After all that work, all those sacrifices made for the sole purpose of the mission...
It was all for nothing.
Soul's green eyes widened in horror as she watched both the Johto and Hoenn Knights marching toward each other. Both Pokémon and people marched side by side, armed and ready for battle. Queen Rin tightened her grip on the balcony's concrete railing tightly, her eyes quivering with great distress. She was against any form of violence, whether be it for a good or bad cause. Death was her enemy, and she'd do anything to prevent it from anyone.
"No... impossible..." Rin muttered under her breath, her eyes never leaving the two armies.
Knowing she shouldn't be standing around, Soul snapped out of her shocked state and turned to face a very angsty Queen Rin. All this was happening because of the essence inside her, which was why she's willing to do something.
"Milady," Soul addressed in almost desperate voice. "Y-Your orders?"
Tearing her eyes away from the nightmare, Queen Rin dropped her gaze at her hand that clutched the concrete rails, her blonde fringe creating a shadow over her desperate hazel eyes. She knew that Soul wanted to do something to prevent another unnecessary war to occur, but at the same time she didn't want Soul to die out there. Ever since she first brought her home, Soul was like a daughter to her. Queen Rin was there to watch her grow up into a very beautiful and strong woman. If something fatal were to happen to Soul, she'd never forgive herself.
That was why it pained her to say her next words.
"Go to your room," she ordered in a strict tone, not making eye contact with Soul. "Stay there until we figure something out."
"But Mil—"
"Go, now!"
Soul was taken aback by the Queen's suddenly strict tone. Never once had she been spoken to like that, which quite frankly startled her. Once again, Soul opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. What could she say to convince Queen Rin to let her assist? Soul closed her mouth before hesitantly taking her leave. The Queen didn't dare look back at Soul's retrieving figure, afraid that she'd cry out for forgiveness.
All Queen Rin could do now was watch from her castle the destruction of what would soon be manslaughter. With every minute that passed by, the opposing sides seemed to get closer and closer toward each other. The Queen bit her lip, for the first time feeling useless that she couldn't do anything to help. As she continued to stare at the ocean of human and Pokémon clad in armor, footsteps began to approach from behind her. She didn't have to turn around to know who it was, because she already knew.
"I hate war," she mumbled, her eyebrows furrowing. "The thought of people killing each other for an unrealistic cause just makes me upset."
"War is something that will stay with humanity until the end of time, Milady," Aaron implied, glancing at her. "There's no way of changing that."
Queen Rin frowned, but silently agreed nonetheless. There was no such thing as peace among the people because no matter what, there would always be that one person who had the desire to change something about the way the world ran. The blonde royal balled up one of her hands into a fist, something she usually did whenever she deeply thought about something. The loud footsteps of the people over yonder caused her to look up. There, her eyes caught something she completely forgotten about.
A gasp of realization left her lips, causing Aaron to look at her curiously. How could she have not thought about it before? The answer was right in front of her all this time, yet she somehow missed it.
"Milady?"
The blonde royal turned her whole body to face Aaron, who was still trying to figure out what she was up to. With desperate looking eyes hidden in her serious demeanor, Queen Rin gave him the thought that occurred to her.
"I have a plan," she informed, though her expression faltered a bit. "However..."
Meanwhile, Soul sat on her bed, all alone and locked up in her room with nothing to do. As much as she wanted to help, she knew she couldn't go against the Queen's word. However, that didn't change the fact of her frustration toward not being able to help. Doing nothing while everyone else were contributing made her feel useless. She could just escape and do something about this, but that would mean betraying the kingdom.
Soul groaned, standing up from her bed and making her way to her desk. From a box, the blonde woman pulled out that familiar bracelet, the one that once belonged to her father. She walked back to her bed and sat down, her eyes staring at the blue gem tied in the center of the leather bracelet. The roars and screams from the outside kept interrupting her train of thought, flinching each time there was some sort of loud explosions.
"Oh Father..." She sighed. "What would you do at a time like this?"
The moonlight from her window shined on the aqua colored gem. Soul grinned the tiniest bit before tying the bracelet onto her wrist, her worries fading only just a smidgen. Suddenly, a sharp pain began to consume her head just as she tied the bracelet onto her wrist. Surprised by this, Soul gasped before pressing her palm against her head. The pain never subsided, only increasing until it almost became unbearable.
