Hooray for more filler! *sarcasm* I originally was going to make this two parts, but, to be honest, I've had enough of the padding, and I'm more than certain that you guys are, too.

This is the last chapter before the epilogue, so stay tuned.

Enjoy~

Chapter 19 - Where the Light Gleams

*~Wingless Seraph - Rest in Peace~*

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~?~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wing Gundam Zero floated in the red-and-blue space, limp, its robotic eyes not glowing green now. Heero was slumped in the cockpit, exhausted from the exertion of using Hikari's power to obliterate Necrozma's soul from existence. In his mind, Hikari called out to him, in a state no worse than him.

"He… Heero?"

Heero let out a soft moan, but moved only slightly at Hikari's voice. But his mind was still active enough to respond. "Hikari. Are you all right?"

In Heero's mind, Hikari, in its projection of a female and in the nude, was on its hands and knees, panting, her privates covered by her long flowing blonde hair.

"I'm… I'm all right." It looked up to Heero. It could see that his face was slightly evident with slight concern. "I'm sorry. I'm not as powerful as I once was…"

"There's no need to apologize, Hikari," Heero said to it in assurance. "Your power was enough to destroy Necrozma once and for all. That's what matters to me and the others."

Hikari expressed a grateful smile, its multi-colored dragon eyes softening.

"You should rest now, Hikari," Heero suggested.

"Thank you." Hikari softly laid down on her side, her long hair acting as a blanket, and closed her eyes, content.

Heero moaned slightly again, this time making an effort to wake up from unconsciousness. He slowly opened is cobalt blue eyes to adjust to the brightness of the monitors surrounding him. In response, Wing Zero's eyes glowed green and readjusted itself into a less relaxed position. On the monitors, Heero noticed Sandrock Gundam, Altron Gundam and Gundam Heavyarms floating in front of him, with Heavyarms holding something in its hand.

"Where is Duo?" he asked the group.

Quatre's image appeared on one of the cockpit monitors with a saddened expression on his face. "He's… Duo is…"

Trowa's image appeared next. "Heero… I think it's better for you to see for yourself."

Heero maneuvered Wing Zero towards the limp object laying in Gundam Heavyarms' hand to see what Trowa and Quatre were talking about. Is Duo really all right from the aftermath? As soon as Wing Zero went close enough to Heavyarms, the question he had mentally asked is answered, albeit not completely clear.

Duo's naked pale body lay limp in Gundam Heavyarms' left hand, his unbraided chestnut brown hair strewn everywhere. He also doesn't seem to be breathing. Almost uncharacteristically, Heero felt his heart drop at the sight he saw on the cockpit monitor. Is Duo dead? Is he comatose?

Heero directed Wing Zero's right hand to Heavyarms' left so that the tips of the formers fingers are touching one side. He then opened up his cockpit and used the next-to-nonexistent gravity to easily jump from his cockpit to Wing's right arm, proceeding to walk down to the extended hand to Heavyarms'.

Once he got to his destination, the Wing Zero pilot kneeled down and slowly touched Duo's skin. It almost felt like ice. Heero hung his head down in sadness. Duo is likely dead, meaning that he had broken his promise to Remilia of not killing him or Lunala, even though Lunala turned out to be alive and well, if exhausted from the psychic possession. What would she even say to him now?

Taking off his new gray zip-up hoodie, Heero laid it over Duo's body, and managed to put it on. Duo was slightly shorter than Heero, so the hoodie looked a tad bigger on him. He then slowly inserted his arms underneath Duo's shoulders and knees and picked him up almost effortlessly. He nestled his head on his shoulders and made his way back to Wing Zero's cockpit.

With Duo still in his arms, Heero sat him down on his lap and closed the cockpit hatch. His mind was left wondering what to say to Remilia next. Quatre looked sad and apologetic, Trowa looked remorseful and Wufei looked regretful with a hint of anger on his face.

"You… this is unforgivable!" they heard Phyco shout at them.

The whole group turned their attention to him and Soliera, flabbergasted and angry at them for what had transpired not two minutes ago.

"Not only have you destroyed the Blinding One," Phyco yelled at them. "You also destroyed the Blinding One's soul! And now you're taking its light for yourselves! Have you no concern for our people's situation?!"

"Oh, don't give us that crap when you're the ones being so greedy!" Quatre berated them. "What you did to Heero, Duo, Lunala, and Necrozma especially, you're no better than your ancestors. It's your own damn fault for making Heero and Duo suffer, Duo especially! And now look at him!"

Both Phyco and Soliera were taken aback by Quatre's words. For the first time in their lives, they don't know what to say, much less think. No different from their ancestors… Those very words repeated themselves in their heads, over and over again.

Wing Gundam Zero, meanwhile, flapped its main wings once to thrust itself to see if it can retrieve Gundam Deathscythe Hell. The latter Gundam remained where it was… as well as the damage taken while being under Necrozma's psychic control. Its lower left arm was missing, its black bat wing was chopped off where it bends inward, the cockpit hatch missing its doors… but the worst damage it took was its face. Its endoskeleton is almost fully exposed, including the main camera, and part of the gold V-fin was missing. Even the endoskeleton itself wasn't saved from additional damage, evident by the sorchmarks from Wing Zero's beam saber.

Wing Zero was able to scoop Deathscythe Hell in its arms, adjusting it slightly so that the damaged wing wouldn't accidentally scratch at its armor plating. With another flap of its wings, it returned to the group, not saying anything other than what to do next.

"Let's get back to Alola."

"How do we do that, though?" Wufei asked calmly.

"We can use Lunala for that," Quatre replied to his question. "Remilia said that she can create an Ultra Wormhole to get us back to the Altar of Light on Poni Island."

"Are you sure about that, Quatre?" Trowa asked in concern. "Lunala looks pretty exhausted right now…"

"It's the only option we've got now, Trowa," Remilia said, sadness evident in her tone.

