I don't know quite what I was expecting when we jumped off the frigate and fell towards the crumbling rocks and pine trees below us—maybe the feel of the rushing wind on my face, the howl of the wind, sheer panic at the fact that I was plummeting to the ground, but the last thing I thought would happen was for us to fall through a golden ring that magically appeared beneath us and suddenly land upright in a glade with the sun shining brightly above us. It was warm and looked to be about midday here and there were several exotic Pokemon dotting the perimeter of the thicket ranging from humming Kricketune to dozens of Starly and Parchirisu chattering in the branches of the trees.

"I certainly hope you falling from flying ships doesn't become a habit," a sing-songy voice sounded from behind us and I whipped around to see a kid that looked to be about my age with black hair and stormy blue eyes. Next to him was a girl that seemed slightly older with long, silvery hair, the same blue eyes, but what really caught my attention was that they were both glowing with different shades of aura and that they were surrounded by demigods. The dark shadowy figure of Darkrai hovered near one with Cresselia floating next to him. Then there was Hoopa, who must have been the one who conjured that weird hoop we fell through, was nestled on top of the girl's head. The boy continued, "This has already happened twice in one day."

Riley visibly relaxed and replied, "Oh yes. I'm sure I'll make a habit out of falling from humanmade flying ships that use the power of the gods to destroy entire cities. Expect this to happen often."

"We must return to the Giant Chasm as soon as we can," Luke said briskly. "Team Plasma is still in possession of Kyurem and N Harmonia. Even without their vessel, they're still capable of destroying the Unova Region."

"They also have this device that can control all Pokemon," I blurted out without thinking. I blushed slightly when I saw all eyes turn to me, but I continued, "There's this guy, Colress, he has it and it's so strong that it can control Whisperer's Pokemon. You can't just send in a bunch of Pokemon or they'll all be mind-controlled."

The girl bit her lip worriedly and said, "The king also is unable to connect to Kyurem's heart. He says that Kyurem's already been tainted with the influence of other royalty which means Team Plasma is now using N's powers."

"That and this device that they have can now influence Whisperer's bonded Pokemon which is something only a royalty should be capable of doing," the boy said darkly, "so, we'll be facing authentic royal Celesta power along with an artificial one plus the power of a god… great. I can see this being an easy battle."

"Either way, we are already in position and neither the device nor N Harmonia can influence the Celestas since none of them recognize N as their alpha. We'll send you to where the king is after you've been healed," the girl said as a couple of Shaymin in flying form descended towards us and released a sweet-smelling aroma that encompassed the three of us. Almost immediately I felt revitalized as a surge of energy shot through me faster and stronger than a cup of cappuccino. It felt like I'd just gotten up for the day instead of being up for more than twenty-four hours.

When the smell had dissipated, I was shocked to find myself being psychically lifted from the ground and being placed on Cresselia's back. "Wait, what?"

"Well seeing as you don't have a flying type Pokemon, Cresselia decided that you could ride her back to Unova in style," the boy said simply before turning to Riley who was boarding his Staraptor and saying, "I think I have an idea of how to subvert the device. Siesta and Hulum are still with you right?"

"Yes, are you sure that's the best idea though Barrion?" Riley asked worriedly. "You'll be surrounded by enemies."

"I know," Barrion said calmly as Darkrai slunk down to the earth in an inky pool of darkness before slipping beneath Barrion and rematerializing so that Barrion could ride him. "It's risky, but I trust you'll have my back… that is, if you don't happen to fall off another flying object."

Riley rolled his eyes, "That won't be a problem. I'm more worried about you being frozen solid by Kyurem."

"Oh dear. I guess that goes against my plan to stand directly in front of Kyurem," Barrion said teasingly as we started to speed up into the clear blue sky where another ring had formed. "You know how I love to put myself in mortal danger just to freak you out."

'Oh my Arceus. He's just like my brother,' I thought with a shake of my head as Riley shot a glare over at Barrion. I didn't have time to think more about this as we entered through Hoopa's ring and back to the cold, biting wind of Unova.

