When May arrived at the Mossdeep Space Center, another battle was awaiting her. The place was filled with Team Magma members.
What in the wold are they all doing here…? This day just gets worse and worse with every second! After being forced to fight with 5 grunts at once, the girl had a pretty angry look on her face. That surprised Steven a bit, when she reached the second floor.
"Your timing is as perfect as always, May," the silver-haired man said once he saw her.
At that point the brunette girl was ready to give up on it all, so she didn't even care if that was sarcasm or a praise. But seeing Courtney there, the girl knew it meant even more trouble.
"You... You little brat…" The Team Magma Admin pointed at May. "Leader Maxie… was broken… He was broken by you!" She stomped furiously.
"How convenient it must be for you to put all the blame on someone else." Steven crossed his arms, still keeping calm.
I guess I'm pissed off enough for both of us… May was glaring at Courtney. Why do we even bother talking with her...
"Shut up! I've had enough of this world!" the Team Magma Admin yelled. "... Aha! … I know. That rocket... " She started playing with the dimensional shifter in her hand. "I'll make it explode… And bring an end to this world…""
"Are you crazy?!" May jumped forward but Steven stopped her, grabbing her arm.
"Of course, I'll also destroy this device that's supposed to warp the asteroid somewhere else, too. " Courtney ignored the girl's shout and clenched her fist, nearly crushing the shifter in her hand.
"May…" The silver-haired man took a deep breath. "This fool… This idiot really wants to do it!"
Now we're both angry. Well, great job, Courtney.
Obviously, it all ended up in a battle. Courtney ordered one of the grunts to fight with her against May and Steven. The Team Magma members didn't stand a chance, so Courtney bursted out with anger after her loss.
"Why must you… always, always, always, always… Get in my way!" Out of the fury, she punched the grunt standing next to her. May thought it was a good chance to get back the device. But before she could even make a single step, a Whismur ran into the room and jumped at Courtney.
By the time everyone realised what had just happened, the Pokemon returned to its owner.
"Nice one, Aster!" The black-haired girl received the device from the creature. "Oh, what a nice machine you've got here…"
Seeing Zinnia, May just hid her face in her hands. I swear, one more surprise like this and I'm giving up on the title of Champion. This is one big joke, isn't it?
"But you know, while it can save us… this could be the worst imaginable tragedy for some other world." The black-haired girl was still keeping her cheerful attitude, despite the words she was saying.
Steven frowned and was about to say something, but Zinnia cut him off.
"I'm not talking to you, you don't get it." She glanced at May. "But you… Hope for our world, tragedy for another… You understand, right?"
The brunette girl looked up, as she realised Zinnia was talking to her. Okay last time 'no' was a wrong answer, so let's play her game… "Uhm… I do?" Just don't ask details, please, please, please!
"Ha! I knew you would!" The black-haired clapped her hands happily. "Well, but the rest of you probably want some kind of explanation, don't you?" She didn't say much, except that she was sure it wasn't the right solution. "Oh well. Looks like it's beyond the power of your imagination."
Without hesitation, she crushed the device in her hand.
"What kind of fool are you!" Professor Cozmo shouted. "You have no proof, claiming such world exists! Out of this fantasy, you… You have destroyed our only hope!"
May felt pretty shocked by that turn of events too. Just a second ago she confirmed Zinnia's words. So… This is… my fault? She heard Steven mutter under his breath and looked down. Maybe if I didn't…
"Farewell, brief hope." The black-haired girl dropped parts of the crushed device on the floor. "Calm down, Prof. It'll be okay." She wasn't grinning anymore, sounding more serious. "I… We can protect both worlds."
The silver-haired man was still angry with what Zinnia had done, but he decided to ask: "Who exactly is 'we'? What are your plans?"
"Oh yeah, silly me! I forgot the other thing I came for!" The girl approached Courtney and snatched the Key Stone from her.
"Wha-!" the Team Magma Admin exclaimed in surprise, but before she could react, Zinnia ran away.
"Now only the one they've got in their base… Looks like my next appointment is calling! Later!"
When she left, noone said anything for some time. Courtney was first to break the silence, muttering to herself a bit too loudly.