As if overhearing the conversation, Lunala flapped its wings twice to fly past the group. As soon as it reaches a reasonable distance from them, its "third eye" appeared in its glassy forehead, and a light blue ripple appeared in response. Lunala's "eye" then glows a bright red as it adjusts the pale gold crescents on its wings to form a circular shape. Multiple orbs of light encircle Lunala and swirl counter-clockwise to its "third eye" and finally releasing a beam of bright blue energy at the ripple, instantly creating an Ultra Wormhole. Lunala then uses its psionic powers to enlarge the Ultra Wormhole big enough for the Gundams to fit through, and it flies right into it, with the Gundams following, and the Ultra Wormhole closing after.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Altar of Light, Poni Island~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Following Lunala, all four (functioning) Gundams emerged from the Ultra Wormhole, and landed beside the somewhat damaged shrine known as the Altar of Light; Altron and Wing Zero on one side, and Heavyarms and Sandrock on the other. Altron had to make some distance from Wing Zero due to Gundam Deathscythe Hell still in its arms.

Heavyarms, Sandrock and Altron brought their hands to the carved mountain so that their fingers are touching the edge. Guzma, who was riding on Altron's hand the entire time, became the first to jump off. Hau did the same as he was riding on Heavyarms' hand as well; then Gladion, Plumeria and Remilia emerged from the Gundams' cockpits, followed by their pilots and they descended down to the altar using the tether cord. Heero only came out last, carrying Duo in his arms, as he jumped out of Wing Zero and landed close to Deathscythe's skirt armor, managing to descend with its tether cord.

As Heero walked to the group with Duo in his arms, Remilia wanted to cry at Duo's supposedly dead state, her legs becoming too weak to support her body's weight. Heero was able to see this and kneeled down to her.

Slowly, Remilia touched Duo's pale face, noting that it felt could to the touch. A couple tears leaked out of her eyes, then she burst out crying, cradling Duo's limp head in her hands and bringing his forehead to hers.

Heero could definitely imagine what Remilia's feeling. Her sadness, that much is clear. She might also be angry at him for allegedly killing Duo, even though the circumstances were beyond his control. Heero was feeling almost the same way as she was; is this what it feels like to lose a friend in combat, let alone possessed by some spirit of a god? When he and Duo first met, Heero thought nothing of him, simply seeing him as a minor annoyance. Maybe… maybe somewhere along the line, during the war back in their world, he started to develop a soft spot for him, or perhaps possibly pity that grew into something more.

A reverb-sounding, glittering moan made itself known to the others' ears. Remilia turned her head fast to the source, thick tears still streaming down her face. Lunala, still exhausted from using its energy to create a large Ultra Wormhole for the Gundams, tried to speak to Remilia telepathically. Like before, it was riddled with white noise, only somewhat worse than last time.

"-tal… chrys-al…" Lunala was saying in a female voice. "Life… f-ce…" It then collapsed from near-total exhaustion.

*~Atlantis: The Lost Empire - Kida Returns~*

Remilia wiped away her tears and tried to make sense of what Lunala had said before passing out. Crystal… Life force… A light bulb suddenly went off in her head. The large black Z-Crystal that was on the altar's platform prior! That must be what Lunala was referring to!

She wasted no time opening her white ruffled shoulder bag and took out the black crystal, whose crimson highlights would only appear in certain angles. Ignoring Heero's curiosity for a moment, she unzipped her fanny pack and took out her Quick Ball, releasing Emil the Alolan Sandslash. She held the large Z-Crystal over Duo's body with both hands grasping the ends, and commanded Emil to use Brick Break over the crystal.

Emil easily chops the crystal with its long icy claws, which released a white mist that slowly descends down to Duo's body and spreads throughout his entire person. In the span of a few seconds, the mist becomes completely absorbed in his body, and his skin complexion returns to normal.

Duo moans and squirms a little, causing Remilia to gasp softly, her heart skipping a beat. Slowly, he opens his indigo eyes and lifts his head up to focus on Heero better.

"H… Heero?" he croaked out.

The latter simply stared at him for a few more seconds, and suddenly embraces him in a hug, his fingers entangling themselves into his long hair. Duo simply laid there, this action taking him completely by surprise. He nevertheless slowly wrapped his arms around his back and hugged him back tightly, gently burying his head into his shoulder.

Remilia soon started to cry softly, this time with happiness and relief, making no effort to stop the smile from forming on her face.

Both of the Gundam pilots released each other, with Duo still being stunned by Heero's wholly unexpected display of affection. Heero took a look at the other Gundam pilots behind Remilia and her Sandslash. Wufei, Plumeria, Gladion and Trowa let out small smiles, Quatre was struggling to not break into tears of joy, and Hau and Guzma fist-pumped into the air. All of them are relieved and happy that Duo turned out okay, despite what he had gone through during their time in Alola.

Duo signaled Heero that he needs to stand up, and Heero complied, taking in his hand to help him back up on his feet, and putting his hands on his shoulders to help him maintain its balance. Both of them, and following the rest, watched the cloudy, overcast sky break from the peeking sunlight, revealing the entirety of the sun in full force, its rays casting wherever is touched by their gleam. Though the circumstances were unusual, coming into this world might be the best thing that's ever happened to the Gundam pilots.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Aether Paradise; The Next Day, Early Morning*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

*~No BGM~*

Duo leaned against the railing in front of Aether Paradise, the ambient sound of the ocean waves almost making him fall asleep yet again. He spent the entire day yesterday resting in the Aether Foundation's medical wing, but he had only woken up recently after finding that he couldn't go back to sleep. His long chestnut brown hair was still undone, waving in the gentle sea breeze, and he wore the same lavender medical jumpsuit with certain parts of his body still exposed, but he was wearing an Aether hooded sports jacket to keep himself warm from the cool breeze plus off-white medical slippers, as the walking around the hard floor long enough made his feet hurt slightly.