Below us was the Giant Chasm with the pines dotting the ground like green daggers with white snow lacing on top of them. More importantly, there was now a mass of flying type Pokemon filling the sky. Most of them had Plasma members riding on top of them, but there were several that didn't and were simply obediently following the mass swarm of Pokemon to the crashed Plasma Frigate. There was a strip of uprooted and splintered trees along with heaps of dirt piled to the side showing the path where the frigate had landed. The ship itself was resting on its side with its white sails now shredded and the mass completely torn away.

"Has Ava unbound Hoopa yet?" a melodic voice asked as several exotic Pokemon came up beside us. I recognized Red's Charizard immediately along with Red riding on top of him… I mean, who wouldn't recognize him? Then there was a Salamence with a young woman in a red outfit and long black hair spilling behind her who I recognized as Pearl, and then there was a young man in orange with a white beanie for his hat riding on a Flygon… I'll admit I didn't recognize him as I wasn't as into knowing the Pokemon Masters as Black was. Then flying on her Hydreigon was Iris herself, and the man who had addressed Barrion was a man with wavy blond hair, gray-blue eyes, with a silvery aura about him and riding on top of a Garchomp.

Barrion respectfully said, "Yes. She unbound Hoopa right after we left."

"Good. We'll need the gods for this battle. Kyurem's mind is starting to reflect Ghetsis Harmonia's mind more and more the longer he's been exposed to Celesta power. I can also hear Reshiram and Zekrom's voices, but they are… quiet… subdued." The man then stopped talking all together, but he and Barrion kept eye contact and I felt they were having a private conversation.

Barrion clearly looked worried by whatever the man had told him, and as he broke eye contact, his eyes flickered over to me doubtfully. "I understand," Barrion replied. He then looked back to the man who nodded curtly to whatever Barrion had said psychically. Barrion then branched off on Darkrai and disappeared through yet another golden hoop.

I nervously gripped the pink appendages of Cresselia as we sped ever closer to the fallen frigate. I tried to reassure myself that everything would be okay now that the Pokemon Masters and Celestas were here, but nothing could stop the growing sense of dread that seemed to overwhelm me.

Bianca tightly gripped Black's hand as they broke through the thick underbrush and followed Yellow out to the field where the Plasma Frigate had landed. Enormous trees were bent and contorted with their thick trunks now obliterated from the impact. Scattered along the ground were a variety of branches, rocks, dirt, and more disturbingly, the still bodies of a few Pokemon who hadn't had time to escape the frigate. Overhead, there were swarms of flying type Pokemon that seemed to blacken out the morning sky.

Yellow marched towards the fallen frigate with Black and Bianca picking their way through the debris behind him. "Stay close to me," Yellow called to them as he brought out his fighting stick with one fluid movement. "Team Plasma certainly isn't finished, and His Majesty wants us to make sure the frigate is completely inoperable. If we could find their head scientist and stop their device, that would be a definite plus."

They had made it halfway through the ruined clearing towards the frigate when a sudden chill seemed to crush the entire area like standing beneath an icy waterfall. Yellow stopped and carefully studied the thicket around them and saw amidst the thick undergrowth dozens of eyes peering intently at them. Countless Pokemon emerged from the destroyed forest and completely surrounded Yellow, Black, and Bianca.

Dozens of flying type Pokemon landed beside them where Plasma members slid off and brought out their own pokeballs. Black and Bianca recognized the red hair of Alex and Jenna sliding off their Dragonites while Bianca felt a coldness completely unrelated to the temperature when she saw Rosa glowering at them from her Flygon. There were others as well, several of the Sages, a few of the navigators they'd run into in the engine room, and Colress himself descending on top of his Magnezone. But what caught their attention the most was a large gray beast that landed in front of them, and on top of the creature was none other than Ghetsis Harmonia himself.

Ghetsis was gripping some sort of cane that was glowing an eerie violet shade which he seemed to use to levitate himself and smoothly lower himself to the side of the gray creature. Teleporting just behind Ghetsis was the Shadow Triad, one of which had N with them who currently had his hands tied behind his back and was gagged.