The blonde woman tried to stand up and go call for help, but her feet gave out under her. She fell onto the floor, crawling toward the door. She struggled, her breaths becoming uneven. Her vision started getting out of focus and before she knew it, she passed out before she could even reach the door.
All she saw was darkness, not a single speck of light to be seen. Soul remembered passing out after that powerful headache took her down, but what happened after that? She didn't know, but she did know that something wasn't right.
Why was she here? What's going on?
There were too many questions whirling around in her head. She was locked up in her room only a minute ago and now she was in a field of darkness. Soul began to walk around, but it didn't feel like she was going anywhere, almost as if she was walking in place. Worry began to stir in her stomach. She didn't know what was going on, but she needed to get out of here.
A sudden stream of light hit her field of vision, causing her to stumble back a bit. The light never came from around her, but rather within her. Sure enough, the blonde woman dropped her gaze and saw the center of her torso beginning to glow. Her eyes widened when the light became brighter and brighter. It was the Ethereal Sphere beginning to react.
The bright light shot out in front of her and began to take form of a person. Soul's eyes never left the sight as she watched the light form into the shape of a man. Once it completely morphed, the light dimmed until she was able to see the person's features. Words couldn't even begin to describe what she felt at that moment. She hadn't seen his face in so long, yet those features of his were familiar to her.
Soul's eyes widened from shock as soon as his sapphire blue eyes made contact with her sea green optics. A soft smile graced his lips as she covered her mouth with one hand. This was all too good to be true, it has to be. The blonde woman felt her eyes line with tears as she looked at the man before her.
"Father...?" Soul asked in a small voice, removing her hand from her mouth. "Is that you?"
The soft smile on his face turned into a genuine grin as he nodded his head, his brunette hair bouncing along with him. That grin... the last time she saw it was that last day they were together. It was that grin that made her believe in his words, that made her believe in him.
"Nice to see you after so long, Soul," he greeted as if he just came back from a trip.
The blonde woman felt a tear fall from her eye, quickly running down to her chin. A few more followed from there as she bit her lip to prevent herself from sobbing. If she didn't, who knew when she'd stop. Emotions got the best of her, making her run toward her father to hug him. However, reality hit her hard as soon as her arms went through his body. A sad frown made its way to her lips when that cruel reminder came to her. How could she forget?
Her father was dead.
"I should've know this was too good to be true..." Soul mumbled in a sad voice.
"I'm sorry, Soul," he apologized, causing her to look up at him. "I'm so sorry..."
She quickly wiped away her tears before looking at him again. Her face softened when she saw that regretful face.
"Father..." Soul mumbled under her breath, shaking her head. "You have nothing to be sorry about."
"Yes I do," he argued. "I made a foolish mistake not telling you about the Ethereal Sphere. Now, because of it, Kanto will have to suffer another war."
Her father balled his hands into his fists as he glared at his feet. Soul couldn't argue that the Ethereal Sphere was what's driving the two foreign military to battle. However, she knew that it wasn't a mistake to not tell her about the Ethereal Sphere. She knew her father. She knew that he must have had a good reason not to tell her.
"Don't talk ill about yourself," Soul scolded, causing him to look at her. "You weren't foolish to keep me in the dark about the Ethereal Sphere. There must have been a good reason."
"There was a reason, but..." he trailed off, biting his lip nervously.
"But what?"
"My reason was invalid, because I knew that it was inevitable," he spoke.
"Father, don't beat around the bush." Soul gave him a persistent look. "Tell me, what are you talking about?"
"It's about the incoming war," he informed. "I know how to stop it."
A look of surprise crossed her face. There was a way to stop all this unnecessary fighting, but at what cost? Before she could ask, her father had beat her to it.
"You need to make your way to the heart of the Tree of Beginnings. There, you must sacrifice the Ethereal Sphere in order to summon Mew."
"I have to summon Mew?" she asked, her heart beginning to race from the growing nervousness.
"That's right." He nodded, looking dead serious about it. "Mew is the key to stopping this war. After summoning Mew, present it with your aura. Once succeeding, Mew will use that new surge of power to create a phenomenon that will cease all negativity in Kanto. However, I sense that another person is planning to meet your fate for themselves."
Soul's fringe shadowed over her eyes as her hands balled up into fists. That prophecy said that two heroes would sacrifice themselves to prevent a feud between humanity itself. Her fate was sealed from then on because she held the last piece to unlock the power that could save everyone.
