Visions From The Past

"Alright everyone, put your backs into it! We've still got work to do cleaning this place up." Guzma ordered Zipp, Tupp, Rapp and countless other Team Skull grunts. Po Town was still recovering from the Darkest Day incident, it wasn't a major city so it wasn't placed high on the priority list. Guzma decided to take charge and make Po Town more presentable, he was a Kahuna now after all and wanted it to be a place worthy of respect. "I want that rubble cleared away by-"

"Guzma!" Mallow called out.

"Huh? Which of you is calling for me?" Guzma turned towards his Skull grunts who were all quick to point at Mallow as she made her way through the crowd, Zach and Lucario weren't too far behind her.

"Guzma, I've got a challenger for you!" Mallow motioned towards Zach. "Zach's here to take on a trial so he can face you in a Grand Trial!"

"Ah, it's that Mallow girl." Guzma crossed his arms while offering her a teasing smirk. "Finally got yourself a boyfriend did you?" Guzma was rather quick to presume that he was doing this to try and impress Mallow, after all what better way to win a girl's heart than to beat the strongest Kahuna!

"Huh?" Zach shot a glance behind him as if he expected to see another person. Mallow was rather silent, her cheeks puffed out while a light blush appeared.

"Actually he's mine." Dawn was quick to wrap her arm around Zach as she caught up, having only fallen behind as Piplup got himself stuck in a hole. Her head leaned affectionately against his as she planted a kiss upon his cheek. Zach wrapped an arm around Dawn's waist and leaned his head against hers, proving Dawn's point as he pulled her close before planting a kiss directly on her lips.

"Ah, well it's nice to see love blossoming regardless." Guzma smirked before sweating as he caught sight of Plumeria impatiently tapping her foot in front of their home. He could tell that she was eager for him to get the challengers sent on their way. "Yes well I've got the perfect trial in mind, it's a pretty amazing trial! It's-"

"Boss, why don't you have him vanquish the ghost terrorizing the woods?" Rapp suggested.

"Yeah, we can't even step foot near those woods without hearing those ghostly moans." Tupp shivered.

"You seemed pretty scared too, boss man. You high tailed it out of there after saying 'I'll take care of it, don'tcha worry'." Guzma sweated and turned pale as Zipp spoke up.

"Yes well... I recently got married to the love of my life, I wasn't going to throw my life away by letting that ghost steal my soul!" Guzma lightly laughed as he excused his actions before performing a deep cough to regain his normal tone of voice. "But yeah, that sounds like a perfect trial to me. Alright Zach, I want you to go out into the nearby woods and find the source of those ghostly moans. Capture or beat it, it don't matter to me so long as you put a stop to it. Bring back proof of some sort and I'll face you in a Grand Trial."

"A ghost? That's all?" Zach raised an eyebrow before forming a light smirk as he gave an eager nod. "No problem, I'll find this ghost and beat him for you!" A few months ago the idea of a ghost would scare him but he faced multiple alpha Pokemon, a rampaging Regigigas and beat all of Hisui's nobles, compared to how terrifying those encounters were a simple ghost barely phased him.

Dawn however appeared to be concerned for her boyfriend, she only just got him back and had no intention of losing him all over. "I'll go with you."

"Uh, trial challengers aren't allowed to receive help." Mallow informed. "If you go then this trial will be null and void."

"But what if-"

"Dawn I'll be fine, remember what Arceus showed us?"

"Huh?" Mallow gave Zach a look. Did the two of them actually meet Arceus? She stood there in complete disbelief, Ash never did tell her or the other classmates that he met Arceus but there also never really was a reason for him to do so.

"We'll be going to a region that neither of us have seen and I had a green feline Pokemon on my shoulder, neither of those things have happened yet therefore there's no need to worry!" Zach gave Dawn a reassuring smile as he placed his hand upon her shoulder. "I'll be fine."

"Carr..." Lucario growled.

"Ace!" Cinderace excitedly exclaimed as both of Zach's partners stated that they had no intentions of letting the ghost hurt him.

"You can wait by the forest's entrance with me," Mallow offered while offering Dawn a warm and encouraging smile. "If he sounds like he's in trouble then we'll come running in to find him."

