(This is it. Day 6, the last island awaits. What will happen on Poni Island? Will our heroes save Lusamine and Guzma? And is Lillie going to become a stone cold boss? Let's find out!

The Reviews

LogBook27062000: Yep, Altar of the Sunne is where we need to go to get Lusamine back. Glad you enjoyed the raid! That chapter smashed my previous personal best for the longest chapter!

Megan Romero: I don't blame you, there's a lot of stuff that had to be digested there. But all we can do is pick up the pieces.)

The sun rose on the Aether Paradise, Aubrey being the first one to get out of bed that morning. She'd look over at her sleeping partner and Umbreon, who she gently nudged awake with her foot. The events of yesterday were still buzzing in her mind, a swarm of angry Beedrill flitting around as she got up out of bed to get ready for the day.

Yes, she knew what she had to do. Yes, it was a big relief that the Ultra Beasts were battled back by the Tapus and Kahunas. But there was still a lot plaguing the Ranger's thoughts as Vatonage stretched, following her out of the room once she was dressed. She decided to let Vanessa sleep in to take this time and think to herself on things.

For one thing, Aubrey had no idea what Lusamine was planning now that she was in Ultra Space. Was she going to try and bring Ultra Beasts into Alola again? What was Guzma going to do now that he was stuck there with her? And most importantly, could she have stopped all the madness right then and there if she wasn't as reckless as normal? Vatonage could sense that last bit troubling his partner, nuzzling against her leg. She sat down next to him.

"Vatonage...look, I know I charge in headfirst to deal with my problems. It's dangerous, yes, but I'm not going to waste any precious time when those seconds could mean the difference between success or failure. Life or death, even," Aubrey told her Partner Pokemon. "But if everyone's gonna judge me for it, like…" The older ranger sighed. "I'm just out here doing what I feel is best for both people and Pokemon. I know I can go over the top, but I wouldn't go as far as to...y'know."

Meanwhile, Jake arose cheerfully with Lillie and Gladion still snoozing away. He was happy to see the siblings were in a gentle embrace with one another, obviously having come close once more after a long time being apart from each other because of the circumstances on Alola. He yawned and prepared to make, or rather scour for considering he'd never been overnight at the Aether Paradise, breakfast. As he scoured, he came across Aubrey and Vatonage, the latter cheerily greeting him.

"Morning, man..." Aubrey waved lightly.

"Good morning Aubs. Feeling rejuvenated from the attack on Aether? I was just about to get the breakfast situation resolved," Jake said.

"Not as much as I'd like to be," The older ranger confided. "Still worried about the aftermath of it."

Jake could tell Aubrey did seem rather tormented in her expression and her reserved body language. It was uncharacteristic of the brave, determined fighter he had grown used to and really admired as a friend this whole journey. He had to help her out with this. "Look, we've succeeded at about ninety percent of everything else that's gone on in Alola so far. We just got a few more steps to go and we'll hopefully get Lusamine back, help her chill out, stop the Ultra Beast madness, and celebrate with root beer floats or something. Aren't you the one who has gone through these kinds of stakes before with Vanessa?"

"Well, yeah. It'd be a big fat lie if I said I didn't," Aubrey responded, taking Jake's hand and standing up.

"Look, I have more reason to be scared right now of not meeting the usual Ranger standards and risking my life in this kind of environment. I'm a rookie compared to you. You know what's keeping me going? Having all of you by my side and knowing this is what Alola needs to be saved. No one else can step in and do what we're doing and I'm going to give my all into ensuring we've succeeded regardless of the weight of expectations and our own fluctuating confidence levels." Jake held Aubrey's hands very tenderly as he expressed all his thoughts that he wanted her to hear.

"...Heh." She smirked. "To think all this started because I wanted to cover for ya way back when at that festival. But you're right. Stakes are way too high to back out now. All this time I was getting self-conscious about being this reckless, headstrong fool...but I think it's better to charge headfirst to deal with this, right?"

"We need someone unafraid to call the shots in the heat of the moment and seize the opportunity. Besides, let's face it, you are a better duelist than me." Jake chuckled warmly and hugged her.

She'd return the hug, chuckling at this. "Well, I'm not sure if I'm the better one when it comes to Pokemon battling, but when it comes to fighting I've definitely got that on lock. C'mon, let's go get the others. We can all discuss what to do next over breakfast."

"Well I think I'm going to return Cetrion to Hoenn and bring back Forrest. I get the feeling his spectral nature will help with the realm of Pokemon cthulus." Jake joked. "And yes, let's."

With that in mind, Aubrey and Jake would go to gather up the others to have breakfast together, though Wicke told them Lillie would need a little bit before she was ready for the day.

"Alright partner...we're the best bet Alola has of setting things right," Aubrey told Vanessa. "Nothing new for us, right?"

"No, not really," Vanessa answered with a chuckle.

"Once Lillie gets here, we'll go over the plan of attack," Gladion added.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I've got trial catch-up to do," Hau informed. "I was so in a tizzy from yesterday's events I forgot to tackle my Ghost trial."