Ghetsis glanced at Yellow's fighting stick which he held defensively as he moved protectively in front of Black and Bianca. "So, you came," Ghetsis said smoothly. "The Celestas, but you seem to be nothing more than one of their lackeys." Ghetsis glanced behind Yellow to Black and Bianca, "You two have been a thorn in my side for the longest time, but you seem to have forgotten what nearly happened the last time you went against me. It'll be my greatest pleasure to finish the job and finally have you eliminated. And as for you," Ghetsis then shifted his gaze back to Yellow, "before you die, tell your alpha that if he comes against me and Team Plasma, I'll have Kyurem cover all of Unova with ice just as he will to you three." With that Ghetsis pointed his cane at them which glowed an even brighter shade of violet as he roared, "KYUREM! GLACIATE!"

Kyurem roared and opened its mouth while generating a ball of bright light and icy energy which he then shot directly towards them. Bianca instinctively wrapped her arms around Black and buried her head into his chest; she was grateful to feel Black return the hug and even kiss the top of her head. Before the glacial attack hit them, a blast of several intertwining attacks countered it with such force that it stopped the glaciate all together until it dissipated with an explosion that caused thick smoke to consume the clearing.

Black lifted his head and even though he couldn't see anything aside from the acrid, gray smoke, he could hear the beating wings of several Pokemon along with the thud as they landed. When the smoke had cleared, they could see the Pokemon Masters riding on top of their various Pokemon along with Ivory on a hovering blue, pink, and yellow Pokemon along with Riley and Luke on a Staraptor. Standing in front of them all was the Champion of the Unova Region and the King of Celestas.

Iris stepped forward—fury etched on her face and her fists shaking slightly from rage—and yelled, "You've destroyed an entire city, Harmonia. You and your damned organization have overrun this Region and ruined it, but I will never let you take it all for yourself. I won't see my home wrecked any more than you already have, you bastard." She then took a shuddering breath and added, "But I'll give you just one chance. Surrender or your entire organization-"

"I don't mean to be rude, dear Iris," Ghetsis calmly interjected, "but you are completely irrelevant in this conversation seeing as I could have you eliminated at any second. You have no authority here." Ghetsis then looked to the man who had been silently watching the interaction between the two humans and continued, "The only one I'll speak with is him—Jonathon was it."

Jonathon smiled darkly before saying, "Oh but if we're negotiating based on power and authority, then I have nothing to say seeing as you've gagged the one person I would speak to." Jonathon glanced over at N who quickly averted his eyes in shame. "What I say is the same as Iris. You threatened to cover Unova in ice if we interfere with your egotistical quest for power and dominance but are you truly arrogant enough to think you stand a chance against us. Perhaps you know of our ways and our abilities, but you have never learned to wield the power of the Celestas. You won't win against us and I suggest you surrender for your sake. Only it won't be human punishment you face, Ghetsis Harmonia, it'll be ours."

Ghetsis smirked, "This isn't about winning a battle, and I'm fairly certain you already know that. It's about how far you're willing to take this fight—how many human and Pokemon lives you're willing to have die in this conflict. I'm willing to see Unova destroyed just as your ancestors wiped out the Region in the past. Are you willing to do the same?"

"You will never get the chance to do so," Jonathon said calmly as golden rings filled the sky allowing countless Celesta Pokemon to pour through. Immediately the Pokemon Masters and the others shot into the air while Jonathon continued, "If you won't surrender, then we won't stop until there's nothing that remains of Team Plasma." He then stepped back into the golden hoop that had appeared behind him and he disappeared as the hoop closed.

The wild Unovan Pokemon sprung into action, each of them firing blasts of energy into the sky in an attempt to hit one of the Celesta Pokemon, but they easily dodged them by disappearing through a golden ring only to reappear moments later near a wild Pokemon with an attack charged and ready. More rings appeared on the perimeter allowing Luxrays, Lopunnies, and a whole variety of Sinnoh Pokemon to all come through and begin attacking the Plasma members themselves who had thrown out their own Pokemon to counter them. However, the Celesta Pokemon were vastly outnumbered by the native Pokemon and soon the vicious fighting began to escalate as numerous bursts of energy destroyed the already desecrated forest as well as weaker Pokemon too slow to avoid the attacks. Battle cries of Pokemon echoed through the Giant Chasm and the sound of vicious fighting seemed to reverberate off the rocky sides of the mountain.