"Good luck Zach!" Dawn planted a quick good luck kiss on Zach's cheek before pulling away from him, allowing him to proceed into the Alolan forest.

"Thanks Dawn, I promise that I'll be careful." Zach offered his girlfriend a reassuring smile before turning towards Lucario and Cinderace. "Alright you two, let's get moving. That ghost has to be around somewhere!"

"Ace!"

"Car..." The two eagerly nodded before following their trainer into the woods. The daylight soon began vanishing as the tree lines covered up the sun's rays, creating a rather spooky atmosphere.

"No wonder Team Skull got scared, I'm not sure that this was enough to scare Guzma though. The ghost has to be-" Zach froze in place as a hooded figure appeared directly in front of them, their face was hidden beneath the cloak but there was something familiar about the individual that he couldn't place.

"Car!" Lucario jumped as the figure had apparently sneaked up on him as well.

"Ace?" Cinderace glanced towards Lucario as she wondered how Lucario didn't pick up on the individual's aura. Cinderace then turned pale as she gasped out. "Ace, Cinderace!"

"...Are you the ghost haunting these woods?" Zach questioned. He didn't understand Cinderace but he ended up on the same train of thought. The only way he could have sneaked up on Lucario was if there wasn't an aura, meaning that whoever they were they sure weren't among the living.

The hooded figure silently shook their head before motioning for Zach to follow. Zach tilted his head before shrugging as he decided to humor the ghost, following him into a clearing where a Time Flower sat. "A Time Flower?" He recognized it as he still carried around the one Mustard had left for him in his bag. "What's this doing here?" He reached out and gave it a quick touch, a bright blue light expunged from his hand upon touching it causing the flower to light up and reveal it's contents.

An all too familiar sight greeted Zach as he found himself back in Hisui atop Galaxy Hall. "Whoa, never thought I'd see this again." He commented while glancing around to see what the vision entailed. Just whose memory was he watching?

Kamado soon came into view, looking much older than when Zach had last seen him as his hair had turned grey. He looked more like Professor Rowan than he had before. Cyllene took her place alongside Kamado as the two gazed down upon Jubilife Village.

"Hold up, how did Cyrus come back from the dead?" Zach questioned. The ghost raised a single finger, motioning for him to quiet down.

"I sense my time on this plane of existence is coming to an end, it won't be long before I get to meet Arceus..." Kamado spoke.

"Don't say that, sir. You got so much to live for." Cyllene responded while giving him a look of concern.

"Cyllene, I'm leaving the Galaxy Team in your care." Kamado turned to Cyllene. "Irida and Adaman told me what you did, a feat like that deserves to be rewarded. I see great leadership qualities in you."

"But sir, I-What will you do?" Cyllene asked.

"I'm going to continue what Zach started, I'm going to spend the rest of my family trying to further increase the bonds between man and Pokemon while also helping give a better understanding of the creatures. Perhaps someday a descendant of mine will become a renowned figure."

"I-I see, well I'll lead Galaxy Team to the best of my abilities sir!" Cyllene saluted as the Time Flower withered shut.

"...Cyrus?" Zach guessed, figuring that the ghost was hinting at their identity rather than giving him some closure on what happened back in Hisui. The ghost shook their head and motioned for him to continue. "Kamado then? Who are you?"

The ghost remained silent before coming to an immediate halt upon reaching another clearing, the ghost silently pointed towards another Time Flower. "Are you in this one?" Zach asked while reaching for the flower.

The ghost remained silent.

"Guess not." Zach sighed while grabbing hold of the flower, a blue light erupted from his hand before a bright and colorful light erupted from the flower. The scenery around them as Zach soon found himself back in Pearl Village however something was different as the civilians all wore mixtures of the Diamond and Pearl clan outfits rather than a single individual outfit. "Huh? What's going on?"

"I still can't believe that all of this is real, Diamond Clan and Pearl Clan... together as one." Rei plucked at his robes as if he expected them to poof away into dream dust.

"It's a shame that he couldn't lead us, beating all those nobles and what not." Arezu frowned.

"He did get to meet Arceus and reunite with Akari though or at least that's what Irida said." Rei spoke.