"Just be sure to be kind to the Totem Pokemon and take a selfie with it and you should be golden," Jake advised. Hau gave a nod of acknowledgement as the last member of their group came to breakfast that morning, and she was wearing something different, as if this was a new beginning for her.

"Oh yeah don't you still need to do the Grand Trial on Ula Ula you two?" Vanessa reminded her partner and Jake.

"Well yeah, but…" Aubrey was distracted by Lillie coming in.

Lillie had ditched her sunhat in favor of a very flattering long ponytail with a white scrunchie that opened up her face and showed more light and confidence. In a nod to schoolgirl fashion, she wore a short-sleeved sailor fuku top with a pale grey tie, a white short pleated skirt, short white socks, and white mary-janes. A cute pink backpack was on her back and created the image of a very sweet, confident young lady as opposed to the demure, nervous flower she once was. She looked the spitting image of a true Lab Assistant now and her confident yet sweet smile showed she was ready.

"I picked these clothes up in Malie...do you think they suit me?" Lillie would ask.

Jake gasped, "Oh my Arceus, Lillie! You look incredible!"

"Woah-hoh-hoh! Look at you, Lillie!" The older ranger beamed. "I second what Jake said to this new you!" Hau meanwhile was blown away by this transformation.

"Thank you, both of you!" Lillie beamed. "I feel like there's so much I have to do to save Nebby, my mother, even Mister Guzma and Alola...but as long as we're together, there's no limit to what we can accomplish!"

"Precisely! And the Grand Trial can wait! Would you go to a theme park if it was raining cats and dogs when Kyogre was out? No! We must tend to the matters at hand." Jake insisted.

"I mean, we did kinda ask Key to tell Nanu 'Hey, meet us on Poni Island for our Grand Trial', so once we get there, we can knock that out quickly and press on," Aubrey decided. "We still need to get whatever Z-Crystal he has from Key, and we might as well..."

"Well okay, but is that alright with you Lillie? Gladion?" The Hoenn trainer asked.

"It's fine with me," Lillie agreed.

"Yeah, fine with me as well. Considering I'm staying here to take care of things," Gladion added. "Speaking of which, Vanessa...do we have a full plan on what we're doing today?"

"Well I got into contact with the Union," Vanessa explained. "They are sending a ship here with personnel to help weed out anyone who might still be loyal to Faba, as well as collect all the found evidence and to search for more."

"And I take it you're going with Aubrey, Jake, and Lillie to Poni Island, right?" Gladion followed-up.

"Yup. New orders from Professor Hastings at that as well," Vanessa confirmed.

"Am I gonna get reprimanded for excessive use of force again?" Aubrey asked her partner sheepishly.

"Nope." The younger ranger shook her head. "Told me to do it. And since we have already taken care of that, you're good."

"Alright, that's a relief. Anything else from the brass or is that it?" The older ranger then asked.

"Yes, they said they have a package for you when the ship docks. Said they would also drop us off on Poni when they get here and unload most of the personnel on board," Vanessa reported.

"Alright! Once they're ready to take us to Poni Island we'll move out!" Aubrey decided.

"Then you'll want to take this with you," Gladion added, placing a blue flute with a moon symbol on the breakfast table. "I found this downstairs, it's the Moon Flute. It's apparently an artifact of Alola's past. They say it's to be played under the moon's light."

"And I bet there's a Sun Flute to go along with it, right?" Aubrey asked with a cheeky smile.

Gladion rolled his eyes. "Yes. When they're played together, it's said that they can summon the Legendary Pokemon. That is, if the old myths are true, anyway."

"Well I've been around the block long enough to know that old myths have merit to 'em," The older ranger mused.

"Aww, I was hoping it'd summon Cresselia. But okay, we'll do what we can with it." Jake said.

"Ehhh...I think you need a Lunar Wing for that?" Aubrey corrected. "Right, Van?"

"Yeah. Plus I thought it was the Eon Duo who were summoned via a flute?" Vanessa answered.

"So let's get the ball rolling. I got a Pokemon to exchange and a Grand Trial to finish!" Jake got up abruptly and looked pumped.

"H'yeah!" All of them exclaimed. They'd finish their breakfast, waiting on The Union to arrive at the floating island.

"Come to think of it, you never did tell me what exactly this Union is about. Are they in charge of all the law enforcement of the regions?" Jake inquired.

"Hmm...kinda. We focus more on protecting Pokemon than actual everyday crime," Vanessa answered.

"And are they trustworthy or do they have super-secret shifty stuff about 'em?" Aubrey and Vanessa gave each other dubious looks. Even if they would answer Jake truthfully, that would probably just be a trap in of itself. "N-no reason... just saying if there's any other plotlines that might turn up while we're on Alola, I'm bracing for something like a rebellion or a coup." He joked.

Aubrey folded her arms in thought. "I wouldn't be too worried about that."

