Ash and Greninja stood together on the balcony at night-mode Cerise Park.

"Greninja, how've you been?"

"Gre..."

"I heard you call me."

"Gre-greninja! Ninja ja!"

"You were in a coma too? Huh..."

Ash looked up at the stars above, wondering what the future could hold.

"Well, whatever it is,"

Ash and Greninja gave each other a supportive smile.

"We'll get through it together."

•.•.••.•.•

Alain, Charizard, and Greninja stayed the night at Cerise Labs. The next morning the whole gang had breakfast together outside. Then they just vibed and talked.

"So, Alain, I guess this is kinda like your job with Professor Sycamore, right?" Ash was saying.

"Well, a little. There's less traveling around and besides, I'm his assistant and not a... um..."

Goh dramatically flared his hand over his face;

"Official Research Fellow!"

Alain laughed.

"Yeah."

Ash noticed again that Alain had grown to be happier since leaving Team Flare and working at his old job again. He saw it in Charizard as well, from the way he got along with Riolu.

He smiled to himself.

"So how are Mairin and Chespie doing?"

"They've been doing well... But I'm not sure Mairin will like that I ran off to find Team Flare."

"Why don't you call her?" Goh asked.

"How?"

Goh snickered and pulled Rotom Phone from his pocket.

"What's that?"

"It's called a Rotom Phone! Here, you can use it to call Mairin."

"Ok... thank you."

Goh opened up the calling app and handed the phone to Alain.

"Excuse me..."

Alain stepped out.

"So how'd you meet Alain anyway?" Goh asked Ash.

"He and Charizard saved Pikachu once when we were in Kalos."

Ash and Pikachu both turned to Charizard and silently thanked him again for what he'd done. Charizard growled softly as in saying "you're welcome."

"I heard he's the Kalos League Champion, is that true?"

Ash jumped back into the conversation.

"You bet he is."

"Wow!"

Ash and Goh talked while they waited for Alain to come back; he came back in a few minutes.

"Thanks for letting me borrow this." he solemnly handed it back to Goh.

"You're... welcome?"

Alain was acting serious all of the sudden.

"Ash, I know where Lysandre's headed ."

"Huh?!" Ash gasped.

"Who's Lysandre?"

Goh was confused so Alain explained briefly.

"Have you heard of Team Flare and the Kalos Crisis?"

"Yeah, I think I heard about it somewhere."

"He's their boss."

"Oh."

"As I was saying, Mairin told me she thinks he's headed to break out his old partner Xerosic."

"The leader of Team Neo Flare!" Ash exclaimed.

"Yes- wait what?!"

Alain broke his solemn streak and turned confused. This time, Ash explained:

"Before I left Kalos, my friends and I were walking through the woods when Xerosic showed up. Said he wanted to collect... the Zygarde cores? We caught 'im though and Officer Jenny took him to jail."

"Hmm. I wonder what Lysandre's planning to do with him."

"I dunno. But we have to go stop him!"

Ash grabbed the air, condensing it into a fist in front of him. Alain nodded.

"Right."

"I'm coming too!"

both Goh and Ash shouted,

"Let's go!"

•.•.••.•.•

"Officer Jenny!"

After a flight from Cerise Labs Lumiose City, Ash & co. went straight to the city jail. A man wearing a straw hat was sitting behind the desk.

"Officer Jenny ain't here right now."

Alain played it cool:

"Sir, we have intel that there's going to be a breakout."

"Tsk. Son, me an' the boys 'ave been workin' on a missin' person case an' we ain't got no time for nun'ya shenanigans."

"This is serious!"

"For the love 'o peat. What d'ya think we gon' do? Let out the prisoners and just let 'em walk away?!"

"Of course not. But we've come to offer our services and help keep special guard over them."

"No."

"At least let us guard the outside of the building?"

"...Fine. If it'll shut ya up."

Ash & co. went outside. Alain turned serious.

"Goh, you guard the front door. Ash and I will guard the back."

"Come on, that's a little uneven." Goh complained.

Alain explained his plan:

"The front door is visible to the road and is less likely to be used for an escape. The back door's more likely. So one man on front, two on back."

Goh agreed to the plan.

"Alright, I guess that makes sense."

Alain, Ash, Greninja, and Pikachu went to the back of the building with Goh and Raboot staying in the front.

As Ash paced around with the others, he couldn't help but notice Alain was acting... a lot colder. The way he stared straight ahead, and bluntly answered any questions put to him.

Ash wondered if this was all because of his past with Team Flare.

"Alain?"

"What."

"Ya know... I'm not mad at you for what you did. I never was."

"What do you mean."

"You don't have to prove to me that I can trust you. Whether or not we stop Lysandre."

Alain's eye twitched.

A grey, red-accented amoured van rolled up to the building. Men and women in red suits jumped out.

"Hello, boys." a voice greeted them.

A voice as cool and deep as Frost Cavern.

"Lysandre!" Ash snarled.

Pikachu and Greninja took fighting stances.

"Let's take him! You ready, Alain?!"

"Ah, Alain. I see you've brought the chosen ones, Ash and Greninja. Very good."

"Ash- I- ERGH! I'm-"

"Alain?!"

Ash whipped his head around to see Alain on his knees pulling at his hair. He strained his voice barely past a whisper.

"I'm- guh! sorry!"

"Alain, what's going-"

An arm came out from behind Ash and locked itself around his neck.

"Ghhckkk!"

Pikachu and Greninja prepared to fight. Lysandre held Ash between himself and them.

"You wouldn't hurt your trainer, would you?"

Pikachu and Greninja hesitated.

"Get in the van, you two, or I'm afraid I'd have to end this right now."

Ash choked on his grip. Pikachu and Greninja reluctantly got in the van.

"Grunts, get Xeroric."

"What about the kid with the scarf?" One grunt pointed at Alain writhing on the ground.

"Leave him."

"But the strain on his mi-"

"Chosen Ones never die."

As Ash watched the world crumble from under him, the voice as cool and deep as Frost Cavern spoke right next to his ear:

"Come with me, Ash.

"I choose you."