When The World Ends
Chapter Twenty-Eight – The Island of Nightmares

Paul was never one who enjoyed the sights and smells of the beach or the ocean all that much. There was never a particular reason, he wasn't afraid of water or the creatures that lurked beneath. There was just nothing appealing about the atmosphere to him.

In that moment, the ocean was almost a paradox to him. It signaled the fact that he was so very close to where his brother was supposed to be, yet at the same time it was the biggest hindrance to achieving his goals. There was no way they could fly over to the island, though swimming there was just as risky. It was only when they were at the ocean's edge that they realized just how difficult their predicament was.

The sound of footsteps crunching over rock caught Paul's attention. He looked over his shoulder slightly, watching Dawn carefully make her way over the pebble-covered coast. It mildly surprised him that Piplup wasn't in her arms, but Paul chose to ignore it, turning his attention back to the horizon.

"We're mostly going to be going on Misty's Gyarados," Dawn explained. "Though Gary's Blastoise is going to carry him and Leaf, and Misty does have more Pokémon if Gyarados struggles a bit with the weight."

"Alright."

They stood in silence for a moment, Dawn shifting slightly. Out of the corner of his eye, Paul watched her open and close her mouth, like she was struggling with what she wanted to say. He waited for a moment to see if she'd get anything out. When nothing came, he rolled his eyes. "What?"

Dawn jumped, a bit startled, but she recovered quickly. "I just…are you okay? You've been pretty quiet."

Paul looked over at her once again, not quite sure what to make of this girl. Some days she really seemed to be a lot older than she actually was. "I will be." His grey eyes locked onto the water again.

Dawn tilted her head slightly. "Alright, but you know you can talk to me, right?"

"I'm supposed to go to a thirteen-year-old for advice?"

She glared at him. "Just because I'm younger doesn't mean I can't help!" Her eyes turned to the ocean. "My mom might be there too, you know. I don't know where she is or what happened to her." Dawn crossed her arms in front of her, tilting her head down slightly. "I have to believe that she's okay though. I have to. Nothing's going to change my mind on that. Focus on something good rather than worrying about everything. My mom, so many of the other people I know, Ritchie…and Reggie too." She looked back at him, blinking away the tears that threatened to well up in her eyes. "So be positive or try to. If you can't…well…I guess I'll have to do it for you then."

Paul regarded her, appearing almost amused. "Still going with 'no need to worry', huh?"

Dawn tilted her head slightly. "How do you know about that?"

"Just because I don't say much, doesn't mean I don't notice things." Paul looked at something over her shoulder. "There's a problem, isn't there?"

Ash came to a stop beside Dawn, tilting his head slightly. "How'd you—?"

"You would have been bouncing to go already if there wasn't," Paul noted. There was really no question about it, he knew exactly what Ash would have done. The boy in question slowly nodded his head, and the three of them started walking back to the rest of the group.

They had a paper map stretched out on the ground, Gary and Leaf kneeling on either side of it to keep it flat. Clemont knelt adjacent to both of them, a digital map up on the tablet in his hands.

Clemont looked up as they approached and said, "Looks like there is a storm coming in tonight."

"We should be able to get to Fullmoon Island before then though," Leaf added quickly, tapping her finger on the map.

"And hope that there's no one there." Misty crossed her arms in front of her, scowling fiercely. "We might not be able to get back here in time if there is."

"So it comes down to going today, or waiting until the storm's over," Gary concluded.

Paul had to admit, it was a pretty valid problem, not some little frivolity like he was originally expecting. It was still frustrating to come so close but get set back over something that they couldn't control.

"What if we use the storm?" Everyone looked up at May, who was staring out over the water.

"Use the storm?" Serena asked her curiously.

"Yeah," May nodded her head, looking back at them. "The ocean will be choppy anyway, and rain makes it harder for everyone to see. We can scope Newmoon Island out without them knowing we're anywhere near there."

"That's insane," Leaf replied bluntly. "We could drown. Gyarados can't watch us all."