"I guess... I'm going to have to sacrifice myself... to save us all..." Soul felt her hands shake with unwanted anger.
She should've known. After all, she was an aura guardian. An aura guardian must create good deeds for the sake of others, making sacrifices along the way. In this situation, the price she must pay was big. Her death would be for the better of others.
If she was going to die, she was going to die a hero.
"Soul," her father called out. "Are you willing to perform the ultimate sacrifice?"
The blonde woman looked up at her father and looked at him straight in the eyes. Determination flared in her green eyes as she gave him a strict nod.
"I'll do it," she answered. Her father smiled at her and nodded his head. She could see sadness in his eyes, contradicting his smile.
"I'm glad," he commented, though hesitation was clearly sensed as he looked away. Soul gave her father a worried look, but he couldn't see it.
"Father?" she questioned. His brunette fringe shadowed over his eyes as he gritted his teeth.
"Fate is just too cruel to all of us, not a single ounce of mercy is given at all..." He chuckled humorlessly. "I'm sorry you have to do this. If only I hadn't died that day..."
A small silver tear trailed down his face, eventually falling off his chin. Seeing him like this made Soul's heart break. Her face soften, her own eyes becoming glossy with forming tears.
"It should've been me dammit!" he shouted, his voice cracking toward the end.
"It's okay, Father," Soul assured in a soft voice, which brought his teary gaze to her face. "If I'm going to die, I'll die a hero."
A small smile appeared on her face as he grinned at her. Suddenly, Soul felt herself being pulled toward him. She felt the warmth his embrace, taking her by surprise considering she couldn't do that to him in the beginning. Tears fell from her eyes the moment she closed them, savoring this last embrace she'd ever get from her parent. She was going to miss this so much.
Her father pulled her away and took a few steps back. Soul wiped away her tears, but stopped when she saw his figure beginning to turn translucent. It was nice being with her father for just this once. After all, she'd most likely see him and her mother in the afterlife.
"I love you, Soul," he yelled as his figure started to disappear by large, shining fragments. "Fulfill that prophecy and show them what it means to be an aura guardian!"
"I love you too, Father! I promise I won't let you down!" she assured with a smile.
Her surroundings started glowing brighter and brighter. And soon, she felt herself disappear.
With a sharp gasp, Soul's eyes snapped open and she immediately sat upright. Her racing heart started slowing down to a more steady pace. Whatever happened just now, it was no dream. It must have been her father's last request before completely passing. After all, he was the earlier holder of the Ethereal Sphere.
Maybe the Sphere came with his thoughts, knowing that she would need them at some point. Well, that just did it then. She was not going to sit around and wait for someone to fix this mess. Her father told her to fulfill that prophecy and damn right she was going to do just that. She got up from the floor and made her way over to her sword that leaned against the leg of her desk.
Grabbing it by the hilt, the blonde woman sheathed it on her scabbard that was sewn onto her belt. Now the real question was, how was she going to get out of here? Knowing General Hayes, he probably told all of the knights to not let her leave this castle under any circumstances. She glanced at the window near her bed, an idea popping in her head. Maybe she could get out of here if she snuck out through the window.
Her room was on the first floor and if she could recall, there was an exit that's only a few feet away from where she was. This should be easy if all goes according to plan. Securing her black cloak, Soul walked over to the window and slowly opened it. The small squeak that emitted caused her breath to hitch, paranoid that someone might walk in at any minute. Once the window was fully open, she released a sigh of relief and began to take action.
Soul hoisted herself up and stood on the window frame. She was one step closer to freedom. Before she could make another move however, the blonde woman froze when she heard the doorknob jiggle. She looked over her shoulder and watched the door open, her eyes widening. This wasn't suppose to happen dammit! Gallade came through the door, but stopped once he saw her.
Neither of them said anything, just stared at each other. He looked confused, while she looked paranoid. After a moment or so, Gallade's eyes began to widen once he realized what she was going to do.
"Soul..." he said, slowly coming toward her. "Get down from there."
She looked away from him, gritting her teeth with anger. Well, it's now or never. Without any warning, Soul jumped out the window and landed on the soft grass. The blonde woman scrambled onto her feet and ran for the exit as if her life depended on it. From the distance, she could hear Gallade call out her name, but not once did she dare look back. If she did, she'd most likely would have changed her mind.