Ghetsis turned to Kyurem, 'Kill any and all the Celestas you can, but make sure your attacks cover more than just them. Hit as many areas as you can and try to bring the fighting to human populations.' Kyurem nodded and he too sprung into the air to join the fray. Ghetsis turned back to the Shadow Triad and hissed, "Katashi, Takeo, find and kill the Celesta royalty. If they're gone, the Pokemon will no longer have a leader and they'll lose control of the Legendaries. Kill them, and we win."

"Yes Master," Katashi and Takeo said respectfully as they teleported away.

N shook his head desperately and pulled at Osamu's firm grip. He pleadingly looked at his father, but Ghetsis simply said, "Oh please do you really think they care about you? You're a freak of nature. Neither fully Celesta nor fully human. They see you as nothing more than a mistake to be remedied by either eliminating you or forcing you to fully become one of them. You mean nothing to them." And with those hateful words, Ghetsis turned from N to oversee a battle that he intended to result in the deaths of countless humans and Pokemon.

The world below me seemed a blur of colors as we sped across the Giant Chasm one second before we entered a hoop and suddenly the entire landscape changed to sunshine, rice paddies, and forests before moving just as quickly back to the icy ruins of the Giant Chasm where Cresselia's body would heat up as she released an attack. From what I could tell, the girl I'd met earlier, who Cresselia had called Lady Ava, was using her psychic abilities along with psychic abilities of a Ninetales, a Xatu, and an Alakazam to foresee where to have Hoopa, who now looked like a colossal monster instead of the cute little creature I'd seen earlier, strategically place his rings. They did this all from Eterna Forest, and it was here that they had the Shaymin working nonstop to produce aroma therapy for the Celesta Pokemon severely injured or who were just too tired to generate any more moves. It was incredible to see how efficient the Celestas were.

The Giant Chasm, though, was a completely different story. Here the wild Unovan Pokemon controlled by Team Plasma were viciously attacking Celestas and they were quickly sacrificed and left to die so that a single blow could hit a Celesta Pokemon. Even though the wild Pokemon were not fighting as strategically as the Celestas were, the sheer volume of wild Pokemon was enough to overwhelm Celesta forces. They were pushing violently against the Celestas and it was clear they were starting to make headway as more and more Celestas were forced to leave and heal.

Luckily, the Pokemon Masters were doing a great job with holding off the Plasma Pokemon. I had seen Red's Charizard easily outmaneuver Jenna's Dragonite while blasting it repeatedly with fire. The others were doing well and Riley was back to fighting in his usual style of jumping from Pokemon to Pokemon, only he was targeting Plasma members themselves as he viciously swung at them and knocked most of them down. He wasn't alone in this endeavor as there was a woman with braided black hair riding around on a Garchomp that was helping and another young man with strawberry blond hair was also helping them. From the way they were attacking, it was clear that they were aiming for Colress who was hovering over the battlefield on his Magnezone staring intently at the fighting Pokemon while fiddling with his device.

But the center of fighting would have to be Kyurem. He had sprung to the air shortly after Ghetsis had refused to surrender and had immediately started attacking. Huge, impenetrable lines of ice laced across the Chasm and dozens of Pokemon lay on the ground incased in crystal ice. Kyurem would also use fire and electric moves… or a combination of all three. This creature was truly terrifying, and it was merciless. It hit everything and everyone regardless of whether that person was with Team Plasma or not. The worst part though was that its attacks had started reaching as far as the outskirts of Lacunosa Town.