"So only a few of us go," Gary interjected, startling her a bit. "Misty can take Gyarados, I'll take Blastoise, and we'll bring Ash with us. The rest of you don't have water Pokémon strong enough to get through a storm like the one Clemont says is coming. The three of us will go ahead, get the layout on everything. Misty can circle the island on Gyarados to get the parameter view, while Ash and I sneak onto the island. I'll get some shots and videos of it, while Ash does his Aura thing. Then we scram."

"There are a lot of dangerous variables in that," Clemont said, pushing his glasses up his nose slightly.

"There's going to be dangerous variables no matter when we go," Misty said, sighing a bit and straightening her shoulders. "Gary and May are right, this is probably the best time to go over."

"You too?" Leaf groaned, tugging at the strands of hair that framed her face. "You guys know I'm all for a crazy idea, but this is—you haven't said anything!" She stop midsentence and stood up, pointing at Ash. "What do you think?"

Ash looked around uncertainly, making sure to look at every single person at least once. Misty and Gary both felt so confident in the idea, as did May, but everyone else was unsure. It surprised him when he felt Paul's worry, though it was obvious that he was trying to hide it, maybe even from himself. Ash looked over at where Pikachu and Piplup were talking with one another, completely distracted from the rest of the group. "I think…it's the best we've got."

"There's a lot of that around here, isn't there?" Paul asked dryly.

"Not gonna ask why you're not coming?" Ash asked him in the same tone.

"We both know you'd never say yes to that, and I'm not stupid enough to drown myself out of stubbornness," Paul replied. "I don't want to go on any recon mission anyway. I want to get in there and take it out."

"First we have to get to Fullmoon Island," Serena pointed out. "Maybe we should just try that first and see how it goes. See if we can even get on the island at all."

"She's got a pretty valid point," Dawn agreed, piping up for the first time since the conversation began. "No point arguing if we can't even get there, right?"

They all had to admit that both girls were right. Looking back at the ocean, May asked, "Who's ready for another cold swim?"

….

The water wasn't quite as cold as they expected, but that didn't mean the trip was pleasant. The ocean became rough as the wind picked up, the storm coming closer and closer to them.

Everyone but Gary and Leaf were on Gyarados. Though some of the smaller Pokémon, including Starmie and Greninja, probably could have got them across the water with no problems, but they all agreed that being out of the water was probably their best option at this point.

None of them knew what was waiting for them at Fullmoon Island, even as it appeared in the distance.

"It doesn't look like there's any buildings on it!" Leaf called out to them.

"Doesn't mean that they're not camping on there," Paul pointed out.

Leaf wanted to argue, but she knew that he was right. Her attention shifted to Ash as he suddenly sat up straight and narrowed his eyes at the shore. "What is it boy? What did you see?"

Ash cast her an annoyed look, recognizing the line from the show they watched as kids about a pet Growlithe that always saved his young trainer. "Funny." He shook his head and looked at it. "There's something around the island."

"Around it?" Dawn asked as she leaned forward to get a better look. Piplup's tiny wings wheeled wildly as he started to tip off of Gyarados' back, and she lunged forward to grab him.

"Yeah, it's…not Aura, but it's…something. I dunno. That weird energy with Mirage Pokémon is orange. Aura is kind of blue or green, but this is almost…pink?"

"Psychic then," Clemont informed them. "Psychic users have said that it tends to appear as a dark pink colour more than anything else. That's why they use that for the classification system."

"That makes sense then," Gary added as they drew closer to the island. "Isn't this supposed to be Cresselia's island?"

"Yeah," Ash breathed out. Cresselia was a psychic-type, and if something bad happened on Newmoon Island, it was a safe bet that she'd try to protect her island somehow. "We're going to go through the barrier in a minute."

"Or bounce right off it," Misty mumbled. May and Serena were the only ones close enough to hear it, and exchanged worried expressions before bracing themselves.

Though they couldn't see the energy like Ash could, they all felt something strange pass over them as they went through the barrier.

"Well, we didn't crash into it," May supplied helpfully, even as she shivered from the energy.

"Bonus," Misty agreed. They all looked towards Ash, who once again sat up ramrod straight. "What now?"