He stared out into the horizon turning violet, gradient against the midnight blue sprinkled with stars, thinking about the latest conversation with Remilia. At first, Remilia was checking on him to see if he's all right-which, really he is, if somewhat exhausted-but… it went a little deeper than that.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Aether Paradise Hospital Wing, Several Minutes Earlier~*~*~*~*~*~

Remilia stared at the sleeping figure, hers halfway obscured by the doorway. She and her Trainer friends had used their ride Pokèmon to get their Gundam pilot friends to Aether Paradise, where they would rest and refresh themselves after their rather spectacular battle against Phyco, Soliera and Necrozma, Lunala especially. It fainted from exhaustion from being possessed by Necrozma, coupled with creating a very large Ultra Wormhole for the Gundams to fit and travel through to get back to Poni. Wicke was kind enough to let the pilots rest in the employee residential area (Plumeria and Guzma went back to Ula'ula while Hau went back to Melemele), and have the Aether medical team attend to Duo and Lunala awhile. Meanwhile, Remilia opted to go back to her house on Melemele to rest rather than take up Wicke's offer of staying at Aether, though she did tell Wicke to vid-call her in case Duo and Lunala's condition changes.

So, Remilia spent the rest of her day relaxing-well as best she could, as after the adrenaline rush she had while distracting Necrozma, she was having difficulty recovering from it, so she had to find ways in order to distract herself. Cleaning her whole house (except for her mother's bedroom), washing dishes, feeding her pet Meowth, taking care of its litter box, even watched her favorite real robot anime shows on the internet. As soon as night fell, she went straight to bed, cuddling her Sylveon plushie. Unfortunately, she was having a hard time getting to sleep. After a few hours, she was able to, only to wake up a couple hours later, in the wee hours of the morning. Her heart still thudding against her ribcage, she got herself dressed and snuck out of the house without waking her mom and flew to Aether Paradise, which led to her standing half-obscured through the doorway now.

Maybe, deep down, she did feel a little silly that she had let her anxiety control her in retrospect, but… Remilia can't help but feel… Every time she looks at Duo, the first thing that ever comes to her mind is her late father. Granted, it did take her and her mom almost a decade to recover from this sudden loss, and, all things considered, she was doing fine, until the very first time that she laid eyes on Duo, namely his face, his attitude… his touch that almost made her feel nostalgic. A small part of her wanted to blame Duo for having one too many similarities to her late dad, but the rest of her felt that it would be unfair to punish him just because he bears the same similarities as him. The entire time the Gundam pilots have been in this world, Remilia kept telling herself that no matter what Duo looks like, or how he acts, he isn't her father and that's that.

But, there is still one tiny, crazy thought that still lingers within her. That crazy thought being that Duo might be the reincarnation of her late father. Like her, he was also a huge fan of real robot shows, and was responsible for getting her into them as young as four or five. She remembered asking him if he wanted to pilot a giant mecha from any of the shows he watches, and he said that he definitely would, because he thinks it would be so cool to pilot one. Come his sudden death some time later, plus watching those same shows online, she had thought that those were grittier than she had last remembered. But that memory made her think that Duo was her father's reincarnation, like he might have achieved his dream somehow.

Her current thoughts were suddenly interrupted when she sees Duo stir under the sheets a little, and she immediately hid herself behind the doorway to avoid being noticed by him.

"Who's there?" he said almost sleepily.

Remilia tried to keep her breathing still, as much as her face had heated up.

"Whoever's behind there, either come inside or leave," she heard him say next.

Remilia swallowed. Okay, so he noticed me, she thought in defeat.

Straightening her spine, she made herself be seen by Duo, who was sitting on his medical bed and wearing the lavender jumpsuit and hair still undone. His clothes were still being patched up, so it's unlikely that he'll change into them anytime soon. He has a surprised look on his face, despite having just woken up.

"Remilia?" Duo asked her name. "What are you doing here?"

Remilia inhaled a shaky breath. "I… I couldn't sleep."

Duo shrugged in response. "Yeah, well, me neither." He paused. "Though I don't see why you would bother coming all the way here from Melemele just to see me. You had a bad dream or something?"

It took all of Remilia's will to not shudder. There he goes again. "I said I couldn't sleep," she replied, being unintentionally snappy. "I never had a bad dream or anything."

Duo was taken aback by her response. "Jeez, sorry, there's no need to be snappy at me. I was just asking out of pure concern."

Remilia sighed in a futile attempt to relieve the pain in her chest. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you. I didn't mean it."

"It's okay. We're all feeling exhausted after yesterday's events, so I kinda couldn't blame you for that."

Remilia stared at Duo rather sorrowfully. She felt her legs becoming weak, but she forced them to keep standing anyway.

Duo straightened his brows in concern. "Something wrong?"

*~Brian Crain - Dream of Flying~*

Remilia let out a shaky sigh, an urge to cry creeping in the back of her brain. "You… you remind me so much of my father…"

The long-haired Deathscythe pilot tilted his head slightly. "I'm sorry?"

"Almost everything about you is him. Your physical appearance, your personality, your… your attitude… It was like he was brought back to life after all these years…"

Duo's eyes widened at what Remilia said about him. He, resembling her father? In many aspects, no less? "I… I don't…" He cleared his throat. "Remi, I really don't know what to say, other than sorry about your dad's passing." He lowered his head down and sighed. "If it makes you feel any better, I never even knew my real parents myself." He then lifted his head up. "The only real parents I ever had was Father Maxwell and Sister Helen, back in the space colonies in my world, before they…"

He stopped himself, upon noticing that Remilia looked like she could burst out crying any minute.

Remilia continued after a brief but heavy pause between them. "My dad was a Pokèmon Trainer, just like I am. He, he never became the champion of Unova, but… he told me that loves the journey more than the goal."

"Is that why you took up the Island Challenge?" Duo asked in curiosity. "To get the same feeling your dad got while on his journey in Unova?"

Remilia swallowed. "Maybe… But, otherwise, I'm not sure myself. I only went along with it, because it was a coming-of-age thing and, everybody else was doing it, and…" She stopped, not knowing what else to say next.

Duo straightened his brows. "You don't regret going on the Island Challenge, do you?"

"No, I don't. I've met some great people along the way, bonded with my Pokèmon even as they evolve…" Remilia paused, trying to think of what to say next. Everybody says that partaking in the Island Challenge helps you become a stronger Pokèmon Trainer, but… with what Duo is implying… is there a deeper reason for all this? She knows she isn't doing it to achieve what her late father failed to do, that much is clear, but…

"Deep down…" she continued. "Deep down, I wish Dad was alive today. Me just looking at you, you being here, even in this world, just helped amplified that. I just wanted him to be alive to witness my achievements, watch me grow up, watch me fight tooth and nail just to become the Island Challenge Champion…" Remilia inhaled a shaky breath and let it out the same way. "I wanted him to be there to congratulate me for reaching that goal successfully, along with Mom…"

Duo listened to her intently, feeling even more sorry for her for having to go through that ordeal of losing her father suddenly, and her issues stemming after the fact. "Come here."