"Yeah, honestly if we keep stuff secret, I think it is more because it is still in development." Vanessa also had a thoughtful look.

"Then I won't worry about it either!" Jake beamed.

After some time waiting, The Union would dock at Aether Paradise, Aubrey spying Murph on deck doing Murph things.

"Heh...never change, buddy. Never change..." She mused.

"Oh hey, it's Murph!" Vanessa would see him trip. "Yeah, that's about right."

"...Who's he?" Jake was immune to the comedy because of stranger danger.

"Murph? A bit of a goofball but has a good head for logistics," Vanessa explained.

"I see. So he's the lovable genius trope. Cool, cool." Jake put a hand to his chin and nodded in a self-satisfied manner.

"I'll be right back, you two. I'm gonna go see about that package they've got for me!" Aubrey would run on ahead to the ship, eagerly wondering what was in store for her.

When Aubrey came back with her new package on her person, she was a new more powerful ranger. A fierce and short golden scarf was around her neck while she wore an activewear vest in her signature black with white stripes, and a pair of black shorts to match. She had black thigh high socks and grey active shoes just as fit for kicking into bad guys' jaws as they were for hikes. A matching grey short-sleeved jacket was on her outfit as were a pair of steel grey and white fingerless gloves and some elbow pads the kind of seasoned boxer would wear. She looked powerful and profoundly victorious, as if nothing could stand in her way.

"I'm ready now," Aubrey was smiling. "Let's keep this vacay train a-rolling!"

"...Well I'm jealous," Vanessa commented.

"Sure thing my dear Nike." Jake gave her the highest praise by comparing her to a goddess of victory.

"I should've been the jealous one Van, you got the cool watch!" Aubrey responded.

"I mean.. True... Maybe we can get you the watch afterwards?" Vanessa offered.

"Jealousy is not a pretty picture, ladies. Why not just compliment one another honestly and motivate each other?" Jake winked as he looked between them.

"And you can get a wardrobe upgrade just like me!" The older ranger beamed. "Now c'mon, we got work to do." She'd head onto The Union with the other three, leaving Hau to hitch a ride with Wicke back to Ula Ula Island, and Gladion to handle business at Aether Paradise.

After a nice boat ride, the four would arrive at Seafolk Village, the only real settlement of Poni Island.

"I must say, riding on The Union was...really something else," Lillie mused.

"That is an old school Sail boat for ya, Lillie," Vanessa replied.

"Well, the professor had one, but it was in a bit of rough shape," Lillie explained. "This was a step up from that, I think."

"It felt great! Hoenn has lots of those around their ports." Jake said. "If you ever come over to my lover and I's home, we'll take you out for a ride in one."

"Well I'm already planning on showing up to the wedding, so sure!" Aubrey beamed. "Now...first order of business is to find Nanu. Van, stay with Lillie while Jake and I go take care of our Grand Trial from Ula Ula."

"You got it. We'll meet ya over by that Restaurant looking place over there," The younger ranger agreed.

"Honestly given that we've analyzed dance, entered the twilight zone, cooked improvised stews, and straight up brawled, I can't fathom what the last Trial would make us do." Jake contemplated as he and Aubrey made their way over. By now, he had swapped Cetrion for Forrest as he had vowed to at Aether.

The two would find Nanu near the shoreline, waving over to Aubrey and Jake. When they came over, he still had his usual frown but looked relieved to see them still in one piece. "Your merchant friend told me what happened. Glad to see you're okay."

"Does everyone on Alola secretly know how to dish out some pain?" Jake asked half-seriously and half-jokingly at Nanu before shaking his hand.

"Us Kahunas do for sure with our Pokemon, yeah," Nanu answered. "I was more surprised that she immediately jumped on the offer to help me battle that thing."

"Yeah, she's a real ball of energy that one. So, who's going first?" Aubrey turned to Jake.

"How about you go first for a change, Aubs? I kind of still have an OP Pokemon for later that hopefully I won't need to use for this Trial, so it'd be more fair for you to show off what you can do first." Jake offered.

"You did go first last time with Olivia, so I guess it's fair," The older ranger agreed.

"Don't take it too seriously now, you two," Nanu said, getting ready for battle. He'd call out a Sableye to kick things off, prompting Aubrey to send out Tenor.

Jake cringed, remembering how he was in pain during that Trial. "We certainly won't, but we are determined to finish this long journey off! Go Aubrey!"

"Think you can handle this, Tenor?" Aubrey asked.

"Prima!" Tenor responded confidently.

"Alright! Let's do this thing!" The older ranger cheered.

For Sableye, it did manage to get off a Fake Out before Tenor would deal with it, packing Disarming Voice to weaken his opponent before exchanging a volley of Shadow Ball attacks, defeating Sableye after getting a clean attack in.

Next out would be Krokorok, who didn't get much time to shine before Tenor went for a Sparkling Aria to lay it low.

'I thought I said not to take this seriously? ...Eh, I can tell she's in a hurry.' Nanu thought to himself calling out his last Pokemon, an Alolan Persian. This caused Aubrey to look at it funny.

