Ada left New Bark Town with more weight on her shoulders than what she was burdened with before stepping foot into her home. All the burden was nothing compared to one of the biggest leads she had regarding the Gates of Time Theory. Without this knowledge, she'd be stuck in this reality that was different from what she was familiar with. However, she knew there was much to learn beyond what this book could provide.
To learn more about the Gates of Time Theory, Ada knew where to go to. All libraries provided the tools necessary to learn, but they were nothing compared to the library in Ecruteak City. Some of the best scholars highly recommended the Ecruteak City Public Library for anyone who wished to learn more about any subject.
The moment she arrived at Ecruteak City, Ada headed straight to the library. She wasn't surprised to find it partially empty considering it was a weekday, which worked in her favor just in case there were others who were interested in the Gates of Time Theory just like her. The librarian in charge welcomed Ada, who smiled at her in a friendly manner. She asked where she could find anything by L.B.W or the Gates of Time Theory, only to received a strange look from the librarian.
"Was it something I said?" Ada asked with concern.
"Oh no, my dear, it's not that." The librarian adjusted her glasses. "It's just... not many people ask about L.B.W."
This certainly piqued Ada's interest. "May I ask why?"
"I'm surprised you haven't heard. Then again, it happened probably before you were even born," the librarian said. "L.B.W was the genius of his generation; even at a young age, he excelled so much at his studies that he managed to graduate early, which was pretty rare at the time. He devoted his life to his research in the scientific studies of space. Years later, he made a remarkable study that even won him a Nobel prize. Every scientist around the world wanted to work with him after that, but something happened that would begin his downfall."
"What happened?" Ada asked.
"L.B.W claimed to have discovered a way to alter what he dubbed the space-time continuum. He said there was a chance to rewrite history for the better and make our reality better than ever. The scientific community didn't believe any of it, so to prove them wrong, L.B.W conducted a series of experiments that could basically create a portal to another dimension. After many failed attempts, he started to give up until one experiment gave him a lead to go off of. He went on a journey in search of the Time Traveling Pokémon itself."
"Celebi..." Ada mumbled under her breath. The librarian nodded.
"The power he needed to alter the reality of other timelines came from Celebi. As expected, L.B.W disappeared from the face of the planet for a decade. Everyone assumed he died, but it was quite the opposite. He lived, but he wasn't the same since then."
"How do you mean?" Ada wondered.
"The man went insane," the librarian answered. "After publishing his book regarding his journey, he became the laughing stock of the scientific community. No one believed a word he said, and that's what drove him over the edge." The librarian sighed as she dropped her gaze. "It became too much for him that he ultimately took his own life."
Ada's eye widened as a surprised gasp left her lips. She couldn't begin to imagine what that man went through, especially when no one believed the things he witnessed.
"What happened during his ten years away from the community?" she asked.
"According to him, he went through different timelines with the help of Celebi," the librarian said. "Sounds insane, right?"
"Yeah..." Ada nodded her head. She herself went through a different timeline, so she knew that he wasn't a liar like the scientific community made him out to be.
"Well, in any case, here's a list of any work published by L.B.W." The librarian handed her an index card. "Good luck trying to translate his work. Y'know, just the ones with a lot of fancy words."
"Thank you."
Ada left and went to look for all of L.B.W's work. The whole time, she couldn't help but wonder about the scientist's past when regarding his travel through different dimensions. What captured her interest was that he changed after coming back. For some reason, it resonated with what she was going through right now. The man must've seen things that would haunt him for the rest of his life, just as she witnessed her brother's secret. No doubt that the sudden changes he found upon coming back to his reality messed with his mind.
Hopefully, with the help of his work, she'd find a way to change all of this.
Finding all of his work took some time, but it didn't stop her from engaging deeply into his work. Along with her copy of Gates of Time: The Dangers of Changing Reality, Ada had all the resources needed to get the answers she was looking for. She wanted to know everything: the chances, the outcomes, the possibilities, the dangers, and the consequences. With the way things were, she'd gladly give up everything just to get her friends back.
As she was reading an article, there were footsteps approaching her. Ada looked up for a moment and found a kimono girl coming toward her. She stopped and looked at Ada from across the table. Ada rose an eyebrow and opened her mouth to say something, but the kimono girl beat her to it.
"Time waits for no one. Doomsday is upon us."
The kimono girl's peculiar monotone voice brought a sense of uneasiness in Ada's stomach even as she walked away. Her violet eyes lingered on the door for a while, trying to process what she just said. It's the first time she heard of doomsday, but it would be the second time she was being pinned responsible for what's to come. The dream she had last night of Zane killing her for letting him live was bad enough, but the fact that it was a dream gave her assurance that it wouldn't happen in real life.