Remilia took a step forward, confused about what Duo was going to do.

"Take your hat off."

Remilia did so, rubbing her pink-brown head.

"Now lean forward."

She bent down slightly, careful to make sure that the first thing Duo doesn't see is her large revealing cleavage.

Duo then places a hand on her head, stroking it gently, a confident smile forming on his face. "If your dad were alive today, I know he'll say this: 'I'm so happy my baby girl was able to become Alola's first-ever regional Champion.' No doubt about it."

Those words suddenly coming out of Duo's mouth was enough for Remilia's dams to burst, and she threw her arms around his torso, her hat forgotten on the white floor, placing her head in the crook of his neck, sobbing loudly. Duo responded by wrapping his arms around her with one hand stroking her pink-brown hair, deciding to let Remilia pour all of her overwhelming emotions into his shoulder.

Remilia was grateful that Duo did so. For far too long, she kept her nostalgic and sad feelings bottled up, even before she met him and the other pilots. On the other hand, she was grateful to Duo for listening to every word she had said about her late father, even providing a shoulder to sob freely on when talking about him had proven to be too much for her to handle. Her throat was starting to feel like an old, wet rag, but with her pouring out every last of her overwhelming emotions she had been trying to keep to the bottom, it was very hard for her to stop crying anytime soon.

Duo just up and let Remilia cry her heart out, not caring if her tears stain his medical jumpsuit. Even though he has been through an even worse situation than her of losing his only parental figures to the war between the colonies and Romefeller… Despite having never cried, he does sympathize with her, because he knows what it's like to lose someone they love, a parent especially.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*To the Present*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

*~No BGM~*

Thinking back on the conversation, Duo couldn't help but wonder: did he really have the same physical and personal resemblance to Remilia's late dad? Well, he couldn't really imagine him having long hair, so if he cuts it all off, he would look physically the same as him. However, Duo knows that he can't replace her father, and he's sure that Remilia knows that, too. He didn't really imagine that they would develop a very close friendship in the short amount of time he and the other Gundam pilots have been in this world, but… deep down, he was glad that they did, even gladder that it happened.

Another part of Duo told him that even with all the crazy stuff that has happened in the past two or so days, he can't forget that he and the other pilots still has to go back to their dimension and time, now made possible due to the fact that Remilia has a Legendary Pokèmon has the ability to create Ultra Wormholes. A chuckle tickled inside him. Duo and the others haven't even been in this place long and yet he feels like he's missing it already. It's not just Remilia, or the fact that she's a Pokèmon Trainer (the strongest one in Alola to boot) that made this dimension special; it's the variety of Pokèmon that live here, the sport known as Pokèmon battling having the uncanny ability to unite people as one. This world's mythos, the biology and habitats of each and every Pokèmon, everything else ever born in this world possibly makes it even more special than anything that Duo or his fellow pilots have seen, or even experienced in their lifetimes.

For the next few moments, Duo wondered if he and his friends, and the others from their home dimension, were born in this world instead of theirs, anything and everything would be different from the circumstances there. He might have met the pilots a little differently, and their pasts would not have been as dysfunctional (or them being dysfunctional, for that matter). Granted, their professions and occupations might be either slightly or wildly different, but the one thing they would have in common is not having to fight pointless battles, a pointless war; there would have been no war, period. They would even share common ground through Pokèmon battling, just like everybody else in Alola, if not this entire planet.

His contemplative thoughts were interrupted when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Heero approach next to him and placed his arms on the railing, staring into the horizon. He briefly thought if he came here just to watch the sunrise.

"Couldn't sleep either?" Duo asked him.

Heero lowered his head slightly. "No."

"Came here to watch the sunrise?"

Heero didn't respond to the latest question.

"I'll take that as a 'yes,' then."

The two of them said nothing for a few moments, as they simply watched the sky's gradients turn into pale rose, then bright orange, with the stars slowly disappearing from the sky. Heero would have to admit, it is quite beautiful. Until now, he never learned to enjoy such moments of serenity and peacefulness.

The Wing Zero pilot looked at Duo. His unwoven brown hair flowed along with sea breeze, almost as if it were dancing in the soft wind. It looked… mesmerizing, oddly for him.

As if controlled by some unknown force, Heero slowly moved his and to Duo's long hair and captured a strand between his thumb and index finger. It felt like he was touching silk.

Unfortunately for him, Duo sensed that he was touching his hair and slapped his hand away. "Get your mitts off my hair, you jerk!"

"I'm sorry," Heero said without a second thought, his mind suddenly snapping back to reality.

"You oughta be."

The two boys opted not to say anything up to the point when the sun was halfway up from the ocean horizon. Duo first yawned, saying that he's going back to the Aether employee residential area to catch up on more of his sleep. Heero opted to stay behind, with Duo teasing him about him staying to watch the sunrise while thinking about his "pretty pink princess," though Duo scampered off before Heero could strike him with his signature death glare.

Sighing, Heero returned to viewing watching the sun rise. Deep down, though, he wondered if Duo was right.

*~Coro - Your Eyes Only (Kissing the Mirror)~*

The rest of the day after was like a slow breeze for the Gundam pilots. Later in the morning, all of them decided to go to the indoor conservation area on the top floor of the main building at Quatre's proposal. Nobody else objected to that, since the past couple of days have been rather crazy, ranging from being sucked through the Ultra Wormhole and into this world to having to save Duo and Lunala from the clutches of a feral light deity known as Necrozma, so they all needed some rest and relaxation.