"...That's a Persian?" She asked.

"Yep. Something the matter?" Nanu responded, his Persian going for Fake Out.

"Oh no, there's nothing wrong. It just looks...super not what I was expecting," The older ranger informed.

"I heard they were prettier than... that." Jake winced. Needless to say, Tenor would close the show with a dazzling performance, bringing Alolan Persian down for the count.

"Whew! I'm curious how many other people pick Popplio for their starter," Aubrey mused.

Once Nanu went to get his team healed up, he'd say to Jake, "Ready now, young man?"

"Yep, and let's just say... I might've lied." Jake smirked deviously as he pulled out his Cherish Ball and had his Mega Ring on lock. Aubrey gulped and Nanu sweatdropped.

"You're going all out for this one, aren't you?" Aubrey asked her friend.

"I see...well, guess I better do the same," Nanu added.

"This is strictly for Alola's sake. It does hurt me more than it does to you." Jake summoned Morality, the Diancie looking ever chipper for battle and once they Mega Evolved into their most radiant glory, it was quick to say that Nanu found himself at a bit of a loss. The Mythic Pokemon used radiant Moonblasts to one hit all three of Nanu's best Pokemon and with effortless elegance at that. Once they were done, the Royal Pink Princess and Jake shared a victorious hi-five. "Booyah!"

"..." Nanu started laughing. "Well shucks. I knew you had the gall to take on Team Skull and Aether on the same day. Here. You've completed your Ula Ula trials now. Congrats, or whatever. Now don't go destroying the place while you're going after the president, okay?" He'd hand over a black Z-Crystal with an interestingly insidious looking decal on it.

"Oh don't worry about us. We'll keep collateral to a minimum," Aubrey promised.

"As long as this Z-Crystal doesn't curse or jinx us, nothing should be broken... or erased from existence. Who knows how Ultra Space works." Jake shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm sure you'll be okay," Nanu assured. "Be seeing you two." He would take his leave.

"Probably the easiest Grand Trial we've done yet...but eh, it works for me," Aubrey said. "Alright, shall we grab the other two and head out?"

"Mmhmm. There's no time to waste, nothing to lose." Jake nodded confidently as he returned Morality and summoned Forrest. Forrest looked happy to see Aubrey was healthy although seemed bummed out he was inactive for so long. Clearly he wanted to help Jake with this valiant fight against the organization they'd grown to learn so much about together. "No worries, Forrest. You're in this with us all the way from now on. We're going to need your talents." Jake reassured his starter.

Forrest nodded and gave a relieved smile at this news. When they went to the restaurant, they'd see Lillie and Vanessa waiting for them there, and it looked like they had news.

"Got something for us?" Aubrey noticed their expressions.

Yup. Talked with the restaurant people here. They suggested we might want to pay Hapu a visit," Vanessa answered.

"Any reason why?" Aubrey wondered.

"Well, he said that her house is apparently the only one still left standing on Poni Island," Lillie explained. "Where else would we go, right?"

"I was wondering what Hapu's deal was...but yeah. She might know what to do," The older ranger agreed.

"Well if you all believe we need her, then we should make like a tree and leave!" Jake nodded. Forrest sensed his trainer didn't think Hapu would help but was compromising and going with what Lillie wanted out of respect.

Stepping off the docks of the Seafolk Village, the group would see there was a Mantine Surfing spot off to the left, and decided to take a detour when they saw a familiar face in her wetsuit, doing a few stretches.

"Key! Yo!" Aubrey called.

The merchant turned to them. "Ah! You're all okay! Oh thank goodness..."

"Hello!" Vanessa greeted.

"Ah...is this your merchant friend?" Lillie asked.

"And you must be Lillie, yes? I'm Key. I'm the one who's been helping them, and they're the ones who have been helping me," Key greeted. "So I've got some good news, and some bad news."

"Start with the bad news so we can have that useful rebound." Jake requested.

"Well, I got top score on all the Mantine Surf Spots," Key began. "Bad news...there wasn't a unique Z-Crystal for doing it."

"And the good news?" Aubrey asked.

"I got something even better," Key smiled, gesturing to a new addition to her own roster, a Pikachu...that was Surfing!

"...Oh dang, a Surfing Pikachu!" Vanessa looked surprised by this.

Jake let out a hugely dramatic and epic gasp that actually startled his friends. "The Cosplay Pikachu's long-lost relative! WOW! That's awesome!"

Vanessa had a now shocked look. "Yeesh man. Give us a warning next time!"

"Mhm! Ain't it cool?" Key giggled. She didn't seem too bothered by Jake's dramatics.

"Yeah. Pikachus that know Surf are pretty rare," Aubrey agreed.

Lillie smiled at this. "Yes, that is really cool, Key," She responded.

"So what exactly happened at Aether?" Key asked. "Care to fill me in? I was fighting this giant mouthed, glutton of an Ultra Beast last night. Surprised that Nanu and I managed to beat it back, but Tapu Bulu was by our side!"

