Chris and Gloria were seated at the front of the dining hall, next to a small stage. They ate in relative quiet, looking at each other often.

As they finished the meal, Melody came out onto the stage, in a different outfit. She pulled out a beautifully crafted ocarina, and began to play and dance. The tune was simple, yet beautiful. Chris's hand itched to dig into his bag to get his flute, yet this was her performance.
She finished her song, and started to chant, reciting an ancient legend about the islands. "Disturb not the harmony of fire, ice, and lightning, lest these titans wreak destruction upon the world in which they clash..." Chris was lost in the words, wrapped up in the story that they told. "And the world shall shout 'Gloria, Gloria', though it is faced with desolation."

Chris perked up, and looked at Gloria. She looked back, and replied to his questioning glance in a whisper. "The word means 'glory'. The origin of my name, but I doubt it means anything."

Melody finished the chant, and came down to the two of them. "So, you two get to be the chosen ones for the ceremony this year, if that works with you. Heck, your name is even in the legend. By tomorrow evening, you need to bring back the treasures from each of the islands near here, Fire, Ice, and Lightning. There is a pedestal up on that side of the island where you will put them. That work with you two?"

"Don't worry about me, you two, my schedule's wide open." Caroline walked over to them. "This is all on you. You don't have to accept."

"We'll do it." No one was surprised by their unison now. It was almost their trademark.

"Okay then! So how do you want to do this? You going to pull an all-nighter, or go in the morning?"

"I'll take you two around in my boat to the different islands, if you want."

"Eh, we'll take care of it ourselves. We can just ride Dratini and Skarmory." Chris felt ready to go, mostly because he knew he wouldn't sleep anyways.

"We'll take off when we're ready, too. The treasures are at the peaks, right?" Melody nodded, and Gloria reached over and put her hand on Chris's. They stood, and walked out onto a balcony together. Melody moved to follow them, but Caroline stopped her.

"They'll want to be alone. It feels different this year, somehow."

"I know, Caroline, and I don't like it. But if anyone can help, it'd be those two and their Pokemon."

Chris and Gloria sat on a bench and looked out at the sea. "So, Gloria, we get another chance to be heroes, even if only for this festival. And yet..."

"And yet something doesn't seem right. Like it's really going to be more than it seems. I think that we may want to get going right now."

"Yeah. It's not like we were going to sleep, anyways, the way this past week has been. Let's go." Together they hiked a trail that Melody had mentioned that led around to the other side of the island. They came to a ledge that overlooked the west shore, with a pedestal in the middle, and seven stone pillars around it in a circle.

"Well, we know where we need to get back to. And there are the three islands out there." Chris pointed out to the silhouettes in the moonlit sea.

"If we're going to do this, let's do it! Skarmory, let's go!"

"Ok Dratini, time to ride!" Their Pokemon came out, and the trainers hopped on.

"South or North first, Chris?"

"South." He wondered why he'd said it, but since it sounded as reasonable as anything else, they went with it, and flew off towards the southern island.

They arrived on the island relatively quickly, landing as near the peak as they could go. They saw a small stone pavilion positioned on an overhang, which looked into the crater of a dormant volcano. "I'd guess that that's the shrine. Let's go, Gloria." They ran over and in, and found a small yellow sphere. They both grabbed it, and pulled it from its niche, wedged into the mouth of a statue of Zapdos. As it came free in their hands, it started to glow.

"Guess that this is Lightning Island, eh Chris? Let's keep going. At this rate we'll finish by morning."

They went back out, and were about to take off when the wind suddenly and fiercely started to blow.

"Something tells me that this isn't a good sign." Dratini looked worried.

"Ack, there's no way I'll be able to fly in this. Where did it come from so quickly?" Skarmory turned her back to the wind coming from the west, the whistle that it made as it passed over her the only sound in the formerly still night.

"Guess we're swimming to the next island, if the water isn't too rough." Gloria started walking towards the trail leading down to the beach, and Chris followed.

Suddenly, Zapdos rose out of the crater. "Something has disturbed the harmony of the elements. Was it you?" He shot a wave of electricity at them, striking all four of them.

"We're sorry, Zapdos, we didn't know!" Gloria pulled the sphere out of her pocket where she'd put it, extending it back to him.

"The locals said that they do this every year, and asked us to do it for them." Chris was on the ground, stunned by the electric blasts. Skarmory had fainted from them, and Dratini looked shaken.

Zapdos eyed the two humans, landing in front of them. Then he looked at the sphere. "No, it can't be! You two, you must go to the other two islands, and retrieve the orbs there, quickly! Something devastating is coming, and we will need the combined power of the orbs to stand a chance against it. Go now!" Zapdos took to the sky, shooting lightning again, and the winds calmed somewhat.

Chris and Gloria stood, and called their Pokemon back to their balls, then ran back down the mountain. Zapdos flew near them, bristling with energy. When they arrived at the beach, the water was eerily still, though the wind still howled.

"Something isn't right about this. There should be large waves coming from this wind, but there aren't any."

"I know, Chris. Something big is coming."

Together they swam over to the next island, and ran through an icy forest. The path led to a cave that went up the mountain. "I can go no further into Articuno's territory. You two must continue. Go!" Zapdos retreated back toward his own island, but he didn't roost. Instead, he flew a patrol around it, his anxiety plain.

Chris and Gloria ran through the cave, winding their way to the top. "This is a volcanic vent, it would seem. These three islands look so different, yet they were all formed by volcanic activity."

"Yeah. It's odd how the same force of nature can exhibit itself so differently. Now, less talking and more running, Chris. You can theorize later!" She emphasized this by running faster herself, trying to outdistance him, though he accelerated as well, a step behind her.

Eventually they reached a bowl at the top of the mountain, the last crater at the peak. The shrine sat on the opposite side from the cave exit, and they ran over to it. They pulled the blue orb from the mouth of Articuno's statue, which also started to glow, then went back out. But before they could reenter the cave, the peak was rocked with an explosion, and the resulting rockslide sealed the exit.

They looked behind them at the source of the explosion. A large airship was hovering behind them, and had shot a missile that had sealed the cave. Suddenly, the bottom of the airship opened, releasing a swarm of metal rings in various shapes. Gloria and Chris watched as Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres all moved in to attack the ship, and were assaulted by the rings.

"Gloria, let's go! We can run down the side of the mountain, but we have to move!" he tugged at her arm, and she followed him to the north slope. At first they actually slid down the mountain, as the peak was covered in ice, but they gained footing as the terrain became rocky, their fighters' training helping them stay upright. As they reached the bottom, they saw that the cliff ran strait into the sea. They kept running until they were in the water, and then began to swim.

"Is it just me, Chris, or is the water a lot colder now?"

"It's not just you. Something is happening. Look out!" Suddenly Moltres fell right in front of them, plunging into the sea. Some of the strange rings followed, and pulled her back out, bound in an energy field. They looked, and saw Articuno and Zapdos had also been captured, and were being drawn into the airship.

"We've got to keep moving! Hurry Chris!" They continued to swim, hoping that the people in the airship had forgotten them.

They hadn't. Within moments, two more rings surrounded the pair, who had no way to fight back while swimming, and a wave of electricity passed through them, rendering them unconscious as they were pulled into the ship...