Kyurem would have been impossible if it weren't for Ho-Oh and Lugia. The minute Kyurem had started powering an attack, Ho-Oh had appeared from a golden ring—it's iridescent wings glinting in the morning sun causing rainbow light to refract off its feathers—and blasted it with golden fire that had completely consumed Kyurem. This, unfortunately, was nowhere near enough to stop Kyurem and in fact only seemed to infuriate him, but just as Kyurem was about to attack Ho-Oh, it disappeared into a ring and on the opposite side another ring appeared and out burst Lugia with the Celesta King riding on top of it. Ho-Oh and Lugia had been attacking Kyurem ever since, but even then, it wasn't enough to stop Kyurem from attacking and wreaking havoc on the entirety of Giant Chasm.

I couldn't help but wonder about what Ghetsis had said earlier… how he wouldn't stop until he either controlled or destroyed Unova. How far would the Celestas go before they decided it was enough… until they decided it was better for Unovans to live under Ghetsis' shadow than it was to have the Region wiped out completely. How far was I willing to go? It was easy to insist that we keep attacking, but that's because I didn't have anything else. I doubted me or anyone I loved would survive Team Plasma's invasion… even my parents were probably too closely associated with the League to make it out okay. But there were so many people in Unova. How could I make that kind of decision for all of them?

Cresselia seemed to sense my worry and she said telepathically, 'Don't worry, young one. King Jonathon will not allow the humans to move that far along in their plans. Already the Tao Dragon grows weary, and the young prince can only sustain his powers for so long since he has never received proper training from the Celestas. Their powers may seem overwhelming now, but the Celestas know how to endure and win… and think outside the box.'

When she said this, Barrion shot through a golden ring riding along the smoky black figure of Darkrai. However, he hadn't come alone. With him was a swarm of Beautifly and Dustox that swooped towards the wild Pokemon and began generating a green mist that settled over them. The Celesta Pokemon had all evacuated the vicinity through various golden hoops while the Pokemon Masters and a few of the Plasma members remained unaffected since they were high in the sky, but the Plasma members below all started returning their Pokemon and shouting "Sleeping Powder!" and ran into the forest to avoid being hit by the effects. Many of the wild Pokemon avoided the attack, but a large number of them did.

'Lord Barrion needs my assistance,' Cresselia told me as she raced towards the ground until she was hovering above it in the area that Bianca and Black were, 'I'll leave you here, young one.' She glanced at the lone Magikarp that was flopping in front of Black and Bianca, 'You should be safe with them.'

I slid off her and watched as she sped into the green mist where Pokemon all lay on the ground asleep. Barrion rode his Darkrai towards the mist, and then went into it. "Wait a minute! What's he doing?" Black demanded as he watched Barrion wearily flop over in sleep. "Is he crazy!? He'll die out there!"

When the green mist had dissipated more, Riley flew across and released a Drowzee from its master ball who materialized right in front of Barrion. The Drowzee calmly sat down in front of him and then raised its hands and did some… weird hand movements? Magic? I'm not sure. All I know was that its fingers were rapidly moving and that it was moving its arms up and down. Barrion then sat up which was a little creepy since his body still seemed limp and his eyes were closed, but what was even more creepy was when all the sleeping Pokemon got up the same way. Some of them convulsed slightly as if they were terrified while others seemed serene and happy. All of them turned to face the remaining Plasma members who all stood by the fallen frigate.

"Wait a minute," Bianca whispered. "I get it. Drowzee are a little like Musharna in that they can eat dreams, but while Musharna can make dreams visible, Drowzee can actually manipulate a person's dreams. I think he's using the Drowzee to help him navigate his dreams and by doing that he can help Cresselia and Darkrai… I don't know… control the Pokemon in their sleep. So, those Pokemon are no longer listening to Team Plasma because it's really Darkrai and Cresselia."

"Kind of like zombies," Black said.

"How is that in any shape or form like zombies?" I demanded. "They're asleep not dead." I watched as the Pokemon moved to continue fighting the remaining Plasma Pokemon and controlled Pokemon. The movements of the Pokemon seemed slow and sloppy… a bit like zombies I'll admit, but they could still get the job done in spite of their lowered speed and accuracy. It helped that they were rejoined by the Celesta Pokemon which doubled their forces.

"You know," Bianca said—hope brimming in her voice, "I-I think we're going to make it! I think we'll win."