"Sorry Vanessa. This is literally a rumor proven to be true! I could cry..." Jake fanned his wet eyes with fond excitement. Forrest nudged his trainer to pay attention to Key's next statement. "O-oh...sorry Forrest." Jake cleared his throat and wiped his eyes. "Well, you see we were able to do several things."

"Not only did we find out that Faba was a massive cringelord, we also found out the connection between Lillie and Lusamine. They were-" Aubrey would be cut off by Lillie.

"She was my mother, yes. And Gladion...he's my brother," She finished.

Key looked surprised by this revelation. "Really? I see...go on."

"We also found out Lusamine has a seriously messed up hobby. She's preserved Pokemon in ice like they are sculptures. Living ones. Makes my blood boil just thinking about it." Jake folded his arms.

"Ah...o-okay then. I severely misjudged her..." Key nervously laughed.

"Gladion said he'd work on getting them thawed out of cryostasis," Lillie assured.

"Good...whew," The merchant breathed a sigh of relief.

"What's more, she went into Ultra Space with Guzma, and now our mission is to rescue them before another Ultra Beast attack happens," Aubrey concluded. "And while we're at it, find out what happened to Nebby to cause it to change forms."

Key nodded. "Alright. Well, I'll be here if you-" She'd pause, seeing something out of the corner of her eye. Some sort of transaction up the beach a ways away, but the content of the conversation was what caught her attention.

"I'm telling ya man, all the ladies will be falling over you with that book there," One guy said.

"Thanks! You have no idea how much this means to me!" Another guy responded, heading off with some sort of hardback book. The gals could tell where this was going. Especially since Jake was the first to go up to the guy in question.

"Sir. Would you keep it down? Ladies don't like men blabbering loudly and sounding like egotists," Jake went on the offensive fast.

"Huh? What's your problem, man?" The guy asked. "I'm just helping a guy out."

"Ah, but it sounded more like a business transaction to me," Key chimed in, standing behind Jake with her hands on her hips. Despite her chipper sounding voice, she didn't look too happy. "And if there's one thing I cannot stand more than villainous teams, it's an Ekans oil salesman."

"Look, I'm not selling Ekans oil! I'm selling dating advice!" The guy insisted. "Y'know, pick-up techniques, different mental approaches? All that good stuff."

"Isn't that something you learn naturally through social interaction? Unless you have the credentials of an Elite Four member, I'd seek my dating tips elsewhere," The Hoenn trainer commented. It was at this point that the rangers would walk on over to see what the commotion was, Lillie opting to stay back with the Surfing Pikachu.

"What's going on here?" Aubrey asked.

"Yeah, what's up?" Vanessa added.

Seeing an opportunity, the guy sighed with relief. "Ah, perfect. I'll show ya two this isn't Ekans oil I'm selling." He would approach Aubrey with a warm smile. "Hey there, good looking. I know of a fun activity that can burn five hundred calories an hour. Wanna see?"

"..." Aubrey stared at him confused. "...What?"

"We better be talking about surfing." Jake put a sassy hand on his hip but noticed Key's fists were clenched. It was clear the merchant had been deeply triggered by this pick-up line.

Vanessa meanwhile, internally facepalmed. "...Oh you have got to be kidding me."

"I don't...exactly get what you're trying to say, man," Aubrey kindly declined. "But I think I can already burn that many calories on patrol normally."

"Oh, you're a ranger? That's amazing," This pick-up artist was trying his best to keep it cool. "Maybe you'd like a nice break after all your hard work."

Aubrey shook her head. "Nope, duty calls. I'll have time for leisure when our current mission's done." It was clear to her friends that Aubrey was oblivious to what this guy was implying.

Forrest seemed to nod proudly that Aubrey maintained her innocence while Jake looked a little bit worried for her. She must not have been the kind of person to get out on her own a lot. Still, he decided to speak up for her. "You heard her. We'll take her somewhere fun and exciting for her hard earned break. Maybe you can hit up some cougars for a good time."

"What, are you her boyfriend?" The guy asked.

"Partner in Pokemon Journeying," Jake clarified.

"...Oh."

"Mmm...I'm getting bored of this..." Aubrey stretched her arms out. "Hey look, I don't really know what all your game here is, but we've gotta get going."

"H-Hey! Wait!" The guy grabbed her arm, more out of desperation than aggression.

"Oh for the love of-" Key groaned, and Vanessa would take that as a cue to just deal with this guy already.

"Uuugh…" Vanessa would grab the pick-up artist and put him in a strong sleeper hold. "Night night."

Once he was out cold, Key smiled. "I was about to do that myself, but thanks Vanessa!" Her cheery mood returned.

"Let's leave before people think we murdered him," Jake whispered.

"Take care!" Key waved them goodbye after Vanessa laid the guy down on a beach towel.

As they left the beach, Aubrey would ask, "...Seriously, what was that guy talking about?"