At Wicke's insistence, the Gundam pilots head to the Aether employee cafeteria where they had their breakfast, which Wicke has kindly paid for. She had also informed Duo that his clothes and shoes are fully mended and ready to be picked up anytime he wishes. Duo enthusiastically thanked the woman, very nearly choking on his breakfast in the process and Trowa had to slap his back once to get him to swallow properly. Quatre and Wicke couldn't help but chuckle at his antics while Heero and Wufei looked annoyed.

After they had their breakfast, Wicke led the pilots to the conservation area on the top floor. They noted that the whole place looks similar to that of the reptile or small primate centers in the zoos from their world, or even breeding and rescue centers. There was also a large variety of Pokèmon residing in the conservation area, ranging from Rock-type to Water-type, big and small; a few others they could hardly tell they're Pokèmon at all! No different from the animals from their world, they mused altogether. There was even one Pokèmon which closely resembles a bonsai tree that looked Grass-type, but-according to Wicke-is actually a Rock-type. The Pokèmon, known as Sudowoodo, is the Mimic Pokèmon that disguises its appearance by standing upright, arms spread and looking like a tree. On rainy days, it finds shelter as the moisture isn't too good for its very rocky skin.

The Gundam pilots walked around the conservation area for a while longer-splitting up into two groups, even-when a young female employee approached Wicke and said that Remilia has arrived on Aether Paradise to see the boys. Trowa overheard this and asked the young employee what she would want with them, and she replied that she will tell them as soon as they personally see her. Duo then tells Wicke that he would like to pick up his clothes; Wicke then leads the boys to the triangular elevator they used to ride up to the conservation area to go down to the reception area, both where the front entrance and the pathway to the mansion, which is all the way in the back of this floating paradise. Wicke excuses herself and Duo from the group as she led him to the upwards path to the white mansion to retrieve his clothes, with Quatre telling them both that Duo will meet up with them at the front entrance.

At the front entrance, Remilia sat on the wall of a small bush garden, sitting closely to a polished gold plaque that says that Aether Paradise was founded by its first president named "Lucius," who passed down the paradise to his daughter upon death, whom she was surprised to find out was actually Lusamine. For a brief moment, she mused that she and Lusamine still aren't any different from each other, no matter how much she hates her for what she's done, especially for what she did to Lillie and Nebby.

Back to the subject, Remilia sat on the bush garden wall, a stack of six differently-colored bento boxes wrapped up in a Luvdisc-patterned cloth topped with a cute knot sitting on her lap. Considering what they have been through the past two days, she thinks it's high-time to give the Gundam pilots a proper tour of the Alola region before they head home along with their Gundams. That reminds her, she needs to ask Wicke if Lunala is recovering well enough for it to create another large Ultra Wormhole for the guys' Gundams to fit through.

Remilia then noticed for of them walking through the entrance and waved at them before walking towards the group, carrying the bento boxes. "Where's Duo and Wicke?" she had asked them.

"Both Duo and Wicke are at Gladion's mansion to get his clothes," Quatre had explained.

"So they're already taken care of?"

"Yes. So we can go whenever we please."

"Before that, though, I've got something for you."

Remilia untied the cute little knot of the Luvdisc cloth, revealing the six bentos. "Here! It took all morning to make these!"

"Bento lunches?" Trowa asked, a little confused.

"For what purpose do you have these made for?" asked Wufei as well, raising a black brow.

"Isn't it obvious?" Remilia replied. "I'm going to give you guys a proper tour of the Alola region."

"But you gave us a tour already," Trowa said bluntly.

"That was before you guys told me you were Gundam pilots from another dimension."

"Point," said Quatre.

"We still need to wait for Duo and Wicke to come back," Heero reminded the group.

"Speaking of, how do you propose going from island to island without a ride Pokèmon?" Wufei asked, shooting her an accusatory look.

Remilia gave him a stink-eye glare. "We can ask Wicke to use the Aether ferry to go to any of the islands. They're used occasionally to have tiral-goers go to Aether Paradise to get a tour about what they do, what the different occupations Aether works on, the works. It's not actually a mandatory part of the Island Challenge, but everybody else seems to encourage it."

"What about the ferries for each island?" Trowa inquired next.

"I'll pay for the tickets, so there's no need to worry about it."

"You must have a lot of money just from being Alola's first regional Champion," said Quatre almost amusingly.

"Plus more from capturing the Ultra Beasts and sending them back to their natural habitats in Ultra Space."

"By whom, Aether Paradise?" Wufei asked skeptically.

"Nope; something that has a lot more money than even Aether Paradise. But I'm not telling who that is."

Quatre suddenly shrieked as he felt a pair of arms wrap around his torso and being barely lifted up from the ground.

"Guess who's baaaack~!" a familiar hearty voice said.

Quatre burst out laughing as he was (mercifully) placed back on his feet. "Duo! Please don't do that again, you really scared me!"

Duo, having wearing his finally-fixed clothes and his hair woven into is signature braid, let out a dorky smirk. "Sorry! Hohhh man, it feels so good to be back in these!"

"Hi, Duo!" Remilia greeted him as soon as he recognized him.

"Hiya Remi~!" Duo swiftly approached her as soon as he laid eyes on the bento boxes. "Watcha got there, some yummies~?"

"Why is it that every time you recover from your injuries, the first thing you ask is if there's any food?" Wufei asked in disbelief.

"Wufei, Duo's been through a whole lot, as we all have been," Quatre politely chided him. "It's only fair that we all deserve a treat to put our minds off of the recent events."

"Translation: Fu- Back off, Wufei, and let us enjoy our last day together," said Remilia, taking note of Wicke's presence, as she knew that cussing whenever she's around wouldn't really be good.

The Sandrock pilot couldn't help but chuckle. "Well, I still say my version's the way to go."

"Though I like Remi's better," Duo chimed in.

Quatre and Remilia can't help but burst out laughing; even Trowa had to chuckle at that statement.

"So, Wicke…" Remilia took a few paces towards the poofy-haired woman. "Do you think you could put us in a ferry to leave in?"

"Of course!" replied Wicke happily. "Which island would you like to go to?"

Remilia turned back to the five boys and repeated Wicke's question to them.

"Maybe to Akala," Quatre replied. "I guess in retrospect, I think I enjoyed that island the most."

The rest of the pilots agreed immeasurably.