"There's an orb on that island," he breathed out. It was the last thing he was expecting, and Ash could feel excitement rising up in him. The part that had been so conflicted about what Arceus told him, about leaving the other problems and focusing on his quest weighed down on him, and now he felt a lot lighter. By trudging forward, they were not only going to try and actually help people, but it led them to where they needed to be.

"You're kidding me, right?" Serena asked as she scooted forward a bit. "There just happens to be one here?"

Gary snorted. "If any of you try to argue with me about being herded anymore I get to say you're clinically insane." The odds of them consistently ending up where they needed to be by coincidence was just too low.

"How about something helpful?" Paul asked. "Like if there are people over there?" Though a bit stunned over Ash's abilities, and slightly skeptical over the range of them, he was quick to adjust, incorporating that into future strategies. He wasn't about to let something so useful go to waste.

Ash closed his eyes, trying to reach out to see if he could feel anyone. It was hard from the rough water and harder to see beyond all of the lush vegetation. There was something on that island, but it wasn't human. "No. But I think Cresselia's there."

"Let's hope this is a Regirock scenario, not a Registeel one," May added, crossing her fingers.

"Regirock and Registeel?" Dawn asked, looking back at Clemont. He just shook his head.

Ash thought about that for a moment, pressing his lips together. Pikachu shifted on his lap, and he looked down at the Pokémon. No one quite understood what he meant about how he could communicate with his Pokémon without actually talking to them in their minds like a psychic could, but no one needed to understand. It didn't change the fact that he knew that Pikachu knew what he wanted to do.

Gyarados and Blastoise reached the beach, but before anyone could get off, Ash stopped them. "Wait a sec. May's right, we don't know what's going to happen here. Let me go ahead and see what Cresselia's going to do."

"On your own?" Leaf asked him skeptically.

"I'm not going to do anything stupid – this time. I'm just going to see what Cresselia's doing, that's all. I'll be back in a minute. I have Pikachu with me."

"Pi pika!" Pikachu cried out, giving them a thumbs up.

"Five minutes," Misty said sternly. "This island isn't that big and you know where you're going. If you're not back in five, we follow you."

"Fifteen," Ash countered.

"Ten."

"Fine, ten," he conceded. Ash fixed the cap on his head and flashed his girlfriend a smile. "It'll be fine! Right Dawn? No need to worry?" The second part was directed to the girl sitting in the middle of Gyarados' back.

"That's when I worry the most," she replied dryly.

Ash blinked and then chuckled, waving as he turned to run, Pikachu gripping his hat to keep his balance.

"He's going to walk off a cliff or something, isn't he?" Serena asked as they watched him head towards the tree line.

Ash never even got to the trees though. He skidded to a stop as Cresselia appeared in front of him. He blinked at the Pokémon, a bit stunned at the Pokémon's sudden appearance. He had been keeping an 'eye' on her with his aura, but a part of him forgot the small tidbit that sometimes psychic Pokémon to teleport.

Sensing something was useless when they could appear right in front of you. It did let him know that Cresselia didn't mean any harm, though his friends didn't know that and he never got the chance to tell them.

Cresselia flew around him once and touched him with the tip of her beak. Then, along with Pikachu, they vanished.

Teleporting was a strange thing. It was like passing out for a moment without even passing out, and then appearing somewhere else. It also completely threw Ash's Aura out of balance. He could feel it rushing around him wildly, and as he steadied himself on his feet, he had to calm his Aura too.

Once he was steady, Ash looked around at where the Pokémon had taken him. He could feel the energy from the Psychic Orb pulsing very close by, but from the looks of it, they were still on the coast of the island. Maybe the other side. He was expecting the shrine to be in the middle.

"That would have been too obvious," Cresselia's gentle voice chided him in his mind. Gone were the days when Ash grew surprised at Pokémon using telepathy, especially legendaries. What did surprise him was how comforting and soothing her voice was.

Pikachu sniffed the air and cringed on Ash's shoulder. The whine that escaped the Pokémon's lips made the hair stand up on Ash's arms. "What's wrong?"

"I wanted to show you," Cresselia said. "I wanted you to see and to know."

"Know what?" She didn't answer, just nodded her head as some rocks shifted, revealing a path to the shore. Ash looked back and the Pokémon just stared at him. There was no question about it, she wanted him to go down there.