"I think it's better we don't know..." Lillie frowned.

"I know why and let's just say you were WAY too good for spending time with him." Jake cracked his knuckles. "Shall we move past this nonsense and deal with Lillie's cougar mom?"

"Could you not!?" Lillie exclaimed, looking away sadly.

"Yeah guys, let's focus here," Aubrey tried to be the mediator. To her partner she added, "Uh...sucks we had to deal with that...but you feel better after choking him out, right?"

"Yeah, ugh...pick-up artists," Vanessa responded with an annoyed groan.

"Hey, I just meant we'd reunite with her and make her see the error of her ways Lillie." Jake cleared things up.

"You don't have to call her that, though..." Lillie shook her head.

Aubrey gave Vanessa a reassuring pat on the back. "Well, if it makes you feel any better, now you know how I feel better whenever I pummel someone ticking me off. Feels great."

"Sorry, it was just a joke in her case. Ehehehe..." Jake rubbed his head sheepishly. Forrest wingpalmed. He gave a desperate look to Aubrey and Vanessa to try to salvage the situation and make things less awkward.

Fortunately for Forrest, Aubrey would provide. "Hey look, there's trainers out here!" She noted.

"Makes sense. This is the last Island in the challenge," Vanessa noted.

"It is huh. Wow. The more you know." Jake looked proud of himself.

Lillie also smiled. "You've really had to work hard to get this far. I hope I can apply the same kind of effort to whatever I decide to do in the future... I don't want to feel so far behind anymore."

"Ah, don't sweat it, Lillie. If you set your mind to it and work hard, anything's possible," Aubrey mused. "And trust me, I would know."

"So we have to battle the trainers to get further to our goal?" Lillie asked hopefully.

"We do, you don't," Aubrey answered, looking at Vanessa. "Maybe battling some of these guys will get that idiot from earlier out of your mind, Van. Wanna go for it?"

"Hmm, sure, why not?" Vanessa agreed.

"Looks like the leading ladies are going to show us something special Lill." Jake smiled and put a hand on his hip as the two Rangers approached their target.

Lillie and Jake were treated to some tag team synergy from the rangers, battling their way through a few Ace Trainers and other assorted individuals in the Poni Wilds - Nom especially got her chance to shine, and was loving every minute of it.

"Whooo!" Jake raised his arms in celebration and Forrest flew around in a graceful pattern. Lillie's eyes brightened as she saw them kick serious butt and command their Pokemon like true companions as opposed to simple things to be ogled at like her mother had always stressed.

"And that's how we partners get it done!" Aubrey chuckled.

"Heck yeah!" Vanessa went for a high-five that was swiftly returned.

"Let's keep moving. I think I see a house ahead. Must be Hapu's," Aubrey noted, leading the way.

"Time to see what's new with her then." Jake said. The crew proceeded forward towards the cozy looking house. This house looked to be primarily made out of some sort of sturdy looking mud or clay, and outside was the all familiar Mudsdale.

"Nii-hiiii!" It greeted.

"Good to see you again, Mudsdale!" Lillie returned the greeting. "You look to be in fine form."

"Where's Hapu at? We need to talk to her," Aubrey asked of Mudsdale, looking to get down to business. Mudsdale would go off to get her, leaving the group for a moment.

"Wow...trainers and rangers sure do amaze me," Lillie mentioned. "You all walk hard paths, but even then, you don't let that stop you even if your Pokemon friends get hurt..."

"Well it's true. We don't just have our Pokemon doing everything for us," Aubrey agreed, scratching the underside of Vatonage's chin. "Both trainer and Pokemon, or in my case, ranger and Pokemon, have to work in tandem to get the job done."

"Though more importantly, it's also why we cannot misuse our Pokemon or stray from the path. That's why friends are here to help you stay in line." Jake chimed in.

"Exactly. There are times when neither of us can move forward without the help of the other," Vanessa added.

"True...which is why I'm glad I had Wicke there for me...and Nebby when I needed him most," Lillie remarked. Soon Hapu would show up with Mudsdale.

"Oh! Been a while, you three," Hapu waved. "Who's the new one?"

"Lillie. She's her own, aspiring young Pokemon starlet." Jake said cheerfully, patting Lillie's shoulders encouragingly.

Hapu laughed. "We already know each other, silly. I'm talking about the other ranger."

"I didn't know if you'd recognize her new makeover that's all." Jake chuckled.

Vanessa laughed as well. "I'm Vanessa Parker. I'm the one who patches her back together when she does something dumb." She was pointing to Aubrey saying this.

"I wouldn't exactly call myself dumb..." Aubrey sheepishly mentioned.

"Well either way Lillie...ya look wonderful. Looks like a new you," Hapu complimented. "So what brings ya out here?"

"Okay, so um...do you know where the Kahuna is, Hapu?" Lillie asked.

"The Kahuna? Hmm, don't really have one on Poni," Hapu answered. Seeing the others looking concerned, Hapu closed her eyes in thought. "Hmm...I suppose the time might be right now. I already finished up my battle with that odd lookin' weird thing that came out of the sky."