"All right," Wick said with a nod. "There's a passenger ferry scheduled to leave for Akala ten minutes from now. I'll lead you six to the docking area. Oh! But first… Remilia?"

"Hm?" It took a second for her to register what Wicke meant. "Oh! Right! Think you can help me with that?"

"Sure!"

Carefully, Remilia handed the bento box stack along with the Luvdisc cloth to Wicke, and the latter held it steady as the former wrapped it up again, tying it back into the cute knot that Remilia tried to recreate as much as possible. With the task done, Wicke led the six teenagers to the triangle-shaped elevator and pressed the down button, leading them down to the docking area.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Akala Island; Paniola Ranch, Some Time Later*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The pilots' first destination of choice was Paniola Ranch, namely where Pokèmon breeders are, and how they do their job. Actually, truth be told, Trowa was the one who brought that question up, and apparently the other boys had their curiosity piqued as well. Regardless, Remilia was more than happy to take them to Paniola Ranch to know more, and also to maybe look at the adorable baby Pokèmon, the Mareep especially.

They arrived to Paniola ranch via bus ride then ride Pokèmon as soon as said bus dropped them off far enough outside the city. With the ride Pokèmon, it took a little more time to get there than on Lana's ride Dragonair, even with Tauros and Mudsdale's fast gallops.

Remilia met up with her friend Savannah again, who was pleased to hear that the boys had finally found each other, while Remilia also kept their true origins (plus Quatre's facial and hand injury, which Savannah didn't even question about much to her relief) out of their conversation due to concerns of causing panic and fear among the locals, as there had already been enough of that with the Ultra Beasts the week prior.

Savannah showed the boys around the ranch while briefing them on what they do there aside from Pokèmon breeding. She showed them to a large herd of pink cow-like Pokèmon known as Miltank in one enclosure with a smaller group of Tauros in another. Remilia had explained to the Gundam pilots that both of them are single-gender species, which Heero had silently noted has got to be the weirdest case sexual dimorphism he had ever seen, let alone having two Pokèmon species being a single gender from each other.

Savannah then showed them the Pokèmon nursery, where they breed different Pokèmon (through exact words). The place looks no different from a cat or dog shelter from the boys' world, complete with very colorful patterns and toys for the baby Pokèmon to play with. Savannah explained that different Pokèmon can breed with one another just so long as they're in the same egg group. Wufei was dangerously close to overreacting at the notion until Quatre slapped his mouth shut with his hand. Savannah further explained that Pokèmon Trainers usually have the breeders breed their Pokèmon together to inherit moves from either parent, or even both; in some regions, breeding contests were held from time to time.

Quatre had questioned the parent Pokèmon involved with rearing their offspring to Savannah. The blonde girl replied that they generally leave the newly-hatched Pokèmon alone with their mothers to attend to until they are old and comfortable enough to be away from them; the case also applies to the starter Pokèmon as soon as they learn their moves of the same type their natural type is, as well as a couple Normal-type moves having learned as they grow.

And so, the whole party spent quite a while with the baby Pokèmon-playing with them, gently petting them, even getting the chance to hold them. Remilia couldn't even help but blurt out "Awwww!" at Trowa playing with a young Popplio, who was able to create a bubble in an attempt to use Water Gun from its little pink clown nose, with Trowa blowing the bubble towards it and the Popplio would bump it back with its little pink clown nose. They would continue playing this game until the bubble popped mid-air.

Remilia also couldn't help but giggle at Quatre and Heero holding the other baby Pokèmon Pichu and Togepi. Quatre tickled the little Pichu in its adorable little tummy, which caused the Tiny Mouse Pokèmon to giggle out its cry, while Heero simply held the Togepi, having a hard time believing that this creature is a Fairy-type. Remilia explained that Togepi siphons the positive energy from other people, and shares their joy to those who take care of it properly. She also thinks that this Togepi has taken a liking to Heero, which confused him more than he would prefer.

I wonder if it's because I'm the mortal reincarnation of a light goddess, Heero had thought. Well, the mortal reincarnation of half a light god which has gained sentience as I grew up.

Sure enough, the boys' stomachs began to rumble. Savannah couldn't help but laugh, stating that the boys must be hungry from their tour in Alola; Quatre half-lied that they hadn't even eaten anything since they left the hotel they were staying in on Ula'ula. Remilia mentioned to her that she prepared six bento lunches for the tour for them to munch on, also saying that she stocked up on Pokèmon food the other day. Savannah kindly led the group to a wooden picnic table next to an enclosure containing a flock of Mareep-which doesn't look any different from a regular young sheep discounting the long striped tail with an orb at the end, odd-looking horns and fine blue fur. Savannah left the group to their own devices as Remilia released all of her Pokèmon for both fresh air and some exercise. She then reached into her bag and pulled out three shallow plastic containers that have Pokèmon food-looking slightly like hard dog food-in them, labelling them as such based on their species' diets. Two of them were labelled as "meat" while the last was labelled "vegan." She opened up the first of the two meat Pokèmon food for Emil and Pucker, while opening up the second, slightly larger container for Brynja, Zero and Shayde. She opened up the vegan Pokèmon food container last for Nori, Kai and Isabelle and set it on the picnic table while setting the other two on the grass.

With the task done, Remilia unwrapped the Luvdisc cloth and handed out the bento containers to the Gundam pilots while keeping one for herself. Curiously-and possibly in anticipation-they removed the lids revealing a rather small but spectacular sushi meal: Magikarp and Clawncher nigiri with wrapped Wishiwashi makizushi nestled next to them, plus diced Pecha Berries with the other half of the bento box containing omurice cut into small cubes with a thin line of ketchup zig-zagging across them. They also noticed that half the lids contain chopsticks while the other half had a small fork in them; Remilia explained that she suspected that not all of them can hold chopsticks very well, so she put the forks in them as a precaution, a fact that Trowa thanked her for her act of consideration.