"Aye we'll win," a feminine voice called from below and I realized it was the Magikarp flopping uselessly at our feet that had said this. "Did ya ever doubt that? Especially with me around."

Black stared at the Magikarp for a moment, "Yeah I checked my pokedex and it says that the only move you know is splash and that you're currently at level 5… how are you helping this battle go better?"

"Oi!" the Magikarp yelled indignantly, "Just because I seem like a worthless Pokemon doesn't mean I am. Yeh should never underestimate a Pokemon's potential."

Black rolled his eyes, "Yeah, okay. I can't believe Riley said you'd be a great asset. All you've done is flop there while we've avoided several near-death experiences from the attacks."

"The Tao Dragon's last attack was well above yer head lad. Don't know why yer still having a hissy fit."

Black pointed angrily at a thick crystalline ice formation latched to a tree mere centimeters above Black's head, "How is that well above my head!? Ugh… sorry Magikarp. I just wish we could use our own Pokemon to help."

"Don' worry none too much about it, lad," the Magikarp said calmly. "I'd get frustrated too if I was crippling weak like yeh three are."

"Gee thanks," Black muttered.

I ignored the two and stared at the sky where the Legendaries wheeled above. Streaks of lightning, licks of flames, and piercing ice all came from the gray dragon while Ho-Oh sliced across Kyurem's flank with flames reaching around it as it fell at Kyurem from different angles. Lugia was maintaining a distance, but it never failed to land hit after hit. Unfortunately, Kyurem seemed to be learned these patterns and was starting to hit them more frequently.

I looked down to where Ghetsis was and saw that his cane was glowing even brighter and that he was completely focused on the battle above him. Behind him was a Triad member standing over N who was lying limply on the grass from the overexertion of giving away so much of his energy. Dr. Colress was eagerly watching the scene in front of him and I could almost hear him say something like, 'fascinating,' as he studied the sleeping Pokemon attacking them.

Bianca's scream was what drew me back to where we were. Her eyes were glued to where Barrion was, and I could see why. Behind his sleeping figure was a member of the Shadow Triad with his dagger out and ready. I wanted to scream or do something, but I just watched in abject horror as the Triad plunged the dagger right for Barrion's jugular when a blue light smashed into the Shadow Triad sending him tumbling across the obliterated field. Riley was beside Barrion in an instant and I swear to Arceus Riley literally growled at the Triad like a Pokemon would. The Triad teleported behind Riley in an attempt to stab him, but Riley didn't even look behind him as he swung his fighting stick and hit the Triad square in the jaw. Riley released a Crobat that must have done something to the Triad since he didn't teleport away again, and Riley continued his onslaught. Hit after hit after hit. The Triad tried to lunge at Riley with one of his daggers, but Riley nimbly twirled away from the attack and in one fluid movement, he pressed his fighting stick against the Triad's neck and swiftly twisted it causing the Triad to at last fall to the ground and move no more. Just like Cheren, but this felt like… vindication.

I noticed that something similar was happening with another Triad member who had attempted to make it through a portal. He was trying to attack the strawberry blond Guardian and he actually wasn't doing too badly, but then the raven haired Guardian came up behind the Triad and grabbed his arms to hold him in place as the other Guardian plunged his fighting stick at the Triad's chest. I had to look away from the actual death when it happened, but it didn't stop me from hearing it happen.

I felt like I should be happy that we were really winning, that we were going to defeat Team Plasma, but the closer we got to victory, the sadder I became. I realized I wasn't the only one feeling like this as Magikarp stopped flopping around and instead stared intently over at Ghetsis. Magikarp sighed and said, "It's a tragedy, really."

"What is?" I asked while anxiety seemed to be building inside me. "W-We're winning aren't we."

"Aye. The Celestas are winning, and they decided to do that from the beginning… no matter the cost. But… well lass, some wins hurt more than others," the Magikarp turned to me and I got a chill down my spine because in that moment, this random Magikarp that I'd just met seemed so… old… and… wise. As if she'd seen more than her fair share during her life. She continued, "They hoped they could stop this, but I worry it may be too late for the lad."