"It's true, all of it." Irida walked out of her cabin, her hand ran along her bulging stomach as she gave it an affectionate look. "He and Akari are back together and I'm okay with that, I'll never love another the way I loved him but it brings me joy knowing that he found happiness! Besides he left me with the best gift of all." Irida gave her belly an affectionate pat.

"Carrr?!"

"Ace?!" Lucario and Cinderace gasped as they realized their trainer was a father.

"..." Zach was silent for a moment before collapsing onto his back as he fainted from the reveal.

Zach uttered out a light groan as he slowly rose back to his feet, he shot a quick look around the clearing before spotting the ghostly figure. "Is that you, Irida? Is that what you wanted to show me?"

The figure shook their head.

"Arezu then? Rei?!" Zach guessed.

The figure merely turned and continued walking through the forest, leading Zach to continue guessing. "Surely not Professor Laventon? Cause you sure aren't Akari."

The figure came to an abrupt stop and pointed towards a third Time Flower. "Final one..." The figure hissed out.

Zach narrowed his eyes as the voice sounded familiar but he couldn't place it. He took a deep breath before reaching for the final flower, a bright colorful light surrounded the area before the scenery transitioned to a hospital.

"What is this? What's going on?" Zach asked. The ghost raised a finger to silence him.

"I can't believe my sister died." A male figure stepped into the room, gazing down at the hospital bed where a baby laid. "I always thought that we'd be together forever..."

"It's not your fault, this sort of thing is rare but natural. Not everyone is... strong enough to live through it. Sometimes there are complications." A female figure placed her hand upon the male's shoulder. "The father's no longer in the picture so why don't we adopt Gloria and raise her alongside Zach? They're only a few days apart in age, it'd be like their twins!"

The male was silent for a moment before nodding in agreement. "Right, let's do that-" A loud crash could be heard as a figure clad in black leaped through the window and raced towards the bed. The ninja quickly collected himself before racing for the nearby bed.

"Oh no you don't!" The male figure leaped towards the ninja only to receive a quick chop to the neck as he fell unconscious. Gloria began crying as the ninja held her in his arms.

"Waaaa!"

"Get away from her!" The female figure placed Zach down before grabbing a vase as she raced across the room before clocking the ninja upside the head. The ninja went cross eyed for a brief moment before flashing her a glare as he pulled out a singular shuriken before hurling it towards her chest with great precision!

"Ack!" The female figured grabbed at her neck before collapsing to the floor as the color left her eyes.

"NO!" Zach shouted out, tears fell from his eyes as he watched his mother die right in front of him.

The ninja let out a huff and picked Gloria back up before leaping out the window, disappearing into the night as security raced into the room. Zach's father soon got back up and shot towards the window, waving his fist as he angrily shouted. "You're going to pay for that, I won't rest until I track you down and kill you! Nobody messes with my family!"

Lucario and Cinderace patted their trainer's shoulder as he dropped to his knees, tears flowing from his eyes. "Why... why would you show me that?"

"Because your cousin is still alive and needs help!" The figure removed their hood revealing that it had been Adaman underneath. Even death didn't stop him from helping his friend. "I'm sorry but it was the only one you'd know, your father never told you before he... you know. And before you ask, Magnolia never knew so don't blame her."

"Cousin... I have a cousin." A light smile briefly formed as he looked up. "Where is she?"

"Your paths are destined to cross soon, that's as much as I can tell you." Adaman smirked. "Just be aware that she might not exactly be on your side."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll see." Adaman raised his hand. "Now I've got to get back to Arceus before he realizes I-"

"Hold up, are you the ghost that I'm supposed to be hunting?" Zach questioned.

"Of course not," Adaman snapped. "I never spoke a word until a minute ago! I saw an opening and took it, that's all there is to it! Now if you'll excuse me-"

"But why you? No offense but... you aren't exactly as close to me as Irida and Rei. How come neither of them showed up here. Or Arezu even."

Adaman shook his head as he offered his friend a light smile. "Rei and Arezu were reincarnated, their paths lay on a different path as of now so I doubt you'll see each other. Irida, she was reincarnated too and you've actually met her."

"She was?" Zach tilted his head as curiosity filled him. "As who?"

"Oh I'm pretty sure you know!" Adaman smirked.

