodded slowly. "The dream you have, I want you to see it through to the end. I know that you can do it. You can change the world with your power, and trust me on that." He mounted Zekrom's back, wrapping his hands around its neck, and Cyan tugged on my pantleg in confusion.

"Well then..." I took a step forward to stop him.

"N, before you go, one more thing." I fumbled for my journal in my bag, and I ripped a piece of paper from it, scribbling down a couple words and a picture, and handed it up to N. He looked at it blankly.

"If you're planning on exploring the world, then I'll go ahead and recommend that place. I know that you'll like it." I smiled at him. "Trust me on that."

He smiled back, slowly but surely, and pocketed the sheet of paper. "Thank you, Bill... farewell..." Zekrom began to beat its giant wings, and the pair soon hovered just above the floor. And, in the time it could have taken me to blink, they were gone, flying towards the morning sun, out the hole created from the wreckage of the wall and the throne. Cyan and I stood silent for a while, watching the sunrise on the horizon. I raised my hand and waved, despite the fact that N was miles away by now, and Cyan mimicked me, waving his tiny, dark blue paw.

"Well, Cyan... shall we head back?" I asked, and Cyan looked up at me before letting out a 'Dewott!' of approval. Slowly, very slowly, we turned our backs on the hole in the wall, and walked out of the throne room, leaving it silent once more.