"What kind of odd looking thing?" Vanessa sounded interested.

"Ultra Beast o'clock." Jake answered Vanessa for Hapu.

"Looks like the Ultra Beasts got to each island in that case," Aubrey thought aloud.

"Huh, so that's what they were? No wonder I saw the other three Tapus in the sky," Hapu responded. "All right then. If you'd all follow me to the ruins, that'd be great." She'd hop on her Mudsdale's saddle and ride off, but before they could follow her, an older lady was seen waiting by the house, almost as if she wanted to wait till the conversation was over before getting a word in.

"Wait here." She sure caught Lillie by surprise.

"Hmm? Can we help you, miss?" Jake asked the older woman.

"Ho ho ho! Well, I'm Hapu's old gran," The older woman introduced herself. "Are you all friends with my girl?"

"Of course we are. We've known her since we arrived outside Royal Avenue a few days ago," Aubrey informed.

"And I believe I met her outside the Maile Library, yes," Lillie added.

"Oh, that's wonderful. She has friends now!" Hapu's gran mused. "Traveling around the islands, making friends, you fellas are luckier than you know." As she talked, a Machamp would walk up to the group, doing a flex. "If you want to head to the Poni Island ruins, how about a little help from this old gran? Mind if I see your Ride Pagers for a moment?"

What would happen next would be very comical for Aubrey's traveling companions.

"WAK!" Jake found himself picked up by the strong, burly Pokemon and held in the bridal carry position. "Ok, ok! This is totally romantic and something I've fantasized about but not in front of the kid!" He blushed and shook his head desperately.

"Pfft…" Vanessa couldn't help herself and burst out laughing. "AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! This is too funny!"

"What do you mean 'not in front of the kid'?" Lillie asked, puzzled but quite amused.

"Don't worry about it," Aubrey assured her.

Forrest in the meantime, settled on Machamp's shoulders and chuckled to himself in amusement as well.

"W-why would I even need to be carried by a Machamp?! Are we going through swampland or something?!" A flustered Jake demanded.

After calming down from her laughing fit, Vanessa would guess, "I'm going to go with Strength boulders."

This calmed Jake down significantly. "Ohhhhhhh, because there's no HMs. Right, that makes sense." He nodded.

Hapu's gran nodded in confirmation. "Right. There's gonna be some big obstacles you're gonna want to move out of the way if you hope to proceed."

"I see. Thank you, ma'am," Lillie smiled. "C'mon, let's get moving!"

"Partner, you wanna stay here? This shouldn't take long...plus I think you were about to laugh yourself sick," Aubrey suggested.

"Yeah I'll stay here," The younger ranger agreed. "Gives me an opportunity to get the lay of the area."

"Let us know if you find anything," Lillie requested.

"I wish you all a bright future," Hapu's gran sent them off with that, heading back inside the house, leaving the group to split off and do what was needed.

Aubrey, Jake, and Lillie would be going the way Hapu went, along the Poni Breaker Coast.

"The Ruins of Hope are this way...this is where Tapu Fini lives, I guess," Lillie commented.

"Always ruins with them eh? I guess it makes sense," Jake nodded as Machamp continued to carry him and Forrest flew overhead. When they arrived at their destination, the Ruins of Hope, they would note that the air felt oppressive.

"What is this place..." Lillie breathed. "If we go in there...maybe Nebby will return back to normal?"

"We can only hope so. Not sure if it would help us save your mom and Guzma, but...eh, a girl can dream," Aubrey responded.

"The people of Alola believe the guardian deity here can wash away any impurities with its mystic water," Lillie added, causing Aubrey to purse her lips in thought.

"Mmm..." From what she saw of Nebby, it looked more like a form change rather than being rife with impurity. But it was good trivia to know. As Machoke set Jake down, he looked around cautiously.

"So it's like washing your sins off. I getcha. Though as far as saving Mom and Guzma, I think that should be easy enough, so you shouldn't worry too much about it, Lillie. Although I do hope we can purify Nebby," Jake shared his sentiments.

"Right. Just you wait, Nebby! This time, I'm gonna be the one to save you!" Lillie declared, the trio heading inside the ruins. And when they entered, they would see the large obstacles that Hapu's gran was talking about earlier in the form of two giant stone blocks.

"Woah...I know I'm strong, but I'm not that strong..." Aubrey breathed. "I guess this is where we need Machamp."

"Must be some kind of puzzle, yeah," Jake said and tipped his head to Machamp to let him know it was time to get to work.

Lillie nodded in agreement. "You've probably handled these kinds of puzzles before in Hoenn, Jake. You've got this!" Jake would indeed 'get this' as he expertly had Machamp move the blocks around to give them a path to the inner chamber.

"And get that over there ok? A little more to the right...done and dusted! We got this on lock!" Jake cemented the puzzle's completion with his navigation skills. Machamp pushing the final stone into place triggered a reaction!

