CONTENT WARNING

A corpse stared back at me, mouth closed in a firm line, dark eyes coated with a silver film like from frost. Coldness preserved – or desecrated – the man's body. His wispy hair flared around his head in white, the ends clear as ice. His skin was gray.

I recoiled in horror. The back of my skull collided with Cynthia's collarbone. The Champion of Sinnoh had reverted back to normal now that we were in the core of the Distortion World. Her Garchomp stood beside her, wearing a ferocious scowl.

I looked at the three older Pokémon Trainers: Cynthia's silver eyes eerie in their serenity, Ace's face drained of blood, Riley's composure calming me. I addressed the Gym Leader candidate first. "Is that really..."

He waited for me to finish.

"Is that really Cyrus?"

Cynthia plunged her hand into the shadow. Ace yelped; Lucario rested a paw on his shoulder. When Cynthia pulled her arm back, she was holding a gray-and-white leather wallet with a golden G, the logo of Team Galactic. Inside was Cyrus's trainer card. It was unmistakable. Cyrus had been banished to the Distortion World and ended up like this. Was he even alive?

"What about his Pokémon?" I exclaimed. "Are they okay?"

"Should I reach into that shadow again and find out?"

There might be up to six Poké Balls on him. "Let's all reach in and find one." I remembered Ace's terror at seeing Cyrus – at seeing anyone – in a frozen, wizened state. "I can grab two."

"No need," Ace assured me. "I'm okay."

"Okay. On my count. Three."

Ace and Riley nodded at each other.

"Two."

Garchomp and Lucario growled softly as though preparing for battle.

"One." Cynthia and I lunged for the shadow surrounding Cyrus. It was like plunging my hand into uncooked soup broth. A fuzzy warmth tickled my wrist. I found a Poké Ball, my knuckles brushing Cynthia's hand.

The twin pearls on my bracelet shone with liquidy glossiness, but otherwise I was fine. I looked into the Poké Ball I had salvaged. A Pokémon shivered inside. "Weavile looks cold but okay. Weavile, come out! You too, my Typhlosion; please help Cyrus's Weavile warm up." Flames sprouted from Typhlosion's back, but Weavile kept shivering, curled up in a fetal position.

Cynthia squinted at the Poké Balls she and Garchomp had retrieved. "Gyarados and Houndoom are rearing to be free, but I'm worried they'll panic if I send them out now. There's no telling what might happen or where they'd end up if they fall. I'll keep them safe for now."

Lucario offered a Poké Ball to Riley, who examined it along with his own. "I can't tell what's inside at all." He held up the one he had found. "This one has a Crobat silhouette, but it's completely still."

"Maybe it's sleeping," I suggested. "Ace, can you check?"

Ace tapped the Pokéball he'd salvaged. "This one's empty."

I winced. "Sorry you didn't find anything worth saving."

Ace put the empty Poké Ball into one of the pockets in his jacket. "It's a used Pokéball, meaning he released a Pokémon or tried to catch one but failed." He and Riley exchanged a worried glance. "Do you think Cyrus tried to catch Giratina?"

I had another theory, remembering the Sylveon that had fled from Cyrus a long, long time ago. Cynthia didn't look at me. She rested a palm over the shadow and Cyrus's frozen body. "If we're rescuing the Pokémon, we should try to rescue the trainer, too."

A surge of fury washed over me. "He deserves this. Cyrus chose the Distortion World; his Pokémon just got roped into it."

Cynthia's eyes widened. Meanwhile, Ace held up the Poké Ball that Riley said contained Crobat. Guilt stung me; Golbat only evolved into Crobat if they were good friends with their trainer. Crobat and maybe Cyrus's other Pokémon would want us to try to rescue Cyrus.

"He's dead," Ace declared. "The wings are splayed out in an X, but the bottom left one is hanging at an odd angle like it's falling off. If it's frozen, then..."

"Crobat might not be dead," I retorted, sounding more confident than I felt. Ace's ace was a Crobat, and Ace himself was a poison type specialist; he'd know better than I would. But with Weavile shivering despite Typhlosion's flames, and a corrupted Poké Ball with no way to know what happened to the Pokémon inside, I couldn't stand it if a Pokémon was truly gone. "Open the Poké Ball and find out."

Riley clamped a gloved hand on my shoulder. "Dawn, calm down. Ace, you don't need to—"

Ace whipped out a stiletto knife and cut the Poké Ball open with a surgeon's precision. Crobat fell limp in his hands, the broken halves of the Poké Ball bouncing off the island and plummeting into the void. The wound causing Crobat's broken wing burst open, bulbous maggots and larvae tumbling onto Ace's fingers and around our feet.

Piplup stumbled to the edge of the island and gagged. I clapped a hand over my mouth before I could join him. Cynthia took charge of the situation quickly. "Garchomp, clear it—but be careful."

In one swift motion, Garchomp slashed the deceased Pokémon off of Ace's hands – Ace flinched when the Pokémon's sharp claw drew blood – and the corpse tumbled into the void.

Ace fell to his knees, crying silently. Lucario genuflected next to him, consoling him without words. I'm sorry, I wanted to say. Lucario nodded at me.

I looked at Cyrus, frozen in the shadow. Now I both wanted to save him and didn't want to. Cynthia was right that we should try to save anyone we can. Cyrus's Pokémon would want that, too. On the other hand, the man might already be long gone, like his Crobat. Trying to salvage him would only defile his body—not to mention, gross us out like heck.

Before we could make a decision together, a roar shook our small red island. I grabbed Piplup before he could fall off. Riley hissed, as he was trying to disinfect Ace's hands. Lucario patted his shoulder twice and stood next to me and Cynthia.

Giratina emerged from the murky void. The sides of his body gleamed like precious metal as claws from dark leathery wings stretched out. Crimson eyes burned with rage.

Cynthia stepped forward, her stiletto heel puncturing the dusty island. She swept an arm forward in a commanding motion. "Garchomp, use Draco Meteor!"

The void whistled. Giant boulders soared through the Distortion World, enveloped in orange and indigo light. The attack rebounded from Giratina's body without affecting the Hegemon of the Distortion World.