ItIt was the dark hours of the Thunder Forest. Nothing much was going on, except for the usual Berry hunt of the Thunderpaw clan. It was a clan of a variety of electric Pokemon. A young Pichu spied a bush of Pecha berries and cheeped happily. It crouched low to the ground, its feet tensing. Then, it leapt…

And it had to dodge the falling people.

Darkrai hit the ground first, on his side, and Anibell fell on him. Goruden landed not three feet away from them, actually denting the ground a little. Cresselia fell into a tree, and was climbing down when Ryan – who had awakened along the way – fell past her and, as a last second resort, he grabbed her shoulders, bringing her down with him. Merii, on the other hand, landed perfectly on her feet, not a single scratch on her mocha colored skin. She brushed off her white pants and black tank top before saying, "So? Is anyone dead?"

Goruden spat out a bunch of dirt and said, "I'm alive. And how the hell did you do that?! I've trained on balance for how long and a girl bests me! How do you like that?!"

Anibell peeked up and said, "Whoa. What happened to the refined and polite Goruden? And what happened to your clothes?!"

Indeed, Goruden's Russian uniform had changed. It had changed to a pair of grey denim jeans, white boots, and a camouflage shirt, which was covered by a red leather coat. On closer inspection, the back was emblazoned with a dark red thread outline of the Landmass Pokemon Groudon. His cleanly cut mullet was now covered by a black cap. A white belt with six hooks, occupied by six PokeBalls, circled his waist. Goruden looked over himself and then cheered, "Hell yeah! I'm free and unrestricted! Woooo!"

Anibell raised an eyebrow at the normally calm Goruden's wild antics. "Okay…Weird much?"

"Anibell?"

"Yes, Darkrai?"

"I would appreciate it if you would please get off of my side. It hurts."

Anibell squeaked and quickly rolled off of Darkrai. He picked the grass out of her honey blonde hair and stood up. Looking over Goruden, he smirked and crossed his arms. "I knew there was something about you that I recognized." He reached into Goruden's shirt and pulled out a mud colored Arceus charm with four extremely dark smoky topazes. "Son of Earth, no doubt."

Goruden stuffed the necklace back into his shirt and said, "For goodness' sake. Did Mum tell you?"

"At least sixteen years back, actually."

"Okay, okay, okay, hang on a minute," Cresselia cut in, rubbing her bruised shoulders and stepping in between the two. "What is going on?"

Goruden called everyone over and said, "Okay, group meeting! Time to reveal your pasts. Sit, sit." He faintly noticed Vespera settle on a large, thick branch of an oak tree. He looked up at her and said, "You like trees, don't you?" She flashed him a thumbs up and a grin. However, Ryan looked puzzled and asked, "Who is that girl?"

The Lunar spirits froze. Cresselia intently gazed at Ryan for the longest time before saying, "She's been with us for some time. Do you remember?"

Ryan thought for a moment before saying, "I don't recall."

'He must have forgotten everything about her when he hit his head on the fountain back in Russia,' Cresselia murmured to Darkrai. He nodded and replied, 'But, there is still one memory I recall that she locked away for him. The day they first met. Two years ago. She told me that in a dream she had gone into the past and talked to him after his father's death.'

Cresselia said no more. Anibell quickly announced that it was around six o'clock of the next day the left for Russia. The times were not the same in both dimensions, so they were grateful for that. Goruden began by saying, "Now, this seems crazy, but…" He was cut off by a loud pop and a flash of white. Within seconds, a jackal like Pokemon was sitting in his lap. It was small, blue and black, and it had a yellow collar surrounding its neck. It yelped and threw its arms around his neck. Goruden smiled and hugged his Pokemon back. "Hey there, little buddy! Did you miss me while I was away?" He was rewarded with another loud yelp and his Pokemon tightening its grip around his neck. "Okay…Riolu…Choking me…Stop…"

After his Riolu had settled down in his lap, he said, "So, as I was saying, this seems crazy, but…I'm the son of Groudon."