Slowly, Ash proceeded forward. Nothing felt strange to him at all. There was absolutely nothing there that should have gotten that reaction from Pikachu. Still, the Pokémon was quivering, unmistakably unsettled, so Ash took Pikachu into his arms and held him close as he walked.

Then the smell hit him. Ash's stomach twisted and it took everything in him not to vomit. He suddenly didn't want to keep walking forward as dread welled up within him. He had a responsibility though. He promised his friends that he was going to make sure the island was safe. Well, technically it was to see if Cresselia was going to be hostile, but it was still the same thing in his mind.

His feet slipped on the rocks under him, and Ash slammed into the ground painfully, skidding the rest of the way down the hill. He groaned for a minute as Pikachu gently patted his face. "Yeah, I'm—." He couldn't keep talking. The smell was so potent that it actually made him heave a bit. Ash sat up quickly, ignoring his scraped arms and jerked back.

He scrambled onto his feet and away from the lifeless eyes that stared at him. His eyes darted across what was once a beach, but was now a graveyard with no graves, a dumping ground for the deceased.

Pikachu cried out in terror and sadness and Ash ran. His legs burned as he ran back up the hill, using his Aura to push him up faster than normal. He had to get away from there. Getting back to the top of the hill, Ash had to let Pikachu go as he lurched forward, unable to hold back his nausea.

He coughed and spluttered and Pikachu patted his arm gently. It took Ash a moment to be able to sit up straight, and when he did he had to wipe away the tears from his eyes. A shadow loomed over them, but he didn't look up. "Why did you want me to see that?"

"To warn you," Cresselia said simply. "Come, your friends are frantic."

"Warn me?" Ash asked, standing up and glaring at the Pokémon. "Warn me about what? That you're hoarding dead bodies back there?" He felt sick again as the image flashed before his eyes. It was one he'd never forget.

"The current brings some, I save the others. Better to honour them than let them be lost to the sea. I pray over each and every one of them," she reasoned, turning and floating back towards the way she had come. Ash fathered Pikachu into his arms and followed her.

"I don't…understand."

"Your thoughts are loud, unprotected against anyone with psychic powers," Cresselia warned him. "I knew what you wanted before you were even here, it is why I let you and your friends through my barrier that protects this island. Anyone else sees nothing. What you saw is the result of what's being done on the other island."

"Newmoon Island? I thought…it's just a prison, right?" Ash asked, his voice shaking.

"A prison? Hardly. You will see for yourselves when you and your friends go." Cresselia nodded her head. "I will give you permission to use my island as a safe haven for both your group and those coming to stop the madness over there. Though it is but a temporary solution. You may take the orb for the permanent one." She paused. "There is one thing I ask of you though, Chosen One."

"What's that?" Ash and Pikachu exchanged wary looks.

"To help me prepare a proper pyre and send-off my young one. My little Darkrai."

Ash blinked. "What?" He followed Cresselia as she glided away from him. He went around the rocky ledges, through the trees, and then he came to a stop. The pulsing power from the Psychic Orb rushed through him, coming from the shrine that was there, but that wasn't what caught his attention.

Slumped at the base of the shrine was the unmoving figure of Darkrai. Instantly, Ash knew it wasn't the Darkrai that he met, but that didn't matter. He was so battered and bruised, and his figure was so cold and lifeless, devoid of any Aura. Just like Shaymin said.

"Cresselia…"

"I helped raise this Darkrai from a young age. He wished to protect Newmoon Island while the Alpha was gone. Those monsters did this to him," she looked at the ground. "I wish for you and your friends to help me erect a pyre and pray for my young one to travel safely to the next life. This island may be your safe haven in return."

Ash nodded his head, and Pikachu cooed sadly. "We can do that for you. "

"Thank you. I know you are busy and running out of time and don't have to stop," She nodded towards the shrine. "The Orb is yours as well."

Setting Pikachu on the ground, Ash slowly walked over towards the shrine, careful not to disturb Darkrai's body. He leaned forward, looking into the shrine and reached out, his hand making contact with the smooth orb. He took it out and stared at the light dancing beneath the dark pink surface.