May was feeling more and more guilty about this, especially when she glanced at Steven and saw his angry face. She sighed and kept staring at the floor.
"May, what's wrong?"
"Eh?" She nearly jumped when the silver-haired man put a hand on her shoulder. The brunette girl looked up at him and, curse it all, unintentionally blushed again.
Steven raised an eyebrow and kept looking at her. "There's clearly something bothering you."
"... I'm sorry!" May yelled and hid her face. "I shouldn't have said that!"
Her reaction was so sudden the silver-haired man didn't know what to say. Plus everyone in the room was staring at them.
"That... wasn't you fault," he said a bit startled. People were giving him suspicious looks, as if he just made her cry. "Calm down…! Why did you even agree with her?"
The brunette girl pouted. "Because I thought if I did, I would finally get some peace…"
Steven sighed heavily and rubbed his forehead. "... It should be me apologising."
"What...?" May looked up at him.
"Maybe I shouldn't have got you involved in this… Sorry." He ran a hand through his hair. "If you want, I won't ask you for any more favors. You… do deserve a break after all."
The brunette girl's face turned pink again. So nice of him… But I can't stop halfway…! "N-no, it's fine, it's fine! I'll fix it!" she exclaimed eagerly.
"May, don't force yours-"
"She's gone to the Team Magma hideout, hasn't she? I'm going after her!" The girl ran off without letting Steven say anything else. That day was already wasted for her anyway.
Once May arrived at the place, she started looking around for Zinnia. She would want to meet Maxie... But I don't know where his room is! Damn… After a half an hour or so, she found the black-haired girl. Unfortunately for May, Zinnia had just won a battle with the Team Magma Leader.
She hid behind a corner, hoping not to be noticed. Although the black-haired girl called her.
"You there! May! Don't just stand there like a stick in the mud. Come over and say hi!" Her cheerful voice was still annoying.
Maxie, along with Tabitha, were surprised to see the brunette girl there. Plus Zinnia was treating her like a friend.
"She's the heroine, here to save the world again. Oops. But looks like she's a bit too late." When the black-haired girl took the Key Stone from the Team Magma Leader, they looked suspiciously at May.
Hey! Don't give me those looks! I don't even like her! The young trainer looked away. Okay, so maybe coming here was a mistake after all.
"Well, now that we've got everything, we can do it: the summoning," Zinnia said with a hint of pride. "Let's go to the Sky Pillar, Aster."
The black-haired girl excused herself and left. But just before she was gone, she stopped next to May and added:
"Oh, I hope you'll come chasing after me, you know?" She winked at the brunette girl. "If you don't know where the Sky Pillar is, just ask that former Champ of yours."
"Oh, so now she wants me to follow her…" May muttered. The Team Magma members were still looking at her, demanding an explanation. So she tried to tell them what happened, although she herself didn't understand everything.
"I see… I don't know what must be going through that woman's mind…" Maxie frowned, after hearing May out. "But I think you may be the only one who can stand against her."
The man gave the girl a Cameruptite, admitting that without a Key Stone he wouldn't use it anymore. May accepted the gift and left.
Ask Steven, huh… As she thought of going back to Mossdeep, her PokeNav rung again.
"Perfect timing!" the girl exclaimed happily.
"Wha- Okay, good to hear you're fine…" Steven sounded a bit worried.
"Er… Do you know anything about the Sky Pillar?" May asked. Like, where the hell is it, for example?
"The Sky Pillar? Why are you- oh." The man was a bit silent for a while. "... It all makes sense. Right. May, hurry back to the Space Center."
He suddenly hung up, so May just stared at the device in her hand.
"Yeah, thanks. Why can't at least you make it a bit easier for me?" She sighed and went back to Mossdeep.
I have to chase after her, so there's no doubt about it. There are still no responsible adults in Hoenn, that much didn't change. So just this day, and I am never saving the world again.
a/n: I'm giving up on something… Just one… more… chapter… and the epilogue. I'm not kidding, I have it written but I can't get through those last two ones. Okay actually, I've made a decision. I'm throwing out the 5th chapter with Episode Delta. Steven isn't even there, screw that. Expect the epilogue this week.