That reaction being the ability to get into the inner chamber. As they headed on inside, Lillie had something else on her mind. "I read about them, you know..." She spoke. "Alola's sacred ruins, and the deities that guard them."

"I take it you've done your due diligence in researching them to save Nebby, yeah?" Aubrey guessed, getting a nod out of Lillie. They would see Hapu at the altar, a bright yellow glow in front of her as she took a sparkling stone similar to the one Aubrey got a couple days ago was floating in front of her. She took it in hand once the glowing ceased.

"I give my thanks..." She said in a soft voice. "For your great blessing. As Kahuna, I will do my best for the people, and the Pokemon of Alola." Hapu would turn to face the three, smiling. "Oh! Bout time you got here!" She'd walk down from the altar towards them.

"Hapu...? Did you just get enlightened?" Jake asked. Him and Forest both having wide eyes from the spectacle.

"If by that you mean accepted as the Kahuna of Poni Island, then yeah," Hapu answered. "The Kahunas are chosen by the Pokemon we worship here - our sacred guardians. They're chosen from those living on the island each guardian watches over. Since you're fairly new to these parts, I thought I'd put that out there for ya."

"So I guess you're the Kahuna now, huh?" Aubrey smiled. "Guess you must've really impressed Tapu Fini."

"Yup. And I guess you must've been something to be recognized by Tapu Koko, giving ya a stone like the one I got here," Hapu continued.

"Well...actually we think it might've had something to do with Nebby," Aubrey clarified, downplaying the importance of such an event. "We think Nebby might be the 'frail heir' that the legends mentioned."

"Ah, is that right? No need to be all humble about it. You've got plenty to be proud of, Aubrey," Hapu assured, turning to the altar. "My grandfather...my grandfather was also chosen for this honor of being a Kahuna. But he passed away some years back, and Poni has been without a Kahuna since. I tried followin' in his footsteps, but I guess the Tapu wasn't choosing me back then."

"I assume it was waiting for you to be mature, have some actual life experience, realize that you are firmly at the place your grandfather was when he became Kahuna," Jake theorized.

"Mmm. Might be onto somethin' there," Hapu mused. "So, the Kahuna you folks wished to meet? Well, here she is now."

"Oh! Thank goodness...please, Kahuna Hapu! Tell us about the Legendary Pokemon!" Lillie requested. Hapu chuckled.

"No need for formalities, folks," She insisted. Aubrey would catch Hapu up on what she missed. "So you wish to know about Solgaleo, who we pay tribute to at the Altar of the Sunne."

"I know she was a terrible person, but she is still my mother. That's why we need to go to the beast's world. Solgaleo is the only one who can!" Lillie replied.

"The world of the beasts...well, sure sounds like a big responsibility, but if you're certain you can do it, I don't doubt that a ranger and trainer can help ya pull it off, Lillie," Hapu assured. "All right. I'll tell ya what I know." Jake and Forrest listened carefully to what Hapu was about to say.

"Okay, so how do we call it?" Aubrey asked.

"Mmm...all I know is there's a ceremony done at the altar," Hapu mentioned. "It uses two particular flutes to somehow give the Legendary Pokemon its power."

Lillie and Aubrey perked up at this. "Are they the Sun Flute and Moon Flute?" Lillie would ask.

"Why yes. How'd ya know?" Hapu asked in response. Lillie would show her the Moon Flute they had. "Well I'll be! That looks like the flute that resided at the lake on Ula Ula!"

"We found this at the Aether Paradise. We assume Lusamine was gonna use it for something," Aubrey explained. "So that means we just find the Sun Flute, head to the altar, and...boom! We've got a Solgaleo!"

"Right. For the Sun Flute, it's said to be held on Exeggutor Island," Hapu informed. "Not sure why of all places it'd be there, but it's been passed down and I guess that's where it belongs."

"Looks like we'll need to hitch a ride there. Hope The Union doesn't mind another journey!" Aubrey decided.

"Exeggutor Island. Huh. Sounds like a safe enough place. Let's get going. And hey, thanks Hapu. You've done an awful lot for us and we're eternally grateful. You'll make Alola legendary." Jake smiled and bowed at Hapu.

"Aww, shucks. Hope this helps ya," Hapu smiled. "I don't know how you'll manage against those beasts though...even with Tapu Fini, the one we fought nearly did us in."

"Dealing with powerful Pokemon like creatures is all part of being a Top Ranger, Hapu," Aubrey smiled. "If anyone can handle this, we can." She'd motion to her traveling companions to follow her out. "We'll go grab Van and head off. Hopefully we'll be able to get to the altar before the sun goes down. If I'm right about this...we'll need the sun in the sky for this ceremony to work."

"And we better count on there not being an eclipse, either," Jake winked.

(Sorry this chapter took a lot longer to get out. Things popped up, and uh...yeah. We'll try and close out this main story soon, because things are going to get wild! Next time, Exeggutor Island, Vast Poni Canyon, and the Dragon trial!)