"Cresselia, you're psychic," he said as he slowly walked from the shrine, his eyes still on the orb. "Are we…doing the right thing? Wanting to help with the prison? Or should we just keep going?" He looked up into Cresselia's pink eyes.

"You're conflicted." She sighed. "I'm not surprised. I never thought it was fair to place such a burden on one soul. At least before there were two."

"What?" That surprised Ash a lot. Two Chosen Ones?

"It matters not, that destiny has long since ended and now all that remains is you." She bowed her head. "Your mission is of the upmost importance, but what value will you gain if you leave hundreds for slaughter? This scenario is not a case of one versus billions. There are many people here, many people who can and will make a difference in the world should you succeed and it moves on." Cresselia stared at Ash sympathetically. "I suppose though, you are not alone, are you? Your friends all love you very much. Love may not win wars. It's not the end-all-be-all, but it is just as powerful a motivator as fear." She nudged him gently. "Our enemies don't understand that, and it will be their downfall."

Ash frowned at that. He understood in a way, but it also confused him quite a bit.

"Ash!" He and Pikachu both jumped as Misty's voice echoed through the tress that surrounded the shrine.

He spun around, looking back and forth before calling out, "Misty?"

"Pikachupi?" Pikachu called out and scurried over to a nearby tree, climbing as high as he could and looking around. Ash watched as his Pokémon suddenly started waving wildly. The sound of footsteps reached them, and Pikachu rushed back down.

Misty was the first one that made it through the forest line. She instantly caught sight of Ash and hurried over, skidding to a stop on the grass in front of him. "Are you okay? What happened?"

"I'm fine," Ash assured her. His mind flashed back to the gruesome scene that Cresselia showed him, as well as the figure on the ground by them. "But…"

"Darkrai," Dawn gasped in horror as she took a few steps towards the shrine. "Is he…?"

"Gone," Ash finished for her. "Cresselia wanted to show me that and something else." He held his hand up with the orb in it. "She says we can use the island as a base, but she'd like our help setting up a pyre for Darkrai. Team Galactic and Rocket killed him."

"Go to Newmoon Island," Paul spoke up after a moment. No one quite knew what to say about this sudden revelation, but he knew that they still had a job to do. Leaf's head snapped up and she looked ready to argue, but he held up his hand. "Only a couple were going to go anyway. The rest of us can set up the funeral pyre." He shook his head. "I'm not heartless, Green."

Leaf looked down at the ground, deciding not to comment on it.

Ash looked at his friends and slowly nodded his head, "Paul's right." He turned to face Cresselia again. "Is that okay? As long as we're all back?"

"Yes." She nodded her head and looked in the direction of the island. "Be wary, a storm is coming and it will be rough outside my barrier. I will keep everyone here safe."

"Thank you." That was really all Ash could ask for.

Cresselia was right. The waves were rough enough that it left Ash, Misty and Gary clinging to Gyarados, who swam low in the water to keep out of sight. Despite this, and the fact that they had to yell over the wind, the three of them still managed to have a conversation.

"That's horrible," Misty concluded after Ash revealed what Cresselia first showed him. "How can they—I don't…" She struggled to find the words but there really was no words to say.

"So we really have to be on our guard," Gary decided. They were going to be cautious to begin with, but knowing the body count that seemed to be coming from the island they were heading to was unsettling. It really made him wonder exactly what they were heading into.

They could see the looming prison in the distance, and it was shocking how big it actually was. They must have erected it incredibly quickly for no one to take notice before the takeover.

The storm was on their side. With Gyarados swimming so low, no one noticed them. If there were any Pokémon in the water for caution, none dared approach one of the ocean's apex predators.

Gyarados stopped by a rocky shore hidden from view of the looming prison itself. Gary climbed off first, Ash following a moment later. He turned around to stare at Misty, who stayed on Gyarados. "Be careful."

She leaned forward so that she was half hanging off her Pokémon and winked at him. "I'll be fine. I have the ocean on my side. Now you two, you be good. No fighting with them or each other or I'll kick both your asses." Neither of them laughed because they knew she could do it. Misty kissed him quickly. "Stay alive."