Duo couldn't even stop watering as he looked at the meal Remilia prepared for the boys. Quatre thanked Remilia for making such a delicious and elaborate meal with Trowa, Duo, Heero and Wufei echoing the same. Remilia giggled and thanked them for their compliments, and they started eating. Duo was eating at a faster pace than any of the pilots, with Heero deadpanning to him to slow down or else he'll choke. Quatre chewed on one cube of the omurice slowly to savor the flavor. The taste is a tad strong for his liking, but he's not about to complain. Wufei, on the other hand, was deeply disturbed that this world eats Pokèmon while considering them their allies at the same time, but decided to keep his mouth shut for politeness' sake and to spare him from Remilia's wrath by proxy of her Pokèmon team.

With their meals finished, Remilia gathered the bento boxes and eating utensils together and wrapped them up in the Luvdisc cloth, with the Gundam pilots thanking her again for the meal. Trowa wondered out loud what they should do next, and Remilia said that she should let her Pokèmon play for a half-hour before leaving for the next destination of their choosing, just so long as they get to Poni Island and go back home. She further stated that she would like to watch the Mareep during this time until it was time to leave. A couple of the pilots agreed that this is a good idea, with the rest of them reluctantly went along with it.

Mareep-watching and Pokèmon playtime done after thirty minutes, Remilia and her Gundam pilot friends set off to their next destination. Quatre proposes they should go to Poni Island to take a look at the floating boat-village they flew past yesterday to get to the Altar of Light, which Remilia clarified is the Seafolk Village. Still, she took Quatre's proposal into account and she lead them to Route 8, which is between Lush Jungle and Wela Volcano Park, which is north of Royal avenue. She explained that the path to Royal Avenue also connects to Heahea City. They wasted no time going there with the ride Pokèmon yet again, plus taking another bus ride to the ferry terminal to get to the Seafolk Village on Poni Island.

They arrived at the Seafolk Village, only to encounter a large, white strange-looking bird-like Pokèmon which Remilia explained to the surprised group that it's a Togekiss. The Togekiss Remilia identified had a folded piece of paper in its mouth, and walked tip-toed towards her, and dropped into her hands. Remilia had unfolded the piece of paper, which is actually a letter from Mina, Poni Island's Fairy-type Trial Captain and a recent friend of hers; also the only person on this island Remilia can trust in guarding the boys' Gundams in Poni Canyon from curious eyes of the locals, while also telling her not to tell them about where they had actually came from. The letter had said that Mina had suspected that since Remilia only has one flying ride Pokèmon, she sent her Togekiss for additional transport for the boys. Remilia made a mental note to thank her for her consideration.

Keeping Quatre's proposal, Remilia told Mina's Togekiss to stay behind, and the group takes a look around Seafolk village. The Gundam pilots were in awe at this place, largely because all of the boats have been built both as residential homes and small business establishments. One boat was even built in physical similarity to the Pokèmon Center, and when Duo and Quatre entered, it really is in the same vein as a Pokèmon Center, except without any fancy machinery. The owner, who appears to be a middle-aged Alolan native, explained to the two boys that trial-goers always go there to have their Pokèmon healed with medicinal herbs plus a day's rest, so it was always referred to as the "calm" before setting off to face the island kahuna and the Vast Poni Canyon and eventually, Poni Canyon's Totem Pokèmon.

After deciding that they have spent enough time in the Seafolk Village, the group decides it's time for them to head home to their own dimension, a fact that Remilia had readily, yet sadly accepted that they had to leave eventually. That was why she wanted to give them the best tour possible; so that they wouldn't ever forget their time here, or their recent adventure.

They mounted Remilia's ride Flygon and Mina's Togekiss and took off to Poni Island's glorious blue skies. This time, they took their time flying above the Poni wilds, and eventually the Vast Poni Canyon. Quatre had remarked that Poni looks so beautiful up above, with Remilia, Duo and Trowa agreeing immeasurably.

The sky was starting to turn golden when the group arrived at the Altar of Light. After summoning Flygon back to the ride ball and Togekiss flew back towards her master (who was casually sitting in Wing Gundam Zero's cockpit), Remilia couldn't help but look at the Gundams surrounding the Altar. They looked so majestic in the sun's light, especially when it's starting to set; but what Remilia found so breathtaking, was Wing Gundam Zero holding the badly-damaged Gundam Deathscythe Hell in its arms like it's a fallen princess. The sun's light reflected off of the shiny metal, causing some parts to glare, almost painting it in a faint gold hue. It exemplified the small dents and scratches on Wing Zero, its angelic wings especially, as well as the heavy damage Deathscythe Hell sustained while being in Necrozma's psychic possession.

Mina's laid-back voice snapped her out of her thoughts, and she asked if there were any Pokèmon Trainers that saw the Gundams. Mina replied that there weren't any from she could see, and aside from several Lycanroc, Murkrow and Jangmo-o, the canyon valley is pretty barren anyway. Remilia thanked her for keeping an eye on the Gundams, with their respective pilots expressing the same. Mina had nodded and climbed onto her Togekiss and flew off to the Seafolk Village.

*~Xenosaga Episode I - Warmth~*

"I still have a few more things to give you guys," Remilia said as she reached into her bag."

"Ooh!" Duo's indigo eyes twinkled briefly. "Is it more food?"

"Duo…" Trowa said to him almost exasperatedly.

Remilia giggled a little. "No, it isn't."

The braided pilot feigned disappointment.

"Here." The pink-haired girl brought out a large golden-white crystal that seemed to shine brightly in the setting sun. She walked up to Heero and gave the crystal to him. Next, she dug out a black purple tumbled stone and gave it to Duo. For Trowa, a red rock shaped like a star; for Quatre, a scale that seems to shine all seven colors of the rainbow; and for Wufei, a pinkish-white shell tied from a dark brown leather string.

"I got those from the flea market in Malie," Remilia explained, taking note of the grateful yet perplexed expressions on the pilots' faces, Wufei's especially. "They're the Shiny Stone and Dusk Stone, which are evolutionary stones, a Star Piece, a Prism Scale and a Shell Bell. The Shiny and Dusk Stones, I got rather involuntarily, the rest I bought willingly. I actually intended them to be souvenirs from my Island Challenge, but… I think it's fitting that these go from me to you guys."

The Gundam pilots continued to stare at her.

