Before Riley flew off to Oreburgh City, I caught up to him on the roof of the Hearthome cathedral. My boots echoed on the hollow dome when I hopped off of Togekiss. Riley turned around and joined me, letting Corviknight perch on the steeple above us; the dark, steel-clad bird reminded me of a guardian angel, though probably not the one that the cathedral parishioners would think of. Above Corviknight, Togekiss flew in contented circles.

"Hello, Dawn," Riley greeted me. "Did you have a message for Roark or Byron? Or someone else in Oreburgh City?"

I shook my head. "I have something," I admitted, adjusting my scarf, "to tell you."

Riley raised a dark eyebrow like a Corviknight's wing against his pale skin. "Oh?"

"Back in Sendoff Spring," I explained, "I eavesdropped on you and Ace. You were talking in a cavern near the top of the waterfall, and I was just above you. I heard every word. I know—I know you doubt if Roark and Byron can actually fix the corrupted Poké Ball we found with Cyrus in the Distortion World, and I know that you look up to Ace as a Gym Leader. That was sweet." Far sweeter than me. I tucked a strand of blue-black hair behind my ear. "I'm sorry I eavesdropped on you, Riley."

Riley rested a gloved hand on my shoulder. "It's okay, Dawn. I knew you were there the whole time. Lucario alerted me to your aura; I knew you meant no harm. And I told Ace," he added with a smile, "afterward, that we had another pair of ears listening in, so he could talk to you about it if he wanted to. Seeing as he didn't, I don't think he's upset."

"Are you upset?"

"Not at all. I believe," Riley explained with a kind smile, "that all things happen for a reason."

"Like from Arceus's will?" Many families in Sinnoh and Johto revered Arceus.

Riley tipped his head to one side. "Perhaps," he acknowledged, "but in the end, Arceus is only a Pokémon."

Riley's words remain a mystery to me. Pokémon are plenty powerful. In the exhibition rematch, the battle unraveled like a spool of organized chaos: Ace's Mega Gengar, Aaron's Heracross, Steven's Mega Metagross, and Cynthia's Mega Garchomp leaped across the narrow mountaintops, followed by their trainers. Cynthia and Steven ended up on a slightly wider surface, their arms around each other's waists. Aaron crouched on a cliff at a higher altitude, while Ace balanced on a steeple-thin precipice near the Pokémon.

The sandstorm faded, and Cynthia frowned. With Heracross out, she couldn't just switch in Tyranitar. Aaron swooped in to take advantage of Cynthia's dilemma. "Heracross, use Close Combat on Garchomp!"

"Garchomp, match it with Dragon Claw!"

Garchomp's scythes dealt heavy blows, but Heracross braced through the brutal attacks to inflict more damage.

Steven leaned forward. "Metagross, help your ally with Zen Headbutt!"

"Gengar, use Shadow Ball!"

"Dodge it, Metagross!"

Garchomp and Heracross threw each other away to avoid the ghost-type attack. Metagross flung itself to the side to dodge Gengar's flurry of attacks and then tackle Heracross; I thought I saw sparks fly from the collision.

The impact flung Heracross at the cliff where Ace was standing, reducing the weak rock to smithereens. The drones blinked red.

"No!" Aaron lunged at his boyfriend, but Ace was out of reach. The young Gym Leader plummeted toward the stones.

Steven's voice took on a commanding tone. "Catch him, Metagross!"

Cynthia gasped out, "Garchomp, help your ally!"

Garchomp swung his scythes in tandem, creating a strong gust of wind that propelled Mega Metagross into a rapid descent.

Nerissa covered her face. "Oh, I can't watch this! I knew this battle was too dangerous!" She peeked between her fingers.

I reached for Togekiss's Poké Ball—only to remember, with annoyance and frustration, that I left all my Pokémon at the gate to Amity Square. Could Piplup make a Whirlpool fast enough and strong enough to withstand a person in free fall?

Kenny leaned over the edge of our hot-air balloon. "Let them reach him, Arceus, please..."

Gengar's eyes glowed. Was Arceus listening to Kenny's plea?

Ace's back slammed into the stones, and his body rebounded just as Metagross caught him. They're too late, I realized with horror. It should have been more gruesome. Somehow, Ace's body remained in one piece, and there was no blood on the stones below. On Metagross, Ace stirred.

"Incredible," I whispered. The Gym Leader had survived a fall that should have been deadly—more than survived, he was able to sit up, though he looked dazed.

Metagross gently placed Ace on the cliff where Garchomp and Gengar were. Mega Garchomp stood in triumph, but Gengar had fainted. Ace ran to his Pokémon and hugged Gengar tightly; around them, drones flashed red.

Paul sounded incredulous. "I don't—how—Gengar and Heracross are unable to battle! The victory goes to Champions Cynthia and Steven!" He scowled, as displeased at his stammering as he was at the spectators yelling for an explanation of what had just happened. "As a ghost type, Gengar must have transferred the damage on Ace's body to himself. With no skin or organs, Gengar can't be mortally wounded, so the damage manifested as a knockout, no different from battle."

"But it wasn't from the battle!" a spectator protested. More joined his voice, arguing that Ace shouldn't have lost this way.

"This is so unfair," Kenny muttered. "Yeah, it's a bad way to end a battle – I feel sorry for Cynthia and Steven – but Ace had basically lost as soon as his Nidoking fainted. Gengar would've needed to sweep through three pseudo-legendary Pokémon with an advantage against him, including a two-on-one against Cynthia's and Steven's strongest Pokémon."

"But losing this way," I pointed out, pulling on the balloon's string to release hot air and descend, "lets Ace save face. In the public's view, Cynthia at least owes him a rematch. It's a fantastic way to start a career in the Sinnoh League."

I thought of Riley's words. All things happen for a reason. A simpler person might think that Ace would've been the unluckiest trainer in the world, but Ace got a better debut than most League trainers. If Kenny's Arceus was as benevolent and all-powerful as Kenny claimed, then that Pokémon was surely looking out for the new Gym Leader.

"A fantastic way to start a career?" Nerissa exclaimed when we were back on solid ground. Kenny joined Empoleon and Piplup in frolicking through the park, waiting his turn to congratulate the battlers. Nerissa, however, glared at me. "It's traumatizing. That kind of experience changes you. I'd know better than anyone."