"Stay alive," he repeated, both in regards to her and a reminder for himself. He watched Gyarados veer off in the water, not liking her going on her own.

Gary placed a hand on his shoulder. "She'll be fine, we're the ones who might get in trouble. You ready to go?"

"Yeah," Ash slowly nodded his head and turned to follow his friends. "Let's see what makes this place tick."

Misty always felt comfortable in the ocean. Certainly she respected the power it had, but she never once feared it even in the worst of storms. If anything, she was thankful for the choppy waves and the howling wind. In the darkness, absolutely no one noticed her, even if the island was crawling with Grunts.

She and Gyarados rounded a bend and she gasped, urging her Pokémon to stop. Through the rain, she could still see a spot that was lit up brightly. Gyarados submerged in the water a little more, and Misty gripped her breathing device in case they had to go under really quickly.

She stared at the very distinctive stage that was there, but was incredibly confused. There was something hanging from the thick metal frame that ran across the stage.

Misty flinched and almost slipped off of Gyarados as nausea swept over her. They were gallows and those were people hanging off of it.

That's when she heard it. Even over the rage of the storm, Misty made out a shriek that would haunt her dreams. Her head jerked up, the rain plastering her orange bangs to her skin. Her eyes widened in horror as she watched a figure run to a high ledge and jump off towards the sharp rocks below.

She closed her eyes and turned away before she could see the result. Misty urged Gyarados away from that spot, her entire body shaking.

Whatever this place was, it wasn't just a simple prison, and she wasn't sure she wanted to know what it was.

Gary snapped a picture in night vision mode so that there wouldn't be a visible flash but they'd still get more detail than a normal camera. He stayed low to the ground, out of sight. Really, he would have loved to move around to get different points of view, but that would have been a horrible idea. The prison was crawling with Team Galactic grunts. Occasionally, he spied the familiar red R that belonged to Team Rocket, but they were few and far in between.

Ash shifted beside him, his eyes closed and his face twisted into a grimace. His entire body trembled slightly as he tried to use his Aura to feel the island around them, to get a glimpse of what was going on from that point of view. Gary didn't need a special power to realize that whatever he was sensing was upsetting Ash a lot. Every once in a while he would open his eyes and blink several times to shrug off the tears that threatened to well up.

"It's so dark here," Ash muttered quietly when he opened his eyes again. "There's so much suffering here."

Gary was about to reply when a shout made them both jerk up. They backed away into the shadows more, and Ash tensed up, ready to defend them if he had to.

A group of people were brought out into the miserable weather. They were a mix of young and old, male and female, seemingly from every walk of life. Ash watched with confusion as they were all made to kneel down.

"Oh Arceus," Gary gasped. He grabbed Ash's arm and tried to drag him back a bit. "We need to leave, now."

"What—?"

"Don't watch this, Ash," he urged his friend desperately. "Come on."

Getting up where no one could see them, Ash looked around again just in time to see the guards surround the people and raise their guns. Gary grabbed him again and jerked him away, but they didn't get far enough until the sound of gunfire echoed through the air.

Ash came to a sudden stop as it hit him what had just happened. He looked at Gary in shock and tried to say something, but no words would come out.

"This place isn't a prison," Gary said to him as he led the way down towards the shore again. "This is a death camp."

Together, May, Dawn, Leaf, Serena, Clemont and Paul managed to erect a beautifully laid out pyre, and had even moved the young Darkrai onto it by the time Ash, Misty and Gary got back. Though questions were asked, none of them wanted to talk about what they had seen yet.

Cresselia floated over Darkrai and stared at him sadly. "I wish you well on your journey to the next life, young one. You have done us all proud by trying to protect the island."

Ash listened to Cresselia talk from his spot in between Misty and the comforting form of Charizard. Pikachu rested on the large Pokémon's shoulder, watching with drooped ears. All of their Pokémon were out, gathering around in respect and sadness.

Ria pressed a large piece of drywood into Ash's hands. He stared down at the Lucario for a moment before holding the wood out to Charizard, who lit the end of it.

Cresselia watched expectantly as he slowly approached the pyre and lit the bottom part on fire. It wasn't something he wanted to do, but Cresselia had specifically asked him to do it, so who was he to say no.