There was silence. Goruden looked at them in disbelief before saying, "What? No yells? No shuns? Man, I'm starting to like you people." He paused for a moment before continuing. "So, this started around sixteen years ago. My mother, Groudon, was very young, and a bit foolish around this time. She loved a human man, so she transformed into a beautiful woman and seduced him. After words, she revealed her true origin to the man, and he blew his top. He cut her badly across the chest, and you will see it when she arrives at Mt. Coronet…and speaking of which, after this talk, we need to hurry up can get there.

"Well, after at least five months or so, since Groudon pregnancies are sped up because of the intense heat they live in, she gave birth to me in human form, but was very surprised to see that I was fully human, with some of her blood. But, that didn't matter to my mom. She raised me like any other Groudon would raise her young: She brought me food, she trained me, and she gave me a place to sleep. On my fifth birthday, she gave me the necklace I am wearing right now. I have never taken it off. After that, she pounded everything she knew about fighting into me. She taught me pressure points, vital points, kill points, acupuncture points, you name it. I am a killing machine. But, I'd rather not kill.

"We lived in the Ruby Cave of Origin in Sootopilis. Yes, there are two. Ruby and Sapphire. Kyogre stays in the Sapphire Cave of Origin when things get rough. Mom stayed in Ruby to raise me. Thankfully, there is a lava pool in there, so, it felt like home to her. She would often let me out of the cave so I could roam around, but she never let me near the water. She loathed it with a passion. Not only because she was a Fire and Ground type…but also because one of her friends drowned in the sea. Her name, ironically, was Oceania.

"So…when I was eight, one of the people close to Groudon betrayed her, and revealed us to the public. Mom tried her hardest to defend me, but, she nearly got killed doing it, so, I left when I was ten. I have not seen my mother since then, except in my dreams and in my memories. Then…I got caught up in some strange thing…and I ended up in Russia. I was twelve. The guards of the palace found me and dragged me inside, and told the Tsarina Alexandra that they were going to kill me, but, she stopped them, and she employed my royal services as a servant. And, since then, I lived in Russia. The Tsarina made sure to smack some extra obedience into me, since my manners were a bit rough.

"It's true; Russia isn't all what it's cracked up to be. The royal family was scandalized by Rasputin via pornographic cartoons, which I will not mention its details, since there are children present. It caused quite a stink, and the Tsar was absolutely furious. And, people started to rebel against the royal family…The Tsarina never filled me in on the details, even though I was her most trusted servant. Then you guys showed up. I had given up all hope of ever seeing my mother again. But, know, because of you, I have another chance, and I don't plan on messing it up."

All was quiet after Goruden finished until Anibell hesitantly asked, "Where's Merii?"

Everyone quickly scanned the area, which consisted of a heavily wooded area and a lake. Goruden and Cresselia took the lake, while the rest of them covered the woods. Cresselia pushed back a bramble of thorny brush and quickly crouched, motioning for Goruden to do the same. Merii was sitting at the borders of the lake, sketching away in a small, grey drawing book. After a while, she studied the picture closely and shut the book, tucking it in her blue messenger bag. Then, she raised her arms up and stretched. Her normally carefree face of eighteen years turned serious. She slipped off her shoes, tightened the blue sash around her waist, and walked out onto the water.

The water barely rippled with each step. It was almost as if she was walking on glass, and the glass bent down to touch the water when her foot landed softly on it. As she was walking, she took her hair out of its normally high ponytail and let her wavy chocolate tresses trail down her back. She reached the middle of the lake, and then she crouched and touched the water with both hands. A spinning disk of light appeared under her, and something pulled away from her body, out of her very soul.

A light blue dog pounced nimbly on the lake, spinning around to face its vessel. It had a long, purple mane that looked like a thin, swirling blanket, and a large crystalline shape crested its forehead. Four waving white ribbons trailed from its legs, and white diamonds spotted its fur. It's piercing red eyes studied its surroundings. It walked up to Merii and nuzzled her before turning into a woman. She appeared to be around twenty years old. She wore a long sleeved blue top, which was ruffled, and wore the same colored pants, except white diamonds adorned its seams. Her shoes were simple white sandals, and her hair was deep purple, and very long. A crystal headband sported a miniature of the shape she once had on her forehead, and white ribbons were tied around her neck, upper arms, and around her waist. Her eyes remained the same, piercing red.