By this time, his yelling might have alerted the other knights that she had escaped. No matter how you looked at it, Soul couldn't go back. The blonde woman panted as she pushed herself to sprint faster. The exit was near. The moment she got out, she was going to make a run for the Tree of Beginnings. Her only way of escape was so close, but before she could go through, someone stood in front of it with a sword pointed at her.
Soul came to a sudden halt and unsheathed her sword. Her green eyes widened when she saw that it was Axel who stopped her. He looked like he didn't want to do this, but he should know that the moment you point your sword at another knight, it's up to them whether or not they want to fight. Soul, however, had no time for this. Her eyes narrowed at him as she gripped her sword's hilt.
"Out of my way, Axel," she demanded. "This is something I have to do."
"I'm sorry, Major." He shook his head. "But I was given orders to stop you at all costs."
Soul growled lowly, now fully glaring at him. She really didn't want to fight him, but it seemed like she didn't have much of a choice.
"Fine," she growled, powering up her sword using her aura. "Go ahead and try to stop me!"
Soul ran toward the curly haired knight, her sword pulled back. Despite knowing how much damage this would cause, he stood his ground and prepared himself. Once she was about halfway toward him, she stopped and swung her sword, releasing the aura blade. Axel jumped out of the way on time, the aura blade hitting the gate instead. A huge smoke cloud resulted after the collision.
Taking this to her advantage, Soul maneuvered her way through the smoke cloud, avoiding Axel by staying away from his aura. From there, all she did was run. She kept running and running, not once looking back. The whole way, she had to avoid both weapons and Pokémon attacks. She had a few close calls, but thankfully luck was on her side and allowed her to get through it. She would get to the Tree of Beginnings and nothing would stop her.
Soul was beginning to get tired, but that wasn't going to stop her from getting to her destination. Sweat ran down the side of her face as short pants left her mouth. The blonde woman could already see the familiar rock formation getting bigger in her sight of vision. She was so close. She knew she could make it before this became any more violent. Before she continued on, a familiar voice caused her to freeze.
The blonde woman looked over her shoulder and found Gallade running toward her. Soul's eyes widened in surprise, but narrowed slightly. Why was he here? He should be back at the castle where it's safe! She completely turned around once Gallade was a few feet away from her.
"Soul, you've gotta come back!" he pleaded in a desperate voice.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, knowing that what she was going to do would make him hate her forever. She didn't have much of a choice. It was for his own good. Soul reopened her eyes and gave him a stoic look.
"I can't do that, Gallade. Don't you understand?" she told him, looking over at the Tree of Beginnings. "The prophecy made it clear that I was going to die. That's why Father never told me about the Ethereal Sphere because he knew that someday, I would have to sacrifice myself using it."
"But you promised you wouldn't die!" he screamed, his voice cracking at the end. "You promised you'd stay alive for me, for everyone. Are you going to betray that promise to them?!"
Soul gripped her sword's hilt, her eyes beginning to water. She did promise to stay alive for everyone's sake. Why did she make such an empty promise? Death was after her since the beginning and she had the feeling everyone knew that. And Gallade... he's been with her since the beginning. If she went through with this, he'd be heartbroken and most likely hate her.
Hesitantly, the woman looked back at the Pokémon, who stared at her with mad, teary eyes. Her blonde fringe shadowed over her sea green eyes as she began to unsheathe her sword. Soul didn't want to do this to her best friend, but again— she didn't have much of a choice anymore.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, looking back at him with sorrowful and teary eyes. "Please, forgive me someday."
Gallade gave her an odd look, which bought her enough time to focus aura energy into her sword for a sealing. When the sword's blue gem was glowing a light blue color, Soul threw it near Gallade's feet. The glow on the blue gemstone manifested. A light blue light came out of the gem and surrounded Gallade's entire body, making him become translucent.
Realizing what she had done, the Blade Pokémon looked at her dead in the eyes with his teary glare. That glare flared with both anger and hurt, which made her own heart break. His final words stabbed her in the heart like a ton of needles.
"I trusted you, Soul! I will never forgive you for this!"
With that, his entire body disappeared into the gem. Right after his disappearance, her tears rapidly left her eyes. Soul turned her back to the sword and continued her way to the Tree of Beginnings. She knew Gallade would never forgive her, and she couldn't blame him for it.
Gallade, I'm so sorry. I hope I'll be able to make it up to you in another life.