However, the kimono girls were known to predict disasters. People believed them to be crazy, but Ada was convinced otherwise. In fact, it brought something up that she hadn't even realized until now.
Ada looked through L.B.W's journal that explained in detail of his travels from beginning to end. She had only skimmed through it a little, but now she was motivated to read it thoroughly. There was one section that captured her interest.
I have waited for ages to prepare for this journey, and now, it is finally going to happen. Those arrogant snobs will eat their words for doubting my word. I know there is more than what we know. The universe is vast. There are endless possibilities! I care not how long this journey will take me. As long as I find my work to be true, I could care less if it takes years.
However, there is one thing that has bothered me since my return from Ecruteak City. Upon my leave from the local library, a young lady approached me. There was this lifelessness about her that made the words out of her mouth all the more peculiar. "Time waits for no one. Doomsday is upon us," said she. I was well aware of how fragile time is, but the warning that followed has not left my mind at ease. I wish to have asked her what she meant, but she was gone before I had the chance.
There are rumors of ladies like her circling the country. People say they know when disaster will strike. I am not one to believe false words, but there was something off about that young lady. What did she mean? Was it a warning? A premonition? I know not.
All the more reason to find myself the Time Travel Pokémon and rewrite history. Disaster will not come if I am able to stop it.
The kimono girls have been around for a long time, Ada thought to herself. Looks like I'm not the only one being warned about time's fragility. But what about that warning about doomsday?
That's when it hit her.
"The Wings!" She gasped.
She and Robin may have recovered the Rainbow and Silver Wings in a different timeline, but things didn't seem to have changed for the better here. Red Eye still hasn't been captured, which explains why Gold and Silver were killed. He could still awaken Ho-oh and Lugia, and if that happened, the world would perish as they try to kill each other.
"Oh no..." Ada mumbled. "We did something wrong, but what?"
Again, she turned to L.B.W's research for more answers. Of course, she agreed to go back in time to get the Wings before Red Eye could and stopping him from ending the world, but she also did it in hopes of talking some sense into her brother. She thought he could turn his life around from there and make it so he wouldn't be fighting for his life in the hospital, but it had done something else. Zane was saved, but at the cost of his sanity.
Just like L.B.W himself.
The realization dawned on her, but she didn't want to accept it. There had to be another way to fix this. Ada turned to her copy of the book Quinn gave her. The title itself screamed at her for her mistake. She turned the pages until there was a section that she was certain would confirm her worst fear.
The space-time continuum is fascinating, but also extremely fragile. When one is presented with the opportunity to go back in time and change any past mistake one made, it is best to only imagine what could have been. I made a mistake, one so grave that I must live with it for the rest of my life. I chose my work over my family. I had a wonderful wife and an equally wonderful son. Rather than staying with them, especially when my wife was expecting our second child, I chose to leave for my journey.
When I found myself at the peak of my career in another timeline, I was able to talk myself (quite literally) into staying with the family. It was my attempt to fix my mistake, but as I now realize, it only made things worse. There was another timeline that showed me as a husband instead of a scientist. It was as though I was looking at a man that loathed his life. I was there to witness as he struck at his wife and burdened her with the blame for his misery. I could not begin to believe that he and I were the same person; it was as though I witnessed the monster brought out from one's own demons.
From that moment, I realized I was responsible for this change. In one timeline, my family became a second thought. In another, I was a miserable beast. Changing the past did nothing but made others suffer. As much as we would like to change the past, take it from someone who has, it makes it all worse. Tampering with the past creates unfixable consequences. If I had one wish, it would be to apologize to my wife, my son, and my unborn child.
"Then it's true..." Ada mumbled as she put down the book. "Changing the past makes everything worse."
Saving Zane from Robin's wrath was the reason he was mentally unstable. On top of that, the death of her friends was because Red Eye was still alive in this timeline even though he was defeated in the other. As L.B.W said, the possibilities were endless. Changing one thing could affect everything else.
One thing she confirmed was that stopping Robin from killing Zane had done more damage than it did good.
"What do I do?" Ada put her head down and pinched her eyes shut.
She sat up straight and sighed in a stressed manner. Her mind was exhausted from everything she learned the moment she stepped foot into the library. It was all so overwhelming with so much left on the line: Zane, her friends, Robin, and Red Eye.
Ada turned the page of the book in hopes of finding some solution to all of this. Her eyebrows furrowed as her fingers traced over the shreds of paper left behind. She looked at the page numbers and noticed the unorganized pattern.
A page was missing as if someone ripped it out to hide potentially powerful information.