"Suicune…" Goruden whispered under his breath.

At that moment, Cresselia stumbled while shifting into a new position, and she grabbed Goruden for support. Both of them fell flat on their faces in front of Merii and Suicune, startling them so badly that Merii slipped on the water and fell into it. Her charge quickly dragged her vessel back to shore. She folded her arms and looked sternly at the two others, but, her firmness disappeared from her face when she recognized Cresselia. Instead, a smile graced her lips and she helped Cresselia get to her feet, and then she warmly hugged her. Pulling away, Suicune studied Cresselia and her wounds – a variety of scratches and slight burns – and said, "You really need to watch out, Cress." She smiled. "I know the truth."

A cold lump formed in Cresselia's throat. "H…how?"

"A little grass sprite told me. Celebi. The poor gal just can't keep her mouth shut." She shook her head. "Then, someone reached out to me and told me that your kid was dying. Is this true?"

Cresselia carefully picked her words and said, "She was attacked. That's all I know. But, she's recovered."

"Good to hear." Suicune raised her head and looked at Mt. Coronet in the distance. "Seems like we're in the clear. Mt. Coronet isn't more than two miles away. I knew I made the right choice in choosing Merii as my vessel." Then, she realized her mistake. "Oops. You weren't supposed to know that."

Merii smacked her forehead. "We might as well sit down and reveal it all." She sat on the grassy banks of the lake and began. "My life…isn't exactly the best. Like Goruden, my father left my mother after finding out she was pregnant, leaving her in total darkness. I was raised in a relatively decent setting, but, on my twelfth birthday, my mother died of breast cancer. After that, I was in a very deep depression, and I began cutting myself to ease my sorrows. One day, one of my neighbors came in to check on me and found me laying in a puddle of my own blood, tears staining my cheeks. I was taken to the hospital, and I went through several therapy courses to relieve my grief.

"Then, right after my fourteenth birthday, a man showed up at my house, claiming to be my father. He had the tests, basically everything, to prove it. I remember that I was pissed beyond belief, and I told him that he couldn't just walk away from his own daughter before she was even born, and then come back and try to be fatherly. I couldn't stand it. So, the very same day, I took up my PokeBalls, several sets of clothes, some personal items, and ran away from Johto. I got ready to board a ship to take me to Sinnoh, but, something stopped me at the last moment, and I hid in the forest.

"I was so scared, I thought I was going to die. I spent my first night crying my eyes out, and then I started out the next morning for some breakfast. While I was picking berries, I noticed a blue shape near the close lake, drinking. I filled my Berry Pouch some more, then I turned around very, very slowly. And there Suicune was, proud as an autumn sunset. She spotted me, just sitting there like a moron, and she approached me. I will say this now, I was terrified of Legendaries back then. I was afraid of what they could do to people. Then, she touched me on the forehead, and I felt a new part of my soul form, and Suicune vanished into thin air. For a few days, Suicune got accustomed to my body, but, it nearly drove me nuts.

"After that was over with, I got on the ship to Sinnoh, and I came here. I rescued my own Riolu, and it evolved into a Lucario. He's still at home with my friend, Mei. I settled in the relatively quiet town of Twinleaf, and I started raising Pokemon to give to some of the children of the community, the ones who couldn't go on Pokemon journeys. I lived there for the longest time, before going to the Hoenn region and getting Jayden, my Mudkip, who is now a Swampert. I got several more Pokemon, but, I returned to Sinnoh just this year, on January first. Then, I found Cresselia in the forest, all battered up and near death. I cleaned her up, and we traveled for a while until we found the rest of the group. Most of them were dieing from Twilight Syndrome. But, now, I'm pretty darn happy I found you guys, 'cause, without you, I'd be lost."