I felt cold and clammy as I demanded, "What do you mean?"

The Magikarp sighed and flopped over to look at the battle once more, "The human is so bent on winning that he'll do whatever it takes. Sacrifice anything… even if it's his own son. Ghetsis Harmonia will continue battling until the gods give out. One of em' is immortal, but one of em' isn't. Guess who's not going to make it."

"N," I breathed looking over at N's still figure lying on the ground. I could already hear the strained cries of Kyurem as he struggled to continue the fight. I suddenly realized what the king and Barrion had been talking about when they'd come… they knew about N's power being diverted which means they knew he could die from this. Cresselia had said that N could only sustain his powers for so long, but I had only thought that was until N had fainted. From the looks of it, N had long since passed out from the energy he was using, but Ghetsis was still pushing. He'd push until all of N's energy was gone.

"Aye," the Magikarp then coughed loudly and said, "Too bad there's no one there to help him… that would be great. Just can't think o' no one right now." The Magikarp then coughed loudly again.

In that moment, I felt like a little girl again with a passed out Shinx in her arms and my childhood friend screaming at me for help. The memory so clearly came back to me of when N was first taken, and I'd stood there paralyzed. 'There's nothing you can do,' I heard rumble over and over in my mind. I'd tried to bond with N and that hadn't worked… I'd tried everything to help. I… I felt scared and helpless. Just as I had all those years ago. I again looked at N. What could I do?

'You can either do something or not,' a voice came to my mind. I assumed it was Cresselia speaking, but it oddly sounded like the Magikarp's voice. 'Just remember that all Ghetsis' power comes because he is redirecting N's power. If you could stop that redirection, you could save N. I guess all it is now is whether you're willing to do it. The choice is yours.'

I stood there for a little while longer and remembered what Riley had said about loving a person completely. Loving them whether they loved you back, loving them no matter the risks, loving them at the sake of your own life. My body reacted for me as I sprinted across the field and directly towards Ghetsis. I had no idea what I was doing other than I knew I had to somehow stop him before he killed N.

I ran right up to where Ghetsis was when I was suddenly levitated off my feet so that I was flailing midair. "You honestly think you can stop me, you stupid girl," Ghetsis hissed as he turned to look at me—his red eye glinting malevolently. "You're nothing but an idiotic lovesick girl that doesn't know what's good for her. You think that your love for my son knows no bounds, that it's one for the ages, that you'll always love him?" At this Ghetsis gave a sick twisted laugh, "Love never lasts. It's disappointing and only ends with regrets. No one is worth loving completely. Least of all N."

"You're wrong," I screamed. "N's my best friend and he has been since we were kids. I know him and I don't care if he's made mistakes. We all have, and unlike you I think N's worth loving and worth believing in. I know he can be better than he is now." In that moment I felt a rush of clarity come to me: I loved N regardless of whether he loved me because I saw him for who he was. N who so wanted to do the right thing that it could sometimes blind his reasoning. N who cared deeply for others to the point that their happiness would replace his own. N who ambitiously wanted to change the world to a better place. N who could be too prideful to let others help him. N who lied when he thought it was in his best interest. N who was too stubborn for his own good. The good, the bad, all aspects of N I loved. I loved him despite his flaws, and I had faith that with time he could overcome them and become a better person. No, I'd do this for N even if I didn't romantically love him and he didn't love me. I'd do this because he was N, someone worth saving and someone worth loving.

I looked over at N and was shocked to see that he was weakly looking up at me, and I felt… no… knew that he had heard everything I'd just been thinking. 'You're my best friend, N. I love you. I want you to know that no matter what happens to me, I'd gladly do it for you. Every moment I spent with you and if could do this all over again, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Even… even the painful parts because you, N, are worth it to me.'