"Oooooo!" Zach, Cinderace and Lucario turned around upon hearing the ghostly moan. It had been a few hours since Adaman left them and they'd searched through the forest in search of the ghost Pokemon but to no avail.

"The ghost!" Zach and his Pokemon raced towards the source of the ghostly moan before scurrying to an abrupt stop in another clearing. The moan sounded like it was right next to them but neither Zach nor his Pokemon could locate the source. "Where is it...?"

"Car?"

"Ace?" The three looked around before gasping out as a small shadow rose from the ground before them. Zach hadn't been present when Bea revealed Marshadow to Ash so this was his first encounter with the species.

"Whoa, what are you?" He asked while pulling out his Arc Phone.

"Marshadow the Gloomdweller Pokemon, it slips into the shadows of others and mimics their powers and movements. As it improves, it becomes stronger than those it's imitating."

"You have to be the ghost I'm looking for, right?" Marshadow nodded in response while punching at the air between them.

"Shadow!"

"You want to fight? Well that's perfect cause that's precisely what I was sent here to do, Lucario let's do this together!"

"Carrr!" Lucario leaped forward while flashing his opponent a challenging smirk.

"Shadow..."

"Use Psychic!"

"Shadow?!" Marshadow gasped, it seemed he was just as surprised as everyone else that Lucario knew Psychic.

"Carrr!" Lucario's eyes glowed bright blue while a similar blue hue surrounded Marshadow as he was hoisted into the air. "Carrr!" Lucario slammed him against the ground with telekinetic force causing Marshadow to gasp out in pain. Marshadow soon arose and smirked at Lucario before leaping towards Lucario's shadow where the Pokemon swiftly vanished.

"Carr?!"

"Ace?" Cinderace tilted her head.

"What attack was that?" Zach pulled out his Arc Phone once more. "Spectral Thief? A move unique to Marshadow, that explains why I never heard of it."

"Mars!" Marshadow leaped out and punched Lucario from behind.

"Carrr!" Lucario grunted out.

"Bone Rush!"

"Carrr!" Lucario summoned his aura infused bone club and gave Marshadow a swift whack across the back of his head. Marshadow grunted out before retaliating with a fiery punch! Lucario held his stomach as he uttered out a pained growl.

"Lucario, you okay?"

"C-Carrr..." Lucario turned towards his best friend while giving him a thumbs up though his breath had begun to grow heavy.

"Alright then let's try out Psychic one more time!" Zach shouted out.

"Carrr!" Marshadow tried leaping into his shadow to avoid the attack only to find himself frozen in place as Lucario proved to be quicker, the jackal smirked as he hoisted Marshadow through the air before slamming the Ghost up against a tree trunk!

"M-Marshadow..." Marshadow lightly groaned as he slid down the trunk before coming to a halt at the tree's base as his fiery eyes reduced to swirls.

"Ace!" Cinderace excitedly leaped into the air as she cheered.

"Heh, we actually beat it." Zach reached for a Dusk Ball before hurling it towards the downed Marshadow. Marshadow opened an eye and smirked as he saw the incoming ball, a green crystal fell from his hands as he lost consciousness once more. Lucario's eyes were quick to notice it while Zach and Cinderace watched the Dusk Ball bounce and shake about before it eventually chimed out to mark the capture a success with the ball soon whisking away in a bright white light as it was transported to Professor Sonia's lab. "And we caught it, awesome! I can't wait to battle with him, his moves were pretty amazing!"

"Carrr..." Lucario nodded in agreement while motioning towards the green crystal that Marshadow had left behind. "Carrr!"

"Hm? Oh it looks like Marshadow dropped something." Zach walked towards the crystal and paused upon picking it up. It was definitely a Z-Crystal but not one he'd seen before as Marshadow's image was etched into it. "...Is this his Z-Crystal?"

Been awhile, originally this and the battle against Guzma was going to be one entire chapter but I thought it'd be best to split it up and at least show that this isn't dead as it was nearly a month and a half since I updated. Just been busy writing Electric Blossom while simultaneously plotting out the next few arcs for this. Next up is Guzma's Grand Trial followed by Gary's Championship match in the next one. The Alola arc will begin wrapping up after that :)