Before anyone could respond, a loud roar split the air. Goruden scrambled up from the earth, ready to fight, but, his enemy was airborne. Rayquaza circled the area, Anibell holding onto his horns. He dropped, and Anibell leapt cleanly off of Rayquaza, landing on both feet. She smiled. "Found you. Come on…we found the hidden entrance to Mt. Coronet."

Merii's happy face dropped instantly. Suicune noticed this and brought her vessel into an embrace. "Easy, now…You don't have to tell them if you don't want to."

Cresselia did not question, and neither did Goruden. Instead, she transformed and flew out of the area, while Goruden climbed onto Rayquaza with Anibell. Merii allowed for Suicune to take over completely and turn into her Pokemon form. Merii got on her back, and they took off into the Thunder Forest.

Darkrai and Ryan were waiting for the rest of the group to get back, at a particularly bare area of the mountian. Once they were all gathered, Darkrai took out a knife and cut himself across the wrist with it. Using his own blood, he drew a circle covered in ruins, and, with a simple Recover, healed his bleeding wrist. He touched the circle with his other hand and muttered something that no one could understand. Then, with a mighty cracking sound, the rocks fell away to reveal a long, long staircase that winded around rock formations and was very high off the ground. He cautiously took the first step onto the staircase, climbed a few steps, and then motioned for everyone else to follow.

While the continued to scale the mighty height of the stairs, Merii opened her mouth to say something, but, she quickly shut it, a blush creeping onto her skin. Suicune noticed this, and said, "Merii…If you want to say it, you best do it now, before we reach Spear Pillar."

Merii sighed. "Okay guys…I have some more about my past. You see…my Swampert and my Lucario…they like me. Like…love me. In…a most extreme fashion."

There was quiet for a while, before Cresselia said, "So? That's nothing to be ashamed of."

"You don't understand. I mean…intercourse love."

Again, she was met with the same response, followed up with, "Well…I really don't know anything about human slash Pokemon love, except this: Does it matter? I really don't think so, because, sometimes that proves just how close you are. Heck, one of the Elite Sixteen has a Pokemon as a lover, and no one cares. They're happy for her."

"Lucky her. Most of my friends ditched me when I told them."

Cresselia stopped so Merii could catch up to her. The staircase was wide enough for three people to walk side by side, so, they didn't have to worry. "Merii, that just means that those people couldn't accept it. If they couldn't, then they obviously didn't care for you in the first place. Did you tell Mei?"

"I did."

"Well then, she's a true friend. She didn't ditch you. In fact, I really don't care that you have two Pokemon that love you that much. Just keep it within Mei and us, okay? We don't want you getting in trouble with the public."

Merii lowered her head. "Thank you…"

The climb continued for at least thirty more minutes until Anibell stopped, since she was several steps ahead. She pulled out the same knife that Darkrai had used and cut her own wrist. She repeated the same process, but, the ruins could be spelled out into 'Hall of Origin'. She healed her wrist, and the put both hands to the circle and murmured, "Open."

The rocks twisted in a most strange fashion, forming a small door. They ducked low and walked down a few long, dark corridors. The only light came from Cresselia's summoned ball of lavender energy. Then, there was a dead end. Ryan got in front this time, and did the same thing as Anibell and Darkrai, opening another door. This time, it was much brighter, and another staircase appeared, this one white. Then, out of seemingly nowhere, Vespera stepped up from the back and took the knife from Ryan. She and the rest of the group steeled themselves and climbed up the last staircase, coming to a large white door decorated with gold ruins. Vespera took a deep breath and raised the knife, but, instead of cutting her wrist, she cut open her forehead in the shape of Arceus's wheel. She pressed her forehead against the door, leaving an imprint of the wheel, and then she cut both wrists and drew a large circle, a lot more complicated than the other ones. Healing her wounds, she clasped her hands in a prayer like fashion and said nothing. The doors boomed, then creaked open, revealing a long, white and gold corridor.

However, Merii suddenly tripped, and she pitched towards empty space, horror dancing across her face.