A sudden burning sensation ran through my body and I felt as if someone had poured molten lava into my veins. It was painful and it only got worse as I felt as if every part of my body was slowly being shredded to small pieces only to be further torn apart. It was the most agonizing sensation I'd experienced, but I also wanted it to happen. A blinding white light encompassed my body and in that moment my mind seemed to practically directly link to N's mind, and I could see and understand everything. I saw his childhood, felt his emotions, and reasoned the way he did. I understood him perfectly, and from that understanding came a perfect love. As I was seeing his memories, I instinctively knew he was seeing mine and while all this was happening I felt myself think, 'I promise to protect you, I promise to stand by your side when no one else will, I promise to love you no matter the conditions, I promise to be your constant companion, I promise to be your Guardian.'

The burning sensation that had been going through me no longer felt painful, instead it felt warm and bright. Almost like home. I also felt an odd sense of power run through me and I heard someone yell, "Ivory!" I looked up to see Yellow flying overhead with Red on his Charizard. He tossed me something which I immediately grabbed. I recognized it as Concordia's rod which, through a surge of power that seemed to come from me, it reacted for the first time and elongated to a fighting stick.

"No," I heard Ghetsis breathe and for the first time I could sense… wait, was I sensing this… genuine fear. "It can't be. No. You. You can't possibly have bonded with him."

I immediately sensed Osamu teleport behind me, and I swung the rod back and rammed it into his abdomen. The Triad grunted and thrust a dagger at my throat, but I easily bent over and avoided it. It was strange though… it was like I knew what he was going to do before he did it. Just like how I wasn't surprised when I heard a familiar battle cry from across the glade. I watched as Nightstar tackled Osamu in a volt of blue electricity and instinctively I knew Nightstar could handle it… because… he was a Celesta now… like me. I turned to Ghetsis who was now backing away from me.

I swung my fighting stick down onto Ghetsis' cane which he held up to protect himself. I immediately knew that the cane itself was made from psychic type Pokemon. I then pressed my weight against my fighting stick and Ghetsis' cane and was pleased to see the man begin to buckle under my strength. Which was funny since I was a skinny sixteen-year-old and he was this towering giant of a man. I pressed further until Ghetsis collapsed to his knees and I could see fractures spider across Ghetsis' cane. 'Not much longer,' I thought as I pressed further and bursts of light spilled through the cracks until at long last the cane split in two and the burst of light threw both me and Ghetsis back from where we had been standing.

I landed in a heap still clutching my fighting stick, and with the thoughts that I'd finally freed N from Team Plasma once and for all, I drifted off to black oblivion.

A/N: So, a really long chapter! I know, but I wanted to get the final done with in one chapter.

Some notes on how the Celestas work: There is a hierarchy within royalty itself. The royal family technically rules together, but there really is one alpha (who is always the eldest of the two royal kids born each generation. The younger is only the next king/queen when the older one is dead or unavailable; the younger is the one to give birth to the next generation of royals. Jonathon did both since he was the oldest and his younger sister, Melody, ran away before she had any kids). The reason N's powers couldn't influence the Celestas was because they were only loyal to Jonathon. Not even Ava (because Jonathon hasn't stepped down and Ava hasn't been coronated) or Barrion can override Jonathon's commands.

Alphas, King Jonathon, can speak telepathically with his subjects which is how he knew what Ghetsis had said to Yellow.

Barrion and Ava are Jonathon's kids, but they wouldn't call him father except in private.

I got the idea of Drowzee being able to help others navigate their dreams from PMD: Explorers of the Sky where the main characters actually go into another person's dreams. This has been what Barrion's been doing when he's visited Anthea and N's dreams.

Ivory gained psychic abilities like Concordia's after she bonded with N. Nightstar broke free of the device's influence when Ivory became a Celesta because he also became a Celesta. Even though Ivory is bonded to N, she'll still respond to the Celesta's natural hierarchy and follow Jonathon's order (that is after they've joined. Technically N is a new line of Celestas and could create his own tribe, but… uh… that doesn't happen in this fic).

The Magikarp's important.

Yeah, there were a lot of Legendaries in this chapter… hopefully this wasn't too overwhelming.

This chapter felt like I was writing a scene from the Sonic movie only with Pokemon lol. Too many people use rings to teleport. If anything's been confusing or needs clarification, let me know!

Thanks again to anyone who's read this far! You mean a lot to me!