He took a few steps back as the fire caught, feeling Misty take his hand into her own. All of them stared at the flames, grieving for a Pokémon none of them knew but was lost to the senseless violence that they were all familiar with.

"This is going to keep happening," May whispered, her voice piercing through the solemn night.

"What do you mean?" Serena asked her.

She shook her head, clasping her hands together in front of her. "As long as Giovanni is alive nothing good is safe." Her breath hitched as she closed her eyes to fight off the tears.

"What are you saying?" Ash inquired hesitantly, though he was pretty sure he knew where this was going. He just didn't like it.

"He has to pay for what he's done." May grimaced at her own words, though she also seemed resolute in them. "They all do."

"You think he should die." It wasn't a question, Ash knew that's what she meant and it really unsettled him. May was so sweet and bubbly, her temper only flaring up in certain moments. This wasn't like her at all.

He wondered what she'd say if she saw the bodies down on the beach or what was happening over on Newmoon Island.

"What else would we do with him?" Paul asked, bowing his head slightly.

"I don't know," Ash muttered, "but killing him...that would make us just like him. What gives us the right to decide to take his life away?"

"Look at everything he's done." Paul scowled. "Look at everyone he's hurt."

"If we can end all of this, all the people he took from us, all these deaths, they'll mean something," May added.

Ash glanced around at all of his friends, and felt his stomach sink slightly when he realized that no one was shocked or outraged by these statements. If anything, it was a sign that they were all thinking it too. "It's wrong." He looked at Misty for support, and she just squeezed his hand again.

"How do you think this is going to end, Ash?" Leaf asked him grimly as she stared at Darkrai.

"I don't know, but what right do we have to pick what happens to him?"

"Courts will never be fair. He'll get away and we'll end up in a situation like this again." Paul paused and sounded almost disappointed as he kept talking. "How are you supposed to save us if you're so worried about saving the bad guys? How many deaths are you going to let go unanswered for?"

"How much blood are you going to get on your hands before you're the bad guy?" Ash shot back, fed up with a conversation like this, especially when they were supposed to be honouring Darkrai. Cresselia didn't seem bothered by it though.

"If that means actually saving the world and not just chasing after legends like you're doing? As much as I need to." Paul looked away. "I can be the bad guy if it means saving everyone else. But can you?"

Ash looked away from him, but that was answer enough.

No, he couldn't.

Note

Firstly, thank you for all the awesome reviews for the next chapter! I'm sorry I wasn't able to reply to many of them, I've been so busy lately! So thank you to: Hinanta001, ultimateCCC, Kauris Azurai, JediMasterDraco, cidneha, thedarkpokemaster, ultraguy7x, cake0108, thor94, amandaalb4, sleoniek6, Model314, Joy-girl, Aaml mania, Great, VolcanicPanic, Killer Sand Shadow, and VikkiAAML.

A lot of you were curious about the game analogy. You really don't have to look too hard for it. Why? All the pieces are already in play in one way or another.

I really hope everyone is actually reading this because I'm going to give you a fair warning. The next chapter is going to be long. Really long. I've decided not to split it up. There were some dark things that popped up in this chapter. I warned you that I'd be taking a look at some dark things that come from real life. Though suspenseful things will continue to happen throughout everything, and there are going to be more dark and serious moments, the next chapter is the darkest. This chapter should be all the warning you need for that.

I promise you one thing: No gore. At most, I mention there are injuries or that people have died. I do NOT go into descriptions of it.

I'd say 'it's okay to skip over' but there are some pretty big moments for the characters. Some are morbid as all hell. Some will make you go 'but that's OOC'. At this point, that's true, because this is the shatter-point for several of the characters. I've made my stance on breaking characters very clear though, so there's only one place left to go from here.

This sounds super morbid but I just wanted to give you all a fair warning. Also, remember: this story's theme isn't angst or anything like that. It's hope. Keep that in mind.

I hope you guys like this chapter! I've been crazy busy so I can't promise any updates soon but I'm still going!

Til next time,

Written by: Skylight Sparkle

Edited by: EchidnaPower