"The Ultra Wormholes exist…" Remilia fidgeted with her hands. "It's now a known fact that the Ultra Wormholes lead to different parts of the multiverse, your dimension especially, but…" She stared at the pilots back. "I'd rather have the Ultra Wormholes just be rumors. More than that… I'd rather not have anyone accidentally go through these wormholes and get themselves lost in them. The Ultra Wormholes existing might not be the case for your world, but me giving those things to you… Now that you know that the multiverse exists, and the Ultra Wormholes exist, I want you guys to keep this a secret."

"Because nobody would believe us even if we told them the whole truth," Heero concluded.

"And you wish for us to keep the truth to ourselves by giving us these," Quatre added.

Remilia nodded quickly. "It's also proof of your time spent here. I wanted you to keep these in remembrance."

Duo shoved the Dusk Stone in his jodhpur pocket. "Thanks, Remi." He then walked towards Remilia and embraced her into a big hug. "I'm gonna miss you lots, kiddo. Your Pokèmon pals, especially."

Remilia gingerly wrapped her arms around his waist to return the hug. "I'm gonna miss you most of all," she said hardly above a whisper.

They released each other and Duo massaged her bare shoulder. "Don't you worry your cute pink head over us, Remi. We'll be fine." He passed a wink onto her.

Quatre also walked up next to Duo, and he and Remilia embraced each other in a hug. "Although the circumstances are a little unusual, we're glad to have arrived in this world, Remilia. In fact, meeting you and all kinds of wonderful Pokèmon are the only good things here."

Remilia peeled herself from Quatre's hold, feigning shock and betrayal. "What?! What about Pokèmon battles? Didn't you enjoy watching them?"

"Well…" Quatre bit his lip. "To be honest, deep down, I don't think I like seeing Pokèmon fighting one another… But, it's actually hard to hate because Trainers like you always take good care of them."

Remilia chuckled. "That's what makes a good Pokèmon Trainer, after all."

Quatre chuckled back, his visible eye dancing with happiness. "Yeah, definitely."

The Sandrock pilot backed up a pace, and Remilia looked at Wufei, who-for some reason-looked a little nervous.

Remilia knitted her pink-brown brows together in confusion. "Something wrong, Wufei?"

The Altron pilot averted his nervous gaze to her and produced something from underneath his blue tank top and showed it to her with both hands. Remilia's eyes widened at the object held out before her. A snowglobe? With a female and male Frillish dancing together? Where the world did Wufei even get this? Better yet, how?

Wufei directed his dark brown eyes to her, his cheeks pinking slightly. "Here. Take this." He snapped his head back to face her full-front. "Th-this my way of saying sorry for the way I treated you, alright?! T-take it before I change my mind!"

Remilia took the snowglobe from Wufei's hands and looked at it a little longer. "It's beautiful. Thank you." She then put the Frillish snowglobe in her ruffled shoulder bag and sidestepped so she can walk towards Trowa.

As soon as she did, she found out that the top of her head is only at where Trowa's chiseled chest ends. It was already hard enough that she had to bend her head upwards just to get into eye contact with him…! She tried to wrap her arms around Trowa's neck, but only partially.

The Heavyarms pilot seems to be amused by this and took her hands into his, and guided her to stand tip-toe on his gray shoes. The additional leverage had Remilia successfully wrap her arms completely around his neck with his around her tiny waist.

"Please take care of yourself," Trowa said in a low but gentle voice, smiling.

"Same to you."

They both released each other and Remilia stepped off of his feet. Last target, Heero Yuy.

Remilia took a sidestep to him and smiled at him warmly, expecting him to say something. To her surprise, Heero bent down slightly to touch the side of her head and pet it a few times, his usual stoic expression unwavering. What surprised her even more? Heero's lips formed a smile-a genuine smile-as he tilted his head slightly.

"Take care… champion," he said to her in the same gentle and kind tone he gave her back on the shrine yesterday, while she was crying over the apparent loss of Lunala and Duo after they lost their first battle against Necrozma. Remilia wanted to cry at the site of his unusually kind and soft face, but… she just couldn't find her voice.

Heero moved away from her, his hand going along with him. Remilia could have sworn his gentle expression remained.

"Let's all get back home," Duo finally said to the group.

"Yeah, let's," Quatre agreed.

Remilia watched the Gundam pilots walk up the stone-carved steps towards the Altar and to their respective Gundams. While watching, Remilia would admit that she's a little sad, but it's outbalanced by her happiness. Her happiness at the fact that they're going back home, to whatever friends or family they had that were most definitely worried sick about them since their space war ended. But even so, she can't forget… she still has one more role to play in this.

She reached into her Gorebyss fanny pack and pulled out her Master Ball, which contains Lunala. Prior to her and the boys leaving Aether Paradise earlier today, Wicke gave Lunala back to her, stating that while fully healed from its injuries, Lunala needs the rest of the day to rest. She released Lunala, and the latter flew up to the golden sky as the boys were getting into their Gundams' cockpits.

As soon as all of them were put out of sleep mode, Lunala flew to a spot away from them all, and opened its glowing red third eye as it enters its "Full Moon Phase." The blue ripple appears, with Lunala psychically making it grow big enough for the Gundams' heights, and shoots out a wide blue ray at the ripple, creating a very large Ultra Wormhole.

The Gundam pilots activated their thrusters (in Wing Zero's case, flapped its main wings) and one by one, they disappeared into the Ultra Wormhole, with Wing Zero entering through last. As soon as it did, the Ultra Wormhole closed to a white vertical slit before disappearing.

Lunala floated down to the dirt ground, exhausted, but thankfully not as much as yesterday. Remilia summoned it back into the Master Ball, intending to drop it off to Pokè Pelago so it can rest up further. She looked to the sky. It was an even more golden hue than it was before. Beautiful as it is, she'd rather want to go back home, maybe crash into her bed for a few hours before her mother returns home from work.

Sighing sentimentally, Remilia summoned her ride Flygon and flies all the way back to Melemele, while taking the time to admire the setting sun in the golden sky, where the light would gleam for just a while longer.

Epilogue up next and then I'll be done~ This'll be my second finished fanfic, which would break my personal record for writing a completed fic only once. Quite the achievement, IMO.